Crazy things are happening in the Cebu Mission!!!

Hello to my dearest family!

Okay so much is happening here in the Cebu Mission. Let me just start off by saying that I misread the transfer text last week and I'm not training. Instead I was informed that my new companion would be Sister Houston (from Roosevelt, Utah! Also, my "twin" in the mission) would be my companion. When I found this out I was SHOCKED. Because with so many new sisters coming in the mission I just thought it was so weird that two experienced sisters were placed together. But I was really excited and figured since it would be Sister Houston's last transfer, President was just trying to end her mission the right way (which you know...I am the best way to end any mission, haha). Then the Zone Leaders told me I had to go to Cebu to be interviewed by President Schmutz and I was like, "what???? It is soooo far away!" So then one of the APs was texting us, kind of teasing me and finally he just called and told me, "You and Sister Houston are breaking ground in the Cebu Philippines Mission....You two are becoming the first coordinating sisters of the mission....you are going to travel all around Negros Island training sisters." I was even MORE shocked after he said that. Anyway, long story short I met my new companion in Cebu and we had a quick 12 minute meeting with President Schmutz where he told us, "You two will write the handbook for this new assignment." and gave us no further direction other than, "go back to your area and have some fun!!" So yeah, Sister Houston and I are seriously having the time of our lives!!! If only you could see us, it's so great. She and I were both companions with Sister Brand (shout out!) and we owe our missionary-greatness to her. (haha just kidding, I sound so prideful.) So yeah. Once a week we travel to the different parts of Negros and go on splits with the sisters. Later today we will travel to Tanjay. But I just laugh because I traveled 12 hours in order to talk with President Schmutz for 12 minutes....so tiring.

SECOND BIG NEWS: OUR MISSION IS SPLITTING!!! What the???? It will split this July 1 and I am just praying I get to stay in the same mission as President Schmutz for the last 16 days of my mission. Crazy things are happening. Seriously.

THIRD BIG NEWS: our baptism was great and now Sister Crisencia is an official member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Her baptism went well (of course it started an hour late- Filipino time) but she was so happy and her testimony was so wonderful. She is the cutest lady ever and I love her a lot.

Okay that is about it. I just feel like this past week has been one of the craziest/most exciting of the mission. I have gotten little sleep but I am loving my missionary life right now. I am so excited for our new responsibilities and I know I'll be the one to keep it going as Sister Houston will be going home this next transfer. I feel so blessed to have been given this assignment and I know that through diligence and prayerful, hard work Sister Houston and I will be able to help and train the sister missionaries here.

I AM SO HAPPY TO HEAR about Rachel's interview at BYU. Rach, I'll keep you in my prayers. Hopefully your nose is okay now, haha that is like the funniest/saddest thing I've heard. I hope Nate and Megan are doing okay--in fact the whole Hullinger clan. I've thought about you often this week. Josh and Britt, keep sending those videos. I love seeing your kids. The other day Sister Houston and I were talking about eternal families and this feeling just swept over me. How much I desire that I will be with all of you forever. I then realized how much work it will take on all of our parts. That it won't always be easy. But siblings, keep the faith and keep doing what is right every moment of your life. I can't think about the next life if my 4 best friends aren't there too. How blessed I am to have each of you in my life!

I know this Church is true. I know that we have the fulness of the gospel and we are so blessed because of what we know. I know the scriptures help us through the hard times and keep us going. I know we have a Savior. Even though we live in this imperfect world we have a Savior who has paid for our sins and gave us the gift of repentance. Each day of our lives we have the opportunity to evaluate ourselves and rid ourselves of our sins, our bad habits, and our natural man tendencies. I know that as we each are diligent in our repentance,  we will become better people- born again.

I love my mission. I'm so grateful for these experiences I am having and the lessons I am learning. To be completely honest, looking back to who I was before my mission, I was a good person who wanted to do what was right. But my mission has changed me. It has shown to me the path leading to our Father in Heaven and all the things I must do in order to return to him. My mission has blessed lives of others but it has taught me lessons I couldn't have learned any where else. My understanding is so much more complete now- I know what I must do to gain exaltation.

I LOVE YOU FAMILY!!!! HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!!!
Love
Sister Trayner