Family is Divine - Family Reunion back home

Kia Ora Mother,

What kinda question is that? ((Kristin asked "what part of yourself will you leave in New Zealand?")) I will leave most of my disgusting clothes over here. Is that what you meant. I honestly doubt that. What part of me will I leave in New Zealand. Well, I hope I can leave an influence for good on all that I met. I hope that people will remember a missionary that was happy and wanted to make life a little better for everyone. I hope I accomplished that.

Also, I would be happy to go to the open House. I am looking forward to that already. Also, to tell you the truth I am trying to focus on the Savior and his gospel in between and the comments about going home soon. I am pretty excited.

Ok, this week was an interesting one. The first part of the week we had nothing to do during the day. We had things to do at night but getting to the night was the hard part. We tracted and I can't believe how many doors we had slammed in our face. This place is the most hard hearted place that I have served. And crazy I might add. However, the scenery and the members make up for it.

We were able to find a new investigator this week and we were also able to get into a home where only one other set of missionaries were able to go. I hope that means something. It is a part-member family where the husband is active and the wife is anti. It is a weird situation but that is the way it is.

I hope that yous have a wonderful week and if anyone is still here send them my love. I love you heaps mum and am grateful for all that you do. I can't wait to see you but will try my best to focus for the remainder of my time here.

Arohanui,
Elder Beckstead

P.S. We have zone conference this week and mission conference next week so hopefully it will be good.

Crazy Week

Kia Ora Mother,

Well it sounds like you are back to your normal busy over the top self. I think dropping soccer was a good idea as you would be stressed to the max right about now. Have a wonderful week and be the best you can be.

Ok, my week was a pretty crazy week. We had to travel to Hamilton this week for a zone meeting and the focus of the mission is beginning to shift. Since we got the new mission president his focus has been mainly preach by the way or talking to everyone we see. Now that is still the emphasis but also we are to try and get less-actives back to church with all their non-member friends. As usual the main focus is to baptize, baptize, baptize. I think it is a good step though especially for this area. All the recent converts over the last 2 years have all gone less-active except for about 2 or 3. So as we focus on the less-actives we can help the branch grow instead of shrink as it is doing now. I think it is a good thought.

A funny story about tracting this week. We went to contact this referral who was about 20 minutes away. We went out and talked to this guy who ran his own religious newspaper and believed in all Seventh-Day Adventist material except for the actual church itself. So that was fine and the next house over we knocked on. The door was a sliding glass door and after we knocked a big burly guy came to the door. He opened the door and came up and looked at my badge. He said, "Jesus Christ? Nah." Then went back in slammed the door. He slammed it so hard that it slid back open again. He had already walked away and I decided to close the door for him. It is funny how some people just don't like us because of a badge that we wear and that they are in a big hurry to get away. Even to the point of leaving the door open.

Besides that we have just had heaps of rain. There is a bridge that goes over a river as well as some paddocks and this week we drove over the same bridge except it was just a river. No paddocks. The river had risen heaps and guess what. It is still raining outside. It just wont quit.

Well, I am getting more and more excited to see you and trying my hardest to not think about it more than needed. Many different people comment on it more and more though so I know it is getting close.

Have a great week at the reunion. Love you all heaps.
Elder Beckstead

Dad got a new job - Trev's reaction - Aug 5th

Kia Ora Dad,

That is excellent News. I am so happy for you. Now I have to consider transferring up to BYU. I have been thinking about that recently actually and that is just a bigger enticement. We will see how it goes.

This week we traveled heaps and tracted heaps. I am getting tired of getting rejected so much. I know there is a reason but I just don't know what. Maybe it is because I'll get rejected by heaps of women. :) Nah that can't be right. Anyways we will see.

Thanks for all you do and I hope that you enjoy the new job. Also enjoy the reunion or the parts you can go to. Let everyone know that I say hi and that I love them.

Love you heaps dad,
Elder Beckstead

Tough Times - from July 29th

Kia Ora Mother,

Wow, I thought you were going to have a break after being released as VP from soccer. Apparently not. Good luck with the driving and such.

This week for us was just a normal week. Well almost anyways. Transfers came and went and we saw no change for us. We are so far away that the changes that happened have not reached us yet. District Leader stayed the same but one zone leader changed. A few district members also changed but we haven't met them yet. We are just putting along out here.

This past week was abnormal though because we are running short on K's for our car. We were stuck in Thames which is pretty useless when it comes to missionary work. Everyone is on drugs or has had brain damage by them. Everyone we have tracted have said no. I don't even know why we stay here. We should live in one of the towns closer to the chapel. But trying not to complain. Also, our flat has heaps of mold which we had to clean today.

We did have a harvest on Sunday in the branch. That was a good thing. The bad thing was that me and my companion we still together and it was just like church ended an hour early. We haven't heard of any results that came from it either. At least the branch is trying to do things like that.

Apparently, we have zone meeting this week with our zone. I reckon it is completely pointless for us to go because it uses up so many of our k's. It is a new month but still, they tell us to budget and then the make us use them all at the beginning. My priorities must be all mixed up because I just cannot see how it how they do.

Well, I am sorry about complaining so much. We are just trying to get used to the fact that we are going to have to tract this whole transfer which is not what I want to do.

I hope that you recorded the opening ceremonies for the olympics so I can watch it. We had to go fix this old ladies tv and the only part I got to see was the part with mr. bean. That was pretty funny. I hope yous enjoyed it.

have a wonderful week and I will do my best to do so as well.

Love yous heaps,
Elder Beckstead

Staying Focused

Kia Ora Mother,

It is a crazy to hear all the things that are happening back home. And what is even more crazy is that transfers is this week and I only have 6 weeks left. I am honestly doing good. It is my companion that is having a harder time than me. I am focusing on the things we are doing and can do instead of the things we aren't doing and aren't able to do. It has helped me to stay focused. The only trouble I am having is not going crazy.

Not very much happened this week exciting anyways. We didn't have any investigators at church this week but we did have a few less-actives. Our K's are still shot and we don't have any progressing investigators. But I guess that is some weeks here in the mission.

Well I don't think anything is going to effect us during transfers. So my focus is going to be on this area and not going over K's. Also, we are basically completely trusting in the Lord to fill our time because it is almost impossible. We are staying positive.

Love yous heaps.
Elder Beckstead

Happy Birthday

Kia Ora Mother,

Well Grandpa said the same thing about the singing and I told him I would be happy to listen but I need a break. I will have to think about it some more but I already know I don't have too much of a choice in the matter. I might just have to go with Xane on Sunday :) but we will see.

This week was an interesting week for sure. It started off alright and interviews happened on Thursday. It was funny though because I was interviewed three times. The first time President Lekias thought I was going home next week and it was all about finishing strong. Then Sister Lekias told him and he called me back in. The second interview was about my area and staying focused. Then he called me in a third time for a temple recommend. I had asked about it during the first interview and he thought I was going home so he said we would do it then. It was a big mess that turned out for the best. All three interviews took about as long as a normal one, so it worked out. Then we drove back and we were suppose to help this guy milk cows. We got there at the end and just watch him treat some of the cows. We are helping him again this week though which I am not excited about at all.

Yes, I did get the package and thank you very much. It was a good package. I even got to give a couple of the baptism pencils away at a baptism we had this weekend. More on that later.

Friday was an ok day except for the fact that not much happened. We had weekly planning and then a member took us to lunch. Then we had a mini, MCM which is a missionary meeting. We were supposed to stay in Waihi with our branch president but he was with the youth until 10:30 pm. You know how changing plans urcs me but there it was.

Saturday was a very trying day. It was my birthday but that night leading up to it I got very little sleep. Then we got our k's lowered in the morning. Right after that we got a phone call from our branch mission leader stating that our potential set couldn't get baptized because she would be baptized into inactivity. We understood the circumstances but it was still annoying. Also, they asked us to tell them she couldn't get baptized. Then we met crazy people throughout the day. Finally, we were at our branch mission leaders for dinner and he gave me a pretty cool birthday present. Looking back it was an alright day. Just certain events have been challenging.

Then yesterday we had 2 baptisms in the branch. The senior couple in our branch are doing very well and 2 of the girls they were teaching got baptized. It was good to see them get dunked :) I gave them a pencil each so hopefully they liked them.

It was a very interesting week with good and bad mixed in. Our mission president told Elder Cenicola that we were under no pressure to baptize and that the branch is not the best at the moment so we will have to do alot of finding on our own. I guess that is what we will be doing from now on.

I hope that you have a good week and I love you heaps.
Elder Beckstead

Trip to Coromandel and Upcoming Interviews

Kia Ora Mother,

Ok, this week was a crazy week. We were stuck here is this area for most the week because we didn't go to district meeting and we didn't have heaps of k's for much. The only exciting thing we did was go up to Coromandel, sleep on the floor of the chapel/house which was freezing cold, and find out that that area is more dead than this one. Suffice it too say that when I got back yesterday from that excursion I was very tired hungry and grumpy. I am warning you now that I need a few days of sleep recovery when i get home because I am exhaused every day and if you miss sleep it is impossible to make it up. I know you know how it is. Oh well. I will just let my mother fix me up when I return home.

Well, this week looks like an interesting one. We have interviews which I am not really looking forward to at the moment but they will happen anyways. Then the package that you sent is sitting in my district leaders boot waiting for me to collect it. The problem is that he lives ages away. I will get it wednesday for sure. Then of course it is my birthday. We will see if I do anything out of the ordinary. I doubt it but we'll see.

Overall things are moving forward and it is getting closer and closer to September. Ok, your question is a bit hard this week but here goes. The first thing about my companion is that he is very good with bible scriptures. I am terrible with the Bible. So with my Book of Mormon knowledge and his bible knowledge we do alright. Second is that he stops for nothing. That is very irritating sometimes but it is a strength that he has. And thirdly he is from California which I guess is a good thing.

Three things about this area are that it is beautiful. Great scenery all around. Then the second is that the people at least the members are mostly nice. They are happy to see Elders back in the area. Thirdly, I am grateful to have a car again. I am tired of biking and a car is a great relief from that.

Then three things I have learned from my mission president is that first, no effort is wasted. I also learn that from Preach My Gospel. Second is that when we come to see people as our brothers and sisters, it becomes easier to see what they can become and it is easier to talk to them and offer the gospel. Then thirdly, is that we as missionaries need to know three things, how we feel when someone gets converted, how they feel and how the members feel when involved in the conversion process.

Love you heaps and I hope that you have a wonderful week.
Elder Beckstead