Sorry this is so late. We woke up at 5 this morning to go
and hike to the 大佛
(Big Buddha). It is one of, if not the biggest Buddha statue ever. THEN we
crossed almost the entire mission in just over an hour (because our mission is
small and the MTR train is a miracle on wheels) to Sheung Shui to eat Tai food
with a member named Jello...we did not eat Jell-o though. THEN we went to 王角
(Mong Kok) to pick up Elder Johnson's tailored suits...now I'm here and I have
traveled the mission and back...Tonight we get to have a meeting with the zone
to discuss goals and have a devotional, as well as get reports from them for
our meeting with the District President on Wednesday.
The Victoria 1st branch is full of some of the most faithful
members I have ever met (other than maybe the ones from my own home ward in the
'Ville!). I wanted to share a story with you that was shared in Elder's Quorum
yesterday:
A brother was living in Massachusetts and would commute to
work in New York every morning Monday through Saturday at 6:30 am and would get
back home from 7:30 to 8 pm. Pretty rough. He mentioned that his family was
struggling relationship-wise because of his lack of time with them. Just as he
felt he couldn't handle any more, his bishop asked him to take the calling of
the seminary teacher. He said that this was the hardest calling he had ever
accepted. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know where the time would come
from. Even to this day, he doesn't understand the fullness of it. He just knows
that times were stretched, or he was given sudden bursts of strength, the Spirit would guide him in his lessons when he literally had no strength to
prepare them. His employment improved more rapidly than ever, and he ended up
being given more time to be with his family because of it. "To this
day," he said, "I have never felt more in tune with the Spirit than I
was at this time...not even on my mission."
This struck me. Will I be
willing to take the callings that are extended to me? Will I MAGNIFY them? A
feeling of peace filled me though. I don't know what callings I or my family
will have in the future. Actually, I'm not even sure exactly what my family's
current and various callings would entail. I am sure of one thing though:
Callings are more than burdens...they are opportunities. They are blessings in
the form of other people. They are times of closeness to God. Times of
weaknesses and having those weaknesses being miraculously turned into strengths
as we repent and exercise our faith.
I still remember a line from a movie from FOREVER ago.
"Never stop pushing your limits." We are literally only limited by
our lack of faith in ourselves and in God. Ask Him to teach you. He will. I can
testify of this because I have seen it happen to me every single night. I pray
after my day asking what more I could have done, or what weaknesses were
strengths that day. I push the rewind button looking back to the times where I
was not relying on myself, but rather on the Holy Ghost.
Please brothers and
sisters, friends, family, whoever you want to call yourself, don't resist those
feelings and urges to do good things. Don't stop acting. Never stop pushing
your limits of how much good you can do. You are needed more than you know
right now. Look for someone under your care (there's always someone) and share
you ability to heal and lead and love, just like the Savior did. Be a light to
the world. You are a light for me.
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