Okay, let's start with Saturday... Nah, Monday.
Once Upon a Time - being monday while I was reading my Email, I ran accross a certain letter that dealt with very spcific and special interest. Elder M. Russell Ballard would be coming to our mission and giving us a special training on Saturday (you can already see how all of this relates...). We were told to keep it quiet until he was actually out of Calgary, because we don't want the entire Mormon world following the prophets.... you know what I mean. My first thought was probably along the lines of "WHITCHICKABAM," but you could also say, "Wow, this will be a very special and sacred experience." Anyway
Following said Magnificient news the rest of the week seemed to sail by. We have taught a lot of members this week, we picked up a new investigator and dropped an old one. We received terrible news regarding an investigator on date for baptism ( I don't wan to talk about it...). I went on splits with the Spanish missionaries (I would like to proudly proclaim that I can actually catch most of what they say.I still had to bear my testimony in English, but I was on topic and was even able to share a scripture from the spanish BOM... yeah... I was feeling pretty good about that, it's pretty great what God does for missionaries, eh?) We taught the Beeza's again, and they are just sailing through the lessons, I don't think anyone really understands how ready they are for the fullness of the gospel. Some day.... grr.
Oh! I bumped into a friend of Momma Plouzek's serving here in the mission (shocking!). I love Momma Plouzek... It's a shame I don't have her address (help?!).
All of that bringing us to Saturday. We were told that we were not allowed to leave our apartments any later than 9:15. We had a few Elders staying in our apartment (because it's pretty spacious) and they carpooled with us to the Chapel. We got there and learned that their (Elder Ballard's and the seventies [Craig C. Christensen and .... Elder Walker whose first name I can't quite remember...]) (I just realized I do this :"..." a lot. Sorry.) flight had arrived early, and it's a good thing we had left at 9:15 because if we had been late, it wouldn't have been good.
So, we were all nervous that we were about to be rebuked by an apostle of the Lord, but as he entered the room there was a definite spirit of peace that filled the hearts of almost 200 missionaries. He joked with us for a few minutes, and taught us about how to be more effective missionaries. He taught us about what it meant to be a representative of Jesus Christ and---not surprisingly---he answered all of my concerns and questions that I had brought with me before he even opened it up for open discussion. At which point, he taught us about keeping the faith, the importance of "greenie fire" and how to renew our faith that the Lord would provide for us (even when there is a lot of snow).
It was sweet, maybe when I get home you can read my notes, because it was a gift from God. Speaking of which, journal writing at night helps you sleep better. True story. I discovered this through personal experience.
So, on top of all of that, the dedication for the Calgary Temple was yesterday. It started 30 minutes late because (this is a direct quote) Salt Lake told us, "President will start when He's ready to start." Hahahahahahaha the Elders just about died in their chairs of laughter as we heard the attitude from our stake president. What a man. Anyway; we watched the gongshow of sealing the cornerstone (President Monson was just telling joke after joke after joke, he talked about being slapped by an old woman and made the sound effect, he invited dozens of children to participate he fooled around with Elder Ballard) and then listened to the simple loving doctrine that the temple presidency had to share, along with the words of Elder Ballard (again) and President Monson. (President Monson talked about speaking at hundreds of funerals, and the power of temple work, it was amazing)
It was a beautiful experience marred only by the fact that we were not able to leave between sessions to get food or water... for complex reasons. So, we were fasting without expecting it, which left every 19, 20, &21 year old a little grumpy.... a lot grumpy. My companion (who has IBS) was particularly frustrated by the news, so by 7 PM when we were able to eat he had basically given up on life. It was a mess as he ranted and raved about how nothing ever goes his way. I sat quietly and listened, pretending to be concerned by his outburst of pent up frustration and kept my mouth completely shut, patiently waiting for the food to come. Fortuantely, the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, so, when we ate, he was much happier, but said, "I've thrown my spirituality out the window for the night, I'm done." So, I talked him out to the car, and we made some stop-bys for the last hour of the day, just following the plans we had made the night before. It was a sweet experience as I watched him really kick it into gear at our last stop by. We got home a little late because we had an unexpected lesson (total gift) and he thanked me for taking the lead and being patient. Which brings me to point number one for the day: Patience will get you so much further than being quick to anger. You will experience the gospel in greater abundance and you will come to see greater blessings from the Lord as you roll with it. :D That's what I learned yesterday. Just be patient.
This is where it gets good, thank you for reading this far.
Also, I heard two really sweet thoughts: 1. President Monson once (apparently) said: "95% of happiness in life will be based on 3 decisions: Who you marry, When you marry, & Where you marry." I just wanted to send out a shout to my parents who did it right. They married the person the Lord told them to, who they also loved (don't forget that love conquers all). They married after my dad's mission in the amount of time which was decided (by God... I think, I don't know that part of the story). They married in the Temple. Eternally. Boom. My parents are amazing and I love them.
2. At the temple open house, the patrons had an opportunity to fill out a comment card. One of the cards was filled out by a six year old boy who said the following: "When I was in that white room, I felt like I loved something." This is probably, maybe, most likely... definitely the sweetest mercy I've ever included in any letter I will probably ever write.. I challenge you to read that strikingly divine statement again and consider the following: The Lord gave us two great commandments; "Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart might mind and strength, and the second is like unto it; love thy neighbor as thyself." You know, I'll let you work this one out on your own, I'll just list a few more scriptures. "16 And he said unto me: Knowest thou the acondescension of God? 17 And I said unto him: I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things."
"When I was in that white room, I felt like I loved something."
I'll just end it here with my testimony. For the past few months, I have been blessed to represent Jesus Christ and enjoy the blessings of the "white room" in one of the---if not the most focused way imaginable. While I have been here, I have, like that boy, felt always like "I loved something." Someone. I know Jesus Christ loves all men. I know that God, our Father, loves his Children, and that we are capable of doing the infinately unimaginable: loving "something" more than we love ourselves. I love this Gospel. I love My God. I love my Savior. I love my Family. I love the special gift of this life. I love the people of Canada. I love President Monson. I love my mission. I pray that someday I will be worthy of the simple, sweet love which has been shown me throughout my entire life. I know that my Redeemer lives. I promise that as you make the temple the ultimate priority in your life, you will always feel like you love something. You will be blessed with a special something. A special someone. A special Faith. A special Life.
I love you all so much. Thank you for your support, your love, and your examples. Have a wonderful week.
Love,
Elder Taylor J. Hill
p.s. maybe someday I'll be grown up enough to just be able to see it all that sweet. I love you.
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