Tuesday, 29 July 2014
Week 52 - Yakwe!
Aloha Ohana and Haoaloha!
Better yet I should be saying Yakwe! (ill come back to that). Well thisweek has been super random with all sorts of meetings and a few changes to the mission and then the end part of the week finally started feeling like it was back to routine of work your hardest andcome home at night exhausted thingking "By golly sister, we have done again and not died." ;)Week 51, Kalaheo, Kauai (the Garden Isle), Hawaii
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| Christmas Sunrise |
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| Sister Broomhead and Me -Christmas tree and our presents! |
Aloha Ohana and Haoaloha,
A new transfer has begun and I'm very excited! We had such an amazing week. At the start of the week it was a little hard, transfers always make me nervous with a new companion that I'm going to have to learn how to like and get along with 24/7, the holidays were ending, no more anticipation to talk to the family, my year mark is here, the mission is changing a lot, and then Carly came home from serving her mission. Aka- I had a lot of emotions all inside me and they finally all took me over the first few days of the week. It was hard but emailing my mom and Carly helped! And then I had to start walking by faith and allowing the Lord to help get me going again. And surprise! He has done it again. I truly am so blessed!
OK, for new Years Eve all the missionaries went to one of our members house, set up a projector, watched a really sad church movie (I left at the end because I didn't like that it was sad), then at 12, fireworks. Then all of us missionaries, and some of my ward families all had our first meal together at the Morris's at 12:15! Then we went home and went to bed :) It was so great and I thought of last New Years Eve when my mom and I tried to watch the whole night and by the new year I was like," Yep that was a waste of time". My mom and I decided we would never do that again. Then this year was so great and simple but surrounded by so many people that I love!
Wednesday- New Years also our P-day (our day to get everything done.) We went to Koke'e with all the missionaries on the island! It is so beautiful. I wish we had gone up earlier and been able to do our studies up there because it was so peaceful and I just wanted to stay and take it all in and not be bothered by the tourists and being rushed to the next lookout point. We went to a park up there and I ended up seeing one of my members from the Palehua ward (Editor's note: back on Oahu) at the park! It was so good to see them and hear how the ward is doing.
Amazing good stories of the rest of the week:
~ Awesome lesson with Gilbert. I hadn't seen him in a few weeks and it was great. We stopped by and he had just gotten home form work and he was really tired but told us later that he wanted to tell us to come later but then he remembered that he always feels better after he visits with us no matter how tired he is. We read 3 Nephi 18 which talks about the sacrament and the importance of church. Talked about the love of God for us and how we all need Him to help us in our hard times. He mentioned how he misses the sacrament sometimes. He really doesn't like any churches because he has seen a lot of judging and people going to church and then acting completely different than how the Bible tells us to be. We invited him to church and he said no. I half expected that but then he told us, "I want to go when I am ready, when I won't go with a critical eye waiting for someone to do something wrong. I am not there yet but I can feel that I am getting closer." I told him that we would keep asking and he said that is fine and that when he comes he will be ready and if it is right he will become a member. I love being able to see people's lives change. Gilbert is one who changes slow, but changing he is. He is so good and I know that when he is ready he will come to church and take that next step closer to our Heavenly Father.
~ Had a lot of QGC (quality gospel conversations). Talked to a lot of people and found some with potential. One is Jacob. We met him and he was in his garage with his bike. We talked about the restoration of the gospel and left a Book of Mormon with him and asked if we could come back, he said yep on Saturday. So Saturday comes and we find him outside once again working on his bike, we found out that he built it himself (well that's amazing). Asked if he had a few minutes and he said ya. So we were able to talk to him about how God loves all of us and has given us our families, prophets, scriptures, and Jesus Christ to help us return back to him. We gave a little bit better review of how the Book of Mormon is the proof we have that the Lord's kingdom is restored back to the earth through latter day prophets. He agreed that it was all possible and wanted to learn more. We invited him to read and he said that he would and we are going back next week. We invited him to church and he said that he couldn't this week but that next week he could! He is really good and I am super excited to be able to keep teaching him. We are increasing our teaching pool which is awesome!
~ We were trying to find this Recent convert who hasn't been coming to church. Well we turned down a wrong street that we thought was right. Got out of the car and met all these nice little ankle biters (small dogs). One of them took a fancy to my companion. So when I backed out the car and she opened the car door the little dog jumped into our car and sat in the front seat. It looks like I have myself a new companion haha.
~ We are trying to work with a boy named Perez, who wants to be baptized but his mom says that he needs to wait until he is 18. He comes to church every Sunday with his aunt and uncle (recent converts, David and Doresty), and wants to serve a mission. Well, we taught about fasting and then we invited them to fast for Perez to be baptized this month. We fasted with them and they are so amazing and we are praying for a miracle for this month.
~Random- I met my first Wicken. We were driving to dinner and see this guy on the side of the road who looked sad. So we turned around parked the car and walked up to him. Well, he was not sad but stood up and we had a nice talk about what a Wicken was. he was very nice and I just hope that some day down the line he will remember those 2 Mormon girls who talked to him one random day.
Well, I love being a missionary. I love being here in Kauai! I love the Lord and I love to laugh! God is good always! Sometimes the first thing we need to change is ourselves! I love you all and will sprint for the finish line. 6 MONTHS! Ah! Alofa ia te oe! Mahal kita! Yakwe yuk! Ofa atu! Pweko pweko yuk! Aishiteru! Te amo! Aloha ia oe!
Saturday, 5 July 2014
Week 50 - Shes HOME!
Carlys HOME! I hope you gave her my lei. Im sorry no pictures I forgot my camera.
Week 49 - Christmas Fills the Air
Merry Christmas!!!!! I love you all :)
3 Nephi 13 Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of him to declare his word among his people, that they might have everlasting life.
Week 48 - Two Weeks Worth of Fingerprints!
Aloha Ohana and Haoaloha,
Well another week has come and gone in beautiful Kauai! I love it here and it is so amazing! Since, I only gave a little bit of infor from last week I will combine the last 2 weeks into one email. Hopefully you will be able to follow my crazy sparatic trains of thought! I really should start planning out what to write before hand but knowing me that will probably not happen sorry everyone!
First things first, Johnny Ralpho was baptized this Friday! It was so good but broke my heart at the same time! Johnnys cousin, Carlmai was going to baptize him and so we had everything planned the baptism ready. johnny and his family arrive and then we are waiting for a few people, a few minutes later we find out that there has been an awful accident on the only highway Kauai has... everyone is stuck in the accident and no one has been moving for the past couple of hours and they arent sure when it is going to clear up. Thankfully we had aenough people to keep going. We started the program and it was small but the Spirit was there as soon as the mom, Tinar (lady who was baptized my first day here) gave the prayer in marshalese and was crying. Then I spoke on baptism and attempted t oread a scripture in Marshallese. The haoles (white people) thought it was amazing but the Marshallese told me to keep practicing haha. I guess its the thought that counts :) Then Carlmai still wasn't here so we had another brother bpatize Johnny and it was great. About 10 minutes after the baptism Carlmai comes hurring in. We go and tell him that Johnny was already baptized and we could just see his face fall as he realized that he was too late. My heart broke. Carlmai served a mission and then faced a lot of struggles when he came home and is just recently starting t ocome back to church consistantly and he was so excited to be able to baptize his cousin, then an accident. i know there will be other opprotunities but it still hurt. As I conducted, "I Am a Child of God" and I could hear the few but loud voices sing the words, I lost it and just cried. It was such a good baptism, just so full of joy and hurt at the same time. Carlmai was able to confirm Johnny in Marshallese on Sunday and it was great.
We have started teaching a man, Gilbert, and he is amazing! We first met him and talked for a bit just in his garage and then we scheduled a return appointment. We go back for the return appointment and find out that 2 days after we first met him some drunk kid was messing around and ended up crashing into his parked car (totalling it) which then hit his stone wall and knocking that over which also damaged another car in the process. I think there were some opposing forces working against us to make him busy to not be able to meet with us. Well we set up another time to come. And he was home and we shared the Restoration. He loved it, he doesn't quit believe everything yet beut he wants to find out for himself what is ture and not so he is reading and praying about the Book of Mormon to know that it is true and that Joseph Smith was God's chosen prophet in these latter days. Through everything that is going on in hsi life he still manages to remain positive and remember that God would never give hims something that he could not handle.
We did splits and I went to Hanalei and it is so beautiful over there. The sisters there have been working a lot with the Spanish people and miracle of the split... We were having a lunc/lesson with a recent convert who speaks Spanish and broken English. We have a translator there who helped a lot in the lessons leading up to his baptism. So the Hanalei Sisters have been struggling to have this recent convert read the Book of Mormon. We talked and we got to know him and then I read a scripture in spanish, which was really fun! Then I had to explain it in Englis hbecause my Spanish is super rusty and I wasnt even very good to begin with. Well after the scripture I start to bear my testimony of the book of Mormon in English and the translator looks at me and tells me to say it in Spansish. I told them it might be wrong but ill try. So I did my best and told him that The Book of Mormon is true. For me, when I read it I feel peace and my Savior's love. The nBook of Mormon has helped me so much in my life. And that was about it. Well as I finished, he stands up and says, "Ok, now I will read it!" Sister Talanoa, my comp for the day, was in shock! They had been trying to have him do that for the past month or so. I was so glad that iwaqs able to help and be able to use my little spainish! Man it reminded me of how much I love Hispanic culture! Just another miracle that God has shown me!
A less active mom and daughter we had dinner with. They love to talk and the mom has been coming back t ochurch recently because in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is where she has felt loved. Well we went over and had dinner with them and they are amazing people hwo are trying so hard to be good and help those around them. Well at the end of dinner I ask the daughter if she would like to come to church with us again and she hesitated liek she was going to say no and then she says, "You know what?, ya I would!" As we drive away my companino, Sister Broomhead, tells me that the last time they had dinner over at their house the daughter said that she would never step foot back into the Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints... she came to churhc yesterday and really enjoyed it! Sometimes all it takes is an invite with love!
Duggy: probably one of my favorite people here. His wife is a member and missionaries have been working on him for years. He absolutely loves Sister Duke (my trainter) and Sister Clayson (who I lived with on Oahu). We had dinner with them this past week and went into their house and sang kareoke, I found out later that Sister Broomhead has never been invited inside they always sit outside... Well, we talked about various gospel principles and he said that he believes everything we believe, but he avoided the question of what was holding him back from being baptized. He said that he would come to church, he didnt because of the crazy rain, lighting, and thunder we had the night before. Well we went over after church and talked with him and he is giong to start reading the Book of Mormon and actually praying about it this time around. he told us that he had read parts before but he had never prayed and I told him then he missed the whole purpose of redaing the book. He is amazing just loves missionaries and I feel like his time is soon! He likes to give me a hard time and calls me 5'10 becaues Im so tall. Ill keep you updated on him :)
Fun for the week: Ward Christmas Party! I definately looked like an elf! I had on my red and white stripped skirt, (thianks mom!) and then a green shirt, bell eawrlings and then I put those bells that normally go on doors in my hair and it was great! There was so many people and it was a lot of fun. Ilove this time of yeawr :)
Ok will that is about it for me! Updates, Ace from makakilo is getting bapitzed this Saturday! Christmas is coming and it is still 80degrees. Ilove it here! I know the churhc is true. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and will bring happiness into anyones life if they are willing to read, ponder and pray about the message it contains. I know we have prophets on the earth today! God is good Always! I love you all! Yakwe yuk! Pweko pweko yuk! Ofa atu! Aishiteru! Alofa ia te oe! Mahal kita! Te amo! Aloha wau ia oe!
Love Always,
Sister Cassidy Jean Lang
Week 47 -
Ok I dont have much time but I just wanted to share a miracle really quick: so there is a member who we went over to have dinner with and when we get there he is rewally sick. He has strep throat! he has had it for 3 days and received a blessing 2 days prior and nothing has gotten better. He cant go see a doctor because he cant pay for it so he is a stubborn Hawaiian and will not go. We make him and his family dinner and then watching him he is a full grown man about to cry. I felt awful. We asked him if he has faith to have Christ to heal him. He says yes then I just tell him to keep having fiath in the blessings he has received. Ok we are going to the store and going to buy a throat numbing thing. We go to the store and then I remember a lady in my last area telling me a bout an old Hawaiian remedy for sore throats. We buy lemonds and lihing seeds. We come back to his house and make him spray the stuff and he thinks we are trying to kill him. He hates it. But can at least eat a little bit without as much pain. Then we make him do the lemons. cutting the lemon in half and then sticking the seed in the lemon and drinking the juice. The first few swallows were the worst to watch. His throat is burning and I just want to cry for him because I can see how badly this is hurting him. He keeps going and the pain starts to relieve. Then he asks for another because it feels better in seconds. We see him sunday and he is 100% better. Im so grateful that Dr. Lang has the Holy Ghost on her side because the Holy Ghost gave me the knowledge to help another. Sam, the guy that was sick, had the faith that Christ would heal him. It was amazing to see how Christ prepared me to be a tool in that specific moment.
Miracle of the week! Love you all! Mahal kita. Ofa atu! Aloha wua ia oe!
Love Always
Sister Cassidy Jean Lang
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