Hola todos,
It's me again, your favorite sister missionary serving in the state of Kansas. As I write this I am thinking about all of the many different places that you all live(mostly on the west side of the country) and I am praying that in all of your many different places you are all finding joy in the journey. I love you all so very much and I am thankful that you are supporting me by reading my weekly emails.
Oh my goodness, this last week has been FANTASTIC. My companion and I worked our tails off trying to find new people to teach. Last Tuesday we had planned to tract quite a bit because we wanted to find people in a new area that we had not worked in a whole lot. That day we worked really hard to use every moment of our time talking to people and we ended up teaching 12 lessons that day! It was INCREDIBLE! By the time we got home we were so exhausted that we planned for the next day and then pretty much fell right into bed, that night I don't remember moving at all while I was trying to sleep I just zonked right out(this is pretty unusual for me on the mission because I normally lay there tossing and turning and thinking about the things that happened during the day). So. Another reason why this last week was so cool is because I know the reason why I worked so hard is because of Elder Holland's talk from General Conference. Every time that I had a temptation to be a bit lazy or let someone pass by without talking to them or every time I just felt like taking a few more minutes than I should at lunch time or being late for my studies into my mind popped the words "Hermana Thorne, do you love me?". Every time throughout the week that the Lord has sent these words to my mind I feel tears come to my eyes and I know that I need to show Him how much I love Him by my actions. It is not enough to just say that I love the Lord. I feel like a different person after this General Conference, especially after that talk. I have started to realize so much that it doesn't matter at all if I am tired, or hungry, or I don't feel confidence. If the Lord could create everything with such utter perfection He can help me change my thoughts so that although I may not feel well or even have the desire to do something I can still do it. The way that I have done things most of my life has obviously not really worked out a whole lot. I sometimes do the same thing over and over expecting to receive a different result. This is one definition of insanity...So. How hard is it for people to change? Well, how hard is it for ME to change? Before I thought it was really, really difficult. In fact I think I wondered if it was at all possible. I think this negative way of thinking came from the promises of others that they would change and then they didn't. I think it came also from me promising myself different things over and over and not keep the promises with myself. You know that part I think is the very hardest, not keeping promises that you make with yourself. If you can't trust yourself because you have let yourself down so many times then you just start to feel so alone because you don't even have you to lift you up. When you feel horrible about who you are a lot of the time you turn away from the Lord. So. I have said a lot of things here. I guess that I am writing and writing to finally make it to this point. I believe with all that I am that making and KEEPING promises is a beautiful secret to happiness. I cannot even believe that this has taken me so long to figure out! For example; we are baptized at eight years old or older into the church. Right there is our first promise that we make with the Lord. We PROMISE to take His name upon us and we are in return PROMISED blessings. If we break our promise to the Lord, how do we feel? Another example might deal more with friends or your spouse. If you make a promise and then you do not keep it how do you feel? How does the other person feel? It is very hard to develop trust within a relationship if promises are not kept. I think for me I am now realizing that before I make a promise or a commitment to someone I really need to make sure that I can fulfill this promise. Of course everyone makes mistakes but I firmly believe that making and keeping promises can not only build stronger relationships, but will also boost your confidence in yourself and the confidence that others have in your. We are a covenant keeping people, remember? This means we keep our promises. I did not know that I would be speaking so in depth about this but I hope that it helps someone out there.
Okay so we got to go the the Gladys Knight program and it was AMAZING! Most of you who know me know that I LOVE gospel music and that was what this was. We got to dance and clap and yell amen! Not even joking you! They are trying to help people understand that the way that we sing the hymns and do some of the things that we do in the church is tradition not regulation. I felt the Spirit in abundance and we have already received 4 referrals from that night that we will be visiting this next week. I was in absolute heaven while listening to Gladys and the choir. I clapped like no tomorrow and sang my heart out. There were a TON of non members there and a good amount of them African-Americans. I think my soul may have accidentally gone to the wrong body and really I was supposed to be a bodacious black woman because I LOVE SOUL MUSIC! It was a bit funny to see some of the members not know how to react to the program because they are so used to the traditional hymns of the church. Well the First Presidency wants the church to start adopting the culture of the members because there are SO many diverse cultures within the 15 million people who are now part of the fold. I am ALL for it! :D Oh! I loved it!!!! Our recent convert Ivan also went and thought it was awesome.
I love you all and I want you to know that if you are feeling down, nothing can help you feel better than listening to some uplifting music, praying or reading your scriptures. Before my mission I thought that these were cheesy answers that probably did not really work. I am testifying to you right now that these things really DO work. I am a witness of this because the things that I have been asked to do on my mission have been the hardest things that I have been asked to do in my life and I am the happiest that I have ever been now because I am partaking of living water through the scriptures and prayer. Sometimes we want to turn to other things but they will not quench your inner thirst. I promise if you really work first on your relationship with the Lord everything else will fall into place. Everything.
"Shall we not go on in so great a cause?"
con amor,
Hermana Thorne
No comments:
Post a Comment