Who Is Christ To You?

A couple of weeks ago we had an amazing Stake Conference where Elder Joaquin E. Costa, a member of the Quorum of the 70, spoke to us. It was an amazing, spirit filled meeting that left me feeling spiritually nourished and incredibly blessed. 

In his Sunday morning address to our Stake, Elder Costa centered his entire talk on one question, "Who is Christ to Me?" And then spent the next 20 or so minutes answering that question for himself. It was so powerful and enlightening to listen a member of the Quorum of the 70 address this topic, and hear his very personal answer. So, being a mom of a missionary, I felt that would be the focus of one of my weekly letters to Elder Scott, and am I ever glad I asked him. After meditating on the question for an entire week, he sent me the following response:

Artwork by Howard Lyon

“Who is Christ for Me?” Really interesting question. It caused me to stop and really think. I discussed it with Elder Cruz as well, and honestly, I don’t know if I can put who Christ is to me into words. Christ is my Savior, my Older Brother, my Redeemer, my Helper, my Guide, my Supporter, my Example. There are so many different ways to describe who Christ is to me. 

I have been studying different paintings of Christ lately for a project, and I love how even in paintings and art, you can just feel His grand love. It is the very center of His being. I love it. I cherish it, and try to remember it in what I do. 

I am very, very, very far from perfect. But luckily, thanks to Him, I can also get better and better. Christ is very special to me and I strive to be a good representative of Him in what I do and say. He is my loving Older Brother who holds my hand and patiently guides me, even though I stumble and fall frequently. He loves me even with my many faults, and helps me to always be better than what I currently am. I love Him and He is worth so much to me. 

Artwork by Michael Jarvis Nelson

Artwork by Brent Borup

Artwork by Simon Dewey

I was so touched by Elder Scott's response, and invite all who read this to contemplate on the same question I asked him, "Who is Christ to you?" Think, "is there anything I need to change in my life to make Him a more central figure in my everyday life? Are there things I can be doing to learn more about Him? Am I taking the time to study His teachings, and to ponder on his infinite Atonement? What more can I do to spread His gospel messages to others? Do I trust and have faith in my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ? Am I living my life in a way that Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father can place their trust and their faith in me?

I have thoroughly enjoyed thinking about these same questions myself. It's made me realize there are a lot of things I could be doing differently. So much wasted time that could be spent doing more to make sure Christ is at the very center of my life and in my home. One thing is certain though, I love my Savior. I am so grateful for His sacrifice and His Atonement on my behalf. I am indebted to Him forever, and I pray I can repay Him in small doses every day of my life. I hope He thinks of me as one He can trust to do His will and can depend on. 

Photos from the past couple of weeks

This is a Book of Mormon in braille. How cool is that?!
He is at Hermana Marta's home who is his pence in Chimbote.

Pizza Making Time

That right there is one delicious looking banana split.

Hair has been cut and colored 😉

Letters Home

The first weekend of October the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints broadcasts its semiannual General Conference. This is a weekend where we are able to listen to our prophet, apostles, and other church leaders, instruct us, give guidance, offer words of encouragement, counsel us and inspire us to be better people. I look forward to it every October and again in April. In all honesty, they are my 2 favorite weekends of the year, and this past October's session was absolutely amazing. Elder Scott thought so, too. In fact he sent me roughly 45 pages of journal notes about them (seriously, Conference is awesome!!). Here's a link in case you're interested in watching any of the most recent talks October 2017 General Conference. Each speaker will be listed individually along with a title so you have an idea what the talk will be about. One thing is a given, each talk will reinforce and testify about key aspects of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and help you draw closer to your Savior and Father in Heaven. 

October got even better when we discovered an unexpected surprise this week. Late Tuesday evening we found 6 letters in the mailbox from my one and only, Elder Scott! We were overjoyed with that happy find since this is only the 3rd time he has been able to find a way to send handwritten letters (A huge thanks to Hermana Irma for helping him with the surprise!) There was inspired counsel in the words we were able to read from him, and I am including some of the highlights. Wow! Do I ever love this son of mine. He is truly an inspiration to me, and I strive to be more like him.

To Dad: I want to share a scripture I reread the other day that I absolutely loved, "I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things." (Alma 26:12). This conference we heard a lot about accepting the will of the Lord. Now, if we are accepting His will, we will have His strength, but it is only when we do that. It is up to us." 

To Mom: "I more than just love my mission, I cherish it. I cannot believe just how quick the time has flown by, and that I have less than a year left. I love it so much, and it's flying by way too quick. I don't want you to ever worry about me. Are there rough bumps every now and then? Of course. We all have them, yes, even as missionaries. But they are short, they pass, and then, after you get to look back on them, laugh and realize how much you were able to learn and grow from the experiences. I am in the Lord's hand and on the Lord's errand. And, in addition to that, you and dad have prepared me more than you can ever imagine....I am one lucky Elder."

To Jordan: "Always strive to be better every day. I always ask Heavenly Father to help me a better person daily. We have so much potential, we don't even realize it. But you know who does? Heavenly Father, and He always is helping us and wants us to reach our potential..... Please remember to always love and serve others. Put it at the very heart of what you do. There are so many blessings if you do."

To Caleb: "Congrats for going up and serving in the hurricane cleanup! Every time they talked in conference about the people in Florida helping in their yellow 'helping hands' shirts, my mind immediately turned to you all. It literally fills my soul with joy that you love doing and offering service....Always continue to focus your life and love on service. (later in his letter he moved on to another subject near and dear to his heart) I want you to study the Book of Mormon daily. There are mountains of blessings in store for you when you do."

To My Church Family and Friends: "I love serving my Lord and being one of His representatives this past year. I have learned so many important things and grown in so many important ways. I can testify that this is truly the Lord's errand. I know He watches over me and my fellow missionaries. I know also undoubtedly that He watches over and blesses each and every one of you as well. 

We just got done having an absolutely wonderful and magnificent Conference weekend. I sincerely pray that each of you were able to watch or hear all of the various sessions. Each was a direct revelation from Heavenly Father. If not, I invite you, without delay, to do so now. If you heard or watched it, I invite you to now to go over it again. I know there are mountains of blessings waiting for those who do."

Elder Scott then expressed his gratitude to everyone who has so diligently served others this past month and said, "I can testify to Elder Eyring's words, you are all angels. Thank you so much. Now though, I invite you to do something more. Don't stop. Keep it going. Look for more ways to serve. My favorite quote of this past Conference was, 'Love without service is like faith without works. It is dead.' I invite and encourage each of you to continue to love and serve others."

And Elder Scott concluded with his testimony

Yo se que Jesucristo es nuestro salvadory redentor. Yo se que el y nuesto Padre Celestial tienen un amor Perfecto para cada uno de nosotros. Yo se que hay un plan para cada uno de nosotros, una Plan de Salvacion, una plan de amor, una plan de gozo, una plan haciedo de Padre Celestial para nosotros. Siempre buscan oprotunidades a sevir otro personas. Padre Celestial va a bendicir usteded y su familias cuando usteded hacen eso. Mas de usteded pueden creer. Yo se que nuestro salvadoe vive, que esta es la iglesia verdadero, restuarado otro vez a la tierra. Yo tesifice que Padre Celestial le ama mucho. En el nombre de Jesucristo, amen.

        Con Mucho Amor,        

Elder (Kyler) Scott

Mision Peru Trujillo Sur

Thank you to each and every one of you who is reading this blog. You all help shape our missionaries to be the kind of people they are in the mission field, and as a missionary mom I cannot thank you enough for your continued love, support and prayers on behalf of the Elder's and Sister's around the world.

Below are a few favorite quotes from the October 2017 General Conference

Elder Christopher Waddell: "In this mortal experience we cannot control all that happens to us, but we have absolute control over how we respond to the changes in our lives. This does not imply that the challenges and trials we face are of no consequence and easily handled or dealt with. It does not imply that we will be free from pain or heartache. But it does mean that there is cause for hope and that due to the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can move forward and find better days - even days full of joy, light and happiness." 

Elder Ronald A. Rasband: "What should you be looking for in your own life? What are God's miracles that remind you that He is close, saying, 'I am right here'? Think of those times, some daily, when the Lord has acted in your life - and then acted again. Treasure them as moments the Lord has shown confidence in you and in your choices. But allow Him to make more of you than you can make of yourself on your own. Treasure His involvement." 

Sister Jean B. Bingham: "Lasting joy is found on our Savior, Jesus Christ, and living the gospel as demonstrated and taught by Him. The more we learn about, have faith in, and emulate Jesus Christ, the more we come to understand that He is the source of all healing, peace and eternal progress. He invites each of us to come unto Him."

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf: (Bearers of Heavenly Light) 
...So, then, what is night?

Night is nothing more than a shadow.

Even in the darkest of nights, the sun does not cease to radiate its light. It continues to shine as bright as ever. But half of the earth is in darkness.

The absence of light causes darkness.

When the darkness of night falls, we do not despair and worry that the sun is extinguished. We do not postulate that the sun in not there or dead. We understand that we are in a shadow, that the earth will continue to rotate, and that eventually the rays of the sun will reach us once again.

Darkness is not an indication that there is no light. Most often. it simply means we're not in the right place to receive the light. ....it is up to us to be in the right place to see the divine light and truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Even when night has fallen and the world seems dark, we can choose to walk in Christ's light, keep His commandments, and courageously testify of His reality and His greatness.

Every time you turn your hearts to God in humble prayer, you experience His light. Every time you seek His word and will in the scriptures, the light grows in brightness. Every time you notice someone in need and sacrifice your own comfort to reach out in love, the light expands and swells. Every time you reject temptation and choose purity, every time you seek or extend forgiveness, every time you courageously testify of truth, the light chases away darkness and attracts others who are also seeking light and truth."

PHOTO TIME

This past week, Elder Scott found out what hydrogen peroxide mixed with Peruvian sun will do to his hair. Elder Cruz tried to warn him, but Elder Scott is, well...a Scott which means he can be a bit stubborn and he wanted to try it out for himself. And when I say he is a Scott, I mean to say his dad did the EXACT SAME THING ON HIS MISSION 😏

It started off as a slightly lighter shade of brown, progressed to red, then orange, then yellow, and finally blond. This may have been a whoops moment of the mission.

It started off pretty neutral.

By the next day it was getting fairly light

Taking on a reddish hue

Changing to orange

WOW!

Elder Scott with Elder Cruz

Pretty soon he became a lemonhead

Maybe this wasn't such a bright idea

Starting to get a little more normal

Looking decent

This is out of sequence because I was only sent a
few carefully selected photos this week. His dad was sent
110 with the label of "TOP SECRET! DON'T TELL MOM!"
I had no idea until I saw Kevin's set of photos 😄