It has been just a good ol' dandy week here in the Philippines! So no worries. Absolutely zero effects to us from our Japanese disaster. Other than it is POURING today (which actually has nothing to do with Japan). But ya, I saw that all on the news. That is insane! I just heard that the whole country was shifted a couple feet! I can't even imagine being there for that. Water disasters seem the worst to me. It is definitely the most powerful. That, I guess, is the reason for the analogy that the gospel will flood the earth. Floods are the most complete. They don't miss a single spot. If you look at the areas hit in Japan you won't find a square centimeter that wasn't affected. I will continue to pray for those people and hope that it can be cleaned up and people will be able to somehow get back to their lives.
The work this week has been progressive. We have spent probably half of the week at the church. We have really tried to teach more investigators at the church and it has brought SO many benefits to our work. One: We get to teach with the members present so it makes the investigators way more comfortable and a built in fellowshipper. Two: The spirit is always more strong when we are in the Church. Three- Just a rough estimate here, but if they will be taught by the missionaries at the church they will be 400% more likely to GO to church. It is like the most perfect solution I have ever come up with. SO our work was fun this week. When you can say it was fun and you still have numbers to show, you know it was a good one. So I had an epiphany the other day. We had all been challenges to reread Preach My Gospel this transfer by our District Leader (Im so close to finishing and the transfer ends in like 10 days, go me.) and I read about ways to find more people. It was perfect. Teach English as a second language. SO we talked to the Bishop (who loves the missionaries right now thanks to some hard work from Elder Q and I) and he was in full support. So Thursday night I will be teaching English (or just like an English tutor to help with papers and projects)at the church. It will be great. I can just feel it. People are pretty bad at English here, but they are ALL required to study it. Even in University. So these people really NEED help and we really NEED investigators. It is just a match made in heaven. It gets people to investigate the church in a comfortable setting and gets us to help the community. Bishop lets us have the keys to the church whenever we need and we have a working tv and DVD player (worth their weight in gold here, to me at least). So I'm thinking this will just let the work absolutely bloom here. It puts me in a comfortable position and helps the people be comfortable at church.
Sister Angelyn is so ready to be baptized. We have the paperwork finished. We have like three more principles to teach her. We have the program ready with half of the ward committed to attend. It will be sweet. She is way excited to be baptized and just has so much support from the ward. Our ward has grown so much in missionary work and it makes me so proud of them. they have all taken on an attitude of missionary work. This is a ward of 100- 120 active members that are ALL working their butt's off to support 6 missionaries. I didn't screw that number up, they have 6 elders they are paying for right now. So I want to encourage our Martinez ward and Augusta stake to step up their game. And to become involved with the missionaries. I don't go to church for 30 minutes before getting asked how different investigators or less active members are.
Other investigators are doing great and we hope to give some baptismal commitments later on tonight to our family investigators. So pray for our success. We had a great District meeting today and Pres. Pagaduan even was at the church today for some meetings so we got to see him for a bit. He is the bomb.
Devyn- No worries, I love getting your letters and enjoy writing you back. I should work on expressing my inner joy of writing letters (I hope you can hear my sarcasm)
Marie- I think the first time I ever write to someone it takes a year or two. I wrote my sister like a week or two after you and she got the letters already. I hate to think the letters got lost. I spent quality time on them. And Joseph expresses his anxiousness differently. It usually involves him crying alone in his closet where no one can see him. Or going to his lab at 4 o'clock in the morning.
Shelby- I got your letter and was very pleased. That is all.... joke! Thank you very much for all your kind words and I hope all is well with Mr. Dorsey (by that I am referring both to Jeff and your beau). Send me the wedding inv.
Love you all! I love the Philippines and my mission. I love the people here. I love the gospel. I am so thankful for our Savior and everything he did for us all. I am thankful for the knowledge I have gained about his atonement and how I can use it to the maximum in my own life. I am grateful to be able to help others do the same.
Elder Lowry
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