February 20, 2010
Dear Family and Friends,
It has been a long time since the last update. For those of you who enjoyed them in the past, I apologize for not doing one lately and for those who didn’t like them, neener, neener.
Now that I have that off my brain here is what’s been happening here in our part of the Philippines. I say it that way because Sister Walker and Sister Cooper are up north in Bagio. Hi Sisters!!
Our beautiful temple is closed for two weeks for cleaning. Because of that, the Temple Complex has been really quiet this last week and will be next week also. We sure miss all of the patrons in and out and the visits to the mission office with their most welcome referrals. We are continuing to baptize about 100 people a month. Our missionaries work so hard and love what they are doing.
Our mission is continuing to grow. We are getting in more missionaries that we are losing and are able to open more areas. We opened two new areas since we arrived and are splitting an area in March and another in April. We are also planning to open two more areas in the very near future if we get approval. The Philippines is a great place to be right now as the Gospel is being spread throughout the country.
Some of you may be aware that on April 28, 1961, Elder Gordon B. Hinckley, then Assistant to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicated the Philippines for preaching the gospel. In his prayer Elder Hinckley invoked blessings “upon the people of this land that they shall be friendly and hospitable, and kind and gracious to those who shall come here, and that many, yea Lord, we pray that there shall be many thousands who shall receive this message and be blessed thereby. … We pray that there shall be many men, faithful, good, virtuous, true men who shall join the Church.” We are preparing to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of that momentous meeting and dedication.
Here is our missionary plea again. In March and April we are losing our three key senior couples, and there are no replacements in sight. If you (speaking to those not already on a mission) have had thoughts or discussions with your spouse about going on a mission, now is the time to act. The need for Senior Couples is greater than you can possibly imagine. There is no way Sister Bailey and I can fill our callings and theirs too, nor could we even try. One couple served in Bogo City at the northern end of Cebu Island, one on the Island of Bohol and the other on the Island of Negros. Sister Bailey and I cover everything from Cebu City, South and the West side of Cebu Island. Let the Lord know you are ready to serve. I’m sure there are other missions with needs the same as ours throughout the world. The work is very rewarding and the pay greater than you could ever think possible.
It has also been a while since we sent a picture of a Jeepney. Here is our Jeepney of the month for February courtesy of the Hilton Hotel, Cebu. (See file "Jeepney Feb 2011.doc")
Our prayers go out to all of you every day and we want you to know we love you and miss you. It’s hard to believe we have been on our mission for 7 months already but we certainly are not ready to leave yet. We still have 16 more months of service to give and look forward to every day of it.
May God bless all of you and may you continue to do all you can to keep the commandments that will enable you to return to you Heavenly Father when the time comes. I testify to you that I know the importance of the work we are doing for the people of the Philippines and for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I know that our Savior lives and loves us and wants the best for us each day and that through His Atonement we can have eternal life.
Take care and I will try to do another update next month.
Elder & Sister Bailey
Sister Bailey, I know you have been home sometime but we are thinking of requesting the cebu mission & have a few questions that maybe you all can answer before we submit our papers. I can be reached at 9186077783 if you have a moment. Thanks so much, Sister Anderson
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