Rollercoaster Week

Hey, everybody! It's been quite the week. It didn't start off on the best foot, and I guess you'll see what I mean in a moment haha. But things are on the up and up now so we are thankful and excited. Can you believe it's March?! Crazy town. Gah. We've got a lot going on this month and we may die so pray for us! Lol anyways, here is a list of a few fun and not so fun things that happened this week:

- Monday night we get back to our apartment to do some online pros, I open my tablet, and the screen is completely SHATTERED. It won't turn on. Nothing. So, that was the beginning of my week. Bahah. ((don't worry everyone, it's mostly figured out now))
- Then Sister Williams and I started feeling pretty sick so we had to take a few naps over the course of a couple of days. For one of these naps we set the alarm for am instead of pm so we slept through a meal appointment...we felt so awful.
- We also did service for a less active member in the ward, she's a dog trainer. She has these 2 massive dogs that she can't really give to anyone because she can't guarantee that they won't harm anyone so she just kept them. So there we were, trying not to be eaten alive by these 2 giant dogs that kept jumping on us. One is named Mr Ed, and the other is Papoo... It's hard to seem menacing with names like that, but trust me, they're crazy!
- Remember Prince?? The guy who we prayed with over the phone in a Dunkin Donuts parking lot like back in July? WELL this week he reached out over Facebook and we called him one night. He was so excited to talk, and kept saying how thankful he was for everything we did for him when he was going through that rough patch. "Sister Yocum, she's an angel, I'm sure of it. She saved my life and I will always be thankful to her for that." It was so sweet, and made me so happy to hear. He's getting out of rehab soon and is doing well, reading his Scriptures and general conference talks. Love that guy!!
- We only had 30 minutes of finding one night but we got 4 return appointments!! It was cool!

Well, I kinda wanted to switch gears for a moment. This week I had a pretty cool experience that I wanted to talk about for a bit.

Quite honestly, there's a few things that have been causing me some stress and worry lately...I'm sure that can be expected haha. But I have been trying to find answers and figure out what I need to be doing right now to make the most of the time I have as a missionary and be proud of my efforts. I was reading in a booklet called "Adjusting to Missionary Life" (yup, I'm still adjusting) and I saw some scripture suggestions. I figured I could check them out, just because I've often found that reading scriptures allows me to find direction.

These are the scriptures I read from Doctrine and Covenants section 6:

"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, blessed art thou for what thou hast done; for thou hast inquired of me, and behold, as often as thou hast inquired thou hast received instruction of my Spirit. If it had not been so, thou wouldst not have come to the place where thou art at this time."

In that moment I got such a strong feeling that the Lord was aware of me. He knew what was going on in my life and that I was looking for direction, seeking His help. He saw that I was turning to the scriptures and He was pleased with me. Then I read on...

"[...] Yea, I tell thee, that thou mayest know that there is none else save God that knowest thy thoughts and the intents of thy heart."

After I read that, I had a feeling of peace come to my heart. God knows my thoughts and the intentions of my heart. He knows the reasons why I do what I do and what makes me tick. I thought about this verse for a moment, and wrote in my study journal, "God knows me. He knows that I struggle, but that I am trying my best. He accepts my humble offering, and He is proud of every effort I make. He loves me."

After I wrote that, I continued to read on:

I tell thee these things as a witness unto thee—that the words or the work which thou hast been writing are true.Therefore be diligent.

Man. That was powerful. I know that the context of the scripture is different, but I felt such a powerful spirit confirming that the words that I had written in my journal were true as well. God loves me, He is proud of me. And I can't even describe what a blessing it is to have that knowledge.

Life can be scary, but I know that God looks out for us and He magnifies our efforts. He knows us and what we're capable of, and He will lead us to where we need to be. The scriptures are powerful! If you're looking for direction and help from heaven, say a prayer and open them up and read. I promise you can find personalized help as you search and ponder!

Just like what this day of the year tells us to do, I'm gonna March Fourth. Keep on doing good, everyone! Love you all!

Sister Yocum

1. Happy 3 months sis!!
2. I try to act like I'm cool
3 and 4. Lennox and Maddox they kill me ahaua also Lennox (the younger one) proposed to me so that was fun
5. Sister Santos and Sister Stout sneak attack heart attacked us!! Cuties i love them
6. Casual morning walk through the cemetery
7. Us and the cool edible cookie dough lady for sisters district pday. It was lit!

8. My baby :( #rip
9. Stay tuned for this