Traveling alone...

Traveling alone...

So yesterday I got on a jeepney at 5:45 a.m. to travel to Quezon City... all by myself. I had to go to a meeting and had special permission, but on the ride there I ran into this one member who thought I was pasaway. On the way home I talked to this one lady who was very strict Roman Catholic, but when I showed her the quadruple scriptures (with the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price), she said, "Wow, completo." And we exchanged numbers and she gave her address and accepted a visit from the missionaries! Sweet!

Sister Roper will be transferring and I will be staying and training a new missionary. We were really hoping I'd be the one to kill her, but instead I am giving birth. That's the terminology we use in the mission for being someone's last companion and being someone's trainer... I'm going to miss her. She's so much fun, and the branch here loves her. But the Lord has more plans and different learning experiences for us.

We had an awesome last week and half together. Saturday we had two service projects. We went to the farm of our branch president and cleaned the pig pens and held piglets!!! And we planted kamoteng kahoy (cassava). The pictures are on Sister Roper's and Sister Biggs' cameras. Then because Sister Roper is a professional hair dresser, we had a "Parlor Day" with the Relief Society where she taught how to cut hair and gave lots of free haircuts. Everyone was really happy.

And some really great lessons with Laarni who will be baptized around Christmas. She's understanding it so well, and she's realized the gospel means change. Her testimony has grown so much because of the changes she's seen in herself.  And then with Chrisper who shared a piece of his testimony about how his baptism didn't feel complete until after his confirmation and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. The ordinances are soooooooooo real!

We also worked with the Jensens on Thursday and shared an article about gospel culture, and Elder Jensen shared the parable of the coyote. It was perfect.

I know that this gospel is also a gospel of happiness. It has the power to make us positive... IF we live it! I read this quote by Einstein that went something like... There are two ways to live. To see everything as miracle or to see nothing as a miracle. We choose to be happy through our perspective, and the gospel can help us change our perspective into an eternal and joyous one.

Mahal ko kayo,

Sister Cope

Pictures of the Week:

1. Bureros Family Home Evening :)

2. Fighting over the apple jacks!!! that the Lagnada family gave to us last week after our awesome family scripture study.

3. Temple tour with Ellen, new convert :)

4. Giant pizza that we ate last P-day with the Elders! "party" size... masarap.

5. With the San Juan Family. Love them to death!

6. Petting piglets at President Gica's farm <3

7. ( scope 008) I love my kambal!

8. ( scope 016) And I love these invesitgators... Ellen's cousin (Faye Ann), Ellen's mom (Nora), and Nora's apo :)

9. ( scope 019) Leading my companion off the steps of the Morong chapel for the last time. Parang engagement picture... Bahaha..

10. (scope 005) The lovely Pinoy CR (comfort room) of our apartment. Angsuwerte ni Sister Roper... maybe she'll be transferred somewhere with a toilet seat! :)

Ipis, Lamok, at Aso.. Oh my!

This has been an amazing week. Just witnessing people grow closer to coming back. With one less active family, we helped them start their family scripture study. I'd never done it before except once with my brother when we were both living in Utah and joining the family of one of my friends back in Maryland. As I testified of it's importance, I really felt the Spirit. It's something I know makes a difference and I yearn to do with my own family when I get home.

We brought Ellen, who was baptized in September, to the temple for the first time. She was excited and really enjoyed herself. It's always special to go there. We also had the privilege of attending the baptism of an investigator in the other area of Morong and there were some serious complications, but the testimony he bore was powerful, and I could just feel that he was truly converted. Tapos we had an awesome family home evening about missionary with one of the more active families in the branch (who  has 3 kids that are mission age) and we invited one of the recent converts who is 22 and less active already and his investigator brother who is 18. The Spirit was definitely there and almost everyone participated.

One of my favorite lessons this week was this man we taught named Brother Perez. We were searching for a referral, and decided to ask directions from him. He invited us in and I just loved his attitude to learn and find out the truth. He had great questions. And told us a story from grade school where his teacher asked him a question and his classmate answered "I don't know." The teacher replied, "Don't say I don't know because there is a period and nothing happens. A better answer is, 'I will find out.' " So we applied this when we invited him to pray about the message we shared with him.

I know Heavenly Father does help us to find things out, if we ask in sincere prayer. Many times He has answered me so personally. Nandiyan Siya palagi and He loves us sooo much.

Mahal din ko kayo,

Sister Cope

P.S. I had tons of great pictures from our two family home evenings, temple tour, and pictures of this horrific cockroach bite I have. But I left my camera cord at home. I also got bit by a dog this week. But it was small and I'm taking antibiotics just in case. (that part is for my mom :)

mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord...

From 11/05/12

I just received an e-mail from one of my good friends and Relief Society president of Pateros! She let me know that one of the daughters of a previously less active family (but now active na active!) is processing her papers. Her boyfriend was baptized a couple weeks after I left the area!!!! ahh! It's so amazing and happy and I am just excited!

We just returned from a zone activity to Daranack Falls. It was beautiful still, but off season so there wasn't as many people and the senior couples cooked for us! I also received mail that one of my friends is having a baby and another got her mission call to D.C. North. For friends who aren't from Maryland, that's the mission my home ward is in! Heavenly Father keeps moving his work forward each family and each missionary at a time! No unhallowed hand can stop the work, di ba?!

Our mission president encouraged us to go finding in the cemetery on All Saint's Day. One of the grandchildren of our less active passed away two weeks ago at just three months old and we visited the grave site  where we were able to introduce the plan of salvation to the mom and make plans to share more.

We also had a new Elder's Quorum President called!! We've been without one for about two months. It's interesting because I was just reading President Monson's talk about 'Seeing People As They Can Become' or something like that and the new EQP is still working on coming back to church and bam! Now he has a calling and it's amazing how Heavenly Father works to help us reach our potential.

He loves us so much and is listening to each prayer, and answers when we pray sincerely and with faith. We just need to open our mouth and have a heart-to-heart with Him. It's amazing the answers we receive.

Mahal ko kayo,

Sister Cope

Pictures of the week:

1. First Family Home Evening of the week with the Bolire Family!! Good night with good news! They started doing family prayer! Tatay was so proud to tell me. He was like, "Sister, you haven't asked yet if we had family prayer." I was beaming at them :D

2. At home making yema. There was some complications and it ended up looking like 'tae'... I'll let you figure out what that means in Tagalog :)

3. Halloween... Us Americanas had to stop by the nearest Save More and buy some candy for ourselves.

4. At the cemetery with the Castillo family. I asked permission first if it was respectful to take pictures. She asked for copies and the kids went around taking some pictures of their own, too.

5 - The second family home evening of the week with San Juan!!! Love them.

6 - Kabahay shot at Daranack <3

7. Sister Miller prepared barbeque chicken sandwiches and brought us chips and salsa!!! it's been too long. yummm.

8. The falls

9. 340 steps (round 2). I walked them back in March. Never thought I'd do it again!! Hala!! And this time I did it barefoot.

Happy Halloween!!

From 10/29/12

Except there is no Halloween here. There is something on November 1st, though, where everyone goes to the cemeteries and they have picnics at the grave sites of their loved ones. It's called All Saint's/Soul's Day.

Earlier this week, one of our members needed a blessing. Her husband is less active, and so Elder Jensen ended up giving the blessing with two other elders close to our area. On Sunday we talked to the wife, and her husband said, "I'm coming back to church. I should've been the one to give that blessing." Not to mention, she was feeling a lot better. It's powerful motivation to stay worthy of the priesthood authority. It's God's restored power here on the earth to act in Christ's name! 

1 Nephi 1: 20 And when the Jews heard these things they were angry with him; yea, even as with the prophets of old, whom they had ^acastout, and stoned, and slain; and they also ^bsought his life, that they might take it away. But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender ^cmercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of ^ddeliverance.

I just wanted to include this scripture because Heavenly Father always blesses me with tender mercies when I need it most. Even when Satan is doing everything to combine against us and bring us down, Christ's Atonement is there to lift us up and Heavenly Father is there to shower us with blessing. It is a great testimony to me of Their love for each of us.  

Mahal ko kayo,

Sister Cope

I'm a Mormon. I know it. I live it. I love it

Not my favorite talk, but I like the phrase. There was a lot about service, di ba? That is one thing I learned coming into the field, how much we can do when we are not full-time missionaries. But there's different things that missionaries can do. But really there's so much more observing and serving we can do, and that we're expected to do, and that we covenanted to do. If we would just look at the people around us and love them, it would make a world of difference.

We talked about Elder Bednar's talk with one of our members that's returning back to church... testimony versus conversion. It's not just about what we know, it's how we came to know it and how we feel about what we know. It has to be way down deep in our heart. Taos-puso sa Tagalog. And then Elder Quentin L. Cook's talk centered around Alma 5: 26   And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?

We have to keep our conversions current.

So yep.. pretty much just soap boxing it up today because conference was the highlight of the week, and having more of our "less actives" and investigators come to the Saturday session than "active" members. Having living prophets, seers, and revelators are the best, and teaching people who understand that and want to see and know for themselves if it's true or not is amazing.

Also, my new companion is Sister Roper!! We're both short Americans so everybody thinks we're related. It's really fun. Sister Roper introduces us as kambal (twins) to all the people she's meeting. We've been kabahay before and we've been assigned in each other's areas and everyone gets us mixed up.

Mahal ko kayo,

Sister Cope

So my mind is not very focused to write an e-mail right now. We received permission to stay longer at the internet shop and watch this: http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/church-lowers-age-requirement-for-missionary-service

I'm so excited for all the sisters that will be going now because the age to go on a mission is earlier. But like they emphasize it is definitely a decision to be made with Heavenly Father. It's great practice for the mission and the rest of our lives in seeking Heavenly Father's will. Ah!!! Missionary work is moving forward exponentially... It's so amazing. And the emphasis on personal preparation... The Book of Mormon and Preach My Gospel.

Sister Curtis and I had a good last week together. (She'll be transferring tomorrow...) 

First of all, last Tuesday. Powerful lesson with Brother Randy and Sister Jhoana. Sister is active and Brother has not gone to church for about 8 years, I think. The senior couple was with us (Elder and Sister Jensen). He has to work to provide for his family, and it's a real concern as Elder Jensen related to him so well, but with faith he will have enough to support his family if he doesn't work on Sunday. God's promises are soooo real. He even says to try him and see if He won't fulfill them in the scriptures. Of course, He will. God doesn't lie.

Wednesday, last week, we went through the temple with Tatay Anselmo (and another sister in the branch). He's 80 years old and he works with the missionaries everyday!! He was baptized last year and he just wants to share the gospel with everyone.

Then this Monday we had a sweet Family Home Evening with the DeVillina Family (one of our less actives families) and Dexter and Vanessa (investigators). There's no electricity where they live, but it was one of the happiest FHEs. Simple lesson, fun games, and Sister Vanessa made sopas for everyone. We brought fudgee bars and zesto (things they need to import to the United states because they're the best).

And because I'm in the Philippines we don't get to see general conference until the week after, so we've been teaching everyone about the living prophet and they have an opportunity to find out for themselves if he's really called of God. Sobang excited ako!!

Yan lang for now. I need to write my mission president.

Mahal ko kayo,

Sister Cope

From October 1st

This week we had some really great experiences. We had an awesome planning session right after zone conference, which led to a powerful lesson. The Spirit definitely guided us, and we found concerns. The wife is active, but the husband is less active because of work and supporting his family. I felt prompted to share Alma 32:27 because he was saying he doesn't know how to start going in the right direction, but he definitely felt something missing... We paused and let him think about the scripture. I could see it as he re-read it, the Spirit spoke to him. He commented how clear it was that he needs to act on his good desires and faith. 

We also had a baptism. One of the older priesthood holders in our branch was performing the baptism, and it took three times for different reasons. I explained to Ellen, the baptizee, that ordinances have to be done perfectly, and the opportunity to re-teach that came on Sunday during sacrament. The sacrament prayer was repeated three times, and Ellen went through why her baptism wasn't right the first two times, and she just seemed a lot more comfortable with the idea. For my non-member friends and family. Ordiances are sacred ceremonies that signify entering into a covenant with God. Our prayers aren't memorized unless doing a prayer for sacrament (blessing of bread and water, baptism, confirmation, etc.)

Then we gave Sister Laarni a baptismal date. The Spirit was so strong and she said yes right away. She is understanding her assignments, and we want so bad for her husband to be there when he's home for two weeks in November. He works abroad in China, and is an active member there. We told her it really depends on her and if she's ready by then, and if she's received a testimony in her heart from Heavenly Father. And her sister in-law is an awesome fellowshipper. So happy.We don't force people to be baptized. In fact, it's horrible when people say they believe what we're saying and they haven't prayed about it. I know this is true, but I know that everyone has to know for themselves that it's true, not from other people. That goes for every principle and doctrine of the gospel. James 1:5, siyempre!

Mahal ko kayo,
Sister Cope