Dear Family and Friends,
Another great week has come and gone in Lucena and it continues to amaze me how fast the time seems to be going. My companion has one month left in the mission, so we're trying to get the most out of our companionship that we can before he goes home. We're continuing to see miracles every day in our finding and visits to members. When I first got here, there was only one member who was working with the missionaries. It seems like the elders before just assumed that other members didn't want to work with them. Elder Pepa and I have been trying to invite every member that we can to come out and work with us for a few hours. Amazingly, several of them were willing to come out and work with us. It turns out that all we had to do was ask. The work and teaching all becomes a lot more effective when there is someone there that the investigator can relate to, instead of a Tongan and an American.
We've also been working on getting our lessons focused on doctrine and making them more short and powerful. President Mangum always says that the most important part of their conversion takes place in between our visits, not during them. So we've really focused on just making sure that they understand our message and making sure that they've felt the spirit. Then it's just up to them to act on these feelings and promptings. It's been a real blessing to be with Elder Pepa, and a really unique experience for both of us to close to going home. I've learned a lot from him.
We have some investigators who are doing really well. They're all reading and praying about the Book of Mormon. The real trick is getting them to come out for church. A lot of them have work on Sundays, and it really isn't an option for them to miss a day of work, since they're living meal to meal. It can be pretty scary to tell them that if they sacrifice and come to church, the Lord will bless them and help them. It really is a true test of their faith.
Our district here is really fun, and I've served with all of the missionaries before in past zones, so there wasn't much of an adjusting period. Everything's going great. Thanks again for all of your support and advice!
- Elder English
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