We had transfer calls this week and it looks like
Sister Van Valkenburg and I are both staying! I'm so grateful for that!
Up until this point on my mission I've experienced a lot of change so
this will be the first time everything has stayed the same. I'm so
grateful, I love this area so much!
We moved
apartments this week and that was an adventure..... We asked one set of
elders and a senior couple to help us and ended up with 4 sets of elders
and 2 senior couples! We were moved in like 20 minutes! It was
incredible! Mormon missionaries are a billion times better than paid
movers, that's for sure! It was kind of an incredible experience. We
were really stressed out about moving 5 years worth of accumulated
missionary junk (our apartment has been used by missionaries for 5
years) and didn't know how things were going to go. But we did our best
at packing everything and tried not to inconvenience too many people.
Then Heavenly Father sent in an army and things went so smoothly! It was
just a testimony to me that when we try our best we cannot fail because
Heavenly Father will always be there to help us and support us. On our
own we would fail, but with Him all things are possible.
This
Sunday I sang in Sacrament Meeting with Sister Van Valkenburg and a
couple other missionaries in our ward. It was so cool! I had so much
fun! As I was singing and looking out at the congregation I just had
this moment of pure happiness. I'm so grateful to be a missionary! I'm
also so grateful that I was able to participate in that musical number.
It's not like I have the best voice, but I was still able to participate
which was awesome!
This week we had a
multitude of Thanksgiving dinners.... I think I've had enough
Thanksgiving for the next 5 years! It is so amazing to me how kind the
members are here! In fact, a week before Thanksgiving we went to the
Ward Mission Leader assistant's house for dinner and they were all
excited to surprise us with American Thanksgiving! It was so funny
because they were a week off! It was so sweet though and it made me feel
so loved! I am SO GRATEFUL for the people Heavenly Father allows me to
serve around. Being on a mission has taught me so much about loving
others and how much our Heavenly Father loves us.
Something
I've been learning about this week is the phrase "perfect love casteth
out all fear" I used to think that meant that a knowledge that Heavenly
Father loves us, will help us to not feel any fear. But I've been
beginning to see that phrase in a new light. Love is an action word.
When we love people we care more about them than we care about
ourselves. Fear is when we're afraid about what will happen to us. So
when we love someone, we act even if we don't know what is going to
happen to us as a result. And when we act in love, that action is what
casts out all fear. And Jesus Christ helps us to act. That's why as
missionaries we talk to people even if we don't know how they'll respond
to us. That's why we're able help our friends and families. It's pretty
incredible!
Have a great week!
Sister Bloomfield 