Today our journey took us south to visit a small branch of
the church in the farming community of Villaverde. They meet in a little rental home that has
been transformed into a church by adding a small pulpit in the living
area. Ten minutes before the Sacrament
meeting started, the “L” shaped chapel was full, including people sitting on
the stairs that led to the second story classroom. As more people arrived, the front porch was
filled with chairs. The door and window
were left wide open so all could hear.
We felt a special joy when the two families we had taught
with missionaries the night before, arrived at the meeting. My heart was filled with love for the little
congregation as they sang the opening hymn “The Spirit of God”. Their voices filled the room and flowed out
the opened louvered windows.
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| Sunday School |
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| Participating during Sunday School |
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| Some of the happy members of the Villaverde branch |
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| Visiting after church |
After church, we went with the missionaries to visit a
family who had not attended. It was a
mother and her four children. Her husband
had been called to a nearby town to help his sister. We talked with them for a few minutes and
then Stephen asked if we could leave a blessing on their home. After he offered a prayer, the mother’s eyes
were filled with tears. She graciously
thanked us for coming and followed us to our car as if she did not want us to
leave.
We started our weekend trip with a stop at Magat Dam. This is the dam where they had to release water after the
typhoon and heavy rains last week. It caused severe flooding in some of the low lying areas in the northern part of our mission.
One of the apartments where four Sisters live is still too muddy for them to move back in.
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