Dear Family and Friends,
Happy Easter, sorry I am one day late. But why stop celebrating. he lives and we should celebrate that every day because this is the greatest news in history. I feel like Easter is the most important holiday that is so easily forgotten with all the candy and eggs. Like Christmas the real meaning of Christ is often forgotten. Easter is to remember that Jesus Christ lives and that even death could not hold Him. Due to this fact we too will not be bound by death but will live again in a literal sense.
This week has seemed super long with a lot of high and lows! But the highs definitely outweigh the lows. Last Monday we said goodbye to the Kawasakis who went back to lil ole Provo, Utah. I will really miss spending our Mondays with them. We ate dinner with Alberta and Beanie on Monday night. We made chocolate banana lumpia for dessert which is maybe one of the best things ever! And we taught Alberta about the Restoration. She is too curious for her own good sometimes. She has so many questions about everything! We are just trying to teach her the basics but she has questions that if you don't understand the basics the answers won't always make sense. Its like asking an algebra question when you don't even know how to add yet... it just won't make sense. The lesson went well, and she still wants to keep learning and she came to church this week.
On Wednesday, we had Zone Conference so we took the ferry to Maui and it was weird to see other missionaries but also really fun. You just feel so motivated to serve the Lord and try your very best. I loved it!
Then, we met some awesome people this week. The first was Kevin (one of the first haoles aka white person that I have really liked). Um he does everything; he is a wood worker, plumber, metal worker, construction, mechanic, basically anything you want done he is the best handy man ever! He is so fun to talk to - has had a rough past that he was able to just decide to get out of one day and is the President of a bike club in Michigan (the good kind- they do fund raisers for kids). He let us come and talk to him and his dog on a porch he built. It was really good, he told us to come by any time. Then we have seen him though out the week because he walks or rides his bike everywhere. We invited him to church for Easter because he grew up religious but hasn't gone in a LONG time. He said that he would come AND ... he did because he is just awesome like that! Then he called us this morning (Monday) and had us over for breakfast. Omelets = yumm! Sister Duke and I rarely cook like that. Kevin is just the best and is so kind to everyone! I really hope that we will be able to keep building this friendship and will be able to teach him.
We also met a guy named Eddie and prayed with him (we had met his son a few weeks ago, there are so many connections that I still have to make with the people here on Lanai). Eddie is awesome! He wants to know what is the truth but doesn't feel like he has found it. He knows a lot of the LDS members on Lanai and really respects them. Then he said something that made me know that I am here on a mission and on Lanai for a reason: he told us, "Every member of our church has this glow about them. They are always smiling and happy even when I know that they are going through a hard time. I see this glow and I want to know what it is they know that I don't know? And how can I get that glow?" Bam - I am right back in Jerusalem sitting across from a money exchanger, Aladdin, and asking, "How is it that you know who the Mormons are?" And he says, "I know who the Mormons are because they have faces of angles." Both of these people see a light in me that I too often forget I have. Well, when Eddie said that tears were in my eyes because unlike in Jerusalem where I couldn't tell Aladdin about how we glow like angels I can tell Eddie. I can tell him exactly where this light comes from and how to obtain it. Our conversation didn't last too much longer because his friend came to pick him up. But he wants us to come back and tell him more, which we will be doing. Fortunately, next time I will be able to tell him we emulate the Light of Christ. He shines through us because we have Him with us at all times! People see this, they notice it and whether they voice it or not they want it. They want what we have - the gospel in our lives. We have the glorious truth that brightens our countenance, provides peace even when life is really darn hard, and makes us be able to end a cruddy day with a prayer and know that we have a Heavenly Father that knows all about our cruddy day and loves us no matter what we have done. If you are a not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day reading this and you have noticed this glow about the Mormon friends you have, please go and ask them about it and the next time you see Elders in white shirts, ties, and name badges or Sisters in church clothes with name badges stop them and ask them about this glow and they will tell you.
Yesterday, Sister Duke and I taught our Sunday School with both 12 year-olds and 35 year-olds it is sometimes hard, to say the least, to be able to teach to both age groups and make it interesting so they both are interested. We used 12 "Resurrection Eggs" inside each egg there was a scripture and something that symbolized the last few days of Christ mortal life. For example, one had a leaf because of Christ's triumphant entry and the people waved leaves and placed them on the ground out of respect. It was so quick that this respect was forgotten and was betrayed. A later egg held 3 dimes symbolizing how Judas, a close and chosen friend of Jesus, betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. The last egg was the best... It was empty. Why? Because Christ is not in the tomb for He is risen. He is alive once again and forever more. It is because He has risen that we too will rise. We have no need to fear death or the loss of loved ones because we will be able to see all those that pass on to the next life before us in the flesh. This world is not the end and we will be able to live again because once again Jesus Christ set the example that we must follow. he paved the way so we could receive every possible blessing.
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