Mission Call!!

Since I got my mission call to the Peru Iquitos Mission, I thought it would be cool to start a blog. As far as I know, missionaries aren't supposed to blog, so once I'm actually abroad, my posts will really be the emails that I send to my parents that they will so kindly publish for me.

It's really crazy that I'm finally going on my mission. Since I've been able to comprehend the idea, I've really looked forward to serving the Lord on a full time mission, and now it's only 98 days away!

I'm suprised at how prepared I feel like I am for my mission. I often hear from missionaries that nothing can completely prepare you for missionary work, and I completely beleive that it's impossible to be fully prepared. It seems like hard work! But I've put a LOT of time and energy into preparing for my mission (that's a first in my life- maybe it'll continue into college and my career!), and I have made significant growth in the past 7 months. My knowledge of the scriptures has grown tremendously, as has my ability to be guided by the spirit. Most importantly, I have begun to learn how to more effectively tap into Christ's atoning power to change and grow. So while I fully aknowledge that I am nowhere near fully prepared for my mission, I do feel like I have done much to make the transition from normal life into Mission life less shocking than it could be.

I am a bit nervous about the fact that I'll have to learn Spanish (but I am very excited about it! 2 years of High School Spanish with the best Spanish teacher ever will pay off!), and I'm very glad that I'm working on Brother Rivera's crew. My Spanish skills have developed a lot in the few weeks that I've been with him.

I've heard from a number of people that visas to Peru sometimes take a while, and that sometimes missionaries wait so long that they are just reassigned... But the Lord has called me to serve in Peru on September 22, and I am confident that He will make sure that my visa arrives in time as long as I am showing faith, even if it takes a miracle. On that note, I met with a passport agent today!