Senior Activity, Comp Studies, District Lunch, and Flat Inspections

Monday started off with a trip to Dargaville with the Carlisles so we could meet up with the other Senior Couples for lunch. Elder and Sister Buchanan are going home soon, and we wanted to have a nice luncheon with them. They wanted to host it at their house since it is practically on the beach. They have such a beautiful view from their living room window. All seven couples made it. We did potluck. Everyone brought something and the food was delicious. The company was even better. I love these Elders and Sisters so much. We always have fun getting together.

We didn't really "do" anything besides eat and talk, but it was the BEST!!! We sat at one end of the table with the Bowens and the Wards. The Carlisles were next to us and across from the Buchanans. At the other end of the table were the Bennions and the Michaelsons. Lots of great discussions filled our time. When it was time to leave, we decided to take a little walk on the beach. 

The Carlisles were braver than us and walked from the house down about 54 steps to get to the beach. Elder Wilcox and I knew our knees, ankles, and hips would NOT take that many steps, so we actually drove right on the beach. So much easier. LOL The beach was so long in both directions. The sand was hard and easy to walk on. We didn’t even have to get our shoes wet. 🤣 We picked up some shells, took several pictures and enjoyed the beautiful view and nice weather. Then it was time to head home. Of course, we made it back just in time to get into rush hour traffic. 😞It was a wonderful and relaxing day. I loved it!

I spent most of Tuesday getting everything done that I didn't do on Monday. LOL I worked on the New Convert Initiative, my Seminary Lesson, and even some work on HawkSoft. The Bishop asked us on Sunday for some ideas on an Easter Program for Easter Sunday. Elder Wilcox and I talked about a few different things we could do. I typed it all up, as well as some ideas for youth activities that MyLiege had sent me. The Bishop came over Tuesday afternoon and picked them up. He picked one of the Easter Program ideas we gave him. He also loved the youth activities we gave him. Later Elder Wilcox picked up Elder Carlisle and headed to one of the missionary's flats to does some work on issues that the landlord reported on. 

Sean called me later in the day. I think he was bored since the rest of the family was away. He had been sick for a couple of weeks. He is finally on the mend. Anyway, he told me he had come home from Church on Sunday and wanted to read my weekly blog. His eyes hurt because of his illness so he sent the blog to an AI program. It generated a “podcast” of two people discussing my week of service based entirely on my blog. The people sounded real and not computer generated. They had personalities and lots of inflections in their voices. At first, I was trying to figure out who was talking. I was amazed at the “podcast”. I got tired just listening to everything they said. It was about a 20-minute talk show. Sean sent me the recording so I could listen to it later. He only shared a few minutes with me on the call. Modern technology is so fun sometimes. 

Sister Jones and Sister Brough

Wednesday morning started with meeting the Stake Seminary Supervisor at the Stake Center so I can start holding my Thursday Seminary class in person rather than on Zoom. She showed me where class is held and the Seminary cupboard, etc. She also gave me a key. About the time we finished with that, it was time for our DCM meeting. The Zone Leaders joined our meeting since they were doing the training. One of my favorite parts about DCM is our 2 stars ⭐ and 1 wish 🌠. We each have an opportunity to tell 2 great things that happened in our week and then 1 wish or goal that we have control over. For example, we can’t wish that everyone we talk to will get baptized, because that would take away their agency. It has to be something we can control, like wishing I could get more out of my personal scripture study, by praying before I study. Anyway, it is always an interesting experience. I love hearing about all the wonderful things happening in the lives of our missionaries.

After DCM, we headed home to make lunch for the Hikurangi Elders before we did our Comp Study with them. We had a good time visiting and a great study time. We left right after that to go with them to a teaching appointment. They are now teaching Ben’s mother. Ben was baptized a few weeks ago, and his mum is impressed with the changes in his life. She is coming to Church and now taking the lessons. I’m glad we got to go with them.

Once home, I got to work on finishing the New Convert Initiative report. I also sent out the Ward Council agenda. Later we had a video call with the Stake Clerk to fix a problem in our finances that has been there since 2022. And later still we had a video call with President and Sister Allen and all the other Senior Missionaries. Fun Times!

Our Thursday was very busy. Our in-person Seminary class was so much better than Zoom. We had six young men show up. They all participated and answered questions and read. We had a good discussion on General Conference preparation. 

Pretty much the rest of the day was one Comp Study after another. The first to show up were the Riverside Elders. We studied Section 29 of the Doctrine and Covenants since that was the Come Follow Me lesson for the week. We didn't quite finish our study before it was time for SPF. That meeting focused on some changes to DCM as well as preparation for the Auckland Temple Dedication on 13 April. For many of these missionaries it will be a once in a lifetime experience. 

After they left, the Ngahere Sisters showed up for their Comp Study. They also wanted to study our Come Follow Me lesson. Instead of just reading and discussing Section 29, we went to the Come Follow Me manual and followed the first two suggestions for what to look for and how it applies to our life.

Elder Soares is actually in this group picture.

Lastly, the Denby Sisters showed up for their Comp Study. Poor girls were soaking wet. It rained all day, and they were on e-bikes.  The bikes work great when the weather is dry but are not the best thing for Sisters when it is rainy! We are praying that a car will become available for them very soon. On top of the rain, both bikes have break problems, and they can’t get them into the shop until the 17th of April. I am not happy with this situation. The e-bikes may get traded out at our Zone Conference, but that is still a week away.

The Sisters also wanted to study Come Follow Me Section 29. So, we read that one once again. Each discussion was unique, even though we were reading the same verses. We discussed different thoughts and feelings about different verses. We all learned something that day. I think Elder Wilcox and I learned the most.

I managed to send out emails to all the Stake Clerks to help out with collecting the information for our New Convert Initiative in between the Comp Studies. We also managed to watch the first session of the Follow Him podcast.

I started Friday morning by helping Leona set up an automatic payment with her bank for the house she is renting to buy. She was very happy to get that done. When we were finishing, the Central District started showing of or a weekly District Planning meeting. The Ngahere Sisters showed up first and got to choose which room they wanted to do their planning in. The Riverside and Hikurangi Elders showed up shortly after that, and each with to a different room. Periodically someone would come out and ask some questions pertaining to planning, so we knew they were doing their planning. The DL would also periodically check in on them. 

We spent the "planning time" prepping for lunch and then watching the second half of Follow Him. We also were able to watch the World Report for 2025. If you haven’t seen it yet, I highly recommend it. It is so wonderful to see all the different things that have gone on in the Church for the last 6 months. The Church has done so much humanitarian work with floods, hurricanes, and wildfires in various areas around the US and the world. Several Temples were dedicated, and so many other things. They did a nice recap of the work that is being done on the Salt Lake City Temple. It is amazing.

When that was over it was time to make grilled ham and cheese sandwiches for everyone. They were beginning to finish up, so our timing was perfect. We also had chips, cinnamon apples, some veggies, and cookies. I love just sitting and listening to them talk with each other. In such a short time, they have all become lifelong friends. 

We finally had to kick them out so we could get our flat inspections done. It takes almost three hours to do them all if we do them in one day. We were planning on taking two days because we had another teaching appointment with the Elders, but the first one went longer than expected. The Elders had someone else with them for teaching, so we ended up not going. Instead, we got the rest of the inspections done so we didn't have to go out a second day.  For the most part, all three flats looked good. Only one needed a little more work. I’m sure it will be better next time.

Saturday was very low-key. I fine-tuned my Sunday School lesson. I finalized the Ward Council Agenda and the Sacrament program. The Elders popped in to wash up and clean their shoes. They were visiting someone in the neighborhood and managed to get a bit dirty. Once they were clean, they were out the door working again. After they left, we gave each other haircuts, before finally settling down for the day.

Sunday was Fast and Testimony for us. For the US it is General Conference Weekend. I started the day listening to the first session. I didn't get to finish it because it was time for our meetings to start. We started with Ward Council. Then we had a nice Fast and Testimony meeting, followed by Sunday School. We had such a nice turnout for Sacrament meeting, I was hoping to have a lot more in attendance for my Sunday School Class. It all turned out OK. After Church we had several things, we needed to take care of in the Clerk;s office. After I got home, there were a few other things to take care of before working on my weekly recap. Once that was done, it was time to enjoy some General Conference. 

It will take us a couple of days to listen to all of General Conference. Because of the time difference here, we (as in New Zealand) don’t watch conference until the following weekend. However, this conference will be an even long wait. Next Sunday is the Auckland Temple Dedication, so there is no conference then. The following week is Easter Sunday, so, again, no conference. They have scheduled General Conference for the 26th and 27th of April. I can’t wait that long!

One of our Supervisors posted a link to a Behind the Scenes of General Conference:  Interpretation video on YouTube. Season also sent us the link. It is only about 4 minutes long, but it will give you just a taste of what we were involved with for two and a half years. Many of the people in the video were people we worked with. It really made us miss this time we had in our last mission. If you would like to take a look, just click the video link above.  

I hope you enjoy General Conference!

All our Love,

Elder and Sister Wilcox

Central and North District Breakfast, Birthday, FHE, Baptism, and Whanau at the Falls

I think every day this week was more impromptu than planned. It started on Monday morning. Since this was the first week with our "new" district and 4 out of our 6 missionaries were brand new, Elder Maraetefau asked if there was something we could do on P-Day to help bring the Central District together. We decided perhaps a district breakfast would do the trick. Well, no sooner had they posted the invitation Sunday evening than Elder Dixon, who is now one of our Zone Leaders and has access to the Central District chat, saw the post and asked if the North District could join us. They also had a few newbies, but only two who were brand new. Of course, we said yes.

We got up early to grocery shop and then went home to fix breakfast for 14 people. We invited the Carlisles too, but they had appointments with the dentist. 😥 We made them fresh scrambled eggs, bacon, and pancakes. We also had some fresh fruit. After we ate, several Elders jumped in and did the dishes. Then we played some getting to know you games and had a grand ‘ole  time. When it was time to leave, everyone was friends. It went a long way to cementing our relationships with each other. 

Sister Brough and Sister Jones

After everyone left, we straightened a few things and collapsed on the couch. We watched the first half of Follow Him. I think we both fell asleep. 😴 Hahaha.  I also did some work on the New Convert Initiative. 

Tuesday was Sister Carlisle’s birthday. We thought about having them over for dinner but figured they would be in Pipiwai at that time. So, we decided to take them out to lunch. We went to a place called The Butter Factory. Their burgers were delicious. 🍔

I spent most of the day finishing the New Convert Initiative report. I am ready to send an email to all the Stake Clerks and solicit their help. The area has talked about it for months, but they haven't put their letter together yet.  I'm ready to ask for their help now!

Elder Maraetefau, Elder
Davis (in back),
Elder Olson, Sister Douglas,
and Sister Smetaniuk

On Wednesday, we held our first DCM as a new District. The Monday breakfast really helped with everyone jumping right in as if they'd known each other forever.  We made apple crisp 🍎 the night before, so we had some fun treats.  We played a fun 'getting to know you' game called Hotseat.  Elder Davis is our new District Leader.  He did a great job.

After DCM, Sister Douglas and Sister Smetaniuk came over for a mentoring section. Steve made grilled cheese sandwiches 🥪 for all of us.  They had an appointment scheduled for after, so we didn't do a comp study.  We will schedule for next week. 

After they left, I worked on several things while Steve met the Elders for a teaching appointment. Later, we went to the family we do Family Home Evening with every other week. We talked about the armor of God and let them help put the armor on a paper man. After singing all 9 verses to Follow the Prophet and having some ice cream 🍧, we headed home. Busy day! 

Thursday morning started with my Zoom Seminary class.  I had seven students. We talked about putting Jesus Christ at the center of all our service, especial our Temple Service. 

The North and Central Districts

We had the Hika Elders over for breakfast before SPF and Comp Study. This time we made homemade hashbrowns, omelet and/or scrambled eggs, and bacon 🥓. It turned out pretty good. 

Just about the time we were finishing our Comp Study with the Elders, the Denby e-Bike 🚲 Sisters showed up. They had a mentoring session and then our Comp Study.  We had an enjoyable time with them. We studied the Plan of Salvation. After Comp Study, we made them lunch and enjoyed that time together. 

As the Sisters were leaving the Riverside Elders showed up for their Comp Study. Normally they do this on different days, but somehow it all happened on Thursday. They wanted to study our Come Follow Me weekly study in Doctrine and Covenants 27 and 28. We had a great discussion with them. When we finished, we enjoyed visiting a little more and getting to know them better. Elder Wilcox brought out his stash of A&W Root Beer for a treat for them. 

About the time things started winding down, the Hika Elders were back. The Riverside Elders went out and talked to them at their car. That gave us time to finish the lunch dishes. LOL The Hika Elders were back to help us clean 🧹 the Chapel. They had been at a service project in the area and were given some dinner, which they put in our fridge. They piled in our car, and we headed to the Chapel. It took less than an hour for the four of us to clean the whole Chapel. We got back, they changed their clothes back into their normal missionary attire, picked up their dinner and headed out. We settled down to finally watch the second half of Follow Him. 

I started Friday morning trying to resolve a payment issue with one of the businesses we sent money 💰 to. They kept insisting they didn't receive the money. The records we had showed the payment had cleared their bank. In talking with their representative, I suggested they look for the amount rather than a name or reference number. As it turned out they weren't even looking for a name or reference number. They found the amount. As it turned out, they saw money had come from the Church and applied it to a previous account that the Church had paid. It was NOT the account we were paying. It all got straightened out.

Elder Maraetefau and Elder Olson

Right after that, we headed out to help a member move a short distance away from where they used to live. I think the previous owner of the house they were living in decided to sell it, so they had to leave. Anyway. We were grateful that they had a couple of large cousins with a pickup truck 🛻 and a trailer who could load the heavy furniture. All we did was load boxes into the member's car and our car. We were able to help with a couple of loads before we had to head home. We had a teaching appointment with the Elders that we needed to get cleaned up for. Just as we were about to leave, the Elders texted us to say their teaching appointment cancelled because the person they were teaching was sick. They rescheduled for the same time next week. We took advantage of the time regained to take care of a few more things on the back burners. 

Elder Bradford, Shadé, and Elder Perry

The only thing we had scheduled for Saturday was to pick up the Punaruku Elders from the Zone Leaders' flat and take them to Punaruku for a baptism. Since we were planning to go to the baptism anyway, it was no big deal. They were at the Zone Leaders' flat because they took their car into a repair shop to fix a dent. They will get it back next week. 

On the way to the baptism, we got a call from the Carlisles asking us if we could help out with the Whanau at the Falls event later in the afternoon. We attended the event last year with the Kreutzkamps. It was where a bunch of the elementary schools performed dances and Hakas as part of them getting back to their Māori heritage. I had wanted to go this year, but didn't know when it was. Auntie Sandra asked the Carlisles to ask us if we could help. Auntie Sandra is the Sister who puts on a big breakfast once a transfer for all the missionaries in the Whangarei Zone. Everyone LOVES Auntie Sandra! So all of a sudden our not much to do on Saturday turned into another very busy day! 🤣

The baptism turned out great with a wonderful turnout. The afternoon event was also very fun. We had both sets of Sister Missionaries, and two sets of Elders were there to help. The Sisters were involved with face painting and two of the Elders were selling candy leis. The Carlisles were also there for a while. They passed out candy leis to all the performers from the Te Horo school after they performed their dances. Then they had to leave to go to another event very far away. They drove a LOT on Saturday, because they were also at the baptism in Punaruku. Our group of Hikurangi dancers didn't perform until about an hour after the Te Horo group. We actually had three groups dancing for a total of about 90 youth. Not everyone showed up, but we still had a great turnout. They all did a FANTASTIC job. We passed out candy leis to all the Hikurangi performers. I think Auntie Sandra made ALL the candy leis!!! 🍬

We headed home so I could work on some HawkSoft and Steve could go on another teaching appointment with the Elders. He wasn't gone very long. As it turned out the person was a no show. However, she and her kids came to Church on Sunday. She is keen to learn about the Gospel.

Sunday started bright and early with Ward Council. Steve did our training and showed an awesome video about how the Ward Council can use the My Covenant Path program in the Gospel Library app to help new members as well as returning members be strengthened in the Gospel. We then talked about several ways we could help people and even created some action items for specific people. 

We had a pretty good turnout for Sacrament meeting. We found out the night before that one of our speakers couldn't make it. I volunteered to be the backup speaker. I had been preparing for my Sunday School lesson ALL week. I had several very profound insights while doing my studies that I wanted to share with my class. Well, we had 5th Sunday Forum on Sunday, so NO Sunday School lesson. So, I volunteered to share some of the things I wanted to share with my class. In particular, I shared what the Spirit taught me about the Sacrament and how we can partake of it with an "Eye single to the glory of God." The other two talks were about experiences each of the speakers had in the Temple recently. They were very good. It was a fairly spiritual meeting. 

Our 5th Sunday Forum continued in the same vein. Per the Stake Presidency, we were to focus on the Plan of Salvation and how it applies in our lives. Brother Walker led the discussion. He had the Missionaries give a brief lesson about the Plan of Salvation, so we were all on the same page. Then, he went around the room and each of us shared what impact the Plan of Salvation has on us. How does this knowledge help us in our life? It was really good to hear the answers from everyone in the room. 

After Church, we took care of a few things for the Bishop before heading back to Punaruku to pick up the Elders and take them back to the Zone Leaders' flat. They will stay with them until they pick up their car this week. 

All our Love,

Elder and Sister Wilcox

Seminary, Transfers, and New Baptism

After the very busy week we had before, we were hoping to have a little more down time. I guess "little" is the optimum word. 🤣

I played catchup on Monday. I got the Ward Council Minutes sent out. I also helped Sister Paratene with something else she needed to finish up the paperwork for her renting her old house to the Mission for our Hikurangi Elders. I thought we had finally finished everything we needed. Sister Carlisle came by to drop some keys to two flats we needed and to pick some avocados from our tree. 

We had a wonderful video call with MyLiege’s family. Anna was visiting, so it was good to see her. Both Alyx and Elle had birthdays this week. Alyx turned 15 and Elle turned 11. I can’t believe they are getting so big. 

I spent the afternoon working on the recap blog, because I never had a moment to do it on Sunday. I took care of a few other things as well, such as the New Convert Initiative. Elder Wilcox borrowed the Bishop's trailer again so he could pick up a couple of mattresses at the Hika flat that Elder Garner left for the Zone Leaders' flat and dropped them off. He took care of a few things at the Chapel and finished by doing our grocery shopping. We also did laundry because we never had time on Saturday to do it.

I thought I would get caught up on Tuesday, but that was not meant to be. I was very busy, and got a lot of things done, but none of them were on my ToDo list. 😞I had to help Sister Paratene with one more thing she needed to send to the Mission Office. We forgot to attach the document when we sent everything the day before. Just as she was leaving, the Sisters showed up for our Comp Study. We visited for a while and speculated on who we thought was going to get transferred. We also talked about the meeting we had the week before with Elder Soares, before we started our Scripture Study. 

In the middle of our study, I got a few calls for things I needed to take care of for the Bishop. I was able to wait until after our Comp Study to do them. During lunch, the Elders called for some help with the Baptism Program for Joe the next Saturday. All of our Missionaries have been working with Joe for about a year. We have even worked with him. He finally decided he was ready. We are all so very happy for him. I spent the rest of the day working on the New Convert Initiative report. There was a lot to do, but I finished it for the week. 

Tuesday night at 9:00 pm we had a Whangarei Zone video call where we received the transfer information. For the most part we predicted who was leaving. The only exception was our Sisters. We predicted Sister Koi would be transferred, and she was. We thought Sister Fale would stay since she was only here for one transfer. They called her name to be transferred. 😭I did not expect that one. 

We had our DCM meeting at the Whangarei Stake Center. The Riverside Elders were sick, so they didn't come. That meant we would not be able to say goodbye to Elder Sanders, who was getting transferred. 😢We had a good meeting, and everyone hung around for a long time to say our goodbyes. We signed bye-bye books and signed flags. We had a total of five missionaries leaving from our North District, plus several more in the South District. Elder Dixon was transferred from Dargaville in the South to Te Horo/Denby/Zone Leader in the North District. I think he will finish out his mission in our Zone. 

After DCM, Elder Wilcox picked up a few parts before heading home for lunch. After lunch, he went to the Hika flat to do some minor repairs. I spent the afternoon preparing for my Thursday Seminary Lesson. We didn't have to do early morning Seminary on Wednesday because the Elders are living in Hikurangi again, so they covered the lesson. I'm back to just one lesson a week. 

Thursday started with our Early Morning Zoom Seminary Lesson. I had about eight students. I managed to get a few to turn their cameras on. A few even volunteered answers without being called on. We talked about different ways to annotate and mark their scriptures. I really wanted their cameras on so I could tell if they were actually doing the exercises. Since I didn’t get very many responses when I asked them to tell me what they marked and why, I’m not sure many of them actually did it. 

After my personal scripture study, the Elders came over for Comp Study. It was actually one Elder from two different areas. Because of transfers, each companionship had one Elder that went to Auckland and the two remaining Elders were companions for most of the day. We had a nice companion study with them. I enjoyed it very much.  We studied our Come Follow Me sections in the Doctrine and Covenants. We had a nice discussion about them.

After they left, we headed to Auckland to pick up two new Sisters that will be serving in the Denby Ward. They are going to be on e-bikes instead of having a car. We got there a little early so we could take care of a little business as well as pick the Sisters up. After they got out of their meeting, Elder Warwood showed the Sisters everything they needed to know about their e-bikes, including how to change the tire. It took over an hour to cover all that. When we finally left it was almost 4:00 pm. By the time we got to Whangarei, it was after 6 so we took them to dinner at Burger King. We had a wonderful visit with them on the way to Whangarei. Both Sisters are from Utah. Sister Jones has been out for about 11 months. She is training Sister Brough, who happens to be Steve’s cousin. Not sure how close, but it is probably a 2nd or 3rd cousin twice removed or something like that. Steve’s mom is a Brough. 

We dropped the Sisters off at their flat and met the other new Sisters that are replacing Sister Koi and Sister Fale. Sister Douglas (also from Utah) has been out a while and is training Sister Smetaniuk from Alberta, Canada. As soon as we got home, Steve left to go to the Stake Center for a Bishopric meeting with the Stake Presidency. It is our Ward Conference on Sunday.

We sort of had an easier day on Friday. We met with Sister Paratene, Ripi, and Marcus at the Bishop's house so we could pick up his trailer again. Then we went to Whangarei to pick up a BEAUTIFUL dining room table and chairs made out of Cody Wood. Cody Wood is native to New Zealand and is very beautiful. It was very heavy, which is why Sister Paratene recruited Ripi, and Marcus to help. 🙏Tender Mercies.

I spent most of the day working on the HawkSoft jobs that Darrin sent me the week before. I finished just as the Elders showed up to finish up the Baptism Program and to stay for dinner. Elder Wilcox made a delicious dinner while I was working on HawkSoft. 

Saturday started early as we met at the Chapel for a Worker Bee Activity. We wanted to spruce the Chapel all up for our Ward Conference. Our turnout wasn’t as big as we had hoped, but everyone that came dug in and cleaned inside and out. We not only did the regular cleaning, but we went around the outside to take care of cobwebs wherever we could reach them. We also got rid of all the stuff left over from the garage sale as well as other things that were left on the stage and even under the stage that didn’t belong there. 

We rested up a bit and then got ready for Joe’s baptism. He had a great turn out with family and friends. He was so excited, and we are excited for him. Those that helped clean the Chapel also attended Joe’s baptism.  After the Baptism we had a wonderful BBQ. Everyone got to visit and enjoy good food. 

We had to do a little more vacuuming and cleaning the kitchen after everyone left, but several stayed behind to help. Many hands make light work. It has been a good day, but I’m tired. 

I spent the rest of the afternoon getting ready for Sunday with the Sacrament Program and the Ward Council Agenda. I even got a head start on my weekly blog recap!

Sunday started with Ward Council. Actually, I started by printing a bunch of stuff for our Ward Conference that the Stake Clerk requested around 8:00 before our Ward Council at 9:15.

Ward Conference was great. Joe was confirmed. It was a pretty emotional experience for him and several of us. We heard great talks from Bishop Henare, President Sadler, and President Reti. Then I set up Steve’s laptop with the big screen TV so he could give the second half of his Elders Quorum lesson from two weeks ago. He said he still didn’t finish it, but they had a GREAT discussion. President Reti even complimenting him on facilitating the discussion. 😊

In Relief Society, we had Ben’s mother. She just got out of the hospital two days before. Her son got baptized a week ago. He has been hoping she would get interested in the Gospel. She has seen the wonderful changes in her son and wants to know more. Anyway, our lesson was about the Temple. We shared feelings and experiences we have had and what matters most to us. After one sister shared about family history work so we could be baptized for our deceased ancestors, I thought it was a good time to explain to Ben’s mom what all of that meant. I explained that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is for everyone who has ever lived on the earth. One of the requirements for us to return to our Father in Heaven is to be baptized. Those who have died without ever even hearing about Jesus Christ were not able to receive baptism. So, we seek out our kindred dead and perform baptisms for them in the Temple. It says in 1 Corinthians 15:29 “Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?”

I told her we do not force anyone to accept it, but the work is performed for them if they choose to accept it. She then said something like that sounds like it is universal for everyone. I said that is right. Everyone has the opportunity because we perform that particular ordinance for them. Later in the day she met with the Elders and asked more questions about the Temple and sealings. She is ready to be taught!

At home we had our monthly video call with Sierra. Later, we attended the Worldwide Women’s Devotional Broadcast. It was actually live last Sunday night, but of course due to the time difference it was Monday afternoon for us. So, our Stake Relief Society scheduled it for this Sunday evening. It was a very nice broadcast. We had a brief testimony meeting after the broadcast. It was a very good evening, and the Spirit was very strong. 

All our Love,

Elder and Sister Wilcox

Elder Soares and Auckland Temple Open House

On Monday we were able to catch up on the things we normally do on Saturday, like laundry. 😂 I also took care of some lesson preparation for the coming week. I only had three days to prepare for 4 lessons, three of which were pretty intense. We had a nice video call with Season. Daylight savings kicked in for the USA so that meant we are now 1 day and 4 hours different. In another month our Daylight savings will end, and we will be 5 hours different. That is a little harder to coordinate than 3 hours 😥

We also had to deal with ONE MORE THING at the old Hikurangi flat. Someone had shot a couple of holes in the kitchen window with a BB gun. The landlord wanted us to pay for it. Elder Garner refused since we weren't even in the flat anymore. The landlord said the only way we wouldn't have to pay is if we filed a police report. So, Elder Garner asked us to do that. That evening, we got a call from the police about the report we filed. they wanted a little more information. We told them we didn't really know anything because no one was in the flat and we were not the owners. The officer got the contact information for the property manager and said we shouldn't even be involved with filing the report. We agreed. She said she would call the property manager and tell her it was her responsibility not ours. YAY!!!

On Tuesday, we had our Sister Comp Study. I worked some more on my various lesson preparations and even tried to work on some New Convert Initiative stuff. The Carlisles invited us to a double baptism for a couple of young sisters in their branch. The baptism was going to take place at a pool near a waterfall. They like to call it the "Waters of Mormon" because it is very secluded and very beautiful.  The road to the waterfalls was a bit treacherous and we worried our car wouldn’t make it. After a while, we came to a gate where we parked our cars. Then we took about a 10- or 15-minute walk to the waterfalls. It was beautiful. Getting to the bottom pool was an adventure. We waded through a couple of spots in the creek. It wasn’t very deep and the Carlisles told us to take shoes that could get wet. It was a little slippery on the rocks, but we didn’t slip or fall.  It was a little tight in a couple of other spots, but we made it safe and sound. Elder Carlisle brought a couple of camp chairs for us to sit in. There were two benches and everyone else sat on the ground. It was a wonderful experience. Lots of people showed up. they served a light dinner after the baptism at the Church.

Wednesday morning started with early morning Seminary. We had all four students there. We discussed Section 21 of the Doctrine and Covenants. 

Right after Seminary, we did the first stage of moving the Hikurangi Elders to their new flat. We borrowed the Bishop's trailer and went to the Punaruku Elders' flat where the Hika Elders were staying so we could load up some of the furniture they had there. We had hoped to meet up with Elder Garner later that day with the rest of the furniture from Auckland, however he couldn't come until Thursday. The Elders had enough stuff to still "move in". They had beds, tables and chairs, and a refrigerator. 

We also had DCM on Wednesday. Most of our discussion centered around the Temple Open House and the baptisms we attended at "the waters of Mormon." We did a couple of fun roleplays in our training. Elder Erickson wanted to emphasize how to keep our messages simple. He had the “teaching” Elders only use single syllables in their “teaching”. They did a great job. It was difficult to come up with single syllable words for common multiple syllable words they normally use. For example, when they wanted to refer to the Book of Mormon, they changed it to the Book of God. For Jesus Christ, they use Christ, or Lord, or God. The purpose was to teach them to slow down and simplify their thoughts. Sometimes we use some large and even complicated words that many people don’t know what they mean. We just need to slow down and think about how to make things clearer and more understandable. It was a good lesson.

I spent the afternoon working on my lesson prep for Thursday Seminary and our FHE lesson for Wednesday night. Then it was time for dinner and our Family Home Evening lesson. They had a couple extra kids that night. It actually worked out well. We had a good lesson with a short video and a picture game. They all seemed to get into it. After our lesson they all played Sardines. It was a fun evening.

Our Thursday was a VERY long day. Again, we started with early morning Seminary. It was our Zoom class, so we didn't have to go anywhere. I only had seven students, and no one wanted to talk. That made it a little hard. However, it left me a little depressed. I wondered if I was doing any good at all. My scriptures study that morning led me to a talk by Elder Soares called "Covenant Confidence through Jesus Christ." It really helped me with my depression.

After that, I helped Sister Paratene fill out the contract so she could rent her house to the Church for the Hikurangi Elders. It was all done on handshake until we could get all the paperwork completed. The Elders had already "moved" in. From there, we met Elder Garner and a bunch of Missionaries at the new Hika flat to finish moving them in. We were a bit late because of helping Sister Paratene. Almost everything was done by the time we got there. We checked things out, noted a few things that Elder Wilcox will need to fix, exchanged information with Elder Garner, and then headed back home for our Mission SPF Zoom meeting. That stands for Short, Powerful, and Frequent in case you are wondering.

When that was over, we headed to the Carlisle's flat to pick up three Elders. The other three got into the Carlisle's car and we all headed to Auckland for an AWESOME meeting with Elder Soares!!! All 200 PLUS missionaries gathered for a picture with Elder Soares and the other leaders who were with him. That took a while. LOL Just when we thought we had everyone, more missionaries would show up and we had to squeeze them in someplace. While we waited for Elder Soares to show up, we sang songs. That was the coolest experience. When he finally walked into the Cultural Hall we sang a beautiful song in Māori. I had tears and Elder Soares said he had tears when he thanked us for the beautiful song. It was such a special experience. Then we went to the overflow area where he greeted each missionary one by one with a handshake and short personal moment. When it was our turn, we told him we were from Oregon. I then told him we shared a mutual friend, Sabrina Batista. Sabrina is one of the Portuguese Interpreters we worked with when we were in Salt Lake City. She has been suffering from cancer since before we left. She knows all the general authorities because of the work she does in interpretation. She is always a favorite to be requested. Elder Soares said he has given her several blessings. I think we both had tears in our eyes as we talked briefly about this cherished mutual friend. 

The meeting was so good. Elder Soares' talk seemed to be the frosting on the cake from my morning scripture study. He talked about the Joy of the Gospel. He then talked about how we don't always see the result of the work we do. Sometimes we may never know the lives we touch. He shared an experience he had when he was serving as a young missionary. He left thinking he was a failure. Fifteen years later he met a man who had been a young boy when her served there. The man told him of all the wonderful things that had transpired since Elder Soares served, and much of it was because of the seeds he planted and the work he did. That made me feel better too.  We don't always see the big picture.  We just need to do our best and leave the rest in the hands of the Lord. I will continue to strive to do my best.

After the meeting, we had dinner with some neighbors of one of the Elders in our car. They were in New Zealand because their son had served there several years ago, and they wanted to go to the Temple Open House. That was so fun for Elder Erickson to connect with someone from back home. We had a great time. We finally arrived home about 10 pm. Luckily, President was aware we were going to be late, so the Elders did not get in trouble. 

Friday morning, we were back in the car heading south again. This time we went to Hamilton to go to the Temple. It may be the last time we go there since the Auckland Temple will be open in April. We had a very nice Temple session and a nice relaxing evening at our B&B. After the busy week we had thus far it was nice to relax for a while.

Saturday morning, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast and visited Clive and Colleen. They own the B&B. We are usually in a hurry to leave, so we don't have time to visit with them, but Saturday we were able to stay a while longer. 

We got to the Auckland Temple at noon and went into our training for the Open House. There was some general training first, and then we were pulled away for our specific training for the role we were doing. We were floor supervisors in charge of several ushers and several "talking points" people on the first floor of the Temple. There was another supervisor on the second floor. We received instructions on what to do if the fire alarm went off as well as what our normal responsibilities would be. We had about 3000 visitors come through on our three-hour shift. Elder Wilcox was station near the front door with a walkie talky. He greeted people and dispersed messages to various people if he received them. I helped out as an usher as we were shorthanded. I also checked on all the ushers and talking point people to see if they needed anything as we didn't have people to rotate in if they needed a break. We had two ushers who were the counters. One stood at the entrance door and the other at the exit door. They each had a clicker to count the people. After the first 1/2 hour, I rotated the floater in to replace the sister at the entrance door. I took the other sister to the break room and said I would be back in about 20 or 30 minutes. When I went back, she was gone, and I didn't see her again until the end of the shift. I let my other two people know they might not get a break. Both were very good about it. Then another usher came looking for something to do, so I had her break the brother at the exit door. When I went to return him to his spot he was gone, but he had already gone back to his spot. However, the sister he replaced vanished. Thankfully, both of the clickers that served for most of the time were awesome about it and never once complained. 

We got so busy for about an hour that the people in charge cancelled our talking points for a time so we could just usher the visitors through as quickly as we could. Thankfully that was only about an hour before we could go back to full tour mode. It was a wonderful experience. I loved greeting all the people who came through the Temple. It was fun to see some people we know. It was especially fun to see workers from our Stake in various positions. It was a very good day. Although, I can't remember the last time my feet and my back hurt so bad! We got home early enough to shower and relax a bit before going to bed. 

I thought Sunday would be a restful day. I didn't have anything, other than my recap to do after Church. Heavenly Father had other plans. LOL We started with Ward Council. We had a good discussion. I think they are getting better every week. Our Sacrament meeting was great. We heard from Elder Erickson since he may be getting transferred this week and Brother Horsford wanted to give him an opportunity to say goodbye to the Ward. He shared some of Elder Soares' talk that we heard on Thursday. Then we heard from Brother and Sister Ashcroft. He was our High Councilor speaker. They were both in charge of organizing our Stake's participation in serving at the Open House on Saturday. Sister Ashcroft gave a brief summary of what that day was like and some of the numbers of how many workers, and visitors, and roles and who knows what else. It was very interesting. She then gave a great talk. Elder Ashcroft also gave a wonderful talk.

Sunday School turned out better than I expected. We had more in class than we had for a while, and participation in our discussion was really good. I worried about the lesson, because I didn’t have time to review my notes. I prepared the lesson early last week and hoped for the best. I guess it helps that I have been a member of the Church for over fifty years and taught hundreds of lessons, and that Doctrine and Covenants and Church History are one of my FAVORITE subjects to teach. I only glanced at my notes a few times and pretty much everything was off the cuff. We had good energy and participation. 

After Church, we stopped by the new Hika flat to pick up some boxes of Chairs that Elder Garner brought for Elder and Sister Buchanan in Dargaville. They said they could pick them up Sunday afternoon, so we picked them up. After we got home, I worked on a few things for the Bishop before Sister Paratene showed up so we could finish her rental contract for the Missionaries flat and her vendor form so she can get paid. It took about an hour or so to get that all done. 

Then I went back to finish up the things for the Bishop. I sent out an email to the Self Reliance class members telling them that the Emotional Resilience Class will be starting at the end of March. And the Personal Finance Class will start at the end of June. By then, it was getting late, and I hadn’t even started the weekly recap for my blog. I was DONE for the day.

I hope you have a Wonderful Week.

All our Love,

Elder and Sister Wilcox