Maligayang Pasko!

Hello friends and family! Maligayang Pasko! Merry Christmas! I hope everybody is having a happy Christmas season! It's been a great week! 

Christmas Packages!

Zone Conference

 First, I am safe! A typhoon came through our mission but Pakil didn't get hit as bad as other areas. All the missionaries are safe, so thank you for the prayers! It has been really rainy and windy so I have actually felt cold! Feels like Christmas :) Sister Cornaby and I were so excited because we actually wore sweaters one night haha. We missed one day because the storm was too crazy but we were able to work and actually teach a lot of lessons this week! People were nice and let us into their homes because it was raining really hard. Typhoons are great for tracting and finding! But downside of the typhoon was I had 2 umbrellas break and some water came into our apartment and it was all over the floors, but it's all good. I feel lucky to be safe and healthy. 

Sweater Weather!

Typhoon Nona

I wish you could all meet these people. The Filipinos are honestly the best people ever. We are working with this sweet, fun 12 year old girl. We have seen so many miracles as we have taught her. Her whole extended family are less-active but 2 of her cousins have become fully active as we have taught her! They even went to the Manila temple with the branch this week!! And we have faith that some more members of her family will come back. It is amazing to see the Lord working miracles in these people's lives! We love the family so so much.

We are working with two other people who are both so amazing and really have a desire to be baptized. But they both come from very, very humble circumstances so it's hard for them to come to church and neither of them are married. In order to be baptized, they need to be married so please pray that these 2 sisters and their husbands will be able to save enough to get married and really have the desire to come to church this Sunday! 

I love love love all of the people we are teaching and meeting. They treat me like family even though I'm a tall, white American who struggles to talk to them haha.

 

I finished the Book of Mormon this week! I read it with a Christ focus and it was an experience I'll never forget. When I finished it was kind of sad like that feeling you get when you finish a really good book and you don't want it to ever end. But then the next day I started it over again and I have already learned so much!! The Book of Mormon is a book we can read over and over again and learn new things each time! I love it so much. I know the Book of Mormon is true. It testifies of Jesus Christ and is the keystone of our religion. The best gift you can give somebody is your testimony and a Book of Mormon. So don't be shy this Christmas to share what you love with others! I challenge all of you to either give a Book of Mormon to somebody you love or if you have never read the Book of Mormon, read it!! 

Even though I'm feeling a little homesick this Christmas season, I am so thankful to be on a mission in the Philippines testifying of Jesus Christ and His church every day! There is truly nowhere I'd rather be. I love you all and I wish you a merry, merry Christmas!! Family- I'll see you in 4 days!! :) 

Happy Holidays,

 Sister Giles