Chapter 56: The Ugly Duckling

Chapter 56: The Ugly Duckling

 

            As missionaries, I think we often feel like the ugly duckling. Either we are comparing ourselves to other missionaries, we are mocked for our beliefs, or maybe we put it on ourselves by having too high of expectations. However, as we know with the end of the story that the little ducky matures and becomes a beautiful swan. Luckily, as missionaries we don´t need to wait until the end of our missions to become swans. A quote really struck me this week: "We become who we want to be by consistently being who we want to become." Heaven knows I needed that this week. I think more than any other point in my mission,  After having a really hard week, it becomes harder and harder to get yourself out the door and out to work! I knew that if I wanted to spread this message of happiness, I really had to strive to be the message--that is be happy and show it on my face. It was really a trying week, but we were really rewarded by the weekend. A ward member gave us a reference of her friend that has just started reading the Book of Mormon. So, we went to visit her, and she told us this: "My friend gave me the Book of Mormon to read. She gave me a passage to read, and told me to pray and ponder to know if it was true. As I got to the end of the passage, I was debating in my mind if I should continue reading this Book. As I kept thinking about it, a little pillar of light reflected on the following page. I tried to move the Book away from the light, but no matter where I moved it, the light followed. I decided to read where the light was, and it was like it was speaking to me. I know this Book is from God. It is like the prophets knew my life, and our giving me the advice I need right now. I told my friend this experience, and she told me that must be God trying to tell you that he wants you to be a member of this church. I thought about it, and I thought, ´Yeah! Your´re right!´ I know that God wants me in this church, but I have to work all week every week. I will pray to see if my boss will let me off just one Sunday so I can come and see if this really is His church." Wow!! It was quite the experience. She has a lot of faith. She´s from Colombia and her name is Lucresia. She´s a little bit older, but she carries herself like she still has got a lot of life in her. Little did she know that all the choices that she made leading her to this little town outside of Barcelona, Spain from her home in Colombia was just so we could share her this message of the Restoration of the Gospel of Christ. We also met with Alberta this week. It was our last official doctrinal lesson with her before her baptism next week, and I was slightly nervous to teach it. Tithing. Gulp. I was nervous because they are saving up for their little baby boy that is due in August, and her husband has struggled with tithing. However, when we started the cita, she told us," Sistas (that´s what it sounds like), I know tithing is the way of God. I love tithes. We are blessed for it. My husband hasn´t been paying, but we are going to better, and when I am baptized, if I ever get a job, I promise I will pay my tithing." Well, that was easy. We barely had to teach her anything.  It helps when the spouse is a member, even if they are less active. I am so grateful for those little tender mercies that we saw at the end of our week. I think God was just making sure we were humble enough to teach them. :)  Thank you all so much for your love and prayers.

Les Quiero,

Hermana Hopkins