Matthew 22:37-38
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind,” He said. “This is the first and great commandment.”
I once had a church leader who often talked about reflection.
Not our literal reflection in the mirror, but looking back on your life and reflecting.
He said that reflection gives you perspective in difficult times. If you just take a second to reflect on what you are doing, and why you are doing it, you have a greater capacity to move forward with more purpose and more passion.
Recently I had to do the very thing that this man often spoke of….reflect.
I reflected on what I was doing and why I was doing it. Why was I serving a mission? What was my initial motivation, and is that motivation still the same? Part of the reflection process is asking yourself questions, evaluating, and reminding yourself of things you once knew.
I am serving as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, because I know that God loves me.
My story:
I have always grown up in the “Mormon” church. I was constantly taught that God loves me and that I was a child of God, but when I was 14 years old I came to a point where I needed to really know for myself. I needed a personal witness because at that point in my life I did not feel confident that what I had been taught all of my life was true. I was lost. So I prayed.
I prayed to my Heavenly Father that he would make himself known unto me, and that I would know of his love for me. I didn’t have a vision or a voice come out of the heavens to speak to me, but instead I closed my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ and I open my scriptures. I read Moroni chapter 8 in the Book of Mormon. Verse 16 was the answer to my prayer, it says, “I speak with boldness, and authority from God; and I fear not what man can do; for perfect love casteth out all fear.” I read these words and was filled with His love. Just as this prophet Moroni knew that God loved him perfectly, I knew that God loved me perfectly too.
This was such a simple experience in my life, but it has had a profound impact on the person I am today. The knowledge and personal witness that God loves me, individually and perfectly and that I am his Daughter, truly motivates my decisions each and every day. I know Heavenly Father lives and I love him. I know the love I feel from him has changed my life, and I know that if everyone had the knowledge of that love, it would change the world. God intends for all of his children to feel his love. This is why I am serving a mission, to share the message of his love and his restored gospel on the Earth.
-Sister Madeline Eddy
