Confident Driving, Sisters, and Spam Musubi Skills
Aloha ko'u 'ohana a me ko'u hoaaloha!
The moment my mission changed was the moment I understood confidence and how to be confident. There is a fine line that comes with confidence as it can easily lead to pride if you place your confidence and trust in yourself more than in the Lord. When we have confidence in the Savior we not only know that He will make up the difference, we know that will do it because He wants to. He loves us.
We have written proof of the Savior's love as we study the Book of Mormon and Bible. "His arm of mercy is extended towards you in the light of the day" (Jacob 6:5), no matter how many mistakes we may have felt that we have made. Saturday morning during our personal study, Sister Eccles offered to fill up my water bottle. 40 minutes later, she is still "filling up my water". I hear some noises but just assume that she is cleaning up or something. She then walks in looking like the most bashful Sister ever and holds up a water bottle with a cap stuck and unable to come off. I just looked at her and smiled and was full of pure love for my companion. She tried and tried and tried and nothing she could do would open it up. We concluded that it may just take time and patience and we suggested we just leave it in the sun for a bit and hopefully the ice will melt and it wont be as tight on the top. Fast forward to the next day, it opened!
Likewise, this is like us and God. We make mistakes, many times unintentionally. We try to fix our mistakes on our own but sometimes it just doesn't work and just causes so much stress. But once we go to our Father in Heaven, He doesn't condemn us, He loves us and works with us patiently. Until all is fixed and anew. Our Savior, is the master healer of wounds physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
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| Exchanges with the Lynbrook STLs ! |
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| Selfie with the Staten English and Spanish Sisters! |
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| Exchanges with the Manhattan STLs |
Although we, humans, may make mistakes...God does not make mistakes. He does not waste His time. He would not put missionaries in an area if He knew there was no one to find, teach, and baptize. Nor does He make mistakes with each one of us. Because He loves us, He sent His son in whom we could see, touch, and get to know. We gain our confidence in our Savior as we read about Him and know His life...but more so as we feel His power in our hearts.
I know that my Savior lives and loves.
4 Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God.
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| Proof I was in Staten Island for a day |
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| Crazy views driving. |
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| City that never sleeps and never gets old. Ahhhh love it :) |
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| Me in the process of teaching a family how to make spam musubi lolol |
Randoms:
1) We got fed three meals yesterday within the span of 4 hours. One from a member who feeds us every Sunday for lunch. Two: Little bbq with the Bishops family in their mansion in White Plains. Three: A member in our ward served in Hawaii and was SO stoked to have me over. Like overjoyed. He made shoyu chicken, choke rice, and he didn't want to mess up on Spam musubi so he waited until I came over and then gathered all his 4 kids to watch me as I made it. It was cute. They almost turned on Hawaiian music. When he asked me to say the closing prayer...never have I done this before...but I almost started to say "e pule kakou.. e ke akua..". Don't know where that came from but it was kind of funny!
2) Put a few of our friends on baptismal date. Looked up former's who are ready now. Knocked on a lady's door and she was like "Mormons! I was supposed to study with these two guys back in Jamaica but I had to leave and never gave them my American number"..miracle. Ran into a less active we have been trying to get in contact with and he invited us to come over next week to see him and his family. Ward members are becoming more and more supportive of missionary work and want to come out with us!
3) Drove through all five borroughs on our way to Staten Island on Monday night. It was pretty cool. Now I can say I have been to/through them all! Even drove alongside Manhattan! Driving is slowly becoming a developing strengths lol.
4) Spent a day in Staten Island with Sister Teeples and Sister Woodin on Tuesday and it was pretty cool. Felt different than other areas but the work there is the same. People are pretty friendly there as well :) the field is white white white
5) Lots of changes happening tomorrow. Another transfer has come and gone and crazy enough tomorrow will be the start of my last transfer. Tomorrow Sister Eccles is heading out to Westbury, Long Island to a small branch to be in a Spanish program again to finish her mission. Our Malibu is getting sold and we will now have two Toyota Corrolla's. And I will be receiving Sister Reed from Brooklyn :)
Me ke aloha,
Sister Ellis
Believe, Love, Do