Week 47 in the Philippines - "temple!"

How's everyone? Enjoying summer? I hope and pray you are all well! Here are a couple photos for your enjoyment:)

This is Oliver and Bingbing, awesome ward missionaries. They are so funny. The umbrella belongs to Bing, but for some reason Oliver was the one protecting himself from the sun:) 

 This is Brother Nelson and his super cute daughter, Nympha. I think I've talked about him before. Brother Nelson is this super awesome, golden investigator we found who read half the BoM after the first time we gave it to him. But now we're kind of stuck because his wife doesn't want for him to go to church and join our church because she wants their whole family to stay Catholic. This week, we focused on trying to just get to know her, his wife, but it looks like it will be a very gradual process of warming up to her. Brother Nelson doesn't want to cause any problems in their marriage and loves his wife so much. So we're working on it. 

This is a picture from our FHE last night! It was so much fun! Sister Rosalie, in the blue to the right, has been investigating for a couple months now. She has the cutest three little boys and we just started teaching her neighbor whose two kids are in this picture as well. Some YW from the ward joined us for the FHE. We used one of the object lessons about the atonement that mom sent me for the lesson! It worked super well! Thanks mom!:)

This week was really awesome because we worked super super hard and taught lots of lessons! It was so good and we met lots of new potential investigators. It was pretty disappointing when only one investigator came to church, but it's okay! Keep the faith!:) We also had a disappointment with our baptismal candidate who was all ready and so excited and supposed to have her interview yesterday, but the night before she and her husband got in a fight because I guess he doesn't want her to get baptized...awesome. So we're working on that...I know I usually don't share disappointments, but here's just a little taste that Satan really is working soooo hard to keep the Lord's work from progressing. But God is smarter and wiser and miracles still keep happening!

This week, we visited this less-active member and she told us that the last time we visited her had been an answer to her prayers. We visited her about a week ago and that was the first time in months and it wasn't even planned. So this week she opened up to us and told us how she had been praying to know if she should still be involved in the LDS church. She asked for a sign and then we showed up! She said she knows that she should come back to church. It strengthened my testimony that as long as we are striving to do what's right, the Lord uses us in ways we don't even understand or realize, to bless the lives of His children. Also, He is super involved in our everyday lives. I know that is true.  

We had the awesomest Mission Pres training last Monday! Oh my goodness, it was sooo awesome. President talked to us about all the progress that's going on in our mission. We've been opening up a bunch of new groups, being formed into branches in order to reach people who live in the bukid (mountains) and in far areas from the cities on the island. It's so amazing to hear about what's going on in this mission! It's so exciting! I love being here sooo much. President even told us that as the work keeps progressing, the goal is in 3 years to request a temple on Negros Island!!!!! When he said that, I got the biggest chills all over my body! It's so amazing to think of having a temple here, so close to all of the amazing members here. That would be the coolest thing ever. It't also amazing that we get to be part of getting this island ready for that to happen! It gives me so much motivation! 

This is such an exciting time as we are all preparing for the Second Coming of Christ. I have the feeling it's coming close! We gotta do all we can to get the world ready for our dear Savior to be welcomed back by tons of righteous members, His disciples. We need to do our part to build up the Church where ever we are! "After all that has been said, the greatest and most important duty is to preach the gospel." (i think that's correct...) Joseph Smith 

I love you all! I love your desire to share the gospel and to live the gospel! Live your faith! I love that talk by Elder Nelson from last conference so much. You are all amazing! I love you all with all my heart:)

Love, Sister Malyon

P.S. Little funny thing from this week-so there are ants EVERYWHERE and I've gotten so used to just squishing every ant I see with my fingers. It's become reflex. This week I thought I was squishing an ant and then I looked at my fingers and there were bug guts all over my fingers. It was so gross. Turns out it was some bug quite a bit bigger than an ant...gross. Love you!