GOD IS SO AWARE OF YOU
Date
June 7, 2018
Area
Provo, Utah
Companion
Sister Thresh
GOD IS SO AWARE OF YOU
Dear all,
The MTC is still one of the most life changing things I have ever experienced. SO, here we go with another saga of the life of Zuster Klassen.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
1. The "Be One" celebration was seriously so cool. If you didn't watch it, go check it out on LDS.org.
2. I'm surprisingly good at kickball.
3. Sister Winter is getting better. We got to help her and visit her a lot this week.
4. I gave my investigator a Church tour, which went SO well and the Spirit was so strong.
5. I learned that I run almost twice as far with music.
6. Testimony meeting on Sunday was SO powerful. Sorenson is so stalwart in his faith. Crofts, Gunn, and Thresh have had such changes of heart. Ostlund is so in touch with the Spirit. Everyone was lead by the Spirit as to what to say. We are meant to be at the MTC together.
7. I finished a pretty big puzzle while Zuster Thresh was at the doctor.
8. Zuster Thresh ate gluten so she's been REALLY sick.
9. Elder Gerrit W. Gong (a new apostle) came to speak to us!
10. Camille Grant, Emma Woolley, Clara Whittaker, Bailey Gray, Lindsey Wilson. So many Southern Utah people are here, and I LOVE IT.
11. Sad one: Zuster Thresh leaves me next Monday to head to Denmark. But I'm not super sad because that is where the Lord needs her!!
12. Two of the Finns got visa waited in St. George! SO mom and dad, find out where Sister Ostlund and Sister Dailey are in the next 6 weeks and take them to lunch!!
Miracle of the week:
We got back from the temple this morning at about 9:30. We ran by T4 to print something. We weren't supposed to be there. I checked my email while we were there, which was something I didn't need to do. I saw an email that I needed to talk to my accompanist about. I didn't have to act on it then, but I felt like I should. I talked to Sister Nielsen. Down the hall during our conversation ran Sister Woolley. She told me she had an audition in 5 minutes and needed an accompanist. She gives me the music and we run over. I sight read it. She sang amazingly well. I wasn't supposed to be there. It was P Day. I felt like I needed to do those things now. She felt like she needed to come to T4 when she could have just gone to lunch. Because we both followed the Spirit, she saw me and came running, and I was able to accompany a beautiful rendition of "Consider the Lilies."
It was quite a discouraging missionary moment when one of our workshop leaders compared the numbers of 1999 and 2017 in terms of convert baptisms. And of course it's not just about numbers, because we aren't just seeking to have a line go up on a graph, but we want to bring ALL of God's children to his fold! The number in 1999 was about 300,000. At the next general conference after that statistical report, President Hinckley said that we could double that number with sincere effort. The numbers in 2017? 230,000. When I heard that, I was shocked and very discouraged. But the class completely turned around when he told us this story:
"When President Monson was a mission president in Canada, there was one area that would never baptize. Every time a new set of missionaries got there, they would be told by their senior companions very quickly that 'we don't baptize here in Kingston.' Well, he naturally closed the area. A while later, he heard that Brigham Young was once serving in Canada and heart that they weren't baptizing in Kingston. He went there soon after and baptize almost 60 people in one month. President Monson began spreading a rumor that he was considering opening a new area where Brigham Young once baptized 60 people in 30 days. Missionaries came forward begging to serve there. These missionaries had high expectations. When he opened it and sent these missionaries there, they became the highest baptizing area in the mission."
Think of all those children of God joining His kingdom! I now have high expectations. Ya know when people say "don't get your hopes up"? Well don't listen to that! Because with high expectations in the power of God, YOU WILL SUCCEED.
I'm not gonna lie, it's been a really tough week. My heart has been exceedingly heavy. I have felt like Peter when he falls into the water, both literally and figuratively. (Tears can soak ya, man.) I am in the mists of darkness experienced by those in Lehi's dream. I have not yet felt Christ's hand reach to me to pull me out of the water.
BUT. The miracles I have experienced these last few days have been mind-blowing. I know even more than I did before (which I didn't think was possible) that God is SO RIDICULOUSLY AWARE OF US. In these depths, He has given me what I need.
The most special and literal one:
A district president gave me a priesthood blessing here. You gotta understand, this man does not know me at all. He spoke of things in my past, those times when I have had a burning testimony on which I must rely in the darkness, and he could have never known how true those statements were. Only God could have know such deep, personal, and revelatory things about me. Only God could have given me the counsel I needed in this time of my life in such a personal way.
I testify that even in the darkest times, or even when the road is not dark but you feel as if God is not speaking to you, that HE IS SO AWARE OF YOU. He thinks about you constantly. He is just waiting to bless you! He is just waiting to give you just what you need. And you may not notice it now, but perhaps He already is!
I have a bunch of pictures hung up on the wall on the top bunk. One of them is of me in a Netherlands tulip field when I was much younger. Who knew that that little girl, years later, would be just 3 weeks away from preaching this glorious and wonderful gospel to the people there? That one day, I would live there, giving up 18 months of my life, just because the Lord told me to?
To end with a scripture from Isaiah 65, verse 24:
And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
I did not call unto the Lord to let me serve there. I didn't call on the Lord to help me and Sister Woolley find each other! I didn't call unto Him to give me SIX reunions with friends in the last 3 weeks. I did not call unto Him to have such a perfect zone. I could go on and on. But He has answered before I even called. And He is listening to me as I cry unto Him now, but He has already given me many things I need during this time.
I love you all so much. I'm sorry I didn't have much time to talk to y'all individually, but I hopefully be able to speak to many of you next week!!
-Zuster Klassen
PS we missionaries LOVE emails and letters and food cause it brightens our little MTC life haha
Pictures:
1. Most of the zone
2. Sisters
3. Candid
4. Companions
The MTC is still one of the most life changing things I have ever experienced. SO, here we go with another saga of the life of Zuster Klassen.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
1. The "Be One" celebration was seriously so cool. If you didn't watch it, go check it out on LDS.org.
2. I'm surprisingly good at kickball.
3. Sister Winter is getting better. We got to help her and visit her a lot this week.
4. I gave my investigator a Church tour, which went SO well and the Spirit was so strong.
5. I learned that I run almost twice as far with music.
6. Testimony meeting on Sunday was SO powerful. Sorenson is so stalwart in his faith. Crofts, Gunn, and Thresh have had such changes of heart. Ostlund is so in touch with the Spirit. Everyone was lead by the Spirit as to what to say. We are meant to be at the MTC together.
7. I finished a pretty big puzzle while Zuster Thresh was at the doctor.
8. Zuster Thresh ate gluten so she's been REALLY sick.
9. Elder Gerrit W. Gong (a new apostle) came to speak to us!
10. Camille Grant, Emma Woolley, Clara Whittaker, Bailey Gray, Lindsey Wilson. So many Southern Utah people are here, and I LOVE IT.
11. Sad one: Zuster Thresh leaves me next Monday to head to Denmark. But I'm not super sad because that is where the Lord needs her!!
12. Two of the Finns got visa waited in St. George! SO mom and dad, find out where Sister Ostlund and Sister Dailey are in the next 6 weeks and take them to lunch!!
Miracle of the week:
We got back from the temple this morning at about 9:30. We ran by T4 to print something. We weren't supposed to be there. I checked my email while we were there, which was something I didn't need to do. I saw an email that I needed to talk to my accompanist about. I didn't have to act on it then, but I felt like I should. I talked to Sister Nielsen. Down the hall during our conversation ran Sister Woolley. She told me she had an audition in 5 minutes and needed an accompanist. She gives me the music and we run over. I sight read it. She sang amazingly well. I wasn't supposed to be there. It was P Day. I felt like I needed to do those things now. She felt like she needed to come to T4 when she could have just gone to lunch. Because we both followed the Spirit, she saw me and came running, and I was able to accompany a beautiful rendition of "Consider the Lilies."
It was quite a discouraging missionary moment when one of our workshop leaders compared the numbers of 1999 and 2017 in terms of convert baptisms. And of course it's not just about numbers, because we aren't just seeking to have a line go up on a graph, but we want to bring ALL of God's children to his fold! The number in 1999 was about 300,000. At the next general conference after that statistical report, President Hinckley said that we could double that number with sincere effort. The numbers in 2017? 230,000. When I heard that, I was shocked and very discouraged. But the class completely turned around when he told us this story:
"When President Monson was a mission president in Canada, there was one area that would never baptize. Every time a new set of missionaries got there, they would be told by their senior companions very quickly that 'we don't baptize here in Kingston.' Well, he naturally closed the area. A while later, he heard that Brigham Young was once serving in Canada and heart that they weren't baptizing in Kingston. He went there soon after and baptize almost 60 people in one month. President Monson began spreading a rumor that he was considering opening a new area where Brigham Young once baptized 60 people in 30 days. Missionaries came forward begging to serve there. These missionaries had high expectations. When he opened it and sent these missionaries there, they became the highest baptizing area in the mission."
Think of all those children of God joining His kingdom! I now have high expectations. Ya know when people say "don't get your hopes up"? Well don't listen to that! Because with high expectations in the power of God, YOU WILL SUCCEED.
I'm not gonna lie, it's been a really tough week. My heart has been exceedingly heavy. I have felt like Peter when he falls into the water, both literally and figuratively. (Tears can soak ya, man.) I am in the mists of darkness experienced by those in Lehi's dream. I have not yet felt Christ's hand reach to me to pull me out of the water.
BUT. The miracles I have experienced these last few days have been mind-blowing. I know even more than I did before (which I didn't think was possible) that God is SO RIDICULOUSLY AWARE OF US. In these depths, He has given me what I need.
The most special and literal one:
A district president gave me a priesthood blessing here. You gotta understand, this man does not know me at all. He spoke of things in my past, those times when I have had a burning testimony on which I must rely in the darkness, and he could have never known how true those statements were. Only God could have know such deep, personal, and revelatory things about me. Only God could have given me the counsel I needed in this time of my life in such a personal way.
I testify that even in the darkest times, or even when the road is not dark but you feel as if God is not speaking to you, that HE IS SO AWARE OF YOU. He thinks about you constantly. He is just waiting to bless you! He is just waiting to give you just what you need. And you may not notice it now, but perhaps He already is!
I have a bunch of pictures hung up on the wall on the top bunk. One of them is of me in a Netherlands tulip field when I was much younger. Who knew that that little girl, years later, would be just 3 weeks away from preaching this glorious and wonderful gospel to the people there? That one day, I would live there, giving up 18 months of my life, just because the Lord told me to?
To end with a scripture from Isaiah 65, verse 24:
And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
I did not call unto the Lord to let me serve there. I didn't call on the Lord to help me and Sister Woolley find each other! I didn't call unto Him to give me SIX reunions with friends in the last 3 weeks. I did not call unto Him to have such a perfect zone. I could go on and on. But He has answered before I even called. And He is listening to me as I cry unto Him now, but He has already given me many things I need during this time.
I love you all so much. I'm sorry I didn't have much time to talk to y'all individually, but I hopefully be able to speak to many of you next week!!
-Zuster Klassen
PS we missionaries LOVE emails and letters and food cause it brightens our little MTC life haha
Pictures:
1. Most of the zone
2. Sisters
3. Candid
4. Companions
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