One Year, 365 Opportunities 

"525,600 minutes. How do you measure a year in life?"

What a year it's been! A year of growth & being uncomfortable. A year of tears & joy. A year of love. A year of service. 

One year ago today I was set apart as a Young Church Service Missionary for the YCSM mission in San Diego. 



You know at that time I was confused, & unsure, but trusting this was my plan from God I jumped in head first. And I've loved every minute of it! 

Just because I decided to serve this mission though, did not make my life any easier. 

Slowly the doubt & confusion went away regarding WHAT I was doing & WHO I am. I'm a daughter of God & Heavenly Father has such an amazing plan for me. He sees me. He loves me. He is cheering me on. For that I am eternally grateful. 

Slowly my trust in the Lord increased. But it wasn't after many a trial that it did of course. This past March (when I hit my 6 month date) I was confused & concerned. My mission was set for a year. Do I stay & extend or should I leave at a year? Should I continue to serve to the best of my ability, or was God ready for me to be elsewhere? That thought process took me until about August. I argued with myself, I argued with the Lord & I argued with my missionary friends. Then a sweet assistant mission leader quoted a scripture (that I had heard 100 times) & it all made sense. I knew what I needed to do. I was scared to make the leap from 12-18 months, but I also knew God would take care of whatever needed taken care of. And He has. 



Slowly I understood my purpose at this moment. Yes, I am a 23 year old sister missionary who most people think is 19. But, the amount of LOVE I have for this mission, & for my ward is ridiculous. About 7 weeks ago now I was called as the Relief Society President in my YSA ward. As much as it wasn't a shock it still hit me in the face. As a girl who has been best friends with dudes her whole life, I'm not kidding when I say I don't know how to female. The same day I was set apart my loving mission leader sat me down & said, "We'd love for you to be a Sister Training Leader for this mission." Now THAT was a shock. But in the last 7 weeks of my life I have never had so much love for these women, both in my ward & my mission. I know God is so mindful of us. I have seen it as I have served these amazing women of the church. 

Slowly I became more comfortable with being uncomfortable. Okay. This is a hard one. Just think of your biggest fear, or maybe something (or someone) that makes you EXTREMELY uncomfortable. Got it? Now imagine having to deal with this EVERYDAY. In Ether 12:27 we are told that when we humble ourselves God will show us our weaknesses!! (Side Note: put your name in place of "men" it's a pretty cool trick taught to me by a pretty cool companion) Now a year ago I would have told you I was uncomfortable enough. I had (have) A LOT of weaknesses! My missionary had just left, I didn't know what I was supposed to be doing, & I had just dropped all my classes. SCHOOL WAS MY THING... up until that point. Spoiler Alert: I made it. I went from one uncomfortable journey to the next. AND God keeps blessing me with the uncomfortable!! It's a glorious thing!! (Don't ask me if it's glorious while I'm struggling. Wait for the growth, okay?)



Looking back over this past year I wish I could just sit & tell of all of my experiences. You might cry but you'd definitely laugh. These moments are things I'll cherish forever. 

I just keep looking forward & hoping time would slow down a bit. Six more months is not a long enough time to grow just a bit more through this mission. I know everyone says it, but I promise you this mission is the BEST mission in the world. 

I'm so grateful for this last year, teaching me to live, love, & grow. I'm grateful for the time I've spent serving & meeting some pretty amazing people. I'm grateful for the phone calls & texts messages from missionaries & leadership sending love & comfort in the crazy times. I'm grateful for my family & the support I've been given all the way around. 


I know this church is true. I know God lives & loves. I know the Book of Mormon testifies of Christ. I know Christ died for all of us, for our sins, shortcomings, pains, & sadness. I know this mission was created for me, & for my happiness. 

Don't worry about how fast you're going, worry about your direction. You may think you're going snail speed in life, but look back & see where you've come from & who you've become. 365 days can change a lot about you. 


If you have any questions about what I've been doing the last year of my life I encourage you to ask! I'd love to tell my story & maybe share some of those funny experiences!! 

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