Hug Someone!

Random encounterings every week here in the philippines: Cockroaches running around your counter tops and walls, Mice that poop in your broom, Spiders in your bathroom behind the toilet, Burn outs(a period of time without electricity) almost every day-sometimes in the middle of a lesson at night and then you have to walk home, Rice every day, Fans at night, Mosquito nets around your bed, 3 hours of doing laundry by hand in a barrel, Buying fish at the market straight from the sea that morning, riding in pot pots(a bike that has a side car for passengers), Afternoon rain storms, Lessons by flashlight...and sooo many more that will just have to wait.
I have no time right now to write you!!! But will you please-where ever your hubby is or your kids are or your dog...or your self....will you please hug for me? Sometimes a missionary has strange requests.

Josh's 4-12 e-mail

This week I read about Alma's conversations with his sons. All of them stood out to me, but I would like to talk about Shiblom and Corianton. To me Shiblom sounds like the most persecuted. It is in Alma 38. It says that Shiblom was even stoned and bound, but he went on. I believe the average person would’t want to go on after this, but Shiblom did because he loved Jesus Christ. Maybe we will have people talk behind our backs or we might even lose all our money, but shall not go on in such great a cause. Corianton is whom we might call the rebel child, he committed a great sin. But Corianton is for the people who think repentance is too hard or because they have sinned they cannot live in the celestial kingdom. Corianton repented of his sins! He went on. He shows the fruits of repentance in Alma 43 verse 1. It says the Alma and his sons, went forth to preach the gospel. All changes are possible with God. We try our best and God changes our hearts.

Argentina orchard

The long road...no not really! We were just walking back and my companion and I thought it was pretty cool this orchard.

Josh's 3-29 e-mail

This week we had our ward talent show! The Relief Society dressed up like clowns, the primary did cartwheels, and the priesthood acted out a famous TV show in South America. Other talents were the violin, dancing, singing, and...... a human puppet! It was really fun and a lot of members came to watch.

Do they have April Fool's Day in the Philippines?

I have a confession...... I may have to come home early......My mission president is thinking about maybe right after we talk for mothers day....Let me explain.

It's been a long time coming and I have been puting off telling you all. Please don't judge me for not telling you until now. but I'm in love...I have had these feelings for quite sometime now and I just can't hold back any more, They are soo deep-I can't really explain, it started at the beginning of when I got to the Phillippines and it's just grown ever since. I've never felt this way before about anything!! I have realized more every day how much I am so intwined!!! and honestly twitterpated!!!! (sp?)How did I ever survive without this in my life every day!!!....I'm in love.....With the Book of Mormon!!!!!!!!!

JOKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! President Malit said it's ok if I stay until the end of my mission....and maybe a little bit more.

Megan's 4-11 e-mail

There is this one boy who works at the terminal that I always see and kept forgetting to grab Tagolog and not Cebuano from the house for him- a pamphlet,but on Saturday on our way to conference- I had one in my bag and I gave it to him and said Basaha!! Read(in command form) telling him to read it...and just like everyone that I give pamphlets to, I never know for sure what they will do with it...but...as we were pulling out he was sitting in his little booth-his work station-with the pamphlet right open, reading it!!! I was soooo happpy!! I really really wanted to jump up and down- but I was in the van!!! I kept squealing and Sister Farnworth was just smiling, staring at me---it was such a strange sensation!! It's like I had gotten the present for christmas I wanted all year. And then I realized something...if I am feeling this at him reading...I just thought about the excitement and PURE and perfect joy I will feel when I can become more and more of an instrument. That is all I want. BUT I NEED YOUR HELP!!!! I am nothing. I am nothing!!! SO I need Heavens help! I need your prayers.

Megan's 4-12 e-mail

A slice of conversation between Sister Dustin and Sister Farnworth:


"You are the light at the end of the tunnel!!!" -Sister Dustin to Sister Farnworth
"At least I'm not a train coming forward!!" -Sister Farnworth to Sister Dustin
"Yeah, the train coming forward is my next companion!!" - Sister Dustin to Sister Farnworth
"hahahahahahhahah" -Sister Dustin and Sister Farnworth


JOKES of course!!! But what I said first though is true, Ii love her! She is bringing me back. I feel like I've kind of had a blanket over my head, and without her knowing, she pulled it off!

Are you flying?

Pres. Malit told this story about an eagle that was born with a bunch of chickens. He grew up with them-therefore acting like them, eating like them, but because of this, never knew he had wings-nonetheless, never thought that he had the ability to fly! One day another eagle saw him from high on the mountain. He swooped down and shouted at the other, "come up here, I'll teach you how to fly!" So the other eagle joined his new teacher and learned how to fly. He never thought that he would be able to do this-because the chickens never flew like this. Then his teacher had to leave and go on with his life-so he returned back to the chickens-and returned back to how he used to live-like a chicken!! So it is with us-Pres. Malit related this to missionaries of course-we go to mission conference, we learn exactly how to help these people, we get really excited and all pumped up...and then we go back to our apartments...and continue to forget to how fly. We have everything we need to be completely happy, well off, financially stable...have peace, but we forget to rise above and fly like we know how! Sometimes it's hard to live what you learn, to do what you preach. That is the test!!

General Conference for Megan

We get to watch conference this weekend in our stake center. I am so excited....I can't even explain. I get to see the man that I tell every one of our investigators about....THOMAS S. MONSON!!!!! A true prophet!!! Just like, Moses, and Adam, and Abraham!!!!!

Where is your bookmark?

Where are all of you in the Book of Mormon?? That book is SOOOOOOOOOOOOO tRUUUUUUUUE!!!!!!!!!!!!! it brings me back....EVERY TIME!!!

Megan's 4-5-10 E-mail

I am still in Palompon. I am TRAINING!!! Only 4 months and I'm training..bah!! My new companion is Sister Farnworth and she is from Utah. She is the light at the end of the tunnel and I'm way excited!!! She wants to know Cebuano as much as me-and so we will be a team! ahah. My english is weird sometimes.
Melanie's comment-I am so happy to hear her English is 'weird'. That's a very good sign!

Lorenzo Snow

Sister Colwell(mom of an elder Josh met in the MTC) sent me a letter from her stake conference in Montana. One of the speakers said the President Lorenzo Snow felt inadequate all of his life. I thought about this for a long time. It seems reasonable that a prophet of God would have the most help to not suffer from lack of self-confidence, but I was taught a valuable lesson. He had that trial, the lack of self-confidence, so he could be closer to Christ.

Josh's 4-5-10 E-mail

So…conference! I had the opportunity to listen to it in English! I wanted to try in Spanish so I listened to two sessions in Spanish and three in English. It was so amazing! They say if you go to conference with a question, it will be answered! Well, it´s true! I had three main questions and in the first session of conference they were answered!!! One message I know that wasn't direct, but that I obtained during conference is during trials we need to see the light at the end of the tunnel during the trial, not just when we get to the end. Truly this a gift from God and a gift from the Holy Ghost. If we don´t think we have rest in this life, we can hope that we will have rest in the next. The story about the baby dying and the family blaming everyone(by Donald Halstrom) is an example of this. They did´t learn to lean on Christ. We have a choice in our lives, depend on our perfect brother who knows every trial we go through and more or we let our fallen brother beat us around and blame everyone for our trials. I need to work on this so much better! Truly learn to depend on Christ.

Megan-The Pre-Existence

Last night we had a piano lesson at the church and one of the students is one of our cfd's (committed for date) and I got to talk to him for like a straight hour. It was a gift. I love him! I want to help him so bad. He has done drugs, still struggles with smoking, moved here from manila because he wanted to change and leave his bad friends there. It's amazing the gifts that the Lord can give us all. Knowing that all the people here in the world chose to follow Jesus Christ before they came here, gives me so much hope that if they can feel the spirit, they will be brought back-if they can just remember!

How Will They Know?

Megan referenced this song in her 3-22-10 E-mail.
How Will They Know?

LDS Children’s Songbook, 182–85

How will they know, the ones for whom we care,
That God is love and with us ev’rywhere,
That life is good, with blessings all can share?
How will they know unless we teach them so?

How will they learn that, though they go astray,
God will forgive and help them find the way?
How will they feel the Spirit day by day?
How will they know unless we teach them so?

How will they grow in wisdom and delight?
How will they choose to follow what is right?
How can they trust the future will be bright?
How will they know unless we show them?

How will they live when they at last are grown?
What will they give to children of their own?
Will they reflect the values we have shown?
How will they know, as on through life they go?
How will they know unless we strive to teach them so?

Megan's 3-22-10 E-mail (notice the Cebuano!!)

There are so many hungry people in this world. just like the scripture says: "they are not hungry from bread or water, but from the word of God". We were walking to an appointment on Friday and saw that the house that our investigators live in had a bunch of guys smoking and drinking-siempre (of course) we were a little hesitant. We kept walking and asked if Stephanie was there? "Pwede mangutana? Naa si Stephanie?" An older Tatay(dad) said, "yes!", and offered us a seat outside. There was this one guy sitting at the door smoking and started talking to us. He asked me if it was not ok for us to smoke. "Bawal cigarellio sa inyo?" I told him that your body is a gift from your Father in heaven. "Siempre dili maayo no? Kay imong lawas usa ka gasa gikan imong amahan sa langit." One by one, the last people for the lesson was Stephanie, her sister, Dad, Mom, and Brother, and this guy-his name is Lucio. I did not understand him completely, but I could understand him enough to want to help him more than anything else- to hear him struggle in his words and his actions, the ways his hands stuttered to communicate what he was trying to say-I don't know why but I was filled with love for him. He has one eye that is masked over, but every time he looked at me he just smiled. We taught him about baptism and repentance and told him that is wasn't good to smoke or drink and that he should be a good example to his friends and be the one to say no-because he said he wanted to stop. He kept saying, just right now, I know the truth, I have learned the truth. He gave the closing prayer-there are so many people that when we invite them to say the closing prayer, in our first lesson, they say, thank you for "among bisita diri aron kami kahibalo so kamatuoran" "our visitor here so that we know the truth." It made me think of the song, how will they know? Sometimes it just takes someone to tell them, "no, you shouldn't do that", and then they won't. They never had someone to tell them not to do something, and so they did it.

He Knows What We Are Going Through...

From Josh's 3-22-10 E-mail:
A powerful scripture is Doctrine and Covenants 19:15-19. "For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent; But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I; Which asuffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink— Nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men."
There was a time when it was difficult for Christ go on. He had to feel this so he could know how we felt when we thought things were impossible. He knows everything we go through.

Josh's 3-22-10 e-mail

This week we received a awesome family to teach. It was a contact of a member who works for this man. He came with us and when we walked up to their house I was surprised!!! It is super super nice and expresses richness!!! I was kinda worried if they would accept us because usually the people in wood shacks and dirt floors down the street accept us into their houses. Their names are Nestor and Beatrice and they are amazing!!! They had some really rough times before and wanted to know God. So they asked our member friend about his religion and that is how we got involved. We have only visited them twice, but they already do things members would. They have prayers before meals and before they go to bed, and they read the scriptures. I am excited to know them better in the future and I hope they will want to be baptized and follow the example of Jesus.