2017-4-17 Easter!

April 17, 2017 – Easter!

Kamusta! 

I hope everyone had a great easter! I sure did. Easter here has got nothing to do with the easter bunny or pretty colors or eggs even (although they still sell balut!). Actually it's a little more centered on the Bible and what we know of Jesus, and it's a little more hardcore. On Palm Sunday, there were a ton of palm leaves or leaf arrangements, that people put next to their doors. They were being sold everywhere we went. On the day Christ suffered in the Garden, people did the "sacrifice walk" where they walked from their house to a Catholic church many kilometers away. Some of them are coming from much farther away... and they are all barefoot. That started after dark, so they went to church before dawn. The next day, there are people that make their own lashes, then proceed to walk around and give themselves lashes. As in whipping their own backs with thorns and rocks and leather. Yikes. I suppose it's these same people who then proceed to be crucified. Yes. Crucified. I luckily didn't see this, but I know which area it happens near here. I have at times praised the Filipino people for being so extremely faithful and it holds true still! 

I'm so grateful for the sacrifice Jesus gave for us. That because of this, God's plan for us can come to fruition. That we will live again, just as Christ rose from the tomb. Although I am much more enthralled by the Garden of Getsemane, I'm grateful still for the cross. And we don't have to literally be crucified to follow Christ's example. We don't have to feel the guilt and weight of mistakes, or not living up to God's potential for us. We can receive this great gift, by repenting. Becoming more like Christ, in all of His attributes. I know He lives, and that following Him is the only intelligent thing to do.

We had a meeting with a group of missionaries where my companion and I set up an amazing race type activity to find the pieces of the "Armor of God" (Ephesians 6) Luckily we volunteered one of our office missionaries to don the armor.

The sisters in our zone of missionaries, after an easter concert. A lot of members participated, and all in all I think there were 16 performances, including our zone. It was very peaceful to watch videos of Christ's life, then listen to songs that describe principles such as hope and repentance, it was very well put together even though there was only 2 weeks notice. One of my favorite parts was when when woman was singing a duet about Christ, and broke into tears because the spirit was so strong. So that was our easter sunday! 

Every day we find. We look for new people who are ready for this message, and ready to make hard changes for good. We got a lot of new great people to come with us to church, which was a great experience. Later in the day we found out we have a referral. A family of 7 went to church asking for missionaries to teach them, and they don't know anyone there. So without any contact they found an LDS church, but it so happens they went to one pretty far from their home, because they actually live quite near to us. Needless to say, we will be visiting them later today. It's amazing to see the spirit working in people. We are looking for those who are prepared. Or in other words, we are looking for the people who are looking for us. And sometimes they find us first :) I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the church Christ established 2000 years ago, this is His church. I know He lives and guides us through the living apostles and prophets. The message will roll forth, a stone cut without hands, because it is true. Thanks for reading, have a great Easter!

Love,

Elder Fish

2017-4-10 General Conference

April 10, 2017 – General Conference

Kumusta po!

So this last Saturday and Sunday we got to watch General Conference, which is held in Salt Lake so if it was live here (april 1 was the real date) it would be in the middle of the night. Hence we get to meet to watch it a week later! So if you already forgot about General Conference or don't even know what it is, here is your friendly reminder!

First off, it was awesome. It went by so much faster than when I was a kid. I think the stories were all that used to keep me interested, everything else didn't stick as much. The more gospel background we have, the more we can get out of listening to apostles and prophets. 10 hours well spent! 

Sunday morning session we had an investigator, someone who wanted to experience church and see if this is the true church, come. Her story is remarkably similar to Joseph Smith's in some aspects, she started going to different churches at age 13-14 and in the past 4 years has investigated many churches. Her parents are Catholic, and have given her all freedom to search, they just kind of see it as part of her nature to search for churches and they are happy with the religion they grew up in. So far she hasn't found the one. She has some preferences but hasn't quite found the church which matches what she believes Christ's church should have. So we were happy to share Joseph Smith's story with her, how he too was confused and sought for answers. Then, having her with us at general conference was a great opportunity. It really changed my whole mindset while listening, I tried to imagine if I sat down in a Stake Center filled with hundreds of strangers, watched some more strangers speak for 2 hours, then went home. What would seem weird or strange while I watched? Is that guy really a prophet? Wow, the choir really rocks! These old men cry pretty often. But man, something really touched me, maybe that's what's making them cry...

I think one of the best blessings we can enjoy is getting living revelation, and every 6 months having talks to study to improve our life and avoid the hazards of life. Something that stuck out to me this conference was how the talks all relate, how there are similar points made, similar doctrines highlighted. For example, John 3:16-17 was quoted 3 times, which stresses it's importance to me. The Plan of Salvation seemed to be the theme on Saturday, and understanding the light of Christ. Seeing the potential in others, and helping them seeing it in themselves. There are many more principles that were repeatedly taught, and even though it's great to have a favorite talk, I feel it's important to have some awareness of what was repeatedly mentioned. There are numerous speakers, and they don't collaborate on who will say what, it's just based on their personal revelation. So when 3 apostles talk about the Holy Ghost in one session, maybe it means we should pay extra attention there! 

I'm so thankful for the church, and that it is truly the Church of Jesus Christ as He established it. I'm grateful to be here to help those who are earnestly seeking for Christ's church. I will always be grateful for the answers it has given me. I love you all, thanks for reading! Pictures next week, promise :)

Elder Fish

2017-4-2 Mt. Everest

2017-4-2 Mt. Everest

Kumusta po!

This week we climbed Mt. Everest! No guides nor oxygen, we didn't even have ice picks! 

 After church last last week we had lunch at a member's brand new home as part of their blessing of them home/birthday party. Then we taught all day and on the way home, they saw us passing by and called us back in, so we had dinner there too. Awesome to spend some time with the members!

 I got to go on exchanges one day with another Elder, we had a great time, even though the heavens opened up in a downpour where one moment it was sweltering heat and blue skies. I saw an American visiting here and talked to him for a moment, it was a little strange to talk about the church in english, but it was okay! In the Philippines, you just walk up and ask a question like "where are you headed?" and it's completely normal, you don't really need to ask their name until you have figured out how many siblings and kids they have, plus where their from  and what their job is. it's a very friendly culture/language, you just act like your best friends with someone and they will respond the same way normally.

 We roasted some barbeque where we do our laundry as part of celebration...

We got to have dinner with our Mission President and his wife! We ate some of the best lasagna I've ever tasted. While the Americans were savoring this Italian dish, my companion was saying this food wasn't right for his mouth, and he was wondering where the rice was...

For my companion's one year mark! This means he has 1 year left, it's downhill from here!

That's all for now folks, I gotta run! Thanks for reading, I love you all! Can't wait to watch general conference and listen to some living prophets next weekend!

Elder Fish

2017-3-26 Master Chef!

2017-3-26 Master Chef!

magandang gabi po!

It's been forever since I wrote, or at least it feels like it! A lot has happened, so here is some summary:

I'm still in my 3rd area, which has it's own unique things. in my last area there weren't as many members, so i was the master chef in our apartment since we didn't get many meals provided. Which means we had hotdogs on rice and anything else that can be fried under 10 minutes. we always commuted since the area was massive, and I got a little rice belly from that. That's the area with all the beautiful rice fields. now I'm closer to the city again, but the area is pretty unique. There are a lot of people, but the whole area is hilly, and it's like a nature hike going everywhere. the area used to have no electricity or water, but the people still developing houses here. They have limited electricity, from 6pmonwards by generator only, but they get by! I’ve been here for almost 2 months, and I watched a whole house get thrown together in less then a month, construction goes fast here! So, lot's of walking, which means no more rice belly, but not for lack of trying! we get fed a lot more here and I’m getting to try some legitimate Filipino foods! 

My new companion is elder Pelimiano, and he's awesome. He's super nice, and I'm learning a lot from him. Since missionaries get transferred to different areas and different companions, it almost gets tough to settle down. But we have to make an effort to get close to the people, even though our time here is relatively short. I hope I get to stay here for a long time! It's no fun to drag a suitcase full of dictionaries and scriptures through cities.

Things are going great still. we talk to new people everyday, the people here are so kind. Even if they have no intent to listen to our message, people will let us in. it's just part of the culture. There's so many different churches here though, so there's a lot of confusion. It's a little disheartening sometimes to realize how different views are about god. I reckon if you collected every snippet, every verse in the bible about the condition of God, then organized it and studied them and how they relate, it would be pretty eye opening. Thing is, whole churches have been founded on a just a single verse in the bible, which is a little absurd in my opinion. It really takes patience to get the bigger picture, but it's worth it. 

i love my job. Even though I won't change the whole world by teaching what Jesus Christ taught these 2 years, it's gratifying to help misunderstanding and confusion become clearer, and to help others understand God's plan for us. Not to mention all the friends I'm making along the way! Sorry for no pictures, hopefully next time I'll dump a whole load of them. Thanks for reading, love you all!

Elder Fish

2017-3-19 Pics President Bertin Took