Josh's 2-28-11 e-mail

Diligence, I have discovered, is an attribute of Christ that takes time to develop. Often times the Lord will give us a trial to help us learn the importance of enduring. This past transfer, I don´t why, but I do know that it has been a lesson the Lord has wanted me to learn. Since my time here in Famailla, we have found people who want to hear the gospel, who let us share the message of the Restoration with them, but they aren´t progressing toward baptism. I have worked harder now than I have any other time in my mission, but I have to remember the Lord wants me to learn diligence. In Preach My Gospel we learn diligence is going forward with ¨excitement¨, and ¨faith in the Lord.¨ I am grateful the Lord has allowed me to learn this virtue. To keep going forward. Some missionaries are seed planters and others are the Johnny Apple Seeds! I am not discouraged and I love this work!!! As we were knocking doors this week I was surprised to find the swearing man!!! We knocked his door and we have a appointment with him this upcoming week!! Crazy! Mabye the Lord has some plans for him....

The work in Famallia

We found a family this week, but only one member has interest. Her name is Carmen and I believe she has received a answer. We finished teaching Carmen and a man asked us to help him, we replied yes and went to work. Our task was to pull a railroad track off the track. It sounds easy, except the track was over a river. It was heavy and hard and the man kept swearing!!! But a hour later with our shoes covered in mud, he said thank you. I was surprised to hear those words from his mouth especially since he was swearing more than half the time!!! We have countless things to be thankful for! Even if we are on a deserted island and the only other thing on the island is a palm tree, we can be thankful for the shade.


Hermana Guzman we might say has a rough life. When she was younger, she went inactive in the church. She became a policewoman, had two children, and lives with a another less active man. She now feels all the time that she has been away from the church that she should return. She is making the changes now, but oftentimes Satan knows this also and doesn´t want us to return. This past month, her husband left her because he has another girlfriend, her house has flooded due to the rain, she is now taking care of her sick aunt, who needs constant care, part of her pay as a policewoman goes to her mother, sister, and brother who all need financial help, and she is raising her two sons as best as she can. To me her faith is impressive and I know to Christ he is happy because she is returning to his church.

Josh's 2-21-11 e-mail-Another earthquake!

I lived through an earthquake!!!!! Yesterday at 4 o´clock in the morning I got woken up to a earthquake! It was kinda scary and exciting. It lasted for about 10 seconds and the only thing it did was knock over bug spray. Afterwards my heart was beating fairly quickly! I felt like a little kid again! It was nothing, but it made me think about how it is a sign for the 2nd coming of our Savior. How we need to prepare now and not later. We do not know when He will come. Preperacion (notice his spanish sneaking in...)should not be procastinated. I sang a hymn afterwards and I fell asleep.

Parable from Josh

During our Priesthood lesson the teacher shared a really cool quote that I enjoyed. A man came and asked three different men and three different times what they were doing. The first said I am cutting rock. The second, I am being paid and the third I am building a house for the Lord. Our attitudes are precious and they have to be positive or we won´t get far in life.

Josh's 2-14-11 e-mail

Josh sent this picture in an e-mail and I asked him whose dog it was and why did it have pink fur? He replied: "That is president´s dog. We don´t know why it is pink!!! We just came home from church and it was pink!!!" He's referring to the branch president, President Marchetti.


I learned the meaning of Famailla this week! It´s an old indian word of the tribes that use to live here. Famailla is fairly close to the mountains where the indians lived and on their travels across the country they always needed a resting place. Famailla means resting place.

Megan's release 3-4-11

Originally Megan's flight plans had her coming home around 6 p.m. and our stake president was going to release her that night. Then plans changed and she didn't arrive back in Cedar til almost 1 a.m. So Friday morning, Rick, Bridget, Megan and I went to the stake center around noon and met with President Greg Powell, who had also set Megan apart 18 months before. He first interviewed Megan and then invited Rick and I into the room. She later told us that he spoke to her as if he had been with her on her mission. He knew many of the circumstances she had experienced and brought back some very tender feelings. He visited with all three of us for a few minutes and then told Megan that the hard part was coming. He officially and honorably released her as a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Then the tears started to flow. You can see by the pictures how hard she took it. Those were not the last of the tears either; she's had many moments where she has yearned to be back in the Philippines, caring for those she came to know and love. She does not want to move into the next phase of her life where she worries about herself. She has loved focusing all her energy and faith for others. It will be a hard transition, but BYU-I will be the best place for her. Hopefully there will be some missionaries there from her mission and surely many that served in the Philippines and hundreds of return missionaries who will be able to empathize with her struggle to leave the work that she has come to love.

Megan's homecoming 3-3-11

The long awaited day finally arrived!!! Bridget arrived from Provo on Thursday, March 3rd, 2011 about the time Rick and I got home from work. We started decorating the house. We put up yellow streamers and a welcome home sign and got some balloons to take to the airport. Bridget made a candy bar poster to put in her room. We left for St. George around 9:00 p.m. We drove to the newly opened St. George airport and met Grandpa and Grandma Mathews, Pam and Pat Baker, Susan Mathews and Heather and all her boys. We had all worn yellow as that is not only her favorite color, but the traditional color to welcome someone home. (Tie A Yellow Ribbon...) arrived early and went upstairs to a viewing area. When we saw the plane land, we hurried downstairs and went to the arrival gate and waited. Many people got off the plane before her, but then finally Bridget said, "I see her and she's wearing yellow!" I was the first one to hug her and the tears of joy flowed as I held her in my arms again. I finally let go and let all the others greet her!