How is your week?? First off I just want to apologize for my grammar really quick if it comes off scrambled or confusing haha. In Tagalog, the grammar structure is a bit different...for example if I want to say "The day was so beautiful", it would be "Sobrang magandang araw na ito"... or something like that. So if we translated that to English, it sounds like this: "So beautiful day now." Just switched haha, and so sorry if my English is getting worse...I never thought this would happen to me!
Anyways...this week went by fast again!! It's been so good:) In a lot of my emails I write about the testimony I've gained that Heavenly Father is mindful of ME and MY worries, but something else that I've really been able to see if how much He loves and is mindful of all of His children. There's one scripture, Alma 26:37 that says:
Now my brethren, we see that God is mindful of every people , whatsoever land they may be in; yea, he numbereth his people, and his bowels of mercy are over all the earth. Now this is my joy, and my great thanksgiving; yea, and I will give thanks unto my God forever. Amen.
Before, I would share that scripture in lessons, but wouldn't really pay attention to it, but now I really know that that is true, and it's been something that's brought me to my knees several times in gratitude this week, as I've prayed and just thanked Heavenly Father for watching out for His children. Here are just a few instances that help me know that INDIVIDUALS MATTER TO HIM and that every one of our souls is precious to Him. There are no lost causes or too far wayward of souls. Even for those that don't even know there is a God, He is in the details:)
1) There's a family in our ward who the husband is Australian and his wife is Filipino. His adult son, Jeff, who's 22, moved here to the Philippines again from Australia about a month and a half ago. We had FHE with them and they told us about their conversion story. Brother Van (the dad), said that when the missionaries found him, they had been tracting all day with no success. But they felt like they should just keep going until the end of the street. That last house was Brother Van and Brother Van said that he didn't know why, but he felt that what the missionaries were teaching was true. All because two elders kept going until that last house. And then with his son Jeff, Jeff was baptized a long time ago but went in active for about 8 years. When he came back to the Philippines a month ago, he was outside the house smoking when he felt that someone was watching him. He threw his cigarette away and just like that hasn't had a desire to smoke again since. He's come to church every week since then and reads the Book of Mormon, the New Testament, biographies of the prophets, the gospel principles book and more every day and just yesterday he got his patriarchal blessing. Now his goal is to go to the temple and he is just filled with the spirit. As missionaries, we had nothing to do with it...it was all the spirit and again, it reminds me of the story of the parable of the lost sheep. Each one of God's children is special enough for Him to go and rescue THE ONE. He loves us all and knows that we will be happy because of the gospel.
2) There's another couple in our ward, Kit and Abi. Kit served a mission, but has gone inactive for a long time since and his wife, Abi isn't a member. But about a month ago, they came to church for the first time together. Kit was welcomed right back into the ward and his testimony and his insights in classes and everything are just awesome. We went and taught Abi the first lesson this week and I extended a baptism date for her. While Sister Caoile was talking, I was trying to discern what day her baptism should be. We had planned in May, but Abi's so good and prepared that really she could be baptized earlier. But I felt that we should just keep with May 23, even though it was a little late. When I extended that invitation, she accepted it but then Kit got a little emotional and said that May 21 was the day that HIS family had been baptized when he was younger and so that time was really special to him. So see? I don't know everything and I don't know what other people need, but God does. It's just up to us to follow the spirit so we can be instruments in blessings their lives:)
I could go on and on, but there's no time and really there's no way I could express my gratitude for the blessing it is to be on a mission and to see the Lord's hands in the lives of all His children. Because of Easter, the church produced a video called "Because He Lives." In it, one of the lines really stood out to me, that there are "no lost causes." No matter who we are, what we've done, what sins we've committed, or even if we don't want God anymore, He still wants YOU. He loves us and will not stop blessing us:)
My invitation to all you today is to share the video "Because He Lives", with at least one person and to really think about the blessings in your life because He lives:)
http://www.mormon.org/easter
I love you all and I'm so grateful for all of you. Never forget that God is close by, it just depends on us if we'll choose to see Him or not.
Love you!!
Sister Allen
P.S. I'll try to remember and write more about the Easter celebrations here in Angeles City next week!