Sister Reategui made it to Legazpi!

We received a letter from the mission president this week. Sister Reategui made it to the Philippines! We are still anxiously waiting to hear from her, which should happen soon. Here is the letter we received from her mission president.
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Dear Brother and Sister Reategui,

 

We were happy to welcome Sister Reategui here in the Philippines Legazpi Mission. Your daughter is excited about her mission and enthusiastic about entering the Lord’s service in this area. She has had an orientation meeting and is now serving in her first assignment with a prayerfully selected trainer. 

 

Your daughter is assigned in the Bulan Zone, to labor in the S San Vicente B area. Her companion is Sister Alabanza. We hope you will write Sister Reategui each week. Include encouraging news of family events and achievements, spiritual experiences, and other matters which will bring joy and deeper commitment.

 

This is a wonderful mission, and your daughter is in for one of the greatest experiences of her life. With your support and encouragement, she will mature and progress beyond your expectations. She will develop a great love for her fellow missionaries as well as for the people we serve and bless.

 

We appreciate the opportunity to work with Sister Reategui. Please let us know if there is anything we can do to help you. We love your missionary and want this mission to be a great experience for your entire family.

 

Picking up your missionary from the mission field at the end of the mission is discouraged due to problems it has caused in the past. If you are considering picking up Sister Reategui from the field, at the end of her mission, please send me an email at least 6 Months prior to her release date to discuss your options.

  

Sincerely,

Jovencio A. Guanzon

Mission President

Philippines Legazpi Mission

WEEK 7: Hello everyone!!!! I AM IN THE PHILIPPINES!!!

WOW, where do I even begin? IT IS SO INCREDIBLE HERE. So humbling. I thought I was here to teach these people, but they are the ones teaching me! Ah. I am so obsessed with it here.

So, I will start with last Monday! We left early in the morning and flew to Seattle, then Tokyo, then Manila! There we stayed in the nicest hotel I have ever seen. We had a few hours to sleep and the early the next morning we were on our way to Legazpi! There, we were greeted by our mission president and assistants. We went to the Legazpi Stake Center where we had workshops and met our trainers and found out what area we would be serving in. My trainer is Sister Alabanza, she is 28 years old from the Philippines! And she is fluent in English and Tagalog so that's awesome. She translates everything for me which must be a pain to do all the time haha so she's great and I have already learned a ton from her! Every time I speak English in our apartment, I have to pay 1 piso so obviously now I am poor and I don't know any Tagalog but that's okay. Filipinos have a funny sense of humor and they keep me laughing all the time. Whenever I kill one of the many bugs in our apartment, my companion always says "Sister, you will see that bug in the Spirit World." Hahaha and everyone here says "See you in the next life." Hahaha I just laugh and laugh. Anyways, we are in the Bulan Zone, in the San Vicente Branch, which is one of the farthest from Legazpi. It took about 3 and a half hours to get there. Crazy, but my companion from the MTC, Sister Fonua is serving in our branch too! Her apartment is right above mine. Such a tender mercy to see her so often! So, I got settled into our apartment and we started planning right away. As we were making companionship goals, the first thing she said was "You need to learn how to cook rice." Hahahaha I love her.

So, Thursday was my first real day in Bulan!!! Ah, it is crazy here. We teach so many people all day. The people are incredible and they make my job as a missionary so easy because I just want to love them all. So, our area is right on the coast but it is very diverse. Some parts look like we are in the middle of the jungle and other parts are right on the beach. It is an adventure here for sure! The people here are so humble and so loving. And, they are obsessed with Americans so I feel like a celebrity everywhere I go. I will turn a corner, and they are all yelling to their friends saying "Look! An American!!" Hahaha and they follow me around calling me beautiful and trying to spit out little English phrases they know like "vhut is yewr name?" or "vhere are yew going?" One time someone called me Miss America and then they had the whole street chanting "Miss America! Miss America" Hahahahaha. They also love my pointy nose. One girl we teach always touches it and then the other day she put a clothes pin on her nose and told me she wants her nose to be like mine hahaha I laughed so hard. Have I told you all how much I love the people here? BECAUSE I LOVE THEM SO MUCH!!!! Not just because they call me beautiful when I am sweaty and smelly. It's so great. 

So, on Friday we had District Meeting and after we went to the only fast food restaurant here called Jollibe. It's kind of like a McDonalds but they serve rice with everything. Hahaha love that rice. Today we taught one of my favorite people here so far, Alfredo. He is a recent convert so we meet with him every week. Also, we are preparing him to baptize his 5 grandchildren next month, as they are taking the lessons right now and are committed to baptism! Ah, they are all the greatest. I'll attach a picture with some of the kids in that family. We teach them a few times a week. AKA my companion teaches and I try to bare testimony at the end. Lucky for me, most people understand a little English so I just use Taglish. Tender mercy for sure. Ah this place is just so great. 

Saturday we watched conference again! On our way, we went to pick up Jake, a new investigator. We taught his mom, Sister Rudy, on Friday. Their family is one of my favorites as well. They also have two girls, who are always playing on the street so we see them a lot. They always run to us and are so excited to see us. I took a picture with them on Friday, and every day since then they keep asking for the picture and to take more pictures hahaha because everyone wants a picture with the white girl! Works in my favor because I love pictures, especially with these incredible people. So, we went to pick up Jake and it was the cutest thing. He was dressed in his nicest collared shirt with his nicest jean shorts and nicest shoes. These people have absolutely nothing, live with no electricity and no running water and some tree branches above their head but they continue to amaze me every single day. It was amazing to see that he has so little but did his best to show his respect to The Lord by dressing in his nicest clothes. THESE PEOPLE ARE INCREDIBLE AND I AM NEVER GOING TO WANT TO LEAVE!!! Just kidding mom, I miss you all too much.But we are coming back. Okay, so after Conference we taught our investigator Cristy. We taught the Doctrine of Christ and then I got to invite her to follow His example and be baptized AND SHE SAID YES!!!! Okay I was like crying so hard I could barely even get out the baptismal invitation I worked so hard to memorize haha. The Spirit was so strong and even though that was only the second time I had ever met Cristy, I love her so much already! She will be baptized on December 7th, we gave her some time because she isn't married but has children with her boyfriend, which is a common problem here in the Pines so hopefully she can work that out. It is so amazing to be a missionary because I feel so much love already for these incredible people and I know it is just a portion of the love God has for each of us!

Sunday, we watched Conference again. Okay, one of my absolute favorite things in the entire world has to be hearing these amazing people sing the English Hymns. Hahaha they sing in English during church, and they love singing here so they just belt it so shamelessly no matter if the key is off or they can't pronounce the word. Alfredo and his grandchildren were there so we taught them afterwards. I wish you could all see my planner every day. So much different from the MTC hahah every open space is full with investigators, less actives, and recent converts we are teaching all day. It is so amazing!!!

Well, I absolutely love it here. The people are so humble and they have already taught me so much. I have learned more than I ever thought and it hasn't even been a full week here! I laugh at the things I used to think were hard at home or in the MTC. It is totally a different world here! I have like 30+ bug bites all over me and I'm sweaty ALL the time and I have no idea what anyone is ever saying and I take bucket showers and wash my clothes by hand but every single hard thing is so so so SO WORTH IT for these incredible people here. Ah missionary work is the greatest ever. I am obsessed with it here and the people are amazing. Ah, I love you all so so much and hope you are all doing well. Enjoy running water and hot showers and air conditioning. Hahaha MAHAL KITA!!!!

-Sister Reategui

                                              Sister Reategui and her companion Sister Alabanza

WEEK 6: FRIENDS! FAMILY! EVERYONE I LOVE! I HAVE SURVIVED ANOTHER WEEK!

HELLO HELLO HELLO!! KUMUSTA KUMUSTA KUMUSTA!! Life is just so so great.

Ah where do I even begin for this week? Oh yes, we shall begin at THE RELIEF SOCIETY BROADCAST I GOT TO SING IN!!! Did you all see me on TV? Such a glorious day and experience. So, you have to understand that this was a very big deal. Especially since we only had 8 days to practice. So every day last week we had a 2 hour practice in the morning. It was so cool to see all the support of the Relief Society members and even General Authorities coming to our practices! It was an experience I will for sure never forget. Especially since Thomas S Monson spoke at the broadcast!!! He totally waved to us in the choir. It was a magical moment. He is just so precious and his talk was amazing and so meaningful since I could actually see him speaking!!! Words can't describe what an awesome experience it was. Unforgettable!

So the next Sunday was fast Sunday, so we had Mission Conference first which was cool to hear from the MTC presidency. They are great and very knowledgeable! Sister Nally's talk was probably my favorite, it was about authority as a missionary. She said authority is given, and power is earned. Power is earned by the ability to discern the Spirit, which really made me think about how I as a missionary can always have missionary power, not just the authority I received when I was set apart. Anyways, after that we had Sacrament and it was Testimony meeting! It's probably my favorite kind of Sundays here in the MTC. It is so amazing to see all the progress we have made as a zone! It was cool, because our first week here in the MTC was a testimony meeting, and now one of my lasts was testimony meeting too! Usually Philippines missionaries only get one here in the MTC so it was a unique experience. I remember thinking my first week I would never be able to bear my testimony in Tagalog, but this week I did and it was an amazing experience. It was cool to see all the love everyone in our zone has for the Filipinos we will be on our way to teach in just 2 days because WE LEAVE ON MONDAY!!!!!!! Where does the time go? I really don't know. BUT IT"S AWESOME.

Okay, so the rest of the week was just great. On Monday, we taught Genella! You know how we wanted to ask her to be baptized last week but I didn't know how to sa Tagalog? Well I memorized the baptismal invitation and totally was all over that invitation. We taught her about the importance of following Jesus Christs example in all ways of her life and I have good news: she accepted! So that was definitely a highlight of the week! But probably one of my favorite lessons we taught was with Fernando this week. He has been our hardest investigator but recently he has really realized the importance of the messages we have to share with him. So my kasama and I went into the lesson with a lot of scriptures prepared, but not really knowing what was going to happen. We just genuinely wanted him to feel the importance of trusting God and putting faith in Him. So I started off the lesson with 1 Nephi 7:12, which says "Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to His will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in Him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to Him." He then said he knew it was true, but still didn't understand why bad things happen to him. So, naturally I turn to the scriptures because I figure it is better than the words I try to mutter out sa Tagalog. So we reviewed the scripture we went over with him last time about how burdens can be taken from him and that he should be of good comfort. Guys, I had never practiced ANY of these words sa Tagalog and somehow they were coming out of my mouth and I was understanding what was going on! Okay, the gift of tongues is so real. It was amazing to see that He knew how hard I was working at this language, and it finally paid off and I could literally see the results in Fernando. So, I felt like I should ask him questions, so I asked if he believed if God could strengthen him and he said he wanted to believe it but he wasn't sure. So, then I asked him if he would pray right now with us to know that this message is true and that he could be strengthened by God. GUYS HE PRAYED FOR US AND STARTED CRYING! Real life our manly teacher/investigator was crying. It was such an amazing moment. I felt the Spirit so strongly and I am so grateful for that experience, even if he is totally a fake investigator. He is so real to me! Then, when we finished the lesson, we went back to class, and our teacher asked us to meet with him really quick. He made me realize how powerful the gift of tongues is. Seriously we have the best teachers ever, Brother Pearce made me realize what being a missionary is all about. He said to us, "You become a great missionary when you worry about the people more about the language." And he said we did just that! Looking back I realized that we did. We love Fernando so much and more importantly than wanting to spit out the perfect Tagalog sentences, we wanted him to feel of our love and of God's love. Okay seriously best compliment ever and IT IS SO TRUE! Especially when we don't know the language at all and we are leaving so soon. I can't wait to get to the Philippines so soon so I can just love the people so much! I already feel so much love for them and so much for our fake investigators it's the weirdest thing. So something that I realized was that I am learning this language BECAUSE I love the people. And that helps me when I am frustrated about the language because that is a really good reason to learn it haha. So I will love the people first, and then learn Tagalog because I love them. He also told us to always be mindful to teach how Christ would, because He has entrusted us to teach His people in His way. I am so so incredibly grateful for all the experiences I have had here at the MTC and I really can't wait to get in the real field!

Okay Tuesday we had a devotional from David S. Baxter of the Seventy and it was probably one of my favorite by far here at the MTC. He talked about Romans 1:16 which has become one of my favorite scriptures, and it says "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth." He talked about really being the best missionary you can be. He explained as we serve with all we have and honor Him, He will honor us. He talked about living in a way that shows our beliefs. That people should see a light in our eyes because of the fire in our souls. There really is no where else we can find this comfort and hope the gospel can bring. How great is it to be a missionary right now? SO SO GREAT. Be not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, because it is so much to rejoice in! We should reflect Him in everything we do. I LOVE MISSIONARY WORK. Have I told you all how excited I am to go to the Philippines in like 2 days? Yes? Okay good.

Guys, God is so mindful of us. He is mindful of everything we are going through. As long as we are willing, God will prepare a way. We just need to trust Him and trust that he knows us better than we think. He will guide the future as He has the past. Like it says in Alma 26:37, GOD IS MINDFUL OF EVERY PEOPLE! He has prepared people for me in the Philippines and I can't wait to meet them so very soon! I hope you are all doing wonderful. I love you all and I am so grateful for the wonderful examples you all are to me. Guess what? The next email you will get from me will be in the PHILIPPINES!!!! Stay tuned. MAHAL KITA!!!

SISTER MISSIONARY CHOIR AT THE RS BROADCAST

Here are some pictures of Sister Reategui singing at the RS Broadcast:

WEEK 5: GUYS I HAVE BEEN HERE A FULL MONTH TODAY! YES. IT'S REAL LIFE.

GUYS. REAL LIFE IT'S MY PDAY AGAIN AND I AM HERE EMAILING YOU ALL! One month has passed since I became a missionary and honestly it has been the greatest and hardest month of my life!!! MISSIONS ARE INCREDIBLE. THIS GOSPEL IS INCREDIBLE!! This week has been a crazy and very stressful week but it has also been so so great. I am obsessed with all things Filipino. And all things missionary work.

Okay, so Saturday after I emailed, we went to the Temple which is always great. Then we had TRC! TRC is so awesome. We taught 2 lessons, one to the same guy as last week, and one to a couple, the guy served in the Philippines and he brought his girlfriend who doesn't speak Tagalog but is Filipino. TRC is fun because you get to practice getting to know people in Tagalog because we don't get much practice with that but it's pretty important! Saturday ended well with our weekly service project of setting up the chairs for the next day's devotionals.

Okay, this week's Sunday was kinda super crazy! So, we went to Relief Society and everything just like normal. Relief Society was so awesome. Jean A Stevens from the Primary General Presidency spoke to us about Christ and how we as missionaries get the unique opportunity to bring many souls unto Him. Something she said in her talk that really struck me was, "This gospel blesses lives not just when we believe it, but when we live it. Send the message that we believe it as you live it." It is SO TRUE! As a missionary, I really need to show everyone I meet all I believe in just by the way I act and live. After that, during lunch, Sister Roroa said she was sick and having a hard time breathing. So I sat with her and talked about what was wrong because she was having a hard time expressing herself and how she was feeling in English. Long story short, they ended up taking her to the ER and I got to go with her! And through talking with her, I realized that the reason she didn't want to tell the doctors anything was because she thought they would send her back to Kitibati. When we walked in to the hospital, she looked at me and just said "See you in the next life Sister." Hahahaha she cracks me up. And I am happy to report they found out what she needed and is feeling a lot better now. Crazy day but I was glad I could help out a little! Later on in the week, my family sent Sister Roroa a package, which was good for her to cheer her up! So family, you guys are awesome and she cried when she was reading the letters. When we went to pick up the package, she screamed "My first package ever!!! The church IS true!!!" Hahahahaha have I told you all that I love her? Because I love her!!!!! Not only because she calls me Princess of Arizona. Hahaha

Okay, the rest of the week was crazy as well! Monday the older districts left, which is always sad but exciting at the same time. We are officially the oldest "generation" here which is insane but so awesome. Tagalog is still hard but it is coming with a lot of hard work. I feel like I am at the point where I can't really speak Tagalog or English. Seriously every time I try to speak English, it comes out backwards or the way it would in Tagalog. Hahaha it's so great. On Monday, we had the best lesson ever with our most difficult investigator Fernando. He is the one that is like 53, divorced, and feels like he has no purpose in life because he's been through a lot of hard things. He literally told us he only invited us in because we looked nice. So, we were teaching him and I thought of this scripture to share. So I had him read out loud Moroni 7:41, which says "And what is it that ye shall hope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the Atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise." And he almost started crying!!! I just looked at him and asked him how it made him feel and he said "that is a good verse. I have had similar questions and now they are answered." OKAY I WANTED TO JUMP UP AND SCREAM! Seriously. Yes he is fake but he is so real to us!!! Then, I bore my testimony that it is true, that there is so much hope through the Atonement and through Jesus Christ!!! I was just so excited. And so then he was just sitting there so I asked him if he understood and he said back "Yes, now I can understand everything you are saying. At first I didn't really understand or care but now your messages are really really good. I know now that Christ is hope and it is a good feeling." GUYS. I REALLY COULD HAVE SCREAMED IN THE MOMENT. I was so excited I almost cried!!! Ah. The Spirit is so amazing and through it lives can be changed!!! Even if it is a fake investigator. Hahaha. We had another lesson with him yesterday and it went so well. Have I ever mentioned how grateful I am for the Spirit? Seriously it is amazing to see as a missionary. I know none of these words are mine and it is so awesome to see the Spirit work through me and through my investigators. So, in our lesson yesterday we decided to sing him I Need Thee Every Hour in Tagalog and he loved it. I don't know why we never did that before because the Spirit was so strong and it was awesome. Then, My kasama shared her testimony about the song and how true it is. She shared about how through afflictions, He is always there for us. She is so great and brings the Spirit everytime she testifies! Then I thought of the scripture in Mosiah 24:13-14, and focused on verse 14 which says "And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit people in their afflictions." OKAY I AM SO GRATEFUL FOR THE SCRIPTURES!!! This verse is amazing and so applicable to Fernando. I asked him if he understood, and he said YES!! He explained that he now knows that he isn't just talking to the ceiling when he prays, he knows that God is there looking out for him. Best moment.

So, on Tuesday, we got moved to West Campus! Kind of weird because it is apartments right by all the college housing here at BYU but it is a fun place to live! Well, Tuesday was kind of super crazy with the move and all. But once we got situated, we had a lesson with Genella. She is our 16 year old investigator that is just so ready for baptism!! This week she came to church and just loved it so much. Then, in our lesson, she asked if she can bring her friend because she is interested too. So golden! I wanted to ask her about baptism but didn't know how and was so mad at myself. Haha so right after, I memorized the baptismal commitment in Tagalog so we are so ready to go for the next lesson with her. I will keep you all posted!! 

The rest of the week was pretty much the same. But, on Thrusday WE GOT OUR FLIGHT PLANS!!!! Really it's gone by so fast. We leave on Monday the 7th, so it's coming up super super fast!!!! 9 DAYS YAY! Ah I am just so grateful for all of my experiences already and can't believe it's just beginning. I know that through His help, we can do all things!! I have really realized during this crazy adventure of mine that during hard times and trials, I learn and GROW the most! The Lord has been with me every step of the way and has brought me so much comfort. I love this gospel and can't wait to share it with the people of the Philippines in just 9 DAYS!!!!!! 

Oh, also we are on our way to Salt Lake in about an hour to sing at the Relief Society Broadcast tonight! So you can all watch me on TV because I'm sure you all miss me so much. I will be the one singing all the wrong notes and breathing at all the wrong times so it should be easy to spot me. Also, I am wearing a dark green shirt. So look out for me!! 

Ah I just love you all. Life is so great. Being a missionary is SO great!!! 

MAHAL KITA,

--Sister Reategui

We got our flight plans to the Philippines!

It's getting cold here in Provo!

Me and my companion

I saw Elder Niver in the MTC!

WEEK 4: WEEK 4 IN THE MTC AND I AM STILL ALIVE!!!

HELLO FAMILY AND FRIENDS AND WHOEVER RECEIVES THESE EMAILS!! I JUST LOVE YOU ALL.

Okay I know I say this every week but time goes by abnormally fast here. I feel like I was just emailing you all yesterday! So this may be slightly repetitive again because we literally do the same thing every day, so don't hate me. I am doing my best here! First off I would just like to say you are all awesome and you keep me going!! Seriously. I feel so blessed to have such awesome friends and family. I wish I could respond to all of your emails and letters as fast as I would like to but I don't have much time, but I will try! I just love you all. That is it.

Okay, so starting with after emailing on P-Day! We get to do a session in the Provo Temple every week, and then after that our glorious P-Day is over around 6 because we then go to class. Saturday nights we have TRC now, which is Teaching Resource Center, where we go and teach someone that has volunteered to come in just as themselves. It's a good way to learn how to make small talk and to really get to know them and know what they need to be taught. Oh, and it is also in 100% Tagalog, which is an adventure in itself. It was so great though and my kasama and I really felt the Spirit so strongly as we taught this man! He was actually our teacher's teacher when he went through the MTC, so it is funny how it has come a full circle for us to be teaching him. The Spirit was so strong in there and my kasama and I felt so blessed. We had been working extra hard with the language and just really focusing on what we needed to teach for the volunteer, and as we looked back we realized that what we individually taught connected so well. THIS GOSPEL IS AMAZING like I can't say it enough!! The gift of tongues is real. There is no way I could do this on my own. Seriously, I didn't even know what I was saying to that man in TRC but when I thought about it after, I realized that what I was saying exactly matched up to the things he was sharing with us, and the things my kasama was saying as well. Ah it's just so great and I am obsessed with missionary work. I am just so lucky to be serving a mission right now!

Sunday's here in the MTC are always great. So we have our Relief Society meeting in the morning, which is always awesome. Stacey Edington taught us about love; about loving the people, about love and true devotion to Jesus Christ, about seeing our investigators as God sees them. It really hit me that we need to know Christ, not just know of Him. I will be sharing His gospel, and how can I really share it if I don't really truly KNOW Him, right? I don't even know if that makes sense but these are just thoughts in my head. Our teachers have really been focusing on this with us. I thought of one of my favorite scriptures, 2 Nephi 25:26, which says "And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." It's so true, my life is dedicated to the name I wear proudly on my tag, Jesus Christ, and I have come to really know Him and love everything about this gospel! So after Relief Society, we had Sacrament Meeting as a branch, and thankfully I did not have to give my talk yet again, but our district sang "Come Thou Fount" as the musical number. I just love that song so it was a good experience. My kasama and I also taught the lesson for our district, which was on the Atonement. Guys, this is real life. I used to be so scared to teach anything or to speak in front of people, and now I do this on the daily SA TAGALOG. Real life, I am a new person now. Missions are awesome! Okay, on Sundays we also go on a walk to the Temple, since it is right across the street. That night we had a devotional and guess who sat front row again?! Yes yo sista Reategui. Hahaha but really we have figured out how the MTC works and we proudly sit at the very front at every Sunday night devotional now. They totally make eye contact with us the whole time, it is so great and I feel like they are just talking to me. There aren't thousands of other people there at the devotionals, right? Right. Well the devotional was given by Ron Tanner, who is the producer of 17 Miracles, and his new film Ephram Hanks. The love he has for those pioneers is so incredible and he was so inspiring! He showed parts from the movie he just made about Ephram Hanks, and it almost had me in tears. Such a powerful story! Apparently it isn't even out on DVD yet, but he gave a copy to the MTC so we get to watch it before all of you. Missionaries are blessed. HA. 

Anyways, the rest of the week was basically the same. Class and class and more class! It's so great. It's incredible to think about how much I have learned in the past 4 weeks. This week in personal study I have been focusing on studying chapter 6 of Preach My Gospel, Christlike Attributes. I have been really focusing on Hope, as that is something I want to really get across to our investigators. This gospel is such a great source of hope for everyone, no matter what. Hope that there is a plan for each of us, hope that the Atonement can make us better people each and every day, hope that we can live with our families forever, just SO MUCH HOPE! I am obsessed with this great message. And I am so lucky to be able to share this hope with the people of the Philippines! On Tuesday, we had a devotional in the Marriot Center, and sadly I was not able to sit in the front row since I am in the choir, but still a very good devotional! It was given by Gregory Schwitzer of the Seventy. It was all about how becoming a missionary is a process of devotion. I know I say this a lot, but the devotionals here are amazing! They are so centered on missionary work and each time I feel like the talk was written just for me. He really inspired me to be the best missionary I can be. Being the best missionary through my actions because this gospel is my joy! Okay I have a lot of favorite scriptures but this one is like at the top of my list. Alma 29:9, "I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, and I glory in it. I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; AND THIS IS MY JOY." Ah basically I am obsessed with that. As I have been so focused on this gospel, I have realized so much about myself and how blessed I am. I am so blessed to be a part of something that can make me better each and every day! I am so blessed to have a Savior that died for me and for all of us, that we may be able to repent and really change to better ourselves. What a wonderful message of hope that I get to share! One thing he said at the end of his devotional was "change the hearts of the world one missionary at a time." I love that. As a missionary, I have realized that I need to change myself and truly convert myself each and every day to be able to teach the people of the Philippines about these things I am learning. As I really devote myself to my mission, and change my heart, I can change the hearts of so many others through Him who has given me all that I have. THIS GOSPEL IS AMAZING!

Okay, here in the MTC we teach at least one of our investigators everyday. My favorite lesson this week was probably our lesson with Genella on Thursday. She's 16 and SO ready for this gospel in her life. So, we met with her and we were just talking about having faith in prayer and having faith in keeping the commandments, and so I asked her if she would want to go on a tour of the church, just to see what it's like. She just looked at me and said "I want to go to church on Sunday!" Haha okay I had a freak out. Seriously I know she's fake but it is so real in the moment! It was such an exciting experience. So then I was like "great, lets take you on a tour first!!!" Hahaha so we took her into some building here on campus and pretended that it was a church building and a chapel and everything since we don't have that here in the MTC. She just kept saying how she felt happy and loved. Seriously the Spirit is amazing, somehow my kasama and I explained to her about the Sacrament and about all 3 meetings she will attend and she was just so happy. The Spirit was so strong and I am grateful that it was there, even through something so silly as just taking her on a fake tour. 

Oh yes, big news, I got selected to sing in the General Relief Society Broadcast choir!!!!!!!! There are 364 of us singing and we even get to leave the MTC and go to Salt Lake!!!! I feel so out of my league singing with so many good singers but I am lucky to have been picked. Yesterday was our first practice, and the whole General Relief Society Board came to watch us!!! They are amazing and they just talk about how inspiring we are to them and how great our faith is. The songs we are singing were written for this specific meeting, so everyone at home better watch because yo Sister Reategui is going to be TV famous for singing and this will never happen again. Plus, I get to see the Prophet and the Apostles so THAT IS AWESOME!!!!!!! That will be next Saturday so be watching. Dad, I expect you to even watch it online. I am secretly praying that they don't show me, but we will see! Still an awesome experience.

Well guys, that's all I have for you this week. The church is true. Missionary work is so so great. I am obsessed with it already and it is only week 4. There have been hard times but I have realized that is when I grow the most! I am so happy to be serving a mission. I LOVE YOU ALL!!! Hope you all have a great week!

MAHAL KITA,

--Sister Reategui

PS - here are some pictures, some districts in our zone at the temple with a member of our branch presidency, rain in Provo and Sister Roroa (not) loving it (HAHAHA) and some of our zone in our classroom

WEEK 3: Week 3 in the MTC!!!

Okay seriously it feels like I was here emailing you all just yesterday. Time goes by so fast here it is crazy! But I love it. I have to warn you, basically everyday is the same thing over and over again so this may get a little boring. But I will do my best to keep it entertaining for you all! So, starting on Sunday.....Sunday was our first "real" Sunday in the MTC since our first last week was a fast Sunday. Every week, we go to a broadcast of Music and the Spoken Word, which is the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing so that is always fun. Then we go to Relief Society, and since they totally favor the sisters here in the MTC, we get really good speakers from the Relief Society General Board. It was super awesome, our speaker was Melinda Barlow and she is actually a returned missionary so she had lots of stories that related to us well. Then we went to Sacrament Meeting. Here in the MTC, you are required to prepare a talk on the assigned topic for that week, and then 3 people in our zone get called. But the trick is that they don't call you until you have to go up there and speak. And it has to be in Tagalog. Hahaha so my praying paid off and I didn't get called last week, but I still have a few more weeks so we will see! That night we had a devotional from Richard I Heaton from the Seventy on prayer. Seriously I know I say this every week, but the devotionals here are so amazing! This week it seemed like the focus was on faith and on prayer, which is something we can always work on! Oh and also, big news.....our choir director told us that the MTC Sister Missionaries WILL be singing in the Relief Society Broadcast!! You all know that I am definitely not a singer, but it is a once in a lifetime experience so it will be fun! And you can all watch me on TV from home :)

Well... Monday through Friday are basically the same everyday. Lots of class! But my teachers are amazing. We have 2 new investigators we started teaching this week, Fernando and Genella, which are played by our teachers. At first I thought it would be so stupid pretending to teach our teachers, but it has actually been some of my favorite experiences here in the MTC so far. They act as people from their missions that they taught, and they are super good at it! Teaching them is hard because they don't really give us a break anymore since we have been here for 2, almost 3 weeks now, but it helps us learn more that way. My teachers are probably just sitting there thinking "we went over this in class today Sister Reategui, why are you speaking like a 5 year old?" Haha, but it's hard! The other day in our lesson, our investigator Fernando was telling us about how he got divorced and was basically crying because he said it was all his fault and she took his kid, and we didn't really know what was going on and we accidentally asked "bakit?" which is why?? Hahahaha and he just looked at us and was so mad. Like I just wanted to laugh because I knew he was fake and secretly our teacher but whatevs. (that was for you platos people) We talked to our teacher about it after and just laughed and laughed. He always tells us its better to make tons of mistakes here rather than with a real investigator so that's comforting I guess. Hahaha this Tagalog thing is hard it literally takes me like 5 minutes just to form a simple sentence in Tagalog on the spot which gets really frustrating. Sometimes I think of really awesome things to say, or ways to answer our investigators questions so well, but I have to kind of dumb it down since I don't know much Tagalog. It's definitely frustrating, but our teachers are good at working with us and helping us realize that the language will come after some time and A LOT of hard work. And prayer. We have really been focusing on prayer with our investigators, because it is really important for them to really know for themselves that there is a God and He is there to hear us at ALL TIMES. Our teachers say all the time, "Nothing in missionary work gets done unless your investigator will pray." It is so true! They really need the conversion for themselves. It may sound kind of stupid that I can say all these things and my investigators are fake, but seriously they feel so real. It's the weirdest thing! We are starting to realize that no matter how many times I testify of the truthfulness of this gospel, it really is all about their own personal conversions. Cute Sister Roroa, the one from Kiribati, had to teach me the other day and she put it the best way. I had to act like a stubborn investigator and her job was to get me to pray. She said, "When you want to get to know a friend, you talk to them right? Well when you want to build your relationship with God, then you need to pray to Him." Okay seriously she is so wise. I am obsessed with her! She always makes fun of herself because she says she has broken English, but she is so amazing. She reminds me that this gospel is so simple and that's what we need to share with our investigators! On Tuesday, we had a devotional from James B Martino, one of the Seventy, and he talked about working in the Lord's way. So cool story......we were actually late to this devotional because I had to go back to our classroom to get my journal, and when we showed up there were only 2 seats left in the whole place! The rest would have to go to overflow in a different buidling. Anyways, the ushers are showing us to our seats and all the sudden we are getting closer and closer to the front......and then they seat us in the very front row! Like this row is just for the speakers' family and friends. Maybe 2 of his family members didn't show up or something but guess who got front row? Yours truly and my kasama. It was AWESOME and the speaker was making eye contact with us the whole time! I was so scared that he would ask us to come up and bear our testimonies or something in front of the whole MTC because he was looking down at us the whole time. But it was so so cool! Maybe we should be late more often. Hahaha, no but it was another good and inspiring devotional! He talked about feeling what the investigator is feeling and really working on applying each lesson to them and how it can help them in their lives. 

Week 3 is known as "the wall" week and I have definitely felt that. The language is getting harder and harder! I know that it will come when it comes, but it has been kind of discouraging. My kasama and I were pretty frustrated this week with it but our teacher, Sister Osborn taught us a really good lesson. She explained to us that if God were to come and say He could move a mountain, we would all believe Him, right? If God commanded me to move the mountain and was right by my side the whole time, eventually, I could do it, right? With His help of course. Well, she explained that He has commanded me to learn this language and teach the people of the Philippines in Tagalog, so what is the difference between moving the mountain? It's the same faith, right? That as long as He is by my side, I can do all things through Him! He will help me learn this crazy language and He will help me through this crazy adventure as long as I am working my hardest in faith. She also shared Ether 12:27, which says "And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then I will make weak things become strong unto them." Okay that has become my favorite scripture EVER. Tagalog is definitely my weakness and it is comforting that as long as I stay humble and diligent, He will help me make this weakness a strength! HIS GRACE is sufficient for ALL men! It's so great and such a good reminder when things seem hopeless. Which is basically me trying to learn Tagalog on my own. Hahaha one day I was really discouraged and Sister Roroa just looked at me and said, "Sister, you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you!" Hahaha I just love her. 

Well that's basically all that I have for you all this week. Here is a Tagalog word of the day....pinakamakapangyarihan, which means omnipotent! Haha Tagalog can be kind of a mouth full sometimes! Oh also, read the story of Enos. It is so amazing! We went over it in class and I have read it several times since then. We need to make our souls hunger for this great gospel we have been blessed with! His short chapter is relatable to so many things! AH GUYS I LOVE THIS GOSPEL. I love missionary work!!! And it really is missionary WORK. Haha I have learned that this week more than ever and I'm not even in the real world yet. But I love it! I hope you are all doing well. Thanks for all the emails and letters, you all make me feel so loved! Have a good week everyone!

Mahal kita,

--Sister Reategui

 

 All the Sisters in our District

 

Lots of class time!

 

My companion and roommates



My District