"And I just stand there being freaky with a cup on my head"

This has been one of the weirdest weeks in my Mission.

So last Monday we were expecting a call to tell us that Elder Temanaha was leaving but we didn't receive one. However we got a call from our trainer Elder Lukens, who was down in Hamilton getting ready to fly home but he wanted to say goodbye but we couldn't come down to see him because President Rudd said it was too far. We ended up just doing normal missionary work that day but still no call. The next morning after studies we were headed out of the flat when we got a call from the AP's to tell us the news, Elder T was going to Cambridge to follow-up train and I was getting Elder Patea in Te Aroha. We spent the rest of the day and Wednesday driving around to say goodbye to people and packing. 

When we left for transfers I left the phone back at the flat but we were already too far to go back. So when we got to Hamilton we just dropped off his stuff but found out Elder Patea had just had surgery and wasn't ready to go out in the field so I was going to get someone else for a couple of days. We worked a bit in one of the other Elders areas because we weren't being transferred so we stayed in our area but we got another call to come pick up my new comp. 

My new companion was Brother Tom Swain who is a returned missionary over in Nawton (a ward in Hamilton), he is really good friends with President Rudd and he asked if he could come out into the field with me for a couple of days. He taught at the MTC for 5 years teaching missionaries with English as their Second Language. He is a very good missionary still even after being home for quite some time but he helped me a lot with the work out in Te Aroha and with helping me become a better missionary. 

We had a really good couple of days and taught some really powerful lessons and found some potential investigators. On Friday night after working our butts off all day, we went over to the Ibarolla's (an Argentinian family in our ward) because we felt like they might need a visit. When we shared our message at the end the whole family was in tears and Bro. Swain and I were almost crying as well. I don't remember too much about the message but I know it was exactly what the family needed. It was an amazing experience to be able to touch peoples lives even though it started out as an odd prompting. 

Brother Swain left on Sunday and I have been with Elder Gemmell from Hastings who is waiting for his Visa. He is a great guy but is still pretty new to the whole missionary thing because he hasn't even been to the MTC.

I know that the work we are engaged in is truly a marvelous work and a wonder and that there is no other place that I would rather be then in the NZHM!!!!

With love, Elder Mitchell

"Ooooooo we can eat cereal"

Kia Ora everyone!!!

Didn't get too much done this week because we spent most of Tuesday after District Meeting in the Hospital for Elder T and then spent the next 3 days inside because he has got the flu. I have managed to avoid it for the most part but sleeping in the same room can get pretty dangerous. We finally got out on Saturday but we were told to not overdo anything so that he wouldn't get sick again. We didn't get to go milking or go help out with the RDA thing but I did get to finish the Book of Mormon which I started on the 25th of September.

On Saturday we got over to see Paul and Maria but we found out that he didn't keep our commitment to pray about whether Joseph Smith was/is a prophet of God and that this is the one true church. We explained to him the important of what we committed him to do and talked about our purpose in coming to help him and re-committed him to do it with a period of time to do it in (we forgot that last time).

Not much else happened really but we do have transfers this week but I will most likely be staying.

Elder Mitchell

Attached is a picture of our district

The ladies are Sister Dynkova (Czech Republic) and her companion Sister Lawless (Seattle, Washington).

"The distant future, the year 2016"

Been a pretty good week here in Te Aroha!

Even though conference was last week for all you guys on the other side of the world, it didn't get to New Zealand until this week, they are kinda slow with stuff like that haha :). It was great to watch our General Authorities give some much needed guidance and I came out with a notebook full of stuff! My favourite talk was during the Sunday Afternoon session by Elder Durrant about 'ponderizing' scriptures and how it can help. I have already started this little challenge and the one that I am picking for this week is Alma 7:11-12, I am studying about the Atonement this week to help one of our investigators learn to better use the atonement in his life.

We spent most of the week contacting referrals and doing service so we didn't get to spend much time out knocking doors but we did teach some of our less active families and set up some appointments this next week for dinner and a lesson so we should be getting fed most of the week! We haven't seen Paul since Wednesday when we helped him move some tires off of the maize pile on his farm but he said he has been praying and reading but since it was GC he didn't come to church. We are seeing this week and we should be going over to give his wife a blessing so we will have to see about our commitment then. Other then a few people we met for the first time it was a pretty slow week for work but we managed to build some relationships with our members which is good because they gave us some referrals!!!

Elder Mitchell

#PreachingTheGospelToEveryCreature 

"Can I come to your party?" "No."

It was a pretty good week here in Paradise! 

On Wednesday we went on exchange with the Zone Leaders and I went down to the Hamilton East Area with Elder Rios and Elder Temanaha was in Te Aroha with Elder Butler. It was a pretty good exchange and I feel like we both learned quite a bit from our exchange. I love exchanges because it gives the area a change of pace even though it is only for a day and just in the one day that I was out of the area they found 2 potential investigators and talked with heaps of people on the streets (there are not usually people walking on the streets haha). After we exchanged back we spent the rest of the week contacting the potential investigators and setting up a family history class and a language study for one of the Hispanic families that just moved into the ward.\

I didn't get to milk the cows this week but they did invite us over for dinner on Tuesday to give us some good news.... Paul wants to stop smoking and get baptized!!!!!!!  He has had a Word of Wisdom problem for quite some time and has quit drinking but he just enjoyed his smokes so much that they have been so hard to give up. He is attending church regularly and has been reading and praying nightly with his wife who is a member! He is progressing so well but he says he wants to pick the date so we will have to follow up pretty soon. 

On Friday we went over to Paeroa branch (out of our area, but we had President's permission) for one of the branch activities with Paul and we were assigned to give a short presentation on a country that they choose and the country that they gave us was France. It was pretty easy for Elder Temanaha because he has been to France and is from French Polynesia. He just got up and spoke a bunch of French to the people there and taught them a French dance, I left my camera in the car so I didn't get any pics but it was pretty funny.

My week was algudz, hope that everyone on the homefront is doing well!

Elder Mitchell

Attached are pictures of me in front of the Lemon and Paeroa bottle, L&P is a soft drink here in NZ that is super popular and it was created in Paeroa.