Molded By The Master

Konnichi wa! 

Another wonderful week in Akashi has gone by! Fun little fact: I might be transferring next week! Well, we shall wait and see.

One of our investigators, M-san, hasn't been answering any of our calls or texts for pretty much the last six weeks. Her husband is a little uneasy about the church and we think that maybe that has something to do about it. Anyways, we felt really impressed that we should go visit M-san on Friday. We didn't have an appointment or anything. In fact, like I mentioned, we hadn't talked to M-san for a really long time. But we felt like we should go. So we did. We prayed, and felt like we 3:00 pm was a good time to visit her, so we went. That, in and of itself, is a lesson I have learned. We must ACT. ACTION leads to miracles. How can we do anything if we are stuck in park? How can God work with a parked car? It will go nowhere; it can't do anything. So, the first thing we have to do is ACT.  

It can be scary sometimes. Okay, a lot of times. When we went to visit M-san, we had no idea what lay ahead. What if M-san's husband slammed the door in our face? What if they told us to go away? What if...but you know, as I biked to her house, I took a deep breath and thought about the lessons I had learned, the lessons God had taught me, over the last couple weeks. About how He always knows what He is doing. How we have no reason to fear. With those experiences and thoughts in my mind, I took a breath and really just tried to let all of those "what ifs" go. And when I did that, well, a miracle occurred.

M-san was home and she answered the door! Not only that, but she was just about to leave to go to the HOSPITAL. Her daughter had apparently been in some kind of accident, and had to stay in the hospital overnight! Not only was our timing interestingly perfect (Coincidence? I THINK NOT), but we had also felt prompted to make a card for M-san's daughter that morning right before we left the apartment. The very daughter who was now in the hospital. Since M-san was in a rush, we didn't want to keep her. We asked if we may pray for her daughter's health together, and M-san agreed. My companion said the pray, and the Spirit was there in abundance. We are meeting her this Saturday.

It was a faith building experience for me  -- a confirmation of something I already knew. That God knows all of His children. He knew M-san's needs, and her situation. He sent us there to give her comfort; to give her peace in a time of need. 

Oftentimes, I find myself wondering if I can really be a tool in the Lord's hands. Can I be a representative of Christ? Can I do all the things that He would have me do; say all the things He would have me say? I am a mortal trying to help an immortal being bring His sons and daughters back to His presence. A little bit of a daunting thought, yes? But, this experience showed me that I can be a worthy servant. I can help Him do this work. I can be a good missionary. If I give it my all, I can become the kind of person I so desperately want to be. 

And that's a promise open to each of us. If we take ourselves out of "park" and start moving forward towards our worthy goals, whatever they may be, we will be able to reach them. We will be able to overcome the obstacles, we will be able to do the impossible. We are much stronger than we think we are. But, in order to see any sort of miracle, any sort of progress, we first must ACT. 

Change can be scary.  Action can be hard.

But when we take the time and put in the effort, and leave our fears and doubts behind, that's when we will become clay in the Hands of the Lord. We will be modeled and shaped into something much more grand and beautiful than we were before; something that we could never become alone. Without the hands of the master, we would forever be a lump of clay. But through the tests and trials, we are shaped. We become a masterpiece.

I am not yet that masterpiece. I don't know if I ever will be, in this life. But I know that I am being molded and shaped, and for that I am grateful.

Sister Weigl