First I would like to give a shout out to Sister Leonardo for the quote she sent me that says:
"Unless we lose ourselves in service to others, there is little purpose to our own lives."
-President Thomas S. Monson
Yes. I know this is true. I have seen this come to life as I have had the opportunity of a lifetime helping those I have grown to love in such a short period of time here in Ligao.
Let me just say I love this work and I love my opportunity to be a missionary here in the Philippines.
It has been another week full of service, as you can probably see from the pictures I sent. I have really learned the importance of service in this work. I have learned that I am not here only to teach the gospel, but to really live the gospel of Jesus Christ. How grateful I am for the example Christ set for us all.
This week I was asked to talk in Sacrament since I am new. My topic was a verse in the New Testament, James 1:22. It says:
"True love requires action. We can speak of love all day long—we can write notes or poems that proclaim it, sing songs that praise it, and preach sermons that encourage it—but until we manifest that love in action, our words are nothing but “sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.” Christ did not just speak about love; He showed it each day of His life. He did not remove Himself from the crowd. Being amidst the people, Jesus reached out to the one. He rescued the lost. He didn’t just teach a class about reaching out in love and then delegate the actual work to others. He not only taught but also showed us how to “succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees.”
Christ knows how to minister to others perfectly. When the Savior stretches out His hands, those He touches are uplifted and become greater, stronger, and better people as a result. If we are His hands, should we not do the same?"
These pictures are from our service this week with our recent convert who is handicapped. we were able to help clean up after her house was destroyed from the storm a few weeks ago. Her name is Marina :)
"Unless we lose ourselves in service to others, there is little purpose to our own lives."
-President Thomas S. Monson
Yes. I know this is true. I have seen this come to life as I have had the opportunity of a lifetime helping those I have grown to love in such a short period of time here in Ligao.
Let me just say I love this work and I love my opportunity to be a missionary here in the Philippines.
It has been another week full of service, as you can probably see from the pictures I sent. I have really learned the importance of service in this work. I have learned that I am not here only to teach the gospel, but to really live the gospel of Jesus Christ. How grateful I am for the example Christ set for us all.
This week I was asked to talk in Sacrament since I am new. My topic was a verse in the New Testament, James 1:22. It says:
"But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves."
I had never really thought of this verse much before I was given this topic. But I know that there was a reason I was given this topic and I learned a lot through my studies for it. In my talk, I talked about first, before becoming doers of the word, we must know of the word. So I talked about the importance of scripture study and attending church. I know that scripture study is so important for us. We are blessed to have scriptures in our lives, as they are the guidance sent from our Heavenly Father for each one of us. So, I challenge you all to read your scriptures EVERY DAY. Even if it's just one verse everyday. But I also challenge you to actually READ it and LIVE it. The gospel is here for us to live it, not just to read it. Let's take advantage of the blessings Heavenly Father has given us!
In my studies, I also came across a talk that my mom sent me I think (S/O to mamma) during my training that I had forgotten I loved SO much. It's about the love of Christ and it's just so great. I encourage you all to read the whole thing...but for now I will include one of my favorite parts from it here....
"True love requires action. We can speak of love all day long—we can write notes or poems that proclaim it, sing songs that praise it, and preach sermons that encourage it—but until we manifest that love in action, our words are nothing but “sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.” Christ did not just speak about love; He showed it each day of His life. He did not remove Himself from the crowd. Being amidst the people, Jesus reached out to the one. He rescued the lost. He didn’t just teach a class about reaching out in love and then delegate the actual work to others. He not only taught but also showed us how to “succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees.”
Christ knows how to minister to others perfectly. When the Savior stretches out His hands, those He touches are uplifted and become greater, stronger, and better people as a result. If we are His hands, should we not do the same?"
This is the true love of Christ. I love the last line, the question that says "If we are His hands, should we not do the same?" Christ was the perfect example. He was the only perfect person to walk the earth, yet He served among the poor and the weak. Who could ask for a better example?
As a missionary, I strive each and every day to become more like Him. To teach as He would teach, to serve as He would serve, and love as I know He would love. I know that I am no where close to perfect, but I have noticed the difference it has made in my life, not only as a missionary but as a real person too. I am so grateful for my mission and for the opportunity I have had to come closer to my Savior, and really feel His love for those I'm blessed to teach.
This week, as I said, we did a lot of service, but we were able to also start teaching a little more too. We were able to find some new investigators and a few of them even came to church! It is fun to see this area progressing little by little :)
Mahal ko kayo, don't you ever forget it!
Sister Reategui
These pictures are from our service this week with our recent convert who is handicapped. we were able to help clean up after her house was destroyed from the storm a few weeks ago. Her name is Marina :)
And... more service/buko drinking with the #fantastic4.
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