Daily Bread and Double Baptisms – Feb. 3, 2014

This week was one of those weeks that feels like it went fast now that it is Monday, but it was so packed, it feels like last Monday was last year…It was loaded with miracles, and also felt like a 7th week of the transfer. Interestingly enough, now that I have seen from another point of view, I think the 6 week transfers are inspired. 7 is just really long, and although Sister Moser and I wanted to stay together for another transfer anyways, it still felt like it was time for at least a little refreshing. Sister Moser and I were discussing a lot about change this week, and how missions are so full of them. It made me reflect on all the changes on my mission, and how I have been able to stay out, and why I have chosen to stay out. Trust me when I say it has been hard. That is the way missions are. I never would have understood a mission fully if I wouldn’t have served one. There have been extremely low points and extremely high points, and even lower and higher points, and yet I can look back at all those points and changes and thank Heavenly Father for allowing me to experience them. Missions can be hard to adapt to because of the changes we make. There are changes in lifestyle, scenery, language, emotion, spirituality, and identity in many ways. So with all of these changes, how do we cope? We find stability in obedience and faith.

I can honestly look back at my mission and see that the only things I have constantly been able to hold on to amongst all of these waves of transition are obedience and faith. Obedience to the commandments of God and rules of a mission give us foundation that is always the same. We wake up at the same time every day. We pray every day. We begin to study at the same time every day. We read the scriptures every day. We go to bed at the same time every day. We plan every day. We take the sacrament every Sunday. We build our testimonies and spiritual floors every day so we have something to stand on rather than sink. When those things slack, the changes pack a much more powerful punch. I have witnessed this many times in my mission and in my life. If I let an area of obedience slack, my floor becomes more wobbly and it becomes harder to stand. Yes we will fall, but think of how much easier it is to get up onto a solid platform than a trampoline with tons of people jumping on it. When we obey the rules, we help build our stability. In many instances, we can make the decision what things will and will not change. I will not do drugs, I will not drink alcohol, I will get out of bed at 6:30 every day, I will pray every morning, I will always stay with my companion and listen to approved music. These habits of righteousness make us stronger so we can confidently confront the changes and know the Lord will keep his promises and help us through.

Faith adds stability because we can hope for and know what is always there. I have faith that Jesus Christ is my savior and understands me. I have faith that my family still loves me even though I’ve been gone for a year (haha…duh!!). I have faith that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ called me on this mission because they knew I could do it. I know through experience that the atonement of Jesus Christ has literal healing power. Jesus Christ has always been and will always be there to walk me through my trials. Thus, maintaining our faith and obedience helps us have something constant to hold on to while we are in the middle of the playing field of change’s many strategic games.

Once we have chosen to build a foundation like this, we take it one day at a time. This morning during studies, I listened to a talk Jan put on a cd for us by Elder D. Todd Christofferson, which just reiterated and reinforced the truths I had just learned the days previously. It is so interesting how the Holy Ghost teaches us a truth, and then by some divine “coincidence,” we find the same truth in the scriptures, or it is taught by prophets and apostles to further embed it in our minds and remind our spirits. Watch these mormon messages derived from the talk “Daily Bread.” Through them, I believe the spirit will help you understand what I have been learning and teach you things I have yet to discover:

(Obedience) Pattern: http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=2649250157001

(Faith) Change: http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=2649250159001

(One Day at a Time) Experience: http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=2649255347001

For those of you who are going through changes, please take it one day at a time. We could eat an entire elephant if we just took it bite by bite. Elder Christofferson said, “In the 1950s my mother survived radical cancer surgery, but difficult as that was, the surgery was followed with dozens of painful radiation treatments in what would now be considered rather primitive medical conditions. She recalls that her mother taught her something during that time that has helped her ever since: “I was so sick and weak, and I said to her one day, ‘Oh, Mother, I can’t stand having 16 more of those treatments.’ She said, ‘Can you go today?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘Well, honey, that’s all you have to do today.’ It has helped me many times when I remember to take one day or one thing at a time.”

So I ask you, “Can you do it today? Because that’s all you have to do today.” I know that we all have the capacity to make it through all of the trials we face in life. I also know that we don’t have to make it alone.

Alright, that’s got to be one of the biggest soap boxes yet, but I couldn’t stop. It was amazing to me just how perfectly that talk fit what i had learned a couple days ago.

On another note, Stephanie and Chapo were baptized this Saturday and confirmed on Sunday!! It was truly a miracle. Stephanie was really apprehensive about it and didn’t want to get at the beginning of the week, but as we fasted, prayed, asked inspired questions, and followed the spirit, we were able to help her overcome her concerns and she and Chapo were able to be baptized together. They were so excited. Fasting is hard, but it works miracles. Every time I have fasted for something on my mission we have seen miracles. Alfred is doing really well and we really feel that he is even closer to getting baptized. His baptismal date is 1 March! He was also really proud of his kids and had a huge smile through the whole baptism. Another amazing thing was that Jan baptized Chapo! How many missionaries get to stay to see someone go from knowing nothing about the church to blessing the sacrament every Sunday and performing their first baptism? What a miracle! Jan and Sami are amazing and they both got callings this week too!

So, last update, I’m staying here for transfers! (I know I already kindof said it, but there it is again.) Now I’m beginning to think I’ll be in Liberal the remainder of my mission…which I have no idea when that will be because I am just taking it one day at a time 😉 The crazy thing is that there really weren’t many changes made in Liberal. Only one of the elders in Liberal and one in Meade were transferred. So here I go again, happy as ever, in the middle of nowhere, the corner of Kansas, where miracles grow like weeds! I LOVE LIBERAL!