So I dont know if I have already told you guys about Hermana Sainsbury and my goal to sit with natives every meal, but it has been so entertaining!! I love meeting and talking to them haha they think we are hilarious (no- its nothing I actually say...I think its more all the stuff I can't say) Two quick stories. So Wednesday is when we met them- Hermana Aguiñiga, Calagua, Ake, and Siza. Two of them eat breakfast with us, and the other two eat lunch and dinner with us. Wednesday morning they served Quesadillas for breakfast........with a FLOWER inside!!! hahah I was thrown off, and i played with it for probably 5 minutes asking the Hermanas if it was normal for them to eat flowers, where they came from, if they tasted good, and finally I just ate it. They were laughing way hard because I was so confused at the massive flower in my tortilla...
Then for lunch, a couple minutes after us meeting our other new friends, Hermana Sainsbury was squirting lime on her food, and it shot out of her hand and juice sprayed right into Hermana Ake's eye! She looked like she was in so much pain, but she was laughing so I think its okay to call that a funny story.
Anyways! This week went by faster than any other weeks that I've been here, and I only have one more!! That is such a crazy thought... I HAVE BEEN HERE A MONTH NOW! I have been learning SO much and it is so hard for me to imagine taking all the things I have learned about teaching and channeling it into real investigators in the field, but hopefully I will be able to do it effectively enough!
My talk of the week is When I Am Weak by Gérald Caussé. :) My companion had brought it with her and let me read it because I have had an obsession with this topic in my studies lately.
The Lord has the power to transform our weaknesses into strengths. 'God is not the God of superheroes, nor the God of people without weaknesses- such beings do not exist!"
Here is a list of PRINCIPLES TO HELP OVERCOME LIFE'S CHALLENGES:
1ST. Build on your strengths
2ND: Recognize your personal limitations
3RD: Rely on the Lord
4TH: Qualify yourselves to receive the GRACE of the Savior
(The talk goes into detail about each of these, but thats a summary!)
Elder Neil A Andersen describes grace as "Spiritual knowledge and power that changes how someone sees himself, increases his capacities, and magnifies his ability to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord"
The Spirit will sanctify us and raise us beyond our mortal condition, which I will certainly need as a missionary every single day. The Spirit is the single most important element in missionary work because it is the way I will testify, the means by which my words will be carried to the hearts of the people I will teach, and the way they will receive personal revelation for themselves and become converted unto the Lord.
I have both the privelage and the responsibility to preach the gospel to God's children! I am the Hope of Israel and I am 19 years old!! The people I am going to teach are prepared by the Lord to receive me and they deserve the very best of me--everything that I am and more. This is THE MOST IMPORTANT MESSAGE PEOPLE WILL EVER HEAR IN THEIR LIVES!! It is my responsibility to study and prepare and teach these people with the Spirit, HELPING them receive the Restored gospel of Jesus Christ. I am helping them come to know their Savior, and bringing them to Him one by one so that He can heal them! I have been so humbled as I have recognized that this is God's work, these are God's children- I need to be as persistent as He would be in bringing them to the knowledge of the truth.
OKAY. I have a challenge. Its a bit of an extended challenge, and it'll require some work! I dont know where you guys are at in Book of Mormon, but I have been thinking and learning so much about the power of scripture study- and especially of the Book of Mormon.
This Book will CHANGE LIVES. It is full of the words of God, and even more than that, it is a tool for CONVERSION. Through the Book of Mormon we can receive revelation, learn the doctrine of Christ, and come to know the Savior more personally.
The prophets have emphasized blessings of studying the Book of Mormon forever... what I want to do is pick something (either a promised blessing from a prophet or a specific question we want answered) and then read the Book of Mormon with that in mind. Is it too ambitious to read it by the end of the year? No? Perfect. Lets do it. Reading the Book of Mormon prayerfully will change your life--I know it has for me!
Brother Loveland (when he was my seminary teacher) told me, "It doesn't matter how much you go through the scriptures, but how much the scriptures go through you" That changed my view of scripture study since high school, and I am so grateful for the opportunities to learn from the words of God.
As a missionary, the Spirit will bring things to my remembrance but I have to get them there in the first place, and this is why gospel study is so important! When you learn by the Spirit, your heart can be changed. I feel like I sound way too preachy right now....I'll stop!!
Basically, this is THE LIFE! I am loving it.
This is the Lord's time. I am His instrument!!
Have a good week!! Love you all SO much :) Talk to you very soon!!
Sincerely, Hermana Rogers
PS My next PDay is on Wednesday, and then the week after it will be whenever it is IN THE MISSION FIELD!! Just giving you that heads up! Also-- I dont think I will get anything else if you send it here, so you can delete this address from the blog and everything haha
ANYWAYS I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH!! :)
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