Tuesday, January 10, 2017

January 9, 2017



Hey everyone, this week went pretty well and it went by really quick
too. We've gotten back to a pretty normal schedule now that the
holidays are over. It's been raining every day and people here in
California really aren't used to rain lol. It's somewhat of a foreign
concept to them to have it rain for a whole week or two. Things have
been going well though and we've been able to have some really great
lessons. The language has been coming along too, I translated for the
first time in church yesterday lol. When you translate you sit up on
the stand and have a headset and translate everything thats said
during the meeting. A few families have English speakers and they have
their own headsets to listen to me. It actually went pretty well but i
had a little bit of a stuffy nose which was irritating. I'm looking
forward to a lot of things this year, I know that there is a lot in
store. I've made a lot of personal goals and I know that this is a
good environment to work on them. It's crazy to think that 2017 is the
year where I'll be a missionary for the entire thing. I know that its
going to go by a lot faster than I think though, its kind of weird how
time works. I know that this time that I have to serve is very special
and that this year will be one that I'll never forget. It's amazing to
be able to do the Lords work each day and progress.

One of my favorite scriptures that I've been thinking about is Alma
37:6 where it says "by small and simple things are great things
brought to pass" which is definitely true when it comes to setting
goals and progressing. When we had our meeting with Elder Bednar, the
topic was on faith and we talked a little about how since faith is a
principle of action, faith is something that is not static. Meaning
that your faith is either increasing, or it is decreasing. And it all
happens with small, simple, daily actions. Elder Bednar said that a
lot of people think that to increase their faith they need these huge
spiritual experiences, but its actually the daily little things that
accumulate to great faith. Big experiences definitely happen and help
strengthen our faith, there is no doubt about that, but if that is all
that we rely on and all that we have, our faith will ultimately
suffer. It's awesome to have great spiritual experiences, but in
addition to the small, daily actions, that is when our faith can
continue to grow. And I've really been able to see that as I work on
taking small steps each day. Even throughout trials and big
challenges, each small step eventually gets you through a hard time.
And thats also the reason that it can be difficult to see progress
when It's in the moment. But in hindsight you can always more easily
see progress that you have made through doing the "small and simple
things" each day.

As I've been reflecting on things, I also remembered a quote the other
day that I heard from when I was in Brazil, I'm not sure who it was
by, but it was "If you feel far from God, guess who moved." Which is a
really blunt one but I like it. It helped me kind of recognize that
honestly, I felt kind of far from Him but he is always there. For the
short time that I was in Brazil, I worked on taking one more step
every day to feel closer to Him. And from that I was able to see
miracles that have changed my life completely. And the amount of
change that I've been able to see in myself over the past year of my
life from that principle is definitely a "great thing" that I've seen
come from the "small and simple" steps of progress. Going throughout
the past year, there were definitely times where it was difficult to
see any personal progress as I worked on things. But as I look back,
I'm really grateful for the experience that I was able to have and for
the Savior. Because all of that progress is only possible through
using the Atonement. There are times where things can be difficult and
its hard to see things, but there is another scripture that kind of
pairs with it that says "faith is things which are hoped for and not
seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no
witness until after the trial of your faith." (Ether 12:6). Which is
true as well, because it isn't always easy during the process. But as
you work on growing faith each day through small and simple things,
you can look back and see all of the faith that you have accumulated
throughout. And then you receive that witness and testimony of the
great things that have come to pass.

I wasn't quite expecting on typing all of that out, but its what I've
been thinking about and I guess that I want to leave that with you all
and share that part of my testimony with you. I love you all and hope
that things are going well for everybody, I love hearing from you all
and seeing how you are doing. And also while I was reflecting, I
wanted to thank you all for the support and help that you've given me
over the past year. I have definitely been able to feel everyone's
love, it means a lot to me. I love you guys and hope that you each
reach all of the goals that you have for this upcoming year.

-Elder Godwin

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