Hi everybody,
This week I am going to format this letter a little differently. I spent the week really looking for a miracle that happened each day. So I'll start with Monday.
Monday (23 Feb)- Monday is our preparation day and sometimes we go and play volleyball or basketball with the other missionaries. I was talking with one of the elders from France I was in the MTC within French and it occurred to me how much I have improved because at the mtc I couldn't even understand the French when they spoke. Then that same night we were at a member's house for dinner and I had like a 40 min. conversation with a sister in the ward and understood everything. It truly is a blessing to only have been here 3 months, and to see my progression and the miracle it is.
Tuesday (24 Feb)- We have been teaching this couple, Elvina, and Yves. They started being serious about the lessons in January when we talked about eternal families with them. Now it is February. We went to their house and holy cow, there has been a change in the way things feel there. It is incredible. There is more a feeling of peace and warmth in their family. The peace that comes from putting God first in your life and being confident in Him. I am just bloowwwnn away of how far this couple has come. Before they had been living together for 20 years with no plans for marriage, but now they have a marriage date. Their 20-year-old daughter even took out the money she saved to buy them wedding rings because they weren't going to buy them. This family is becoming more unified and loving, because of the gospel.
Wednesday (Feb. 24)- Today we had two good miracles happen with investigators, and both of them testified of the same thing. Moearii is 21 years old and has a daughter. She just stopped smoking this year to set a good example for her child and started making church and reading scriptures a priority. She told us how much of a difference she has seen since she has been doing those things. She said she sees a change in her boyfriend and daughter even. It is interesting how much these changes we see and they talk about have to do with family. Next Noeline, we went over there in December to share a little message with her and talked about Mat 11:28-30 and how taking the yoke of God upon us doesn't seem easy at first, but it is how we can receive the desperate help and rest we need. Then, she wasn't taking the missionary lessons, because she didn't have time. She was trying to deal with life with a wayward son and a busy work schedule. I don't know how, but since then she found time for the gospel. Wednesday, she told us about how using the Book of Mormon to help her in her life and how her wayward son is starting to come back, that their relationship has made leaps. I know all that is happening because she exercised her faith and took the yoke of Jesus Christ, by putting him first. Now the things that made here heavy laden are becoming light.
Thursday (Feb 25) - We went over to Tauhia's house (Tauhia is trying to stop smoking) with a calendar to help her make goals to stop smoking. We pulled it out all already to help her and then she started telling us how she hasn't smoked since yesterday afternoon. That is a huge accomplishment for her! She then told us she said a prayer when she felt like smoking and then took a nap and fell asleep. When she woke up she felt like smoking again, but she was all out of the paper I guess you have to use to roll a cigarette, and by that time the store was closed, so she couldn't smoke. God answered her prayer to help her not smoke. Ok back to the lesson. We were all there ready to make goals with this calendar to diminish little by little and she tells us she is done. I asked, "What day do you want to be completely done with smoking?" She said, "today was the last day Feb 26, 2015, I am done!" Okay, well that took care of that. (quick follow up: She has kept her word this far) What a relief and blessing for us. I am so happy for her.
Friday (Feb 27)- It was a hard day. We had a lot of lessons cancel and we showed up to one of our lessons and our investigator was drunk. We also were talking to this man, but he was not nice and was all up in my face and calling me a "jolie fille" (pretty girl). He even told me "your in your dreams, baby." not appropriate. I just stood there. I was really praying to be patient in that moment, more like that 40 mins he spent talking to us. By the end of the day, I was happy, because Noeline, who I talked about on Wednesday, told us on wed. she wasn't going to be able to go to church because she had a thing at work she was in charge of and couldn't tell her boss no. In that moment I didn't say anything. I didn't feel it was right to lecture or something. Well, we were at the church and it was like 8pm at night because we just finished a lesson and she told us she would be at church on Sunday. I guess she talked to her boss or something. Oh, what a miracle that was! She was so happy too. She actually had just got done cleaning the church and they were having a little party. The youth were dancing and they had dinner and it was really simple, but I could see it meant so much for her to be there on a Friday night with her son, having good wholesome fun.
Saturday (28 Feb) - This was another day of a lot of lessons falling through. We took a trip in a jeep up the mountain in some rough roads to go see a family. They were nice and we shared some verses with them. They didn't really want to receive the missionary lessons, but they gave us mangoes from their mango tree. I love mangoes. That was a little miracle for me because we ran out of mangoes, but now we have some.
(side note: We started talking to one of our invesgator's neighbors and they were kind enough to give us some Monoi oil. It is this oil the Tahitians use to keep off mosquitoes and is made from Tahitian flowers. I had never tried it before. Well, I put a whole bunch of it on and it didn't keep away the mosquitoes. I am pretty sure it attracted them. Now I have more bites than I started with)
Sunday (1 March)- The miracle yesterday was I made it through the week. The week was hard, I'll be honest. By the end of it, we kind of had a dance party to efy music. Oh, it felt so good. I am glad I live in a house with 3 other awesome sisters. It feels like home for me in a way.
Today I feel like my outlook on a mission is changing for the better. I am soooooo happy to be here on this island and with these humble happy people.
I hope you all have a wonderful week and look for the miracles in your life. They are real. God is a loving, powerful, God. We are soo blessed to be His children. Love you all!
Soeur Campbell
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