The Grace of God

I would be a very ungrateful person if I did not share my experience lately with the Grace of God. As you all know, I am leaving for my mission very very very soon! I have worked my butt off trying to save my portion of my mission. It was hard & took some sacrifices on my part & the help of so many people around me...

I guess you could say it all began when I moved to college. I had the intention of serving a mission then, I was not 100% sure though. I did know I should start saving money just in case. I applied for many CNA jobs and was offered one quickly. I accepted without missing a beat because as a college student, I couldn't waste any time! Well for some reason, I felt very uneasy about this job. I was making more than my last CNA job, but not much. The same day I accepted the job, I received a call from Kolob. They wanted to interview me. I felt that I should go and just check out the place. I was interviewed by the DON. I asked "When can you let me know by?" Her response "Right now, we would like to hire you." It happened so quickly, but I accepted and had a $2 raise from my last job & felt so much better about this place! Heavenly Father blessed me with a job that paid me more so that I could have a better opportunity to save the money I would need.

I had planned to stay in St. George for a couple of weeks after school got out so that I could save some more. Well, I had no place to live and had to move home. I was extremely nervous about having enough money. How was I going to come up with the rest of the money with no job & a million things that still needed to be purchased!? I stressed and stressed to my parents how worried I was about this! They told me that if I believed I was doing what I was supposed to (preparing for a mission) then I just needed to let go and trust in God. That is easier said than done. But I decided to truly give it a shot.

Well, I made a list of the many things I still had left to purchase and do before I leave. One of the top things on my list was immunizations. I have no insurance, so I would be paying for this out of my pocket! I called the health department and was told that it would cost over $100 for the two shots I needed. I was sick to my stomach and contemplated just telling the missionary department that I was "refusing" the immunizations. But I remembered that I just needed to put my trust in God. & also, the church wouldn't want you to do something for no reason (& i'm pretty sure that I would have gotten sick for being disobedient haha jk) So I went. Then something small but miraculous happened. The lady at the desk for some reason decided that she would only charge $5 for one of the shot & the regular price for the other. I was amazed. This was a small thing, but it meant the world to me. I realized then that Heavenly Father was touching my life in very simple and amazing ways.

The next big money sucker on my list was the dentist (again, I have NO insurance... and this was going to cost a lot!). Just a little background. I have terrible teeth. It does not matter how many times a day I brush and floss my teeth, without fail, every dentist appointment I have had one or more cavities. I was very sure that I was going to have a few. Well they did my check up & xrays and I waited nervously to hear how many cavities I had this time. "Well, all your teeth look great! No work needs to be done. See you when you get home from your mission!" My jaw dropped. Someone could easily brush this experience off as me getting lucky. But i know. I know that my Heavenly Father is continuing to bless me as I prepare to be a missionary.

Many other things have happened. Small things defiantly. Things like mission shoes being on sale, getting babysitting jobs, getting more on my last pay check than expected. But I know these blessings come because of the Lord. Not by any coincidence. There were times where it was hard to sacrafice for this. I stayed home spring break while all my friends went to Cali, I worked extra shifts when I was tired, I sucked all my plasma out, I paid my tithe when I didn't know how I would pay for things without that money. But when you do all that you can, God makes up for the rest!

My parents have beens SO kind to help me with so much also. My Grandparents has put out her fair share of money for this mission and I am so grateful that Heavenly Father blessed me with such wonderful family members to help me along the way. Gods Grace is real everyone. 

love, mo.

Dear Sister Price...

To say I'm a little late for this post is quite the understatement. I thought about not writing anything at all since most of you already know where I have been called to serve. But just in case somewhere out there someone still has no idea... this ones for you.

So the wait was excruciating... I turned my papers in January 5th & it didn't come January 31st! The Friday before I asked my bishop if it had been assigned & he broke the news that it hadn't. I was bummed- another week without my call. I had thousands of doubts in my head & was just emotionally drained from thinking "where in the world will I go?" The next day I was just bored & out of curiosity decided to try logging into my ldsmail (those of you who have served or are going to serve know that you can't log in until your call has been assigned.) I had tried this a million and one times during the month of January and this time it let me in! Calliope & I had a freak out in the car, thats when it got more than real for me. I didn't want to jump to conclusions so I texted my bishop to make sure it had been assigned & he gave me the long awaited "It has been assigned!" Little did I know that, the waiting game was just going to get worse.

I figured I'd be like Braxton (Elder Bowden) & get my call the coming Wednesday. Nope. It didn't come Wednesday or Thursday... I gave up on the week. Who's mission call comes on a Friday!? To say I was disappointed was an understatement. Then Joshy texted me & told me it had come. Talk about excitement.

Well... I couldn't come from St. George to Syracuse until the next morning. Though, I didn't mind that short 24 hour wait! The drive home was one of excitement, anxiety & just felt like a blur of a dream. I came home and we had some family come over. My best friends on Skype & I was shaking.

Silly thing to be shaking over right?! I felt completely ridiculous & I really hope my guest didn't think I was being ungrateful but I couldn't even form words to hardly talk to anyone! hahaha. Then the moment I had dreamt & anticipated since last March was here. My hands shook as I opened the envelope & my heart was in my throat.

"Dear Sister Price,

You are hereby called to serve as a missionary[This is the moment I accidentally looked down and saw where I was going] for The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the Knoxville Tennessee Mission."

& I really don't want to be cheesy or anything, because when people told me this I thought they were full of it. But as soon as I read Knoxville Tennessee... I KNEW that was exactly where I needed to be! I was so worried I would be called somewhere & be bummed or not excited. Nope. The Lord sure knows us & knows where we need be.

I leave June 4, 2014! Provo MTC.

I could not be more excited to serve in Tennessee!  People keep telling me... June is far away. Oh no... it feels SO close. Not that I'm counting or anything... but I 98 days until I go! Time seems to be flying by.

Thats the story.

Mo

P.S. If you're wondering how I broke the news to Elder Bowden... I felt super creative & ordered a Pizza to his apartment & had the Dominos people write Knoxville Tennessee June 4th! (They thought I was insane on the phone.) But he really loved that he got to know the same night I did. (: 

Faith & quite a bit of music.

First off, I really have missed blogging my heart out. But it turns our college makes you a little busier than expected. Since I ditched FHE to do homework (yes, go on, judge me.... hahaha!) & finished it way earlier than expected, instead of logging onto Netflix & catching up on PLL... I decided I'd write again. I have so much to tell all of you.

So guess what? You remember all of those countdowns I posted... like... the 100 days until my mission papers went in!? Well folks! My papers went in and just last Thursday MY mission call was assigned. That means 'the brethren' all looked at my dorky picture and were inspired to where I should spend the 18 months of my life serving the Lord. I COULD NOT BE MORE EXCITED.

It wasn't a smooth road like we all hope for. But boy does the man upstairs know what he is doing. I turned my papers in January 5th 2014. Not by chance, obviously I wanted to turn them in that day for SO long. But as the time got closer to me turning in my papers it seemed impossible to get them in on that exact day. I was frustrated, stubborn and in need of a little humbling. The Lord knows me so well. He relieved my anxieties and by nothing short of a miracle... my papers were submitted! Not even a week later my dear stake president sent an email to me telling me to get ahold of him. (eek! I knew something was wrong.) I was told that I needed to get some more information, then to re-submit my papers. I was really frustrated then. I did as I was told and was told my call could be delayed up to a week or two months. There was no way to know!

Lets just say God is full of sweet sweet mercy! That my call will most likely be here this week! I will finally get to hold a call in my hand and I cannot wait.

Through all these small but very hard trials, my faith was pushed along with my patience. I learned so much about myself & Heavenly Fathers plan for me. I learned how much easier life is, if you just put your complete faith in the Lord and press on. As Jeffery R Holland put so well "No misfortune is so bad that whining about it wont make it worse."

So thats that, stop your whining and try trusting the One who knows you better than anyone, who loves you more than you can imagine, and seems to have a better perspective on things than any mortal.

love,
Mo

My Best Friend

I just had to post something about my very best friend today. I was thinking about him during conference and how absolutely proud of him I am! Although I miss him... SO much... I wouldn't want him anywhere else. & thankfully tomorrow is Pday so I will *hopefully* get a email from this cute missionary. 

I don't really have a lot to say other than. Boy, do I miss him! 

Come what may... & LOVE it.

Lets just say that the beginning of this week was not one of the brightest of my days. It was just flat out... HARD. I didn't see myself getting out of that rut any time soon. It is hard to miss your best friend every second but know that he is e x a c t l y where he is supposed to be. It is hard to miss my family & my home-- whenever I get bits of home at my home away from home, my heart aches. I miss my big teddy bear Joshy teasing me- but never failing to make me smile. I miss my grandmas hugs and long talks where she would let me ramble about the same things over & over again. I my Randy's laugh-- if you haven't heard his laugh, you've missed out. I miss hanging out with my sister & shopping with someone who knows whats up. I miss talking to Jess about all my medical nerdy stuff. I miss my Sophie.
It is hard to be an adult, to get myself to get groceries, do my laundry, keep a budget, get to class, do homework, study, study, study, work, go to church, try to forget for a second that my whole entire world has changed & there is absolutely nothing I can do about it but "press forward..." (i'll get back to the meaning of that later in this post.)
Well anyways all these things that are so 'hard' in my life are also things that I wouldn't change. I have learned SO much about myself being down here. In high school I thought I knew myself but I also second guessed my every move. I was so unsure about so many things. College has helped me realize who I am & who I am going to be & what is really important in life. So what is so important? I'll tell you...

• Family 
• Education
• Religion 
• Love
• Phone calls
• Kindness
• Goals

I say family because you don't realize how important some people are to your puzzle until your not with them 24/7. Being away from home has made me feel SO thankful that I have the wonderful family that I do!
Education is the whole reason you are here. You need to absorb it. Your paying thousand of dollars, you might as well enjoy it.
Religion, It really doesn't matter your faith. You have to have something to hold onto. I had a silly thought today walking home from class... "The government knows me by a number, I'm just a freaking number!" well a few moments "Well I guess what really matters is that Heavenly Father knows my NAME!"I'm such a nerd! hahahaha.
Love is so important to me for multiple reasons. I love Braxton with all my heart & without love, I don't know if I could do this. It has been so hard not to talk to him all the time & to stay super positive in all our contact.
Phone calls can be a life saver on a lonely night. I have had this multiple times...
Kindness is important! No matter where you are in life. You don't know what someone has gone through, is going through or what they will go through... BE NICE.
Goals, goals, goals are so important. Along with time management!

Anyways, while I was in my self pity for a good 3 days. I felt like it wasn't going to end & I didn't know what to do. Well Wednesday I went to institute. & I read a scripture that was a slap in the face for me to wake up & stop the crap.
2 Nephi 31: 19-20
"... for ye have not come thus far save it by the word of Christ with unshaken faith relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty save.
20. "Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God & of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward feasting upon the words of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the father: ye shall have eternal life."
Well, lets break this down a bit. "ye must press forward" I needed to hear that, I need to go on!
"having a perfect brightness of hope" lets just say I was feeling pretty hopeless...
"and a love of God" I think I just needed the reminder of the things that were going on in my life were for my good (see D&C 121:7)
"if ye shall press forward feasting upon the words of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the father: ye shall have eternal life" That made me think that if I endure to the end, if I press forward, If I maintain my faith, I will have eternal life AKA happiness. So I drug myself out of a hole from just reading two verses from the scriptures. Pretty cool if I do say so myself.

I'm doing so much better. Also if you look at quotes on pinterest... they help too (:

I couldn't just pick one.
Hope you feel a little happier after reading this.
xoxo
morg.

best-last-date-for-two-years-ever!

The time came and it went... fast. The day me and Brax had talked about for our entire relationship. The conversation that made me sad, but it was so far away that it was so easy not to think about it!
Yesterday that sweet boy took me on our last date for two years! It was absolutely perfect. We spent the morning running little errands together, then he took me home to get all fancy! I loved that! The last time we dressed up together was senior prom & I couldn't wait to do it again! We drove to SLC and walked around temple square, then ate dinner at The Roof. I was on cloud 9! The food was fantastic and so was our view!

After dinner we continued to walk & talk around temple square... I made him be cheesy with me & take some 'cutesy' pictures. AND I LOVE THEM SO MUCH. (thank you much, iphone.)
We drove home and got in comfy's and cuddled on the couch watching TV. Although, I don't think I payed attention what-so-ever... my mind has been running a thousand miles at all times.
but I just have to keep reminding myself that
everything will be okay..

        This was our view from our table... can you say PERFECT!? 

He was a little nervous... I think (:

These pictures I just absolutely adore... like how much better can they get?? they can't!

But to end... Brax is the cutest sleepy boy ever! 

I love that boy.

I'm going to miss him beyond belief!