New experiences everyday!

July 30, 2018

We went bowling last week as a district and it was pretty fun!

We saw Kimo on Tuesday and had a pretty intense lesson with him. He isn't really interested in doing anything or changing. We taught the Plan of Salvation so I was super bold with him about getting to the celestial kingdom and what he needs to do to get there. We will see if anything changes.

  

We also had a lesson with Kase. She is 8 and we have taught her the lessons so she feels ready to be baptized. We went over the interview questions and she did really well. We just hope we can get her and her family back to church more often.

We had a combined relief society activity with some good food. One of our members made Fry bread and so we ended up helping finish the rest of the dough.

We went to visit someone we met a few weeks ago and we ended up meeting his son who was really nice. His name is Dayson. He has met missionaries before because he hangs out with his family that are members in another ward. We testified of teaching and helping him learn so he said we could come back!

We did service for Sister Campbell on Wednesday in her yard. It was satisfying getting rid if overgrowth from her neighbor and invasive vines and weeds.

We had exchanges on Friday and I went with Sister Paletasala to Honolulu. It was weird being back but it was fun. We were able to talk to a random guy who said we can come back and visit. He accepted a Book of Mormon. A member needed help moving some furniture so we were an answer to her prayers because her husband wasn't available. She was really nice! We visited a few people and had a really good lesson with long of their Pohnepein investigator that will be baptized soon. The lesson was on the word of wisdom and they had asked her about it last week and she already started living it! So awesome! It is not easy to give up habits!

On Saturday we attended a baptism for some Elders in our zone. His name is Kent. He is an older gentleman who is blind. But he has an amazing mind, he was an astrophysicist and worked for NASA! So the Kelou sisters that we live with started teaching him because their member shared the gospel with him! Member missionary work is the best! 

That's about all folks!

Aloha,

Sister Heath 

Fry Bread!

cute dog that looks like a tiger

he didn't want me to leave...he was like hugging me!

Kent's baptism

Nature is Great!

July 23, 2018

Last week we were able to go hiking as a district so that was fun!

That night we had a lesson with Uncle Lawrence and Brother Recca was able to come and they talked story just about the entire time so it felt like Sister Lavaka and I were eavesdropping. I think it was good to have that connection though. We just ended up sharing a quick scripture. 

We had Zone Conference on Friday which was wonderful and motivating! 

That night we had a lesson with George and Elise. We were able to bring a sister with us from the ward. She ended up talking with Elise for a while and then George came home. Our member is a teacher which we didn't know so she analyzed Elise and what kind of learner she was and gave her some advice. She also shared her experiences about the Plan of Salvation and whatnot. It was cool because she lives right across the street too. 

Sunday we were able to have another lesson with Janelle who is the wife of a returning LA. She has many questions that are being answered so we hope she will continue to progress. 

Other than that we prayed and fasted for help so that we can find people to teach and get the work going!

Aloha,

Sister Heath 

  

Likeke Falls

Likeke Falls hike

 Caught a gecko to get out of the house

you'd think I starve my companion bit I don't...,

 spikey caterpillar

Slooow Week

July 16, 2018

This week we didn't have very many appointments and no one seemed to be home when we stopped by and were walking around...so it was a little slow and pretty warm outside!

But we were able to do some more training to help Sister Lavaka get more comfortable talking to people. 

We were able to talk to one guy as we were walking at night. He is actually someone I met with Sister Nichalson and we tried to go back because the missionaries used to meet with him and his girlfriend before. But his girlfriend moved out and he wasn't there when we went for the appointment and a few other times we stopped by. Anyway, he asked us to come by because his girlfriend is back and he saw a difference in her when she was meeting with the missionaries. So that was really awesome. We were able to go over the next night and have a really good lesson with both of them. They just seemed to need a reminder. They both have had spiritual experiences in their life. So we are excited to see what happens with them.

Other than that nothing too exciting happened this week...

I know that this gospel is true and that it truly blesses us individually and our families. When we live it we experience peace and joy personally and in our homes. What a blessing it is to be a part of this gospel and to share it with others!

Aloha! 

Trying to find some people to talk to!

The Thing That Will Be of Most Worth Unto You Will Be To Declare Repentance Unto This People~D&C 15&16

July 9, 2018

On Tuesday I was able to meet my new companion Sister Lavaka. She is from Kihei, Maui. She is Tongan and super awesome! I was a little stressed out the first day trying to do everything perfectly right but things got better. 

We visited an investigator that I have gone on a walk with before with his dog and Sister Nichalson. We just talked a little bit. This time he was washing his car but was willing to talk to us. He said he had a question he's been wanting to ask. He wanted to know what Joseph Smith had to do with our church. So we taught the Restoration really quickly. He was interested but when we asked if we could come back he didn't want to commit. He feels like he isn't ready even though he likes learning about other religions...but he did ask if you can buy the Book of Mormon online. We told him he could have the one we had. We read the invitation with him to read, ponder, and pray about the book. So we hope he does that and feels the spirit.

Saturday was an eventful day. In the morning we visited Uncle Gideon who we see once a month. He is very slowly coming back to church. He never went or listened when he was young so we are trying to teach him but he has a very hard time paying attention. He is so funny to talk to because of his strong personality.

We also visited with Brother Richards who is less active and he is really funny too. We read the Book of Mormon with him and explained it as we went because he has a hard time understanding. He won't come back to church yet but we hope to help him start reading more.

Across the street is Kimo who is another investigator we have been working with...he wasn't there for our appointment on Thursday so we decided to stop by. We were able to sit down and talk for a little while but he wasn't feeling well. He had a cough and he loves to laugh so it wasn't a good combination. He was really sweet about it though. We read a scripture and invited him to keep trying to read and to pray. 

Then we headed to the Waimanalo ward dinner in honor if Father's and Mother's day. I expected it to be something small, but it was a big event and a lot of people came. It was from 6-9 and we showed up at 7. Everyone was telling us to hurry and grab food before it was gone. So we were able to get some food and enjoy live music from our talented members. There was also a presentation for two of our oldest members(I think). Auntie Momi who is 92 and still plays music at Dukes in Waikiki. And Brother Kaio who is 85 and has always been hard working.

Sunday Sister Lavaka was asked to speak in Olomana at 1. But when we got to Waimanalo ward we were on the program. I completely forgot that we were asked to speak. Luckily we had some time to put our thoughts together. Sister Lavaka went first and she did so good. She was such a natural! She introduced herself and read the quote on the front of the program which was Our Missionary Commission. I just shared some thoughts from my recent studies about being encircled in the arms of safety through Christ (Alma 34-14-16) and how declaring repentance is the thing that will be of the most worth in this life (D&C 15-16).

In Olomana it was really great because Uncle Gideon came. (The day before he said his wife has been bugging him so much about church that he would come. He apparently wasn't in the mood for a lesson so he said he would come early to church and we could share something with him). So we shared briefly about prophets. I'm not sure if he learned anything because we were just in the back of the chapel. But I guess it's better than nothing. Everyone was surprised by what we've done because of his strong personality but since we are sisters he feels the need to be kind to us. 

There was a couple that has started coming to church. The husband is a less active member and the wife isn't a member. So we ended up teaching the wife during 3rd hour. We were able to get to know her more. She had a rough upbringing but is such a good person. She had questions about the gold plates so we were able to teach the Restoration. We also talked about the spirit and she was glad to know what the feelings were that she has experienced. We invited her to study the restoration pamphlet and we could answer any questions next week. They live out of our area but will keep coming to church. So that was really exciting. Uncle Gideon and this couple were both brought in by one of our members who used to be bishop. The best and most effective missionary work is through the members.

Well that's about it!

Aloha,

Sister Heath

 

 I inherited picking up pennies from Sister Kwak and decided to cash them in...Picking up a penny a day pays off! 

Sister Lavaka my new companion

Transfer meeting saying bye to Sister Nichalson

 Sister Lavaka and I with our white ginger flowers that Brother Richards gave us

Adventures and More to come!

July 2, 2018

Last week Monday we were able to go on a Jungle Expedition at Kualoa Ranch thanks to one of our members in Olomana that works there! We went with 2 other companionships of sisters. We had such a great time! We were able to see where some sets from movies were filmed, see some great sights, and enjoy ourselves!

We live with a sister that is going home. Last week was her last district meeting so we wanted to do something special. She didn't want a cake but we knew she liked avocados so we made her an avocado lei as well as a sign. We sang Aloha Oe to her after district meeting and she was surprised and loved it!

After that we helped film a video for the sisters to post because they posted daily about the 13 articles of faith. So if you look on facebook I'm sure you will find how it turned out.

Thursday we went to see one of our investigators but he wasn't home but we were able to talk to a friend that was visiting. We found out he was a member and that he is a Robinson! They are very well known in Hawaii because they own A LOT of land. They own the island of Niihau and they have given a lot of property to the church. I found out that he used to live in Kennewick too and he wants to move back. He only came to help his family in Kahala. So that was neat, I was a little star struck.

Later we were actually able to go back and meet with our investigator Randy. He wanted to know what prophecies Joseph Smith had but wanted someone that wasn't biased so he ended up searching it on google and reading what wikipedia had to say. All that I heard him read seemed correct so that was good. It was funny sitting there. But I was glad we could motivate him to search. We had him download the Gospel Library app where he can read the Book of Mormon since he is on his phone a lot and so we can search other things. So we hope that will help him!

It was a good Thursday because we were able to talk to 20 people which we are supposed to strive to do every day but some days is a lot more difficult than others and it was our first time actually doing it! It helped us be motivated to talk to everyone we saw about the gospel! We were able to meet a few people at the end of the day that said we could come back so we will see what happens with that!

Friday was Car Fast Friday for the mission so no one used their cars. We had to go the the mission office so we decided to ride the bus. I've done it before while I was at school but it was Sister Nichalson's first time. We did a lot of walking but it was good exercise. We weren't able to see many people because of traveling and studies but it was an experience for sure! We are definitely more grateful for where we are serving and have more empathy for those who serve in humid places and have to walk all say everyday!

Saturday we decided to use the bus again because we have a mileage limit and were at it and decided one more day wouldn't hurt. But man it did my calves were so tight from the day before but it was great exercise!

We were able to have a lesson with Kimo and try to help solve his concerns with the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. We were able to set a specific time to come back which we hadn't done yet so that was good. We hope to see some progress with him.

Olomana ward had a beach activity in honor of Father's Day. So we went to have lunch. It was fun to see everyone and the food was really good. It was pretty funny as we were leaving to the bus stop right after a member just asked us if we needed a ride. We were almost there and the bus passed by! 3 minutes earlier than expected. So one of our members gave us a ride which we were very grateful for.

That night we ended up finding out that an activity I had been invited to was happening in Kaneohe. We would have been late riding the bus so we ended up driving. It was the Ahuna's performing Polynesian dances which they do every year and traveling. They are going to Taiwan and everyone met up in Hawaii so we were able to get a preview. It was so fun. It was all the granddkids dancing. They even had them do fireknife dancing! I had a blast and was able to see another relative from my grandma's side and her husband who is the presiding bishop, Bishop Davies.

That night we got our exciting transfer news, well actually we knew most of it earlier in the day because I was asked to be a trainer! And Sister Nichalson go the hint from president that she is going to Maui. So we found out that she is going to Makawao and I will be staying and training! It's fun because the other sister in our pad will be training too!

Sunday Sister Nichalson said her goodbyes and one of her investigators that I taught a few times who moved to Kailua was baptized so that was really great. A lot of our ward was there to support and it was great to see the support from Kailua even though they don't really know her. Her name is Abcde. She is 10 years old and has such great knowledge of the gospel. She actually asked the sisters to teach her!

Aloha, 

Sister Heath

view on the tour

do you recognize this? I was so excited! (At Kualoa Ranch. Hint: Jurassic World)

 the sign and lei for Sister Downs

Thursday we went to the farmers market in Kailua for dinner and a member gave us Ahi chip things (I ate it AND liked it)

Car fast Friday (end of the month when we don't have any money but Sister Nichalson has a bunch of change!), 

Kualoa Ranch

 free yogurt on Thursday too! (Taro+coconut And papaya)

 Abcde's baptism

Getting attacked by a T-Rexadventures