Update on Mission/Coming Home

Well the time is just flying by but just like you said I have not decided whether that is a good thing or a bad thing. ha. I really do love the mission and yesterday it finally hit me that I will not always be on the mission. I think yesterday was the first time that I really felt like someday my mission would come to an end. It is part of life and so I will deal with it. ha. There is only so much that I can grow on the mission the rest has to come through other things after the mission, and so I am at peace (At least for now). Well this week was a very strange week. It was just full of so many things. Also it was a week that I really learned a lot. Some of the things that I learned I do not know why it has to be this certain way but I know that it does have to be.
1. Well this last week I was able to go on a division with someone from Idaho. He is from Coeur´de´lene. He is really a good missionary. He is our district leader and kind of new on the mission but it was still great to go on a division with him. I was able to learn a lot with him. I just hope that he to was able to learn a few things.
2. On Friday we had the chance to go around with President and Sister Richardson for the whole day. We had to go to every single house in our zone to inspect their apartments and to let President interview them. It was great. I really do love President and Sister Richardson. They are really great. It is always good to do these kind of Interviews every once and a while because it helps you to get to know them a little better. Also they inspected our apartment and I was interviewed. It was really great they thought that our house was really clean and they liked it. Also the interview went great. The funny part is where we had the interview. President likes to do the interviews somewhere where he is able to shut the door and really be one on one with the person and the only place where that is possible in our house is the bathroom. Just to let you know our bathroom is very very tiny. Our bathroom is about the same size as the bathroom upstairs in the old house. Not the whole bathroom but if you take out the sinks and just talk about the shower and toilet area it is about the same size if not smaller. ha. So President sat on the toilet while I sat on a chair right in front of him. Both of our legs just jammed up against us because it was so tiny. ha. It was an interesting place to be interviewed that is for sure. Let me just tell you that the interview was great. Ever since I got on my mission I really wanted to be able to feel like Ammon and his brothers (Alma 26) when I finish my mission. I talked to him about it and he started to talk to me. He told me that if I continue to work like I am now he promised me those same feelings. He said that he cannot talk for God but he said that he knew that my President really is grateful and pleased with my work. That made me feel so good. As you all know I am kind of a perfectionist. I always feel as though I could do better. He talked me to about that and told me that when I get home and tell my stake President or my family that I tried my hardest on my mission he said that is when I will really know if that is true or not. He said that if I really tried my hardest he said that as I say these words to a family member it would turn into a spiritual experience. That is what I strive for. I really want to know from God if my mission has been acceptable in his eyes. It was such a great conversation that we had. He really helped me so much to know a few very important things. All I know is that I will keep trying my hardest and wait till after my mission to know whether God was pleased or not. I know however that I am really trying my hardest!! We will just have to see whether or not God thinks that I tried my hardest. I love my mission so much. It has been able to help me so much in almost everything. Well enough about that. Now it is time for other things that are more important.
3. This week I really learned a few things. We really tried our hardest and everything that we could do to have a baptism this past week. Unfortunately it did not happen. We really thought it would but I think God really wanted us to learn something from this experience. It was a great experience that is hard to explain. The lady will still be baptized but this week and not last week. It is actually a miracle that she will be baptized at all! For this I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father. We are trying our hardest and really hoping to be able to have 5 baptisms this week. We think it is really possible and hope that it will happen! We will try our hardest and put the rest into the Lord´s hands. I have 4 more weeks and 7 more baptisms to complete my goal that I made with my Heavenly Father. I will try my hardest until the very end so that I can complete the goal that I made with my Father in Heaven. I know that it is possible but it will not be easy, and I am fine with that. ha.
Well other than all these things I really do not have that much to say. I love my mission and I love my Father in Heaven. I know that he loves me. I know that Christ really did pay for my sins and that I can live with my Father in Heaven again if I do what is right. Thank you all so much for all of your support. I know that miracles are true and they happen almost every single day. God is a God of Miracles I know this is true. I feel so grateful that God has made so many miracles happen on my mission even though I am probably not even close to really deserve these miracles. I love you all. The key to staying on the path that leads us to eternal life are three or four very important things... Prayer, Scripture study, church attendance, and temple attendance. Please if someone who reads this is not doing these 4 things please start to do them. I love you all and until next week.
Elder Daniel J. Parkinson