Cyclone Lusi

Sorry everyone that this is late, I didn't have time to update Elder Matua's blog because I left for St. George and didn't get back until today. So here is his email from last week.

Hello Family and friends:) At the request of my mother she asked if I could report on the week day by day so....let's see how good my memory is:)

Monday- Just a normal P-day full of emailing mom and dad about the past week. We played rugby at a park in Otara for P-day...and my BODY WAS SO SORE! Couldn't walk straight 'til Wednesday.
Had a family home evening at a member's house, aiga o (family of) Tema. Awesome family, I cried as I shared my testimony of the Atonement...like always.

At the park for P-day

Tuesday-We had a special training meeting with President Lekias to help us with our lesson plan making. After the meeting we picked up the ward's potential mission Fiali'i, he comes with us almost everyday to help him prepare for the mission life..and we SET SOMEONE FOR BAPTISM!!!!!! Next month.

Wednesday- Nothing really happened today we knocked a lot of doors and well we found FOUR new investigators plus a new family!!! We have got a lot of work to do! Fiali'i was with us again. We had a trade off, Elder Calizo was with Elder Utia(District Leader) and I was with Fiali'i. Nothing happened....the rest of the night no one new. We sang to someone on the street...There is sunshine in my soul today..brought the spirit so strong!!!

Thursday-A lot better. We visited less-actives...and more less actives...and members...non of our investigators answered their faitoto'a (doors) ....really tough today!

Friday- Today was an answer to my prayers...We had companionship study with Elder Utia and he left us with some great advice to help us with talking to everyone and we used his advice as best as we could. We had a prompting to visit one of our members so we followed it and I am so glad I did!! Brother To'ona'a shared with us his plan to help the ward with the missionary work...having a seminar with nothing related to the Church....learning how to plant fruits and vegetables. Elder Calizo and I bore our testimonies to him and BOOM felt the spirit and he thanked us for the encouragement!'

The wrath of Cyclone Lusi ;(

Saturday- CYCLONE!!!!! Wasn't that bad the Lord was watching over us when we were working The storm seemed to just go around us until we went home...and then it poured down on us...

Sunday- We had meetings all day...I was so tired...SOOOOOOO Tired!!! Great week full of work and full of the spirit! Almost finished with the Book of Mormon!!! WOOO HOOO, I'm in Ether chapter 3:)

Love you all :) Stay Healthy and REMEMBER THE SAVIOR IN ALL THAT YOU DO!

Alma 26:12 READ IT!!!

Being Bold....and Learning to be Patient

Bike Repairs

Well to begin I'd like to thank our Father which is in heaven for this chance to send this e-mail to you:)

A whole fish...delicious!!!!

I'll stick to the positives this week because this past week didn't go as we expected it would. But we had a chance to really work with members of the ward ....building their confidence and being BOLD, saying we need your help with this work NOW!!! Well not in a mean way...just out of Love and a lot of spirit to back it up! But I'm grateful for the members of this ward. Do all things with Love and the Lord will do the rest! Slowing realizing that. But we also had the chance to take some potential missionaries out to do some missionary work and let them experience the work...Fialii Tautai and Sapati! Had fun with them!;)
A lot of talking with members trying to get there help and getting to know the area better. I hope it works!!!!


Love you all:) Have a great week::)

New Challenges, Same Great Spirit

Hello My Dear Family!!
How are all of you?
I'm glad to say that my companion and I found two new families and 3 new investigators:)
So excited to see what will happen! The work is picking up.Yes, I think the work will be going a lot smoother now! I pray everyday that it will:)
The work is quick and everyday is getting faster and faster! I love it! I love it! I love it!
One of our NEW investigators is AOG (Assembly of God) Pastor with a family of six ! He had some really interesting questions about Salvation...we taught the Plan of Salvation...but he can't wrap his head around it quite yet and we are planning to go back to his house:) We have been studying the Bible so much! It's so good! I've learned about how the Book of Mormon and Bible are SOOOOOO TRUE!!!

We switched areas and now we cover a different part of the ward...a lot more members and a lot more opportunities to share the gospel!!!:)

Love you all and have a good week:)

A week full of GROWTH

Flower decorations for our bikes

This week was a stressful one. Getting told that you and your companion are to cover a whole other area that you have never been in before and having to find two sets from the previous sisters( who failed to put an address of these people on the teaching record). It has definitely been one of those weeks! Having to find them and them not answering and KNOWING they are there was frustrating.

Breakfast????

But we had the AMAZING BLESSING of Hearing from Elder Neil L. Andersen this week @ our Mission Conference! Oh my gosh was that an a amazing experience! I was blown away, I had many questions concerning the things that I have experienced in the five almost 6 months I've been out. As I listened, I could absolutely feel the spirit and many of the questions I had were answered as I listened to the words of an Apostle.
 "If you are questioning impressions that you are receiving, Is this me or is this the spirit?
You are so close to the spirit now than you will ever be, BELIEVE THAT EVERYTHING THAT YOU RECEIVE IS TRUE AND ACT ON IT AS SOON AS YOU RECEIVE IT!"
My jaw dropped as I heard those words! I really needed to hear that. I'm going to follow that counsel and hopefully the work will explode.

MMMMMMM!!!!

So we're hoping that we can  move forward and continue to teach and find more souls ready to listen.

Crazy week but knocked it out! LOVE YOU ALL:)

New companion, same area.

Me and Elder Calizo

Well I'll be honest this week had a lot of high notes! I was grateful for things that happened! My new companion is Elder Calizo from American Samoa. He is half Filipino and half Samoan. We are working in my original area and we hope to find even more people to teach. I had a very interesting thing happen to me on the Thursday after I got my companion...We visited a non-member (Seventh Day) she was talking and talking and talking and..then she said fai se tatalo a'u ( I'm going to say a prayer). Well, a thought came into my mind that I did not fully understand  and you'll have to ask my Mom  about it. Needless to say it was something my Mom wrote to me in a letter she sent that made me think back to that prayer and the thoughts that I had, so I decided to record it in my journal. Maybe I'll share it with you someday.

In your studies I would suggest you take a minute and read Moroni 10:4-6 and also Joseph Smith-History. And I would also recommend Elder Tad Callister's book, The Infinite Atonement.

On our way to transfer meeting

Love my new companion and I hope to be the best trainer I can be! :) LOVE YOU AND HAVE A GREAT WEEK:)

A New Chapter

I got some great news this week and I am so excited to tell you all that I am going to be training a new missionary!!!!! So excited!!! I received the call this week on Tuesday! As soon as I got the call... I accepted :) I went straight to my knees in prayer to know what I should do for this new Elder and I was reminded of the things my trainer taught me. Thoughts of teaching lessons came into my mind from the last twelve weeks and the things I learned but I also thought of the things that I would do differently. I want to do my best to help this Elder transition to this life....the life of a missionary!   Also that I can become better in teaching others and learn from him also! I hope to do the best that I can! MY LANGUAGE IS GOING TO GET SO MUCH BETTER THAN IT IS NOW!!! AHHHH I'M SO EXCITED!!! I CAN'T WAIT!!!

Me and Elder Pulido went on splits I was honestly a little nervous to cover my area with the two of us and the lack of Samoan we have...but I think the Lord was with us more than usual helping us answer questions. I was grateful for that trade off because I actually felt like I was making progress! I have been making progress and I'm reaping the fruits of it !!



Each passing day the work is becoming easier and that much more important. I have loved reading the scriptures lately, I'm currently in Helaman and reading the New testament! I invite all of you to read the Book of Mormon and rebuild upon the foundation of your testimony and the reality of knowing that HEAVENLY FATHER AND JESUS CHRIST LIVE AND THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST IS TRUE!!!!!

I love you all and can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for me!:)

Quick email...slow week

Malo Soifua Lo'u Tina, Uso, Tama...and to friends and family! This week was a slow one but was also super fast, if that makes sense?? I still don't understand why that is...but let's get to the point:) The work is sssssllllllllooooowwwwwllllyyyyy building! We did a lot of relationship building this week and ahh..well yeah that was probably why this week went so slow. Pheww glad I have this week behind me!

Stake Conference this week:) Went really well and I was having some Deja-Vu those two days...almost like I'd been there before in that very chapel.. ...I was listening to one of the Sister RM's bear her testimony and BOOM I had a feeling of ....."woo I've been here before...and she was speaking....and woo this feels right!"

Taking a Break

I had a lot of spiritual promptings this week that always led me back to my Patriarchal Blessing..I found myself THREE times this week reading it..right before going to bed...I guess that's why the blessing is so important! If YOU haven't gotten yoursyet, GET IT! The blessings from it are numerous and I can't explain how much help it has been to me!

I ran across some scriptures concerning Diligence...Alma 26:5 and D&C 75:1-5. These can apply to any situation I invite you to read them! And reap the blessings from it!

Love you ALL! Have a great week!:)

Baptisms and a week full of BLESSINGS!!!!

Hello Family and Friends!

 O a mai outou?!?! Manuia? Seki a??

The Samoan is getting better, and I have found that with trying to speak the language it is coming along....just really slow so I looked to find some other resources:) I looked to music as another way of learning. I got some music from a member. Apparently music has been helping a lot of the Elders and Sisters learn the language. Hopefully it will do the same for me:) I have been speaking in companionship study, sharing what I have learned...not very good but luckily Elder Gaga can understand what I'm trying to say! It's helping but I WANT THIS LANGUAGE DOWN PAT! I've never wanted something so badly and I'm going to keep doing everything I can to learn it.

Sa seki a le papatisoga!!! Sa la'ua fiafia mo le la papatisoga!
Elder Gaga and I were so excited for Saturday...but honestly it felt like another day not any different. I was really excited for this baptism! Wow it was amazing! Sam almost hit his head...not my fault Sam is a big guy!! I was all the way to the front of the font and he still almost hit his head! I had to pull him forward after he went under to stop him. Faaninimo...piece of cake;)

Me, Sam, Faaninimo and Elder Gaga

As I said the prayers (D&C 20:37) I got a little choked up and really felt the spirit. It was an amazing day and I was privileged to be a part of it.

Great week and can't wait to see what is next. Keep praying for me and Elder Gaga:)

LOVE YOU ALL!!

Plugging Away

Me and my MACHETE

Hard at work

Not a lot to report this week. We are still on track for baptisms at the end of the month. It's amazing to see the work moving forward. We had to pull back a little with one of our investigators and we hope to still get her baptized someday. But on a happier note we will be  baptizing Sam and Faaninimo!!! YEAH!!!

So we are having success and I think the work will continue to progress. Hope you all are doing great, thanks again for all the emails and prayers. You just don't realize how much that helps. LOVE YOU ALL and will be in touch again soon.

Elder Gaga and the Lawnmower  

Service projects and teaching

Vave le taimi (time is flying)! I love this area and honestly I think...if I could, I would stay here the whole duration of my mission. I love it here! This week Elder Gaga and I got two new sets!!:) Sam (lost record has to be baptized again) and Grace (a sister that's been going to church for a long time but just hasn't been baptized) I'm so excited, you have no idea! I finally have the chance to see the work progress! I am SOOOO EXCITED AHHHH! I am so full of joy! Ah...finally!!!!!

Gifts-camo pants, Ravens T and Toms

Service Project

We got to do some service for some of the people in this area and that was awesome. My language is struggling but I know THIS week is going to be better for me to start speaking! I can't wait to say the new things I have learned! We've been teaching in English because Sam and Grace understand it better than Samoan and the same for me. Ha Ha. I think I need some practice in my own language before I just start trying to speak.
Thank you for all of your prayers. It's good to have your support and I know that I can't do this on my own. And thanks also to all who have emailed or sent letters, it's always good to hear from you all. I will try my best to respond, but if I don't please forgive me cause P-days just don't give us much time.

Alofas to you all.

Short email this week

This week has been a great one! Had the chance to spend some time with Elder Hall, we were in a trio til Thursday. Being in a trio made me so grateful for my companion! The three of us were able to work in both the Samoan and English programs! Nice to mix it up a little bit! We drove the car everywhere and honestly made the day longer. I'd rather walk! ha ha We had a miracle on Thursday! Wow it was cool! We met with a girl named Grace! She's twenty-four and has been going to church for 11 years but hasn't been baptized. Guess what?!?!?! WE SET HER FOR Baptism on the 18th of January! WOOOO!
Super Excited!  Can't wait for this day!

I hope all goes well this week and hope every single one of you has a fantasic day:) Love you and yours!

These are pictures of Sis. Pe'a and Sis. Brown's baptism commit, I had the opportunity to baptize her. It was AWESOME!!!