"You are assigned to labor in the Philippines Bacolod Mission"

"Sister Dixon,

You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the Philippines Bacolod Mission. It is anticipated that you will serve for a period of 18 months. You will prepare to preach the gospel in the Hiligaynon language.

The Lord will reward you for the goodness of your life. Greater blessings and more happiness than you have yet experienced await you as you humbly and prayerfully serve he Lord in this labor of love among His children."---source, Jessica's mission call dated January 22, 2013

Jessica has less than a week in the Philippine Islands, Negros, Occidental.  Her mission call promises have been realized as she has been rewarded for the goodness of her life, and she has received greater blessings and more happiness than she had yet experienced. 

A quote from President Gordon B.  Hinckley:

"You will come to know that what appears to be a sacrifice will prove instead to be the greatest investment that you will ever make."

Here are 18 months captured in a few photos of a place that will always hold a tender spot in our hearts.

"Many young women are serving missions. Many are preparing to serve, not because they aren't married or have nothing else to do; but because they have a desire to serve and therefore are being called to the work.The reason so many are going is because in the next generation, Heavenly Father will be sending His Priesthood army to the earth and He wants to send them to mothers who have been properly trained and taught in the gospel. What better training can a young woman have than that of serving a mission."--President Gordon B. Hinckley

The Time is Far Spent

Hello everyone!

This week has been filled with all sorts of emotions, but it's been an overall very good week. :)

Monday we had FHE at Arlene's and had a lot of the ward missionaries come, which helped a lot with fellow-shipping her and her kids. They had a good time and we even got some new investigators! :)

Tuesday we visited Marlyn. She was in the hospital for a week because her mother-in-law fell, and she said she wished she had brought her Book of Mormon with her to read, but she forgot. She is such a sweet, sweet woman and her spirit is so strong. She's very shy, and even though she really wants to come to church, she's been super busy helping her mother-in-law since she's the only one home with her, and we sense that she's just very shy, even when we have members come with us to help fellowship. She was very grateful however, when we offered to come pick her up on Sunday. She got teary and told us how much she appreciated us willing to help her, especially with her house so far, and us visiting even in heavy rains and floods. She said no other missionary has done that from any other religion. She viewed it as a sacrifice for us, but it's amazing how when you have so much love for someone, it really doesn't feel like a sacrifice after all...

Wednesday we had an awesome CSP at the Peroy's, an older couple who needed help weeding their yard. They were so sweet and gave us bread with cheese whiz for an afterward snack, told us all about their families, showed us immaculate records of their family history, and gave us advice about budgeting. haha Serving is the BEST! We also had a pretty good day visiting some investigators, recent converts, and less active members. We had Josie Pineda come with us to one of our investigator lessons. She's a returned missionary and gave an awesome testimony of the importance of baptism. She was pretty bold too which helped our investigator, Juvy, get thinking more about why we need to be baptized. There's just nothing like having members work with us and testify. :)

Thursday we had an amazing Zone Conference and learned some great things about recognizing the Spirit and working with ward leaders. I also loved what I learned from President Lopez. "We seek difficult things in this mission. Not easy things. Because difficult things require faith in Jesus Christ." Oh how I testify of this statement. My faith in Jesus Christ has grown immensely because of the difficult things we seek in this mission. I love it. :) Later that night we contacted a referral that Bishop Quinquero gave us, and they are GOLDEN! They are a part member family, with the parents less active, but they still have a testimony. They have kids who are youth aged and they were so excited to listen to us. We had one of the stake presidency members, President Queremit, who's in our ward come with us, and it did wonders. On Sunday, all five kids, plus their little sister in primary, came to church! I'm so excited for this sweet family to be baptized and to help the parents become active again so they can prepare for the temple!

Okay, just realized my time's almost up. But the rest of the week was wonderful! Full of awesome planning, lessons, member exchanges, a one day mission, a very adorable Primary Program on Sunday, and many miracles! On Sunday the closing Hymn was "God Be With You Till We Meet Again."..... Not a good choice. Especially because Cheyene and Reslie came and sat by me once the Hymn started and they told me they were going to sing this for me. The flood gates just opened, even though we have a "bawal maghibi until Nov 3" (not allowed to cry) sign in our apartment. haha I can't imagine what this week is going to be like....so many mixed emotions, let me tell you. Time flies. I'm so grateful for the time Heavenly Father has given me to serve His children here in the Philippines. The things I've learned from them will remain with me forever. They are amazing and I love them so much. I know Heavenly Father has a special place in His heart for these people because I get to feel a taste of that love every single day as a labor among His children. There's no place I'd rather be right now than with these sweet people. There's such a big place in my heart for my brothers and sisters here. I know the work we do each day is absolutely true and there is nothing that brings as much happiness and joy as helping others come unto Christ. I know He lives and loves us and that this is His work.

I hope everyone has a good week and HAPPY BIRTHDAY Grandma Dixon!! Love you all so very much! xoxo

Palangga ko kamo, 

Sister Dixon

The Time has Come for "Lasts"

Today, President Lopez posted over 500 photos of the Bacolod North Zone Conference. There are several of Sister Dixon, and as I looked at each one, I thought, "This is her last time to bear testimony to her zone. This is the last time for her to sing with her zone. This is the last time for her to play the piano for her zone. This is the last time she might see some of these devoted elders and sisters. This is the last time she will eat with her zone.  Next week will be her last full week of full-time missionary service, as the week after, she prepares to come home." 

I didn't think that these "lasts" would feel so tender to me. 

I can't imagine what they feel like for her.