Dear Family and Friends,
So I'm not quite sure what happened with last week’s letter... The library we go to is pretty packed during our e-mail time so we’ve been using these old computers lately. It probably timed out or something. Oh well, sorry about that. [no letter arrived last week, so Shaun and Susan mentioned it in their email to him. Fortunately, it had automatically saved, so Joseph forwarded it and it is now posted as July 8th's letter!]
The big news this week is tranfers! I'm going to be staying in the same apartment with Elder Burbank My current area is being split in half (which is good because it's a pretty huge bike area) Elder Sturgell will be going to the other side of the bike area with Elder Low who is coming back from his English area. (are you following this so far? :) Elder Fowler and Elder Clawson are staying in the car area. (oh the good ol' car area. I was there for 8 months) And Elder Burbank and I are still zone leader companions. Guess what? Elder Jolley is training a visa waiter, still in HB. So he'll have two Elders he's training at the same time this next transfer. Crazy! The missionaries just keep coming! When I entered the field we had something like 150 missionaries. Now, we have 248 and rising!! Next transfer we are getting two more Cambodian missionaries. Then in October we are getting one more, who literally IS Cambodian, as in -he is currently living in Cambodia, has squinty eyes, black hair and eats weird stuff, the whole deal. So by October we'll have eight Cambodian missionaries total. Cool! I'm not even sure how that's going to work but I have the faith it will. I personally am really looking forward to this transfer. Elder Burbank and I both have strong language skills and experience, so I think we are really going to be able to get some quality work done!
The other day I found myself a little frustrated. Have you ever experienced a time where you know you are right but the person you are working with refuses to listen and insists you are wrong? And even when that person is proven wrong, he still doesn't recognize it and continues to insist that you're wrong? I found myself in that situation the other day, just over the littlest thing but man, it was frustrating! Fortunately though I have the Spirit to remind me that the whole purpose of this life is to see how we will handle situations like these. I realized I could either choose to be Christlike or let my pride get to me. (Isn't it that way in every choice we make? 2 Ne 2:27) The issue at hand didn't even really matter. All that would come of it would be "See! I'm right, you're wrong." It's always cool when something I've been teaching my investigators happens to me. The mission has helped me have that "fresh perspective" again. In this situation I was literally able to recognize the Holy Ghost guiding me in how I should respond (Mosiah 3:19) When I decided to let it go, I felt great! I knew I had gotten that question right on my "life test" (Abraham 3:25) I grew spiritually, and as a person too, because of it. I know the more and more we choose to be Christlike and put off the natural man, the closer we will get to our Savior and the happier we will be.
Over the course of my mission I've faced tons of these little trials. I’m realizing that we have the gospel. We have the Holy Ghost. We have the answers we need to pass our life test. Ten years from now, I could be married with kids who look up to a dad who has some pride just like any average dad, OR my kids could look up to a dad who has internalized the attributes of Christ. I hope I can be a model and example for my future children. How grateful I am for the gospel which gives me an eternal perspective on what this life is truly all about. I’m grateful for Christ's example in how we are to live. I'm grateful for the Gift of the Holy Ghost that guides us to make the right choices. It gives me a desire to be better every day. I'm grateful for the Atonement that can put us right back on track when we mess up. I love to repent. I know the gospel is true and that internalizing the attributes of Christ will bring us more inner peace and happiness than anything else. I know that by doing so we can become what our Heavenly Father knows we can become. He created us, He knows us better than we know ourselves. In fact, He knows everything. He loves us so much and always has our best interest in mind. I know we need to follow His guidance that He has given us- in the scriptures; from His prophets; and from His Holy Spirit. I testify if we do this we will be blessed and happy. (Mosiah 2:41) I love this gospel.
Love,
Elder Hicken
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