Bula family and friends,
Another week has flown by! It has been quite a great week too. It has rained a lot this past week, making it difficult for us to go out on Friday. It has been really good for the farmers around here, especially for the sugar cane.
One success story from this week was a member named Sister Ratu. She came with us on Saturday to take us to meet three less active families. We were able to sit down and talk with one of the families, the Cabebula family. We shared with them about the story of Christ in 3 Ne 11 where he invites them to come and feel the wounds in his hands. We told them Christ is doing the same for all of us. He is inviting all of us to come to him. He will never reject or turn anyone away. He only says "Come unto me." They actually came to church yesterday. It was amazing to see the success we can have when we combine members with missionaries and do this wonderful work.
Another story of members helping in missionary work is a boy named Joeli. He is sixteen years old and he plays on the Ba soccer team. He is an exceptional young man, he invited two of his friends to meet with us this week, Jekope and Apakuki (Habbakuk in Fijian.) Both of these guys are real seekers of truth. Jekope has been reading and reading the Book of Mormon and he came to church yesterday. They are probably our investigators that are progressing the most this week.
We visited quite a few less active member families this week to invite them to church and help them. Another family was the Chand family. They are a wonderful indian family that has promised to teach me to make indian food. Watch out I'm going to cook spicy delicious curry when I get home. We invited them to church and the daughter sonia told us in church, "It just felt so nice for someone to invite us."
Please my dear family, if you know that one of your friends or family is not going to church, invite them. Don't do it because of your calling or a sense of duty, do it because you love them so much and you know that the savior would do it himself if he were here right now. To those who may not be going to church regularly, please know how much the savior, Jesus Christ loves you and he is holding out his hand to you saying, "Come unto me." I have felt his love so strongly in the past few days as he has reached out to the strayed and the weary here in Ba.
Yesterday I felt a strong spirit of love and unity while we were at church. The aaronic priesthood passed and blessed the sacrament, and many of our family came to church yesterday who don't usually come to church. We had one recent convert interviewed to recieve the aaronic priesthood and one child of record to get baptized in the coming weeks. I think a large part of it was one brother named Brother Ratu. Our usual president, Bro. Ganilau, from Lautoka was running late so he asked Brother Ratu to take charge at church. Brother Ratu made sure the aaronic priesthood set up the sacrament, that there was someone to teach all of the classes (he taught the primary.) and he with quiet dignity helped everything to run smoothly. Brother Ratu hadn't come to church for a few weeks and it felt a little empty without him doing his calling as the executive secretary or clerk (I'm not sure which.)
I don't ever want to go home or go back to how I was before. I look forward to seeing you my family, but I don't want the spirit to cease in my life. I don't want to ever leave the Savior. I think I'm realizing more and more though, that the pattern I know as a missionary is something I must continue and live throughout my life. The pattern of selfless service, relying on the savior, and constantly praying to our Father in Heaven.
Last night we visited with the Mateiwai family and Brother Mateiwai saw a picture of the Prophet and he said, "My lifelong wish is just to go to Utah and to see the prophet speak." As I told him about the conference center and the Salt Lake Temple, he just listened with wonder and pure hunger. I hope someday he is able to go there, what a blessing that I have been able to do that.
This coming week we will be watching Conference. I am so excited to finally watch it. Dad keeps sending me talks and I just keep thinking about it. The talk from President Packer seemed like one of his usual powerful talks. I am so grateful for living prophets and apostles who speak to us and guide us today.
This week a senior couple from Oregon will be coming to Ba. I think it spells change for the ward here, and I think it is definitely positive change. I feel like there is so much for us to do here, but not nearly enough time to do it all. It will be nice to have help. I feel like the stripling warriors when they recieved reenforcements and it says that their souls were greatly cheered. Senior missionaries are really important too, they can do things that other missionaries cannot do. Someday, I would really like to serve a mission with my eternal companion, but for now I will be serving with my current companion Elder Tay.
I am so lucky to have Elder Tay as my companion because he is such an amazing cook. I still will always love Mom's cooking (she is honestly a very talented cook I have realized), but I am very happy with the food Elder Tay often cooks for me. I usually cook breakfast, either porridge or pancakes or eggs, and he prepares lunch and we go to a member's house for dinner generally.
I am very healthy this week! It feels great to work hard and not worry if I will make me sick the next day. I am really grateful for my health!
Have a lovely week, and enjoy that fall weather! I love you so much!
--
Elder Paul Leland Hill
Fiji Suva Mission
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