Upon the Isles of the Sea

7:57 PM

Mahana Oaoa

7:57 PM

Iaorana tatou! Thanks for the birthday wishes! I did indeed have a happy birthday. We hiked Tapioi again, and made friends with the ho...

Iaorana tatou!

Thanks for the birthday wishes! I did indeed have a happy birthday. We hiked Tapioi again, and made friends with the horses. (p.s. grandma and grandpa: while we didn't get to see the Tiare Apetahi flower on Mount Temehani, I used some of the money you sent to buy a pareo (hard to describe, but very pretty and also useful) with the apetahi flowers on it; Merci beaucoup!)

We had another great week, starting with an exchange with our sister training leader, Soeur J. Soeur M went to Faaroa again and Soeur J came to Uturoa. During exchanges we talked a few teenagers and asked to meet them for a second lesson. T accepted but I was a bit cynical and didn't think he would really be there. And I was right, he wasn't, because he made an emergency trip to Bora Bora, I don't remember why. But he had told his family that we were going to stop by, and they were expecting us! They had a lot of great questions, and before we could even finish answering one they asked another on a completely different subject. They said that for the next time they're going to invite all their friends over, without telling them why, and then invite us to come and talk with them all!

Not actually much else to write this week... Our amis are coming along slowly but steadily. Mami R still has trouble remembering what we teach her, so we're going to try to see her more often, so she doesn't have time to forget haha! We changed our teaching strategy with R and he's starting to understand and remember better. Saturday we were able to attend the General Women's Conference. I loved all the messages - especially President Uchtdorf's. He talked about faith - and it was a direct answer to some things that I've been thinking about recently! Just makes me all the more excited for General Conference this weekend. Is it really General Conference time again already? Yikes, that was fast. Not complaining though. I'm always excited for new messages, scripture, and revelation from our prophets and apostles!

To finish, I wanted to share the words (loosely translated) of a beautiful French hymn/lullaby. In part as a continuation of my message last week, in part to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of my own birth ;). It's called "Souviens-toi" or "Remember":

Remember, my child: your Heavenly Parents
Held you in their arms not long ago.
Today, marvelously, you are here.
Your face shines still with the reflection of the heavens.
Speak to me, my child, of these blessed places,
Because for you the veil of forgetfulness is thin.

Remember, my child: at the dawn of time,
We were friends playing in the wind.
Then one day, joyfully, we chose
To accept the Lord's great plan of life.
That evening, my child, we promised,
By love, by faith, to reunite.

Je vous aime
Soeur Ladd

7:52 PM

Livin' On A Prayer

7:52 PM

Iaorana tatou! Hey guess what day it was? HUMP DAY! ♫ ♫ Ohhhh we're halfway there ohh ohhhh livin' on a prayer! ♫ ♫ Last...

Iaorana tatou!

Hey guess what day it was?

HUMP DAY!

♫♫ Ohhhh we're halfway there ohh ohhhh livin' on a prayer! ♫♫

Last Friday marked my 9 months with the plaque (nametag). I felt the song reference was very applicable. Last December Soeur S and I entered the MTC together, and last Friday we were together again during our district meeting. I still find it funny, and awesome, that we both came to Raiatea together and now are both training. What's more, our 'daughters' were companions in the MTC as well!

Speaking of our district, we've officially changed our name from the Raiatea District to the Relief Society District. Before, we were 6 sisters and 4 elders, but Elder T and Elder I from the secteur of Fareatai left last week, and in a few weeks will be replaced with a senior couple. But for the moment we are 6 sisters and 2 elders, and they fell a little overpowered. We even had refreshments after district meeting (cake for Elder G's birthday last week). In any case, we had another good week. Papi P is getting closer and closer to baptism, and we hope to set a date this week. D is still struggling, he's got a lot of blocks he needs to get over before he's feels ready, especially alcohol. But the support of members will really help.

Mami R is doing awesome. It was pretty funny last Saturday - we went for her lesson at 10, and her daughter was with us but her son-in-law, our translator, wasn't there yet, so we waited around for a bit. Eventually we gave up waiting and started teaching with our broken Tahitian, and her daughter trying her best to translate as well. Finally her son-in-law arrived and re-explained everything we'd taught. By the end of that, we had spent three hours with her! In the afternoon, we came back to teach her daughter-in-law, and she came back and listened to us again! Obviously she wasn't sick of us yet! Compare that to her attitude before, when she would never even talk to the missionaries. When she came back for the lesson with her daughter-in-law, we were able to invite both of them to baptism - they didn't say no, they didn't say yes. They had a lot of new information to process, so they aid they'd think about it, pray about it. We're starting to notice some suspicious opposition in the family, it seems like some of the sons and daughters are trying to keep her away from us. But that's okay, Heavenly Father is on our side.

This week we taught her about the Plan of Salvation, and ended up focusing a lot on the pre-mortal life. She's got a strong Christian background, and knows the Bible very well, but she'd never even thought about a pre-mortal life and was really surprised by that idea. I've taught the Plan of Salvation so many times, but it's the first time I really focused on that, and why it's even important for me personally.

Our life started long before our birth. Heavenly Father is literally our Father, for He is the Father of our spirits. We lived with Him as spirits before our birth, and He knows each of us individually. However, we were not like Him, and in order to receive the blessing He has, He sent us here to earth to learn and progress. It's a pretty big deal.

"The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God" (Romans 8:16) He knows me personally. He knows you personally. Ua here te Atua ia tatou.

Ua here au ia outou!
Tuahine Ladd

Oh, happy news - C, an investigator I taught in Matavai, was baptized on Saturday, and H, who I talked about several weeks ago, will be baptized this coming Saturday!

9:58 AM

Ye May Know

9:58 AM

Iaorana tatou! Eaha te parau api? We had an awesome week in Uturoa! Our big little miracle was that every lesson had a member present!...

Iaorana tatou! Eaha te parau api?

We had an awesome week in Uturoa! Our big little miracle was that every lesson had a member present! I'm not sure I've ever seen that in my mission, let alone this secteur. Plus our members are awesome and I don't know where we'd be without them.

For example, Thursday we went to see D as usual. Soeur U came with us and Frère M said he would be there too. But when we got there, D was drinking with his friends and he asked if we could do the lesson the next day. We were about to call Frere M to say the lesson was cancelled, when he arrived. He said hi to us and then went back to talk to D and his friends. He comes back to us a few moments later and says, "hey, come here, D's friend says he wants to take the lessons." We go back, and end up teaching D and all his friends!

On Friday night I finished the Book of Mormon for the nth time! I started sometime last fall, don't remember when, following the advice of Elder Holland to take a paperback copy and a question that you want to answer, read, and mark anything that applies. I focused on missionary work, of course, and have been reading little by little every day. On Friday, I'm not sure why but I started reading out loud as I read the beautiful last chapter, the last words of the prophet Moroni.

As I said last week, we started teaching Mami R, Soeur U's mother, which is a miracle because she always turned away the missionaries before. What's more, she's starting to believe! It's a little difficult but funny because she doesn't understand French and we don't completely understand or speak Tahitian. Thankfully we had a good translator, Frere U. Also, she's getting old and starting to lose her memory so she doesn't really remember new information. She loves to read, so she reads the pamphlets or the chapters in the Book of Mormon that we give her, but then she forgets what she learned. Pray that she'll be able to remember what we're teaching her!

"I, Moroni, write somewhat as seemeth me good; and I write unto my brethren, the Lamanites; ... I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things....

And now I speak unto all the ends of the earth—...

And I exhort you to remember these things; for the time speedily cometh that ye shall know that I lie not, for ye shall see me at the bar of God; and the Lord God will say unto you: Did I not declare my words unto you, which were written by this man, like as one crying from the dead, yea, even as one speaking out of the dust? ...

And God shall show unto you, that that which I have written is true.

And again I would exhort you that ye would come unto Christ, and lay hold upon every good gift, ...

Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him."

I was a bit stubborn and this time I didn't exactly follow what we call 'Moroni's promise.' He asks us that "when ye may read these things... ponder it in your hearts... ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true." The promise is "by the power of the Holy Ghost, ye may know."

When I say I didn't exactly do what he said, it's because I read, I pondered, but I didn't really pray and ask God. Why? Because I would have felt a little ridiculous doing so - I already know the Book of Mormon is true. So instead I just prayed for gratitude that I have this book in my life! I love the testimony of President Ezra Taft Benson "It is not just that the Book of Mormon teaches us truth, though it indeed does that. It is not just that the Book of Mormon bears testimony of Christ, though it indeed does that, too. But there is something more. There is a power in the book which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book." I have certainly felt that power as I study the Book of Mormon, as the words and stories that I read each day apply to me personally and provide answers to my questions and prayers.

Je sais que le Livre de Mormon est vrai.
Ua ite au e, e parau mau te Buka a Moromona.
I know the Book of Mormon is true!
Do you?

Je vous aime,

Soeur Ladd

6:56 PM

I Direct A Choir (Almost)

6:56 PM

Raiatea district: on the boat on the way to the motu Iaorana tatou! Blessing number 147 from serving on Raiatea: quality time with Pr...

Raiatea district: on the boat on the way to the motu

Iaorana tatou!

Blessing number 147 from serving on Raiatea: quality time with President and Soeur Bize. When I was on Tahiti I only saw them during conferences or interviews, but last week they were with our district for a whole three days! As I said, they gave a fireside in our ward on Sunday, and we also had the privilege of inviting them to a few lessons on Sunday afternoon. The Spirit was so strong as President Bize testified of the priesthood and the importance of the temple to Papi P. Then on Monday they joined us for frisbee, choir practice (will explain later) and a nice car ride as we looked for a tourist sight that is of course not at all marked so we ended up just driving around. Highlights are President Bize trying out Elder T's bike and singing a nice jazz rendition of Redeemer of Israel, and Soeur Bize helping us attempt to break into the chapel because we didn't have the keys and all the members were at work. Tuesday we had our zone conference which was really awesome of course.

So the first or second week after I arrived on Raiatea, we ate dinner with Brother and Sister M and I mentioned the missionary concerts that we did on Tahiti. They said that we should do the same thing here. I told them we only had 10 missionaries here, when on Tahiti we were 100. They said do it anyway! So we did! I took the same theme we used for the concerts on Tahiti - the Light of Christ - and we sang hymns such as:

Hark, all ye nations!Hear heaven's voiceThru ev'ry land that all may rejoice!Angels of glory shout the refrain:Truth is restored again!Oh, how glorious from the throne aboveShines the gospel light of truth and love!Bright as the sun, this heavenly rayLights ev'ry land today.

Gotta love the hymnbook. (I appreciate that in French Polynesia, the hymnbook is a like another book of scripture. Everyone brings their own hymnbook to church along with their Bible and Book of Mormon) Anyway, It was stressful and we didn't have enough time to practice but it was fun! Turns out I don't really know how to direct a choir so Soeur Temauri graciously helped us at the last minute and I got to sing too.

As I mentioned the other week, President's challenge this month was about our lessons with members present, and our zone succeeded! It's been over a year since Raromatai has won a challenge, so it's a miracle for us! And this challenge has really helped boost Uturoa, we've had a lot of miracles through our work with members. For example, we visited some friends of the U family on Saturday, and Soeur U's mother accepted the missionary lessons for the first time ever. We also visited D and R, who had taken the lessons before but weren't very serious. Halfway through the lesson, Soeur M abruptly changed the subject to baptism and we taught about Christ's baptism - by immersion and by priesthood authority. They have a lot of questions now and wonder if their (Protestant) baptism even counts. I can't wait to meet with them again and help them find peace for their family through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Side-note, a few weeks ago Soeur K and I took a few moments before heading home to appreciate the sunset at the dock by our house. A young girl came and sat with us. Being missionaries, we of course talked to her about faith and how she's a daughter of God. When she sees us in the neighborhood now she says "hey it's the popaa!" (caucasian) Turns out she's D and R's daughter!

Anyway things are going great here in Uturoa! Can't believe I'm almost halfway through my mission. My faith grows stronger everyday and I know Heavenly Father is always there for us. A scripture that always helps me when I'm feeling discouraged is my 'mission scripture,'. Doctrine and Covenants 68:6, which says, "Wherefore, be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you; and ye shall bear record of me, even Jesus Christ, that I am the Son of the living God, that I was, that I am, and that I am to come."

He is with us! He stands by us!
Ua here au ia outou!

Soeur Ladd