Sister Kofford in Tahiti: Relationships Make up our Lives!

12/7/15
Iaorana friends and family!

Like always, I hope and pray that you are doing well and loving life! Especially since Christmas time is rolling into the air! Here in Tahiti it is still hot and there is not Christmas music everywhere we go, but despite it all, I think the world hums with the spirit of the true meaning of Christmas! So as we live through this season, try to take a sufficient amount of time each day to remember! Remember Christ. Remember the things that he did for us! Remember his birth. Remember his life. Remember his sacrifice. Remembering is a cool thing that God allows us to do! So do not forget to remember!

Soeur Cromar and I had an awesome week! No human words could ever describe the things a missionary lives through in just one week. Often times, we find it difficult to even describe our feelings to ourselves! But through the good and the bad, the happy and the sad, the joy and the sorrow, Christ knows it all! And God is willing to listen! So never hesitate to invite these people along with the Holy Ghost into your lives to lead you, to guide you, to listen to you, and to love you! On Saturday, we had Ani's miracle baptism! We literally found her two weeks ago and she had been preparing long before this day! She will be an outstanding member of this true church and an amazing missionary one day! This truly is Gods work!

This week, I thought about the relationships that we have in our lives! I thought about all kinds of relationships that our Heavenly Father encourages us to have. Our relationships with our siblings . . . we are obligated to love them even when we think we have had enough of them haha (but after learn, that we have everything in common and they become our best friends!). Our relationships with our friends. We usually put on a good face and try to be our best around them, we have fun and we learn a lot. Our relationship with our parents, learning to trust and obey. Finding that they are wise and loving and having the desire to become just like them! And then I thought about our relationship that we have specifically with our fathers. They provide, preside, protect, and much more. They are there through it all to love, to correct and to be our friend. How blessed are we in this life to have these amazing relationships? Then I thought about our Savior, Jesus Christ and his relationship he has with his father. In the scriptures we learn that they are "one." They found this perfect love for each other and even through the hard times nothing but good came out of it! How did they find this balance? In a relationship, we have to know the person, trust the person, and love the person. With these three qualifications, things will work out. God knows his son perfectly, he trusted him to atone for the sins of the world, and he loves his son enough to have sent him to earth to show a perfect example. Christ knows his father and his will. He trusted his father enough to obey him with exactness and to live his life for him. He loves God to the point of giving his will to him. Pretty cool. Then I thought about the relationship that we have with our Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ. We know that in a relationship, to find success, it will take the efforts of both sides. Heavenly Father and Christ are doing all that they possibly can to find success in our relationship with them. They know us,to the point to give us weaknesses and occasions in our lives to improve and become better! They trust us to keep the commandments that they have given us and to ultimately make it back to live with them again. We know that they love us because all that they have given us, are giving us, and will continue to give us. Now the question that we need to ask ourselves is, "What am I doing to contribute to my relationship with my Heavenly Father and his son, Christ?" There are numerous things that can be done to contribute to this eternal relationship . . . but for me this past week, I found two very important things. In John 14:15 it says, "If you love me, keep my commandments." Through our obedience, we can help this sacred relationship. In Mosiah 2:17 it says, "When you are in the service of your fellowmen, you are simply in the service of your God." When we serve others and form better relationships with them, we are really improving our relationship with God. So the second question is, "Are my relationships that I have in my life contributing to my eternal relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ?" Relationships are so important! We are placed into each others lives for lots of reasons, and for the most part, God is the only person aware of these reasons. But when we work on treating people as Christ would, serving, and loving . . . we are really coming to know God, we are gaining trust in him, and we find an endless and burning love through these experiences! I know that God lives! He loves us! Christ lives and he loves us! We are here to love and to be loved! To help each other turn these earthly relationships into an eternal round by inviting everyone to come unto Christ and have eternal life through him! So during this Christmas season, remember who you are and your purpose here on earth! Love those around you and contribute to your relationship with God and Christ!

Thanks for everything that you do for me! Thanks for your thoughts and prayers! I love and appreciate each one! I hope you have a great week! Keep loving life! Love you all!

Love, Soeur Kofford