Prayer miracles and Pig on a spit

Kia Ora Whanau!

The weeks are going by quicker and quicker! i feel like i JUST emailed yous yesterday! not much change over here except with the weather!! it's just getting colder over here i have pictures of me in a coat to prove it! :)

But this week has just been plans for Terri's baptism and helping her get ready! we are so excited for her and i know that she has been an answer to my prayers. i know that the Lord is mindful of me and everything i say to Him and He wants to help. and He does!! 

Yesterday we didn't have a ride to church and it's really far away so we got a ride with members who take a taxi to chruch! it was so fun being in a taxi, not many missionaries can say they rode a taxi to church! hahah it was so fun! 

we also went to a giant tongan feast yesterday and we walked up and they had a full pig roasting on a spit! it was massive! im sending pics right after this don't worry! we had HEAPS  of food and it was soooo good! 

sorry this email is short but i just want to end with a reminder to read and pray EVERY DAY EVERY DAY EVERY DAY! i know it works and you will be able to see the hand of The Lord in your lives! 

Stay safe and don't have too much fun!

Kia Kaha

Sister Judd

ps stooge i hope your face doesnt hurt too much. you can do it! love you!!! 

General Conference and American Night

Kia Ora!!! 

 

This week has been so good! Fist of all General Conference! i loved the theme of families and marriage it was so special! one of my favorites talks was by President Pearson, it was really special seeing him at the pulpit for conference because he is in the area presidency for my mission and he was here just a little while ago giving us a training and he is so amazing! he was the one that said "Stay by the Tree" and study the Book of Mormon "EVERY DAY, EVERY DAY, EVERY DAY" he is so good! i also loved President Monson's talk on temples. It was such ad amazing week, just very different than watching it at home in my pj's that's for sure! 

 

We have such a crazy week! we have an investigator, Terri, and she's been taught by HEAPS of missionaries for almost a year and a half now and we set her to be baptized on the 25th of this month!! she is so excited and so ready! it is such a blessing and i know that Heavenly Father has answered my prayers this week with Terri. she also came to sunday conference and she loved it. she is so excited to go to the temple next year and be sealed to her kids. she understands the blessings the temple can bring her and she wants it as soon as she can. i love terri and her kids, they are so special and i know Heavenly Father loves them too. 

 

Earlier in the week we went to Stevee's house and had 'American Night' i made fried chicken, fried pickled and soft pretzels and they mad a Maori traditional called boil-up. it was so much fun! nobody had ever had homemade fried chicken or even eaten pickles (except for on a burger from macca's) and didn't even know what pretzels were so it was so much fun watching them bite into the crunchy pickles and chicken. thanks so much dad for the frying tips they all loved it!! i also put some of grandma's seasoning in the flour and it was so good! they were blown away that grandma made it all herself hahaha i told them that we put it on everything back home and they thought it was magical seasonings. it was so fun to have that little piece of home here in new zealand, it was just weird being the one to do it all make sure it was all perfect. i now know how dad feels when he does all the frying hahaha go dad!! 

 

it's April now and that means cold season! it's SOO weird being opposite over here but it really is getting cold. it's been raining all day and im wearing tights and two jackets hahaha everyone makes fun of me because im a chicken with cold (thanks for that dad) and the weather is SOO different than AZ. it's weird actually having seasons! and rain! but i love it! 

 

i hope yous had a wonderful weeked and i love love love love love love yous!! 

 

Kia Kaha!

Sister Judd

Easter, Daylight Savings, and Miracles

Kia Ora Whanau!

This week has been so crazy! First of all Daylight Savings is a thing and we had to turn our clocks back an hour saturday night and it was SO weird! everyone was making fun of me because it was no big deal for everyone but us Arizonians don't do that so it's been an experience. it's lighter earlier and darker way late. it's weird going into may and having the weather get colder! i'm not used to it at all! but it's been fun doing everything backwards! 

I LOVE EASTER! This holiday is truly so special and i definitely took it for granted back home. it is so wonderful and as a missionary it is such a blessing to share the message of Jesus Christ to anyone we meet. we had SUCH a good sacrament meeting yesterday and yous have been on my mind all week because i am SO jealous you got General Conference already! we are watching it next week and i and so excited! We just watched the Women's session this week and it was so good! i am so glad that i get to be with yous for eternity! we're gonna get up to no good :) haha

We have had a miraculous week with Terry. She has finally received a testimony of the Book of Mormon and she is praying for the 25th of April. she is so special and has been prepared by HEAPS of missionaries and i am so glad to know her and help her progress. 

WE GET TO GO TO THE TEMPLE TOMORROW!! man i miss the temple HEAPPSSSSS! we are so blessed to have the temple in our mission and we get to go to twice a year and general conference times. i miss the temple and feeling so close to Heavenly Father. such a blessing. 

I will send pictures next week but i ate some new stuff this week. Tua-Tua which is sea food. they find it by letting the waves come up and then those little bubbles are the tua tua. so yummy!! we also had Hungai (hung-ee) which is heaps of meat cooked in the ground with some veg and sea food. sorta like the pit that we used to have but more islander.. it was SO GOOD! 

thanks so much for all the prayers and love i can feel it always. yous are so amazing and i know the blessings i receive is from the support of all of yous! 

i just want to leave a quote from the Woman's session from Sister Stephens and she says, "We need to boldly defend our families and our home" our families are so sacred and we need to protect them with all we have. i love yous SO MUCH AND THINK ABOUT YOU ALL THE TIME 

stay safe and have fun

Kia Kaha

Sister Judd

March 30th Transfers and Easter

Kia Ora Whanau! 

 

Wow 2 months cam on went and i'm starting my second transfer now! I'm still in Manurewa but i have a new companion! Sister Clarke went down to the visitor's center in Hamilton and my new companion is Sister McFlinn! she is from Brisbane, Australia. She is so cute and so much fun! 

 

I am SOOOO excited for General Conference! Because they don't have the channel we have to watch it a week later than yous but I can't wait! it's gonna be weird not waking up to dad making crepes but we're gonna have our own that morning :) Next week is Easter and i can't believe it's April already!! We're so excited to bring our investigators to church on Sunday for the special Easter program. This is such a great Holiday to talk about and invite people to learn more about Jesus Christ and the sacrifice he made for us. 

 

 I just love this are heaps and i know i am supposed to be here. one of our investigators, Terry, has been taught by HEAPS of missionaries but i really do feel like this is her time. she has been prepared so much by the Lord and we're working with her to feel ready. She is so great and her kids are the cutest. She is so receptive to the spirit and she knows that the church is true, she just needs to take that leap of faith now. and that's why we're here; to help her take that leap. 

 

Marlene WILL get baptized i have faith in her. she just needs to have faith in herself.keep her in your prayers. :)

 

sorry it's short today but this week has been crazy just trying to get Sis. McFlinn introduced to everyone and the area but i'll have more next week! and more pictures too! stay safe and have fun!! 

 

GO KYLEE (or shall i say Sister Smith) BOLIVIA IS WAITING FOR YOU!!! 

 

Kia Kaha

Sister Judd

 

ps the dogs here are INSANE and i may or may not have been almost eaten and have a tooth scratch on my leg to prove it. but moony is a good defense. she's got my back :) 

March 22nd WHANAU! (fahn-oh)

i loved seeing all the pictures of yous at Sea World i'm glad yous had fun and saw some creatures for me. keep doing fun things and sedingme pictures!!  

 

Well this week has been so crazy i don't even know where to start. I can't believe my first transfer is at it's end! i went by so fast and we accomplished so much! i'm excited to continue the work and i' m just getting started. I had such a great start to my mission and i know that New Zealand is where i am supposed to be. 

 

Our lovely Fijian/Indian Barbara was baptized on Saturday and it was such an amazing experience. The amount of faith that she has is incredible. She has had such a hard life and has been through so much and yet she continues to rely on The Lord. I have learned so much from her. A couple days before her baptism we taught her about temples. We brought Sister Pasikala with us and she shared the blessings that she has received from attending the temple. She also told Barbara that because of her choice to be baptized she can be with her husband again and be sealed to him for eternity. as she said that Barbara broke into tears and told us that all she wants is to be with her husband again. She knows this is the true church and she wants to do everything she can to go to the temple. We are so lucky that Heavenly Father has given us temples to not just help ourselves progress but to help others who are waiting in the Spirit World. I know that the temple is the house of the Lord and that the work that we can do for others will help generations. She's a special lady and i am so blessed to have been able to help her come closer to Christ. and her family as well. 

 

So, the moment i have been waiting to tell yous since Tuesday morning. After exercise Sister Clarke and I were walking back to the flat and we were in the grass that has HEAPS of hidden hole because it's really uneven and i stepped in one and my left ankle rolled under itself and i felt a crack. we had to go to the hospital and get x-rays and i ended up fracturing my left ankle. I'm in a moon boot, who we cal moony, and i'm just limping around everywhere. it needs to stay for 4-6 weeks so she's going to be my other companion for this next transfer. Don't worry about me i'm completely fine, Sister Clarke is taking good care of me and it's really not that bad. moony is a really good conversation starter and she gives our lessons character. Heavenly Father just needed a good laugh so he's watching me limp around the area with moony stapped to my leg. 

 

MY FIRST PACKAGE AND I AM SO HAPPY!! So much candy!! (or lollies as they would say here) The Milano's made me cry, and also the ranch. so amazing! thank you mom and dad so much!! We really enjoyed taste testing most of the lollies that Sister Clarke had never had before. The peanut butter is amazing and the giant bottle of advil came right on time as well, because the prescriptions that they gave me just makes me feel yuck and the advil works better anyway. OH! so funny, as i was pulling out all the lollies i found some of mom's hair!! it was so funny and we had to take a picture. sister clarke said, "so that's where you get your shedding from" because my hair is constantly everywhere all the time hahahahaha and i found like three other strands after that too. oh mom too funny. it was a perfect package thank you thank you thank you! :) 

 

The last thing i wanted to share with you is a quote from Henry B. Eyering which says: "If Faith is not embedded in your hearts, the power to endure will crumble." Because of moony i have had to have heaps more Faith that this is part of the plan that Heavenly Father has for me and if i lose Faith i will not be able to endure and keep the work progressing. This is a lesson that can be learned during any time in our lives. that as long as we have Faith we can endure. once we lose that Faith the power to endure leaves with it. i'm so glad i have a Savior Jesus Christ who has felt everything i have felt so that i can turn to him whenever i need it. even if it is for a fractured ankle. He keeps me strong and keeps me positive. i love my Savior and my Heavenly Father and i love love all of yous. thank you for the support and prayers. i can feel the love all of yous have for me and it keeps me going. 

 

have fun and be safe!!

Kia Kaha 

Sister  Judd

March 15th Luau Dance and Elder Nielson

Kia Ora Whanau (family in Maori) 

 

This week has been magical! Last week of my first transfer! so crazy! it's been raining the the past three days and i absolutely love it. i love wearing my rain clothes and walking around in the rain talking to as many people as we can. we realized that if people are willing to walk in the rain they will be willing to listen to our message. so we've talked with heaps of people the past couple days. it's been great. we asked Heavenly Father to give us heaps of people and i was like "uhh dude it's raining how is that going to help?" but it did and we were able to meet so many amazing people.

 

Barbara is getting baptized this week!! i think she might be even more excited than we are! she is so cute and i love her dearly. She asks us everyday if it's her baptism day yet and we have to keep reminding her that it's on sunday, because she just wants it to be now. she even has her clothes already folded up and ready. She told us when we were reviewing the baptismal questions with her that the reason she wants to be baptized is because she wants to follow the commandments and she knows that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are there for her and will help her no matter what. she has the strongest faith i have ever seen and she keeps it strong no matter what.  

 

We also met Sammy. We taught her the Restoration the first time we came to her house and she loved it. she wanted the lesson to be over so she could read the Book of Mormon. She just recently heard that her Grandfather had a stroke while he was in Samoa and he was the one that raised her and he's on life support so it's really hard for her. She's having a really hard time coping and she doesn't know what to do. We shared with her about the Atonement and how the Savior can help her feel comforted as she's going through this alone. We invited her to pray and ask Heavenly Father to give her comfort and help as she is going through this hard time. we shared some spiritual experiences when we have used the atonement during hard times and as much as those times were difficult for me i am SO glad i went though them so that i could help someone who needed it. 

 

This week we met with Elder Nielson of the Seventy for Zone Conference. it was so wonderful. Him and his wife are such great teachers and they care about missionaries and this gospel so much. i learned so much from them but one thing that stood out to me was Elder Nielson's message on how the Lord loves broken things. he shared this saying with us: 

 

Broken Clouds to make rain 

Broken ground to make grain

Broken grain to make bread

Broken bread to always remember Him 

And a Broken Savior to pay the price for all of us. 

 

This is such a powerful message and when we are broken we can turn the the Lord and He will ALWAYS help us. What a blessing it is to know that no matter what we are going through The Savior has felt our pains and all of our emotions so that we don't have to go through it alone. Just like with Sammy, the Savior felt what she is feeling and she can ask Him to take it away. And he will. I know it. 

 

I hope yous had a fun week and you were safe! have a wonderful week and always remember that you're never alone. 

 

Kia Kaha

Sister Judd

March 8th Baptism Miracles and Cheesecake

Kia Ora Whanau (family in Maori) 

 

This week man! So crazy! 

 

we had a baptism! Tati and Tawhiri are nieces of a member in our ward and she texted us last week to teach them. they are solid and were so excited to be baptized. Tati is 9 and Tawhiri is 11. My first baptism and i couldnt be more excited! love this amazing work. 

 

Barbara. oh Barbara. she is so wonderful, i think i told yous about her last week and how we have to yell at her to teach her and it is the funniest thing ever. a couple days ago she asked sister clarke to say the closing prayer and she started it and yelled "DEAR HEAVENLY FATHER" and it was so funny. she had to stop and tell Barbara that she had never yelled at Heavenly Father before so it's really weird. She was sweet about it though and told us that He understands and He's not upset with her. and the next day i said the prayer and had to start over because it really is hard yelling at him. so i guess that's another thing i get to check off the list. 

 

the past couple days have been crazy for us becasue we have all of these solid investigators that we teach during the week and then comes sunday none of them attend church. people's agency makes me SOO frustrated and i wish i could just make them come. i guess that;s how Heavenly Father feels about everyone one of us and i have to just worry about 5 people. it's just so upsetting because we know that if they come to church they'll feel the spirit and understand why we want hem there so badly. but satan also knows why it's so important and he's really good at getting them to change their minds. man, i hate that guy. 

 

Manuwera is such a funny place. it's definitely not what comes up when you Google New Zealand. I'm in South Auckland, the very tippy top of the Hamilton Mission where it borders the Auckland mission. i love it here it's just not what i expected. very suburban and very interesting. let's just say we hear sirens all day and night. i can just hear dad's voice in my head saying "your idea of sketchy is going to change once you're on your mission" haha well you were right dad....like always. but i love good ol' Manurewa. there are are so many people here are waiting for the gospel they just don't know it yet. Finding the ones that have been prepared already to hear our message is the best part. 

 

this week i had my first bike/skirt incident and it was a doozy. as you can see in the picture that i sent it got stuck in the brakes and then created a GIGANTIC hole. it was so funny because the area that we're in has a lot of members that live close by and there were so many people that saw us trying to get my skirt out of the bike. sister clarke loved it. i'm not sure my skirt enjoyed it that much but it was pretty hilarious. i guess it was bound to happen right? 

 

i love being able to write you guys every week, it makes me miss you so much but i love getting tell you about my week. i hope yous stay safe and have a wonderful week! don't forget that there are people all around you who are looking for answers to their questions and you are able to answer them! rely on the spirit and pray everyday! you'll feel closer to Heavenly Father and feel His love always.

 

Kia Kaha

Sister Judd