Dear to the heart of the shepherd
My time here in the Philippines has been the best, saddest, scariest, and most eye opening week in my life!
The poverty here is so real. I cannot express to you enough how truly without these people are.
I was proselyting in the slums of manila and holy cow basically imagine combining a city, a maze, a junk yard, and a tunnel all into one and that's where these people live.
As I was walking through the slums I could see so many faces so hopeless and many more looking for relief from their pain in all the wrong places. I was told the biggest problem in the Philippines was the amount of addiction. As I walked down the streets I could see just how true it was. I felt so much sorrow for the adults but the real sad thing was the children. literally everywhere I looked there were just so many kids that clearly had no future. Their cute little faces broke my heart I won't go into details but seeing the poverty of these children at the time didn't make me cry at the time but later that night brought me to tears.
The most important thing taught in the MTC is how much god loves everyone but I couldn't understand if God was real and loved these people how could he leave them in these wet dark holes without food? Where was God? I have always felt Gods hand in my life but where was his hand for these people? Then I realized I was the aid God sent, me and all my fellow missionaries were Gods hands reaching for these poor, lost, people.
In the hymn "Dear to the heart of the shepherd" there is a line that says "Out in the desert they wander hungry and helpless and cold, off to the rescue we hasten bringing them back to the fold" If there is any line in a song to describe those people it is that line.(minus the cold its like a thousand degrees here)
I know I am God's hands and even though I can't pull them out of their poverty, even though I can't put clothes on the backs of the children or give them clean water, I can bring them something and that is the light of the gospel. I can't help their physical ailments but I can bring them to Christ who can save their souls, I can't give them money but I can give them truth, I can't feed them food but I can let them feast upon the words of Christ.
Although I am an imperfect tool the Lord will make do with me and hopefully will enable me to bring the light of the gospel to even the darkest, filthiest, smelliest alley of the slums.
I love you all so much and ask you to not only pray for me and my success but also for the relief of the people I'm serving.
The poverty here is so real. I cannot express to you enough how truly without these people are.
I was proselyting in the slums of manila and holy cow basically imagine combining a city, a maze, a junk yard, and a tunnel all into one and that's where these people live.
As I was walking through the slums I could see so many faces so hopeless and many more looking for relief from their pain in all the wrong places. I was told the biggest problem in the Philippines was the amount of addiction. As I walked down the streets I could see just how true it was. I felt so much sorrow for the adults but the real sad thing was the children. literally everywhere I looked there were just so many kids that clearly had no future. Their cute little faces broke my heart I won't go into details but seeing the poverty of these children at the time didn't make me cry at the time but later that night brought me to tears.
The most important thing taught in the MTC is how much god loves everyone but I couldn't understand if God was real and loved these people how could he leave them in these wet dark holes without food? Where was God? I have always felt Gods hand in my life but where was his hand for these people? Then I realized I was the aid God sent, me and all my fellow missionaries were Gods hands reaching for these poor, lost, people.
In the hymn "Dear to the heart of the shepherd" there is a line that says "Out in the desert they wander hungry and helpless and cold, off to the rescue we hasten bringing them back to the fold" If there is any line in a song to describe those people it is that line.(minus the cold its like a thousand degrees here)
I know I am God's hands and even though I can't pull them out of their poverty, even though I can't put clothes on the backs of the children or give them clean water, I can bring them something and that is the light of the gospel. I can't help their physical ailments but I can bring them to Christ who can save their souls, I can't give them money but I can give them truth, I can't feed them food but I can let them feast upon the words of Christ.
Although I am an imperfect tool the Lord will make do with me and hopefully will enable me to bring the light of the gospel to even the darkest, filthiest, smelliest alley of the slums.
I love you all so much and ask you to not only pray for me and my success but also for the relief of the people I'm serving.
Love, Elder Roberts
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