We’re finally here. Sorry it has taken so long to get this going, but we’ve been pretty busy, and hopefully you will enjoy seeing our blog and the things we are doing.

We’ve now been here for four weeks and love serving in the Auckland New Zealand Mission. Sister Robertson is the Mission President’s Secretary and I’m the Financial Secretary. The work is sometimes hard and a little frustrating trying to do all we are assigned to do. We’ve had many days that we’ve had to put in some 12 hour days which is hard on some old timers like us who are not used to it, but we feel blessed.
The Lord’s work is going forward here in New Zealand. There are 170 missionaries assigned here, and in the next few weeks there will be 190. Getting everything ready to add 20 more missionaries is sometimes very stressful. Sister Robertson has to make all the arrangements with their travel, passports and all the paper work that involves, and I have to make sure they have money in their accounts when they get here and take care of all the rent and utility bills. We are busy making sure they have a place to stay and with beds and furniture to go with that.
Every 6 weeks, about 1/3 of them are re-assigned with new companions and areas to work in, so that’s also a lot of work, tracking where they are and where they are living.
The Elder’s and Sister’s have such strong testimonies of the gospel, and are simply wonderful to be around. Sister Robertson is able to give each of the Sister’s a big hug, and I get to give the Elder’s a hug. It should be just the opposite, but who am I to try and change the rules.
We survived our first inflow of 11 missionaries coming in and 6 going home, and we have 17 scheduled to arrive in early October. With the Lord’s help I’m sure we’ll be able to do all we are required to do.
One of the things that I will be required to do is transition the Mission Finances from the old system (MOS) to a new system (IMOS) that is being put in place in all the Mission’s around the world. I think it will be much better once I get it set up, since I will be able to pay bills electronically instead of preparing hand drawn checks now. I think there will be a lot of work getting everything transitioned to the new system.
We really love the country of New Zealand. It is very beautiful here. We are three blocks from one of the most beautiful beach’s we’re ever seen. Although we haven’t seen a lot of the country yet, we hope to be able to get settled and travel a little more on our P (personal) day. This country seems to have everything, beaches, mountains, geysers and lakes. Auckland, where we live is a huge city of 1.3 million people, but once you get out of the city, there are rolling hills and beautiful landscapes. The people here are warm and very friendly. It’s a real mix of cultures here: Whites, Tongans, Samoans, and Chinese. The mission includes all 4 languages.