Stepping out of Klurisa Land!

Two years ago I embarked on a journey that has forever changed who I am. In the beginning I felt a lot like Laman and Lemuel saying that God had asked a hard thing of me. If there is one thing that I learned in Michigan it is that I CAN DO HARD THINGS!

A mission was not what I expected at all. In fact I really had no clue what mission all entailed. The one thing that I did know was that Missionaries got fed. As you can see through my pictures I got fed REALLY well! I was really just trying to measure my spiritual growth and I wanted something I could physically see. Haha

A mission is so much more than the dinner appointments and the weird food stories. It sounds selfish to say that my mission was about me but it is true. No matter how much I feel like I contributed to Michigan I got so much more out of my service to the Lord than I was ever able to give to anyone else.

God taught me who I am. He did that by allowing me to help others see who they are. One of my favorite parts of being a missionary was the amount of love I was able to feel for complete strangers! I could knock on a door of someone who lived in very humble circumstances and little going on in their lives or I could knock on a door of a mansion of someone who felt they had it all- and I would feel an overwhelming amount of love for them. No matter where people were at in life I knew that God loved them. I could feel it. As I would teach them the Spirit would confirm to me that they are children of God and He desperately wants them to be happy and return to live with Him again.

As I learned who I am my thoughts and actions changed. My desire to live in alignment with God's will increased. I learned how to communicate with my Father in Heaven and to urgently follow promptings. I yearned for a deeper connection with the Spirit. I knew that obedience to God's commandments was where it started, I often heard that there were three reasons people were obedient.
1-Fear

2-Duty
3-Love

It was a process for me to be obedient out of love. I went through all three of these phases and thank heavens for my wonderful companions who were so patient with me as I was learning and growing. I felt a day and night difference as I began to be obedient because I loved the Lord not because I was fearful of what might happen if I was not obedient or because I had to due to the name tag that I had taken upon my self. It didn't happen over night. It is still something I am improving on every day. I have had to learn to rely on the Savior and his grace to help me as I strive to become more like Him. I had to take the focus off of ME! I was no longer in Klurisa Land! I was in the Lords Land! And in His land there is no time for selfishness. 

Because I know who I am I served. God showed me what I had and I knew I had to share it. The Gospel has changed my life. It brings me purpose, understanding, and allows me to live more abundantly. This is why I LOVED my mission. I got to share what is most precious to me with so many wonderful people who have left such a positive impact on my life. I will forever remember these people and the memories I was able to make with them. They were each a piece of the puzzle that made up my mission. Each piece is valued and essential in creating the big picture of the wonderful 18 months I was able to spend in, the Lords Land, My Sacred Grove.

I CAN do hard things. That is because God is real. He is my Heavenly Father. He is aware of me and He knows me personally and He loves me. I can do hard things because I have a Savior who suffered for me and knows how to help me overcome my sins and weaknesses.

I can do hard things because I have a Heavenly family, an Earthly family, a mission, and a ward family who are always there cheering me on and helping me all along the way.

I know this church is true. That is something I cannot deny. I have watched the gospel work in so many people's lives and in my own life. I know that the Book of Mormon is inspired of God. As I have read it my love for it increases. It is what has helped my testimony to grow and to understand more of the nature of God and where I fit into His plan. I know that Joseph Smith is the prophet of the Restoration. He did see God and Jesus Christ. This knowledge came from diligent scripture study and teaching others what I know. Through this process the Spirit was able to testify of truth to me.

 I am so grateful for my mission and all that I was able to learn in Michigan. I cannot believe it was two years ago that I entered the MTC. I could never imagine in that moment the amount of good I was doing for myself and my family. My mission changed me. It saved my life!

One Month

Two Months

Three Months

Four Months

Five Months

Six Months

Seven Months

Eight Months

Nine Months

Ten Months

Eleven Months

ONE YEAR

Thirteen Months

Fourteen Months

Fifteen Months

Sweet Sixteen 

Seventeen Months

                                         

Eighteen Months

God is SO Nice!!

On my mission my companion and I would talk about how nice God is. Everyday He would display a simple act to show us that He knows us personally and that He is very aware of us. As I began to recognize these acts more and more I became excited each morning to see what the day would hold.

Learning to recognize God's hand helped me so much in Michigan but it has also been a blessing to me here in Idaho. It is so important to know that God is with us EVERYWHERE. Not just in a physical place but where we are personally. He loves us when we are doing well and when we are struggling. No matter where we are He is always going to be there.

Recently, I was reminded of this simple truth.

There are some days where I would give anything to go back to Michigan and be a missionary again. I loved it so much! Although, my mission was so much more than I would have ever dreamed of that is no longer where I am suppose to be. One of the hardest things I was ever told was that I was no longer needed in Michigan. In my last interview with my Mission President he told me that I had served my time in Michigan and that it was time to go home. This about killed me.

Heavenly Father is still very aware of me even though I am no longer a missionary. He still sends me reminders that He is there and everything is going to be okay. The way he reminds me is so personal to me. There is no one who knows me better than my Father in Heaven and my Savior.

Lately, there have been people from Michigan coming into my work. I am always surprised to find people from Michigan in Idaho. WHAT?? They come at the perfect time too. There was a specific experience that I have no doubt God had his hand in.

My coworker was checking a lady out and she looked over at me and said "Klurisa, this lady is from Michigan." Sure enough she was decked out head to toe in Spartan gear. All the signs were there. We bonded over our love for MSU and instantly became friends. She did not hesitate to tell me that she was Catholic and she wasn't sure why she even came into a Mormon bookstore. It was nothing short of a miracle. It was a friendship that was in need of being created!

I do not believe in coincidences. All things happen for a reason.

God is light! Whenever the simplest of thing brings happiness into my life I know it is God. I know it is His way of showing He loves me and that He is still there. I know He will never leave me. He is always seeking for ways to manifest His love to His children. It is then our choice to decide if we will recognize it as such.

The more I attribute these acts to God the happier I am. No matter who you are it always feels good to be remembered and to be loved. Each time I witness a miracle I am touched to know that God was thinking of me in that moment. To know that He is interested in me and my life and He cares about me. He is my Father in Heaven and He loves me.

I think of it like a lighthouse. His love is always there but how we live determines how far or close we may be to that light.  Our perspective changes according to how far or close we are. The goal is to always keep God close and keep that eternal perspective.

God's love is unconditional. My mission taught me how much God loves His children. This changed me life. If there was one thing I could tell everyone it is that God loves you. He is there. No matter where you are in life. Whether you are close to the light or far from it. It doesn't matter. He still loves you and if you will look you will be able to see that love manifest in your life. Let God love you!