What's up everyone!!!!!!!!
This week has literally gone by in a blink! I cannot believe how fast it has gone!!! I love it though! It has been a really great time working with Elder Carrington in Ambo! I just can't believe that I have been in Kiribati for 3 months now!
This last week we had a ton of really solid investigators and lessons. One experience that really stood out this last week was our tracting experience. One day we had a little extra time so we decided to pray and ask what we should do. After we prayed we talked it out... "Maybe we should see one of our less actives"... nothing, "or maybe see if we can get a referral"... nothing "Let's tract a house past the catholic church, we haven't gone past there yet!" As soon as we said that I felt the spirit confirm that is what we needed to do.. We went past the church and I felt strong that we should go to a specific house, and I told Elder Carrington, and he said he felt the same way. We got there and one of our investigators walked out of the house!! Turns out it was his family that we tracted! sooooo sweet. It is amazing what the Lord will do if we just pray and ask. It's my testimony that if we just listen to what the Lord tells us and if we follow his commandments he will give us what we need every time.
The rest of the week was full of good lessons and new people. Today for p-day was a blast, the first thing that we did is go email, and after we went to Betio to see if we could find any cool WWII stuff.
We got to Red beach and took a ton of sweet pictures of us standing on old ships, guns, and cannons. We looked around with a couple of kids, and they found a bullet!! They let me keep it too! I am pretty excited cause it wasn't in the water so it wasn't all rusted! On the way back we caught a ride on.... a dump truck! It was so sweet, we stood on the back and we were way above everything! The only down side about today... sorry mom, but Today was literally the first day in a long time where I forgot to put on sun screen and I got fried..... ha ha. After we caught back up with the missionaries at the Stake Center, and I totally rocked it at basketball, I was definitely on my A-game. I was stuffing people left and right!! ha ha.
Any way P-day is about over I love you all! Remember that Ngaira Natina Te Atua ao e tatangirira! (We are all children of God and He really does love us)
Dad,
Sounds like you had a great time shoveling the snow this morning, the only thing I have to worry about is making sure I have enough sun screen on so that I don't burn! haha (My son is a punk!)
That is so cool that the Provo City Center Temple is getting ready to be dedicated. I wish there was one here so that I could go, but it is really making me appreciate how many we have within a short distance of our house! I know that the Temple is a house of God, and within it's walls we can perform sacred ordinances that last for eternity. I love the temple so much.
I also love the Atonement. I know I have had to apply it many times within the short time that I have been here! haha I have used it to overcome my faults and short comings, my sins, for comfort, peace, and to expand my happiness. I know that the savior loves each and every one of us, and he really wants us to apply his atonement. I have been reading the Howard W. Hunter prophet book and in it it said, that we all have to carry a yoke in this life, we all have to carry some kind of load, so why not let it be the Saviors yoke for his yoke is easy and the burden is light. I love that so much... The Savior literally takes most of it, but that doesn't mean we wont struggle, we wont have pain, or else we won't grow. He just gives us just enough strength to push through it.
My new zone is amazing! Most of them are Islanders so it's a pretty wild zone, but tons of fun!!! hahah Our areas include Ambo, Bonraaba, Teaoraereke, Bairiki, and Betio which has three sets of missionaries working there. I don't know all of their names but I know their faces! XD haha
I love Ambo, all of our investigators are super prepared for the gospel, the only difficulty is a lot of them hate Mormons, but that's okay! We are having a lot of success and a lot of spiritual moments!
The Senior couples are amazing, I don't see them as often as I did in the West Zone since they live at Moroni High School, but they are super nice!! One couple and the Nurse are getting ready to leave this next month! I really love Elder and Sister Jenks, they were in the MTC the same time as us, and they are just so inviting and helpful to all the missionaries!
Funniest thing that has happened this last week is we went to this house where we were trying to contact a couple and they weren't home again.... Just their drunk dad... We got up to the house and he is sitting in front of a speaker system jamming to a Christmas song, and we did our Mauri Mauri kain to house to call him to the door, and he didn't hear us, we tried for like ten minutes before he came to the door. When he finally came to talk to us he started talking and slurring in English... he asked our names and when Elder Carrington said his this was his response... Oh that's a German name! Hail Hitler!" It was so random and so unexpected we both started busting up laughing! Oh it was so bad!
The scariest was probably yesterday, we were about to drop off two of the Elders at the house but noticed there was a large crowd of people. They were screaming profanities towards another HUGE guy down the road. The big guy egged them on and they all took after him with massive rocks, (in the meantime we were parked just a little more than twenty feet away!) Then they started chucking these boulders in the direction of our car toward this guy. It was pretty freaky.
The most spiritual happened yesterday as well, we went to this guy, Beia's, house to teach him the Book of Mormon. When we got there, we were waiting for him to come and we started talking to this other guy who said he was going to sit in on our lesson as well. SICK! As we were testifying about the book of Mormon, the spirit was so strong another guy came in and listened to it too! They all had great questions, and the First guy who sat in seemed like he was really interested! The Book of Mormon is truly the word of God! As I testified of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, I felt the spirit testify that it was all true!
I have two other SD cards for my camera and I think sending them back and forth is a good idea!
I love you love your son,
Elder Johnson
Dear Mom,
My new area is amazing we have a ton of great investigators who are soo prepared for the gospel in their lives. It is a little harder to get in a lot of lessons however since our area is so big and we walk. I'd say we have a pretty good routine set in place, but It freaks me out to think this is already my third week working in my new area.... It's going way too fast, It freaks me out cause I still don't have the language quite down, it is so simple that it's hard. Our house is pretty big, as of right now we have 6 elders living there. One just got set apart, and one is waiting to go back out to an outer island. It's a blast, the Zone Leaders are super chill and nice. I love it.
I am so glad that you are continuing to read in the Book of Mormon. I know the kind of strength that can bring. Don't quit even when things are going rough, just remember you can always find peace, comfort and happiness in the gospel. Pray for strength, apply the Atonement, and never let go of the iron rod which is the word of god.
I have been reading from the Howard W. Hunter prophet book lately for personal study, and one thing that has really stood out to me is he constantly talked about fear verses faith, and if we just have faith and follow God and do everything good in his eyes, we have no reason to fear what so ever. I know this to be true, I have found when I have gotten frustrated, scared, angry, upset or down, I pray, and I sing a hymn in my head, and it helps every time. Try that the next time you have any of those feelings, and I promise you it will all be better.
I also love the Atonement. I know I have had to apply it many times within the short time that I have been here! haha I have used it to overcome my faults and short comings, my sins, for comfort, peace, and to expand my happiness. I know that the savior loves each and every one of us, and he really wants us to apply his atonement. As I read the Howard W. Hunter prophet book it said that we all have to carry a yoke in this life, we all have to carry some kind of load. So why not let it be the Saviors yoke for his yoke is easy and the burden is light. I love that so much... The Savior literally takes most of it, but that doesn't mean we wont struggle, we wont have pain, or else we won't grow. He just gives us just enough strength to push through it.
I love you mom, and just so yalls know, I am sending home a small little package for you guys, just a few little things pray that it will make it your way!!
I love you so much,
Love your son,
Elder Johnson
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