Hello po!!!

Hello po family and friends! Aye badaw! Pagod na pagod ako talaga! Pero iyoslang iyan kase WE WON THE ZONE ACTIVITY AGAIN! Lol I don’t know if you all realize what a big deal this is pero ….. it is! Lol it was awesome! We went to a resort in Matnog that has a bunch of really pretty hot springs, and like legit vines with HUGE trees. They were ancient and it created a really cool atmosphere. We played games and took a lot of pretty pictures and then President Guanzon took us our for lunch! It was great the food was SOO GOOD. I had so much fun this morning! I can’t even tell you! I laughed so hard and just enjoyed myself. It was awesome!

Aside from that we have had a very successful week! I will start with a family of investigators that we have been teaching since my second week here. I have mentioned them before, the Corres family? Okay well in the past 3 weeks or so they have progressed SO MUCH! Seriously I have been blessed with the chance to be able to see the spirit literally working through them and it has literally been SO BEAUTIFUL to witness. We taught them on Wednesday and during our lesson I asked Tatay Lando "why it is important for us to exercise trust in God?" His answer to me literally brought tears to my eyes. He told me that before we started teaching their family, he felt pretty sad most of the time. And it was difficult for him to feel hope. He lived life but he didn't feel like it meant anything. And then he said that when we started visiting them and teaching them, he noticed a change in his life. He started to feel real joy and happiness in his heart, and he saw what a difference it made to his family. He also said that he KNOWS without a doubt that he will be even more happy after he gets baptized. Seriously after hearing those words I felt so much joy and peace in my heart. I wish I could describe to you in words what those things felt like and how they mean to me pero I cannot! The change that I have seen within their family is a miracle. It truly is. I am astonished and amazed at how they changed once they truly FELT the truth. In my first transfer Tatay liked us well enough pero whenever we would go around he would leave and basically just avoid us all together. Lol but now even tho he can't read, he stays up until midnight with his wife listening to her read him the Book of Mormon. And even tho he is ashamed that he doesn't have any shoes to work, he prepares his clothes and anything that he will need on Sunday the day before. His wife Nanay Inggai bore her testimony this past fast Sunday and honestly it was one of the most beautiful experiences I have had on my mission so far. She was so incredibly nervous but I kept pushing and seriously when she actually got up there I had tears in my eyes. Her testimony was so simple and beautiful and I know that this is the reason it was so POWERFUL. I felt God's love for His children when she was speaking and it really touched my heart! I wish I had time to tell you all the things that I see and experience on a daily basis! Pero I hope that you can feel the weight and truth of what I am trying to convey through these emails. 

Brothers and sisters I want to testify to you that the Lord truly IS hastening his work. And that it is a blessing and a privelege to be apart of it! Mission's and the experiences that we gain here are PRICELESS and their worth truly cannot be measured. I have seen the testimonies of those we teach grow in a way that is remarkable to me. I have also seen my own testimony grow and progress in a way I never thought it would. I have seen how truly great and matchless God's love is for His children and I have seen how rewarding it is when we submit ourselves to His will. My heart is FULL and my happiness in this Gospel continues to grow more and more every day. I promise you that THIS Gospel is real and when you allow Heavenly Father to guide and direct you, He will give you things that you never knew you needed and He will give you things you never knew you deserved. In Mosiah 6:15 it says, "Therefore, I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable always abounding in good works that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heave, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life, through the wisdom, and power, and justice and mercy of him who created all things, in heave and in earth, who is God above all men." I love this verse! And I love the promises that are in it. Never forget that God literally IS our father and like every loving and caring parent He desires to bless us with EVERYTHING that we stand in need of. He is wise and he is preparing us to become better. When we pray to him let us remember how important it is to be humble and meek and to always be willing to submit ourselves to His will. I know that when our expectation exceeds our belief we are holding ourselves back from blessings and knowledge that is rightfully ours. I have SO MUCH to learn as a missionary and also as a child of God pero I know with out a doubt that if I continue to try every day to do what is right and if I sacrifice more of myself to become the person I KNOW he needs me to be one day I will be able to say that it was all worth it. And I know that that "one day" will come sooner than we think. 

I love this work and this Gospel and I can't even begin to express to you the joy and love I have for these people. I KNOW that what I am doing is right and the power that comes with knowing that you are exactly where you need to be and that exact time is not something that I would give up. 

I love you all so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Talk to you again next week! Stay safe and have faith in the things that you know to be true!

Love you ALWAYS!

Sister Fonua