THE 4-MINUTE MIRACLE!

TERE, FAMILY AND FRIENDS!!! Hope everyone is doing well :) BYU friends, I know finals are coming up...please know I pray for you all! Good luck! As we say in Estonian - Usume endasse!! (Believe in yourself!!)

By this time next week, I will be in ESTONIA!!! We leave at 3:50 a.m. Monday morning. Can't wait! It's been a wonderful 2 MONTHS in the MTC!! I LOVE THE MTC, AND I LOVE MY FELLOW MISSIONARIES!!! I just love being a missionary with all my heart :) 

Two months!

The Work:

• THE MIRACLE: Oh my goodness, friends. I will never forget what happened this week. So Õde Austin is a wizard on the piano, and I love to sing, so we decided to audition to perform in front of the entire MTC at the Sunday night devotional for this week! Well, the day before the audition, I started feeling a little sick, but I prayed that my voice would hang in there until the audition. My prayer worked! Our audition went well, and they asked us to perform on Sunday! We were so excited! Well, my sickness started getting A LOT worse. The day after the audition, I couldn't even go to class because I was so sick. I got a priesthood blessing on Saturday, felt a little better, but still didn't have a voice. I woke up on Sunday feeling AWFUL. But I knew throughout the entire weekend that God needed me to share my testimony with my vocal chords on that Sunday night, so I trusted Him the whole time. I knew He would grant me my voice for that performance. It sounds crazy, but I trusted in that miracle because it has happened in my past performance experience.I never doubted God's power. During choir practice, just two hours before the performance, I had no voice and my whole body was just so sick haha. But I continued trusting! I continued praying! And I knew my friends here were praying for me as well! Sure enough, when we went to the sound check, my voice "turned on" for the run through, then turned right back off. I knew that was God showing me that yes, He would help me out for the real performance that night!! We went to the devotional. Before every devotional, the entire MTC sings prelude hymns together. I love it! I tried singing along. My voice hurt so bad and nothing good was coming out (keep in mind - this is MINUTES before I was supposed to sing an entire song beautifully!). BUT FRIENDS. CAN YOU GUESS WHAT HAPPENED? We got up to perform, and God took away my sickness and gave me my voice for those 4 minutes. After Õde Austin and I shared our testimonies with the audience through song, both of us reflected that it was the least nervous we have ever been for a performance. We simply testified of Jesus Christ together. It was a 4 minute miracle. As soon as we sat down, my sickness came right back, and I could no longer sing. But tears were in both of our eyes as we expressed gratitude to Heavenly Father in our hearts. Friends, I know that faith in God and in His power results in miracles.
• I have an invitation for you all! As you all know, this weekend is Easter (It's also GENERAL CONFERENCE!! Write down questions you have and have faith that they will be answered!!). In preparation for both of these events, I invite you to watch this video: - http://www.lds.org.uk/jesus-christ-is-always-there-easter-2018?lang=eng-gb. We shared this video with an Estonian member and testified about it. By the end of that lesson, we were all in tears. It was very special. I invite you all to write down one time Jesus Christ was there for you. Then share it with someone! With everyone! 

• Fun fact: "Õde" in Estonian doesn't only mean "Sister." It also means "nurse." So Õde Austin and I like to think of ourselves as nursing the people of Estonia back to spiritual health :) 

The Funnies:

Ok, I'm sorry friends - at this point in the MTC, things we think are funny are simply just not funny to the outside world hahahaha. But I promise we are laughing and having SO MUCH FUN!!! 

I should have some funny stories for you in my next email from our travels and from my first little bit of time in the mission field! Buckle up for that email!!! 

Spiritual thought:

I was thinking a lot about how we can grow our relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ this week. Think about this, friends - how did you grow your relationship with one of your best friends? Picture one of your best friends before you read on...think about when you first met that person and specific ways you grew your relationship into what it is now (and how it continues to grow). 

For me, I grew my relationship with my best friend by spending time with her, getting to know her, sacrificing for her, sharing my love for her in various ways, reaching out to her every single day, simply talking with her, being vulnerable with her and letting her help me, trusting her and having faith that she will keep her promises, and believing that she will be there for me always. Hopefully some of those ways I grew my relationship with my best friend are similar to the ways you grew your relationship with your best friend. 

So. How do we grow our relationships with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ? How do They become our best friends? BY DOING THOSE SAME THINGS.

Get to know them by studying the scriptures. Show your love for them by loving the people around you, by following His commandments, earnestly praying every day, going to church with questions in your heart knowing they will be answered. Sacrifice for them by asking on your knees every morning, "What is one thing you need me to do today, God?" then go about the day on His errand. Reach out to Heavenly Father and simply talk to Him on your knees and in your heart. Be vulnerable with Him, because He is listening. Trust Him and have faith that He will keep His promises to you if you keep your promises to Him. Lastly, believe that both Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are there for you always. 

This seems like a big list, I know!! But I promise if you start with ONE of these ways, (just one!), you will see a spark in your relationship with Them. I promise that because I have seen it in my own life. I have seen my relationship grow by doing these things every day, especially on my mission.

Lastly, I would like to share with you all my favorite scripture in Estonian. Please look it up in English! This is my testimony in one verse of scripture! 

2 Nephi 22:2 - "Vaata, Jumal on mu päästeö ma usaldan teda ega karda, sest Issand Jehoova on mu jõud ja mu kiidulaulö ja samuti on ta saanud minu päästeks."

Trust in the Lord. Choose JOY! Find peace :)

Õde Smith-Driggs

POWER OUTAGE? NO PROBLEM.

FAMILY AND FRIENDS! Hello to you all :) I hope you are all well. You are in my prayers. 

Quick birthday shoutout to my brother!!! Happy 22nd birthday this Friday, Abraham!! 

Everyone go send him some love :) 

The Work:

• We get our flight plans THIS FRIDAY! We will leave the MTC in just under two weeks. Can't wait to continue my mission in Estonia!!
• We got to Skype with another amazing member from Estonia! The members over there just astound me. We talked with her about the power of the Book of Mormon, and we testified that it could answer any question she had (either by receiving the answer from the words on the page or from specific feelings in her heart as she read). She talked about her testimony of the Book of Mormon, and it is SO STRONG. I am humbled to learn from the people we are teaching.
• Elder Dale G. Renlund from the Quorum of the Twelve apostles came to speak to us yesterday. What a privilege to hear from another member of the Quorum of the Twelve! I learned from his words that Jesus Christ is the source of all joy and peace. He said our goal as missionaries is to bring JOY to the world. So if Christ is the source of all joy and peace, we are bringing CHRIST to the world! So grateful for the opportunity to do so!

The Funnies:

• Our power went out on Sunday, so our room decided to have a glow stick party! Best memory of the MTC!!

• I had to go to the foot doctor off campus this week. IT WAS SO SURREAL TO LEAVE THE MTC!

We were missionaries in the real world! We talked to people outside the MTC walls! We drove in a CAR! It was crazy hahaha. 

And the doctor who helped me just HAPPENED to have a grandson who is serving in Estonia right now! 

I will serve with him for one year! And the person who drove us back from the doctor is good friends with my freshman roommate (shoutout to you, Elli!!). I'm convinced both of those were NOT coincidences. :)

Spiritual thought:

I was devastated to hear yesterday that one of my friends, only 17 years old, unexpectedly passed away. My heart just broke. I don't know how to describe it.

But friends, I know the Plan of Salvation is real. I know she is in Jesus's arms right now, and I know she has become a guardian angel for all those she loved while on this earth. It was amazing to feel that although I was devastated, immediately I felt peace because I knew she was safe with the Savior. My heart broke for all those who do not know about the Plan of Salvation...then my heart leaped for joy in realizing that that is why I am a missionary - to spread the news that we will see our loved ones again, that families can be together forever. Those simple truths bring me so much comfort, and I only wish I could tell everyone in the world that message. I'm starting with Estonia, though. :) 

Yesterday, I not only gained a real testimony of the Plan of Salvation, I also gained a real testimony that we can always feel peace through Jesus Christ. Always. He can swallow up any feelings of grief, pain, or sorrow and replace them with joy. His joy is constant and everlasting.

My thoughts and prayers are with my friend's family and friends. 

"Christ's grace isn't the light at the end of the tunnel. It's the light IN the tunnel." - Sheri Dew

Trust in the Lord. Choose joy. Find peace.

Õde Smith-Driggs 

Guess who got bubble wrap...!!!

TERE HOMMIKUST, MY LOVELY FRIENDS!

I think about you and pray for you all every day. I love hearing updates about your life, so please keep sending them my way!

The work:

• We had the opportunity to teach a member from Estonia over Skype* yesterday!!  I was feeling down yesterday morning for some reason, and a little nervous about moving to Eastern Europe. But the wonderful member showed us his home and showed us what it looked like outside (even though it was dark haha), and he got me really excited to go to Estonia!! The lesson was incredible. I couldn't understand a lot of what he said, but I could understand enough :) Guess what he said when we asked him what he liked to do?? Sleep and read the scriptures. That's it. What an inspiration. During the lesson, the Spirit directed me to ask about his testimony of Jesus Christ, then invite him to write down his testimony and share it with others. He has such a beautiful testimony. It was amazing to see that even though he said it was hard to share it, he said he would try. :)

• Our investigator here at the MTC, Piret, has committed to be baptized! We are working hard to get her prepared for that step. It is amazing to learn how to help people through the baptismal preparation process.

The funnies:

• SHOUT OUT to the Wankier family and to my family...THEY SENT US BUBBLE WRAP! (in response to my email a few weeks ago titled, "Please send bubble wrap.") Hahahaha.

• Fun fact: One of the grammar principles in Eesti keel is this: if the sentence does not sound beautiful, you've done something wrong. Not kidding. The language is built off of beauty! Isn't that awesome?? Hope that gives you all a sense of how beautiful Eesti keel is, and how much I LOVE IT. Ma armastan eesti keel, nii palju.

Spiritual thought:

Recently, I’ve been working on being patient with and kind to myself. We were reading in 1 Nephi 1 in the Book of Mormon when it talks about Lehi's vision, and I realized something - Lehi's heart had to be open to receive that revelation. He could not be "carried away" (vs. 8) unless he was willing and ready to be carried away. My question going into that study was, "How can I be more patient with myself?" The answer is, "Open your heart and let God help you." 

We so often want to think we can do it by ourselves. But friends - we will never reach our full potential without God's added strength and power. It is only when we open our hearts to His help that we are filled with the love and patience we need for ourselves. 

If you are struggling with being patient with yourself, or you feel you need to be kinder to yourself, I invite you to read Alma 42:29-31. Then say a prayer on your knees, asking God to place the peace, love, and patience He has for you into your heart. I promise that if you ask sincerely, He will flood you with that love and patience.

I'm still working on this myself, so let's work on it together, ok? Ok :) Let me know how it goes! I love you all. 

Trust in the Lord. Choose joy. Find peace.

Õde Smith-Driggs

P.S. Two "Mom" notes:

1. *Did you know Estonians created the Skype software? Eliza taught me that before she left:)

2. Here is a photo Eliza sent our family today with the following caption: 

“When you see your CAR on the way home from the temple??? Hahaha. LOVE YOU GUYS.” 

Abraham works at the MTC and parks near there. She must have seen it on her way back into the MTC from her p-day break.

Jesus Christ: Our sole source of peace

HELLO FRIENDS!

First of all, I just have to give a special shoutout to my SISTER! She got into BYU! Thank you for all your prayers! So proud of you, schnookie! 

The Work:

• Small miracle this week - Õde Austin's Vitamin Water spilled in her bag, but her camera and scriptures had been out of the bag, and her other most important things were not damaged at all. Tender mercies are a real thing!

• We had our first lesson with a new investigator, Milvi. She is 60 years old and very "spiritual." She was very crazy the whole lesson and I had no idea what she was saying. She was just making huge motions with her arms to show us how much she loves yoga. She even talked about her prayer mantra! It was one of those lessons that everyone talks about where you literally understand nothing and just smile and nod the whole time, inserting a testimony of Jesus Christ here and there. Our next lesson with her was the hardest lesson I have had here at the MTC. We kept trying to testify, and she would not accept any of what we were saying, and we couldn't understand what she was asking. It was really hard. We just wanted to help her, but she doesn't want to be helped. I was feeling frustrated afterward because I didn't know what to do. But our teacher, Õde Soosalu, helped us concentrate our efforts on how we can do better next time. By the end of the night, I was feeling a little better. Please pray that our next lesson with her (Friday) goes a little better. Please pray that the Spirit can continue guiding us in our lessons with Milvi.

• President M. Russell Ballard, the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, came and spoke to us last night. It was a question and answer session! President Ballard is such a sweet man, and we could all feel his love and God's love last night.

• Also I just have to publicly express my love for Õde Austin. We sing and harmonize together on an hourly basis and testify of Jesus Christ together, going about doing good...could life get better?? I don't think so :) Ma armastan sind, Õde Austin...niiiiiii palju!! Sa oled väga kena ;)

• The Estonian is coming along!! I love this language so much. It is sooooo beautiful. Yes, it is hard. But all languages are hard! English is hard! And I just depend on the Lord's help every day. I know that whatever I don’t communicate in words, the Spirit makes up the difference and helps the people I am talking to understand God's love and message for them. I depend on that in writing these emails as well. I don't know what each of you are struggling with. Only God knows. But I trust Him to take my simple words and transform them into what each of you personally need to hear.

The Funnies:

• A speaker came and showed us picture after picture of super hard situations in the mission field, and said things like, "So yeah, he may not be able to stand up because everything is too short for him in Japan, but hey at least he is serving in this picture by doing the dishes!" or "Oh yes...these dear missionaries ended up in the hospital, but hey at least they survived!" hahahaha.

• "Kuulama" in eesti keel is "to listen." So to remember that word, Õde Austin and I think, "Cool llamas have big ears. Cool llama...kuulama!" Haha so this is the sign we make to remember it: 

Spiritual thought:

I would just like to bear my simple testimony of the power of the Atonement. Life is hard, my friends. I know that. You all know that. And we can't feel happy all the time - we can't! We have to experience sorrow so we can appreciate happiness. But I know that whatever emotion you are feeling in your life right now (happiness, sadness, joy, depression, anxiety, hopelessness, loneliness, comfort, excitement, etc), you can ALWAYS feel peace through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. it doesn't matter the emotion, peace is always available. That is my favorite thing about this gospel. In my saddest moments, I have turned to my Heavenly Father in prayer and asked for peace. He has freely given me that peace. And in my most joyful moments, I have opened the scriptures and felt complete peace and solace. We always need Christ, no matter how happy or sad we feel.

Christ understands you 100% of the time. He understands 100% of all emotions you could ever feel because He felt them first. 

So when you feel sad or hopeless or alone, please feel peace in knowing that at least one person understands you - Jesus Christ, the Savior of the Universe. What better best friend could we have?

Ma tean Jeesus Kristus armastab sind nii palju. Tema tahab suhe sinuga. Ainult Jeesuse Kristuse lepituse kaudu, sina võid tundad rahu ja rõõm alati. AINULT Jeesuse Kristuse lepituse kaudu. Armastad tema. Järgi tema!

I love you all :)

Trust in the Lord. Choose joy. Find peace.

Õde Smith-Driggs