picture with our district leader

Christmas Present

Dear Whaunu,

 I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! I had a great one. Being able to talk to you all was really wonderful and I enjoyed being able to hear all your voices :) We also were able to have Cairo Smart baptized this weekend! It was such a wonderful thing! After being  the pianist and singing a musical number with my companion we were able to enjoy a breather visiting with Cairo and her family after she was baptized. She loved the way the program turned out and was so happy after she was baptized. :) And on Sunday she was confirmed. She also Loved the Snickerdoodle cookies I made Sammy! Thank you for the recipe! I had so many requests for the recipe afterwards! Your cookies are famous here in New Zealand! :)
    We had Zone Conference the week before and it was so good. Something I really liked is what our Mission president told us to do: while we are reading the Book Of Mormon, we should look for the words "the way" "a way" or "way". As we are doing so to ponder what is the Lord's way for us. As we do this we will Find our way by finding The Way. I know this is promise is true not only for me but for you all as well. 
   We were door knocking this week and we met this really nice couple! We had tried there house but they weren't home, then we realized that they had returned so we tried their door again. They opened and invited us in on the spot. They told us they had just been thinkng about how our church was very beautiful and they wanted to go inside. We scheduled a return appointment with them tomorrow to tour the chapel. It should be really neat :) Their names are Xin (female) and Hann (male) They are from China. 
 Well I hope you all have a wonderful new Years! Make some good goals and resolutions. As my mission president says : A goal not written down is merely a wish.
Love you all!
Sister Sudweeks

Christmas

Feliz Navidad! Merry Christmas dear familia! :)

 I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and enjoy being able to spend this time with family and reflecting on the meaning we celebrate Christmas. I was reminded of something I had thought about a while ago the other day. That is Christmas has the word mas, which means more in Spanish. So let Christ be More in our loves this Christmas and the years to come.

    I am looking forward to our Christmas activites this coming week: they include caroling, service, a delicious meal eaten at a members with less actives and nonmembers present (a missionaries dream) and visiting with you all on Christmas eve. I can't wait to talk to you all; hopefully I have picked up somewhat of an accent... you will have to let me know.

   Exciting news! On Dec 28th Cairo Smart our nine year old investigator will be getting baptized! :) I am so excited for her and her mom is too! It is so great to see a family once again make the changes to be active in the gospel and receive the blessings from living the gospel and keeping the promises they made when they were baptized/ made temple covenants.

    We had a fireside last night about the fourth wise man. Sorry I didn't have time to tell you about it last week. But the fireside was so good. We sang God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman as missionaries. the story is about the fourth wiseman who wants to give his gifts to the Savior just like the 3 wisemen, but on his way he is stopped by people who need his help, who he does help and in the processes gives away his three gifts to help them. Throughout his life he tries to find the Savior and on the day the Savior is crucified he gives his last gift away to help this young woman, and he dies. As he is dying he hears the Lord's voice commending him for helping him when he was thirsty and aiding him. Abatran the wiseman asks when this was because he never did see the lord, and the Lord answers that when you are in the service of your fellowmen you are only in the service of your God.

   Miracles: We were out door knocking a street and everyone was so nice to us! While we were dorr knocking we found this older couple who had meet missionaries before and even had them come in. They told us they were busy now but to come back in the new year! We can't wait to go back and see how the Lord has been preparing them to meet with us. Second miracle: same street we were door knocking. As we were this lady comes up walking her dog and we go to talk with her. We found out her and her mom used to meet with the missionaries also and we asked if we could come back. She said yes! So we will see how things continue to progress with them as well.

 I hope you all have a merry CHristmas! :)

Love you all heaps!

Love,

Sister Sudweeks

   P.s. Cairo and her mom Jaime?

My companion and I and one of the members

Zone Conference

Dear Whanau,

    How has your week been? It is only one more week till Christmas! Wow! Times has flown, where has this last year gone? The Lord's work is hastening! I am so grateful to be a part of of the hastening of the Lord's work.

    We have a Christmas Fireside coming up and we are singing God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman. Sister Fetu'u and I have been singing it in the car on the way to appointments. The fireside is going over the rendition of the Fourth Wise Men by Henery Van Dike. If you haven'y heard it before, you should look it up it is wonderful. We sang at a nursing home this week, and I felt like I was doing Gate City Singers again. I really enjoyed being able to sing with most of my District to these cute older residents a very merry Christmas.

 I met Sister Clark yesterday, she is the sister of Brother Duncan! Small world!

   Have a great week! And Remember to keep the Spirit of Christmas  in Christmas this Christmas season

Love,
Sister Sudweeks

Dear Whanau,

   What a week! My new companion is Sister Fetu'u. She is from Tonga, but she lives in Oakland with her family. She was in my intake at the MTC too! So it was really cool to see her again and hear how she has been doing!  She is such a hard worker! I have so much to learn from her; I can't wait to learn everything I can.

    This week has been a fast week, and December is going to go by too quickly! We have a fireside we are singing in as missionaries to celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. I am really looking forward to it; we have been inviting heaps of people to it. I really hope they come. It is going to be such a wonderful place to hear and feel the Spirit.

    We have a baptismal date set with one of our investigators this last week for Feb. 22nd.  I am so excited for her!

    I love this gospel so much. I know that This is the Church of Jesus Christ on the Earth once again. The Lord lives. He loves us! He will always help us. I know that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can overcome all things, that all the pains we feel can be washed away and any mistakes we made can be made whole.

  Have a great week!

I love you all heaps!

Love Sister Sudweeks

   

Fwd: Pictures

----Doing Service for Sister Guthrie, the Family History Guru and Investigator to the church :) She goes to SL and does heaps of family history there each year. She is so amazing

Transfers and a Calling

Dear Whanu,

   Happy Thanksgiving! :) I know it's late, but I do hope you all had a great day counting your blessings. I had a most unforgettable day on thanksgiving. We had it right after our District Meeting, and because Sister Vila and I had planned a service activity we weren't able to stay for the lunch. So we grabbed a plate and ate in the car... I was so greateful for Elder and Sister Webb for feeding us a Thanksgiving meal. Sister Villa tried Pumkin pie for the first time, and liked it for the most part :)

    I am staying here in Masterton and my new companion is Sister Fetu'u! I think it might be the Sister Fetu'u from my intake! :) I will find out Wednesday or Thursday. And I have been called as the Sister Traning Leader (District Leader for the Sisters). I am really grateful for this chance to serve the sisters in my area. Sister Vila is going to Ashburton -- the Christchurch Zone. She is going to do great things there.

     I was really touched by something Sister Webb (Senior Couple in my Area) told me while Sister Vila was in Wellington for Missionary Council last Tuesday. She brought up Ether 12:27 and how it says that the Lord will make our weaknesses become our strengths. She then brought up that sometimes the Lord will allow our weakeness to remain though. As with Joseph Smith, he struggled his whole life with being able to read and write. But when the Lord was helping him he could translate and write so well. I was really touched by this. Sometimes we will always have something that is weak for us; but the reason we have that weakness is so we will always turn to the Lord, that we will rely upon him, and by so doing we become strong with that thing when we are men and woman of God rather than our natural selves relying upon ourselves.

  I love you all! Keep reading the scriptures, praying, going to church, and attending the temple :) Remeber the covenants you have made and let that strengthen you in all you do.

I love you heaps!

mahal na mahal kita, aroha, Le amo,

Sister Sudweeks