Stand Forever

Hermana Wright (Bestie from Lehi) at the Mexico City Temple

"Happiness Moments"

-SEEING MY BEST FRIEND KAYLIE WRIGHT HERE IN MEXICO. Kaylie is currently at the CCM and they took a trip to the temple this past week, and because I live so close I got to walk over there and give her the biggest hug ever. She is one of the best people I have ever met in my life. If you don't know her, you should. She will bless your life like she has blessed mine. :) I feel soooo blessed to have been able to see her. :)

-Making a very very very mini Easter egg hunt for my companion and watching her search the house for a little paper egg.

Sister Naumann ("Mission Mom")

-Going on companion exchanges with Hermana Rice and Hermana Tukuafu! I got to re-learn the Tongan dance Hermana Tukuafu taught me once upon a time when we were companions, and Hermana Rice and I died laughing at every pun we could come up with.

-Having a breakfast with one of our amazing investigators and the mission president's wife!

Investigators

I HIGHLY recommend that all of you read the talk "Stand Forever" by Lawrence E. Corbridge. It changed my life.

One of my favorite things that he talked about was how the worst of all human conditions is actually the most common, and that is to die spiritually. 

Later he says,

"Pay whatever price you must pay, bear whatever burden you must bear, and make whatever sacrifice you must make to get and keep in your life the spirit and power of the Holy Ghost. Every good thing depends on getting and keeping the power of the Holy Ghost in your life. Everything depends on that."

Members LOVE to feed the Hermanas!

I encourage you all to think about the moments that you have felt the influence of the Spirit in your life, and to write them down. Think of what you can do to feel and recognize His guiding influence every day of your life.

Sometimes we forget like Oliver Cowdery did -- 

D & C 6: 22 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things.

23 Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?" 

Easter Package

As Elder Uchtdorf says, "Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith." It's okay to have questions, but never doubt that God is your Father, you can talk with Him every second of every day, and that He loves you beyond measure.

With that knowledge, that comes through the Holy Spirit, we can Stand Forever in the gospel of Christ.

Have a wonderful week!!!

Hermana Greenwood:)

Sunflower

"Happiness Moments"

-Saul (recent convert) works at Dominos and made and brought us a special pizza!!!

-Ximena (recent convert) and her family made us pancakes for our last lesson!!! (She also was just called to teach in Relief Society!! WAHOO she is incredible.)

This week I just want to extend an invitation. An invitation to not only learn more about Christ, but to get to know Him. He is our friend, our counselor, our support, and we need to rely on His infinite mercy and grace more in our lives.

Moroni 6:8 "But as oft as they repented and sought forgiveness, with real intent, they were forgiven."

It doesn't matter what you have done or what other people have done to you, what matters is what you are going to do. As a sunflower grows, it always faces towards the sun, because it knows that that is where it will receive EXACTLY what it needs.

Do we sometimes forget to look to the Son of God?

Isaiah 55:8-9 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

Matthew 11: 28-30 "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

I promise that Christ is there with you every step of the way, you just have to let Him in. Similarly to the sunflower, I invite you all to follow the Son. The Son of God. For He truly is the way, the truth, and the light.

I love you all!!!

Hermana Greenwood:)

Goodness, Light, Love

Hermanas Greenwood & Carter at Ximena's Baptism

 "Happiness Moments"

-XIMENA GOT BAPTIZED. She is INCREDIBLE. When I first met her, I half-jokingly put her under the "members" section because we told her that she would be baptized really soon. And now she is a member!! :)

Watching General Conference at the Visitors Center

-GENERAL CONFERENCE

 

Wow how grateful I am for modern revelation. For living prophets and apostles to help lead and guide us on the straight and narrow.  

I loved what Elder McKay said when he talked about how maybe we won't necessarily be delivered immediately, but we can immediately see the goodness of God. We see that goodness through the little things, and often through other people.

Fruits and Veggies make for another Happiness Moment

Just as Sister Eubank explained, we may only be a light bulb on a Christmas tree at temple square, but we are helping to gather the Lord's children. And that light reaches FAR.  

  

One of my favorite songs that was sung has a part that says, "Come unto Jesus. He'll turn the darkest night into the brightest day."

God's goodness is always there. Christ's light can always find you. And nothing can separate us from their love.

Another Happiness Moment - New Shower Head!

I echo Paul's testimony in Romans chapter 8 that reads,

38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 Have an incredible week!!

Hermana Greenwood:)

The Rock

"Happiness Moments"

-Saul got baptized!!! He is amazing. I love watching people transform their lives. At the beginning, he always came to church in a sweatshirt and jeans, and this last week he came in a sweater vest and slacks! And it has been so cool to watch him make so many sacrifices to follow Christ in his life.

-Going on companion exchanges with INCREDIBLE hermanas in my zone.

-Talking to my cute family every week is outstanding. :)

My companion and I were talking a lot this week about this crazy world that we live in, the priorities that people have, and what people really should be focusing on.

We learn in Helaman 5:12 about how Christ is our rock, He is our foundation, and that we CAN'T FALL when we build upon Him and His teachings. And it doesn't matter what the world throws at us.

12 And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall. 

There is a quote that I heard this past week that I love. It says, "Many men struggle to reach the top of the ladder, only to find that it is leaning against the wrong wall."

Don't forget the promise we find in Helaman 5:12; we don't have to worry about where we are climbing to on our ladder if our foundation is built on Christ. With Him, we can reach eternal life.

He is our rock, our Redeemer, and our best friend standing there with open arms. :)

I encourage you all to go to Conference this weekend with open ears and open hearts. We often repeat the same things over and over again in the Church, and it is because we should be building our life upon it. 

I love you all! Have a great week and soak up every second of Conference!!

Hermana Greenwood:)

Every Day is a Good Day

"Happiness Moments"

-Definitely dropped our house keys down a drainage thing yesterday... good thing people here are nice and saw us desperately trying to use my magnet name tag to attract the keys to it and they helped us out.

-Decided to push our beds together and watch the best two years in Spanish for language study with some popcorn one night. Best decision we have ever made.

-Juan and Omar got baptized!! These two little kids are the most energetic bunch ever. After their confirmation the Bishop said, "These are now the two newest members of the ward..." And Omar yelled, "WAHOO!!!" Haha I love them with all my heart.

I feel like this week I have a couple of scattered thoughts. So here we go... :)

Every day is a good day when we choose Christ. A scripture that really hit my heart this week is in D&C 50: 40-42. What a good reminder that we are never alone, we are His, and He will never leave us behind.

As odd as it sounds, getting outside of your comfort zone is never really comfortable;) But wow am I grateful for the recent experiences that I have had to get outside of my comfort zone and serve others. A quote that I love is, "A ship in port is safe, but that's not what ships are built for."

I invite you all to learn more about Christ this week, and then to get outside of your comfort zone and strive to do as He did, speak as He spoke, and be more like Him. I promise when you do so, every day will be a good day.

I love you all!

Hermana Greenwood:)

The Power of Not Knowing

Hermanas Carter, Greenwood, Tukuafu, and Rice at the Mexico City Temple

This past week I read an INCREDIBLE talk titled, "The Power of Not Knowing" by Liz Wiseman. (It is a BYU speech.) And I wanted to share a couple of quotes and thoughts. :)

"Where is learning really born? It is born in the struggle."

"Sometimes the more we know, the less we see around us."

Hermanas Vieira & Greenwood (Intercambios/ Exchanges)

She also gives a couple of key things that we can focus on, especially when we feel like we don't know what we are doing.

1. Ask more questions

2. Admit what you don't know

3. Learn to see the genius in others

Have you ever felt like you don't know what you're doing? Have you ever tried to fake it until you make it? I have. But why focus on what we can't do or can't control? That only leaves us running around in circles. Something that leaves us out of breath and with a big headache.

Scrambled Eggs and Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll (First Cinnabon ever!)

This week I want to encourage you all (and I will do the same) to ask more questions, admit when you don't know or understand something, and look for the genius in others (and tell them!)

"Sometimes our state of not knowing is actually where we come to know God."

Instead of focusing on what you don't know, focus on what you can learn.

More than anything, focus on God.

Maybe we don't know everything, but we do know that Heavenly Father knows and loves us perfectly. Remember that. :)

Hermana Greenwood:)

Who We Are

Hermanas Greenwood & Carter

 I firmly believe that this past week about takes the cake for one of the best weeks of my mission.

I absolutely LOVE my new apartment and area and ward, and my companion is great and the cute hermanas in my zone are lovely. I couldn't be happier.

I have seen the Lord's hand so clearly and felt His angels more than ever in my life. We don't know the area, but somehow we get everywhere we need to go without problems. We had almost nothing to go off of when we first came into this area, and have since found AMAZING people to teach. The field is white and ready to harvest.

Study Area

This past week was my first time leading companion exchanges. Although I didn't really know what I was doing, I realized very quickly that companion exchanges are just a way that we can learn from each other and enjoy the journey that we are on as missionaries. I had the wonderful opportunity to be with an hermana who just barely came from the CCM, and I wanted to share with you all something she learned from her teacher there.

Kitchen

He said, "A testimony isn't just what we believe, it is who we are."

I have fallen in love with that perspective. When we have a strong testimony of something, we act on it, we do it, it becomes a part of who we are, and that is how we become converted.

Living Room

I am SO grateful to know that I am a daughter of God who loves me even when I don't feel like I deserve it, to know that He has given me gifts that I can develop and share with others, and that this plan brings happiness that can't even be described.

Bathroom

You are a child of God, He loves you even when you don't feel like you deserve it, and you have received great gifts from Him that you can develop and share with others in this wonderful plan of happiness that we are living.

Bedroom

Never forget who you are. :)

Hermana Greenwood:)