Magandang araw sa inyong lahat!
First off, I am very thankful for the opportunity I have to serve here in Ballesteros with Elder Madsen. It's going to be a pretty different experience serving with an American Companion, and I've already had to adjust to his language skills, personality, and (strangely enough) his culture. I've realized that, after being with so many Filipino companions, that I've adjusted quite a bit to the Pinoy culture, and going back to American culture is actually pretty odd. That's alright though, because I know that this will be an opportunity to grow and learn.
Elder Madsen and I are doing well. I've found it's kind of strange to talk to and associate with an American all of the time, but I will do my best to adjust while trying to help him adjust to the Filipino culture. A little bit about Elder Madsen: He is from Bluffdale, UT, he has two siblings, he has never seen Star Wars or Lord of the Rings, and his favorite color is navy blue. He is six months in the mission field, and isn't quite yet comfortable in Tagalog :) And now you have met my companion haha :) I really like Elder Madsen though, and I'm excited for the opportunity I'll have to continue to get to know him.
I'm doing great as well (Like always haha). Conference was very good and I had many questions answered from what was said. I especially liked the talks focused on ministering, not just the instructions from the new announcement, but from what was said throughout the conference. Lately, I've been trying to figure out how to become a better missionary, and I realized after conference that I need to be better at showing my love for those around me. I need to seek after better ways to help those around me feel the pure love of Christ. I need to understand how I can show and develop my pure love for others. I especially loved the story that Elder D. Todd Christofferson shared in Priesthood session concerning the power of an united Elders Quorum.
In 1918 Brother George Goates was a farmer who raised sugar beets in Lehi, Utah. Winter came early that year and froze much of his beet crop in the ground. For George and his young son Francis, the harvest was slow and difficult. Meanwhile, an influenza epidemic was raging. The dreaded disease claimed the lives of George’s son Charles and three of Charles’s small children—two little girls and a boy. In the course of only six days, a grieving George Goates made three separate trips to Ogden, Utah, to bring the bodies home for burial. At the end of this terrible interlude, George and Francis hitched up their wagon and headed back to the beet field.
“[On the way] they passed wagon after wagon-load of beets being hauled to the factory and driven by neighborhood farmers. As they passed by, each driver would wave a greeting: ‘Hi ya, Uncle George,’ ‘Sure sorry, George,’ ‘Tough break, George,’ ‘You’ve got a lot of friends, George.’
“On the last wagon was … freckled-faced Jasper Rolfe. He waved a cheery greeting and called out: ‘That’s all of ’em, Uncle George.’
“[Brother Goates] turned to Francis and said: ‘I wish it was all of ours.’
“When they arrived at the farm gate, Francis jumped down off the big red beet wagon and opened the gate as [his father] drove onto the field. [George] pulled up, stopped the team, … and scanned the field. … There wasn’t a sugar beet on the whole field. Then it dawned upon him what Jasper Rolfe meant when he called out: ‘That’s all of ’em, Uncle George!’
“[George] got down off the wagon, picked up a handful of the rich, brown soil he loved so much, and then … a beet top, and he looked for a moment at these symbols of his labor, as if he couldn’t believe his eyes.
“Then [he] sat down on a pile of beet tops—this man who brought four of his loved ones home for burial in the course of only six days; made caskets, dug graves, and even helped with the burial clothing—this amazing man who never faltered, nor flinched, nor wavered throughout this agonizing ordeal—sat down on a pile of beet tops and sobbed like a little child.
“Then he arose, wiped his eyes, … looked up at the sky, and said: ‘Thanks, Father, for the elders of our ward.’”
I truly believe that the new changes brought to the Priesthood Quorums and the new ministering program will bring about miracles that people need in their lives. I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to live in this dispensation and be a holder of the Lord's holy Priesthood. I hope that each and every one of us will find better ways to minister to others that need to feel the pure love of Christ in their lives.
Sa susunod na naman haha!
Mahal ko kayong lahat!
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