Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Adieu

So this little project has come to an end. I can't lie I am going to miss writing on this little blog thing but I guess this new obsession will have to wait until I return home from the mission. Every time I wrote on this website I wrote with a specific person in mind. Whether it was a friend from home or a person on the Square, I always wrote hoping that something that I said could or would help resolve the concerns of the reader. Life is constantly changing and as you can see from this being my last blog entry as a missionary, so is missionary work. I will return home from the mission shortly and this fact has had me reflecting on the past few months as a missionary. I have spoken to a lot of people and shared with them the thing that I hold the most sacred, my testimony of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. I suppose there is no better way to end this experience than to leave you with that very testimony.
Christ lives. He is the same yesterday, today and forever and because of this undeniable truth He has called a prophet again today. God's current prophet, Thomas S. Monson, holds the keys to the power of heaven and leads and guides Christ's Church through divine inspiration. There is no greater happiness that can be found than in and through Christ's Gospel. I can promise you that if you will humble yourself enough to ask God if this is true that He will tell you because He told me. I pray that you can find the truth that speaks happiness to the soul and peace to the mind. There is nothing of greater value that I have to leave you with except for these things. They may be simple but they are true, of this I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Saturday, June 4, 2011

Mon ami

I have been sitting here in front of this screen for thirty minutes now. I have written and erased over and over again yet I still sit here not having a clue of what to say. There are so many things going through my head that to put these thoughts in any logical order seems impossible. The atonement, repentance, faith, life after this... all of these things circle in my head but not one lands on the feelings in my heart.
Jesus Christ
It seems like this last week the only person that I have been able to think about is one of my best friends from home. She has had a rather tough year and me having come on a mission doesn't really seem to have helped much. See, she and I have been friends for a long time and there are very few things (if any) that we don't share with one another and me being on a mission doesn't allow us the free form of communication that we have grown so accustomed to. I know it's been hard on her but it's also been hard on me not being able to talk her through any struggle or situation she may find herself in. So I'm going to take this opportunity to speak to her (hoping that she will read this)... 
 A big part of this mortal experience is that we face trials and struggles to help us grow closer to our Father in Heaven. We will all struggle, it's a fact of life but God has promised us that with faith in Him then He will "make weak things become strong." When  we look back on the journey of our life we can see all the times that we have struggled and fallen; all the times that we made choices that were in complete contradiction to the will of the Lord. We've all made mistakes, we've all sinned but we must always remember that Christ died so that we wouldn't have to carry that guilt and pain. In the Book of Matthew Christ pleads with us, "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." If we will turn to Christ in our trials and humble ourselves enough to ask for His help He will give it to us. He wants to help but it is up to us to seek it out, "ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you; for he that asketh, receiveth; and unto him that knocketh, it shall be opened." In the Garden of Gethsemane Christ paid the price for our sins, He paid it so we wouldn't have to. How dare we not give Him that which he rightfully paid for! We cannot be afraid of the consequences that we face as imperfect beings because we must have faith in our Lord and Savior. He wants to take care of it, now allow Him to. My prayers are always with you, until the end.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Les paroles de vie

It has been quite a while since I last sat in front of this computer screen. It's amazing how quickly time passes, especially as a missonary. Soon I will be approaching my half way point (my family lovingly reminds me of this everytime they write) and let me just say I look forward to the day with feelings of nausea. It's scary to think that some day I will have to return to the real world and leave this work in another's hands. There is still so much to be done and with time quickly coming to a close my heart is filled with an emense sense of urgency. How can I possibly accomplish all that I have planned to do since I chose to come on a mission? How will I ever be able to say, "I've done all I could"? Will it ever be enough?
A missionaries greatest fear is going home. Whilst on your mission you come to love people and truely see them as Christ does, sons and daughters of Heavenly Father, and you desire nothing more then their eternal welfare and happiness. That's where the fear comes in. Did you do all that you could to help God's children come closer to Him? Did you tell everyone about Christ? Did you "open your mouth"? Once you return home things change. You still love people and you still want to share the message of Christ with them but you are no longer a set apart missionary. It becomes difficult to find the confidence to "open your mouth" for fear of rejection and causing offence, but how important it is to share with others something that will change their life. Every missionary leaves their mission with the intention to continue working just as hard teaching other's the gospel, but as life begins to invade our spiritual quest that desire often dwindles into a past memory. It is imparative to continually nurtur that desire we have to share with others the one thing that can bring them happiness far beyond that which is offered by the world. We must "treasure up in [our] minds continually the words of life" so that we may be given the things to say. If "[we] are prepared [we] shall not fear" because we will know just what the Lord would have us say and do to help God's children return home. Studying the scriptures can often seem such a daunting task. With school, work, family and an array of other responsibilties it can be hard to find the time to dedicate to studying the words of God but what better way to spend your time? As we find time in our busy lives for the Lord and the things which He has asked us to do we are promised that the Lord will be with us in all that we do (Joshua 1:9). Let us find time for the Lord and His words in our lives that we may always be "missionaries" inviting others to come to Christ. What greater promise can we be given then to have the Lord our Savior as our companion?

Friday, May 6, 2011

La prière

With Mother's Day just around the corner the mission is all a buzz as we prepare to call home for the first time in a while (in order to help maintain focus and avoid feelings of homesickness, as missionaries we only call home twice a year, Mother's Day and Christmas). For the past few day's I have been thinking a lot about what I am going to share with my family. Since I do write home every week I feel as though all of the stories, at least the good ones, have already been told... So what am I left with? Nothing. Nevertheless I know that my family will be sitting around the speaker phone in great anticipation. So what do I say? What do I share? I certainly don't want to share the same stories that I wrote about last week but there is something about the flair of a verbal story that cannot be conveyed in a written message. As I continued obsessing about what to share with my family my companion drew an interesting parallel. Just as my family is already aware of all the funny and entertaining stories of my missionary experience my Father in Heaven is aware of them as well but nonetheless He still wants to hear them from me. Having a good teaching companion like Sister Nieves helped me change my distracting obsession to a creative contemplation about her proposed parallel. Could a call home really be that similar to a prayer?
Mormon Message : Prayer
Every night and every morning we get on our knees to pray. I can't lie, often times I find myself sitting thinking "What do I say? I don't really even remember what happened today." Or thinking, "I don't need to say that, He saw it, He know's I'm sorry." But there is something to be said for expressing gratitude or penitence verbally. So once again I thought about my Mom and Dad, could my Heavenly Father really want to hear all the silly things that I tell them? Does He really want me to repeat what He already saw? As I continued to think about it I finally came to this conclusion... Of course He does. He is our FATHER in Heaven. Just as we call home to tell our family something exciting He wants those "calls" too. He want's to rejoice with us and bring us comfort during our trials because He is the only one that understands us perfectly. We have been given the blessing of prayer as a form of communication with our Heavenly Father. Each prayer is simply a phone call home where we can tell our Father in Heaven the concerns of our hearts and He can bring us answers and comfort through the Holy Ghost. We would never deny our parents a phone call, how then can we deny our Father in Heaven a prayer?

Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name; and whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you." - 3 Nephi 18:19-20

Friday, April 29, 2011

Le Saint-Esprit

This is one of the first chapels built in Salt Lake City.
Having a companion that speaks Spanish has certainly made for an interesting transfer.Especially when you consider the fact that I do not speak a word of Spanish, except for maybe "Hola amigo, como estas." Yes I know, my knowledge of the Latin Tongue is pitiful but it has taught met that regardless of the physical language barrier the Holy Spirit can bridge all gaps. In the Book of John it states, "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance...(John 14:26)." When you drive by a local church on a Sunday afternoon you will often see the parking lot filled with cars of all different shapes and sizes. Inside the four walls of that chapel there are families, neighbors and friends gathered together to learn more about Jesus Christ and His gospel. Someone who has never heard of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may be surprised when the walk into an LDS Chapel to the sound of kids munching on Cheerios in the back row. The real surprise would come after having sat down for a few moments and witnessed the sacrament, or communion, being passed in complete solemnity or when they hear an ineloquent man speak plainly on his experience with the strengthening power of the gospel. It is undeniable that a special feeling resides there. For many it is a familiar feeling that is often unidentifiable but can be found in moments of prayer, when looking at art or even enjoying the serenity of the outdoors. That special feeling can only be given by the power of the Holy Ghost. It is the Holy Ghost that brings us comfort through our most difficult times. It is the Holy Ghost that helps us learn about Christ and His eternal plan for us. It is that same Holy Ghost that can help a non-Spanish speaking missionary know that the words of her teaching companion are true. What a beautiful gift we have been given so that we can know "the truth of all things."

"And I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder them in your hearts. And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." Moroni 10:3-5

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Joyeuses Pâques

Can you believe it's Easter time already? It feels like just yesterday I was getting ready for finals as I sat in my apartment watching the Easter Devotional on the BYU Channel. It's amazing how time can fly and how quickly things can change. This time of year my thoughts, like many others, are turned towards that infinite atoning sacrifice of our Savior Jesus Christ.
In my last few posts I've written a lot about choices and how they can both negatively and positively effect our lives. As I think about the role of the atonement in my life my thoughts are once again pulled towards the many choices that I have made. Inevitably we all make mistakes, none of us are perfect but because of the perfection of Christ we can be forgiven of our transgressions and be made clean. My favorite account of the healing nature of the atonement is in The Book of Mormon and it's about Alma the Younger. His father was a prophet yet he went around trying to destroy the Church, destroy Christ's Church. When an angel appeared to him he was struck down and brought to a complete remembrance of all of his many sins. Of this he said, "I was racked with eternal torment, for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree and racked with all my sins...I did remember all my sins and iniquities, for which I was tormented with the pains of hell; yeah I saw that I had rebelled against my God... (Alma 36:12-13)" Now we may not be in such excruciating pain as Alma but we are all tormented with feelings of guilt. Elder Scott Grow said, "There is no sin or transgression, pain or sorrow, which is outside of the healing power of His Atonement." No matter what we've done that has brought us the pain of guilt we can be comforted in the promise that there is nothing outside of Christ's healing power. I know that my life has been far from perfect but I also know that as I continue to exercise faith in Christ I can be forgiven of my many mistakes and face each day with a "perfect brightness of hope."

"Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life." -2 Nephi 31:20

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

L'amour

Prophet Gordon B Hinckley once said that "Love is of the very essence of life (The Greatest of These is Love, Ensign 1984)." As my new teaching companion (Sister Nieves - Mercado) and I have been getting to know one another we've been talking a lot about the love that we have for our families and friends. We have also spoken a lot about how we show that love to those around us and we always seem to come to the same conclusion; we all show and receive love in different ways but one thing remains the same, we all need to feel loved. Through out society you see displays of love in all forms. Large statues like the one posted here can be seen in various places all over the world. We can also see young kids helping the elderly with their groceries, we can even see people donating their time to visit hospitals or homeless shelters to help lift the spirits of those with a broken heart. All of these are great way's to show our love for our fellow man, for our brother's and sister's, but the greatest exemplar of love is still our Savior Jesus Christ. Of the love that He showed us President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said, "Love is what inspired our Heavenly Father to create our spirits; it is what led our Savior to the Garden of Gethsemane to make Himself a ransom for our sins. Love is the grand motive of the plan of salvation; it is the source of happiness, the ever-renewing spring of healing, the precious fountain of hope. As we extend our hands and hearts toward others in Christlike love, something wonderful happens to us. Our own spirits become healed, more refined, and stronger. We become happier, more peaceful, and more receptive to the whisperings of the Holy Spirit." In the Book of John Christ says, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." Christ gave us the greatest gift of all, the gift of eternal life, the only thing that He asks of us is to show our love for him by keeping the commandments that He has given.One of the greatest commandments that Christ gave us is in the Book of John as well and it states, "This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you." It can be so hard sometimes to show our love for others but when we do we can find greater joy and peace in this life. Timothy inspired us by saying, " Let no man despise thy youth, but be thou and example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." I pray that as I continue my mission I will be able to grow in that Christlike love and return home to be an "example of the believers."

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Le choix


This morning started off like most mornings on a mission. I smacked my alarm clock into silence as I rolled off the bed into a morning prayer. As I prepared for the day a reoccurring thought entered into my mind about the choice I made to serve a full time mission. It seems like everything in life is either the result of or the precursor to a choice. Whether we run out of gas on the freeway because we chose not to fill up the tank or we didn't go to a party because we knew it wasn't a good scene, each has it's own consequence. As I continued to think about why I came on a mission and how it has effected my life I started to ponder on how it has effected the life of those around me. It never occurred to me how my service as a missionary would effect others or if it even would. I knew my family would miss me but as for my friends I just assumed that we would just pick up where we left off when I got back. Most of the time when we make a decision we don't fully contemplate the domino effect that our choice will have on others or the future generations. As I continued to think about choice I turned to the scriptures during my personal study and thought a lot about Lehi, the prophet from the Book of Mormon.  He chose to listen to the promptings of the Spirit, to leave all of his possessions, gather his family and flee into the wilderness just before the Babylonians came to destroy Jerusalem. Because of the choice he made to listen and leave generations were impacted and we now have the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of of Jesus Christ. In the Spring of 1820 a young man would make a choice that would change the face of the world forever. He couldn't understand why there were so many Christian churches if Christ had only established one, so he took his question to the most reliable source, God. He asked which church was right and which one he should join, at that moment he saw God the Father and Jesus Christ and would later become instrumental in restoring Christ's church back to the earth. Because of a question, because of a willingness to follow lives have been changed forever. Now, I don't necessarily think that lives for generations have been changed because I chose to serve a mission but I know that mine has. How has our decision's effected our future? How will it effect the generations?

Sunday, April 10, 2011

La vie

How do you stay strong in the face of adversity? Life is filled with difficult times. Things that we never thought would happen to us seem to invade our reality at an ever increasing rate. I always thought that while people served missions that they and their families would somehow be preserved, protected for that period of time, nothing could touch them. As I sit here in front of the computer I realize that no matter where we are in life we are in no way immune to the whiles of the Devil. I just received news that a friend from college passed away. Although her and I were never really close, she means a great deal to someone who has meant the world to me. Death of a loved one is never something that one can prepare for but one thing we can take comfort in is the knowledge that this life isn't the end, it's all so much bigger than this world.

A man named Jesus Christ was a carpenter and in His 30's He revealed himself as the Son of God, the literal Savior of the world. From the immaculate conception to the garden of Gethsemane and the finality of the empty tomb, there is no doubt in Christ's divinity and mission here on earth. All these moments in history added up to the single most important event in the world, the atonement. As Christ conquered death and the pain in Gethsemane He opened the door that we too may conquer the grave. It can be hard when faced with the loss of a loved one to remember the gift of a loving Father in Heaven but what a beautiful gift it is. When my Grandfather passed away last year rather suddenly I couldn't understand why at that moment in time did my Father in Heaven take him away from us. He was the glue that always held us together, our foundation. At his funeral we sang a closing hymn that really struck me, the last two versus of "How Great Thou Art" (written by Stuart K. Hine) read:
And when I think that God, his Son not sparing,
Sent him to die, I scarce can take it in,
That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin, 
When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation,
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
Then I shall bow in humble adoration
And there proclaim, "My God, how great thou art!"
Death is never easy but as we remember the eternal perspective these unbearable moments may be faced with courage and strength.  I am so grateful for this knowledge that this life isn't the end. Because of Christ and His sacrifice I will be able to see my Grandfather again, as I face trials with this in mind the Holy Ghost speaks peace to my soul. I may be on a mission and unable to assist those I love through their trials but I can go on serving knowing that it is in the Lord's hands, what better place for them to be.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Conférence général d'avril 2011

It has been such an amazingly crazy weekend at Temple Square. Thousands of people from all over the world have gathered in this 35 acres for the semi-annual event called General Conference. Many have had the opportunity to listen to living prophets give us guidance in this crazy world, what a wonderful blessing it is to have a living prophet today! All of the addresses were wonderful and uplifting but one in particular really made an impression on me. Each time I study or listen to conference I begin with a question in my heart and mind that I am in need of an answer to. Every time without fail within the course of the conference or studying I am able to find an answer, this General Conference was no exception. As I sat in the Conference Center awaiting the beginning of the Saturday Afternoon Session I began to think a lot about what I really wanted out of life and how to attain the goals I have of going to graduate school, being a Mom, a Grandmother etc. Towards the end of the session I began to become a little discouraged as I didn't really feel like I was receiving an answer to how I could achieve all the goals I have set for myself. Finally Elder Dallin H. Oaks got up and said just what I needed to hear and what Heavenly Father would have me know. One thing he said that really struck me was, "Desires dictate our priorities, priorities shape our choices and choices determine our actions." Almost a year a go I had the desire to serve a full time mission so I made it my priority to prepare to serve, made the choice to go by filling out the necessary paperwork then took action by coming to the Utah Salt Lake City Temple Square Mission. Since I have been here life has been nothing short of an extreme roller coaster ride filled with unanticipated twists and turns. Now as I sit almost half way through my mission I can't help but think about the next step my life must take when I return home. So there I sat in this giant auditorium with 21,000 people as Spirit reminded me of the commitment that I made as I chose to make serving a mission my priority. In the Doctrine and Covenants Section 4 it states, "O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day." Elder Oaks's talk was a subtle reminder that I had allowed my priorities to become muddled with distractions of the future. I hadn't even recognized how truly distracted I was as I sat pondering and day dreaming about the future while there was still so much work to be done in the present. How often does that happen in society? How often do we sit waiting for tomorrow when we haven't completed today and how much do we miss out on as we allow the days to pass us by? I pray that I do not get caught in the snare of "what if's" for there is far too much to do in the "right now's."

Monday, March 28, 2011

Le courage

Today I read in the Book of Mormon a story about a man named Alma. He heard the words of a prophet named Abinadi and despite the rejection of the general populous, Alma felt the truth of his words and followed that prompting. Because of the ferocity of the peoples rejection Alma was forced to hide and flee the city. I don't doubt that there where nights when Alma was hiding in the woods that he would think to himself, "How much easier would it have been to just concede, to just go along with what everyone else was saying despite the spiritual confirmation that I received." President Monson (the current Prophet or President of the Church) once said, "Let us have courage to defy the consensus, the courage to stand for principle. Courage, not compromise, brings the smile of God's approval (The Call for Courage)." This story of Alma in the Book of Mormon is a stellar example of courage. He knew in his heart what was right and despite the societal pressures he did what the Spirit prompted him to do. It can often be hard in this crazy world to maintain a moral standard that contradicts pop culture but how much more blessed are we to stand for what we believe in? Because Abinadi stood for truth and because Alma stood for his faith millions of lives have been affected as they've been able to read this record. What a blessing it is to have a record such as this to help give us that courage we all need to "defy the consensus."






Saturday, March 26, 2011

"attendant avec l'oeil de la foi"

Life is filled with twists and turns that often times cannot be anticipated. There are questions that cannot be answered and things we simply cannot understand. Despite all of this adversity we face if we are able to look forward with faith we can be given all the answers and strength that we need to accomplish any task (Alma 32:40-41). My testimony of this principle has significantly increased this week as I sat in front of two Sister Missionaries who were looking to me for help and guidance. I am not a theologist nor a scripturist but I do know that no matter how weak I may be through faith in the Lord my weakness may become strength (Ether 12:27). In the Book of Mormon we see so many examples of people being given strength according to their faith. In the First Book of Nephi chapter 7 it states "But it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord, Saying: O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren; yea even give me strength that I may burst these bands with which I am bound." Because of Nephi's faith he was able to break the bands which held him bound and stand before his brothers that were causing him so much pain. We may not be tied up by evil captors but we can be freed from the woes of life that hold us bound if we exercise faith in Christ. According to our faith we can be granted the ability to do all things, even help two Sister's in their time of need.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Une lettre

Until you are away from home without the ability to talk to family and friends every day you will never come to understand the joy that a simple letter can invoke in a person. Today I received a letter from a family I stayed with in France several years ago. It wasn't fancy, just a simple hand written note which I was ecstatic to receive. It got me thinking about how I would feel if I couldn't even hear from my family once a week, how horrible would that be? I wonder if that's anything close to how our Heavenly Father feels when we don't regularly come to Him in prayer. Prayer is our best source of communication with our Father in Heaven, it's much like a telephone call home. Through prayer we can tell our Father how we are feeling, verbally express what we need and what we are grateful for. He wants to hear from us everyday in the same way that my parents want to hear from me and I will want to hear from my children. When looking at prayer from the perspective of parent to child and child to parent I can truly feel its necessity and understand why prayer is so often mentioned in the scriptures. What a beautiful gift and magnificent form of communication.

"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God (Philippians 4:6)."

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Le prophète

A few days ago we had the opportunity to preview the new Joseph Smith movie, Prophet of the Restoration. The movie tells the life of the first prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as a brief history of the beginning of the church. Since watching the movie I haven’t been able to stop thinking about the sacrifices that have been made throughout time for the cause of Christ. Beginning with Adam, each prophet has had one thing in common; they were all rejected by the common man as they tried to preach the word of God. It’s sad to think about so many that have died because the people didn’t want to hear what they had to say, they didn’t want to hear that what they were doing was wrong. It’s just like Abinadi the prophet from the Book of Mormon (Mosiah 11). He went to King Noah and began to rebuke him for his wickedness and call him to repentance but holding true to the pattern King Noah grows angry and tries to destroy him… It is heartbreaking to think about all the people that have died throughout history for their belief in Christ and for their desire to follow his example. I am so grateful for all that they’ve done but I sure wish they didn’t have to do it.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Jeudi

Yesterday we met these four young boys from Arizona who had hopped on a bus for 14 hours just to come to Temple Square. They couldn’t have been older than 18 but you could feel their excitement as they were able to explore this historic site. Two of them had just gotten baptized a few months ago and you could sense their love and desire to share what has made them so happy with everyone they know. This encounter got me thinking about why I served a mission, what made me want to dedicate 18 months of my life to this work? I’m not a convert to the church being that my family is LDS but I nonetheless had a defining moment when I had to chose, is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints the true church? Much like many converts to the church I had to ask, I had to know for myself that it was the right church for me. So I did just that, I asked my Heavenly Father knowing that He would answer my prayer. Because of that question and the sincere desire that I had to know the truth I was able to gain a personal witness that it is Christ’s church once again restored to the earth… I guess that’s why I chose to serve. The gospel of Jesus Christ has changed my life and I know it can do that for everyone. What better gift to give back to my Savior than to help others return to him?


And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you (3 Nephi 11:20).

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Le début

It has officially been two weeks since I last had a Diet Coke and I am beginning to feel the fatigue. When I woke up this morning I began to wonder why it was that I quit in the first place but the Lord subtly reminded me when I read in 1 Corinthians 6:19 which says, “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” I guess it can be hard sometimes and easily forgotten that our bodies are a gift from God and that we are to care for them to the best of our ability. That is why God revealed the Word of Wisdom (the Lord’s law of health) through a living prophet, Joseph Smith. We really need to take care of ourselves so that the Lord can better take care of us. Maybe I should start running in the morning… But it’s just so early!

Bonjour

Hello everyone... and by everyone I mean the two people that will probably read this (including myself). I guess I should tell you a bit about me... Well, I am a Sister Missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After I graduated from college I decided to dedicate 18 months of my life to serving my Heavenly Father and my fellow man by teaching people about our Savior Jesus Christ. I don’t know how exciting my blog will really be but I am looking forward to sharing my missionary experiences with all those out there in cyberspace.