Hello! March
24, 2014
This week was
incredible. Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles came to
our mission this week!! Instead of speaking to us, he did more of a question
and answer session. Here are some highlights:
- First of all, our mission is HUGE! And President Scott
had to pull a few strings so all the missionaries could come together. All
280+ of us in one place was pretty remarkable. Sister Scott was so sweet
when she got to see all of us together! It was incredible.
- Along with Elder Bednar and his wife, there was also
Bishop Dean Davies from the Presideing Bishopbric and his wife and two
members from the quorum of the seventy. It was a once in a lifetime
experience to have them all in a setting like that!
- Elder Bednar's wife spoke first and gave us three
pieces of motherly advice: 1. Every person who serves a mission deserves a
good companion. You be that companion! 2. You be the kind of missionary
your mother thinks you are. 3. You be the kind of missionary the Lord
expects you to be. LOVE THIS!
- Then Elder Bednar spoke and used a very interactive
format. He gave us three talks to study at least a month ago and so we've
all been studying those talks. They were all by him and they are called
"Seek Learning by Faith" "Ask in Faith" and
"Converted unto the Lord." He asked us what we learned from
those talks and we were able to stand up share what we learned.
- Two things he said really stuck out to me as a teacher
of the Gospel and a student of the Holy Ghost: 1. Don't play the
"Guess what's in my head" game. Ask INSPIRED questions, When you
play the "guess what's in my head" game and you try to have
people guess a specific answer when you ask a question, you are treating
them as an object that doesnt act, but is rather acted upon. He really
helped me understand that people are AGENTS. We have agency, therefore we
need to act and not be acted upon. 2. When taking notes, don't write down
word for word what the speaker says! I've heard General Authorities
explain this before, but I'm a quote person and I like to have quotes to
look back on. But I found quotes from the Holy Ghost are just as good and
probably even better :)
- He talked about observing, listening, discerning, and
responding when teaching. It's the Lord's pattern for teaching and it's
the teaching pattern that has been implemented from Preach My Gospel and
the new youth program, "Come Follow Me." It's incredible if you
really think about it.
- We talked a lot about covenants and the nature of the
Godhead. Both things I want to study more in depth.
- There was a pretty new missionary that stood to ask a
question and he's from the Philippines. I couldn't understand what he was
saying because he was far from me, and he was speaking with an accent and
crying, but Elder Bednar understood perfectly. He walked off the stand
grabbed that young elder in a hug. He pulled back and looked directly into
his eyes and said, "You can do this. The Lord has sent me to Toronto
to tell you that you can do this." He hugged him again, and everyone
was in tears. It was a sweet testimony to me of the reality of his call as
a representative of Jesus Christ. He cared for the one.
- My favorite part of the whole conference was Elder
Bednar's testimony at the end. He bore a simple, but powerful witness of
the reality and nature of each member of the Godhead, the Restoration of
the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and other truths of the Gospel. At the end he
said, " I am a witness that all of these things are true." I
felt so strongly that he truly is a witness.
It was a three hour
drive back to Kingston, but it was okay because we just talked the whole ride
home about how blown our minds were! And we sang hymns. I love living with
these three sisters! It's so much fun!
Another miracle from
this week: Last monday Sister Taylor got an email from her mom saying that one
of her friends from back home is going to school at Queens university in
Kingston and gave her the girl's cell phone number. She is not a member, but
has been going to church with all of her mormon friends since she was 6 or 7
years old. We texted her and asked if she would be interested in having the
missionary lessons, and she said YES! :) We met up with her this week and gave
her another Book of Mormon (because she has one, but it's at home in BC) and
committed her to read it. It was incredible to see that hand of the Lord in
this situation! I am a firm believer that God's hand is in the details of our
lives. The smallest details. No coincidences.
I am so happy. I am
happy because I am living the Gospel. I am even happier because I am sharing it
though. It truly is a miracle that we have the ability to change,
progress, and find true joy in this life through the Atonement. I know it is
real. I know it applies to all of us. I love my Father in Heaven; my Savior,
Jesus Christ; and my comforter, the Holy Ghost. They are the source of all that
is good in our lives and if we live in appreciation, our happiness expands. I
love the Gospel. I hope you all have a great week and do a little better
tomorrow that you did today!
Love and Prayers, Sister
Felix
Quote of the Week:
"The office of the
Holy Ghost is His ministrations among men is described in scripture. He is a
teacher sent from the Father; and unto those who are entitled to His tuition He
will reveal all things necessary for the soul's advancement." -James E.
Talmage
We ate at this place
called "The Big Apple" on the way to Brampton. It seems like it was a
pretty big deal! If you want to google it, I'm sure you could find something
about it. But they had LAZY ONE PAJAMAS there!!! I was so excited!! So excited.
I don't think anyone really understood, but I was super happy about it.
The other picture is of
Sister Taylor and I eating lemon candies that an investigator gave to us that
are SO GOOD! I don't know if they sell them in the states, but they're
fabulous!
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