Come What May

“God knows the desires of your heart” (my sweet friend). On January 30, 2013 I reported to the Provo MTC, as giddy and anxious a missionary as they come.  Officially I was supposed to come home from my mission at the end of July 2014. The health problems of 2013 changed my plans a little, but I am so grateful for the incredible opportunity I had of those seven months serving as a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the south of Chile.  What a wonderful learning experience it was and how much I have grown since that first day at the MTC! This next month was supposed to be the final stretch before my eagerly anticipated arrival home.  I always hear about how the mission just seems to fly by, so I’ve thought a lot about my last 17 months.  I had a good run and spent half a year working hard in Chile.  In July I got sick, in August I came home, in September I had surgery, in October I made new plans, in November I g...

“God is not the God of superheroes, nor of people without weakness—such beings do not exist…He helps people like you and me, those who recognize their limits and their weaknesses and seek His help…” (Bishop Gérald Caussé). The other day I clocked in for my FamilySearch service hours, said a prayer, got organized, answered the phone, and had a long conversation with a very grumpy person.  I’ll be honest, it wasn’t my pleasantest hour.  When I answer the help line I never know who is going to be on the other end—old, young, impatient, skilled, ignorant, cheerful, frustrated—there’s all kinds.  I am sometimes disappointed by the unkind criticisms that come primarily from members of my own faith.  I am well aware that just because we know how we should act doesn’t mean we always do, but for some reason listening to this man was particularly disappointing for me.  I was neither personally attacked, nor personally offended, but I was affected by this man’s cloud ...