In The Blink Of An Eye

I am left full of gratitude. All that this year has brought me, blessings upon blessings that are just impossible to count. I am emotional while writing this email because I am here. I am serving a mission & I am doing it for my Savior. At the beginning of the year, I did not know in the slightest that I would be at this place in my life, but I would not want it any other way. I have been a missionary for 4 months!!! My testimony has been fortified immensely. I have no doubt in my mind that this church is true, that we have a living Prophet on the earth today and that he is guided by our Father in Heaven, that the Book of Mormon is the word of God that goes hand in hand with the Bible, that the Prophet Joseph Smith was called of God to restore this church, that Jesus Christ was sent to the earth to redeem us so that we could use His perfect Atonement to repent and come unto Him, that the family is ordained of God and that they can be forever, that the temple is the House of the Lord and that we can make and keep sacred covenants with Him there, & that by keeping and remembering our covenants, we can live with our Heavenly Father & Jesus Christ after this life is over. I can't think of anything more beautiful. A Gospel of love and light. Peace and hope. Joy and happiness. For all who made me who I am today, who helped prepare me for this moment, and to those who played part in the journey, thank you. I love you. Keep building the Kingdom of God on earth. Keep sharing your light. Keep studying the scriptures. Keep going to church. Pray, all the time. Keep searching for ways to serve. Love everyone. Smile all the time. Be happy. There are a lot of hard things to go through, there is so much darkness, people are losing their way and getting lost. & It is only going to get worse. So, find the good, find the light, find Jesus. He is there, you just need to look for Him. I promise you, from the bottom of my heart, that He loves you.

 

 

For those who read my previous email, you know the story of Alejandro. He sent us a message on Monday telling us he wanted to learn more!! When my companion told me, my heart was racing and my stomach was full of knots, but in the best way. We scheduled a lesson with him for the following day. We waited and waited for 7 o clock. We had a young couple with us to join in teaching. He hadn't responded to our messages from that day, so we were slightly worried, but we had faith. 10 minutes passed by, and I said, "He's going to be here", went to look out the door and he was standing there at the gate just looking in. I opened the door, full of joy and told him to come in. We gave him a tour and he loved it all, even the kitchen was so amazing to him. We sat in a classroom and began the lesson. About halfway through, that same feeling of my stomach and heart racing came in full force. Bore my testimony and as the conversation started to shift, I knew I needed to invite him to be baptized. This would be my first time asking. In my head, I was deciding whether or not to change the topic again, but I had an experience the week before where I felt I had missed a prompting of the Holy Ghost, that I pray and pray to be able to recognize. So I just knew I needed to. I opened my mouth and just began to talk. I said, "I just really feel like I need to say this, but do you want to be baptized?", he nodded his head and said yes, and I went on to say that we could put a day to prepare for so that we can teach him all the things we need to before his baptism. We were about to say January 28. He started first and told us he was thinking of January 24 because it is his birthday. And the spirit was with us that day, so strong. It was a miracle. We had met him two days before that. Since that moment, he decided, on his own, to start the Book of Mormon from the beginning. He has been reading and asking questions all week. We are so happy.

 

 

But to my surprise we received transfer news... I am being transferred to an area called Villamitre in Bahia Blanca with Hermana Lopez!!! She is also from Uruguay! She is a light and I am so excited to serve with her and learn with her!!! I sure am sad to leave this area. I have grown to love it so much. Hermana Burgos has been an amazing companion & we laugh all the day long. She bares testimony from her heart & works hard! I feel extremely lucky that I have had such good companions to this point!!! Santa Rosa was such a happy start to the rest of the mission!!! With all that, I am so excited to see what the Lord has in store!!!

 

 

I read some beautiful things this week that helped fill my week of the spirit, & I want to share them with you. We must never let fear divert us from faithful living. There is a plan. It will all be okay. Just be faithful. God is in charge. He knows your name and He knows your need. We must go forward with faith in every footstep. God is anxiously waiting for the chance to answer your prayers & fulfill your dreams, just like He always has. But He can't if you don't pray, He can't if you don't dream. In short, He can't if you don't believe. "Be still & know that I am God." Keep your hearts pure & you shall sing songs of everlasting joy as you build up Zion. Be of good cheer!! Gird up your loins!! Remember your faith. The Almighty is with this people. We are doing the work of the Lord... let us fill our mission. We of this generation are the end harvest of all that has gone before. It is not enough to simply be known as a member of this church. A solemn obligation rests upon us. Let us face it & work at it. Be grateful, & above all, be faithful. It is a blessing to live in the last days. God is watching over His world, His church, His leaders, & He is especially watching over you. Be pure in heart. Oh how blessed you will be. Be worthy of an invitation to the wedding feast!!! Be worthy to have Christ come to you, to be worthy to have Him greet you, & to have Him accept & receive & embrace us. The lives we present to Him in that sacred hour must be worthy of Him. "I am filled with Awe, with an overwhelming sense of duty to prepare my life for that long-prophesied day, for the time when we will make a presentation of the church to Him whose church it is." He must recognize us quickly & easily as truly being His disciples. Our faith must not be difficult to detect. Yes, if in that great, final hour we say we are believers, then we had surely better be demonstrating it. The Shepherd knows His sheep. Be prepared. There is evil and sorrow in the world, but there is no evil or sorrow in Him. He will shelter us from the storm. Truth has been restored.

 

 

"Look unto Him in every thought, doubt not, fear not."

 

 

Oh how much I love you & miss you!!! I pray for you all the time.

Hermana Morley <3