Area 4, Week 3 - Naduna,Vanua Nevu Fiji 6/8/14

Ni sa bula re na noqu matavuvale,

How is everyone doing today? I hope that everyone is doing good and having a good time. I cannot believe that another week has gone by. We did get the chance this week to have both a Zone Traning Meeting and also a Zone Conference. It was a really sad Zone Conference because this was the last Zone Conference that President Klinger is going to have in this zone in Savusavu. He gave us the best advice, training and information that we are to know.  First, he gave us a training on how important Chaper 13 from Preach My Gospel is. That is the importance/role of the members/ward in missionary work. He said that this chapter is the chapter that almost every missionary overlooks and does not study. This was his first training in Fiji and also his last. It really opened my eyes on really how important this is. One quote that I like states that "without members in missionary work, there is no missionary work." This is where it all starts. We can only teach to a point and then we get transferred or leave and it is up to the members to retain to the efforts put in by us. It is the way that they, the recent convert, endures to the end and stays active in the church. They have to feel loved to want to come back and learn.

This training really did stick with me and my companion. We are setting up some plans on ways that we can improve to help this area out and get the members more involved to feel the missionary spirit in their lives to help them in turn share the gospel. I have kind of overlooked this chapter myself and have not read it in like a year or so. That is what my goal for this week is to study that chapter and also to give a training on it for our district meeting this week.

He also gave us one more training session and told us to always remember two things to do in our lives. First, is to always choose the right. Do all that you can to stay on the straight and narrow path. Do not veer off and if you accidentally do, you can always return and then continue choosing the right. Then the second thing that he told us to always remember is to remember the Primary songs. When he was sharing this subject, the spirit was so strong. He even sang his top three favorite songs to us. It was so powerful. Almost everyone in the room started to cry. I have to admit it that I did myself. It was just so strong. President told us that Primary songs are the best place to learn simple doctrine that changes lives. I looked back at my primary days and think the same thing. Every song that they have in there is just so simple. For example "I am a child of God". How much more simpler can it get?  "I know my Savior Lives". "I Feel My Savior's Love". This is the place where we learn the basics.

He went on saying that he thinks that this is where the most important callings in the church are. Mainly, the Primary Chorister. This is the person that is teaching Gods' children simple, but true doctrine. He told us that he still remembers his primary chorister teaching him all these songs and even remembers her name. He thanked her so much for everything. I went on thinking myself, Do I remember my Primary Chorister? I don't really know if I do remember but I think that it could have been Sister Zaugg? I dont really know from the Meadows ward. Do you remember the chorister when I was in Primary? This really touched me because it is true. What more can you say about primary songs.

It really shocked me to think that this would be his closing remarks to us missionaries. You would think that it would be something profound about missionary work or the gospel doctrines, but it was something so simple as songs, especially primary songs. I can now see the power that is in them. He invited us that when we have our future families that we need to teach our children these songs. Nothing else can sooth the soul more than this. I now know that this is what I need to do. If our mission president tells us how important it is, then it must be important.

We were really busy this week driving everyone around for this occasion.  We also picked up the Klingler's from the airport and moved missionaries around to places. We also did have an issue with relocating the Nakawakawa Elders. We had to take the trip all the way down there again to pick up all of their stuff and wait for their house to be built up in the village. So currently we have one of the elders staying with us and the other one staying with a different pair of elders that live right above us. Elder Johnson from Bountiful City is staying with us here in Naduna. It is pretty cool to have another companion that knows alot of the same places that I know.

Well that is pretty much my week. We had a really good week and now I have 2 companions. It was a really rewarding week for me spiritually but for the area, it was not really the best. We did not get a lot of time to be in our area.

I want to tell you that I love you all very much and that I know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ. The Lord's hard is in everything that we do as long as we are obedient. I know that I am doing the Lords work.

I thank you so much for everything and look forward to next week.

Love,

Elder Grotepas