Today is the Day!!!!

Today I will be set apart as a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
I'm speechless.
But these quotes all relate to how I feel...

President George Q. Cannon (1827–1901), First Counselor in the First Presidency said, “God has reserved spirits for this dispensation who have the courage and determination to face the world, and all the powers of the evil one, visible and invisible, to proclaim the gospel and maintain the truth and establish and build up the Zion of our God fearless of all consequences. He has sent these spirits in this generation to lay the foundation of Zion never more to be overthrown, and to raise up a seed that will be righteous, and that will honor God, and honor Him supremely, and be obedient to Him under all circumstances.”

Harry Emerson Fosdick said; “Real Christians do not carry their religion, their religion carries them. It is not weight; it is wings. It lifts them up, it sees them over hard places, and it makes the universe seem friendly, life purposeful, hope real, and sacrifice worthwhile. It sets them free from fear and futility.”

Elder Glenn L. Pace said; “Sisters, I testify that when you stand in front of your heavenly parents in those royal courts on high and you look into Her eyes and behold Her countenance, any question you ever had about the role of women in the kingdom will evaporate into the rich celestial air, because at that moment you will see standing directly in front of you, your divine nature and destiny."

Farewell!

The time has come! It's only Thursday, but I don't have any more time for blogging before I'm set apart as a missionary. (on Sunday! YAY!!!)
For the past few weeks I've swayed from feelings of anxiousness or numbness. But recently all I feel is EXCITEMENT! I LOVE my savior Jesus Christ, I LOVE His church, and I LOVE teaching His gospel! My dream of being a missionary is coming true and I could not be happier! Is there really anything else I can say?
Nope! The only thing on my mind is "YAY YAY YAY YAY EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Until we meet again, I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes:

"When we stagger or stumble, He is there to steady and strengthen us. In the end He is there to save us, and for all this He gave His life. However dim our days may seem, they have been a lot darker for the Savior of the world. As a reminder of those days, Jesus has chosen, even in a resurrected, otherwise perfected body, to retain for the benefit of His disciples the wounds in His hands and in His feet and in His side—signs, if you will, that painful things happen even to the pure and the perfect; signs, if you will, that pain in this world is not evidence that God doesn’t love you; signs, if you will, that problems pass and happiness can be ours. Remind others that it is the wounded Christ who is the Captain of our souls, He who yet bears the scars of our forgiveness, the lesions of His love and humility, the torn flesh of obedience and sacrifice."
-Jeffrey R. Holland, January 2003 Ensign


Oh, and here's my mission address if you'd like to write me: (I'd love to hear from you)
Sister Andrea Monica Summerhays
Utah Salt Lake City South Mission
8060 S 615 E
Sandy, UT 84070

For My Friends

I love that the gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel about friendship.
One of my favorite chapters in the Book of Mormon is Mosiah chapter 18 because in my study and application of this chapter, I have learned about the covenant of baptism. I like to call it the covenant of friendship because truly, that's what it is. Thank you, Heavenly Father for blessing me with the commandment to be a good friend.

To me, we are emphatically taught in Mosiah chapter 18 what it means to "come into the fold of God, and to be called his people." The way is clear; God has commanded us to be friends. Through baptism, we promise to God that we will "bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light; yea, and...mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and stand as witnesses of [God's love] at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death...that ye may have eternal life." Or in other words, endless life spent in the presence of God, our loved ones, and friends. Furthermore, we have been commanded "that there should be no contention one with another, but that [we] should look forward with one eye...having [our] hearts knit together in unity and in love one towards another...And...that [we] should labor with [our] own hands for [each other's] support...And there [is] one day in every week that [is] set apart that [we] should gather [ourselves] together to teach the people, and to worship the Lord [our] God, and also, as often as it [is] in [our] power, to assemble [ourselves] together...And again...the people of the church should impart of their substance, every one according to that which he [has]...And thus they should impart of their substance of their own free will and good desires towards God...to every needy, naked soul." And because the people of Alma had become real friends "they did walk uprightly before God, imparting to one another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and their wants." and "they [did] sing to [God's] praise forever."

Today I want to thank my dearest, sweetest, closest friends. I love you. Thank you for showing me God-like love, for accepting all of my craziness, meticulousness, and insecurities. Thank you for showing me your own kind of craziness and loveliness. Thank you for our memories, secrets, laughter, adventures, parties, and mistakes. I'm grateful that God has blessed me through you.

I'm also grateful to Shauna Niequist, for recording my own thoughts and feelings more eloquently than I could ever express:

"Friendship is acting out God's love for people in tangible ways. We were made to represent the love of God in each other's lives, so that each person we walk through life with has a more profound sense of God's love for them. Friendship is an opportunity to act on God's behalf in the lives of the people that we're close to, reminding each other who God is. When we do the hard, intimate work of friendship, we bring a little more of the divine into daily life. We get to remind one another about the bigger, more beautiful picture that we can't always see from where we are."

"Friendship is a sacred, important thing, and it happens when we drop down into that deeper level of who we are, when we cross over into the broken, fragile parts of ourselves. We have to give something up in order to get friendship like that. We have to give up our need to be perceived as perfect. We have to give up our ability to control what people think of us. We have to overcome the fear that when they see the depths of who we are, they'll leave. But what we give up is nothing in comparison to what this kind of friendship gives to us. Friendship is about risk. Love is about risk. If we can control it and manage it and manufacture it, then it's something else, but if it's really love, really friendship, it's a little scary around the edges."

"the closer you get to someone, the more that friendship gives you and the more force and power it has to make your life bigger and richer."

Room at my Table

Tonight I am making "room at my table" to write. I haven't blogged in...a very long time. My mind and life as it feels has been too scattered and disorganized for blogging time. I think I could write a novel about "how to stress out so much that while you may think you're accomplishing a lot, you're actually just running in circles like a crazy circus act, but instead of laughing at the end, you cry." Perfectionism will be the death of me; it is killing me; it has been my whole life. My resolution for today and for the rest of my life is to repel and ultimately vanquish perfectionism. It controls everything I do, and I hate it. God created me to act, and not to be acted upon. And so, I am choosing to embrace my imperfect, messy, flawed, sinful, foolish self. I will not allow my perfection addiction to enslave me any longer!
Today has been a blog-worthy day. It is December 1st, which means I have 18 days before I enter the MTC. (This could be an entire blog post in itself) I have 18 days left of my "current life" before I turn my entire self, time, energy, talents, and strength to the Lord for 18 months. Reality has struck again. For this reason, I had a tiny break down this morning. But praise be to God, because He is kind, and gracious, and loving, and so good to me. The rest of my day has been the perfect medicine for my ailment. First of all, I got a break from work today! Hallelujah! Secondly, I got to sing Christmas carols at my church's nativity exhibit which was a beautiful experience. I love singing. But more specifically, I love sharing what God has given me with other people. He's blessed me with a voice to sing, and a testimony of Jesus Christ. And when I get to share both at the same time, there's nothing quite as rewarding. Then I was able to enjoy some time with my family for Weston's 5th birthday! He is five years old now! Life is so fleeting. I really loved watching him open his presents, try not to smile as we sang happy birthday to him, and blow out his candles. He is so precious. Finally, tonight, I was honored to hear my favorite author, Shauna Niequist, speak at a Hope Fellowship women's banquet. I spent my evening at the table with Amanda, Brittney, some new friends, and many other beautiful women. We were physically and spiritually nourished by delicious food and inspiring words. It turned out to be exactly what we all needed. These are the things that I'm taking away from my experience tonight:
Christianity is lived, not preached.
I resolve to make time for quiet, meaningful, thoughtful prayer
"I'm jealous of myself right now"
I resolve to give my all (from best to worst) to Christ, exerting more effort to give Him my bad, broken, and ugly
Every woman needs to be given a scarf from someone who loves her
I will make room at my table for the unexpected
True hospitality is not color-coordinated, planned, or picture perfect
I want my family circle to include my neighbors, co-workers, and church friends
I resolve to give up comparisons and competition
I want to take time to experience anew the true story of Christmas, and re-live it each year.
Christmas is more about a pregnancy and birth than I'll ever realize until I have children of my own
I need to make time for myself; for rest, nourishment, and love
I resolve to make room at my table for pain and heart-ache
I want my friends to know that tears are equally as welcome as laughter
I want my home to be a place of warmth, rest, and peace. Where all can come to forget their worries and be reminded of how loved they are.
I resolve to live life slower, to make time for what matters most, and share God's love with friends, strangers, loved ones, and family.

And to close, here's one of my favorite quotes from Shauna Niequist
"You have stories worth telling, memories worth remembering, dreams worth working toward, a body worth feeding, a soul worth tending, and beyond that, the God of the universe dwells within you, the true culmination of super and natural. You are more than dust and bones. You are spirit and power and image of God. And you have been given Today."

The Battle of our Lives

Okay, this blog is now becoming my Mission President's blog :) I have other posts written with my own words, but they're all still in drafts. I just get so excited when I read his messages, that I have to share them! 

“My Commission”

     As we read the Book of Mormon, we will read through the accounts of contentions, battles, and wars. We must all wake up to the fact that we are daily fighting a war. This war has eternal consequences! In this mission daily battles are won and lost. Satan, with his hosts, is the foe. He is knowledgeable, clever and relentless. His desire is to deter, discourage and distract us from the work of God and destroy the warriors in the Lord’s army.

While examining battles described in the scriptures, it is easy to understand the common attributes of the ultimate victors. Obedience, diligence, spirit, faith and vision characterize the true warrior of God. Worthiness, commitment, love, selflessness, focus and hard work are the traits of the victors.

In speaking to a group of 20 stake presidents in our mission last week, they all agreed that one of the challenges of the missionaries in this mission is that they do not fully understand who they are and the stature of their calling. Our missionaries are the very best warriors, fighting the most important battles in the history of time. You were chosen and committed to this battle before you were born. We are protected by marvelous armor, but it will only protect if we always put on the whole armor as we go into battle. We must gird our loins with truth. We must put on the breastplate of righteousness. Our feet will be shod only by preparation through studying the Gospel and Preach My Gospel. The shield will only be ours if we truly have faith. Our heads are protected only when we understand the missionary lessons. The sword will bring peace and confound our enemy, for it is strengthened and sharpened by the Spirit. (Eph. 6:11-19) This is one step in building our confidence. Let us learn from Achilles* that we cannot afford to leave one part of our body unprotected.

We must embrace “My Commission” penned by Bruce R. McConkie.

                  “I am called of God. My authority is above that of kings of the earth

  By revelation I have been selected as a personal representative of the Lord Jesus Christ.

           He is my master and He has chosen me to represent Him-to stand in His Place,

       to say and do what He Himself would say and do if He personally were ministering

          to the very people to whom He has sent me. My voice is His voice, and my acts

        are His acts; my doctrine is His Doctrine. My commission is to do what He wants

          done; To say what he wants said; to be a living modern witness in word and in

   deed of the divinity of His great and marvelous Latter-day work. How great a calling!”

We have all covenanted with the Lord that we would fight this battle to the death for eighteen months or two years. Your call letter read:

“You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the Utah Salt Lake City South Mission. It is anticipated that you will serve for a period of 24 (18) months.

You have been recommended as one worthy to represent the Lord as a minister of the restored gospel. You will be an official representative of the Church. As such, you will be expected to maintain the highest standards of conduct and appearance by keeping the commandments, living mission rules, and following the counsel of your mission president. As you devote your time and attention to serving the Lord, leaving behind all other personal affairs, the Lord will bless you with increased knowledge and testimony of the Restoration and of the truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Your purpose will be to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. As you serve with all your heart, might, and strength, the Lord will lead you to those who are prepared to be baptized.

The Lord will reward you for the goodness of your life. Greater blessings and more happiness than you have yet experienced await you as you humbly and prayerfully serve the Lord in this labor of love among His children. We place in you our confidence and pray that the Lord will help you become an effective missionary. You will be set apart as a missionary by your stake president. Please send your written acceptance promptly, endorsed by your bishop.

Sincerely, President Thomas S. Monson”

You all sent that letter to President Monson or you would not be here today. How good is your word? Can the Lord trust you? In the process of answering this call from the Lord you have willingly relinquished your agency. The decision has been made. You no longer have the option to choose whether you will serve or not. Your choice is HOW YOU WILL SERVE. How you serve will determine how the Lord is able to bless you on your mission, throughout your life and through the eternities.

May the Lord bless you with this endeavor so you can “meet the measure of your creation.” (D&C 88:19)

* In Greek mythology, Achilles was a Greek hero of the Trojan War. Legends state that Achilles was invulnerable in all of his body except for his heel. He died because of a small wound on his heel, the term Achilles’ heel has come to mean one’s point of weakness.

Who can read this message and restrain from exclaiming "SIGN ME UP FOR THIS!!!!"I'm a soldier in the Lord's army and I love living in enemy territory. I will fight until death for the cause of truth because this is what I came here to do. I am so excited, guys. SOOO excited! 

Update

I apologize, I haven't forgotten about you, my precious blog. It seems that the more I live (I'm making myself sound like I'm 80) the more I don't care about a lot of things. Like, watching television for example, or coloring my hair, or updating my blog apparently. With each day I understand with more fervor that this life is fleeting, and this gift of time is more valuable than anything for sale. We can't buy time or sell it, but we sure can choose to use it wisely or to waste it. I believe in the truth that what I do during this short mortal life will have eternal consequences so therefore, why be frivolous or careless? Which reminds me of how much I hate the current YOLO attitude which disregards all personal accountability. But I'm not going to get worked up about that today. My point is that I haven't written a post in several weeks and during that time huge life altering things have happened!

First and foremost, I GOT MY MISSION CALL! I got assigned to my mission on August 24th, and on August 31st it arrived in my mail box! I was at work when I got a picture message on my phone from my step-mom saying "you've got mail!" I looked at the picture and felt a jolt of excitement mixed with peace then quickly returned to work before I got too distracted. It wasn't until I left work that night when reality settled into my mind. My car was filled with tears and happy feelings and prayers as I drove home. Of course, like any family event in my life, the few hours leading up to opening my mission letter were stressful and chaotic. Coordinating different schedules, computers, internet connections and 3 different time zones is complicated. But thankfully, it worked so that most of my family could watch using google plus and skype. (technology rocks) I sat at the kitchen table with two computers facing me, my grandparents on speakerphone by my head, and my dad and step-mom near my side. There was so much anticipation. I started to shake a little as I opened the letter. I was worried my dad would find out where I was going before I did because he was standing above me, so I was really careful to cover it up. Reality hit like a pillow to the face when I read the words "you are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints." I almost started to cry, and felt nervous for the first time since I began this endeavor. Then I read "You are assigned to labor in the Utah Salt Lake City South mission."
My mind stopped processing after I read the word "Utah." I know there was a lot of commotion coming from my parents, the computers, and the phone, but I blocked out the noise, kept my head buried in my letter, and continued to read so I wouldn't cry. I tried to force a smile on my face as I looked for my report date and language. The rest is a blur. I think everyone was being supportive and congratulatory but I just wanted everyone gone so I could cry. I felt in my heart that it was right, but I wasn't excited about it. I was looking for adventure, for something new and exotic, maybe even dangerous. I wanted to learn about, and fall in love with, an entirely different culture.
U-T-A-H doesn't exactly spell out "foreign and new"
But it didn't take long for the sad feelings to fade. I knew it was right, and I accepted that this is what I signed up for. I didn't do this so I could go on an exotic trip or take awesome pictures, or vacation in a cool place for 18 months. I did this so I could invest 100% of myself to the cause of truth, to labor in the service of my God, and to help my brothers and sisters come closer to Christ. Like I've said before, if there's an adventure I want to take, I'll take it. If I want to travel or explore someplace new, I'll do it. But this is not an adventure. This is a mission assigned to me from God. A cloak of responsibility has been placed on my shoulders, and I accept it with honor and humility.
It's been about a month and my perspective has completely changed since the night I read my mission call. I am so excited to be serving in the Salt Lake City South Mission! I have heard only great and wonderful things about it. This may be strange, but I already love it! I know my mission (I love saying my mission) will be demanding and glorious, and all sorts of difficult. And I know Heavenly Father has people in store specifically for me to meet. I think Utah missions require missionaries who teach most powerfully by example because there are so many confusing examples living there. For this reason, I recognize that Heavenly Father is exercising an enormous amount of faith in me, for which I am graciously humbled. I am extremely grateful my life has led me precisely to this point, and I love that my dream has come true! I am soon to be a missionary!       

Discouraged much?

Anytime I get nervous or anxious about my mission, (or more accurately, discouraged) I go to the mission blog so that my thoughts and feelings can come back down to earth. Today as I entered the home page, a message from my mission president, President Miller, showed up as the first post. I loved it so much that I wanted to share it with you.

DISCOURAGEMENT

President Gordon B. Hinckley was called to the European Mission with headquarters in London, England. The mission was hard and success seemed impossible. Discouraged, Gordon wrote his father saying, “I am wasting my time and your money. I don’t see any point in my staying here.” His father’s reply came, “Dear Gordon, I have your letter. I have only one suggestion. Forget yourself and go to work. With love, Your Father.” After pondering this response and reading Mark 8:35, Gordon promised the Lord that he would try to forget himself and go to work. “I count that as the day of decision in my life. Everything good that has happened to me since then I can trace back to the decision I made at that time.”

For those who have been or are discouraged, I would ask you to view the letter President Hinckley’s father wrote to him as a letter written by your parents to you and make this as the “day of decision”. Of all the tools Satan employs he is most effective with this instrument. When he cannot get to a missionary in any other way, he uses this tact. During World War II the Japanese had a woman by the name of “Tokyo Rose” who sent messages many times each day telling the “American Boys” to go back home. She would taunt them that they were giving their lives for no reason and they should go home and enjoy the comforts of their home. Although Tokyo Rose is not calling you, there are sirens from the adversary saying the same thing.

BEWARE OF THE EVIL TOOL: A Chinese legend describes how the Father of Sin decided to have a sale and dispose of all his tools to anyone who would pay his price. The implements were laid out in a row for inspection and among others were tools labeled: “Malice”, “Envy”, “Hatred”, “Jealousy”, and “Deceit”. Each one had a price tag on it. Apart from the others lay a harmless looking, wedge-shaped tool, very much worn from use. It was priced a great deal higher than the rest. One of the buyers asked the Devil what it was, “That, he answered, is Discouragement: and it’s in fine shape.” “But why have you priced it so high?” asked the buyer. The Devil answered; “Because it is more useful to me than any of the other tools. I can pry open and get inside a man’s consciousness with that wedge when I can’t get near him with any of the others. And believe me, once I do get inside, I can use that man in whatever way suits me best. Of course, you’ll notice it is well worn. That’s because I use it with nearly everybody, for very few of you mortals know that it belongs to me.” However, the price was so high that this particular tool was never sold. The Devil still owns it and is still using it. ( From The Ambassador. ) See Hymn # 241 “Count Your Blessings” –Do not be discouraged, thinking all is lost.

Please review and identity these scriptures and how they relate to discouragement

2 Nephi 2:1-2, Mosiah 3:129, Mosiah 4:27