The Sun is Shining! The Birds are singing!

The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and the work is awesome!(: 

This week was an awesome week. We were constantly going and seeing people. It was awesome. I loved it. it was raining some of the week, but once the sun came out it was so pretty. It made me realize how mu ch I LOVE FIJI. Today when we were riding the bus, i turned to Sister Alaga and said, "isn't it weird that one day we won't be in Fiji anymore?!" Then we had a whole conversation about how lucky we are to be here. Which is so true. I am the luckiest person in the world. I am in Fiji, serving Heavenly Father, and serving his most loving and caring people ever! I AM THE LUCKIEST MISSIONARY EVER!! 

And to make me even more lucky the work is going awesome right now!(: This week we had the funniest things happen to us. We were able to pick up 2 new investigators. One from a part member family, who we have been trying to get since I came to Makoi. And the other is a referral from bishop. All her kids have been blessed in the church, but they don't go to church. So we contacted her and she was more than happy to let us come over and share the gospel with her again. Heavenly Father is awesome.(: 

So one night we got a call from a guy we didn't know. He said one for the previous missionaries had given him a pamphlet and all that stuff, and he wanted us to come and share more about the church. me and Sister Alaga were a little hesitant at 1st, just because it was a random guy we didn't know. So we invited 2 members to come with us. As we got there we were all a little scared and didn't know what to expect. But we walked with faith, not by sight.(; haha And the lesson turned out WAY GOOD! He turns out to be Hindi! So he has no knowledge about Heavenly father or Jesus Christ. We basically had to just explain what WE do as missionaries and then he started asking some questions about what we believed. We explained some things very simply. And what I have learned from these Hindu people is they have the best questions. They really ask the questions of the soul. Which makes it so easy to share the gospel and have the spirit there. Even though he didn't invite us back and said he will call us when he wants us to come over again. I think it was my favorite lesson this week.(: He will always remember the mormon missionaries who were able to tell him that he is a Son of our Father in Heaven. 

We also had a cool lesson with our less active family we have been working with. They have a Word of Wisdom problem. So me and Sister Alaga have been prayerfully trying to decide how to approach it. We were clueless the 1st few weeks. But this week we both decided we needed to address it. And so we went for it. And let me just tell you, that was the best lesson about the Word of Wisdom EVER! We were able to commit both of them to stop drinking and smoking. We are going over there tonight to have Family Home Evening with them, and I am so excited to see what has happened since we saw them last!(: 

Other little things that happened this week... yesterday I was doing the dishes and i went to go and put the plates away and Sister Alaga was in the room. I open the cupboard and there was... A DEAD MOUSE!!! I was able to control; myself after tripping over the tape that was on the floor.. haha but atleast it was dead.. then I waited for sister alaga to come out and I told her to open the cupboard and i was dying laughing...(: I am the best companion! haha! We  had a little funeral and all(: 

So we heard of the AWESOME lesson to have with people. So we decided to do it yesterday...(: We put flour in a container and put 1 piece of candy in it.. then we told them they had to find the "prize inside" but they couldn't use their hands or feet. they had to use their face. I hadf to record it because it was so funny. we were dying laughing. Then we shared the lesson about the Holy Ghost. The kids loved it and the parents were dying laughing. After the youngest daughter, tawamua, was crying because she was scared.. then she wouldn't touch the flour after that! It was so much fun!(: 

and last thing... So i don't know if I have talked about Ipa before. But she is this young women, who since I got here has been like my bestfriend! haha! We always have so much fun! She reminds me of Mila.. So i love her. She is only 15 but she is like my bestfriend. Anyways, she is going back to Rabi.. her island.. and wont be coming back until after I leave! I was so sad when she told me! So no more Ipa! Makoi is going to be sad without her! haha(: But i'll see her again one day!(: 

Anyways, thats it for this week(: It was such a good week! The best thing in this world is being a missionary. How lucky am I to be able to be in FIJI!!! FIJI!! haha(: I love this place so much!!! tr really is home(: 

I LOVE YOU GUYS!! I am trying to send pictures... Sorry no pictures lately! Computer problems... haha(: 

LOLOMA LEVU!!! 

Sista Rich 

I LOVE CONFERENCE

It feels like weeks just get shorter and shorter!! This week was one of those weeks, where it feel like I was just emailing you guys like 2 days ago!!!(: haha! But, it is a good thing when weeks go by fast right?!(: That means not only were we busy, but we were having fun!! SO TRUE!!! 

I will start with the obvious, I GOT TO WATCH CONFERENCE!!!(: It was just as awesome as all of you said! There was so much I got out of it, I was taking notes like no other. I just keep going over them and studying them. I can't wait for it to come out in the Liahona so i can read it over and over and over again!!!(: 

But let me tell you the WHOLE story.. 

So Sunday morning we go to the chapel to watch and the power is off... We were all so bumbed!! I wanted to watch conference!! So one of the Elders called the Zone Leaders and they said we coudl go to another chapel to watch it. So we go. but there is no bus that goes to that chapel... So me and my awesome district took the hour walk, 1 1/2 mile uphill walk, to the chapel. At that moment, I realized how lucky we are to have transportation available to us. And I gained a lot of respect for the members who walk to church every Sunday. Because that was not an easy walk. but it was fun!(: 

So my Sunday started off learning new things and I just keep learning from the talks.. My favorite was the talk from Jorg Klebingat.. I think.. haha! But he talked about being ready to stand in front of Heavenly Father and the 6 things we need to do to be ready to stand before Heavenly Father. My favorite part was the end of his talk when he talked about the sister who he had interviewed said she blamed herself before anyone else could.. then this is what he said "...acknowledge and face your weaknesses, but don't be immobilized by them, because some of them will be with you until you leave this life. No matter what your current status, the very moment you voluntarily choose honest, joyful, daily repentance by striving to simply do and be your very best, the saviors atonement envelops and follows you, as it were, wherever you go. Living in this manner, you can truly always "retain a remission of your sins" every hour or every day, every second or every minute, and thus be fully clean and acceptable before God ALL THE TIME."That was seriously the perfect thing for me to hear. I loved it! We all have weaknesses, and I am definitely full of them. but don't swell on the bad... try and overcome them, but still be proud of who you are what you CAN do perfectly. And of course, the Atonement, which has played such a big role lately, will be able to help me feel that acceptance ALL THE TIME!!!(: Conference was AWESOME. 

Lets see what else happened this week. Ohh.. real quick, so we had transfers this week. And this will be a shock to you!! NOTHING HAPPENED!!(: haha! Neither me or Sister Alaga are getting transferred! That is the 1st time that has happened since I left Nadi! It is a good feeling just being in one area and with one person again! I am so happy I get 6 more weeks to be with Sister Alaga!(: 

We had the baptism of the beautiful Slayawa Matai!(: She looked so beautiful as she was dressed in white! And when she got up to bear her testimony that evening, the spirit came and just hit everyone like a ton of bricks! When she bore her testimony, she talked about how her whole family joined the church and kept sharig the gospel with her, but she didn't want to join because she didn't believe in the Book of Mormon. She has gone through elders and sisters for about 2 years. And she said that everytime they talked about the Book of Mormon, she lost interest. Until one day when the sisters came over.. we invited her to read it. Its funny because I remember that lesson, we told her that we can tell her it is true all we want, but until she actually opens it and reads it she won't know for herself. and she said as soon as she read it she knew it was true. It was one of the strongest testimonies I have ever hear. because of conference she hasn't been confirmed this week. but next week, we are looking forward to that(: 

We also had a really good lesson with one of our less actives this week. We go over and things are really awkward. We ask how everyone is and the dad said I'm sick. And we asked him what his sickness is and he said "headache from these people.." haha me and Sister Alaga look at eachother and we knew at that moment that the lesson we prepared was perfect.. We were sharing Lesson 3. the 5 steps in the gospel. Vakabauta, veivutuni, papitaiso, ciqoma na isolisoli ni yalo tabu, ka vosota ka yacova ivakatiotioti.

The lesson was seriously so strong when we talked about repentance, and baptism. We talked a lot about of the things they felt at baptism, and how they can have that in their home. By the end they all were very happy and seemed like we left them on a good note, and as President Monson said at the end of conference "with resolve to be a little better than before". Brother Kapuati shared an awesome testimony with us about how he loves his family so much and that is why he knows this church is true. Because the change it makes in his family. It was such an awesome lesson(: 

Other than that we were looking forward with an eye of excitment to this week because DIWALI!!!!! We are so excited, be prepared next week for pictures of SHAREES!!!(: Anyways, I love you guys so so so much! you are so awesome and I hope you all have an awesome Diwali this week!(: 

AU LOMANI KEMUDOU KECE!(: 

Sister Rich

I LOVE FIJI!!!

Well this week was a week that made me LOVE Fiji even more than I thought was possible! I can't even tell you how much LOVE I have for these people and this place. I don't think I can even express my love for them, I have too much! And this week was definitely a week when my love for them grew.

We started off the week kinda slow. But it got better and better as the week went on. I can always tell when I have been in an area for a while because people start to know my name, and I don't even know them. But then, I remember I am white. So that means everyone is going to recognize me... haha! But it was fun because me and Sister Alaga recognized a lot this week, that everyone is really recognizing us! They are calling our names, and we don't even know who they are! So that's kinda fun!(:

Sala, who was MIA last week and the week before, FINALLY came back. We were going over to see her sister in law, but instead, she was home. Me and Sister Alaga were so happy and we now have her baptism this Thursday! She is so so SO excited. And I am too! It will be so much fun to watch the last one in that family to be baptized. We are hoping that the whole family comes. Even the Inactive ones! So we are praying for that!!(:

We had a dinner with a member this week who is a widow. So she stays home by herself. But she is this cute little Indian lady. You can tell she gets lonely sometimes, and so we try and stop by when we pass her house. But she is so cute when we come over for dinner. She sits and eats with us, and talks to us about everything. but this week, since Diwali is coming up... my favorite holiday.. I asked her what she was going to do. And she said she was going to get out all her sharees and dance. Me and Sister Alaga laughed and told her how fun that would be then, she got up and went and got ALL of her Sharees and made us put them on. We sat in her living room for about an hour letting her dress us up in Sharees. And we even danced a little with her(: She is so cute!(: 

So Friday was my 2nd Fiji Day!(: It wasn't as cool as last year. But it was still fun! A lot of people ended up going to the village because it was a Friday, so they left and spent the weekend in the village. But the people who were home were having fun all weekend celebrating. It is kinda like 4th of July, but a 3 day thing. So it was fun celebrating with all the people all weekend. And what made it even better was there was Rugby 7's tournament this weekend. Which I am totally going to watch when I go  home!!!(: But, Fiji made it to the Final! They were AWESOME. An every house we went to this weekend. The game was on. We didn't even have to watch tv to know what happened. We could just walk down the street and Fiji would score and there would be cheering and yelling. It was awesome. But what made it even better was in the final they played Samoa. And since my companion is from Samoa, everyone was laughing at us and inviting us to come over. And it just so happened, we went to a less actives house during the final.. and so of course they wouldn't turn off the TV because it was the final.. SO we cheered on Fiji.. Well.. i cheered on fiji and my companion cheered on Samoa. But my companion was very humble when Samoa lost. But the Fijians were very humble when they won also. So I am officially won over, I LOVE RUGBY! haha(:

SO, this all ties in, so just bear with me.. This is one of my "courtney" stories. haha! Anyways, SO this morning when I was doing my studies, I was reading in D&C. I am trying to read all of D&C before next month. I LOVE IT.. But it is awesome. Anyways, I was reading and I thought about Rugby. Or just any sport in general. I was thinking about how when I was playing softball I knew how it felt to win. I knew how it felt to be the one who worked so hard and even though it was hard, it was all worth it. And that is what I was thinking about the saints back then and even today. We are constantly playing. Sometimes we score and sometimes, we fall back. But in the end, as we all work as a team, as we give it our all, as saints, we will win. All the hard work, all the sweat, tears, pain, everything will be worth it. The faith we have to have in ourselves and everyone that we can do this, is what helps us come out on top. Like it says in D&C 52:13 "..He that is faithful, shall be made ruler over many things" or in my words ".. He that is faithful, shall be made winner over all things". SO just like Fiji, we are going to play against the hardest team. We are going to be hit hard and its going to hurt, but if we stay faithful, if we play the way we know is right and the ways we are taught, in the end, we will be the winners and the best team EVER!(:

Anyways, there is so many things I wish I could tell you about this week, but I am runnin gout of things to say. This week was such a good one and I am sure this next one will be too! I LOVE FIJI. I LOVE being a missionary. And I LOVE this gospel. oh and I LOVE YOU guys(:

LOLOMA LEVU!
Sister Rich

Pictures

A week full of dancing in the rain!

A week full of dancing in the rain! But, sill a good week(: 

We had a lot going on this week. We have been super busy, trying to see everyone we could this week! And we were able to see a lot. We were actually able to pass our goal!(: Which was AWESOME! 

The week started off kinda slow.. but got busier and busier as the week went. We were able to get a new investigator. His name is Ronald! haha! He is Indian and he is married to a less active. But, what is so cool about him, is that he is Hindu! So that means, he doesn't blieve in God.. well he doesn't know who God is or Jesus Christ or the Holy ghost! Literally no idea. We had a 1st lesson with him, and it was one of the best lessons this week. He totally understood who they were and he really understood who the Holy Ghost was because he could feel it he said. It is so awesome. He is so awesome and his wife is awesome too! She is this little indian girl, who loves Heavenly Father, but since she got married she has had a hard time coming to church and stuff, but she wants him to get baptized, so she is a good support for him!(: 

We were able to have a fun service this week helping an inactive family clean. This family is so much fun. It breaks my heart that they don't want to come to church. But, the fact that they still love the missionaries, is a good thing! Actually the missionaries are the only reason they have any ties to the church. But they are awesome. They went back to their Hindu religion since the grad parents passed away, and have been gone ever since. But they are so mice. We were able to clean and play with the family for a while. We were able to make lucnch with them. And what was cool is they had all these old Liahonas and books frm the church. They wanted to just throw them away, but they said they don't have the heart too. So they were saving it for us, so we could give it to other people. I went through all of those Liahonas. Old conferences, old talks. It was awesome. It was almost like Christmas!(: haha! We had a lot of fun. 

Then I had the chance to go on exchanges this week with Sister Matheson. She is so cool. She is from Utah. and shes cool. haha(: We had a lot of fun! It was the 1st time I have ever been with someone white on my mission like that. SO that was different, but super fun! haha! We talked about how different thing srae going to be when we go home. And just how different the culture is and everything. It was fun. But, its amazing the love we both can feel from and for the people here.(: and that love wil never change! 

ok I want to tell a super cool story! So as you know, the temple is closing down. It is going to be shut for no more than 2 years. But it will be closing this saturday. SO the temple has been so so SO busy this past week.  few weeks ago, we were told Fiji was in a drought, because there wasn't enough rain. But this past week, there has been rain ever snigle day.. and not just a littrle bit. A TON! Haha! I defintely saw this as a blessing for the people here in Fiji.. It is like Heavenly Father is giving them one last huge blessing before the temple closes! I thought that was totally cool!(: 

Something I learned this week was kinda what all you guys said conference was about. Testimonies, obedience, strength. SO i cannot wait to see it. But I can tell you that this gospel is SO SO SO true. Our Heavenly Father loves us so so so much! I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love this gospel. It really is the good news. That is trhe best part of being a missionary, sharing the good news and seeing lives change from it! 

I love you guys so so so much! Keep being awesome and keep the gospel with you ALWAYS!(: 

loloma levu! 

Sister Rich

People are happier when the sun is shining!

It seems like the weeks get better and better as the sun gets hotter and hotter!(: I swear, people are happier when the sun is shining. No matter how hot it is, as long as the sun is shining it gives you happy vibes, and that has definitely been true here!!!(:

This week was full of walking, walking, and walking! haha(: 

We had a fun week. It was hot and humid! Which means it is looking a lot like the holiday season around here(: Which reminds me... mom you cant take the Christmas decorations down until I get home! I will help!(:... haha! 

Anyways.. SO i do have some sad news.. our investigator who was supposed to get b aptized this week... she ran away from us. Haha! We don't know what happened. But she just said she will be back on Tuesday or wednesday. But since she didn't come to church yesterday.. we have to move her baptism... So theres the sad news. but plus side.. She is still wanting to be baptized and she is coming back.. hopefully!(: haha! 

We were able to get 2 new inestigators this week!!! They are 2 little boys! One is 11 and the other is 9! they are so cute and are so excited about church and us teaching them. Tehir parents are less active and they are awesome too! The whole family is just ready for change! You can see it in their eyes everytime we teach! When we went and taught them the other day, and we asked them if they would come to church on Sunday as a family and the dad said yes we'll be there and the 2 boys both said YES! haha(: They are so ready to have the gospel in their lives! 

Its so cool how me and my companion were talking last week about how we need to find new investigators to keep us busy and we said okay lets forcus on Sala, our baptism date and we will focus on finding next week. But this week, we worked so hard to see everyone, recocent converts, less actives and investigators, even some members, and all of a sudden, little investigators started popping up.. So it just shows that hard work bring blessings(: haha! 

I also got a surprise yesterday at church.. We were sitting in Relief Society. And it was ending and i turned around because someone walked in and guess who it was....... ANA MATAITOGA!!!! I wanted to cry I was so excited! haha(: She brought Junior and Tukai and they have totally forgotten me! But, I was so so so happy! It was so good to see her and to hug someone familiar!(: She said everyone is doing good and i got to sit and talk with her for a few minutes!(: 

We also had a fireside yesterday because the temple is closing down. We got to go and listen to the templ epresident! it was so awesome. They talked a lot about Heavenly Fathers love and to keep the fire of the the covenants burning in you while it is closed. It made me appreciate the temple so much! It made me realize how much of a blessing the temple is! We are so lucky to have one 5 minutes away. But these people, now they have to travel to another country! The sacrafices they will make will  be a blessing when it opens, and I hope I will be able to be here for it!!!(: haha! 

Well thats about it for this week! it was such a good week.. not much to talk about! but I can tell you that the church is true. No matter how hot and miserable the sun is, this work is real and all worth it at the end of the day!(: I have always loved walking and talking but now, it is even better because the spirit is there and I am not doing this by myself. I have Heavenly Fathers help! I love this work. I love this gospel and I know that it is true. I love you guys so so so much! 

au lomani kemudou kece! 

xoxo sister rich

Bula. Kaise. Mauri. Talofa.

Bula. Kaise. Mauri. Talofa.

Its not just Bula anymore. haha(:

This week has been so fun! Makoi is awesome. I miss Lami. But Makoi reminds me of a little Nadi! haha! So it has been fun! They transferred me over here on Tuesday evening and I got my new companion. Sister Alaga, from Samoa. She has been on her mission for about 9 months. So it will be good because we don't have to worry about training or anything. We get to just be missionaries. But, she is awesome. We have had so much fun this past week(:

The sun is still out and my skin is getting darker again!(: I am getting my permanent tan back and my feet have a tan from my shoes, so that means, we are working really hard and walking EVERYWHERE! One thing about Makoi, is there aren't busses like there has been in my last few areas. So our only option is taxi and walk. So walking it is. But it has been fun, because there are so many people here so we can just talk to everyone!(:

One thing that I have loved is that where every you go, fijians are always the same.(: They LOVE with all they have. They love more than I knew was even possible. And I hope, by the end on my mission I obtain that attribute!(: But the people here are what make this area. The members are so awesome and they LOVE the missionaries. I have met some amazing people here and I already love them so much!(: On Tuesday, I was super nervous about coming so I asked for a blesing from our District leader in Lami, he came and gave me a blessing and something he said was "you promised people before this life that you would meet them and teach them. You will meet those people." And I have, I have definitelu met those people, because I just love them so so so much!

Anyways, we have this investigator, Sala. She is 24 and has 2 kids. She is the BOMB. She has been so interested in the church because her mom and sister joined last year. She has been taking lessons on and off since her mom and sister started the lessons but never finished or progressed to baptism. This week we were able to see her almost everyday I was here and teach her. Because that is what she wanted. She kept telling us come back tomorrow. And she came to church on Sunday and LOVED IT! This week we had such a awesome lesson with her and her sister in law, who is also a new investigator. We were teaching the Plan of Salvation and they were both really interested. Both Sala, and Kalera were asking questions. And the spirit was answering.. then the next day, me and sister Alaga went back and taught Sala and invited her to be baptized. She didn't even have to think about it. She was more than ready to be baptized. It is amazing to me how people are just prepared to hear and accept the gospel at a certain time. She could've made it this far last year with her mom, but for some reason, she is now ready. I am so happy I get to be apart of it.

So this week was awesome. Still settling in, but loving it. I am still studying the atonement and am LOVING IT! This week I read a talk from Brad Wilcox "His grace is Sufficient" and I LOVED IT! If you can go read it, because it is awesome. But, something I learned from it, is that the atonement doesn't only save us, it is so much more than that. It is the hope to know that everything is going to be okay. It is the love that our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ has for us. It is the reason for us to change. Sometimes I am so self critical on myself, and something that I have read over and over again since studying is to "see myself through Heavenly Fathers eyes". I know I am far from perfect, But because of the atonement, i know, past my imperfections, he still loves me and everyone else in this world. Like it says in D&C 67:13 "...continue n patience until [we] are perfected". So the Atonement is real. Its up to us how we use it.(:

So this week was good and awesome. I love you guys so much!! You guys are seriously the BEST FAMILY EVER!!!(:

Au lomani iko. Hum tum se pyaar carta hey. i tagiriko. 

Sister Rich