Holy Week!

We started off last week with Zone conference on Tuesday.  President Rahlf and Sister Rahlf talked about the power of conversion through the Book of Mormon and the Atonement.  It was the best Zone conference I've ever been to.  President Rahlf talked about how Joseph Smith couldn't have written the Book of Mormon without help from God.  He talked about how during the translation when Emma was the scribe, Joseph Smith, in the middle of translating, looked up and asked, "Does Jerusalem have walls around it?"  That's just one of a hundred things that he couldn't have known unless he was a prophet of God.   President Rahlf is basically a genius and has read the Book of Mormon so many times he decided to read it backwards from the last book to the first just so he could say he did it.  When he bore his testimony about the book, it wasn't like an I know, it was like an I KNOW!  They also talked about the Atonement of Jesus Christ and told us as each companionship to make a special message about the Atonement of Jesus Christ for Easter. 

 Here in the Philippines they don't really celebrate Easter like we do, but they are really big about Holy Week. Over 90% of the population here is Catholic.  For their celebrations here they sing all week and have a bunch of rules they follow, like you can't leave your house one day and stuff like that so you can better remember Jesus Christ.

It was cool to share our special message about Jesus Christ and how he lived and died for us so that we can live again.  It was also cool to realize we remember Jesus Christ every week through the sacrament and everyday.  We don't just remember him one week a year.  

This week was an awesome week.  Seriously really good, because I think everyone, not just us, was thinking of Christ a little more. 

 

I just watched 'Because of Him' on LDS.org and if you haven't seen it go watch it.  It's freaking awesome I get to teach people about Him everyday.  

Mahal kita.

Fishing in the Canal

They circumcise at age 10 here! ;)

#BecauseOfHim I get to live with my family again.

Conference Week

This week at first was pretty slow which we thought would be the complete opposite, because the harvest season is over so everyone should be at home.  We'd go out to work and get punted from every single appointment.  Our spirits were definitely low.  It was too the point where we didn't know what we were doing and we had nowhere to go and teach so we decided to go to one last place to see if we could teach there.  We ended up not being able to teach because it was his birthday and they were really busy but we noticed a Nay who was shoveling a big pile of dirt into buckets and then taking the buckets too make a little wall around her house so when it rains their house doesn't flood.  It took some convincing for Nay to actually let us help but when she finally let us get to work, it was going great.  We started to talk to her a little, but before when we would talk to her she wasn't really talkative and would basically just tell us to go away but this time it was different and I could tell that because we were helping her, her trust was growing towards us.  After we finished she fed us and said we're welcome back anytime.   

Mom, after you asked me the other week about any service projects I've done in the last week I thought back through the week and couldn't remember one, so I prayed for an opportunity to serve and it was amazing how many things are there in broad day light and I never noticed them.  

So General conference was a little weird this week because I still haven't seen all the sessions because my ward only played one session on Saturday and two on Sunday, so I still haven't seen the priesthood session and one session on Saturday.  From what I saw it was all really good but the one thing I looked forward to the most in all of the talks was at the very end when they bore their testimony.  When each of them bore their testimony it was just like a shock wave of the Holy Ghost, every single time.  After I heard them bear their testimonies I was just hoping my testimony feels the same when I say it to my investigators because that's the one thing no one can deny is the feeling of the spirit.

Well I love you all and I'm loving the mission.  Everyday is a struggle and that's what makes it worth it!  I'm really so blessed to be able to serve our Father in Heaven and be a representative of him everyday.

Mahal ko kayo! 

Elder Tribe

At the Baptism

Baptism

Cleaning clothes in the river

 

So we got the transfer list this morning and my comp and I have one more cycle together so that means I'll be in Ramon for at least six months and 4 and a half with Elder Rocamada.  I'm super excited because I feel like this cycle the work is really going to be better because it's been getting better just a little bit at a time over the last four and a half months.

So I kind of have to rush writing this because we had a zone activity earlier but this week was really great and the baptism was amazing.  It was the best baptism I think I've ever been too.  Everything just went so smoothly. The end was the best part when she bore her testimony, she talked about how her husband wasn't the only reason she was baptized.  When she said that, I knew that I had done my job.  She bore her testimony about how she really knows she is a child of God and how important the Gospel really is.  I'm excited to stay in the area so I can stay with my recent convert and help her out.

This week we also had splits in Balurate.  The split was probably one of the best I've been on while in Ramon.  We went out to work and everyone was amazingly home and in harvest season that's basically impossible.  We contacted two potential investigators and the lessons were amazing and also kinda hilarious.  So the Elder I went with was Elder Mccausland again.  The lessons were all super good and it was cool to be translating for another Elder because he still doesn't quite understand what they were saying.  After working we had a huge dinner that their landlord gave us because Elder Mousley is going home.  The dinner was really weird and super fishy but it wasn't fish which was kinda weird.  I think the food they gave us was crushed up bones because every bite had over 20 little pieces of bone that you had to just swallow.  

Well it's almost time to go so I'll just wrap it up.  This week was good and I'm really thankful to be a missionary. I'm thankful that I know what is true and that I can share it with every person I meet.

Santiago North Zone

Love Elder Tribe

With the cycle coming to an end and my companion being the District leader we have been pretty busy going to all the areas and doing interviews and baptisms, so our area suffered a little bit this week with the work. 

Speaking of baptisms, we still do have our baptism scheduled this Saturday!  We are way stoked because it's our first baptism for the both of us in Ramon!  I don't remember if I told you her name but just in case I didn't it's S. C.  She is awesome and has a strong testimony of the Gospel.  When we first started teaching her, she basically was just listening because her husband is a member but now she is the one asking us when we're going to come over. The other day she had someone ask her why she is going to be baptized and she told them "Cause I want to be with my family in this life and the next."  That's when you know your time and effort has paid off and it's a good day to be a missionary. 

Yesterday on Sunday we worked with the young men from the ward for the first time since I've been here.  We had four young men show up so we split and I took half of our area and Rocky and his young men took the other half.  My first lesson was kind of rough with them because they were both pretty shy and wouldn't say much so I had to teach the whole thing but then they started opening up a little and giving the scriptural thoughts to some of the less actives and recent converts.  At the end of the splits it was a way good time.  Also one of the YM we went on splits with is waiting for his mission call and it's hard to believe that this time last year I was putting in my mission call and getting all excited to find out where I was going.  

Well that's it for this week!  Put your shoulder to the wheel and push along cause time is to short to sit and just waste time!

Mahal ko kayo!

Elder Tribe