Sunday, January 27, 2008

You'll get a kick out of this one. . .


We were finding , when my companion was kicking some dandylions. [He] can actually kick the heads off. I wanted to try so I go for a nice long one. I was just wearing the wrong shoes that day.


My shoe came right off my foot, flew high into the air and landed on some random roof. I was flabbergasted! Scare the kids!


I then proceeded to befriend a dog so I could get to the door. This dog, like most, was a very nice dog. I then proceeded to knock on the door. No one was home. There was no way up! We looked around for another 10 minutes and finally the guy came out of his house, and he was not happy. I told him why we were so persistant about knocking on his door, and he was almost joyful. He helped us get it down, by using a rope and a piece of wood. He was actually a very nice guy. He was not interested in hearing our message, but I know some day that guy will come lookin' for us. Anywho, random. I was very glad to have my shoe back.

This Bites


Elder McMurdie and I went out to do some more [finding]. There was one house with a ten foot gate! It had a sign on it saying: "beware of dog".
We see hundreds of these a day so I wasn't worried. My companion is terrified of dogs in general. So we both went to the gate and whistled. We tried to get this "dog" to come out. When there wasn't an answer I decided to go in.
I got halfway to the door when I heard heaps of barking coming from around the back of the house. The dog was loose. It came running around the corner barking mad. This has happened before, usually you can just hold still and the dog will stop in front of you. This dog must have been different. The Black Lab came right at me. As soon as I realized the dog wasn't going to stop, I turned to the side quickly. It missed my leg but ripped a small hole in my pants. I was then in a predicament. The dog was now between the gate and me.
I had two options: 1. Fight the dog 2. Try, beyond all hope, to get past the dog and out the gate (that is assuming my "terrified" companion had not already shut the gate on me, it happens all the time).
I chose option two. The dog, after biting me was weeling around to get me again. I do not know how, but I miraculously got past the dog. I ran full on for the gate. My companion was screaming: "hurry up, come on!". I barely squeezed through the gate right as my companion decided to close it. The dog happened to be right on my heels. He got the gate rightfully in the face. My companion calls it a "near death experience". I call it another day of being a missionary

Missionary Finding


This week was insane! This was the week that President Finnigan wanted us to do 1000 hours of finding as a mission. Elder McMurdie and I set a goal to get 24 hours. We ended up getting ~27 hours! On Tuesday, We started our morning off with exchanges. We took two young men from the ward here and did some serious door-knocking. That way we could get twice the hours in half the time!

Weird Experiences


We had 5 progressing investigators, 4 investigators at sacrament meeting, 3 New Investigators, 1 baptismal date set, and 26 1/2 hours of finding! That, my friends, is powerful. I am so blessed here in Napier. May the Lord bless you and the devil miss you.

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Wednesday, January 9, 2008


New Year: 6 Jan 2008

Well this last week has been awsome! We have three baptisms coming up! We just need one of them to stop smoking, and the other two to come to church every sunday (they have only missed one week). We are very excited here in Napier. This week is shifts. Which means we could go anywhere in the mission. I, being the man with the hook-ups, know what shifts are (I know where everyone is going). My companion, Elder Spendlove, is going to Christchurch (the third biggest city in New Zealand), there he will preside as a Zone Leader. I predicted this event happening. Elder Kumar (another elder in our district, from fiji)is also going to Christchurch. Sister Krok (a sister in our district, from Australia) is going to Levin. Sister Hatch is training another sister from Austrailia here in Napier. Elder McGrevy (Elder Kumar's companion) and I are staying put. So much for shifts. This last week was really powerful! Elder Spendlove and I are tearing Napier apart (that is good). We are having a hard time keeping up with our finding (we are supposed to do 10 hours a week). The reason for that is because we are so busy teaching people! I would rather teach than go finding any day. We are still in the process of teaching the family mission plan to the entire ward. My new companion and I will have to pick that up. There is a tremendous amount of work to do here, sometimes it feels a little overbearing. The members here are awsome they are so involved in the work. The family mission plan will help them get even more involved. We currently are getting 4 less-active families back to church! We are very excited for them. They are faithful people that have just slipped off the tracks. Two of them have just been offended by the members. I cannot express in words my heartfelt gratitude toward God. He has not just opened the windows of heaven over Napier. He has poured down countless blessings upon this people. I know this church is true. I now have a faith that cannot be broken. Being a missionary has shown me who I really am, or who God really wants me to be. I have seen my weaknesses and developed my strenths. I have been able to look into the eyes of many and testify to the truthfullness of this gospel. I love all of you. You all had a large part to play in helping me become who I am, a servant of God. I love you all, even if you don't e-mail me very often. -Elder Robert M Alexander-New Zealand Wellington Mission-P.O.Box 50448-Porirua, New Zealand

23 Dec 2007

Wow! I love being on a mission! You get to experience so many great, new things. You also get to experience many humbling, sad things. This last week was very eventfull. We started out by visiting the boat loads of media referalls we've been getting. We taught many lessons (which is always the most fun), had many tea appointments, and family home evenings. This week was very full on. On Thursday (Dec 20th) we started out planning out our week. This is where we can set goals and plan how to acheive them. We then ate some food and went finding. At 3pm we did some "chalk-talk" or "G.Q.-ing". What we did was draw on the side walk the nativity scene. We also drew the american continent (aztec temples). We put the star heralding Jesus Christ's birth in the middle of the two. We then wrote "The witness of two nations" over the lot. We then stood around and sung carols while we took turns explaining it to people who were interested. fun stuff. That evening (5:45pm) we went caroling with the ward. It was heaps of fun! Then we went home. Elder Spendlove was doing his folow-up calls with the rest of the district when an earthquake hit! At first the lights dimmed and there was a slight rocking. Then it started moving around much more violently. It was a fairly calm earthquake to be sure. I just sat there and cherished the moment. It ended in a minute or two, and we went back to life as we know it. It was a "cool as" experience. The next day was just a normal day for us missionaries. That night, however, was a very sad night. We got a call from the zone leaders, saying that a missionary in masterdon was hit by a truck, and his life was hanging by a thread. The missionaries name was Elder Carnivole from Austrailia. Ten minutes later we recieved another phone call from the zone leaders. Elder Carnivole had passed away. It was a very traumatic experience for everyone. The entire mission fasted and prayed for his family. Even though I have never met him, it was hard to take in. We are definitly being tried. The work however is still as progressing as ever. We are getting ever closer to leading the mission. We have many investigators who are preparing themselves for baptism. No baptisms yet I'm afraid. I really miss you all. Espessially at this time of year. I will be calling home for christmas. Probably on YOUR Christmas. You are all good examples for me. I hope I can be a good example for you.-Elder R. Alexander

16 Dec 2007



love being on a mission!!! These last couple weeks have been awsome! Napier is a wonderful place. We are still working with MANY investigators and MANY less-actives. We are so blessed here. The windows of heaven have opened up over this area. Many other baptisms are on the way. The work is exploding! All the missionaries say this is the most active area in the mission right now. I am so blessed and so grateful to be here at this time of great excitement. The ward here is awsome! We can hardly keep up with the work. Something that we have started here that I think will work really well, is the Family Mission Plan. We are helping each member develop a plan for the next quarter. Each family sets goals to help the missionary work move along. We write it all down on a sheet of paper (very organized), copy it two times, give a copy to the ward council, a copy to us missionaries, and a copy for the family. I feel really good about this program. I know it will work. One of the hardest things to do here is getting the members involved. My companion and I (Elder Spendlove) get along like peas and carrots. We have so many strengths and so many weaknesses, but together we are nearly perfect. Elder Spendlove is the district leader here in Napier. The sister missionaries here really make us frustrated. They are probably the biggest challenge we have right now. Christmas Conference was this week! It was so much fun! We started out like any other conference, hearing from President Finnigan. This is always the best part. We all hear what we need to work on, and also hear a little healthy chastisement. We are so blessed to have such an awsome mission president. After the leangthy speaches, we all played sport (kiwi saying). There was: Basketball, Football(soccer), Grid Iron(American football), Rugby(so much fun), and ping pong. It was heaps of fun, and helped all of us to blow off stress. We then Came inside and had gift exchange, White Elefant style. We then watched a movie!!! The movie was called "Polar Express", it's just to bad I've seen it before. Life goes on. We then went to our family that we were staying with for the night. They took us fishing, don't worry it was off the shore. I caught a flownder, but it was to small to keep. Good times. Well, all else I can say is that I love you all. Keep up the missionary work. Yes, even in Utah. Always be praying and looking for oppertunities to serve. Work hard, be smart, keep and follow all the rules, and as you lead the way, we will see you at the top, be there. -Elder R. Alexander

2 Dec 2007




There is nothing I really need that I cannot get here. I can live without cheap mayo for two years. Yes Mayo is extremely expensive here. It ranges from about 10-12 New Zealand Dollars. Which is about 8-9 american dollars (give or take). In my new area the flat (apartment) already has a [Christmas] tree. We are still working on decorations. Every year we have a Christmas conference, or a zone "get together". We have very well kept chapels here in New Zealand. Espessially here in Napier. We walk heaps, but members do occasionally give us a ride. The first thing I did in New Zealand was get off the plane, meet the president, travel to the mission office, and buy a bike.

21 Oct 2007


Anywho, heaps of things are different here in New Zealand. I would tell you but i dont have that much time. The work is going wonderfully. We have two progressing investigators, and many more investigators. It is hard to visit them all regularly. Most of them work heaps(<--New Zealand Saying) so it is hard to get a hold of them all the time. One of our investigators is an Anglican minister. He has HEAPS of really really hard questions. We will teach a lesson then spend three weeks explaining the doctrine in detail. It is hard work. He says he is on a journey to find the true gospel of Jesus Christ. We are working hard with him. We sometimes have to tell him to take some things on faith. We also have a progressing investigator who is very excited about the gospel. She also has lots of questions about the next life, which we sometimes cannot answer. I have a new companion! His name is Elder Viamatahau! I call him Via for short. He is from Tonga! Isn't that awsome! I feel like Elder Groberg in "The Other Side of Heaven". He likes to play vollyball and is fairly good (though he won't admit it). We love to play touch Rugby. Oh yea, did I tell you that peple over here are obsessed over Rugby? The United States has a team. They are horrible. The New zealand team is like the best in the world. They are called the All Blacks. I love New Zealand! It is so beautiful here, and the people are incredibly nice. It rains HEAPS! but we stay dry. . . sometimes. There was this one day when it was raining by the bucket loads. Elder Fallis(my last companion) and I were Finding (door-knocking) when a lady, we didn't even know, let us in for Milo (hot chocolate) and biscuits (cookies). It was awsome! Most people here are like that, genuinely NICE. We even got invited in for beer once. LOL!!! We had to refuse :) Well life is good here.

14 Oct 2007


Missionary work rocks! I love the people in this area. New Plymouth is a wierd place. The people in general are crazy! They say and do wierd things. Just the way they live their lives is so different from what I am used to. It's not just me either. All of the missionaries in the mission that have been to New Plymouth say the people are crazy here. Nevertheless, I love the people tremendously. Their kind nature (however crazy) is wonderful. I have still to have a door SLAMMED in my face. The other missionaries say it only gets better. The members say that if you can make it in New Plymouth, you can make it anywhere in New Zealand. However, this mission is similar to a European Mission, by the way of baptisms. The average baptism rate for missionaries here is 3-5. Not very high. I hope to "Raise the Bar" to the best of my abilities. I am not sure how successful I will be at that, seeing as I have been preceeded by strong, powerful missionaries. I have taught the first lesson countless times already, and given out countless pass-along-cards, and pamphlets. Therefore, the work is going along great! We are still teaching an anglican minister who still has heaps of really hard questions. Some of his questions include: Who is heavenly father's father? Why couldn't Heavenly Father proform the atonement? The bible clearly states that we cannot add to the bible, why was the Book of Mormon necessary? I have been able to slip by with satisfactory answers. He says he MAY get baptised. That is good enough for me, he will probably be baptised soon. :)) We also have two other progressing missionaries, who are progressing well. We have challenged one to get baptised, but says she is still thinking about it. Shifts are coming soon. My trainer is going home tommorow. I am so sad to see such a great missionary go home. He served his two years with great distinction and humility. Elder Fallis will forever be in my memory and my heart. Elder Fallis and I had a scary experience the other day. He and I were riding our bikes down a big hill, when we were about to pass another road. A car who was traveling up the hill, was about to turn into the street we were about to pass. The car and Elder Fallis then collided. Well the car wasn't really travelling that fast at the time. Elder Fallis was going fast. About 35-45 kilometers per hour (25-30 miles per/hr). Which is fast. Elder Fallis walked away with some cuts and bruises. Which is really blessed for flying through the air, and landing on concrete. He is ok now. He is going home in the morning anyway.

Elder Robert M. Alexander, New Zealand

30 Sep 2007
Life is good in New Zealand. We are continuing to teach Sarah. She is still coming along, we are planning to teach her the third lesson, and challenge her with Baptism. I am excited! We MAY have our first baptism. We finally got a hold with our other progressing investigator, Tiffany Long. She was being taught by Elder Tuesher and Elder Mudrow (the elders here before us.) She was coming to church and receiving the lessons well. When we visited her she told us she did not want anything to do with the church any more. grr. We have picked up two other investigators, however. One of them is an Anglican Minister. He is searching for the true church of God. He has a lot of really good hard questions. We have been able to answer all of them. It has been a great learning experience. Our other new investigator is a young girl who is accepting the gospel beautifully. She has a lot of questions of the soul such as: Where did we come from, why are we here, and where are we going? We will teach her the plan of salvation on our next visit. We are excited about her to. (as all of our investigators). We were given a challenge by President Finnigan called "spring planting". This is where we had to have 25 gospel conversations, per day, per companionship. It was tough but it was rewarding. We got to teach the first lesson 10 times!!!