Kumusta?

        Let me first off start by saying, on the 4th of July... I forgot it was THE FOURTH OF JULY! Hahaha it was Elder Datu's birthday and we celebrated that. I forgot all about what everyone was doing at home, not to say I didn't think about America and it's wonderful and miraculous starting, but I didn't think about you family AT ALL! I hope that doesn't make you feel bad haha. I realized a day or two after the fourth that you had, the flag raising, the parade, fireworks, BBQ, and all that jazz. I didn't even think about it. I opened up my email and saw all your pictures and I GOT SAD... why? Because I realized that next 4th of July I won't be a missionary anymore! It will be fun to be home and fun on the 4th, but I don't want my mission to end. Anyway, happy fourth of July, little late. I feel very blessed to not worry about home at all. I am lost in this work and I LOVE IT! 

         So this week I will "participate" in my first transfers! I am very excited to give my advise to President Reeder and then watch and learn! I am learning so much here on my mission, and growing so much! I love it. This next week, like all transfer weeks, will be full of busy days and long nights and long rides and long meetings and little sleep hahaha. I can't wait, send a prayer our way. 

       We will have a baptism this week, Sixto Ramos! He is awesome, he is a part member and his family hasn't always been active. But his family has started to come to church again while we've been teaching him and now they go to church as a family and it is just awesome! We have seen such a change in Sixto and in the Ramos Family in general. They are happier, and Sixto has gotten so much smarter. That kid can answer about any question in all the lessons we have taught him. He reads better and has just matured in this process! Anyway we are excited for his baptism. We'll try to send pictures.

       Earlier today we had a Zone Activity and it was awesome. Very pretty and it was the first time the Reeders have seen The Philippines in that way. The ocean was way pretty, I will try to send pictures today, we are pretty busy.

       This week we had an amazing lesson with The Azanya family! We had a Family Home Evening there and we had for member presents, our Bishop and his wife, our ward mission leader, and our Elder's Quorum President and his wife! It was awesome! Members are the key to this work! Family, if you are not giving thought out, and prayed out, referrals to the missionaries you should do it! Members are the key to missionary work. The Tatay said a few words at the close of our FHE, he said how he was impressed with our church, how we dress, how we act, and he talked about how WE CAME TO THEM, including our Bishop coming to them, he said how in other churches they want you to come to them, but hot in this church. And he loved how much we focus on the family! I love being a missionary! So- share the gospel with your friends, or tell the missionaries that they can use your home to teach people they are already teaching and you can be there and be member present. In the words of Gramps, "Do it 'dang' it!"

         We had "Meet the President" Zone Conferences this past we and they were awesome! President gave a talk called, "Do We Realize What We Have?" We all talked about we we have in this church that can be found no where else, how families can be together FOREVER, the Plan of Salvation and I could go on and make the list but I wont. We talked about all these answers we have to life's questions and how blessed we are and how we need to share it with others. President read us a letter of a conversion story in Germany, this lady had 3 PHD's in religion related topics, and she had wrote multiple books on the same topic. Anyway she let the missionaries in her door and they handed her something she had never heard of before, "The Book of Mormon." She read it and D&C and the Pearl of Great Price and like 20 different volumes of doctrine from the church and some Talmage writings in the next 8 weeks and she was baptized into our church. She gave a talk at her baptism and said, "I don't think you members know what you have." I don't know if I realize what we have, I need to be a better missionary. We are so blessed and we need to share this Gospel and our testimonies. I know this church is true, I know it. So lets share it, the world is starving for truth. I love being a missionary.

         I am learning so much here and the Reeders are awesome! I miss the Bliesners but they've earned their right to go home. I feel like my emails are getting more and more boring haha, hopefully they will get better. Let me know if you have anything you would like me to write you about or anything you would like to know. 

       Thanks for your prayers and I pray for you. I hope the fires will stop there in Arizona. I miss you all, but I don't want to see any of you one day earlier than I should haha. You guys rock! Tell the grandparents I said Hi and that  I love them! Also if you know any couple missionaries that want to serve in Naga, send me an email, no guarantee, but I think we could get them here, pull some strings. We need couple missionaries here bad! So let me know! I love you all, sorry this is short, we have a lot to do today.

Elder Davis 

        

They look like lifeguards; in a way I guess they are!

Seriously? rough P Day.

What a view!