I call this week my "I'm not a quitter week", and you'll see why.
I suppose my week had been uneventful until Wednesday when we had district
meeting, zone training meeting, and my companion's 9 month mark #humpday!
That day I learned a lot, sometimes I feel overwhelmed with the things that
I learn throughout the week and so sometimes I don't write a lot...or at
all...like last week. But this week, I have learned a lot of things that
will bless you all as you read it. I guess I want to focus more on district
meeting. For those of you who know me, talking to people I don't know makes
me really uncomfortable and super nervous. As missionaries, we have been
asked to talk with everyone that is put in our path, and I have been
avoiding it for ten months now. Well, the spirit chastised me hard core as
I was sitting there and satan tried to get me to think that because I had
been than was for twenty years that I could NOT change and the spirit kept
telling me that I could.
I know that in life we will all face trials that maybe we have faced our
whole lives but as we trust in the savior and dive into the scriptures and
prayer we can overcome any trial that is in our path. The gospel of Jesus
Christ changes people if they let it, I know because I have seen it change
me. I used to be easily angered and set in my ways but now, with much help
from my savior, I have better control of my emotions and I realize that I
can change who I am for the better.
I've been studying in the Book of Mormon lately and it has been
overwhelming because I have been learning so much I just didn't know what
to share and so I didn't. My apologies. But now I realized I don't need to
share everything and I feel a lot better about this and a whole lot less
stressed. Okay. Game time. So I have been learning quite a bit, I am
studying using the institute manual and so it is going a little bit slower
than usual but it is going nonetheless. I studied about Nephi and his
example and I want to share with you what I learned from his broken bow
experience. Richard G. Scott had something to say about this and this is a
majority of what I have learned and I'll explain why after;
“*Just when all seems to be going right, challenges often come in multiple
doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of
your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared
to grow more (see Proverbs 3:11–12). He therefore gives you experiences
that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for
your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants
you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails
discomfort and pain*” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1995, 18; or Ensign, Nov.
1995, 16–17).
Nephi's broken bow didn't come from his own disobedience, it was an
accident. But the Lord saw fit to "trieth [his] patience and [his] faith"
(Mosiah 23:21). But what I learned from Nephi was that just because things
may get hard doesn't mean we should give up. This week was by far the
hardest week in my mission. I felt a lot of the time like I couldn't go any
further, that I couldn't put one foot in front of the other. I guess I was
frustrated, things have been hard for a really really long time and
yesterday I had just had enough. I finally called my mission president to
talk with him because I had been feeling down for quite a few days. As we
talked, I noticed that all of the icky feelings went away and I started to
feel better. Things are going to be hard, my mission president told me that
I had a hard assignment and he knew it was hard but that I could handle it.
I know that I can do hard things because my savior did everything for me.
Through his sacrifice I can accomplish anything, It won't be easy, but it
is possible. I also had the chance to help my companion through a rough
spot as she had with me this past week and now our relationship is stronger
because we are focusing on using the savior's atoning sacrifice to help us
out. No matter the circumstance or the trial we may be in or face, the
gospel of Jesus Christ will strengthen us and help us overcome it.
For a missionary to *want* to go home is a very big thing. At least for me.
I know why I am here and I don't want to miss out on the opportunities to
help others come unto christ by going home. Everyday I study with a picture
of my family on my desk because they are my rock. They are why I am here. I
have them for all of time and eternity and they have helped me become who I
need to be. They have kept me on my mission because of the love we have for
one another. We aren't perfect but we are eternal. That's all that matters.
To those of you who feel like you want to give up, like the extra effort
isn't worth it, I want to invite you to keep going. Do the things the lord
has asked us to do. He has asked those things of us so that we can be
blessed. Read the Book of Mormon, pray, go to church, and let the gospel
change your life. As you depend solely on the savior you will change for
the better and you will be happier in the face of trials.
I haven't shared everything that I have learned, just the most important. I
know that the lord is here to strengthen us and will do so as we depend on
him. May you all be able to see the lords hand in your life, the blessings
he has given you, and the help you receive from him daily. I love you all,
I love this gospel and I know that it is the fullness of the gospel of
Jesus Christ that will bring us everlasting happiness.
Have a great week!
Love always,
Hermana Rebekka A. KunzIllinois Chicago West Mission
1319 Butterfield Rd. #522
Downers Grove, Illinois 60515
July 2014 - January 2016
I suppose my week had been uneventful until Wednesday when we had district
meeting, zone training meeting, and my companion's 9 month mark #humpday!
That day I learned a lot, sometimes I feel overwhelmed with the things that
I learn throughout the week and so sometimes I don't write a lot...or at
all...like last week. But this week, I have learned a lot of things that
will bless you all as you read it. I guess I want to focus more on district
meeting. For those of you who know me, talking to people I don't know makes
me really uncomfortable and super nervous. As missionaries, we have been
asked to talk with everyone that is put in our path, and I have been
avoiding it for ten months now. Well, the spirit chastised me hard core as
I was sitting there and satan tried to get me to think that because I had
been than was for twenty years that I could NOT change and the spirit kept
telling me that I could.
I know that in life we will all face trials that maybe we have faced our
whole lives but as we trust in the savior and dive into the scriptures and
prayer we can overcome any trial that is in our path. The gospel of Jesus
Christ changes people if they let it, I know because I have seen it change
me. I used to be easily angered and set in my ways but now, with much help
from my savior, I have better control of my emotions and I realize that I
can change who I am for the better.
I've been studying in the Book of Mormon lately and it has been
overwhelming because I have been learning so much I just didn't know what
to share and so I didn't. My apologies. But now I realized I don't need to
share everything and I feel a lot better about this and a whole lot less
stressed. Okay. Game time. So I have been learning quite a bit, I am
studying using the institute manual and so it is going a little bit slower
than usual but it is going nonetheless. I studied about Nephi and his
example and I want to share with you what I learned from his broken bow
experience. Richard G. Scott had something to say about this and this is a
majority of what I have learned and I'll explain why after;
“*Just when all seems to be going right, challenges often come in multiple
doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of
your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared
to grow more (see Proverbs 3:11–12). He therefore gives you experiences
that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for
your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants
you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails
discomfort and pain*” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1995, 18; or Ensign, Nov.
1995, 16–17).
Nephi's broken bow didn't come from his own disobedience, it was an
accident. But the Lord saw fit to "trieth [his] patience and [his] faith"
(Mosiah 23:21). But what I learned from Nephi was that just because things
may get hard doesn't mean we should give up. This week was by far the
hardest week in my mission. I felt a lot of the time like I couldn't go any
further, that I couldn't put one foot in front of the other. I guess I was
frustrated, things have been hard for a really really long time and
yesterday I had just had enough. I finally called my mission president to
talk with him because I had been feeling down for quite a few days. As we
talked, I noticed that all of the icky feelings went away and I started to
feel better. Things are going to be hard, my mission president told me that
I had a hard assignment and he knew it was hard but that I could handle it.
I know that I can do hard things because my savior did everything for me.
Through his sacrifice I can accomplish anything, It won't be easy, but it
is possible. I also had the chance to help my companion through a rough
spot as she had with me this past week and now our relationship is stronger
because we are focusing on using the savior's atoning sacrifice to help us
out. No matter the circumstance or the trial we may be in or face, the
gospel of Jesus Christ will strengthen us and help us overcome it.
For a missionary to *want* to go home is a very big thing. At least for me.
I know why I am here and I don't want to miss out on the opportunities to
help others come unto christ by going home. Everyday I study with a picture
of my family on my desk because they are my rock. They are why I am here. I
have them for all of time and eternity and they have helped me become who I
need to be. They have kept me on my mission because of the love we have for
one another. We aren't perfect but we are eternal. That's all that matters.
To those of you who feel like you want to give up, like the extra effort
isn't worth it, I want to invite you to keep going. Do the things the lord
has asked us to do. He has asked those things of us so that we can be
blessed. Read the Book of Mormon, pray, go to church, and let the gospel
change your life. As you depend solely on the savior you will change for
the better and you will be happier in the face of trials.
I haven't shared everything that I have learned, just the most important. I
know that the lord is here to strengthen us and will do so as we depend on
him. May you all be able to see the lords hand in your life, the blessings
he has given you, and the help you receive from him daily. I love you all,
I love this gospel and I know that it is the fullness of the gospel of
Jesus Christ that will bring us everlasting happiness.
Have a great week!
Love always,
Hermana Rebekka A. KunzIllinois Chicago West Mission
1319 Butterfield Rd. #522
Downers Grove, Illinois 60515
July 2014 - January 2016