From Bagyo to Baptism

Hello my lovely friends!

What a wild week! I swear every week gets more adventurous than the last!!

 

Well, we started the week out strong with a bagyo or typhoon…also known as a hurricane! That's right, I survived my first hurricane!! Don't you fret though; it was pretty mild for where we were. 

 

Shortly after P-Day hours ended, it started raining really hard. We ended up working from home because of the rain. The next day, it was still raining so we worked from home again. That night, we got a notification to go home and make sure our 72-hour kits were good because the typhoon was coming. We were then told that we had to stay in all the next day too! By this point, I am already a little stir crazy. I wanted to go out and find people to teach, but the direction was to stay in. We made cookies and studied and spent time together! 

 

All in all, it was an adventure. I was glad that I got to experience it from the safety of our apartment, and that it was relatively minor in our area. We mostly just experienced wind and rain. It was not too crazy, and we did not have any flooding, which is a blessing. We also had very nice members providing food for us while we were stuck inside, so that was a win too!! 

 

Compared to having a typhoon hit us, the rest of the week was chill. We meet as a district every week, and this week we met in Ilagan! Ilagan is a much bigger city than Tumauini (where I am). And…drum roll please…they have McDonald’s!! I know that doesn’t sound that exciting, but it was so fun! We went down to meet as a district and we got McDonald’s for lunch…and they had apple pie!! Now, for those of you who do not know, I love McDonald’s apple pie. The one in the Philippines is not quite like the one in America, but it was still pretty good. If you have not had a McDonald’s apple pie before, your homework is to buy one and then email me about the experience;) I promise it will change your life!!

 

Anyways, meeting in Ilagan was fun. I got to ride a Jeepney for the first time!! A Jeepney is an old WWII army vehicle that they turned into a little bus. It was so fun!! 

 

Another fun thing that happened this week was the STL’s came for exchanges with the other sisters that we live with. It was like having an extended sleepover! They are so nice and it was fun to get to know them a little better. It made me excited to do exchanges with them in a couple weeks!

 

Ok…now for the crazy news of the week…I am going to Manila next week!! On Friday, the office elders called us and told Sister Lazan and I that I have to go to Manila to do fingerprinting for my visa! It’s crazy! I will be gone from my area for 3 days! But I am so excited! We might get to go to the temple! And I will get to see some of my MTC district again! It will be so fun! The only downside is that once again, there are no plane flights from Cauayan to Manila, so we will have to take a 10-hour bus ride to get there. The good news is that we will fly back on our return trip, so I guess one 10-hour bus ride is better than two! It will be so fun, so stay tuned to hear about that adventure next week!!

 

For real now, the news you have all been waiting to hear about…WE HAD A BAPTISM!! AHHH!! My first Baptism! It was sooo cool. 

 

Fun fact about the Philippines, you may have heard of Mormon standard time before, but the Philippines has Philippines standard time…basically if the start time is 2:00…add 15 to 30 minutes. 

 

Our Baptism was no exception! Two o’clock came around and Nanay Leonida (the person being baptized), the baptizer, and Sister Lazan and I were the only ones there! Not even the bishop was there yet! It was ok though, we just watched Bible videos while we waited. Finally, people started to show up, but we were still waiting on the bishop. The bishop showed up at 2:30 and we were ready to start!

 

The Baptism was so sweet. Nanay Leonida was a little nervous and she ended up having to try twice to be baptized because she did not get fully immersed the first time, but it was such a special experience, and I was so happy to be a part of it! I felt the spirit so strong. It was amazing to see her commitment. 

 

She was then confirmed on Sunday. I am so excited for her! She comes to church consistently and she listens every time we come to her house to teach, even if we are not teaching her (we also teach other people who are related to her at her house). I felt the spirit as she received the Holy Ghost. I felt so much peace. This is why I am here! I felt so blessed to experience helping her come closer to the Savior. She is just the sweetest, and I love her! 

 

Next week we have two baptisms scheduled but pray that Tatay Pascual actually keeps the Word of Wisdom so that he can be baptized!!

 

This week I read one of my favorite scripture stories. It is in Mosiah 24. This story is about a people that are doing everything right. They love the Lord and they remember Him always, but they still fall into a hard time. 

 

I love in verse 12-14 it says:

 

12 And Alma and his people…did pour out their hearts to him; and he did know the thoughts of their hearts. 

13 And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage.

14 And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.

 

I love this. It is a reminder that even when it is hard, we can turn to God. He is listening. He doesn’t always take away the trial, but He can strengthen us so that we can carry the burdens that come with life. I have seen this with my mission. Last week was really hard. I felt homesick. I was struggling with the language and the culture, and I felt alone. This week, however, was very different. I felt a lot of peace. The homesickness I had been struggling with was almost gone. The language and culture were still hard, but I felt happy and grateful to learn more. I felt my burdens lift as I turned to God. I know that as we rely on Him, He will carry us and make us strong.

 

The Philippines is an absolutely wild place, but I love it. I am loving the adventures that I have already had, and I am so excited to have more! Anyone who is getting ready to serve a mission, this is for you. A mission is hard, but it is also so wonderful. There are times when you might want to hide back in your bed. Maybe you offend your companion because you are from a different culture or say the wrong thing when you are teaching a lesson. BUT…it is so good. Every time things go wrong; I feel like I learn so much more. I come closer to my Savior. I have the wonderful opportunity to give the next 18 months to God and I am so grateful for it. So, if you serve a mission and it feels hard, it’s ok. God knows that you can do it. He would never ask you to do something you cannot handle.

 

I love you all! Thank you for your emails and your support! I really appreciate it! I feel your prayers and your love as I am here!

 

The church is true, God loves you!

I love you all!

Love, 

Sister Miller

 

Pictures:

Teaching a super cute family!

A member made us lunch.

Sleepover in our kabahay's room.

Baptism pictures!