April 30, 2013

Minamahal na pamilaya :

Kumasta po Tayo !!

I can't for this week to end!!! I leave next Monday!! I get to go from LAX to Hong Kong and then Manilla :) I am soooooooo excited.

This week has just been amazing.  We got a new district this week and they are just wonderful. Me and my companion have still been teaching our investigators and we have them committed to baptism. Which is amazing!! I can pretty much understand the language but I can't speak it for anything.

This week has had its challenges. My companion tried to help me word this correctly. I love him to death but sometimes he just does not want to work.  That is something that I knew was going to be a problem for me on my mission. A companion who did not want to work and just wanted to have fun. I came onto my mission knowing exactly how I thought things should be done. I had goals that I had before I came and I just want to serve the Lord to the best of my abilities. I had a vision of what companion study should be and how things should be done. What I have come to realize is something which has changed the way I look at things and the way I am going to serve my mission. The Lord put me in a companionship that did not give me exactly what I wanted and He did this on purpose because maybe the Lord wants something different from me.  A successful missionary is measured by a lot of things. It may not be how I wanted my mission to look, but the main thing that a successful missionary is to become who the Lord wants you to be. You do not have to have the best companionship studies to be successful but becoming who the Lord wants you to be is what the whole mission is about and it is becoming more like Christ. That is what I have come to realize. Nothing in the Mission is about me, it's about the Lord and tending to his work. You have got to be humble and just love everyone. I have created a bond with each and every Elder in my zone. I love everyone of them to death. It's all about love. If I had time I would write you about everyone.  I love everyone at home too!!

Mahal ako ninyo. I will write Saturday before I leave!! mabuti ang buhay ko. (My life is good!!)
Elder Bigelow

April 23, 2013

I can not believe how fast my mission is going!! Its already been a month!?! It's good to hear from everyone! 
This week has been kinda of a rough week! But it turned out to be one of the best too. I kind of hit a wall when it came to learning the language and just felt like I was not progressing as fast as I had the past couple weeks with everything. I kept on praying for help to get over this hump so I could just keep on working my hardest and help people. My answer came at a time and place where the answer did not really fit the atmosphere. In priesthood meeting, I was sitting there and a thought of me wrestling popped into my head!! It took me by suprise and I just sat there thinking about that. I came to the realization that it was an answer to my prayers in this way. During my first 3 years of wrestling I went to practice everyday, I did most of the drills I worked hard. But I  progressed slowly those 3 years. It was not until my senior year, until I put all my time, all my effort and all of my heart into the sport that I accomplished something that I did not think was possible. The thought hit me that I did not want my whole mission to be like my first 3 years of wrestling but that I wanted to achieve a lot more and I learn that I can do hard things.  I have to just buckle down and work. It's going to be tough, I know that but when I look back on wrestling it was tough my senior year but it was so worth it. I know what I am aiming for this time is not just a medal but something of far, far, far greater importance.  It is for me to come unto Christ so that I can have eternal life, but then also to see the joy of others as they have this same feeling of joy and happiness and peace that I have. If it wasn't for this comfort this message gave me, I would have just buckled under the pressure and stress I had later that night. It seemed like every companionship had something going wrong that night. I was the only one not fighting or crying. The Lord helped me to work through with all the problems in the Zone as a leader. I have had to have more patience than I ever had before in my life. Being Zone leader is not an easy job, but I was helped beyond my own strength and I am truely grateful for that. The Lord loves each and every one of us. 
Oh how I love my life right now. Our investigators are coming along just fine. Last night we taught a lesson. Me and Elder Masame just froze, we couldn't speak but with what we could speak we felt the spirit, Roy felt it too. The spirit is the one who converts I can testify of that. 
For our devotional we were priviliged to have Elder Richard G. Scott come and speak to us. Just the spirit that he brought. At the end of his talk he gave me an apostolic blessing (well the whole MTC), that We would master the language, that we would become closer to our companions and that we would become close to Christ. 
I just want to leave with my testimony. 
Alam ko po na, that Jesus Christ died for us. That he died for me and YOU.  He did not die for just everyone but YOU personally. He has helped me so much and I turn every little problem over to him. I have faith that if you pray to your Heavenly Father that he will answer you, He is there and loves you. But you have to seek the answers. If you want to talk to God get on your knees but if you want God to Talk to you Open the Scriptures. I can testify of that. Oh how I love the gospel. This next week should be amazing !!!! 
Mahal Kital  
Mahal, 
Elder Bigelow

April 16, 2013

Kumasta everyone!!
Well I am now the zone leader. With it has came lots of extra responsibilities. Which is fine because it brings blessings from the lord. The weather in Utah has been crazy!! I miss Phoenix weather where it is just HOT!!! 
I am starting to get sick of the food but I am proud to say I have not gained any weight!! 
Our investigators have been coming along pretty well, hopefully by the end of next week we will have a baptismal commitment!!
I just want to share one thing that was said in a fireside! That there was a reason why Nephi was commanded to go get the plates before He was commanded to get a wife. And as I am serving this mission i am realizing why I have grown soo much just in 3 weeks. I thought that was very interesting! 
I can not wait to get out in the field even though my Tagalog is not up to par. We met some Filipinos at the temple and they started to talk to us and we were just like WHAT!?! They talked so fast!!! I only have 2 weeks to get the language down! 
Anyway, my companion says hi and we will just keep on working and doing our best to serve the Lord!!! 
With love Elder Bigelow!!

April 9, 2013

Time is flying by fast!

Well Magandang Umaga po!!

First things first, I am freezing!! It's been raining and snowing like crazy this week and I only have my suit jacket. I just have to get through the next month and I will be fine!! So, this week has been an amazing strange experience. It was finally my turn to say Mabuhay sa MTC to the new elders! That was pretty fun, knowing that I was that Elder just a week ago was crazy to think about! I joined the choir and the Elders in our District are singing in sacrament in front of the zone. I have some bad news, my companion, Elder Masame, broke his toe while playing volleyball. The other elder from Fiji broke his ankle in that same gym period doing the same thing. I am staying away from that sport. I got kicked out of 4 square because I was getting too into it and dove to get the ball. I go hard!!

The language is a bit harder than it was, we are now trying to get down sentence structures and its way harder. I would write you all something but it would take to much time to figure out what I want to say and then translate it!!  

I want to share a quick story. Me and my companion were in personal study, it was completly silent and then I had this feeling to get up and help him. I was like, ok, and I looked up and he was fine. So, I went back to studying and then it hit me again your companion is about to pass out you need to help him. I was like ok here goes nothing he's fine. Elder are you ok? Yep, he replied and out of nowhere I asked if he wanted a blessing. To my surprise he did and as he was sitting there, I told him what I felt and he told me that he was about to pass out. I'm so glad I had the spirit with me or who knows what could have happened.

General Confrence was amazing!! I actually got to listen to all of the talks!! I have applied all of the talks to what I can use now in my life. There was one talk talking about marriage and so I am using it to help my companionship with Elder Masame!! My favorite talk was Robert D. Hales in the priesthood session.

Being the district leader comes with its stresses. You have to not only worry about your companionship but all the others too. One thing that I have been trying to work on is not having everything my way. I know what I want and how I am going to get there but its not always the best choice. I'm pretty stubburn when it comes to these kinda things. I'm trying to obey all the rules exactly because "Exact Obedience brings Power" and I can testify of that just in the 2 weeks that I have been here.

One thing that has been reoccuring to me through the whole 2 weeks is the Quote "Never give up on ANYONE because the Savior has never given up on YOU." One of the Elders in our district does not want to study and just has no will to work and always runs off and so I think that this can apply to him right now but to all my investigators in the future.

I don't know if I mentioned the investigator we were teaching all last week but we commited Mary to baptism. It is one of the happiest moments in my life even though it was just practice and she is one of our teachers. I came to love her and truly care about her needs. We are starting to teach 2 new investigators, Roy and Laura. Both of them are also our teachers, but these characters are very real to me and my companion.

I got to go into Provo today with my companion because he needed to buy some things. It is amazing what things other missionaries leave here at the MTC.  I found a suit jacket that I am using since I only had 1 and there are lots of snacks!

Oh how I love this place. There is such a strong spirit here and I can't wait to share the gospel with the Filippino people.

I just want to say I have been prepared for this. I am so glad I went to mission prep because it has put me ahead of the other missionaries. I know the lessons and was already to teach and my teacher was really impressed. I just want to thank my mission prep teachers for that.

I love all of you guys but as I am going to say my whole mission, I don't miss you because I am too busy!!
Love,
Elder Bigelow

MTC Companion - Elder Masame

2 MTC District Elders

My MTC District Elders

It has been cold and snowy.

April 2, 2013

MTC

Kumasta Everyone!!!

Mom and Dad and Landen thanks for the package and the letters. Like I said tell everyone to just dearelder.com me!!!! (MTC Address Info on the side.)

Anyways, after I got dropped off things got a little crazy!! I was whisked away to a room where I got my tags and then straight to the classroom where the teacher spoke nothing but Tagalog!!! I was a little freaked out by all the different words and things. Then everyone else started to show up. I am the only American Elder in the 2 new districts that showed up on Wed. My companion is a Samoan from Australia. I have been picking up the accent pretty well for a week. In my district though there are 4 elders and 5 sisters. The 5 sisters are all American. There are 2 Australians and a Fijian then Myself. The pace that we move at the MTC is an amazing one. In just one week, I have taught 3 lessons to an investigator in Tagalog, I can almost pray in the language and bear my testimony. On Thursday, I was appointed District Leader and so my responsibilities increased a lot. On Sunday, we were privileged to hear from a General Authority because it was Easter. I had meetings all morning long and people started lining up at like 7 to hear this General Authority. So in our branch there was some people that were going to pass the sacrament so we followed them in the back so we would get a seat. I got to sit in the 3rd row staring right at the podium of the auditorium. Bishop Gerald Causse (I can’t spell so pasencha), came to talk to us. Such a good speaker!!

Some of the things that I have learned in a week:

Isa: I truly need the Lord’s help if I want to do anything on my mission, Language study, Personal Study and so forth.

Delawa: It’s hard!

tatlo: Exact Obedience Brings Power!

apat: A reassurance that HE LIVES!!

lima: I was preparing for this all my life. I am prepared for the MTC, but I’m not for the field. That is because I literally hold people’s salvation in my hands. But I am trying my hardest to be prepared!!

I forgot what 6 was so 6: The power of priesthood blessings!! I have already started to see some of those blessings from the stake president’s blessing come to pass. Such as I will feel the spirits of the prophets of old. I was reading the Book of Mormon with my companion and we read a scripture about Lehi and the spirit hit me like a train.

I know my savior lives and this week has just been so awesome!! I love my companion and I love the work.  I love you guys back home, but I don’t miss you because I am too busy to miss you!! I love you pamilia!!

I can’t wait to be able to speak the language!! It’s pretty crazy, my teacher said his family thought he was making it up!!

Anyway, I’m out of time!!

Elder Bigelow