Thanks so much for your encouragement and all you're doing over there. Keep going strong! I love what you say in your emails and hope you're gaining strength from my thoughts. Keep telling me what the weeks are like!
Here was our week...
One of our recent converts, JUNIOR, RECEIVED THE PRIESTHOOD! He is inviting all his neighbors to church and coming out to teach with us and studying Preach My Gospel and coming to Youth Activities every week and has terrifically strong and genuine relationships with all the youth. He loves them and they all love and embrace him. He is a totally transformed man! He is constantly and consistently going to school and getting his future set and thinking of his mission, while at the same time leading in his home and building a good atmosphere of love and charity in his previously kind of contentious home. He has all his priorities right, and you would be so proud of him. Most importantly, he loves and is unbreakably attached to Jesus Christ, and his own personal testimony of this gospel. The whole family is that strong! The Recent Converts are all going strong!
The Heading of this emails was (=) that symbol. It represents that if you are in line with Heavenly Father, no matter what way you face (or what you face) you'll always be smiling. That power is drawn from making and keeping covenants with Heavenly Father and following Christ more perfectly day by day.
I am so proud of this Zone. I love watching each one of the missionaries around me grow. I love watching the progress each one of us are making together, one week at a time, following one prompting at a time, helping each other through everything. We are such a tight knit band of brothers and sisters.
I have now caught on to planning far ahead. I mastered planning and learning how to always reach or exceed my personal and mission goals, and then I wanted to go to the next step--planning effectively at least a week in advance. On Tuesday after District Meeting, that night, I called the missionaries in my District to assign them their parts in next week's District Meetings rather than waiting till Sunday night to assign it all.
We are taking very great pride in our Area Book. I wish you could come down personally and see it. I'm pleased with our area, very pleased with everything. So many challenges. So much growth. So much still to do; and a clear vision of how to do it!
The other day in Training, Elder Datoon and I sat down together and I told him a big long list of earnestly honest things Heavenly Father had pointed out to me in my observations of him, that are his personal strengths. We have been focusing on having him serve from his strengths and positively building from there. He is loving every training and looks forward to them eagerly. He takes away so much from them and I gain and learn from him every time. We edify and learn together from one another through the Holy Ghost.
That is the main comment of the week: The Holy Ghost is strong. I mean so strong. I accredit everything to how strongly the Holy Ghost is non-stop with us in all we're doing. It's a real energy and power we can't deny. During personal studies, we'll totally on our own find scriptures for our investigators and come together in Companionship Studies and see that we both happened to come across the same radically random scripture that was PERFECT for our investigator--and realize the Lord is working through us both unitedly, perfectly. He's able to freely and fully perform His will through us. We're grateful for His patience and long suffering as He so lovingly shapes us day by day into more perfect Epistles.
Our lessons every day have been powerful, focused, bearing fruit. The Spirit is soooo strong! We have learned how to go in with our objective, get it done, get them on the Spiritual High and wanting more, and then leaving with a return appointment to teach a little more next time. I love it! POWERFUL. Our Member Presents are just phenomenal as well! They devote their priorities to this missionary work. The Members and Missionaries really are coming together in this great last Hastening before Christ comes Himself, VERY soon. We can all feel the joyful urgency.
A group of YSA's were on their way to go play Volley Ball the other day, just to hang out, when we asked if they would like to come save the world with us. They each made the decision to come with us. That day we were blessed to meet Golden individuals and families who agreed that day to devote their lives to Jesus Christ by setting dates when they will be Baptized, and freeing their schedules to have us prepare them for those dates. Because of people's decisions of total consecration to this work, the Holy Ghost is in more full force than I can describe to you.
This work is fun! It's simply energizing and exciting and fulfilling and challenging and rich and rewarding! We are flying higher than we've ever experienced previously. We can see real and specific growth in ourselves every single week.
We really are on a higher level every day. Heavenly Father never stops showing us how.
For next month, we're working with 13 Baptismal Dates. They are all facing their own challenges and overcoming one hurdle after the next. We are pleased with their advancing progress.
.
We are seeing incredible miracles, and we are constantly laughing, enjoying, "smelling the roses"--as the saying goes--, we are just giving every day all we've got, but at the same time, this work is just energizing for both of us. We certainly earn our pillows, but, by the next morning, we're fresh and bouncing off the walls with energy for the Lord's work in our thriving and booming area!
One of many examples I wish I had time to share, was this one man named Joseph, who was a good friend with one of our other Baptismal Dates, and he was at their house and we taught him. It was so powerful and he eagerly agreed to be Baptized and to come to church the next day. We told him it would start at 11. He showed up at 8AM just so he could experience more of it! He came to the Fijian ward and then stayed for the English ward and then just told us how much he loved it! The members loved him and he loved church... 6 willing and enthusiastically spent hours of it! He's remarkable and on date for December Baptism!
So many more stories like his!!
Elder Datoon had the opportunity to entirely lead 3 lessons on Saturday! He was so excited to tell me how much he grew from that trust. He was a little bit nervous at first, and then just faced it and very successfully led the lessons. He is growing and just more and more positively changing very rapidly.
Elder Datoon is now freely OYMing in Hindi, he is leading in Companionship Studies, Weekly Plannings, teaching in Hindi, Bearing his Testimony in Hindi from his heart, Praying perfectly in Hindi, and Introducing himself perfectly and is able to ask people questions about themselves and their families, invite Families to be Baptized, pray, etc. etc. IN PERFECT HINDI. His pronunciation is just perfect, like a local. His Hindi is just through the roof!!! Who gets all that much down in just their first 2 full weeks in the program? He has a gift from Heavenly Father and is so perfectly teachable and proactive. He is so meek.
We are exactly obedient in all things. We get exact full studies every day, full trainings and full work and full fun and full sleep and full potential. Last night I was watching the District while showering and forgot to bring my watch in with me, so I was a minute late to 10:30. As I got in bed at a minute past, (now with my watch again,) I was happy inside seeing my son in bed a minute ahead, on his complete own accord. I have witnessed his nature, and his actions. Both are non-stop fully inline with the Lord's will for him. Our natures, are exact obedience, work hard, play hard, enjoy the full potential of each moment. We are both reciting President Layton's 4 keys of success every night with a broad smile and happy hearts at the end of each Nightly Planning. We just remind ourselves constantly where all our thriving and booming success is coming from--it's coming from living those keys fully. We're just reaping the results and happy about everything.
I'm so proud of you.
Keep emailing me! I want to keep hearing about you! Stay in touch, because we're both in the same boat together. Let's just row each other to full strength. I'm here for you. I love you. We're going to accomplish so many more miracles. This is the work of the Lord. I know it is. This work is true. Not just because of the 1000's of miracles that follow it, but because of the change we see and feel and watch the Atonement of Jesus Christ make in us as we live to share it with others. He is our motive. Serve for Him, and you'll always have all the power and energy you need.
I need to keep hearing back from you. :)
Stay strong,
Love, your fellow soldier,
Elder Howard
Fiji Suva Hindi
Here was our week...
One of our recent converts, JUNIOR, RECEIVED THE PRIESTHOOD! He is inviting all his neighbors to church and coming out to teach with us and studying Preach My Gospel and coming to Youth Activities every week and has terrifically strong and genuine relationships with all the youth. He loves them and they all love and embrace him. He is a totally transformed man! He is constantly and consistently going to school and getting his future set and thinking of his mission, while at the same time leading in his home and building a good atmosphere of love and charity in his previously kind of contentious home. He has all his priorities right, and you would be so proud of him. Most importantly, he loves and is unbreakably attached to Jesus Christ, and his own personal testimony of this gospel. The whole family is that strong! The Recent Converts are all going strong!
The Heading of this emails was (=) that symbol. It represents that if you are in line with Heavenly Father, no matter what way you face (or what you face) you'll always be smiling. That power is drawn from making and keeping covenants with Heavenly Father and following Christ more perfectly day by day.
I am so proud of this Zone. I love watching each one of the missionaries around me grow. I love watching the progress each one of us are making together, one week at a time, following one prompting at a time, helping each other through everything. We are such a tight knit band of brothers and sisters.
I have now caught on to planning far ahead. I mastered planning and learning how to always reach or exceed my personal and mission goals, and then I wanted to go to the next step--planning effectively at least a week in advance. On Tuesday after District Meeting, that night, I called the missionaries in my District to assign them their parts in next week's District Meetings rather than waiting till Sunday night to assign it all.
We are taking very great pride in our Area Book. I wish you could come down personally and see it. I'm pleased with our area, very pleased with everything. So many challenges. So much growth. So much still to do; and a clear vision of how to do it!
The other day in Training, Elder Datoon and I sat down together and I told him a big long list of earnestly honest things Heavenly Father had pointed out to me in my observations of him, that are his personal strengths. We have been focusing on having him serve from his strengths and positively building from there. He is loving every training and looks forward to them eagerly. He takes away so much from them and I gain and learn from him every time. We edify and learn together from one another through the Holy Ghost.
That is the main comment of the week: The Holy Ghost is strong. I mean so strong. I accredit everything to how strongly the Holy Ghost is non-stop with us in all we're doing. It's a real energy and power we can't deny. During personal studies, we'll totally on our own find scriptures for our investigators and come together in Companionship Studies and see that we both happened to come across the same radically random scripture that was PERFECT for our investigator--and realize the Lord is working through us both unitedly, perfectly. He's able to freely and fully perform His will through us. We're grateful for His patience and long suffering as He so lovingly shapes us day by day into more perfect Epistles.
Our lessons every day have been powerful, focused, bearing fruit. The Spirit is soooo strong! We have learned how to go in with our objective, get it done, get them on the Spiritual High and wanting more, and then leaving with a return appointment to teach a little more next time. I love it! POWERFUL. Our Member Presents are just phenomenal as well! They devote their priorities to this missionary work. The Members and Missionaries really are coming together in this great last Hastening before Christ comes Himself, VERY soon. We can all feel the joyful urgency.
A group of YSA's were on their way to go play Volley Ball the other day, just to hang out, when we asked if they would like to come save the world with us. They each made the decision to come with us. That day we were blessed to meet Golden individuals and families who agreed that day to devote their lives to Jesus Christ by setting dates when they will be Baptized, and freeing their schedules to have us prepare them for those dates. Because of people's decisions of total consecration to this work, the Holy Ghost is in more full force than I can describe to you.
This work is fun! It's simply energizing and exciting and fulfilling and challenging and rich and rewarding! We are flying higher than we've ever experienced previously. We can see real and specific growth in ourselves every single week.
We really are on a higher level every day. Heavenly Father never stops showing us how.
For next month, we're working with 13 Baptismal Dates. They are all facing their own challenges and overcoming one hurdle after the next. We are pleased with their advancing progress.
.
We are seeing incredible miracles, and we are constantly laughing, enjoying, "smelling the roses"--as the saying goes--, we are just giving every day all we've got, but at the same time, this work is just energizing for both of us. We certainly earn our pillows, but, by the next morning, we're fresh and bouncing off the walls with energy for the Lord's work in our thriving and booming area!
One of many examples I wish I had time to share, was this one man named Joseph, who was a good friend with one of our other Baptismal Dates, and he was at their house and we taught him. It was so powerful and he eagerly agreed to be Baptized and to come to church the next day. We told him it would start at 11. He showed up at 8AM just so he could experience more of it! He came to the Fijian ward and then stayed for the English ward and then just told us how much he loved it! The members loved him and he loved church... 6 willing and enthusiastically spent hours of it! He's remarkable and on date for December Baptism!
So many more stories like his!!
Elder Datoon had the opportunity to entirely lead 3 lessons on Saturday! He was so excited to tell me how much he grew from that trust. He was a little bit nervous at first, and then just faced it and very successfully led the lessons. He is growing and just more and more positively changing very rapidly.
Elder Datoon is now freely OYMing in Hindi, he is leading in Companionship Studies, Weekly Plannings, teaching in Hindi, Bearing his Testimony in Hindi from his heart, Praying perfectly in Hindi, and Introducing himself perfectly and is able to ask people questions about themselves and their families, invite Families to be Baptized, pray, etc. etc. IN PERFECT HINDI. His pronunciation is just perfect, like a local. His Hindi is just through the roof!!! Who gets all that much down in just their first 2 full weeks in the program? He has a gift from Heavenly Father and is so perfectly teachable and proactive. He is so meek.
We are exactly obedient in all things. We get exact full studies every day, full trainings and full work and full fun and full sleep and full potential. Last night I was watching the District while showering and forgot to bring my watch in with me, so I was a minute late to 10:30. As I got in bed at a minute past, (now with my watch again,) I was happy inside seeing my son in bed a minute ahead, on his complete own accord. I have witnessed his nature, and his actions. Both are non-stop fully inline with the Lord's will for him. Our natures, are exact obedience, work hard, play hard, enjoy the full potential of each moment. We are both reciting President Layton's 4 keys of success every night with a broad smile and happy hearts at the end of each Nightly Planning. We just remind ourselves constantly where all our thriving and booming success is coming from--it's coming from living those keys fully. We're just reaping the results and happy about everything.
I'm so proud of you.
Keep emailing me! I want to keep hearing about you! Stay in touch, because we're both in the same boat together. Let's just row each other to full strength. I'm here for you. I love you. We're going to accomplish so many more miracles. This is the work of the Lord. I know it is. This work is true. Not just because of the 1000's of miracles that follow it, but because of the change we see and feel and watch the Atonement of Jesus Christ make in us as we live to share it with others. He is our motive. Serve for Him, and you'll always have all the power and energy you need.
I need to keep hearing back from you. :)
Stay strong,
Love, your fellow soldier,
Elder Howard
Fiji Suva Hindi
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