Days run quicker, dreams come true. This missions what you make it. This missions for you too.
Refocusing My Focus
It’s like taking a pause a small course correction, everything’s already there in the frame, the camera just need to concentrate on the subject. Recently it’s felt like this, and I’ve seed the change. What’s been the focus? Jesus Christ. I know that sounds strange. I’m just now focusing on Christ?
Not exactly
It’s almost a new confidence it’s putting all my focus on Him letting the other parts blur, realizing more each day what it means to be a true disciple of Jesus Christ. The impossible race. But really the more I learn the more it makes sense it’s never even been about being perfect and getting everything right.
“
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Matt 5:48 It’s about being perfectly fine with accepting the help we 100% need to clean up the mess we’ve made, and giving it all to the Savior.
My Run With David Goggins
Finding ourselves yet a great way off, the hour at 20 minutes till, and the ETA 30 minutes, there was only one option. Run. Yup thats right impromptu 3k. The three other missionaries I was with and I took off. As time passed we found ourselves unable to muster the strength to continue the arduous pace. In our plight it was as if an angel of God was sent to rescue us in this attempt at 100% obedience. This angel “David” apeared out of nowhere passing us, running the opposite direction, just as we had come to a walking pace. Randomly he turned around and started to run after us passing us and giving a yell, BORA ELDER!!! (LET’S GO).
There was no second thought we all took up his pace and followed him, adding our own cheers to the mix as he led us half of the way back, just to round a corner and disappear basically into thin air as quickly as he apeared. His job was finished he had motivated us. So even without him we kept going.
As we got close to our house my companion started to falter and so one by one we all assisted him with a boost pushing from behind with our hand on his back to give the necessary boost.
As our hour struck we arrived, perfectly on time, 100% obedient.
A Dream Come True (Eunice)
When we first met her a couple months ago she said that being baptized was her dream. She had been from church to church but she never was baptized.
Before I started my service as a missionary, I had the dream of baptizing in the ocean, and unfortunately I found out the only area that could was not an Elders area.
We started teaching Eunice and she seemed to love everything we taught and grew to her own personal testimony. Every sunday something seemed to happen an she never ended up going to church. After some time we weren’t able to contact her anymore. Just like that she had slipped without a trace out of our lives. Everyday I would think about what had happened, to that sweet lady.
One day as we had just witnessed a miracle (a person who had already talked to the missionaries but had stopped, was ready to be baptized when we found him), my comp and I left the house talking. He was surprised that something like that could happen, I explained that some people just aren’t ready but they will be. I began to start talking about Eunice, the lost lady and was about to say that I knew she would be found by some missionaries eventually. As the words left my mouth I looked around and before I could finish, there she was. Right in front of us. We rushed over and started talking to her, and from then on she came to church every week without fail.
After spending almost 5 months in an area close to the beach I had almost given up hope of fulfilling my dream, but finally the day came, our zone decided to have all of the baptisms together on the beach, something that required the authorization of three different. One by one they all accepted.
So there we were, the warm water, the lapsing waves, the setting sun, the perfect
person, and the perfect place. Two dreams united.
God has a tendency to do that. To take our will, all
we can do, and if its a righteous desire he’ll take whatever we thought and make it better, better than we could have imagined.
Trust in God, that’s the only thing I can say. Do what it takes to repent, the joy in Him is always better than the joys of this world.
Google Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/cnvNHFLuWEPTfcKj7
Love yall
-Elder Gist