My wise Father sent me this in his email this week... And I didn't realize how applicable it would be this week:
"There are some challenges in this last part of your mission because there are things that need to be done in preparation to return. It's part of mortal life. Sometimes we wish things could take care of themselves without a thought... but that's not how it works. As Mom would say "shooter-booter". Continue to rely on the Lord to direct you in these last weeks on your mission. He is very aware of you and will help you accomplish what needs to be accomplished. Continue to trust and follow Him."
We just received news from our Area Presidency that "President and Sister Lopez returned to the United States so President Lopez can receive urgent medical treatment. It is not anticipated that they will be returning to complete their mission."
So... I feel like my bubble from this really wonderful week has completely deflated. This is most certainly a challenge like my dad talked about. President has changed my life in so many ways, and has shifted so many of my paradigms. All the missionaries are still in shock, but we won't lose faith. I know the devil knows our weaknesses, but God knows way more than the devil, and I know Bacolod mission is capable enough to work with the Lord to overcome this. I'll try to focus on the really good stuff from this week...
For one, it's been freezing. Megs told me somewhere in the 70's or 80's? And I'm dying. But it's a blessing because people are so much more awake when it's not hot and they are napping. So. Better for proselyting. Blessings.
Speaking of sleep. I often wake up my companion because I teach in Ilonggo in my sleep. Some things never change, I guess.
Companions are so great because they are like permanent, assigned best friends that aren't allowed to leave you 24/7 and they have to like you. So. I see the benefit of eternal companions. I love my companion, too. And we got to do exchanges twice this week, one in Old Sagay and one in my area with Sister Molejon who taught me SO much. That was a great day in and of itself.
But the weekend was even better. For one, M. G. got baptized. After 7 months of going to church, she finally made her decision. She is a maid for one of our members, Sister S., and S. gave a really lovely talk at the baptism, encouraging M. G. to go on a mission. (she's 26.) S.'s family is going on a temple trip next month, and M. G. has been working on her family history to be able to go. It's such a wonderful opportunity for her to go to the temple so soon after her baptism. I've seen so much in Sagay the influence the members can have on investigators.
I just love missionary work, and I love accounting for our work each day and at the end of each week. Daily planning has turned into such a revelatory experience for us, and we've seen the fruits of seeking guidance, acting on promptings, and following up on our investigators. We've seen a lot of progress this week with Brother J., a long time investigator and husband of a recent convert. He came to church the past two weeks- the first time in almost a year. Ro. En. accepted a baptismal date for February and is so much more interested in reading the book of Mormon with his family than he's ever been. W. and B., a couple we've been helping work toward marriage and baptism, have seen progress and both came to church yesterday with their recent convert parents. Ber. is preparing for baptism this Saturday with her recent convert mother and her member friends. We walked in for our lesson last Monday night and saw Ber., A. (En.), and another member working on their Personal Progress at the kitchen table- with copies of the Ensign, book of Mormon, D&C, and church manuals strewn everywhere.
I love this work. And in every one of these situations, members have played such a critical role in developing our investigators commitment to the gospel.
"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and thieves break through and steal;
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not breakthrough nor steal."
As I've seen our investigators and recent converts begin to lay up for themselves treasures in heaven, I've thought about what this means to me. It is my opinion that God doesn't care nearly as much about the things we do in life as much as he cares what we become. because of the things we do in this life. It may not be overly important to the Lord what we study in school, but what we become because of what we study. He may not always care too much about where we work, but He most certainly cares about how our work shapes us, what we learn from our work, and if we work with integrity.
The Lord is there in all the decisions in our lives, but often times he trusts us to make informed decisions because he sees the whole plan in full. He knows that this world full of jobs, schooling, work, communities... It's all just an instrument to put us where we need to be and teach us what we need to learn for a much bigger and better purpose than just worldly success. I often think those who work only for worldly success here on earth will find that, in the next life, they are just like the high school student who wasted his high school years striving for fame and popularity only to realize after graduation how little it all mattered.
The wise man built his house upon a rock. It might not have been a big house, or a really nice and fancy house, but the wise man probably learned a lot about diligence and hard work while in the process of building. It may have even been a small, bamboo house, but it was founded upon a rock-- a sure foundation. It may not have been filled with lots of nice things, but it most assuredly was filled with his family, his scriptures, family pictures and memories, and the Spirit.
I'm so grateful for the perspective the gospel gives us. Because of it, we can see clearly that heavenly treasures carry much more weight than worldly counterfeits. Sort of like weighing gold against feathers.
"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
I love you all. Please pray for President and Sister Lopez and for the missionaries. We feel a little lost without our President.
Love,
Sister Luke
This is 2 weeks worth of pictures, so get ready.
1. Reunited at MLC
2. Reunited 2.0
3. Some of my favorite peeps
4 &5. Meet J.J.
6. Last week's VIP at our planning session
