Miracles Happen, Once in a While. If You Believe

A couple months ago, there were different sisters in the area that I am now serving in. They were asked by our stake president to do an service activity for the community. They came up with the idea to do a clothing swap (with live music), and the clothes left over would go to a homeless shelter. They got the word out, and got things started, then they were both transferred out of the area, and Sister Gull and I were left to pull everything together. Now here is what we thought it would look like basically the whole time:

But, God proved once again that He works miracles if you have a little bit of faith. My companion and I had faith about the size of a mustard seed for this activity. And that was plenty, Heavenly father worked a miracle in Riverton, Utah this weekend. 

We had people there the whole time, and everyone was happy. We had so many clothes there that we had an entire 17 foot trailer full at the end to go to the homeless shelter. We also had enough musicians to last the entire evening, something I really just didn't think would happen.

God works any miracle we need Him to. Have faith, it will work out. 

Saying Goodbye Again

I have learned that I will never like goodbyes. Well, at least not the goodbyes of people whom I love. This week we had to say goodbye to Sister Mobley. It was a blast serving with her, but the people in Sandy need her, so she was called away.

Diana, Sister Mobley and Sister Gull

Have a wonderful week and a safe Halloween! 

On a Tandem with Christ

Last Monday my zone went on a hike and at the top of the hill we could see basically our entire mission. Here it is, the Salt Lake City South Mission:

So we have a new method of transportation over in Riverton:

Diana and Sister Gull

Learning to ride a tandem is a pretty interesting experience. It requires a lot of trust for whoever is on the other seat, especially when you are on the back. 

While on the back you have no control of where you are going, when you start and stop, and you can't really see where you are going. Whoever is in the front has total control of all movement of the bike, so they definitely need to be able to safely control.

A couple nights ago we were cruising down the street, going a pretty decent speed when my companion steered us into the lane of traffic. There was no car in the lane at the time, but I knew there were cars that would be there at some point. I had a very minor panic attack thinking she would kill us both, when I looked over and saw the large roadwork sign that my companion was steering us away from, so that we wouldn't crash into it.

From the backseat where I was sitting, I could see the sign, so I couldn't see that we were in any danger. But I could definitely see the line that we were crossing taking us out of the bike lane. I had started to panic because I couldn't see what was ahead, and thus couldn't see that we needed to make any changes in our course of travel.

Our lives are exactly like that. We don't know what is ahead, we just know what is right now in front of us. We don't know when sometimes the course we are taking is leading us toward danger. But Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ know. They can see where we are headed, and they know what we need to do to avoid any danger that might come out of the darkness. The trick is having the faith and trust to follow them without question and without fear.

I had to have the trust that Sister Gull wasn't taking me into the street for no reason, and that she had our best interest at heart. Similarly, we all have to have the trust that when Heavenly Father guides us and calls us to do something scary and seemingly disastrous, Jesus Christ will be at the head of the tandem guiding us to safety and making sure we don't get hurt. Trust in the Lord and all will be well. He knows the way, and He will always save us. 

I love you all! Have a magnificent week!

A New Area?

I got transferred this week! I definitely didn't think that would happen. I don't know how, but I kind of convinced myself I would be in Herriman for the rest of my mission. Well, that's not the case. I was transferred to Riverton this week. I love Herriman, and it will always be what I consider it my mission "home" because I love it so much and I spent so much time there, but I already love Riverton too. Leaving Herriman was really hard though, when I got the call I couldn't stop crying for a while. Change is hard, but when the Lord says "move" you move.

My companions right now are so much fun. We get along really well, and they are two of the kindest, funniest, most genuine people ever. Sister Mobley and Sister Gull and I are already a great companionship. Everyone assumes it's temporary and one of us must be waiting on a visa or something, but nope. We're just your regular companionship, only there are three of us instead of two. 

This week we got to do some actual service. Most people won't let us help them with anything, but the bishop of one of our wards has a pumpkin patch, and so they needed help washing some of their little pumpkins. We got to help out and do some service, and in return they let us choose some tiny, adorable pumpkins to take home. I completely forgot to take pictures of them, but I will soon and send them home. 

Diana, Sister Gull and Sister Mobley

Well, no more time this week, but I love you all!

General Conference and some Pre-Halloween Fun

This weekend we got to go to General Conference! It was amazing. It's such a wonderful opportunity to get to hear from the Prophet of God and a number of other inspired men and women who are called to teach us the things of God.  It's always a good opportunity to receive revelation and get the answers that we desperately need to our prayers. If you did not get a chance to watch it, I invite you to do so. No matter what your faith is, or how strong that faith may be, it will be strengthened as you listen and apply the things that we learn from the servants of the Lord.

 October 2014 General Conference

I had the opportunity to go downtown to conference for the Sunday Morning session with Chad and Amy. It was a great experience and easy to see the hand of the Lord in getting us there. Yesterday morning things seemed to be falling apart in terms of us getting there, but everything came together exactly as it needed to for us to be there and have a wonderful experience.

Amy, Chad, Diana and Sister MacGregor

Yesterday afternoon I got to go watch conference at the house of one of my favorite families here in Herriman. This is the Christensen family. I love them, and Sister Christensen says I look like I could be part of the family.

The Christensen Family with Diana

Earlier on this week our mission had a sisters conference, so all the sisters in our mission got together and we had some special training. It meant that I got to see some familiar and beloved faces.

I got to see Sister Aldridge! My companion from the MTC. It's always fun to see her, because it takes me back to all the good times at the MTC and how far I have come in the past year, how different things are than I expected them to be and how amazing everything is.

Diana with Sister Aldridge

I also saw Sister Beaudin and Sister Revolorio

Diana, Sister Beaudin and Sister Revolorio

  

They are both awesome, and I love them so much. I was companions with both of them separately, and then they became companions for a little bit. Sister Revolorio goes home this week, and Sister Beaudin goes home next month. I can't believe it. I will miss both of them so much, but I am grateful for the time we got to serve together.

This week we had a lesson with the Glasseys'. I can't remember if I have mentioned the Glassey family before, so forgive me if I am repeating myself. The Glasseys' are a family in one of the wards I cover, and they are active members of the Church. We've been teaching them the lessons to give their boys the experience of meeting with the missionaries and helping them to prepare for missions in the future. They are an awesome family that I love. So, with Halloween fast approaching Brother Glassey is gearing up for his favorite time of the year. He's designing his decorations and beginning to start putting things up. When we got to the Glassey home, this is what we found in the seats that we normally sit in for our lessons:

Obviously we had to have a little fun with our new buddies, our skeleton selves. So we set them up to show what people normally see when they open the door and we're outside:

Well, I mean, we're dressed, and usually look a little less creepy than that, but you get the idea.

Overall, I made a new friend:

And last of all, we saw this great pine tree while we were out the other night.

So, you may notice something about this tree. You know, the fact that it's just a tree with a pine cone tied to one of the branches. This was one of my favorite things that I saw this week. So, this tree is in a neighborhood without a lot of trees because it's a pretty new neighborhood, and it definitely has no pine trees. Seeing that someone had seen this tree and decided to make it even more exciting than it already was, made me smile. It teaches a great lesson. We need to make the best of what we have. Sometimes we just don't have awesome things or awesome circumstances, but we can always make them better. There is always something we can do to be happy. Make the world the best you can. Even if all you can do is just a little, it is enough. Do what you can.

Have a wonderful week! I love you all!

The Parable of the Beanie

So, first off let me start with a story from Thursday night: we had dinner with this family in one of our wards that are super nice. They have two little birds that were chirping happily, sitting in their cages. I wanted to go over and pet one through the cage, but of course I didn't want to get my finger ripped apart by demon birds, so I asked if they were friendly. The next thing I know the little girl has opened the cage and the birds are flying directly at me. Luckily they were friendly, and although one did nibble on my face, he was not trying to eat me but was just expressing affection. It did freak me out a little to have the birds flapping around my hear, at first. But then I realized they weren't going to hurt me or anything so it was just good fun.

 I feel like we do that a lot as people. We get freaked out and shield ourselves from things, but then really those things that we are shielding ourselves are really something amazing. We spend way too much time living in fear. We need to just trust in God knowing that things are going to be amazing. He loves each of us, He gives us experiences that might seem scary, but really they're there to help us grow. We shouldn't be afraid of change because change is amazing, it's what allows us to be more like our Savior and ultimately happier.

So, there is this street in Herriman that we walk down pretty often because it's more of a main road that connects some different areas together. Since the very first time I walked down that street in March there has been this beanie sitting there in the gutter. Over time it's gotten a bit dirtier and more beat up. This week as we walked down the street I saw it again and it hit me in a new way. 

Since March it has gone through a a lot. It has seen snow, wind, rain, many cars, and yet it's still there, pretty intact. It's true that it is now now nearly as vibrantly colored as it used to be, and it's got stuff on it, but it's still in the same general spot, still the same beanie. It made me think of all the people that we pass every day in life. They're going through all sorts of trials. They experience heartache, rejection, betrayal, all kinds of things that we don't see happening. But we can see the marks they leave behind. We don't always recognize them for what they are, but we see the change that comes over people.

All this hat is waiting for is for someone to see it's potential. If someone picked up this beanie and cleaned it up, it would still probably be a pretty nice beanie, that would bring warmth and comfort to the wearer. It might not look like much but it does have potential. People are the same. Sometimes they don't look like much but all anyone is really waiting for is someone to recognize their potential, love them, and help them clean up their lives.

This is what the gospel is for. The gospel of Jesus Christ helps all of us see our own potential which is great. We have the potential to become as perfect as Him through His Atonement. We have the potential to do great things. I know this is true. I know Jesus Christ makes all things possible. I know He loves you.

Have a wonderful week and remember to see the potential of all those around you. You are a child of God and he loves you immensely.

Love,

Sister Judd

Herriman District 2

We got to go to the temple today! This is my district: My companion, Sister MacGregor, Me, Hermana Wilcox and Hermana Paredes, and Elders Northrop, Passey, Richards, and Tyler. It's a pretty great district, I love them and I love serving with them.