Gonna make it short

Sunset

So earlier I was throwing up and now I have a fever so I think this letter will be really short.  

So this week was pretty rough with one of our investigators who the past couple weeks has been progressing.  The other day we went to go teach her and right as we're coming up to her house I see her take one step out the front door and then turn around and run inside.  At first I thought she was just going to go grab us chairs because that's what she usually does but when we asked if she was there the Nanay said in the most disgusting scratchy voice after taking a huge hit of her cigarette "Wala sya.  May pupuntahan sya yata." Which means she's not here and she is probably going somewhere.  She says all this and I know she is right inside hiding from us.  Not to mention we could see her sandals outside the front door.  It was pretty frustrating and I was pretty mad after it happened the second time and almost the exact same way except for the second time the Nanay comes outside in just a towel to tell us she isn't there even after her said she was inside.

 

We've been struggling pretty bad lately to get our investigators to progress by coming to church so if anyone has any ideas about getting people interested in coming to church please tell me.

We did have some success this week with bringing some less actives back to church.  On Sunday morning we showed at up their front door and said we're going to church and sure enough they got ready and came with us.  So it wasn't a terrible week with the work.

We also got a referral from a member who lives clear out in the mountains.  It was pretty awesome and the lesson was really good because the whole compound came and listened to us. 

 

Well this week was good.  Sorry for the letter but it's really hard to focus right now.

Elder Tribe

Our apartment ;)

This is how the food is cooked.

We're doing alright.

So looking back in my planner trying to remember what I did this last week and what popped out to me was the big letters I wrote that said "Walk for EVER."  I want to get a step counter to see how far we walk because I've never been so dead in my life.

This week was pretty amazing with one of our investigators St.  She has committed to be baptized on April 5 but because she is living with her boy friend we realized it wasn't allowed.  When we were leaving her house one night after the lesson they told us to come back Friday and have lunch.  We asked if we would teach them then or later and they said later but then right as we were walking outside the gate she told us they were getting married and it was their reception I guess you could call it.  It was an answer to our prayers.  We hadn't even talked to her about how she would either have to move out or get married and they just decided to get married themselves. 

This last week we found some less-actives and this week they came to church.  It's almost crazy sometimes how easy it is to return less-actives because all you do is have to fellowship and show them that you care.  We also found a less-active and he's already told us he'll come back to church and all we had to do was talk to him and show him the commandments and what it says there about keeping the Sabbath day holy. Madali lang na naman

I don't really know what else happened this week.  I've been trying to keep my planners more updated so I can write better emails but what I do is kinda boring.  We did find a less active and a new investigator who live in the same house.  We taught them and then when we came back the next day she had friends over and we talked to them for a while and OYM'd them.  Most of our conversation was about the differences between America and the Philippines.  They can't believe that back home we don't eat rice three meals a day and we don't have rice fields every where.  

We have a member here in our area who is doing a better job at being a missionary than we are.  He has a different non member with him every week at church.  We met the kid he brought this week and he really wants to get to know Heavenly Father.  In the morning he goes to our church and then in the afternoon he goes to the born again Christians in the afternoon.  This week when we teach him we're going to tell him our purpose and hopefully he'll realize we're the one true church.

Love you guys,

Elder Tribe

She Said Yes!

We finally have a baptismal date set!  First one set in over three months and I'm stoked!

This weeks lessons were probably some of the most spiritual lessons I've had my whole mission.  We went to Sister D this week and since she works every day we teach her at her little hot dog stand when she isn't busy.  The lesson was to go over any questions she had about the Book of Mormon.  She had some amazing questions and some I didn't even know but luckily my companion knew them.  When we were leaving she asked if we could leave our triple combination with her so she could read it while she works and write down questions she had.  When we told her we had an extra pair we would just give her she told us that she wanted to cry and was really so excited to have her own.

This week I really feel like my testimony was strengthened.  We taught a lot about the Plan of Salvation this week especially to our new investigator who has come to church two times in a row!  We taught her the plan of salvation and about the Restoration of the church.  She is super interested and maybe it helps to have her boy friend be a returned missionary but after the lesson about Joseph Smith, we asked her if she believes there is a living prophet today on the earth and she said YES!  We then asked her if she would follow the example of Jesus Christ through baptism and she said YES again!  We set her goal baptismal date for April 5th.   It was amazing and I'm way excited!  So please pray for her that she'll be ready!  I also bore my testimony at the end of the lesson and I was saying things I'd never said before.  It was really awesome and you could feel the spirit so strong.  

Our spirits are high right now and our area is better than ever.  We just reported the highest ki's in our area this last week and it feels way good to finally have a baptismal date set!  Hard work paying off!  Work Hard Play Hard! 

Love,

Elder Tribe

This is what my investigators eat!

My comp playing with the eels.

11 bagong investigators!

Way good week for new investigators it was crazy!  Yesterday night when we reported Ki's to the Zl's they called us back just to make sure our Ki's were correct cause the 11 new investigators really is crazy!  

So we found this one lady last week Sister K, she is super cool and is always willing to listen to our lesson and is always inviting people over to have us teach.  The other day we taught the Plan of Salvation to a group of about 10 people that Sister K referred to us and the first thing we ask each of them is "Saan Tayo nangaling?" or "Where did we come from?" and it was weird hearing these people say they had no idea where we came from.  The usual answers are 1. I don't know 2. We were water 3. From my moms stomach.  Being in this Gospel we really are so lucky!  We know where we came from, we know what our purpose here is on earth and we know where we are headed after this life.  With those three questions answered, life is so much easier.  The lesson ended well and at the end of the lesson we always ask what they learned and then when they tell us we explain the importance of it and how it really is important to know those questions.  

The work has been really great in our area.  The work here in the Philippines doesn't seem like a mission really.  Before the mission I expected to be getting rejected everyday and have just a couple of lessons at the end of the week but it's not that way.  The people here are so nice and won't say no even if they want to.  I feel like I really am so blessed to be here in a mission where honestly you don't get rejected other than just a couple times!

The mission is great right now and people are just showing up to church out of the blue who have never even been taught before.  We are working freaking hard even though it's scorching hot temperatures outside.  Love the work even when we get home from a hard days work and have no electricity or gas.  Nagpapasalamat ako na maging instrumento sa kamay ng diyos.

This dog ate a frog!

Love you guys,

Elder Tribe

Trunky Week!

So this week is what missionaries would call trunky week.  It's the week before transfers!  We just found out who is getting transferred in our zone.  I thought I was getting transferred so I was getting pics with all the families that I taught and now I guess I'm not even getting transferred.  I guess it's a good thing though because one Nanay said she would cry if I got transferred.  It's also a good thing because I love the area and my companion. 

So it's spring here in the Philippines.  The spring is way different here than it is back home.  The trees all of a sudden just lose all their leaves and then the next day they have the leaves back again.  So my allergies have been pretty bad!  I guess that proves to Allan and Miriam that I don't have a worm!

This week I had splits with Elder Mccausland again from Florida.  It was hour 5th splits and it almost feels like I'm training him but it's good.  We taught a couple lessons but the best part is OYMing people when you have two Americans together.  The people seem to just all stare at you and so it's always really easy to start a conversation.  They always ask us if we could come back and marry a Filipina.  I always just say  Pwede which just means like it's allowed.

I had a really cool lesson with Elder Rocamada this week.  We went back to teach our investigator and she was super excited we were there.  She said that she sees us some times walking around and just wants to yell and tell us to come teach her but she is shy.  We taught her about the B of M and she was so excited the whole lesson.  When we finished teaching her she told us by the time we get back she'll have finished the BofM.  She is seriously a GOLDEN INVESTIGATOR and truly prepared.

Way excited to be here in Ramon for at least one more cycle!  

Coolest Family

People live here

Love Elder Tribe