Hello everyone! I hope everything is going good back home! To say the least this last week was just awesome! and what a great way to start this one with reading emails about home, friends, superbowl but most of all my new nephew Dax Sargent Bell! I have to say that's just a baller name! I love it! and he's a cute little guy! I'm going to be honest I think newborns are ugly but I think that Dax is just a cute little guy! So glad that the Bell family has had a great start to their February and with Kaleb getting baptized this week that is just awesome! Kaleb, it's the best thing you can do! I'm so proud of you and I'm so sorry I couldnt be there! I hope you the best!

 

So family!! Like I said this week has just been awesome! To start off the food here is just great! Just the rice I just eat and eat platefulls of it and never get tired of it then also the bread is just so good! I love it! But besides that the work is just going great!

 

Me and Elder Leng are now starting to really get along and we have seen a huge difference in teaching together. We are still at the beginning but we know that if we keep it up good things will happen! So this week I don't really know what I've done to improve my language skills but I've just really been focusing on vocabulary I guess and I swear last week every lesson I probably understood about 70-80% of what was being said! I think I'm really getting a feel for how they speak and can pick up on a few words here and there so I put those together and it's increased so much! I'm just hoping from here on out it stays with me! A lot of prayer and humility has gone into this work and I'm not going to get confident just yet! haha. I've learned my lessons before! So that's my plan of action. But the Work is so much more fun when you know what people are saying. Even this one lady Sis. Rayu she is a less active for years nows and doesn't believe we need the Book of Mormon when we have the Bible. She speaks pure Cebuano and I was even understanding what she was saying. I think it helps when you just go in saying alright I'm going to understand. If you doubt even a little what does that say about your faith in the Lord? Why would the Lord bless me with comprehension if I doubt that I'm going to hear these people. It says over and over in the scriptures that the Lord blesses us to the desires of our hearts. It's so true. If we desire what we need the Lord will bless us if our deires are righteuos. I know I have a desire to have a million bucks right now but that isn't a righteous desire in the Lords eyes. I also know that I have been called to be a instrument in the Lords hands to teach these people in the Philippines about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. About the TRUE and living Church on this earth! I know that... as my desires are to learn this language... to be the best helper in the Lords hand and to do this work for Him. That's a righteous desire of mine and I have seen such blessings from the Lord as I work diligently, obedieantly and faithfully for my righteous desires to come to me at this time!

 

Family Friends, who ever reads these emails,

 

I love this work. I love this mission. Words can't even express what I feel right now as I email home about my progress and this work of the Lords. I know for a fact I am meant to be here in the Philippines right now. I know for a fact that I have been called by the Lord to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. I can't express the amount of thankfulness to family, friends and leaders who support me and pray for me. But most of all I can't express my thankfulness to the Lord and what he has done for me in such a short amount of time. It's such a blessing to have Him in my life where I know that he is truly guiding me and working through me to help these people here in the Philippines.

 

Well all! It's time for me to get! But again. Know that I love you all and miss you all! I wish you the best and I hope you have a good week!

 

I love the mission! (and the food) (still miss the milk)!!

Love,

Elder Sargent