Finding Hapiness

Hey, thank you for all of the letters and emails!  They mean the world today.  I love getting letters, especially because I can get them any day of the week!  

This week went by really fast. I hope next week goes by fast too.  On a sad note, the mother and daughter we committed to baptism dropped us this week.  That has been disappointing. We are going to drop by and figure out what happened tomorrow or Wednesday I think.

We have exchanges tonight with the Sister Training Leaders (STL's)  It will be good to go out with a different companion and I'm excited to get to know the STL's better!

Saturday was a really fun day.  We got up and did personal and companion study.  Then we went to a zone service activity. We ran the booths at a carnival type thing, and me and my companion did face painting.  It was fun for the first two hours, but the last three hours were a little long.  It was fun being with the zone though, and I love working with little kids.  They were so excited to get their faces painted!  After that we stopped by a home with two less active girls. They are twins and they are 16.  They go to different schools and one of them was going to homecoming that evening!! So we stopped by to see her dress and stuff.  She looked really pretty, and she was really excited.  Then that night the district did a movie for investigators and less active members at the church.  We watched The Restoration and that was a ton of fun.  We brought Eric.  He is less active and a recent convert.  (This is not a normal missionary day by the way... and it was fun!)

Anyway, my insight this week revolves around happiness.  I've been thinking about the movie "Inside Out", and about the relationship of the characters, Joy and Sadness.  I've come to recognize that many times you can't live and be satisfied in one state or the other.  In mortality you need both, but God didn't send us here to be sad.  2 Nephi 2:25 says that "men are that they might have joy".  Because of the fall we can experience joy and sorrow.  Part of our purpose here on earth is to have joy. There are times when joy will seem distant.  It's important to realize that God does not create that distance.  We do.  Our loving Heavenly Father wants us to be perfectly happy. That's why we have the plan of happiness.  That's why He sent His Son. So we can reach that end state of perfect happiness with Him and our families. It's important for us to experience sorrow so we know what it is, but never forget how close you are to joy.  Sometimes it comes in the form of ice cream at a friend's house, or a good book and a blanket. 

I feel like I have finally found that joy out here.  God has blessed me more than I deserve.  I need Him.  I love you all, and I hope everyone has a good week.  Keep writing me.  

Love, Jess