I Can Do Hard Things

Monday, July 20, 2015

Email to Lisa

Whoa! Bradley's the bishop!! That is so crazy! And you're the bishop's wife! That is just super cool. I'm so happy for y'all! Give Bradley my best and my congratulations! ❤

Things have improved since last week, or maybe it's just my perspective. :) Our mission president sent us a letter last week, asking us to start a 40-day fast from distractions and to talk with everyone we see, no matter how awkward or inconvenient. That's given us a little more courage. I'm doing my best to do what the Lord prompts and nudges me to do, no matter the sacrifice and no matter how hard.

Something significant I've learned recently out on my mission is more of a confirmation really that God truly is our loving Heavenly Father. He gives us commandments for our benefit. He gives us hard things because we'll grow from them and become the people we're trying to become in the first place. Sometimes I feel like a little kid with my relationship with Heavenly Father— I.E., "Daddy doesn't love me because he did this to me." Not that I've ever truly doubted his love, but it's really resonated with me that he asks hard things because he loves us. He truly, truly does. Be still. Know that I am God. Everything works out for the best when we trust him.

One other thing is how important it is to keep the Spirit and how sensitive it really is. My companion pointed this out in a lesson, and she mentioned how we as missionaries repent a lot. :) And it's because the Spirit really is so crucial and so vital in the work that we can't afford to go a minute without it. I keep thinking about how important the Spirit is for non-missionaries— for obvious reasons, though. But I'd never really thought about what an important role repentance plays. I've heard that you really ought to be repenting every day, and it's stood out to me now, more than ever, how important that is. The Spirit is what helps us become who the Lord wants us to be, and ultimately who we're striving to become anyway. We are not perfect, but repentance is a real power, and the Spirit that comes from it is crucial for survival in mortality and especially the world we live in today.

I'm so grateful for those things that invite the Spirit. Prayer is powerful. The scriptures are wonderful! Church is so important for helping us to feel the Spirit, renew our promises, and learn how we can be better. The Spirit is so important, and being worthy of it is even more important! I'm continually praying to be worthy of it, here in my work.

Maren is looking SO CUTE as always! Give her a big hug! Tell her to stop growing so quickly!

Love you!

Sister Nielsen