Wow. Where to start? So many things to say!
I am so grateful for the time I have had to be able to serve my Heavenly Father and His children here in Santiago Chile. I knew before coming that this would be a good experience for me and that I would learn a lot. But I never could have imagined all the ways that God would bless me, shape me, and use me as an imperfect little instrument in His hands to bless the lives of others. I think there are two adjectives that just wrap my mission and me up into a tidy little package: happy and grateful.
I have never felt so happy in my life. I have never felt such joy in tribulation and trials and triumphs. Everyone says that you can't be happy all the time, but I think that I am an exception. Even when I'm sad I am happy... didn't know that was possible but it is! There is an unextinguishable joy that comes from the gospel of Jesus Christ, and it just grows when you take time to share it with others. I am happy.
I have never felt so grateful in my life either; grateful for challenges, grateful for hard things, grateful for happy things, grateful for little things, grateful for big things. Most of all I am grateful for my Savior. I thought I had a testimony that Jesus Christ was my Savior before my mission, but wow has it grown. And I hope that it will continue to grow throughout my entire life. He is so important...for all of us! Thanks to Him, we can find comfort in the hardest times. Thanks to Him, we can overcome our weaknesses and the things about us that we would like to change. Thanks to Him we can leave behind our mistakes and start over again, never returning to our old habits. Thanks to Him, we can be a little more like Him every day.
What an honor it has been to be a representative of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the past year and a half. And something that I love and that is giving me a lot of comfort as my full-time mission comes to a close is that it doesn't really have to end! I can still follow Him, I can still be "an example of the believers", I can still spread His light and love, even without my name tag on my chest. Sweet, right?
Another thing that I love is that I have a long list of people I have met here in Chile who have changed their lives to know Christ (see Alma 22:16-20), and my own name is on that list. I am changed and I love it. I am happy and I am grateful.
This is a list of things I like to think about and might expound on later. I don't know how much time I will have. If not now or next week, when I get home:)
- there is nothing that changes a life like the gospel of Jesus Christ
- repentance is beautiful and it is an opportunity and a gift that we should take advantage of every day
- there are so many beautiful people in this world who need to be loved and need to have the eternal blessings of the gospel
- Christ is at the head of this church and He inspires his leaders
- we can receive personal revelation every day if we are worthy to have the Spirit
- Heavenly Father is aware of us and is always looking for ways to show us His infinite love for us and for all of His children. He truly wants us to return to Him and receive all the countless blessings He has in store for His children. Close your eyes and remember a time when you felt God's love for you.
- The Book of Mormon is the word of God and has the answers and solutions to our questions, inquiries, and doubts. It testifies of Jesus Christ and His holy mission on every page. If we sincerely read it and apply its principles to our lives, we will gain eternal life.
- prayer is such a huge huge blessing
Con Mucho Amor,
Hermana Siebach
PS: We have two friends getting baptized this week! Stay tuned!!!
| We went to the temple this week to accompany Rodrigo on his first ever baptisms!! Go Rodrigo! |
 |
We also had zone conference and I saw some of my friends :)
And finally, we hiked into the clouds this morning
and it was cold and misty and lovely.
No comments:
Post a Comment