January 14, 2014

Komusta Pamilya ug mga Barkada!! (Tagalog)

This week has been insane, me and Sister Tandiman had a wonderful time visiting places we hadn't gone before and finding new investigators. We have a Sister inour ward who I think i"d brought up before. Sister Virgi Alcantara is such a wonderful helper because she has such a good attitude about missionary work. She is always there to help us find new people to teach since she knows pretty much everyone. It is so helpful on hastening the work here. I just feel so lucky. We get to teach so many lessons and be with so many people while people in other places are having a harder time. I feel so blessed, and really look up to all those who are having a harder time. They are my heros! The hardest part is getting people to come to church especially without pilete. (money) With one investigator, Sister Magdelina, she said she wants to come to church so bad, pero she can't without money. We told her to start saving her money from Monday so she will be able to come to church on Sunday. She said okay and we told her that if she prays to Heavenly Father and really asks him to help her, He will provide a way. And if she does her part in showing her faith in Him by saving her money it will work out. We told her that we will pray for it to work out as well. We hope she will come. In her prayer at the end of the lesson, she did exactly that. She prayed and told Heavenly Father her situation and asked Him to help her. It was so sincere and we really felt the Spirit. It was great!! Also with Sister Sally. She wants to come to church and to bring a friend, so hopefully she does so. It's nice to hear that people want to come, that means they want to learn more and want to find out for themselves in this is the church for them.

Zone Training was AMAZING!!! Wow, I learned a ton from it and it made me want to be even better and use the scriptures more. In Preach My Gospel it says that The Book of Mormon is the most powerful tool in conversion. So it is so so so so important to be familiar with the scriptures ourselves so we can teach from them and not our own words. I usually use my own personal experiences in lessons, which is good and can help us connect, but it's better to use scriptural examples or things from the scriptures. I want to be so familiar with the scriptures that when someone says something to me or asks me a question it reminds me of a scripture or a story of someone from the scriptures instead of from mylself. I mean I can do that a little bit now, but I want to be able to that with a lot of different scriptures, so it's not just the same one over and over again. I have had wonderful experiences and have learned so much from being able to study from the Book of Mormon every day. I LOVE IT SO MUCH!!!

This Sunday was pretty sad because we had no investigators come to church. We were really dissapointed. But less active members did come!! So that made it better, but it was still sad. Our Sacrament meeting attendance dropped a ton and I'm pretty sure it was the rain, but that really shouldn't be an excuse. It was raining way hard and basa kaayo (extrememely wet) We couldn't believe it. We usually have 250+ come to church, but this last Sunday was 155. Next Sunday hopefully will be better. We just have to stress the importance of coming to church. I think the Lord is testing us. Because we went from having 9 come last Sunday to 0 this last week. DILLI MAAYO. well, we will be better :) That got us motivated to always strive to be better.

Oh and wow we were shocked last Wednesday Sister Tandiman ug ako got a call saying there was going to be an EMERGENCY TRANSFER, what? Totally unexpected. We were both way sad. I really didn't want her to go. I feel like we had gotten so close and really began to get unified in our teaching and with our investigators, but as time as gone on, I have realized why this needed to happen. I was scared at first, honestly. To get used to a whole new companionship, to lead the area without Sister Tandiman, to be in a threesome, and just everything. But I am so happy. Sister Zamora ug Sister ALbaytar have helped me grow so much in these past few days. They speak Visaya all the time so it really pushes me to practice. Sister Tandiman would use it too, but we would speak in English more and use Cebuano for our lessons and FTE's. Then after the lessons we would talk in English. With these two now, they are always speaking it. It's because Sister Albaytar doesn't really know that much English. It's a good thing I'm in a threesome though because if Sister Zomora weren't here I don't know how much I'd be able to communicate with Sister Albaytar. It would just be harder. Having them speak it all the time made me realize how much I knew in Visaya, there is still so much I need to learn, but it made me feel better about my Visaya. It is neat hearing them speak and figuring out what they are saying. Also just asking questions. I realize, I'm not going to get to use this language after my mission really and if I just keep using English, it won't get me anywhere to learn more. They tell me things everyday I can improve with and tell me what I am good at. It's nice. It has been okay leading the area, I got lost once so far, but it's been good. Now I know where it is. So even though it was scary at first, I have loved my new companions, they are wonderful and I learn so much from them. It's fun learning more about their culture and their lives before their mission. Everyday I realize more and more, why they needed to be here at this time and that I needed them to learn and grow more in this language and just as a missionary.

Wow, we had the greatest experience with Sister Vicky. She is amazing and has really progressed. We know she knows this is the true church and she has a strong testimony of this gospel. She is so excited to get baptized and we are planning on the 25th of January for her. She just told us that she has already come to church a lot in the past and so she probably could have been baptized earlier, we just didn't have her record from the old missionaries and all they had taught her. But now we know she is ready. We were told she has already been taught these things, but are still teaching them so we have it in the record. We are so excited and know she is ready. I can't believe how much she knows about this gospel and the sacrifices she makes for it, and the blessings coming from that. She is great!

 Oh and with Brother Ben and Sister Vengi we are extending his baptism to Febuary 15 since they still need to get their Cenomar before baptism.

Well, this week has been great! I have learned a ton, gotten more confidence in myself, and learned more about really studying the scriptures so we can expound them better and give a better background. I was studying the words in Jacob chapter 5, the allagory of the Olive Trees. I love that chapter and it is perfect for missionary work. The Lord really is with us all the time, helping us in His vineyard. Without His help we would be nowhere.

It has been so wet too, these past few days. I have always been inside when it rains really hard, but we have been able to experience the rain as we walk. Our shoes get soaked and it is so fun!!! We walk in huge puddles and it reminds me of puddle jumping with you all. Man how I miss it. I see what they mean by needing two outfits sometimes in one day, but I haven't had to worry about that until this week. So funny. I hope to be able to have a good coming week with my new companions. I am having to learn patience with them because we are often late to our appointments or meetings. Hopfeully that will get better. I realize that even though I am the junior companion I can still share with them the importance of being on time and helping us become better. We haven't taught as many people as I did with Sister Tandiman because they, my new companions get talking with members or investigators which makes time run out in the day. So hopefully we can plan better for this week.

I hope that everyone will enjoy their week and that everyone is okay with the SNOW. I hear it has been crazy and in the negatives all over AMERICA. Wow, just a little bit cooler there than here. I wonder if that's why it's been so rainy lately. hmmmmmm, well, hope school and work is going well and that you are enjoying LIFE.

Love Sister Riggs