To What We May Become

Feb 24, 2014  "Elder Holland - Zoe baptism”

Dear Family,

What a week of miracles! Two of our investigators set baptismal dates in March, each progressing well and increasing in their desire to come closer to God. The members have been taking good care of them and we are thrilled to watch their spiritual journeys beginning.   This week, we also had one of our investigators  (Zoe) meet her baptismal date. Her story is incredible. Over a year ago, she was contacted by the missionaries in Yilan. She took all the discussions but was unwilling to be baptized because she feared family opposition. Eventually, she stopped meeting with the missionaries and fell out of contact with the Church. Over a month ago, one of the missionaries who previously taught her was serving in the JinHua ward. While making phone calls outside, he miraculously caught sight of Zoe and felt he recognized her. They made the connection and the Elders retaught Zoe how to pray. Zoe's name and new Taipei address were given to us and we began meeting with her. Only weeks later, we got to witness this sweet, loving, honest sister be baptized. It was such a beautiful day! It has been extraordinary to see her change from a young woman feeling alone and frightened to a loving new convert who is full of faith. I love this gospel of change. The last miracle I want to share took place in the office today. We were all sitting and eating lunch when someone tried to buzz into the door of the office. She is a former investigator who asked if she could have a chance to meet with us! Sister Chu and I were stunned. We are excited to meet with her tonight. Sometimes, God blesses us so greatly that we feel happy and grateful to the point of bursting! This week was one of those weeks! 
This weekend left me pondering about so many beautiful things. It's hard to know where to begin to share! Elder Holland and Elder Hallstrom came to visit our mission. Their words were inspiring, alive with the spirit, rich in power and truth. However, there is one beautiful principle I would like to write about. I was really grateful Elder Holland invited the leaders and mission presidents on the stand to stand up before our group of missionaries. It provided the chance to think, to self-evaluate, to think beyond our beautiful and short missionary service to a life full of giving to the Lord. As I looked at all the people standing and pondered how much I admired them, the lifetimes they had spent sacrificing, trying to be faithful and Christlike I thought about the absolutely extraordinary nature of the gospel. Nothing changes, refines, and enables us more than the gospel of Jesus Christ. Following it's principles in every facet of our lives... as parent, primary worker, or full-time missionary... produces glorious and magnificent changes. It filled me with the desire to do so much better, to strive to do so much more, to work harder, to "reach for heaven" and never miss a day of the precious life God has given me. The fire of that truth hammered in my heart every time Elder Holland pounded the pulpit in emotion. Extraordinary.
I also thought of sweet Zoe who we'd seen baptized only a few hours previously. I thought about her journey... her new beginning. I thought of all the joy and change and beautiful blessings that the gospel has the chance to give to her, and I became giddy with excitement for her. This weekend, I came away with an overwhelming desire to "be more perfect" in every area of my life... by continually striving one day at a time.
Sister Holland's address was so powerful. She asked us to open to the end of Mark 4 where the Savior tells the waters of the Galilee to be still. She invited us to look together at a few verses before the famous "calming" of the storm where Christ tells them they will cross over to the other side. This is important. He ALREADY tells them they WILL cross over. When they are afraid in the boat and doubting they will make it to safety, they have forgotten that the Lord already gave them the knowledge that they will make it to the other side of the water. Beautiful. What things are we upset about because we forget the promises the Lord has already given us. I hope I can never be "of little faith" in the storms of life. Sister Holland also wore a stunning, classic purple jacket and simple, red framed glasses. Refined and spiritual. Elder Holland then spoke to us. I don't have time now to write everything that he said... but I will say that he was as fiery and full of the spirit as we have ever seen him. He looked exhausted but passionate, full of love and fire for the gopsel. I learned SO MUCH that night by watching and listening to these amazing leaders speak and interact. It's all in my journal- I'll have to share it later! 

 

I love Sister Chu so much. One thing that I truly admire about sister Chu is her great desire to seek the spirit in everything that we do. She is always eager to lead out in prayer before making decisions in planning, hitting the streets for contacting, and discussing how we can be better missionaries for our ward. She is always anxious to look heavenward. I'm very grateful for her example and her constant reminders to "look up" and follow the spirit.

Love you always,

Sister Barden

Feb. 16, 2014 

 

Dear Family! 

 

I hope you had a happy Valentines Day!  This Saturday, we have Elder Holland, Elder Hallstrom and Elder Stevenson of the Presiding Bishopric coming to Taiwan. They are going to give us a special missionary fireside. We all are unbelievably excited. I've been thinking about Elder Holland's address to us in the BYU Jerusalem Center.  This week should be very memorable. 　

 

What an incredible week! I can't help but smile as I think about all the little miracles we experienced. We had one remarkable experience with a member-present lesson. Sister Chu and I had a lesson with a new investigator named Jason. As we began trying to find a member to help us teach Jason, everyone we called did not have free time during his appointment time. Sister Chu and I must have called over 10 different members before we decided to try a member who usually doesn't attend our assigned block of meetings. During the lesson, we were amazed at how simply and boldly she invited Jason to take action. As she spoke, Jason listened more and more intensely... really pondering the words she was telling him. When we extended the invite to attend church, he told us " I wasn't sure before, but Sister Tsai has said something that gave me inspiration. I will be at church tomorrow". And he was! I believe that God needed to speak to Jason through the simple words of this member that took over 10 other phone calls to find. Miracle!  Also, on Sunday, a mother who lives in our area brought herself to church. As I sat next to her, she told us her daughter was a member attending BYU. For years, she has not wanted to listen to the missionaries and has not been willing to go to church. However, when she and her daughter ran into Elder Gibson (Her daughter's BYU classmate) this mother felt that God was aware of her and her daughter. She  had a marvelous experience during sacrament meeting and expressed her desire to learn more. "I have cancer" she told us..."but I'm not afraid... I want to learn more about God". Wow. We already love her and are excited to help her as she comes closer to her Savior. 

 

　　 Ever since viewing the new film in the temple, I've been thinking more about women and their role in the Lord's plan. Women are caretakers and often take it upon themselves to consider other's needs and worry that they are not doing everything to succor those needs. Women are thoughtful, tender and sensitive... and often put pressure on themselves. This week, in Luke 10, I found some simple and beautiful counsel that I feel the Lord extends to all women. In verses 40-42, we read about Christ coming to the home of Martha. As Martha is "cumbered about with much serving", worrying about keeping the house in order, Mary is sitting at the feet of the Savior. When Martha asks Christ "Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?", the Savior responds " Martha, Martha. Thou are careful and troubled about many things... but only one thing is needful". First, I love that Christ states her name twice. I feel that shows how much he loves and admires her. Second, he acknowledges that her desire to care for others...to want to help and serve.. is a good one. However, he also tells her that only one thing is truly important. That important or "needful" thing is our relationship with the Savior.  I love this. I love the reminder that the only, truly needful thing is to find ourselves at the feet of the savior through our obedience, prayer and study. Discerning good, better, best is so important. 

 

Companionship: Sister Chu! Every week is more fun and memorable than the last. She tried to cut my hair this week... yeah that didn't go so well. haha. No worries! I'm getting it cut again today! We laughed so hard.... 

 

I am excited to hear more about the new house! Have such a great week and take extra good care of TJ on his 16th birthday week!

 

Love, 

Sister Barden 　

Feb. 10, 2014 

Dear Family, 

     I'm excited to hear you'll be moving into the new house soon!  

     What a wonderful week! I was grateful for training and all the wonderful things I learned from the other missionaries during our leadership training seminar. 

     Sister Chao and I were contacting after the training seminar when we noticed a younger gentleman with an open expression walking near us. As we began introducing ourselves and sharing our purpose, he responded with interest. He said he had never been contacted by a Christian church and honestly admitted that he was interested in learning more. We had a wonderful lesson on the street and set up a time to meet with him. As we taught the first lesson the next day, particularly while reciting the first vision, a powerful spirit came into the room and his expression began to soften. He was listening intently... asking thoughtful questions about many of the principles we were sharing. At the conclusion of the lesson, he accepted an invitation to be baptized. As simple as this miracle was, I was so grateful for the reminder of how powerful the influence of the gospel can be to someone who has never felt it's peace and power before. It strengthened my testimony that for all the investigators that struggle to improve and and are full of doubts, there are those that are unbelievably prepared to receive this gospel... and they absolutely will be put in our path. I'm so motivated to do everything I can to be obedient and hard-working enough to find them! 

     This week, during the training seminar, I was grateful for the opportunity to watch 'The Atonement' clip for new mission presidents. Every time I watch it, I feel hit with fresh insights and a warm outpouring of the spirit. One of the most remarkable characteristics of this message is that it reaches deep into our souls, takes all the pain and heartbreak we sometimes experience in missionary work, and gives us the comfort and freedom of feeling GRATEFUL that we have the chance to understand... to understand some of what the Savior felt, what every prophet has felt, what those who spend their lives serving the Lord feel. This week, I was feeling very tired... a little weighed down by some trials and working very hard with Sister Chu to try to complete our responsibilities as best we could. Friday's training, particularly the testimonies President  and Sister Day bore... filled me with nothing but complete and total gratitude that I have the chance to serve and give whatever I can to the Savior. Understanding provides greater opportunities to learn, to become stronger, to deepen our relationship with God. I wouldn't trade the understanding earned during a mission for anything in the world. 

     Trying to be as diligent and malleable as possible. 

Loving the journey, 

Sister Barden 

 

Feb. 5, 2014  

 

Hello Family! 

 

This week we saw many miracles even though we were far from Taipei! The Sisters I exchanged with had so much faith and we were so blessed this Guo Nian week! The East Coast feels so... zen. It felt as if I was in traditional Asia. Unbelievable.

 

Sister Mao (in Ji'an): Sister Mao has a fire for missionary work! She is full of energy and love for the gospel. I was very impressed with her ability to let the spirit guide lessons and 'Teach People, Not Lessons'. Mao JieMei is very 'people smart' and is good at using her gifts with the spirit to teach according to needs. We saw miracles as we knocked on doors in her area! I remember us talking with a young woman at her front door. She was Buddhist, but as we began to share a message about our eternal identity and the importance of baptism, her face began to soften. We were only a minute or two into our lesson when her mother called out from behind her "Tell them we don't need their message. Come back inside". We felt a little crestfallen until the young woman looked back at us, and in a hushed voice said, can we talk more next time? We wrote down her phone number and felt excited that she had felt something that caused her to want to hear more about the gospel!

 

Sister Bennion (in Yuli): Sister Bennion is a very strong missionary. She has a deep love for the work which is manifest in her diligence and sincerity. She has a great desire to be exactly obedient and give everything she has for her area. Aside from lessons we had on the street, the most miraculous part of our exchange took place in companionship study. Ministering to other missionaries is just like teaching investigators. I now have a very strong testimony that the Holy Ghost can help us to understand the needs of other missionaries and know what to say to bring them the peace that they need. Sister Bennion shared her discouragement that, after her four transfers in Yuli, she has not helped an investigator be baptized. I could see how much she loved her area and the great effort she had given. I know the spirit helped me know some of the things I needed to say to help her. As we talked about being a successful missionary and tried to renew our perspective together, the Holy Ghost was present and directed our discussion. It was a little sacred space that left us both feeling so lifted.  I greatly admire Sister Bennion.

 

Sister Miao (in Hualien): It was so much fun to go on an exchange with my beloved trainer! The language barrier is not the challenge that it was when we were both in JiLong and it allowed Miao Jiemei and I to talk so freely about the work, about lessons the Lord has taught us, to share miracles. I LOVED IT! :) This was easily one of the most memorable days of my mission. I admire Miao JieMei so much and working with her felt so natural and easy. We just followed the spirit and were led to people that needed to hear the gospel.  Our exchange helped us both see some of the ways God has changed our character and our understanding of who we are and what is possible with the Lord's help. Such a special day... incredible.

 

I wasn't with Sister Chu much this week, but I missed her! Our relationship and communication is becoming more open and comfortable every week. Something I love about our companionship is that we will discuss things together and listen and learn from each others’ thoughts and experiences.

 

On exchanges, I have had a few sisters ask me how to help other missionaries and investigators recognize the spirit and understand how to follow it. I've been prayerfully pondering this topic and reading Chapter 4 of PMG and a few Conference talks. From my own experience, I have felt times where I grew in my understanding of the spirit and how it speaks to me. These spiritual growth experiences include times where an environment was created that invited the spirit and times when I was given opportunities to exercise the gift of the Holy Ghost, that is, I was given a responsibility (great or small) where I needed to rely upon the Holy Ghost for direction and comfort. 

 

Sometimes, God needs us to relearn lessons. We are imperfect and susceptible to making the same mistakes. This week, I realized that I was creating high expectations. I was reminded of some of the feelings I had when I became a trainer... feelings of being inadequate and not fully enjoying the process of learning from the mistakes that we all make as we grow and become better. However, I know that as I consistently find that quiet, humble, peaceful place in my heart that reminds me I am doing my best and God will always help us do the work he needs us to accomplish, the spirit comes more easily. It is at this 'place' that our minds are clearer, our hearts are turned outward, and we are better able to distinguish between smart and wise decisions, between what might help another person and what they actually need. I am grateful for the opportunity to consistently learn how to stay in this 'peaceful place'! 

 

Love you all! 

Sister Barden