Happy Belated Mother's Day!

This week my spiritual experiences are things that I want to keep close to my heart and not have my mom post on the internet, but it has been a good week and I have learned, been uplifted, and felt the spirit. I know this Church is true. I know when people rely on Heavenly Father and act on their faith, miracles DO happen. I've witnessed it. I've heard about it in the testimonies of those I've taught. I had a really good birthday, too. I woke up to Ferrero Rochers(!!!) from my beloved companion, Sister Goud. I had the privilege of going on MTC exchanges (see pictures and descriptions below). One of the returning less actives we taught that day treated us to halo-halo. Since the temple is in my area, although we can't just go to it whenever we want, I did get to walk outside of it on my birthday. And my kabahay treated me to pancit (the birthday tradition here), Chooks-to-go chicken, and chocolate cake from Goldilocks (sosyal!). Haha... More about the MTC exchanges, though. We were doing evaluation afterward and I asked the two sisters I worked with when they felt the Spirit the most. "When we were teaching families" was their reply. We taught one sister who is preparing for baptism by herself, but then we taught a less active family (and it just so happened they were all together in spite of their busy schedules) and we taught a new family who Sister Goud and I had contacted a week ago. And I thought back and realized, it's true. That's why they ask us to find families to teach. The gospel is really all about families. It not only prepares us to be eternal families, but helps us with the trials we experience as families in this life. Anyway, the gospel of Jesus Christ is amazing, and true, and real. Yan lang. Simply lang. Mahal ko kayo, Sister Cope Pictures of the Week: 1. My kabahay(There are six of us in one house!): Sister DelaCalsada, Sister Ramilo, Sister Dulay, Me, Sister Goud, and Sister Sojor, with the mission president's wife, Sister DeLaMare on Zone Interview day. 2. On my birthday we did MTC exchanges! These two sisters will be serving in Thailand, but they are at the Philippines MTC for 19 days. The sister on the left is from Cambodia, the one on the right is from Thailand. I got to work with them and hear testimonies in Thai, the other translated into English for the people we taught. I spoke in Tagalog. It's amazing. The gospel really is going forth in every tongue. 3. My birthday feast courtesy of my kabahay. 4. Blowing out the candle. (Sister Goud is taking the picture.)

Mag-te-twenty-two!!

I'm going to be 22 years OLD this week!!!! But enough about me. Pinaka-awesome day this past week = Friday. We were able to do a service project and help a member family and an investigator that lives with them to move. (Service projects are always a welcomed relief from the daily schedule.) And they live closer, not farther! Hooray! Tapos we taught the Quiano family. They were recently found before I arrived in this area and we were reviewing whether they had read and prayed about the Plan of Salvation. I felt like I needed to describe our purpose a little bit. " We're not just Bible Study," I said. I explained how we give commitments to help people come closer to Christ and prepare for baptism so after baptism it's easier to keep the promises made. "Mahalaga ang work ninyo," sinabi ni Brother. And he wasn't being sarcastic. He really got it. It hit him why we were there. And in my mind after he said that, I thought, "Yes! Someone truly understands!" Background for those who did not serve here in the Philippines. There are a TON of religions here and a ton of missionaries. Born again, Saksi ni Jehovah, Iglesia ni Cristo, etc. Many of them go around just reading from the Bible and it's kind of like a time to hear the words of God, and when they leave that's it. They don't have to live by and act on their faith. We're trying to help people become spiritually self-reliant. So when the missionaries aren't there, they're still studying their scriptures, praying, serving others, etc. Then, because Sister Goud is Indian and she caught the attention of this other Indian woman in our area, we were invited to dinner at their house. It made Sister Goud so happy. It's the first time in 17 months that she's had Indian food. At least as an American, I have McDonald's. Haha. But it was delicious, and they spoke in Hindi and I just smiled. Thankfully, a Filipino neighbor came over for a visit so I had someone to talk to in Taglish. And I gave her a Restoration pamphlet and she said we could visit her at her home. So hooray! I know the gospel of Jesus Christ is real and true and it leads to happiness. Even though I'm literally on the other side of the world with a lot of rules to focus on the missionary work, I am happy because I see other people becoming more happy as they develop their hope in the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and Heavenly Father's plan for us. Mahal ko kayo, Sister Cope Pictures of the week (that are not actually from this week :) 1. Sister Polinar and I at one of our favorite places to teach with fresh hangin and shade. Not to mention it's hidden away from the main road so it's quiet, too :) AND it's where Nanay Evelyn and Sister Jessica live, and they were always just so receptive and willing to act. That's it for my old area. Pictures of/in my new area to come... P.S. Don't forget I have a new address... Sister Samantha Cope C/O Philippines Quezon City Mission Aurora Blvd. Corner JP Rizal Street Project 4, Cubao, Quezon City Metro Manila, Philippines

I am now in the Quezon City South Zone, Quirino 1st Ward. It's sooo different. But I'm loving it. I've had some amazing experiences here already. One of my first nights here I taught to Erina, a Korean girl studying English here. We have to teach her really slowly and simply. It's amazing, though, the spirit that is present as you teach like that. She didn't know who God was and we had the privilege of teaching her that there is someone who knows us perfectly, who created a plan for us to be happy, and who loves us. I had a similar experience two night ago when we taught the Kwan family. The wife is from here, but the husband is from Singapore. We had English, Tagalog, and Mandarin Books of Mormon out, and as Brother Kwan translated the Chinese into English, slowly and simply, it was just really beautiful how clear the principles the gospel are. And the returning member that we had with us, Sister Lou, shared a testimony that was exactly what Sister Kwan needed to hear. And their daughter did the reading assignment and has been praying about it, and she's only 12! My new companion is Sister Goud (from India!), and she invites the Holy Ghost into each lesson as she shares her testimony and personal experiences. Yesterday we worked with two Sisters from the ward who are preparing to serve missions. One is recently activated, the other is a convert of 3 years. The second is the only member in her family, and they don't want her to go, but she is relying on Heavenly Father to make the right decisions. Oh my goodness. The faith of the people I meet everyday is inspiring. I know this gospel has blessed my life and their lives. I know it will bless the lives of those who choose to come back to church or investigate the Church and come unto Christ through baptism. AND... the temple is in my area! It's like a 30 minute walk! But we can't go until our designated day. But there are perks to being in the city. We meet at the same chapel that the mission office is in, and this morning before district meeting, we got cookies from one of the senior couples. Oh yeah! And one more thing... The other night we came home and our gate, front door, and back door were open. The other sisters, who were the last to leave that morning, said they locked it. So we got to sleep over at the mission home with air con for a night before they replaced our locks! It was pretty sweet... and weird seeing our mission president in a t-shirt the next morning. Haha.. It's hotter here in the city and I miss Antipolo sobra, but I know this is where the Lord needs me at this time. Revelation is real! Mahal ko kayo, Sister Cope Pictures of the Week: 1. Saying goodbye to the DeJesus Family (minus Erroll, plus Kristin). Grabei. I love them a lot. 2. My new companion, Sister Goud, and I at the internet shop, right now! Hala! :) 3. My recent converts in Antipolo--the San Agustins <3 4. An epic Family Home Evening, complete with ooga booga and pulbo. 5. My other second family in Antipolo--The Franciscos (minus Brother). 6. On the way to transfer meeting with my kabahay and friends... S. Schmidt, me, S. Polinar, and S. Iosefa.

Mosiah 2:21-24 & 41

And the roller coaster continues... I had a really good week this week. As usual I learned a ton. But I just found out I'm finally being transferred. I've been in Antipolo for 7 months. I love these people with my whole soul. And this area is all I know. I feel so unready, but I know Heavenly Father takes us out of our comfort zones (katulad ng sinabi ng guro ko sa e-mail niya :) to help us to stretch and grow and become more like Him and live up to our potential. Pero grabei. Mahirap. I don't even know what to expect. I feel like I'm starting the mission all over again. But I'll roll with the punches... In one of our lessons, wow. Heavenly Father helped me to think twice before I pass judgment. We were heading to this one less active, and I wasn't very excited about it because she hasn't really been interested and halos walang progression. As we taught I was thinking, does she even care? And then all of a sudden she started crying. She testified that life wasn't this hard when she was going to church every week. She knows the Church has blessed her life. It's hard to explain how. But Heavenly Father just pours out more blessings upon us as we obey His commandments. That's just how it works. He provides for us spiritually and temporally--He keeps His promises as we keep ours. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the only real thing that will help us now and in the eternities (not just now and not just in the eternities, but both)! At the end of last week we taught a lesson to someone in the midst of affliction. I thought how can words from the scriptures help? I had a lack of faith in the power of the word of God, but the next day in personal study, it was restored. I read about the wars among the Nephites and Lamanites and how part of the Nephite preparations were preparing themselves spiritually with the word of God, while the Lamanites prepared using fraud and deceit. (Alma 48:7, 61:21) And guess who won? Those who prepared spiritually. They had built up their faith that God would deliver them by giving them strength through the enabling power of the Atonement. The gospel of Jesus Christ works... for real problems. I know I'm not wasting 18 months by preaching to people. I know that what I'm sharing is true and real, and if we apply it we'll see the fruits of the gospel in our lives--peace, happiness, strength, the love of God. We can't just study the words we have to live them. Easier said than done, but thankfully Heavenly Father has infinite patience with us. Mahal ko kayo, Sister Cope Pictures of the Week: 1. Zone Conference at the mission home! 2. Kay Naog/Santana sunsets <3 3. Enjoying mango with Sister Contaoi, a returning member, and her neighbor and best friend, Sister Jessica. 4. I'm going to miss them. Malakas ang pananampalataya nila. Amazing examples to me of what God will bless us with if we put our trust in Him. 5. Family Home Evening with the Tidors. Lots of powder and a couple tears, but masaya... :) 6. Goodbye Antipolo Zone...

Happy Temple Day!

It's finally open again. It's been undergoing renovations for the past two months so I'm happy to have the opportunity to return. It keeps the perspective that it's not just about baptisms and church attendance. It's getting them to the temple to make more promises to Heavenly Father, and receive more blessings (including the beautiful gift of the power to seal on earth AND in heaven, and have eternal families)!

This transfer is going by so fast. We still get punted a lot here in San Isidro, Antipolo, but we manage to find people who are ready to hear the gospel, like Sister Jessica. She's the best friend of one of our returning members. They study the Book of Mormon together. She takes notes, highlights in the scriptures, and writes down questions. She's amazing. And she's not just learning the gospel, she's living it! After President Uchtdorf's talk in general conference, 'The merciful obtain mercy,' she called up her ex-husband and shared some apologies. And a couple hours later her daughter, who she hasn't heard from since Christmas, called her. The gospel is so real. It works if you live it, not just learn. It makes no difference in your life if you don't apply it. That's why it breaks my heart when investigators and less actives don't keep commitments and we continue to hear about the struggles they're having. Siempre they won't just all go away, but with the gospel we can bear our burden's cheerfully. Like the people of Alma in Mosiah 24, I think. It's an amazing chapter about God's awareness of us and how He keeps His promises and lifts the righteous.

Then there's the San Guenza family. We taught them about the Restoration on our third visit, and I could just see it in their eyes--their desire to keep the commitment we gave them to pray about whether or not the message was true and to come to church. They wholeheartedly accepted the challenge to pray and they wanted to all come to church. But because of their financial situation, one of the brothers said, "We'll have to talk about it, discuss, and decide who will go because we don't have money." Two came at the beginning of April, and three came this past Sunday with the help of members that gave them a ride. The sacrifices people will make because of their faith in Christ are humbling. I know I can do so much more... including being exactly obedient (and not going over on e-mail time...)!

Mahal ko kayo,
Sister Cope

P.S. Use my new address. It should be in a couple blogs down. Also, if you e-mail me, I do get them, but I can't reply... Just to my mom, dad, and brother. But I am so happy to receive them so keep sending them :) I will snail mail back if you include an updated address in your e-mail! Salamat po.
P.P.S. No pictures this week. I didn't charge my battery... Next time na lang.

Happy Easter

What a great way to spend Easter watching conference. In the morning session on Saturday we sat next to one of our recent converts, Sister San Agustin, and her investigating daughter, Jelyn. Sadly, there was no Tagalog translation, and I think partly because of that they did not return on Sunday. But we sat next to the Madelo family from our branch, who after three years of being members were sealed in the temple last November, and next to them was one of our less actives and her investigating neighbor. A couple families were there as well, and I'm so happy for those that made the sacrifices to come. We did a lot of teaching about living prophets the days leading up to conference, and I can't believe people would pass up this opportunity to find out for themselves if Thomas S. Monson is a man of God. But we actually had one investigator run away from us, and then she realized we saw her and came back and told us her baby was sick. If only they realized what they're missing--guidance for our day, our trials mismo.


We had this one interesting lesson with this one less active who was baptized as a kid and has since converted to born again Christian along with 6 of his friends. I don't think all of them took it seriously, but we were able to find another less active in the process, and one of the friends said he went to the 'Mormon' church as a kid with his family. They even had the member that was with us offer to give them a ride, and they passed it up! I know that President Monson is called of God to lead the Church and as a prophet for the whole world. It's crazy! But just like Biblical times, there is revelation now. I received answers to several questions I had going into conference, and I know that each speaker was inspired through the power of the Holy Ghost.

I can't wait to reread them and gain more insights for myself and those I teach. God speaks to us today through personal revelation, ancient revelation, and modern revelation.


Mahal ko kayo,
Sister Cope


Sobrang pagod ako dahil naglakad ako sa 345 steps kanina. Here are some pictures... As a zone we went to Daranack Falls in nearby Tanay.
1. Trying to get a zone picture by using timers... it didn't really work because we're not all included, pero masaya pa rin.
2. Kind of a zone picture... everybody except me and two elders who laid down sa tuktok ng bundok :)
3. Sister Polinar and I at the base of the falls.
4. I don't know if we're allowed to walk in water as missionaries. (For those who aren't members/aren't familiar with missionary rules... Swimming is BAWAL. But hopefully this was okay. It was the only way to get to this really cool tree which I didn't end up including pictures of here. Ha.)
5. Elder Ochavo, and my kabahay S. Schmidt, S. Polinar, and S. Iosefa. on the bridge back to this...
6. The 345 steps... in the distance.
7. We made it! :D

How was General Conference?

Suwerte kayo. You get to see the prophets and apostles speak a week before me! But this was a great fast Sunday. We saw a lot of less actives come back to church yesterday. And although we were punted most of the rest of the day, we kept smiles on our faces. There's this one new family that has moved into our area and have been shy to attend the branch and adjust to a new congregation, but we taught them two hours before church, and then all six of them came (except for their mom who works abroad). It was a miracle to see our sacrament room more full than I've ever seen it before in the 6 months I've been here.

Satan tries so hard to keep us from drawing closer to Christ. There are so many temptations, including the temptation to get bothered by little things that turn into big things and drive the spirit away. I witnessed several experiences of that as our planned Family Home Evening almost fell through, and as one of the recent converts decided to be offended and not come to church for the time being. We have to stick to the basics (magsimba, basahin ang aklat ni Mormon, manalangin--I tell people this all the time because the power from doing them is real) and build our testimonies so that when trials come (and they will), we're prepared. Like Helaman 5:12 ... And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.

This is what our mission president closed his e-mail with last week: " This is God's work! This is his glory! You are his amazing instruments! Keep winning the battles!" It's so true. This is a battle. And we will win in the end, but Satan is taking too many of our brothers and sisters down with him. If we rely on God and strengthen ourselves through the gifts He's given us, we will be better able to lift others around us.

Mahal ko kayo.
Sister Cope

Pictures of the Week:
1. Dinner with the Patricio family. Sister had a horrible migraine when we first arrived, but we offered a prayer over the food and included her in it and by the time we left, wala ang sakit niya. Ah-mazing. Prayer works :)
2. Family Home Evening with the Tagle family. Their father recently passed away, and he always wanted to have FHE so we made it happen. It was a very special experience, and of course afterward we played games which included punishment of powder and sampling a talent... Bliss and I sang one verse of a hymn since apparently we had the most powder... I tried to erase some of mine to get out of it... It didn't work.
3. The kitten I'm holding is so small you can barely see it. I was so excited as you can see from my facial expression that makes me look like a crazy person. Beside me is Chole one of the little sisters of an investigator, but she's been reading the pamphlets, too, and in the closing prayer of our last lesson asked for a Book of Mormon. We forgot to bring extras, but it's amazing how even at 11 years old she desires to know more about God. And Teresa Lanot is one (to the side) is one of our returning less actives who referred her neighbors to be taught, and it's amazing how ready they are and how sincere their desires to know the truth are. We are not in each other's paths by accident. Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us.