Right, so highlights from this week:
-A dumping week. Jonathan ran into our RC Carla in
Sainsburys and declared that we (the sisters) had sacked him, Carla was furious
at his I'm-a-hard-one-to-crack self-righteous attitude--she ranted about the
encounter for some time. I'm grateful PMG talks about No Effort is Wasted, and
I am confident that our break-up with Jonathan was as plain as plain could be,
not contentious or judging, just straight up. No guilt here :)
-Lots of service this week: we did my very first Helping
Hands project in the rain (I'm convinced the rain would wash away the city if
it weren't for the good people living here--it's been pouring since April)
digging up a weed called Ragwort that is poisonous to the horses. I'm a pro
now. We cleared out a field and felt pretty good about ourselves until Richard
reminded us in his calm, happy way, "There is always ragworting to
do."
-Miracles! I've gotten my very first Provo MTC referral--a
guy in Eastleigh wants a Book of Mormon. Stay
tuned.
-We brought a guy who tracked us down in the library and
asked us where the chapel was (who are you?) His name is Ryan, 19, and he'd
been taught by the missionaries up north where he's from. He's got a few
problems, not the least of which is no mobile, but he is eager to learn. We
took him to his very first sacrament meeting, and watched Finding Faith in
Christ, and extended a baptismal date for September 22. He's very aware of the
stuff he needs to give up, but he wants to be baptised and the influence of the
Spirit was just heroic. Amazing!
-Our ward missionary Sue Collis has published a book. I
believe it's called Listening to Young People of Domestic Violence or something
to that effect. It's part of her dissertation. She works for the County Council
and removes children from unsafe homes, usually where mental illness is
involved, and she held interviews with adolescents talking about growing up
amidst domestic violence. The book is academically-instructive--"if the
child says the following, it may mean such and such is happening in the home."
We are so proud of her :) She is the sweetest, most joyful person (I expected
her job to be more along the lines of being a preschool teacher or elementary
school choir director.) I hope I can get a copy!
Sister Barker said that when a boy comes on a mission and
for 24 months studies the power of God, His permission and how He operates,
that boy will become a man and learn so much more after his mission than he
would have done if he never went. The Spirit of the Lord and a dependence upon
that Spirit is so vital to learning anything of value. Without it, everything
is suspicious and everything is questioned for the very virtue of questioning
it, and they are like those people spoken of by Nephi "Ever learning, and
never able to come to a knowledge of the truth." What a meaningless
existence when everything you have ever learned is a sham and relative and
changing. I am so grateful that I know Truth (with a capital T) so that I can
navigate. Truths that I am a daughter of God, I have a mission here on earth,
families can live together forever, there is only one road to heaven (it is
strait and narrow) and that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, did come to earth and
die for us so that we can progress eternally and return to live with Father
again. How much meaning, how much peace comes from that knowledge! That is real
happiness--knowing that the course one is pursuing is in accordance with the
will of God, and feeling the sweet assurance that He is there to bless us with
the deepest desires of our hearts.
Remember who you are, who God is, and try your utmost to
bring your life into accordance with His will, and the rest is magic. I love
you all, and I pray for you each day. Let's see if this rain will go away sometime
before the Summer Olympics, eh? ;)
Love from,
Sister Willard
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