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| That's my BOY!!! |
Well my week started off kinda rough! We have been trying hard to find people to teach but it's all Wesleyan people in my area and they have a Conference coming up June 23rd where people from the entire world come here to meet. (Tongans from all over the world.) So every single night they get together and ako hiva (song practice) So at night they aren't home and during the day they are all working which leaves our villages desolate... But we have been doing more lessons and actually had an investigator come to us! His name is Sitiventi and he had been baptized once but ran away when it was time to be confirmed. He really wants to get baptized and we were able to teach and talk to him and will continue teaching him everyday this week! He has a date to be baptized this week! I don't know if it's too fast there aren't really any rules that I'm aware of.. It's more just if we feel he is ready and I think he is! He really wants to go on a mission too! He is 23 and has time to go if he wants! He was definitely a blessing! But also we had a chance a while ago to teach an inactive member about the Word of Wisdom! We taught him the W.O.W. and then he left and went back to Tonga! Well 2 days ago a member came over to us and told us they got a text from Poasi and his family! Saying how grateful they were for our example to him and also how he was so grateful for the message we shared with him and that he realized after the teaching how unhealthy it is to do the things he was doing and that he should clean up his life. Well now he is a strong member and wants to serve a mission also! He doesn't know if he will be able to because of tattoos but he wants to! I am so grateful for the opportunity we have to touch souls. Even when I feel down I know there are people’s lives that I have touched and that they are living better lives because of the Gospel!
Also Saturday was an adventure!!! It was a service day for us! But first in the morning we wanted to start off with a sweet snack!!! So we went with our buddy Sunia to a big mango tree with a BIG bee hive in it!!! He got an old coconut branch and lit it on fire to smoke the bees out... Then with his Machete he broke off the honey comb and that made the bees mad! He asked for another branch so I went to give him one and ran into 1 tiny bee... It stung me right between my nose and right eye... It hurt so bad!!! But it was well worth the fresh honey! haha After that we went to (tufi niu) which is pretty much searching for old coconuts on the ground that people feed their pigs with and make food with the coconut milk! While doing that we decided to climb coconut tress! Man was that an adventure.. Trying to get down was rough... I have a video hahaha! After that we just went to get fire wood for a member and it was fun chopping things with a machete! Oh we also caught a fish with a machete! That was interesting and cool! Tongans are talented!
Well this week is going to be good! I am having a good time, learning a lot and can't wait to progress in my knowledge! I love studying the scriptures and also other materials!
I learned this week from the B.O.M. that we need to learn from our own mistakes as well as the mistakes of others! In Alma 55 the Nephites send a lamanite named Laman to give the Lamanites wine that the prisoners will escape! Well it worked and when the Lamanites tried it on the Nephites the Nephites remembered what had happened previously! I would love to hear what each of you learn in your personal and family study! Please tell me!
Love you all
Elder Swan
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| Amazing~ What an adventure! |
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| Don't let go |
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| My Companion - Elder Caudill |
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| I ate 5 Coconuts this day |
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| Can you see the little boy in this tree He's a STUD! |
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| Fresh Honey ~ So worth it |
