The week was very wonderful. I am loving the work here in Page. Sister Steele and Navarro are good about helping me get my mind off the anxieties of going home. We had exchanges this week with Farmington and it was so good. It got me pumped for the work all over again. It was great to talk to Sister Johnson about all the strange emotions I'm having lately. She gets it.
"I don't worry about you at all." She told me. It means a lot to hear that from another missionary. I've had so many doubts lately. But I've realized too that I've been too inward. With the anxiety of going home, my focus has started to shift to myself. And exchanges have been so great for getting away from that. Studying for exchanges is one of the biggest blessings of having them. The best is when the sisters give me a topic of what they want to work on. So much insight comes for me, for the area I serve in, and for the exchanges themselves.
For exchange forms with Sister Te'o, we discussed Charity. Something that hit me as I studied this week is that charity comes from unity with the Lord. Pure love is something only He knows and comprehends. And so it is something only He can give. When studying for Sister Johnson, not a whole lot came to me. I had a few thoughts and things I wanted to share during training, but nothing in particular.
When it came time to do the exchange forms we sat down and I asked her to train me on what they learned at their Zone Training. Farmington zone sounds like they had an amazing zone training, by the way. It really impacted both Sisters and they talked about it a lot. So Sister Johnson shared with me about diligence, and about consecration. She grabbed a whiteboard and went at it. I learned so much, and through her little bit of training I was able to receive answers for things I've had concerns about. It's amazing how when I finally stopped focusing on myself, the answers I was looking for came. And that's just how it is. The concept of "losing yourself" doesn't make sense until you put it into practice. And then everything falls into place.
It was so good to talk to everyone at home for Mother's Day! And somehow it gave me more focus on the work. The family is such a great reminder of why I'm out here. We've enjoyed so many blessings from having the restored gospel to teach us as a family, and I want that for everyone. We're so far from perfect, but we are nothing short of happy.
I was also glad to see all the great improvements made in the companionship since exchanges. Sister Te'o is phenomenal at building up leaders. Through the exchange she offered me such sincere heartfelt compliments. When the exchange was over, the three of us sat in the car and asked each other how it was. "Sister Te'o made me feel on top of the world." was the first comment made. We all agreed. She made me feel like I could do anything. She made me feel like I was the best missionary she's ever talked to. And I could tell that she meant what she said. It's amazing what sincere praise can do. We think many good things about each other, but do we say them? Since exchanges I can tell we, as a companionship, have all been making more of an effort to vocalize those thoughts. Before bedtime on Wednesday night, Sister Navarro told all of us the wonderful things she noticed that we did that day. I noticed even the difference it made in our confidence in lessons.
We went to teach Kevin after the Farmington sisters had left. We had discussed that day in 12 week studies how maybe what he needed to hear was just the simple truth: God loves him and knows him personally. We talked about how we might tie that into the ten commandments lesson we'd be teaching that evening. And during that lesson, I felt the spirit so strong as my companions testified of a Father in Heaven who loves us enough to give us commandments. And to be honest, I don't quite know if Kevin felt it. But I felt it. Sister Navarro and Sister Steele have such powerful testimonies. And sometimes even in lessons, we still have that fear of sharing. But in that lesson, they opened their hearts and shared with power and authority the simple truth that they knew to be true. I don't know how anyone could've left that living room not edified and uplifted. The spirit was strong. The love and praise we shared with each other built up our confidence. The confidence allowed fear to depart and the spirit to come in.
I hope I can carry that home, the ability to build each other up. I hope to surround myself with friends who make me feel like my companions have- uplifted, supported, and loved.
We're still teaching like crazy and I'm still fighting some sinus problems. The members have been stepping up to plate and going out on splits with us. This week in one of our wards we had a member at every single lesson we taught! It was amazing, and the members add so much power to our lessons. "I don't worry about you at all." She told me. It means a lot to hear that from another missionary. I've had so many doubts lately. But I've realized too that I've been too inward. With the anxiety of going home, my focus has started to shift to myself. And exchanges have been so great for getting away from that. Studying for exchanges is one of the biggest blessings of having them. The best is when the sisters give me a topic of what they want to work on. So much insight comes for me, for the area I serve in, and for the exchanges themselves.
For exchange forms with Sister Te'o, we discussed Charity. Something that hit me as I studied this week is that charity comes from unity with the Lord. Pure love is something only He knows and comprehends. And so it is something only He can give. When studying for Sister Johnson, not a whole lot came to me. I had a few thoughts and things I wanted to share during training, but nothing in particular.
When it came time to do the exchange forms we sat down and I asked her to train me on what they learned at their Zone Training. Farmington zone sounds like they had an amazing zone training, by the way. It really impacted both Sisters and they talked about it a lot. So Sister Johnson shared with me about diligence, and about consecration. She grabbed a whiteboard and went at it. I learned so much, and through her little bit of training I was able to receive answers for things I've had concerns about. It's amazing how when I finally stopped focusing on myself, the answers I was looking for came. And that's just how it is. The concept of "losing yourself" doesn't make sense until you put it into practice. And then everything falls into place.
It was so good to talk to everyone at home for Mother's Day! And somehow it gave me more focus on the work. The family is such a great reminder of why I'm out here. We've enjoyed so many blessings from having the restored gospel to teach us as a family, and I want that for everyone. We're so far from perfect, but we are nothing short of happy.
I was also glad to see all the great improvements made in the companionship since exchanges. Sister Te'o is phenomenal at building up leaders. Through the exchange she offered me such sincere heartfelt compliments. When the exchange was over, the three of us sat in the car and asked each other how it was. "Sister Te'o made me feel on top of the world." was the first comment made. We all agreed. She made me feel like I could do anything. She made me feel like I was the best missionary she's ever talked to. And I could tell that she meant what she said. It's amazing what sincere praise can do. We think many good things about each other, but do we say them? Since exchanges I can tell we, as a companionship, have all been making more of an effort to vocalize those thoughts. Before bedtime on Wednesday night, Sister Navarro told all of us the wonderful things she noticed that we did that day. I noticed even the difference it made in our confidence in lessons.
We went to teach Kevin after the Farmington sisters had left. We had discussed that day in 12 week studies how maybe what he needed to hear was just the simple truth: God loves him and knows him personally. We talked about how we might tie that into the ten commandments lesson we'd be teaching that evening. And during that lesson, I felt the spirit so strong as my companions testified of a Father in Heaven who loves us enough to give us commandments. And to be honest, I don't quite know if Kevin felt it. But I felt it. Sister Navarro and Sister Steele have such powerful testimonies. And sometimes even in lessons, we still have that fear of sharing. But in that lesson, they opened their hearts and shared with power and authority the simple truth that they knew to be true. I don't know how anyone could've left that living room not edified and uplifted. The spirit was strong. The love and praise we shared with each other built up our confidence. The confidence allowed fear to depart and the spirit to come in.
I hope I can carry that home, the ability to build each other up. I hope to surround myself with friends who make me feel like my companions have- uplifted, supported, and loved.
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