Happy Fathers Day

Hey Dad and kris and Anni and Davo.

Happy Father's day dad!!! I think it's coming up close if I'm not wrong. On the 17 right?? Anyways, happy Fathers day, I am grateful for you Dad, and am grateful for all the sacrifices you have made in your life so that you were a greater part in our lives, it means a lot, and I am grateful for it. I love you dad.

So this week, we have a Baptism coming!!! Sister Veronica had her interview yesterday and she is finally getting baptized! It has been pretty quick. ha, She will be baptized this Saturday, the 16th. She was so nervous for her Interview yesterday, but according to our Zone Leader, Elder Sims, she did a great job and she is ready! I was a little stressed yesterday because one of our recent converts Sister Caridad, has missed her 5th week of church yesterday, she has no reason, she just didn't want to come, I was mad at her, because of her choice, and I shouldn't have been, but was. Later after church she showed up to the chaple to be there for sis Veronica and her interview, because they are neighbors and friends. We sat down and got to have a good talk, and kind of got talk about the church thing, I think she is having a hard time adjusting to the Mormon life, cause she use to be so active in her last Church, and she had a calling kind of like visiting teaching in her church, and stuff, and now not really, and she only has some friends, she would make more friends if she would come to chruch and the activities. But she is stubborn, so am I though, ha. I have been really pondering how to help her. We will pray and see. I am excited though for Sister Veronica's baptism, it will be nice to have a baptism finally!! Ha good stuff.

We had a Film showing also on saturday, where we showed the Restoration movie of Joseph Smith, the 1 hour version, we were hopefully going to have many attend but at the last second, many of our investigators and Less actives bailed on us. So we were just trying to find some people to bring and stuff. And one of our Families we are teaching were able to come, and brought some of there extended family so it turned out ok. And I had fun. So it was a success.

I hope you guys are all happy, and doing a lot of fun stuff. And I hope you guys get all figured out if what you will do. I know that you will know what to do, if you listen to the peacefullness of the Spirit. I love the Peace the spirit brings. I have really felt that this past week. It is nice, and helps in our hard time. I love you all and miss you.

Love Elder Benjamin L. Larson

Good Birthday

Hey Mom, Jess Steve and Spence,

Hope that your all feeling better, sounds like you got hit pretty hard with the flew. Sorry to here about your job thing falling through., hopefully you will be able to work next week.

So I am doing good here in the Philippines, I had a good birhtday talking to you guys, it was nice to hear all your voices . And this was a pretty normal week, it has beeen raining more lately and I am getting wettert. I like the rain though cause it's coolder. But it's wetter too, so that is the down side.

So We had a few family home evenings with one investigator family, and also a Less Active family ANd then a Investigator and her New member friends. So we had three FHE's one afte4r the other this week. It was fun thought. And we and my companion made Mango Floats, with Gray-ham (gaham) crackers. they were very yummy, but probably not as good as waat you all ate on sunday after steve and spencers talks. I bet those were great.

I got Katelyn's wedding announcement, I have neber met her new husband, but she looks happy there, did you get to meet the guy? How old is he??? IS he nice? DId Katelyn seem really happy?? Ha, lots of questions sorry.

Sorry mom, Notheing really exciting has been happenig, we had to move back the Baptismal Date of one of our investigators because she dreanked coffee on saturday. We told her that one thing she can do is switch to another drink. One drink I drink a lot here is called Energen, it is like hot chocolat with some oatmeal in it, it is really good, I drink it every morning, ha more like three times a week, ha. It is good though, closest thing to milk I can find, but it's hot so not the same.

So I was talking to my comp E. Montejo last nicght, about vampires, He asked me if I bleleave in that kind of stuff, I told him no. And then he said, why is there Twighlight then? I then chuckled a little, and explained to him that Twilight is just a story , and fake, the people in it aren't really vampires, and wear wolves. And then he said, How do you explain the people who drink blood and stuff, I told him that those kind of people are just wierd and crazy. Then I told him the story of Dracula, how he was a real person but not a real Vampire, he was just a creep and a sick person who enjoyed killing people and drinking their blood, thats it. Then he said, "I still believe in it". ha THe people here in the Philippines are very suppersticious, they believe in Withces, Aswangs (mystical creatures) and vampires and stuff. My comp also asked me if I believe gohst can show them selves in pictures, I say to him, no it is just in the head, in the thoughts. He believes it, haha I think it's funny. I have learned that my comp is a very afraid person. He has many affraids, when a dog barks iven it is across the street or far away, he jumps, and when we walking in the rain, with our umbrellas, if it has lightning or thunder, he quickly closes his umbrella, or he holds onto the Plastic part only cause 'he will be ok if he gets hit by lightning and he holds the plastic', ha and he also makes random noises, like because he is afraid, because he thinks of himself getting hit by a car or struck by lightning, and it scares him, haha, he is so funny, and just, has a lot of fobias he says. haha, I also have to be the one to turn out the light at night.

So the Filipino people are one of a kind people, they are so funny, even if you explain to them how this wierd things happen, they still believe in all this wierd stuff. Haha i love them. So I hope you are all diong well and don't have the flue. And also this is our new address to our Mission, just incase I haven't told you yet,

Elder Benjamin Larson

Philippines Quezon City Mission

Aurora Blvd. Cor. JP Rizal Street

Project 4, Cubao

Quezon City 1109, MM, Philippines

I love you all so much, and hope you are doing well, and Steve and Spence, don't get married yet if you can help it, we still have to play, haha, joke, but seriously try to hold off a while, ha unless you fall in love or something crazy like that, if that happens I guess you can get married. Ha

Mom, I love you, and miss you, and am so gratefull for you! And Jess, I freekin love you! And I hope you are enjoying your calling as the Munchy Mingly Person or whatever, ha, I love you kid.

BE safe all you peole, and take care of eachother.

Love Elder Benjamin Lamoreaux Larson

Blowing Bubbles

Hey mom jess steve and spence,

How are you guys doing? Wow, thats good, it seems like you are doing many new things there in the house of ours. And I am glad that you got all the garage all cleaned, and i am glad too that I am not there to experience that ha. 

I am doing good here in Philippines, it has been rained for a couple of days, the first two, we had no unbrellas, the next two day we finally bought some. ha, good thing too, cause those days, we almost had no lessons. Only 2-3. It is hard sometimes here, the people are very really busy and many of the time they just don't want to or have not the time to listen us to our message. So steve and spence, you have a new car!! Wow, Mercury?  Is it a stick shift, what color is it, you should probably send to me a picture. ha

I also heard about Josh that makes me sad, and hopfeully he will be ok. I will fast for him like you.

So today is our P-day, and we did our laundry today. we have no machines so we use buckets and our hands. And today I discovered that half way through Laundrying, it is much more funner to take a brake a Blow Bubbles with your hands and the clothes soap!! ha, they are HUGE! Man I liked it, I don't know about my comp, Elder Montejo, he was pretty serious about his laundrying. Ha But I like to blow the bubbles, and then to catch them again and send them off flying again. 

So nothing to exciting happened this week. Except.............. Brother Rosendo who has been being taught of the missionaries for about 6 months has excepted the Baptismal Date of June 2, ha, so you know, those 6 months were all teaching about prophets, Joseph Smith especially and the BOM. Ha, we have just started to go into the Plan of Salvation, Steve and Spence, dont judge me, I know it is long of only Lesson 1, He needed it, believe me. ha

So I am excited that he is excepted to that date, and it is so cool to see people change. I remember the first time I saw him, he was convinced that Joseph Smith was Fake, becuase of his many wives. And also he had questions of the BOM, and why there is no sayings of it in the bible. He has listened to a different preacher man for a while, he is from the Philippines, and is memorized in the bible. and so he calls him self a prophet, but all he does is show scriptures in the bible trying to destroy Joseph Smith and our church, wow, what a prophet.. haha

Me and my comp are doing good. we are doing are best, and I am really starting to feel all the slack that I am pulling. Ha but I guess that is how it is as a trainner. We will be in a lesson or talking to a people on the street and they will ask something then I will look to my comp to see if he want to answer or me, and the look on his face is like, YOU YOU YOU YOU YOU YOU YOU!!!!! He is still pretty shy and stuff aobut teaching, he will get there. 

I love this work and the philippines, even though it is wet and hot, and smeels like many  different thingys. I love it all. and I know that god loves us and has a plan for us, and we should follow it or our lifes will suck. I love gods plan and his word, the BOM and Bible.

Love Elder Benjamin Lamoreaux Larson

Training

Hey Mom, Jess, Spencer, and now Stephen.

 

I am doing good here in philippines, It is so very hot though, it has been 35* celious, up to 37* celcioius, I don't know what that is in F, but it is hot, plus humidness. But hopefully rainny season start soon. and yes mom it is true when it is wet season, you are always wet, even if you have a unbrella.

 

So Steve how is you being not a missionary. It is weird no? Thats what they all tell me, it is wierd. But it sound like you are having fun, a lot, and volley ball playing. So how was Katelyn's weeding, was it fun. It is wierd that she married now. Is she get merried at the temple?

 

So my new comp is elder Montejo, he is also from Philippuines. But a different place of it so he speaks a different language called Waray-waray, and he says he is not so good in speaking Tagalog. I think he is better than I was though when I was just new, but also i wonder if he is understanding what i said to him, ha it is wierd to train. I do a lot of the teaching, and he is still pretty quiet, but he is also fun and happy, he reminds me of the spencer when spencer is in trouble, quiet and kind of inocent looking, ha, he is just like you in trouble spence.

 

So we are teaching a man who is name is Rosendo Fransiya (60+) he is very cool. He at first would also always ask questions about Joseph smith and why he had many wives, but now he has move on, and not so much struggling there now. He has been taught by the missionaries for kind of a long time, I am his 6 missionary. But he has just started to come to church, since I have been here. i am lucky.. one thing thats funny, is that he told us he believes there is no girls in heaven after we die, he said we are all boys after we die, because girls cant have the priesthood, I didn't even know what should i say. So I just told him i want to get married one day, and be sealed in the temple, and after I die, when i see my wife again as a spirit, I want her to still bee a girl. haha, then he still wans't so a lot convinced, so i just said in myself to my head that this isn't important for his salvation for now. But he is very cool, ever since he has start to church, he has listened his problem about Joseph Smith and he has now had a desire to read boook of mormon, and before though he didn't want to read it ever. We talked to him of baptism, but he sais he is afraid to be baptized because he doesn't want to sin again after and loose his chance to be clean. So this tomorrow we will teach him about repentance, and sacrament and stuff. 

 

He is one of the investigators that I have really seen a change happen into him. And I really love him, I want him to be baptized but I know it is up to him, and I want him to make the choice. It will be good, I know he will be baptized! He is prepear of god! I am lucky to be here in this time of his life. It is very cool!

 

I love you all, and I know that throught the gospel of jesus christ we change our bad happits to good happits. I also know that christ is the    one who is changing to us. we can't do it alone we must have him. I love you all. 

 

Love Elder Benjamin Lamoreaux Larson

I get to have kids!!!

Hey Dad, Kris Anni and David!

Happy Birthday david, sounds like you had much fun in your birthday celebration throughout the whole day, your 9, wow!!

So I am doing ok, but something new is happening in the mission. We got a call from our AP's on Monday, and they gave me some news. well...... I am going to have a Kids...........................  I am training!!

I don't know how I am going to do this. I have a hard enough time with a Jr comp. ha but hopefully it will all be ok. And hopefully I can take care of my kid a lot.

So on tuesday we had a meeting with the president, only the missionaries who will be train, so I had to go alone, it was so weird to not have a companion, but I did it just fine, and I was able to take a Jeep-Nee into more center city, and then find a taxi, and me and the taxi man had a pretty good talk, we talked about religion and why there became many churches, and I gave him a brief summary of christ establishing his church when he lived on earth, then I gave him a Pamphlet to read, the restoration. Good stuff.

So on the brite side, we had many Less Active members come to chruch, 17 came! And 6 investigators showed up! The work is really taking off, but I feel bad for Elder Basalo cause he has been here in Marikina 4 for 6 months, and no baptisms yet, poor kid. He will do good in his next area though, he is a good missionary.

So I hope you guys have fun with Steve, and Tell me how is his english when he gets off the airplane. I bet you he will not know how to english after he is done. Ha, this will be funny. I know how that is, sometimes I forget my english too though.

I love you all, and hope you are happy. And I know that god love us, and his son Jesus christ sacrificed for us, and this gives us the hope to go through our lives daily.

Love Elder Benjamin L. Larson

The boys are coming home!!!!!!!

Stephen and Spencer will be coming home soon!!! YAY! Spencer will be home April 11 and Stephen will be home April 25!!! I dont know when there homecoming talks will be but I will let you all know as soon as I know.

-Jessica

Sheila was baptized!!

Hey Everybody,

Conference was great, I liked the talk that Jeffrey R. Hallond gave about "Its never too late!", and the 2 that Deiter F. Uchtdorf gave. On saturday after the 2nd session of conference Sheila was baptized, it was great because the spirit was strong and there were a lot of people there because of conference. I attached some pictures to this e-mail there are pictures of servic projects, activites, me at the temple with Elder Alves Da Silva my last comp. also there are pictures of baptisms, and pictures of me and elder Araujo, and Elder Bentes my curent comp.
This week was a good week and many things happened like, Splists with the Zone leaders, Baptism interveiws, teaching , doing contacts, rude people, many laughts, distric meeting, Learning new words, Genral Conference, Eatting at members homes and joking around, and inviting people to get baptized. It was a pretty good week, many people we taught this week for the frist time really had no intrest but we did our part. We did enconter a girl named Byanca(15 years old) which excepted the invite to be baptized on the 21st of April. She was very foucused in on the lesson when we taught her The Resturation. Bruna didn´t go to the conference so we got a little sad about that because she missed a great opportunity to hear the servents of God speaking.
Saterday after Sheila´s Baptism we bought a pizza and were walking to our house when a young homeless boy(about 12) stopped us and asked for a slice of our pizza. So I reached into the pizza box and grabbed a slice, and as I was handing it to him a little bit of the cheese and toppings fell to the ground. I said sorry, then he reaplied ´´It´s ok, you know you´ll eat anythink when you´re hungry.´´ and then he walked off. I feel sad for the way his life has turned out. I know that when we keep the commandments of God we are blessed, and when we´re down and hungry The Gospel Of Jesus Christ and lift us up and strengthen us.
Have a great week everybody,

With loveElder stephen larson