Monday, May 30, 2016

Hello,

Sister Leausa and I exchanged emails yesterday and she is doing really well. This week was transfer week and she is not going anywhere this time. She will stay in Marikina with Sister Ghouri.

Sister Leausa also shared some very exciting news with me. Her very first companion that she went through the MTC with, Sister Swanson, has been transferred to Sister Leausa's area and will now be a companion to one of the other sisters that Sister Leausa lives with.  What a wonderful reunion this will be for these two sister missionaries.

Sister Swanson & Sister Leausa at the MTC - July 2015

I learned that missionaries that are going home are allowed to call other missionaries in their area just before they leave the mission field. This morning Elder Soifua (her second cousin) called her to say good-bye and wish her well.  Sister Leausa will miss seeing him but she is so excited for him to be headed home and "returning with honor." Elder Soifua is such a great example to her.

Sister Leausa did not have time to write her "weekly email" this week so I just wanted to give you a quick update. She has had an awesome week this past week and sends her love to everyone.

Our ward held a "half day mission" and this was the group I was assigned to!
It was raining so hard that day.
They really got to experience missionary work.

Sister Wyona & Sister Leausa

Sunday, May 23, 2016

Hi everyone :)


Geez. its been awhile, noh? since I've written a weekly email, a "thoughtful" one at least. hah! i wish i could say its because i haven't had time to write one. But, that would be a lie.

This last month has been on of the hardest months of my life. this transfer has been the most challenging one by far. trial after trial, struggle after struggle...challenge after challenge. i can remember a couple weeks ago i wrote in my journal, "i just want to go home." nothing was going right, at least that's what i thought. my comp and i hated each other, our area was not progressing, and it felt like we were getting no kind of help from our ward. in my eyes, everything was just falling apart. i have to be honest, i really did just want to come home. 

BUT! "mama didn't raise no quitter!" haha! it wasn't until yesterday at church that i FINALLY began to understand. the topic given to the sacrament speakers was adversary. so, of course, all of them shared about the trials and challenges we face in our lives. one sister, assigned to speak, shared a story about a car accident that their family was involved in. long story short, the accident was caused by the family and as a result, one person died. not in their family, but in the other car. im sure we can imagine the impact of the death of that one man on this family. that a pretty heavy burden to bare; a pretty big trial. the sister mentioned how devastated she was and how at first she had no clue how to deal with the trail. while on the other hand, her husband, he was shaken up too, but he told his wife, " im happy to be going through this trial. it helps me to better understand my heavenly father." 

throughout the rest of her talk, i jotted down a few other things about trials in our lives:

          Trials help us to use our free agency wisely.
          Through trials, we learn to trust the lord more.
          Do we see trials and challenges as stumbling blocks or stepping stones?

Tribulation will be our constant companion; everything depends on how we react to it.i took the things this sister said and applied them to my "oh so difficult" mission. and after taking a good, hard look at things, the problem wasn't my comp, its wasn't my area, and it wasn't my ward...its was ME :) my heavenly father has placed in my path stepping stones, and i viewed them as stumbling blocks. he blessed my life with a companion who would help me become more of the woman God intended me to be, and i viewed her as naught. he was asking me to trust him and his plan for me, but i was wanted to complain and beg for things to go my way. he was asking me to endure and i was failing...MISERABLY! 

In the book of acts, new testament, chapter 14 verse 22, we learn that we enter the kingdom of god through tribulation. in the book of alma, book of mormon, chapter 38 verse 5, we learn that as we put our trust in the lord, we will be able to get through AND over our trials. and my all time favorite, doctrine and covenants, section 122 versus 5-8. we learn that all the hard, sucky things we go through in life are for our own benefit; to help us gain experience and become more lie our savior, Jesus Christ.

I sit back and think about this last month. at first, what i thought to be the transfer from hell. hahaha! but now, what has become the greatest learning experience ever :)

I testify that god lives, jesus is the christ. only through trials, tribulations, and challenges will we ever be able to understand our heavenly fathers plan for us. only through tribulation will we find TRUE joy. i testify that god DOES answer prayers; hes answered mine in so many ways. and for that i am truly grateful :) for those of you who think the world is ending, like i did, i promise you ITS NOT. hahaha! keep pushing! try looking at things from a different angle. try to see the lesson the lord is having you learn. when you do, i promise you, youll look back at the trail and say, "thats it?!" :) i leave you this week with one of my favorite quotes in hopes that this weeks "trials" are viewed as blessings :)

"THE TEST A LOVING GOD HAS SET BEFORE US IS NOT TO SEE IF WE CAN ENDURE DIFFICULTY. IT IS TO SEE IF WE CAN ENDURE IT WELL. WE PASS THE TEST BY SHOWING THAT WE REMEMBER HIM AND THE COMMANDMENTS HE GAVE US."

I love you all soooo much! and hope you have an amazing week!


Sister Leausa

"This is Sister Janet. She is from Palawan, one of the prettiest places in the PI. She is our most progressing investigator at the moment and i LOVE her! She has a baptismal date for June 11 that we are so excited for." 

"May 21 was National Day of Service so we got to join our Stake in giving service to the Barangay (city) that we live in."

Sister Swanson & Sister Leausa

Elder Soifua & Sister Leausa (second cousins)

"We decided to ride a calabaw (water buffalo) to our next appointment. hahaha!"
\Sister Leausa & Sister Ghouri

"Went on MTC exchanges and this was the group we had. All polys except for one."

Sister Leausa & Sister Mendez

Marikina Zone

Exchanges with Sister Nielsen

Sister Talamaivao (Fagaloa, Samoa) & Sister Leausa 

Sister Tropia (PHI), Sister Leausa & Sister Richards (NZ)

Sister Leausa & Sister Collins (Samoa)

West Jordan, Utah Sister Missionaries serving together in the PI

Sunday, May 8, 2016

Hi everyone!

It's been awhile since i last wrote you all. sorry :) i dont really have much time left to email, but my mama requested that i write a little something for all of you and the blog. haha! its so crazy to think that im more than half way done with my mission. itll be 10 months on the 22nd! crazy! im loving absolutely every minute of it...even the hard days :)

Today i was able to skype with my family; oh man how i miss them! but i know how much they are blessed because of missionary work :) this last weekend was also Mother's Day :) to all you mamas..HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

I am so grateful to be blessed with the mama i have. she has taught me how to be strong and independent, and has shaped me into the woman that i am today. if it wasnt for the things she taught me before my mission, im pretty sure my mission wouldve been harder than it already is. haha! im so extremely grateful for her and definitely in debt to my heavenly father for blessing me with her :)

Mothers are special; i hope you all realize that :) my favorite story about mothers in the book of mormon has to be the story of the 2000 strippling warriors :) read it! because of what their mothers taught them, they had no need to fear. mama, thank you for everything! :) i love you soooo much!! :)

Alright, thats all ive got for this week! sorry so short! i hope you all had a great mothers day and i hope you all have a great week! i love and miss you all! :)

Sister Leausa

Sunday, April 24, 2016

Hi everyone!

As much as i hate to admit it, i was transferred :/ im no longer im beautiful taytay. im now in good ol' Marikina City. assigned to Marikina 1A to be exact :)

My companion, Sister Ghouri, and I are white washing. which means, in short, the area, before we got here, was an elders area. and now, its sisters! :) which means when we first got here, we had NO CLUE where anything was; the houses of the members, investigators, less-actives, nothing! when white washing, everything is totally up to us. we have to be the ones to find everything and we really have to depend on the area book to be able to "survive.' these last couple of days have been challenging but fun :) 

Sis. Ghouri is from pakistan. its been super cool to get to know her and her culture. i dont know about any of you, but before my mission, i didnt even know that the gospel was in pakistan. the lords work is truly hastening! :) 

I have to be honest, i was really sad leaving taytay; i cried. hahaha! one of my hardest goodbyes was with the Espiridion family and sister Milyn (one of our progressing investigators) :/ ive come to love that family so much. and as hard as it was to say goodbe to my own family when i left to come here, leaving them was so much harder! i dont even want to think of how im ever going to leave all these people when i leave here to come home...its a good thing ive got a loooong 9 months left, huh? :) haha! 

I dont have much else to report this week :) i hope that you all have good health and high spirits! i love and miss you all!! Muah!!!


Sister Leausa

"Look at what street I am on...."

"Sis Milyn is in the back and her daughter Sainai. Definitely some of my favorites.
The sister in  the purple, Leah, less active, is making her way back to church. "

Sister Leausa and Sister Ghouri, her new companion.

Monday, April 18, 2016

This is the Espiridion family. 

"A little taste of  home."

"We had Sisters Conference on Wednesday which was really fun."

"We had a service project at the Mentoy families house. I am going to miss them so much!"

"These are the sisters that I entered the field with."

Sunday, April 10, 2016

Magandang umaga po sa inyong lahat! :)


This past week has been nothing short of amazing! I. LOVE. GENERAL. CONFERENCE! i hope you all had the chance to watch the 186th annual session of general conference last week. here, we watch it a week later than when its actually broadcast, but that is okay because it was still AMAZING! :) for those of you who missed it, its a good thing you have a cellphone :) haha! you can watch it online at LDS.org :)

All throughout primary and my youth days, i was told i should write down questions i wanted answers too, before conference; and then hopefully, they would be answered during conference in one talk or another. i never really thought anything of it. i always said, "ill just let the spirit guide me," and never really put that much thought into questions that i wanted answers too. last general conference, i said that it was different watching conference as a member and as a missionary, right? same concept applies this time :) i didnt know if my questions needed to be "structured" a certain way or have a certain topic, so i just took the questions my heart wanted answers to. i came up with FOUR:

1) how can i be a more successful missionary?

2) how can i become more Christ-like?

3) how can i be an better instrument for my family at home?

4) which one should take priority when i get home, family or medical school?

[Dont laugh at question 4! haha! pres. Revillo always says "begin with the end in mind." im just obeying mission rules. hahaha!]

I listened earnestly to each talk, took notes...all the stuff i needed to do to hopefully get answers to my questions. as i reviewed my notes last night, to my surprise every single one of my questions was answered in one talk or another :) i wont explain how, or in what ways, because that would take forever...but all my questions were answered :)

I'm grateful for general conference; for the guidence, inspiration, and council we receive from the lord. im grateful for a living prophet, even thomas s. monson, who receives revelation for all god's children. im grateful for jesus crist and his infinite, atoning sacrifice. i testify that he lives, he is the savior and redeemer of the world. i testify that god hears and answers prayers. my questions might not hve been asked through formal prayer, but they were asked from the depths of my heart. i testify that god loves us, his children, and wants the very best for us. he wants to help us succeed. im grateful for his love and mindfullness of me; one little sister missionary in PQCM who desires to share the gospel to her filipino brothers and sisters. im grateful that he hears and answers my prayers. i testify that the church of jesus christ of latter-day saints is the lords kingdom here on earth and through restored, priesthood power, families can be together FOREVER.

I hope and pray that you all have an amazing week :) oh! speaking of conference, i almost forgot my favorite quote...
"love is making space in your life for someone else"

We all know someone who needs a little extra love in their life...give it to them! :)

Mahal ko po kayong lahat! ingat po kayo diyan, lagi!

Sis. Leausa

Sister Weston (Utah), Sister Aiono (Australia), Sister Leausa and Sister Wilkins (Utah)