April 4, 2011

I LOVE GENERAL CONFERENCE!!! April 4, 2011

O.k. I LOVE my family and I am almost way too excited and hyper to even write. Lol Oh my gosh I feel so blessed! I don't really have words to describe it but this conference has made my week! And will make the rest of my mission and life from the things that I learned from it. I really feel like crying. God has truly been so good to me when I don't deserve it. My mission has prepared me for the rest of my life. I did not see that when I first came out. When I first came out I thought "this is just a moment in time God wants me to serve and when it is done, it will be done and I'll go back." I can't go back! This mission has forever changed who I am as a daughter of God, and of my parents here on earth, as a sister, as friend, and as a future wife and mother and grandmother. I will use my mission the rest of my life because it is so ingrained in me. It is not only what I do but it's who I am. I loved that talk at conference. About do and be and how you need to have both in coming to know God and be a true disciple of Christ.

I loved general Conference. They talked about marriage a lot.... Umm sad to say, I'm so scared to date and get married but this conference has helped me to see that it is of God and when I get home it needs to be my number 1 priority. I know God will help me along the way. Thank heavens I don’t need to deal with it now. I have had my heart locked for so long that they're going to need a pry bar to open it. Lol. It was so amazing and as always I love Elder Holland and President Monson's along with so many others. I'm just so sad that it is all over. We were explaining this conference to an investigator and he started to get excited to come too. I love it! I was so excited to listen to conference that on Friday night I couldn't sleep. It felt like when we were little and we would keep giggling because we were so excited for Christmas we couldn't sleep. That's what I was doing. My companion would have thought I was weird if it weren't for the fact that she was giggling with me. Lol I love her so much! I'm going to miss my comp so much if she leaves me. I've had her for so long that I don't know what to do with myself if she leaves. We get our transfer calls on Saturday and leave by Tuesday so I'll let you know if I get transferred or not.

Speaking of marriage I can't believe BreAnne is getting married! What the heck! She did write and tell me before everyone else told me but how exciting! This was totally an answer to my prayer. Two things I didn't know if I could handle while on my mission; if someone died or if someone got married. I'm so excited to be there for it! God truly does answer my prayers. I know God is mindful of me.

I can't believe you already got my papers!!! What!!! That means I'm going to get mine soon. Oh that is way too weird. I'm just going to ignore that you said that. Lol man I have so many mixed emotions about coming home. I don't want to come home and yet I miss my family. If I could only come home for a month and then go back I would be ok with that. I feel like elder Holland does about his mission although I think he would beg to differ, but I love my mission so much. It means everything to me. I am not the same. Satan has tried to play a nasty trick on me the last couple of months in trying to make me feel like I'm the same person I was before my mission, but I realize in my heart and as an answer through conference, I have changed. I don't want the same things. I use to want what I wanted but I don't want that anymore. I want what God wants.

I'm working very hard on memorizing Jesus the Christ and I love it. This will be so amazing to be able to say and I have used it in my teaching a lot because your memorize scriptures with it too. It truly was inspired, so thank you for sending it. The pictures have helped a lot!

One thought from what Christopher wrote about thinking that people don't need to come to church. That is so true here too. They think they have a relationship with God but they don't or else God would have told them to come to church. I have met so many people that may not be happy with their church but they continue to go because God commanded it. Those are the people I would like to find. But it's all in the desire of their hearts. I liked when they said in conference People think of God as a butler to answer all their demands or as a counselor to listen to all their whining and in return they feel that it is his job to make them feel good about their sorry sinful self.

It made me laugh because I found out a long time ago that if you're going to complain, God will give you something to complain about. He is there to council with and help us repent when needed. (Which is everyday?) I need to go to him more and ask him how I can improve. I know it's one of my weaknesses but it's how I will improve my life and make it a life he is proud of and be the person he wants on his team and can use.

I love my Heavenly Father so much! Oh my goodness I have so much to say about conference but you know. You were there and felt it. I miss you all like crazy but am sending my love to you.

Oh soon I'll be sending stuff home in packages, DO NOT OPEN THEM! They may be presents or things I want to show you later.

I love you all!!! xoxoxoxoxo
Love your forever Sister Missionary

Dear President Barry

This week has gone well. I absolutely loved conference. It was the one of the highlights of my week. I learned so much about what I personally need to do to become a more consecrated disciple of Jesus Christ and how I am to help others around me come unto Christ.

We have been struggling a lot with our recent convert who seems to forget why he was baptized. He has encountered a lot of challenges in the last couple of weeks but through constant prayer he has made an effort to come back. We saw this dedication when he attended all sessions of general conference. It was amazing! He felt the spirit and it reconfirmed to him why he became a member of the church. He struggles a lot with a multi personality disorder but is finding strength in the Lord and is overcoming a lot of different obstacles that come with that. I have seen a change in him that only the gospel can bring to those that want to change. It is truly amazing to see.

Alex continues to progress as we try to see him every day and teach him. I know that he can become a strong member and he is looking forward to being baptized. He was so excited when he found out that he had the possibility to be baptized before his probation. We had an amazing lesson the other day as we talked about the desires of our heart and what that meant. He came up with questions for conference and really thought about what he wants in his life. He became very emotional as he talked about his desire to have a family that is righteous and on the right path. He said he knows he did it all the wrong way and that his life was not in order with God but that he is really trying to change that. We sang "love is spoken here" at the end of the lesson and it was so powerful and the spirit was there. It was amazing to be able to testify of that spirit while it was present and help him to know that that is what it feels like for him. I pray for him every night that he will endure this waiting period and look at it as Gods time line of preparation and learning. He is amazing.

David is doing very well too. Although he will have to wait a year to be baptized, he lives with a member so it helps him to stay on track. He and his less-active wife and baby girl went to all sessions of general conference and David even went to the priesthood session. I was not sure what his true desire was until General Conference. I really see that he is trying to do what is right and follow the savior. He is also trying to quit smoking which seems to be a very hard thing for him. He has just come off from being a drug addict so the smoking is his substitute. But after a lesson on the word of wisdom he understood that they are all connected and that he needs to put a stop to all. It was a great lesson and spirit felt. Since then I have seen a great effort to try and quit even though his wife smokes and refuses to quit with him. I know that as he continues in faith that he will be blessed.

We don’t have as many investigators as I would like but I’m thankful for the ones that I get to work with now and hope that they let the spirit work with them and change them. Through conference I have received answers to my prayers and know that if I follow that spirit we will receive the direction we need to find many more of Gods children. I love this Gospel with all my heart and I'm thankful for this great opportunity to serve.

Till next week~
Sending lots of love,

Sister Pedersen~

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