Keep On Keeping On

Hello friends and family! Hope all is well with you! Life is good as ever here in Baao!

Remember Sister Hansel? She is the young girl that was in the hospital last week..well early Tuesday morning we receive word that she had passed away at midnight the night before. It was a big shock for Sister Sanft and I and we sat their for a long while thinking, praying, and crying for this family. I had not gotten to know the girl or her family very well but we feel for them and are heartbroken for them and for their loss. We got permission from our mission president to go to a different area to attend the live-in of Hansel and to visit with her family. (here in the Philippines, immediately after a death, the body is prepared, lain in the coffin, then taken to the families home where it stays for about a week for others to come see and pay their respects, then after about a week they hold the actual service and burial). This was my first time going to a live-in here and it was really difficult for me. We walked into the home with this young girl laying right their as her mother comes running from the other room and starts weeping into my chest as I just hold her. I didn't know what else to do but just cry and hold her. My heart aches for this family. We sat and visited with the mom, dad, and little brother of Hansel for awhile before heading back to our area to go to our different appointments. Mom, Hansel, and the little brother are members and the father has been investigating the church for many years but hasn't really shown progress. Before we left their house on Tuesday, Brother told us that he was ready to listen to us again and to become a member so that he could be with his family forever. I know that families can be together forever through the gospel of Jesus Christ. What a blessing it is in my life to know that I can see my family again after this life.

This week has definitely been a tough one for me with different concerns and challenges but even through the struggles, I am proud to be a missionary and am happy to be here. We have a promise from our Father in Heaven that when we endure trials well, we will succeed in the end and receive many blessings. I definitely saw that this week as I struggled with some things but chose to press forward with faith and likewise I experienced many miracles and blessings in our work. One of those blessings was the successful baptism of Spencer! :) Spencer is an 11-yr old boy whose mother, father, and older brother are members. He now lives with his mother and step-father and have stopped coming to church due to some financial challenges in their life. He was baptized a couple years ago but was never confirmed a member of the church and never received the gift of the Holy Ghost so he needed to be baptized again. Anywho, long story short, he has been coming to church every Sunday and this weekend he was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and we could not be happier for him. :)

My goal here on my mission is to complete families and help families become forever families through the covenants and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love these people and want them to know what I know and what we know as members of the Church of Jesus Christ. This gospel is centered on our Savior Jesus Christ and families. When we put Him in the center of our lives, we find true joy and happiness in this life and find peace and hope in the life to come.

Love you all! Keep sharing the gospel with your friends and family! :)

-Sister Roderick