EVMCO
We had the absolutely amazing opportunity to attend the East Valley Millennial Choir & Orchestra (EVMCO) concert this week. There are 2 Mormon directors, the Stewart brothers" who gather groups from different areas in the country totaling 3000 people to participate in these amazing productions about the Savior. This show was called "Amazing Grace" and it was PHENOMENAL! The tickets are actually quite expensive but one of the members of our Ward, who is rather wealthy, said "sisters, I want you to go to this concert my husband and I are in... if we buy you and an investigator tickets can you go?... We were like "what?" And she said "I'll take that as a yes!" and so we went and I have never had a more spiritual experience with music in my entire life. It turns out that Jenny Oaks Baker was the spotlight performer. She is solo good!... Well...There are actually no words to explain how amazing it was... I wish all of you could have been there! My cousin Jacob was one of the singers. I saw him a couple of times and I'm pretty sure he recognized me too! ;) #benefitsofhavingfamilyinmesa
Anyways if you could look them up and listen to their music I would strongly suggest it! They are officially called "Millennial Choirs & Orchestra"!
"Fix me Jesus"
At the EVMCO concert they sung a song called "Fix me Jesus" which is an old African Spiritual song. It has very simple repetitive lyrics to a simple tune... But when the choir and orchestra came together we were all in tears as we thought of how we need fixing that can only be done by the Savior.
Here are my thoughts from this song: Broken things... There are sure a lot of them on this earth. In one way or another WE are all broken and need our Savior to fix us through the Atonement. The Lord is aware of everything in our life that is broken. He is the only one who can fix us completely. The atonement bears no scars. He will fix everything that is broken in you!
Here are the lyrics to another song from EVMCO called "Jesus, Hold Me in Your Arms"
Jesus, Jesus, Holy Jesus,
Hold me in your arms,
The world is dark as night,
And I need your guiding light.
Jesus, Jesus, Holy Jesus,
Hold me in your arms,
And take me somewhere safe and warm.
Food Fairy
We had the opportunity to participate in some secret service this week. There is a family in our Ward that we have been working with who don't live in the best of circumstances but this are MUCH better than they have been in the past. As we have had lessons with them they have really opened up and told us about some of their trials which include some serious health concerns that the husband suffers from. So this week we felt prompted that we needed to take them dinner. Their kids mentioned that they LOVE "Jack in the Box" fast food so on Friday night we bought a bunch of "Jack in the Box" (courtesy of my parents) and dropped it off for them with a note saying "FROM THE FOOD FAIRY". We placed the goods, knocked, and ran to our car. We actually had to do this several more times to ensure they received the food but they never came to the door! All the cars were in the driveway and we heard people in the house but we had no such luck! This was all right before our baptism so we actually had to just leave the food there and run to the church. When we got there we had out Ward Mission Leader from the other Ward call them and tell them to check their porch! He got a text back at the end of the baptism from the uncle who said that the mother of the family was absolutely touched by this act of service because her husband had been in the hospital again and she had not even thought about making dinner! How cool! It is so fun to do secret service!
*** Look up the "A Fence or an Ambulance" poem! It is a wonderful poem about preparing and preventing VS repairing and repenting ***
Who Will Man the Lifeboats?
"Amidst the storms of life, danger lurks; and men, like boats, find themselves stranded and facing destruction. Who will man the lifeboats, leaving behind the comforts of home and family, and go to the rescue?" -- Thomas S. Monson
As missionaries we are the ones who leave everything behind to man the lifeboats. We sacrifice all we have to pull others out of the storms and waves of the adversary and into the lifeboats of safety. It is a wonderful responsibility! Will you man the lifeboats when the Savior calls you? ... Well He is calling NOW! Do what it takes to be the Savior for someone else drowning in the oceans of sin and sorrow. Whatever is holding you back... Give it up! Let it go! Be who God needs you to be! There are people that only you can save!
"Did you check the inside?"
Our bishop this week told a story about how he borrowed a shop-vac from his neighbor to clean out his garage. When he was finished he asked his children to clean it well so he could return it to his neighbor in the best condition. Later that day he went to take the clean vacuum back to his neighbor and as he did he felt the spirit tell him ..."did you check the inside?"... He said "I stopped in the middle of the road...because I know I need to listen when the spirit speaks to me...and turned back for my home. When I got to my driveway I opened the top of the shop-vac and it was absolutely full of garbage and debris. My children had only cleaned the outside And left the inside absolutely filthy. I was so glad that I did not return it to him that way." He talked about how when we take the sacrament the spirit asks us that question... "did you check the inside?" which means "did you check your heart?" Look inside and decide whether you are doing your best or just doing what is comfortable. The sacrament acts as a cleansing agent when we make it a meaningful ordinance in our lives. It will clean the outside, inside, and every other side of us! We can start over and recommit to become more like our savior... So always remember " did you check the inside?"
This time on Funny Moments with Sister Duiai: The Angry Tempest "Toast"
- We were sitting in sacrament meeting this Sunday singing the opening Hymn "Precious Savior, Dear Redeemer" and we sung the words "curb the winds and calm the billows, bid the angry tempest cease" except this time sister Duiai thought it was "tempest tossed" ... But instead of that she sang "bid the angry tempest TOAST" at the top of her lungs... Ha ha ha! She looks over at me and says "I just said tempest toast" and I said "ha ha ha I know"! Language barriers can be super funny sometimes!
One last thing...
In the scriptures it says "And it came to PASS" not "and it came to STAY"
We can be sure that our trials will not stay forever. We will one day be freed from all cares and sorrows. If we press forward and hold to the rod faithfully we will be rewarded by out father in Heaven. We just can't give up now or let go of the light we have when life gets hard. Remember "it came to PASS"!
Picture: We said Tchauzinho (goodbye) to Gleicy this week! She is the investigator we have been teaching in Portuguese who just moved to California! We love her so much and have had so many tender mercies happen while teaching her!
Video: creepy lizard video
Love,
Sister Zimmerman
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