Sister Syd: Canada Week 40: Adventures full of God's love

Hello everyone! Another week has come and gone - time is so crazy! This week was full of fun and adventure! We had some really good lessons, adventurous walks, and went into the city for exchanges and zone conference. We were also able to serve a few of our members. Service has always had a BIG part of my heart. I have loved the countless opportunities and ways I have been able to serve while on my mission!

Some of our adventures this week included holding baby kittens, playing with big dogs, and weeding gardens. We even had the crazy opportunity to try a food dish from the Philippines called balut - it was interesting. We ran into one of our members while we were getting gas and watched a gorgeous storm and admired a beautiful sunset!

My companion and I got to go on exchanges with our STL's on Thursday which was wonderful. We stayed the night and then attended Zone Conference the next morning. It was supposed to be a district conference, but due to recent restriction lifts we got to meet as a zone. It was really great to see other missionaries! On exchanges I GOT TO SERVE WITH MY BEST FRIEND - my cute MTC companion Sister Smith. It was so fun to work along side each other again and catch up. God is truly in the details of everyday! That has been ever so evident in my life, especially on the mission. I am so grateful for His hand in my life and for the people He has placed on my path along the way. I am so grateful for the countless blessings He continues to provide.

Zone conference was so great and full of some much needed training. It was all about adjusting back to doing missionary work outside again and having natural and normal interactions with people we meet at the store, on a walk or really anywhere we find them. It was so good - I love normal and natural! The biggest message President conveyed was just about having 'positive interactions' and 'planting seeds.' I felt an amazing spirit there. God is just so good and in every detail - all we need to do is look!

We also had some really awesome lessons this week. One that really touched me was our lesson with Danny. We discussed the importance of conversion. It is one thing to come to know and believe things, but to truly be converted to Christ we need to show it in our actions and in the way we live our lives. I shared a quote with him from Elder Bednar that says, "Knowing that the gospel is true is the essence of a testimony. Consistently being true to the gospel is the essence of conversion." Living our lives as Christ would is a slow, continual process - it doesn't just happen over night. We need to hold on and be patient and persistent in our pursuit to true conversion.

There is a song that I have absolutely loved lately called, "I am His Daughter," by Russ Dixon. The chorus says, "There's so much more to me, He helps me see that I have so much to offer, I am His daughter. He loves me the way I am, He's my strength when I stand, He is my king and my Father, I am His daughter." I have loved listening to this song and hearing that God sees so much in me - He sees so much in all of us. We are His children. His love for us is immeasurable. The line, "He's my strength when I stand," has particularly made an impression on me. I would not be where I am today without the strength I have received from both my Father in Heaven and my Savior, Jesus Christ. I have had so many ups and downs in my life. My mission has been a wild ride - a wild roller coaster ride! But I have learned that I would much rather be riding a roller coaster than a "merry go round" or "ferris wheel" in life. I talked about this with my Mission President in my interview with him this week. While the downs are hard, we will always make it through with God's help and His strength.

One of my favorite scriptures is found in 2 Nephi 22:2, "Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid; for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also has become my salvation." So good! I know if we place our complete trust in Him, there is no need to fear things in life. We need to turn to Him and allow Him into our life because He is our salvation - He is our strength!

I want to bear my testimony of some things from my studies this week. I loved re-reading Joy D. Jones talk from the last General Conference called "An Especially Noble Calling." From this I learned and loved two things: 1 - 'The Lord LOVES effort', and 2 - 'Heeding personal revelation leads to personal progression.' I have seen snippets of this in my life. I can testify that the Lord truly does love effort. We also need to heed personal revelation to help with our progression and conversion. We need to LISTEN then ACT. It takes effort to do both, and God takes note of what we offer. We just have to do our best and He takes care of the rest, especially if it is done with good intention and desire. I love this work with my whole heart. I love my Heavenly Father and Savior, Jesus Christ and am eager to continue on my own path of conversion each day! I also know that God loves each and you with an infinite love! Just keep hanging on to the hope only He can give!

Love and miss you all -

Love, Sister Merrill