Sister Smith: Week 39!

Trials, Growth, and Fireflies

Week 39--April 18

Okay, let me give you the update about my arm. The ringworm or rash that was taking over my arm was getting worse and it was becoming painful to even touch my arm. I went to the dermatologist again and it turned out not to be ringworm, it was a black bee bite. The dermatologist gave me oral medicine and cream to apply and so guess what my whole arm is BETTER woot woot! Thank you Heavenly Father(:

Some funny stories...

-We were in a restaurant eating when all of the sudden Sister and the Elders were like Sister, move, stand up! I was like what the heck is happening? So I moved and there was this gigantic spider that fell from the ceiling right next to my food, that was awesome!! Haha but after they gave us some free food (;

-One night after saying our prayers I looked up at the ceiling and saw this little light flickering in our room...I was like what is going on? Then I realized it was just a cute little lightning bug/firefly haha(; Its always fun sleeping with fireflies!

- Fun fact, I bought professional hair cutting scissors and cut my hair..yeah that whole process was a little stressful.

This week has been...interesting let me start off by saying that this is our last week in the transfer!! We didn’t know (until Saturday) that there are only 5 weeks this transfer and the next there will be 7...Sister Kendell and I are super sad because we only have one more week together. I’m positive she won’t stay here the next transfer but I know I will! I know one of the Elders will get transferred too...but we have been here a loooong time together! I’ll miss them, we have all grown so close, I know without a doubt we were all friends in the pre-existence.

On Friday we had this awesome activity with our little ward.(: We made posters, got tables, 3 boxes of Book of Mormon, and pamphlets. We went out in the road where people do lots of shopping and there are open markets and gave out Book of Mormon with the members! It was literally sooooooo fun!! The members were a little nervous and didn’t like it at first, but once they got walking around with us (missionaries) and we showed them what to say and do everyone loved it!! We got tons of addresses and gave out TONS of Book of Mormon..I asked the Elders if we could do this activity every week it was the best! Rodrigus was there and he walked around with me and bore his testimony and invited people to church, super special!!

Let me tell you what happened to me on Saturday. Okay, Saturday was normal we ate lunch at the house of a member, visiting people, we set a date for baptism, the 6th of May for this cute girl Rafiela. Everything was normal, we stopped at the church to drink some water and they had some food there and I ate a lot and Sister only ate 1 and stopped because she found a bone in her food. The councilor to President Kuceki was there and he said he was excited to hear my talk in church the next day, and I was excited too. Anyway, later that night we went to the church to make reminder phone calls to the people we talked to during the week that said they would come to church. While we were making phone calls my stomach started hurting a little and I didn’t know why, then later we came home and we were writing down our numbers for the day and I said Sister I don’t feel good, then I ran to the bathroom and threw up...yeah. So after I felt a lot better but then during the night I was vomiting a lot. In the morning we called Sister Kuceki and she said to go to the doctor and so a sweet member took us. They gave me an IV and lots of medicine. So after the doctor I was feeling much better and the Elders came over to give me a blessing, but right before they did, I threw up again! I was so mad! Then they gave me a blessing and bought me medicine. So yesterday, the whole day Sister and I stayed in the house sleeping.

When I was laying there in misery staring at the ceiling feeling like super sick and saying why, why is this happening to me right now..in the mission?! I lay there and thought wow, I study patience everyday, I study faith every day, and look at me...when Heavenly Father throws a trial at me..I am thinking why, why me?? I realized I need to have more faith and patience. Instead of feeling sorry for myself I began praying and thanking Heavenly Father for a healthy body, for my life, for my mission, for everything. I thought about all the people I have met that have changed me. I thanked him for Jesus Christ who knows exactly what I am suffering; feeling, and that Jesus Christ suffered waaaaaay more than me. I can’t tell you how much changing my perspective on the situation of being sick helped me feel so much better. After that I started praying for him to help me feel a little better so I could study some Portuguese and he did, he helped me.

I know that sometimes in our lives it is easy to study talks, and read things that we know we need to do. But when we are given a trial or difficulty we don’t apply what we have learned, what we know, we just fall back into the natural man crying and saying why does this have to happen to me. But these hard times is when he is testing us and when we grow the most.

The Book is blue, the church is true, Jesus Christ is Mormon too!

-Sister Smith