Rain! Rain!

Howdy!

Hello to everyone!!! I love you all!!  My p-day was filled with fishing for food, washing clothes in bowls and eating cream crackers .... It was a party. :)

This week was great!  It rained a lot.  It was amazing!  Apparently it was the first big rain in about nine months.  Whoot!  It was great!  It cooled everything off!  I love the cold!  Everyone in the world should be grateful for the cold! :)  Hard to say that to you who are probably freezing right now.... :)

The rain helped with the mosquitoes.  I have learned the reason for mosquitoes is to make us grateful for when we are not being bitten by them. :) I am very grateful for bug spray.

I was able go on splits with Elder Jubeck for three days!!!  He is awesome!  He reminds me a lot of Tyler!  It was awesome.  We were lead by the Spirit so much, it was great!

We are still waiting for a Branch President to be assigned. Until that happens, we will not be able to do much organizing within the branch.  Hopefully next week....

Our hut on the northern part of the island .... It has not progressed...  But we work on it occasionally. It's a slow process ....  But it will get there.  I am very excited for it!  We did chop open coconuts to get money to buy supplies for the hut though.  Coconuts = money. :)

Thank you for everything - your thoughts, prayers, friendship....everything!!! I love you all! 

Thanks!

Keep the faith!
Hurrah for Israel!
Love,
Elder Weenig

Rained ....  more of like an ocean fell from the sky.....  Somehow....

Rain and more rain 

Our fishing hole

With Elder Jubeck

My first catch. This is not the bait. :)  (We are hoping this was a catch and release)

A fishy situation ... Is kissing a fish wrong? I thought so ... But apparently you are supposed to do it to be able to catch more fish .... It is a lie, I didn't catch anymore fish after that ....

Trucks, Leadership and Goals

Howdy y’all!

This week was good.  It went in the blink of an eye.  For church, we hired trucks to bring people from both ends of the island to the center where our branch has a maneaba (pavilion). It was great.  It is our last week doing that because the mission wants the branches to be independent of the missionaries help.  Which is great!  The members here are mostly all new, so they just need to learn how to function the Kingdom of God, so that they can do it without outside aide.  It will be great!

Lesson of the week: Everyone needs to be a leader at some point.  As I have been the new, trainee, I have been the follower.  Following my trainer from lesson to lesson and while I teach, I mostly testify of the truthfulness of my companion's words - I hope they are true, I sometimes don't quite grasp the language completely. ;) But, this past week, due to companionship exchanges, I have had to take a leadership role in showing the new elders around.  It boosted my confidence.  It motivated me in my work.  It was great to be able to successfully meet and teach people.  I felt great!  I loved it!  Anyway, the best way to feel confident is to pray and then to do your best to follow the Spirit. That is what I have learned this past week.

 As a missionary, we focus a lot on goal setting.  It is great.  Another missionary, Elder Johnson, shared this way of goal setting with me, so I figured I would share it will you all:

1. Write down your Vision - overall, big picture of self or project.
2. Write down any obstacles that will prevent you from reaching that vision.  Be specific!
3. Write down SPECIFIC ways to overcome the obstacles.
4. Make a very detailed plan, using SMARTS:
    S - Specific
    M - Measurable
    A - Agreed upon with God (and companion if need be)
    R - Realistic
    T - Time Specific
    S - Stretches you to be better
5. Get to work!  Do it!  Get others to support you in the goal setting and achieving.

Yep,  I thought that was nice and helpful, so I thought I would share it.  Hope it helps at least one of you.

I know that the church is true and that through God we can do all. Through Christ and His Infinite Atonement, we can become greater than we can ever imagine.  I know that my Savior lives and that through Him I can do all things.  I testify of the power of prayer and the power of continually turning our minds and hearts towards God.  I testify that it is real - the gospel is real.  I know it.  I do my best to live it.  I love it.

Love you all!  You are all such remarkable, great people!  I know that you all have such a great influence on those around you!  You have all had a great influence on me!  I know that the world is a crazy place, and that things are crazy back in America, but I know that God sent each of us here at this time to the specific places He sent us, for a reason.  We can do so much in any place that we are in.  We can overcome.  You all can do this!  I love you!

Thank you for everything - your thoughts, prayers, friendship....everything!!! I love you all! Thanks!

The church is true!  Go team!

Love you!
Keep the faith!
Stay strong!
Hurrah for Israel!
Elder Weenig

The Holy Ghost Testifies Clearly and Perfectly

Howdy,

This week has been great!  Having another set of missionaries on the island is great! Our week has been crazy because we have gone on splits to show them around the island and whatnot.  They will work on the south end of the island and we will work on the north end. We all still live in the same house, which is in the south, until ours is built in the north, so it is very crowded.:)  Also, Elder Kennedy went on a split with Elder Jubeck to Abatiku. (the small island off of Abemama) .  Apparently the entire island wants lessons over there.  It is awesome!!!  I am very glad that all is well over there.  I worked with Elder Johnson. He was great to work with.  It was fun to see his style of teaching.  It is very different from Elder Kennedy's.  It was cool to see the differences and combined them into my own teaching. :)

I was able to go on a split with Elder Jubeck for a day. He is as new as I am, so we had to rely completely on the Spirit.   A lot of our lessons fell through, but our final one was the most amazing thing ever!!!  It was with Tebetikai, a woman that has been cold to lessons in the past. But we were able to teach her and she loved it. She said she had had lessons before, but had not understood them.  But that she understood our lesson. She cried at the end of the lesson and was so happy. :) That is how I know that the Holy Spirit was there. Because she said it was very well explained - but only the Holy Ghost can testify clearly and perfectly to everyone.  He gave her the needed understanding.  I am grateful for that.  It was a wonderful experience.

Another highlight of the week is that we received a pan sent out from Tarawa!  Now we can cook if we don't have a meal provided. Whoot!! We almost always have meals, but it is nice to have the back up. :)

Our investigators are doing well.  A couple, Karabeia (teenage girl) and Tui (middle-age man) are progressing towards baptism.  There are a few that will follow closely after them.  I am happy for them. :)

Thank you for everything! I love you so much and pray for you daily! Thank you for your thoughts and prayers!

THANK YOU AND LOVE YOU!!!!

Hurrah for Israel!

Love,
Elder Weenig

Return to Abemama

Howdy!

I am back in Abemama!  With two new elders. Our house is very busy now.  Elder Jubeck and Elder Johnson. Elder Jubeck is from my MTC intake and Elder Johnson is one intake behind Elder Kennedy (about a year and a half).  They are both amazing and are truly consecrated missionaries.  I am so happy they will work on Abemama with Elder Kennedy and I.  It is going to be great!

Tarawa was great, but it is great to be back in Abemama and to have Abemamaian food.  In Tarawa, we only had three or four actual meals.  The rest was just bread.  The day we returned we were fed dinner at our first, second, and third lessons. :) The only two foods that I need to learn to like are:  sea worm and octopus.  I like the rest.  My favorite is fried breadfruit.

I am glad to be back to work. We should be able to teach more lessons now that our area is smaller -- less biking. :)  I hope and pray to improve and that the Holy Ghost will be my constant companion.  One thing that I have found, as I study in the morning is that a lot of the scriptures are addressed purely to the members of the church and to all people.  I read them as a missionary and see how very important they are, but I wish I had seen that before.  Every single scripture and every single word of every prophet applies to us personally.  To me personally.  I am so extremely glad for this time on my mission to learn the word of the Lord and learn to apply into my life by serving others and living the pure words of Christ.  His gospel is simple:  Faith in Jesus Christ, Repentance, Baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end.  I think we all make that too complicated. We just need to believe in Christ and obey His commandments.... And in return we receive eternal happiness and life.  It is a pretty good trade.  I like it. :)

Well, in news. Our branch president left, so we will get a new one soon.  My companion is the branch president until that time.  To correct something I said in a previous letter :  the fuel did not come from Fiji, the mission president had nothing to do with getting the fuel.... We asked and that is what we were told, but they told us over text message and the sarcasm did not come through with the text message.... So, I accidentally lied to you all. Sorry.  Anyway.  Life here is great!  Kiribati is amazing!  The people are so kind and loving and faithful.  They believe with every fiber of their being. It is amazing.

I love you all!  The Lord has given us a great work to do!  I know that through the Lord we can accomplish His work!   It is amazing to be in the service of God!  He provides me with so much peace, joy, and support.  I know that He supports me and will help me do all things. I know that the Lord is real.  He lives.  He helps us each and every day.  He is truly all-knowing, all-loving, and all-powerful!  I testify that we can ask for His help and He will grant us the needed strength.  I believe in Christ.  He truly is our King - the king of His kingdom, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Let's go save some souls - either through the temple or through inviting someone to church.  Either way we are saving a brother or sister. We got this!

Love you all!  Keep the faith!!!
Hurrah for Israel!!!!
Love you!!!
Elder Weenig

Elder Kennedy and I with the Branch President and his family.

Our transportation from Tarawa to Abemama.  The plane holds about 18 people.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Howdy!!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

I hope that you all have had a wonderful holiday season.  I did.  I came to Tarawa, the main island.  We had Christmas as a mission and I was able to Skype home to the world's best family!!!  I love them so much!!!  They are fantastic.  Also, prayers are answered.  I prayed for the Skype call to work -- it usually doesn't for my mission.  And it did!!!  I am soo happy!!!  It was great!!!  I love Christmas.

The best part about Christmas is that we are able to refocus on what is truly important in life.  CHRIST!!! He is our light and our life. It is through Him that we can do all things.  We can feel joy, we can overcome all things, we can feel peace.  I know that He lives, and that He loves us!!!  He is our Lord and our Savior!!!  I hope that y'all remembered the most essential part of CHRISTmas, because it makes the season so much more joyful.  Because He is born for us!  He is born to save us from our sins.  He lives now.  He leads us through His prophet, Thomas S. Monson.  Christ is alive.  Truly.  He was born for us, He died for us, and He arose again for us!!!  I love  Him and know with all of the fibers of my being -- my heart, my soul, my mind, my body -- that He loves me and He loves all of you!!!  I am grateful for Christ and for Christmas.

For New Year's Eve, our mission ate dinner with the President of Kiribati.  It was amazing. They had traditional Kiribati dancers and singers.  A traditional Kiribati feast -- the whole pig and everything.  We all received flower crowns and whatnot.  It was an enjoyable experience.  I am grateful for the New Year and for the president's recognition of how beneficial the church is for his country and for his people.  Wherever the church goes, the country is blessed.  I believe that.  The gospel uplifts not only those who hear its message, but also uplifts those that they come in contact with and their country.

We received training from our mission president and the president of the Pacific Region of the Church.  We learned that we must set goals and work to achieve them -- fitting for the New Year.  And that we must declare the gospel with a voice of rejoicing!  The gospel is joyous and happy!!!  I am glad that I have been blessed with it in my life!!!  I know that it is real!  It is true!!!  It leads to true happiness and peace.  I invite you all to enjoy the power the gospel brings through striving to increase your faith everyday, every minute.  I have seen it work on my mission.  I know that it is real and true and that it truly works.

Also, I learned something amazing!  One, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is actually and truly is God's kingdom on the earth today!!!  It is His kingdom!  Like His kingdom is established in these days!!!!  How amazing is that?!  Also,  I learned that the name of the City of Enoch was Zion.  So, if we are building Zion, we are striving to be like the City of Enoch!  How amazing?!  How great a responsibility!  That is awesome!!  I hope and pray that I fulfill my part in preparing God's children for the Second Coming of His Son.

Keep the faith!!!  Lets go save souls (missionary work, temple work, fellowshipping, etc)!!! We got this!  We cannot lose, the Lord is on our side!!!!  Love you all!!!

Let's build up Zion!
Hurrah for Israel!!!

Love,
Elder Weenig

Our Christmas tree with Elder Kennedy (Evansville, Indiana)

I love the bananas.  They are small but tasty

P-day -- boat ride with the members

Island sunset

Cutting coconuts

Shower hut and shower bucket

Weaving roof pieces

World War II wreckage

Dinner with the president of Kiribati.  We are wearing the crowns we were given as guests.

Christmas dinner

Marshall Islands Kiribati Region missionaries
with President and Sister Halecks (President of the Pacific Region of the church) and President and Sister Larkin

Skypeing with the family