Elder & Sister Ferney: Saying Good Bye!

Our Last week is trying to tie up all the loose ends at the office. Our main goal was to finish up shopping for office supplies for the new Antipolo Mission Office. It is a bigger challenge then we expected because it involves a language barrier, several different shopping locations and Elder Keller’s schedule. (He has the credit card)

We plan to be picked up by a shuttle at 5:00am Monday morning and take to the Manila Airport. Our plane departs at 8:10am. We fly to Tokyo, Seattle, Salt Lake City, then Idaho Falls, arriving at 6:05 pm. Our Mission Report will be 26 May 2019 and we plan to give lots of hugs to all those whom we have missed!

We said our “Good Byes” to the Teresa Ward last Sunday. It was bitter-sweet. We were given many small gifts and lots of hugs. Members flocked to the parking lot for photos. It happened to be Fast Sunday, the perfect time to bear testimony and express our gratitude for our Missionary experiences there. Fortunately, this week has been filled with several Zone Conferences at the Mission Home. We were invited to speak at each one, giving us the perfect time to say good bye and express our love and admiration to all the missionaries, knowing we will probably never see most of them again.

The most favorite part of our mission has definitely been working and serving with the young missionaries. They are Wonderful! They come in all different shapes, sizes, colors, and personalities. They study, pray, serve, and teach. They endure sometimes unpleasant circumstances, and work long hours. They eat different foreign food, live in meager, humble housing but appear clean and neat at all times.They buoy one another up, and learn to communicate with their companion in a foreign language. They adjust and adapt to different cultures and climates. They strive to be obedient and qualify themselves for the Gift of the Holy Ghost. They may suffer with home sickness, or other hardships, but they have the desire to serve their mission, honor their covenants and invite others to come unto Christ. They are young ambassadors of the Lord who

lift, encourage, inspire and bless others all over the world. As Senior Missionaries, we LOVE them! We never heard one complaint! It was a joy to serve with everyone of them and we felt it a privilege to be associated with them!!!!

We will cherish our friendships with the Teresa Ward members. Their living conditions are so hard but they always manage to laugh because they are comedians that do their best to fill their callings and be missionary minded. We especially admired the families of the Bishopric and the Stake President. They were a joy to work with. President and Sister Koster have also been a blessing to serve with. The Lord increased their capacity to fill their assignment which would be totally impossible to do otherwise.

The Ondoy refugee area probably taught us the most. We realize the Self-Reliance program that the Church provides is invaluable. It is the ONLY thing that is ever going to help people rise from poverty to a better quality of life. We had the chance to work
with Elder and Sister Gabrielsen as they implemented the Self-Reliance classes throughout three different missions. They are a dynamic couple from Meridian, that also taught workshops with us to our PAUWI (going home) missionaries before their departure. The Church has provisions for every condition or circumstance that sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father can find themselves in. Truly a blessing for all!

After living in the Philippines for the past 18 months, we have a broader vision of the difficulties and challenges of 3rd world cultures. We more fully appreciate the privilege it is to be a members of a world-wide church that represents the love of Christ. We also realize what a privilege it is to be a citizen of the United States where we have clean air, clean water, and an info structure that was planned out. Basically a higher standard of living. Where much is given, much is expected. We are grateful that we could serve in this capacity to further the work of the Lord.

Brecause of our mission, we have become far more tolerant. Our testimonies have been strengthened and our hearts enlarged. Our capacity to teach, learn and serve has grown and we want to continue to progress in our efforts to serve others.

We are not ruling out another mission but would have a VERY DIFFICULT time returning to the Philippines. The heat index was unbearable and the air quality is so poor that it is causing many health problems. We are glad we were able to finish out our mission here. Several Senior Missionaries went home early or developed poor health and couldn’t finish their mission. We have been told that this is one of the most difficult missions, not because of the people, but because of the logistics and environmental concerns. There are 11,000 people per square mile living in the Philippines. An area about the size of Arizona. (Not to mention the insane traffic) haha!

During our mission, we felt the love and support of our family members. We see the unity of our children and realize the potential of our grandchildren, to do Family History work and prepare themselves to serve the Lord. Our hearts are full. We have so much to be grateful for!! As we served in the mission field, our family ministered to us and assisted us gladly whenever we needed anything taken care of at home. Words cannot express our gratitude. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

One of the last missionary experiences we had just last Saturday was taking the Carpina family to the temple to be married and sealed to their six children for time and all eternity. It brought us to tears as we remembered kneeling across the alter when we were sealed to our three children. It took us close to a year to get this little family prepared for this day. It was a perfect ending for us and a new beginning for them.