Visit my other blog HERE to see more about my life from March 2, 2016 - September 2, 2017. I am serving as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in the Alpine German-Speaking Mission, and hope to do my best to bring people unto the Lord. The gospel has blessed my life so tremendously that I hope to bestow upon others this same joy.
Here are the rough notes from my farewell talk:
I wanted to start my talk with a story about a man named Daniel Garn. Daniel wa born in a German colony in Pennsylvania in 1802. He was baptized by Hyrum Smith and was the 33rd member of the church. At one point Daniel Garn served as bodyguard to the prophet Joseph Smith.... and one an interesting side note - he - along with a man named Josiah Arnold - saved the life of the prophet during an assassination attempt in Missouri. Josiah Arnold happens to be the great great great grandfather of John Arnold in 3rd Ward! Anyway..... Daniel Garn was later called to be the first mission President in Germany. He also helped translate the Book of Mormon into German and helped the first German converts immigrate to the US. This amazing man helped pave the way for me to serve in this beautiful area..... and in more ways than one..... Daniel Garn is my great-great-great grandpa. I feel so much gratitude that this was the mission I was called to. Also, perhaps it's no wonder the Lundgreens and the Arnolds are such good friends!
About the same time that I left for college, a lot of my friends left on missions. Not only were we thousands of miles apart, but now our only form of communication was a weekly email. Now it’s my turn to say goodbye to those I love. But why would we do it? Why would we young and naive eighteen and nineteen-year-olds leave behind our families and friends, our schools, our hobbies and our music for so long to go a brand new place where people will slam the door in our faces? Why would we try to learn a new language or deal with weird foods and dangerous, unsanitary situations when so often the very thing we have come to preach will be mocked?
I will never forget the testimony meeting at my second year of girls camp when Lydia said, “We have the gospel. I don’t want to go to the afterlife and have my acquaintances say ‘Why didn’t you share it with me?!’”
Fast forward a couple years. At seventeen years old I was going through a bit of a hard time, and I remember being frustrated because I wanted to do something important but didn’t know how. One day I was driving and it suddenly hit me-- one of the greatest things I could do to help other people is to give them God’s truth.
Because no matter how many people slam the doors in my face, to give just one person the chance to know of God’s love and of their value makes all the hardship worth it for me.
Learning about the Plan of Salvation has helped me both in getting ready for my mission but also in understanding life itself. This gospel helps us to understand that life is not a fluke, but in a premortal existence we specifically chose God’s plan where we would have the agency to make our own decisions. We chose to come to earth, and we understood that we would have hardships. Life is not hard because God is cruel or because God is nonexistent, but because by hardship we can grow and be prepared for the next life. Nephi taught that their must be opposition in all things, and it is by sadness that we can truly know joy. Even going away to college has helped me to understand this plan and essentially prepare me for my mission. My parents are excellent teachers, but there are things I couldn’t learn by staying in the comfort zone of my home where they would be there to forever take care of me. I had to fly from the nest, go 3000 miles away to the middle of the Pacific where I knew not a soul and suddenly had to fend for myself. I’m sure my parents weren’t exactly thrilled when I called and informed them that Hawaii was getting tsunami or hurricane warnings, or that I had been out snorkeling and saw a shark, or that I was planning on jumping out of a plane, and I’m sure they would have loved to continue making my decisions to make sure I stayed on the path of both physical and spiritual safety. Similarly, I’m sure as our Heavenly Father it would have been so much easier to keep us under His wing in the premortal life rather than sending us to earth where many of us follow the road of self destruction.... but if He had done that, we would have remained like children. Our purpose is to learn and progress and become like Him.
The stake president asked me something hard that I’ve had to overcome. I feel like my life has been filled with many blessings that I’m so grateful for.... but many of you have known me since I was a kid, and I grew up being extremely shy. I was very quiet, very reserved and perhaps timid, not because I didn’t want to be social but just because it was hard for me. As a writer I had plenty of ideas, but I had absolutely no idea how to vocalize these same words. As a funny note, I didn’t know until last night that apparently the reason my family got into theatre is because my mom was trying to get my out of my shell! This is a struggle that I’ve had to really work on over the years. It made me really nervous thinking about going on a mission, where I would have to approach people and try to share something that’s really personal to me. But it’s amazing the way God placed specific people in our lives at the precise time when we need them most, to help overcome our challenges.
A friend of mine who served in my same mission commented that many people have turned their back on God because they think He turned their back on them. The horrors of World War II and its aftermath to their country were too much to bear, and many weren’t willing to listen to the words of a young American girl who had never experienced such devastation. But I hope to convey to them the love I have for the gospel in a way that they can understand the blessings that can be brought forth. That families can be together forever.
In an answer to that question of how have I prepared to serve a mission, I’ve done all the normal things-- reading all the standard works, attending several religion classes, taking mission prep, and I feel like I’ve gained a testimony and developed a sincere love for my Heavenly Father, but... I’ve also worked my entire life to overcome my shyness, so that one day perhaps I can be that right person at the right time, a dynamic speaker who can soften the hearts of those who need to hear the gospel. I will forever be grateful for those missionaries who shared the gospel with my grandma when she was my age, because the impact that made in the lives of not only her, but my mother and myself and siblings and cousins is tremendous.
In closing, I’m going to share a little blurb that I wrote on my blog a few weeks ago:
I don't know how I'm going to be as a missionary, thrown into a world where the language is so different and the responsibility is great and those people like myself who are trying selflessly to share their gospel AKA the most valuable thing they have to offer, are often rejected. What if my companion doesn't like me? What if my shyness makes me awkward when I'm trying to talk to people?
I cannot wait to discover a totally new part of the world. I may be leaving the incredible island of Oahu and saying goodbye to those I care about, but now I head on a new journey in the land of my ancestors where I will meet new friends, see beautiful sights, hear and speak a lovely language, taste delicious foods, and dive into a culture far different than my own. I might be scared and exhausted, and people will reject me, but I will still be sharing with those who listen a wonderful message which will change their lives forever. When I return, we will all be wiser and filled with stories to tell, our reunion sweet and filled with the love of those whose absence made them appreciate each other that much more. This is an incredible opportunity I have been given and I hope to make it the best year-and-a-half.
