Taylor Swift Said it Best (Ch 27)

สวัสดี​ค่ะ​ everyone!

Well, my first four days in Lampang are down. How were they? I am going to borrow from modern-day poetess/singer/icon Taylor Swift to answer: "It's miserable and magical, oh yeah" - - Taylor Swift, 22. One moment I'm getting my skirt sucked up in my bike and almost careening into a roadside stand, but the next I look out and see wild horses just roaming the fields of Lampang, and, woah. It's hard to do things all in Thai, but I can tell my language is going to get better. It's been a week of ups and downs. Miserable, sometimes. But always magical, too. Lampang is so beautiful.

With my new companion, Sister Mittavong, from Laos

I finally had to prove myself on the "I'll go for seconds at the maggot stand" thing. One of the members came to dinner last night with a bag full of fried worm/maggot things and asked if I'd ever tried them before. I told her that I had, and, just to be cool, that I liked them, too. Whoops. She said, "If you like them, you can have lots!" The next thing I know, my plate was loaded with crunchy maggots. I had dug my grave already, so I had to lie in it. I finished the plate of bugs. The verdict? Flavor was okay. Texture left a little to be desired. All in all, I think this will be a one-timer for me.

I learned something from Saints this week that really helped me. In this part, Joseph Smith is pleading with the Lord to know why the Saints have had to suffer so much in Missouri and Ohio. This is the answer he is given:

"The Savior reminded Joseph that the Saints could not suffer more than He had. He loved them and could end their pain, but He chose instead to suffer affliction with them, carrying their grief and sorrow as part of His atoning sacrifice. Such suffering filled Him with mercy, giving Him power to succor and refine all who turned to Him in their trials. He urged Joseph to hold on and promised never to forsake him."

I have never thought about the Atoning sacrifice quite in that way before. The Savior goes through each of our trials with us, so He feels every ounce of our pain and suffering. When He allows us to go through these trials, He doesn't say, "This will make you better," and then stand back and watch as we struggle. No, He is there alongside us, suffering the same pains and feeling the same feelings that we are. In the end, He could take away our trials. It would be far less painful for Him--and He doesn't need refining trials, anyway, as the only perfect being ever to live. He doesn't, though. The Lord allows us to have these trials to give us better perspective and refine our characters. He pays the price for these experiences. He freely accepts the pain and suffering that results from them because He loves us. I love my Savior. I know that He lives and is mindful of us at every moment. I'm so grateful for Him. 

Okay, that's all I've got! Lots of love to everyone. Sending prayers your way. You're amazing. Thanks for your examples. 

Living it up in Lampang, 

Sister Harris