Wow! The Lord is hastening the work!

I took a tuna salad to Arevalo business class to give some ideas about adding offerings to the fish business to get more sales and cut waste.  Anyway, they were having a little celebration because they are halfway through the 12 week business course.  The pig farmer is considering a loan and Ray showed him an amortization schedule so he could see the cost.  We had lunch and shopped for eight items, could only find four; no black pepper, very seldom can find sour cream.  Came home and it is fast Sunday noon to noon.  Ray is typing his conversion story.  I am reading from Jesus the Christ. Amy, Elle, and Ava are in for the scripture challenge, along with Susan, Raymond, Tia, Darrin, Tim, Sarah, Talmage, Lillie, Dallin, April, Mike, Emma, Jane, Rachael, Dave, Dietrich!  What great supporters!  Thanks, Dave for your calendar, I already found a mistake in my counting.  I skipped a day on paper so this Sunday, January 11 we are on page 77 O.T.
Sunday, January 4 Analisa, (my lost opportunity found), texted that she was coming to church with her three children and they came, the children enjoyed it and I got to send them on their way with a picnic lunch for the hour and a half ride home.  There were also two investigators at church.  After Mandurriao church and getting Analisa and her family off, we went to Molo 2nd where there is a new bishop, explained the initiative and told him where his ward had left off.  Then we attended San Miguel Group and they had two investigators.  Next was My Path at Mandurriao ward, with 23 attending.  Sister Janice, the ward specialist did a great job.  She is also an ob/gyn with a darling baby boy of her own so she just takes on a few patients now.  She and her husband, a fairly new convert went to the temple and were sealed with baby Thio in November.  Her father is President Garcia, past stake president.  He is a lawyer by profession and really knows the gospel. We were beat at the end of the day.
Monday we are being invaded by ants...bathroom, bedroom, closet...aah!  We went to Arevalo for internet service and discovered I typed last weeks' letter twice.  Thanks Rachael for editing.  There has been no internet at the Center for a month.  Ray found our water bill at the landlords so we went and paid that plus the phone bill.  In the afternoon we went to the wharf to pick up more books.  That takes about an hour and a half.
Tuesday we had zone meeting until noon and then the missionaries helped Ray unload eight boxes of books from the truck to the Center.  They are very heavy.  We unpacked the books.  The PFM is working on the internet to have two going in case one quits.  They will be moving back into our building in the room right next to us so the service should get better.  We had our self reliance committee meeting at 6pm.  It was decided to just keep focused on My Path.  We also made arrangements for our neighbors' son, who is 37 years old to come to our bungalow tomorrow to meet with the elders.  He has approached us several times but we don't understand the language, even in English well enough to really communicate.  I wrote about him before.  His father died and was just buried Dec 27.  He was given a Book of Mormon in Ilongo last year.
Wednesday I made lunch for the missionaries and Alvin came over.  They talked and I bore my testimony and I think he felt the Spirit.  The missionaries extended him a baptismal date of February 7.  His name is Alvin, pray for him.  He so needs the gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  After we went to the Center and began preparing talks for Sunday.
Thursday we were at the Ford dealership having the truck serviced.  It cost almost $200.  We can't figure out why this one thing is higher than in the states and everything else is much less expensive than the states.  Our appointment was at 8:30 and we were able to drive away at 11:00.  We did some wash, ironing and made and ate fettuccine .  We went to the Center and Ray printed off an ecclesiastical endorsement for PEF for a young student.  We returned to bungalow at 7:30.
Friday we are told that we will not be able to drive to the Center because of a festival celebration, so we went to Arevalo and did some things like turning in reports...  Later we were interviewed by Hazel Garcia.  She has a soft ice cream business.  Then we picked up the elders and went to Cecelio Mamgamgos funeral which was held outside the house.  The road to the house is narrow and not a road just a path. When we left, the elder had to lift up electrical wires for us to get out.  Anyway the 49 year-old deceased was a convert since 2006 but his wife and children have been members.  A tradition here is for relatives to play cards and gamble to help pay for the funeral expenses.  That was very interesting.  He left a wife and three daughters, 16, 13, 10.  They had not been to the temple yet so it will be an opportunity for the family to be sealed together after a year.  They also serve food when you come for the "wake" as it is called.  We got home around 9:30.
Saturday we were doing facilitator training at the Center and a fellow came in.  He remembered a missionary from his high school days and he is looking for some service and he came to the church.  It is a really sad story.  He is a medical technician and his wife was also, but he was working in Cebu when typhoon Yolanda hit last year and his whole family drowned, wife and two little girls 4 & 6.  He will come to church there tomorrow and meet with the sister missionaries.  His name is Junjie.  Pray for him.  He is so lost.  I cannot imagine the trauma.  He left, Ray finished the training, and we drove to Tiolas  to do My Path there.  There were 23 present.  We returned to the Center to take care of books for Tiolas , Jaro, Mandurriao , and LaPuz for Sunday.  Arrived at bungalow at 7pm worn out.  I sent some texts to bishops and branch presidents and now to bed.  What a week!