Frog Adobo

Dear loved ones,

As usual we had another amazing week in Burgos. On saturday Jennifer was baptized and it was perfect. Her brother Cesar (a recent convert) was able to baptize her. The morning was beautiful and the spirit was so strong! It made me so happy to see Cesar baptize his sister. The gospel really is for families. This saturday we have two more baptisms. One is Richieanne daughter of a recent convert and the other is her cousin Mayanne. I don't know if I talked about this last week but we recieved a portable dvd player to use in our companionship study and for the new 12 week training program. We only use it to watch the preach my gospel dvds. I have absolutley loved using it in companionship study. It is such a big help and has helped Elder Tating and I learn how to improve our teaching and how to become better missionaries. When watching the short segments I have received promptings about how we can help our specific investigators. I am thankful that we can use technology to help the work of the Lord move forward. This past week one of our focuses in our study was on finding. We focused on finding in our area this week and had great success. We have 5 new investigators 2 who attended church and many more potential investigators. We also received 3 referals from members. Right now our real enemy time. We don't have enough time to teach all the people we want to. This past week has strengthened my faith that God prepares his children to receive the gospel. He will lead us to them or lead them to us. We always need to be finding.

So this past week I ate frog twice. It's a lot like chicken with a lot of little bones. The second time I was the one who cooked it and not going to lie, my frog adobo was pretty amazing. Masarap to say the least! My cooking is actually getting pretty good. I am learning how to cook a lot of Filipino food and most of the time it's not half bad. I have had a couple epic failures but they were funny so everything was good.

As far as the pictures go two are from the baptism. One is of Elder Tating and I in the poring rain. Elder Tating's umbrella got locked in the church so we didn't have umbrellas and the rain started to pore just as we started our 1 and a half walk from from Labney. We were very wet, but it was a really funny walk home. The last picture is of a member and I in our branch president's tricycle on the way to the baptism. Don't worry my companion was in the tricycle too:)

Sorry this letter is so short. I love you all. I love Burgos and I really just love it all.

Mahal ko kayo

Love Elder Leishman

Magandang Araw sa inyo!

Dear Family and Friends,

This past week has been an exciting one! It was fun to head back to the mission home to be trained and pick up my new companion. My new companion is Elder Tating. He is from Laguna, Philippines. He is awesome! I am so excited to be his companion. He is so excited about the work, our investigators and area and really just about everything! He is very happy and our companionship is off to an awesome start! Right now there is a brand new program for Trainers and trainees. The curriculum in the MTC changed and so now starting this transfer around the world there is a new training program for the field. For the first 12 weeks for a trainee and trainer they have an extra hour of personal study everyday and there is a guide for what to study for that extra hour. The goal of the program is to have the trainee ready to train a new missionary by the end of 12 weeks. The program is awesome. I have spent time studying it and I know it's inspired of the Lord. I have already seen the benefits of it. I know that if we follow it with exactness Elder Tating will be ready to train a new missionary in 12 weeks. I am really excited about the next two transfers! We have had to do some adjusting to our schedule and have lost some proselyting time so our hours of work are fuller than before which I didn't think would happen. We are really busy right now which is the best way to do things!

This past week there have been two bagios so it's been raining a lot! Despite the rain the work continues and we have had great things happen in the work. Right now we have 3 investigators with baptismal dates on Aug 13 and more on the way. It seems that the closer that investigators get to baptism the harder Satan works on them. It's so important to follow up with investigators, strenghten their faith and be there for support and encouragement as they prepare to covenant with the Lord We have a new chapel being built in our are right now and it should be done this month. I am so exctied and so are the members. There are lot of new investigators by the new church and the work is really going to blossom when it opens!

This past week these scriptures really stood out to me Mosiah 27:25-27. When you have time read them. They talk about how we must be born of God and changed from a carnal state to spiritual state become new creatures. It says if we don't do this we can't inherit the kingdom of God. This helped me realize that to return to our father in heaven we have to have a "mighty change of heart". We have to literally beocme "new creatures" This is only possible through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Only through the atonement can we experience this change. This change doesn't happen all at once, but it occurs as we repent everyday, and strive to become disciples of Christ. Let us all strive to become new creatures by become disciples of Christ, putting off the natural man and striving to be a little better every day.

I really am very happy and I Love being a missionary!

I love you all!

Love Elder Leishman,

The pictures are of Elder Tating and I, new zone Jerseys:), and Elder Calianga and I on a pogpog or hand tractor!

A Wonderful, Rainy Week in the Philippines!

Dear family and friends,

As always it's been another great week in Burgos. There was a Baguio and it rained for 4 days without stopping and almost all my clothes are wet. We got punted a few times because our investigators were out in the fields planting rice becuase of the rain but despite the rain it was still a good week. We had our last zone conference with President and Sister Puzey. It was awesome! It was such a spiritual, uplifting conference. President Puzey focused on the the need to be Christlike, and Love. Chapter 6 of Preach my Gospel (Christlike attributes) is my favorite chapter. As missionaries it's not just about what we do but it's about who we are. I have mentioned this chapter a few times but I really love it. As missionaries it's all about love. We need to gain charity and love for all people; Our Savior, our families, our investigators, our companions, the members, the people you sit next to on jeeps and even the drunkard who swears at you as you pass by. When we have charity we are different people. People also need to know that we love them. There is a saying that I hear a lot from other missionaries "people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care" It's really true. It's like the Example of Ammon. King Lamoni probably wouldn't have been converted if Ammon and marched in and said "I'm here to baptize you!" . He first served the King and showed his loyalty of love.

Saturday was a crazy day. I woke up to the sound of pouring rain and my first thoughts were about Pepito's Baptism. I knew that we probably couldn't hold his baptism at the river. I spent a most of the morning praying that we could find a way to have a baptism for Pepito. When we went to the meeting house no one was there. Our branch presidency had gone out into the fields to work because they thought we wouldn't have the baptism because the river was dirty and overflowing. The wife of our branch president was home so she was able to get a hold of the Branch Presidency. We then were able to contact the Zone leaders who happened to be having a baptism an hour later at the stake center. We hopped on a couple of trikes and headed into the city. There were only six of us, because there was no other transportation for the members but things worked out great. The trip to the city took 1 hour each direction in the pouring rain. When we got the stake center the font was filled and Pipito was baptized. I am so grateful that the Lord provided a way for Pepito to the baptized. When there is faith and will, there is a way. Yesterday the rain was still coming down. I knew that Pepito would have a hard time getting to church. Pepito is very poor and he usually barely has the money to go to church. Since he used all his money for his pamensahe to his baptism, the Tanedo's gave him some money so he could go to church and be confirmed. Pepito was able to get a ride with a private jeep (which never happens) and was able to attend church and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Pepito said that he had been praying for a way to be baptized and to be confirmed. He said he knew that because of his faith and prayers the Lord provided a way. This was a testimony building experience for Pepito and for me. The Lord does answers our prayers. However faith needs to be the essence of our prayers. I am so grateful that everything worked out and that the Lord answered our prayers. When we have faith nothing is impossible.


Things with Elder Calianga are good. His style of work is almost exactly opposite of Elder Pioquinto's so we are working on adjusting to be able to teach and work together in Unity. He is really quiet and very serious but slowly he is opening up to me. The work is good right now and it's continuing to improve. This week we have four baptisms and again I pray that everything will work out. It seems that right before baptisms crazy random things happen in the lives of investigators. This is Satan's way of trying to prevent them from following the Gospel. However with faith, effective follow up and the support of members things work out.

Here is a little funny story. Last night we had a member drive us home on his trike. It's a 1 hour and 45 minute walk from his house to our apartment so we pay for his gas and he drives us home. Last night the store where we usually buy gas was closed so we were going to get gas closer to our apartment Halfway home we ran out of gas.... We then pushed the trike with the member's son steering for 30 minutes in the rain. We were using a flashlight to see. I loved every second of it and we laughed a most of the time. When we were about 10 minutes away from our apartment we finally were able to get some gas and we were able to make it home before 9.

Well I love the Gospel, I love the Work, I love the Lord, I love my investigators, I love the members, I love my family. It's all about love

Love Elder Leishman


Note from mamalar:I thought Joe looked terrible in this pic compared to the pics he has sent the last two weeks. He assured me that he is healthy and feeling great, he just looked like that because of the rain. Hmmmmmm

June Malapit Na!

Dear Family and Friends,

It has been another great week in Burgos! This past month our attendance at church has increased every week and our work is increasing. May has definately been great. I can't belive that in two days it will be June! Yesterday in church our Branch President gave us 20 minutes at the end of our fifth sunday meeting to review the Branch Mission Plan with the members. It was so great to be able to coordinate with all the members. Through our little meeting we were able to establish a plan for the retention of our new converts, assign members to visit less active families and have more effective fellow shipping. When I first got to Burgos there was little work with members. They rarely would accompany us to lessons, there was no home teaching, and there wasn't a really strong spirit for missionary work. It has been so great to see the more members get involved with the work and see how much more effective the work is when you have the trust and support of the members. Right now one of the most active member missionaries in Tatay Remigio. The change that has occured in him is so amazing! A couple months ago he hated the missionaries. He has felt the blessings of the gospel his life and has changed dramatically because so. Now he wants to share the blessings he feels with others. Now the Tanedos are visiting less active families, Tatay remigio helps others go to church, he lets us use his house to teach an investigator and shares his testimony and he just is astig!

Right now we have an investigator named Hinckley. He is 14 and is the only non member in his family. He isn't a member because his family has moved around a lot. He was been staying in Burgos for his summer vacation. He has come to church everyweek and I didn't even know he wasn't a member till his father came and visited the branch and told us so. We have been teaching him but he already has a great gospel background. It has been really great to teach him. Right now his baptism date is June 11, the week before he goes back to his house to go back to school. The timing has worked out great with him. I pray that things continue to work out. We are already starting to coordinate with the missionaries in the area of his house for when he returns to school.

This past week I started the Book of Mormon again and I really love the example of Nephi. No matter how hard the situation, how big the task, how pesimistic his family is, the attitude of Nephi is "I will go and do". When the first attempt to get the plates from Laban failed Nephi said "Let us go up again". Nephi had great trust in the Lord. We need to become like Nephi. We need to be exactly obedient. When things are hard, when things don't work out, when we feel inqadequate we need to "go and do the things that the Lord commands". When we don't succeed and we feel down we need to "Go up again". As we do so our trust in the Lord will grow. We will become great like Nephi and be able to do all things.

Well right now we are heading into Tag-ulan or rainy season. From what I hear Bountiful has been having it's own rainy season. It rains every day and usually when it rains it pours. However the rain is pretty warm. The plants are turning green and farmers are starting to flood their fields. It is so beautiful in my area right now! One of the things I love about the Philippines is the babershops. getting a hair cut is awesome. The babershops are little hole in the wall places and the tatay's that cut your hair know what their doing! They use the old school tools and methods and are good at it. When their done they even give you a little shoulder massage. The Philippines is an amazing place. I have new experiences everyday that I could only have here. The Philippines is really starting to feel like my home. I am so grateful to be able to serve the Lord here.

Well till next week!

Mahal Kita

Love Elder Leishman

May Pics

What a treat to receive pics from Joe's first baptism in the Philippines! You can read the last blog entry for the narration on the pics. Nothin like a little rainstorm in the Philippines :)

Magandang Araw!

Dear Family and Friends,


This past week was a great one! Everything went perfectly with our four baptisms and confirmations! It was an awesome experience. As you can see our baptismal font is a river and it's beautiful. The spirit was so strong and there was a smile on every face there. You couldn't hold back the joy. It really was a different feeling but it was so great. It was especially touching to see the gratitude and happiness of Sister Tanedo. She spoke at the baptism and her remarks were perfect. For her it isn't just about the baptism of her husband. It's about becoming an eternal family. Tatay and Sister Tanedo have already started their family history and are now counting the time till they can go to the temple to become sealed as a family and perform ordinances for their ancestors. It helped me realize just how blessed I am to have the family that I have and to have been born into the church. This experienced also helped me realize how important it is to focus our missionary work on families. We need to try and find and teach families. The gospel blesses families in so many ways and only through the gospel can we live with our loved ones again.


This week I had another great experience. One of the things I have struggled with these past few weeks have been trying to recognize and follow the promptings of the spirit. The spirit is absolutely essential in every phase of missionary work. This past week I realized that I had been relying to much on myself, my own skills and what I thought should be done rather than seeking the Lord's guidance through the spirit for the things I should say and do. One morning we were on our way to our first appointment (Hinckly, who is the farthest from our apartment) and I decided to pray. I was sitting on the back of a noisy bumpy trike it wasn't quite peaceful or reverent but I prayed really really really hard to have the spirit with me that day as I taught so I would know what to say and do. Our next teaching experience was great. I taught the restoration and as I shared the story of Joseph Smith and bore my testimony about him I felt the spirit like I hadn't felt teaching for a while. The words came to my mouth. I taught the restoration a little differently than I usually do but it was what my investigators needed to here. I felt the spirit and I know that my investigators felt the spirit too. This experience taught me that to have the spirit as my companion I need to plead with the Lord for guidance. I also need to be humble enough to recognize the promptings of the spirit and follow them even if they don't make sense. I have a feeling that this is something I'm going to have to work hard for throughout my mission.


This week I came across a scripture in Mathew that really stood out to me. mathew 16:25 "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it". This scripture applies all people. When we are focused on ourselves and our own personal needs we can't can't become true disciples of Christ. When we loose ourselves in the service of others we find out more about ourselves and about our Savior. When we serve others we are happy and we can really get to know our Savior.


I don't know what things were like this past week in the states but here there were tons of people that said the world was going to end on May 21 and 6:00. The world didn't end but it was actually really funny because at about 5:30 a big storm rolled in. I laughed.


As far as the pictures go. The first three are from our baptisms and the last one was taken last night. When it rains in the Philippines it really rains! It actually feels really good! Last night it started to rain right after we started the hour and a half walk home. Thankfully a nice man on a trike picked us up halfway home so we didn't have to walk the full way in the rain. However we were already as wet as wet could be! I actually love the rain here so no complaints on my part!


Fight the Fight Faith


Mahal Kita


Love Elder Leishman