Alright Fokes, this is it. I'm down to the wire. I leave in less than 72 hours and come Wednesday morning I will be flying to Provo, UT to spend the next 6 weeks learning a new language and more importantly how to be a missionary. I have so many mixed feelings at this point and it doesn't seem real yet.
I have been reflecting on the past few months since I received my call, and all I can think is how much I've grown, but also how much I could have grown more. I have spent a lot of time being a bit selfish and focusing all on me, when I should have been focusing on others and especially preparing myself. Of course this isn't a bash on Sarah fest, but its just self reflection; and along with the negative there is always a positive! For anyone who has served a mission, or even received a mission call and has had that wait to be set apart and enter the MTC, you can understand how difficult that wait can be. Each person is different and with that there are different trials and temptations thrown in the way of anyone doing what is right. A few things I have learned are there are a couple cases in life that Satan spends extra time and effort into ruining a person: 1. when going through the temple, or more importantly being sealed and 2. when serving a mission. This is because both effect thousands of other people. Being sealed is a blessing to your family and generations to come, and teaching and baptizing others blesses more people than we may ever know. With that said, I have gotten a large dose of Satan's attention.
Not that I feel I should reveal every corner of my heart, but I do like to share personal experiences for any few people who read this so that they may take something away from it. I have been tried in ways in the last few months different than I ever have before. The day I went through the temple was interesting. I've heard countless times how Satan works his hardest on this day in your life, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I didn't get a flat tire on the way, I didn't wake up to some sickness or really any temporal obstacle. I woke up with a feeling of inadequacy to receive my own endowment and the ordinances and covenants that come with that. Never before had I felt something like that and I struggled a lot, not sure why I was feeling the way I did. I have been on the road of repentance many times before and I knew that I was square with the Lord, and even though I'm not perfect, He was there to make up the difference. So that was my trial that day, I felt unsettled and even though that's not the way I imagined feeling on this special day, once I entered the Celestial Room and saw my loved ones standing in a circle waiting for me I was filled with love and peace. I have made it a priority to attend weekly since and have been monumentally blessed because of it.
So now for the wait. I knew reading my call the next four and a half months were going to feel like the longest ones of my life, but I didn't know what that really entailed. I met a lot of new people and started hanging out with a new group of friends, friends who grew up together and have known each other for years. So at times I felt like the odd one out, not exactly fitting in. I didn't know anyone else waiting for a mission like me and didn't have anyone to turn to when things got hard. So what do you do? You turn to the Lord. I have never leaned on Heavenly Father and Christ so much in my life as I have these last couple months. There have been nights I've spent a good thirty minutes on my knees pouring out my hurt heart. I have never been so humbled. I started realizing life isn't all about me. I started serving those around me, even people who didn't necessarily want my service. I obtained a knew understanding of charity and tasted a sample of what I expect to feel on my mission. I worked hard at my calling and being active in my singles ward and continued to meet new people. I can now only hope I have left a small impact on some hearts here in AZ.
I now have a true, deep desire to serve. I want to be the best missionary I can be and leave the next 18 months on the field, holding nothing back. I want to forget about my life here, but not experiences that have shaped me into the person I am today. I am ready to be molded and improved upon and I can only pray my heart will be softened for this to happen. I am nearly Sister/Hermana Klein and want to be nothing less than a stalwart representative of Jesus Christ.
I will see you in 18 months! Write me while I am gone (: And may your lives always be blessed!
-Sarah Klein- sarah.klein@myldsmail.net
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Friday, February 8, 2013
Catch Up
I realize I have not written for weeks! Shame on me. So now I will try to keep this brief while also catching the world up on my crazy life! The biggest, most important news is that I will be serving a mission and I will be serving in the Alabama Birmingham Mission (wait for the applause) SPANISH SPEAKING!!!! I am to report to the MTC on June 12. The call is perfect and I am beyond psyched to serve our Lord for 18 months! I cannot wait to learn Spanish and to grow in the gospel and learn more and more about myself. Since I got my call (last Saturday) I have been praying for a love of the people I will serve in Alabama and perhaps in Mississippi and Tennessee, and I have already been blessed with only a portion of love Heavenly Father feels for his children.
I know nothing can top that news, but other than that I have been insanely busy and always on my toes. I am seeing more and more blessings from my job as a respite worker, one being its flexible schedule, not to mention a wonderful co-worker (my mother) who often covers for me :). My calling as the FHE Leader in my ward is a calling that brings many blessings as well. I have a new found love and understanding for Family Home Evening and especially for the members of my ward. I hope I can make FHE as strong as possible before I leave.
Other than that, my mind has gone blank. I spend a lot of time with great friends and with my family. I have been blessed to attend some discussions with the missionaries in my ward. I am keeping busy with classes: sociology, institute and Irish Step Dancing. And most importantly, I'm happy!
I know nothing can top that news, but other than that I have been insanely busy and always on my toes. I am seeing more and more blessings from my job as a respite worker, one being its flexible schedule, not to mention a wonderful co-worker (my mother) who often covers for me :). My calling as the FHE Leader in my ward is a calling that brings many blessings as well. I have a new found love and understanding for Family Home Evening and especially for the members of my ward. I hope I can make FHE as strong as possible before I leave.
Other than that, my mind has gone blank. I spend a lot of time with great friends and with my family. I have been blessed to attend some discussions with the missionaries in my ward. I am keeping busy with classes: sociology, institute and Irish Step Dancing. And most importantly, I'm happy!
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Surprise!
What an eventful last few weeks. I hope everyones' holidays were as wonderful as mine and that the true meaning of Christmas resonated in each persons heart. I enjoyed every moment with my family and had a very comfortable week and I was able to get back to the things that matter most in life. New Years was a blast and I was able to party the night away with great friends.
Friends have become immensly valuable to me in the last few weeks and I have been blessed with amazing people who care about me. I am better learning to rely on those around me and open myself up to dear friends whom I trust. My best friend currently lives in California with some of her family. I was fortunate enough to visit her a couple months ago, and we talk regularly but this last week I was thinking about her and missing her more than usual. Then I get a call from her Wednesday informing me that she was flying out Friday morning and I would get to see her all weekend!! I was so so so so so so EXCITED! And on top of that, we would be surprising my family that night with her presence. So last night I "go to the store" and pick her up from her grandma's. We hide her in a box and once I usher the family outside....POP....out she comes (except she was stuck, so really we had to pull her out.) Later that night we scared my younger sister when she got home and got it all on film. This was the highlight of my new year!
Besides wonderful friends and wonderful surprises, I am learning new things about myself every day. I am learning how to be patient, and I am learning how to be happy. And I really am happy! Life is great, and I know its only going to get better from here because I choose for it to.
Friends have become immensly valuable to me in the last few weeks and I have been blessed with amazing people who care about me. I am better learning to rely on those around me and open myself up to dear friends whom I trust. My best friend currently lives in California with some of her family. I was fortunate enough to visit her a couple months ago, and we talk regularly but this last week I was thinking about her and missing her more than usual. Then I get a call from her Wednesday informing me that she was flying out Friday morning and I would get to see her all weekend!! I was so so so so so so EXCITED! And on top of that, we would be surprising my family that night with her presence. So last night I "go to the store" and pick her up from her grandma's. We hide her in a box and once I usher the family outside....POP....out she comes (except she was stuck, so really we had to pull her out.) Later that night we scared my younger sister when she got home and got it all on film. This was the highlight of my new year!
Besides wonderful friends and wonderful surprises, I am learning new things about myself every day. I am learning how to be patient, and I am learning how to be happy. And I really am happy! Life is great, and I know its only going to get better from here because I choose for it to.
Friday, December 21, 2012
Cowboy Lovin'
That's it, I'm a gonner and I swore I wouldn't be. I went to the Dustin Lynch concert last night at the Toby Keith Bar & Grill and it was OUTSTANDING! After delicious dinner we (my date and I) headed over to the stage to get ready for some country rockin! The opening band was fun and very talented; they got the audience singing a long to some classics (like "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy"). And then the long waited star of the night came to the stage and I was hit like a ton of bricks....dang he is cute! He started singing and I fell again and by the end of his first song I was fighting every girlish urge in me to not jump up and down screaming like the rest of the girls in the place.
I had so much fun and loved every minute of his singing. He is very talented and throws a good concert. Everything was close and intimate and he involved his audience. I had the perfect spot about 3 "rows" from the stage and right in front of the mic. I know for a fact we made eye contact and sang to each other a handful of times, definitely sent butterflies to my stomach and a big smile to my face.
This was my first concert experience and I don't think I ever want to go to a big one! I like that everyone was close and could see our artist and that I wasn't sitting three stories high watching him from a screen. It was all very real and close. So next time Dustin Lynch is in town I highly suggest you go, you will get in touch with your girly side and fall in love with a cowboy.
I had so much fun and loved every minute of his singing. He is very talented and throws a good concert. Everything was close and intimate and he involved his audience. I had the perfect spot about 3 "rows" from the stage and right in front of the mic. I know for a fact we made eye contact and sang to each other a handful of times, definitely sent butterflies to my stomach and a big smile to my face.
This was my first concert experience and I don't think I ever want to go to a big one! I like that everyone was close and could see our artist and that I wasn't sitting three stories high watching him from a screen. It was all very real and close. So next time Dustin Lynch is in town I highly suggest you go, you will get in touch with your girly side and fall in love with a cowboy.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Out Shooting
Learning about myself all over again means that I get to learn new hobbies and talents I never knew I had. One that I have enjoyed a lot more lately is target shooting with rifles. My family has always sported guns and with a retired sniper father, I have the best teacher to help me learn all I want to know.
Today I went out with him while he was trying out a Remington .308 he just customized. We came to find that one didn't do too well today, but we also brought my two personal favorites :) I have fallen in love with a semi-custom Cooper .223 and a customized Remington .308. My dad is a .308 junkie so we always have a few on hand, only problem is they're a little much for tiny me to handle, but this one has a large, heavy barrel and a big scope, making it a little more comfortable to shoot. And lets just say today I killed it. That .308 and I are becoming fast friends and with it I could do a lot of damage haha. Soon comes the day when hopefully I will be competent in many areas of the sport of shooting, but for right now I'll enjoy being able to make a nice group of three.
What I love about shooting is the stress it relieves. Once out in Thatcher I was having a rough week or month or something and I took a friend out to the desert with my old .22 rifle and we shot at a paper I taped to a tree. I probably shot 50 bullets at that thing, and by the end I felt so much better! Maybe its a little violent, but it feels good to leave it all on the target and sometimes its necessary to blow that thing to shreds haha.
So if anyone would like to fulfil my Christmas list, I would love a .223 of my own, thats definitely on my wish list and next step is to make the target a little more challenging and to go hunting :)
---------Another fun day in the life of Sarah!-----------
Today I went out with him while he was trying out a Remington .308 he just customized. We came to find that one didn't do too well today, but we also brought my two personal favorites :) I have fallen in love with a semi-custom Cooper .223 and a customized Remington .308. My dad is a .308 junkie so we always have a few on hand, only problem is they're a little much for tiny me to handle, but this one has a large, heavy barrel and a big scope, making it a little more comfortable to shoot. And lets just say today I killed it. That .308 and I are becoming fast friends and with it I could do a lot of damage haha. Soon comes the day when hopefully I will be competent in many areas of the sport of shooting, but for right now I'll enjoy being able to make a nice group of three.
What I love about shooting is the stress it relieves. Once out in Thatcher I was having a rough week or month or something and I took a friend out to the desert with my old .22 rifle and we shot at a paper I taped to a tree. I probably shot 50 bullets at that thing, and by the end I felt so much better! Maybe its a little violent, but it feels good to leave it all on the target and sometimes its necessary to blow that thing to shreds haha.
So if anyone would like to fulfil my Christmas list, I would love a .223 of my own, thats definitely on my wish list and next step is to make the target a little more challenging and to go hunting :)
---------Another fun day in the life of Sarah!-----------
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Patience Is A Virtue
Patience is one of those things in life that I was not blessed with. In fact I'll let you in on a little secret about me, I'm a planner, I stress and worry about things far more than I need to, and I have to stay busy. When I came home from school over in Thatcher I had a plan, which only a few days after I got home crumpled before my eyes. So there I was plan-less and unsure what I was doing home and why I had felt I needed to be there. That was when I truly started relying on my Heavenly Father and trying to detect what His plan was for me. It was only a couple of weeks later that I met my ex-fiance.
So there I was again, I had a plan. It did not work out, and I know for the best, but I was left plan-less. I have spent the last two and a half months doing all I can to any have insight on what I am "supposed" to be doing with my life. And I have thought of every option I perceive as possible right now. Something I am asked a lot is if I am going to serve a mission, and I have asked myself and Heavenly Father that so many times, and every time I feel if that is what I should do, its not for right now. So no mission, maybe school? I'll be honest, I am not a big fan of school. I don't really enjoy dragging myself there however many times a week, taking classes I am only taking to get a piece of paper stating I have gone through enough torture and faked enough papers, or slipped my way through enough tests to have a "degree." That is definitely the worst mind set to have about learning, but my goal is to work on one thing at a time haha. But maybe I will take a class next semester to ease my way back into it and I would really enjoy an institute class.
Another reason I don't care too much for school is because my whole life, whenever students are asked what they want to be when they grow up I've answered: a mom. Its honorable to receive and education and for those who want to have a career, but I believe my role on this earth is to take care of some of Heavenly Father's most precious children. So getting a degree is not on the top of my to do list. Unfortunately to be a mother I also have to be a wife haha, which is not in the cards for me this moment, therefore I am back to square one. Moving out of the house again sounds extremely appealing some days, but I know I need to be home right now, building a stronger relationship with my family. And I will admit a new singles ward with new people definitely would be fun, but I also know I need to be in my ward for the time being.
I attended the temple yesterday for the first time in a few months, and that is a huge part of my life that had been missing. The spirit there is euphoric and leaves me feeling refreshed. I left it all on the table and felt a complete peace that the key to Heavenly Fathers plan for me is patience. That virtue I have struggled with my entire life is now necessary for me to learn, or go stir crazy. Thankfully I have an amazing family and a lot of small hobbies and a wonderful job to preoccupy myself until the next big "plan" comes my way. I am left with lots of "right nows" and "maybe I could try this", but I know what I will do is be patient.
====Sarah in "Life As I Know It"====
So there I was again, I had a plan. It did not work out, and I know for the best, but I was left plan-less. I have spent the last two and a half months doing all I can to any have insight on what I am "supposed" to be doing with my life. And I have thought of every option I perceive as possible right now. Something I am asked a lot is if I am going to serve a mission, and I have asked myself and Heavenly Father that so many times, and every time I feel if that is what I should do, its not for right now. So no mission, maybe school? I'll be honest, I am not a big fan of school. I don't really enjoy dragging myself there however many times a week, taking classes I am only taking to get a piece of paper stating I have gone through enough torture and faked enough papers, or slipped my way through enough tests to have a "degree." That is definitely the worst mind set to have about learning, but my goal is to work on one thing at a time haha. But maybe I will take a class next semester to ease my way back into it and I would really enjoy an institute class.
Another reason I don't care too much for school is because my whole life, whenever students are asked what they want to be when they grow up I've answered: a mom. Its honorable to receive and education and for those who want to have a career, but I believe my role on this earth is to take care of some of Heavenly Father's most precious children. So getting a degree is not on the top of my to do list. Unfortunately to be a mother I also have to be a wife haha, which is not in the cards for me this moment, therefore I am back to square one. Moving out of the house again sounds extremely appealing some days, but I know I need to be home right now, building a stronger relationship with my family. And I will admit a new singles ward with new people definitely would be fun, but I also know I need to be in my ward for the time being.
I attended the temple yesterday for the first time in a few months, and that is a huge part of my life that had been missing. The spirit there is euphoric and leaves me feeling refreshed. I left it all on the table and felt a complete peace that the key to Heavenly Fathers plan for me is patience. That virtue I have struggled with my entire life is now necessary for me to learn, or go stir crazy. Thankfully I have an amazing family and a lot of small hobbies and a wonderful job to preoccupy myself until the next big "plan" comes my way. I am left with lots of "right nows" and "maybe I could try this", but I know what I will do is be patient.
====Sarah in "Life As I Know It"====
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Success!
For anyone who could here the mass of people, music or perhaps see the light....maybe you just were taking a drive down Sossaman and saw all the cars-yeah that was my bonfire. I said it would be the BIGGEST bonfire of 2012 and man oh man I was right! My guess is a total of anywhere from 300-400 people showed up, some how managing to fit in my backyard and willing to walk 1/4 mile to get there.
Let me just say I had been planning this for a while and there was a lot of cleaning, cooking and setting up. There was chili, smores, starburts, and a hot cocoa bar...all delicious. And I got several compliments on the chili (maybe I'll have to do a chili party sometime). It was all worth it and I now know how many people can fit in my backyard!
Thanks to all for coming and helping make it a SUCCESS!
----Sarah in "Life As I Know It"----
Let me just say I had been planning this for a while and there was a lot of cleaning, cooking and setting up. There was chili, smores, starburts, and a hot cocoa bar...all delicious. And I got several compliments on the chili (maybe I'll have to do a chili party sometime). It was all worth it and I now know how many people can fit in my backyard!
Thanks to all for coming and helping make it a SUCCESS!
----Sarah in "Life As I Know It"----
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