Alright, so as I said in my last email I
transferred this week to Bocaue. My companion is Elder Torres; he is a great
missionary and a skilled teacher. We get along very well, and we have set very
high goals for our area and for our work. Elder Torres is basically a Filipino
version of myself.
The area has a reputation of being a hard
one, but I don’t particularly like reputations, so my plan is not let it affect
anything that happens while I am here. We have already – just in this short
week here – found several families that are very interested in what we have to
teach. I have found that as I become a better missionary, and as I improve in
the language – I have a much MUCH bigger impact on the areas that I am in.
There is a lot to talk about and I am
pretty certain I won’t get to all of it. For the basics: this area in Bocaue is
flooding right now. They aren’t crazy flash floods, but there is water a lot of
places that we go. Sometimes, when we want to tract in certain areas – we need
to be creative about how we make it through the flood water. Soon, we are gonna
get some companionship boots so that we can go anywhere we want and focus on
those progressing areas, even if they are flooded. A lot of houses here, when
the floods are high, have water coming into them. When we want to go tracting,
we need to go through the flood to get to the people that God has prepared for
us. Sometimes during the low tides there are no obstructions and we can easily
visit any house that we want, other times at hightide it can be a real struggle
to get out and visit those people; we aren’t really scared of water so we press
on.
I will have a lot to say about this area
in the coming weeks and months. We will have many interesting experiences in
Bocaue. I really enjoy it here. This is my first time in the city, up to this
point it has been province. There are actual places to eat here – we have a McDonalds.
We also have a big foodpark across the street called "The Ranch", but
that will probably get its own email in the future.
Culture: Day to day living. This is so
important. People have to do things that keep them subsisting one day at a time.
Especially people who own Tindahans or tricycles; these people are getting
money and then spending it almost immediately to buy food for that day only.
When we tell people they need to set apart Sunday as a day for the Lord, that
they cannot work and they cannot buy things, it takes a huge toll on them
mentally. God will provide for their financial needs, if they are doing it in
faith – but it takes an insane amount of faith to start on that path. A lot of
things done in the Philippines are daily. Going to the market to buy food,
getting paid at your job. It is like living paycheck to paycheck but a lot less
consistent.
Tagalesson: Followup:
We gonna learn how to go to someones
house and to see if they remember what you told them and if they read what you
gave them.
"Nakapagbasa po ba kayo ng ibinigay
namin sa inyo sa nakaraang?"-"Were you able to read that thing that
we gave you last time?"
"Anong naalala mo tungkol sa last
lesson namin?"-"what do you remember about our last lesson?"
“Pwede ba nating imbitahan ang buong
pamiliya mo dito para makinig sa mensahe namin?"- Can we invite your whole
family to listen to this message?"
If you get these sentences down you are
good at followup, it is that simple.
Alrighty, for next week I will try to get
things organized to talk about the area that I am now in.
As long I don’t die in a flood, I will be
safe to email you next week.
Keep on keeping on
Love
Elder Faulkner
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