"If you succeed with your testimony, you'll succeed throughout all your life."--Week 87

This week was a challenge. Transfers happened, and the first week here for my companion, and it was super hard. People that had never cancelled before cancelled. Investigators hit trials that they've never hit before. Lots of tears were shed. It was the first time I've had to do contacting in months! And don't worry it was horrible and everyone hated us. I felt like I'm going to be damned because this lady got really offended by something I said and told us to leave.

Luckily we had some good stuff that happened this week. Like, Friday, there was an activity at the beach with a whole bunch of traditional food (I ate maybe the biggest piece of fafaru on this Earth, and I stuffed it all in my mouth on one go because that's what my cohorts challenged me to do), and then we had Fetiarava's baptism and a wedding in Paopao all in the same day. Elder Davis came down from Orovini for the marriage, so we all got to run into one another again. Saturday was another activity with food too (too much food dude), and then in one miraculous stroke, we got 5 new investigators (a couple from Paopao that had rescheduled our appointment 3 times (!), Vahinehau's husband, and Narii's parents), a bunch of investigators at the chapel, and two new baptisms (the aforementioned couple from Paopao). We were blessed with the Standard of Excellence in the course of less than 24 hous. I feel like maybe this week was a test of my endurance honestly; to see if I could hold out for all this good stuff.

The quote that makes the title of this week's email actually comes from Fetiarava's mom. It was something she said to her daughter to encourage her to bear her testimony after her baptism that I found to be quite touching and true. Quentin L. Cook spoke on this subject a couple conferences ago as well, saying we need to be valiant in our testimonies. It's not just to say or to believe in Christ, but it's to believe Christ (as President Bize says) and to really do something about it and make it legit. May we all strive to be better covenant-keepers and more penitent. We're here on Earth to have a change of heart, so let's keep repenting and staying humble and making the Lord an imortant part of our lives.


-the new crew
-Fetiarava's baptism
-the choir actually ended up making it





-Kevin Tehiva (the mini-missionary) was at the wedding and was out there strutting his stuff with some girls that Elder Davis thought were good-looking.




-clockwise around the table starting from the front: Davis, Dieutre, Bradshaw, Firuu, Patrice (he's rolling with the sexy crew), Donadier, some kook

-I actually got to do the baptismal interview for this couple, Raitini and Wendy, now that I'm district leader again. They were super happy.
also "DMP" Teva is making a funny face in this picture. I feel like it actually sums up his personality quite nicely.










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