.: Week 58 "Marayong Adlaw"

Week 58

"Marayong Adlaw" means good day in Visaya...Sister Lubas is trying to teach me her language and this might have been one of like 5 things that stuck. Good thing I only have to learn one language haha :)

Dear Family and Friends,

Hope all is well and everyone had a good 4th of July. Mine consisted again of me singing the National Anthem at 6:30 in the morning and wearing a blue skirt and red shirt...yeah that was all my festivities for that day. Hope all of your's was a little bit more festive than mine was haha :) But anyway this week consisted of a lot of change and new things..but on a mission I have learned to accept and invite change. I think it's fun to live life always changing so this week was a fun one.

First off we got a new mission president this week...President Fermanis and he is super awesome. He is from New Zealand...and their family is so fun. They have 6 kids and brought 2 of them to the Philippines...their youngest boys. We gotta work with him a lot at MLC (Mission Leadership Conference) and he is just a cool guy. Super different than President Ostler but I am excited to get to know a new family and work with him more. When someone asked in our "meet the president" meeting how he and Sister Fermanis met...in about like 10 seconds he told us they met and then he went on a mission and then everything gelled together and they got married...and the look on his wife's face was SO funny. He clearly answered the question wrong...if anyone of you become a mission president one day tell how you met your wife in a better way haha :)

New Mission President--President Fermanis from New Zealand

New Mission President's wife

Had a lot of good experiences and finds for the week. I think the best part of the week was for sure seeing Joshua pass the sacrament for the first time...it is the funnest thing to see your recent converts progress in the gospel! Love that kid...he told us after he was glad that he didn't spill the water tray...whooop Joshua for the win!

We had a super funny lesson with a new couple...James and Sara. Sara is a Filipina and James is from Africa. So our lessons are like a big combination of English/Tagalog...its so fun. She reads the Book of Mormon in Tagalog and he reads it in English. Haha best thing of my life...we will teach them again tonight. They weren't able to come to church yesterday because of an "all day birthday" party for their baby turning one...its kind of a thing to do that here.

Jovelyn is doing good and we were able to teach her live-in partner this week too, his name is Roger. We knocked on the door and caught him reading the plan of salvation pamphlet...they are super awesome :)

But to finish off with a spiritual thought is one from a funeral we went to this week for a member in our ward. He died of a heart attack...sad situation, but he lived a nice, long life :) When we got to the funeral, everyone was of course sad...but there was just a feeling of peace in the room because we really do believe that our life is not finished after this one...the promise in Alma 11 that we will even know even as we do now..and it helped me put my life in perspective that we need to really live our lives right until the end like Brother Vicente.

Grateful for the gospel and this opportunity to serve. Have a good week everyone! :)

Love,

Sister Zarbock