Letter #36

Hola Harmano's y harmana's,

Yahooo!!! CHRISTMAS!!!! Mom...oh no don't you dare send it to the office!! TO ME!!!! The last package you sent came and I loved it!! You found the green things!!! :) G-ma used to give to us...but I shut it too tight and now I can’t' open it...but I screamed for 1 hour because I was so excited about it!!! Thank you for that mom and the sun rider awesome and the tea tree oil. I will use for staff infection? Can I use it for that!?


Super excited for Christmas how about you!!!!!??????????

Ok so this week was incredible, we are finally working in our 3rd ward. It started off really hard though because we had to give up 5 investigators to the elders that took our 1st ward and now are praying and working hard to find in this new HUGE area! On bikes...super duper fun....I haven’t ridden out there yet....pray for me!!1 ha ha! We went tracting the other day and it was INCREDIBLE my companion and I were led to a street and the last door we knocked on we ran into a girl name Rachel. She had BLACK eye shadow on that looked like she took a black sharpie and colored on her eye lids. We walked to the door and the person at the door (looked mighty different also...definately could fit in with the Portland crowd) ha-ha! said "are you looking for Rachel?" .....Mum....then this bright eyed young women practically jumps to the front door and says "are ya'll Mormons? I love Mormons".....I was so confused I didn't know what to think. But This was Rachel....so her mom married a Mormon for a while before she met her ex-girl friend...yes I said girlfriend...Rachel says' "she's my mom, and /I still love her." We started to talk and ended up teaching the plan of happiness to her in her backyard as she smoked cigarettes. Poor thing told us she was 16 years old, and has a 7 month old baby boy and is married to a 21 year old. wow!!! Her house was full of honestly it seemed to me like a crazy house with lots of confusion and pretty sure many were shooting up with ....not good things. She was amazing though....her eyes and soul are lost, and during the lesson I asked, "what is one thing that makes you smile when you think about it?" She said without hesitation," my baby..." We explained then how that joy is something she can have all the time and enjoy when she follows Heavenly father's commandments, because it makes us free and happy. She wants us to come back Wednesday...so we're really excited because she'd be in our area and is married so we can teach her!! A real miracle led by the holy ghost.

Satan is working hard to frustrate this new area that we're working in, my companion doesn't ever really get excited or at least she hides it really well, anyone that knows me knows I love getting excited and happy, because it relieves bad feelings. Heavenly Father teaches, "be happy" when he puts Adam and eve in the garden. I love this. You have either two out looks in life....happy or not happy....everything that's good and leads you to believe in Christ comes from God, if not it's not of God. So any feelings other than happiness don't come from Heavenly Father. I think about this....when I'm angry or hurt or offended or whatever...how does that make me feel better....why don't we put away our pride and act as a child would: meek, submissive, loving no matter what, caring, smiling and not letting little things get in the way. I challenge each of us this Christmas to look at a situation we just can't or won’t let go of. a family member, a friend a co-worker, a member of the church, bishop, stake President, me and you.....what is your rope that binds you from being truly happy? .....And act as if you were Lydia or June and Grace or Jacan or Aiden, a little child....What would they do?....Don't they keep loving even when we sometimes hurt them? How is it so easy for them to love and forgive so quickly? Or say, "I'm sad because you...." and why can't we forgive so easily and not hold grudges or hold back, because "they deserve it"....The savior. I would imagine he would not only forgive us but I'm sure he would run to us kneel down to our level and gently grab our arms and wipe our tears and say "all is well....you are forgiven....now let it go....and go in peace...be happy."

Oh a joy this Christmas season. How blessed I am and we all are...for we have the restored gospel that brings Good tidings of great joy!!! You know Gospel means: "good news" and what is the great news we have? The plan of Happiness. so then the angels when they came to tell everyone, "we bring good tidings of great joy" they were really saying.... " We bring you the good news of the Gospel; the Plan of Happiness".....Hey we have that don’t' we....makes sense yes....? How wow and guess what that's all I do all year is I get to share that message with all that I come in contact with....I get to share the gospel of the plan our Heavenly Father has for his children....Who are lost....battered...scared...bruised....broken....lonely.....scared.....looking....and maybe some are on the verge of giving up.....like the old violin....but what happens at the end of that story?... The "touch of the master's hand"....

I have seen his hand in the work...why? Because this IS his work. We're merely tools and if we don’t' perform to our potential we are put through a fire until we are perfected in him. and I know that this is possible. we are not perfect, but the refining fires of God we can be through the atonement and us choosing to Endure to the end.

A special moment happened this past thanksgiving I don’t' think I shared. because I left on my mission. I bought a little necklace...a mustard seed. and when we went through all the trials I personally had to go through I would wear it and hold tight to it, hoping for it to give me extra faith when I was drained....I continued to wear it all through my mission until last week....I've talked of Amy who we actually found her baptism records and she IS a member....I felt prompted to give her something thanksgiving night (we went to dinner with, her parents who had no family w/ them, she was working 80-105 hours a week). I jumped out of the car and was so excited...what am I supposed to give her I thought....then it came...."oh no..." I thought. not that....she won’t think it's as special to me as it will be to her....but the whisper came again and I slowly opened my wooden box and pulled out my rusted, dirty battered little mustard seed....and wrote a note to explain....I sealed the letter and gently tucked my little goldfish-greenish mustard seed in a strategically taped letter. and wrote AMY on the front....I hurried and ran to give it to her parents to give to her and ran back in my apt. shocked at my empty hand....the next few days she called and thanked me....but then Sunday her mom came to me and said this;
"I don't think you know how much that little mustard seed meant to Amy. When she got it she opened it up and with tears in her eyes instantly put it around her neck...." Well we had a lesson with Amy on Thursday and guess what!!!?? Bishop came...and gave her a blessing and talked with her and Amy is meeting with him on Tuesday to start to lift her Heavy burden she has tried to carry on her own for this 10+ years. Keep her in your prayers. She is actually excited for it too. :) AMAZING!!! next step TEMPLE!!!

I love missionary work, even through bed bugs and hurt bodies and sweat and gaining weight, and slammed doors, how I love that little spark we see in those that are truly ready and humbled.....I love my savior, I love my Father in Heaven and I am so grateful to be a missionary and serve. Yes it's hard always....but wow!!!! 2 ways to look at life....HAPPY or not happy.... LIFE IS INCREDIBLE and we are numbered. God bless us every one!!!

Love you forever and always from here to Heaven,

Sister Judkins