Mālo e lelei!!! (One last time)

Mālo e lelei!!!  (One last time)

That's right, we got transfer calls on Saturday. I'm moving to the Magna East Stake and will be training a new missionary from Minnesota, Sister Garrow! I'm excited and nervous to train again, and I'm really sad to be leaving the Tongan stake, but it is what it is.

This week was absolutely amazing. I'm talking miracle upon miracle every single day!

On Tuesday we met a girl our age named Kylie. She showed up at church and told our ward mission leader that she wanted to be taught the lessons! Her boyfriend recently got sent to prison and she decided that she wanted to go to his church so that she can write down the lessons and send them to him to help keep his faith strong. But while she was there she really liked what she was hearing and started thinking about her own conversion! She is SO nice and she treats us like royalty. Seriously, I have never met someone with more real intent and desire to learn. She's amazing!!

We had the most AMAZING lesson of my whole life on Wednesday with Jenlei!! We were talking about our purpose in life, and she was telling us how she knows that THIS is where she needs to be right now and she knows it, but she is scared to take that leap of faith and be baptized because she doesn't want to let us or bishop or anyone in the ward down if she messes up. We told her "Jenlei!! You could never let us down, we love you!! You just have to take that leap of faith and trust God, that He is going to be there to hold you up!" The spirit in the room was almost tangible! SOOO she is going to be getting married AND baptized on November 18th, in just 11 days!! All in the same day!! Ahhh!!

We also got to see Crystal on Tuesday & Sunday!! Seriously I have never met someone with more faith. So last week when I said they got the place they were looking for, it turns out they didn't because they still need a financial backup to sign the contract with them. So right now they are jumping from hotel to hotel, and her husband's family is paying for it. When we saw her yesterday she said the day before she was about ready to throw in the towel, but she said that she isn't done yet, and she has faith, so she went to church and payed her tithing! She amazes me more and more every time is see her, I feel like she teaches us more through her example of living the gospel than we teach her sometimes. She is already becoming a missionary at her job and has invited her co worker and supervisor to the ward Christmas party next month and to church!! She is on fire!! 🔥🔥

Other amazing things that happened this week: I taught my first lesson in Spanish!!! It went great! There is a Hispanic couple that likes coming to the Tongan ward and the husband isn't a member and he only speaks Spanish. So we took a member with us that speaks Spanish and he and I taught the lesson. I was terrified but it went good and the Spirit was there.

All in all, this week was unforgettable. I'm really sad to be leaving but excited for what is to come!

 I can't really put it in words how much I'm going to miss the people here and Sister Afungia. Everyone I have met here has taught me how to love people, like really truly LOVE people how Jesus Christ loves. Sister Afungia is an amazing example of following of President Thomas S. Monson's counsel, "Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved." She loves and gives with her whole heart  and I've been so blessed to serve with her. I've never felt so much love in return for our service. She has definitely showed me how to be obedient to the first and second greatest commandments, to " love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." And to "love thy neighbour as thyself." I'm so grateful for the opportunities I have had on my mission to serve in the Polynesian wards. The people I have met here have become my family, and some how some way I'm going to come back, haha. I testify that God is love, He is so loving and more than anything He wants to show us how loving He is. We can see it when we serve others and pray to see them through God's eyes. It might sound like a burden to do so at first, but it's not. It actually makes our load so much light to care for others. I'm so blessed to be a missionary where literally my only job 24/7 is to SERVE other people, and that comes in more ways than just sharing the gospel. So I want to challenge you this week to look for 2 opportunities to serve someone else. Whether it's paying for someone's food at a restaurant, racking someone's leave in their yard, or sending an encouraging text message, there are so many ways to serve our neighbors. After, before he preached his gospel, Jesus Christ "made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant.."  I testify that serving and sharing the gospel go hand in hand, and that I love this work!

I hope you all have an amazing week!! Pray I don't freeze my butt off this coming winter! Jk, also sorry this email was so long. And the picture of us making faces at the table is us and Crystal! Haha Love you all!!

Love,

Sister Abby Martinez