Week 53

Monday, February 22, 2016

Hi mom!!!!!

I don't have a lot of time today, but I will try to type fast!!!

This has been a good week!!! I got to be companions again with one of my children :). It was an awesome day!!! We had an awesome lesson where it was all teach this person and not the lesson!!! It was so amazing to have the spirit work through me and testify! I came so close to crying and the investigator cried too! I love her :). I hope that she progresses!

We made to resolve and the commitment to become more consecrated this week, and the miracles that immediately followed were amazing!!! We got a progressing investigator that came to church yesterday! And just amazing!!! I love this work and I know that it is true!!!!

Then I know that member referrals are amazing and work the very best!!!! Last night we taught one of the most amazing Sister!!!!!!!!! It was so amazing the lesson!!!! We didn't have to ask inspired questions, she would ask them on her own, and then all we had to do was give inspired answers :). it was amazing!!!! She has a lot of potential :) I am excited to see where this goes :).

I love you all and I hope that you are all happy!!!

Love Sister Emma Nelson :).

I promise next week will be longer and better....

 Sister Makilan yan

 Sa Alvinos! When I come back and I bring you mom, We shall eat here like there is no tomorrow :) We eat here almost everyday..... if not, about three times a week :)

So this is what happens when the landlord has a cat, and then leaves and then missionaries move in and the cat is not aloud in the house because of the rule, do not keep pets of any kind, and the Ssiters dont know if the cat is pregnant or fat, and then the missionaries take  trip to Naga for a day.... And when they come back form Naga, and the STLs are about to go to bed early, and then they found all of this in the closet of one of the other Sisters..... WE HAVE KITTENS!!!!

Week 52

Monday, February 15, 2016

Hi mom!!!!

This has been a crazy week!!!!! Full of learning and being busy!!! I feel like when I come home I might sleep for a good month :).

On Tuesday I have my first ever exchanges!!!!! That was frightening and exciting!!!!! It was with my kabahays and it was sooo good!!!! I love those sisters and I am so happy that I got to work with them, and build a better relationship with them!!!! And then right after that, I had more exchanges!!!! They were good too!!! I miss training... Talaga...

So then we had a broad cast for all of the missionaries and it was so amazing!!!! It was about teaching repentance and baptizing converts!!!! It was amazing! I feel like it went a long with last General conference, about simplifying. They really just taught Preach My Gospel and it was so amazing to realize the true meaning of Repentance which equals Change! It was awesome to realize that is what we teach as missionaries is change, and how amazing it is to see changes in peoples lives!!!!

It was amazing to meet President Nelson on Saturday!!! It was awesome to look into his eyes and think about all the wonderful and amazing things that he has seen! He is truly a man of God!!! I will tell you more in 27 weeks :). HAhaha. I received some awesome promptings and it was so awesome to be taught by the Holy Ghost!!!

I cannot believe that It has been a whole year since I have left!!! It has been a really hard thing, but I would not trade it for the world!!!! I love my Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, and I am so glad that I am here on a mission in the Philippines Naga Mission!!! I love you all and I hope that you have an awesome day!!!

Love Sister Emma Nelson

Week 51

Monday, February 8, 2016

Hi mom!!!!!

I have to tell you that I laughed out loud in the computer shop at the line "The worldliness is bad today.  I try to be good, but..." It made me laugh harder than I should have :).

I am good today! I have come to the realization that it never permanently stops raining here in Daet.... I struggle with it a little more than I thought I would.... But on the bright side, (HEHEHHEE punintended....) It is cold here!!!! I am loving sleeping with a blanket and still being cold!!! It is one of the best things of being in Daet!!!! Oh and another thing about Daet... It sounds kinda like Diet, but the only thing here that's on a diet is my wallet... Daet is full of amazing food :) I love it so much!! Food, food, food...:)

So we came back to Daet on Tuesday, after our meeting... It was a good meeting! I learned a lot and realized that I have to repent of the things that I did when I wasn't a Leader.... Oops... :). at least I can repent... We just talked about things for the mission and how to better train missionaries, and we got trained by President Reeder, and by the Asistants :). It was a good day!

Our Investigators are good! I feel so bad for the ones that struggle, so they sometimes have no way to come to church... It makes me sad, because they are the ones that have the biggest desire to be baptized... And then, one of our investigators left.... Like she left her "Boyfriend" and her daughter... She and her boyfriend had been together about four years and she left.... I think that it might be because of the age span between them... like brother is old enough to be her father... but they are both really nice. Brother Felix is a less active, and he has a very strong testimony of the Atonement, and I feel bad for him, but it was Sister choice... I can only pray for them...

Another one is a ten year old boy, and is very talkative... :). He makes me happy! And he is so smart!!! We were talking about Obedience, and he starts talking about following the word of wisdom, and we look at each other like WOW!!! Because we hadn't taught him yet about the word of wisdom, so we killed two birds with one stone and it was an awesome lesson :) I love Jerom :).

We haven't had exchanges yet, we will have two this week, and then we will have zone conference! I am excited!!!!! For the conference, not exactly the exchanges!!!! I am excited for one of them, becuase I get to work with a sister that is in her training!!! I miss training like none other! But, I know that I can do it, and I will be able to have exchanges!!! I am a little worried because, I am going to work in my area, and haha.... I hope that I can remember all of the places that we are going to.... :3

I love this ward, and I love the members! I wish that I could go back to Milaor, and do things differently... But whats past is past... It reminds me a lot of Goa... The whole area reminds me of Goa. Like the way I feel about it and the way that I just love it. I also love my companion! I love her soooo much!!! As we have talked and gotten to know each other better, I have realized so many reasons why we are companions! It is a good companionship! I love her, and I learn so much from her everyday!

I love the pictures!!! All of them! You are all so cute, handsome, and beautiful!!!!

I will be in Naga again on Saturday :). I get to meet my long lost grandpa or something... I laugh every time a sister or Elder tells me that my Papa is coming, and I immediately think of my Grandpas... And then go what? OH!!!! I get it now... They all laugh at me...so yesterday for my personal study I thought about all of the blessings that I received because of the Restoration of the gospel... and it was a very long list, but It was a good thing to do to realize how blessed I am because of the question and the faith of a 14 year old boy :).

I know that this church is true! I love the book of Mormon! please continue to read it! Have an awesome week!

Love Sister Emma Nelson!

Week 50

Monday, February 1, 2016

Hi mom :)

I am good this beautiful day in Naga :). We have Missionary Leadership Council tomorrow, so, we traveled from Daet to Naga this morning, so I spent another P-day in Naga :). MLC happens every month, so I will be back again in March :) It is exciting being an STL... And a little bit stressful, but I love it and I love the sisters, and I love my companion.

The road trip is beautiful, and I love the mountains, and the palm trees, and all of the things that go with Daet and our area!!!! I love it so much, that when I get rich, I will buy a house in Daet and go live there and be happy as can be :) We have a stunning area and I am still learning it, and we have some awesome investigators that are so ready to be harvested, and it really is the Promised Land :). I want to stay there until August, but I know of some other STLs that want to go to Daet, so I will probably stay there until June, if I don't transfer in June, then the rest of my mission is there in Daet :) It scares me to think that in a couple of weeks I will have reached one year and then I will be so close to finishing my mission.... Oh well, at least I have some weddings to look forward to :) *Cough, cough*

So as an STL I am apart of the Leadership council here in the Naga Mission, and so we have meetings we have lots more paper work, and we have exchanges and apartment checks for the other sisters and we get to travel throughout the Zone, we get to help train missionaries, and we get to do all of those things, and keep a thriving area too :). For me, this is all just a little stressful.... but I have an awesome companion to help me and to be there for me when ever :) I like living with STLs, because it is just a little bit more easier to be obedient than to not....... I like that part a lot... no Babylon, no staying up too late, being on time for studies and for all of the things in between!

I miss the snow more than anything... Maybe it is because I am not there in Utah..... THATS WHY!!!! AHahahahaha I still miss it :).

I love my area!!!! I think it is one of the most beautiful parts of the Philippines! It has a lot more than Goa, but the people are still so nice, and humble and they are willing to listen!!!! I love the members and they don't speak Bicol, I think yesterday was the first Sunday that I had where I understood about everything they said and I didn't nosebleed!!!! I love it so much!! We have some awesome people ready for Baptism! One is a ten year-old part member that is sooooo ten, but like all ten year-olds he was listening and he understood a lot about the Restoration and the Prophets and all of that! Then we have some Tatays, that are ready too! One is about 80, and has a lot of questions about the Restoration, and the other one is about 60, and he is so excited to be baptized on February 27!!!! We are excited for them and they are excited too :).

We have our first exchanges this week, I am a little stressed about this, I am working in the other sisters area, but still, I am pertified to go on exchanges D: Just.... Yeah, Yan lang... PERO! I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded!

I saw Sister Padilla and Sister Sulunga earlier today, I miss them both so much, and then I miss my other, Sister Gonzaga! I decided that I really do feel like their mother here in the mission!!!! I miss training so much and I miss everything about all of my akis!!!!! They make me happy and I will forever love them :) Training is the best part of my mission, and I will forever be grateful to Father for letting me train three Missionaries :). It is the best because you get to see and help these missionaries grow and become better and see thier progression, and with out trainers to train new missionaries, there is no other reason to have any other responsibility! I miss it more than ever!

Sorry for last weeks email, and how short it was, I really wasn't in the mood to write a really long letter so, I wrote that one... But I made a goal for this transfer to be a little more detailed in my letters, because of my dark days, in Milaor... But those days are over now, and I know that everything will be ok and all cool :).

I hope I have changed, I hope that I have changed and that it is a permanent change and that when I go home, I will be a better person and be better with the things that I struggled with and be better able to do the things that I want to do :). I hope that I have grown more spiritually, and that I will be better prepared for the things that I need to do when I get older :). I am excited to come home, but I am also scared... I remember thinking before my mission how scared I was to change on my mission and become different, but now I realize that these changes have just made me a better person! I am still Emma, even though my name sounds a little strange to me, and I have just become a better person through my mission with a deeper understanding of the gospel and with a much stronger testimony of Jesus Christ and I will be a little strange when I get home, but I know that it will be ok, and that I am a better person because of what I experienced here on my mission :).

I love the feeling of peace!! I know that it is one of the best feelings to have!!! I love how when we walk through the door, it feels like home, and it feels just so amazing :). I love the scripture in D&C 6:22 or 23. I know that it is true and I know that it is also an expression of Gods love for us :)

So this week I had an awesome thought, and I want to share it with you... So I was thinking and reading about the Grand Council in Heaven before we came to earth, and I was reading a quote by... someone.... I forgot... :) Basta! And he was talking about that moment that we forgot about and Satan's rebellion and how it was described as a war in heaven and I feel like I kinda saw it, and that it was a scary feeling, and I thought about all the people that I love here on earth, and all the people that I forgot about there in Heaven, and how many of those people that I loved might have followed Satan, and then if thats how I felt just thinking about it and not remembering the people that I love so much, the pain that Father must have felt when he saw 1/3 of his children walk away from his perfect plan to become like him! When I had this thought I realized how much we have to keep fighting Satan all of our lives, and how we cannot let him win. I then thought about His perfect love for us and how all we have to do is trust him! Cool di ba?

I love you all so much and I love this gospel!!! I know that it is true and that we have a loving Father in Heaven who loves us and is always there for us!!!! I hope that you all have a great week!!!

Love Sister Emma Nelson!!!