May 1, 2012

KUMUSTA PO KAYO!?!

Things are good here. Really REALLY warm, but good. I am already realizing what a blessing it is that I am only going to be spending one summer in the Pines. :)

I realized in my last email I forgot to explain the baptism of Mutya. We started teaching her mom (who was less active) and after she became active again Mutya started coming with her and decided she wanted to be baptized. She is 9 so we had the opportunity to teach her. I am so grateful for this opportunity that we had. There were multiple occasions that as we were teaching Mutya, Her mother would come to understand something on a deeper level that she didn't know about the gospel. I truly believe that it wouldn't have happened if you weren't trying to teach the principles so basic. It taught me that it is just my job to teach the basics. To help people understand the basic doctrines so they can start to gain a testimony and strengthen their foundation. The spirit really does teach people the things they need to learn if they are open to it.

I am so grateful for my mission and I am coming to realize that no matter who hard I work I will never be able to pay back my Father in Heaven for everything He has given me.

I love you all!!!

Sister Morton

April 23, 2012

Magandang Hapon!

This week has been so so great! So many things have happened that just make it so obvious to me of how aware God is of each of us. It really is incredible. Last sunday we had a couple of new investigators come and the lessons were just what they needed to hear and then yesterday we had another new investigator come and EVERY single lesson seemed like it was just for her. Every single talk in sacrament, and the lessons in sunday school and relief society. So amazing.

I'm not going to lie, missions are hard! I have been struggling a bit this week because I just don't know how to help some, ok most the people here. We have been teaching some of the less actives here since january and nothing is helping them. It's so hard because for a lot of them their primary concern is how they are going to have enough money to support their families throughout the week. We have really trying to just focus on building their faith. We are seeing a little bit of success and it really is a miracle. I know I just need to be patient and remember that our Heavenly Father knows exactly what each of us need. I am trying and learning everyday to rely on Him and it is incredible the difference I feel when I focus on Him. I love being a missionary, even though it's hard. I don't remember where I read this last week- I think from a sweet email from one of you but it said that the harder the trial the more God trusts us. I don't know why He trust me with this at all, especially in Tagalog ha ha, but I do know that He knows what each of us can become and I just need to trust that He can and will make me a far better person than I can make of myself.

I love you ALL!!!!

Pinakamahal kita!

Sister Morton

PHOTOS :)

1-Baptism of Mutya!

2- One of our investigators climbing a coconut tree to get us some fresh buko!

3- The buko he threw down from the tree

4- The drink they made from the juice, complete with milk, sugar, coconut meat AND crackers

5- OH the sunsets in the Philippines!!!! SOBRANG MAGANDA!!!!

April 16, 2012

SO really... How in the world am I already emailing you again?!? Ha ha! Time is going so FAST!!!

I am great! We have been hard at work all week and were able to teach a lot of people. This week was really good and we had a few new investigators come to church. A family from San Crispin, a barangay (neighborhoodish) in our area, that we have been teaching for the past few weeks finally came AND I was one of the speakers. So it turned out to be a pretty great day. It helps that I finally feel like I am starting to learn the language well enough to communicate with people. Many times people will still just blankly stare at me when I say something to them but Sister Rombaoa told me that I am saying things correctly it's just that they are shocked that "someone like me" (ha ha) is speaking Tagalog. I LOVE Sister Rombaoa! she leaves in four weeks and I am sad to be "killing" another companion!

So something I have been thinking about a lot lately- being happy. So many of the people we teach will say "I'm not happy because of ________, or if I just had _________ I would be happier. It has been really hard for me because a lot of the issues are because many of the people are so poor and I don't know how to help them.I wish I could just tell them that money won't make them happy, because I KNOW that money and material objects are not the source of true happiness, but it's not that simple. During my talk I was just overwhelmed with love as I looked at my ward. I know that true happiness and true joy comes from focusing on Jesus Christ, Others- Serving and loving them and then You- focusing on making yourself a better person, more like Christ. This was from sister rombaoas talk yesterday :) I also know that when we are grateful for our blessings we are not only happier but God blesses us with more.

I am so GRATEFUL to be a missionary! I love you all!!!!

MAHAL KO KAYO LAHAT!!!!

sister Morton

The photos- I meant to send them last week, we were able to attend transfer day so I got to see my "boys" aka the elders that were in my zone in the MTC! and that big thing is a carabao they are huge!

April 8, 2012

Kumusta!

So Easter weekend has been great. We had conference and I loved it!!! I of course have limited time so I just want to talk about one thing that I really enjoyed about it. It was actually a talk about raising children. don't remember which one at the moment. Now for most of conference, and let's be honest for most of my mission, I have tried really hard to not think about getting married and starting a family because I am just so excited for when this is going to happen. It is especially hard with all the family talk during conference and when we are teaching two different families with brand new babies. Anyways... the talk was about raising children in the gospel and helping "our" children to make their own spiritual connection to heaven. Well guess what? I have about 30 of God's children that I am trying to help make a spiritual connection to heaven and it's hard! I just want every single person I talk to to understand the gospel and realize how happy they can be. I loved at the end of sister Esplins talk how she quoted "I am a child of God" All of us really need some one to lead us, guide us, and walk beside us during some point of our life. If you're not the one needing to be lead or guided I hope you can find someone to lead guide and walk beside. :)

No time left!!!! I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!

LOVE YOU ALL!!!

Sister Morton

April 2, 2012

April 2, 2012

Kumusta po Kayo?!?

SO... The big news of the week... I'm not going to transfer day on friday! It will be the first time I won't be there since I have been in the field. Ha ha... It's sad because all the elders from my batch in the MTC will be there, but other than that I am excited to be staying with a companion for longer than six weeks :) and I will be getting another soon enough anyways because I will be "killing" Sister Rombaoa in 5 weeks. Ha ha yup my second "kill" is just 5 months. I'll be sad when she goes home.

Other than not really having news about being transfered, I really don't have any news.

It has been super rainy still. I found out that it is going to be a wet summer because of la nina or something, which means it won't be as hot this year, but I will be leaving more palda puddles :)

What else.... I swear I was just writing this email last week so it doesn't seem like anything has happened.

One awesome thing about this week- We started to teach Nolasco's (The old man we baptized last month) wife. She hasn't wanted to listen to us at all because of her catholic tradition but she let us teach her once, so we taught about eternal marriage and she has since started reading! I am so excited because Nolasco is so excited to go to the temple and he doesn't want to have to do it alone. So I am hoping and praying that she will continue to let the Spirit work.

Other coolness- Elder Tyler Haws (he's a BYU basketball player, who is serving in quezon city) came to san pablo to do a fireside last night. Our stake has been making a big effort to get the youth excited about serving missions and it was really good.

I'm outta time now so until next week.... Hopefully I will be able to send some photos later today :)

LOVE YOU ALL!!!!

Sister Morton

March 26, 2012

Kumusta po kayo?!?

SO... remember how a week of two ago I said it was the beginning of summer here and was SO HOT? well I spoke too soon. On Saturday we were sitting in a lesson and I heard thunder- for the first time since I have been here. Now it has rained before, and quite hard my first couple of weeks here, BUT I learned that thunder means it's a REAL storm! OH MY GOODNESS!!! I have NEVER seen rain like I saw on Sat. and of course it was one of the few days I chose NOT to bring my umbrella. HA! I'm really bad at following promptings.... so needless to say I was soaking wet for the rest of the day and I would leave a puddle wherever I went. Luckily we usually just teach on covered pouches or on concrete floors :) It has been cold for the past few days.... no joke. I even slept in my fleece jacket the other night cause the sheet just wasn't cutting it. ha ha. I still love it here though and all the rain has washed most the trash away so that has been nice :)

On a more spiritual note... a real quick one since I only have 4 minutes. This week I realized how even though each one of us has very different things going on in our lives we all have trials. We all have something that is trying to bring us down and something that is there that will make us stronger if we face it with the right attitude and know that the purpose of our trials is to make us stronger, better people. I'm grateful for this experience AND I'm so grateful for all of you!!!

MAHAL NA MAHAL KO KAYO LAHAT!!!!

Sister Morton