Dear Family! May
19, 2014
This week has been well, an
adjustment week, just as it always is with a new transfer. But...really
it mostly has just been HOT!!!!!! It was
about 105 for 3 days! wooot!!! That was a good time!!! So we had appointments,
and did our best to stay inside and stay cool, and let me tell you we were so
grateful when it got back into the 80's yesterday! I am just grateful
that I am serving here and not somewhere where it is more humid and hot like
that all the time. I'll take So Cal. :)
So like I mentioned, this
week has been an adjustment week. Before transfers, I knew I
was getting transferred, and I felt like that is what was supposed to happen,
and so that was good. Monday night we had dinner with Brian and
Kristy, and then saw the Dunnings, Leva and taught Catherine and said bye to
Ronnie. It was a busy 3 hours after all of our Pday activities were done!
Tuesday was the first of the HEAT
WAVE! I finished packing and we went and saw a few members and then
headed to Irvine for transfer meeting. Sister Chua and Sister Staley are
great! And they are both so different
and so fun! Sister Staley is from Nevada. She came out the same time that
Sister Hurst did, so about 3 months ago!
Sister Chua is from Malaysia (is that how you spell that?) She has
been out for 6 weeks. They are so great, and I love working with them
already!!! So things are going good
here in this area, I still haven't met most of our investigators, but
that will change soon I am sure! But we do have a lot, so hopefully we
can help them progress towards baptism!! :)
So honestly, most of this week
was a blur...so I'm not really sure what to tell you about it! But I will tell
you about yesterday! So we went to the Oak Creek ward's sacrament
meeting. Which was good, I’m excited to be in that ward, it should be
really good. But our ward meets in a building similar to ours at home,
which is the first one on my mission that is like that, so I was feeling kinda
homesick during church, and then I was missing the Laguna beach ward, and I was
just praying and wondering why I was sent to this ward (why I couldn't still be
in Laguna, why I had to have been moved in east away from the ocean where it
was hot), what my purpose was, and really I was just kind of murmuring. So I
opened the scriptures randomly (something that doesn’t always work for me when
I am looking for an answer). But yesterday it did. I opened up to D & C 66. Which was
a direct answer to my prayer. So here are some of the answers that I
received
5 Behold, verily I say unto you, that it is my will that you should proclaim my gospel from land to land, and from city to city, yea, in those regions round about where it has not been proclaimed.
My missionary purpose (v.5)
7 Go unto the eastern lands, bear testimony in every place, unto
every people and in their synagogues, reasoning with the people.
I am supposed to be here (eastern
lands...and that is what I'd mentioned in my prayer...umm my yeah, I think God
is trying to tell me something) oh, and that I should testify.
9 Lay your hands upon the sick, and they shall recover. Return not til I, the Lord, shall send you. Be patient in affliction. Ask,
and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
11 Keep these sayings, for they are true and faithful; and thou shalt magnify thine office, and push many people to Zion with
songs of everlasting joy upon their heads.
12 Continue in these things even unto the end, and you shall have a crown of eternal life at the right hand of my Father, who is full of grace and truth.
So this was
kinda like me getting called to repentance, just not in a harsh way, but really
God telling me that He has a plan for me and that I just need to go out and
work, and that He will take care of the rest! And that is really what I
needed, so my prayer was answered and my faith was strengthened!
Then we left the Oak Creek Ward and headed over to
the Lake building for the Chinese Branch where we stayed for that entire
block! We (Sister Staley and I) used the headsets during sacrament
meeting, but they only interpret that meeting. So the rest was in Chinese, but
a few of the members who aren’t Chinese helped us out so that we could understand
better! So that was great! I also played the piano in Relief
Society...boy do I need practice, but they don't have many members who play the
piano, so they appreciated my stumbling through 2 hymns, but I'll practice so
that next week will be better! We also had dinner with the Relief Society President of the branch, and
all they elders serving in the branch, so lots and lots of Chinese
language. And I tried sushi, but it didn't have raw fish, I can't
remember what was in it...so I don’t know if that counts or not, but I'll
probably have sushi sometime in the next 5 weeks (I’ll probably only be with
Sister Chua for this transfer, but we will see!) But, that should be
fun!!!
So things are
going good! And I am adjusting quickly,
and everyday is getting easier being back in Irvine! I've already
seen quite a few members from the Woodbridge ward, so that is weird! But fun! :)
This morning
as I was studying, I was studying God's love for a lady that we are going to
see tonight, and I found this scripture that I wanted to share with you!
34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
So as we love each other, we
will be better examples of Jesus Christ. For He is the greatest example
of love (CHARITY!) And as we have charity, we will be able to help more
people come unto Christ, and help them feel of the love that He has for them!
:) So just an interesting thought!
I love this gospel, I love this
work! I am excited to be back in Irvine, and to be stretched and pulled and
grow in the way that God has planned for me! I know that God loves us,
and that because He loves us, He sent His Son! I know that Jesus Christ
is our Savior! And that is the message we get to share with the
world! And as a representative of Jesus Christ, I know that this Gospel
is true, and it does change lives!
I hope you have a great week! I
love you all so much!!
Love,
Sister Taylor Burningham
No comments:
Post a Comment