This has been quite the week. I was debating whether or not
to write about what I'm about to write about, because it's personal and
crazy, but I'm going to. I don't know why but I hope it will help
someone. Also just writing things out is good for me a lot of the time.
So really this email will just be me blabbering the whole time. Feel
free to not read :)
I'll begin with transfer
calls. I'm staying!!! Words cannot describe how happy I am! This area is
like home to me. I love it hear so much and have already promised
people that I will be returning after my mission. I'm so grateful I get
to serve here another transfer. At the end of this transfer it will be 6
months in this area! Yay! I'm so happy! Both my wards were blown apart
by transfers though. Out of the 3 companionships I work with, only one
other missionary stayed the same. And they're adding another set of
missionaries to the Brookswood ward! So this is going to be
interesting. Sister Van Valkenburg is going up to Prince George! So
exciting!
We had quite the interesting lesson
the other day. It was just so funny I have to write about it. We have
two investigators who are just so awesome and hilarious. They live a bit
of a street life so it's interesting sometimes. The other day we
invited a member, Brother Friesen, to our lesson. When we got there both
our investigators had thought we were coming at 9 instead of 8 like we
had planned (don't know why they thought that, we're home by 9). They
were wanting to go get some dinner so they said we could tag along with
one of their friends. The member was a bit confused so we told him he
could leave but felt like it would be productive for us to stay with our
investigators. Brother Friesen took it like a champ and just shrugged
his shoulders and said he would come. We ended up walking all over
downtown Langley in back alleys and such. It would be normal for us
missionaries, but it was just so hilarious to have a member with us. I'm
so grateful Brother Friesen's such a trooper. Now that I'm writing this
I'm realizing that it's probably not funny to people who weren't there.
Oh well.
Anyways, this Wednesday
I took a field trip to Vancouver! Vancouver is beautiful! I wasn't
going to write about my experience there, but I've decided to anyways
for some reason. The purpose for going to Vancouver was to renew my
passport, which expires in June. No good because I'm supposed to be here
until January :) So I went to Vancouver with the Cranes and another
sister who got her passport stolen. The other sister was able to get her
passport, but I was not. I was a little bit miffed but I didn't have
much time to dwell on it because the sister I was with started talking
to someone at the US consulate and I had to join in because it is my
responsibility as a missionary. We have no time for such things as
worrying haha. So I had one of the best conversations with some people
ever and we met this guy who lives in the other sister's area and now he
gets a chance to hear about the gospel and it's just wonderful. I never
felt the spirit support me so much. I think it was because I wasn't
letting myself think about my passport.
Anyways,
we had a bit of a drive home. As I sat in the car thinking about the
whole situation I really felt a lot of peace and comfort about it. But
if there's one thing I've learned as a missionary it's how Satan works
on me. And I knew he was going to use my passport as arsenal. So I
decided to ask Elder Crane for a priesthood blessing, even though I felt
fine in the moment. In the blessing I was reassured that I would be
able to stay in my mission for the full 18 months. I know that Heavenly
Father is watching over me and that I had to go to Vancouver last
Wednesday for reasons unknown. Reasons I may never know. Regardless,
Heavenly Father sees and understands more than I do. The spirit told me
that one of the main reasons Heavenly Father is having me experience
this is that I needed an experience to increase my faith. We learn in
the scriptures that Heavenly Father can only work miracles according to
our faith. And I know that there are things in this mission that
Heavenly Father wants to accomplish. Things that will take miracles. And
I could not develop the faith I needed to on my own. If I were a
mathematical equation, the things I need to do and the faith I had
previously did not compute. But the experiences Heavenly Father has been
giving me have been helping me realize that "if ye will have faith in
me (Christ) ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in
me" (Moroni 7:33).
I know that Heavenly Father's hand is in this work, that He is guiding
and directing our lives. If we allow Him to direct us, we will
experience miracles. I know that we are literately in God's hands.
Alma
37:7 "And the Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and
eternal purposes; and by very small means the Lord doth confound the
wise and bringeth about the salvation of many souls"
Hold on and have faith. No matter what your situation God can and will work miracles.
Sister Bloomfield
