It has been such a great experience to have shared these weekly
missionary letters with you. I feel both excited for Sister Urie to
come home and Sad that her time is up. I know she is returning with
honor. God is pleased with her work and so is her family. Well done
Sister Urie. This being the last email I want to say thank you for
sharing this with us. Terri Urie
Dear Family,
Dear Family,
What a week..What a week. It feels as though I have just went to
sleep..to wake up and find that its Monday AGAIN! Time has truly been
going by so fast. I love my mission. I love the time that I get to serve
the Lord full time with all my heart, might, mind and strength. What a
joy and a blessing this has been to me. There were so many wonderful
experiences that happened this week. They are near and dear to my heart
and I hope you will find them a treasure as well..
I know Gods hand is in our lives because of the way everything has
worked out. There was a chance for a hot second of me coming home in
October...Had that happened I would have missed out on so many things
here. Noah and his Dad being baptized. Different things in the ward and
opportunities for growth that couldn't have happened else where. Things
came full circle yesterday at church when we were able to see Noah pass
the sacrament and his dad bless the sacrament. I couldn't help but tear
up. It is so wonderful to see those that you have shared the gospel with
come into full fellowship and participate in their callings and in
church. Noah's dad received a calling also on Sunday and is so very
excited to do all he can.
We were able to have a fire and roast some smores with them and
some other members of the ward yesterday. Following we had a little
scripture study. There was not a dry eye. I will truly miss both Noah
and his dad so much. Noah wants with all his heart to serve a full time
mission and his dad wants to be faithful and do all he can to remain
active in the church. It warms my heart to know that they too have a
testimony of our Savior and his plan for us. They are life long eternal
friends that I will always treasure. When they go to the temple..I will
be there. I never want to loose contact with them. ..knowing them causes
me to reflect on the missionaries that helped Grandma and Grandpa
Hartman to join the church. I am sure they felt a small portion..if not
the same as I feel right now. With all my heart I wish they could see
the impact that they not only had on y'alls life..but how it has
influenced so many other lives.
In missionary work there are those who sow and those who reap. I
was always a "sower"..I love helping plant the seeds. This brings my
heart so much joy..but there is just something about "reaping" and
seeing the fruits of your labors. It makes you appreciate all the little
seeds that took time to plant and were nurtured patiently over time.
God does have a plan. He is over all, he created us, loves us and will
in his time bless us with that which we stand in need of. The Lord in
his infinite wisdom made me a sower until the end. He knew i needed those
experiences to be able to fully appreciate the joys of reaping such
wonderful souls for Christ. Praise be to God.
..On a lighter note..It was so fun this week just living up the
missionary life dream. Finding, teaching..and almost helping someone get
to baptism. ( she will be baptized soon!) ..We were able to help out
with the ward Christmas party. There was a little program put on..i
played a violin solo ( of course) and we sang with the choir. ( our ward
is so talented) .. the best part came when who should arrive at our
party but Chris Kringle him self! Santa Came!..Sister Johnson and I
could not miss out on such an opportunity we got in line and had our
picture taken with Santa ( yes we made him hold a copy of the Book of
Mormon.) After we got our pictures and candy canes I turned to Santa and
asked him if he had read the Book of Mormon before..he said he had not!
..I asked him if he had one..he did not.. We told him that even Santa
needs to get presents at Christmas and gave it to him as a present for
Christmas..Santa promised that he would read the Book of Mormon and pray
to know if it was God's word. So when he comes down your chimney..or
however he enters y'alls house..make sure you follow up with him and see
how his reading is going ;) before you know it we will here how Santa
was baptized in the Brandon ward with the help of Sisters Johnson and
Urie! woo hoo! lol.. ( After we gave him the book we went up to the
bishop and asked him who Santa was..come to find out hes the father in
law of a member..and hes not a member of the church!..yet
again..planting seeds.ha!)
There were many more experiences that we had this week..but I will
limit this email to just those few and share the rest with you when I
return home. I have been keeping a journal every night..so we will have
some fun stories to talk about..as I am also to hear all of y'alls.
One thing that I am excited for is to see the change in each of
you. With time comes opportunities for testing, trials and growth. As one
of my good friends likes to say.."There is no Growth in the comfort
zone and no comfort in the growth zone." I know that the Lord has taught
all of us things and we have been able to grow. Please accept this
change that i have made to myself and my life. I am not perfect, nor
will i ever be in this life..but I love he Lord and have a strong
testimony of his gift of the atonement. This, having faith in Christ and
repenting of our sins, can change lives. Peoples hearts can change.
There is a great talk on this from this past general conference entitled
"See others as they may become" By President Thomas S.
Monson. I recommend reading this one. one of my favorite quotes in the
talk is .."
During the 1940s and 1950s, an American prison warden, Clinton Duffy, was well known for his efforts to rehabilitate the men in his prison. Said one critic, “You should know that leopards don’t change their spots!” Replied Warden Duffy, “You should know I don’t work with leopards. I work with men, and men change every day.""
During the 1940s and 1950s, an American prison warden, Clinton Duffy, was well known for his efforts to rehabilitate the men in his prison. Said one critic, “You should know that leopards don’t change their spots!” Replied Warden Duffy, “You should know I don’t work with leopards. I work with men, and men change every day.""
We are meant to change and progress and become more like our Savior
and our Father. This is a commandment. Repent. What great news the
gospel is that we can change and be forgiven of our wrongs and have our
'garments washed clean". The Atonement is real. This is something I want
to always remember and apply in my life. Never to be judgmental of
others again. God loves us and I know that he has a great plan for us.
I love yall. Thank you so much again for all your support, love,
prayers and encouragement throughout my time as a missionary and
throughout my whole life. I truly love you and cannot wait to see yall
again soon!
Till we meet again.
Love yall!
Sister Rebecca Urie.
Mississippi Jackson Mission
May 25,2011- December 12, 2012
Southernism: We told one of our investigators that wed see her at
church and she replied.."if God willing and the creek don't rise"..haha
too cute
Tracting Tips:none!..raining :) ( Flowood is crying because i'm leaving)
Scripture: Alma 26:16
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