Week 19 - Transfer News!

Kia Ora!

Dang, what a week. I'm bouncing up and down right now, so excited. This week was a bit of a rollercoaster because transfers are here and I felt like I was going for sure and then all this stuff came up so I felt like I was staying and it was just a lot of back and forth. But we stayed focused and really had a great week of missionary work. We found this awesome Maori family. They have had missionaries in their house before but we're the first ones that came and could answer all their questions without batting an eye. So they came to church!! We had 6 investigators at church and I was just so pumped. Then we had this Maori guy, Herewini Jones, do two firesides this weekend talking about whakapapa, or geneology, and it was so cool. He connected all the Polynesian Islands back to the Lamanities and then everything back to the House of Israel. I was mindblown and it could have been easy to shrug it off and say he was a crazy guy, but you couldn't deny the Spirit that was in our little chapel. It was crazy awesome. So this family came to that as well and afterwards brother Jones basically set the mom for baptism and committed her to read the Book of Mormon. Just blew my mind and did my work for me haha. All around, church was one of my best Sundays. At the end of the combined meeting for third hour, the branch president randomly asked me to bear my testimony. So I go up and pretty much burst into tears. Okay not that bad, but after four months of not crying it had to come out eventually, especially knowing I was getting transferred. So I looked out and saw this tiny little branch and saw all these wonderfully faithful members and I literally felt the Savior's love for all of them. Crazy powerful. I'm definitely going to miss these people!

So transfers.... I'm getting put with a cute little Filipino in the Hamillton Zone! So, it's right next to the temple and to President Rudd... But I'm so stoked cause that means I'll be by the temple for Christmas and they do awesome lights and it'll be so awesome to use the visitors center for investigators! Other than that the only interesting thing about the week was this poor lady going off about how bad she felt for me being from the states... She said it was a terrible, awful place and shuddered..? Yeah, I was quite confused.

But hope everyone had a great week and enjoyed thanksgiving, I totally forgot about that holiday... But I'm thankful for you all and for the wonderful gospel in my life. Most of all I think I am thankful for the Savior! He is everything. The way the truth and the life.... haha our favorite quote. But really so grateful for His atoning sacrifice! Utilize the Atonement everyday! Love you HEAPS.

Alofa atu,
Sister Machen