Nalpas Sen!!!!

Well.. Tapos na. 

Its crazy how fast two years can fly by. I didn’t think it would be so fast, but now I think I understand what every one else says about serving the Lord and how amazing fast it goes. I am so grateful for the blessing that was given to me to serve the Lord here in the Philippines Baguio Mission. I have learned so much and have met so many people that will never leave my thoughts and prayers. I am grateful for the support that my family has shown and for their love and I am eternally grateful for the Savior and His atoning sacrifice. This last week has been bittersweet to say the least. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday we had zone conferences in Candon, Baguio, and in San Fernando. The combined zone conferences Presided by President Bangal brought energy and knowledge to each one of us missionaries. President talked about the importance of the Book of Mormon and also bore a great testimony of the Church and the Gospel. I will never forget the Spirit that I felt as he has spoken and instructed. I have gained so much respect for President and Sister Bangal and I know that Divine Design specifically chose them to lead the Baguio Mission and support all within it. In Luna, my first area I learned the power of prayer. I learned that even the most simple prayer can stop a storm when you need clear skies and learned that without communication with our Heavenly Father we will struggle in making correct decisions and being guided by His hand. I loved my time there with Elder Golle, Elder Moreland and Elder Waite. Each of them taught me something new and helped me continue in my progress. I was able to go to church yesterday in Luna, and see all the oh so familiar faces in the spirit filled Meetinghouse. Thank you as well to Brother Spencer Frederico and his family who drove me to Luna so that I could go to church there. It also felt great to be able to hold conversations with the members there, and actually understand the things that they were saying haha.

In Narvacan, I learned what it meant to be a Disciple of Jesus Christ and a lot of that is because of Bishop Ruiz and his wife. Elder Scott and I had a blast and learned so much from one another.  I loved the members there and those that we just seemed to stumble upon or be stumbled upon. I miss Narvacan so much and cant wait to visit once again some where down the road. I was only there for a short amount of time but at least each day spent was a day worth writing about in a journal full of memories. 

Then came Sevilla Ward. Man the Sevilla ward is the best ward I was assigned in here in the San Fernando Stake. (It was also the only ward I was assigned in in the San Fernando Stake!)  I learned more Tagalog thanks to Elder Campbell, gained a stronger sense of loving others as I was with Elder Tavita and then topped off my time there with Elder Diaz learning so much from his testimony as a fairly new member of the Church and already serving a mission. 

Then comes my time in Bangued Abra where I have never felt the Spirit stronger. I love Bangued. The Isolation, and seclusion. The area we worked in and more importantly the people we met. It is without a doubt that a large piece of my heart has been left in each one of my areas and for sure, Bangued. Being in an apartment with only American Elders was a blast. Learning from each one of them and seeing Elder Campbell and my companion Elder Jenson finish their missions on top and always working their hardest set the example of what I should do when that time came. After the left, Elder Lloyd came in and seemed to not leave for the rest of my mission! Haha we were companions from August 2017 until February 2018 and witnessed mighty miracles in the hearts of those in Bangued. I gained a stronger testimony of following the Spirit and also in the Priesthood. I am so grateful for Elder Lloyd’s knowledge of the scriptures and his work ethic. Whether it was leaving the house at 6am to go to work or not coming back till 10pm at night, he wanted to work as much as possible and pushed us both to always do our best. 

And then my last area, the very familiar Sevilla Ward once again. Yesterday before going to Luna, I attended Sevilla’s Sacrament, making it my 43^rd Sacrament Meeting in the Sevilla Ward hahah. Who woulda guessed that I would be in one area for almost a year of my mission? Definitely not me but I am not complaining either. I could walk down these same streets for another 6 months if needed without complaint. It was so cool to know so many people here in San Fernando. To learn about their families, to share with them the message of the Restoration and to see the Gospel take affect in their lives in order for them to be strengthened and blessed. Not only was I blessed with great companions in this area, Elder Bin Salleh, Elder Lloyd and Elder Ebreo but I was also blessed with the opportunity to work with so many other missionaries in the mission and in their areas learning from them what it is that I can do to succeed as a missionary. Im not going to forget the late nights preparing things, trying to get in just a couple minutes of personal study on hectic days before my eyes literally couldnt stay open anymore and also the times the that Spirit was so present in lessons, activities, and at church. 

I cant begin to describe how much I have learned and how many miracles I have seen occur in my mission but I will just end this last email by saying that I know the Church is true and that The Book of Mormon is the word of God. Russel M. Nelson is the living prophet and the Atonement of Jesus Christ is what we need daily to overcome obstacles and to succeed in our lives. I love my family so much and I cant wait to see them. Especially I am grateful for my mom and dad who are the two best people I know and in whom I have complete trust. You both are so amazing. Thank you.

See you all soon,

-Elder Pitt 

Dalawang Linggo na Lang... Sana Mas Matagal pa

Well this week didn't decide to slow down so hopefully next week will. I cant believe how fast this month has gone by. Seems like yesterday we were celebrating New Years and now we are almost three months into 2018! 

This week was just like the others: Awesome.

Almost all of the lessons that we had with the members here and with others were about what Elder Rasband had taught and how we can apply them into our lives. Everyone really has seemed to take hold of the 3 things we should say daily. Just yesterday I thought that the food one the top shelf was Elder Lloyds that he left pero it was actually Elder Ebreo's! But because of Elder Rasbands advice, after a quick "Elder Ebreo, Im Sorry, and I love you" he forgave me and i replied "Thank you,"

HOW SIMPLE! 

The members are also acting on the words as well. It through a rush of urgency into the Stake that is so awesome. So many service projects have been scheduled. A bunch of activities are being planned and more. 

We dropped off Elder Lloyd Monday night so if im not mistaken he should have already gone swimming by now and given his talk at church! Welcome home Antarge Lloyd! 

Elder Piad and Caballero were working with us this week which was pretty fun. We have zone conference next week and a follow up training as well so Elder Ebreo and I had to divide the work. I spent 2 days in the office running some errands and finishing up all of the "Honey do's" but we also got to work as well which was nice.

Tatay De Guzman, a member of the ward passed away last week so there was a funeral for him on Saturday. It was a really nice service filled with almost all of his neighbors. He was very known in his neighborhood and it was very nice to see all of the support given. 

Other than that, this week was normal. Normal sounds lame but its the furthest from lame. I love walking house to house introducing the message of the Restoration to people. I love it even more when we are able to share a message. I am grateful for the help the Lord has given me as I work and also for the strength He blesses all of us with. 

I started the New Testament again marking all of the "commandments" the Lord mentions. Ive been highlighting even the less known commandments "Repent" "Follow Me" one of my favorites in Matthew "Let your light shine before men". Its been cool to see all the things we are commanded to do. Not just the ten from the Old Testament, but everything that he says, all His words are endless and continue to be spoken through the Prophet in these times. 

Ive come to really appreciate Doctrine and Covenants Section 1 Verse 38:

"What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."

I love you all! Have a great week! And good luck to all those filling up March Madness brackets! 

 

--

Elder Pitt 

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What a Week!

This week we were blessed here in the Baguio Mission to hear from Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. But before I get to that part, Ill share first about other things that transpired this week leading up to the icing on the cake.
Last Monday we taught an investigator of ours, Kevin, about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He is a graduate in Business and is now working full time and going to school for a master’s and is only around 28 years old. He not only read the entire pamphlet that we gave him, but also accepted the invitation to pray about what he had read to receive a confirmation for himself of the truthfulness of the message. We have him a Book of Mormon and explained to him why, how, and what the Book of Mormon works in our lives. He promised to read it as he is on the road this week for work and I am super excited to see him next week. He might know more about the Church than I do by the time he is back seeing how smart he is with everything.

On Tuesday, I took a trip up to Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur to go on exchanges with the missionaries there. I met with them in their District Meeting in Narvacan, my old area. While we were there, I saw Elder Waite and other missionaries in the district... Bishop Rambo was at the Church so I got to say hello to him as well and then when we left, Sister Araceli and Sheila were waiting inside the Relief Society room to surprise me and say hello. Elder Scott and I used to teach at their house weekly and while I was assigned in Bangued, Sister Araceli and her husband Arman were baptized.
It was just so good to be able to say hello and talk with them again. I was so lucky that the timing was just right to see Bishop before he left to Laoag and the Maaghops.
Working in Santa Maria was great, Elder Maurer and Elder Vilela are awesome missionaries. As we were meeting with the members and friends of the missionaries, we ran into two girls who I interviewed for baptism when I was in Narvacan. Again it was great to see familiar faces and see their progress in the Gospel.
Once I got back from Narvacan on Wednesday we worked the whole day in our area until night talking to people on the way and when night came we were invited to a member’s restaurant to have dinner for Elder Lloyds last week here in the mission. A lot of members were there to say thank you and goodbye! Elder Lloyd is going to be missed! We are taking him to the bus station later tonight around 11:30pm, and he will be with his family soon after!
Friday, we had a meeting at the office with President to prepare everything for Elder Rasbands visit. Elder Ebreo and I stayed in the office after while Elder Lloyd worked with a member for the day! It was fun printing out papers and organizing everything too with Elder Ebreo... but it is way more fun being outside haha. Saturday morning, we had a follow-up training for missionaries still new in the mission and then after it was over, we made our way to the Stake center to get everything ready. By that I mean make sure all the missionaries in the mission got there on time seeing how the Church leaders and already made sure everything was set up and ready for Elder Rasbands arrival!
Before our meeting with Elder Rasband, he held a 5 hour training with all of the Priesthood leaders in the stakes and districts of the Baguio and Laoag missions. Meaning that we crossed paths with the Bishops and Branch Presidents of the areas I had been assigned in before.
Turns out that in Narvacan, brother Arman Maaghop was called as the Elders Quorum President meaning that he was at the meeting as well. It was the first time I had seen him in over a year and was such a blessing to see how strong he has been in the Gospel and also how courageous he was to accept the calling of Elder Quorum President! I salute you Brother Arman. We also saw Bishop Rambo, and his wife Jo-Ann who are both so awesome. People I will never forget.
As we got everyone into the chapel to prepare for Elder Rasband we watched a video about the Book of Mormon that shed light on the power the Book of Mormon has in conversion and in helping us understand our potential. We were asked to take a group picture with Elder Rasband once he arrived so when he came in, we were all smiling and posed as perfectly as possible haha. Being in his presence was amazing. One by one he said hello to each of the missionaries and then together with Elder Haynie of the Seventy, gave such great instruction on Heavenly Fathers "Divine Design". It was his topic in General Conference before and I invite all of you to listen to it, ponder it, and think about how you have been moved like a chess-piece in life by our loving Heavenly Father. He talked about how who we are today is who we will be the rest of out lives, so if we dont like who were are or what we are doing, we simply need to repent change and allow Heavenly Father to do His Work. He shared stories about his time as a business man, and as a Mission President. Stories about missionaries who at their time did not see the success that other missionaries would see after 2 years later because of the previous missionaries.
He bore testimony about the Savior and about President Nelson as a Prophet of the Lord. He recounted his experience as being one who participated in the setting-apart and ordination of President Nelson. He filled the room with the Spirit has he testified. I wont forget the feeling. He opened my eyes in helping me see how I have been moved like a chess-piece in my life by Heavenly Father, and how others have been moved around to help me. There are no such thing as coincidences because Heavenly Father is running the chess-board and knows exactly what moves to take. Whether its a move backwards, or a move forwards. A big shoutout to the missionaries of the Baguio Mission who not only asked questions and reverently pondered as he spoke, but almost immediately left after the conference to get back to the work. Bangued zone had to travel 4 hours… So the furthest Elders in the mission made it home at 11:42pm.. Just in time for some shut-eye before the Sabbath Day!
Sunday, Elder Rasband stayed in San Fernando for Stake Conference blessing us with the opportunity to hear him again. Perks of being assigned in Sevilla! After the conference he requested to meet each person at the conference one by one. It was so cool. 2 of our friends who has been investigating the Church were able to meet an Apostle, one of them, Ryan, experienced that on his first week coming to Church. It was awesome. I asked him if he wanted to get in line and he casually shrugged it of and said something along the lines of “im alright” to which I told him, “No no no, you want to. You don’t know why but trust us you want to.” Haha! What a cool experience it will be too when 30 years from now who knows he might be asked along with other people “What was your first time at church like” to which he can say something along the lines of “Well this one American spoke English the entire time then I had to wait in a long line because the missionaries wanted me desperately to shake his hand… Now I understand more fully why that was so important!” haha. Well what did Elder Rasband talk about at church? Where do I begin. One of the first things that was mentioned was 3 necessities that we need in a marriage. (Side Note: I sat at the edge of my chair with pen in hand for them… Preperation.. hehe) They were three phrases as a matter of fact, and he said that each wife should first evaluate her husband as the priesthood holder on how well does at saying these three things daily, then the husband should also evaluate the wife in a loving atmospohere.

1)      I Love You. 2) Thank You. 3) I’m Sorry.
Well to all of the husbands who’s wives were reading this email and then called you down to have an evaluation, I am sorry! But I love you, and thank you for understanding that this is the Lords advice and not mine!!
It was amazing advice! This last day all my companions have said to me or the missionaries who live in the same apartment is “Thank you” and then someone on the other side of the apartment will yell “I love you!” and of course a random “I’m sorry!” to finish off the three triads of success in a relationship.
He also talked about 6 things that will keep us on the covenant path and those are

1.    Personal and Family Prayer Daily

2.    Personal and Family Scripture Study Daily

3.    Hold Family Home Evening

4.    Watch Out For Your Fellow Man

5.    Paying Tithing Faithfully

6.    Striving to always stand in Holy Places. (The Home, The Church, The Temple)
Simple laws, Great blessings. His wife shared a wonderful message as well about being the daughter of a great mother, and striving to be a great mother to her great children.
So I cant continue in this without first thanking you Mom and Dad for everything that you have done for me and for us kids. You two are the greatest and still are.

I learned so much this week as I have every week. I love the feeling of the Spirit and the Joy the Gospel brings to people. After the Conference we had lunch at Nanay Salvatera’s house. We have visited her almost every single week I have been assigned in Sevilla making it about 10 months of visits. She is such an amazing woman and has such strong faith. The senior couple in the mission, the Seymours came along as well and it was perfect. We ate a delicious lunch and then watched as Sister Seymour, Nanay Salvatera and her daughter all talked and talked and talked about kids, life, jobs, the Gospel, church activities, cookies, and Elder Seymour sat on the couch with the other men and missionaries shootin a little breeze but mostly just waiting for the what we called “Relief Society Presidency” to invite us to get more of the cookies Sister Seymour made hahaha. Felt just like being at Grandma and Grandpas again.
Well what else has happened? Oh yeah! Elder Lloyd is going home! If you haven’t caught on, he has been my companion since the middle of August rounding us off at over 6 months of being companions, and we didn’t even fight once! He is one great missionary and I learned so much from him. I know he’ll kill it in whatever he does.

As for me, I think getting on a Partas Bus at 11:30pm can wait for now. Ill stick to just driving others instead. I hope the time goes slow and as for now I wont think about it. I love being a missionary. I know that the Church is true and that The Atonement of Jesus Christ has power. All of us no matter how far away we have wondered, will always be able to see that speck of light, that speck of hope, that speck of the Savior which will give us just enough strength to get back on the path.
I love you all, thank you for enduring this email, and Im sorry I don’t have more pictures.


--
Elder Pitt

The time is far Spent

There are 4 weeks remaining to publish glad tidings in Baguio Mission!

Well the big news this week? Elder Lloyd goes home in 7 days! I have been with this Kiwi for 7  months now and he still hasnt gotten tired of me! (or hasn't spoken up yet) but tis been a great 7 months and now we are going to go out hard this week! This last week we were approved to just work work work in our area and it was the best, we were only in the office once giving us so much more time meeting new people and teaching the Gospel. 

Our investigator brother JR has been coming to church and reading the Book of Mormon so much recently. We visited him and found out that his family is actually moving him back to his hometown. He is 42, and got a skin disease making it harder for him to walk and work, so his family is going to help him get the medicine he needs back down in Leyte! It was sad to hear that he was moving, but he said that when he gets there, he is going to finish what he started here in San Fernando and be baptized in the Church. When he asked his family if there were "Mormons" in his home town, he found out that his cousin is a member of the Church! How perfect! 

I have really come to see the change in brother JR and his willingness to open his heart the the Spirit. Same goes for Dianne, someone who we used to visit way back when Elder Tavita was my companion here! She was at church yesterday and we barely saw her because she was surrounded by the other single adults in the ward. Sevilla ward is awesome. 

I had the chance to work with the missionaries in Bauang this week too, Elder Kim and Elder Lanogan! We met with someone who we have been teaching here in Sevilla, but is from Naguilian and wants to go to church there! We also met with some members of the Branch who knew other missionaries like Elder Smith and Richardson (Shout out jimmy and isaac!)

Elder Rasband comes here on Saturday. I am very excited to hear from him and his counsel. I am grateful for living prophets and apostles. I know that the Gospel is so important to every single one of us and that the Lord is in control. 

Sorry for the short email and no pictures! Ill try and take pictures this week just haven't remembered to! 

 

--

Elder Pitt 

I need to tell my Sister Happy Birthday

Hello Hello happy February!! How was everyone's January? Its so weird to me how fast time has been going by the last couple months. I am so happy that I have been able to learn so much and hear that you are all doing good as well. 

This week was jam packed with meetings and training's and places to go! 

Starting on Tuesday we held a training for all of the missionaries who would be training new missionaries coming into the mission called "Train the Trainers" what a mouthful! It was a blast 

though, we talked about the importance of the beginning of a missionaries time serving the Lord and how great our calling is as representatives of the Savior. President is the best though, it seems as if every meeting we had with him or training this week, he would share something new but use the same key passages in the scriptures. He has really opened up my eyes to pondering the words I read and to look at them differently each time I read. On Wednesday, the new missionaries arrived fresh from the Missionary Training Center with their shining white polo's, new neckties and polished shoes! Boy did my shirt look more of an egg-shell color than white hahah. Meeting with the missionaries was great. They have such a zeal and a desire to work all day. Its awesome. Some were from the states so it was fun to see their dying desire for AirCon and electric fans while all of the other Filipinos wanted to leave the office and stand back out in the heat! It cracks me up each time and everyone else gets a good laugh at it too. 

After their orientation and training we got some dinner with President and Sister Bangal and then they spent the night at our apartment. We had to set up other meetings so we werent able to get home before they were asleep but the other missionaries in our apartment took good care of em! 

Thursday the trainers and trainees met one another, heard some solid advice from President about always pushing yourself and always re-evaluating how you can improve and then they went to their new areas! Right after the training ended, we went from the mission home to the church and started our Mission Leadership Training! It was almost all focused on how we will prepare ourselves for when Elder Ronald A. Rasband comes to visit in just two weeks! It is going to be such a great experience. We also discussed Doctrine and Covenants 121 which is always a must read. 

President Bangal is inspired. He loves the Church and the Savior and does everything in his will-power to help us missionaries become converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

On Sunday, Elder Ebreo and I went to church in Agoo! It was my first time in Agoo at church and it was fun! Elder Baquiran from the Area Presidency came to visit and Elder Haynie from the Seventy will be here in a couple weeks. Him and his wife gave talks as well as President and Sister Bangal. 

One of them talked about the importance of the home, and how if we want to establish Zion, we need to start within the walls of our homes. It reminded me of two verses in proverbs 

"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart form it." 

the other "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:-" 

The more we are able to bridle our passions, and help others on theirs and our spiritual journey back to our Heavenly Father, the more we will become strong in the faith and confident in ourselves.

I love the Gospel, I love the Savior, I love you all. 

Elder Pitt 

Wen Apo

Another week down, another week of learning, another week of life in the Philippines and boy was it great. 

It started out with a Family Home Evening at the Salvatera's house Monday night! There were two missionaries from a different zone here in San Fernando this week who ended up just being with us for the whole week kaya there were 6 missioanries all at Nanay Salvateras and she absolutely loved it haha. She wanted to invite all the missionaries here in San Fernando if possible! (thats about 18) But we just kept it at 6! It was a super fun time, Sister Rose shared with us her sotry about when she was a brand new member of the Church and there were hardly any members in this city. It was really cool to hear her views and thoughts she had when she was brand new to the Church. I think we all learned a lot that night.

The rest of the week picked up with places to go meetings to hit and people to share the Restored Gospel with! 

We went to a baptism on Saturday in Bangar which was fun to see and then that night, Sister Angelica got baptized! The Sevilla ward is so supportive and has helped her so much in understanding and living the Gospel! I am grateful for all of the things I have learned on the mission. Next week there are meetings every single day. I will promise to make my email bigger as well and send pictures. I love you all! Happy Late Birthday Lyss!!

Mabuhay pa rin ang Sevilla

Hello Hello everyone!! How was your week! HAPPY LATE BIRTHDAY ATE MALERIE!

If "y'all" missed her birthday, shoot her a text, and also dont forget Alyssa's is right around the corner!!

 This week was awesome! I dont think I have traveled so much in one week my whole mission but I loved it! We had zone conferences Tuesday through Thursday and they were great! 

Tuesday was in Candon. A new senior couple arrived last week and they will be working in the office so we brought them with us to show them the areas of the mission! They are from southern Utah and are the best. We drove them up and on the way got some pandesal! It was their first time and definitely not their last! Each Zone Conference we watched the broadcast from the Church with President Nelson to begin. I am grateful for a living prophet. President Bangal explained the need for a prophet and what the role of a prophet is. He also talked about the Sacrament in each of the conferences which was super cool. He explained more in depth the bread and the symbolism of everything in the Sacrament. Also the need to partake of it weekly and why it is so frequent. 

I was able to see the missionaries who are assigned in my old areas as well so it was good to catch up with them about the people in Narvacan and Bangued. I got some letters from the members too which was great :) 

Wednesday was in San Fernando so all we had to do was bring the van from the office so it was a piece of cake! Thursday was a blast though! We woke up at about 4 and were on the road right away to go to Baguio City!! It was gorgeous!! The chapel has no Air conditioning because of how cold the weather is! How crazy is that?? 

The Seymours (senior couple) loved it as well. They were super excited to see Baguio. It really does look so different from the other parts of the Philippines that I have seen. Pine trees, malls, overpasses and more! We stopped also to buy some fresh strawberries! I think that was a highlight for sure hahah. 

Friday was great as well! There was a follow up training for all of the new missionaries in which we showed an old video from the Church about Agency. It is my favorite video produced by the Church. Even if its older than I am hahah. It talks about the things that make up Agency and the reason why agency is so important. I have come to learn quite a bit these last 2 years about Christ, but the Atonement is my favorite thing to study. Agency and the Atonement go hand in hand and cant be separated. We need both and have to use both. 

Saturday, Elder Tobias from the Area Presidency came to the office to meet with President Bangal and all of the Stake/District Presidents in the Baguio Mission. They talked about the duties of members in missionary work and the duties of missionaries. He gave us a lot of advice as well with what we can do as missionaries to fulfill our purpose. Elder Tobias was full of knowledge and support. It was a blessing to see a member of the Area Presidency explain each one of our callings in the gathering of Israel and to be approachable during all of it. Missionary work is so invaluable to the world. 

Elder Rasband will be here February 17th, we have been asked to prepare by reading his previous conference talks. I am very excited to listen to an Apostle and learn from the Lords chosen servants. 

I love you all! Have a great week! 

--

Elder Pitt