Week 40

Kia Ora Whanau! 

This week my bike tire went flat every single day. I put so many patches on that tube, but it keeps getting new punctures. Time for a new tire.

On Tuesday the real highlight was getting to see Lavell. She's not active and her 10 year old son isn't baptized but wants to be. A few weeks ago the Bishop of the ward told her that her son, James, can't be baptized until she starts coming to church and supporting him more, which is fair. So we talked to her about this and she told us that she really wants to come back and she told us her concerns as well. We just had a really open and honest conversation and it was really great. It was definitely orchestrated by heaven because her older kids came home right as we were wrapping up so the spirit was able to be there during our conversation with no distraction. Towards the end when I was bearing my testimony that I know Heavenly Father is aware of her and will help her achieve her righteous goals, she said "ya I know, but if it's important to me I'll make the time. Okay, I'll come to church on Sunday." Man it was so cool. But then she didnt come, sad. 

On Wednesday L.A. and Cherie got baptized! It was so happy. We fasted that their dad would have a spiritual experience so that he would want to start coming back to church. I have a testimony of fasting because people keep telling us that he was very overwhelmed (in a good way) by the love that everyone showed him and his family. 

On Friday, we almost got yelled at. We were going to contact a potential and so we opened their fence and walked into their yard and knocked in their door. When the lady opened the door she was super mad at the fact that we opened the fence and she told us that we are lucky the dog is inside or else she woulda killed us.  She almost started to yell but then I told her we are inviting people to a community event to support unity and she all of a sudden switched and was super nice. So that was a blessing we had a ward activity to invite her to. 

On Saturday a member took us to the yummiest cafe ever for breakfast! It was so nice, especially since after as we were leaving we saw some less active people we are working with so we invited them to church and they came! In the evening we had breakfast for dinner with a potential. It was so great lol. 

Sunday was really cool, except that L.A. and Cherie were our of town so they weren't at church to be confirmed and recieve the Holy Ghost. So that wasn't good. But we arranged for them to get confirmed later that night in their home. It was so cute because they were wearing their pajamas when they got confirmed. 

Sunday night after the confirmation we drove to Upper Hutt to catch the very end of the missionary fireside. Since I'm back in the stake that I started my mission in I got to see everyone from Western Hutt ward. It was so much fun! It felt like I had come home haha. Seiara was there and she gave a talk at the fireside, I was so proud and happy.

Spiritual thought this week comes from President Nelson. He says that the key to connecting with Christ is very simple. "The key is to make and keep sacred covenants. … It is not a complicated way.” Make Christ the center of your life." Life and the gospel doesn't have to be complicated, if you keep Christ the focus, then everything, literally everything will work out.

Ofa Atu

Sister Olson 

Pictures:
-LA and Cherie's family
-Sister Bailey got hit by a car
-Me and Seiara 
-People from my first area
- We had to have a sleep over at the STLs flat
-a member took us out for breakfast 








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