Changing the world one tweet at a time! A little dramatic? Elder Bednar doesn't think so. I just watched his BYU devotional address and I'm excited. It's all about the way we can use social media to share 'the hope that is in [us]' (1 Peter 3:15). How something as simple as a social media post can help combat negative messages with edifying truth. The Church has already run some brilliant social media campaigns (i.e. #BecauseofHim) inspiring positive online conversations around the world. Here are some excerpts from Elder Bednar's address.
"Social media channels are global tools that can personally and positively impact large numbers of individuals and families. And I believe the time has come for us as disciples of Christ to use these inspired tools appropriately and more effectively to testify of God the Eternal Father, His plan of happiness for His children, and His Son, Jesus Christ, as the Savior of the world; to proclaim the reality of the Restoration of the gospel in the latter days; and to accomplish the Lord’s work.
Beginning at this place on this day, I exhort you to sweep the earth with messages filled with righteousness and truth—messages that are authentic, edifying, and praiseworthy—and literally to sweep the earth as with a flood."So go on, share the goodness!
Hello internet! It's been what, 18 months?
I just returned from the greatest experience of my life and I don't really know what to say.. How on earth do you sum up something that has literally changed your life forever? I don't know but I'll give it a try.
First off here's an intro to what a missionary does.
First off here's an intro to what a missionary does.
I grew up in the church with a big supportive family. For me living my faith was like breathing. I couldn't see any other way of life that felt right or that would bring me as much happiness. That's why I decided to serve a mission in the first place; to bring that happiness to others.
When I landed in England and put on the shiny, black badge I could feel the weight of my calling - the responsibility and privilege I now had, to honour Jesus Christ's name. It was scary/daunting/exciting! But now all of a sudden my support network was gone and it was just me and my beliefs; me and God. I was confronted every day by people who questioned and often belittled my beliefs. For once I really had to stand on my own two feet and see if my faith was strong enough to endure some serious opposition. In the process I built this relationship of trust between me and Heavenly Father. I learned that working and losing yourself in the service of others when you would much rather be curled up on the couch, out of the rain, gives you a unique insight into God's character. I came to realise through countless miracles that God is keenly aware of us. He is in the details of our lives. I got to experience being guided to people at the right place at the right time, and having incredible conversations where we would be on a busy street but completely oblivious to the noise (I call it 'spirit bubble'). You would see their eyes light up and you both knew that it wasn't a coincidence that you had met. That God had something (or everything) to do with it. This happened to me at least once a day. It's the most incredible feeling to know you're able to help God do His work. I think that's what got me through the damp, bone-chilling cold, the rejection, the long, sometimes lonely days. I felt in my own small way like Christ's first apostles, like a true disciple of Christ. It was necessary to go through the refiner's fire a little bit. But I grew a heck of a lot and witnessed so many lives change because of it. So no regrets, only gratitude :)
So basically I know God and Jesus Christ better, I know myself better and I have a greater understanding of what life is all about and what I can do with mine. I will always be grateful for that.
A bit of my heart will always be in the England. Thank heaven for the internet or I'd be seriously homesick. A scripture from the Book of Mormon pretty much sums up my feelings:
"And now it came to pass that all this was done in [England]... how beautiful [is it] to the eyes of them who there came to the knowledge of their Redeemer; yea, and how blessed are they, for they shall sing to his praise forever." (Mosiah 18:30)
I feel like one of our Prophet's Gordon B. Hinckley who served a mission in England, when he said,
"I love the English people. No one can sell the English short in my mind because I labored with them, I lived with them, I was in their homes at their firesides, I learned to know their hearts, and I learned to love them." (x)
I'm starting my 'return to the motherland' fund. But it's good to be back! I've missed Australia and these guys.
I'm leaving in 13 days. What is life?
"The capacity to be alone is the capacity to love. It may look paradoxical to you, but it is not. It is an existential truth: only those people who are capable of being alone are capable of love, of sharing, of going into the deepest core of the other person - without possessing the other, without becoming dependent on the other, without reducing the other to a thing, and without becoming addicted to the other. They allow the other absolute freedom, because they know that if the other leaves, they will be as happy as they are now. Their happiness cannot be taken by the other, because it is not given by the other."
—Osho, Being In Love
—Osho, Being In Love
"Recognize that there is a power greater than ours, that no matter how good a man is, he is not good enough, that no matter how wise he is, he is not wise enough, that no matter how strong he is, he is not strong enough for all the things which he will face in life, and that there is a source of power to which he can go with the assurance that he will be listened to and that there will be a response."
- President Gordon B. Hinckley
- President Gordon B. Hinckley
There's nothing like some tripped-out pop to take you to a sunny place. I've been listening to this in the car on the way to and from work and imagining I'm on a summer road trip. I want to marry this album. Very tempted to buy tickets to Tame Impala's Melbourne show..
After the longest three weeks of my life, I got my mission call. For Mormons, a mission call is the most important/highly anticipated letter you'll ever get. It's a letter from the prophet assigning you to serve in one of the 300+ missions worldwide for 18-24 months. I'd been waiting many months (years really) for this and there it was, sitting in my mailbox. I ran inside, impatient to open it. Luckily half my family were home to witness, although in hindsight I wish I had've waited for all of them to get home. But the suspense was killing me, so I opened it. Hands shaking, I pulled the contents out and started to read. My eyes went straight to the location; I couldn't help myself. I yelled something in disbelief then read out the first sentence for my family's benefit.
"Dear Sister King. You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the England Manchester mission."
!!! There was a lot of screaming, hugging, crying, phone calls, and Facebook statuses on my behalf after the announcement. I've been somewhere between shock and excitement ever since. But as excited as I am to serve in the country I've been dreaming of for as long as I can remember, the reality that I'm going to be a missionary is setting in and I have a lot of preparing to do. I report to the MTC on January 24th.
Some fun facts about my mission and the Manchester area in general:
My mission area is pretty much the whole north west coast and goes as far east as Manchester, from the Scottish border down to the middle of Wales.
The city of Manchester has an amazing history, and as a history geek and lover of old buildings I can't wait to see some of the sites that weren't destroyed in the WWII bombings (including a Roman fort, the old cotton mills, and Chetham library where Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels met regularly). It actually never occurred to me that the reason we call bedding 'Manchester' was because the town is famous for being the global centre for cotton production during the industrial revolution. Other cool things to come out of Manchester (and the greater area) are The Smiths and Elizabeth Gaskell, who spent most of her life in the area and wrote many of her novels about the north (time to watch North & South again I think).
Probably the biggest thing I'll have to adjust to in England is the insane cold. The average temperature in winter is 4°C and a 'warm summer's day' is around 18°C. I think I'm going to have to invest in some thermals if I'm going to survive walking the streets every day. I found it kind of funny that the first thing on the personal items to bring list was an umbrella. Typical England. At least I get to enjoy an Australian summer before plunging into the cold and wet.
Weather and culture aside, I'm really looking forward to being a missionary. It's the best decision I've made. I know that the hardest things are always worth doing and that as long as I have a testimony of the things I'll be teaching and a desire to serve and love others, Heavenly Father will make my weaknesses strengths. I've been listening to general conference in the car this week. I loved the talk by Elder Nelson about missionaries where he explains their purpose. It really reassured me that by going on a mission I'll be able to help people change their lives for the better and have the happiness and peace the gospel has brought to my life, and that's a much better way to spend my time than anything else I could be doing right now. Here's the talk:
"Dear Sister King. You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the England Manchester mission."
!!! There was a lot of screaming, hugging, crying, phone calls, and Facebook statuses on my behalf after the announcement. I've been somewhere between shock and excitement ever since. But as excited as I am to serve in the country I've been dreaming of for as long as I can remember, the reality that I'm going to be a missionary is setting in and I have a lot of preparing to do. I report to the MTC on January 24th.
Some fun facts about my mission and the Manchester area in general:
My mission area is pretty much the whole north west coast and goes as far east as Manchester, from the Scottish border down to the middle of Wales.
I'll be going to the England MTC (Missionary Training Centre) near Preston, Lancashire, which is next to the Preston Temple. Here's a photo my friend took of the temple at Christmas time.
The city of Manchester has an amazing history, and as a history geek and lover of old buildings I can't wait to see some of the sites that weren't destroyed in the WWII bombings (including a Roman fort, the old cotton mills, and Chetham library where Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels met regularly). It actually never occurred to me that the reason we call bedding 'Manchester' was because the town is famous for being the global centre for cotton production during the industrial revolution. Other cool things to come out of Manchester (and the greater area) are The Smiths and Elizabeth Gaskell, who spent most of her life in the area and wrote many of her novels about the north (time to watch North & South again I think).
And no, this isn't Hogwarts, it's Chetham Library.
Weather and culture aside, I'm really looking forward to being a missionary. It's the best decision I've made. I know that the hardest things are always worth doing and that as long as I have a testimony of the things I'll be teaching and a desire to serve and love others, Heavenly Father will make my weaknesses strengths. I've been listening to general conference in the car this week. I loved the talk by Elder Nelson about missionaries where he explains their purpose. It really reassured me that by going on a mission I'll be able to help people change their lives for the better and have the happiness and peace the gospel has brought to my life, and that's a much better way to spend my time than anything else I could be doing right now. Here's the talk:
My mission papers are in! So now begins the longest 3-4 weeks of my life; waiting to find out where I'll be serving for the next 18 months of my life. I came across this awesome talk by Ronald A. Rasband about how missionaries are assigned through revelation. I know that wherever I go, will be where the Lord needs me. Here's an excerpt from the talk:
With the encouragement and permission of President Henry B. Eyring, I would like to relate to you an experience, very special to me, which I had with him several years ago when he was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. Each Apostle holds the keys of the kingdom and exercises them at the direction and assignment of the President of the Church. Elder Eyring was assigning missionaries to their fields of labor, and as part of my training, I was invited to observe...
