An Exciting Week!

Kia Ora Family!

This past week was awesome! What a great week it was! We had some totally awesome miracles happen and some really great things coming up this weekend! First and foremost, thank you all for the emails! Wonderful to hear Mom and Dad that you had a wonderful vacation together. Even though you didnt get to go to utah, it sounds like you had a lovely time together!

As for my week it was pretty awesome! We are starting to have some great success here in Otahuhu! Whats crazy is there is only about a week and a half left of the transfer! I am just dumbstruck at how fast this transfer has gone!

Anyways, time for the miracle. So Terrei and Lisa, the couple we've been teaching are still set for this weekend to be baptized. I believe i already told you that last week, but we have some more exciting news also about them. Well i'm not sure if i told you that they have three kids and are unmarried and are living together, so in order for them to be baptized they need to be married. Elder Dorosan and I knew that we had to address this concern as soon as possible. Tuesday night we had a lesson set with them and decided we would do so then. So we went in and finished teaching the plan of Salvation and then moved in to the topic of marriage. It was perfect because we had just finished touching on how we can live in the celestial kingdom with our families forever. It was a perfect transition for marriage. It was i must say pretty tough to bring the topic up but we did it, and it turned out great! Terrei told us that he knew marriage was important and that he know knows that it is time for them to be married. Lisa on the other hand didnt say no, but was a little hesitant because of the time frame. So we just committed her to sincerely pray about it and we would return tomorrow night and talk more about it.

So we came back the next night to follow up about the whole thing and brought Bishop with us. Immediately as we started the lesson Lisa told us that she had prayed about it and felt really good about being married and baptized as soon as possible and on the date we had set for them, the 28th! It was great, we didnt have to do any persuasion or anything! The Lord answered her prayers and did all the work haha! So that night we discussed all the arrangements and how bishop would be more than happy to do the marriage. They agreed and all was well!! We continued to meet with them throughout the week and all is still well for this saturday!! They are going to be married and baptized this weekend!!! Its so awesome! I can't explain the joy i have for this family! Just to see how the lord has come into their lives and how much they have changed! Its so great! So along with being a missionary, i am a wedding planner at the moment haha! Its pretty crazy how much we have to get together, but the bishop is in it with us 100% and with his help the ward is too. We are getting great support from the relief society to do some decorations and bring heaps of food. Its going to be a great day! We are going to be doing the marriage and baptism in the same service. They will get married and proceed to baptism. Yesterday we also taught their oldest daughter Ariana who is 10 and asked if she wanted to be baptized with her parents and she said yes! What an incredible week its been! I have so much gratitude to the Lord for being and instrument in his hands to bring this family to the Gospel. Its really amazing to just witness how when people really do pray about what we teach, read the book of mormon, and come to the church, they really will receive and answer and continuous answers from Heavenly Father! They have just expressed that since we've been coming to share the gospel in their homes, there has been so much more peace within the home. They do not get so upset with each other and really feel Heavenly Father's love. It was so wonderful to hear them say that.

I believe we told you about Josie the girl who was supposed to be baptized this past weekend. Well sadly it didnt happen. We are still holding the faith though. Her dad keeps saying she is to young to make that decision. What we've decided to do for the situation is have Josie write a letter to her father, telling her testimony and why she wants to be baptized. I really think this could work. We are praying hard out that is heart will be softened!

Well i'm not too sure what else to write about. We've just been really busy helping Terrei and Lisa. We have got a lot of work to do for this Saturday. I just want everything to go somthly and for there to be no problems. I know that it will all work out fine though in the end.

In the front of Preach My Gospel in the intro from the First Presidency, in there it says "more happiness awaits you than you've ever experienced as you labor in the lord's vineyard." Thats not the exact words but its something like that. All i can say is that i testify that that is true. There have been such joyous moments this past week and weeks before as i have served. I am so glad that i'm out here doing this work, and even though it is very difficult at times. i love it and love sharing the gospel with everyone even if they say no, or curse at me or are rude to me, i dont care, at least i gave that person a chance.

Well thats pretty much it! Keep me in your prayers! Pray everything will go smoothly this week for Terrei and Lisa's wedding and baptism! Oh before i go, i haven gotten the package yet! I 'm sure i'll get it after transfers, i believe thats the next time the Zone leader will go and get mail. Anyways, love you all so much!!! Talk to you next week!

Love,
Elder Rawlinson


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