So much to write about
this week! Wow. So on Friday I completed one whole year on my mission.
It's crazy to think I've been out this long...the time seriously flies
by! The title says Cumple Año(s) because on Friday I was completing one
year (in Spanish, cumpliendo un año) and Hermana Hawkes was having a
birthday (cupliendo año(S)) haha so it was like a double celebration! We
ate lots of cake, ice cream, and pizza haha it was a good day!
So
the other day I was reading this little book we have called Adjusting
to Missionary Life and something in there really hit me. "Sometimes a
mission feels like a wonderful spiritual adventure-or at least one you
can handle. You calmly move forward with faith, realizing that much of
the nervousness or worry you experience is temporary. You take courage
in knowing you will adjust with time, grow spiritually, and develop many
new skills. Experiences you once feared become more manageable. You
even come to cherish aspects of missionary life that once felt
overwhelming. You rely on the Spirit, grow in confidence, and find joy
in your service." When I read that it was like wow...this is so true. I
remember at the beginning of my mission, there were so many things that
were overwhelming and stressful but now, like it says, are more
manageable and I've even come to love these certain aspects of
missionary life. For example, at the beginning of my mission, I did not
like contacting.....like at all....like I dreaded it. BUT now I love it.
I just talk with everyone and it's so fun because it's like going on a
treasure hunt for golden investigators and it's just so great! Yeah
sometimes people just reject us and don't want to listen, but the
rejection doesn't really bother me. I know I'm doing what I'm supposed
to and giving everyone a chance to accept the message. If they don't
want to listen, that's their choice. I really have grown in confidence
and my testimony is so much stronger. I know that this church is true
and that the Lord loves us. He has a plan for us and I am here because I
want everyone to know of this plan. We also watched a video clip the
other day of a football player and he was in practice and they were
doing this really hard exercise and they blindfolded him and then he had
someone on his back and he had to crawl across the football field. The
player didn't think he could even go 30 yards before he started, but he
put on the blindfold and started going. His coach was right there beside
him..supporting him and encouraging him not to quit. As he was going,
and things were starting to get hard, he wanted to quit, he wanted to
rest and take a break but his coach wouldn't let him. He just kept
encouraging him and telling him he could do it. He made it to the end,
thinking he surely had only gone to the 50 yard mark but it turns out he
went the full 100 yards. There are SOO many lessons to be learned here.
I like almost cried when we watched this clip. It just made me think
about how sometimes we don't think we can do it but we have to remember
that the Lord is right there by our side. He is cheering us on because
this is His work. Sometimes as missionaries we want to quit or rest or
take a break but we can't. This work doesn't rest. We can't just be here
and waste time and rest and not look for new people, no. We have to
always be working and it's hard. It's hard to constantly be looking and
searching and be rejected and do everything possible. But I know we can
do it. I know the Lord is my strength "for as to my strength, I am
nothing" I only have 6 months left and I'm going to give it my all. I
want to do everything I can to find these lost sheep and bring them back
to the fold. It's not easy but it is ever so worth it! I want to thank
you all for all your support and helping me keep going for this whole
year. I could never have done it without you!
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