DUCK!!!!

Maayong aga, family!

Wow, this week has just been a blast!!! We have just been working so hard to get this area up and running!! We have really been focusing on getting the trust of the members and building good relationships with them, because before... I don't know what happened here. but, I am proud to report that things are getting so much better now! People are just flocking towards us wanting to work with us. It is great! The work just stands still when the ward isn't involved.

We got to go to the community service project that was all three of the bacolod stakes, north, central, and south. And lucky me I got to see so many of my recent converts and all the people that I love from all the wards that I Have served. It was awesome. Remember Sister Emilita? from Bacolod 1? I saw her and she just started crying. I miss her so much! And Sister Joy from Bacolod 1, also. She was so cute! I am so happy! 

I also got to see people from Silay, and Tangub. It was just amazing, and all that AND I got to do service! I didn't realize how much I miss doing service. We got to go to the High school and sweep the grass. Literally. I am not even joking. They gave us these little hand brooms and we swept the grass. It was fun, I really felt Filippino.(: There were so many people there, and it was so cool to see us join together with the Baranggay people and serve. I think they really appreciated it too. 

So, i've been on my mission now for 10 months... and one of my favorite stories to tell people about how prayer works and how Heavenly Father loves everyone, and wants to help with even the silliest of problems is about that one time when we were going to the temple. We were about to leave our house in Pima and I couldn't find my white shoe ANYWHERE. I looked in my closet, under my bed, seriously I searched the house everywhere. Mom and dad were getting frustrated cause I couldn't find my shoe. Then dad told me to pray, so him and I went into my room, knelt down and prayed. Then dad opened my closet and there was my missing shoe. ha. okay, so I was telling this story to a family that is in our ward and about half way through the story I could tell that Sister Magante was trying so hard not to laugh, and I was getting really self-conscious. Then she finally stopped me and said "sister Young, Zapato... parang duck." haha. Then everyone busted up laughing. Now.. so you can understand... In Hiligaynon the word for shoe(singular) is Zapatos.... but my spanish background makes me all confused cause in spanish Zapatos is shoes(plural) so i always make the mistake of forgetting the "s"... well in Hiligaynon when you forget the "s" on Zapatos it means DUCK... So, I am just so happy to announce that for the whole 10 months of my mission I have been telling people that I needed a White Duck to go to the temple.. and I couldn't find it anywhere... but after we prayed I found my lost white duck in my closet.(: Silly problems, Lost ducks, I promise you that heavenly father answers prayers! 

That is my funny story of my life... awesome huh. It was really funny, and it made the kids we were teaching just have something else to tease me about! 

I really do have a testimony of prayer though. Heavenly Father loves us so much! Even if you are ugly, or pretty, or older than the hills, or just a 6 or 7 year old child, he hears and answers our prayers. It doesn't even matter the problem ukon situation, he will always be there for us if we are going to depend on him. If we will trust him and follow the promptings of the spirit. 

I love getting on my knees at the end of a long, hard day of procelyting, or a long day of getting punted 6 times in a row and just talking to my Father In Heaven about how my day was. About my trials, about what I thought I did good, about how I thought my companion talked too much, about how inadequate I feel, and then just having his love pour over me and comfort me. And as I kneel there he talks to me, though my thoughts and through my heart and gives me answers to my questions, he gives me strength, he gives me advise, and most of all he takes away my worries and cares and I really just feel his love for me. 

I know that all of you can feel that. You have to just try. It takes a long time to be able to really communicate with Him, because we are so tired at night, or we have sins that we don't want to confess to him, those things block that pure communication with Him that we all need so desperately. I have a lot of room to improve, I am not perfect, but I am so thankful that I have developed such a good relationship with Him. It has helped me so much! 

I love you all and I hope you have a fantastic week! I challenge you to develop that relationship with Our Heavenly Father, it will bless your life so much. Just try it. 

Love, Your sister Missionary,

Sister Young