Ang Huling Linggo!!!

Hey everyone! I can't believe that this is the last letter that I'm going to get to write as a missionary! I know everyone says this but the time as gone by so fast; I don't know what happened. It's crazy to think that I only get to go out and work 4 more days and then it's all over. I'm just going to keep giving it all I’ve got until the end... It's really been an amazing experience.

I'll apologize right now if I'm not able to replay to every ones emails but everyone in the family decided to write me this week so now I don't have time to reply. Plus there is a funeral at the normal internet shop so we had to go to another one and it took me 30 minutes just to log in... oh well, I guess I can just talk to you all in a week.

Of course I'm excited to come home and see everyone and get to take a hot shower, but I'm sure going to miss doing this work. There is so much awesome stuff happening in our area right now and I'm going to miss it all; it's really a bummer. I'm excited to start home teaching though when I get home. I'm just hoping that the Lord won't wait to long to give me some kind of assignment. There really isn't anything better than serving others and serving the Lord :)

My companion and I have been having some awesome companionship studies this week and we have been learning about getting the branch leaders more involved in our work. This week we decided to give it a shot and it really paid off. Our branch president lives really far away but we felt like we really needed to go visit him at his house. It took a lot of time out of our work but now we have a better understand of how we can help him and how he wants to help us. While we talked, he gave us a few names of people that he thinks we should visit that have gone inactive. The Spirit told us that we need to change our schedule and go visit one person in particular. We found her pretty easily, but she was really hesitant to talk with us; thinking that we were going to chastise her or something.

After talking for a while, we got her trust and she was willing to listen to a message and she even invited her friend. The lesson was simple but awesome because her friend has a ton of questions that no one can answer... except us :) So the Lord is totally guiding this work and led us to an inactive and a non member that had been searching a long time for the truth.

I'm excited I'm going to finally get to tell all of you all the other things that have happened these last two years; I've never had time to really explain anything. I have loved my mission and I have loved this time that I was able to serve the Lord. These two years have changed who I am and what I want to do in this short life we have. We are SOOOOO blessed to have this gospel in our life! I've see the gospel change lives and it really will bring us true happiness if we learn it, live it, and apply it.

I know that this is the church of Jesus Christ. He leads and guides His church through His prophet. I know that He is our Savior and Redeemer and that he lives. He is the ONLY way. It is by Him and through Him that one day we can return to our Father in Heaven and receive his greatest gift; eternal life. I love this gospel. I'm so grateful for the help and direction it gives us if we live it and it’s been an amazing two years sharing it with the people here in the Philippines :) Love you all!

Love, Elder Smith