They say it's Spring...but I don't believe it!

Oct. 22nd, 2019

So today we were getting a few things in the shops & I saw a store window that said, 'Happy Spring!'

It was about 11:00 am & 41*C outside...which is like 105*F. It got up to 107.6* today. If this is spring then, come summer, we're going to be like eggs frying on the pavement! I would like to pay homage to the man who invented A/C...he was a genius & deserves my utmost gratitude.

Elder Tate had the opportunity & I use that word very loosely, to spend some quality time w/the Elder's quorum for a morning of golf. There were six guys playing, plus the two missionaries & an eight yr old...most of them had never played before. Here's a pic of one of the 'putting greens'. Out of nine holes only one was actually green. They had a good time even though they had to start at 6 am & by the time they finished four hours later it was in the 90's. 

The good thing about the warm weather is that our efforts to help move the Lord's work forward in this part of His vineyard is getting hotter, too! We sure love the pioneering saints here in sunny Karratha & Port Hedland, WA. They are such good people who love the Gospel of Jesus Christ & are willing to do whatever is needed to bring their friends/family to an understanding of this marvelous work & a wonder. Here are some highlights of what's happened the past week.

Here are our two wonderful Elders we serve with in Karratha....Elder Poxon from Burmingham, England & Elder Yavala from Fiji. Can you guess which one is which?! 

Elder Yavala can eat his weight in food every day & bikes like a crazy man while poor Elder Poxon is nearly melting in the heat & lagging half a mile behind. There's no way he will gain any weight here as he sweats it all away...plus he's a vegetarian, so the poor boy can't gain an ounce. They both are very smart...Elder Poxon wants to be a biochemist & Elder Yavala an IT guy. 

Here are our other two Elders from Port Hedland. At the time of this picuture, we were serving in a local soup kitchen. One is Elder Gardner from a little town close to Gilbert, AZ & the other is Elder Tiikana (pronounced Sekana) who's from a small atoll called Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands. Again...can you guess which is which? 

Elders Yavala & Tiikana tell us that most of the schools in the Pacific Islands are owned/operated by the Church. They provide education free of charge to all children up & through high school regardless of their faith. Most of them speak very good English, which is required to graduate. Elder Tiikana will be attending BYU-Hawaii where he wants to study computers after he finishes his mission. Elder Gardner is going into the family business...which is the town his family owns. What?!

We had the pleasure of visiting with an 86 yr. old member of the branch in Port Hedland..his name is Jacob Brockley. He was a young child during WWII & witnessed/survived the bombing of his beautiful city of Cologne, Germany which lies on the Rhine River. It was fascinating hearing him tell about the places he's visited/worked/traveled & the famous people he's come in contact with, like Bruce Lee, who he knew very well & received martial arts training from. He also wore very little clothing...which was a little weird for me, but didn't seem to bother him in the least. 

We're learning to try all kinds of new things when it comes to bringing others to Christ. It seems there's people everywhere looking for something that's lacking in their lives. They might be found in a soup kitchen, in a gardening or exercise group or learning English. They might simply be listening to a Sunday evening radio show & hear a message that resonates in their hearts. The two young Elders in Port Hedland have been doing a radio program for quite some time twice a week & invited us on as their guests. It was a very inspiring opportunity & taught us to be prepared to open our mouths & share a message to anyone who might be listening. 

We discussed the meaning of the verses found in Matthew 7:7-8 which says: 

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 

The key is we have to ask, seek & knock...these are action words that require us to go & do...

Our first & favorite English student has moved with his family to Perth. We sure love his family will miss them, but we can look forward to continuing English lessons over video chat & seeing him continue to progress both in his language skills & also in learning the gospel through his lessons. We look forward to seeing them again the end of November when we go to Perth for a senior missionary conference.

Our Garden Group continues to thrive...different families showing up almost every week. The children created a scarecrow out of cast off clothes belonging to their dads & had a great time cooking up a sausage sizzle w/Elder Tate. That's what they call a weiner roast in these parts. The gal holding the little one is Sue...she's from Burma & has joined our Zumba class. Last Saturday we had 9 non-members & 5 members. It's getting almost too large for our little branch building...which is a great problem to have!

In closing I would like to challenge each of us to look around & make a new friend. It's not hard...there are people everywhere who need a friend. The Lord knows who they are & how we can help them feel His love. They are just like us...they love their families, they want to be happy & they worry/have problems & challenges too. We have the answers they are seeking & just need to be ready & willing to open our hearts & mouths when opportunities are presented. 

We love you all & are so grateful to be blessed with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The opportunity to listen to conference & hear the words of modern-day Prophets & Apostles has strengthened our testimonies & given us the added peace & courage to continue on this chosen path. May God bless each of you & your families as you also press forward in faith.

Hugs to all....Sister & Elder Tate

Miracles all around!

Oct. 5, 2019

What a great couple of weeks we've had! It's pretty incredible when we open our eyes & pay attention to the daily miracles that unfold around us. Things that appear to be mere happenstance, coincidence or accidents are rarely that...especially when it comes to our Father's children....our brothers & sisters. 

These past couple of weeks have been busy & filled w/opportunities to serve...sometimes that's just code for hard work! We helped one of our Community Garden family's move from one house to another...man, how I wish she could have had the RS come teach her how to organize, pack  & clean. At least we had a few experienced Priesthood brethren to help move everything! We are going over again early tomorrow morning to paint for several hours along with the Elders. I say early...7 am because by 11 it will be 100* & I'm hoping to be standing in a cool shower by then. 

It surprises & even shocks people when one volunteers, offers & asks if help is needed. This gal didn't really believe we would willingly give of our time to help her family without wanting something in return. Even though she has had a wonderful friendship w/the gentleman who is in charge of the Garden, she refuses to let him get closer to her family & I believe this is because she thinks we have ulterior motives. And yes, even though our ultimate desire is to bring her family into the Gospel, we just want her to know she is a beloved daughter of God & he is aware of her needs & sent us to help her. Following the example of the Master Gardner...planting seeds is what we do.

We've had great success teaching our Mongolian friend, Gooray Batmuckh (Elder Tate calls him Batman) & we love his family. He is doing fantastic & we have started using gospel principles to teach him sentence structure, paragraphs, nouns, etc. It's been great! Because they feel grateful for our kindness in teaching their son, his parents have accepted us with open arms...even though we don't speak the same language, the spirit's influence is universal, touching hearts & souls. We're sad that they will be leaving the area soon to move to Perth, but we know our relationship will only become stronger over time. Elder Tate is now making plans to go to Mongolia fishing...😆🎣

It is pretty amazing that when we look for opportunities to just be friendly & invite others to join in fun activities or to help serve others, people often surprise us & jump in w/both feet! We don't know what they need, but the Lord does. Case in point...A couple weeks ago I felt prompted to ask a eally energetic lady in our branch who has taught Zumba classes if she would be willing to teach on Sat. mornings. She said yes, so I put up Zumba fliers in our apartment complex, our branch Facebook page & around town with the hope that a few ladies would want to join us for some fun. 

A few days later I got a call from a sweet gal who had just moved here from Brazil. She's Japanese, shy & needs help with her English, so guess what....another opportunity to teach English & the Gospel. She was so grateful to have a new friend & was excited to participate in something with other women. Two of the gals from our garden group also asked to join us as well as Gooray's wife (Uga) & his mom. 

So, come Saturday morning, it was pretty exciting (& noisy) when we had 5 non-member ladies w/their 6 kids join the other six of us & 9 other kiddos. We had a fantabulous time & they all want to continue coming. 

Gooray's mom & wife Uga, are on the left; my friend from Brazil, Simone, is below them, almost out of the pic; Shelly from the garden group is in front w/camera; & Lisa in front w/glasses also. We had a blast & their kids are sooo excited to come back.
Next time we have two older kids from the branch coming to help watch the littles so we don't have an accident as they love to run between our legs & crawl around. Not a good combination with uncoordinated women.


Elder Tate & the missionaries go out twice a week making bread deliveries from a local bakery (delicious donation goodies!) to those in need, less actives & our non-member friends we're fellowshipping, etc. Last week they went to the home of a man from Iraq that the elder's had tracted out. He was very touched by their kindness to him & when they returned the other night w/bread he invited them in & sat enraptured as they discussed gospel principles. He came to Church the following day & stayed for both meetings & understood/enjoyed the topic from the Come, follow me class discussion. He is excited to be taking Engish lessons w/Randy using the Gospel Essentials manual & the scriptures as their text. Here's a copy of the handout they enclose with the bread.

                                            
This past weekend the Lord provided us with another humbling experience. I was waiting outside a store for Randy when a dishevled man who was walking by stopped & looked at me rather oddly. I was a little nervous when he came shuffling up to me & I turned to walk away, but stopped in my tracks when he said, "I'm a member of your church." He pointed to my name badge & heard a quiet voice whisper in my head say, 'just listen.' So I did.

He went on to tell me he had been baptized in New Zealand in 1975 where all of his family had been converted to the Church. Most of them are all still active after all this time...& he is still in touch with one of the elders who taught him. He became quite emotional as he told me how much he loved that man for caring enough to sacrifice in order to travel to New Zealand in order to find/teach his famiy. 

John explained that he was traveling across the country to first visit his sister, who lived a few hours from where we are, & then would be going south to Perth to see his brother, who is dying of cancer. He had already traveled about 2500 miles & would be driving another 1200 miles in a 25 yr. old camper. 

His camper had broke down several days earlier in Karratha & he had been hanging out either in the Library or wandering the stores where there is A/C, just people watching. He wasn't panhandling or looking for a handout... he was just lonely & wanted to connect with people & seeing my missionary badge had given him the confidence he needed to make an approach. We talked with him for quite some time & invited him to come to church...which he did. He so enjoyed spending time interacting with the members & expressed his gratitude at finally being able to take the sacrament. 

One of the members followed him to a petrol station to fill up his van & others gave him some cash so he could get to his destination safely. He was teary eyed & so appreciative of everyone's kindness to him, a stranger. It was a perfect example of the Apostle Paul's admonition to the saints about taking care of the poor & needy so that everyone could be blessed...both the one receiving & the one giving. 

We are so very grateful for the blessings of the Gospel & the Atonement of Jesus Christ. These blessings are made even more apparant when we have the opportunity to listen/watch General Conference & hear the words of a living Prophet & Apostles. As the world continues to draw away from the Lord, it is our privilege to draw ever closer to Him by being obedient, prayerful & doing all we can to stay on the covenant path. That is the only way to true safety.

We testify that the words we have heard from His servants are true! We love these wonderful men & women who teach, testify & direct the affairs of God's kingdom here upon the earth & pray heaven's blessings upon them & all your families.

Love, Elder & Sister Tate