From Refining to Defining

The only thing I can think to call this post is "From Refining to Defining." Last week was hard. I really felt like I was going through a refiners fire. This week was defining. I have determined these past 7 days how the rest of my mission will be. Powerful experiences shape and define you.

Tuesday, Sister Hill and I went to Nashville where I was invited to participate in leadership training (ZLC) while she exchanged with the sisters in Nashville. Wow. The meeting was a revelatory experience even though President and Sister McKee could not be there. I have learned so much about missionary work and I now look at missionary work differently! During the meeting we received a phone call that Sister McKee had regressed; they found infection/additional blood clots. Right then, we all knelt and prayed, 25 strong, and pleaded on her behalf. By lunch we learned that her blood pressure stabilized and that we would all be able to go sing to her after the meeting.

Many of you may have seen the video I posted on Facebook of the missionaries singing, "Called to Serve," to her. I can't even begin to describe the emotions I felt. That hospital room is a hallowed place. President McKee counseled us while holding his precious wife's hand. He said, "Sometimes as missionaries we don't want to do things, like get up at 6:30am. Well I didn't want to do this. I didn't sign up for this! But I do hard things. As a mission, WE DO HARD THINGS. The best gift we can give Sister McKee is to BAPTIZE! Keep working hard. Satan will want this to slow us down but we are strong." We also sang, "I Need thee Every Hour." Then we knelt around her bed and prayed. We each got to say hello to Sister McKee and tell her our name. President embraced each of his Elders and comfortedthem as we left the room. He is brave, undaunted, and faithful. President McKee is the closest man to Jesus Christ I have ever worked closely with. I was certainly called to the McKee family and not just to the Tennessee Nashville Mission. "Expect miracles" is our mission motto.

And so the work keeps going forward! President McKee left her side for the first time yesterday to attend the missionary meeting with Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles. He said, "Elders and Sisters, the keys of the Priesthood still work in the ICU! My office is set up right next to Sister McKee's hospital bed." And we all received our transfer calls Saturday night. I'll get back to that in a minute.

One of the best moments in my life was being able to sing for Elder Nelson. Sister Bishop and I sang, "My Kindness Shall not Depart from Thee," a song written by Rob Gardner in a musical history of Joseph Smith. Coincidentally (but not), Elder Nelson started his address to us with the very same story about which the song was written, Joseph in Liberty Jail (see Doctrine and Covenants 121). He talked about trials and why we have them.

And he is funny! He opened the floor up for questions, and one Elder asked, "How can I get a fire going in my area with the missionaries in my area?" Elder Nelson responded, "Is it cold where you are, Elder?" He is a scriptorian! He frequently turned to the scriptures for answers. I also got to lead the music! We passed him in the hall after the meeting and as I shook his hand for the second time, he said, "Thank you for being so helpful."

It was not a coincidence that Elder Nelson was the apostle scheduled back in May to see us. He is cousins with Sister McKee! And being a heart surgeon, he knew how to minister to the McKee family in a way that no other apostle would have been able. Because of Sister McKee's condition, all 10 of the McKee children have been in town staying in the mission home. Together they sang with President McKee about how the small things bring about miracles. They also sang, "I Need Thee Every Hour."

He left a blessing upon the missionaries and the mission and Sister McKee.

Okay, I am getting transferred! I'm going to Franklin, TN to serve with Sister Tauoa! Sister Hill is also leaving to open an area in Clarksville with her MTC companion, Sister Means! We are SO devastated to be getting "whitewashed." This area is so large! Elders are coming in and we must trust that the Lord knows what He is doing with this part of His vineyard. It is, after all, HIS area and not ours. President McKee personally called us yesterday (again, So Christlike. He is always outward focused.) discerning that we were worried about the transfer call. He reassured us that he received a powerful revelation that Elders needed to be in the Fulton area, and that it was not that we were doing anything wrong. We really appreciated that phone call!

It's been a tearful few days saying good bye to so many people I love so dearly. Middle Tennessee/Kentucky has a large spot in my heart. I do have complete trust in the Lord and I am also excited to serve in a new area. Send all letters to the mission home (Brentwood) until I get my new address! Here we go! Chapter 4!

Love Sister Nordstrom

The Jensen Family Tree 

Small and Simple Things

Our mission president said in his email to us today, "We have become so grateful for 'small and simple things.' My favorite scripture in Alma 37:6,7 concerning small and simple things is having a deeper and deeper meaning." He is referring to the tiny miracles they are seeing daily in his wife, Sister McKee. She has been in critical condition in the hospital since Thanksgiving after a severe heart attack, stroke, cardiac arrest, and bleeding in her brain. She has gone through multiple surgeries and is slowly coming out of her coma. Tens of thousands have been joining in prayer for her and her family. Even the Quorum of the 12 Apostles held a special prayer for her this week. We miss our dear mission mom but we know that these small miracles are progress in the right direction. 

It's true, Heavenly Father leads us along "line upon line and precept upon precept" (2 Nephi 28:30). He does not show us every miracle nor give us every answer all at once. 

This week a dear friend of mine sent me Vocal Point's newest CD, "Lead Thou Me On." Besides highly recommending it, I also want to share how one song on the CD seems to be just for me.

The first track is "Lead Kindly Light," a song that has taken on a whole new meaning for me. "The night is dark, and I am far from home, Lead thou me on!" The night is very dark out here in the country, each day is long, and we are tired and very far from home. We are guided by the Spirit while on the Lord's errand.

"I loved to choose and see my path, but now, Lead thou me on." I have always been a planner. I like to see far in advance and know where I'll be and what I'll be doing tomorrow, next month, next year, 30 years down the road. I have never had to rely so much on faith and not see so far. I truly have been learning to ask Heavenly Father, "Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see the distant scene. One step enough for me." Is one step really enough for me? 

We lead those we teach one step at a time. We give them small commitments: "Will you read from the Book of Mormon every day? Will you pray to know that Joseph Smith is a prophet?" Then, "Will you come to church this Sunday?" Then, "Will you commit to live the Word of Wisdom....the law of chastity....the law of tithing?" Then, "Will you follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized by someone holding the Priesthood Authority of God?" 

Through small and simple means, we are led one step at a time through our journey. Be patient with the Lord and remember that He is working on His own timetable. That is one of the biggest lessons I am learning as His servant. 

Sister Ryceejo Nordstrom