Nicole's Letter:
"2017"
1/2/2017
I can't believe that it is 2017 already. 2016 was such a good year. Crazy to think of all that happened. I finished three semesters of college in Hawaii. Then went to Fiji. Then came on a mission. That pretty much sums up the year in three sentences. To say the least, it was a good year.
As I was falling asleep on New Years Eve, I was thinking that this entire year I would be a full time missionary. And I am not going to lie, it made me a little depressed and it was daunting to think about. But then the next morning I was talking to my companion about the coming year and she said that this is the year she is going home and it made her super sad to think about. And then at church one of the members gave her farewell talk and the other speaker was Brother Nicholes (who has been a mission president). In his talk he was talked about how amazing missionaries and missions are. He told of how missionaries are literally set apart and are representatives of Jesus Christ. I knew that but it hit me. What a honor and blessing it is to be a full time missionary all of 2017. I am set apart as a missionary of the Lord and this will be the only full year that I will be a full time missionary. I know that I am going to look back on 2017 with tenderness. Not saying that it won't be extremely hard or uncomfortable because each day proves to me over and over that missionary work is uncomfortable but it also it the greatest thing I could be doing right now. Brother Nicholes also said that missionaries have a spirit about them, even when knocking on doors they carry that spirit. He continued and said that even if the person slams the door they are not slamming it on the missionaries they are slamming it on the Savior. That made me comforted since this week we knocked on this door and a lady opened it, looked disgusted and said "Oh Lord, bless these girls. And then yelled I pray that you will find Jesus" and slammed the door before we could even say one word. (Probably thought we were JW. Man do people hate JW, even more than they hate us. And everyone thinks we are JW). But that was interesting. No matter what happens I get this time to draw even closer to my Savior, Jesus Christ. I know that it is a sacred privilege. I also know that the mission will end even though in my mind that day is very far into the future, it does end. And if I know anything, I know that I want to be on that flight home with no regrets. As I have been around more and more sisters, I feel like some are disappointed with how their missions have gone and I don't want to feel like that. I am going to serve with all my heart, might, mind and strength. And I know that might mean different things on different days. (I told my companion that I was going to leave everything on the field and she laughed, she is going home in two transfers:) Those are my thoughts for the New Year. It will definitely be a year to remember and a year that I have never experienced before but it is exciting (or might as well look at it as exciting rather than be depressed about it).
This week we went over to Dee and Lee's home and she had back surgery and we had talked about priesthood blessings before. She said she would think about one and then Sunday she humbly asked if she could still get one. So two people from the ward came over and let me tell you I have never prayed harder. It is funny how much faith you have for someone else's faith-if that makes sense. I prayed so hard that Dee would have faith and let the spirit into her heart. After the blessing she didn't say anything. The Brothers left and Dee just looked at us and smiled and said she didn't have any pain at that moment. It was a very neat experience.
As I was falling asleep on New Years Eve, I was thinking that this entire year I would be a full time missionary. And I am not going to lie, it made me a little depressed and it was daunting to think about. But then the next morning I was talking to my companion about the coming year and she said that this is the year she is going home and it made her super sad to think about. And then at church one of the members gave her farewell talk and the other speaker was Brother Nicholes (who has been a mission president). In his talk he was talked about how amazing missionaries and missions are. He told of how missionaries are literally set apart and are representatives of Jesus Christ. I knew that but it hit me. What a honor and blessing it is to be a full time missionary all of 2017. I am set apart as a missionary of the Lord and this will be the only full year that I will be a full time missionary. I know that I am going to look back on 2017 with tenderness. Not saying that it won't be extremely hard or uncomfortable because each day proves to me over and over that missionary work is uncomfortable but it also it the greatest thing I could be doing right now. Brother Nicholes also said that missionaries have a spirit about them, even when knocking on doors they carry that spirit. He continued and said that even if the person slams the door they are not slamming it on the missionaries they are slamming it on the Savior. That made me comforted since this week we knocked on this door and a lady opened it, looked disgusted and said "Oh Lord, bless these girls. And then yelled I pray that you will find Jesus" and slammed the door before we could even say one word. (Probably thought we were JW. Man do people hate JW, even more than they hate us. And everyone thinks we are JW). But that was interesting. No matter what happens I get this time to draw even closer to my Savior, Jesus Christ. I know that it is a sacred privilege. I also know that the mission will end even though in my mind that day is very far into the future, it does end. And if I know anything, I know that I want to be on that flight home with no regrets. As I have been around more and more sisters, I feel like some are disappointed with how their missions have gone and I don't want to feel like that. I am going to serve with all my heart, might, mind and strength. And I know that might mean different things on different days. (I told my companion that I was going to leave everything on the field and she laughed, she is going home in two transfers:) Those are my thoughts for the New Year. It will definitely be a year to remember and a year that I have never experienced before but it is exciting (or might as well look at it as exciting rather than be depressed about it).
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