It's Monday and we just got back from a last zone activity so that's why I'm on pretty late. I only have a few minutes before we've got to run , but a couple of significant things happened in the past week that I want to share before I forget.
..it's actually Tuesday now. I'm in the office about to get interviewed and then take off for Manila. Elder Tolman called us yesterday while we were emailing and said he needed to get a haircut so I had to go with him to get one as well and we didn't have time to email again , so now is the only time I have. So I've got to be pretty quick.
So this week was pretty normal and fast. Went on my last exchanges with Asingan , and then on Thursday Elder Hyatt got called to be the new Assistant to the President! We got a call from President asking us to head to the office and we had a quick talk with us , explained a few things , and then called Elder Hyatt to take Elder Tolman's spot. So from there we ran to San Manuel and picked up Elder Dela Cruz who became my new and last companion! He's a really good missionary and I've known him for a while. So I've had the opportunity to work with him over the past few days and show him his new area and things he has to do as a zone leader. Friday we got a temporary addition to our companionship , which maybe I'll talk more about in person , but it was really special for me and a really good ending to both of our missions [well his isn't over just yet]. And Friday night we taught an amazing lesson to the Andar family and extended baptismal dates. They accepted with excitement and look forward to their baptisms. A job is keeping one of them from attending , which hurts everyone else , but her faith is strong enough to do what's right. The Spirit was really strong right from the beginning when we sang and Brother and Sister Tolentino came with us. Saturday we had a really short day as a baptism at 5 cut in through almost all of the work , but it was a really nice service and we were happy to have a baptism. Elder Hyatt baptized and I got to be part of her confirmation on Sunday. Sunday's church was really nice as well , but the possibly one of the strangest things of my mission happened later that night.
Our first appointment that we had planned was the Garcia family. We had met Brother Garcia as we were walking one day contacting some less-actives. We asked him for directions to someone who supposedly lived nearby , and partially drunk , he stated that he was a member. [This was last week] So me and Elder Hyatt went back to them and we met brother , his mom , and his two kids. Brother kept blurting out random doctrines about the church and what not , and to be honest we were pretty astounded at how much he still remembered despite being about 20 years inactive. His mom was very against the church at this point , despite being active back in the day , and his two kids were so incredibly shy and only came in after he sternly told them to. The oldest is Christopher - 21 and then Christina - 13. They were both , again , super shy and wouldn't say very much. Anyways that lesson was pretty horrible because of the mother and brother blurting out random things every two seconds and ruining any flow we could get going ... so we left without much hope. But we did learn that neither of the kids were members and Christopher mentioned he was taught in the past. So okay - once more fast forward to last Sunday. I had just thought I would more or less show Elder Dela Cruz their house , seeing as they're members and part-members , and maybe we'd be able to teach. So we luckily find it again Sunday night and Christopher surprisingly answers the door. He then immediately tells us to come in , so we're like ookkayy .. and enter. He goes and gets his sister immediately and they sit down in front of us. We ask him repeatedly if his dad is home and finally he says he's drunk. Then in stumbles Brother Garcia ... indeed , drunk. And rambles on for about 10 minutes asking us many times who we were and stating how he was a member. After he finally leaves I ask Christopher if he had any questions before we started and he instantly pulls out a Bible and Book of Mormon , puts them side by side , and asks "which of these is the most correct book on earth" . So we realized that this was going to be a bit of a different lesson we asked if we could start with prayer. After the prayer we ask Christopher where his question was coming from and he completely opens up. He tells us how he was taught really in depth by sister missionaries back in 2009 and how he almost got baptized. He said he had a hard time accepting the Book of Mormon back then ... and then in stumbles brother again. Another 8 minute rambling and then he leaves. It ruined a bit of the mood , but then Christopher picked up from where he left off. And then it got ... weird .... Brother then stumbles in again , only like 3 minutes after the left before. Now remember , he is completely completely drunk. This time he's holding a kitten by the neck and body and then attempts to wring it's neck! Luckily the thing jumped free from him somehow but it was screaming. He then enters the room and by the impression in his shirt it's obvious there's something he's stunk down the front side of his pants ... after 3 or 4 minutes of rambling he leans back and it becomes obvious that there was a gun sticking out of the front of his pants. The three of us kind of just got silent as the feeling in the room completely changed and now the feeling of uh... what do we do comes over us. He messes with Elder Dela Cruz and our companion a bit , and then won't leave. Keeps rambling on and all the while staring at us. But eventually he does leave. So this was the decision ... to leave or to stay. So we just kind of look at each other and decide to stay. We invite Christopher to continue where he left us and he makes the remark "I think there's a Spirit that doesn't want you to teach." But we still asked him to continue and this is where everything changed - he went in depth telling us about how he was taught and how when the sisters left and he went to his church and knelt down and prayed. After the prayer of him asking over and over again if the things they taught were true he came to the feeling that if the missionaries ever came back he would accept what they were teaching. But they never did. So he said he spent 2010 and 2011 regretting not acting on what they were teaching and he missed the church and going to church and what not. So he said he was thinking about the church a lot lately and then he was so surprised to see me and Elder Hyatt there last week that he didn't know what to say. So ... in the end , Brother Garcia never came back into the room and we had a solid 30 minute lesson with him , and somewhat his sister , about the Book of Mormon and him promising to continue studying and listening.
So , that was one of the strangest and really amazing experiences of my mission. Coming only two days before I go home. It's amazing how to the Lord will use you to find the elect and what you'll be put through in order to teach the message.
Yesterday , we had an awesome zone activity in which we went hiking up near some falls and ate what's called "Budal Budal Fight" which is rice and ulam divided into three teams and you eat it on banana leaves with your hands. First time to finish wins. No one was able to finish all the food but me and Elder Nieman and Velasco and Harrison were able to eat for the longest , ha. Anyways that was really fun and we ended the day with another amazing lesson with the Andar family about the Atonement and it's motivational powers. A really great last lesson for my mission.
So this is the testimony I'd like to leave , seeing as my time is about up. I'm so incredibly grateful for the two years I've been given to serve here in the Philippines. I don't know what I was thinking before I left , but there is no way I could have expected any of this to happen. I'm so grateful for the Atonement , the First Vision , the Book of Mormon ... all pillars of my testimony. I know the Church is true and I now understand what that means. Thank you , Mom and Dad , for getting me on a mission and helping me to serve. For all the motivation and support. I love the Filipino people and know this call was inspired of God. And I know from two years of personal experience that any single person with any slight desire to know if this work and church and Gospel is true only has to read a book and ask in prayer if it is. The Spirit is real. It will bear testimony.
I love you all and can't wait to see all of you again.
Love,
-Elder White
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