So I went to the doctor last week -
actually a clinic that a member recommended. Slightly sketchy, but what more
can we expect in Thailand? He looked at my throat, listened to by
heartbeat/breathing and said "It's just a cough. Just because the weather
changed. You'll be fine in 5 more days. Get out." Basically. He gave me
some medicine, all of which I have no idea what it was. But it got better, so I
guess it was good for something? Or my illness just ran its course, and I was better
with time. Who knows! :)
This week was so much better than
last. I set some personal goals this week to help me work and serve more
effectively. I set these goals based on principles found in "You can do it
now" by President Uchtdorf, and also from "Look ahead and
believe" by Elder Edward Dube. One of the most prominent goals for this
week was to make God's commandments my personal goals, rather than a standard
set by some outward force. In other words, make the Lord's standards MY standards,
and not just guidelines or suggestions. I found this extremely helpful in my
personal goal for inviting for 2 hours daily. Sister Crockett and I are pretty
good about being obedient in doing it daily, but it is no secret that this is
actually a hard thing to do with a smile, especially when you are not feeling
your personal best (aka, when you have lost your voice...). So when I got my
voice back, we hit the ground running. The first day I set my goal to talk to
everyone I saw for at least 30 minutes. I got overwhelmed fairly quickly. I was
seeing all the people I should have been talking to walking past me. I spent at
least 10 minutes in silent prayer just asking Heavenly Father to give me the
strength to accomplish my goal. I wondered if I set my standard too high, but
as we got going, it became so much easier. I didn't have to talk to every
single person, but as I had the goal to stretch me, I talked to way more people
than I would have normally. It certainly has made me that much more thankful
for my voice. The rest of this week inviting went so much more smoothly. We
found some good potentials, but I think the best part is that I felt good. I
felt like my efforts were appreciated by the Lord. I could smile, talk, and
just spread God's love to all those within my reach. Sometimes people are not
willing to accept it, but that does not make the effort any less worth it.
This experience helped me to see the
silver lining behind being sick last week. It has helped me to appreciate even
the small things, like a voice, that I have all too often taken for granted,
especially in the service of the Lord. I was so grateful to have a voice to
raise this past week. I guess after all I truly couldn't see at the time the
design of God in that trial. One other thing I have learned is that it doesn't
matter what source the trial comes from - God or Satan - what does matter is
how we handle it. In the end, it is our attitude that will make or break our
trials. We can either choose to be hardened or offended by their presence, or we
can choose to face them with faith and learn from them. Shouldn't we be
thankful for the trials God chooses for us to endure, just as we are for the
abundant blessings He sends to us?
Well, that's all for this week!
Can't wait to talk to you again next week!
Love,
Sister Norrell
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