August 25, 2013

Dear Family, 

Thanks for all the emails. It's so amazing and it makes me so happy that Justin and Jacob are serving missions, I know that Heavenly Father has such a great plan in store for their lives and the lives whom they will all touch. Good to hear you're all doing so good as well, Drake's doing senior portraits?! That's so awesome, he's growing up! I saw the pictures of Demi and was shocked! She's growing up so fast! Hows dave? Tell him to shoot me an email next week i miss him.

This last week i went on lots of exchanges with many zone leaders of different zones. Its such a great opportunity to get to learn from all them, and to help them out in their areas as well. I got my philippines license as well, we took a 2 hour drive to cadiz zone leaders last week and had exchanges with them, that was awesome to go back to my old zone and see the progression. The days are just flying by faster and faster, because we are so busy with proselyting! I don't know if you know or not, but we spend no time in the mission office. We are 100% full time proselyting missionaries. Before the assistants did lots of office work, but now the Lord has us out on the streets setting the example for the mission! It's so great as well, i'm really doing a lot of self evaluation and  trying to find what more i can do to improve. Our investigators are progressing well! Especially the Occianas family, we are really helping them recognize the Holy Ghost answer their prayers, and its so powerful when they realize that those good and peaceful feelings they have are the Spirit of God testifying truth to them. We also have been teaching Venus, she is progressing so well, and accepted a baptismal date for Sep 21st last week. She is very noble, and ready to receive this Restored Gospel.

President also said next transfer Elder Peralta and I will be the only 2 left here in the area, so we know we've got lots of work to do. I have so many things that i've seen that we can improve here, to really make our area the model for the whole mission. I know the Lord can do it through us, because Elder Peralta have had many talks and discussed that we are going to be humble to the Spirit, and not be a hinderment to the Lords work here in Bacolod 3rd ward, we know miracles will come. He's a really great missionary, very humble and submissive to the Spirit, and I know that's how we're going to be successful. Keep reading the scriptures family, of old and new. Holding to the rod is the only way we will make it to the tree of life! And how great will be our joy, if while we are holding onto that rod, we are also holding the hand of one of our family members, friends, or someone that needs help to make it to that tree of life. I know the Book of Mormon is true, and I'll keep sharing it every day with my Filippino brothers and sisters.

Love,

Elder Doane

August 18, 2013

Dear Family,

Thank you for all your emails, i love opening them up every monday and getting to hear how you're all doing. Sounds like Drake is just being hilarious still, and Demi's growing up! I remember seeing her on skype last time and it looks like she's changed a lot, I'm excited to see her again come December. Mom thanks for working that website! No worries, slowly but surely it will get done. Will you thank Sister Erekson as well for me? That's so nice of her to help. That's so cool that Dave has that new calling! He'll be great for it, he's got lots of creative ideas and things. That sounds like so much fun. Were you ever able to take family pictures? Or maybe just a few pictures that we took a while ago as a family. I don't mean to bug you guys about it, I just don't have any picture of us as a family! So if you could send one that'd be sweet.

Wow this last week just zoomed by, i can't even remember what all happened. We got out and just proselyted every hour that we could, and taught many lessons. I think we taught over 30 this last week, 26 of them with a member. The Lord is really manifesting His hand in this work, it's amazing how He really does qualify those whom He calls. Sister Michelle Minguillo was baptized saturday, and i got to confirm her yesterday at church. It's really awesome because she's setting a good example for her less active mother, who came to church yesterday for the first time in years. We also are focusing on a lot of other people who have baptismal dates in the coming weeks. One miracle last week was when Elder Mifflin and I were walking from one appt. to another and this girl called us, "Brother! Come here! Are you bible studying?" and we went up and talked to her, asking why she called us and wanted to bible study. As we got to talk to her, she expressed to us that her father had recently died a few days ago, and she was searching for solutions to problems in her life. We then testified of the plan of salvation, and how it was restored in our latter days so that we could know how our families can become eternal if we live the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She began to cry. And what was amazing about this, is it was 8pm at night on a busy 4 way intersection, but the Spirit still was so strong, and it was evident in her countenance that she felt it. We invited her to the baptismal service the next day, and said we would come by to pick her up to walk with her to the service. The next day I went to work with Elder Dy, and Elder Mifflin and Elder Peralta said they would go get her. When i walked into the church, there she was! She was super shy, but she really came! Before the baptism my companion and i were showing her gospel art pictures, and testifying of the resotred Gospel to her. After the service she said she felt so peaceful, and she didn't want to leave after. She also came to church on Sunday, and said she loved it. We have plans to go to her tonight and extend a baptismal date to her.

Once again the Lord has shown unto us that He will put us in their path, or them in ours. I have such a strong testimony that God is our loving Heavenly Father. That's not even including the other 3 families we're teaching and all the bunches of names He has entrusted us with here in Bacolod 3rd, I am just speechless at His hand that He has been manifesting here in the work. I'm about to cry right now even when i'm typing this. I just know this church is true, because I know the Book of Mormon is true. I'm so happy I read it, and prayed to know if it was true, because of that I'm here today. That Book is what made me who I am today, and will make me who I will become in the future. Thank you mom and dad for giving me this chance to serve, and grow up in the Lords church. I just know in 10 months we will rejoice so greatly when we see each other again. May we continually repent and change for the better every single day of our lives, that we will be prepared when we stand before Him at the last day.

Love always,

Elder Doane

August 11, 2013

Elder Peralta and Elder Doane at a
Fireside in Manapla

Dear Family,

Time is going by faster than it has ever before in this area. We are being so blessed with so many miracles, i can't even begin to think what to type right now. Thank you so much for all your emails, its so good to know you're all doing well.

Last week we had mission leadership council and Elder Peralta and I gave a training on harnessing the power of the members, it went very well. Everyone said they felt a very strong spirit as we gave the training as a companionship. He's such a great Elder, and he is very spiritually mature, knows how to work with the Spirit. The work has just been miraculous. As assistants we go on about 3 exchanges a week! With all the zone leaders, so we do lots of traveling, but it's all for the purpose of improving the work! It's so wonderful, i'm getting to meet so many new people and help them see how the Gospel fits into their life through the power of the Spirit.

In our area the work is progressing so well, the Lord is showing us His tender mercies in every aspect of our work. Last sunday we had 21 investigators at church, which is just a testimony that this is truly God's dealings with the people here in Bacolod, and I'm just being used as an instrument in His hands. One amazing thing, last week Elder Dy and I were trying to contact a referral, and we had no clue where to go. So we just found the right street and started walking down it, and we approached a house that we had never seen before and asked them if they knew who we were finding. After a while of talking to them, they let us come in and we sat down and began talking with them. They helped us find out where the person lived, and then to thank them we offered to share a message about Jesus Christ to them. As we began to share with them the Doctrine of Christ, and how it has been restored in full in our latter days, the room was filled with the Spirit. We testified simply, and taught clear and sound doctrine, and I knew the Spirit was there. We asked them how they felt about what we had shared, and the brother said 'I feel something inside of me i've never felt before, and the hairs of my arms are all standing up'. We testified to him that that was the Spirit of God testifying to him that what we had shared was true, and the father, Joseph, and his son, Glen, and their house help, Riley, all accepted the invitation to be baptized on sep. 14, and came to church this last sunday.

I have such a great testimony that Heavenly Father will put those people in our path, or put us in their path, who are being prepared to hear this message of the Restoration. I know with all my heart Heavenly Father loves us, there's no doubt in my mind. All the questions we have can be answered through the Book of Mormon, if we will just open it. I know Heavenly Father sees more in us than we see, we just need to submit to His will and let that potential come out. I love you family, thank you for your love and support to me serving the Lord here. I pray for you day and night!

Love,

Elder Doane

August 4, 2013

Family!

This last week was probably the fastest week ever, I know i say that every week but it's true! On monday my companion Elder Borromeo was coming to Bacolod because his mission is all finished, and the assistants texted me that I needed to come with him as well. I hurried up and packed my bags, and when we got to Bacolod, President Lopez interviewed me. I really love going into interviews with him, i really feel for that small time I'm having a conversation to the Lord, it's so wonderful. He told me he wants me to be his new assistant. He said he has trust in me to look for opportunities to be a servant to other missionaries, just like Christs disciples in the Book of Mormon. So now I'm here in Bacolod 3rd Ward, in Bacolod Stake. This is actually the same stake as my first area! So it's great to be in the city again. My companion is Elder Dy, he's been an assistant for a while now, so he's really teaching me a lot of administrative things. There's also 2 more assistants, Elder Mifflin and Elder Peralta. Elder Peralta and I are the new ones. Our area is so great, we have been so busy with our investigators and inviting people to the waters of baptism! It's been so wonderful, and I've never been so happy because of how busy I am. President told us our first priority is proselyting. We need to be the examples of all aspects of missionary work, finding, teaching, rescuing, and baptism. It's so wonderful because we have so many investigators to teach and invite to baptism, we also found 14 more last week!

Last week was so great to welcome the new missionaries into the field, and give trainings to the new missionaries and the trainers. Their testimonies were so powerful! I felt so blessed to be in their presence, and to hear so much more training of President Lopez as well. We'll also be doing a lot more exchanges across the island, so we will be traveling lots these next upcoming weeks and teaching/training missionaries through proselyting. So busy! But i love it. More than anything. If anything i've learned lately and been applying is how to be an effective Christlike leader. It says in the missionary handbook 'the best way to be a Christlike leader is to help others feel of your love.' I've really been applying that, not just with other missionaries but with every single person I come in contact with. I'm here as a representative of Charity, the pure love of Christ. And it's my duty to share that love with others, to lift them up. I've felt the Spirit in my life more recently than ever before, and I know it's because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ that I have that sacred opportunity to feel His Spirit. I know the Book of Mormon is true. It's our church. It is the message of the Restoration. It's my life! It has all the answers to our questions, problems, and challenges in life. I love this Gospel. I love you family, please read the Book of Mormon, and pray every single day. I remember the quote 'Pray as if everything depends upon God, work as if everything depends upon you.' and that's how our faith brings miracles.

Love,

Elder Doane

July 28, 2013

Thank you for all your emails! It sounds like you're all doing well and staying busy, that's so awesome. Yes i would love to see a family picture! Even if the ones that catherine took that one time before Dave left on his mission, i would just really love to have a family picture! Jessica is coming here?! That's so exciting. I was so stoked when i saw in your emails that she has been assigned here in Bacolod. I'm so happy for her! Will definitely try to get in contact with her to give her some heads ups about our mission. How exciting!

This last week was so tiring. Every night kneeling down for prayer i just feel like i'm gonna fall asleep while i'm praying. But it was so great! I got to go on exchanges with the Assistants to the President, such a wonderful experience. I really learned about the importance of the Doctrine of Christ, and inviting investigators to be baptized in the very first lesson we have with them, testifying to them of the simple truths of being cleansed from their sins through this sacred ordinance that has been restored in full through the restoration. I worked with Elder Mifflin, he's from Utah, a great Elder! We also had a missionary fireside last week, which was a miracle! If i have time I'll send some pictures, but ah it was such a miracle. We had been planning for this since June, and we made so many preparations and stuff, we set a goal to have 65 people there. We spent so much time setting up, inviting people, all that kind of stuff! It was so much fun for me, because I was really able to apply my talents i acquired from student council. I felt like I was back again planning some party in student council! But it was so cool, the decorations looked great, and we had 60 people attend. Even though it was 5 short, Elder Borromeo and I were so satisfied with the Spirit that we felt and the joy we saw in everyones faces who attended. They told us usually the firesides in that ward in the past had attendances of like 15, maybe 20. But it just goes to show that 'you get what you go for'. It really testifies about agency, and the power God has given us to do anything which is expedient in Him. We also had 4 couple missionaries come! It was so awesome. One of them sang with me and Elder Borromeo 'I Believe in Christ' and one gave a talk that was so powerful about the Book of Mormon. The fireside was entitled, "The Book of Mormon- What? When? Why?" There was also a little girl named Mohonri, 10 years old, who gave an awesome talk on the Book of Mormon! She reminded me a lot of Demi, she's so awesome!

I also got to have an interview with President Lopez this last week. It was so amazing. I feel like whenever i step into his office and talk with him, i'm literally in a conversation with the Lord. He really loves you mom and dad, and thanks you for your support you've given to the Lords work here in Philippines Bacolod Mission. I asked him about what I should do coming home, whether to go straight to BYU or to stay back in AZ for a while. He said right after that, " I think you should go back to BYU, that's too great of an opportunity you don't want to miss." So that's what I'll be doing when I come back! I also talked to him about teaching in the Provo MTC when i got back, and he said its a very competitive field, but that he would make sure that I don't have a hard time getting in to teach there. So that's what I'm planning on! I'm so grateful for that interview i had with him, those plans about coming home had been bothering me for a while, now they're all settled out so i don't have to worry about them! Dad if you could email coach robinson at BYU, and our athletic director, i think her name is Jessica Mullen, just give them an update about me, and if there's anything we need to do before next year to get me all registered? THanks so much.

I know this church is true family! It's the same church Jesus Christ established from before, and has not changed and will not change no matter where we are. The Book of Mormon is proof of this church, and proof that God is a God of miracles, and our Loving Heavenly Father. I love you family, keep clinging to the rod of iron through your dilligent study of the Book of Mormon every day.

Elder Doane

July 21, 2013

Hello fam!

Thanks so much for all your emails, I love hearing stories and stuff they really give me a good laugh. Tell Devon I love him, and I'm sure he'll come back even skinnier than he is from his mission. Haha. But no dad I'm all good, I'll let you know if i need somethin thanks so much! 

This last week was just, i don't know i don't have words for it. It's been like a roller coaster here this last transfer in Manapla, with areas we're going to, members we're working with, trying to switch things around that have happened in the past, we've been so busy and so challenged this transfer! But I just want to tell you about a miracle that happened this last week.

Sister Merlie Arcano is one of our investigators, who is just on fire. And the reason is, she loves the Book of Mormon. She says she can not live a day without reading the Book of Mormon, and she's currently in Helaman with her reading right now. Every lesson we have with her is just so powerful, its like Heavenly Father has already revealed the restored Gospel to her through her own personal study rather than we having to teach it to her. This last saturday the 20th of July was her scheduled baptism. But her husband has been having some serious health problems, and they were extremely concerned with him. The last visit we had with them she said she was going to take brother to the hospital, and she was scared it might disturb her baptism on saturday because no one else could stay with brother. But she said, "I will be there Elders, i won't let anything stop me."

So we were still faithful that the baptism would go through. We went saturday, set up the room, filled the font, and were so excited for Sister Arcano to make this sacred covenant with her Heavenly Father. After we set up, we went over to her house to check how she was, because we hadn't seen her in a few days, and she wasn't home. Her daughter was there, and told us that brother is in terrible condition and sister arcano was the only one watching over him. She said she was so sorry, but the baptism would not go through for that day.\

Walking away from that, I had no idea what to feel. We had been working so hard, trying to give it all we had in every aspect of our work, and yet another thing fell through? We went back to the church, and talked about what we could do. It was about 1pm, and the baptism was supposed to be at 3pm. Sister was 2 hours away in Bacolod watching over brother, and we didn't know whether to take it all down, or leave it. So we got down and prayed to Heavenly Father and really asked for guidance. After our prayers and scripture reading, we felt that everything would work out, somehow, whether the baptism fell through or not.

3 and 330pm came around, and not even one member besides the speakers showed up, neither did Sister Arcano. So we decided to take everything down, and just reschedule for next week. But the thing is, we were okay with it. The Spirit of the Lord really comforted us and just said not to worry. So we went back home to finish our studies and proselyte for the rest of the day. Until around 530pm, the phone buzzed, and i got a text that said.. "Elder, ari di c sister.. gusto ya magpabunyag sbng.. dali na kay gahulat sya." Which means, "Elders sister is here, and she wants to be baptized. Hurry and get over here because she's waiting on you." We jumped up from our study tables, and hurried over to the church, and found Sister Arcano there, crying with her face in her hands. There was also 2 or 3 members, sitting right next to her comforting her and really 'mourning with those that mourn' like in Mosiah 18. When we sat down and talked with her, she told us about her crazy day, with brothers condition being terrible, with no one else there to watch over him. She called brothers siblings, and told them they needed to get over to bacolod because she was going to be baptized that day, and right when they got there, she booked it to Manapla. There was so much traffic, and she said she really felt like something was trying to stop her from being baptized that day.

So we set  up the baptism again, sister got in her baptismal suit, and she was baptized on july 20th, 6pm. As the baptism was going on, I was in tears, could not believe with my mortal eyes what was happening. I saw a miracle as a consequence of the faith of one of Heavenly Fathers' daughters, and her choosing to act and not be acted upon. As she shared her testimony, she said she knew that this is where she needed to be, she knew the Book of Mormon is true, and she prays that she can bring her whole family into the church.

God is a God of miracles. I testify of that, because i witnessed it on Saturday. I know He loves us all, because He speaks to us through His prophets in these latter days. And He will prepare a way for us to keep the commandments. Don't believe me? Ask Sister Merlie Arcano.

I love you family. I pray for you every night. Keep holding to the rod of iron, the words of our beloved prophets.

Elder Doane

July 14,2013

Hey family,

Thank you for your emails, it sounds like you all had a good time over in Cali. 115? That sounds scorching! I don't know how I'm going to bear that, I'm so used to rain here in the Phillies I'll probably die back there at home! But I'm glad you all had a good time. Sounds like the Dave Dem and Drake are all staying busy as well even if it's summer, that's good. Haha moms letters are so awesome! Does she know she's typing in all caps every email? Haha, but I really love them, thanks so much mom for your inspiring words. I don't need anything, doing well! I'm good on shoes, I actually got some from a previous missionary who went home, I use them for my dress shoes on sundays. Its a real blessing from the Lord!

Wow the work is so challenging/rewarding. This really is God's work you know, His work and His glory! We are really trying to work through the members here in Manapla, we really have a great hope that through the Book of Mormon we can soften their hearts to help them have a desire to share the Gospel. We have seen many successes with it so far, we received one really solid referral last week that has great potential to be baptized! Her name is Michelle, she's 18, and she's a studying secretary in college. She's very learned as well. The first lesson we taught her we just really focused on how to begin teaching in Preach My Gospel, asking her questions and listening to what's important to her life. The Spirit was so present in that lesson. As she shared her feelings with us, we took what she said and testified of Gospel truths she highlighted, and just added on to what she knew with the message of the Restoration, especially focusing on the Book of Mormon. She said she is so excited to learn and understand more about the Book of Mormon, she also has a less active cousin he said she is going to return back to the church too just to help Michelle gain a testimony. How cool no? Heavenly Father really does prepare ways for His children to come back to Him.

I really have a testimony of asking questions and listening. Lots of times we have things we want to teach, we're so excited to just let it out of our mouths and expect everyone to listen to us. But first, we must show others how much we care about them, by asking questions, and listening, really finding out whats important to them first, and then out of pure love, we can take those Gospel truths that they are already familiar with from the pre existence, and add unto them with our unique message of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We must teach others the way Christ did, through love. That is the way we will build our house on that rock, the sure foundation of our Redeemer who is Christ. If we stick to our own knowledge and wisdom, we will surely fall, just like the foolish man who built his house upon the sand. Primary songs are the best huh? They really do testify of eternal truths. Well family I know the Book of Mormon is true. I have seen it's power, and am still witnessing it to this day. As it changes my life, and the lives of others, I'm gaining a stronger testimony of it every single day, and through that, I'm gaining a greater testimony of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and through that, I'm gaining a greater testimony of our church, the one and only true church upon this earth. How blessed are we! Keep the work going family, pray for opportunities to share the Gospel, and they will be given unto you. Give referrals to the missionaries! They need you! The Lord needs you. I love you so much, thank you so much for all your love and support, you guys are the best family i could ever ask for.

Elder Doane