Running in the Rain ☔️

Kia Ora!! Merry Christmas and Happy holidays to you all 💖 https://photos.app.goo.gl/btkDY6hNfKPBTj3Y6 As the title suggests... there was some rain this week but that also means rainbows 🌈 and if I've learned anything from being out here it's that there is plenty of RAIN but because of that there are the most BEAUTIFUL RAINBOWS. You can't have rainbows without rain.. And yes I also did actually run in the rain but not on purpose haha... our mentor said the most eager missionaries get the hardest areas.. but we saw soooo many miralces!! Our friend Arthur says he wants to be baptized on his time so thats exciting and we got a member refferal 2 days ago (she called us and we were giddyy) about a man who works at her cafe who also wants to be baptized named Tres HE IS SO KEEN!! Also as far as our goals this week GOD IS HASTENING HIS week because usually we haven't met any of them by now but we've gone over some of them.. 🎊 🤯 1/0 for new friends.. 4/2 for members at lessons and 3/1 for friends coming to church. GOD IS SO GOOD. Highlights: - my comp woke up and made me breakfast almost every morning :) oooh and she did m y nails so she's basically the best 💅 - had my first piano lesson here in new zealand :) - we have a KEYBOARD IN OUR flat now!! - Tres came to church!! And a returning member we've been doing little lessons with finally came to church (keep on inviting!!!) - working with members to come up with new ideas to help with ministering :) - getting to watch our members teach our friend Arthur about the sacrament was such a neat and powerful experience 💥 - We started what we call a 40 day fast not sure if that's a common thing or not among missionaries but it's super neat and I'd invite you to look it up!! Basically we fast the first day physically and then spiritually the rest of it.. it's super neat :) - getting a little glimpse of the joys of missionary work. We are doing temple prep lessons with our new member Marie and now that she's hit almost a year she will get to go here soon! But she shared with us a little book she had been compiling pictures and things that the original sister missionaries had shared with her and it just hit me how priviledged I was to be there not only to get to be a missionary but to see how far she's come. The gospel of Jesus Christ truly blesses everyone and it's truly indescribable to see how it changes lives for the better. There's no better thing I could be doing with my time and there's no better way to help people than to help them come unto Christ. MISSIONARY WORK IS THE BEST WORK. Lowlights: - weekly planning HURTS MY BRAIN ☠️ (if you have any advice do tell) Like gives me a headache everytime because theres literally so much to think through and by the time we are done we are FRIIEED but that's because if you know me I like to be a little too thorough sometimes still working on that.. - Some of our newer members have been struggling and it is really hard to know how to help especially when I know how much work and love and effort previous missionaries put into teaching and getting them baptized.. but that's one of the harder things about the work we do. We can only INFLUENCE and INVITE. At the end of the day it's up to their choices and agency. :) Lollights: - chucking a meat pie out the window to ensure our member who cleans the chapel couldn't find it lol - branch choir practice and how ironic it was that the music director love her to death... name is Melody and she was singing flat and we were just trying not to laugh histerically good times for real 🎶 - planning on having our whole branch come to sing carrols at the hospital only for it to be my comp and the other sister missionaries hahaha. - The other sister missionaries in our district shared with us the best SONG I've ever heard.. somehow they put in a conference talk into AI and it's the best thing ever.. 🌴🤣 With Christmas being this week usually for missionaries we've been told to accept that the work may be slow but God only knows that's not how I ROLL hehe because we've been anything but that... 🎄 I've seen so many prayers answered this week I can't even name them all. Literally never in the way or time my companion and I would expect to accpet them in but it always comes. If you couldn't tell already I've been reading from Enos in the Book of Mormon.. Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles compared receiving answers to prayers to the opening of a combination lock. It is a step-by-step process: “Petitioning in prayer has taught me, again and again, that the vault of heaven with all its blessings is to be opened only by a combination lock. One tumbler falls when there is faith, a second when there is personal righteousness; the third and final tumbler falls only when what is sought is, in God’s judgment—not ours—right for us. Sometimes we pound on the vault door for something we want very much and wonder why the door does not open. We would be very spoiled children if that vault door opened any more easily than it does. 🙏 ** HUGE SHOUTOUT TO ALL MY FELLOW MISSIONARIES WHO ARE AWAY FROM HOME FOR CHRISTMAS ** Jacob 5:70 "it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard sent his servant; and the servant went and did as the Lord had commanded him, and brought other servants; and they were few." You are among those few and the Lord needs you and will bless you hang in there. Love you all soooo muchhhh, <3 xx Sister Talbot oo