Steadfastness In Christ

January 29, 2010

Mommy & Daddy,

This week has been pretty good. We’ve had more success. We have also been taking Mandarin and Cantonese tours. I haven’t really learned any Chinese yet. It’s pretty hard.

My companion and I are still getting along great. Her birthday is tomorrow and I planned to have a surprise breakfast for her. A few other sisters are blowing up balloons tonight and tomorrow I’m going to wake up early and make German pancakes and eggs. I home my companion will like it.

I was really surprised when I heard dad was released from being the organist after 27 years! But I was also excited. It’s about time they get dad out of the calling so he can get a new one. The Lord is preparing you, daddy, for a responsibility to show your potential. Continue going to church and build your testimony. I want to come home to parents who are more righteous than me. The Lord is testing both of you now. You don’t have a calling or any reason why people would need you to go to church (so it seems) but this is your time to grow and to prove to the Lord that you really do honor the covenants you made.

I think of Nephi and his family in the wilderness. One of the first things the Lord commanded Nephi to do was to kill Laban. Sometimes I think Nephi could have just took Laban’s clothes, got the brass plates and ran for it. But more than getting the brass plates, Nephi needed to be tested to show his obedience to the Lord. Even when his brothers tied him up , or murmured, or tried to kill him. Nephi was always faithful to the Lord. Because Nephi showed his faithfulness to the Lord, the Lord continued to give him more commandments and blessings because he knew Nephi was a good and faithful servant.

This is your test. Mom and Dad, you may think that you are not needed at church anymore, but that is not true. People there need your testimony, the Lord needs you to be His servant and I need you. I need the comfort of knowing I was born of goodly parents who love the Lord. When I testify to people of the temple, I want to know that I will be with my family forever and that my parents go to the temple often and keep the covenants they made there. We have always been holding onto the iron rod, but sometime we forget to move forward. We need to make sure we are pressing forward with steadfastness in Christ as we can so we can reach the tree of life and see our potential. Then we will be able to help others (family) come too.

I love you both so much. If it weren’t for your sweet testimonies, I wouldn’t be here. I am so grateful you are my parents and that I was born into the covenant. I know this church is true with all my hart. I know the book of Mormon is the word of God. I encourage you to read it together. I know you are both so busy, but if you find the time to read it for at least 15 minutes a day together. I promise you, you will grow closer together and closer to the Lord and you will have a better understanding of His divine will for you. I know this is the Lord’s church. I am so grateful to be a literal representative of Jesus Christ. I love you so much!

You’re in my prayers.

Love Sister Garbett