Mission XXIII: Last Transfer

As mentioned in my previous email, we had a nice, spooky transfer day this last halloween :)  It was the last transfer day that I will get to experience in the mission and I would say it was one of the best!  This transfer I got a new companion!  His name is Elder Lucero and he is from Samar!  My last three companions have all been from the same region of the Philippines and it's awesome hahaha!  Elder Somosa will be serving this transfer as a travelling Assistant meaning he'll be working a couple weeks in Palawan then coming back here to the mainland where he will end his mission two weeks before I do.

We were able to do a temple session with President and Sister Fermanis and the departing missionaries on Tuesday.  That night we had to say goodbye to a solid group of 5 missionaries.  We are grateful for the service they rendered here in the field and for their dedication to gathering Scattered Israel here in the mission. 

On Wednesday we had our new missionary orientation meeting where we trained the trainers and gave tips on adjusting to the new missionaries.  We taught them about the culture that we have here in the mission and also about the culture in the Philippines which they seemed to find as their favorite part.  Also something new that we implemented this orientation meeting is we gave them opportunities to practice teach other companionships and practice skills that we've been emphasizing here in our mission such as: Teaching with Plainness, tying every principle into Jesus Christ and the Restoration of the Gospel, and effectively extending baptismal invitations.  I had a spiritual experience during the practice teaching portion of the orientation.  I was walking around observing and as I listened and overheard the teaching I continuously heard the name Jesus Christ repeated throughout the room of the companionships teaching.  Believe it or not, we missionaries tend to overlook the most important part of the gospel which is of course, the Savior.  There is a certain power that can be felt in hearing two representatives testify of the Savior and bear witness that He really did atone for the sins of this world.  It was a powerful moment for me and it reminded me once again that the foundation of which the doctrine of this church is built upon is Jesus Christ.

Pictures:

1) We attended a fireside held in my old zone in Manila!  It was amazing because I was able to see some of my good friends from Sampaloc! 

2) Here is one of the departing missionaries from this transfer, Elder Pehacek!  He's been an awesome friend and I will miss him!  We have the same tie so we decided to match on his last day.

3) This is my new companion, Elder Lucero!!  He is the man!

4) While we were at the temple I saw one of my good friends from the earlier portion of my mission, Elder (Brother) Sanchez!!  He was my very first district leader here in the field!

Pretty crazy to think that this is the beginning of my last transfer.  Be assured that I'm pushing hard every single day to make sure I end my two year service on a strong note.  I love this church and I'm grateful for these last few weeks that I have to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ as a full-time missionary.  

Love you guys!!!  Hope that you have an incredible week :)

Elder Burdeos