Humility...?

Kia ora whanau!

Man... this week! It was all good I guess.  The Preston's showed me the news about Sadie. I didn't know her, but I recognized the name. That's way sad though! The Preston's knew her very well. 

So today I don't have anything to tell you, so I just thought I'd let you know how I'm doing. 

Missionary work is hard. It's awesome... but hard! Especially now that they changed it a ton, I feel like I have to retrain myself! It's been very good working with members though. And I'm in flippin' Tauranga, where the members have beams of sunshine surrounding them with smiles from ear to ear! So it's all good! 

I feel like my testimony has been strengthened heaps! I have really been studying the scriptures, and finding the little treasures that are buried deep inside them. It's been wonderful really! I honestly never thought that I would enjoy and like the scriptures so much. But it happened! Weird...

I've been out here for so long that my jokes have even changed. Missionary humor is ridiculous! For example... The best dating advice is found in the Book of Mormon!! Check out 1 Nephi 16:7. "And I Nephi took one of the daughters of Ishmael to wife." Awesome! What I learned here is that you just have to get it done, you know? So that is a beautiful life lesson that I learned on my mission! ;) 

On a more spiritual note though, the scriptures have changed my life! I have scriptures that are marked as "Life Changers" that I hold dear and that I'll never forget! I have started ponderizing just recently. I'm now on my 9th week of ponderizing scriptures!! My study journal is the flippin' bomb!

Also though, I feel like it's humbling me in a way. (I know what you're thinking right now after reading that, "THANK GOODNESS!") But I don't know how good it is--continuing to learn and grow in the gospel, and trying to improve each day has really opened my eyes to all the things I stink at! I have realized that I have a lot of improving to do still! But I'm heading in the right direction, which is what matters most! 

When I mentioned how I was becoming more humble, I remembered how we had a ping pong night the other day with Timoti and his whanau and Jordan Miru. I flippin' wrecked them! :) I am still undefeated in the mission field! Jordan gave me a good game though. I only beat him by 2. But a "W" is a "W" you know?? That's all that matters!! ;) Haha! 

Funny story. We looked in the area book and found a family with the last name Pene. So we were like, "Elder Pene, lets go visit your cuzzies." So we get there and some white fella was working outside. We asked him if the Pene's still lived there. He said they just moved a couple weeks ago. So we asked him for his name, and he said, "Oh, we're the Butlers!" Haha, what a coincidence--Pene's and Butlers! ;) I thought it was funny.. I don't know about you!

Well, that's all for now! We have a pretty mean week planned this week! I'm pretty pumped. Combined ward sports night & feed. Exchanges in Whakatane, Otumoetai, and Kawerau, a Baptism on Saturday, and a musical fireside on Sunday! Solid! So that's me! Love ya'll heaps!

Elder Butler 

p.s. I promise I'm more humble. Just not when it comes to ping pong! Then, there's no mercy. I'm like Rex Cwon Doe  on Nepolean Dynamite. "Bow to your sensei... BOW TO YOUR SENSEI!!" Break the wrist, walk away... You feel me?? ;) Love ya!