Thursday, July 31, 2014

Week 34 Arizona

So Crazy week of awesomeness!!!!!!!!! 

I don't know if you remember but about a month ago I was teaching this lady over Facebook and then you wrote her a note and all that stuff... So this week she sent me this message, "Sister Raynor - well I wanted to make sure you heard it first. I've decided to be baptized. I came to a realization on Sunday that there was no way I was going through eternity without Eric by my side. I want to spend eternity with him - thus gotta get baptized first. No details are worked out yet but I will let you know when a date has been set. Love you and appreciate all your support!" I was so happy that she has finally made the decision to get baptized... it was awesome.

Then on Wednesday...something horrible happened. We have been teaching this girl Brenda for 3 months. Like she was ready to get baptized since I got here and Friday was supposed to be her baptism! But then on Wednesday, we had interviews with President Toone and there, he really stressed making sure that people are ready to be baptized. So when we went over to Brenda's that night we wanted to be sure that she was ready...and she wasn't.  
After a lot of talking, she told us her deep dark secret: that 18 months ago (when she was 16 1/2) she signed a contract to work for a company that is owned by Satan... and she has been trying but she can't get out of the contract. My heart was broken. Then on Friday during our planning meeting, she called us and said "last night I was really upset so I drank like 2 gulps of beer and I said to myself 'what am I doing this is stupid' so I prayed really hard to know what to do and then I had a thought put into my head by God...'Brenda, you were 16 when you signed that contract, you weren't an adult, they cant hold you to the contract' and then I called the company and told them that and they just said, 'well do you want to keep working for us or no?' and I said 'no' and they let me go." 
We were practically screaming, we were so happy for her. We thought she wasn't going to be able to get baptized for at least 6 more months, but now it's just 2 weeks away.

Another miracle, on Wednesday, after we talked to Brenda, we were really down but then someone just called us and said "hey are you the missionaries?, awesome, I want to get baptized" WHAT?!?! That doesn't happen! 
It turns out this guy (who we thought was a member) has been going to church for 2 years with his girlfriend, he's read the entire Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants and he is starting on the Pearl of Great Price...that was awesome.

Miracles are real!!

Much love,
Hermana Raynor

Week 30 Arizona

Hey Mama, 

Happy July 4th!

Sounds like for the most part you survived the 4th, and I might go so far as to say you even had fun :)

Quick warning, it's been a pretty uneventful week. Down here, it is getting so hot like 109, but luckily on Thursday, there was this gigantic dust storm so it was a bit cooler than usual.

The 4th was interesting for us, we had to be in our apartment by 5 which was pretty lame but at the same time we did get to just relax for a bit which was actually quite nice. 

On Wednesday, the entire mission (except Yuma) got to go to transfer meeting (Yuma skyped in)!! It was so fun to be able to see everyone, I loved it. 

We also got to go to the Visitor's Center last night and that was really fun. The spirit you feel there is just so strong. It was a cool experience.


Love you,
Hermana Raynor

Philippines Week 39


Sorry, I don't have much time this week. just pictures. I love you all so much. We went to the Mount Samat monument again. Makes me think of grandpa Tom every time. I met the new mission president from Lehi, Ut. He is an incredible man. I love you all.

I just keep thinking that 18 months is not long enough to help these people. That is all I want to do. Of course, I miss my family but there is nothing like this constant spirit that I feel everyday. It is indescribable. 









Philippines Week 38

The storm really it hard here in Abucay. Many homes were destroyed and much confusion occurred. Sister Pilkington and I were actually on our way to Balanga when we got the text that our mission president  interviews were cancelled. Right after we read the text, a tree in front of us on the road fell in front of our jeepney and we ended up spinning to the side and hydroplaning across the highway. Luckily, everyone was okay but we all knew that we were really lucky.
I’ve been studying a lot  about miracles this week. It seemed appropriate after the storm.
It seems like every time a miracle occurs, it is founded upon the faith of the person receiving the miracle. They are usually asked if they believe that through Christ they can be healed. In the Bible Dictionary, it says that prayer, felt need, and faith are necessary.
“Miracles should not be regarded as deviations from the ordinary nature, so much as manifestations of divine and spiritual power.”
I like to think that miracles are occurring around me everyday-whether big or small and it is just up to me to recognize them.
Miracles are a response to faith. SO if I am faithful and do what I should be doing I know that I will see miracles.

Miracles have always been a part of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  And as we teach this gospel, I know that I have and will continue to see miracles.  Whether it be a change of heart or a priesthood blessing, MIRACLES ARE ALL AROUND US.

I love you all. 
Happy Birthday Nonie.

 Love you. Sister Raynor shine








Philippines Week 35

Well, this week was Fourth of July! I've never been so happy to have an American companion. To celebrate we wore red, white and blue and we managed to find a watermelon.  It definitely made me think of some good times with the Allen Family in Modesto. Below, is a really bad picture that a member took. He kept walking forward to show us the picture before it would flash and so there wasn't any that were good but yep.




As we are struggling to find ways to help the people in Abucay and the Abucay Ward, I have noticed a change within myself. I have changed from a “Me” missionary to a “we” missionary.  I find myself spending my time thinking about the people here more than about myself and my home.   

SO this week I have been studying a lot about the power and authority that is needed in  teaching.  I’ve been studying about how we need to fully consecrate our lives in order to have power and authority.  I read a verse about the sons of Mosiah in Alma 17:3
“But this is not all; they had given themselves to much prayer, and fasting; therefore they had the Spirit of prophecy and the spirit of revelation, and when they taught, they taught with power and authority of God”

We need to be willing to give up ourselves to the Lord. We put all other thoughts out of our minds and hearts and focus solely on His will. 

This week, I have realized that we need authority to preach His gospel.  We need moral authority. We need to live and apply the things that we preach and teach.
This moral authority will lead to Spiritual power which will:
·         Help us with this work
·         Guide as to what we should say/ what people need to hear
·         Become instruments in the Lord’s hands
I know that as we live to the standards that we teach, God will see our efforts and bless us accordingly. He wants to bless us.  He wants to guide us and I know that as he sees our diligence, he will strengthen us.

I love you all. Nagpapasalamat ako para sa mga pagdarasal ninyo.  Cubo.
Sister Raynor

Below are pictures of a really scary cemetery.  There are people who actually live there - this is where we were proselyting this past week!




Monday, July 28, 2014

Week 32 Arizona - Great Spiritual Experience

Hey Mama,


Looking back, this was one of the hardest weeks in my mission. I feel like I say that a lot, but don't worry the story has a good ending this time. This week just started horribly, but at the end of the first night I received a bit of revelation that made the difference for me. These past two weeks, Hermana Arellano and I have been lacking in unity and it had just been getting worse. On Monday, nothing happened but for some reason there was this tension by the end of the night that came from nowhere. It was just awful and I didn't know what I should do so I did what I had to do. I got on my knees and begged for help, for some guidance, for direction and then... Get ready... your mind is about to be blown (mine was) the answer came in the most unexpected and what I thought was a seemingly unrelated idea. 

Christ's hardest day was His most successful.

 I'll just let that sink in for a second. On the hardest day of His life, the hardest day of His mission, He found the greatest success. He was able to pay the price for the sins of all of mankind. It was the hardest most awful lonely event in the history of the universe, and at the same time it was the greatest win for all mankind. At first i didn't know how this message applied to my situation, but then it came.  When Christ was being arrested, he looked beyond Himself and His situation and he healed a mans ear. When he was nailed on the cross and suffering in physical agony, He looked beyond and thought of his mother's welfare.  Christ was able to look beyond Himself during the most awful day His life and he made it His most successful. 

The beginning of this week was just awful, and I could have let it get me down and let it distract me so that I worked less, but then that thought came to me. So instead of letting the adversary get me I turned it around and instead of working hard, I worked my hardest and the Lord blessed us with success. This week our teaching opportunities essentially doubled instead of 16 or 17 lessons, we had 33. I learned that when we face challenges with faith, miracles come.

This week, after that revelation came, my personal study was incredible, a little selfish, but incredible nonetheless. I just want to end with some things I learned this week. All Truth comes from God. All these trials that we go through are there to teach us truths, and they are specific to us and what we need to to learn (or the truth we need to learn) at that time. Testimonies are truths we already know. When we share our TESTimony, we share the truths that we have learned from our trials or tests. 

I guess that the take home message from this week is this: Challenges + Faith = Miracles. 

Now, I have a testimony of that.


Sister Raynor

Week 33 Arizona

So, the funniest thing happened on Saturday. But before that...the back story.
We have been working with this guy named Jorge for the past 2 months.
Jorge is 35 and a recovering alcoholic. He came to Tempe from ca
because in ca he was surrounded by friends that drank as much as he
did and he couldn't fix it there. So he came here to stay with his
mom. But only thing is that he left his girlfriend behind. From what
it sounds like, she wasn't the nicest person, like she used him a lot,
like " if you don't buy me this, you don't love me." Anyways she has
been the thing that has been holding him back, but 2 weeks ago, I
guess she called him and told him that she has a new boyfriend and
that he's the man and that Jorge sucks. Man did that set him off! His
mom called us the next day and told us not to come over. But she said
he started drinking and saying "I'm gonna go and kill them, and then
I'm gonna punch them!" We thought that was pretty funny. Jorge is like
5'2" and probably couldn't hurt a fly. But it gets better, next she
told us that the lady friend is 65! Ewww! Nastiness!

The funny stuff. So on Saturday we stopped by to see Jorge, he had
seemed to cool down enough for us to feel safe going over. So when we
went by, he wasn't there but his mom was. She told us that she is
teaching Jorge a lesson about drinking. She makes all the food at
their house, so whenever he drinks, the next meal she makes him is
laced with a powdered laxative!  He has had diarrhea for a week!  She
was telling us that on Wednesday, they were walking to subway and he
started freaking out and just ran the rest of the way to subway
yelling "it's leaking!" He pooped his pants...twice. Hermana Rodriguez
is my hero.


On Sunday I got to speak in church which was the scariest 15 minutes of my life, and I'm pretty sure I butchered the Spanish Language, i think they understood the message.

The Boat

Good morning brothers and sisters. For those of you who don't know me,
I'm Sister Raynor. I am from Modesto, CA and today actually marks my
eighth month in the mission. Well, before I begin, I would just like
to give thanks to Google Translate for making this Spanish translation
possible!

The subject of my talk today comes from one of my favorite stories
from the New Testament. It is the part in Matthew chapter 14 where the
Apostles are in a boat and they see Christ walking on the water.

28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come
unto thee on the water.

29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he
walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning
to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.

31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him.


I love this story because at times I feel like Peter. As a member of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I like peter desire
to come unto Christ.  I can say I have not been asked to walk on
water, yet I have done many things to come to Christ. Things that
compelled me, like peter, to leave my nice dry boat to follow him.

For me, this stepping out of the boat just happened quite recently.
So, be excited because it's story time! When I got my mission
call-almost a year ago- it said something like "Sister  Raynor, you
are called to labor in the Arizona Tempe mission. You are to teach the
Gospel in the English Language." For me this wasn't stepping out of
the boat, I remember thinking, " I'm a ward missionary, this whole
mission thing is gonna be easy." It turns out in the teaching aspect,
I was right. Those first five months were easy. But then it's the
night of transfer calls, and I got a call from our mission president,
and our conversation went something like this: "Sister Raynor, at this
time, the Lord needs you to be a Spanish Missionary, will you accept
this new assignment?... President Toone, I don't really speak
Spanish... Sister Raynor, does the Lord call the qualified or does he
qualify the called?...President Toone, I accept." After five months of
just lounging in the boat, it was time to step out.

Since then I had been able to get by. The two companions I have had
since being reassigned were both fluent so I could get by with the
little Spanish I knew. But then something awful happened...we went on
exchanges! An exchange is something that missionaries use to do one on
one training with other missionaries. When we went on our exchange, I
was to remain in our area with another sister who did not speak any
Spanish. As we went to our first lesson, I was asked a question, and I
can clearly remember struggling to find the words to answer it. I was
at the point of giving up, when i like peter cried out in my mind
"Lord, Save me" and immediately the words came to me.

I had stepped out of the boat and as I began to sink, but when I asked
for help, immediately it was given. The path to discipleship can be
scary at times and we may be asked to do hard things, but I know that
if we are following Christ, He will help us along the way. I leave
these things with you in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.





El Barco

Buenos Dias  hermanos y hermanas. Para aquellos de ustedes que no me
conocen, soy Hermana  Raynor. Soy de Modesto, California, y hoy cumplo
ocho meses en la misión. Pues, antes de comenzar, me gustaría dar las
gracias al Google Translate por hacer esta traducción posible al
español.

El tema de mi discurso de hoy proviene de una de mis historias
favoritas del Nuevo Testamento. Es en Mateo capítulo catorce, donde
los Apóstoles están en un barco y que ven caminando a Cristo en el
agua.

28 Entonces le respondió Pedro y dijo: Señor, si eres tú, manda que yo
vaya a ti sobre las aguas.

29 Y él dijo: Ven. Y descendió Pedro de la barca y anduvo sobre las
aguas para ir a Jesús.

30 Mas al ver el viento fuerte, tuvo miedo y, comenzando a hundirse,
dio voces, diciendo: ¡Señor, sálvame!

31 Y al momento Jesús, extendiendo la mano, le sujetó


Me encanta esta historia porque a veces me siento como Pedro. Como
miembro de la Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días,
yo como Pedro deseo de venir a Cristo. Yo no puedo decir que se me ha
pedido que caminar sobre el agua, todavía, pero he hecho muchas cosas
para venir a Cristo. Cosas que me obligaron, como Pedro, dejar mi
bonito y cómodo barco seco y que lo siguiera.

Para mí, este paso de salir de la Barca acaba de suceder hace poco
tiempo. llegué a mi misión llamada casi un año atrás- mi llamamiento
misional así decía "hermana Raynor, estáis llamados a trabajar en la
misión de Arizona en Tempe. Vas a enseñar el Evangelio en el idioma
Inglés." Para mí esto no es caminar sobre las aguas, recuerdo haber
pensado, "soy una misionera de barrio, todo la misión va a ser fácil
en cuanto a la enseñanza, no me equivoqué esos primeros cinco meses
fueron fáciles. Pero entonces en la noche de las llamadas de cambios,
y me llamo nuestro presidente de misión, y nuestra conversación fue
algo asi "Hermana Raynor, en este momento, el Señor necesita que seas
una misionera español, va a aceptar esta nueva asignación ? ...
Presidente Toone, yo realmente no hablo español ... Hermana Raynor,
el Señor llama a los calificados o él califica el llamamiento?
...Presidente Toone, yo acepto." Después de cinco meses de simplemente
descansar en el barco, ya era hora de salir.

Desde entonces yo había sido capaz de salir adelante. Las dos
compañeras que he tenido desde que fui reasignada hablan fluidamente,
así que podría usar el poco español que yo sabía. Pero entonces
sucedió algo terrible ... Tuvimos intercambios! Los intercambios son
para recibir entrenamiento. Cuando fuimos a nuestro intercambio, debía
permanecer en el area con otra hermana, que no hablaba nada de
español. Cuando fuimos a nuestra primera lección, un investigadora
hizo una pregunta.  y puedo recordar claramente como luchaba  para
encontrar las palabras para responderle. Yo estaba a punto de darme
por vencida, entonces como Pedro grité en mi mente: "Señor, sálvame" y
de inmediato las palabras vinieron a mí.

Yo había salido de la embarcación y me hundí , pero cuando le pedí
ayuda, El de inmediato me ayudo. se qué el camino al discipulado puede
dar miedo a veces y se que se nos va a pedir hacer cosas difíciles,
pero sé que si estamos siguiendo a Cristo, Él nos ayudará en el
camino. Dejo estas cosas con ustedes en el nombre de Jesucristo, Amén.





Love you, 
Hermana Raynor

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Week 32 Arizona

This week was just a crazy week. We had 33 total teaching opportunities! "Monsoon" season has started and so we have had 3 dust storms, and last night, we had a flash flood warning (we were fine).  But, that wasn't even the craziest part. 
          We have this lady we've been teaching, named Maria, and she just did a full on 180 degree turn on us... It was nuts. We started teaching her about two weeks ago and to be 100% honest, I didn't think she was going to progress. She was a referral from someone else we had been teaching. The friend said that she liked what we were teaching but that she doesn't really "want to change," but also told us that she had a friend who has an alcohol problem that could probably use some help. So that's how we met Maria.
            We would go by her house and she would come out and talk to us, but she would talk really quietly, she never made any eye contact, she never smiled, and she never really seemed happy to see us. We were at the point where if she didn't start progressing soon, we were going to have to stop visiting her so that we could focus on those that were progressing. So, in a last ditch effort, we took a super bomb member with us and as per usual, Hermano Gomez delivered. He just gave her a spiritual spanking. She had said that she was waiting for God to help her and when Hermano Gomez heard that... It was just a smack down. He just told her right there that she needs to stop waiting for God to give her a sign and to start paying attention to what He has already given her. He told her that God has already sent her a sign, he sent the missionaries to her door and that even was her sign and that the choice that she makes-to accept or decline the missionaries invitation - is her choice to either accept God's help or to not. BOOM!!! Super powerful.

The next day we went back and not only had she read the Book of Mormon, she read 8 chapters! The day after that, she was at chapter 15. The day after that, she came to church and that night we went to the visitors center. There, we watched the Joseph Smith Movie and she was in tears. While we were sitting in the gardens there, we invited her to be baptized and she and her whole family accepted (80% solid) but  the cool part was that when I was extending the date, I said "on August 2nd..." And before I could finish, Maria said "oh, that's my birthday" and we were stoked. That day came from the heavens. We didn't know Maria was going to progress so fast so that Sunday morning, we had prayed about a day to give her and that was the one that came to us. When we told her all of that... It was a 100% yes. It was so awesome


Love you all,

Sister Raynor

Philippines Week 37

PAMILYA KO!! Kumusta na kayo?? Namimiss ko kayong lahat.  Sana sobrang masaya at maligtas kayo sa inyong gawain.  Sobrang masaya ang work ko dito sa Abucay, Bataan, Pilipinas.  

This week has gone by so fast but I am finding that as I am here on my mission longer, they just keep going by faster and faster.  Time seems to fly when you lose yourself in this work. 
This week in my studying, I have been focusing on what I like to call the “magic”—The Book of Mormon.  There are so many people that are unable to find the truth because they “know not where to find it”. But that is where we come in as missionaries. We show and give them evidence that Jesus is the Christ who has restored His church here on earth.  We teach from the Book of Mormon and then testify of the truths of the doctrine found in it. 
I’m coming to find that most of the people here that have become less-active, stopped reading the Book of Mormon when their faith started to waver. If we but hold to the “rod” [the word of God], we will literally be guided to the source of all truth and eventually back to our Father in Heaven.
I came upon a verse in my reading in Alma 13:20 that says:
Behold, the scriptures are before you; if ye wrest them it shall be to your own destruction.
This is what I have decided to use more in my work. The Book of Mormon is the “keystone” of our religion.  As we focus more on using the words of God found in the Book of Mormon as we testify and teach the doctrine of Christ, we will be able to soften the hearts of these people by using the words of the Father. 
I know that anyone who truly reads the Book of Mormon, cannot help but to develop a testimony. The words there are truly the words of God.  The Book of Mormon should not just be used in our teaching but we need to realize that everything we teach is from the Book of Mormon and revelations that God has revealed to the prophets.


SO crazy things that happened this week:
  • I saw a drunk man stuff a lighted cigarette in a 2 year old's mouth. The little kid was crying and coughing.  It was horrible.
  • I saw a different two year old playing with a machete. We told his mom who was next to him and she just said "bahala siya" like whatever he wants.
  • We walked out to an investigator through a rice field. We were covered in poop and dirt. Then I went and washed it off next to a man showering himself.
  • Gays are very common here. They usually have long hair and are called Bakla. We were in a house with a Less Active and her bakla nephew walks in past her to the kitchen and so she looks at us and just says "Bakla!" in a disgusted voice. We were pretty much laughing that whole lesson.
  • Walked through knee high water with no boots. SO gross. There were fish and garbage and just junk. 

Welp, I love you all so much. I hope everyone is doing good.  Mahal kita!

Sister Raynor


Week 31 Arizona

So this last week was an interesting one to say the least. We Had a really good week as far as teaching goes, I think We taught 18 lessons with a member present at least 7 of those lessons were on facebook, and on that note, shout out to James Loveless for giving a bomb testimony yesterday! It made a huge difference for a friend I've been working with. We have finally figured out how to really use Facebook, and to use it well. 2 weeks ago, we made it a goal to make our Facebook time more effective and by changing our Facebook time to different hours of the day we were able to find "the golden hour" for Facebook. The days that we are on Facebook during "the golden hour" are usually the days that we can get 2 lessons during our Facebook hour. Its been such a blessing to be able to reach those who i was (maybe) a little to scared to talk to about "church stuff." On Wednesday, I had an awesome conversation with a friend from home and I wish that i had done it sooner (like before the mission.)

I also had an awesome lesson with another lady from my first area...and now she's praying for a baptismal date. This lady is what you'd call a dry Mormon. She goes to church with her family and she loves it, her husband and step son are members (active-now) but for some reason she hasn't gotten baptized. Right after I left that area, the missionaries decided that it was time to stop visiting her so she could have a little time to progress on her own. The question that I had always wanted to ask her was "why haven't you been baptized yet?" and on Tuesday, she was on Facebook and I just started a conversation with her. To give you an idea of how ready she is, I asked her how she's doing and this was her response:
          "Hi Sister Raynor! I'm doing very well. Actually just reading the June Ensign right now. How are you? Hope your mission work is going great & you are feeling loved."  
What nonmember reads the Ensign??? Anyways I asked her my question and she told me:
"Well, that's a challenging question that I'm pondering. You see, I do love the people & the beliefs & feel very refreshed in the teachings. My challenge is opposition from family. And I feel that I need to learn more & understand things to counteract that opposition. I'm praying for guidance & answers but I haven't found my testimony yet. So I just need some time." 
Her answer had me stumped for a few days, but then...revelation through showering... I knew what to study in personal study and this is what I shared with her that day:
"Sister Amadio, this morning I was studying about faith, I've been going through these phases where I just focus on a principle, but this morning I read something that made me think of you. It's from this book called True to the Faith, but this is what it says under faith:
"Faith is a principle of action and power. Whenever you work toward a worthy goal, you exercise faith. You show your hope for something that you cannot see, yet.'"  
After that we talked a bit more and now she is praying for a confirmation about August 9th to be baptized!!

What else?? So transfers calls came last night....and I'm staying!! Yay!!
That's all I have for today!! Love you,
Sister Raynor

Oh yeah, the picture is from yesterday, it was elder Jacobsen's last dinner as a missionary.





USE Facebook to do your missionary work! Every bit counts!

Hermana Ashley Raynor



easter.mormon.org
Jesus is the Son of God, our Savior and Redeemer. Because of Him, death is not the end, and life takes on new meaning. We can change, we can start over—and we can live again with God. This Easter, celebrate His life and discover all that’s possible because of Him.

Philippines Week 36

Hello family!!
This has been such a good week.  I am really learning a lot  as we try to revive the area here in Abucay.  We have been spending a lot of effort on finding new investigators.  We have been actually trying a method of finding called God’s Referrals.  The idea is that if God gave us a referral, it would be the best referral that we would ever get. SO that is what we do--  Ask our Father in Heaven for His divine help.  We pray about specific streets, places, and times.  We ask specifically.  We do this separate and then combine together to compare our promptings, we have found that usually at least one or two streets match up and so that is where we go.  We usually see quite a bit of rejection in Abucay but we have found that, with the Lord’s help, we can enter into at least three new houses every day. This is so amazing to see. The Lord loves us so much and wants to help us and guide us in this work.
We just need to give our all in order to see the results. We cannot afford to do anything halfway. Imagine if the Savior had only done half of the Atonement, where would we be?  But we are so blessed because He gave us the perfect example and the perfect way to return to him--through the gospel of Jesus Christ. This work is the work of the Lord.  I know that He is hastening His work and it is our job as His representatives to “put our shoulders to the wheel” here.  

Other things this week:
There have been floods everywhere. Of course, as Americans, we are super unfamiliar with the random weather here and managed to wear boots the one day that there was no rain. 

We got chased by an old lady who was trying to pay us so that we would pray for her because she fell on her head.  Her eyes were pointed in different direction--it was kind of scary just because it was night time.

We also proselyted this one street and after we had been rejected by the first 10 houses, Sister Savage really had to go to the bathroom and so we just knocked on the last door and asked if she could go. It was a 14 year old boy who let us into his HUGE house.  While Sister Savage was going to the bathroom, the boy went to tell his mother to come meet us while I waited in the kitchen( by the bathroom).  The next thing we hear is "Mormons(whispered), Mormons(normal voice), MORMONS (yelled). Then the mother comes in and says "Bakit?" (WHY?-normal response when we proselyte, like why are you here).  And so I just started introducing the church and then the woman said "I need to get my husband to see this!" At that point, I was like banging on the bathroom door telling Sister Savage to hurry.  She got out of the bathroom, and we left, really fast.  I was terrified.   Tagalog isn't very friendly sounding when someone is mad.

Welp, that was my week. It was a good week. Its starting to cool down and rain a little. The drought is ending.  We were actually able to wake up at 5 this morning and jog the 15 minutes to the beach. It was so beautiful.  We also got a new Mission President yesterday--I'll send a photo.

I love you all.  Cubo. Sister Raynor

Sister Savage falling asleep on ground after planning meeting.



Flash Flooding:  


President and Sister Dahle