So now what?? Look Back At It.

Aloha family a me friends, 

A big shoutout to my cousin Zack who just got called to the Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) mission speaking French and reporting to the Ghana MTC! I'm SO stoked for you. Ho'omaika'i Zack!! 

Well, what a week. General Conference on the mission sure is exciting. We get to sit down, eat, and listen to our dear Prophet Russel M. Nelson and his apostles speak. What more could we ever want in life haha. Also. This was the first time in my life I listened intently and took notes for each of the talks. #accomplished #missionschangeyou lol

So now what? We've just had this super, crazy, awesome, bomb dot com, spiritual Easter Weekend and General Conference. God's given you all this knowledge and now WHAT are you going to do with it. You could just sit down and be like "oh cool another weekend, another Easter, another General Conference". Yeah. That's actually not cool. I urge you to "wake up! and do something more than dream of your mansions above". We are modern people who need modern day revelations more than ever before and need to apply it. The Lord is hastening His work and we need to as well. 

I would be a hypocrite if I didnt tell you my now what. But I don't want to bore you with too many of my takeaways so I'll keep it to one quote that stuck out to me (for today).

Dieter F. Uchtdorf said something along like as we trust in Heavenly Father we will be able to "look back and see that the dots really do connect". Like wow. How true is that. Rewind....in the days leading up to leaving on my mission I was as chill as a cucumber. But the day before I left I remember sitting on a surfboard at Canoes during sunset and just realizing how fast life was about to change. And could I actually do this, I dont know the Book of Mormon that well, I've never tried to live that missionary schedule. What is life. Lol. Before I knew it I was eating my last poke, turning off reggae, and getting set apart as a missionary.  

But looking back at my life, God has been prepparing me all along. From understanding my identity as a Hawaiian to getting through orchestra concerts to working my butt off in running but still falling short of goals to literally living life on the edge as I hiked around O'ahu to somehow learning 1500 terms of the human body. There isn't a day that goes by without applying a lesson I've learned in my past. All these joys, trials, and heartaches have given me experience, shaped me into the person I am, and serve as stepping stones to raise my limits. And thus the dots really do connect. 

There is no one way to prepare for a mission. We are all so unique. So special and so precious in the sight of the Lord. No one has the perfect life and no one's life goes how they expect it to and how so exciting is that. We need not to be worrisome of what is ahead for the Lord has prepared us in His own ways. As we place our trust and exercise our faith, God will surely light our path.  

I know, without a doubt, that my Savior lives. He is my best friend. He loves me more than I can comprehend. This is His church on the Earth today and I testify President Russel M. Nelson is a man called of God to lead and guide each of us. I know that I am an imperfect person but God has a perfect plan for me. AND I love you all so much!

Got a little taste of home with my taro boba :')

Wacky New York weather. Wacky Sister Missionaries. 

Randoms:

1) After the annoucement of the new temples around the world, a member from the Spanish ward came up to me and was like "Aren't you so excited for another temple in your country??". Lol. No sorry I'm not from the Phillipines. 

2) Transfer calls were this past week and I got a new roommate! Sister Ellsworth is a Chinatown Sister so she mainly speaks Mandarin but will do one transfer in the Bronx speaking English. I told her to teach me some Chinese because I need to reconnect those roots. 

3) With transfers and new boundaries we had to transfer one of our most progressing families to another set of Sisters :( BUT sacrifices do bring blessings. As that night we taught a Haitian mother and son and the next day at Family Home Evening she met a ton of members and told us "this church is perfect how can I sign up?". Oh how they shine with the light of Christ.

4) We got fed between General Conference sessions at 3pm. I ate so much oxtail and Jamaican chicken I didn't eat until 9am the next morning. 

Me ke aloha, 

Sister Ellis 

Believe Believe Believe