LITERALLY, new light in the Heavens!

(Finland – Week 49)

15 Dec 2015

Some days, people just really don't want to talk to you. Despite your best efforts, the coolest and fanciest grammar principles you know, AND the new Christmas video, some days people just don't listen. Those days can be hard, but our Heavenly Father knows that. Yesterday was one of those days. But then, last night, I saw, the NORTHERN LIGHTS. While standing and gazing at the glorious green, a shooting star streaked across the sky. Wow. (I have no pictures for proof, you all will just have to believe my words.) Seeing the Northern lights has been on my bucket list for ages! One time my family ran around a city more north than almost all of Finland looking for these lights, and we never saw them. But yesterday, after a long day of rejection, I saw them in southern Finland! And I saw a shooting star!! Wow, Heavenly Father is truly mindful of all of His children. He really does want to make sure we each have a good day.

This past week we had a mission tour! Meaning someone not in Finland came and spoke to all of the missionaries in Finland over a couple of days. At the mission tour our Mission President's wife spoke about the shepherd, meaning Jesus Christ, and how He is always with His sheep. She had us look at a picture of Christ cuddling a lamb on His breast, and of another of Christ holding the lamb draped across His shoulders. Then she asked us our thoughts. Someone was probably thinking something profound, but what came to my head was, "I wonder if the sheep was dirty, animals are never clean especially if they've been wandering around where they shouldn't have been. Jesus is just cuddling it right to Him, does it not get His clothes gross? How does it smell? How long did He carry the sheep? I wonder if it kicked Him." I don't know why I was thinking so literally, but I started pondering the condition of the lamb. I was touched to think that, even if covered in mud, Christ wouldn't have cared about that. If the lamb was kicking him or chewing on His hair, Christ would have still carried the lamb. We will never be pushed away, labeled too dirty, or rejected by Him. His light is everlasting, His patience, His love. This is one of my favorite verses of Christ in this season because the nights are so long, and the daylight so short, "He is the light and the life of the world; yea, a light that is endless, that can never be darkened; yea, and also a life which is endless, that there can be no more death." (Mosiah 16:9) I know that Christ really is there to carry us, no matter our condition. He is always there to shine for us, to bring us home. I'm blessed to know what it means that a Savior is Born, and I invite all of you to share what that means to a fellow lamb, to point them to the shepherd.

We also heard from Elder Dyches from the Europe Area presidency! (If you don't know who that is, go here https://www.lds.org/church/leader/timothy-j-dyches?lang=eng :)). He's awesome. He talked to us a lot about how much we can be in control. There's a lot in life we really have no control over. A lot of things happen that are hard to explain, hard to handle, and completely unavoidable. But we have so much control, in how it affects us. Why is that? Because we can always turn to Christ to find the energy we don't have, the strength we need, and the motivation to keep going. We can choose to be happy by choosing to follow Christ. I just love learning how to be happy! It's the best and it works!

It was a really great week, and I wish you all the best week as well!

Much love and MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Rakkaudellani,

Sisar Mendenhall

An afternoon in Finland: