Well HELLO EVERYONE! Hope you all have a had a wonderful week. It was another beautiful week here in Aotearoa!
So of course we wanted to enjoy the sun during our summer season! But sometimes as a missionary, we can't. BUT GUESS WHAT?! WE GOT TO!!! There is a member that works on and owns a farm. He also works for another farmer, who really needed some help. So literally most of our week was farming. And what an amazing miracle it was. We felt kind of bad that we spent so much time farming and not so much out knocking on doors, But CHECK THIS OUT!!! While we were milking cows on the farm the member works at... the boss came over.... AND INVITED US TO HIS HOUSE FOR DINNER!!! He wanted to know why we would willingly and with no cost help him. We hadn't even met him or talked to him! "Preach the Gospel at all times, and if you have to, use words" The service we gave was enough for him to want to know why!
Then we had ring some pigs! Like put a ring in their noses. The reason why is because, believe it or not pigs dig WITH THEIR NOSES!!! Imagine that ? Aye? That's a new form of putting your nose in something. SO to prevent that, we pierced their noses with the ring, cause it hurts their noses when they dig! So much fun! What made that even more fun was we had to catch the pig.
We first started off by leading the pigs to go to the trough to eat, then grabbing their hind legs and then holding them down...but thats no fun. The Members who works there (and owns his own farm too) brought in in-active brother. (Shannon here: "In-active means someone who is a baptized member of the church, but isn't active in church activities.) And we all know what happens when brothers get together... Competition time!
So we said "forget the tricks, let just tackle them"! OH YEAH THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD IDEA... lets try and tackle 60kg pigs while they are running. And we learned something that day. Pigs. Are. Fast! and they can juke. So many time as we were running after the pigs, they would step us! ( meaning juke) and because of that we would slip and fall right into a fresh patch of pig "mud" ... you know what I am talking about... Wilber, you are not so sweet. But at the end of it all we were able to have a good time! Plus got to share a little something with the brother! So all in all it was great.
All in all I really grew to appreciate the work... I also learned why Adam lived so long, because " by the sweat of his brow he made his daily bread" he was a farmer... and man .. do you need to be in shape to do it!
OKAY ENOUGH ABOUT FARMING
To wrap this up, Sunday was a great day! We are currently staring up a group in a place called Pangakawa. And on Sunday the group President, Brother O., called and asked if we could speak. Of course we love to.. but we would be the only ones to speak.. and my companion.. that sly dog.. only spoke FOR 10 MINUTES... I had my talk all ready for maybe a 20 minute talk.. not 40. So of course I'm like "flip 40 minutes". But so many times the Lord has been my voice, during times like these. but for some reason I always doubt.. But as I got up..my original plan was talk on Obedience.. but the spirit took a different route.. on missionary work. So I'm up there.. no notes.. just a humble spirit.. And I end up talking for 45 minutes.. without a single pause. Just words kept coming and coming. And at the End. I knew that the Lord had been my voice. Sometimes, we need to get out of the way and let the Lord work through us. He can't get through to others if we are blocking him with our doubts.
I know that is true!
Well I love you all!
-Elder Gish
December 6, 2015
Kia ora Whanau! Tena Koe e Hoa!
ELVIS HAS LEFT THE BUILDING! I got transferred back to TAURANGA!!!! South Auckland was so awesome, and I will miss everyone there dearly. But it is so awesome to be back here in Tauranga! I love this place. The area is so flipping awesome! I Love it so much, the welcome into the ward was probably one of the warmest I have received. I am with an awesome Elder named Elder N. He is a Samoan Aussie,and the flipping man. 
So we are serving in a Ward, but we are also serving in a Group! Its like the pre-stages of a Branch! So we do heaps of service out there. IN FACT! On Thursday we were helping out a member who owns a farm, and we milked 400+ cows! It was so much fun! But at the same nasty.. While I was under a cow milking her, she decided to give me a present.. then everything went black..but i guess that's nothing out of the ordinary! I still loved it! But as of right now we are just trying to build the area up.
But I wanted to share something I read in my personal studies.
Revelation 3:3 " I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour i will come upon thee".
In my last area we had a member experience a terrible break in from a thief, it could have been a lot worse, but he was prepared! So it is the same when Christ comes. We need to make sure we have a plan in line when he comes. We know it will be soon. ' Proper preparation prevents poor performance'. I have been thinking alot about this scripture and how I personally dont wan't to be unprepared when Christ comes. The only reason that member in my last area prevented a catastrophic event was because he was prepared. A thief is only harmful if we dont know that he is there, but if we do all we can to make sure we are prepared for such an event, no harm will come.
I know that being prepared for Christ's coming is so important because he will be here sooner then we think!
I love you all!
Thanks for reading!
-Elder Gish
