I am emotional today. I am sitting at my computer with tears streaming down my face. I just watched a brief video on Facebook about missionaries coming home. I remember my feelings as my children came home – Oh so glad to have them home.
But that is not what is making me cry. I am crying because I am so humbled to be able to watch the Elders and Sisters of the Arkansas Bentonville Mission act well beyond their years as they seek to think about and lift others. I hope I can express some of what I’ve witnesses in the past few days. Yesterday, President heard from a young man. He said, “I know these transfers come by revelation and all, but is there any way you could leave Elder Mar______ here? I haven’t been active and since he’s been here he’s helped me see that I need to be tied to the Lord. My family isn’t really active and I’ve just felt he understood me and helped me so much.” In District meeting I watched two Sisters give instruction. Sister Bal___ and Sister Benit______. I felt their genuine love of the Savior. During the instruction there was a role-play. I was paired with Elder Strob_____. When we finished I wondered how someone in three minutes or less could make me feel like crying when I didn’t even have the challenge (We were practicing how to help someone, so it was a made up problem.) At that moment I am not sure that I would have felt any more love or assurance from an apostle than I did from Elder Strob____. Why is that? Because he was just the instrument through which the Lord was working, and the Spirit was working very strongly. Then last night as I was driving home from picking up some treats that the activity day girls had made for our missionaries, I saw the two missionaries who are assigned to our ward out talking with a friend of mine whom they had taught, but who wasn’t really progressing any more. I stopped to say hello. Elder Bro_____ and Elder Cal____ said, “Don’t you think we should have Cas________ go down to your home and let the new missionaries practice teaching her once. Cas_______ agreed. So without any forewarning, we brought Cas_____ to our home. The three sisters took about three minutes to decide who would do what in teaching the first discussion and then they came over and taught. The spirit was very strong, and three times Cas_____ said, “Ooo, these sisters are really good.” When they finished I was able to testify of my love for her and her great worth. The Spirit was strong, and I knew I had seen greatness - not only in the faith filled actions of three, brand-new, sister missionaries; but also, in the thinking of two missionaries who decided to have faith in three brand new missionaries. This morning we met at the transfer point at 6:30 am. Elder Da_____ was there. He will go home tomorrow. Two totally new Elders will replace he and his companion in Cassville. Instead of thinking he was done with his mission and resting the last day of his mission, he was still thinking about Cassville. He said to one of the young Elders that would replace him, “Let’s go back to Cassville and I will show you the ropes. “ These things might seem little to you, but “out of small things proceedeth that which is great.” Repeatedly I am blessed to see what happens when we think about others rather than ourselves . I see it repeatedly several times a day. Day after day, and I exclaim in my heart? “How did I get so lucky to be part of these great Elders’ and Sisters’ lives?” |
Archives
June 2018
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