The Quest For Happiness

Today, I am overwhelmed with joy and happiness. I don’t know exactly why or where it stemmed from but I know it was sent to me by my Father in Heaven. A couple of weeks ago, I had a mission reunion on BYU campus and President and Sister Packard were able to come from Texas. Every time I see and hear from them I am always filled with love and joy and gratitude for them, and for the experiences they helped me have on my mission. While president was speaking I had kind of a sad feeling, a sort of depressed feeling that I wasn’t good enough to be friends with the Packard’s or the other missionaries. But after the meeting I went to talk with President and Sister Packard, and President immediately hugged me and told me how proud he is of me and how happy I look. That shocked me because I was not feeling happy at all but for some reason I portrayed to him happiness and contentment in my life. That really stuck to me and I have been thinking about it ever since. I went home and talked to my mom about it and she said the same thing that I look exceedingly happy, and I could not understand why, especially when I was actually feeling down and sad about myself and my life. But today, I have a new perspective.

I was sitting in relief society today, and we were talking about Christ-like love and how we have seen it and felt it in our lives. There was this nagging feeling in me that wanted me to feel bad for myself, and not be happy or feel loved. But the thing is, it couldn’t stay. I don’t know how to describe it but I recognized that it was there but it was extremely faint. I had/have far too much happiness and love in my heart and my mind today that negative thoughts could not latch on and live. I was set apart as a Temple Patron after church by Brother Bill Betz. He is the new second counselor in the bishopric. He is amazing and so kind and loving. As a temple patron I will be expected to attend the temple weekly and encourage others to go as well. They are thinking of making it a committee so we can make a bigger difference in the ward in helping everyone attend more frequently. I am really excited! I am already getting ideas of talking to the Elders Quorum and Relief Society and making a ward temple day or something along those lines. Brother Betz gave me such a lovely and endearing blessing which really filled my heart to overflowing with love and gratitude. He talked a lot about how proud Heavenly Father is of me and how aware He is of me, my wants, needs, and deepest desires. My Father is grateful for my faith and love for Him and His Son. After the blessing Brother Betz was telling me how women are given so much in the church and from our Father in Heaven and one thing that God gives the men to try and keep up with the women is the priesthood. And with the priesthood they are able to see a glimpse of how God truly sees us and who we really are, and Brother Betz just looked at me and said simply but with such love and admiration, “you are amazing”, and then thanked me for my faithfulness and service. He also told me not to get comfortable in this one calling because they, the bishopric, have been talking about me. I told him that I would love to serve in any capacity they want, I just want to serve. I have the greatest and deepest desire, right now, to serve and lift the hands that hang down, the hearts that are troubled and weary, and the weak who need some extra strength.

I cannot contain my happiness today. There is so much to be grateful for. My Father is leading me along, I know it. I know He led me here, to Utah State, for a reason. I love this ward, I don’t know what it is about it but it has such a wonderful spirit about it. Everyone I meet is another incredible person that I dearly want to get to know better and be friends with. I am so grateful for the people I met here and have as friends. I am so incredible blessed! I love and revere my God and my Savior. I love the gospel and the complete joy it brings and will bring in the eternities. I am so humbled today. I am deeply grateful for my family, each and every one of them. They bring so much to my life and my joy. They each bring so much faith, joy, and many other special characteristics to our family. I cannot wait to have a family of my own to add to this incredible family unit.

I have so much on my mind and heart but I cannot bring the right words to explain my feelings. All I can really say is, I have never felt so happy in my life. I am incredibly grateful for the millions of blessings the Lord has sent down to all of us here on earth at this time. We are so lucky to be here in the last days.

It's Not the End, It's Just a New Beginning

It has taken me a while to sit down and actually write my last post. I have been home for two months now and I just haven't been able to get myself to do it. I guess it has been hard because I miss my mission like crazy. I did not expect it to be this hard to adjust back to life. My mission means the world to me, I learned so much about myself, the gospel, and life in general. It has totally changed me, to say the least. I try to keep in mind the things my mission president taught me; to not make the last 18 months the best of my life, but the beginning of the best of my life. My mission isn't over per say, it is just beginning. My mission was like the MTC for the rest of my life. I will never forget the experiences and the changes that I had on my mission. Now I have so many new experiences and resources to apply in my life.

I might be a little biased, just as any missionary may be about their mission president, but I had the best mission president and presidency I could have ever asked for. They did wonders for me. I feel so blessed to have had them as my leaders. They are such a powerhouse presidency!! First, we have the incredible President Packard, with his texan accent and his quickened excitement and enthusiasm, the fatherly figure and great love that you can tangibly feel emanating from him. Then, President Christensen, the humble, wise, peaceful, friend, but so incredibly strong example to us all. Last, but not least, President Haight. I just love and respect him so so much. He is very tender, proper, genius, can totally see right through you, but the kindest, happiest, most loving person you will ever meet. I can never truly explain how much they have changed my life, because "you cannot explain in words things that can only be experienced". Every time any one of them taught us, I was just filled to the brim with light, knowledge, understanding, love, and excitement for the gospel. I will forever miss those sweet experiences.

So I started writing this probably around November 2014. It is now October 20, 2015. As you can see I have been putting this off for a lot longer than a while.. But Now I have decided to keep up a blog! So naturally I have to finish this one off just to make me feel better. This past year has been full of wonderful and scary up's and down's. I have learned so much about myself and how to apply the gospel more to my life after the mission. I went to BYUI one last semester and got my associates. Afterwards, I went on a Baltic Cruise with my dad's side of the family, went to Boston for the fourth of July with some mission friends, decided to attend Utah State University, attend my best friend, Andrea's wedding in B.C. Canada, go backpacking with my brother, Andrew, and made an awesome new life in Logan, Utah. It's been quite the year! Nothing like I had imagined or expected.

Relating this to the end of my mission in New England, and how I am applying my experiences to my life now, I have been more able to rely on the Lord and trust in His timing. Of course, it hasn't been easy but my relationship with Him has definitely been strengthened even more since I have returned home. For a while I felt a dip in my spirituality, and I may still feel that at times, but I know it has been strengthened because I think of Him all the time, I remember my mission, I read my scriptures and pray everyday, I attend church and the temple. On my mission my main focus was on God and bringing others to Christ, but now, after my mission I have a lot more on my mind; school, money/job, friends, future and present family, and above all incorporating the gospel in every aspect of my life. Definitely isn't easy, but I am managing and I am loving life!

This is basically a very short summary of what I learned on my mission; how to apply the gospel to my everyday life. I loved when President Packard would talk to us about this subject and he would always say, "from now on, your main priority is your future family. Everything you do, every choice you make is for the benefit of your future spouse and children. Whether or not you do your homework, where you go to school, the friends you make, how you spend your time and money, etc... Everything will lead to your future family, they are what matter the most." I love President Packard and his always awe inspiring advice and wisdom. I hope I have made good choices this past year that will strengthen my future family. I am grateful for my mission and for the experiences I had there, and the incredible people I met who changed my life. I definitely got more out of my mission than anyone I served, taught, was companions with, served around and so on. It was the best decision I have made in my entire life (so far :) ).

Alma 26:16

“Therefore, let us glory, yea, we will glory in the Lord, yea, we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever.  Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord?  Yea, who can say too much in the Lord?  Yea, who can say too much of his great power and of his mercy and of his long-suffering towards the children of men? Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel.”

Dear Family and Friends,

This week has been an interesting one. We had wonderful Zone Conference in Worcester. We talked about the three venues of conversion (Missionary lessons, personal study, and church attendance). We were uplifted and edified by all of the members in the mission presidency. It was such a treat to hear from them all. They are such wonderful leaders, I always feel so much love from them, and they are such a powerful group. It was really funny, while President Christensen was teaching us about the personal study venue; he got a call from the mayor in New York. He asked, "do you mind of I take this? It's the Mayor of New York. He calls me sometimes...” We all were dying! I just love President Christensen; he is so sweet and humble. He shared his powerful conversion story over lunch with us. He is incredible!

We had a wonderful session about the church attendance venue with President and Sister Haight. I just love them so much. They are so spiritually powerful and just simply wonderful! I always feel very special when I see president Haight because he always makes a point to come and talk to me. I love how they teach and how they present themselves, they are very bold and loving. I feel so grateful to know each of the members of our mission presidency pretty well. It amazes me how dedicated they are and how personally involved they are with each missionary. I love them!

We had exchanges this week with the Sister's in Amherst, and I went to Amherst with Sister Wheeler. I had such a fun time! It seemed like such a long day but it was so wonderful. It didn't work out the way Sister Wheeler had hoped but we had a good time learning together. I met so many wonderful people in that area. We had a great conversation about commitment because we were trying to commit these two people to invite someone to the fireside that we had on Friday, but they weaseled out of it. We learned a lot about commitment, how to help someone make a commitment, how important it is, and ho we need to be committed and always have something to work on.

                               

Our fireside on "What the World Knows Because of Joseph Smith" went so well!! We didn't get as many people there as we hoped but we still filled the chapel and there were many non members there. We had our investigators there, less actives, former investigators, potential investigators, and low lying fruit and so on! It was awesome. President Packard did such a wonderful job. As he always does. He really touched the whole audience. I loved how he made a point to talk to so many of the people in attendance, especially some of our former and potential investigators and less actives. It was amazing. Everyone loved the event and it was so good to have the wonderful portable visitors center there! Everyone loved that, too. It was a successful night.

The past few days it has been hitting me so hard that I am leaving in less than a week. I can't believe it! It seriously has gone by way too fast. I really feel like I just made it to the mission from the MTC like a week ago. I seriously never knew I would actually get to this point. It really breaks my heart. This has been the most incredible experience of my life and I don't want it to end! I have seen people change because they have decided to follow Jesus Christ. I have seen my own testimony strengthen so much more than I thought possible. I know this gospel is true. I know our Father in Heaven has created a perfect plan to help us return to Him and that His only Begotten Son came to complete the Atonement and make that plan perfectly effective. I don't know everything the Lord has in store for us, I don't know every in and out of the gospel but I do know that it is true. I do know that this is the only way we can return to our Father. It breaks my heart when people reject this message we have, or just can't seem to understand it, yet. I hope and pray that everyone that I have come in contact with while on my mission will one day understand the gospel and accept it. Of course it is still is their choice, they have their agency, which is so frustrating sometimes! But I do love that gift that God has given us, and I know it is essential for us to grow and learn and someday reach our potential.

I love my mission. I cannot bear to leave it, but I know it is time. I only hope that I have done all the Lord has asked me to do and that He is pleased with my work. I am forever changed because of the decision I made to serve a mission.

I love you all and will be seeing you soon.

Love,

 Sister Christensen

Zone P-day

Quabin Reservoir

Last District Meeting

PROGRESS and TEMPLE

This week has been so crazy. I feel like I say that every time. But it has been especially crazy this week! We finally got our investigator, T and her boyfriend to have dinner with some members. And it went so well! I didn't know if those four were a good combination.  They talked and talked and talked. But now they are friends! Wahoo! :) :) It was perfect.

We have been able to get into more homes than we have previously been able to! It has been so awesome. I just love it. I love seeing the progress that is happening here. There are so many miracles that are occurring. All our investigators are progressing pretty well, although they are all in different places. We also were able to visit with a less active that is having so many medical issues on top of other things that are really sad in her life. We met her at a cemetery and walked around talking with her. We taught her about the plan of Salvation while we were there. It was just what she needed. Though it was quite the experience teaching the plan of Salvation in a cemetery.. She is a sweet lady. I really hope she comes to the fireside on Friday! It would be so good for her!

This past weekend I had the amazing chance to go to the temple to witness a family from one of my past areas being sealed. It was incredible. This is what it is all about. This is where all the work we do goes to. It was such a special experience I will never forget. It has been so amazing to see this family progress so quickly! I had the opportunity to witness their baptism just over a year ago. And now they are sealed together for time and all eternity! I just love it.

A perfect day

Sorry this week is short... I don't have much time. But I love you all and I hope you have had a wonderful week and that this coming week will be wonderful as well! :)

Love,

 Sister Christensen

Investigators!

                                               

This week has been nuts! We met with all three of our awesome investigators this week! Tara is doing well, but we all know she will take a while to accept the gospel if ever.. She is really intellectual. But we have dinner tonight with her at a members home so I think that will be really good for her.

Our faces when we found out Branch Council was not happening

Dan is doing so well! I am so so excited about him. He totally gets everything we teach him and he has such a deep and genuine desire to change. It amazes me! He came to church yesterday, and I felt kind of bad because it seemed pretty overwhelming to him. But our branch mission leader wrapped him in and he said he enjoyed himself. He really is so awesome! One of our members called us later and said she was so impressed and touched by him and she wants to come teach him with us! He is doing really well.

Jordan is doing good still waiting on the parent’s approval but his good friend who introduced him to the church is coming home soon from school, and he thinks having him around more will help. He just needs to come to church more often now.

A few days ago the sisters in our district called us in desperation. They had an appointment with an investigator that they have been trying to meet forever but could never get a chaperon or it just didn't work out. So on this day the member that they had to go with them backed out and they needed a chaperon, so we went with them! It was so much fun. This investigator has been learning from the Sisters in Worcester but lives in Oxford's area so they have been trying to switch him over. He really wants to be baptized but can't quite yet, for certain reasons. But it was fun teaching him because it really felt like we were teaching a little kid, but he is definitely in his late 20's or early 30's. He is kind of forgetful but a really great guy. I am so happy we were able to help them out. Afterwards we were talking about it and one of the sisters said she finally realized what members meant when they say that missionaries bring an extra spirit with them. She felt it with all four of us sister missionaries teaching together. That was pretty neat. I think it was supposed to happen that way for some reason. It was neat.

There are so many miracles that are happening right now! There are families, active and less active that we haven't been able to get in for who knows how long, and now we are seeing them this week! We are also finding so many more people to teach! It is so amazing. I know that the Lord is preparing this area for something special. And I know that the fireside that we are having on the 25th about the prophet Joseph Smith will help a ton too! I am so excited for that!
Many wonderful things to look forward to! I love you all and I hope you know how much I love the gospel and how much I love learning more about it and applying it to my life and to other's lives! It is such a tremendous blessing.

Love,

 Sister Eliza

Desperate times, call for desperate measures! 

Picking Blueberries...YUM!!

Happy 4^th of July!

Me and Sister Bentley getting ready to watch the fireworks

                                        

Huge Bonn Fire

This week has been crazy! We found two new investigators and are so excited about them! One of them, D, is friends with a family that is mostly inactive except for one member. I think I might've mentioned them last week.. But we taught him for the first time this week and he seems so sincere and genuine in his quest to strengthen his relationship with God. He really needs God in his life! We actually stopped by today because we needed to update them on our status for our lesson tomorrow, and ran into him there. He said that he had read Moroni chapters 7-10 and said he really liked it. He even talked about specific parts in those chapters! It was so awesome! He said he will be continuing reading it!!

                                       
Our other new investigator is a boyfriend of a young woman in the branch. He has been going to church on and off for the past 5 or so years and wants to be baptized so badly!  Sadly his family is very traditionally catholic and is not supportive. So we are hoping and praying that he will find a way to involve them and help them feel more comfortable with the idea of him getting baptized. It was a really neat experience teaching him because when we talked about Joseph Smith he bore a very simple and sweet testimony of Joseph Smith! He is awesome. 

We had a wonderful Sunday yesterday. Both Sister Bentley and I bore our testimonies in sacrament meeting, even though it scares me every time it felt so good! It was a very sweet meeting. I was so happy that our investigator T came! She did enjoy the meeting too! She did think it was different.. but she said it was nice. I am so happy! :) It was a great day.

I have been having some pretty awesome studies lately, mostly for our investigators. But I learn so much while I am looking up their questions and the things we are preparing to teach them. It is so amazing how the Lord works. I love reading the Book of Mormon; especially where our investigators are reading because it seems like an extra boost of the spirit comes into that study. We are both learning about the same things, but in different ways, and we get different things out of it, but then it is also easier to answer their questions and help them understand. Doing this has become such a huge blessing to me. The more I study where they are and try to understand where they are coming, the more my testimony is strengthened in the gospel. What a wonderful gift we have. It really shows how deep the love our Father in Heaven has for us. He truly loves us all individually and personally, and He truly has a perfect plan for each of us. The gospel is so perfect, even when the world is so different and it changes all the time, the gospel stays the same. The members of this church are not perfect but as we all strive to live this perfect gospel we become better and better, and closer to becoming perfect like our Father in Heaven and His Son Jesus Christ. I love it!

                                         
I hope you all had a wonderful and safe 4th of July!! I love you!!

Love,

Sister Eliza

Israel, Israel, God is Calling!

We have had an interesting week.. full of random events but it ended with a wonderful Stake Conference! A couple of days ago, we were stopping by a members home to see if this member , Sis. B, could go out with us one day this week. She is the only active member in her family and has two kids that aren't baptized. She has a ton of non members in her home all the time. So while we were talking to her in her house, her nonmember son came in and told us that our tire was flat, like really flat. What? that was really strange because I did not even feel the flat tire as we drove there. So we went out and yes it was very flat. There was a razor like thing in it so we had to switch it out with the spare. While they were doing that for us :) we were talking to Sis. B she told us how her son's friend asked her about coming to church with her. She was so excited and immediately set up a time for us to come and teach him at her home. It was funny because he was sitting right there and you could tell he was a little bit embarrassed and timid about it, but never denied anything. So we are going to teach him tomorrow! We are so excited. He has a very difficult background so we are just hoping he will be willing to make the changes he needs to so he can improve his life. 

Saturday we had the adult session of Stake Conference. Man, that was so good! President Packard came and spoke, and of course he always wows the audience. (Personally his was my favorite talk..) We also had Elder Gordon H. Smith come and talk. He is a member of the 6th quorum of the seventy and is a Senator from Maryland, I believe. He gave a very good talk as well. He shared some neat stories but I really liked the talk he gave on Sunday a lot more. It was very powerful.

Sister Bentley and I have been having awesome conversations about the gospel lately. Yesterday, we were talking about stake conference. Elder Smith talked briefly about the story of the woman caught in adultery. A picture depicting that story was on the front of the program. It was really neat because sister Bentley was talking about how that story really hit her that day. What she was saying and expressing reminded me of a very similar experience I had a transfer ago. This story means so much more than I thought it did even just a few months ago. The people brought this woman to Christ to find a way to condemn Him at the same time condemning this woman. I can only imagine how this woman felt, being so exposed to the public of her sin. And yet, Christ took that confrontation so simply, humbly, and peacefully. You can just see the gentleness and the care He had for this woman. In the picture, He is reaching out to her, just like He is telling her He understands and He loves her. Christ is so careful and loving. Through this story I had a strong feeling how deeply and truly Christ felt every one of our pains. He is there with us during every trial, He knows exactly how we feel because He felt what we feel. Can you imagine that? It is so incomprehensible to me how He truly went through every single pain that has ever or will ever come into the world. But I know He has. And I am so grateful for it.
I was reading an article from the June ensign, about the sacrament. It was such a wonderful way of describing how I felt as I read and talked about this story. It is heart breaking and painful to think about how Christ did go through all of our pains for us, and how unworthy we feel. But He loves us so much more than we can understand and He sends us His love and grace. We must understand why He did that so we can use the atonement and continually strive to be better and to become like Him.

President Packard talked about how when we let the Lord Hasten His work through us, He is actually hastening the work in us. And how the gospel is all about us becoming like our Heavenly Parents. I wish I had my notes with me so I could talk more about it. But I don't think I could say it as well as he did anyway. It just made me so grateful for my mission, and how the Lord keeps telling me how lucky I am that I actually listened to the prompting He gave me to serve. I cannot express how grateful I am to be here and to learn the things I am learning. My life has been forever changed. I hope all of you who have served a mission will always remember why you served, the things you felt and experience there, and how it has applied to your life since. Those of you who are planning on serving a mission or who may serve a mission in the future, know that it does change your life, you learn so much about life and about your own relationship with God. The decision to serve is NEVER the wrong decision. I always think about how everyone should serve a mission. It would benefit the world in so many ways. I love it!! And those of you who haven't or may never serve a full time mission, we are all missionaries, just remember as you live a consecrated life and follow the promptings the Lord gives you, you are doing exactly what He wants you to be doing. We, as members of His church, have covenanted with Him that we will dedicate our lives to Him and everything we do will be for the benefit of others, our families, and ourselves in drawing near unto Him.

Love, 

Sister Christensen

Only historical site in North Brookfield

Service

                                     

https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/article/ces-devotionals/2012/01/israel-israel-god-is-calling?lang=eng&cid=email-shared