Spirits are high for outgoing missionaries! I´ve got the Clothes Ironed, Hair Buzzed, and the packing has already begun in anticipation for 10:00 monday night when the real adventure begins! I am grateful for the experience of the MTC and all the knowledge I have been able to retain. I thank my Heavenly Father for the level of preparation, including success in learning the language, He has helped me to achieve. Ecuador is calling and i´m ready to Run! I do not fear what lies ahead because I now if I have Faith God will be with me and ¨will not suffer that I should fall.¨[Alma 56]
I want to begin by rewinding a week. September 11th brought a lot of grateful thoughts to my mind though there were no American Flags flying in Mexico.. -Agency is among the greatest gifts and key parts of God´s Plan; Unfortunately, too often lives are effected by those who use theirs to do evil. On the other hand, how grateful I am for those who protect our freedoms. Oh how God must bless those who sacrifice much of themselves for our behalf. [John 15:13] -¨Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for His friends.¨ I have the greatest respect for our these people whether they are a Navy Seal or your next door neighbor. Once again, God Bless America.
Then there are Heroes on a different level, though none the less appreciated. I can feel the love of family and friends out here. I´m grateful for the sacrifices they´ve made and the things they´ve taught that have influenced so much of who I am. Now I am turning more than ever to my Savior to shape me into the Missionary and furthermore man I need to be. The man He knows I can become. I will share in my own words something I heard in a recent devotional. Christ speaking: ¨I stood atop a mountain and beheld the edge of a cliff. Christ stood there and beckoned me to come to him. I said no, I will fall! Again he said come to the edge of the cliff and again I denied His request. Upon the third invitation I hearkened to Him coming to the edge of the cliff. He pushed me - And I Flew!¨ We must learn to Trust Him to make us into what He needs us to be - To help you reach your potential - To grasp hold of things you cannot yet see.
Other quotes i´ve enjoyed from the week:
¨God knows our circumstances and Judges us accordingly. He knows who is standing in a hole and who is standing on a chair, and He does not just measure height - He measures growth.¨ -Believing Christ. Moral of the story for me, help people grow! Don´t judge where they stand or compare.
¨To reach a goal never before attained, One must Do things never before done.¨ Richard G Scott
¨That which we persist in doing becomes easier; not that the nature of the thing has changed but our power to do has increased.¨ Ralph Waldo Emerson. Simply put, continue to do the will of God and persist in all challenges with faith. [Ether 12:27] Come unto me and I will make weak things become strong... A life without cause is a life without effect. Always have a purpose - a righteous purpose - and come unto Him with humility and all can be accomplished.
I want to talk about prayer, maybe again? I apologize if my messages seem centered on my needs but hey, it is my mission, I´m just sharing what I learn! Or maybe I am just trying to stress the blessing prayer is and the importance of it! Want some scripture study? [D&C 6, 8, 9] - God will answer your prayers - look at where you are at! God may, rather than confirm or deny our questions through the Spirit, withold an answer. He wants you to Act in Faith - listening for the spirit. Take advantage of such an opportunity to gain experience and comfort in the knowledge that God has trusted to you. We may learn from the example of Nephi in [1nephi 3] as He acts in Faith to fulfill the Lords command to obtain the Plates (records) from Laban. He acted several times not knowing exactly how his task would be accomplished, until the Lord provided a way!
The truth is, I shared faith once again because I came to a humbling realization of the truth of ¨How quick men are to forget the Lord their God.¨ A short 4 weeks ago my testimony of prayer was greater than ever. As my comfort and own self-reliance have increased her in the MTC my prayers have unfortunately done the opposite. I have failed to often pray before study time and meals in one of the most Holy and spiritual places I could be! Pray Always! I´m so grateful for this reminder shortly before I enter the field. What an appreciation I have for the gift of prayer and God´s love for me.
I´ll end on a light note. Apparently not even being set apart as a missionary can tame my ¨flirtatious nature.¨ My morning teacher (who I am good friends with) pulled me out of class this week and proceeded to explain that my evening teacher (who I am cool with but is very anal about rules and things) had taken a picture of me - alone - talking with another sister in our district for a lengthy period of time and was very concerned I had a big attraction to her that was becoming a problem. Well, to His great concern I had a good laugh and explained the situation. This sister (who is certainly a sweet spirit and a Joy to have a round - though not exactly my ¨type¨) had asked me as the day came to an end, ¨Ëlder wilson, what did you learn today?¨ More than happy to share I grabbed my study journal and sat down by her so she could read what I had recently wrote. (with our classmates and companions around us) we talked about things (for a total of 5 or so minutes). Hmmm... still haven´t figured out how to feel about my evening teach. What a Dork. But oh well. I might call him Paparazzi or something - or maybe play off another scene and invite him to take a photo. ;) Good stuff. #missionstandards
Truly, I can´t wait to get to Ecuador! I love and pray that I am fully taking advantage of every moment of this Mission. Ready to do all I can for the people of Ecuador! Best of wishes for all the friends and family back at home. Next time, I´ll be in Ecuador! Adios,
Elder Wilson
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