All You Need is Love!!

Hello Family!

Well the weeks just continue to go by!  I have been working hard in this area of ours.  We continue to find more and more investigators every week, but the problem remains to convince them that they should come to our church!  My new companion, since he is a lover of food, has been able to hook us up with tons of dinner appointments!  Talk about being my new best friend.  I love having more than just one dinner (at a member's home) every 2 weeks.  This week I got to have this bread that is like filled with vanilla icing.  It was really good.  Pretty soon I am going to try balut (duck egg) for the first time and hopefully I don't get sick! 

Anyways as far as work is concerned, we are having a little bit of a challenge with our ward.  The attendance continues to go down, even though we continue to work everyday.  The reason why this is, is because the members are judging other members pretty harshly.  My companion and I have been trying to get things to settle down, but I think I may have to get up and say something in front of the ward because it is getting out of hand.  

The less actives need our help, not our judgement.  The only being with the authority to judge us is God.  I know that even I have been caught judging other people, but in all honesty everyone just needs love.  That is the key to reactivating members; through love.  I am hoping that we will be able to figure this out because I would love to see our attendance go back up into the 100s.  

I would love to live a long and prosperous life, instead of see the end of the world right after I get back home and things just start to get rolling for me!!!  My challenge to everyone reading this is to LOVE!!  Because we all need somebody to love.  

On a funnier note, this week I got a funny video of this dog in our neighborhood doing circles in his cage.  It appeared to be on some drug because its eyes were all dilated.  I think we may have to much time on our hands...  Just kidding! I also took some good pictures of the landscape (see below) we get to walk by every other day!  I hope you all know that I love you guys!  

Recently I found I kinda have just been going through the motions with email so I am trying to really go back and reread the past emails!  I know that this church is true.  I know that our responsibility as a missionary is one of the highest callings I will ever have in my life.  I know if I continue to work hard and be obedient, I will receive many blessings later.  

Keep being a great example to those around you!  Remember who you are and what you stand for!  And most importantly, remember to keep sending me love!... And food... ;)

Love,

Elder Warren

PS - Christmas is a huge celebration in the Philippines.  I mean the Christmas music starts around September and keeps on going.  I haven't not heard about Christmas since the time I got here haha.  I don't know what else they celebrate.  All Saints Day is another big celebration.  It has tons of food and they go to the cemeteries.

Transfers and Another Food Update

Hello Family!!!

Well I guess I kind of lied last week, my companion in fact did get transferred!  It was a little bit of a sad week for me, but I am ok now.  My new companion is actually pretty awesome!  His name is Elder Rebojo and he is actually from the same batch as Elder Canencia.  

Since I am now leading the area, I actually got to go down streets I have been wanting to check out and we ended up finding some very potential investigators!  It feels weird being in charge now.  I feel like I am getting old in this area haha.  I have been here for 2 and a half months.  

I am now eating rice and pancit for every meal now.  Its actually pretty good, but I think my skin is getting a little stretchy haha.  At our ward council meeting I was able to successfully talk about all of our recent converts, less actives, investigators, and describe their needs all in Tagalog.  After the meeting we went with Brother Kevin, a return missionary to a less active Sister and let me tell you, the spirit was so strong.  We hadn't had a lot of luck that day with lessons and I think we were ready to get in a good lesson with someone.  The women actually really wanted to come to church, at least to sacrament meeting, but her father was in the hospital, so she couldn't.  

Leading your area is a big responsibility.  You need to know the names of those you teach, where you teach them and when you can teach them.  This week I have felt like I am now worthy enough to be leading my area yet, but I guess I did pretty good for my first week.  I have contacting down now.  I can say and get everything I need in like 2 minutes.  I am actually pretty proud of how my Tagalog has been progressing.  

As for food this week... I had blood!  It actually tastes pretty good and I don't really mind the texture but it is pretty weird.  Along with this, I had kikiam and fish balls which are probably the greatest things ever.  I am on the Filipino diet now, that includes rice, pancit and chicken.  That is really about all I eat now.  

I am doing great now though.  I joke around with the presidents in my ward because I have enough vocabulary to do that.  My new companion is a lot more serious than Elder Canencia so someone has to make up for his absence!  I am too used to this area haha.  But I love the fact that now I can explore the places I haven't been yet.  After all, we as missionaries can not leave any stone unturned!!!  

I miss you guys and love you guys but the time is flying by so fast.  Before I know it it is going to be christmas and I will be able to talk to all of you face to face!  I love you all and hopefully I can send some pictures soon.  Maybe not this week though because I am still trying to get them off Elder Howards camera...  

Love you!

Elder Warren

(email sent on 11/9/15)

CTR and Food Update

Hello everyone!

Well it was another week in the lie of a missionary!  It was jam packed with proselyting, meetings, and tracting!  What was super sweet was that a member of the 70, who is in charge of the health of all the missionaries came to our mission to come talk to us!  It was a great meeting, and very powerful.  I learned a lot from this meeting, including ways to get better contacting.  I have really been working on contacting, since that is the best way to get better at the language!  

Yesterday,  I just decided to Choose the Right... street and I ended up meeting some very good potentials.  I was able to teach them the first lesson without the pamphlet because our mission has no more.  In fact we have been out for a week!  I guess that just goes to show how our mission is hastening the work!  But anyways I got 3 new investigators just in 10 minutes.  it turns out they had even been coming to our church activities already and have been wanting to learn more about the church!  Finding new investigators is so easy for me now.  I always seem to find random streets I have never been down and I just tell my companion we are going down them. On average, I find 1 - 2 people who know about our church and want to learn more about it.  I really just wish I didn't have to give them the lesson 3 pamphlets now hahaha.  

Anyways, I am kind of all over the place today with this email, sorry haha.  For the meeting with the member of the 70 we had to get up at 3:30 a.m..  It was not a very fun day.  I had to work to stay awake, but somehow I did (unlike all of those times back in Paradise).  I loved being able to see my 4 roommates from the MTC!  We had some good laughs and talked about the struggles in our areas haha.  I also got 2 dinners for the first time during this mission in the period of a week!  Mom I guess I should've been nicer to missionaries, then maybe I would have more dinner appointments now.  

Besides that, I did not get hit by another car this week.  I bore my testimony in sacrament meeting this fast sunday, but it didn't go over so well.  I was so tired that when I first came up I said "we believe" instead of "i know".  I didn't give a long testimony but I had an overwhelming sense of peace come over me.  I feel like sometimes I go so hard that I don't remember to settle down and really feel the Spirit.  After all, the Spirit is our greatest tool as missionaries.  

I wish I had more to say about my week but that is pretty much it.  Oh wait........... FOOD!  Holy cow did I have some GOOD stuff this week.  I tried this ice cream called quezo real ice cream.  As you've probably already guess, yes it was cheese ice cream but for some really strange reason it tasted amazing!  I also had squid this week which pretty much just tasted like salt.  All of the Halloween costumes looked great!  Natalie did a great job in the performance!  You guys are wayy to busy though.  I do not miss those days.  Well I am doing great here.  I am still with my companion so I think he will be my companion through Christmas!  Wow I can't believe it is already that close.  January marks my 6 months completed.  Dang I am too old.  

Well I love all of you guys!

Elder Warren