Week 1

Well, I am here with my new companion, Hermana Cruz! She is from Mexico City, Mexico! She is 22 and the 2nd of 4 children. Her whole family is members and she is super obedient and excited to be here in the mission! We have worked so hard this week and little by little we are seeing the results. We were able to visit lots of menos activos this week. We also recieved about 4 references this week! That means that the members are starting to work and are sharing the gospel! I am super excited about that! One crazy way we found new investigators this week is there was a family and they needed to start their car...but it wouldn't work. They started pushing and pushing the car, but nothing happened. So we offered to help push the car, and magically it started working! :) We are going to visit them this next week. :)

I was able to study my scripture this last week and it really helped me to forget myself and go to work. I thought of a story that I heard here in the mission:

A young man went to the place that makes crosses. The kind owner recieved him warmly and asked him what he was looking for. The young man said he came because his cross was too heavy to bear and he wanted another one. They started walking among the crosses. He saw some that were very small, and other that were gigantic. As he kept walking, he didn't see one that quite fit him. As he rounded the corner, he saw the cross he wanted. It was a little beaten around the edges, medium sized, and perfect for him. He looked at the owner and said, "I found the cross I wanted!" And the owner said, "That was the cross you started with. Now, take up thy cross and follow thou me."

I love this story. Every single one of us has different trials, everyone has a different cross to bear. But every single one of us can take up our own crosses and follow Jesus Christ because He knows how our crosses feel on our backs. He knows how painful it is to put one foot in front of the other, day after day, longing to just sit down on the side of the road and call it quits. That is why the last step in the gospel of Jesus Christ is endure to the end. If Jesus had sat down on the side of the road in the garden of gethsemane, none of us would have the amazing privilige of living with our heavenly father again. We have experiences to learn and grow. I am learning a lot here in the area and I know it is for a reason. I love my mission and I wouldn't trade it for the world! My new scripture is 2 Nephi 25:26. I love you all!!

Love,
Hermana Wood :)