Monday, March 14, 2011

Mmmm, Mc Donalds :)

> Hello my momma!!!11!Hioiofls Hello My FAMILY and FRIENDS!!! :) :)
>
> Remember the guy Jesus that I wrote about last week? Well, we went to
> his house last Wednesday--our scheduled appointment--and he came out
> and told us there were no other people there with him. We didn't have
> a woman fellow shipper with us, so we couldn't teach him. He told us to
> come back on Saturday and gave us a time. When we came back, two kids
> came out right away and said, "He's not here. We are by ourselves."
> And we heard people from the back talking and cooking and doing
> cartwheels or something. So we wrote Jesus a note saying we'd come
> back. Well, we went back yesterday, and a man was there--his brother I
> think--he said he wasn't there...he was far away. But then, he slipped
> and said they just got back from church and were tired and resting
> upstairs. Soooooooo... we may try one last time. It's so sad, because
> our lessons with him were beautiful and I know he felt the spirit.
>
> We went to a place called P.D. Galima. It's far in the bukid--or rice
> fields, where the caribou pull plows and people are harvesting rice
> now. There is a woman there named Emy Rivera. She owns a tindahan or a
> small hut/store, where she sells packaged peanuts and small packets of
> hair shampoo. She is about 60, has long grey hair and no teeth, but
> her smile is beautiful. We had oymed her a while back, saying we
> wanted to share with her. But one day when we returned, people said
> she wasn't there and we just made it a point to return. We returned
> one day and she was behind the screen of her tindahan and said, "You
> guys didn't come like you said you would." We told her that someone
> told us she wasn't home and we would love to schedule another time to
> come visit. So we did. The scheduled visit was this week.
>
> When we showed up, she apologized for the state of her home--cauayan
> with dirt floor and a grass roof. We told her it was lovely. And it
> is, because you can see the rice fields from it, and it is surrounded
> by coconut and mango trees. She sat us down and we began with "I Am a
> Child of God." She expressed to us her belief about the godhead. She
> has been so many religions and compared the godhead to an egg--God is
> the shell, Christ is the white, and the Holy Ghost is the yoke. My
> head couldn't grasp how that fit. We taught her that God is our loving
> father in Heaven, that Christ is His son, and that the Holy Ghost is a
> spirit--that they are one in purpose. She asked so many questions, and
> we shared from our pamphlets, from the Bible, and from the Book of
> Mormon. At the end of her lesson, her sweet daughter, Maritess
> Mansano, sat down to listen. Maritess looks into your eyes when you
> talk, and when she talks, her voice is soft and genuine. We bore
> testimony and scheduled a return appointment for this week.
>
> When we returned, we taught from the plan of salvation--about how we
> are God's children, how he has a body of flesh and bones, and how we
> lived with Him before this life. Her daughter was there and said, "Of
> course, this makes sense." And said that they had had a family
> discussion about the godhead the night before. After the lesson, Emy
> said that she had always seen us walking from house to house around
> her and would ask '...I wonder who they are." She said that when we
> finally came to talk to her at her tindahan, her heart felt warm and
> she felt invigorated. She said she's had the Jehovah's Witness come
> share with her, but by the end of her sharing, she would be exhausted.
> By the end of our sharing, she said she felt like she wanted more. She
> said, "Only the people who know God will know who you two are. I want
> you two to know that you are received in our home." We extended a
> baptismal invitation to them, and they are to be baptized on May 7.
>
> Another man, James De Leon, drove us home one night in his tricycle.
> Sister Banks had talked to him about the gospel as she rode on the
> back of the bike and I rode inside. He told us he was excited to hear
> what we have to share. We went to his home a week ago to share, and
> only his wife was there. His wife told us that James told her about
> meeting us and that when we come over, she should accept us with no
> hesitation. She did. We taught her about how God is our loving Father
> in Heaven. I did magic for the kids before we left :) We scheduled an
> appointment to return.
>
> This past week we went to visit them and brother was there. He looked
> so excited to see us and scrambled around his humble home to find us
> chairs. When we began our lesson, we began with questions about what
> they knew about God. I felt inspired to ask him why he had been so
> anxious to let us into his home and what he wanted to know from us. He
> said, "Everything sister. We want to know everything. What do you
> got?" Basically, in Tagalog. We laughed and I told him we wanted to
> teach him everything, and that there is so much for him to know but we
> would have to teach one thing at a time. He shared some miracles he's
> seen in his life that have been wrought just through prayer and faith.
> We testified that God is so aware of his family and loves him and
> that’s why we were sent to him. I handed him a Book of Mormon to read
> and he said, "This is nice Sister, but we don't have any money for the
> payment." And we of course said that it was free. He said, "You know
> it’s the true church when the word of God is handed out for free." We
> scheduled a return appointment, he had his daughters buy us bread for
> Marienda, and he drove us home on his tricycle. Cool, huh???
>
> We have been praying to be led to those who are ready to hear the
> gospel. And these people are SO READY. We have six people, just from
> this week, who have committed to be baptized. And four of them came to
> church this week.
>
> We are also teaching a 12 year old boy named Gershon. He should have
> been baptized when he was 8, but there was a mix-up, and now we are
> giving him the discussions. He's so cuuuttteeee.
>
> Sister Katherine Lopez doesn't have cancer after all. She is pregnant!
> Yayyyyyy.
>
> What else....
> this week we have zone conference and president is coming into town. I
> will probably get all the mail I've missed out on for about a month,
> tomorrow. I am anxious to see what he says about me leading the area
> or not. I feel like if I had a map, I could do it. Sis. Banks is going
> to draw one for me today.
>
> My Tagalog is coming along. Looking back, it is definitely much
> better since Naguilian, but I need to brush up on my verb
> conjugations.
>
> There was no tsunami here. Yay!
>
> Um, Sister De Fiesta leaves the mission on the 23rd! I wish I could
> see her one last time before she leaves! She is such a remarkable
> missionary and blessing for me to have had in my life. I totally love
> her.

> > We always have candy on hand and when we leave our apartment about 10
> kids come up yelling--Sisterrrrrssss candyyyyyyyyyy. I have a plan to
> ask them gospel related questions from now on that they need to answer
> before I give them anything. I love the kids here. They're so fun.
>
> Momma, I feel like I am becoming a mother. Seriously, Like...I have a
> hidden talent I never knew about. I can create food like you do! If
> something is going rotten, I will invent a new recipe and it will
> actually taste good. The elders actually ask us to feed them a lot,
> and it is so fun to. OH! My pasta and meatballs was a hit on Monday.
> E.Apin ate and said, "Wow" like every two bites. Plus I am a master at
> multitasking, and doing laundry, and cooking, and cleaning at the same
> time. I'm so grateful for this time I have to learn all of these
> things. I’m surprising myself ;)
>
> I love you momma, and I hope this email finds you in happy spirits. I
> pray for you.
>
> Tell Jillian I will pray for her friend. I don’t have time to write
> back, but I am so sad for what her friend is going through right now.
>
> Thats all. Thank you all for your love and support. Love You ALL!!!!
> LOVE
> Sis Fort

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