When Study Time Turns into a Bird Chase

Heeeellllllllllooooo!

Hi everyone. This week was fantastic. Elder Duero and I are doing great here in San Jose and continue see the blessings of the Lord in our lives. Hmmm.... I think I'm just going to get straight to the point and talk about why the title of this blogpost is what it is. So every day as missionaries, we are required to conduct what we call companionship study. In two hours we review our plans for the day, discuss what we learned in our personal study, and prepare to help those we are to teach later on. Every companionship study we open and close with a prayer to invite the Spirit. So here's where it gets interesting. Elder Duero was giving the closing prayer to our daily planning session when all of the sudden, literally out of nowhere, a bird about as big as my fist and a half just zoomed, and I mean ZOOMED into the room. Elder Duero yelled "what the heck?!" and I followed with, "what in the- where did that come from?!" Not two seconds later a second bird flew in. After we closed our companion study, we spent about an hour trying to catch these two birds in our house. How did they enter, you ask? Well there are screens on the second floor windows in our apartment. The apartment is kinda old, so those screens have holes in them. MY question, however... What on earth possessed these birds to just fly into our apartment? Anyway, after that hour we caught the birds, rejoiced in our victory, and of course, set them free. 

But anyway. On a more serious note, Elder Russell M. Nelson, president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, visited the Naga mission and gave a beautiful and encouraging talk to all of the Naga missionaries. It was such a privilege to hear a true servant of the Lord speak to us and give us an inspired message. What did I take from it? Well something he addressed to us was that we as missionaries or, in general, as human beings, when faced with a challenge or problem have a responsibility to be part of the solution. I believe that as people we have this tendency to be overburdened by the challenges that we encounter from day to day. We complain, we blame, and ultimately we lean towards giving up. I can relate with that 110%. But let me say this. But if we change our mindset. If we think of ways to solve our problems, rather than being set back by how daunting those challenges are, I promise that they become easier to bear--to overcome. Life becomes almost like a game with an objective in mind. If every day, we strive to combat our problems with optimism and true intent to solve those problems, I know we can. I love being a missionary. I love encountering new challenges. Without the Lord's help, I would literally be helpless. Missions are awesome. I LOVE being a missionary. Hope your week was awesome and that anything with wings didn't enter in your homes. LOVE YOU ALL! 

-Elder Bondoc

PS: I don't know if any of you remember, but a couple of months ago a cat got into my bread in my first area. A little over a week ago, ANOTHER cat got into my bread. Coincidence? Hmm... We'll see in my next area. 

​On Tuesday, my companion and I were able to help the mother of a member repair the roof of their house. Service is a cool thing. 

Missionary Life Can be a Walk in the...Mud?

Maray na aldaw sa indo gabos!

So this week was hilarious and so fulfilling. Elder Duero and I have been having a blast lately as I've been teaching him the ropes of missionary life. So two days ago, he and I were walking through a rice field to our next appointment. This was the first time that I had gone this way and figured it would be a pretty effective shortcut... which it was! Don't get me wrong we made it to our appointment a bit early.. but there were consequences. SO imagine this. The path that we took was an uneven, 10 inch wide, mud path and on both sides of us were rice crops with about a foot of soft mud on either side of us. So we walked. I thought it would be an easy fifteen minute walk. It ended up being a 25 minute walk that included me tripping in the mud about twice. It was like we were walking on a tight rope made of mud. We couldn't stop laughing. Missionary life is the greatest. I still can't believe that I literally trudge through rice fields every day on the other side of the planet. What a blessing! 

But this week I learned the importance of planning. As missionaries, we are taught to plan every day and every week. Because of that, we see the fruits of our labors. That's something that I want to apply to my life after my mission. Something that I learned from my dad is that you should always have a plan, a back up plan, and a back up plan to that back up plan. Here in the field, we always have a goal. Whether we accomplish it or not, it doesn't matter. It's the fact that we strive every day to stretch ourselves and meet our potential. Even our Heavenly Father has a divine plan for us. If He can plan for us, there must be  something divine about planning for ourselves, right? I hope you all had a great week. Tita Ludi! Salamat po sa package na ipinadala niyo! Sobrang maganda po ang bag tsaka yung mga t-shirt. Salamat din Naomi sa mga bimpo. Laging ginagamit ko yung mga iyan. This work is awesome! Love you all! Have a great week and I'll email you again next week!

​Ward Home Evening two weeks ago. It was a blast!

The Power of Listening

WOW!

I absolutely cannot believe that it is already February. I'm actually shocked that time is flying this fast. Thanks for all the emails this week. So what's new in the life of Elder Bondoc? Well I'm so glad that you asked! Firstly I have a new companion! He's fresh out of the Missionary Training Center. His name is Elder Duero. He's from Cebu and 19 years old. He just finished his first week on his mission and is an absolutely incredible missionary. He always asks me questions about what he can do to become a better missionary. 

But this week I learned how important listening is. Let me explain. So as missionaries, our main purpose is to teach other about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Therefore, we have this tendency to become a little... talkative. So this week I tried to improve my listening skills and this is what I learned. No matter how much you say, your words will only go so far. You'll only get to know a person so much. But if you wait for a moment and just listen, you'll find out what truly lies in the heart of a person. What his or her spiritual needs are and what you can do to help them... At least that's what I do. I find much more excitement and happiness in listening to the people I teach rather than actually teaching them. Why? I can't really say. I just know that through listening I show that I truly love those I teach. And  yeah. To be honest, I really love the people I teach, the people I meet, and even the people I haven't met yet. That's why I'm serving a mission. Anyways. I LOVE YOU ALL! In a matter of 4 months I'll have been on my mission for exactly one year. That blows my mind. Take care. Have a great week and I'll talk to you all again next Monday!

-Elder Bondoc

My companion, Elder Duero
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Guess Who's Training Again?

Hello Everyone!

So this week is transfer. My companion, Elder Almario is being transferred to Pasacao, under Pamplona Zone. And as you've probably figured by the heading of this blog, I'M TRAINING A NEW MISSIONARY AGAIN! I'm so excited to help another missionary learn what it really means to be a missionary. It's truly a blessing and privilege. I understand what it feels like to be a new missionary, and to be honest, I'm still a new missionary. But I can surely tell you that I'm doing my best to learn and grow from every companion that I've had, have, and will have. 

So from this oncoming experience, what can I say? Well I can say this much... Missionary work isn't just about helping investigators, less-active members, or even members themselves. Missionary work also includes our companions. Every day I strive to understand my companions. I pray for them and truly ponder what I can do to make their experience here on their mission an unforgettable one. How can I love the people I meet if I don't even love the person that is at my side 24/7? (Like a brother sort of love, mind you.) Empathy is SO important here on mission. When you get someone like me and put that person on the other side of the globe, you can't say that empathy isn't key. I try to put myself in the shoes of everyone I meet, attempting to feel what they are feeling. But Christ knows us. He is the perfect example of empathy and I carry his name on my badge every day. I am His representative and am willing to do whatever He would do if he were here. I love being a missionary. I love the challenges that being a missionary brings. I love the people I meet. I hope you all have a wonderful week. Ingat kamo!

-Elder Bondoc

Picture taken after a community service project we had last week. I'm living on cloud 9! 

"O be wise.."

Kumusta po sa indo gabos!

Hello everyone. Thanks for taking the time to email me this week. You're all the best. Anyways, this week was pretty awesome. My companion had the chance to lead the area and boy did he do a fantastic job. I'm so thankful for him and for his desire to become a great missionary. This week we had so many opportunities to meet new people to teach and share the gospel with. I'm also SUPER thankful for the support of the members here in San Jose. They are so kind, it's kinda ridiculous. I've never met such kind people in my entire life.

So something that I learned this week actually comes from a verse in the Book of Mormon.

"O be wise; what can I say more?" Jacob 6:12

So I'm a 19 year old on the other side of the world. At times I have absolutely NO CLUE what I'm doing. Other times, I face challenges that, at this point in my life, 19 year-olds probably shouldn't be facing. But whenever something like that comes my way and I have to promptly think of a solution this verse always pops in my head. Every day I learn so much about others and even myself. Let us all be wise in any endeavor we face in our lives, even if some of us may be 19 year old punks without a clue on the other side of the globe. Stay classy everyone, and hope you all had a great week! 

-Elder Bondoc

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AY KABAYO! (OH HORSE!)

Mabuhay!

Hello everyone! This week was awesome. I can't really explain everything that happened.. quite frankly because it's the same thing that we do every day. We walk about 4 hours every day to get to and from our proselyting area. Which is great. (It's hard to express sarcasm in words so just bare with me here.) Anyways, it's been a tiring week but a super fulfilling one. Elder Almario and I have decided to push ourselves to our limits and try to teach as many people as we can and meet as many people as we can. It's hard, but I know we can do it. So here's something cool that happened. Two days ago, Elder Almario and I decided that we would try our VERY best to attain all our goals for that given day. We did and it was probably the most fulfilling feeling in the world. So after our last appointment, it was time to go home. It was about 7:30 PM and we were beat. Ahead of us lay a 2 hour walk back home which seemed impossible. Around that time, the road is absolutely empty. No vehicles. Just us and the stars. SO we started our trek. Not five minutes in, a public transportation vehicle pulled up next to us. The driver proceeded to yell "Der! Sakay na!" which translates to "Elder! Hop in!" What a blessing. The 2 hour walk turned into a 15 minute break. 

This week we talked to a lady who is now 85 years old. She's hilarious. She is also easily startled. For example, I could probably startle her about 12 times in about 15 minutes, without her expecting it. Sometimes we even tease her and every time we do she shouts "AY KABAYO!" which is absolutely hilarious.I don't know her name because we just call her "Nanay" or "Mom." Anyways, she walks about four miles every day just to say hello to her great grandchild and sometimes does it without shoes. The road isn't paved and super rocky. She's really a trooper. But yeah. When an 85 year old without shoes would be willing to walk four miles just to say hello to her great grandchild, I wonder what I would be willing to do for my family. We struggle every day and sometimes take for granted those who raised us and are always willing to be there for us. I love my family and would do anything for them and I know how important families are. That's why I'm here in the Philippines. I want to testify that families truly can be together forever. 

Anyways, that's all for this week. Hope you all have a great one and I'll talk to you again next week!

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A New Year to Look Forward To

HELLO! Before I say anything...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Thank you all so much for emailing me. This week was awesome for many reasons. Let me describe our week as briefly as possible. So let's start with December 31 and January 1. Let me tell you, the members of the Church here are so nice. And I mean SO nice. On each of those days, we had four different families that offered to feed us and, of course, how can missionaries, such as us, reject such kindness? So off we went. We thought we could handle it. We were mistaken. So these eating appointments came one after the next without any time to rest or... for lack of a better term...unload. So by the third appointment, we weren't even enjoying ourselves anymore. It hurt. Like it literally hurt to move any appendage of my body. But despite that... It was fun. 

But the highlight of my week was my first baptism. I had the opportunity to baptize a 12 year old kid named Raffael. Let me explain why I cherish that experience. So a lot of people have this conception of missionaries of our Church as deceptive, persuasive, and snide 20 year-olds looking to baptize anyone they see in sight for the sake of... well who knows what? Whatever the case may be, a lot of people have this weird misconception of us. Our responsibility, as missionaries, is to serve anyone we meet and share with them the message that we have. That's it. We invite people to make certain commitments and they, by their own free will and choice, choose to keep those commitments or not. But let's get back to the question I mentioned: Why was being able to baptize Raffael such a momentous experience? well firstly, it wasn't even for me. It was for him. I saw at first hand the progression of a young kid who truly believed what we taught. And I was able to participate in a life-changing experience that surely changed the trajectory of his entire life. I know that through continued diligence and support from members of the Church here in San Jose, Raffael will do incredible things. I am SO thankful that I can say that I was part of this kid's life. 

But yeah. That was my week in a nutshell. My stomach still hurts a little bit from being literally stretched to its limits, but I can still say that at this point on my mission, I'm still as happy as ever. It's hard. But it's a happy sort of hard, if that makes sense? I hope this 2016 brings us all of us joy, success and maybe a little bit of growth. (And I literally mean that because I don't think I've grown half a centimeter since I've left.) Thank you all for all the emails and I'll talk to you all again next week!

-Elder Bondoc