Well. I've heard of so many missionaries that have sent out their last email or blog post and are just overcome with emotion; with sadness, fright, anxiety, or excitement. And it's kinda weird, because I don't really feel like that. It doesn't feel like I'm going home this week. It just kinda feels like another transfer coming up. Actually, not even another transfer coming up, it feels like I'm staying in Miami Beach but with a bunch of packed suitcases, haha. I've been working my absolute hardest, going so hard. I've been testifying and inviting all that I can, going by love and going by the Spirit.
It hasn't fully hit me yet. And I hope that it doesn't come very soon, because I will be heartbroken when it does. Actually, it will probably hit me tomorrow as we drive up to the mission home. But I will never, ever, for as long as I live regret serving a mission. I have savored this 18 months, used them to the best of my ability, and given them to the Lord. Just before I was set apart to serve as a full-time missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I was getting ready, brushing my teeth or something in the bathroom. And I asked my younger sister to get out her iPod and speaker, so that I could hear a song one more time. That song was "I Lived" by One Republic. I chose it because I wanted to be able to sing those lyrics about my mission when I finished, namely these lines: "I did it all, I owned every second that this world can give... with every broken bone, I swear I lived."
Ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, mis queridos hermanos y hermanas, I still have some time left before I return home on Thursday, but I will be able to honestly say about my mission: I did it ALL, I owned every second that this world can give, ... I LIVED.
I will forever be so incredibly grateful that my beloved Father in Heaven gave me this opportunity to serve and to grow. And now 2 Timothy 4:6-8 has a new meaning for me. I gave it my all up until the very end. I served with all of my heart, might, mind, and strength. I finished strong.
2 Timoteo 4:7
He peleado la buena batalla, he acabado la carrera, he guardado la fe.
I'm going to quote my dear friend that recently returned from her mission in Virginia (because she is far more eloquent than I and said it so well): "I have felt the Lord's redeeming love in own life and seen it change the lives of others. I understand more than ever the power of Christ's Atonement. It is the most important doctrine we can ever learn about. It's scope is infinite, it's effects eternally felt. Through it we can overcome any challenges we may experience in this life, whether they be emotional, physical, mental, or spiritual, whether our pain comes as a result of sin, the poor choices of others, or the natural challenges of life. The Atonement overcomes all.I have experienced some of the sweetest friendships of my life during this time that I know will last into the eternities. I am so thankful for the people I have met who have taught, served, and loved me. From companions to investigators, members to my dear mission president and his wife, I have been richly blessed. "
I know that my Redeemer lives. I gave 18 months of my life to serve as a missionary. And now I will continue as a disciple of Christ for all of my life. I add my testimony to that of Moroni, and all of the other great prophets and apostles and missionaries that have testified of the divine truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that we have the fullness of the truth in the Lord's church today, that perfect church has been restored and it is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. And if you say that I'm incorrect, "judge ye". <<<That's one of my favorite new lines of scripture.
I know that these things are true. Nothing can ever change that. Nothing could ever make me deny it. I love my Savior and I will follow Him.
Éter 12:37
...tú has sido fiel; por tanto, tus vestidos estarán limpios. Y porque has visto tu debilidad, serás fortalecido, aun hasta sentarte en el lugar que he preparado en las mansiones de mi Padre.
I love you all so very much. I will see you soon.
Shall We Not Go On in So Great a Cause?
Les quiero a todos. La iglesia es verdadera. Gracias por todo que han hecho por mí. Les veré pronto.
Misión cumplida
~
Hermana Samantha Curnow
Florida Fort Lauderdale Mission
17 Diciembre 2014 - 30 Junio 2016
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