Week 23

NOTE:

Sister Ventura's email didn't go through this week, which may be a result of the not-so-awesome internet connection that her area experiences. However, she was successful in sending all her pictures for this week. Enjoy!

[One of the members birthday celebration!]

[Foggy in the Philippines]

[How we shower with warm water haha]

[Salamat gid para Brother and Sister Apao for sending this package to me! 😃]

[My first district lunch! we had pochero (nilaga)]

[We ate at this cute cafe when we went to Iloilo 😊]

[Cuties!]

--

Send me an e-mail: 

elza.ventura@myldsmail.net 

Written letters and packages: 

Sister Elza Ventura 

Philippines Iloilo Mission 

Osmeña Street, 

Arevalo, Iloilo City, 

5000 Iloilo 

Philippines

*Some names have been changed or omitted to protect the privacy of individuals.

Week 22: Why life is not easy

*Note: URL Links to scriptures and related material are enabled.

Maayong Hapon everyone! 

[Adventures of Sister Ventura]

[Many pictures to follow below!] Just one highlight I would like to share is what I learned on Sunday. We had Ward Conference, so [every Sunday], [there are] people from the Stake [that] come to speak to us and check up [on how our ward is doing here in my area]. The 2nd speaker during our sacrament meeting was just amazing. He shared that "life isn't easy, but if we feel it is difficult, we are on the right track." I pondered on that and realized how it is so true. The whole reason why we are here on earth is constantly learn and progress, not to stay idle and coast through life. Heavenly Father sent us here to earth because He wants us to learn para so kaugalingon (ourselves) how to choose between right and wrong. May kahilwayan sa pagpili kita (we have agency), one of the most amazing gifts Heavenly Father has given to us. Why life isn't easy isn't because Heavenly Father wants us to feel miserable, but because He wants us to have the bad days so we can know what the good days feel like! Just like it says in 2 Nephi 2:11: "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my firstborn in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility." Even when we feel like things aren't going our way, always remember if we're doing the right thing, we really are on the right track! Everything is of a wise purpose that only Heavenly Father knows and has in store for us. I know that life isn't meant to be easy, but it is worth it!

I hope I was able to help someone out today with this e-mail today!

Halong kamo pirme,
Sister Ventura

[Our face when we're punted. All we want to do is to share a message about how one can be rich... in blessings! Haha]

[Selfie because why not]

[I love her so much 🙂]

[Shortcuts 😀]

[When you are limited on kitchen ware 😆]

[Butterfly in Ilonggo = ALIBANGBANG haha]

[A City sign 🙂]

[When the timer of your camera doesn't cooperate, haha!]

[Ward Conference!]

--

Send me an e-mail: 

elza.ventura@myldsmail.net 

Written letters and packages: 

Sister Elza Ventura 

Philippines Iloilo Mission 

Osmeña Street, 

Arevalo, Iloilo City, 

5000 Iloilo 

Philippines

*Some names have been changed or omitted to protect the privacy of individuals.

Week 21: Attack of the fever

Maayong hapon everyone!

[Flags set up for Philippines Independence day 😀]

I don't have too much time this week to write so just some updates (MANY pictures to follow):

Transfers happened this past week and Sister Reyes didn't transfer, we are both here [in our area again]! We got a new companionship in our area too and they are Sisters! One of them is my ka-batch (*started in Iloilo at the same time)! So it's official that ako ang (I am the) last companion ni Sister Reyes 🙂

Also this week, the STL's (Sister Training Leaders) tell us we're getting an early Christmas present: MICROWAVES AND WASHING MACHINES IN EACH APARTMENT. So yes if you guys didn't know I've been living without a microwave, haha. So if we made food we would either need to eat it all or put it in the fridge and reheat using the stove. I'm also so excited to get washing machines! No hand-washing now. 😯

This past week, nahilignat ako (I got a fever). I honestly didn't know how warm I was because they use Celcius here and so when I checked my temperature I was 37.9. Later on I found out that amo na is equivalent to 100.22 degrees Fahrenheit! I slept most of the time so I can regain my energy again. Being sick sucks, but I look forward sa sunod nga mga semena (to the following weeks) to continue our work [in our area]!

We weren't able to do too much work this week but next week will definitely be better because I will be healthy!

Hope all of you are doing well! Check out all the pictures below!

Halong kamo,
Sister Ventura

Photos:

[The thermometer is my best friend when I'm sick 🙂]

[TRANSFER DAY (Sister Reyes and I didn't transfer, meaning I'm her last companion!)]

[Random, haha!]

🙂

[I ate this thing called Balengyoy. It was pretty good, gali!]

[Kasweet sa ila 🙂 (They're so sweet)]

[Made fried oreos!]

[Guapa 😀]

[Choir practicing for Ward Conference Next Sunday]

[Ice always comes in a bag 🙂]

[This is how we do itttttttt in the Philippines 😀]

[I found this so funny - it's a big pineapple that's a CR (Made me think of one of my cousins)]

--

Send me an e-mail: 

elza.ventura@myldsmail.net 

Written letters and packages: 

Sister Elza Ventura 

Philippines Iloilo Mission 

Osmeña Street, 

Arevalo, Iloilo City, 

5000 Iloilo 

Philippines

*Some names have been changed or omitted to protect the privacy of individuals.

Week 20: Doing the best that I can

*Note: URL Links to scriptures and related material are enabled.

Maayong Hapon kamo tanan! 

We had a city-wide brown out for a couple hours so amo na nga I e-mailed later than usual. 😁

[Dynamic Duo]

Not too much happened this week and I didn't take that many pictures either - pasensya gid (so sorry) everyone! I'd just like to share a really spiritual experience that I had, and actually it didn't happen all at once, pero I saw how it developed over time. So we have one member here at our ward, she's around my age and when I first met her, she was struggling to know for herself if our church was true. She was actually planning on converting to a different religion, but she decided to do what she can to know the truth. So last month she decided to start joining us in going to lessons for investigators. Over this past month and currently as well, I was able to see how she learned that she did have a testimony all along, and not only that, but her testimony has grown so much! I saw how she sincerely answered questions that investigators had from her heart. Since she was on vacation she came with us at least twice a week to teach lessons, and sometimes even four times a week! Maskin I saw her growth, I was wondering if she saw her growth para sa kaugalingon niya (for herself). I found my answer yesterday as she bore her testimony if front of the entire church congregation. She went up and first thanked Sister Reyes and I for the missionary work we do [in our ward]. And at the end she said through going to work with the missionaries, I really know, for myself, that this is the true church. It was so simple yet so meaningful for me. She thanked us, pero I know that it was in her this whole time! These past few weeks I've talked about how I see the growth of my investigators, but what I am doing is so much more than that. My purpose is to strengthen all those around me by inviting them to come closer kay Jesucristo. I also know that even though I wasn't able to see the results of my work right away, I have learned how to be patient in waiting to see the effects. Just like how a nice deed may not only help the person you are directly helping, but it can create a chain of nice deeds! A lot of times we may feel like we're not doing enough and that we can be doing more, but always remember that patience definitely is a virtue. Like even though I didn't see how I helped this member right away, I was grateful to see the results of my efforts later on.

Pero yeah, hope all of you are doing well! 

Halong perme, 

Sister Ventura

--

Send me an e-mail: 

elza.ventura@myldsmail.net 

Written letters and packages: 

Sister Elza Ventura 

Philippines Iloilo Mission 

Osmeña Street, 

Arevalo, Iloilo City, 

5000 Iloilo 

Philippines

*Some names have been changed or omitted to protect the privacy of individuals.