Monday, November 24, 2014

A NEW CHURCH IN THE JUNGLE!




I LOVE SAN MIGUEL

So maybe I will tell you about my week as well! So last week was a great week for us here in San Miguel, and I didnt know it could get better, but it did, this week was even better than the week before!!

It just was such a solid week here for us, maybe cause it was the opening sunday of our new chapel and every one was just so hyped for that! But the church attendance was 149! My first sunday was 30.. quite an increase!! Plus we worked really hard to try to beat last weeks numbers and we did!!

We were able to get so many new investigators 26!! Our teaching pool right now is just getting huge, we just have no teach the ones that are willing to progress, so the more the merrier.

My dry spell is finally over, we finally got some INV to come to church, so I was so thankful for that and it has been a blessing of our hard work to get some progressing investigators!! 

Also the investigator who told us to pick him up the last two weeks who flaked twice promised us he would come but he doesnt know where it is, so we were like okay we will come, cause you know third times a charm and all that jazz, well I dont think third times a charm works here, he didnt come with us.. So frustrating, oh well he has his agency. 

Sister Lara is still doing great, she is my favorite investigator by far and she is golden, she shares the gospel to her friends and now we are teaching her and and all her friends and they are great INV too! They promised us they would all come to church this upcoming sunday and I belive them! I am so excited for them! She will get baptized there isnt a doubt in my mind, she is just to solid, she is awesome!

Well this area is progressing like crazy, I can just remember when I first came here and it was a joke at what this area was, but now its great, just got to continually thank the Lord for all my blessings, but I know he has been here all along the way helping me! 

So I can say I love SAN MIGUEL!!

SELFIE FROM THE PHILLIPPINES



I LOVE FAMILIES!

Hey mom, sounds like Vegas was a good time with all the girls, I would like to go to vegas after the mish and play some poker and black jack ahah!! But sounds fun!! All is good on my end, its just been really hot here latly, hoping it will cool down! How are things with you guys! hope to hear from you soon! love you!

Any ways things are going good here in San Miguel and we continue to increase the numbers here in San Miguel! 

So many good things happened this week! We have been focusing a lot on finding in our mission so of course if we want to get new investigators we have to talk to people and go finding, so we talked to 60 people and got 14 new investigators this week so that was a huge plus about this week.

We found a few families this week and I love families and teaching them that we have a message that can make their family happier, but these families we found are really really poor families, like they really have like nothing, like this first house we went to it was a concrete room with nothing in it, no chairs or tables or nothing, they litterally had nothing.. so sad, but its so humbling as well. Also the other ones live by the river in this wooden box basically on stilts so when it floods it doesnt get to their "house" These experiences make me really count my blessings for what we have, some times we take simple things for granted but these people literally have nothing so its good to always be greatful that is a great lesson I have learned this week!

Also we are getting a new chapel!! All the members are so excited to get into the new chapel, we will go to church there next sunday! I am glad to get out of the ghetto meeting house, the new chapel is huge and so so nice, I will send pics next week when I go to it!

We are teaching a lot of families right now and they are so awesome, I just hope and have faith that they will progress cause we all know that what we are teaching them will just help their lives so much! 

Any ways that is basically my week, lots of new INV and lots of talking to people, this area is really getting better and its making me really happy to see the progress in this area, lets hope and pray we can get a baptism! 

Rockin the STASH!



Baby Steps

I am happy that things are going a little better and that britt is taking baby steps. And it was so touching to see the whole community coming together for such a good cause and to see tanners and his buddies always going to the hospital and hanging out with him as if it were normal, so touching. I would like one of those believe for britton braclets if that is possible. Any ways they have been in my prayers every day and night this past week, so it brings me joy that things are looking up a bit. #powerofprayer

So this week was a busy but really solid week here in San Miguel!

I saw busy because two days we had no work.. On wednesday we had to go to Cubao(in QC Mission) its about a 4 hour bus ride away, we had to go because my comp had a dentist appointment and that is the only "safe" place to go get dental stuff done. And the other day was on Saturday, usually our best day of work for us, we had a zone conference all the way in Camerin where the mission office is, we didnt get home until like 9is so again no work so that was pretty rough, but the conf was great learned a lot of new stuff from the AP and our mission pres! 

I also said it was a solid week becsause the other days that we could work we went HAM and worked really hard cause we knew we had to make up for the two days that we wouldnt be able to work. So we OYM like crazy and got 17 new investigators who are all willing to listen and some of those are families! I love finding people who are prepared for the Gospel! Like last monday night we were walking to an appnt and this guy has a huge smile on his face and just sticks out his hand for me to shake it, and the people who are normaly like that are drunk so that crossed my mind.. But we talked with him and set up a return appnt and we went back and taught him and he said that what happend that night wasnt chance and that he was suppose to meet with us and he wants to get baptized and come to church and every thing!! It was such a miracle! But we went to go pick him up for church and he must have been shy or scared but we heard him say to his kid umalis ako, umalis ako! (I am gone I am gone) then his son comes out and is like oh he is gone.. That sucks and so does satan. Next week na lang haha.

Sister Lara is doing really good she really wants t come to church and she accepted a bap date for Dec 6, but she still hasnt come to church because she has lots of phobias.. So pray for Lara, but gosh she is so good at reading her assignments and she knows this is the true church, we just need to build her faith that she can do it!

We found 4 new brgys(city) this week in our area.. Our area is so large haha but it is getting so much better than when I first got here, I can see the future potential for this area! I love san mig!! ahah

Oh I also got your letters today!! That was really happy!! Thank ytou!!! Still no card.. So I have to wait another three weeks to get it..

Cultural note.. People fight spiders here, and since we live in the middle of no where there are a lot of spiders, so at night when we get home we fight the spiders we caught.. Its legit.. I named mine Hercules, cause he cant lose. And these aren't ordinary spiders they are large..

We had a CSP tday, I love service #mosiah2:17

Well thats about my week, I love you so much and keep me posted abut brit!!

Love, elder Howell

Rockin the HAT!




Britton...Don't Give Up..Don't Quit!

Wow heard the news and now its pretty hard to focus on the emails right now.. I am just stunned at the news you guys are bringing me and I was thinking and still am thinking about what to say.. I dont know how you guys or tanner feels of the Shipps, but what I do know is that Jesus Christ know every heart ache and bad thing that we have or will go through, he suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane for all of us, like it says in Alma                  "And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people"
 He knows exactly what the Shipps are going through. Some times its hard to comprehend all of this and some times we ask why me?.. But remember we have a Father in Heaven who loves us and he knows why bad things happen. I know its hard but dont give up, dont quit, there is help and there will be a brighter day as we live the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And always always remember the Gospel of Jesus Christ will and can get us through hard times. I know there is a plan for this and Britton must have a more important thing to do, but DO not give up. I know things happen for a reason..


I guess I can report this week but its a little hard to do it my usual happy self but I will try my best. 

Well me had a cool mission Conf. on Wednesday where the whole mission met together and we got to hear from Lyn G. Robbins, of the Seventy and also one of the members of the area presidency. It was a great day where they talked about Christ Like attributes and how us as missonarys need to come home better than we started. I really enjoyed what they taught us about how we need to be more christ like.

Sorry this is tough to recall all the stuff I wanted to say especially now..

I ate goat head this week.. really gross..

I think thats about it sorry its hard to focus now i am just worried about you guys.. so ya..

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Heavy Heart! AND I ate Goat Head!

Wow heard the news and now its pretty hard to focus on the emails right now.. I am just stunned at the news you guys are bringing me and I was thinking and still am thinking about what to say.. I know how you guys or tanner feels of the Shipps, but what I do know is that Jesus Christ know every heart ache and bad thing that we have or will go through, he suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane for all of us, like it says in Alma                  "And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people"
 He knows exactly what the Shipps are going through. Some times its hard to comprehend all of this and some times we ask why me?.. But remember we have a Father in Heaven who loves us and he knows why bad things happen. I know its hard but dont give up, dont quit, there is help and there will be a brighter day as we live the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And always always remember the Gospel of Jesus Christ will and can get us through hard times. I know there is a plan for this and Britton must have a more important thing to do, but DO not give up. I know things happen for a reason..


I guess I can report this week but its a little hard to do it my usual happy self but I will try my best. 

Well me had a cool mission Conf. on Wednesday where the whole mission met together and we got to hear from Lyn G. Robbins, of the Seventy and also one of the members of the area presidency. It was a great day where they talked about Christ Like attributes and how us as missonarys need to come home better than we started. I really enjoyed what they taught us about how we need to be more christ like.

Sorry this is tough to recall all the stuff I wanted to say especially now..

I ate goat head this week.. really gross..

I think thats about it sorry its hard to focus now i am just worried about you guys.. so ya..