One Thing Is Needful Jan. 2, 2018

Motra Christensen and I are now over the first and third wards in Tirana. Taking over the other sisters' area. We are looking forward to a busy transfer. 

Motra Godfrey finished her mission. To be poetic: Godfrey taught me how to dance in the rain <3 Bye buddy. Ishalla me një fat të mirë.  [Mom comment: Hopefully you will have good luck - something like that.]

Majlinda, the investigator who left after the baptism fiasco, came back. Ready? So she said after she left, the whole day she felt like she was hearing the Spirit tell her that she needs to continue learning with us. And she felt so bad. So she was praying hard for forgiveness. Then she said that she just felt this peace, that she was forgiven. She got her answer. She said that she's not looking for that sign now. She doesn't need to see a sign. Not anymore. And everything that happened on Monday had to have happened so that she would leave, so that she would get her answer. She came to church on Sunday.  She is finding her faith and it is really cool to see! Now we are going to stop smoking. Here in comes the power of God. :) You never know why things happen. It's a good thing God does.

"The Atonement will carry the missionaries perhaps even more importantly than it will carry the investigators."  (Missionary Work and the Atonement by Elder Holland aka the BEST talk EVER) So I have really had a cool past transfer, really thinking about what I'm doing here. It's been kind of hard when you think of what the "good" missionaries do, ya know what you are supposed to be doing here. And when you don't have all that success, you begin to wonder why. Why don't we have success? What am I doing wrong? Then you start feeling like an awful person, like a failure. This is why a mission is hard. But this is also something that you don't have to feel. I think I just kind of got to a point this transfer when I decided you know what? I don't want to be depressed right now. Everything just fell through. Everything is my fault. But I don't want to be sad anymore. Then I read in the Bible, Luke 10:40 - 41 "And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her." Then it hits, ok ya ya I get it, ok I'm worried and troubled about everything. But there is only one thing that cannot be taken away from me. Investigators will leave, members will leave, things will not go as planned, but Christ will not leave. So if we take our own advice, to build our foundation upon Christ, then we won't fall, we won't get sad, when everything around us fails. So I obviously need to change my focus. Of course we are going to keep working hard, of course we want to find success in helping people come unto Christ, but my goal for this transfer is to know my Savior. So then at the end of the transfer I can see success. I will measure my work on how I have come to Him. :)

Love,

Motra Hegërd