(2/23/14)

Dear Family and Friends,

I always get thrown off when we have P day on a different day and then have it on a normal day. "I will try my best to not quote myself from last week. (Close quote)." Just kidding!!

The big thing this week was the baptism! Right after I send  my last email Elder D and I witnessed the marriage of our investigators J and F. It was just a small ceremony in the Mayors office, with just Jo (J's brother and our BML) and us to be witnesses. Sweet and simple. Then on Saturday we had the baptism. There were three baptisms, J and F and then one investigator from Buguey B. We were supposed to start at 5, but the clerks office was locked and guess where all the baptismal clothes are kept? Luckily our clerk was able to rescue us, even though he lives very far away. It all went well and then the confirmations were yesterday. J and F are so happy and converted. J now really wants to work with the missionaries and we are happy to have him as a fellowshipper. We have several couples that need to be married before they are baptized, so he will be a great testimony to them of how the Lord will open the doors they need opened to prepare for baptism.

I had the privilege this week of going on exchanges with the district leaders companions. The district leaders were with Elder D in Buguey, so I got to go to their areas. I enjoyed it very much and I learned much from the other missionaries and I hope they were able to learn a few things from our work together. It is great to get to see their testimonies and meet with the people that they teach. I felt as if I had been teaching them the entire time. Like one family in Sta, Teresita. I was working with Elder V there, (he is Filipino, but is basically an American) and we taught Plan of Salvation to this family. Apparently the mom had been asking lots of questions about the plan of Salvation while the Elders were teaching restoration. We asked her if her questions were answered and she said they all were. Then she started asking questions relating to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the next lesson they will teach. They are so prepared! 

Mean while back in Buguey, our investigators our moving swiftly towards baptism. M is set on her new baptismal date of March 29 and has stopped drinking coffee. Her cousin just came back from Manila and he fellowships with us. We also gave a new baptismal date to Er and El. They really wanted to come to church this week, but their baby has been sick and then Er got sick, so they weren't able to come. They have been prepared by the Lord and are now set on their new goal of April 5. We had been trying to get to Ju and Mas all week, but hadn't had success until Sunday. We found out that Bro. Ju has had a few relapses in Word of Wisdom, and Mas is feeling a little helpless. We helped them set some plans to help Bro. avoid temptation and stay strong. Sister N has been having some trials of her faith also, but when we taught her on Tuesday, we could tell that the Spirit touched her heart and strengthened her. Please include them all in your prayers.

 I really love teaching families and helping them prepare for baptism. I love to see as families come closer together and closer to our Father in Heaven. I know that His perfect Plan of Redemption is centered on Jesus Christ and is the way for families to be together forever. Through the ordinances of the Gospel all people may be cleansed from sin and return to live with God again. I am grateful for the blessings of temples and the great power that is manifest in the ordinances performed there. I know that it is the house of God and that only within the walls of a temple and through the priesthood authority of God can families become eternal. As missionaries, we want to see those that we teach in white three times. First at baptism, second in the temple and finally in the celestial kingdom, Great joy awaits all of us as we help "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39). I have been studying this week about the importance of the baptismal covenant and how much we need to prepare for it. We are all so blessed to have the chance each week to partake of the sacrament and renew our covenant with God. As we receive of the Spirit again each week, we are cleansed and become a little more perfect each day until the day when we will stand pure and spotless before the throne of God. 

That is all for today! Next week is MLC, so I get to go back to Laoag City again. I am sure that there will be much to tell you next week. Keep on doing your part in the Lords vineyard. Remember that "The harvest is great and the laborers are few, but if we are united we all things can do". Mahal kita!

Love,

Elder R Wood

Welcome to the club. The Club of Many Responsibilities. (2/17/14)

Dear Family and Friends,

The title is how President Barrientos welcomed all of the new Zone Leaders and Sister Training Leaders to their first MLC. HE welcomed them all one by one and then got to me and said, "Welcome to Elder Wood, but hindi naman siya bago. Luma na (he isn't new though. He is old now). He has been in the office for almost a year, but now he is out." My first MLC was amazing and I enjoyed it. It was different from the usual MLC. Usually after the Council we have a sports activity and then a FHE, but ths time it was just a straight 6 hour meeting. I loved it!

The focus for the mission for this month is chapter one of Preach My Gospel. It is all about fulfilling our purpose and helping others progress towards baptism, which is central to our purpose as missionaries. We had ZTM on Thursday, so we only had one afternoon to prepare. It went great. The APs came for it. (That was a surprise for a brand new zone leader). The Sister Training Leaders for our zone gave the best part of the entire meeting. Sister Training Leaders are the best! They give life to the zone! Everything went great and we are excited to shoot for our new baptism goal for the month of March.

Today is marriage day! J and F are going to get married today at the town hall of Buguey. They had their baptismal interview on Sunday and all that they need now it the official document from the Mayor saying they are married. Yeah!!! We are going to the city hall at 2. The baptism is this weekend. Elder D and I will both be performing one of the ordinances. We have many other investigators getting closer to baptism and are looking at a big month for baptisms in March. 5 is our goal for our area.

This has been a busy week with MLC, ZTM, Baptismal interviews, exchanges, and almost anything else you could think of. Through out it all, I have been blessed to receive a greater eternal perspective on this work. Everything that we do as missionaries and members of the Church is of eternal importance. As S. Cagahastian (STL) said during ZTM, we are here to celestialize families. Celestialization! It is through the work of proclaiming the gospel that we help others to reach exaltation and eternal life. That takes great effort on our part, including repentance and obedience. One thing that President taught us in interviews yesterday is that there is a step above exact obedience, Strict Obedience. This obedience brings exaltation. This is the goal and always has been. As followers of Christ, it is our desire, not only for ourselves, but for all people. I know that the Savior has shown us the way to return to our Heavenly Father. It is his Gospel-the one and only Way. I know that there is nothing more important than this work. I know Christ is our Savior and he loves us. Thank you all for your help in this work. Keep the faith!

Love,

Elder Ryne Warren Wood

Zions Camp-From Buguey Centro to Pattao Junction (2/10/14)

Dear Family and Friends,

I am back in Laoag writing this email. MLC is tomorrow and President allowed those attending from Gonzaga Zone to travel down this morning. Hence the title of the email. We decided with the STLs to take the early morning bus, which starts at midnight. No worries right. WE talked to a tricy driver who agreed to take us to the junction to wait for the bus at midnight, but we couldn't get a hold of him or wake him up. So we walked for about an to get to the junction and then waited for a while for the bus. We made it safely to Laoag. Personally, I slept most of the way. The bus got packed!

This last week was a great week. Every week is great as a missionary, but each week just seems to stand out more and more. This week, Elder Dizon and I taught 26 lessons and surpassed most of our goals. I know that the Lord has greatly poured out his blessings upon us. Exact Obedience Brings Miracles! We found a new family this week, the Mamaspas family. They are a young couple and they accepted a baptismal date after the first lesson. We found them just walking around and they are super excited for us top come back again.

This coming week, we had two baptisms planned, but it looks like there is going to be a slight snag. J and F are supposed to get married and baptized on Friday, but the Mayor of Buguey is not available to perform the wedding. Ouch. We will most likely have to schedule it for the next week instead. This is the couple that lives a good 30 minute walk out of town, but they are super prepared and got all of the paperwork for their wedding ready on their own.

We have also made some really good progress with our other investigators. N is close to resolving her concern about coming to Church and M now loves Sunday School and Young Women's classes. For N, she had an epiphany this week that one of the reasons her life is hard is becuase she is missing the blessings of attending Church. She read the story of the people of Alma in Mosiah and that really boosted her faith. She and her kids came to all 3 hours of church on Sunday.

It is ironic that we had so many of our investigators attend all 3 hours of Church when we had to leave after two. On of the district leaders in our zone has some baptisms coming up and we went to Sta. Ana Sunday afternoon. FOr those of you who don't know, Sta. Ana is the very tip of the island of Luzon. We got there around 230 after a couple detours and set backs, and then found out that the last transportation leaving Sta. Ana leave at 3. Luckily the branch president has a car and helped us get home.

So much has happened this week and I can't tell it all, though I wish I could. One day. I know that this is the work of the Lord and that he is our Captain and King. He has redeemed us from the Fall and through our repentance we can be cleansed from our personal sins. I know he lives and he loves us. Remember that always! Keep up the faith and works!

Love,

Elder Wood

From the new Uncle in Buguey (2/2/14)

Dear Family and Friends,

Congratulations to A. Bice on the new Baby!!! I am an uncle! Hopefully I will get some pictures soon of [my niece] (hint hint). Man. I feel old. Kind of ironic since I was talking with the missionaries in our zone and realized that Elder D and I have been out the longest in our whole zone. Sixteen months this month. So crazy!

Well I arrived in Buguey after a long adventure coming from Laoag. I wish I could tell you all everything that happened in the trip, but there just isn't the time! All I will say is that the bus was full, so some missionaries who were supposed to get on along the highway couldn't and we had a missionary miss his stop. Oh the things that happen on the first day as Zone leader. I ended up riding on top of the multicab from Magapit to Gonzaga. A few days later Elder D rode on top of the tricy from Sta. Teresita to Gonzaga and back in the rain. Cagayan is like nothing i have every experienced before.

We have already had more lessons this week than I almost had in a transfer in the office. The last two Elders here set us up with a lot of great investigators who are working towards baptism. They are all so awesome and I love them all already. WE have two couples who are progressing towards baptism. One has all of the paper work done now and is just waiting to solemnize the wedding. The other couple just learned law of chastity and is deciding on a date for marriage. Luckily, Brother has friends that work in the city government so they will have an easy time with the paperwork. The members here are great and we have fellowshippers almost everyday. Big change from Laoag, 

I am the only foreigner in the apartment in Buguey, which is awesome! MY Tagalog is getting better already. I kind of went stagnant in the office, but I am on the climb again. I am also helping Elder D with his English. The most difficult thing for both of us is pronunciation, since there are sounds that neither of us is used to making. For me it is the ng and for him is is th. Our apartment is not far from the ocean, so we are going to do exercise on the beach. It is so beautiful and peaceful here compared to Laoag. Country versus city.

Well that is about all that I have time for. I will tell you more about Buguey in the coming weeks. I just want to close this with my testimony of how important this work is. No matter where we are in the world, we all have a role in the work of salvation. It takes everyone to do the work of the Lord and when we all work together, the Lord will quicken us by his Spirit and give us success. I know that Christ lives and that he loves us. Keep up all the work that you are doing. Pray, feast upon the words of Christ, and endure to the end! Hurrah for Israel!

love,

Elder Ryne Wood