Satan Really Is Fighting Me In This Area

Me Sweating!

September 26, 2016

WEEK 47

Aloha, mi familia y amigos,

Man.... not going to lie... Satan really is fighting me in this area. I still haven’t figured out how I can receive the best amount of success here but I’ll let you know when I find it. Life is hard. Everything isn’t given to us on a silver platter. We need to try and try and try again.

I mean there are many examples of great people who tried something and was great at it. BUT there are many more examples of GREATER people who at first didn´t succeed but kept on trying and trying until they did… like Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison, Alma, Amulek, and Jesus.

This week I learned a lot about the atonement of Jesus Christ. This week I tried and failed A LOT OF TIMES but I know at one point, God will give me the revelation I need so I can find the best way to help people. I have learned this week, especially from Elder Salazar. He’s helped recapture some of the attributes I have lost. Again, God puts people in your life for a reason! I have a true testimony of that.

We also went with the sisters to help them in their area...IT’S SO WEIRD having sisters in the district... I am so accustomed to go on exchanges but with the sisters, my good old companion just comes with me everywhere. I love that kid but the sisters are pure power... There’s a reason the sisters don’t need the priesthood! LOL!

Well, even though I made a lot of mistakes this week, there’s only one way to go and that is up. I am ready to make more mistakes but I am even more ready to do better… learning more and more of the LOVE of our Savior Jesus Christ.

Sorry... I am not sharing all of the miracles or great experiences. I just feel like I should tell you guys that even though we make mistakes, God is still ready to make us his servants.

THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING. I love you so much!!!

- Elder Pukahi

P.S.  You asked me about my companion… Yes, he’s TOTALLY Jessica’s size!  We mesh really well and he’s way cool.

Also, we are going to be watching General Conference at the ward building and will be trying to get people to come with us and watch it. It will be FUN! Love you!

Happy Birthday Everyone!

Our name tags

September 19, 2016

WEEK 46

MY FAMILY!  HAPPPPY BIRTHDAAAAAAY!!!!!!!

I LITERALLY FORGOT! Not going to lie—Dad, Carlton, Josh and Jessica… Jessica, just lucky for me that your birthday is a little later but I totally forgot. Half way through this week, I don’t remember exactly what we were doing but I looked at my watch and realized, wait, it’s September and everything and then BAM—everyone’s BIRTHDAYS... and well... yeah. And now I’m here saying HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH!

So… as I said last week, it was a little loco and it’s been about the same this week. We’ve been all around here and there this whole week. My district is actually in another area and I have sisters in my district so when I want to verify their work and everything, me and my companion have to go together and stay with them. But when we do, we lose that time to work in our area…I guess that’s life.

But EVERYTHING IS GREAT!  Well… even if this week was hard… I swear that I’ve never been REJECTED SO MANY TIMES EVER like what happened this week! I feel bad for Elder Salazar because it’s been a little rough but at the same time, it was really weird... Because… EVERYTIME somebody rejected us, I was happy. I don’t know but maybe my mindset has changed so that’s good.

On a tower in Rio Bravo

TODAY we had a sports day again! The zones from RIO BRAVO and REYNOSA went to the Mission offices and played a lot of sports and got a little wet, so when I get pictures of the activity I’ll send you some!

This last week, I spoke in Sacrament meeting about a lot of things but mainly I talked about MOMMY AND DADDY and what I have learned from you. Like I mentioned before, the Branch is kind of dead. This last Sunday we only had 40ish members but had 20ish investigators and converts come to church.... That just shows you that the members are not working and helping each other. So I’m really trying to make this branch a missionary branch but it’s going to take some work. But as I spoke about you and everything that we’ve gone through, we could just feel the spirit. A lot of the members were crying.

After the meeting, the members now want to support us so we’ll see what happens this week. But it’s all because of you guys. MY PARENTS ARE THE BOMB! You have been the greatest example and I love you guys sooo much! Thank you for everything that you have given me and how much you both have sacrificed for me! I LOVE YOU GUYS!

Well, I LOVE the mission! You already know!

- Elder Pukahi

This Crazy Week!

My new companion Elder Salazar

September 12, 2016

WEEK 45

So the title of this email is:   THIS CRAZY WEEK!

Dear Family & Friends,

It was...CRAZY! Let me explain. So on Tuesday, I went to go drop off Elder Cox in Reynosa, expecting to just pick up my new companion and that’s it, right? But NOPE!  The assistants surprise me and tell me that I will be opening a new area, too!  So yeah, I got transferred as well.

Getting new companions with mission president

Let me explain about my new companion... ELDER SALAZAR! He’s new to the mission, so he is 18 and from Durango, Mexico. HE IS SWEET! We are going to finish his training so fast! HE’S SO PREPARED! Every missionary that I have trained have been so prepared—it’s crazy! Good old Elder Salazar will be totally trained in no time! I am so excited.

But here’s the REAL crazy part. On Tuesday, they told me in the morning about me being transferred. So in the afternoon, when we got back at like 5:00 pm, we went to the appointments that we had set up. I gave all the references that I had gotten from people to the sisters in my district. Then me and my companion left that night!

Then Thursday, we went back to Reynosa to see our mission president, along with… ELDER PAUL B. PIEPER, our Area Seventy. We had a training with him, where he told us what we needed to do better and helped us by showing how we can do it. But what’s even crazier is that only 15 missionaries in the whole mission had the opportunity to talk with President Pieper one on one in an interview. President Regelado called me and told me that I was going to be one of the 15 people, as well as my good old friend Elder Cox. (He’s killing it as a trainer by the way with his newbie companion.) I am so grateful to have had the privilege to talk with a man called from God. I have learned so much this week!

Group photo at the mission office

This week because of my interviews that I needed to do as district leader, as well as the other meetings that happened this week, we didn’t have a lot of time to work in our area yet, which I feel bad for Elder Salazar. He hasn’t gotten the regular mission experience but he will learn and will be better than me.

But a miracle happened this week. I was praying for the knowledge on how I can have the success the mission needs in this area, and I felt impressed that I needed to change the mentality of the members and get them on our side. So the time that I had, I worked on gaining the confidence of all the leaders of the branch.  OH!  I’m still in Rio Bravo, just in another branch named Monte Real. When I was getting ready to come over here, people told me that the Branch President is crap and that members don’t want to work. But with the time that I’ve had with these people, I realized that it isn’t the members’ fault—it is the missionaries’ fault. They hadn’t gained their trust. And this week I haven’t gained the trust of the members 100% yet but the members brought people to church for us and are entrusting us to teach them and help them to baptize. So #miracle.

Oh, another thing… On Sunday, Elder Pieper assisted with our Rio Bravos conference that we had, so... that was crazy too!  SO YEAH! MY WEEK!

I LOVE YOU GUYS! The church is true and all we have to do is create the miracles!

- ELDER PUKAHI

Another pic of me and my companion

Formally becoming companions

Going to the mission home

Picking up my companion

Here is a link from the mission Facebook page that shows Elder Pukahi playing the ukulele with other Elders.  Enjoy!  https://www.facebook.com/misionmexicoreynosa/videos/672464252917966/

My Mission

This Week Was Awesome!!

Met up with my old MTC companion at the big meeting.  Elder McGary

September 5, 2016

WEEK 44

Dear mi familia y amigos,

This week was awesome!!  But I some unexpected news… My good old companion, Elder Cox, is leaving me already to go be a trainer in another area. And so I will again be… training. ALSO, for the first time in the last two years, we are going to have sister missionaries in Rio Bravo and they are in my district. YEAH! But nothing will change for me. I’m still training, still district leader, so it’s going to be fun. I have no idea yet who my new companion is so, I will tell you the next time!

But we were able to do a lot of things this week. So, like I mentioned to Dad in his email last week, I was invited to go to a big meeting with the Zone Leaders, which happened this week. We talked about the success of the mission and everything. It was really cool and I learned a lot. But it was actually pretty intense. The assistants (AP’s) show the results of the mission to everyone and they pretty much say "Good Job" to the zones that have baptized a lot and for the people that haven’t, they “planched” them why they haven’t had success and everything.

I realized in my mission that we all want success and are working together to make it happen. So we will strive to be the servants that God needs. We’ve lost a lot of missionaries these last two months so as a mission we are hurting a little bit, but we are thankfully getting the same results. At the meeting, I got the chance to talk to my good old father, ELDER MULLINS. He’s an AP now! We have 6 assistants in my mission, which is unusual. I also got to see my old MTC companion, Elder McGary.

AND the president is in LOVE with the ukulele. Anytime I am with him, he wants me to bring my ukulele! This weekend the general authority over our area will actually be visiting our mission and he wants us to SING for him with the ukulele.... so I will let you know how that goes.

Sadly, we didn’t have baptisms this last week. Because of the meeting, we lost a couple of days to work. Also, the investigators that we have right now are not progressing enough to be baptized. I will let you know what happens this next week.

I love you all! The mission is awesome!  Also, if any of you have questions, I can answer them. Just email me.

- Elder Pukahi

Marisol, she's an investigator.  We are teaching her English.