Words from Elder Ryder Nielsen in the Phillippines

 "I am sad to hear your week didn't go very well with being sick in all but that was kind of my week as well i just had a bad sore throat and sinus infection. This made the week a little more difficult as you can imagine. I think i got sick because of lack of sleep, as we had to get up pretty dang early a couple of days. If you still have a sore throat i have an instant cure that i was given to me from my mission president's wife, Sister Stucki. Go to the store and buy some fresh ginger, peel it and cut 2 or 3 chunks of it and chew it up really good and then swallow. I did that and literally once the ginger hit the affected area it was instant relief. I will do that now on for the rest of my life, granted the taste is absolutely horrible. I am still little clogged in my sinus area but my throat is as good as new.

Our week was very busy we had a District meeting on Monday and also a kind of emergency transfer that happened in our zone which forced us to travel to Makati and then back to our area which pretty much took up our day of serving. Then on Tuesday we were given the opportunity to go to the temple which like always was a wonderful, amazing experience. But also my companion had a doctors app. because he had this huge wart that seemed to be growing bigger each day haha. After his app. we were scheduled to go to Saint Lukes Hospital in Makati to go see a specialist. So Wednesday we spent half our day in a hospital waiting for the doctor only to find out that we would have to come in again on Friday to do the procedure. Then Thursday we had what we call MLC which stands for Mission Leadership Counsel where all the Zone Leaders come to together with President Stucki and the Assitants and we counsel together on resolving problems and making plans and setting goals for the mission. Very inspiring meeting. The only problem was my companion and I were having a hard time focusing because we both were so very nervous through out the meeting. I will explain why, well Wednesday night before the meeting we recieved a text from President Stucki that said some thing like this "Hello Elders! Would it be okay if I joined you two this Thursday to work with you in your area after our Meeting." When i read the text message i almost fell over backwards hahaha. I told my companion and he did fall over backwards on his chair! hahaha We both counseled with one another and we both agreed that there was no way we could say no to our mission president hahaha my response was some thing like this "Hello President! We would love for you to join us!" So after the meeting me and my companion loaded up in President's car and drove out to our area which is about an hour away from the mission home depending on traffic and I say that because Manila traffic is horrible! My companion and I had a wonderful night planned for us and we made it to each appointment on time and we were able to teach good powerful lessons along with our mission President. It was great blessing to work with him. On the drive over to our Area in Las Pinas we really got to talk about his life and ask him more personal questions. He truly is an amazing man. A man called of God. One of the investigators we taught who is a die hard catholic actually committed to come to church and he stuck to that commitment. That was the first time I saw him come to Church the whole time I have been here. The Lord continues to bless us in our Area. Being a Zone Leader is really nothing special. I remember Dad wrote me an email when i became a district leader that basically said remember it is lonely at the top and thats what I have seen as a zone leader. This week we have a specializied training meeting. Last night we received a text from one of the Assitants that said President Stucki wants my companion and I to take 30 mins and share on how to build a model area. This time my companion had the phone and when he read it to me I fell back on my chair hahaha I guess President Stucki really liked our area. So we are nervous wrecks once again with having to prepare for that. I am grateful for all the blessings i have recieved i am grateful for this area that i am serving in and for the people that we are serving. I am so grateful for my companion Elder Washburn what a hell of a guy. I am so grateful for you mom and Dad and all of my siblings and all the extended family. I am so grateful for Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and his Infinite Atonement, i have felt His Mercy in my life and i look to share that with others. I look to send His influence out to a world that is held down in bondage and captivity and by doing so my testimony has grown and begins to be unshaken. And the best part is i feel quiet Joy and Peace in my heart and Mind through selfless service to others. "The Further You Look For Truth Outside of Yourself, The Further You Will Get From It."- A quote given from Papa. I love serving others and i will continue to do so for the rest of my life. It is the only secret the Savior had and the one which he left the World!"