Week 17 - I almost died

Hello po lahat

It is Typhoon season here and I thought I would leave you devoted fellow friends and family with an entertaining story of the week. So many people ask "Elder Terry are you just writing about the good things and work that is being done on the field for you" and the answer is very much so YESSSSSS! I see some of the weirdest things every day, and am apart of difficult experiences every single day, but it's starting to become normal to me so I don't write about it because it doesn't seem strange anymore and no one gets upset about it so neither do I. Dogs attack you, streets turn into rivers, you sleep in your own sweat because you don't have electricity, RICE EVERYDAY, ETC.

But this week was as little too much for me to not write about... I love sleep so much and I was completely exhausted and it was only half way through the day. Elder Barredo and I and wanted to invite all our investigators, literally every single one said they would be busy and wouldn't go for some random excuse lol" ( love agency ) so we went up "the hill of death to Tatay Radam's house and then this mini typhoon came out of no where. The hill turned into a waterfall coming towards us and we were literally holding our umbrellas completely sideways trying to block the rain but that didn't accomplish much. The rain and wind was so strong A TREE FELL right in front of us and we didn't even see it until it landing in front of us and was an inch from hitting live electric wires. It was a humbling experience and now I literally live the motto you a'int living if your not almost dying. This is just one a the few different experiences I face everyday. Of course I have bad days and rough times and disagreement, but this is all making learn to face to the Lord and just trust that everything will work out. I'm honestly just happy out here and I enjoy the work so much. It's only 4 months in and I am forgetting English words and days fly by like crazy because I get so focused on the work.

Inside the Mabini cave last Pday

 Sick tree I found

 After math of the rain this week literally every single day

 The river is twice as full now and way muddy

I hope I continue to almost die because they make great stories. haha. Please pray for me to not die here...thanks Love and Miss you all

Love, Elder Terry

Week 16 - First Baptism

KUMUSTA PO LAHAT

Fantastic week here having my first baptism and conformation this week.

The persons name that I baptized is Edgardo Radam and his story is so great I am just going to write about that this week

It started about my second week where we saw this old Tatay pushing his bike up this huge hill and we offered to help and I thought we would push for just little bit later, but 3 kilometers later and lots of sweat we were at the very top, he was a nice man, but he wasn't interested in our message. I then said we didn't walk up here for no reason so Elder Amone and I just started walking down this random stone path at the top of the hill and we walked down that for a while, but there were no houses in sight. I then said "ugh ok the first house we see we will teach and then leave." The first house we found was Edgardo Radam. This was still my 2nd week here in the Philippines so my Tagalog was super basic and I had to rely completely on the spirit. When we finished our lesson he said that through the spirit he knew that our message was true and that he would be willing to do anything to be baptized. (key Investigator)

Through more lessons we learned that he had a bad heart problem and he had to take medication and when he even just gets up to walk for a little he has to sit back down to take a break and also he hasn't even left Mabini for 4 years because of it, but he was so so respective to our message and love learning about our church. Teaching him and seeing his willingness to learn and grow was way humbling and this spirit that was felt in every lesson and so strong.

Because it is difficult for him to travel far we were planning to baptize in the river, but it is rainy season and the river was becoming too strong and muddy so the day before the baptism Elder Barredo and I talked to the ex. Mayor of Mabini, who actually owns a resort 2 mins from Edgardo's house. He was way nice and said we could all come for free because it was for such a good cause. so he was baptized in a pool at a resort.

Baptized Edgardo here at the resort

Edgardo Radam at the church just before the baptism( the bag is for his heart problem)

It was such a great experience getting so close to one of my investigators and seeing him progress made me so happy. Blessed to have met him and to learn so much from him. These are the experiences that just make the mission so amazing and the feelings are truly indescribable.


Pretty view near the Resort

​I lived the vine where I went to flip the egg but the handle broke and this is the result :D

​So That's my awesome week. Excited for this upcoming week with two more baptisms coming and one of them is the daughter of Edgardo

Love, Elder Terry

Week 15

This is been another great week here in the Philippines.

I am enjoying my new companion and working. It's been a little harder to work here at this time of year because it is officially rainy season. For the past 3 weeks there hasn't been a single day when it did not have a thunder storm. The power is constantly going out in the whole town, it is harder to go out and teach because we get stranded out in houses during a mini flood, and people don't seem to want to go to church if it rains. Obviously Elder Barredo and I continue to work hard and do the best we can, especially with building up the branch here. It is the best branch, but has a lot of work to be done and most members don't know how to start a branch because they are all new members. President Deyro gave us permission to direct the branch and the branch president ( no counselors ) to help really stabilize how the branch should run. Really excited for this once in a life time opportunity and I hope that through help from members, my companion, and of course through lots of prayer.

I was put in charge to set up everything because no one knows how to. We had a meeting after church yesterday and I talked about how we have a tiny little branch only 6 active priesthood holders and 50 sacrament attendance and our goal was to get 20 active priesthood holders and 100 sac attendance. after the success president Deyro promised a new actual chapel. We also talked about how they (the members) need to invite people to church and to talk about the church to others so it can grow. Also that we were setting up home teaching and it would be announced next week. The branch president wants to work hard but he has no idea how everything should work so we are going to meet with him a lot to help him out with callings, home teaching and how to interview people. This is the smallest branch in out mission so this will be an interesting, once-in-a-life-time experience.
PS this was all in Tagalog and afterwards the whole branch was motivated and was like dang Elder Terry is awesome, so I felt pretty great after.

Have my first baptism next week and I hope it will turn out successful and awesome.

Here are some pictures of the week

Teaching them in large quantities

 This is how a Pinoy plays pool

 A mom liked picture

 I promise I teach more than just kids

Love, 

Elder Terry

Week 14

Good week here in Mabini with my new companion, Elder Barredo, with me leading the area keeping track of all our Investigators, Less Actives, Recent Converts, and Members. It went successful and I truly learned the importance of planning and writing everything down because you will forget it and that would not be very great.

Like I said about Mabini earlier, it is one of the newest and slowest progressing branches in the entire mission so I've been finding some holes about our branch this week. There is no home teaching happening, no interviews by the branch president for anything, such as priesthood advancements and callings, and very few members have been endowed, and most people don't even know what a patriarchal blessing is. Also no one is receiving callings when they become members so the amount of less actives is way way higher than it should be. Out of all the 50 active members we have all are somewhat recent converts so most don't know how a branch should actually be run so It's mostly up to the missionaries to completely set up everything. If we are inviting people to a church that isn't set up properly than it weaken their faith, so our focus here in Mabini from now on will be to teach really progressing investigators who are going to church and basically setting up the branch here. This is not normal here in the Urdaneta Mission, and it will be difficult, but I am excited for the opportunity.

Also thank you everyone for the support and the prayers and the emails. They motivate me to keep working and remember my purpose to invite others to come unto Christ. It really does make me get lost in the work and just work all day every day to be a successful missionary. I am way happy here and loving every minute.

Some Pics From the Week

I love this old Tatay who served in the Navy at Long Beach during WW2 so he has fluent English. He invited us to his 4th of July day party and fed us so I actually got to celebrate this year.

 Helping kids with their project for Nutrition Week

 This describes the Philippines pretty well I think

 Enjoying my Preparation Day at 100 Islands

Thanks again

Love,

Elder Terry

Week 13

Kumusto po kayo

Let's jump right in folks. So for a normal training experience you normally have a Tatay(Trainer) for 2 transfers(6 weeks each), but I am 4 weeks in to being here and my amazing Tatay got a call Wednesday morning saying he was being transferred in 2 hours to a different area and he headed to Rosales and I stayed in Urdaneta for 2 days for follow up training by president Deyro and my old MTC batch. I then meet my new companion/2nd Tatay, Elder Barredo, a Filipino from Mindanao. He is way awesome and has only actually been a member for 3 years. His testimony is way strong on why he is here and how he got here and I'm excited to work with Elder Barredo here in Mabini, but it'll be interesting leading the area keeping track of all our investigators and area so pray for me thanks.

Also our prayers are slowly and surly being answered success is coming here everyday. For example we had one investigator Melody, and we were teaching her, and then we found her friend Kisses, and we started teaching them both, and then we found the daughter of another one of our investigators, Sharry May, who is friends with them 2, and they went to church last week. This week we also invited 2 of their other friends, Catholine and Jasmine, to go to church to go AND THEY ALL WENT and they all want to be baptized together. P.S. they are all from age 8 to 12. I'm feel way blessed to be a part of progressing the kingdom of Christ here in Mabini.

On splits with Elder Roxas, Elder Bermudo, and Elder Amone

My new companion Elder Barredo

High quality construction work

Love and Miss you all

Elder Terry