I BELIEVE IN CHRIST

Cool sunset!

"I believe in Christ-- 
My Lord, my God!
My feet he plants on gospel sod. 
I'll worship him with all my might; 
He is the source of truth and light.
I believe in Christ; he ransoms me. 
From Satan's grasp he sets me free. 
And I shall live with joy and love, 
In his eternal courts above." 

Family and Friends, Aloha!

These beautiful words come from the third verse of hymn #134, "I Believe in Christ." They have echoed throughout this week as Sister Bradley and I have focused everything we teach on Jesus Christ. How many times when explaining our doctrine or beliefs with another is it focused ALL on Jesus Christ? Sure we might teach "The Restoration," or "The Plan of Salvation,"...perhaps even the "Word of Wisdom,"....but are we teaching it with Christ as the topic? The hymn says that "HE is the source of truth and light." It is only through Christ that we can find truth and light. 

In a talk I read this week by Elder Holland, he shares experiences from his travels to missionary zone conferences.  He will ask the missionaries a simple question: "What is it you want investigators to do as a result of their discussions with you?" Many shout, "Be baptized," while he then responds, ' “Yes... we do want them to be baptized, but what has to precede that?” ' He teaches these missionaries that the most important thing we can teach those who are learning about the church is first, faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement. Let me say that again, FIRST is faith in Jesus Christ.

Last pic with President Dalton before he heaves on the 31st

He doesn't say the restoration, or the commandments, or anything like that, but to have faith in Jesus Christ. So Sister Bradley and I asked ourselves why this is the case? We discovered that if we have faith in Jesus Christ  then we have truly been converted unto Him. With true conversion in the Savior Jesus Christ comes a willingness to do His will. If we are truly converted unto Him, then everything falls into place. We don't need to worry about knowing everything to be a missionary and sharing this gospel! We first teach them about faith in Jesus Christ, and they too will have the desire to do His will = be baptized by someone holding the Priesthood authority of God :) . 

SO that being said, when we focused our lessons on Jesus Christ, we saw miracles:

Miracle #1 
Well, Sister Bradley and I have decided that our theme for the transfer is to "Move the Point." Our area is called the Laie Point. There are all of these rumors of how it's the area that never gets baptisms, and the members don't do missionary work, and never feed the missionaries...blah blah blah. We took those rumors and threw them in the trash. Christ said that if we have faith even as small as a mustard seed we can move mountains. Well, we're going to move the point. Together we are putting all our focus on baptizing in this area, and we know that with faith, we will. Well, not by any of our own efforts, a week before we were transferred into the area, the Sisters who were serving there told us that they were walking down the street on the point and this couple called them over. The girl friend, Na'ili,  then said that she was interested in learning about the Mormon church!

Apparently the Sisters (Sister K and Sister Spencer) just stood there in awe, haha....and then realized she was serious. So, they set up an appointment with her. Well, the night of the appointment we get a phone call that Sister Spencer is sick and they were wondering if I wanted to go to the appointment with Sister K while Sister Toleafoa took care of Sister Spencer. At this point we already knew that I would be serving in that area, so it was perfect. I was able to get really close to Na'ili really fast because Sister K was already on comfortable grounds with her. I don't know how else Sister Bradley and I would have been able to get close with her so fast if I had not been able to meet her when I did. Well, it gets better. Sister Bradley and I prayerfully decided that we should simply focus our first lesson with her on Christ....because it is first faith in Jesus Christ that converts us, right?  I truly gained a testimony of focusing on Christ at this lesson with Na'ili. Not only did she say she knew that this was right, but we were able to set the date of June 22nd for her to be baptized =) She is AMAZING! 

Miracle #2 

A girl and her mom came on our tram at the PCC. The group they came with on our bus was very large, but I knew that I needed to talk to them. Knowing I would regret it if I did not follow this prompting, I walked up to them. They were standing by the Book of Mormon display we have. They said they were originally from China here on vacation! I asked if they practiced any religion and they both said, "no." I then turned to The Book of Mormon and taught them that if they wanted to know God and Jesus Christ then The Book of Mormon would do just that. They both smiled, and the daughter said that that would actually be really nice. I gave them the guest card and the daughter marked that the missionaries could contact her where she is now living in the U.S.A! Bah, it was the best! 

I love being in the Visitor Center! Sometimes I don't feel like I got called to Hawaii, I got called to serve the world!

Making coco Samoa

I am so grateful for my call as a missionary. It's so easy for me to forget that I am set apart as a missionary, because it has just become a part of who I am. BUT, as I e-mail every week and look at the miracles I have witnessed, I realize just how cool being a missionary is. It's the best, I highly recommend it ; ) I know this gospel is true, because Jesus Christ is the head of it. It is only through Jesus Christ that we can find true and eternal joy. I am so grateful for Him, and the example that He has set, more importantly for the Atonement that he made for each and every one of us. He lives, and I KNOW that. I know that He loves us, and I know that as we look to Him, His arms will always be wide open for us. I love you all, and invite you to remember our Savior Jesus Christ every day in every thing you do. I can promise you that you will be happier and that you will find peace in knowing that you are doing God's will. Have an amazing week, because you are never walking alone!

Love you SO much,

Sister Moyes