Monday 10, March 2014

Where Do I even start?

      Howdy all! This has been such an amazing week! So many miracles. We had Zone Training, and we had a baptism!!!!!! It was AMAZING! I hope the pictures go though!

     This past week we went and looked at a future potential apartment and met the owner of said apartment. He was super nice, he is a hot shot retired air force guy. Super cool sunglasses. Anyway, he was like 75 years old with a cane and just had the same coolness as Uncle Dennis. But Uncle Den is a Marine! Anyway we met him and he was super impressed that I knew Tagalog and we looked at his house he is renting. It was nice, but we won't be renting it. Anyway to make a long story short we met him, we and his family were great and we shared who we are as missionaries and what we do and I told them that I know this language because God helped me learn it, anyway we went home that night and it was like 8:30pm and we were about to do out Daily Planning and I couldn't sake the feeling that we needed to go to him and give him a Book of Mormon. Even though it was late I knew we were supposed to do that. So we got our shoes back on and ran over as fast as we could (i think my trainee thought I was crazy.) We got there and I gave Tatay the Book and told him it was true and that it changed my life. I told him to read it. I don't know what will happen from it. He lives far away and was going to leave the following morning. Anyway I hope he will read it. But if he does or doesn't I walked home that night feeling that God was pleased that I followed The Spirit's impression to me. I have learned on my mission we can never hesitate when we feel an impression, no matter how matter how late at night and how far away and how tired you are. I was happy to give him a Book of Mormon, he's probably someone's Uncle Den too. I love my mission. I go to bed with a smile on my face every night and I wake up just as happy- missionary work is AWESOME!

       We have now been in Baao 4 weeks. This is our 5th week. President dropped us off in our area on that first night and then next morning a man named Melvin Tanay came how from his service has a Marine in the Philippines Marines. On our third day we taught him and his wife. In every new teaching opportunity their comes a point where you have to ask the people if they would like to be taught or if we could teach them. That always happens, and I always remember how they respond when I ask them if we can teach them. I want to see how interested they are. That has been the case my whole mission EXCEPT for Melvin and Avon!

      It was our third day here, he got home our second day here and on that third day it was as if we were transmitted into their living room that afternoon, sitting in front of each other, him with a pamphlet of the Restored Gospel in his hand, and we were to preach the Gospel to them. I have absolutely no recollection of  how we started to teach them. But God put them in our path. As we kept teaching them I would always ask Elder Arganda, "how did we start teaching them? I just don't remember!" I even went back in my journal to the day we first taught them. All that was written there was, "As our desire to share the Restored Gospel is strong, God will lead us to his children who are ready to except it. We will lead us to them, or them to us." That is what happened with them. On the first lesson we invited them to be baptized and they accepted!

      Both of them have parents that were members and went to church when they were in primary but they grew up outside of the church. Since he is a Marine he is often gone. He was baptized on Saturday, Confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints of Sunday and also received the priesthood of Aaron Sunday night. Today is Monday and he leaves to go back to Mindanao and keep fighting. He has some intense stories! Anyway, we got special permission to get him baptized on such short notice! They are awesome! Avon's family is returning to the church, her Uncle is also the councilor to President Reeder and we had him baptize them! It was awesome!

      Last night was our last lesson before he left and I promised him as a Representative of Jesus Christ that God would protect him physically and spiritually if he would read in the Book of Mormon and pray like he should. It was a great meeting. They thanked us for serving missions... do you know how good that feels? It makes every hot day worth it! I told them that when I was set apart President Hunt promised me that there are individuals and FAMILIES waiting to hear my testimony, they, I believe, are numbered among those President Hunt mentioned. They have a little 2 year old boy named Sky... when that kid serves a mission I will not be able to express how happy I will be. They are planning on going to the temple to be sealed together for FOREVER in 2015! 

        Well, life is great here. I love my mission. We are working hard. I am gong to "serve my mission to it's fullest and come home exhausted!" ;) Baao is a special place! Today we are in Naga and tomorrow we are going to Daet in Camarines Norte for our Trainer and New Missionary Workshop! I am glad to be the one taught and not the one teaching that workshop this time!!!!!

        Oh, the pictures. Hope you liked them. The pictures of that meat stuff is COBRA! We are teaching this investigator family and Tatay said that when they were out in the rice fields that day a cobra was right under him and he killed it.... intense. So they were about to cook it. I DIDN'T GET TO EAT IT! They told us that we could take some home and cook it if we wanted to... but I aint got much experience cooking cobra hahaha. I wish we would have gone when it was cooked..... I would have eaten it so fast! Snake is so good! Hopefully before I go home I will eat Cobra! Also, the other pictures are of our meeting house. I hope you like it! Life is good here. Thanks for your prayers and support! Love you all. I'm praying for little Lowee! Tell her to Magpagaling!!!!!!!!!! Love you all!
Elder Davis

Baptism day!

Cobra!

Thank goodness it wasn't cooked!

Loves the kids!!!

"church house"