Sister Franks in the Philippines - September 7, 2014

Hello again! 

I don't know why starting this is always the hardest part. Maybe because I still feel like I just emailed not that long ago (true). Time goes so fast, of course, but don't worry, lots has happened since I last wrote. 

Firstly, we had MLC (Mission Leadership Council) on Friday. It was a little different than usual, but because of STL tsismis ("gossip"), we knew why. Our mission goal for the year of 2014 was to have 100 baptisms a month (compared to the average of 50/month last year). Of course, we care about a lot more than just baptisms (we aren't here to convince people to join the Church or to just add to our numbers) but we know that baptism by proper priesthood authority is a sacred covenant and ordinance necessary for exaltation in the Celestian Kingdom of God, and is one indication of how successful we are in fulfilling our purpose to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive His restored gospel. The mission has been working on a lot of things this year to reach that goal: improving our individual obedience to be worthy of the Spirit, improving our teaching skills, developing and learning to exercise our Faith in Christ, and better understanding the power and authority of our calling as His representatives. During the first half of the year, we had an average of about 75-80 baptisms a month. The month of August was the first that we actually reached (exceeded) our goal--reaching 124 baptisms! 124 precious souls, our brothers and sisters, who have gained a personal testimony of the Savior and the restoration of His gospel through the prophet Joseph Smith, and made the covenant to honor and follow the Savior throughout their mortal and eternal life. :) To celebrate this groundbreaking occurrence, President and Sister Revillo decided to do something different for MLC. In the morning we did all the regular discussion things, the trainings and workshops, then we took a picture (on the mission Facebook probably, if any of you have found that), loaded up in some vans and went out to lunch at a fancy buffet, then to a park/zoo in Pasig to play games and explore. Though I was sad that it didn't feel like MLC (not quite as spiritually filling as I am used to), it was a lot of fun. Especially getting to bond with the other missionaries that I've never had the chance to serve in the same zone with. The best part, though, was bonding with President Revillo (he played all the games with us). It was so fun because he is usually very formal and professional (of course, as our leader), but he has a great personality and with the missionary leaders he readily opened up and showed his fun-loving, fatherly self. :) It struck me how much he really loves and trusts us; like we are his own kids and he just wanted to do something special for us to celebrate the happy occasion. 14 months after our initial meeting, I am finally learning to see President Revillo as a real person, a friend, and not an intimidating power figure. #progress

One thing I kept thinking about during MLC is something that came up in our Stake Conference a few weeks ago regarding Hastening the Work of Salvation (not sure if I shared this already. Sorry if it's a repeat). It occurred to me that "Hastening" doesn't just mean improving our own teaching skills as missionaries or working harder, or longer, or more efficiently, or with more energy. There have been thousands of incredible missionaries before us who have done all of that. We are here to CHANGE THE CULTURE of missionary work. We are here to renovate the whole process. We aren't here just to involve members in missionary work; we are here to make members INTO missionaries (so they can do the work on their own, alongside us). The Assistants kept saying during their workshop in MLC that "there are only two of us in an area...there are only two of us in an area..." Having the help of the members is the only way to change that. I'm still not 100% sure I know HOW to accomplish that, but I hope as I continue to study and apply the guidance from PMG and other mission resources, the Spirit will be able to tutor me in that area. :) I really need to master it to the best of my ability during the short time I have left though, because I will only have one "transfer" (6 weeks) in the branch in the Soo when I get back to apply everything before I leave for college. More and more, I really feel like a major reason I was supposed to come on this mission was so that I personally could learn how to be a missionary, and realize all that I need to do to help the Church grow at home. 

Another thing I was thinking about during my personal study on Saturday morning is the principle of our personal conversion. They say that the best way to know if you understand a concept is to try to teach it clearly to someone else. We used to talk about that a lot when I was a tutor at BYU--we need to understand the topic inside and out to be able to teach it in different ways according to the needs of the students we are helping. I realized that probably, that is a major reason (if not one of the main reasons) why the Lord sends us young people to serve missions. Honestly, we don't really know that much, and salvation is a big deal--it is a big thing to entrust to a group of "kids"--but the Lord sees more than we do and He knows that the way we learn the Gospel here on the mission, especially how we learn to live it (teach others the doctrine, inviting them to live it, promising blessings from obedience, and testifying of the truth of what we teach), helps us understand and internalize it in a way that casually living the Gospel as a member of the Church never would. Of course there are many members who never serve full-time missions who are able to become fully converted to the Gospel, but I believe that even those members are involved in missionary work in some form or another, whether within or outside the Church. There is just something transformative about giving of yourself in the service of others. I don't know what it is, but basically, I am just so grateful that the Lord arranged things in my life to get me to come on a mission. Only here have I come to realize the importance of all that we do. And as Elder Crowther (one of my zone leaders) mentioned in our conversation after MLC, the Lord expects a lot more from us members of the Church than we often realize. He expects us not just to live the commandments. He expects consecration of EVERYTHING, including our time, talents, and TESTIMONIES (i.e. sharing them!). 

The work in our area is still going great. Brother R.J. is still one of my favorite investigators and is rapidly progressing in his testimony and preparation for baptism. It is so fun to teach him every week and see how much he loves what he is learning, and how his understanding is enlightened through the power of the Holy Ghost. :) He truly is one of the Elect of God. I am so excited for his baptism and their eventual sealing next year! He has taught me so much about treasuring the many simple but profound Gospel truths that I have so often taken for granted. Yesterday, he taught us the Plan of Salvation (that is how our lessons usually go with him--we just ask a few questions and he shares what he learned in his study....he is so great!), and said that it blew his mind when he first learned that we didn't just come "from our mothers." We actually lived as spirits before we came to this world. We lived with our Heavenly Father, as His spirit children, alongside our brother and future Savior, Jesus Christ. We were all given agency, or freedom to choose, and were taught how to be righteous. A plan was presented in which we could come to earth, gain a body (to become like our Father), gain experience and be tested. We knew all that we would go through, that we would make mistakes and eventually die, but we also knew that our Father would provide a way--a Savior--for us to be able to overcome both Sin and Death. Every one of us used our agency to choose whether to follow this plan. Those who had Faith in Jesus Christ and chose to follow Him (ALL OF US HERE ON EARTH) were blessed to receive a chance here in mortality. For R.J., this was all new knowledge. He had never been told anything about a life before this life. Seeing things from an eternal perspective, getting a taste of this new and additional knowledge, was like a new favorite dessert. He just couldn't get over how wonderful it was. Hearing his explanation of the Plan of Salvation felt like listening to a kid describe his favorite movie or TV show---so excited about every plot twist, and the genius of it all! It was definitely a very humbling experience for me and a great reminder of how blessed I am to have the knowledge I have.

I am almost out of time so I will just close by saying that I have the greatest companion ever! Sister Faka'osi is so sweet and kind and humble and patient and loving---I woke up on Friday morning (at 4:30am, mind you) to get ready to go to MLC and found breakfast waiting for me on the table. She is just like that though. Always looking for opportunities to serve. She's such a great example, and I am determined to be a great companion in return. :)

That is all for now! I love you all and miss you and pray for you always! Hope you have a great week!! 

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

Sister Franks in the Philippines - September 2, 2014 (A thought about hands)

So this week has been an interesting and introspective one for me.

Firstly, I just have to say I am still SO excited for this transfer!! I truly love Sister Faka'osi and am learning so much from her every day. At first I felt a little awkward because she's so quiet and I thought we might not get along or be unified or whatever (because we were kabahay for so long before) but the more I am with her the more I can see that she really is just the nicest and most loving and understanding companion. She is SO HUMBLE. And such a good missionary! She is teaching me how to be an even better Preach My Gospel missionary. And our work has been going SO well. We have found so many new investigators (about 12) since transfer day, and one even has a baptismal goal date already (he was taught by elders previously when in college but never baptized because he moved back here to Antipolo). 

I am excited for all the new missionaries in our district too. We had an AWESOME district meeting yesterday with our new district leader, based partly on Elder Holland's talk "Remember Lot's Wife" (one of my favorites) and partly on just having a positive attitude, the power and authority of our calling as missionaries, and how to really exercise our faith unto miracles. It was really fun. Elder Nelson's question for the day: "What am I going to do this transfer that I didn't do last transfer?" The answer that stuck out for me: I am going to work really hard to build up this area, not because it is MY area (the attitude I usually have) but because eventually it will be someone else's area, and I want them to be able to hit the ground running and keep going with all the progress that is taking place right now. I really am not trunky (I don't think), but I have been realizing/feeling more and more lately how little time I have left to do all I can for these people. I just want to know that, even though I will eventually have to leave, I can say that I have done all I can to equip my successors and help them to get the most out of their time here. 

We had a really good member lesson last Friday with a family that has been feeding the missionaries every week for ages but never really participating in member missionary work. We read from Preach My Gospel about How to Set Goals and talked about why we need goals/vision (1 Nephi 17:18) and they responded REALLY well! They committed themselves to pray as mother and daughter (the husband is a seaman) and set goals for their family. We had another good member lesson on Saturday with a family whose son is on a mission. We had the goal originally to commit them to send him spiritual thoughts from PMG in their weekly emails to him, but discovered that the mother is the only one who regularly emails (he's been out for about six weeks now), so that changed into a commitment just to email him! Even if he doesn't have time to respond (the complaint of one of the sisters). As we testified (as missionaries with a family at home) of the power of families supporting their missionaries, it really hit home for all of us there. The spirit was really strong, and overall, it just hit me once again how important it is to teach people, not lessons, and how important planning is, even for members who we see all the time. Having a lesson that we had planned specifically for their family and their situation was so much more powerful than just sharing a quick scriptural thought about missionary work before rushing home. (Sorry if this isn't the most relevant to all you non-missionaries, but I'm just kind of spouting things that stuck out to me this week, and that was one). 

In other exciting news, there are 3 kids who are cousins/neighbors of one of our really strong member families (the Martinez family). They were referred to us a couple of months ago and we have been teaching the kids, preparing them for baptism. On Friday, we texted our member to see if we could teach at their house and the response we got was "hindi po" ("no")----because the mother of the 3 kids had decided that she wants to be taught as well!! :D So we were able to go to their house for the first time and teach the mother. It was just another miracle to see how the Lord really is working in the lives of so many of His children and that there really is a right time for everyone. :)

You may be wondering by now what my subject line has to do with anything, since none of this seems to relate to it. Let's just return for a moment to the first line of this email....

I have been thinking a lot, as I said, about a lot of things. Mostly thinking back on all the experiences I have had on my mission that have really changed my life and taught me so much about what it means to be a true disciple and follower of Jesus Christ.

Last week, I accidentally stabbed by hand with the safety pin that I've been using to hold my bag together (the shoulder strap is getting a little sketch but I can't bring myself to spend the money on a new one for just two transfers). It happened to pierce, unfortunately, right at the base of my thumb on my right palm. At first it was like "Oh shoot. Bummer." But then as the week went on, I started to notice something I had never noticed before: HOW MUCH I USE MY HANDS FOR EVERYTHING. And how frequently I use alcohol (hand sanitizer). I noticed because it always brought a twinge of pain. As I was attempting to wash my hair yesterday (yes, lathering shampoo hurts too), I thought of what an interesting experiment/learning experience that was for me, and what a cool symbol in terms of our relationship with Christ. They say "we are the body of Christ" diba? We are His HANDS and feet here on earth. To me, that stuck out, because I realized how important we are as His instruments! It is awfully hard to wash your hair with one hand, let alone none. I have a testimony that every single one of us is important to the Lord's work! We missionaries (one "hand" if you will) might be able to survive without the help of the members (the other "hand"), but the result will definitely not be as pretty or as effective as it could have been if the two worked together. We really do need each other and the Lord needs every one of us on His team! 

In the symbol of hands, too, I thought of course about the Atonement of our Savior. How He allowed His perfect, loving hands to be pierced by the nails that held Him to the cross as He gave His life in our behalf. Those same hands that had brought light to the blind man, raised the "sleeping" daughter, wiped the tears of the sinner, and washed the disciples' feet. Those same hands that learned the carpenter's trade, taught the learned in the temple, and brought a faltering Peter to successfully cross the sea. In realizing how central hands are to the things we do each day, it somehow became even more powerful to me that Christ has chosen to retain in His the scars of His eternal sacrifice. I feel like, for Him, His hands were more than a tool for every day life, they are a living witness of His love for us and all mankind. He used them for good during His mortal life, and they are a symbol of His service throughout eternity. 

I feel like there should be a deeper or more powerful conclusion to this somehow, but I don't know what it is. Let's just leave it at the fact that I have been pondering a lot this week, and I invite you to do the same (maybe you can get out of this through the Spirit what I'm not able to put into words). 

All in all, as I stood in the temple this morning and reflected on all the time I have spent there since I came to the mission (essentially every other month, aside from my time in Morong), I realized how much I really have changed in the past 15 months. I still feel like a kid, in terms of the things of the world and having to go home and graduate and get a real job still scares me, but in terms of my spiritual progress, I feel like I've finally kind of "found myself." Ironically (as I should have already known), it really is true that the best way to find yourself, as Christ Himself taught, is to lose yourself in serving others. I believe that no matter what form our service takes, and no matter where we give it (as a missionary or not), what really matters is our attitude toward it, and whether Christ is really the reason and motivation for all that we do. 

I am almost out of time, so I will wrap this up now. I just want you all to know how much I truly do love and miss you, and how happy I am to be here serving the Lord in the Philippines Quezon City Mission as a missionary and member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. :) I hope you all have a FANTASTIC week!!! "Good luck" and "have fun" to all those starting a new semester! 

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

Sister Franks in the Philippines - August 25, 2014

Hello!!

I don't know about you, but it is hard for me to believe it has already been six weeks since I wrote to say how excited I was about getting to be companions with Sister Cutia again! And now, in less than 24 hours, I will be having to say goodbye to her again, and Sister Tehei as well. :/ On the bright side, though, Sister Tehei is now going to be an STL in Quirino, with my old companion, Sister Rimano! She is scared still, but she is going to be awesome!! She is a great missionary!!! We also found out last night that among the new STLs is my beloved daughter, Sister Garcia! She is going to be companions with Sister Doucette in Taytay Zone. :D AND, guess who is coming here to Antipolo with me? SISTER FAKA'OSI! Remember way back when (i.e. last year) when we were kabahay for basically my whole life in San Isidro? It's going to be like a reunion, but better, because we get to work together in the best area in the whole PQCM and we both know a lot more what we are doing. I'm pretty excited! I just feel like I am getting more and more blessed every transfer. Of course, I know these next 6 weeks will bring their own challenges, but I also know that the blessings will far outweigh the trials. 

This week was really great, honestly! First of all, we only had one day of exchanges, and Tuesday was a holiday so Sister Cutia and I got to go on splits with our ward missionaries. It was such a fun and productive day! And we found two new less active families! One of which is a part-member who wants her two teenage sons to go on missions (we've got our work cut out for us there :P). Thursday was also a holiday, which included a baptism from our kabahay's area, and a birthday dinner at a member's home, where we got to hear one of the most amazing Filipina voices from the birthday girl. (Like, seriously, she was a performer/singer in Korea, but now just chills and sings karaoke at home. Dad, I wish you could hear her, you would have loved it. She's so tiny--like 5 feet tall and maybe 110lbs--but her voice is so powerful and mature. The greatest part was watching her sing with so much passion vocally, but her body was so relaxed--definitely a professional). 

The experiences I most want to share come from the weekend, though. It was stake conference weekend, for one thing, which was so fun because I got to see members from San Isidro again! Haha the DelVal and Tarun family all said they thought I had gone home already. :P But Gel said instead of going home I could just come live with them if I want. No worries, though, as tempting as it is, I wouldn't do that to you. :) 

After the Saturday session of conference, we had a REALLY rough lesson. Sister Cutia and I both came home spiritless and frustrated and just so worn out emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Knowing it was conference again in the morning, I decided to fast in order to get the spirit back so I could get out of the stake conference what I needed to. I just prayed that I would feel the love for missionary work that I used to feel. The Sunday session of conference was good, but nothing extraordinary to me. At lunch, I was hesitant to even break my fast, feeling I still hadn't gotten an answer/result. But I just went with it anyway, and kept praying. One of the members had come up to me after church and asked if we had be able to visit a certain less-active family. We haven't (I still don't know where they live), and he asked if he could take us there to meet them. So we went out to meet him first before our appointments, but ended up having a schedule too crowded so we asked if we could just stop by our investigators first on the way. He agreed, and we were able to teach Roell and Michelle and invite them to FHE at their fellowshippers house the next day. We were then late for our next appointment, so we apologized and asked if we could see the less-active member family later. He readily agreed and was like "let's go! where is the next appointment?" We were a little confused at first that he was just going to come with us even though he was just supposed to be there for the less-actives. I admit, I was actually kind of hesitant to let him come, since our lessons after were part-members so we didn't technically need an extra member to come. But we just explained the protocol of him having to walk separately from us during travel to the appointments, and it ended up being a huge blessing that he was there! He actually served here in our mission, before it split, and is definitely a great missionary. He is an even better member missionary, though, because he just quietly observes and listens while we teach and waits for us to invite him to share. I was so glad he came, ultimately, because everything he shared was so perfect for our investigators. 

The highlight of the week was, of course, meeting with RJ. We had brought a simple object lesson to teach about prayer, scripture study, and the importance of keeping the Sabbath Day holy. It turned into a great discussion of how the Gospel strengthens our families. The moment that really hit Sister Cutia and I the most was when he stopped us in the middle of the lesson and was like, "I just have to say this. Do you remember the first time you came here? You asked me what it was that I expected from you and your teaching." Of course, we did remember that. He had said how he just wanted something to strengthen his marriage and his family (raising his 8 month old daughter). Then he smiled and said, "THIS is what I expected." I was blown away, once again, and just told him, "That is honestly the nicest thing you could ever say to a missionary." We are just here doing what we've been called to do. Our message really isn't ours--it is from our loving Father in Heaven and our Savior, which is why it works--but hearing/seeing someone realize the truth and blessings of the Gospel is basically what we live for! There is nothing at all like it! 

We had another great lesson yesterday with a new investigator (she came to church last Sunday, but we weren't able to teach her until Saturday, then Sunday, then yesterday). In the 24 hours between our visits she read the entire Restoration pamphlet (Saturday to Sunday) and Introduction to the Book of Mormon and testimony of Joseph Smith (Sunday to Monday). And she prayed about it! Our lesson yesterday was so great. We just talked more about the Restoration and shared with her about having living prophets and apostles today. I showed her the pictures from the conference issue of the Ensign of all the general authorities, and when I put it in front of her, she just stared at it for like 90 seconds. We sat silently and let her read their names and look at their pictures (probably my coolest experience with the "power of the pause") and afterward as we were talking about how she was feeling about our message (from her reading and her prayers) she said, "I just can't get over that there are living prophets and apostles. I always thought that ended back in the time of the bible when they all died. I didn't know we had a living prophet today." We asked her how she felt, knowing that we do in fact have a living prophet to guide us today, what she would say to him or ask him if he were there in the room with us. She said, "I would ask him what message he has from the Lord. I want to hear his words and all the counsel he has for us." It was honestly one of the coolest experiences, seeing how much and how quickly she is progressing, just by doing the littlest things that we invited her do. Like really, it's not that hard to read 10 pages of a pamphlet, or say a prayer, but because she is sincerely thirsting for the truth, she has gotten so much more from those simple actions than many others who have taken the same steps, faithlessly, and missed all the blessings. I'm so excited for her baptism! (October 18 is the goal we invited her to, but I have a feeling she will be ready much sooner at this rate). 

I've got to email President now, but just as a closing, I'll share this link that Gladys shared with us today. It's from our FHE last weekend with the Baluyot family--they asked us to do a special musical number like the elders used to, so we sang a very impromptu "Nearer, My God To Thee." Also, at the end, you can see their dog--the cutest golden retriever ever! :) Just don't mind my awkwardness. I promise I am not usually that awkward. :P

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bd2f5gIe4c

I love you so much!! I hope you have a great week (and Labor Day, since I won't be emailing until Wednesday next week--temple day!). You are in my prayers and thoughts and, of course, my heart always!! 

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

Sister Franks in the Philippines - August 17, 2014

Hello again!

This week has been truly an incredible learning experience for me. I wish I could share everything that I have been through and all it has taught me, but I suspect this email will only scratch the surface. Which is probably how it should be, honestly, as sacred things should be kept sacred. One thing I will say, though, is that this week taught me a lot about the mantle of leadership, and has given me a newfound respect for every branch president, bishop, stake president, mission president, and most of all the apostles and prophets who lead and guide this church. 

Why exactly? Well, let's just say that Sister Cutia and I were given an assignment by President Revillo to meet with some of the sisters in our route and help them with an issue that had come up over the course of the transfer. I was not excited at all, but thankfully, the Lord compensated, as always. I am so glad that Sister Cutia was there too, because she knew how to handle things even though I definitely didn't. It was interesting though, knowing that we were there representing President Revillo, and really trying to listen to the Spirit to figure out what to say, and what he would say if he were the one sitting there. I tasted for the first time in my life what "the mantle" often referred to feels like. Though only for about 24 hours, I could tell a noticeable different in myself during that day. I realized also how beautiful the power of the atonement and process of repentance truly are. I learned even more deeply and profoundly how personal and individual the Gospel is. We met with each of the sisters individually, and I was amazed that even though the issue/the reason we were there was still the same, we ministered to each sister according to her needs. I don't think I have ever felt more like a genuine representative of our Savior Jesus Christ than I did that day, as we taught and testified of the power and role of the Atonement in our lives. I echo once again the anthem of my mission and my life: "I really don't know why Heavenly Father loves me so much. I really don't understand why I am SO blessed!" It's so humbling and awe-inspiring to realize how undeserving I am of all that the Lord sees fit to bless me with.

We had more exchanges this week, too, which was great and fun as always, but of course, meant I was especially excited to get to work in our area again (although I am getting better at putting the sisters first before our own work--probably the hardest part of being an STL for me). We were especially excited for our lesson with brother RJ. We were a little let down when we got a text from him on the way to his house saying that his wife had a migraine and could we just meet "next time" instead. We had brought a Book of Mormon and a copy of the DVD "The Restoration" to give him, so we decided to stop by anyhow just to drop it off. When we got there, he opened the door and apologized, explaining that Sister Leslie was sick. We said we understood and we were just dropping by. Just a few minutes into the conversation, Leslie's face appeared in her bedroom window (right by the door) and asked if we could pray for her. RJ eagerly asked us if we could come in and pray for Leslie. We agreed, and came in, though really we were thinking she needed a Priesthood blessing more than just our prayers. From then, everything just unfolded. We prayed, and then we were going to leave but they insisted that we stay and have cake (for their daughter's 8 month "birthday"). 

Let me just pause here to say that it was the most delicious cake I have ever had here in the Philippines: red velvet with cream cheese frosting, "straight from Makati" (Manila). It was SO GOOD.

At first I felt awkward, because I knew Leslie wasn't feeling well, and I know how awful migraines are when Mom gets them, so I was thinking we should just hurry up and get out of there so she could rest. But as we were eating, RJ was like "I have something to share! Is that okay?" We agreed, and he brought over his copy of the Restoration pamphlet and started telling us about his experience reading it. He said that he started reading it in the way to work (he commutes about 2 hours in a public-transport-type SUV). At first it was just because he said it would be embarrassing for us to come teach him if he hadn't done the assignment we left two weeks ago. So he read, and started looking for the answers to the questions we had left (just simple questions to help him focus on the main points of the lesson). He said that when he read, he remembered what we had said about praying, and so he tried it. He prayed, telling the Lord how he is looking for the truth and asking to know if what we are sharing it true. He said that the feeling he had was one he could not explain. Like chills, daw, that completely washed over him from head to toe. When he got to the office, he started reading the english pamphlet alongside the tagalog one (to better understand, because neither one is his first language). The more he read, the more he understood and the more he wanted to know. He was disappointed when he realized that the pamphlet is only like 8 pages of actual content. The rest is just pictures. :P

It was so fun to talk to him and hear him explain complex concepts (Christ's ministry, the Great Apostasy, the Restoration of the Gospel and the Priesthood) so simply and so accurately. We were astounded and told him how impressed we were. He humbly said, "no, it's all from the pamphlet!" but believe me, I have read those pamphlets many many times, and I know that the knowledge he gained was from the Holy Ghost, and not just from his reading. We explained to him that what he felt when he prayed and read was the Holy Ghost testifying to him of the truth.

I felt impressed to ask him if he believed, based on his experiences, that Joseph Smith was a true prophet. He immediately said, "that is a really interesting question!" And then, as an explanation, he gave the example of a child who is adopted as a baby and raised by a mother who is not his birth mother. He said that when your birth mother comes back into your life (say, when you are teenager) and tells you that they are your mother, it is a hard thing to deal with. You love the mother that raised you--she has taught you good things, loved you, etc. But you also know deep down that your birth mother is your real mother, and he said, of course you will eventually accept her as your mother. He said that is how he feels about the Church. He was raised as a Catholic. It is hard for him to let go of his Catholic roots, when he doesn't yet even really know much about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But he also said very absolutely that in time, he knows he will come to know and accept the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ as the truth. Sister Cutia and I were blown away by his explanation, and just overall the progress that he has made this week! It was pretty much all we could talk about for the rest of the night.

 

Experiences like that are the ones that make all the sacrifices of missionary work 100% worth it!! There really is no joy in life greater than helping one of our brothers or sisters to receive the joy of the Gospel, the knowledge of the truth and that spiritual connection with their Father and their Savior. 

Also, our mission is really pushing working with the members right now. We've been challenged to visit every member of our ward before the transfer ends. Trying to be courteous, we asked in ward council for the leaders to sign up for a time that would be convenient for us to come share with them. So far, it is going well, but I have come to the conclusion I am going to gain a lot of weight this transfer! Filipinos already have this habit of feeding all their guests, but even more so apparently when they know our whole lives are based on service and they feel like feeding us is "the least they can do." Haha at least all the food is delicious though. :) 

There is so much more that I could share, but I have a lot to report to President and Sister Revillo still. I just want to close with a great quote that I heard in church yesterday: "The Gospel takes different roots in those who share it frequently." So let's all do that. :) There are nothing but blessings in store as we do! 

I love you all and I hope you are as excited for this week as I am! It's going to be a great one!! :D 

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

Sister Franks in the Philippines - August 10, 2014 ("Napakalakas ang swag ko")

Happy Week 4! :D 

There is a lot that has happened this week--I'm not really sure where to start honestly.

This has been a great week for our work with the other sisters. Not as much for our own area, but consequently, I feel like I have grown a lot in terms of my perspective and feelings toward my calling as an STL. I had a hard time last transfer, because I had truly fallen in love with missionary work during my time in Taytay and learning to give my whole heart, mind, and strength to my area and my ward. When I got here to Antipolo, I fell in love with the area right away, and had a hard time adjusting to being away from our area so much on exchanges with the other sisters, especially when we have so many amazing, promising investigators. In trying to cope with it, I kept reminding myself of what both Sister Rimano and Sister Cutia told me: how as an STL, serving our sisters needs to come before our investigators and our area. I realized some more while we were on exchanges in Morong. I was talking with Sister Dickison (my batch going home) about how the longer we are in the mission, the more we see the bigger picture and realize what a tiny role we play in the Lord's plan. Especially in going back to previous areas, I have recognized more than anything that the work still goes on, even without us. We really are just instruments and tools that help get things done. The mission experience is more for us than anything else--because "losing our lives" in the service of others is the only way to truly "find" ourselves and become who we need to be. That is the miracle that I have seen taking place in myself. I can honestly say that I am a different person than I was when I came here. Not just my attitudes and actions have changed, but even my nature and instincts. I have finally become truly converted to this Gospel. In thinking about that, Luke 22:32 came to mind as we were on the way to church yesterday: "But I have prayed for thee," Christ says, "that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren [and sisters]." I thought about the transfer I had right before I was called as STL and how that was the transfer I truly learned to let go of myself and give everything to this work. In a sense, that is when I became converted to missionary work. Now, it is my chance to strengthen my sisters (and brothers) and try to help them have the same experience; to help them learn to love the work without holding anything back. The greatest joy I have ever felt has come from investing everything in the work and witnessing the miracles that happen as a result. 

One miracle is that, even though we only had about 2 days in our area last week, we were able to have a baptism! (My first baptism in Antipolo; the first baptism in our area since it got whitewashed). Brother Joeferd (9), is a part-member whose mother is less-active. He has wanted to be baptized for quite a while but we had been struggling with finishing all the requirements for his preparation. Nearly a month after his initial goal date, he was finally able to be baptized on Saturday and confirmed yesterday morning. It was such a sweet experience--mostly just because I know how long he has wanted to be baptized. Even though his family weren't all able to attend (not enough money for them all to come to the church), they were all so excited for him, and it was just a happy day. :) 

Our exchanges this week were a lot of fun. I got to work with Sister Tehei (my kabahay) and to go back to Morong(!) and work with Sister Faka'osi and Sister Delasan, and Sister Dickison. Morong was especially fun, because both Sister Cutia and I served there, and she hadn't been back since she left there after our second transfer. We had so much fun with the sisters there (Sister Taufa is there now--she is so sweet/fun too). We even got to have dinner with the Susa's again on Friday night before we left. :)

I was so happy to work with Sister Delasan this transfer. She is from Bacolod, and so cute. She looks like a Latina, actually. So pretty! For a new missionary, she is doing REALLY well! She is already great at following the spirit and trying to listen for the needs of her investigators. I was surprised when she said during evaluations that she struggles with lack of confidence in herself. I shared with her about how Satan tries to bring us down, especially before and after spiritual experiences and invited her to read Moses 1, about Moses' experience fending off Satan. We talked about having faith in the Lord and in the Spirit to direct us and not doubting the authority of our calling. It reminded me a lot of my time with Sister Garcia when I felt so inadequate and unqualified. I remember emailing President about it one week, and being so shocked and humbled the next week when I got on my email and read the first line of his response: "Sister Franks, there is no room for negative thinking in this mission." Haha I have told myself that over and over since then, whenever I am tempted to let Satan bring me down. I know he is working so hard, but I am determined not to let him win! 

I also had a great spiritual experience while working with Sister Dickison. We were on the way to one investigator, when we ran into another one who asked where we were going. We told him and he asked when we were going to come visit him. We explained that we could come right then. So we went in, and taught him and his mother who is recovering from a stroke. Our lesson started out about prophets and priesthood, then went into Christ's earthly ministry. In a way I had never experienced before, we started out talking about the Atonement, and then I made a statement that Christ didn't just DIE for us, His whole LIFE was for us, too, to show us a perfect example. The Spirit, at that point, spoke directly to Sister Dickison and she (thankfully) listened and responded, showing the picture of Christ's baptism and explaining Christ's example of being baptized. We shared from 2 Nephi 31 and John 3:5 and had a really good discussion with them about the need for baptism by authority. We invited them to be baptized if they come to know our message is true and they both accepted! It was one of the coolest lessons I have ever had. We were both amazed, talking about it after, how much the Spirit really guided the discussion, because it was not one that either of us had been expecting.

We had Zone Conference last week, too, which was wonderful as always! I am running out of time though so I don't think I will share my insights this time around.  

We have another busy week of exchanges this week, but I am looking forward to them, and placing my trust in the Lord that He will care for our investigators and help us do all we can in the days that we are here. I just truly love this work. I am the happiest I have ever been in my whole life. Every day is so fulfilling and I can see myself changing so much. I still have a long way to go and a lot of weaknesses to overcome (I have been working on Repentance this week, something that President talked about at Zone Conference), but I am just so grateful for this chance to serve and to love others more than I ever knew I could. 

I love and miss you all so much!! Hope you have a great week!! You are in my prayers always!

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

Sister Franks in the Philippines - August 4, 2014

Hello!!

So the upside of Mindoro is....well, Mindoro! It is beautiful, it is so ready for the Gospel, it is a breath of fresh air (quite literally), just like I shared last week. The downside of Mindoro (or rather, having a lot of exchanges) is that my email time was spent a lot on reporting so I will have to be efficient today (short and sweet and to the point), so I apologize if this isn't as uplifting as it could be. 

Firstly, exchanges in Mindoro were amazing! The sisters there are so incredible! Not just Sister Garcia, but Sister Judd, Sister Kahui, and Sister Suminguit as well. I had so much fun with every single one of them and learned so much from their examples! They are all amazing teachers and missionaries. It is so cool to see how Heavenly Father knows us each individually, and He knows all our strengths and weaknesses, and He chooses so carefully who gets paired together as companions and where they get put. Over and over this week, it has been confirmed to me that each sister is where she is for a specific reason, and I feel so blessed that the Lord lets me have little glimpses of why that is. 

As for Sister Cutia and I, the same is true. It is an interesting but cool feeling to come home from exchanges and be back with my real companion, because it feels like coming home. Like you get back from a long day at work or something and you get home and feel that peace and safety and security like "this is right. this is where I am supposed to be." And even talking about our exchanges and the things we learned and such, I feel like we just keep becoming even more united and are becoming better missionaries every day. 

We had MLC on Friday (we were late because our flight from Mindoro got delayed), which was so amazing. I swear, I get more and more personal revelation from it every time. Before it was all about the content of what was said that uplifted and inspired me, but now I feel like I get so much more from what ISN'T said, or at least not out loud, but rather the Spirit just pointing out little things to me to help with my own personal life or purpose. It's like Heavenly Father is trying to, little by little, take away my training wheels and help me learn to rely more on the Spirit as the true teacher (which we all know it is anyway). 

After MLC, we finally managed to get home a little after 9pm. We were so excited to see Sister Tehei and Sister Tipasa again! Haha I missed them for real. But we are back with our real "family" now. :) So happy to be in Antipolo again! 

Saturday morning, I was so excited to finally get to work in our area again. We had set some pretty high goals during our planning last week, even though we knew we would only have two days to work. It was perfect, though, because we worked SO HARD both Saturday and yesterday to accomplish them! We didn't quite reach them all, but we did reach a lot of them and I was amazed at all the miracles we witnessed along the way, that I know the Lord blessed us with purely as a result of our faith and hard work.

FOR EXAMPLE: our zone goal is to have 6 new investigators every week, or 6 new people to teach. For the simple reason that the more people you meet, the more people you teach, the more people you can help come to a knowledge of and gain a testimony of the restored gospel. If we just stay with the same 20 or so investigators, we will miss out on all the others that the Lord is preparing each day. We didn't make our goal last week before we left for Mindoro, but I promised the zone leaders that we would be working super hard to accomplish it this week. We weren't quite sure how, considering we were planning to and trying to teach all our investigators who are preparing for baptism as well, but we set the goal in faith and decided we would work toward it. Haha we even shared our goals with our district leader on Saturday morning after the interview for Joeferd (finally being baptized this Saturday!) and he asked how we were doing so far. We confidently explained that we hadn't started yet (i.e. zero), but we were going to accomplish it! When we set goals on Saturday night we still hadn't found any new investigators. A lot of our plans fell through on Saturday and yesterday, especially our finding ones, but we just kept working, teaching everyone we could, and as we walked home last night after our last appointment, we named all the new people we taught and saw that we had exactly 6! It was such a sweet tender mercy from the Lord. :)

I am coming to realize how missionaries feel that say they never want to go home. I feel like I am finally getting to a point of understanding what missionary work is all about and how to be successful and give everything to the Lord, and I only have a short time to accomplish all that I want to. The only comfort I can find is that at least I might be able to help some of the newer sisters to catch the vision I am catching, that they might be able to implement it sooner and accomplish even more. There was an elder who bore his testimony during MLC (he is going home at the end of this transfer) who is one of the elders that I respect the most of everyone I have met. His testimony was pure and powerful, and the biggest thing that struck me was how sincerely he loves this work, and how he really has given his all to it during his time here. He is the one who I could say more than anyone didn't just serve a mission, but BECAME a missionary. As in, he lives and breathes it. His companion was talking about how he can't even walk down the street to an appointment without stopping to OYM someone, because he just loves the people and he knows that this Gospel is what they need. 

Basically, this week has been one in which my trunkiness (if there was any left) died and instead I am battling the part of me that never wants to let go of this life and the work we are doing here. I love this Gospel; I love the people of the Philippines; I love being a missionary and serving my Heavenly Father and my Savior, Jesus Christ. I know that this is the truth, and the one Gospel that provides us with the knowledge we need and the true and living ordinances that will enable us to one day stand before the judgement bar and say that our garments have been washed clean through the Blood of the Lamb. I just want this same joy and peace and purpose for every single one of my brothers and sisters, wherever in the world they may be. 

That is all I have time for today, but I just want you to know that I love you and miss you and am praying for you always!! Hope you have a great week!!!

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

P.S. The mexican food in Mindoro is awesome! And the restaurant has free delivery! Yeah...we ordered it 3 times in 4 days....it was so worth it.

P.P.S. Filipino airlines say the darndest things: pretty sure they just take the Tagalog message and translate it into English, leading to the use of words like "disembarkingship" and "disembarkmentship", which I am pretty sure mean the same thing, though I don't think either one is actually a real word.  ;)

Sister Franks in the Philippines - July 27, 2014 (Shout out from the Rock!)

Oh hey!

Guess who made it to Mindoro?! That's right, WE DID!! Haha I didn't say anything on Thursday because I didn't want to jinx us. :P But we got here on Friday morning with really no problem at all. Flying in was super fun (also, sidenote: I forgot how much I LOVE air travel! Being above--and within-- the clouds is one of my favorite feelings ever, and such a great way to put things in perspective), and landing in San Jose was kind of like flying to the Soo--just one runway with a little tiny one-room airport. But the surrounding here is gorgeous. So green! And so many palm trees! I saw the ocean for the first time in years (we are going to be beach later today) and basically just love it. I think I am glad that I was never assigned here, because the mission culture is a lot different, but I am so happy for this experience to be here and to get to work with the sisters all this week (we are here until Friday, which was unexpected, but delightful). 

Life in the real province is definitely different than life in the mainland province (Morong). There is legit nothing here in terms of the kind of civilization we are used to. But they do have a Jollibee! Haha and apparently some kind of Mexican restaurant we are hopefully going to for lunch ("Cantina"). Basically, we are in the "capital" of this half of Mindoro, and it is like the smallest southern town you could imagine. Everyone is just chill and doing their thing and so nice. :) Oh, and we got free fish from some of the sisters' investigators! (#win)

This weekend has been so fun and so full. When we got here on Friday we went to the sisters' apartment, and then straight to zone interviews, followed by zone conference (same day, because we missed interviews last transfer). It was so inspiring! I absolutely love being a missionary, and missionary work. Sister Cutia and I got to give a workshop for interviews that we called "OYM", but instead of "Open Your Mouth" like we are used to here, we talked about "Open Your Mind!" and how we need to open our spiritual eyes and see the work the way the Lord sees it, if we are to accomplish all that He needs us to accomplish. It was a fun workshop, but honestly, I think I got so much more out of preparing for it than we were able to share in the 25 minutes we had. Basta. It was good. :)

We also got to attend their branch FHE ("family home evening") on Friday night, do service on Saturday morning, and attend District Conference on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. Conference was SO GOOD!! I don't think I have been that well-fed spiritually in a long time! I forgot my study journal, so I was taking notes in my planner and nearly ran out of room both days (and my writing was tiny). It was a cool experience too, because I was able to receive revelation throughout the conference both for my work here in Quezon City Mission, and what the Lord expects of me when I get home. I know that my work as a missionary will not end when I get back to the states, but actually, the Lord is just preparing me to be the kind of MEMBER that He needs to establish the church in the U.S. as well. The goal here is for Mindoro District to become a stake, and everything they were talking about, I just kept thinking about how to apply that to Traverse City District. Even though I never really lived there, I'm starting to feel more connected to it, and thinking about all the work that needs to be done and how I can help the missionaries when I get back. 

One thing that really stuck out to me in the conference, though, was the huge focus on LOVE. How love is the essence of the Gospel (like Pres. Monson shared last conference) and should be the center of all we do. This morning, I was studying Pres. Monson's talk and pondering a thought that had come up yesterday: Christ says that the Second Commandment (loving our neighbor as ourselves) is "LIKE UNTO" the First (loving God with all our heart, mind, and strength). I was thinking, how are those two related, and how do they connect with who we are personally? One thing that occurred to me earlier is that loving ourselves is instinct--that is the Natural Man within each of us, to look out for ourselves first. It is the purpose of the Gospel to help us put the Lord first, above all, and then to put our fellowman second, next to ourselves. We shouldn't have to force ourselves to love others. Christ teaches that, like loving ourselves, it should be a natural part of who we are. That is the power of the Gospel and the Atonement. Through Christ, we can get to that point, of having true charity for all our brothers and sisters. 

Another quote I loved from conference was shared by a sister who just received her mission call: "God has no phone, but I talk to Him. He has no Facebook, but He is my friend. He has no Twitter, but I follow Him." :) 

Finally, there were several speakers in the conference who made comments about how they served in the "best mission" in the world. Elder Arduro (sp?), the area seventy who was presiding, explained that we can claim our mission as the best mission only if that is the mission in which we have GIVEN OUR BEST. He then said that we should all feel that the mission in which we CURRENTLY LIVE is the best mission in the whole world. To me, that highlighted how we, as members, should be invested in the work that the missionaries are doing in our home wards and branches. After all, we are the heart and soul of the Church, missionaries are just appendages sent to help hasten the Lord's work. We have to remember, too, that WE don't share the Gospel, the LORD shares the Gospel THROUGH us. :)

We got to attend the district meeting here this morning with the other missionaries, and I had another really inspiring revelation. The question that was posed to us was,"why do we work so hard now, when we could just wait until the millennium or baptisms for the dead?" We were put into pairs and had to discuss it, and at first a few missionaries even said, "well, duh!" but then as we had to find an answer, I started to think more deeply. Why is it that it is so important to know the Gospel while we are alive? Why is it not enough just to get the ordinances done at some point before Judgement Day? There are a lot of pieces and a lot of answers to that question, but the one that was most powerful to me is one I found in Alma 34:34, based on what my partner, Elder Tan, said about how the Gospel blesses our lives and we need to have a knowledge of it and live it now. Actually, I don't remember what he even said, but somehow the Spirit used it to remind me of that scripture, which says,"Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis [final judgement], that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that SAME SPIRIT which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that SAME SPIRIT will have power to possess your body in that eternal world." When I read this scripture before, I thought it was saying that whoever would accept the Gospel here on earth will accept it in the Spirit World (the next life, before the final judgement), so in a way, it doesn't really matter WHEN we hear the Gospel. Only today did I really grasp the fullness of what this verse teaches. Yes, it means that good people who want to follow Christ and who will do all they can to live according to their knowledge will not be denied the blessings of exaltation, but that doesn't mean everyone will automatically be saved. The reason they say it is easier to repent in this life than in the next is because, during this life, WE STILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO CHANGE OUR NATURE. Through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can literally decide and change WHAT KIND OF SPIRIT possesses our bodies at the time we leave this life. We can literally ensure, through our application of the principles and ordinances of the Gospel, through learning to submit our will to the Lord's and becoming like are Savior Jesus Christ, that the spirit which possesses our bodies in "that eternal world" is one which is worthy of Celestial Glory. Like Amulek taught,"this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God" (Alma 34:32). NOW is the time to work to accomplish that goal! And it is only possible, for us and for everyone, through a knowledge and correct understanding of the Gospel and Atonement of Jesus Christ. That is why we MUST share the Gospel. That is why we must warn our neighbors and rescue the lost and wounded and starving souls of the world. We are the only ones capable of offering true and lasting and complete peace and a fullness of joy in this life--and the next. We are the ones who can fill the hole in the hearts and souls of our brothers and sisters that they may not even realize is there (see PMG pg. 156).

Basically, I am just so excited to be a member of the true and restored Church of Jesus Christ, and to have the chance to invite everyone I meet to experience the same joys and blessings that I receive every single day from it. :) I know without any shadow of doubt that this Gospel is true--it is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know it because I have seen how it has changed my life, and continues to change and refine me every single day. Sometimes I am intimidated when I catch a glimpse of the kind of person the Lord wants me to become, and who He is shaping me to be, but I know that as I put my trust in Him and give everything to Him, He will make of me something so much greater than I could ever imagine, and He will lead me on a path that may not be easy, but ultimately will lead to the greatest joys and eternal life that my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are preparing for all those who are obedient, faithful, and diligent. 

Another blessing of being here in Mindoro is getting to spend time with the sisters. Sister Garcia, my anak and one of the best companions ever, is here and I got to work with her yesterday. It is such a blessing to see her again (first time since I left San Isidro in December) and to realize how strong our connection still is and how much we still love and respect and trust each other. I am so happy and grateful to see how much she has grown and what an incredible missionary and leader (even just by example) that she is. I pretty much just feel so spoiled right now. I honestly don't know why Heavenly Father is so good to me, but I am so very grateful for all the blessings and little miracles that He treats me to each day. 

Working with Sister Cutia is still great, and our members in Antipolo are AWESOME! Even through we aren't going to be in our area for over a week because of this trip, they are really working to help out our investigators and less-actives and help them feel loved and welcome. 

Life is good! God is great! There really is nothing like the joy of serving the Lord by serving our fellowman (see Mosiah 2:17). :)

I love you all! I hope you have a great week!!! I miss you, and you are in my prayers! 

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

Sister Franks in the Philippines - July 23, 2014 (Dream team reunited)

First off, just have to share some pictures from our adventures the past week! (I love working with Sister Cutia again! For real this time. We have so much fun all the time, and our area/ward is seriously the best!!) Shout out again and thanks to Gladys for the pictures!

1. In high spirits after a great teaching appointment (Roell and Michelle accepted a baptismal date!)

2. On the way down to their house in the middle of a rain storm--a little muddy, but we love them just THAT much! Oh, the things we do for the salvation of souls!​

3. This is their little house...it got super torn up by the bagyo (storm), but brother Roell has worked really hard and fixed up and reinforced their roof and walls. (This is the kind of house they call "house with no nails", it is purely tied together with ropes. Pretty impressive actually)

 

4. Dinner at the Martinez house with Gladz after a great lesson with Ruby and the Roberts (Gladys' cousins) and a quick jam session with some of Bro. Martinez's instruments.

​

Basically, I am just loving life right now! 

The storm last week was an adventure. We were told we weren't allowed to leave our house (or sleep). So basically a whole day with nothing to do. 

Summary--

Things that got done:

Kabahay breakfast

Videos of the rain storm and our neighbor walking on his roof

Playing makeshift scatagories

Creating a mission version of the cup song from pitch perfect(?)

Singing hymns in Tagalog

Playing pinoy henyo

Commissioning a member to buy soda for our sick kabahay (and ice for our melting fridge)

Watching mormon messages (once the power came back)

Celebrating our last day together before transfers

Things that didn't get done:

Language study

Updating my journal

Cleaning the house

Laundry

Then on Thursday, I bid farewell to Sister Rimano and welcomed my beautiful, masipag, beloved new companion, Sister Cutia!! At first, it was weird being companions again. She is more hyper than I remember, and SUCH an incredible missionary!! I was a little intimidated at first, but of course, she is so humble and patient and loving and open and we somehow settled in super quick. This past week has been one of the best of my whole mission, and I am pretty sure it is just going to keep getting better! I am so pumped for this transfer!

I still absolutely love Antipolo, and our area is doing amazingly well! I really do love being companions with Sister Cutia again. We are already so unified and have so much fun working together. She is a great leader, especially by example, and is really helping and inspiring me to reach my potential as a missionary. It is cool to see how much we have both grown and changed since the MTC and I am so grateful to have the chance to serve with her again. I really feel like we are so blessed to be together and to be serving in our area--there are so many amazing people who have truly been prepared to receive the Gospel. And the best part is that the members are even better at finding and nurturing them than we are! Our ward has truly grown so much in their willingness to be involved in missionary work. As a future member-missionary, I am so inspired by all that they do to support and help us in our work! 

Alongside the hundreds of other blessings we experience every day, we have 3 different member referrals (6 investigators, referred by 3 different member families) that feel very promising. They really are so prepared. We started teaching Roell and Michelle last month and they still need to get married before they can be baptized, but they agreed to prepare themselves to be baptized on September 20, and I think they will be able to reach it. Another are 3 siblings who are cousins of one of our best member missionary families. Ruby is 16, Obet is 11, and Robert is 10. They accepted a baptismal date for August 23, so we are going to work hard to help them reach that. The last is a part member, RJ, (the husband of a returning member who just recently moved back to the ward--she didn't like going to church in the ward they lived in before I guess) who we just met on Sunday through one of our ward missionaries. They are such a cute couple and RJ is so eager to be taught and accept the Gospel! It is clear that he has already seen the blessings of it in their family and in his wife, and he wants it so badly for their daughter (7 months old) as she grows up. Even from our first meeting, I feel like he is willing to do anything it takes to gain a testimony for himself and prepare for the covenant of baptism. I know he is going to be a great priesthood holder and leader in the church. :)

There are so many stories and miracles I could share about finding and teaching and working with members, but pretty much it all comes down to the fact that THIS IS THE LORD'S WORK, and He is truly hastening it!! I can feel it; I can see it. I am SO GLAD that I get to be a part of it!!! This is going to be an amazing transfer and I am so excited to see all the miracles that the Lord has in store as we build our faith and unity and teaching skills and truly learn to harness and apply the power of the Spirit in our work. :)

P-day is on Monday next week, so I'll save the rest for then if there is anything I forgot. Talk to you in a few days! Have a great weekend!! Love you!!

Always,

Sister Emma Franks :D

Sister Franks in the Philippines - July 14, 2014

Good morning from the land of sunshine and smiles (and rainstorms)!

There is a bagyo (typhoon) on its way to us later today, so hopefully I can get all this put together before we lose power. The mission has been working really hard to ensure that we are all prepared should a disaster ever hit ("72 hour kits" that could probably feed us for about a month--or just our whole ward for a day), so I am actually not concerned about the storm, just about getting all our errands done before stores start closing and trike drivers take cover. :P

So, as you may have realized from my lack of email yesterday, it is another transfer week already. I am thankfully not being dragged away from Antipolo (I love it here! For sure my Philippines hometown), but I do have to say goodbye to my beloved companion, Sister Rimano. I am sad, because I have really grown to love her in the six short weeks we have been together, and I have learned more from her than any other companion so far, I think. Especially as far as Christlike attributes go. She is amazing, and I know she will continue to be an incredible STL for the sisters in Quezon City (she is transferring to Cubao--which means she will have to be working in the office, doing favors for Sister Revillo, which she's not excited about). She is going to be companions with Sister Sanders (if you remember her from my MTC stories), and Sister Sanders' previous companion (my MTC companion) Sister Cutia is COMING HERE TO ANTIPOLO! Haha the Zone Leaders called last night to tell us transfer announcements and they wouldn't tell Sister Rimano who my new companion was until I came to the phone. In a super delayed and dramatic fashion (not out of character for our beloved zone leader, Elder Romney), he said "your new companion is a female....she is a Filipina." Thinking it was a new sister, I asked if I knew her, but I don't think he was listening. "Well, she's only kind of Filipina." "Is it Sister Cutia?!" "Yes." "Wait. What? For real?! Is that really true?" "Yes." Let's just say I was super excited. I still can hardly believe it.  

The most ironic thing is that, every time I've seen Sister Cutia at mission gatherings, we always talk about how we should be companions again now that we kind of know what we are doing. When she became STL, I was super excited, because I thought I would at least get the chance to work with her sometime--then she was assigned super far away from my area and that hope died. But now it's legitll happening. I'm a little nervous, because I know she is super magaling and I'm still trying to figure things out, but I am trying to ignore all that and just remember how great it was and how much I learned from her in MTC and how much more I will get to learn from her now that I've figured out more how to be humble and teachable and get the most out of our time together. :) SO EXCITED FOR THIS TRANSFER!

Other than that, this week has been the most productive, fulfilling last-week-of-the-transfer I have had my whole mission. Even though Sister Rimano had to have her wisdom teeth out last Monday so we missed work on Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday, we were super punted (as in, every single lesson we had planned fell through), but we were able to make it up with the appointments we missed on Tuesday and it was still a great day. Thursday, we went to go contact a referral (that was our only plan for the two hours of work in the morning), and found out that she actually moved back to the province. Since we knew we would need to do some finding in the morning anyway, I had already put myself in the mindset for it, so we weren't thrown off. Her mother-in-law was the one who told us that she had moved, and so we asked if we could teach her instead. She accepted and we had a good lesson. She was pretty upset about them going back to the province, and I think that might have distracted her a little from what we were trying to help her understand about the power of the Atonement, but at least she recognized us as representatives of Jesus Christ and trusted us enough to open up about her life and feelings and struggles. 

After lunch, we had lots more appointments set up but they also fell through, 100%. We tried to make up for them by making back-up plans of less actives and other investigators we hadn't seen for a while. In my heart, though, I somehow knew that all that was useless, that we were supposed to be finding that day. Since we have had so many exchanges and days we haven't been able to work, I kept telling myself that we should take care of the investigators we have before adding more, but of course that isn't the Lord's way. Thankfully, we didn't fight the promptings too much, and we did get to OYM and teach two sets of new investigators. After, Sister Rimano and I were talking and she shared that she had been having the same feeling I was (that we should be finding instead of trying to teach people we already know) and we both felt bad that we hadn't embraced that prompting. We were still able to reach our zone goal of 6 new investigators (weekly, but we found them all in one day), but I am pretty sure we could have found even more if we hadn't been so prideful and hardheaded. Blah. The Natural Man in us is so obnoxious sometimes! But still, I consider our day a success. :) 

We also got to have another Temple Tour on Saturday with our ward. Most of the investigators from our area ended up cancelling or not being able to come (i.e. overslept :P), but it was still so worth it because of the ONE investigator who did come! James, the boyfriend of one of our ward missionaries, has been doing so well in keeping commitments. He reads everything we ask him to, the only hard thing is getting him to come to church regularly (he comes like every two weeks), because his parents are super active in their church and still not super sold on him being "Mormon." He has been working on it though, and Saturday seemed to be a breaking point, or at least significant for us in realizing his sincerity, because he came to the temple tour all by himself, even though his girlfriend had to work and wasn't able to come with him. Thankfully, there was another ward missionary (Gladys, the one who takes all the pix) who was able to come and she fellowshipped him for the tour until she had to leave for work.

After the temple tour on Saturday we got to go to a baptism for two investigators in Sister Tehei and Sister Tipasa's area, as well as the grandson of one our returning members. It was a fun baptism, and after we went out to try to teach some more lessons, but ended up not being able to, so instead we just went around to people we hadn't seen for a while and invited them to church. Another good day, with the regular stress of missionary work and people not understanding the eternal impact of their choices, but also the joy of seeing faith being nurtured and sprouting and growing. :) 

All the rewards of this unexpected week came on Sunday though. First of all, we had SIX investigators that came to church (only happened two other times my whole mission)! And they all have fellowshippers!! (Sidenote about working through the members: DO IT! We work so hard to help the people we have found on our own to come to church, and it is so difficult! But the investigators that are found through the members seem to automatically understand the blessings and importance of coming to church). The best was Brother Peralta. Remember a few weeks ago I mentioned a less-active returned missionary that we met super by chance? Well we (mostly the ward leaders) have been working to try to help him come back to church (he hasn't been to church for over 20 years because he said he didn't know where the church was here in antipolo), but his work schedule changed to night-shift last weekend so he finally had Sunday morning off and he said on Saturday night that he would come to church on Sunday. I hate to admit that I was a doubting-Thomas, but I wasn't actually surprised when we got to Church on Sunday and he wasn't there. I WAS surprised, however, when I happened to look out the window as the Sacrament was being passed and noticed him waiting outside the Sacrament hall! I pointed him out to Sister Rimano and when the Sacrament passing was over, we hurried out to welcome him. We invited him to come in for the rest of Sacrament meeting and I started to lead the way, he was hesitant to follow and I could tell he felt awkward/unsure of himself and if he should, but just at that moment, our ward mission leader Brother Wilfred happened to notice us and caught sight of Brother Peralta (who he had met when he went to visit them) and rushed over to welcome him, grabbed him in a handshake, put his arm around Brother Peralta's shoulder and led him in to the chapel in a way that said "what are you doing outside? you belong here!" It was such a perfect, touching display of Christlike love, fellowship, and true missionary spirit. We went and sat back in our pew and I just put my face in my hands, ready to cry almost, and said a silent prayer of gratitude. I honestly wish I could have videoed that scene with Brother Wilfred though. It keeps playing over and over in my head and I just keep thinking "This is what it is all about! This is the kind of spirit/vision/whatever it is that every member needs to catch!" Just reaching out to those who are lost and reminding them that THEY AREN'T LOST TO US. They belong with us. They belong in the Church of Jesus Christ, where we are all struggling to overcome problems and weaknesses together, with the help of our Savior. 

Like I said, this week was just amazing. There is most I could say, but I still have to email President and Sister Revillo. One last exciting thing: I got to talk to Sister Garcia last week!! She is in Mindoro, which is under our STL route, and since we didn't get to have exchanges there, we called to follow up with them and see how things are going. It was so fun and so weird to talk to her! For one thing, I didn't recognize her voice at first because she sounds so much like a foreigner. She was already fluent in English when I was with her, but her accent is basically gone now. She is still so adorable though, and I can't wait to see her (eventually!). 

No spiritual thoughts today, but I do just want to say that I know that this Church and Gospel of Jesus Christ are SO TRUE. and the promise that families can be together forever if we just follow the process outlines by our loving Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ is the most beautiful blessing I could ever imagine. It is so incredible to testify of those truths every single day and see the power of the Holy Ghost working in the lives of others, and within me as well, grounding us in our faith in our Savior. This Gospel truly is for everyone. :) Everyone one of us is a spirit child of our Heavenly Father who chose to follow our Savior Jesus Christ before coming to earth, and every one of us was planning on hearing His Gospel here on earth. All we have to do is invite others to follow through on that promise they made before birth. :) 

I love you all! I hope you have a great week and remember to pray for opportunities to share the Gospel. :) You are in my prayers every day! 

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

Sister Franks in the Philippines - July 6, 2014 ("Mistakes of the past don't define you, they refine you")

Hello!!! :D

So this week was an adventure and a half! Mostly a lot of things that didn't go at all according to plan. For example:

Monday--we went to the dentist to find out about Sister Rimano's wisdom teeth and if she would have to have them taken out. It was supposed to be just a quick consultation, but then it turned out that she had to have an x-ray (since her teeth are impacted--is that the right term?) so then we had to come into town (btw, the dentist that was recommended to us by the members here happens to have an "office" in their house--both the husband and wife are dentists and they literally just have a dental chair off to the side of their living room--but oddly, it felt totally comfortable and legit. not sketch at all like you would imagine).  So basically it took way longer than it was supposed to, but the dentist couple were SUPER NICE and gave us a ride to the x-ray place! And it was originally just going to be the husband, but we aren't allowed to ride in vehicles without another woman present, so we were about to just decline the offer (super awkwardly, because we'd already kind of said yes before we realized it was bawal), but then we just explained it to the woman and she was like "oh, would you like me to come too?!" and even though that afternoon was her only free time, she just quickly grabbed her purse and 2 little kids and locked up the house and came with us. We are so blessed!

Tuesday--Morong zone had their zone interviews and we had to give a workshop for it (thankfully, we didn't have to stay the whole time though). We thought our workshop was at 2, so we had planned all our lessons in the evening (even had members who were going to work), but then we texted to confirm and Elder Vandyke said we were actually supposed to be there at 4 instead. So that kind of shot down what we had arranged. It all worked out alright though, the workshop went well, and it was fun to get to go to Morong again. :D And then the Elder and Sister Sheffer (one of the senior couples) gave us a ride home! Saved 40 pesos! #score We had a really good lesson that night though, with one of our recent converts who is 87 and a widower. We watched the "Together Forever" DVD and talked about how we CAN be with out families forever, through the power of the Atonement and Heavenly Father's plan for us, but we need to do our part to prepare ourselves (he still doesn't really understand the importance of preparing to receive the Melchizedek priesthood). It was a really good lesson! Although really every time we watch a video it's great--the church really knows what they are doing and how to invite the Spirit. 

Wednesday--We had two awesome ward missionaries that worked with us (Daniel and Valyn) all afternoon, which was awesome! We got punted from most of our planned appointments, but the Lord of course was in control and provided us with other options, which worked out. The best was that we finally got to teach the man who came to church last Sunday, a referral from one of the bishopric members. We braved our way to his house (it was SOOO muddy!!!--oddly, the only one who slipped though was the bishopric member who was showing us the way to his house) and met his wife and their young kids. We had an AWESOME lesson, just sharing about the blessings of the Atonement and the Gospel and how it can bless their family, and at the end we invited them, if they come to know that the message is true, to be baptized. They both said yes, and said they would come to church on Sunday as a family!! (*sidenote, they weren't able to come to church, unfortunately, because one of the kids came down with a fever, but we are still super excited to see them again!*) We also had another great lesson later that night with Brother Alejandro. He was so excited that Valyn was with us, too, because I guess he knew their family before but hadn't seen her for like 8 years. He was so involved in the lesson and had a lot of questions (related to our topic of priesthood, prophets, and the organization of Christ's church) and we got to explain the pattern of Christ's true church throughout history and how that same organization exists in our church today! It was so fun! One of those experiences that makes you just love being a missionary! :)

Thursday was MLC, and actually the only day that went according to plan. EXCEPT that we forgot our phone charger at the house here in Antipolo and our phone died about an hour after we got to the mission home in Quezon City...and we weren't supposed to be back here until Monday. So after MLC and errands at the mission office, Sister Rimano and I just went and chilled at 7-Eleven for like an hour and charged out phone at the nifty little charging station there. We met a really nice young woman from Marikina though, and got to OYM her while we were all waiting. Even got to introduce her and her husband to one of the Marikina zone leaders, and hopefully the elders will go teach them soon. :) 

We stayed the night at the Quirino sisters apartment, which means seeing not only Sister Cutia and Sister Sanders, but also Sister Racaza and SISTER TINGEY! Which was perfect, because Sister Tingey is actually flying home today (leaving a week early for a family reunion), so it was the last chance to see her. I love that sister so much!

Friday morning at way-too-early-in-the-morning, we got picked up by the office elders and APs (and Mindoro zone leaders) and drove to the airport. Everything went really smoothly for our flight, EXCEPT the fact that we never actually made it to Mindoro. We never actually made it off the tarmack, because our flight got cancelled (as we were sitting on the plane waiting for take-off) due to bad weather in Mindoro. So instead we just calmly collected our bags, got a taxi back to QC, dropped the Revillos off at the mission home and then went to the mission office to catch a jeep back to Antipolo. On the bright side, though, we got to eat the krispy kreme donuts the Revillos had bought to take to interviews, got to nap (thankfully) for a couple hours when we got back to the house, and actually finished our weekly planning on time!! 

Saturday--we were supposed to be in Mindoro. Obviously, didn't happen. We decided to use the time we had already freed from our schedule to finish our mainland exchanges with the other Antipolo sisters. The only thing unexpected in our day Saturday was that we accidentally stole Sister Tehei and Sister Tipasa's house key, thinking it was ours, so we ended up getting a call from them asking where the key was, only to discover that we had brought both sets with us, and were now almost a half hour away from our apartment. Luckily, Elder Johnson was able to come rescue them with their copy of the key! (Though he wasn't too excited about having to give it to them). 

Sunday--yesterday was just a great day! Gladys worked with us (which always makes my day), and we had some great lessons. Especially with the Decrito family! Last week we left an assignment for Brother Decrito to read Alma 32, and when we got there yesterday we discovered that he had not only read it, but he understood and remembered basically all of it! We had a great lesson about faith, and asked where they are in their personal "growing process." Sister said she is still at the "experimenting upon the word" stage, trying to plant the seed, but Brother is already to the nourishing stage! :D It's SO COOL to see how people progress in the Gospel, and to literally see the changes that take place in them as they keep commitments and their faith starts to grow. I love missionary work so much!

Sorry this is so scattered. Basically, the moral of this week is that, even though things may not go according to OUR plan, they always go according to the plan of the Lord! He is really the one in charge, and we are all just instruments (hopefully not malfunctioning ones) in his able and confident hands. This Gospel is so beautiful, and there really is no worldly substitute for the joy it brings to our lives. :) I love you all. Hope you have a great week, and know that you are always in my prayers!! 

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

P.S. Just a quick spiritual thought (since this emailing is lacking a bit of that): "It is the celestial glory which we seek. It is in the presence of God we desire to dwell. It is a forever family in which we want membership. Such blessings are earned through a lifetime of striving, seeking, repenting, and finally succeeding." -President Thomas S. Monson

Learned a fun trick from testimony meeting yesterday for persevering through hardships: "Always expect the biggest/worst trial you can imagine. Then, when trials come, no matter how hard, you can say 'well, this isn't [as bad as] what I expected!'" :) Perspective really is everything.

Sister Franks in the Philippines - June 29, 2014

So jumping right into things today because I'm already 1/2 hour into email time (don't know how that happens every week...). This is going to be a great week. It's already a good start, since today is a good day because (drum roll....) I GOT A HAIRCUT. :D It's amazing how the littlest things can make Philippine heat quite bearable (you wouldn't know how much long hair increases the burden of heat, but it does. I don't know how these Filipinas all go around with long, black, rebonded hair that they wear down all the time. I would die). We won't dwell on that, though, because I have a lot of good stories to tell this week.

Firstly, I have to tell a story from last week after P-day. We went to teach the Balignasay family. They are pretty special investigators to us, because Brother is such an incredible potential leader. He is the president of Phase III of their subdivision (kind of a big deal apparently), and every time he speaks, he reminds me of Brother Susa, a counselor in the branch presidency in Morong who is like the superstar member/leader there. Anyway, on Monday, we were teaching about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and specifically about Heavenly Father's pattern of calling prophets and apostles and giving them authority, etc., how the truth was lost after the death of Christ and the apostles during the time of the Great Apostasy (or Dark Ages), and how Christ restored the true authority and His church by calling a new prophet in our time just like in Biblical times.  I had opened my scriptures to Ephesians when we shared about the foundation of Christ's church that he established (Ephesians 2:20), and then they were just sitting in my lap as we continued the lesson. We got to sharing about Joseph Smith being called as a prophet, and the promise that they can know of the divinity of his call if they follow the same admonition he followed (in James 1:5) to ask God in faith to know the truth. I can't even explain what happened, but as we were testifying, I happened to look down at my scriptures, and noticed that the pages had flipped and the verses now staring back at me were from Galatians. Knowing better than to ignore promptings, I shared Galatians 5:22 and explained that these are the kinds of blessings that the Gospel has brought into our lives, and these are the blessings that we want for their family as well. The lesson continued and the spirit was so strong and Sister Rimano and I both came away overflowing with excitement and smiles! I didn't realize until the next morning during personal study that I had just experienced a fulfilling of prophecy given long ago to other missionaries, found in D&C 84:85-- "Neither take ye thought beforehand what ye shall say; but treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man." I've seen the Spirit working through us many times during my time here on the mission, I have been given words to say or thoughts that I otherwise never would have considered sharing, but never have I been so LITERALLY given the exact words, the exact scripture, to share. It is so cool how involved the Lord is in His work, and how if we are just doing our part, doing all we can to be prepared, He takes over and helps us accomplish His miracles. :)

Another testimony-builder of the Lord watching over this work came from our district meeting last week. This transfer, the President and Sister Revillo have been wanting to emphasize role playing a lot more in our training meetings. We talked about it at MLC (the Mission Leadership Council, with all the zone leaders, STLs, training assistants and assistants to the president) at the start of the transfer and were told that most, or at least half of our workshop time should be spend on role playing. No one, however, told our district leader, Elder Tinsley, who wasn't a part of MLC. As he was planning for the workshop last week, he said that he was thinking about a question that one of the zone leaders had asked him a couple days before "Have you asked the Lord what his vision is for your district?" Admitting that he hadn't, Elder Tinsley prayed and asked, and said he was surprised by the answer he got. He felt impressed that our district really needs to improve and apply role-playing in our companionships. And that became the topic of our workshop. It was an awesome workshop, and perfect for our district (8 of us missionaries), but the thing that amazed me even more than that is how stewardship is so real, and how Elder Tinsley, without any human influence, received the same revelation that our mission leaders have received. It was a testimony to me, as one who had been in on the leadership conversations, that the Lord truly is the one leading this work, and how the Spirit conveys messages so much more effectively than we ever could. This work is so true. It amazes me every single day. 

Since yesterday was the 5th Sunday of the month of June, it was Missionary Sunday in our ward. Sister Rimano (my wonderful and masipag companion) gave a talk in sacrament, along with one of our ward missionaries, and our ward mission leader. Her talk was awesome, but one thing that really stood out to me was how she talked about how the Church is emphasizing "HASTENING the Work of Salvation". She then talked about how the opposite of "hastening" is "delaying" or "procrastinating" and referenced President Uchtdorf's talk in Conference about "Sleeping through the Restoration." One thing that I started thinking about during her talk, and the one after her (Daniel, our ward missionary, who shared from D&C 4), was the statement that "the field is white already to harvest". Usually, when we talk about that verse we read it is in, "the field is white. it is ALL READY to harvest." But that isn't actually what it says. It says it is "to harvest" ALREADY. As in, right now. I thought of what happens veggies in our garden that are ready to be picked, but don't get picked. Or the trees on the side of the road surrounded by rotten fruit that was once prime and delicious, but never harvested, and eventually over-ripened and fell down. THAT is what the Lord is telling us about missionary work. He is saying "I am already preparing my sons and daughters to hear the truths of the restored Gospel. They are ready! But you need to go find them and help them ASAP before Satan's substitutions get to them first and they are no longer willing to accept the message." That is why the Work of Salvation is being HASTENED. Because we have no time to lose. Thinking of that is a little overwhelming to me. Like, "oh man! What if I don't get to the other fruit in time because I am busy trying to harvest here?" But I find comfort in the next verse, verse 5, which tells us that "faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, QUALIFY him for the work." Meaning we CAN do this! But only if we have the faith and the desire and seek the Lord's help. I know that that is true. We CAN do this! Because if we couldn't, we wouldn't have been asked to (see 1 Nephi 3:7, and 1 Nephi 9:6). Our Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ are very hard-working. They have not left us alone to do this work of "bring[ing] to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39), but rather have invited us to work ALONGSIDE them, to be one with them in this divine purpose. WE ARE SO BLESSED. I can't even get over it! 

I need to end this pretty quick, but I just want to testify again of the truthfulness of this Gospel and especially of this church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In teaching a wonderful less-active member yesterday, I had a realization of the power of church attendance in my own life. I thought of the time when I struggled the most with being true to the Gospel. The time when I was the farthest from my Heavenly Father and my Savior. The time when I hardly ever read my scriptures or prayed. Though I had a really hard time, and struggled a lot spiritually, I never stopped going to church (mostly because of my pride I think? or just because it was such a part of me, like a habit I didn't even notice). I realized that that one little act of obedience was SO SIGNIFICANT. In fact, I think I can attribute everything about where I am today to that one subconscious decision. I think about what might have happened to me, paths that I've seen my friends go down that led to even more trials in their lives, if I had neglected my duty to participate in this one true church. It seemed like a little thing to me at the time, but the power of being fed spiritually at least once every week (by people who were much more in tune with the spirit than I was) had a profound influence in my life. Though I knew I was making mistakes, I never forgot who I was. I think that was the biggest thing that gave me the strength I needed to get my life back in order and repent and recover and return to the loving arms of my Savior. I realized that we might be able to "survive" not reading our scriptures or praying every day or having family home evening, but if we neglect or disregard our obligation to attend church and partake of the Sacrament of our Savior Jesus Christ, we are willfully shedding the very armor we rely on to get us through the endless temptations we face every day. 

This work is so true. It is so incredible, and it is so amazing to be a part of helping others realize and partake of the countless blessings that the Gospel of Jesus Christ brings to our lives. It is so cool to see how, in testifying to others of these blessings, I realize more and more what a profound role this Gospel and this Church have played in my life, in shaping who I am, in giving me the strength that I need to endure joyfully. 

In case you haven't noticed, I am still loving life here. :) I hope you are doing well, and that you have a great week!! You are in my prayers! I might be late emailing next week because we are going to MINDORO this weekend for zone interviews and exchanges (the island away from the mainland where everyone wants to go daw) and don't fly back until Monday.  

HAPPY (advance) 4TH OF JULY!!!!

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

Sister Franks in the Philippines - June 22, 2014

Happy Monday!! :D

This week has been so good. So full, too, because we got to go on exchanges in (wait for it) MORONG! It was so fun but so odd to go back. The weirdest thing was realizing that there was a whole transfer (6 weeks) that I was in Taytay before coming to Antipolo. Meaning it's been about 2 months since I left that glorious area. It's weird to see how many things have changed. I hope it is all for the better (I have to trust that it is, because the Lord puts missionaries where they are needed. Doing things differently isn't always bad). 

One of the coolest things about being back in Morong, actually, was getting to have exchanges with my old companion, Sister McCarthy. I think it probably wasn't the most effective exchanges for her, because it pretty much felt like we were just out working like before. But I guess maybe that's a good thing, because at least we were both comfortable. We went on a mission to explore part of Morong (we pretty much just working in Cardona the whole time when I was with her before) and find the members from the branch directory that we hadn't met before. It turned out to be really fun--we got to OYM some people, teach a member lesson to the district president and his family, and find a less-active who actually let us in and talked to us and is willing to let the sisters come back! 

We also got to go back and teach Rafael Pacheko (if you remember my story about "breaking in" to find the less-active who turned out to be a celebrity). He was so cute and apparently remembered me because when we got there he saw me and was like "it's been a long time! I was waiting for you to come back and see me!" I had to explain that I had gotten transferred the week right after we found him, and I'm actually assigned in Antipolo now (so it's not like I can just stop by whenever I feel like it), and he was really good-natured about it, but I'm not 100% sure he actually understood. :P 

Fun little spiritual insight from my language study last week (been a while since I got to share one of these):

The word "bayaan" means "to allow" or "to permit." (Such as "I was permitted to go cliff-diving as long as I was home by 12.") The word "pabayaan" means "to neglect" or "to abandon." The interesting thing about these two words is not just that they share the same root ("baya"), but how intuitive it is that they SHOULD be connected, as we gain a deeper understanding of the Gospel. Even not knowing the details of Tagalog grammar, I think you can still see the cool relationship here. There is a negative connotation to the idea of having too much freedom. Parents (or anyone) who allow too many things are neglecting those whom they should be protecting. The longer I am here on the mission, the more I can see that this is exactly true, especially when it comes to commandments. Our Heavenly Father, because He LOVES US, gives us commandments not to restrict us, but to help us. If we didn't have commandments, we would just be wandering through life, trying to figure things out for ourselves, but with no guidance or direction to go by. The fact that our Heavenly Father doesn't tolerate sin (hindi tayo binabayaang magkasala) shows that he cares and has not abandoned us to be overcome by things which will hurt us (hindi rin tayo pinabayaan ng Diyos). 

I'm so grateful that we have a loving Heavenly Father who understands what is best for us, and who doesn't hesitate to inform us of what we need to do to be happy. That is what the Plan of Salvation (AKA the Plan of Happiness) is all about. It is a guidebook--an instruction manual--for us to know how to live life in accordance with "the nature of God", or in other words, in accordance with "the nature of happiness." (See Alma 41:11). 

That is all I have time for today. I'll throw in some pictures to make up for my lack of words today.

Hope you all have a great week!! I love you and miss you and am praying for you!!

Love always,

Sister Emma Franks

(Thanks again to Gladys Martinez--our #1 ward missionary/photographer--she's the girl in the front row farthest to the left)

Just a big, happy Filipino Family Home Evening! 

Climbing the mountains in our beautiful area (this is the area called "upper zig-zag"--you can probably guess why...there are a lot more of these curves :D)