Joy in Temple Covenants!

Today I just received a phone call from one of my mission companions, Emily Peck, with some of the greatest news!  One of our recent converts had been running through her head all week, and so today she decided to call her, Dona Clair, baptised February 29, 2010 into the Caxingui Ward of the Sao Paulo Stake in the Sao Paulo North Mission, Brasil.  She said that as she chat briefly with Dona Clair, this sweet older woman expressed her excitement about being able to receive her patriarchal blessing later on this week as well as her current enrollment in a temple preparation class in preparation for her temple endowment which she will be receiving next month!  This came to me as some of the most wonderful news!!!  I just had to post this JOYous moment asap on my blog for the world to see!  Dona Clair will be entering the temple to make covenants with our Father in Heaven next month! What a wonderful blessing to have been able to be a part of her life, participate in her story, and see, even a year after her baptism, the great blessings that come from faithfulness and consistency in the church.  This sweet woman was such an example to me of perfect childlike faith.  She believed so readily and heartily the doctrines as they were taught to her and she knew, from the beginning, that this gospel, this church, was the thing that had been missing from her life for so long.  She loves the church, and has grown so much even in the short time that we've known her, and I feel so blessed to have her be a part of my mission story as well.  Sweet Dona Clair, PARABENS por sua fidelidade! Nos a amamos e regozijamos em saber de seu progresso e desejo de continuar firme neste caminho tao estreito e apertado. Sei que realmente, a Senhora esta no caminho que leva de verdade a vida eterna!  Parabens minha amiga! Te amo!!! <3 <3 <3

Come What May and Love It-Heavenly Father has a plan!

Today I ran into a little book, while spending too much time shopping for groceries at Macey's, called something like Dance before you can't do it anymore... or something like that. It just had a collection of little statements and quotes to help the reader remember what's most important in this life.  In perusing its pages, I saw little tidbits like: Before you can't anymore, remember to let go of pride; to not be hasty to win an argument; to be slow to judge those around you; and when opportunity arises to speak ill of others, resist the temptation.  It had other things like: Cherish every word that leaves your lovers lips, make the most of every moment with those you love; don't miss an opportunity to tell them you love them, etc.  But the one that caught my eye today, and brought me JOY was the one that said that Heavenly Father knew the plan for my life. That was all it needed to say.  Over the holiday break, I began to worry more about what I was going to do with my future. Graduation is coming up (I still don't know when, but it's finally getting close) and I have no plans as far as what I'm going to do for a job, where I'm going to work, live, etc. I've also been worried about trying to figure out where I should live this Winter semeseter, be it where I currently am, or where I'm trying to get into as a roommate with my good friend Kim.  I can't seem to find a buyer, however, for my current contract, which means I may be stuck here and not get to live with her afterall... which would be sad, as she has already begun moving her things into our would-be shared room.  On top of that, a few friends  have taken an interest in helping me find someone to date/(hopefully marry) and that is another stressor I wish to not think about.  Who will I marry and when? Which classes should I take? When will I graduate? Where will I live? What will I do?  So many questions and "unsure"ities about the future are often part of our lives and daily worries. So, you can imagine how grateful I was for that tiny little reminder today at the store that even though I DON'T know all the answers to what will happen in my future, Heavenly Father knows the plan for my life.  He knows. So, every bit of confusion or "unsure"ity that enters my mind He is aware of.  Another phrase entered my mind as I sat pondering the thought tonight, a phrase I may often refer to by the late Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stating: "Come What May and Love It." Sometimes his is hard! I live in a place I'm slightly fond of with roommates that are okay and a ward that is fine and classes that are hard, etc. (Not that I'm complaining) There is nothing wrong with any of these people, places, or things, but they just aren't my first choice, or my favorite, or where I'd hoped to be, nor with whom. But sometimes life just gives us what we don't expect, and maybe what we don't even want.  What we need, instead of what we think we need. Though I am in a place and situation less than ideal in my mind, Heavenly Father knows the plan for my life.  He knows where I am most apt to thrive, what situations will help me to grow the most, what people will give me the most opportunity to help and serve, and maybe where I want to be and where I think I should be just doesn't quite fit in with Heavenly Father's plan for me.  and if that's the case, "Come what may, and I will learn to love it." Not exactly what Elder Wirthlin said, lol, but it's the best I can do sometimes! I definitely appreciate these two statements, and though the saying by Elder Wirthlin is one I have been working to master since I first heard it, I still have a LOT to learn on the subject of loving whatever comes our way.  But I am thankful for the little lessons along the way that help me to get there. I must be happy with who I am, where, and who I live with and am surrounded by.  Perhaps there are opportunities for growth and service there that I never would have expected.  There great thing is that "Heavenly Father knows the plan for my life."  Wherever I am right now, I sure hope and pray, is exactly where He intended me to be, and even if not, "Come what may and love it." I can still follow his plan by learning to make the best of it!
Anyway, so I'm grateful for today's tidbit of JOY, a reminder that no matter what the circumstances, location, confusion about the future, "unsure"ness, etc. that Heavenly Father knows the plan and that because of that I CAN love whatever may come. How grateful I am for his concern and care with each one of us. I sure love Him for the ways He finds to enrich our lives and help us to remember that He is always there. What JOY his great plan, whether I know it all the way right now or not, brings to my life, and what JOY is sure to come, despite the "who"s and "where"s and "how"s, as we learn to love whatever people and places and things his plan brings to us.
I wish I could have stated that all a bit more poetically, but being the amateur writer that I am, it will have to do.  I leave you with my testimony of the all knowing wisdom Heavenly Father has. From how to create worlds without end, to the tiniest, tenderest thoughts and feelings of our hearts and minds.  He knows which paths will bring us the most happiness in life and I know that we simply have to trust in Him, though the future is often unsure, and He will guide and direct us in the way that will bring us once again into his presence for eternity.  I am grateful for his plan. I know it is true, and I know that He knows and loves each and every one of you, too! Trust is Him! Love whatever comes! He knows the way!