So it has been another great week here in Naga!
We've met lots of new people, had lots of great experiences and Sister Raneses and I are getting closer and closer every day. It's hard to believe that her training is already 2/3 over! It feels like only about a week! But then again, that is how the whole mission has been.
I am constantly amazed by how fast the time seems to be slipping through my fingers! It's crazy! And it only seems like the harder we work, the faster it goes. This week was a very fast-paced one. We had a great Family Home Evening last Thursday night...
And last Wednesday we had exchanges. This week for exchanges, Sister Raneses went to the area of the STL's to work with Sister Pombo and I went with Sister Jimenez in our area. For me, being able to work with Sister Jimenez again was a huge answer to my prayers that I would get to see her again before she goes home at the end of this transfer. I will really miss her when she leaves and hope we can stay friends forever!
Sister Jimenez is awesome! While we were out working, I learned so much from her example that I hope to carry with me throughout the rest of my mission. One thing that definitely stood out to me was her example as a leader. Being around her made me want to work harder, be more diligent, smile, help more people and do my best. I know that I am nowhere near perfect, and have tons of flaws, so seeing her example of leadership helped give me a better idea of how to better lead our area and the people here, as well as gave me a better idea of how to better help the people here.
In addition, seeing Sister Jimenez again reminded me of all our good times back in Goa. Those days when Sister Jimenez was always cooking tasty food for me and Sister Stackhouse and I were constantly laughing and joking around. It was so fun to think back on those good times, but on the other hand, I am super happy to be here in Naga now, and just want to do my best to help the people here with the time I have left.
Over the following days, I have been trying my best to apply the things I learned from Sister Jimenez and have definitely seen improvement in our work. For one, as Sister Raneses has started to really learn/know our area, it has been easier to pass off the lead to her. Since I know I won't be here forever.
In addition to exchanges, we have seen a lot of unexpected miracles here in our work over the past couple of days. A few weeks ago, I remember feeling a little discouraged when out of the blue, all of our progressing investigators started moving. I wasn't sure what to do and felt hopeless as I watched the progress in our area start to slow down. But just this past week, I have noticed that as we have put in our all, the Lord really will do the rest. I saw that happen time and time again as people I had thought were gone suddenly moved back into town or started progressing again. It really helped me to realize that as we are doing our best, the Lord really will provide us with the people to teach.
I think out of everything that has happened this week--good and bad--that is what I want to testify of. I know that God is here. He loves us, will answer our prayers and will never leave us. All of us will have times in life where our situation seems hopeless or we might feel like a "lost cause", but I can promise that if we do everything we can to work hard, choose the right, and follow God, he will always provide the way for everything to work out.
Just be grateful, smile and enjoy the ride while it lasts. Because every second is a blessing and every moment a gift from God.
(This is called a skate. they send these things shooting down the railroad with about 30 people crammed on one. They are powered by what appears to be a "lawn-mower" engine. I'm not sure how safe they are...)
For me, I think we all have good moments and bad, and I think that within each moment there is good and bad. But as the saying goes: "you can either choose to see the cup as half-empty, or half-full", and it is always happier to be optimistic and choose the latter. God puts people in our life for a reason. Whether we love them to the ends of the earth, or experience only heartbreak and pain, there are no accidents. Everyone around us is in our life for a reason, and there is something we can learn from each one of them.
I have seen that in each of my companion here as I have striven to do my best and learn from each of them. Because of Sister Villa, I can now say that I value choosing the right and being exactly obedient. I have seen the blessings that come from obedience and because of her, have been striving to gain those blessings throughout my mission.
~ Sister Villa~
Because of Sister Satini, I can now say that I have a little bit more humility. I am better at letting things go, apologizing and admitting when others are right. I can more easily recognize my own flaws and accept advice on how to fix them.
~ Sister Satini ~
From Sister Black, I really learned my purpose as a missionary. I learned to be more hard working, to love and to focus on the things that really matter. Because of her, I can now keep going and working hard with a smile on my face even when I am not feeling well or things seem hard.
~ Sister Black with a cute little Filipino ~
And now, I am so blessed to have Sister Raneses as my companion. Since we are still learning from each other, I am not quite sure how to define the things I am learning from her in a single attribute yet, but so far, I think what stands out the most from her is how to be more patient and loving. How to trust that God will really be there to help us and to be willing to work hard as we wait for the blessings. From her, I have learned to be more optimistic and kind and for that, I will forever be grateful that she has been a part of my life.
~ Sister Raneses ~
So overall, I would say that things are going pretty good here. I love the people, my companion and the Philippines in general. Now I just have to keep working hard and pressing forward, because I know that as we do that, everything will work out in the end.
I hope you all have a great week,
Sincerely,
Sister Matheny
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