Oh my goodness, it has been such a crazy week! But the Lord has been blessing us so much here in this new area. The members have been wishing, hoping and praying for Sister Missionaries for years and there isn't a day that goes by that someone doesn't tell us that. It's a really interesting challenge starting an area from scratch, but we've got some awesome Elders, really helpful ward counsel and a "duan chuan" (short-term missionary) Lin Jie Mei. She's from this area so she knows it really well and has been helping us learn the ropes here. It's been really helpful because she knows where people live so when we go to visit people there's already people we know of that are in the area to drop by and visit. She's preparing to serve a mission in Germany so this has been good for both us and her. She's getting a great experience of missionary work before she hits the field, or even the MTC! She has an incredibly strong testimony and conviction of the truth as well as a sweet, tender, loving heart and an attitude of service. She does the dishes for Sister Zhu and I all the time because we're always so busy doing other things and getting a ton of stuff organized. I love her and Sister Zhu so much!
Some of the most precious experiences this week have come from visiting less-active members and helping them come back into the "arms of safety." There's one sister who we had no idea who she was but Sister Zhu found her on the ward list and had a feeling we needed to go visit her. When we showed up on her doorstep she was really timid and opened the door just enough to poke her head out. It was amazing what happened over the next few minutes as we just expressed our love for her and that she doesn't need to worry about anything and that we were going to help her. Even though we knew nothing about her or her situation the Spirit spoke to us that her heart was really broken and needed mending. I turned to D&C18:10, 15 about the worth of souls and there was such a special spirit there. I was also so grateful that I had 2 native companions with me because when this precious sister expressed guilt for still drinking milk tea they both chimed in with a good substitute and said that we'd come over one day and help her make it! They are both such tender, loving sisters and I'm so grateful that they knew how to relate to her in a special way.
We later found out that she's been struggling from depression, anxiety and has no self confidence. She hardly goes outside because she's scared of anyone taking advantage of her. Oh, how these precious souls, especially these tender-hearted daughters of God get tortured inside by the tricks and lies of Satan and the evil influences all around! It's so heartbreaking, but it just goes to show the protection the gospel brings and the very real healing power of the Atonement. When we went back to visit her a few days later she opened up to us even more and we shared spiritual experiences, cried together and assured her that she is a beloved daughter of Heavenly Father and that we were going to help her. I'm so grateful for the Gospel. There's no other way to be fully healed from the scars of life than through the Atonement of Christ and His Restored Gospel. I know because I've been saved by it before. I'm so grateful I now have the opportunity to reach out and lift others out of the depths of despair and depression and bring them into the light of the gospel and the tender, loving arms of the Savior.
After learning more about the situations of a few other sisters we're working with Sister Zhu raised the question "Why does God let such bad things happen to such good people?" I had just read a scripture that morning that said it convicts the wicked and justifies God in punishing them, which I told her, but I didn't think that was all. As we continued to talk I felt the Spirit help me understand that there is nothing another person's agency can do that the Atonement can't heal. The bad things that happen in our lives give us opportunities to come unto the Savior to be healed. Otherwise if there was nothing that needed mending in our lives we would have absolutely no appreciation (or need) for the Atonement. But despite what tragedies that happen in our lives, the choices we make, or how evil the world is around us, if we come unto the Savior we can be mended, healed and strengthened. And that is my purpose as a missionary, to find those people whose hearts are open, broken and seeking for that healing power and bring them to the Savior. We've felt His help so much as we've been led to those who are seeking for that healing power.
I love being a missionary so much. I love the Lord with all my heart and I'm so grateful to be in His service. I know the Gospel is true with all my heart! I love each one of you so much as well and hope with all my heart that we can be together in the Celestial Kingdom forever. I'm working towards that goal!
All my love, Sister Morey
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