Hermana Miller: Week 27: He Lives!

4/21/2014

What a week! We have been working our little tushies off! And seeing plenty of miracles to boot.  (Some examples: Found a long lost "sheep" who had never had his records transferred and did not know where the church was, having 26 lessons, finding TONS of new investigators, having specific prayers specifically answered, lovely weather, and EASTER!)  Can't really complain. (Especially about the weather!  I finally have the classic missionary watch tan! YES! I am a real missionary now!)

I can't believe it has been six months already. That is just simply mind-blowing. I have learned so much and changed so much in such a short time. It really feels like it has been a few weeks and that is it! The Savior has changed me completely. (Thank goodness! I was a prideful BRAT!  Sorry, everyone!) I can't even begin to explain or list how different I am, mostly because I just don't know all the changes yet! But I loved Easter because it reminded me just how incredible our brother and Savior Christ is. I know that through Him we can ALL become new and better people! He makes everything possible. He lives! I had the opportunity to give a lesson on the Final Judgment yesterday in Gospel Principles, and I was so amazed by the incredible mercy of the Savior which always overpowers the perfect justice which we deserve. We are so lucky to have Him. I can't express how much I love Him.  Really, I can't. And I know that love will continue to grow throughout my life as I serve Him and search to know more about Him. I love Mosiah's words when he said:

 "I say unto you, I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts, that ye are not found on the left hand of God, but that ye hear and know the voice by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which he shall call you.

 For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?" ( Mosiah 5:12-13)

I know this is true. I am so dedicated to staying a missionary and a servant of my Father in Heaven, not just for the next year but for all eternity. That is the only way to be happy. I know I can never repay Him for His perfect love and unending forgiveness, but at least I can try. President Weston shared a quote with us that said this:

"Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit." (Peter Ustinov)

I know the Savior loves us dearly, because He is constantly forgiving us. I know my Father in Heaven loves us, because He sacrificed His Son so that we COULD receive that mercy! And His Son rose again! He lives! And He loves us. I know this.

"Me & My Buds"

I love you all. Serve the Lord and smile. I will!

Love,  Hermana Miller :)

The picture you get back when you send them fun St. Patty's Day items! :)

"Yum."

"Hermanas Miller & Pocock & their sweet X. kids"

"My Low Rider"

"They are engaged!"

"My District"

"They are always after me Lucky Charms!"

"Nebraska's Exotic Wildlife"

Hermana Miller: Week 26: Happiness.

Hello, everyone!

My heart is so happy today. (Even though we had a crazy rainy and then blizzard day yesterday!) One of the biggest lessons I have learned on my mission is that happiness, true happiness, comes from hard work and sacrificing for other people-especially the Lord. President Weston shared this wonderful quote with us recently:

"Happiness is different from pleasure. Happiness has something to do with struggling and enduring and accomplishing."(George Sheehan)

Isn't that the truth! In a lesson I recently asked a family with several small children what they thought Jesus is like, and I loved the answer I got from their 5 year old daughter. "Jesus was happy!" Yes, yes He was! I testify that Christ is the happiest man that there ever was. Yes, He had to suffer and endure through every heartbreak and hard moment we will ever have to, but I know that through it all he was still happy. He was happy because He was perfectly obedient. He was happy because He lived worthy to always have the company of the Spirit with Him. He was happy because He not only died for us, but LIVED for us too. He gave His life in the service of His brothers and sisters, and continues doing so today! That, my dear ones, is what truly brings joy into our hearts and lives. Service. Sacrificing for others. This week as we enjoy the Spirit of Easter, I would encourage you all to focus on every aspect of what Christ did for us during all of His 33 years, not just those few days at the end of His life which we tend to focus on at this time of year.

I am so grateful for all that He did - for His flawless and unfailing example of charity and perfect and tireless compassion. He was infinitely aware of the needs of others, and likewise infinitely searching for ways to meet and satisfy those needs. I am so grateful for the Atonement of our dear brother, Christ. It truly has changed my life and my heart. He saved me. Many of you may or may not be aware but there was a very dark and difficult period of time in my life in which I strayed from the path and rebelled against the commandments of both my earthly parents and my Heavenly Father. Those were without a doubt, the hardest years of my entire life. I got to a point where I never thought I could change on my own, nor did I feel I was worthy to ask my loving Father in Heaven for the strength to do so. I was, in every form, 100% a different person from who I am today. And why am I different now?  What changed?  Why is it that I am here spreading the word of the Lord and feeling such intense joy and purity in my heart when 2-3 years ago I was so miserable and muddied up by the world? It is all because of that great and atoning sacrifice of our Savior, Jesus Christ. He truly does transform people, and it is never too late to allow Him into your heart and do so. If any one of you reading this needs an example that the Atonement of Christ is a real and tangible gift that we ALL have access to, look at me. I am a testament that He lives. That He loves us. That He never gives up on us. If you need a testimony that Christ loves you no matter what, and is ALWAYS waiting for you to return, with outstretched arms, lean on mine until you can develop your own. I echo the words of that famous song as I say "I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me." I truly am.

I have learned to love the lyrics of the hymn "O Savior, Thou Who Wearest a Crown." The second verse says:

  

"No creature is so lowly,

No sinner so depraved,

But feels thy presence holy

And thru thy love is saved.

Tho’ craven friends betray thee,

They feel thy love's embrace;

The very foes who slay thee

Have access to thy grace."

Everyone has access to His grace and love. None is turned away from His loving arms. He rejoices in every single one of His brothers and sisters who humbly come back to Him and ask for forgiveness and for divine help. Luke 15 has become one of the very dearest chapters to my heart. I love the story of the lost sheep because it rings so true to me and my past:

"What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine  in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

 And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

 And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.

 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance."

Just like a good shepherd, He truly knows each one of His sheep. He is deeply aware of our presence or absence in His fold, and will search us out, but we must make the decision to let Him pick us up and put us on His shoulders as He carries back to safety and green pastures. The climb is steep and the way may be rocky and full of stumbling blocks, but I testify that He WILL carry you through that repentance process as you permit Him to. He did it for me, even when I know I didn't deserve it, and He WILL do it for you, free of price, and free of judgment. Why would we ever turn down help from the one person who loves us enough to conquer any obstacle, even death, to save us? Repentance is a gift, remember that. Use it. As you struggle and endure and accomplish making those eternal changes with the help of Jesus Christ, our dear brother, you WILL be happy.  I can promise you that, because I have experienced it. Don't you EVER give up.  Don't you EVER shut Him out.  Don't you EVER think it's too late or you are too lost to be saved. It never is,  His arms are always outstretched, beckoning you to come to Him.

I love you all, and beg you with every ounce of my heart to consider your lives and humbly and sincerely repent for anything that is impeding you from enjoying the full and true happiness of the Lord.  I am doing the same.  Enjoy this Easter season.  He lives.  He loves.

Staying strong and positive,

Hermana Miller :)

Hermana Miller: Week 25: I wish everyone in the whole world would watch General Conference!

HEY, HEY, HEY! Who is happy today?! This girl!!!!

Guess who are companions again?!?!?! If you said Hermana Pocock and I, you are 100% WRONG! Get this - Hermana Buhler and I are together again! Never saw that one coming! It's crazy that the last time we were together we were in Mexico, and now we will be in Grand Island and hitting our 6 month mark together this transfer. Time flies. We have both grown up so much in such a short time. Someone once told me something before the mission, they said: "The mission wasn't the best time of my life....but it WAS the best time FOR my life." I can truly testify that going on a mission was the best decision I ever made. It has changed me so much and made me such a better person-better than I ever could have become without it. I still have such a long way to go, but I now know the keys and habits to pursue to continue this lifelong upward progression. But I have to say, that I disagree with the first part-despite all the challenges and disappointments lately, I would be the most ungrateful and blind person of all history if I didn't say that the mission has been the best time of my life. I know I have sounded kind of frustrated and down lately, and yes, it has been tough, but I am still happier than I ever have been in my whole life. These people, this work, and the Lord are worth the tears. And the payback is sooo sweet it overshadows every hard moment, by far. I am so blessed to be a missionary and get to share the joy of the restored and complete gospel of Jesus Christ.

I KNOW that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is true, with every fiber of my being. If you have any doubts, I challenge you to go on LDS.org and watch each session of General Conference with an open heart and mind, and just try telling me after that that those men and women are not absolutely called of and inspired by God. They truly are special witnesses of Christ. I received so much spiritual revelation and comfort this weekend. Truly blessed. I got to watch half the sessions in English and the other half in Spanish...so that was wonderful. The Spirit truly speaks all languages. If you didn't get a chance to watch all the sessions of Conference-do it! I promise you will hear something you specifically need. I know the Lord is tenderly aware of each one of us, and loves us dearly. He knows what we go through and will go through, and that is why He has given us a living prophet today-so that He can give us that direct fatherly counsel and comfort that He knows our hearts need. He is wonderful. I love Him.

I am excited for this new transfer, we have made so many HUGE goals and plans and are already putting them in action. Be on the look-out for miracles. Buckle up, Grand Island.

I love you all, I am doing well. The foot is healing okay and the tendinitis in the knees is being made up for by the Lord. He takes care of His representatives.

Don't forget to review your Conference notes, and pray to set new goals for the next six months. I know that pattern is a way to continue progressing through your whole life. Don't be shy to share the gospel-if we truly love our brothers and sisters, we will do it, and nothing will be able to stop us from sharing it. When we love someone, we want them to have the best things possible. Think about all the blessings you have seen in your lives from the gospel. Other people deserve those too. Don't be selfish. Go share this message of love, hope, and eternal and joyful families.

I love you all! Be an example of the believers!

Love, Hermana Miller ;)