Week #74

Bula Vinakwa! (Naitasiri Dialect)! This past week has just been awesome. I have seen so many miracles that it blows my mind......I have no idea where to begin. So I mentioned a few emails ago about the huge flood that had happened in our area. I also mentioned that during that time we decided to proselyte in the back of our house where the majority of people who live there are Hindu. Do you remember the girl we gave a blessing to? Well....we were out proselyting in our area this last week and her dad was driving a truck and made us pull over so he could talk to us. In his broken excited english he told us the blessing had worked and he wanted us to come visit him and his family. Just two days ago we went back to their house and they were so excited to have us be there. We asked the girl (Sarika) how she was doing after the blessings. She told us that she hadn't had any more encounters at night anymore and that she felt so much peace. We told her about the priesthood and where it comes from and how we have it. She was so excited she said she would pray about being baptized. They invited us to dinner the next day and so we went over and the dad was there. He was so happy to see us. After we shared the plan of salvation they had so many questions. He told us he's going to start coming to church and quit smoking and drinking......BULLLAAA! This family is prepared. I'm almost convinced this is why the flood happened. If the flood never had happened we never would have ever even thought of going behind our house to proselyte. God works in mysterious ways! After the lesson we taught Sarika how to say a prayer. In her prayer she asked to know if this was all true! The Spirit filled the room. They are hindi by religion but the spirit of Christ is starting to grow within their home. Miracle #2 - A few weeks ago we met this family from Vanua Levu. We taught them about baptisms for the dead and we just shared with them the restoration and they all sat in silence when we told them the story of the young prophet Joseph Smith. After the lesson they asked for 10 Book of Mormons hahaha. I belong to the best mission in the entire world...... The people here have faith unlike any other race of people I have ever seen. Elder Willoughby and I are excited for the work out here and in our area. Other than some awesome miracles we have also had some crazy experiences...... One morning we got stuck out in this village where we have to cross the river. The rain just started pouring down so hard and all these fijian kids grabbed buckets of water and just soaked us....so that was cool! Also we've been having lots of centipedes in our house and bed bugs so the church sent out some people to spray our flat and it just made it worse so we all have been camping out sleeping on the main room floor. It's been sweet! Other than all that the week has been a blast! We found out who our new mission president and wife is so that's kind of sad and crazy! It will be sad to say goodbye to President and Sister Layton! They are like our parents! Being a missionary has pretty much changed my life. Every day is hard.......which means everyday I have to rely on the Savior. I know He is there. He lives as does our father in Heaven. I wouldn't have left my family for 2 years if I didn't know it was all true! The gospel has been restored and this life on earth is just a short moment. We must live the gospel and push forward. We can see our loved ones again after this life if we choose the right. The Gospel of Jesus Christ answers all lifes problems and questions. When I'm feeling lost I pray and he's always there. And that's not just something that is supposed to sound nice. It is 100% true. I know it! I love you all and look forward to next week!

Love, Elder Jonutz