Abemama

Howdy!!  So, I only have like five minutes, so this will be brief.

I am on Abemama.  It is the best!!!  We have fans in our house - which is half of a cinder block hut.

We have a bucket for a shower.... And we get to filter our water, which is great. :)

Food: water (actually sugar water, they put in sugar to hide the taste), rice, noodles, and fish.  I did have bread for one meal.  The food is pretty good.  Except the canned ham.  That is evil....

We run three different sacrament meetings. (About 85 people came this Sunday) So, that is our entire Sunday.  It is awesome here.  I love it.

Sorry that this is so short, the internet is down except in a building... We are borrowing a worker's computer for a bit.

Thank you for everything. Tell everyone that I love them so much!!!!

I LOVE YOU!!!!

Elder Weenig

Waiting to board the plane in Salt Lake City

Grateful to receive an email from President Larkin along with this picture which includes President and Sister Larkin "... Elder Weenig, arrived safely in Tarawa...Elder Weenig has been assigned to his trainer, Elder Kennedy, and they will serve on an outer island called Abemama which is located in the central islands of Kiribati...." 

Week Six - Final Week at the MTC

HOWDY,

Wow!!! It is going by sooo fast here in the MTC.  I will be leaving for Kiribati next Tuesday.  So I am getting ready for that.  It is all coming up so quickly.  I am excited to go out and serve!

Soup box moment:  Our new President of the U. S. is a touch (more than a touch) ... different ... but that does not mean that we should not support him.  Remember that it is the people of the nation, not the president that dictates that future of our country.  "government BY the people, FOR the people, and OF the people"  Lots of peoples in that statement!  Food for thought.

I know that this gospel is true and real!!  Jenny Oaks Baker came to speak to us on Sunday!  It was great!!!!  She spoke on the power of prayer and how if we seek to be more exactly obedient to the will of the Lord, He will bless us.  The Lord has given us everything!  The only thing we can give to Him that He hadn't already is our agency.  Give our will to His will.  I know that He will lead us to do right!!!

I love you all!!!  I hope you are loving life!  Keep the faith and let's build Zion!

Hurrah for Israel!

Elder Weenig

Brother and Sister Heward - Sister Heward is the seminary secretary at Timpanogos. They are in my branch presidency at the MTC.

Week 5 -- Let's Build Zion

Howdy!!!!

I hope that you are all doing well!  So this week.. It has been great!!!

Okay, down to business.  The gospel is true! 

The MTC is crazy.  I am learning a lot.  We had a Skype TRC (where we teach real people as opposed to role playing people)  It went well.  I mostly understood what was going on, and I think that the person we were talking to understood us....  It was great!!!

Guess who came to the MTC!!!!  You were close. Nice guess.  It was PRESIDENT NELSON!!!! (Sorry to all of those that read ahead, so the surprise was ruined for you....)  Anyway, it was great to hear from him.  He is amazing!!!  He talked about how the Lord is hastening the work, and so we must keep the pace.  We have much to do - missionaries and members.  He said to make sure that we had written the new and everlasting covenant on our hearts - keep it with us always and hold true to it.  

Along with that, at a bishop's training conference, Elder Christofferson said that while the world is wicked enough for the Lord to come again (I agree on this point, I mean, just look at this year's election candidates.... :)  ), the members of the church are not committed enough to their covenants for Him to come.  I really liked that thought.  We can become better and as we become more committed to our promises with God, we will be preparing the way for the Lord to come to earth.  So, my challenge to you (and to myself as well)  is to go and be more committed to the promises that we have already made.  

We've got this, we can be the change that corrects the wrongs of the world.  All we have to do is change our hearts! 

Let's all go out and build Zion!!!!  I love you all!!!  Keep on being awesome!

Hurrah for Israel!!!

Love,

Elder Weenig

With Elder Sagapolu on a field trip to the doctor's office.

P-day sandcastle with Elder Shurtleff