7-25-11

Hey everybody!

I hope everyone';s doing good, over here it's just another week in the office, not a ton of stuff to report.

I come to the office, do stuff, go to work at 6, come home and eat. We have been doing this like karate stretching every night its pretty legit. Elder Biado, my companion took karate forever and teaches us all this crazy stuff.  It's fun.

There's been a lot of moves. with 32 missionaries coming in next month we have to find places for them to sleep. So tons of people are looking for apartments, including us in our area. On Tuesday we helped move some sisters into their new house. Their old house is way big but really hard to get to and it was rough tryng to get the truck up in there.  Me and Elder Biado did everything because of course they're sister missionaries, haha.

On friday we had our monthly office meeting, we all meet at the mission home (office elders, AP's, office couples) and talk about the upcoming month.  It went really smooth, faster than usual, they say.  Transfers are going to be pretty crazy, lots of new stuff is happening.  Sister Christensen who's in charge of apartments with her husband, is so funny. She was cracking jokes the whole time, me and Elder Haws were rolling, haha.  She kinda reminds me of mom, just some of the stuff she says haha

On Saturday, our P-day, we went bowling with president and his wife and son Ben.  Ben is almost 16 and just got back from Utah for the summer.  He's a funny kid and I'm so glad he's here though, a funny kid that livens stuff up a bit haha.  Ya and the bowling we went to? Total Filipino style, a ball that's like a shotput ball but lighter with lttle pins that they put up by hand every time.  It was pretty fun, we all had terrible scores aha.  Then the best part of Saturday was our baptism. Ian De Los Rios got baptized, the little 9 year old.  He's so smart and so funny.  We asked him and his little brother who was the most handsome out of the two of them and Ian covered his face all shy and said "Me". hahah it was so funny.  He reminds me so much of Noah except he speaks Tagalog haha. And president came to the baptism and said a little something about enduring to the end. Elder Biado baptized him and after Ian bore his testimony, well sort of, he went up to the front, stared straight at the ground and thanked everyone and us for teaching him.  His dad came though, his dad and mom and oldest sister live in Pasig and are always working but his dad got the day off so that was awesome.  Really nice guy and now its a completed family.

The work is definately the best part, at the same time it kinda sucks cuz we just have no time.  People come up to us in church and are like "did you contact that referral we gave you" and we have to say no because we didn't have time.  In any other area you would contact a referral right away but we just don't have time, plus we have to look for an apartment, takes more of our time because it's kind of high priority.

Anyway life is good here.  I may sound like I hate the office but its pretty fun.  I get to see the other missionaries regularly and help them with their problems as little as they are sometimes. Life's been not too crazy lately, but we have zone conferences and trainings coming up, then transfers.  So it'll start to pick up soon. Time definitely goes even faster in the office.  Transfers almost half over!  Crazy stuff.  It's weird being in the office at times though, almost forget you're a missionary because you are not always doing "missionary" things, almost like I'm taking a break to work in an office before I go back to my mission..  Any spiritual insights, thoughts, anything I'll take it from any of you.  I need it because sometimes I feel pretty spiritually starved. Something I loved though from the July's Liahona is the article about the forest fire fighters? I don't know if you've read that but I loved it.  It definitely is inspiring me how guidance, help and even comfort are just around the corner if we'll just act in faith and do what we're supposed to know.  I need that for sure.

Anyway love you all. Thanks for the support. I'm a spoiled kid for sure, thanks for the love and prayers.  I hope all is well and you are all in my prayers.

The church is true and this work is where we all need to be in whatever way we can.

Got to go to new.familysearch.org in our gospel principles class (yes we use computers in our Sunday school class sometimes, Quezon City 2nd ward is an American ward I swear) and it was way cool. Our families got a lot of work to do, something I'm going to try when I go back home. Pretty cool stuff.

Anyways love you all and hope the family reunion goes well!

 

love

Elder Stover

 

7-18-11

Hey Everybody!

 

Ok well one thing about the office is... these letters won't be really that long I don't think, not a ton to write about. I mean if you want to hear about all the headaches I get and mistakes on baptismal records, I could tell you, but I'm sure everyone else gets enough of that kinda stuff in their own job. haha  So I'll try to not talk about that too much. It's kind of how the office feels like sometimes, like I work in an office.  Then 6pm rolls around and I remember I'm a missionary and I get to go teach the gospel for a couple hours haha.

 

But this week has been a good.  The week started really pretty crazy. Elder Haws didn't get his license until Thursday, then got a ticket on Friday (he was coding which means once a week you can't drive that car to prevent traffic and such. So he just got it back today. So, as president calls me, Elder Chaufer in his letter this week. I don't know if I can express how much I dislike driving, especially in crazy Cubao and Quezon city, its the worst.  People cut you off all the time.  It got so bad on Thursday that this guy wouldn't let me in and man I got mad. Elder Biado had to calm me down a bit.  It takes avoiding road rage to a whole new level.  The guy yelled at me for not using a signal, I was like nobody uses a signal! haha  Oh man fun stuff.  Oh ya and I got in an accident on Tues!   I forgot about that, it seems like so long ago, haha oh man.  I was backing out of a store onto the road and some Lancer came out of nowhere to do a U turn (in the right lane).  It was the tiniest dent but they were freaking out.  I gave them money cuz that's what other office elders told me to do but they wanted to go to the insurance and do it the right way (imagine that).  Anyways no worries now, all taken care of and president wasn't mad. He said if I didn't have an accident here in the office then something would probably be wrong with me.

 

We've been playing basketball most every morning and it's been pretty fun.  Elder Haws is pretty good and he doesn't try very hard. haha.  He's such a humble guy, man hes cool. I like the guy a lot, we relate on a lot of stuff.  He likes a clean house like me, which is good cuz the house was disgusting, all these going home elders and  former AP's that left a ton of stuff and never cleaned.  So on Saturday we took care of that and it was good, we got it looking really nice.

 

The work is fun.  We've been getting some good referrals because its such a cool ward.  The only problem is we're moving to the AP's ward next transfer and us 4 will share it.  So in a way I'm sort of getting transferred, to a new ward.( 5th area in 7 transfers =P)  The elders coming in to Quezon City 2nd ward are going to be lucky because there's a ton of work to do, we just don't have time to do it all.

We have a baptism this week, Ian DeLos Reyes. He's 9 and it's a completed family.  He's such a smart kid, listens really good.  He reminds me so much of Noah that its funny. He's shy and looks a lot like Noah.  He knows everything so we're just getting him ready for Saturday. He's got this little, loud, center of attention sister (like Haidyn) funny tho.

 

Oh I got to study my scriptures this week which was so needed, I was about to go crazy.  It's like me and Elder Haws were talking about, I hope I've at least learned that lesson on my mission, that I need the scriptures, everyday and as much as possible.  You feel like a different person when you don't have them, it's kind of rough really.  I feel kind of lost and it's kind of hard to explain. I read the talk by L Tom Perry about the Sabbath Day and the Sacrament.  If you haven't had a chance, read it. its really good.  I loved it and it built my testimony.  It is definitely something I got to work on when I get home for sure, keep the sabbath day and keep my Savior on my mind the whole day.  It is pretty easy to get distracted on Sundays sometimes.

 

We taught this less active kid this week, his brother's wife is our investigator.  Him and his brother were baptized as kids but haven't gone to church in a long time. We taught him and it went good. He's 17 and was asking all these questions about missionaries and how to apply and stuff which is so cool.  The only problem is he has a kid and well ya, hard to tell the kid that he cant go on a mission. We told him he could come work with us tho if he wanted. It's too bad you know?  As much as we can repent, we still can't fix those outcomes from the mistakes we make.  We can only move forward and improve on those mistakes, we can't go back and delete the old ones. It's kind of hard but then again that's what agency is all about.  It's the toughest and yet most beautiful principle in all of the Gospel, all of the world.

I know this church is true. I know its the "right one" for everyone, but not everyone will know unless they use a little faith and find out how many blessings are there and they all depend on us.  I hope we never hold back any effort on our part to be blessed because those blessings are ours for the taking, they really are,

 

I love you all, hope all is well.  I'll be here, in the office, stressing and yet still loving it.  A different day, different challenges kind of like real life.

 

love

Elder Stover

7-11-11

hey everybody!!

On Sunday president called, last Sunday the 3rd. We just had our district conference that was awesome. We had an area authority come that was awesome. He gave a great talk about tithing and sacrifice, how as we show God we love Him thru obedience he will always show us he loves us more. It was a really cool talk, a cool story about their daughter going to college. Anyways then after the Zone Leader's and Sister Delamare came with us to drive us back to our areas. Me and Elder Vargas got home, had a good lunch and then president called. Ya he wanted to talk to me.  I really didn't think too much of it at first, until he asked if I was sitting down. haha yep I'm the new office elder, or mission secretary. I was pretty shocked. He told me how Elder Nelson, the last one, thought I would be a good replacement (he didn't really, president just makes stories like that sometimes) He asked how I felt about that and I was silent for a good 20 seconds. Not only was office secretary the farthest thing from my mind (District Leader, trainer, everything was before that in my mind) but I have never wanted to be an office elder, sitting on a desk typing up spreadsheets? Ya not my idea of fun especially when I could be out teaching and doing missionary work. Oh man I was shocked, but eventually I got over it. We went out and started to work, well mostly just seeing people and to say good bye and take pictures with them.  Then some stuff happened, Brother Jovan, he always works with us and is getting his papers ready for his mission, he thought we were joking and then when he figured out we were serious he started to cry!!  I was touched a lot because it was kind of unexpected. I thought he was closer with Elder Vargas. It kind of hit me in the heart and made it that much harder to leave. Coming into that weekend I was wanting another transfer. I guess that's how it works out. Then later on, the Varona family, a family that I never knew cared about me at all, never wanted to listen, always busy (a less active family) told us to come over and share. So we did.  I said the opening prayer and it was hard. I got a little choked up just praying for these people and the whole branch. I've met pretty much every member in the branch and it was just hard. I love those people so much, I've put in so much thought, worry, frustration and effort into that branch.  I guess that is when you really love the people, when you've given them your all. Maybe that's how Christ feels, he's given so much to us and its because of that, not the love we have for him, that he loves us perfectly because he gave his perfect love to all of us. It's amazing how much you find out how important you are to people once you leave. I also learned why you usually only have one night to say good bye not 2 days like me.


Tuesday I flew up with the Zone Leaders who had Zone leader counsel that day and got with Elder Nelson and went to go get my license. Ya yep I've been driving. My comp is Elder Biado the financial secretary and we live with the Assistants to the President, Elder Agner (a filipino) and Elder Haws. Elder Haws was called the same time as me. He plays ball for BYU, hes way good, just look up Tyler Haws, he's the man, so humble too. But he cant get his license til later this week so I've been driving us all around the past week, it kinda sucks a lot.
 Ya anyways so even tho I'm in the office we still get to teach, thank goodness. If not I'd go crazy. Our ward is Quezon City 2nd and our chapel is the 2nd chapel built in the Philippines, pretty cool huh?  Totally opposite of Rizal in about every single way haha. No more walking (like at all), real strong ward with good ward missionaries (Return Missionaries) just way different.  We're teaching this kid, Ian he's cool, 9 years old, just a cute kid, real smart, a little shy, a little chubby, kind of reminds me a lot of Noah.  They've had some good baptisms lately too, I'm real excited.  Just thinking about the work over there gets me excited and thinking about the work at the office gets me stressed. Oh man the baptismal records are the worst. If you misplace one they gotta get baptized over again. I do referrals and a bunch of random stuff too.

Now that I have my license tho it'll be really nice if you guys come pick me up.  I still got to talk to president about it but its a long ways off so I wont worry about it haha

Anyways life is crazy, so different from the laid back life in Mindoro. I'm just trying to find time to read my scriptures and write in my journal. oh and sleep that would be cool too haha.  I've been lost a few times as I'm still learning this city, my first area on this side of the mission.

Anyway I love you all, thanks for the support, the letters, emails, prayers, everything.

Elder Stover

6-27-11

hey everybody

This week has been a challenging one here in Rizal, Mindoro, Philippines.   Oh man this area is so much different from the rest of our mission, my old areas.  Those other ones are just so much easier, not easier just maybe lighter is a way to put it.  Here you are responsible for your investigators (the few that they are), every less active and every member.  Sometimes I just think about what would happen to these branches, this district if there were no missionaries.  This is a good place for missionaries if you want to feel needed. Lately the feeling of being unwanted sounds like a great one haha, a heck of a lot less to stress about.

The week didn't start out bad or hard.  On Tuesday we went out to see a less active family on the other side of the river.  There's a bamboo bridge to cross but when it rains a lot it floods. That picture I sent with my shoes and socks off? ya that's the place, but twice as deep.  There were these two kids that were waiting for their mom to come and get them to take them across and home.  We offered to have them jump on our backs.  One of them wanted to and got on Vargas's back, the other didn't want to.  Scared of big white guy with blonde hair and blue eyes. It's a  good thing though, cuz I slipped at one point and fell in! haha not totally but I pretty much sat down. My bag got all soaked and my scriptures.  They're all usable just a little jacked up. It's all good could have been worse, good for a good laugh, especially for these little girls behind me lol

Oh ya.  On Sunday our electricity died, bad connection close to the meter and it kinda sparked.  We reported it to the office here last Monday but nobody came so that on Wednesday night we got picked up by the Zone Leaders, spent the night with them and then in the morning got it worked out so that on Thursday afternoon we got it fixed finally.  Good thing its the rainy season  cuz if it was the hot season I would have died without a fan for 4 days. iIt's been an interesting couple of days, not the best but we survived.  Lots of people don't have electricity around here so I grew my empathy a little bit I guess.

Our other investigators, the Mattheo kids are doing great.  We had our scripture Fair for the youth in San Jose and they went and started taking seminary too (its every Saturday morning here).  The only problem is their parents wont let them be baptized, they say they've already been baptized (as babies).  It's all good with them for them to be taught and to go to church but not be baptized. Ok, so about the scripture fair, it was fun.  We had some games and they divided into groups. My expectations were a bit high but it was still pretty good. I know they had fun and learned something.

Then yesterday, ya we tried to make a branch mission plan.  We didn't finish but we had some decent ideas we'll build off in the coming Sundays.   Hopefully people will start to stay positive.  I feel like I'm in this big bubble of negativity, a whole bunch of problem finders when what the Lord needs are answer finders.  I think that's what it is.  Everyone here just talks about how hard their life is, the members talk about how hard it is to share the gospel, the leaders talk about how hard it is to organize stuff, its just this constant negativity and its driving me crazy.  It entered my head at least like 20 times this weekend, "i want out".  This place is wearing on me, not cuz we have few investigators, few lessons, low numbers,it's just this constant weight of negativity on our two shoulders constantly.  I'm just grateful for Elder Vargas.  We don't agree on everything, sometimes he's a big negative (but then again so am I) but he has good decisiveness that helps me out.

I just have to work my hardest, put my all into it and know the reward for that effort will come, maybe not now, maybe not in this life.  I just have to do all I can and help others to put in their all too.  Agency man, it's a tough principle to truly understand.  It's hard to feel successful sometimes though.

But I love what Elder Arthur shared in our district meeting this morning, the biggest mistake people make in this life: failing to recognize the spirit.  Everything, every sin, mistake and downfall all have that as it's root.  If we will learn to always recognize the Spirit we will always be successful. Why? Because we will always do the will of the Lord. He will never allow us to fail if we will only listen and accept His guidance.  Amazing how that works isnt it?
I'm just gonna try harder to do the will of the Lord, to do my purpose here and know that that is enough for that is all that is expected of me.

Love you all!  Thanks for everything.  Choose the right, amazing how much easier life is when we make right decisions.  Don't fail to look for the "easiness of the way", trials are gonna come no matter what, but if we choose the right, follow the will of the Lord, we will always succeed in the end.  "The way is prepared, and if we will look we may live forever". He Knows the Way, because He is the Way.
Love,
Elder Stover

6-13-11

Ok where to start for this week.
   Well its been a kind of a tough week.  The area is still hard, and this transfer isn't as fun without Elder Hand. Elder Vargas is alright but I enjoyed last transfer despite the disappointments. This week they kind of weighed me down a bit and come Saturday it was pretty hard.
    On Tuesday we got a new referral, a guy named Rey Sabino. He's quiet but really a nice guy, 20 plus.  He wants us to teach him there at his friends house or at his uncles house cuz his parents are against it and he just wants to avoid any problems, I guess. We tried to go back on Saturday but he wasn't there. Then leaving there on Tuesday we got soaked.  It had been sunny and hot then started pouring and we got soaked, that's when we started bringing our umbrellas everyday, mine is a cheap one and is already kinda broken haha.  It's crazy how fast the weather can change here.  After church on Sunday it was really hot, I was sweating like crazy.  Then a few hours later it started raining, clouds move in from the mountains and bam.  It makes work exciting right? haha
   We've been teaching these kids, nieces and nephews of a member, kind of a weird situation.  The member family lives in San Jose but travels every Sunday to come to church here in Rizal.  The kids stay at the house with their parents and go to school but their parents are never there or are busy so we've only taught the children.  They are smart kids, even if a little shy. They are our tender mercy right now.  They come to church, are always there, listen, and are smart. I love teaching kids it just reminds you how simple this Gospel really is and how easy it is to understand it.  It's us, the people, that make it complicated and complex.  I was feeling that way on Wednesday til we went and taught them last.  It was cool, definitely brightened up my day, made up for the rest of the day.
    On Thursday we taught this less-active family about scripture reading in the Book of Mormon.  The husband is the Elders quorum president.  That lesson, oh man, he brought up the religious group that said that the world would end on May 21.  I don't know if you heard about that over there but here it was talked about.  He said they said it in Peter somewhere.   I asked him if he'd read that in the Bible, of course he hadn't.   Nope, he just believed what some crazy religious group wrote on a paper.  So that is the people here, even the members, heaven forbid we look in the Bible to find out for ourselves, that would be too hard and they're too busy.   Oh man I was practically steaming after that lesson, not happy at all.   We tried to commit them to read a little every day and they said maybe, if they have time.   Man oh man, people amaze me sometimes.
          Just so you all know, I know this is God's church.  No other church or organization or religion or anything can produce these feelings and give me this joy and help if it wasn't from God.  I can't tell you how bad we all need to go to church every Sunday.  It's not just to boost attendence and all that, meet a baptismal date, but for ourselves and our spiritual power.  I don't know how many times I've taught with the example of our "spiritual battery" and how come Saturday, its running low.   So true, don't forget it!  We need that charge or we can't function.
   This work is great, it's hard and challenging but its great.  It's when it's hard that you notice all your weaknesses and when you notice all your weaknesses you can fix them.  A
scripture for all of you: Ether 12:4, if we have faith, we have hope.  Just remember your hope and you'll keep the faith.  It's cool how that works, no?

I love you all and thanks for everything you do.
Elder Stover

6-6-11

hey everybody!

This week has gone pretty well. My first full week with the new comp, Elder Vargas. President Delamare said for me to help Elder Vargas have fun but thinking back I think he has more fun than me haha.  I'm like the old boring serious guy. haha.   Not really, but he's good at getting/forcing the youth to work with us.  We had more people work with us this week than all of last transfer, everyday but Friday and Saturday. He's a good missionary, very good at teaching. We have gotten used to each other in our teaching and its flowed pretty well. I don't know if the language is getting better, I kinda feel like I suck at the language this week more than usual.  I think just cuz I use it more and see my mistakes a little bit more often, but it's nice cuz it lets me fix them more. It's not as easy to have a companion that doesn't really relate to you all that well, but new challenges bring new blessings and I could use new blessings haha

The work has progressed pretty well. We got the most lessons since I've been here so that was good. With all of our less actives we've been focusing totally on the Book of Mormon.  We have a bunch of reading charts and have been talking about the importance of the Book of Mormon for all of us, and how much better and stronger our lives will be if we will all read at least a chapter a day.   We've read with them (I've read the introduction in Tagalog 10 times. I can practically recite it from memory) and 1 Nephi 1. vs 12 of 1 Nephi is awesome, perfect promised blessing.  If we will read, we will be filled with the Holy Ghost.  Scriptures say it better than any one or anything else can. It's been nice and I feel it's centered our lessons and work.  We as a companionship have been reading it every day (in Tagalog) and I've been reading at least a chapter every night before bed. So much to learn oh man, definitely a reason all the prophets counsel us to read it, a reason its the Book of Mormon and not the bible. Just read the introduction if you want to know why, or better yet just start reading it every day and you'll see in your own life why.

As far as investigators go the work has gotten better as well. A recent convert from last year sister Ching Magbanua's daughters all moved in with her and we've been teaching them. Mostly the oldest, Herlinda whos 22 with a 1 year old son and a husband that works in San Jose. She's way good, very smart, the best part is shes a great listener and is interested. Everything went well until on Friday when we tried to commit her to baptism.  That is when her concern came out.  Her mom, sister Ching hasn't been doing the best things lately, I guess. Her husband, Herlinda's dad, was strangled to death 4 years ago and ever since sister has had to hanap ang buhay, or get money. haha I don't know how to explain it in English. So Herlinda says she'll be baptized if her mom changes. She says that's how she'll know the Gospel is true and what she needs to do. I talked about how even when we're in the church we don't always do the best things because even with the Gospel people aren't perfect. It was hard and Elder Vargas taught about being an example to her mother and doing what she needs to do for herself. She hasn't received an answer to her prayers yet and as I've thought about it, its cuz her heart isn't all the way open cuz shes shut her heart to acting on her answer (being baptized). Oh the joys and sorrows of being a missionary aha
It's been a great week. The work is getting better and I already know I'll grow a lot this transfer. Vargas will test a different kind of patience in me, but in a good way. I think he's here as much for me as I am here for him.


Anyways cool scripture to share as I was studying about patience this week (funny how the Christ Like Attribute you focus on is the hardest for the week) 2 Corinthians 6:10. I think this verse summarizes a Christ like life and as Christ's servant, we have all we need.

learn it, live it and love it

love
Elder Stover