This week was solid. It's a Long email week!
This was probably my last week in Langen! I've now been here 8 months (6transfers) and I'm almost certainly leaving! So next week I'll be emailing from a new area. Transfer calls are Saturday so we'll find out then!
We got back in contact with Soroush! His phone broke and also he has to move and is trying to find a new apartment, but fortunately we managed to get in contact and set up an appointment, then got Facebook messenger working so we can communicate. He's doing well, and we are glad to be working with him again :)
The Manics are doing wonderful!! They are still reading and praying and loving it! They see the blessings of the gospel and are so grateful for them. They are truly "feasting upon the words of Christ" and they are awesome. Their papers are almost here and then they can get married and baptized! So close! Sadly I probably won't be here for it, but I hope I can maybe come back for it. Maybe.
We had another massive mission conference with Elder Sabin of the Seventy, who is the first counselor in the Europe Area Presidency. It. Was. Amazing. He is such a spiritual giant with a lot of wisdom and insight. The conference was about 5 hours long and it was a spiritual blast the whole time. Kinda felt like Sidney Rigdon after he and Joseph Smith had the vision in Doctrine and Covenants 76. I wanted to plop on the ground and fall asleep. It was so powerful. He taught us powerfully about the plan of salvation and the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He also had a question and answer where he addressed any concerns and questions anyone had and it was wonderful.
As a part of the fact that the conference was for 4 different zones, we overnighted again and had Elder Mortensen and his companion, Elder Hyatt stay with us. Elder Mortensen goes home next week and it's been way fun to hang out with him and catch up for a few days for this conference.
I've been thinking a lot about two stories from the Bible and how they relate.
One is the story of the Widow's Mite.
Mark 12:41-44 reads :
"41 ¶ And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.
"42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.
"43 And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
"44 For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living."
This widow didn't have much to offer. She had only two mites to give to the Lord. But as Christ says, her offering was worth more than that of any other. This is because she gave her all. It was a sacrifice for her to give just these two mites, but she did it anyway.
She very easily could have thought to herself, "I have only two mites. They barely make a single farthing. What is even the point of such a meager offering? What difference is 2 mites really going to make? Why bother? I have nothing to offer." She may have pitied herself and given up. She could have seen herself as the world sees her and seen only the monetary value of the two meager mites. She could have become discouraged and given up.
But she didn't. She saw herself and her offering the same way that the Savior saw it. For its value as a personal sacrifice and consecration. She knew that even though her offering wasn't much, it was all she had. So she gave it to the Lord anyway.
The other story is that of the Syrian Noble, Naaman.
2 Kings 5:1,9-14:
"1 Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the Lord had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.
"9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
"10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.
"11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.
"12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.
"13 And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?
"14 Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean"
Sometimes, all the Lord asks for is 2 mites. Sometimes he doesn't ask us to work amazing miracles by faith. Sometimes he doesn't want us to do great acts of service. Sometimes, for today, all God asks for is 2 mites. Simply because all he asks for two mites however, doesn't mean we can withhold them.
We sometimes get discouraged when we desire or long to do great things for the Lord but seem unable to do so. We want to feed the poor, end wars, supply aid to disaster victims, baptize the planet, etc. Circumstances continue to block us from serving as we would wish. But when this happens, we cannot forget to cast in our two mites. We cannot forget to do the simple things every day that we CAN do. We cannot forget to read the word of God every day. To pray every day. To go to church every week. To love and serve those directly around us. We must remember to do what we can. It's not enough to be willing to die for our Savior, we need to live for him. Don't look at these small Commandments as the world looks at them. Don't think to yourself that they are worthless. Maybe for today, all we can offer is our two mites that make a farthing. But let's make sure we offer them.
There are days when we are beat. When we are absolutely exhausted or cranky or somebody wronged us or we misplaced our keys or it's too hot or too cold or we feel down or we feel happy or we feel accomplished or we feel defeated. It doesn't really matter how our day, or week, or year is going. We can still make sure, every day, that we throw in our 2 mites. We don't need to make excuses. We can't allow ourselves to think that we've done enough. Because the instant we think that we have done enough, we are "[casting] in of [our] abundance". God doesn't care how much we throw in, simply that it's ALL we have. I've quoted it before, but "The Lord doesn't want your time. He doesn't want your service. He doesn't want your energy, your work, your money. He wants you". He doesn't care how much you give, he wants you to experience the joy that comes from truly giving your all.
Something Elder Sabin answered this week was a question another missionary asked, but is also something that has been on my mind. "How do I know if I've done my best?" to which Elder Sabin said "You can know you've done your best if you have desired to do your best". What "your best" is really measured by isn't how much you give, but how you give it. You succeed if you try. Your desires and heart are what measure your gift to God, just like the Widow.
Omni 1:26
"26 And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved."
So let's try to simply throw in our two mites every day. To give all we have to the Lord. He will bless and stand by us. Try to be better today. A little more diligent. A little more like Christ. Give him your two mites and don't look back :)
Once again I love you all! I really hope you know that you are a child of a loving Heavenly Father who watches over and stands by you. Just because we can't see him doesn't mean he isn't listening. He loves and knows you.
Habt eine schöne Woche. Ich habe euch sehr lieb :)
Bis aufs Wiedersehen!
Elder Harps
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| MTC group reunion! Minus Elder Lichtenberg and plus Elder MacAlese |
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