The testimony of a representative of Jesus Christ - Week 76

People always say "have no regrets." That is the number one advice I have heard from everyone about finishing a mission. Well... I do have one regret, and that is that I can't take the people that I have come to love with me. That it has to end. 

This week has been full of miracles, like any other. We have seen people's hearts soften, we have seen the spirit work through others, we have seen people take steps towards progression, and we have seen those we love, feel the healing influence of the gospel. But just as any other week we have seen people choose not to accept the message we have, we have seen people choose the world over the gospel, we have seen people not take the steps towards progression even though they know it is what they have to do. This is missionary work! All of these crazy emotions and experiences wrapped up in a short 18 month period. I have felt excitement, nervousness, relief, devastation, happiness, anger, uplifted, hope, but most of all, I have felt the love of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and our loving Heavenly Father.

I can't pick just a few things to talk about, I can't tell you all the life lessons I have learned (mostly because my
head is going in circles right now and I'm pretty sure I'm in the twilight zone), but one thing that I can tell you, that I am a special witness of, and that I hold so dear, is my testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I know that we have a Heavenly Father, that we are his sons and daughters. There is no doubt in my mind that he is there. Just look around and see his presence! He is always thinking of us, always watching after us, hoping that we will be able to follow the example of his son Jesus Christ and one day come back to him. Can you just imagine what it will be like to one day stand before our Heavenly Father and have him reach his arms out to hug us? 

I know that we cannot make it back to him on our own. We are soooooo far from perfect. There had to be a way provided for us to be washed clean of the stains of sin. So God provided for us, a Savior, his son Jesus Christ, our big brother and best friend. The Atonement (or suffering of Christ for us) is always there, in its radiance and glory. As long as we are obedient, do our part, and apply the Atonement in our lives every day, we can have that hope to one day return to live with them.

I know that Joseph Smith was called by God to help restore the gospel, to bring us out of the darkness of the apostasy. He lived a life of hardship and constant trial. How many of us would have continued to put up with what he went through? I don't think I could have done it. But he did, because he knew it was true. And because of what he did, through the power of Jesus Christ, I too know that this gospel is the one and true fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

I know that it did not stop there. God has continued to call prophets to lead and guide us through these troubled days. We have a prophet now; Thomas S. Monson. I know that he is lead by God and that he can help us to know exactly what it is that our Heavenly Father would have us do. I have a very personal testimony of that. Almost 3 years ago, President Thomas S. Monson was led by God to announce that young women of the church could start serving missions at age 19. That announcement changed my life, and the lives of many others. I know that it was sent by God.

I have a testimony that God will ALWAYS qualify those He calls. We have all come here to earth for a purpose. We knew exactly what that purpose was before, and although we do not remember it now, it does not mean that we don't need to fulfill it. Whether we are called to serve a full time mission, be a stay at home parent, be a doctor that finds the cure for cancer, or even just to be a son or daughter of God that lives a life where others can feel His love through them. He will help us to do whatever it is that we need to. Just as Nephi says in 1 Nephi 3:7 " I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them".

I know that the scriptures are the word of God. I have come to love them so dearly. As I have been able to study them more deeply for the past 18 months, I have felt how they truly are "food for the soul". A day without reading the scriptures is like a day without eating- it just about kills me! I have found such comfort and peace and I read and find answers to my prayers or counsel from God. Although they are the same words for everyone, they are infinitely personal, because it is how our Heavenly Father talks to us, and we are each individual persons.

I have been so eternally grateful for the opportunity to be so involved in the lives of others for this past 18 months. I love being able to go into people's homes and teach them of the gospel, to be able to see the light that starts in their eyes when they feel the spirits promptings, the see them make choices in their lives that not only effect them for the better, but all those around them. I can't imagine what it will be like not to do this anymore. I have been so blessed.

These are just a few of the things I know and love. I challenge each of you to take a minute and think of or write down the things you know and love. As we share our testimonies, they grow stronger, because we can feel the spirit testifying of the truthfulness. Share your testimony! In this last week, I have set a goal to not only be a representative of Christ, but an extra special representative of Christ. This is my last opportunity to bear testimony of him as his missionary, and you can believe I am going to take every last bit of this opportunity.

And of course, I am so excited for the things that will continue to happen in my life. I know that there are so many more experiences and opportunities waiting me that I cannot even imagine. I am excited to see what the rest of life holds. 

I love you all so much. I am so thankful for all of the love, support, counsel, and prayers I have received from each one of you. I hope that you have been able to feel the spirit as you have heard about my mission. I hope that you have been able to see the change that has happened in my life, and I hope that it has been able to change your life too. Keep on keeping on y'all.

Para siempre Dios este con vos.

con amor,

Hermana Lundquist

Incredible Opportunity - Week 75

This week we had another lesson with Maria. She still had not prayed about a specific study topic for the book of Mormon, so we decided to just read the first chapter with her. We finished the chapter and she just looked up at us so happily. We talked a little bit about it and then I asked her if she had noticed anything that might be a topic she wanted to study. She smiled really big and said "I want to study the visions that the prophets and servants of God have." Whoa! It was such a simple thing, but both Hermana Garcia and I got so excited! So she pulled out a colored pencil and a sticky note and made her first marking in her Book of Mormon. I just love moments like that. Last week we had promised her that is she prayed and studied even just the first chapter, she would receive revelation about a theme she wanted to study, and we saw it happen!

So this week we had a zone breakout. There is this tradition where at the last zone meeting a missionary has, they do something called  a "dying testimony". Basically they just bear their testimony one more time with the whole zone. So Elder Harper and I both gave our "dying testimonies" it was really weird because it is something you see happening throughout all your mission. As missionaries finish up, they share their testimony and you always think "whoa, I will never get to that point. They are so old and wise." yada yada. So when the moment came where it was my turn, I was actually really shocked. I kind of seemed not real. But it was actually a really cool moment. As I tried to sum up everything that I have learned on my mission in a total of about 5 minutes, I had another moment where I realized how much of a blessing it has been, how much I have loved it, and how much I really have changed. Even though I am a "dying missionary", I am excited to continue on as a living member missionary and apply the things I have learned(:

This week I had the really incredible opportunity to go to a meeting where two trainers from Salt Lake City came and talked with the mission leaders about how to plan and set goals more effectively. By the end of the training, my brain felt like it was about to explode with new information and ideas. I wished for a second that I had heard all of this a year and a half ago, but then I realized how much of a blessing it was to hear it now and realize that I can continue to use this information as I go on and plan and set goals for the rest of my life. I learned how truly important it is to make plans and set goals for everything. EVERYTHING! From weight loss, to marriage, to school, to studying the gospel, it makes a big difference if we can prayerfully set goals, make plans, and then carry them out. I was so thankful to be in that meeting!

On Saturday we spent 6 hours helping a member make tamales! Whoa! My hands hurt by the end of it, but it was such a blast. Just to be with some of the members of the branch, to be able to get to know them in a non-church setting, it was awesome! We talked about so many different things, we laughed, we almost cried, it was a really great day! But for the rest of the day we were pretty much exhausted. You would be surprised how much energy it takes to make a tamale.

This Sunday we had a pretty cool miracle! There is a woman we were trying to work with who has not really been coming to church for a while. Last week, Hermano Rhem (one of the men in the bishopric) was talking with her and he told us that she had mentioned that she wants her son to get baptized. But she left before we were able to talk to her. This Sunday we were able to talk a bit with her and found out that she and her husband are working on coming back to church and her husband is working on becoming worthy to receive the priesthood so he can baptize his son (who is about 8 or 9 years old). She told us that she would like us to come over every Friday to teach a small lesson to help him learn more about the church before he gets baptized! Woohoo! We have been trying to work with this sister for a while and it was really cool to see her starting to warm up and come back to church. I know that this is going to bless her family so much, especially because her two younger sons will be able to see the example of their older brother and one day be baptized as well!

Well it was a great week! I love you all so much. I am having such a blast, but I was thinking maybe I should try to have less fun so that these next two weeks go a little slower haha. 

Keep on keeping on y'all!

Love,

Hermana Lundquist

Miraculous week - Week 74

I am not even sure where to begin for this week. We had quite a few really great experiences.

This week I was able to finish reading the Book of Mormon. It broke my heart, but also lifted me at the same time. If you know me very well, you know that I hate ending things. I just don't like endings. So it made me sad to finish it, but at the same time I am ready to start reading it all over again. As I read it this past time, I studied the characteristics and desires of the kind of person that God wants me to be. This was the first time I have ever read the Book of Mormon with a specific theme and let me tell you, it was life changing. The things I learned, the things I was able to recognize, the spirit I felt, was so beautiful. I can't believe I have never done this before! I learned so much about attributes like joy, faith, humility, patience, etc. I feel like I have a better understanding of how to develop these attributes in my life. I would invite all of you, if you haven't done this before, to pray about a specific topic that you would like to learn more. And then, as you study the Book of Mormon, to prayerfully seek out things related to that topic. Make it exciting; use a fun color to highlight, use sticky notes, draw pictures in the margins, etc. Whatever it is that gets you excited. And then just do it!

So Sunday morning, we were all pumped up for general conference. As we were driving to the stake center, weSaturday and Sunday and can hardly wait for October to hear them again!
started talking about how incredible it is that this is the day that Christ was resurrected. How great of a blessing it is to know that He lives again. As we said that, the speedometer got a little funky. I thought it was weird, but we just kept on going. Then all of a sudden the car started beeping and a few different lights lit up on the control panel. We pulled over and looked at the car guide to try to figure it out and they all meant totally different things. We called the elders and they said they were close to where we were so they would come take a look at it. We turned the car off and back on and it was fine again so we drove a little more but then all the same things started happening. We called our vehicle coordinator for the mission and after looking at a few things, she said it would be okay to drive the car to the stake center. The Elders drove right behind us and we got there with no problems, although the car kept beeping and lighting up. We finally made it to the stake center and were able to enjoy the wonderful talks from general conference. As we were talking about it later, Hermana Garcia told me that things like that make her happy. I looked at her like she was crazy, and then she went on to explain that they make her happy because she knows that she is doing the right. Whenever Satan tries to get in the way or stop us, it is because we are doing the right. So this experience was just a testimony to me of how important it is to listen to our living day Prophet and Apostles. I felt so spiritually full after 

This past Monday, we had dinner with some of the elders from an English ward, and their members. There is a boy in their ward named Abraham who was baptized about a year ago and his mom was interested in a learning a little bit more about the church. She speaks mainly Spanish. The elders has told us about her a while ago and we had met her at a stake party, but she lost her interest for a little while and we were not able to get a hold of her. This Monday we were finally able to meet all together. After the dinner, we taught a family home evening lesson about the gospel of Jesus Christ. We explained in detail how baptisms cleanses us and receiving the gift of the holy ghost helps to protect us from the things of the world. She seemed to be touched but didn't say much. Last night we got a text from the member who's house we had visited and she gave us the phone number of the woman who wants to learn more and said "you should probably get in contact with her. She told us that she would like to get baptized by May or June." MIRACLE!!! The minute we read that text, we just started screaming! We are finally seeing the fruits of our labor! 

Well, it is such a blessing to be a missionary. We have been having such an incredible time. There have been ups and there have been downs. There have been times of a lot of joy and there have been times of a lot of trial and heartache. But it all has been so incredibly worth it! The blessings that I have seen come from it, take away any sadness I have felt. I love it. I love it. I LOVE it. It has been the hardest, but easiest thing I have ever done! Teaching others, having the desire to share what I know will bless them, comes so easily. The sacrifices have been totally worth it. 

I love you all. I hope that you had an incredible Easter and that you were able to remember what the Savior has done for you.

Have a great week!

Love,

Hermana Lundquist

The lagrimas (tears) begin - Week 73

Well, it all starts to get really real when people start crying over the fact that you are going home soon... whew

We had a really great week!

On Tuesday we did some more service for Pam. It was a LOOOOOOONG service day, but by the end, we all felt so good that it didn't even matter. She recently moved and all of her boxes were just shoved into her garage. Because of some health challenges, she can't lift anything too heavy, so we spent a large amount of the day moving the boxes, organizing them by content, cleaning the garage while it was empty, and then moving all the boxes back in. It might sound anti-productive, but she can now walk through her garage, she has a big pile of things to give away, and she knows what is in all the boxes. Before my mission, I recognized that when you serve, you get the warm, fuzzy feelings for helping out, but I really didn't enjoy it too much. Now, I love it! I just love sitting back and looking at the finished project. It was a really great "warm and fuzzy" day(:

This week, we set a goal to help get Angie and Ceci to church. Hermana Garcia gave a talk on Sunday, and she on Wednesday about keeping the commandments and how important even the seemingly small things are. Then on Saturday night, we decided to stop by one more time. I have seen before that during the week we will have a really awesome, spiritual lesson with someone, and they will be way excited to come to church. But as the week goes on, it gets harder and things happen, and by the time Sunday morning rolls around, it is pretty low on the list of things to do. So we decided to try and visit them on Saturday to have a really good lesson and then that spirit would carry over to the next day. We were only able to see Angie, but we had an incredible lesson. We read in the Book of Mormon with her, and it just so happened that the chapter she is reading right now talks a little about bearing testimonies. We told Angie that we would like to bear our testimonies to her, and that after, she could share hers if she wanted to. So we bore our testimonies to her, and then she bore hers. And it was beautiful. I was almost in tears. She told us that she knows that God is watching out for her because he always brings us back to teach lessons and they really help her. It was so gratifying to hear. Sometimes we think that people get annoyed with us visiting so often, or that they don't get much from the lessons we teach. But then we hear people share testimonies like that, and we know that the small work we do, makes a difference. So we invited her right then to call the member who can give her a ride and set it up. So she did, and the member so was so excited! And so were we. And so was Angie! So it was just a big circle of excitement haha. Well we walked into the chapel on Sunday and looked around and didn't see Angie. We were so bummed. But then, we saw her sitting in the corner! Woohoo!! We went over and said hi and then we were just so excited that we went around and said hi to everyone. I think they were a little
taken back with our unusually high amount of pep. But it was great! We have begun to see the fruits of our labors(:
really wanted them to be there. We had a really good lesson 

I went to the last mission leadership council meeting I will ever go to (unless one day I am the wife of a mission president... hey that doesn't sound too bad haha). It was really good, well... the meeting was great! The trainings were all incredible as usual. But I am just a sucker when it comes to final things, so I was a little sad. But as I was feeling bummed, President Passey got up to give his training, and he talked about the Resurrection. Well if that isn't something that just pumps you up, I don't know what else is. It is such a blessing to know that one day, we will not have to suffer the pains of a mortal body, that one day we will be able to dwell with our Heavenly Father. All of this is possible because Christ lives.

Speaking of that, I have an invitation for all of y'all. Yep. Every one of you that is reading these words right now.I invite each one of you to visit Helives.mormon.org (of if you are feeling a little daring elvive.mormon.org) and watch the video. As you do, think of what this video means to you, why it is important, and how it effects your life personally. And then, share it! Knowledge like this can't be cooped up. The whole world needs to know! Shout if from your rooftop if you want to! Ask the missionaries in your ward for some of the pass along cards and give one to someone who needs to know that He lives. This is such a beautiful week, and it will end with a beautiful Sunday. Easter Sunday. I challenge each of you to find at least one person to share this message with. Good luck! I would love to hear about your experiences! 
The church has released a video called Because He Lives. If you remember from last Easter, there was one called Because of Him. And just like the video from last Easter, it is incredible. 

And we always have to remember that all we can do is invite. People have their agency and sometimes they say no. But as long as you do your part, you will be blessed. 

I love you all!

Don't EVER forget that He lives for each and everyone of us. No matter who you are, where you are, or what you have done, He lives.

Love,

Hermana Lundquist

Full of success - Week 72

So this Thursday was one of those days that was perfectly planned out to the T and we were really excited, well... at 9:30 in the morning a woman called and cancelled a service project we had, and our day just all the sudden changed from perfectly planned, to crazy. We were a little worried, but we re-adjusted and continued on, and it turned out to be the most successful day we have ever had together!  In the morning we went to try and contact some referrals we have and met a woman named Gloria. She let us come in immediately and talk with her for a bit. We started talking about family and the blessing it is and she really opened up a lot. We didn't have a ton of time, so we scheduled to go see her again on Tuesday. But it was such an awesome way to start the day! We then continued on visiting some less active members, and seriously everyone that we tried was home! I love these kind of days!! Tender mercy from the Lord for sure.

We had a lesson with Hermana Jewell this week. Last week we finished reading the Book of Mormon with her, so she is ready to start it again. We decided to talk with her about the power of studying a specific theme as you read and taking notes on the impressions you receive. We shared a scripture from Doctrine and Covenants section 130 verses 18 &19, that talk about how important it is to gain knowledge in this life, because it will ultimately be all that we bring with us. As we talked about receiving revelation through the Book of Mormon and more knowledge, she just got more and more excited. By the end we thought she might leap out of her chair. She was talking about getting sticky notes to us, and different colors to make different themes, it was awesome. Honestly, one thing that has become really important and exciting to me is studying the scriptures. It is so much fun to look back through and see all of the notes you have taken, all of the different colors, etc. I heard a quote once that says "If your scriptures are falling apart, it probably means that your life isn't". Basically saying if we have used our scriptures well, studied and loved them, it probably means that our life is in pretty good order. And it is true! 

On Friday we had a lesson with the Tarazon sisters, and it was another incredible one. We talked about the blessings of God with them and how we can more fully receive them. They have both been struggling with different challenges in their life, but the beautiful thing is that even though they are having hard times, they are still able to recognize the hand of God in their lives, no matter how big or small. I love seeing things like that click in other people's minds. For example; when we read the scriptures or pray more or go to church, it just seems like our life kind of goes a little smoother, or that we are able to have more strength to get through the bad times. Coincidence? Not at all. The Lord has promised us blessings beyond what we can imagine, if we only do what he asks us. 

On Saturday we were able to do service for a woman named Pam that we met a few weeks ago. She is having some health problems and thus has not been able to keep up with her yards. The homeowners society here in Tucson is crazy, so she needed to get them out pretty quick, and it just so happened that we knocked on her door a few days before the due date. The Elders and us all went over, and within a few hours, we had totally cleared everything. I love doing service! It has become another of my favorite things to do on the mission. I just love seeing how a few more hands can make such a big difference. The elders that teach those that go to the English congregation will be going back to visit her later this week.

Last miracle of the week: When Hermana Flake and I were serving together, we met a woman named Gloria. We visited her a few times, but after that were never able to have contact. Sunday night, we had a half an hour left and were not quite sure who to visit. Hermana Garcia had a prompting to go visit Gloria. So we drove over to her house... and you will never believe who was sitting outside. Gloria! We talked with her and set up a lesson for tonight! Somethings have changed in her life since the last time we saw her, and she seemed really excited to see us. We can't wait to go back and see her!

Well, as you can tell, it has been a pretty awesome week! I am so grateful that we have been able to be busy, to see the fruits of our labor, and to be blessed with miracles each day! 

I hope y'all are having just as a great of a time as me!

Keep working hard and looking for the hand of the Lord each day in your life!

Don't forget to put on your armor!

Love,

Hermana Lundquist

Good week as usual(: - Week 71

This week we were able to work a lot with some less active members of the branch. I have loved seeing lately how creating a relationship with someone, past just being their missionary, can really help us to help them. We have experienced a lot lately some members really opening up to us about what is going on in their lives and what they are struggling with. For example: This week we went to see a woman who adopted her daughters children, so she has a FULL house. On Sunday they were not able to make it to church. Rather than start off the lesson by bombarding her with questions, we just talked about her, got to know her a little bit more, and let the spirit guide. By the end she totally opened up to us about why they hadn't come to church on Sunday. They had had a really hard experience in their family that they are still struggling with. But because we listened to her, we were able to know what was going on, help them feel better, and help them to get some more help. I strongly believe that that would not have happened if we hadn't started out by just trying to be their friends and show them that we love them and actually care about what they have to say, what they are going through etc. I have experienced in my life that as I see people caring about me and my life, I feel so much more comfortable to confide in them and a lot of the time I come to see that they were the person Heavenly Father placed in my path to help me in certain times of my life. Showing our love for people really is so important. Because you never know when you will be able to have a chance to show it again. Take every opportunity to show the people you care about how much you love them.

This week Hermana Garcia got really sick, so we had quite a bit of down time. During that time I was able to go
back and look through my journal from my mission and remember experiences I have had. It has been incredible to see how much I have changed, how much I have learned, and how many people I have been blessed to meet. This past week was the last week before my final transfer. And for some reason, everyone decided to remind me about it all week. It was terrifying. I cannot believe how much has happened in my life in such a short time. I cannot believe how time has passed so quickly. I'm pretty sure I say that every week, but it really does fly right on by! I took some time this week to set some goals for these final 6 weeks. I am positive that I am going to see miracles. I cannot wait to see what the Lord has in store for this part of Arizona. 

Thank you so much for the support and love you have been to me! I can't wait to tell you all about this final part of the adventure. I feel like I am part of Captain Moroni's army, heading towards the final battle with the Lamanites. All the practice, prayers, trials, and learning have lead up to this moment. I am ready, with the armor of God, to fight this battle. It is going to be a crazy one! But I know that the righteous always come out conqueror in the end.

Love yall! Have a good week!

Hermana Lundquist

"Mountains to climb" - Week 70

Well, as always, I have learned some really incredible lessons this week! I won't go into detail on all of them (because we would be here all day) but I have learned a lot about patience, love, and endurance.

On Wednesday we have Zone meeting. It went really well and I trained on reverence. I had this really nice training on the tools we can use to be more reverent planned, but when I got up there, it all went out the window. I don't remember exactly everything I said, but I do know that it was really bold, really spiritual, and really shocking. Our zone is full of great missionaries, the one thing we lack is a little more reverence in all situations. I talked to another missionary after and she told me that I had basically just given a call to repentance. Haha well if it was what the Lord needed to be taught, then it was perfect. After I sat down though, I just had the most beautiful feeling of peace. One of my favorite things about being a missionary has been being able to just have such guidance from the spirit. The moments when we say something and we have no clue where it came from, but we know it was what the people were supposed to hear, are the best. Because it shows that you are doing what you are supposed to, and that you are worthy to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord. I love being a missionary(:

Later on Wednesday night, we went to meet Ivan (someone that the Elders referred us to). They knocked on his door about a week ago and he said that we could come by and talk with him and his family. So we were able to sit down with him and to explain to him a little bit about what we do as missionaries. He told us a bit about his beliefs (he is catholic) and his life. We were then able to teach him about the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and it went really well! He was really able to feel the spirit. When we talked about prophets he said "So does that mean that there is a prophet today on the earth again?" I love when you can see the wheels turning in people's heads, as they make connections and it starts to make sense. I LOVE that. We set up another time to see him this week, but he went to see family, so we are going to try to visit him again tomorrow. Hopefully we will be able to talk with his wife too!(: I love being a missionary!

Sunday was a really important day, for a few reasons. 1.) We were able to go to church and partake of the sacrament. Always the best part of the week.  and 2.) I received personal revelation on what my purpose in the Sahuaro Branch is for the next 2 months.

We had a meeting with the leadership of the branch to talk about how everything is going and it started out really rough because lately, the members have been having a hard time. We all basically realized that something big needs to be done to help this branch change directions. Later on we had dinner with the second counselor of branch presidency and we were able to put down a few ideas of what can be done. This Wednesday we are going to meet with the elders and make a "rescue plan" of what exactly we are going to do to help the Lord's church in this part of the world. As I pondered about it, I felt strongly impressed that this is why I am here. I know that these next 2 months are going to be rough, that we might not see all the fruits of our labor that we want to, but I know that with the talents each of us have, with the things we have learned, and most importantly with the help of the Lord, we are going to make a huge difference. I titled this weeks update "Mountains to climb", because before us right now is a huge mountain. It looks daunting, it looks like there is no way over it. But as we work with the tools we are given, I know that the Lord will help us to come out conquerors.

I love yall so much! I hope that you have just as incredible of a week as we are going to! Keep working hard and never forget who you are.

Love,

Hermana Lundquist

ps: I heard a really cool analogy this week. Missionaries are like the surgeons/doctors. We have to tools to fix whatever is the problem, but the members of the church and nurses/therapists. The missionaries come and go, but the members are the ones that say and help the whole "healing process". Look for the ways that the lord wants you to be someone's "nurse" this week.