Christmas Letter to Our Ward Family

To Whom It May Concern, J

 

Merry Christmas! It is currently about 19 degrees outside. And here I am, wearing a t-shirt and shorts. That may sound absurd, but these New Zealanders go by something called the centigrade system. So that means it’s really like 60 something and climbing. Christmas in summer is going to be weird as. I am currently serving in a little town called Waimate. If you don't know where that is, it is just south of Timaru. And if you don't know where that is, it’s just south of Christchurch. So I am part of the Canterbury District in the Christchurch Zone, where heaps of earthquakes and other fun stuff happen. Whooooooo :)

 

Church in New Zealand is basically the same as church at home. My current branch has 2 sets of Elders and about 50 active members. Alexandra, my first area, had approximately 6 people on a good Sunday. Including my companion and me. Something that is a bit different about church here is that members normally can't just walk down the block to church or to the temple a neighborhood over. No Excuses Eighth Ward! Also it is socially acceptable for some men to wear skirts to Church. Lookin' Flash Brethren.

 

One of my favorite experiences as a missionary so far is probably when members give us referrals and the person turns into a golden investigator. Or when I first committed someone to baptism and they accepted. That was pretty cool. But then I got transferred, so best of luck to the new Elders haha.

 

So my companion and I went garage sale hunting one Saturday morning while we were waiting for it to be time for us to go do service. We found someone selling one of those sandwich press things. We haggled with all of our might, mind and strength and were finally able to buy it for 5 whole kiwi dollars. And now we use that baby to cook nigh on everything. So I have been eating lots of toast and sandwiches and then whatever members happen to feed us. Also, lots of ice cream. Good stuff.

 

Life as a missionary is pretty routine feeling, so you have to find things to make you laugh through the day. We don't have a lot of investigators here in Waimate, so we do lots of finding, which usually means door knocking, since there is no one on the streets to talk to. Some people will be interested, but most are not. It is nice when people will nicely talk to you, but there are many who don't speak quite as kindly. I find that that breaks up my day a bit, when I have to hold in laughter after someone slams the door on us, after only seeing our badges. This keeps me going, because I think it’s pretty hilarious seeing how mad people get, and because I know that it is the adversary that makes them this way. We teach that the closer we grow to Christ and our Heavenly Father, the harder Satan will try to pull us away. He knows that the work we do will destroy his footing in the hearts of these New Zealanders, so he tries his best to make our work harder. In Utah, we are surrounded my members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints every day. But here, we are establishing Zion. It is not an easy job, but it is necessary. The gospel must "penetrate every continent, visit every clime, sweep every country, and sound in every ear" (Joseph Smith).

 

I know that the work I am doing is the work of our Heavenly Father, and I am proud to represent Him and our Saviour Jesus Christ. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

 

Love, Elder Paulson