Fireside success.

July 27, 2014

Hello :) I'm writing a bit later today because we had a couple of YSA take us out adventuring for P-Day and they have work at 3, so we split up our emails. Anyway.. I want to tell you all about maybe the biggest event/accomplishment on my mission. Since March, here in Wellington, the missionaries have been trying to get a musical fireside in the ward. Each time we proposed it we got pushed aside for whatever reason. I'm now the only missionary left since March and I kind of said I'll do it or die trying. The date kept being changed on us and it didn't seem like the ward was very supportive of it. Nevertheless, we kept trying ha. During the past couple of months we'd assigned singers, speakers, made flyers, posters, and tried to coordinate it all.

Daniela and I playing our violins for the fireside.

Finally, this Sunday came and we were happy just for it to happen. We had a rehearsal before and it seemed a bit rough, but we thought it would come together. We were so happy because there ended up being more people at the fireside than at church, and we personally had 8 investigators come! All the missionaries in our district sang "We Thank Thee O God For a Prophet". It was a capella and had a verse of Samoan which was cool. Sister Leausa and I then joined a family who performed "I Know That My Redeemer Lives". The mum had been stressed out because her children weren't really wanting to do it. Her daughter plays the violin but didn't want to do it alone, so I asked if they had an extra one I could play. Amazingly, they had an extra full size violin, so we played a duet. It was really fun to play, and I played a bit in 3rd position to impress people haha. It worked! So many people complemented me on the violin playing. (unlike Utah, not every child learns how to play heaps of instruments, so my small talent seemed impressive.) We then joined in the closing number of "The Spirit of God" as kind of a backup choir. The theme of the fireside was "Come Unto Christ" and the speakers read little parts from The Restoration lesson of Preach My Gospel. We then sang songs that correlated to the message. In the background we had a slideshow of pictures that also went along with the theme. The Spirit was so strong and the music was amazing! We had a member, Shaqaila, playing music in between all the numbers so there was also music being played. We were so happy with how it all came together. Our new Mission President gave the closing remarks, and then there was supper and mingling afterwards. Whew! My head hurt, but I was so relieved that it was over and that it was successful. I hope this helps the members to not only have faith the missionaries can do good things, but also to get the members more involved in the missionary effort here in Wellington.

We went to the Wellington Zoo last Pday :)

Other than that, we went to the Zoo last Monday which was super cool. Since it's winter, and the kids are in school, we had free range of the park. We held a real kiwi that's dead and been stuffed(weird), we saw cheetahs just sitting on the laps of some of the keepers, and we got to see lions, tigers and bears. Today, we've been out to a couple of really cool museums all about Maori culture, and the boats of Wellington.

Life is really good! I anticipate I'll be moved in transfers which is about 2 weeks away. Sorry this is so brief, I've run out of time. I hope you all have a beautiful week!

P.S. I'm excited to hear about Brother Montgomery's engagement! someone will have to start sending me mail because I always rely on his monthly letter haha.

Love, Sister Kennedy

I am a disciple of Jesus Christ.

July 20, 2014

My modeling days in Wellington:) haha.

So.. I had a pretty great week!!

Friday was my one year mark, and right after our alarm went off at 6:30 we got a knock at the front door. The post man had this huge box for us. I opened it and found SO MANY LOLLIES. Ha Shaqaila sent them from Flaxmere, but even better were the cards and letters from all my past companions. Ahh!! That was so cool:)

It's real rainy in Wellington,
but umbrellas make for a nice photo :)

I went to my study desk and found Birthday balloons, pictures, candy, and little gifts from my adorable companion:) An hour later, another knock came and I went down to find a member who had dropped us off this big Tongan breakfast. Wow! My companion had been coordinating this all on our exchanges and it was just so sweet to have all my companions be a little part to my day. Ha, it feels so great to be a year old:)

As a present to myself I finished the Book of Mormon. It was the fastest I had read it, just over 2 months. I had to read over 10 pages a day, but it was super fulfilling! I love the Book of Mormon and reading it fast gave me more of a context of the area, people, and timeline of it. It's true.

The fun was a bit halted when we had to do an emergency exchange with some sisters in the zone. It turns out: disobedience really is the worst haha. So this week I went on 2 exchanges, had a lot of headaches, and got to meet with our mission president and his wife and talked to them quite a bit. 

My 1 year skirt burning.

Friday night we went to the beach and out on the dock to burn a 1 year skirt. We had lots of hairspray and a lighter and it eventually worked even with the wind. Turns out I'm afraid of fire when I'm holding it, but I let it burn for a bit then threw it into the ocean. It was my first burning, and it was fun.

Saturday was really neat because we had the baptism of Tomai, our 8 year old miracle. We were excited for his whole family to be there and for quite a few ward members who also came. Primary baptisms are really the best. Everyone was giving him little presents to represent the warmth of the Holy Ghost, and cute little journals. His baptism really touched his mum, which is great because we are teaching her as well. He gave a little testimony after and he thanked my companion and me by name for helping him learn about Jesus which was the best. He's the cutest!

Then, right after the baptism we had the ward talent show. It was so great! We had dancers, singers, violin players, piano solos, taekwondo performance, and even a harmonica performance (check out Kurt Mueller on youtube. He was a finalist for New Zealand's got talent and he plays some mean songs on the harmonica!!). The lady who did taekwondo is actually going to compete in the world championship and represent NZ, so we have a pretty talented ward here:) My companion and I sang a song. A hymn of course because that's all we can sing ha, but everyone said it went well.

Tomai's confirmation day and his mum and sisters.

Sunday was really great because Tomai had his confirmation. In his blessing he was told that he would bring his family to the Saviour Jesus Christ and we thought that was an amazing promised blessing!! Big things are gonna happen for this family.. We can already see them in white:)

Sister Leausa, my companion, is really great at motivating me to memorize scriptures. Each companion study we have a pretty long list of scriptures, and our purpose that we state memorized. One of the scriptures we've memorized is 3 Nephi 5:13, and it helps me remember my worth as a missionary: "Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of him to declare his word among his people, that they might have everlasting life."

I love you all heaps! I just want to tell you all how much I love New Zealand, how much I love the people, how much I love my mission, and how much I love my Saviour.

Love, Sister Kennedy

P.S.This is the new blog for our mission: http://newzealandwellingtonmission.

My week was AOK.

July 13, 2014

My email is a bit later today! But we got caught up on a call with the Zone Leaders for ages discussing all the issues in the Zone, then my companion's bike chain got caught so we got all greasy trying to fix that, and it is rainy and so cold so biking was a bit challenging against all the wind:) But alas, we've finally made it to email.

We stopped to see some women playing rugby, when one of the players went down. The physio went out on the field and it made me way pumped to be an athletic trainer. Maybe I'll come back to New Zealand and be a trainer here.

This week we had a dinner appointment that made me feel right at home. It was the Ikitogia family who has the 8 year old boy who will be baptised on Saturday, then 7 and 6 year old sisters, and a little cousin who was 3. We all ate dinner while we told dumb knock-knock jokes. It was really funny and I thought of our funny and all the dumb jokes that we would tell each other. I would like to think my companion and I had less than dumb jokes, but they were all pretty silly ha.

Our miracle for the week was Leighya, the mum whose kids all told silly knock-knock jokes and tested her patience. On Monday we came over with 2 of her member friends and we presented to her the Stop Smoking Program. It's been put together from the church and it's 7 days of replacing any craving or desires with other things. Every day my companion and I would stop by with snacks, send her a text, and make sure the members were encouraging her. It was so awesome! The first few days were so hard for her, but after the 4th day it got so much easier and she knew she could do it. Literally, her skin already looks heaps better, and she feels much better! Today is her 7th day and she's completely smoke free. Yay!! Honestly, I've prepared and taught the Stop Smoking program 4 times now, but she's the first one who had a true enough desire to quit smoking. We know this will help her progress in the gospel now:) It's like that with most things in life, the first few days are so hard, but once you get over the hill it's way easier. We just can't quit in the early stages.

I serve in the prettiest place in the world.

Fun facts of New Zealand:

-They have the Commonwealth Games coming up soon which is essentially the Olympics but for only countries that live in the Commonwealth of the Queen. That's New Zealand. The big events for us are netball, rowing, and other sports that are foreign to me ha.

-Electricity is really, really expensive, so no one really owns dryers. They all just air dry their clothes which becomes really difficult in the winter and rainy season. Luckily, we own a dryer.

-The most common vegetables I eat here are pumpkin, kumara, and silver beet which are all things I'd never had before NZ.

This week should be fun. I turn old and one year this week, we have a baptism of our 8 year old Tomai, and our ward has a talent show on Saturday that we are singing in, so it should be a really great week! I will finish the Book of Mormon this week, which is so exciting! Just over 2 months so I've been reading heaps. Mum, you'll be proud to know that I actually like reading now ha. I love you all and am so grateful for your emails, letters, and prayers in my behalf. I realize that this will be the most I am ever prayed for in my life, so I will try to absorb it as much as possible ha. Have a great week!! 

Love, Sister Kennedy

Good, Better, Great!

July 6, 2014

My posters for the Wellington Zone presentation.

This week was really great! I say great because our new mission mantra is "Good, Better, and Becoming Great in Christ". The Hudson's have been praying 6 months in preparation to come to this mission and they've already shared with us their vision and the motto for how we as missionaries, and this mission can become great. I was so excited to be at Mission Leader Council with them on Wednesday and hear all about them. They had a great get-to-know the Hudson's and we learned all about their family and life. He worked for GM in both Canada and Detroit. He gave the closing prayer at her baptism (she was a convert at 18, and still the only member of her family. She was introduced to the church from the Osmond family who she was a HUGE fan.), and they later met in Provo when she was attending BYU. I just love them to bits, they're the cutest. I gave my presentation for the Zone and it went really well. All the STL's did the presentations and they were all fun. I think they figured sisters would do something nice and creative, and each presentation was different and fun. Now I just want to be transferred all over New Zealand to see these places for myself. We then had Zone Conference on Saturday and it was pretty much all the same things from MLC, but it was really great. 

4th of July in New Zealand.

On Friday we were all excited to wear our red white and blue outfits. Our District Leader called and the 4 Americans all sang The Star Spangled Banner. I pulled out my American $50 that I'd been saving and we said the Pledge of Allegiance with the flag on the bill. It was really quite a fun day. We kept saying how we wished there was a barbeque or something so it felt like the 4th. Luckily at our Zone Conference, which was the 4th in America, we got to help some members grill some sausages and patties so it felt like the real deal!

Our miracle for the week started on Thursday night when we tried to visit a potential investigator. No one seemed to be home and after knocking 3 times and waiting, we decided to leave. We were about in the car when we heard someone open the door. She told us that the woman we were looking for wasn't home. So we told her who we were and asked her if she'd been interested in hearing more about the message we share. She was all keen and told us we could come back the next day. So Friday, we went to her house and had an amazing first lesson! We didn't teach a whole lot, but we got to know her personally and spiritually. She asked us if we had heard about he Christchurch earthquakes and of course we said yes. She then told us how her track team was down in Christchurch for a meet, and they were celebrating their record winning times sitting in the big cathedral when the quakes hit. She was pinned under rubble with a broken leg for 3 1/2 days. Her 2 best friends who were by her were both killed. She was there with no water or food for all that time and she said the only thing that got her through was her faith. AMAZING! We were blown away by her. Her name is Nicole and she's only 20 years old, but she's so great. She told us that she's only been in Wellington 2 weeks and she saw our chapel and had the impression she should go there. On our first visit she accepted our invitation to be baptised, and even accepted August 9th as a baptismal date. We came to church yesterday and loved it. The YSA are already fellowshipping her and she's just the miracle we've been praying and fasting for here in Wellington. She's so great:)

Well, I'm just loving my mission! I couldn't ask for anything better. We had a stake wide fast for missionary work, and although I love our ward I do wish they were more missionary minded. So we are hoping that the fast will bring much faith and miracles into our area and stake. It is quite cold here, but it's home. A bunch of students from BYU showed up to church yesterday on their summer semester study abroad. I don't think they were anticipating being so cold on their summer trip, but it was fun to see American faces and welcome them to my home land now. It really is home here for me:) Have a great week! I love you all heaps:)

Sister Kennedy

P.S. I met this Samoan member, who now lives in Australia and he was all excited to hear where in Utah my companion and I were from. She said, "I'm from West Valley", and I said "I'm from Brigham City". He said, "are you kidding me? I was born in Brigham City on my mission." He said Brigham was his favourite area and he was so happy to know that's where I'm from. He served there 2003 in the Box Elder Stake and said he knew the Jordan family and they were the best. I don't know who the Jordan's are, but maybe my family does. Anyway, it was a fun little connection.

Keep our paths straight.

June 29, 2014

I am currently sitting in the Wellington library, looking out to see pouring rain and the cold weather. I am also sitting with 2 companions because I'm in a trio for 2 days:) Sister Sturzenagger is from Switzerland and staying with us, which is awesome because she has a German accent and reminds me of Lea Herbers. I told her my great-grandpa was from Switzerland and is made me so happy to know my family history! Grandma Stratford, is that why you learned German? I had no idea that's the language they spoke. Anyway, trios are pretty fun!

So our most exciting event for the week was on Sunday when we got to meet our new Mission President and his wife! We hugged Sister Kezerian goodbye, and I've always heard that the Sisters get to hug President when they leave. So since he was leaving we got to hug him which was nice. President and Sister Hudson are jus the cutest. She definitely has a Canadian accent, but they feel like the right people to lead our mission. I have a Mission Leader Council on Wednesday with them where I'll give my presentation for our Zone, then we have the first Zone Conference on Saturday which will be fun. Endings and beginnings are hard, but they are necessary to continue to hasten the work of salvation. 

Baptism with our Ward Mission Leader, Aileen, and Danielle.

We had an absolute MIRACLE on Saturday! There was a baptism of a woman about 30 minutes away and so we tried to get some investigators to come. Our ward mission leader was the one baptising the woman so he brought an investigator and her member friend, then 3 Vietnamese girls came with another member and we hadn't even met 2 of them before the baptism! They said that they all felt something that they've never felt before and it was awesome to know that they were truly feeling the Holy Ghost testify of truth. The Vietnamese girls then took us to lunch to try Pho which was pretty nice.

On Thursday the Relief Society put on a Zumba night and it was so cool. We can't do Zumba as missionaries, but we were in charge of making smoothies and it was fun to watch everyone. The Lord needs us to fellowship and get involved in the church not only on Sundays, but during the whole week. Everyone there had so much fun and I love that about this ward.

​Matariki Day at Te Papa

This weekend the Maori people celebrated Matariki Day. Matariki is the God of the stars and it also symbolizes the New Year here. They had a big celebration at Te Papa which is the big national museum. There, they had Kapa Haka groups (people who do their songs, chats, haka and poi ball dances) from all over New Zealand who came. It was awesome! We did finding while we were there and met a young mum who is very promising:) I can now find the Northern Cross, which is represented by the 4 stars on the New Zealand flag. I really do love the stars down under!

Alma 56:40: "Now they durst not turn to the right nor the left lest they should be surrounded; neither would I turn to the right nor to the left lest they should overtake me, and we could not stand against them, but be slain." The Stripling Warriors were being pursued by the Lamanites and what I love is that they recognized that if they deviated from their straight course, the enemy would overtake them. It's the same with the Lord. His paths are straight and when we deviate from the way He has shown us, that is when we get into danger. So continue on the straight and narrow path!

Love you all heaps!
Sister Kennedy

Vindy Vellington

June 22, 2014

Well, here in Wellington there's a big old sign on the mountain like the Hollywood sign saying Wellington. But this week it has a makeover so it now reads Vellington. Probably for an upcoming vampire movie or something, so now I saw I'm from Vellington in a vampire accent ha.

My companion and I on top of old barracks looking out to the ocean between the north and south island.

This week we were fasting for a miracle. We've had a lot of great investigators that just kind of fell of the rails. That happens quite a bit here.. so we were praying for a miracle. I mention the little boy Tomai last week and he is doing great! We were teaching he, his little sisters, and 2 member cousins the Plan of Salvation this week. We have these little visuals that we use to show the plan and kids really love it. His mum, who always sits in the lessons just started asking us all of these great questions! She told us about a time in her life when her prayer was answered and she knew God existed. She asked pretty much all the questions we answer in the Restoration lesson, and she even said that maybe one day she would be baptised and become a Mormon. Ha we were just so stinkin happy! We hurried to the car, wrote in a Book of Mormon and gave it to her. It was so great and we really believe great things will come from this family and the faith of this young boy.

On Wednesday there were transfers and a whole heap of missionaries left for home. We were so happy to be able to spend the afternoon with Sister Alcock before she flew home to Canada. I met her on my first day at the airport, so it was fitting that I take her to the airport on her last day. We got to stop in to see some of her favourite people and it was nice. But also terrifying to see missionaries go home. Ha it just isn't real!

It's getting real cold and windy here. I'd say that the best thing about our area is that it's getting more steady. We are so lucky to be teaching a lot of lessons in the week, working with many less-actives, and we're are lucky to have great members who feed us:) In this ward we are really lucky to have supportive Relief Society members who come on splits/rescue visits with us each Thursday night. That way we get to help the Relief Society and they help us as well.

We stopped on our bikes to pick up this balloon ha.

That's it. It was a pretty boring, and consistent week ha. I love the area I'm serving in, we get our new President on Sunday, and I'm working on a presentation to show and tell the new president all about the Wellington Zone so it should be a fun week!! I love you all heaps and hope you have a great week:)

Love, Sister Kennedy