It's a Good Week!

It's been a good week! It's been nice to get back into the swing of things. We had a mission tour this week with Elder Teh of the First Quorum of the Seventy who is also the Area President of the Philippines. I'll go more into that later. I just want to start off by saying thank you to David Gustafson (and every one else of course) for keeping me in his prayers!! I feel them I really do every single day. Thank you so so so much for that. And who would have known that there's snow in October. I showed my companion the picture and he was in shock!!! (Of course he's never seen snow in his life too...) This week we lost two days worth of proselyting to travel and the Mission Tour which isn't bad, it's actually a good thing. On Tuesday we traveled to Lipa where our zone and two others would have our day with Elder Teh. We spent the night up there and started fasting that night for the next day. Elder Teh asked that we arrive at the latest 7:30 to study and prepare ourselves. We arrived at 6:40, so I had almost an hour and a half to prepare! It was a good reverent environment. When Elder Teh and his wife came in, they greeted every single missionary. I was so impressed. He's kind of a big deal, so for him to take the time to talk to us each individually was so humbling. One thing I loved about him is that he had a great Spirit that radiated from him, but not intimidating at all. We started at 8:00 and the Elder Teh opened it up. He told us how Elder Bednar really doesn't like the term "meeting" in a church setting, but rather "revelatory experience". He encouraged us to use this time as an opportunity to receive revelation and listen to the Spirit. He said something I really liked. He told us that even during what may seem the most boring sacrament speaker, we can make it a revelatory experience. This is something I'll try to do in sacrament meetings here when I don't understand a word that's being said!

The Assistants, President and Sister Peterson gave us workshops, and after each Elder Teh would stop and share his thoughts and ask us to share ours. At one point he asked us to share something that we had learned, but was not specifically said. Some people shared, and I was thinking to myself what I had learned. As I was sitting there, Elder Teh said, "Elder Yost, you look like you're dying to say something." Well at this point I didn't really have a choice! I thought to myself and looked down at my notes and said a sentence I'd written. "Preparation precedes Power." I shared how important preparation is and how I wanted to strive to prepare myself better so the Lord could pour out his blessings according to my preparation. I then shared about how Uncle Christopher has written me every single week of my mission. He closes every letter by saying "Be a missionary to match the message." When I shared this I got really emotional. I could feel my Uncle's love for me in that simple yet powerful phrase. I could also feel the enormity of my calling, and even though I'll never be perfect like this message, as I prepare myself, the Lord will impart the blessings and the strength that I need to be a missionary to match the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. When I was done, Elder Teh just smiled and said "What a great Uncle you have."

The revelatory experience lasted 5 hours, and when it was over I was surprised at how fast it went. We ate an amazing lunch, and one of the AP's told me that Elder Teh was interviewing a few missionaries and wanted to meet with me. I was pretty nervous when I went into the room with him, but very quickly I was just so relaxed by his warm smile and friendly manner. He wanted to know about my family, how my mission was so far. He thanked me for my comments earlier and said he felt some missionaries were touched by what he said. He thanked me for my service, and told me the Church expects to have about 10,000 additional missionaries, going up to 60,000 total within the next year in response to President Monson's call. What a great experience it was to be with him and to feel of his goodness. He truly is a man called of God.

We got back to Pola and got back to work. I almost stepped on a poisonous snake that was in the middle of the road. That would have been interesting. We found some potential investigators that I think will be good. We only had 2 investigators at church yesterday. Nanay did not go, and T. was drunk on Saturday for his birthday. On the bright side he's a very nice and loving man when he's drunk!

Last night as we were finishing up our teaching, the power in the whole town went out. We walked back home about a half hour in pitch black except for our flashlights. I read an article earlier this week by Elder Nielsen of the Seventy that's in the Ensign. It talked about prayer and how even Christ himself felt the need to pray very frequently to the father. I've made a commitment to pray more often and frequently as a result, and have felt such a tremendous increase of the Spirit. We got back to the Apartment, still no power, and I found a quiet spot and under candle light I finished the Book of Mormon. I thought of the early saints, like Parley P. Pratt, Wilford Woodruff and others reading by a candle, seeking the truth. What a sweet experience that was for me as I read, and I too prayed to receive the truth from God, as did Joseph Smith himself. I bear witness that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. This Book is true. I have felt it for myself. With all the negativity and accusations back home about the Church, I would ask a simple question. Does the Book of Mormon draw people closer to the Savior? If something be good and persuadeth men to do good, it can only be from God. I bear witness that it is from God, and that as Elder Holland said, as God always does, in the Book of Mormon he has provided safety for the soul once again. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Love you all! I'll try to send pictures, but this place may not have a card reader. Could you send one!!

Love,
Elder Yost