Sister Brittany Robertson: Week 57

Magandang gabi sa inyo lahat doon!

I hope everything is great and happy over there and the first week of school was not too stressful! I am praying for all those who went back to school!

Last Monday, Sister Regacho and I got to go to a little "mini zoo" that one of our recent converts works at. It is called that cause it's a place with a bunch of animals that were imported from different countries and different places- some from Africa, some from the Amazon River, some from Australia and so on. It was way cool and we got to see everything from eagles, parrots, snakes, a HUGE fish from the Amazon, tortoises, stingrays, to crocodiles. I was amazed hahha.

But the thing that really stuck in my mind was we were going to leave and just kind of talking with the guards that watch over this mini zoo. We were chatting and then of course the two guards started asking about us and who were were and then we got to sit down and share with them the first discussion. I left just thinking about what had just happened. This was of course on preparation day when we could have gone to this mini zoo just for fun and recreation and enjoyed ourselves. But as a full-time missionary, you kind of learn how to go anywhere and teach the gospel. You see opportunities to share the gospel no matter where you are and what you are doing.

It is a wonderful time in a person's life to be on a mission because you get to see how normal everyday things can lead to gospel conversations. Our name tags definitely help because they make people curious but I think it is a great principle and skill to learn how to strike up a simple conversation about the gospel of Jesus Christ with anyone who sits next to you or anyone you talk to. Everyday I go walk the streets in the Philippines and talk to tons of people, even for a few minutes, about my purpose as a missionary, and through that effort, lives have changed or even days have been changed for those who we talk to and sometime never see again. I don't know. It just got me thinking how cool it is what I do everyday. That I can go to a zoo and strike up a conversation with the guards there and then share about the gospel of Jesus Christ with them. I am doin' a pretty cool work if you ask me (:

We also had another baptism this last Saturday which was quite a touching experience. First of all, it was so hard to even get it to work cause we needed a speaker, someone to preside, someone to conduct, someone to baptize, and two witnesses. Well, other than the one getting baptized and her mom, three other people attended and we made it all work. Sister Regacho ended up being the speaker and then the other three males who attended took part in doing the rest of the responsibilities. It all worked out in the end! But even though we were few, the spirit was so strong.

Ana Marie Dalisay is who got baptized and her mom is a recent convert and her brother is on a mission. Her testimony after her baptism was the most amazing thing ever. She explained that she, at first, was tired of the missionaries constantly coming to her house and always asking the same questions if she had prayed about our message and if she had read the Book of Mormon. She didn't understand why it was so important until she actually tried it one night. When she prayed, she went to bed right after and had a dream. In that dream she was kneeling on the beach and she saw how beautiful the view was. She then saw a vision of the Book of Mormon and had a story of the Book of Mormon played out in front of her. She then saw a family come together and explained how happy they looked. She basically received revelation that everything we share to her is true.

She awoke from that dream very thought-provoked and wanted to seek more truth. She said that after that she hadn't stopped reading the book of mormon and noticed that every single question she had or everything she had been wondering about life was answered through that book. She explained that if she was struggling with one thing, she would pray and read the book of mormon (at a random place I may add) and it would happen to be the exact chapter she needed to read for her to be comforted and for her questions to be answered. She expressed that she received a testimony for herself that the Book of Mormon is true, Prophet Russell M. Nelson is called of God, Joseph Smith is a true prophet that helped in the restoring of the true church of Jesus Christ to the earth, and lastly that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is led by Jesus Christ. She explained so much more that I wish I could just copy and paste her testimony because it was just beautiful. I was very moved and touched by it. She is so converted and we are over-the-moon happy for her!!!

Also, there is one guy we are teaching named Ritchelio and he is the BEST!! He has as long of hair as me and wears a rainbow beanie and has an earring in one of his ears but he is a spiritual giant! He is a referral and if I would have passed him on the street, I would not have seen him as someone in desperate search for truth but he totally is. He isn't from here but works here so he literally has no house and totally looks homeless if you see him in passing. He lives on a bench with a cover and he sells cotton candy for a living. Hahah he's so cool. We taught the restoration to him and it was such a good lesson because before the lesson he literally described his situation and it was like the situation of Joseph Smith. He has joined lots of churches and he has concluded that none of them are the true church because the fruits of their church are not in line with how God would act. He says he just hasn't felt that they are the one true church of Jesus Christ and they feel more like churches of people. He was so touched after we related the story of Joseph Smith to him and he wants to come to church! He doesn't have any pants to wear, so we are going to search for some because he says "Well I could come to church in shorts, but I want to respect the house of the Lord by wearing the best clothing I can find!" He's so sincere. His heart is in the best place to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ. I see Joseph Smith in his situation and we gave him a Book of Mormon and he is excited to read it because he reads over and over our pamphlets that we have given to him!

Also the BEST surprise happened to me yesterday when I got to sacrament meeting, I was talking with some of the members and some of the people we teach, and then all of a sudden I saw two young men by the door of the sacrament hall waving to me!!! It was Rinel and Leonil FROM BAGO!!!! They were part of the Alegria Boys and they visited me yesterday at church and it was the BEST surprise ever I almost cried!!! It made me feel so special and they said the others wanted to join but said they had no money to make the trip. Aw it made my heart burst though I was so happy. I miss Bago and my family there!! And that gave me a little piece of that.

Anyways, this is the work I am doing everyday and it's the best! I am happy with the fact that I have everyday to give my all to my Heavenly Father by giving the best news in the world to people who desperately need it! Missions are way hard and it's crazy how up and down they are but it's the best growing experience one can have. Missions are marvelous(:

Love you all! Miss you all!!

Sister Robertson