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| My beautiful view each day |
Fleet and Missionary work are both great but I am trying to figure out how to balance the two of them. They both are important and time consuming. That is my goal of the week. I just need to be able to be organized so I can successfully do both!
It is bitter cold here. I am expecting hypothermia pretty soon or frost bite or something. I think my ears might even fall off. But the Christmas season makes the cold weather bearable and it's great because everyone is in the mood for missionary work this time of year!
"J", our investigator that lives right here in Salt Lake City is getting baptized next Saturday and I am so excited for him. The best part about it is that since he is local we actually get to attend the baptism! J is very interested in the Humanitarian and Welfare programs in our church so we get to take him on a tour at Humanitarian Square and Welfare Square on Wednesday. I have never served there but Sister Steenhoek has so she knows the ropes. It will be so much fun.
My other investigator, "A" gets baptized in less than three weeks and he is so excited!! He is just the sweetest kid. I wish I could be there for him but the local missionaries have been awesome and are taking great care of him.
Exciting things are happening! We have two new investigators. One is from England and the other one is from Scotland! They are so prepared. We have to call them in the mornings because of the 7 hour time difference so that is how we have been spending some of our mornings and it's a great way to start our days!
We spoke to the one from Scotland the other day and Grandpa Wellman, I do not know how you understood those people when you were on your mission. It is so hard to understand her! She asked me where our "hole" is. She meant church but I didn't know what she was talking about. I asked, "You want to know where our Hell is?" She thought I just said "hole" with an accent so luckily she didn't catch on to that. Sister Steenhoek had to press mute because she was laughing so hard. Eventually I understood what she was trying to say and we emailed her the address of the closest church building to her which is in Glasgow.
Temple Square is an amazing place to be this time of the year. The lights are beautiful, the music is wonderful, the spirit is strong, and the Square is covered with people- lots of beautiful families and couples! It is like General Conference every night. We have the opportunity to talk to so many wonderful people from all walks of life. I always seek out the younger girls so I can talk to them and get them all pumped up to serve missions! I just want people to see how happy you can be when you are spending your days serving the Lord. As Missionaries, when we visit with people we always challenge them to make commitments to improve their lives. Sister Steenhoek and I have been committing everyone we meet to do an act of service this month. It is the season of giving and I love to see how charitble and kind people are right now. I wish we could feel this way all year long!
I love hearing how excited Jagger is for Christmas. He and I are the same exact person! I love that he loves Christmas so much! Sometimes I wish I could be home just for Christmas but I really wouldn't trade this experience for anything in the world. I love the joy I feel at having a completely Christ-centered Christmas.
I am so blessed to be here at Temple Square with the music, happiness, and true meaning of Christmas all around me. I know that this is my only oppurtunity to have Christmas here so I am going to enjoy every second! I return home around the middle of December next year so this will be my one and only Christmas at this beautiful place.
So this past week with Fleet consuming all of my time, I have been wondering if I am even making a difference. This calling has kept me so busy that I feel like my mind hasn't been there enough to help my investigators and less-active members. This really bothered me and I was so stressed about it! So I decided to pray and ask God if what I was doing to contribute was helping people and if I was actually making a difference or even listening to the spirit! It was really weighing on me because I just want so badly to help people while I am here on a mission. Well, the next day I received a call from a member that I met at General Conference. She is my age and about to serve a mission. We have kept in touch since October. I got her contact information just in case she might have people she could share the gospel with and in November she found that person she thought would benefit from it. It was one of her best friends from middle school that she hasn't seen in many years. She gave me her number and I gave "L" a call. There was no answer so I left a message and planned to call back in a couple days. Then when S, the girl I met at Conference called me the other day she told me she had very exciting news! Her dad had a random business trip in Missouri over Thanksgiving and that is where L lives. So S and L got together and L told S that she got my message! She was so touched that S wanted to share the gospel with her because lately she has been searching for the truth. L said something that I said in the message really touched her and she is so willing to learn more and meet with missionaries! So S said, what did you say in the message? And I honestly have no idea what I said! It was driving me crazy because I do not remember anything.Then I remembered a talk that Elder Bednar gave about teaching by the spirit. He said sometimes we do things or say things and we have no idea we said them or where they even came from. That is the spirit teaching through us! After this experience, I recognized that it was Heavenly Father answering my prayer. I am making a difference because I am listening to the Holy Ghost. Sometimes we just don't feel like we are good enough or we feel inadequete; but we just need to recognize that God really is there and he is helping us!
So I decided to do a 40 day Fast. Except I am not food fasting. I am World fasting. I am doing my best to stop thinking about things that do not matter and I am just focusing on missionary work. It is hard and a little boring sometimes but I have noticed a positive change in myself in just the last week. I used to get caught up in moments where I would dwell on the past and future and it made me kind of depressed so now I am just focusing on right now and working on being exactly obedient. It has been an amazing experience because I am so much happier now than I was before!
Thank you so much to Grams and Mac for the wonderful Christmas card and money! You both are so good to me and I appreciate it so much!
Dad and Keli thank you for beautiful card and money! I really appreciate all the support I receive from everyone. I feel so loved!
Mom & Jeremy, thanks for the letter and package. The new camera works great! You guys made my week. I love hearing that everyone is doing so well and it doesn't surprise me that Jersy thinks she is a cat now.
Kendall, how is college life? How are missionary preparations going?
Grandpa and Grandma Wellman and Christie and Trev! Thanks so much for coming to see me. It really made my day! I felt bad because I was so busy but your visit was exactly what I needed to give me a break from all of that stress.
Alyssa! My Mom said you are planning to serve a mission and I just want you to know that it is the best decision you can make right now. When I first considered serving I was really hesitant! I felt like life was going ok and I had a lot of opportunities in Arizona that would be good for me but I just decided to jump in and go anyways! It was a big step for me but it was the best choice I have ever made. I promise you that you will see such a positive change in your life and you will be able to feel Heavenly Father's love for you so strong! I have never felt so close to Him and I hope this feeling never goes away. I know that God will bless you and take such good care of you. It is such an amazing feeling to know that you are helping others receive what makes us so happy in our lives and what keeps us going. I am so proud to have such awesome cousins that are going to serve missions! Your family will be so blessed and you will be more happy than you have ever been! I love you!
Enjoy the Christmas season everyone and remember why we celebrate!
Love,
Sister Macy Park
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