03/31/2014

            This week has actually been crazy, I got transferred again. I’m a Zone Leader in Punaauia, the cool thing is, Bora Bora is in my zone! I hope that I get to serve out in the outer islands again before I come home; the islands are a lot different than the main island of Tahiti. Anyway, in my new companionship, I’m with two Elders for the moment, just until president figures out where to put them; Elder Fitzsimmons and Elder Garvasi. Both Americans, Crazy thing is, Elder Fitzsimmons is from Lehi and knows a lot of my childhood friends like Tanner Eastmond and Andrew Massey! He's really cool, I’m glad the Lord put me with those two, we have a lot of phun together, all while doing the work of the Lord. We recently got 22 new missionaries here, that puts us up to 150 or so missionaries in Tahiti. It’s more than tripled ever since I arrived! There were only about 50 missionaries when I got here. This mission is growing, and I wouldn’t be surprised if another person from alpine got called here.

            I baptized a little boy this week who was in my old zone, he kept changing his mind on wanting to be baptized. He said that I was the only one who could baptize him haha. It was really awesome to go back and see my old ward, I miss them all a ton. I had a really cool experience this week with door to door. For the first time on my mission, I knocked on a door! We were on the tallest mountain in Tahiti and after trying multiple doors, I had the pleasure to knock on the final door. When I knocked someone yelled "come in!" which kinda threw us all off guard, so we decided to just wait for the lady to open the door. When she opened the door, we presented ourselves and asked if she had already met with the missionaries. She stared at us for a second and then finally answered with" I’m a member" It was really phuni to see how the Lord led us to some old abandoned apartments at the top of the tallest mountain in Tahiti just to find one of his wandering sheep. We invited them to come to church the next day. Not only did they come, but they brought an investigator with them! Thanks for all that you guys do for me! Let me know if there is anything you guys want or need! I love you all! I don’t have much time left, so I will end my email right.... now.

 

Elder Fyffe

 

 

 

 

 

 

03/24/2014

                This week was actually pretty dang eventful! I enjoyed every day because I’m just so dang happy to be out here on my mission. Last night we had our second concert for all of the stakes; it went pretty well I thought, they say we keep getting better and better! The only thing was that we didn’t have any air conditioning, the dang thing was broken. So we were all sweating up a storm. There was a part during the concert when I felt the spirit really strong. The sisters were singing "love one another," and I looked out into the crowd and I saw one of my old companions who had finished his mission a few months ago. I hadn’t seen him since he finished, and It brought back a flood of good memories, and I was just extremely grateful that The Lord gave me a good friend like him. Missions are great for that reason, you find true friends.

            After we finished the concert, we started to drive home; it was already pretty late so we were in a hurry. Elder Faatau the driver was driving when all of a sudden he pulled into a house to visit someone. He got out of the car and started to visit with the person when I asked his companion what was going on because we were kinda in a hurry. He told me that it’s a family friend where the father died this past week, so we decided to let him take his time. He then called us over and asked if we could give a blessing to the mother and daughter. I gave the blessing for the daughter and Elder Faatau for the mother. The spirit was really strong during the blessings, and we both felt prompted to testify of the plan of salvation and use that as a base for the blessings. After the blessings the mother told us that The Lord had answered her prayers. Earlier that day after church, she had come home and knelt in prayer, asking her Heavenly Father to send her some angels because she needed help. The Lord sent her 4 missionaries and she was surprised how fast he answered her prayers. I was really happy to be a part of her answer.

            Those simple experiences are always the most powerful for me. The simple proof that our Heavenly Father loves us and answers our prayers! I miss my sister a lot, and there are times when I feel like she’s the only one who could calm my stress at times, just by talking or listening to music with me. Thank goodness that she will always be my sister, because I will always be her loving brother! I can’t wait for the day when we can go do a few temple sessions together!

            I have learned that I can show how happy this gospel has made me, and I hope that others notice the light that shines from within me. Humans are naturally curious, so I know that the best way we can preach this gospel is by our actions. People will see, eventually. I love my life, I love my mission and I love the hope it gives me to always keep moving forward! Thank you all for your prayers. I pray for you all! I love you Teesha! 

Elder Fyffe

 

As for the Pictures, there’s another baptism we had, his name is Potini. We’ve only been teaching him for three weeks, yet he was prepared by the Lord and was baptized last Saturday! The other is of an activity we went to, I love you all!

Note from Deeb for those who are probably asking... I couldn't identify any elders in this pic so I'm presuming they are the on the ground taking the pics and not in swim suits. Safe assumption I think- For those who are likely wondering :)

 

03/17/2014 

            This week has gone by with a lot of laughter for me. Like I have said- the mission is hard, but it’s the most joy that I’ve ever had in my life. I love my life right now! As for the work, we’ve been seeing a lot of miracles happen lately, there have been contacts that we have been getting, and the people already have the desire to change. When we teach them the gospel of Jesus Christ, they see that it’s the only way, and then they accept baptism without even thinking twice. I love these people here. Transfers are going to be happening in this next week or so. I will see if I stay and train, or if I go somewhere else. I hope I stay; I want to get to know this ward better. I love them very much already!

            Today we celebrated the birthday of two elders in our district. We had a BBQ for them. I’ve had meat sweats ever since this afternoon! I feel so fat! When I come home, we’re getting a gym membership!  

            I think that you would all be glad to know that the missionaries here have a choir program going on. We sing every weekend in a different stake. Surprisingly enough, even to myself, I sing in a quartet. I didn’t sign up for it; someone threw my name in because they heard me sing one day, but I actually enjoy it! A lot of my timidity has gone away. Missions really change a lot about a person. I’m still the same old Chrixtian, it’s just that God is getting rid of all the not so great things about me and helping me become a good person. I still have a long way to go, but little by little, I like the person I’m becoming. I can’t seem to get rid of my craziness though. I have too much phun making others laugh at my sake haha.

            The pictures I sent are of a family that I interviewed for their baptisms. I love those guys soo much. Their last name is "U." But at the end of the night, I told them all to make a phuni face for the picture, and they actually did it! Before I forget, the package still isn’t here yet! Anyway, that’s about it for this week! I wish I could send you all some of my crazy dancing videos, but they’re too big to send. So you will all have to wait! I love you all so much! Stay safe this week! 

Elder Fyffe

 

03/10/2014

           

            Not a lesson goes by where I don’t testify of the love that I have for my family; a love that took my whole life up to this point to understand. I do have the best parents in the world, it’s the biggest reason to be excited when it's time to come home.

             My mission is stinkin hard, I’ve never been more tired in my life, and it’s seriously the best though. I love it too much I think. I pray for you guys every night. 8 months left, I’ve been gone for 16 months! Stinkin crazy but in what will feel like a weeks’ time, I will be home! I can’t wait! This week went by fast with a bunch of cool experiences. I love my new companion, he’s chill and already speaks really good French, and is more of a friend than my companion. Life is good. All I want these people to know is that their Father in Heaven loves them, and that I love them.

            We went on a hike yesterday, and then the other pictures are of a stake activity and then another baptism that we had. I love you guys, thanks for everything!! 

Elder Fyffe

 

03/04/2014 Transfer

03/04/2014

          The big news for this week is that I was transferred! I’m still on Tahiti, but I’ve changed the area, Now I’m in a little town on the waterfront called Matatia. It’s actually pretty hard for me to adjust to things right now, the only thoughts that go through my head are, "this isn’t my home." My "home" being the last ward I was in for 8 months of my life! I love and miss those guys. Very difficult to get up and bear my last testimony with them on Sunday. At least they all know that I love them more than anything, because at one time or another, I told them personally. God really blessed me in that last sector; I never knew that I would feel so much at home, away from home. Also being away from my old district is pretty rough too, I was extremely close with them all, the good thing is though, I will see them every Monday. I told them that it was hard enough leaving my family in America, now I had to leave my family in Tahara'a. I didn’t cry though, because they all told me not too haha. They’ve all adopted me though, so if we ever need a place to stay, I know where to go.  
         
          Well, Most of the things I have to talk about, I wrote in my journal last night, so I don’t have much to say. My camera might die soon, so I’m going to buy another one... Which will make me poor, but at least I will be rich in memories that it will capture! Here are the pictures of this past week, this will tell the rest of the story for me. I love you all so much, stay safe this week!

Elder Fyffe

02/24/2014 

            2 years really is a long time, a ton of things happen, people grow up, some people shrink... (Mom) some pass away while others are born. There are times on the mission where people tell me of life changing experiences that they have had. How maybe they almost got hit by a car, or how they read a scripture and it changed their outlook on life, welcoming a new child into this world, or even getting lost in a song. All of these things can change our lives, and they don’t even take more than 10 minutes. God gave us a lifetime in order to prepare ourselves for the second coming of his Son, think of how much time we must all waste, maybe waiting for these life changing experiences to come to us. Being a missionary has made me see how we don’t have to wait for these experiences to come to us, but when we go out looking for them, we find them. I can’t even begin to explain the changes I’ve had in my life, most of you have probably noticed a few already.

            I’ve also had the privilege of hearing people testify that through the missionaries, they received the gospel and that it has changed their lives. They thought they had It all figured out, they came into the light of this gospel and realized that they were actually pretty far from the path. We were lucky enough to be visited by Elder Nelson this past week; they came to give a training to all of the missionaries. Just before he gave his talk, his wife spoke and she said a phrase that really got me thinking. She said, "Be the kind of missionary that your mother thinks you are." Ma, what kind of missionary do you think I am? I can’t really say for myself, because if it were up to me, I would say that I’m not that great of a missionary. I just love these people more than anything. Ma, I hope you know that I do my best because I know you pray for me at least 17 times a day. I’m out here because I love my family, and I do all I can, so that whenever people hear the last name Fyffe, They are reminded of all of the good things I did as a missionary.

            I’m known for being crazy, I just can’t seem to shake that quality that I have, and it comes with the Fyffe name... I do all that I can though, so you can be proud of me, and so that I can become the missionary that you think I am. As a mother, you have a sense of what I can become, I apologize that it’s taken me this long to start to become this person. But through everything you tell me, I know that I’m well on my way.

            I was able to give a blessing for the first time in English yesterday, to a Sister Missionary in my zone, I was prompted to tell her how proud God is of her, and all that she does for his work. I feel like even with all of the faults and weaknesses that I have, he never really has lost sight of the person that I, inevitably, will one day become. He's probably giggled a few times because of all the stupid mistakes I’ve made, but he’s definitely the most patient person I’ve ever known. He’s never once left my side. Thanks Ma, for adopting this amazing quality from our Loving Heavenly Father, you have never once given up on me. Even when you already saw the outcome of my actions, way before I did. I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done, just know that I work my hardest, for the people I love. So that I may become the missionary that you always knew I could be.

            Thank you all for your prayers, don’t forget to pray for my companion too! As for the Pictures, It’s just of some ants at church, then me on a split with another Elder, so we took some cool alleyway photos, than the last is of a family night that we held, all those people are my adopted family. Be safe this week, I love you all! 

Elder Fyffe

 

02/19/2014

CRAZY how Sister Green is back!! I talked to her last week, now she was with you guys; it hurts my brain to think that my mission will actually come to an end. But she looks really happy to be with you guys, so I can’t imagine how happy I will be when I’m with you guys ha!            

            As for this week’s adventures, not too much has gone on actually. It’s been pretty chill compared to last week. I continue to see the Lords hand in his work as I am out talking to people.

Our congregation at church has almost doubled since I have been in this ward; I still haven’t been transferred by the way. Anyway, this past Sunday, we had to open the back curtains and add three rows of chairs. I love going to church now, it’s weird that I never liked to before. But now that I go, I see all of the people who I have helped, and who have helped me, And I just get lost in the atmosphere.  

            Sorry to cut this letter short but I actually have to go, so I will try to have cooler experiences next week to write about. Just know that I love you all, that I’m getting fat, which means there is more of me for you all to love. Stay safe this week!

Elder Fyffe