I am late updating this Blog as we have been travelling, but I will report on that next week. This week was also busy but peaceful. We spent a lot of time visiting with non-active members. They are always so welcoming and I wonder why they don't choose to associate with the members because they are so kind to us and willing to visit and love us to leave a thought, lesson, or prayer in their homes.
If you look closely at the above picture you can see a beautiful Monarch Butterfly almost in the center of the picture. It represents the peace we have felt this week in our work. One day we cooked a meal for the Elders as they journeyed through to Nelson for interviews with the President. We missed the association with the group but had been told we didn't need to come to Nelson, so we stayed home and worked with the members.
When the Elders got back from Nelson they phoned us and told us we would have District Meeting with them in Greymouth. We were glad as it gives us the lift we need for the week. They told us they might be having a baptism on the 16th of March. A young girl whom they had been working with really wanted to be baptized and only needed her mother's permission. She wrote a beautiful letter to her mom and told her how much she loved her mom and how much she really loved Heavenly Father and how much she wanted to be baptized. She took the letter to her mother on the weekend and her mother gave her permission to be baptized. The elders are so excited. When we came back from Greymouth we stopped at the Punakaiki Rocks (Pancake Rocks) and they were really exciting. The blowholes were blowing water and it was so grand. It was exciting to see.
On Friday we journeyed to Karamea. It was a beautiful day and a wonderful drive. An interesting side note. One of the dear sisters who lives up here was having a problem and prayed about who could help her. Our names came up several times and she kept saying to herself they can't come because they were just here for a visit. Finally, she called us and was so thrilled when she knew that we were coming up to visit another lady. Heavenly Father sure works in miraculous ways if we will just listen, as this lady did. So we were able to help this sister and then able to go on to visit Zelda. Zelda is an interesting Maori lady. We had a great visit with her. She is busy with her home care business, she weaves crystals, and does deep tissue massages. She is famous for her massages, she has customers coming from Perth, Australia. Above you can see an interesting tree that was in her back yard that the children have made a swing for. We asked her if she ever swung on the swing and said laughed heartily and said no she didn't know who would give her a massage when she was done. We all had a good laugh over that one. I don't know if she will ever come to Church. She said she has been a member all her life but right now she is a "naughty girl" but she also said "I like you. Please come back again."
Above you can see a bridge, the only one left, we've been told; that is used for both trains and cars. It is also a one-way bridge and everyone "Gives Way" to the train. They have narrow gauge trains here in New Zealand. This bridge is just out of Greymouth on the way to Hokitika.
Above you can see the clock tower in the middle of Hokitika. We journeyed down after District Meeting. What an interesting town. It is touristy but very beautiful. They have a lot of Jade Carving places here. We hope to come down again and see some of the other things here. The trip was quite quick as the road was wider than usual and not a winding.
If you look closely at the above picture you can see a beautiful Monarch Butterfly almost in the center of the picture. It represents the peace we have felt this week in our work. One day we cooked a meal for the Elders as they journeyed through to Nelson for interviews with the President. We missed the association with the group but had been told we didn't need to come to Nelson, so we stayed home and worked with the members.
When the Elders got back from Nelson they phoned us and told us we would have District Meeting with them in Greymouth. We were glad as it gives us the lift we need for the week. They told us they might be having a baptism on the 16th of March. A young girl whom they had been working with really wanted to be baptized and only needed her mother's permission. She wrote a beautiful letter to her mom and told her how much she loved her mom and how much she really loved Heavenly Father and how much she wanted to be baptized. She took the letter to her mother on the weekend and her mother gave her permission to be baptized. The elders are so excited. When we came back from Greymouth we stopped at the Punakaiki Rocks (Pancake Rocks) and they were really exciting. The blowholes were blowing water and it was so grand. It was exciting to see.
On Friday we journeyed to Karamea. It was a beautiful day and a wonderful drive. An interesting side note. One of the dear sisters who lives up here was having a problem and prayed about who could help her. Our names came up several times and she kept saying to herself they can't come because they were just here for a visit. Finally, she called us and was so thrilled when she knew that we were coming up to visit another lady. Heavenly Father sure works in miraculous ways if we will just listen, as this lady did. So we were able to help this sister and then able to go on to visit Zelda. Zelda is an interesting Maori lady. We had a great visit with her. She is busy with her home care business, she weaves crystals, and does deep tissue massages. She is famous for her massages, she has customers coming from Perth, Australia. Above you can see an interesting tree that was in her back yard that the children have made a swing for. We asked her if she ever swung on the swing and said laughed heartily and said no she didn't know who would give her a massage when she was done. We all had a good laugh over that one. I don't know if she will ever come to Church. She said she has been a member all her life but right now she is a "naughty girl" but she also said "I like you. Please come back again."
Above you can see a bridge, the only one left, we've been told; that is used for both trains and cars. It is also a one-way bridge and everyone "Gives Way" to the train. They have narrow gauge trains here in New Zealand. This bridge is just out of Greymouth on the way to Hokitika.
Above you can see the clock tower in the middle of Hokitika. We journeyed down after District Meeting. What an interesting town. It is touristy but very beautiful. They have a lot of Jade Carving places here. We hope to come down again and see some of the other things here. The trip was quite quick as the road was wider than usual and not a winding.
It is great to read your blog. It brings back wonderful memories. You seem to be doing a wonderful thing in Westport and the area. Lots of love the Hoaglands
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