To Be Humbled!

So this week was UNIQUE!  And by unique I mean different than anything else I have ever done. Ha!  I have almost mastered living with one arm- I can do so much with only one hand!  The one thing I still can't do is my hair...so it is going to be frizzy and unruly for the next few weeks.  My companion is great and has really been looking out for me.  The Lord knows who to place in our lives at certain times!

 
I am no longer the designated driver and that is so weird for me!  I haven't been the passenger in a while and I saw everything in a new perspective..I call it the seat of shame. HA!

My new job...backing the car out!

So the day after I broke my clavicle it was deep clean day in our apartments.  I was a big contributor..NOT. But I did try to do what I could..and no I didn't over-do it so don't worry :) That night at our dinner appointment we got to carve pumpkins with the Rivers.  It was fun.  I was still exhausted after the last few days events so it was a good outlet.  I carved with one hand!  Go me.

Wednesday I was really tired, sore, and probably hurt a little bit more than I previously had. The Sisters we share the car with were SO sweet and Christ-like...they gave us the car until we get cleared to walk again- so probably after my surgery.  That night was the Trunk-or-Treat for our ward and it was so cute!  There was chili and costumes, and many friends.  Only a handful of people asked about the sling that I was wearing...the rest of the ward saw me with it on Sunday and said, "Oh I thought it was a part of your costume!" Haha.  Nope.  Hermoine Granger didn't wear a sling that I ever remember.  (PS that's who I was.  And I rocked the hair as well.)  WE gave out candy bags that had pass-along cards in them to the friends (of our members) who attended this event.  IT was a good time- although cut short by the rain.

The rest of the days we were able to see a few of our less actives, investigators and members.  But we didn't go full throttle because I want to be careful and let myself heal.  It is hard to reign in the 'missionary' within me!  That was a challenge and I had a constant battle with myself.  But I was wise, and CTR..chose the right.

Halloween was fun.  We did our normal missionary stuff during the day and then when the trick-or-treating started we went to a members house and mingled there.  They threw a party and had some non-member friends there. It was great.

Not being able to do much on my own has helped to increase my humility.  I know that the Savior suffered all, and I can turn to him.  Learning how to rely on others has been difficult, but if I can't let those who I am serving help me, how could I ever let the Lord help me?  I am doing well and will keep you updated on the coming week!
<3 Sister Golden

My Ice Machine!

I use it while I sleep!

Serious Mishap!

So I accidentally hit a curb and busted our car tire last weekend..I broke my collar bone playing soccer at our Zone Activity, I can't do ANYTHING on my own, and then the mission president asks me "well did anyone at least get a good video of it?!" when he heard about my fall. It was funny.  I got a blessing and some drugs afterwards and will be in a sling for 4 weeks.  Surgery is not an immediate need and we will go to Raleigh on Monday to see a Dr. to make sure I will heal correctly.  For a girl who has never even dented a car, never fractured a bone...this was a rough week! hah.  So please excuse any errors or sloppy sentences- I am now typing with 1 hand.  Not so Golden...bahaha.

Changing the flat tire

Getting our tire fixed at Mr Tire

Urgent Care

Broken clavicle with bone fragment

The elders brought me some cookies!

This week was different (besides the obvious reasons.)  But I was able to see the Lord's hand very prevelantly in my life as a missionary this week. We went to go see a less active sister even though it wasn't planned and we brought some cake we were given.  She let us in and immediately ate the whole thing.  She started crying and said she needed our visit because this week was really hard for her since her husband has passed away.  I was glad we listened to the prompting to go and see her.






Tuesday of lasdt week we had our first transfer training meeting with {President and his wifwe plus

the assistants.  It was so great! We are becoming such good missionaries because of what Presidebnt is emphasizing and focusing on.  I love it!

So North Carolina has a motto.  'Esse quam videri' in latin.  It means to Be rather than to seem.  I love that.  We should always strive to be our best selves- not something fake, or what we think others want us to be.  We should focus our efforts on pleasing Christ who will help us become so much more than what we could ever make of ourselves.

I love this quote I came across in my studies as well.  "The Lord instructs his servants to be humble because the process of being made whole spiritually begins with a broken heart.  Think of all thgood that comes from broken things.  Soil is broken to make wheat.  Wheat is broken to make bread.  Bread is broken to become the emblems of the sacrament.  When one who is repentant partakes of the sacrament with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, he or she becomes whole."

Apply that today!
<3 Sister Golden

Jason...our car tracker!

We got a Tiwi put on our car.  Tracks the speed, brake pressure and driving skills of the missionary. It will be interesting! We have a card to log in and out each day we drive.  And it talks to us if we go too fast or don't have a seat belt on...it's name is Jason.

We had Zone Conference this week and Pres. James and the assistants and a car rep for the church came from Utah.  It was a great time- Sister Petersen and I were asked to give a role play in front of all the missionaries because I guess one of my answers was something the instructor was looking for. I had to invite an unwilling investigator to pray for the first time out loud after a lesson.  Upon them saying no I needed to ask again and get on my knees and wait for them to respond.  It was great!  President James came down from off the stand to join me and be my companion for the role play.  I leaned over to tease him (it's my personality) and said "You know President, it's kinda hard to kneel in a skirt over and over again..." He then said, very loudly, "I know! I don't know why ANY one would choose to be a girl!"  The whole chapel erupted into laughter!  It was so funny.  Then he got a little sheepish and said some things after that...I pretended to be offended.  I think he gets my humor ;) But it was great!

That night we had some really good homemade Indian food for dinner with a family from the ward. Brother S is actually Indian and a convert to the church.  The only one in Morrisville. He is great- we liked that dinner because we asked him a ton of questions for the area.

After that is was kind of humorous because we went to go see an investigator who is a kind Indian woman (christian) and she had Indian snacks and tea for us to try. WE were FULL!

Friday we were able to see two sisters who are living together and in their 70's.  One is a member and one is not.  After listening to some of the conversation I felt as though the one sister was struggling with something but hadn't opened up.  The spirit prompted me to share Mosiah 24:13-14; I was hesitant at first.  But after reading it and sharing a brief testimony this lady told me that her daughters anniversary of her passing away was the next week and she felt really sad and burdened down.  She said she appreciated the scripture more than I knew.  I am grateful to be a missionary and to help people receive the revelation they need.

The next night we were tracting around and I recognized a house of someone I had talked to before.  We knocked on the door and expected no answer.  A couple lived there and invited us in.  They were Catholic and had a ton of questions about the church and what missions are like.  They were intrigued that we would leave family and home for 18 months to do this.  The wife was so cute and turned into a mama bear and offered us dinners, and rides, and said to CALL her if we ever needed anything.  And then she gave us her number and drove us home.  Although we cannot commit everyone to be baptized, or even take a Book of Mormon, we can instill friendship and love into the hearts of the people we meet.

Love, Mallory

I love my care package!!

Power Statements Work!

Hard Work Pays off!  This week we went out contacting (tracting) a lot.  We had been studying ways to approach people in conversation on their door steps with something we call a 'power statement.' Just a regular "HI we are missionaries from the church of..." won't get you very far.  So we came up with a 'theme' you could say for that day's contacts.  This last week was the Atonement, and this week is about eternal families.  We are using short concise spirit filled statements that will hopefully catch peoples attention.

I can say that IT WORKED.  We found 4 new investigators this week!  Actually the Lord led us to them.  I love the quote, "Don't ask the Lord to guide your steps unless you are willing to move your feet."  So true!  This can be applied for all facets of life though.  I am glad to be learning it now when I can make it into a habit!

Last week was filled with so many great things!  First we had Zone Training.  Where all of us missionaries in the Stake get together to be instructed by the different leaders.  Our Zone's motto is Earn your Wings. (A scripture from Isaiah) We are working hard to find new people to teach and lifting the respective areas in which we serve to their highest potential.

 The next night Sister Toner took us out for Indian food at a place called Betel.  And it was FABULOUS!  I can say for sure now that I like Indian food...at least what I got. Ha.

The NEXT day, we got to go to the Temple and do a session as a Zone.  This is the first time I have ever gone to the temple with the Elders, and it was a great bonding experience.  I love the spirit that’s felt at the temple.  It is a place for us to reflect on how we can improve, and go out to make the world a better place.  After the session we had lunch together (Costco Pizza) and then had a small devotional with the Temple President.  He gave a great talk about the symbols and meaning behind the temple.   I want to study more and read more about the temple when I get home.  The Temple literally means the house of the Lord; what a privilege it is that we can visit and be so close to Him.

We went out tracting later that day and had some success.  We ran into a man who was part of the Jehovah's Witness church and I took TOTAL advantage and asked him every question I ever had about that religion. It was a good conversation and after politely declining his offer of giving me their Bible and trying to convert us we left.  The next place we went to was a grouchy, old gentlemen who opened and closed the door in one swift movement, no pause in between.  He saw us and said, "NOPE!" Haha.  I laughed.   When we knocked on the next door this little old lady hooked up to an oxygen machine answers the door and goes, "Oh my gosh! Ohhh myyy goshhh? It's YOU!  I just talked to you! You're here!"  I was very confused...Maybe she saw us in a dream and we were an answer to prayer? Nah. That was wishful thinking. Ha!  She thought I was her daughter and my companion her granddaughter.  She didn't hesitate to tell us that she was VERY disappointed we weren't them.  I felt so bad!  They said they didn't need anything and we could leave. So we did.  Ha.

Another funny thing this week...we were fed pizza 4 times.  I am very tired of pizza. Sister Petersen said that she was craving it and all of a sudden that week BOOM. The Lord provides.  So many carbs...

Sunday we were able to teach that family of 4 again at a members home.  We have gotten through the first 3 lessons, and are now teaching the commandments.  I had been praying to find a really good video or mormon message that would go along with our lesson about Church attendance, Prayer, and reading our scriptures.  I couldn't think of one before hand so we just went ahead to the lesson and I trusted that the spirit would take the reins. About 3/4 of the way through the lesson our member Brother M. made a comment and *WHAM* all of a sudden the phrase, "Daily Bread" came to my mind out of NO WHERE!  I had been praying for this and the answer came.  Daily Bread is a 3 part video given by Elder Christofferson about the need for physical sustenance as WELL as spiritual sustenance.  It was the perfect video for our lesson and the spirit that filled the room was so strong.  I know that the Lord provides, but not until we go forth in faith and start the work on our own.

“I think it’s not by chance God has created us in a way that we have to have daily physical sustenance. The children of Israel, coming out of Egypt, lived for 40 years, approximately, on something called manna. They couldn’t have lived from hunting, and their lifestyle was such that they couldn’t be planting. So they really didn’t have an alternative. God was, in essence, providing their daily sustenance. And I think at least one of His purposes was to teach them to remember Him, to think of Him, to look to Him, to have faith in Him, that He was the source of their life. He did it in the way of making it a daily thing. They couldn’t gather up manna and store it. It would only be good for one day. They couldn’t forget who was the source of their blessings. There’s a spiritual parallel in our day. We all recognize the need for physical sustenance. Hunger and thirst remind us very strongly if we forget. But the spiritual need for sustenance is equally strong. It comes not in drinking water and eating food, but in our constant, daily efforts of communion with God. We ought not to think that we can go weeks and months without spiritual sustenance and not suffer and not have a deadening influence in our spiritual life. Acknowledging the reality of our need for a daily spiritual administration, or manna, helps us increase in our courage to do the right thing and to serve others more than we would have if we ignored God. People sometimes think, “well, those are such small things. Prayer, immersing ourselves in the scriptures, pondering, meditating--how can that really produce a significant difference in a person’s life?” But it does. As small as those things seem to be-- as daily, routine, sometimes, they may seem to be--these are the kinds of things that, day by day, transform us.”

Love y’all!
Sister Golden:)

I love this family!

Hurricane Warnings!

Many of you may have heard that a little storm blew through the Eastern States.  We had some crazy rain and wind for almost two weeks straight.  What made it more interesting though was the fact that we bike and walk every other week.  It was a fun experience to say the least.  My companion got new shoes the week prior and got so many blisters! I felt so bad. 

The week itself was good.  We were able to befriend a few less active ladies who feel lonely, and LOVED that we stopped by.  One of them said, "Now you know you MUST call me if you EVER need a ride anywhere!"  It was so precious.  People need to feel like they have a place; like they have something to contribute.  That is when they will open up and the spirit will be able to touch their hearts.  Sister Petersen and I aren't here to condemn, guilt trip or set unreasonable expectations.  We are here to love, serve and invite people to come closer to Christ.  When paired with promptings and inspiration, there will always be feelings of love there.

Tuesday was a fabulously busy day.  Those days are always my favorite.  I feel more successful.  We had lunch with a less active lady, went and saw a part member family who made us some yummy pumpkin oat cookies (yes they were good), and later that evening saw a sweet woman who is returning to church.  We had gotten caught in the rain that evening and luckily our dinner appointment drove us to our next lesson.  We have been teaching a woman who is Indian descent but Christian.  She is always excited when we come over and said she would have an 'Indian treat' for us that she cooks.  Unfortunately when we arrived she was leaving and said she had to cancel and had texted us earlier about it.  We didn't get it and had to leave- but that happens in missionary life.  Sadly quite often, but I have gotten good at having back ups at the ready!  It just stinks when A...B...C...and D all fall through also.  And then it starts raining. HA!  IT all builds character ;)  At least I will have dates planned back at school and always have a back up...JUST KIDDING.  I make myself laugh.

Waiting for the dreaded flu shot!

We also got a hurricane warning this week.  Our Zone Leaders called and told everyone to:  1. Fill up our Car  2. Charge our phone  3. Get 30$ in cash  4. Have our emergency buckets ready to go.
Problem...we don't have the car, I have no monies, and my hurricane bucket was left in a previous area.  So Sister Petersen and I start racing around the kitchen throwing together ramen, almonds, tuna, soup, granola bars, oats, hygiene things, clothes, etc.  We were a whirlwind of commotion.  We were then told to get flashlights, water, and extra food.  Our dinner appointment had just cancelled on us and we were going to get a ride to the store with them.  So we reached out to a member we are really close to (she and I are like kindred spirits) and she took us to WalMart to get some stuff.  Emergency Essentials!  She also fed us dinner afterwards, drove us home in the rain, and came to a lesson with one of our investigators.  She is SO great.  I love her. 

We got some texts from a sweet couple who has adopted us as their grandchildren making sure we had all the necessities. They ended up bringing us over some banana bread and soda to make us feel better.  Sometimes I want to cry because members just care SO much about us. I feel so indebted to them at times.  But they are trying to serve just as I am.  We are all on the Lord's errand.

We had a really great lesson with our family of 4 we have been teaching.  They have gotten through the first 3 lessons and said they want to work towards being baptized.  I want them to progress so badly.  I feel a yearning for them to experience what I have felt because of the gospel- and what I have seen my family become because of the blessings received.  We love them and are so grateful that we are trusted enough by the Lord to teach His precious children. 

Conference this weekend was AMAZING!  I can't even place if I had a favorite talk or not.  But I can say that all 10 questions I brought to conference were answered Specifically and Directly.  I was so humbled by the fact that the Lord cared enough to answer me through his Servants.  I loved being able to see 3 new apostles called and sustained and I loved being able to feel the spirit as each of them spoke. 

Watching conference with the Spagnolo Family!

 

Saturday night we contacted a man who was a Baptist Deacon and had no qualms in telling us we had better be careful what we are preaching - because if we didn't we knew where we were going.  I was able to use several Bible verses and have a lively conversation with him in which neither one of us swayed.  Poor little Sister Petersen had no idea what to do. But it is scary when someone bashes on the things you love and cherish.  I was so high on Conference that I laughed a few times when he denounced our principles and Book of Mormon verses.  We left and I was confident and happy to be a member of this church.

It is true.  This is real.
I love you all!
Love Sister Golden:)

New Companion!

So this week was a blur!  On Monday we said most of our goodbyes, stayed up packing Sister Atkinson's things, and went to bed.
Tuesday was an early start because I had to be at the church to go through some training at 8:15.  We met our new missionaries/new companions, and then had lunch, went to the transfer meeting and saw all the departing missionaries who were going home.  It was sad, but you knew that they were returning with honor.  The older I get in the mission, the more people I know, and then the more I know, the more I have to say goodbye to!

Bye bye Sister Atkinson

That night we jumped right into missionary life.  We went and visited one of our investigators and taught her about the Book of Mormon.  We brought her a Hindi Book of Mormon because that is her native language, and she was SO excited.  She said she would start reading right away. 

After the lesson Sister Petersen goes,  "Whoa.  I really don't know what the heck I am doing here. I feel like I don't know anything.  You were so good in there.  I can't do that!"  That made me think back to when I was a new missionary last September as well.  I had forgotten how scary, humbling and eye opening it all was.  But I encouraged her, and on we went.  We did some contacting and I told her to just say, "Hi How are you doing today?" As soon as the person opened the door.  Door contacting is so scary at first and I want her to be confident.  NOT nervous.  WE had dinner with our Relief Society President, had a mini meeting then grabbed some quick groceries to hold my new missionary over till Monday and headed home.  We learned how to plan, then crashed.  She was exhausted!

Our new children! Me with Sister Petersen

The next morning the alarm clock doesn't go off, but my body wakes me up at 6:50.  I'm like, "SHOOT.  I am starting Day 1 already as an AWFUL trainer."  I wake her up and we exercise in our living room.  I have to remind myself to do everything a little bit slower and explain what we are doing because Sister Petersen isn't used to the daily grind yet.  But I have enjoyed really thinking and focusing on what we do.  It helps me understand our purpose on a little deeper of a level.
After studies we go to District Meeting, then to lunch with the Green Level Sisters.  It was nice because we were all able to give Sister P advice and sympathize with her about how she was feeling!  Oh man, I remember being in my first week on the mission.  She is a champ.

We then went to an apartment complex to contact some former investigators that we found in our area book.  Some of them had moved, some didn't answer, and some said they weren't interested.  It was good practice though just knocking on doors.  Although we didn't get a whole ton of answers, we were able to meet a nice man whose name is actually GUY.  He was impressed with what we are doing and asked us to come back the next week after we shared a scripture with him.

Thursday we commenced in our first ever Weekly Planning Session together.  It took a while, but that's okay.  That night we were fed dinner twice, haha.  Chili with the Erickson's and Mexican chili with the Ortiz's.  Man, was I full!  It was pouring that night as well- luckily we had the car!

Friday we sang the song Come Follow Me at a baptism for the Elders.  Everyone said that it was great and brought a special spirit to the room.  I love that music and hymns can do that :)

Saturday we were able to contact one of our potential investigators!  That sweet woman Karin who liked my prayer.  When we walked in she immediately said, "Honey!  Give me your number I want to be able to contact you!  I am so gald you came back.  Every time you are here there is just such a wonderful warm presence.  IT's like you carry something with you.  I just love that.  Could you come over for dinner one night?  I want to get to know you girls better."  After some more conversation she gave us homemade applesauce, jelly, and brownies that she had canned, or froze.  She is SO Sweet.  People are so kind when you just LOVE them for who they are.  She wants to keep in touch after my mission as well.  What a nicey lady.

Then on Sunday after dinner we went contacting, found 2 new investigators, and one lady was so excited that we had an extar Book of Mormon for her, that she went to her pantry and gave us her homemade canned Dill Pickles, Sweet pickles, and peppery pickles.  Haha so nice.  Southern Hospitality is a real thing.  I think we need that in the West Coast.  That night the family we ate with made HUGE steaks, baked potatoes, and peas for dinner because they knew we had been fasting all day.  Food is 2x better on Fast Sunday :) Haha.

That night we had a really great lesson with a family we have seen about 3 times now.  The three children are really like sponges, and as we teach they ask us questions.  They have also been reading in the Book of Mormon and want to watch Conference next weekend.

I know that this is the Lord's work.  Remember, if this wasn't the Lord's work, the adversary wouldn't pay any attention to us.
I love it, I live it I need it.
<3 Sister Golden

Asked to Train Again!

 Alright, so I am going to share a bit of news first before going on to the rest of my letter.  On Friday we got a phone call from President and was sort of freaking out.  We had just gotten back from our work out and I was all sweaty and short winded.  We answer and he asks to speak with me...he doesn't say anything for what feels like a minute.  I start to panic in my head and worry if it is bad news.  But then he goes on to say, "Will you train for us?" Blunt and to the point.  I say, "yes, President I will." And he goes, "I'm sorry."  I don't know how to respond and consider saying, "Thank you?" and "Why?" HA! He continues, "I am sorry that I only have a few people I entrust with the sacred calling of being a trainer.  And know that I can trust you completely to do this job. But I know you will be great."  I was glad to know that the Lord trusts me, and so does President James, but I was still nervous!  I feel like I don't know the area, BUT... I also know that the Lord compensates for what we cannot do, and we are endowed with power when we need it most.  So I am trying to just pray a lot and put my faith and trust in the Lord.

We love biking!

Someone gave me a basket:)

Anyways.  This week was a good one for teaching.  We started teaching three siblings, whose mother actually has been taking the discussions on and off since 2009.  We had one lesson with the kids last week and all of them plus their mom came to church yesterday.  That night we had another lesson with them and the SPIRIT was so STRONG!  They were all sincerely interested and asked to continue the lessons.  They said they would all study and seriously pray about baptism.  The mom said, "You know, now I can finally accept the Joseph Smith story.  I understand that these things can happen and that God speaks to people differently due to time period, personal reasons and what we need."  So I know that the Lord has plans for his children.  We needed to teach them at THIS time, because the children are old enough to understand, and that is helping their mom learn as well.  So neat :)

Another lesson we had this week was with a single mom and her three girls.  She has also been seeing the missionaries for years.  We had a heart to heart lesson and she opened up to us about her struggles as a single mom and we were able to share a scripture of comfort from both the Bible as well as the Book of Mormon.  She really appreciated that and said that it let her know that God will always talk to his people and never leave them abandoned.  This was a great leap because her religion doesn't really even read the Bible. 

Another lesson...with another single mother (I am beginning to see a pattern) was about the Strippling Warriors.  She said that she hated being a single mom and felt that she wasn't doing her kids any good by raising them alone.  I felt prompted to turn to Alma 56 and when we got to the part where the boys said, "for our mothers knew it..."  she teared up and said "I needed to hear that."  The scriptures continue to amaze me.  No matter what our life struggle may be, we can find hope, comfort, and solace when we open and read them.  Even if we don't get an answer in word form, the spirit that comes with reading can be an answer in and of itself.  I have found that to be true many times for me as well.  If it isn't a habit for you already, I would encourage you to try and read from the scriptures daily.  You will find more spiritual comfort as you do so. 

This week we had Zone training so we all got together at the Stake Center.  That is always a treat because we learn a lot...and we get to see the temple of course!
At the training we got a bunch of new information!  News that we can NOW do things with Elders!  Such as have a District or Zone Activity, and with permission drive to meetings together, and possibly being able to eat together after meetings.  It will be SUCH a weird change, but I believe that it will increase the unity of our mission and allow us to practice obedience on a higher level.  Just gotta' stay consecrated!  Ha.  Today we had our first Zone Activity and played football, kick-ball, and zombie ball.  That last one was interesting.  Haha.  We got a big zone picture which I will hopefully receive next week.  But it was great being able to mingle and create a better relationship rather than shaking hands and going in the opposite direction.

  Tuesday was our Deep Clean day last week.  And we went to TOWN!  We cleaned out our apartment SO good.  I felt very accomplished and actually miss being able to clean and organize.  Weird, I know.  But it is like a stress reliever for me!  I just turned the music on and we went straight for 4 hours!

So because of conference coming up we have been informing our investigators and less actives about the Sat. and Sun. sessions, as well as the Relief Society Broadcast.  We seem to be getting good feed back about people wanting to watch and attend.  I know how powerful conference can be; and for someone who is investigating or trying to return to church, this can be a crucial moment!  I love going into conference with specific questions I want answered.  1. It always works.  2. I feel more close to my heavenly father.  I want you to do the same! :)

So this cute little 80 year old man had been meeting with us on his door step for about two weeks.  He is the one who always calls us pet names, haha.  The last time we saw him he called us, "Sweet darling baby girls".  When we brought a couple with us to a lesson The Old Man said that he wasn't interested in learning anything further.  But we were SO charming and didn't know how such nice girls like us were in the world.  1. It made me feel good that we put a positive note on the 'Mormons' and 2. I now can say that an 80 year old man had a crush on me.  Ha! Too bad he broke up with us before it went any further. 

I am truly grateful for the gospel in my life.  There are many struggles that our investigators face- and others who refuse to listen to the message we have to share miss out on blessings that could help them through.  I want to quote a talk I was reading by President Monson.

"When the pathway of life takes a cruel turn, there is the temptation to think or speak the phrase, “Why me?” Self-incrimination is a common practice, even when we may have had no control over our difficulty. Socrates is quoted as saying: “If we were all to bring our misfortunes into a common store, so that each person should receive an equal share in the distribution, the majority would be glad to take up their own and depart.”
However, at times there appears to be no light at the tunnel’s end—no dawn to break the night’s darkness. We feel surrounded by the pain of broken hearts, the disappointment of shattered dreams, and the despair of vanished hopes. We join in uttering the biblical plea, “Is there no balm in Gilead?”  We are inclined to view our own personal misfortunes through the distorted prism of pessimism. We feel abandoned, heartbroken, alone.
To all who so despair, may I offer the assurance of the Psalmist’s words: “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
Whenever we are inclined to feel burdened down with the blows of life’s fight, let us remember that others have passed the same way, have endured, and then have overcome.
Job was a perfect and an upright man who “feared God, and eschewed evil.” Pious in his conduct, prosperous in his fortune, Job was to face a test which would tempt any man. Shorn of his possessions, scorned by his friends, afflicted by his suffering, even tempted by his wife, Job was to declare from the depths of his noble soul, “Behold, my witness is in heaven, and my record is on high.  I know that my redeemer liveth.”
As we each face different hurtles in life, let us see them as humbling blocks, not stumbling blocks.  I know that the Savior is in the details.  Although our mortal mind cannot comprehend the end of our challenge, our spirit knows that this life is just a place to learn and be tested.
"Yes, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is our Exemplar and our strength. He is the light that shineth in darkness. He is the Good Shepherd. Though engaged in His majestic ministry, He embraced the opportunity to lift burdens, provide hope, mend bodies, and restore life."
I leave that testimony with mine as well.

Have such a good week :)
<3 Sister Golden