So, I promised to share my epiphanies last time. The first was this. As members of the Church, we follow each member of the Godhead in a different way. We follow the Holy Ghost through personal revelation, we follow the example and teachings of Christ, and we follow the commandments of Heavenly Father. When I think about following three different people, I could see how some might be concerned about splitting loyalties or being pulled in three different directions. That's why the savior said several times "my Father and I are one." To make it clear that following Christ would never interfere with our loyalty to Heavenly Father and his commandments. I'd never really understood why Christ said that so many times before now. The second was that management of expectations is a skill that we need to develop as human beings. The third I think I'll keep to myself for now. If you're really curious, you're welcome to send me a message, and I'll consider telling you. (by the way, if you want to contact me, it's much more convenient if you use DearElder.com instead of email while I'm in the MTC, because I can read those throughout the week, whereas email I can only read and respond to for sixty minutes each week. Though if you're inclined, handwritten letters are wonderful as well)
I'm writing in chronological order, so if it seems like I'm jumping around topics a lot, it's because that's how my life is right now. Anyways, my teacher said something this week that I think definitely applies to me and that I need to work on. She said "a goal not written is but a wish." Goal making is something that they really stress in the MTC, and I'm not great at writing down my goals.
So, at the beginning of this week, Elder Rilloraza wasn't feeling all that well. Saturday night we gave him a priesthood blessing. If you're keeping count, that's the second one I've had the opportunity to give since I got here. It was such a good experience. The priesthood is such a wonder. The next day, Elder Rilloraza rushed out halfway through the Sunday morning devotional. Elder Rilloraza was so sick that he slept for most of that day and the next. When we got him to the Health Clinic, they diagnosed him with mono. I don't think I've been around someone with mono. It was usually just material for funny jokes in high school. I'm not going to lie, it's rough. He was passed out for almost two days straight. During those two days, I stayed with him and Elder Whitney made a temporary exchange with another companionship. I was worried that missing that much class would drop me back behind the other Elders, but I found that in the front of our Tagalog-English dictionary, there's a grammar guide, and I managed to pick up quite a few useful language tools that I taught to the other Elders. Along with that, I ironed a bunch of shirts, polished shoes, wrote in my journal, and read in my scriptures. It was some alone time that I think the Lord recognized I needed. (technically I wasn't alone, but Elder Rilloraza was so out of it that he certainly wasn't imposing on my alone time) That Sunday was fastSunday, and when dinner rolled around and I was still with Elder Rilloraza, I was worried that I wasn't going to be able to get anything to eat until the next day. Let me just tell you, God has everything worked out. My district is the best, and my fellow Elders brought food by that they had picked up at the cafeteria. They're the best.
That Sunday morning devotional that I got to sit in on (Elder Whitney went out with Elder Rilloraza, and I tagged along with another companionship in the zone) was mostly focused on the life of Christ and Joseph Smith's life. Apparently Joseph was born on December 23rd, and we were encouraged to learn more about his life, so I've been reading through Joseph Smith-History as part of my scripture study. It's been such a wonderful experience. There's a lot about the initial restoration of the Church that I didn't realize. If it's been a while, you might consider reading it as well.
By Tuesday, Elder Rilloraza was feeling well enough to go to the Tuesday Night Devotional. Rumor had it that we were going to have an Apostle come. When we got there, it was announced that Elder Hafen, Emeritus General Authority, would be speaking. I was definitely a little disappointed. Apparently Elder Ballard was delayed by the snowfall, and couldn't make it. However, that disappointment only lasted until Elder Hafen started speaking. He spoke mostly about how we would go through great tribulation, and that we'll want to go home, or harden our hearts to protect against the rejections we would face, but if we endure the trials, we will be able to experience incomprehensible joy. It was so cool, because the day before, I'd stumbled across D&C 121:7-8 in the Maeser Alumni Missionary journal in Elder Nathan Haug's entry.
His wife also spoke, and her message was very brief, but she related a story about her granddaughter, who was born twelve weeks premature with Cerebral Palsy. Sister Hafen talked about what a blessing Kiah was. Kiah passed away at the age of sixteen. Sister Hafen related how thankful she is to have a knowledge of the Plan of Happiness, and how peaceful she is to know that she will see her granddaughter in the next life. That message is so touching and so personal to me. I'm so grateful that I have a knowledge of the Plan of Happiness, and that I will be reunited with my sisters in the next life.
The other thing that Elder Hafen talked about was that he had known Elder Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve since he was three years old. He said that Elder Holland wasn't sure whether he wanted to go on a mission, and that his decision to do so brought him the spiritual growth that later allowed him to be in a place to be called as an Apostle of God. It was intriguing to me to think of Elder Holland at about my age being conflicted about whether or not he should go on a mission. I don't think that we as church members ever realize that the leaders of the church were not always as spiritually strong in their faith as they are today.
I have more to say, but I'm running out of time, so I'll have to add it to next week's email. I love you all. God loves you. Have a wonderful week!8888
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