This week I again approach this email with very little to no exciting news from these past 7 days. I fear this may be the case for quite some time😂…

The most exciting things that happened was probably when this homeless man at the service we go to every week sang to me😂! I was getting him some hygiene products and we started a small conversation and after a little while he asked for my name. “Sister Oldham” I told him. He then started singing: “Sister Oldham is sooooo beautiful!! You really are!”😂😂 I was dying. He was too kind hahaha.

We also had to take our car into the shop and it took 5 hours longer than we thought it was going to take so we ended up walking around for like two and a half hours before getting picked up and we got some really awesome sunburns!😂 Then me and and my companion hit our 4 month mark this week on May 2nd!

Besides that stuff, nothing really that exciting has happened. But I do have a few thoughts I would like to share that have been on my mind this week.

We had a mission wide zoom devotional earlier this week with a man named Elder Pieper. He covered a lot of really amazing stuff, but it was when he asked if any of the missionaries had any questions for him that one message in particular really hit me.

One Elder asked him how he was able to stay so positive and find the joy out of all the trials and challenges he has faced in life. He started by making a really good point. Opposition gets our attention. When bad things happen, a lot of times it’s the only thing we can think about and can find itself at the center of our attention. How true is that? As I’ve pondered more on that interesting point, I’ve come to personally believe there is a reason for this kind of tendency.

When we face trials or challenges, rather than asking things like “why is this happening to me?” or “what did I do to deserve this?”, we should step back and look at the bigger picture. Heavenly Father could easily pave a perfectly neat and paved path with roses and daisies all along the way through this life for us. He is God, he his capable of all things. Yet, he allows us to experience sharp turns, rough terrain and thorns along the way. To me, the only explanation as to why a loving Father in Heaven would allow us to suffer has to be something that would be only for our benefit. So, when first faced with an obstacle in life, the question we should ask is, “What will thou have me learn?”.

We are benefited through Him teaching us and giving us experiences to grow and become like Him. We agreed to that! Every single one of us! We were planning on it! We knew this life would be hard but more importantly we knew why it would be hard and we wanted it! We wanted to be a part of His plan.

Remembering what I agreed to before coming to earth makes me question why I can come to be so frustrated when these defining moments of growth and development occur in my life. When I really step waaaaay back and look at the whole picture, I dare say I WANT the trials I have the opportunity to face every day. I know why they are there and what their purpose is and I want the result more than anything. But I can’t get the result if I’m not willing to experience the pain.

From now on, when I come upon a bump in the road I want to step back, ask my Father: “What wilt thou have me learn?”, then counsel with the Lord and write out a plan for what I can do to improve my situation. As I do my part and humbly rely on the Lord, endure to the end, let the Master teach me and then watch Him work his mighty miracles, I know I can become a changed person. Man, I want that more than anything.

I love y’all so much with everything I got! This Gospel brings me the most joy and I know that every trial we face is meant to teach us something. Heavenly Father knows what is best for us. It’s just up to us to be humble enough to take the refiner’s fire and let it change us.

Thank you so much for reading to my gospel rants!😂 Have a great week!

Scripture of the week: 1 Nephi 10:19

Get Busy, Get Lost!
-Sister Oldham