Sometimes people are mean

 

Bonjouuuuurrrrrr!


Well, surprise surprise.......WE'RE STAYING IN BOURAIL!!!Hahahahahzhah me AND Soeur Gunn. -Hahahahaha it is unreal. By the end of this transfer it will have been seven and a half months together and five months in Bourail. We are shocked because we were basically positive that  one of us would be leaving because it's unheard of to be together this long. But we are so crazy grateful to stay together and help Bourail to progress and help strengthen and bring others unto Christ.

The fun new news is that there will now be elders in La Foa! Which means we will be sharing our branch. It feels funny thinking that all of these members will now have another set of missionaries in their lives. Hahaha being all the way up here alone with the branch makes them feel like our special secret hidden treasures. It will be wonderful to share them and their love. It wil also be an ENORMOUS blessing to have more priesthood in the branch. That will make all the difference. We can do a lot and do our best to do a lot for the branch, but we greatly lack in something. And that's the power of the priesthood. Never underestimate this power and impact of a righteous priesthood holder. It is irreplaceable.

This week was full of some great lessons but also a few more "negative" things. But those negative things actually strengthened my testimony the most this week.

Example one. I was on an exchange and we were teaching this man. And suddenly he goes, "Jesus Christ is not the Son of God. That is just false." Oh my.  Words cannot do justice to the feeling I had inside. I was filled with a warm, sweeping, rushing NO. I just wanted to get up and walk out. I wanted to stare him in the eyes and make him recognize that he just told a grave lie. He lied. Jesus Christ is the Son of God. That I know. But in this moment when the Spirit manifested that truth so strongly to me it also told me that now was not the time to make a scene. So I sat there silently smiling while the truth brimmed inside of me. Sometimes we are called to be silent and sometimes that's even harder.

Another time this lady flat out SCREEEEEAMED at us when we called bonjour at her gate. She just screamed and cursed and threatened us and told us to get lost and was just so meeeeean. I don't think I've ever met anyone that mean. And I literally couldn't understand that kind of anger. That kind of hate. It is incomprehensible in my head. My life has been so full of love and light and joy and sometimes sorrow but never ever hate or anger. 

Fun Fact. The other day we talked to this man. He was half drunk and we left pretty fast, but before we left he have us "American girls, the Mormons" a free painting. He makes these sweet aborigine paintings so I was pleased.

A few extra notes from last week…….

We are currently experiencing a cyclone. But no worries it's not that bad, just a little rain and wind. One year a cyclone flooded the whooooole town, but looks like that won't be the case this year.

Last Monday was one of my favorite days of ever. One of the most wonderful sisters (our Kanaky member who lives in Bourail and loves us so much and we love her so much), well she took us to go see  her family who was camping at the beach. We drove an hour down this dirt road to a secret, back, local part of the beach. It felt like we were on a private island, This sister dug for mussels and me and Soeur Gunn walked around with her granddaughter as she showed us how to catch crabs and eels and paraded us around the beach. It was the most  beautiful place, like heaven touching the earth. And all you could hear was the distant sound of the waves breaking on the reef offshore.That's it. Silence. Oh it was so beautiful.I never  wanted to leave.

Love you!
Soeur Evans

 

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One Year Musings

Branch in Bourail

Bonjour to my family and friends,

It's official. This week I hit my one year mark.  And let me tell you my head has been filled to the brim this week with thoughts and emotion. Not only my head, but my heart as well and my tear ducts a few times too.

As dear Nephi said,  I can only write but a hundredth part, but I thought I would share a little bit of my reflections looking back on my mission so far.  I just finished Our Search for Happiness, by Elder Ballard and he says it so very perfectly and so very beautifully and eloquently.  "Many of our missionaries begin their missions thinking they are going to repay Heavenly Father for His goodness toward them by serving Him for 18 months or two years.  But before long they learn an important eternal truth; you can never do more for the Lord than He can do for you."

He could not be more right.  I started my mission hoping to end it feeling like I had somehow paid the Lord back a little bit for all the goodness He has always showered upon me.  But now I know that as life goes on I will only feel continuing, accumulating, overwhelming gratitude to my Lord and Savior.  I cannot pay Him back.  I'll never be able to.  What an incredible powerful and humbling realization.

Elder Ballard also talked about how our weaknesses, trials, challenges, and adversity are turned into strengths and opportunities, and triumphs  and adventure.  That is real and amazing and miraculous and nothing in me can deny the truth of that.  I know it and I've lived it and live it each day.

But I've also learned that the second, lovely, positive things can't come without the first hard, less positive things.  I will be very real.  Missions are hard.  My mission has not been all rainbows and sunshine and adventure.  Behind each miracle and blessing is a lot of hard work and ache and struggle and sorrow.

My mission, is not a mission of many baptisms.  I think the goal for last year was 40 baptisms for the whole island.  I have been blessed to see and take part in a baptism because I got to Bourail 2 weeks before their set date, but aside from that, no one I have taught and loved and cried with, and encouraged has made it to that wonderful point yet.  And sometimes it is hard and exhausting to pour your heart and soul into people and then to have them turn away from the "everlasting" gift you are trying to offer them: the gift of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I rarely talk about what  is the "real" or "average" day .  I like to focus on the miracles because the miracles are what make it all worth it and in the end, outshine the rest.  But I realize now that it is deeply important to understand the other side too.

 To give you a tiny picture…Plenty of days we spend all day following up on previous contacts—walking all over Bourail—and no one lets us in.  After a long, hot day of asking and offering and testifying, we return home that night, having taught zero lessons.

For every prepared wonderful ami we find, there are at least 70-80 people who reject us or drop us or are simply uninterested.  Aka, lots of "searching" is required before the "finding" happens.

No matter how much you love and pray for these people, they ultimately have their free agency.  Yes, the Lord can change their hearts and the spirit can touch their hearts, but if they themselves do not allow the change to take placle in themselves, it cannot continue.  This work is completely in both directions.

We invite, we act as instruments in helping them come unto Christ.  But they must accept our invitations.  And in the end, THEY must COME.  We do the best we can to fulfill our half of the process.  Unfortunately, it is rare that we find those sweet children of God who have both the desire and the willingness to fulfill their half.  When both halves come together and the spirit is there, that is when the miracles of conversion take place. 

Sometimes as missionaries, we could really use a "Mom" hug or a "Dad" hug.  The Lord is with us and sends us love and comfort.  But sometimes a nice, tangible squeeze of affection would be much appreciated.

Anyway, that's just a teeny tiny bit of real life. This last year has doused me with just about every emotion (not anger/hate).  I've learned to both tuck away my feelings way down deep and share  them and expose them in a way I never thought possible.  The Lord has stripped me down and showed me my absolute weakness, but He has also woven me with a deep enduring strength.  I have cried tears of profound, overwhelming joy and  soul-aching sorrow.  I have been humbled down and lifted up.

What have I learned in a year?  A mission is sacrifice.  Being a disciple of Jesus Christ is sacrifice.  He asks a lot of us and He asks us to give it all to Him until our last day. But oh does He GIVE.  He asks and asks and gives and gives and gives.  God is so infinitely Good.  He is so merciful.  He is so patient.

This past year has been so much more than incredible experiences in a foreign land.  I'm not on vacation.  I'm not on study abroad learning about world culture and the French language. I am on a mission.  I am a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ to the people of la Nourvelle Caledonie.  I love them with all that I am.  I love the Lord more.

I keep saying this but I just feel filled to the brim.  Everything I experiences seems richer, deeper, and more immense.  I think D&C 123:12-17 sums it all up pretty well.

" 12 For there are many yet on the earth among all sects, parties, and denominations, who are blinded by the subtle craftiness of men, whereby they lie in wait to deceive, and who are only kept from the truth because they know not where to find it—

 13 Therefore, that we should waste and wear out our lives in bringing to light all the hidden things of darkness, wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven—

 14 These should then be attended to with great earnestness.

 15 Let no man count them as small things; for there is much which lieth in futurity, pertaining to the saints, which depends upon these things.

 16 You know, brethren, that a very large ship is benefited very much by a very small helm in the time of a storm, by being kept workways with the wind and the waves.

 17 Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."

"A very small helm."  I wasn't called to a mission with lots of acceptance or thousands of lessons or many baptisms.  And looking back I am so grateful for that.  God has taught me to rejoice in the smaller victories, the more subtle successes.  I rejoice in the sum of all the little blessings.  And when the grand miracles come, it is all the sweeter!.

I love you all.  Thank you for all that you do and all that you ARE.  May we all "cheerfully do all the things that lie in our power."

Soeur Evans

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Edified and Uplifted

Bonjouuuuuur!!

Well we spent all week in Noumea and only got back to our secteur on Friday afternoon. It is good to be back.

I had THE most WONDEFUL day on Thursday. We started the morning with Zone Conference. Enfin! I learned so much and felt the spirit so strongly. It was such a blessing to get to hear from President Brewer and feel the spirit that absolutely radiates from him and his wife.
After our conference, since me and Sr Gunn were sectuerless we got to sit and talk with Sister Brewer for a couple hours as we waited for our ride. What a treat! We got to really get to know her and it is such a privilege because normally we get very limited interaction both our Mission President and his wife due to them living in another country and only coming every 6 to 8 weeks. And then, my favorite part of the day. I was able to receive a priesthood blessing from President  Brewer, with our stake president, President Guidi, standing in as well. They are the two men in the surrounding 3 countries who hold the highest  priesthood  power and keys. It was an incredible privilege. As they laid their hands upon my head and gave me a blessing by the power and authority to God, I was filled with the Spirit. I know these men are the Lords representatives. I feel a renewed energy and peace and duty.

We are happy to be back in our secteur!

Tidbit, it's been a while since I gave a tidbit. Yesterday our best friend member fed us. Total local meal, she didn't buy anything. It was some steamed bananas and water taro from her garden along with a parrotfish- all cooked in one pot with some fresh scraped coconut. The fish was literally just a fish. Head, eyes, scales, gills, even its parrot beak still attached. And I ate it all. Our member loves the heads especially, and ate the lips, gills and brains and eyes right there. hahaha so wild. Not to that point yet.

We are getting taken to the beach today! Gonna see how to fish with a spear and other casual awesome things. Can't wait!

looove you all
soeur evans

I Know Enough

This letter starts with the answer to my question about telling us a little more about her everyday life in Bourail.

We live in Bourail village in an apartment that is super nice, full of sunshine and a constant breeze. We keep the windows open constantly because we're on the second floor and we can always hear birdsong and the sound of the babies of our neighbors playing downstairs. This week being in Noumea for meetings has been an adjustment. I was sitting trying to do studies yesterday in the other sisters' apartment and couldn't focus. Then I realized it was because I couldn't feel the breeze or hear the birds. I went and sat on the balcony and immediately felt more peaceful and able to focus. Crazy the little things about me that are changing too. I need to feel like I'm outside pretty much constantly now or I feel uncomfortable.

We walk everywhere, obviously, which means were out by about 10 or 1030 each morning and back by nightfall at 7 at night with just a one hour lunch break. Most of our walks are a minimum of 30 minutes but sometimes it gets up to an hour and half one way. Hitchhiking is a thing here so pretty often people pull over and offer us rides. If they are nice looking women alone in the car we accept and always have a great moment to contact them and to also speed up our routine a little :)

We shop at a little discount store in town about a 10 minute walk away. The town center, aka, the main street, is only a 5 minute walk from our house. Other than that if we need something else we go to the little store across the street from us and they have all the basics food wise. We're good friends with the girls who work there.It's fun to just go buy a baguette every now and then

This week with the  mission president I will talk about looooads. It's been 3 or probably more months since I got to talk to him, so I am beyooooond excited and ready to talk with him: I love and respect him so much. I'll ask about school and mostly give a report on the work in Bourail. They just opened up another secteur up north because we have been having so much success up here. It is really exciting and rewarding to know that our work is making a HUGE difference on the work and the progress in the whole north. So so happy. We will talk about things that need to get corrected or tweaked up north, as things are still getting started up north in all aspects. 

We have the one active member here who I LOVE.. She is so giving and humble and sweet and hilarious and real. She's the straight up islander from the tribe near Bourail and she is hilarious. She just eats the shrimp heads and hands and everything during dinners together and is just completely herself and I love it. Not enough room to describe her but one day. Sometimes on pday we get to go to the beach with her which is the bessssst. Her kids went camping on the beach the other day and speared some fish with homemade spears and then smoked river eels on the beach as we ate the river shrimp they had caught that day for dinner. I'm not kidding when I say SO STINKING LEGIT aaaaaah obessed :)))

Hope that gives you a little picture of my life..

Here is the rest of her email…….

sorry vite fait! quick email

We are in Noumea this week, yes allllll week. We have ZONE CONFERENCE this week!! I am so very very excited to see President and Sister Brewer! It has been much too long. We have to stay down in Noumea all week as a result of all of the meetings and interviews and such that will take place. While I am very excited for the spiritual edification of this week, I already yearn for the people of  Bourail and doing the everyday missionary work up in our very own secteur. It's just not the same when you're tagging along in other soeurs secteurs.

We had an interesting experience this week, one of my most passionate moments on my mission thus far. We were in the middle of a lesson with our recent convert and he was getting a little fired up about some questions. Some questions we were able to answer, but others we just didn't know. For the latter, we simply said we don't know. He questioned how we could come all the way around the world if we don't know all the answers. And my heart was pumping like crazy and the Spirit almost bursting me as I testified that I DONT knows everything. There is a lot I don't know; But I KNOW that this church is true. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior. I know the Book of Mormon is true. I may not know everything, but what I DO know is enough. More than enough.

Well unfortunately that's all I've got time for. I love you all!!! Read the scriptures. Pray with sincerity. Thank your Heavenly Father for all He gives you.

Love you endlessly

Soeur Evans

photos-- working on my tan, untouched sunset

The Lord's Bountiful Hand

Bonjouuuuuuur mes cheries!

Well the Lord is so good to us. We had.......22 LESSONS THIS WEEK!!!!!! I am sure that to some that looks like nothing. But it is absolutely incredible to us. We started in Bourail with about 7 lessons a week and almost all of those were with our recent convert couple preparing them for baptism. When they were baptized we were still able to maintain 7 to 11 lessons a week. The longer we've been here the more we teach and this week just blew us away. We feel so very blessed. How rewarding it is to start a secteur. To arrive and have nothing. To know the President of the branch lives an hour away and there is a couple preparing for baptism, but apart from that it's been years since missionaries set foot here. And then to look back over the weeks of hard work and truly see the fruits of your labors. Lists of names of people we teach and of inactive members in the area that have been lost for years. How sweet it is to be an instrument in the Lords hand.

Unfortunately there is opposition in all things and despite inviting every one and their dog to church we ended up with only 6 people at church. Hahira and 2 of those were us, one was our branch president and one was his 9 year old son. We gave the talks and taught Sunday school. We will be giving the talks and teaching Sunday school next week as well. And the week after that. Hahahah on the brightside I only need a little post it note of scriptures and s few minutes to pray and ponder in order to prepare for talks now :)

Sr Gunn and I are staying in BOURAIL!!! No transferring for us :)

We love you! Hahaha oops I'm so used to saying we. I love you all!
Talk to someone about Christ. Guaranteed it will lighten their day. 
Soeur Evans

Mangos & Umbrellas-- Part of Summer

A peaceful moment in paradise

11 months on the Mission, 20 Years on this Earth

Skyping home on Christmas Day with Sr. Gunn

Dessert Table on Christmas Day- French

Christmas Feast with Area Missionaries

Happiness is Skyping with Family

Cooling off on a Summer Day- Dec 25, 2014

Missionary Christmas Day in Noumea

Happpy Happppy Days to you all!!
I missed so many big days with email not working last week. The place we do email was closed and we were so so very sad. But! Its open today sweeeet praises!

Quick recap so you know briefly my life over this holiday season. 

Last week we spent most of the week in Noumea. We had a big missionary Christmas devotional with our whole island (about 40 missionaries total). Twas grand to see everyone but it felt super weirdly normal. Hahahaha almost like a normalish social situation.

For Christmas Eve we had a grand meal with some members down in Noumea. Christmas Eve here is rung in with sea food so the table was arrayed in mussels and shrimp and loads of raw fish.

Christmas day we got to spend with the Guidis because proselyting is impossible on Christmas day here. It was sooooo wonderful to get to talk to my sweet family!! The rest of the day was full of fun activities with the Guidis and other missionaries. Hahahah when we showed up they told me and Sr Gunn to go sit on the couch and relax. Hahahahaha we just stared at each other in confusion and awkwardness because we literally don't remember how to relax. We are so used to constantly doing something. We lasted about 10 minutes on the couch and then had to stand up and find something else to do that the other 10 missionaries hadn't already done. It was a lovely day full of the Spirit.

We went back up to Bourail on Friday. As soon as we were back we felt a huge ease wash over us. It felt good to be back with these people we know and love doing the work we know and love. 3 days away from our secteur felt like a long time, regardless of the wonderful things that happened those 3 days.

Other details... live have been out 11 months! Eeepers that's crazy! 

Also I am 20.  Baaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!!! Sr Gunn is the cutest and she spoiled me on my birthday :) But God really outdid Himself on my birthday. ALL OF OUR PLANS WORKED. That is unheard of. All of our amis were there for their lessons. The Spirit was unbelievable. We had a day FULL of missionary work and the Spirit filling our hearts. I couldn't ask for anything better.

This Sunday our recent convert passed the sacrament for the first time. Cane in one hand, sacrament tray in the other, he hobbled between all 10 of us and used the Lord Holy Priesthood for the first time. It was such a tender moment to watch him and to feel the Spirit of this moment.

We taught a lesson for the New Year for our little branch. Hshahaha church is basically us giving talks, us teaching Sunday school and then us doing a third hour of sorts. Hahaha it's unconventional. These poor sweet souls need some other people to hear from. But! I HIGHLY recommend reading the talk "The Best is yet to Come" by Jeffrey R Holland. It is life changing.

Fun fact. It was 115°F on New Year's Eve. We were out doing porte a porte and joking about how we felt like we were literally cooking ourselves and then found out we were. Yowza it is hot.

Looove you all. Sorry for the scatterdeness. Too much to tell!
Soeur Evans

Joyeux NOELLLLLLL

JOYEUX NOELLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!

Yikes I almost logged off without sending my big email. So caught up in thoughts of my cute family.

Well this week is a blessed week. The week we get to think of our Savior and all He does and is for us.  I am so grateful for a simple Christmas this year that gives me more of a chance to focus on the things that actually matter. The things of importance. To think about my Savior Jesus Christ. To think about my sweet family. To serve all of the diverse people who surround me. To invite random people on the street to think about Christ. To sing songs of the lord for the old lady who lives behind us. To remind others of the hope that comes from faith in Jesus Christ ( Moroni 7:40-42) . Oh it is truly a blessing!

Amid all of the Noel things we had a really sweet week too! Ok honestly it is Noel here now but it doesn't really feel like it so I have to work hard to remind myself it is. All of the classic "Christmas" things are stripped away- hot chocolate, decorations, being with the family, carolers, being cold, sweaters, Christmas parties or events. Noel on an island is something else. But as I said, all good.

Anyway among the delightful things of the week are:
We went to the tribe of one of our members. And did the tribal custom offering to the tribal chief to get accepted into the tribe. I handed the costume (manou, money, a book of Mormon and a brochure all wrapped together) to the man, about sweating to death of nerves and heat. I said the little ritual presentation of the costume. Then, all without smiling or telling, he takes it and walks back into his house. Then he walks out with a roll of fabric and money for us. He accepted!! And plus he gave a costume of thanks, which isn't always required. Yes yes yes! We shared a thought about Christ and the true meaning of Christmas. Then we drank sweet hot milk together. Then he gave us lychees from his tree. Then we left with him smiling and waving goodbye. We can do all things through Christ!

We also finally got to do service this week. Showed up to our recent converts house and asked what we could to. She tapped a tree in the middle and goes, "cut it there." hahahahahaha uhhhhhh. So we cut a tree down. Us two soeurs. With our machetes and arms. Proving to Bourail that were not pansies. Thank you father for raising me right. 

Loooove you all. HAPPIEST OF CHRISTMASES TO YOU!!! Please take a moment in all, the busyness of Christmas to have a quiet, sacred moment with the Savior. 

Talk to you soon family!
SoeurEvans