Tuesday, July 8, 2014

July 7, 2014 Fireworks and Farewells...


Hello! Transfers are this week and I'm staying. However, my companion is not. So I will receive a new companion this week!
Things are going well. Everything is crazy! This week we got to meet the new mission president and his wife and it was an absolute treat! They are amazing and I felt an instant connection with them. So I'm excited for the wonderful things they will do for the mission.
Last night, we got to sing at the outgoing fireside (the fireside for all of the home-bound missionaries. They all speak and so do a couple of their recent converts.). It was a sweet experience to sing with all of my sisters! (:
I'll send a video!
The fireside was great and the Spirit was so strong! Sister Livingston and Sister Tuala are both going home, so it was fun to see them speak and wish them luck.
And then I realize that I'm not far behind. I love the mission, but the only thing is that it goes by too fast.
Everything in Livermore is good. We've been talking with people, serving, teaching, and sweating. This week was HOT.
The 4th of July was stressful but so fun! In the morning, there was a stake breakfast and during the week we had literally invited EVERYONE to it. One investigator showed up. But that's okay! It was Irene and she had a great time. After the breakfast, we went to Quail Garden (an elderly facility that we serve at every Friday – see pic) and had a BBQ with the seniors!! It was so much fun! Us and the elders played Family Feud and all of the residents there just loved it. Everything is more fun when you're serving others. In the evening, we got permission to see the fireworks if we had a less-active or non-member with us. We were so excited so we set out looking for someone to invite us. haha.
We saw Jack(one of our investigators) and his entire family outside, ready to watch the fireworks and they invited us to join! It was so much fun. As I watched them, I realized how blessed I am to live in this country. I realized how even more blessed I am to be serving my mission in this country. It truly is great and I'm even more convinced that I am serving in the best mission in the world.
It gets weird when holidays start to repeat themselves on the mission. But that's okay. I'm just taking it all in and loving every moment of it.
Great things are about to happen in Livermore. I just know it.
I can honestly say that this last transfer was the longest and most difficult transfer of my mission. However, I'm still alive. My companion and I were talking the other day about how we feel 'carried' every day. The physical amount of work we do in the mission field is more than any person can do alone. I'm so surprised I've not suffered heat stroke, died of an asthma attack, spontaneously passed out on my bike, or gotten hit by a car. I have been carried since day 1.
Anyone who knows me knows that I have the physical stamina of a sloth. Walking up a flight of stairs wears me out. But somehow, I am being carried by the Lord. I learned this transfer that Ether 12:27 is true. He will make weak things become strong. I myself am a weak thing and I have done things that I never thought I could do because the Lord is there. He knows me. He knows my capabilities and He takes me to my limit, then adds a little more. Isn't He the best?
I hope you all had a great Independence Day! I love you!
Sister Julie Catherine Harris  

No comments:

Post a Comment