First email from the mission field. She's in W. Virginia!!

Hello friends and family! How's life? Great? I hope so!

So, I flew into Maryland last Tuesday! That was one busy day! When we landed in the airport, many missionaries, along with President and Sister Richards, were there to great us! We got slammed with 99 degree weather and lots of humidity! That was definitely a change! I felt like I was swimming! But, other than that day, it's actually been pretty nice here! Not too hot or humid :) There was a giant thunderstorm the night we flew in. I've never heard thunder that loud! I was in awe :) Love it here! 

So, I met my trainer, Sister Lawrence, last week and she's pretty awesome. She bow hunts like Katniss Everdeen and totally gets teased about it all the time haha. We both love yoga, cats, and ice cream, which is basically all I ask for, so we get along pretty well haha. I've been sent to serve in the Harper's Ferry, West Virginia part of this mission, so that's amazing! It's everything I could've hoped for! Lots of country, wide open spaces, and it's SO GREEN! I've never before seen so many trees! I'll send some pictures :)

My companion mentioned to me the other day something pretty cool to think about. There are a bunch of Sisters out on missions and a bunch in my mission, but we are the ONLY TWO SISTERS to be called to the Harper's Ferry area at this time! How lucky are we?!

On transfers day, it was pretty awesome; I was driving through Maryland, then we went through Virginia, and made it to West Virginia twice in one day and the drive was less than 2 hours. Super cool. I've almost been in all the states in my mission! I'm just missing Pennsylvania and I haven't even been here a full week yet! For those of you who don't know now, my Preparation Day will be on Monday for the rest of my weekend. Just so you know. 

Oh, and HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY! Almost! This Saturday! That'll be fun! Sis. Lawrence and I get to go to a cookout with one of the recent converts in this area. She's pretty awesome :) We were weeding in her yard a couple days ago and, I kid you not, a giant spider that looked more like a creature, was right above our heads staring at us! I swear, it's legs were the size of my pinky! And a new Tongan sister, Sister F., just poked it with a stick and it totally moved all the plants and weeds while it was running away. Terrifying. The bugs here are big.

Speaking of bugs, FIREFLIES!! I've never in my life seen fireflies and they're everywhere here! God totally knew I'd need that because, as you all know I love glitter, and these little bugs are like bursts of glitter everywhere here and it's perfect after a long hard day. Just amazing :) Utah needs fireflies. Bad. 

So, the townhouse I'm living in is more like a mansion! I've been so spoiled here! Just my comp and I live in it and we have 3 floors, our own bathrooms, and a full-size kitchen! I'll probably never be this spoiled in my entire life. Love it! And we get to drive by the Potomac river almost every day. So beautiful. I'm extremely blessed. 

So, we have one investigator family that is absolutely golden! All the children know their bible and what we are teaching them just makes sense to them, which is awesome! The mom, Amy, really wants to come to church, but her husband refuses to let her. He thinks Mormons are those polygamists and they marry children; she knows he's wrong, but his heart won't soften. We're praying for her... 

So, we have awesome members here who are super involved in the missionary efforts. I love it. They feed us well and I've never seen so much ward/missionary interaction. DO MISSIONARY WORK! The missionaries will appreciate the referrals and you and your family will be blessed! It's hard being rejected so much here because the people are comfortable in their lifestyle and they don't want to put in the work to learn more, so they just don't, but it really is like handing out $100 and having people just stomp on them. Sometimes people can be mean and will offer my companion and I beer just because they know we don't drink and they'll tease us about it, but that's okay. It is frustrating, but it's okay. I really do love these people and so many people love God here, so that's always great! I just have to keep remembering that The Lord is preparing people for me to teach if I just stay obedient. 

So, you know how Hazing is totally and completely bad? Well, my companion totally hazed me into this mission! Haha, so we had an appointment with this family who had tattoos everywhere and were offering us alcohol and all this stuff, and it got super uncomfortable really fast because they were asking me these deep doctrine questions and my companion wasn't answering anything! I was all along while teaching them, then they all busted up laughing because it was all fake! RUDE! They have this cute little 7 year old who thought her family was super mean for doing this for me, but I thought it was funny. Sister Lawrence is lucky I have a good sense of humor. It was good. They're a great family. We're going to start teaching their little girl the missionary lessons to prepare her for baptism. They're a less-active family and we're working a lot with the less-actives so hopefully that'll help. We are going to have a yoga party soon :) 

Well, I think this is all for now. Our district hiked Maryland Heights this morning. We were hiking for about 4 1/2 hours, but I have lots of pictures! I'm so exhausted by now haha, and we haven't had anything to eat, so grocery shopping is the next thing on the list!
I love you all and I know you're all amazing! I know this Church is True! I wouldn't be here if I didn't. Many people get comfortable with where they're at in life; DON'T! Push yourself to work harder, be better, and love more. Learn new things! I know that if I hadn't had that desire to learn for myself if this Gospel was true, I would be completely lost. This world is a tough place to live. Life isn't fair. I've met some people here who have lost children and just terrible things, but this gospel and God's love gives them hope. I know this Gospel can give you hope too. It won't take away your challenges, but it will make life easier. Remember that. I love you all! Have a great week!

Love, 

Sister Humphrey

Hello all! This week has been so busy and so crazy! The days drag on (we're in class for 16 hours), but they all blend together, so the week goes by fast. I'll make sure to attach the pictures in this email. I get to go to the temple again later today, so that's excited! This week, my companion and I started TRC (which is where we teach "investigators" who are really just converts). That was a love/hate experience; haha. We've had many lessons that were completely inspired by the Spirit. If the spirit isn't there, nothing is being taught. We had a couple lessons that were just horrible because we ignored the spirit. Those were hard wake-up calls, but we've gotten better. We love our "investigators" so much and I have no idea how I'm supposed to leave them on Tuesday. I'll be heading to Maryland at 4:30 in the morning on Tuesday! Bright and early! But, anyway, these people that Sister Hart and I were able to teach are just amazing people. We had an experience with Barbara, one of the "investigators", where the Spirit was so strong! She taught us so much! She was going through things that she just couldn't do alone and she finally tried "the pray thing" we taught her about and at first she didn't think it would amount to anything, but she started reading "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" pamphlet that we had felt inspired to give her, and it completely answered her prayer. She was able to feel the comfort that she needed and she was so excited to tell us all about it! We were able to invite her to baptism and she accepted! She even said the closing prayer and it was probably the most spiritual prayer I have ever had the opportunity to hear.

So, the first presidency is coming to the MTC!!! .... The week after I leave. Great timing right? We'll be missing the Tuesday devotional that they'll be likely speaking at, so that sucks, but Maryland will be good. 

So, I encourage all of you to say one prayer every day that just focuses on other people. Give thanks and pray for others ONLY. See how your life will change. Because I can promise you it will, and the lives of those you pray for will change as well. I don't think I've said a prayer for just myself this whole time, except for when praying for food. it's an amazing experience. I love it. When we focus our attention on others rather than inside ourselves, great things happen. The spirit is continually with me unless I put myself in a situation where it can't reside (which doesn't really happen at the mtc). Such an amazing blessing. 

Here's some quotes from this week:

"One of the greatest secrets of missionary work is work."

"The labor starts when you get up at 6:30 am and doesn't stop until 10:30pm when you go to bed. And the blessings of your labor are the harvests."

"The difference between a mission and a great mission is work. Hard work."

"Just get up and do the work, then you will become a champion!"

"To get the miracle, we must step forward in confidence."

READ ETHER 12!!! All of it! It's amazing :) Just read it. Please. 

Well, my time is up. I love these people so much. I'm going to miss the MTC and all who are in it. I'm going to miss my investigators because they really are amazing people. I love them so much! Thank you all for your love and support. You're amazing! I have lots of pictures for ya! Hope you enjoy them!

Love, 

Sister Humphrey

 

First Mission Pictures!!

Her first email as a missionary!! Enjoy!

Just got this email from Terilyn today. She also sent pictures. I will attempt to add those too. 

Dear family, you suck at writing me. Dear friends, I'd love to hear from you! Haha, okay, rant over. Just so you all know, my P-days are on Saturday while I'm at the MTC! I'll be having one more Pday before I leave to Maryland. We just got our travel info yesterday, so it's coming fast! Only 10 more days at the MTC!! Crazy!

So, missionary time is really strange. The days seem to drag on, but the week goes by so fast! All of the days seem to blend together, so it's hard to remember what day I did certain things. We are in a classroom most of the day and have little to no time to do anything for ourselves, including shower. My companion and I have been waking up early to exercise, which is great, because we don't have much gym time. Even on Pdays. I did have gym time yesterday and that was a blast! We got to play Volleyball and I just found out that there are high records for certain conditioning exercises including pull-ups. For those of you who know me, I can pop out 20 pull ups in no time and the record for the girls is only 11, so, Whitney, when you come to the MTC, look for my name on the record board!!

Okay, so the first day of the MTC was a bunch of running around and talking. I met my companion, who, by the way, is the coolest person ever. You know how you can give really good friends "The Look" after hearing something and it's just awesome because you both know what the other person is thinking? (Alexis and Leah, if you don't know what this is, then I've been giving you crazy looks our entire friendship)  Anyway, within three hours of meeting Sister Hart, she and I shared "The Look" and we've been best friends ever since. I seriously feel like I have separation anxiety whenever we're apart! We've been told that we are "eternal friends" by our branch president and we definitely feel that way. I love her so much! And, I have so much that I can learn from her. She's just awesome.

Our entire district is going to Maryland, so that's something new. Most districts have people serving in different areas, but not us! During our orientation on our first night, we were told that we were part of more than 600 missionaries entering the MTC on June 10th and that it was the biggest group of missionaries our presidency has ever had (but not a record at the MTC). So that's cool.

Another cool thing! So, my companion and I have been called as Sister Training Leaders! When I first entered the MTC, I had no desire to be a missionary leader. None. But when we were in our Branch meeting, I just had the biggest desire to serve these Sisters! Luckily our Branch Presidency felt that and asked us to this calling. I love it! I get to love these sisters and serve them more than ever. My companion is great at it, too! We get to welcome the new missionaries next week and give them a tour of the MTC (which will be my companions job because I'm directionally challenged in that area). I'm so excited! My comp and I are like big sisters to all these sisters and it's just awesome!

The food is yummy and it's hard to eat very healthy here, but my appetite is still small like usual, so I guess that's good. I get to go to the temple today, which is great! it's going to be so nice to get out of the MTC for a while. And tomorrow my companion and I are going to start MTC choir! We'll only be in it for two Sundays because we leave on June 23rd, but that's okay. 

Something that I learned while at the MTC, for those of you who know physiology and how the human body works, you'll know what a positive feedback system is. THE GOSPEL IS A POSITIVE FEEDBACK SYSTEM! If you don't know what that is, then you'll have no idea what I'm talking about, but if you do, IT MAKES SENSE! The more we put into the gospel and learning and trying, the more blessings we receive and the happier we feel. When we feel happier, we are more likely to serve and share our happiness with others, which is how we learn and try and serve; therefore, we receive even more blessings for the additional work we do. Isn't that awesome! It totally makes sense :) Oh, and Whitney! When you come to the MTC, pay attention to one of the videos during your first three days about Fundamentals. It shows Gymnastics! A certain gymnast whom I LOVE that hurt her ankle during the Olympics and competed on the vault anyway (and landed on one foot) (I hope you know who I mean! If not, I'll tell you next week) is shown in this video and it made my day! 

I have so much to learn here! It's crazy! We've been teaching some "investigators" and one of them is really hard to connect with. She's very disinterested in everything and Sis Hart and I have struggled finding ways to teach her and help her feel of Heavenly Father's love for us. Yesterday was our first time teaching her and it definitely wasn't easy. My companion and I struggled for the longest time to feel the spirit directing us. We had no idea where to go with her after our lesson. Yesterday was definitely a learning experience. We were taught more about prayer and how we can teach and invite others to come unto Christ by helping them feel His love for us. We have done SO many role plays to learn how to teach better and be directed by the Spirit. After our lesson, our teacher asked us (as companions) to go into empty rooms with just our companion and do some individual prayer. We were able to kneel down and just pray, pour our hearts out to God, and listen to what He had to say to us. I think I prayed for about 20 minutes and when my companion and I looked up, we were both bawling. It was a hard day and we needed to feel of our Father's love and we needed to know that He's proud of us for what we are trying to do. I can testify to you that as long as you try, even though you will fail, your Father in Heaven is proud of you. He loves you and He wants you to be happy. That is the greatest message I can tell you right now. The Atonement is real and our Father loves us SO MUCH that He provided a way back to Him despite our imperfections. I just can't stress this enough. OUR HEAVENLY FATHER LOVES US! We should be jumping for joy! Ah, just such an amazing feeling. 

Although I still have so much to learn, I know the Spirit will be able to teach through me and my investigators will be able to feel the Hope and Happiness that comes with growing in the Gospel. Seeing this change in people is exactly why I left. 

Well, I will end with a quote I heard while in the MTC because quotes are what I'm all about! 

"Everything in this conversion process must happen to you before it can happen to them." - Elder Holland. If you can become truly converted, then you can teach. Before that conversion happens, your investigators won't be able to feel the spirit. Pressure! But it's good. Okay, I love you all! I hope you have an amazing week and I hope I get to hear from you next week! Seriously! I'm desperate ;) OH! And if you know anything about DearElder.com (or not) please use it! Mess around with it, because I can get your letter the very next day at the MTC and it'd be nice to have something handed to me while the rest of my district gets their letters. Thanks guys! I love you all!

Love, 

Sister Humphrey

Message from Mom

Wow!!! It's here! We leave to go to the Stake Center in an hour and 10 minutes to have my little girl set apart as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Then I'm stuck to her like glue because until she's dropped off, I'll be her companion.
It has been an exciting journey as she has thought about going, decided to go, getting called, and then preparing to go. I must say that she is an example to me; her testimony is strong, and she knows who she is. The Baltimore, Maryland mission is getting one very special girl.

I love you Terilyn!! I am so grateful to have you in my life!

Just so you all know, I'm not a computer whiz, and I may mess stuff up, so if there are mistakes, please forgive me. I'm going to attempt to post her weekly group emails, and an occasional picture she may send.

Here goes the next exciting journey in our lives!!!

Off to the MTC I go

Jumping for Joy

     In less than 24 hours, I will be sitting in the Provo Missionary Training Center. I will be in a brand new area with completely different people. That journey will last for 12 days until I head off on another journey to Maryland on June 23rd. Right now it's hard to think about all of the emotions I'm feeling. Honestly, all I can think about is how hungry I am, how much I want ice cream, and how much I wish my head would stop hurting. Probably not the best things to be thinking of as I prepare to be set apart as a full-time missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but I guess I just can't help it! For my last day as a normal 19 year old girl, I chose to spend the majority of it with my family at the Mount Timpanogos temple (#favoritetemple) and it is absolutely beautiful! I love the feeling of the spirit throughout the temple. I can honestly say, there is no better place (even my bed!). While thinking about the MTC that I will enter tomorrow, I can't help but hope for such a spirit there with me. I know it's not the temple, although we do get to visit there often, but I can't help but wonder how strong the spirit will be in a place where I am surrounded by people who have the desire to serve the Lord. So many people full of optimism and hope and love. I don't know a lot of things pertaining to missionary work or the MTC, but I do know that it will be amazing. It will be a learning experience. And, it will be worth it.

     My wonderful family will be updating this site while I am gone, so check back here for more info! I would love to hear from you all during my MTC stay and after. For now, my MTC mailing address is: 

Sister Terilyn Humphrey

JUN23 MD-BALT

2009 N 900 E Unit 142

Provo UT 84602

     Please write or email me! I could use all the support I can get! And don't forget to check out the website dearelder.com where you can write me online and I will get a letter in the mail the next day! It's free while I'm at the MTC and very simple to figure out! Thank you all for your love! In one way or another, you've all shaped me into the person I am today. I love you! 

Love, 

Sister Terilyn Humphrey

P.s. My mission email is terilyn.humphrey@myldsmail.net

Farewell Talk

Here is a copy of my farewell talk! I am posting this mainly for the people who had to miss it, but, obviously, all are welcome to read. It was such a blessing to talk about something so close to me! Here goes:

For those of you who don’t know, or have forgotten, I have been called to serve in the Maryland Baltimore Mission, and I will be reporting to the Provo MTC on June 10^th. While I’ve been preparing for my mission, I have come to find out that everyone knew I would be serving, except for me. Knowing that I would be serving an LDS mission was a surprise for me. In fact, I remember sitting in institute class my first semester of college with my friend Kennede, when she turned to me and asked, “So, when are you turning in your mission papers?” and I was in absolute shock. I quickly told her that I wasn’t going to be serving a mission because it just wasn’t for me and it wasn’t in my plan. After asking why she would think such a thing, she replied in her usual ‘well duh’ tone of voice with, “Because you would be a good missionary.”

            Ken, I’m not sure I’ll be a good missionary, but I’ll try. Her question made me start really considering a mission. Like I’ve said so many times before, I did not want to serve. I prayed many times about it, but I’m stubborn and didn’t like my answer. Luckily, The Lord knows that. I remember sitting in the temple waiting to do baptisms for the dead back in October after my classes had finished for the day, and I prayed to Heavenly Father thinking, “Okay, Heavenly Father, I’m going to ask this one last time and whatever answer I receive today in the temple, I will accept it. Should I serve a mission?” I then began reading in D&C section 15 where I had left off the night before and The Lord answered my prayer that day in the most direct way. D&C 15 verses 4, 5, & 6 state, “For many times you have desired of me to know that which would be of the most worth unto you. Behold, blessed are you for this thing, and for speaking my words which I have given you according to my commandments. An now, behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father. Amen.”

            I know The Lord knew my heart and He knew that I wouldn’t serve without an answer as direct as that. He answered me in a way that I could not deny that I had received my answer. So, I guess that answer that day has led me to where I am standing right now, despite my doubts, fears, and my plan.

            As a soon-to-be missionary, I have had the opportunity to memorize D&C section 4, which is essentially the “missionary scripture” and all missionaries must know it. D&C 4 states, “Now behold, a marvelous work is about the come forth among the children of men. Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve Him with all your heart, might, mind, and strength, that ye may stand blameless before Him at the last day. Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God, ye are called to the work. For behold, the field is white already to harvest; and, lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul. And faith, hope, charity, and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work. Remember, faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence. Ask and ye shall receive, known and it shall be opened unto you. Amen.”

            I would now like to talk about section 4 in the Doctrine and Covenants verse by verse.

            The first, again, states, “Now behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men.” This “marvelous work” discussed in the first verse is talking about missionary work. The work of The Lord is greatly increasing! It is said often in this church that “our greatest and most important duty is to preach the gospel,” not because we want the highest number of members or more support and popularity, but because we want all of God’s children to know all the truths this gospel brings and to feel the joy that comes when one follows the great plan of happiness. I know I have felt of this joy and it is true and eternal. I encourage all members to take part in this “marvelous work” by serving missions or by being an example to all by living a happy Latter-day life. Each one of your testimonies is important and can make a difference in someone’s life. Share it. Help the missionaries share this glad message to people who are willing to listen. Be a missionary, whether you’re wearing a badge or not. According to Elder Clayton M. Christensen, “The ability to share the gospel isn’t a ‘gift’ that has been given to only a few Latter-day saints and denied to the rest. We have concluded from our own experiences from watching others that finding people for the missionaries to teach can be easy and natural for all of us – if we go about it the Lord’s way.” We are all called to this work and we will not fail.

            The second verse states, “Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve Him with all your heart, might, mind, and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last days.” As I’ve said before, we have all been called to take part in this “marvelous work,” We will all be serving God if we live the gospel teachings and that service will bring you great happiness. Because this work is so important, we all need to remember to give it 110% every day, all day. That doesn’t mean that your entire life should be devoted to proselyting and only serving as a missionary does for 18-24 months, but it does mean that we should all look for opportunities to serve. Pray each morning for the opportunity to share the gospel and serve someone and the Lord will provide if you do your part. Then, watch how your life will change. Performing acts of service helps one be happier. That is fact. Forgetting yourself and giving of your time, love or talents to someone in need not only changes the life of the one being served, but also of the one serving. I have been given so many great examples of people who truly give their all in service for the Lord. Many of those people are sitting here today. Thank you for your examples. You’ve helped me realize that at the end of my life, I want to be able to stand before my Father in Heaven, exhausted from the work that I’ve done, but extremely happy for all the lives I’ve touched, and I want Him to be able to say, “I’m proud of you, Terilyn. Well done.” Because what child doesn’t want to make their parents proud? Service to God’s children will do just that.

            This third verse in D&C 4 states, “Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God, ye are called to the work.” I remember walking to the bishop’s office the first time I was going to tell him that I wanted to serve a mission. I felt like such a fraud. I knew I needed to serve a mission, and I was acting upon my answer, but I still had no desire to give up tumbling, school, my amazing job where I get to coach some of the best kids in the world, my family, and 18 months of my life for a mission that would require hard work and rejection daily. I did not want that. But, thankfully, The Lord answered my desperate pleas asking for that desire to serve. He helped me realize that I did want to serve and I’ve had that desire all along. And my desire to serve can basically be summed up all in one word: Hope. This truth I have been fortunate enough to learn has given me an unshakable hope for the future and knowledge that everything will be okay somehow and someway.

            There was a time in my life that I had little to no hope. I was lost and unhappy. The trials in my life at that time, looking back, were not as bad as I felt they were, but I was lost and without the truth and knowledge I have now, I felt like it was the end of the world.

            Luckily, I had great leaders in this ward and great examples in my life who taught me the gospel principles and helped me find hope. I’ve recently faced trials in my life that have been the most difficult for me and my family so far, but these times have not been my darkest moments because The Lord has prepared me for this, and the happiness and light found in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is far greater than the darkest sorrows of my trials. The Lord has helped me realize this and I know there are people out there that are going through difficulties much greater than my own, and they are searching for hope. The Lord has prepared me to serve these people by giving them the hope that I once found in my darkest hours because of the people He placed in my life. And that is why I have chosen to serve a mission now.

            The fourth verse states, “For behold, the field is white already to harvest; and, lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store, that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul.” People are ready to hear the truth. We must do our part to bring it to them. It is our greatest duty and we will be blessed for our efforts.

            Verse 5 reads, “And faith, hope, charity, and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work.” This verse always reminds me of the quote, “God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called.” I guess that’s a good thing because I am far from being qualified to teach the Lord’s children. But this verse reminds us that as long as we are striving to be better, striving to gain faith, hope for the future, have charity and love for all of God’s children, we will be enough. You do your part and God will do His, blessing you with the qualifications to be better in all of your callings in the church, your home and your life.

            Verse six states, “Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence.” There are many qualities and characteristics that will bring us closer to Christ and make us better missionaries, but these few mentioned are obviously important. One can not learn and therefore, teach without faith or knowledge. By living a pure and virtuous lifestyle, being humble in all his actions, giving to those in need, serving with kindness and love, and diligently striving to become more Christ-like, we can come closer to God and learn more each day, and we can feel more of His perfect love for us and each of His children.

            Lastly, verse seven: “Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Amen.” I can testify that God hears and answers your prayers. I urge you to seek for answers to your questions and they will be answered. Most answers will not be blunt, but if you search diligently, with the right intent, you will find an answer. I know God will help you if you ask. Set goals for yourself and let Heavenly Father know what you want to accomplish. If you do your part, He will help you become successful.

            I remember having a full-blown panic attack at the beginning of my spring semester. I was preparing to serve my mission and I had made the goal to not only receive my associate’s degree within only one year of college, but to do it with a 4.0 GPA. With this goal in mind, I registered for 17.5 credit hours, just half a credit short of the maximum allowed for my scholarship. As I looked at all the syllabi and the workload I would have this semester, on top of preparing to serve, I began to cry. I remember walking into my mother’s room that night at 3 in the morning just bawling because I felt so stressed out and I couldn’t sleep. The future essays I would be required to write were literally haunting my dreams. I’m sure my friend Haylee can remember this. I prayed so long that night and many other nights that semester. And, as you can all see, I survived. I was able to reach my goal, but through it all, I know I was not alone. My Heavenly Father knew how important that goal was for me and He is the only reason I was able to do it.

            Seriously, “ask and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” Whatever your request may be, as long as you have sincere heart and it’s in the Lord’s plan. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true and that is has the complete truth. I know that continued revelation exists on this Earth and that our prophet Thomas S. Monson speaks for the Lord. Joseph Smith restored the gospel to this world and he prepared the way for Christ to come again. I can not wait to devote 18 months of my life to The Lord in service of His children. Because of this opportunity, I will come closer to my lifelong dream of inspiring millions through the Holy Spirit. I know that because of the plan of salvation, we are not alone, and God has a plan for each of us. Families can be together forever. I know this gospel brings true happiness. It is not just a happy message. I go to church to hear the truth, not to feel loved and accepted by others, although that is always a bonus. I desire to share this gospel, not only because of its absolute truth, but because of the happiness it brings. The great blessing of the atonement can heal your pain as it has healed mine. I urge you to replace your fear with faith. Let the gospel into your heart and let it change you. I know the Lord will strengthen you when you are weak. All of us have our part in this miracle. “May the Lord bless each of you in your personal quest to know His will for you and to submit your will to His.” Thank you all for coming and for the influence you’ve all made in my life. You inspire me. I know these things are true with all my heart. In the sacred name of Jesus Christ, Amen.