Many of you have asked me the question, “When do you get to speak to your son who’s the missionary?” Well, I am able to speak to Matthew on the phone on Christmas and Mother’s Day, over the 2-year period that he is serving a mission for The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints. However, each week, I write to him and let him know what’s going on at home, encourage him in the things that he is learning and going through, and I am very blessed to see Elder Plašil (that’s his last name) GROW in his testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ when he writes back every week. He draws much inspiration from his personal experiences and in his letter this week, his words touched his Mom’s heart!!!😊♥️I would like to share his latest letter with all of you for my Sunday message.💋
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Letter from Elder Plašil:
Hello everyone! It has been SUCH a GREAT week to be a full-time servant of the Lord! This letter is going to be kind of short, but there is something I want to talk about.
I had the opportunity to go to a home this week that was, let’s just say, rather messy. The inside was absolutely horrid, it was very sad to see. The grass probably hadn't been cut in years. The trees and bushes were not at all kept. There were spiderwebs everywhere and at least 12 stray cats were wandering around. It was so dirty and just miserable. It got me thinking about how long it would take to clean it all up and how difficult it would have to be. You would definitely need help. I imagine it would be pretty discouraging also. Then I imagined how it must’ve started when the house was sold a long time ago, the grass was probably cut and there were little to no weeds. Everything was clean. No... foreign smells would be looming. It was probably a pretty nice place to live but just like every yard, weeds find their way into it. It probably started with one... then two... then five. "I’ll pick them later." Your dog has been pooping and peeing wherever he wants. "I’ll clean it later." You can no longer use the backyard pool because it is a rather nasty shade of green. "I’ll change the filter later." Next thing you know, you’re a pig living in a self-made pen.
This analogy works rather the same as repentance. Imagine if you would’ve just picked that first weed. More are bound to show up, but just pick them when they do pop up and you avoid the abysmal future.
Now, not all hope is lost if you do find yourself lost in your mess of a house. It will take some work (maybe a lot), and some time (maybe even more), and probably a lot of help from others (family, friends, church leaders), but nothing is too dirty for the cleansing power of the Atonement. Imagine yourself now being clean once again. Just start with one weed and never stop pulling.
I LOVE YOU ALL! HAVE A FANTASTIC WEEK!
Elder Plašil
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I am grateful to my missionary for pondering upon and sharing this analogy and... providing a great Sunday message today.
In the repentance process, we need to forgive all, including ourselves! Caring around judgments, holding a grudge only fuels anger and cankers the soul. As my son’s analogy states, they decay and destroy our house. It is our responsibility to keep ourselves clean from these negative actions and let God be the judge. Give it to the Savior and as we forgive others their trespasses, our’s will be forgiven too.
“And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” (Mark 11:25)
When we truly repent and attempt to repair what we have broken, either by word or action, we begin to have a broken heart and contrite spirit. In doing so, the Savior’s Atonement or “cleansing power” is designed to wash away our sin as if we had never done it to begin with, and we are forgiven. It is a mighty change because our heart and lives change forever!
I hope you have a fantastic week and perhaps, we can all fit in a little weeding in our lives. 😂👍 I know everyday I am so grateful for God’s words of wisdom in my life. They help me to focus and continually strive to be better, as well as declutter and remove every unclean thing in my soul. After all, cleanliness is next to godliness, right? 🤣🙏💋
Enjoy this #Happy #Sunday! ☀️
