I guess my first order of business should be to inform you all (even though most of you probably know by now) that I got my mission call! I'm going to the Spain Madrid mission and I report to the Spain MTC on March 20.
In the two weeks since getting my call, I've been mildly panicking because I've forgotten at least a decent-sized chunk of the Spanish I knew upon graduating from high school. And so, naturally I bought scriptures in Spanish, as well as switching my phone and laptop to run everything in Spanish.
(semi-related side note: If there are typos in this post, I'm sorry. Now that my computer and my internet are set to run in Spanish, they think everything I'm typing is spelled wrong, and therefore everything I type has that red squiggly line underneath it, and I don't have the time to look at every word and decide what is actually incorrect versus what is English.)
I've also been doing a bunch of research on Spain, and I've reached the following conclusion: it's BEAUTIFUL.
Just look at this.
And this.
Breathtaking, no?
I've also been listening to hymns in Spanish, and my favorite is definitely Conmigo Quedate, Senor (or Abide with Me, 'Tis Eventide.) It's so powerful in Spanish, even more so than it is in English. At least, I think it is.
But Lara, you may be asking yourselves, why didn't you do this post all about Spain and your mission when you got your mission call? Why did you pick Thursday, November 29, to post this?
Well, my friends, there is a reason!
I got something else today. Something that, the moment I held it in my hand, it became, by far. my most prized possession.
Today I got my temple recommend. I am humbled and honored to stand worthy to enter the House of the Lord and to make sacred covenants with Him. As I was interviewing with the Stake President, I was surprised to discover that my eyes were brimming with tears. I was so filled with love for my Heavenly Father and so happy with this chance to show Him once again how very much I love Him.
Almost every time I stop and think about where my life is headed, I'm overwhelmed with gratitude for His flawless guidance. I am brimming with enthusiasm to share the gospel to the people of Spain. Even just the concept that I might be an instrument in bringing just a little more peace or joy to someone's life makes me almost giddy.
A lot of people have asked me why I want to serve a mission, and the answer is really very simple. It's not because every other girl in all of BYU is going (which we all are) or that I want to travel to a foreign country (although I am extremely excited because SPAIN) or that I think it will be cool or fun or something. I'm fully aware that this will be the most difficult as well as the most rewarding thing I've yet done in my life, and there's no way to really know exactly what I'm getting myself into. But I want to do this because I love the Lord. I love Him so much and I love His gospel so much. I love the blessings it has brought to my life. I love seeing those blessings in other people's lives. I am serving a mission because I know the power of Christ's Atonement and I want to see it work in the lives of others. I want to see the despairing, the grieving, the despondent, taste of the joy that the truth of the gospel has in store for them.
I have felt strongly since I got my mission call that this is truly where the Lord wants me to be, that this is a place where I can touch lives and, more importantly, where I can witness the matchless power of the Atonement change lives.
I am so richly blessed, and I thank my Heavenly Father for it every day.
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