Email from February 21: Maraming Salamat!

Thanks for the birthday song video!! Haha! Holy smokes Jennifer and Jessica, you both look so old! I'm really shocked! Jennifer looks strikingly like Lisa all of the sudden! And Jessica, you look so tall and mature! Looks like you haven't lost any little-girl energy though, so that's good! Well, I hope you had a great week. I sure did. I'm here in the Lingayan zone doing great! Lisa, Happy Birthday on Saturday! We have a big cockroach who is hiding somewhere in our room. I tried to hit him with a broom but then he disappeared. He tried to cuddle up with me in bed the other night! errggg... ;)

This week we've been trying to seek out the inactive members and invite them back, and help new investigators through them. I've noticed a lot this week how important it is to point people to Christ. You can never go wrong in pointing them to the Savior. It always is sure to bring in the spirit into any lesson. One of my favorite investigators, Rowena, (19) is getting married on March 5 to the son of our ward mission leader. She's a very sweet girl. We committed her to be baptized on March 19, and she's really excited and her faith has grown a lot recently. Yay! It's amazing to be a missionary and to have so many people open up to you every day and share their. you get to observe a lot of people in a lot of different situations, and they look to you with trust for advice. My testimony has really been strengthened that Heavenly Father gives you what you need to say right in the moment you need it, to help someone. The gift of the Holy Ghost is the most wonderful and precious gift anyone can enjoy in this life. I wish all people could understand that.

There's a path we have to walk at night a lot, and they say there are snakes on either side, so we have to keep in the middle, or we'll get bit. kinda scary. But | was thinking how that's kind of like life. We've got to keep on the "straight and narrow" path and not make any deviations from keeping the commandments, or we might end up getting bit.

Serving a mission is the best thing ever! It's like an incubator for spiritual growth. You learn so much. And the more you learn, the more you realize you still need to learn. There's something about serving a mission that really changes your perspectives about life and realigns your priorities. It's really good. I've also been thinking about the difference between "happiness" and "fun." I've observed a lot of people who try to find happiness by having fun. While it's true that happiness can encompass fun, fun alone will not assure us true happiness. There's a difference. Happiness is lasting, whereas fun is a fleeting thing that leaves as soon as the music, lights, glamor, and noise all fade away. It's really sad because I think it's easy to deceive ourselves and become blinded to the fact that we are not truly happy, as long as we are absorbed in our little world of chasing after one "fun moment| to another. Everyone wants to be happy. Everyone wants to feel loved. But it's crucial to step back and realize that concerts, food, parties, drugs, material things, etc. can never produce true happiness. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ can. And that's what we as missionaries are on an errand to help people discover for themselves.

I love you!! Thanks for all the wonderful emails!!

Love always, especially you :)
Rebecca