A mission is a horribly wonderful, tragic, amazing, heart-wrenching, spirit-lifting thing.
On
a mission, the pains are deep, but the joys are sweeter than any joy
you've ever known. The most amazing part of it all is that the happiness you feel as you labor in the Lord's vineyard is so consuming and
uplifting that you are able to turn back to the times of sorrow and
question why you ever felt that way.
This past week is a perfect example of that. We had
transfers this week, and as a result, things were super slow.
But when the time came to go out and work hard to make up for the time
lost, noooooobody was home.
Fabulous, right?
Miracle #1: When
things seemed their bleakest, we stopped at a store we have in the
area to follow an impression Sister Herring had had for the bulk
of our day out. We were then able to have an amazing lesson with the
cashier at the store. Sisters in the area have been trying to teach this
lady for moooooonths, because she really is the sweetest lady, and for
whatever reason, that night was finally the perfect night for things to
move forward. We told her about how God truly loves and cares about her specifically,
and how the Book of Mormon would allow her to feel that love as she learns more
and more about Him and His desire for her.
Miracle #2: Last
night, we knocked on a door that Sister Herring really wanted to try
because they had lots of pretty decorations up, and while we had knocked
on the door before (they hadn't answered), we figured that trying again
couldn't hurt. This time the lady that lives there opened the
door and invited us in to teach her and her husband our message. They
hadn't really heard a lot of fabulous things about the Mormons or our
church...despite that, they were very receptive to the Spirit that was
present as we taught them about a young man's humble prayer to our
Father in Heaven that was answered so that we could have the chance to
accept the Lord's restored truth today. As we walked away from their
home, we realized that we had forgotten to give them our number (you
really can't blame us. We walked out in a miracle-induced haze) and when
we came back to give them our number we found the husband at their
dining room table, already reading from the Book of Mormon.
I
can't even begin to tell you how grateful I am to be apart of this
mighty work. Miracles are things that just become a part of the life of a
missionary, as you do the work with an honest heart, full of love for
those that you serve.
I love my trials, and I love my miracles. They stand
equal in my sight, because with out the trials, the miracles are never
wrought.
"It is your reaction to the
adversity, not the adversity itself, that determines how your life's
story will develop." --President Dieter F. Uchtdorf
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