“Tree
and Bush”
Monday
August 5, 2013
No,
folks. This week we aren't talking about tree and bush couples in which one
half of the couple is significantly taller/shorter than the other half. Nope we
are talking about spiritual growth. Do you remember that talk by Elder
Christofferson in General Conference a few years ago where he quotes Hugh B.
Brown's story about the currant bush?
It goes a little like this:
Basically there is this currant bush that has grown into a
tree and is crossing over a fence. The gardener comes and cuts it down to size.
The currant bush is upset because it was growing so well and was a great big
tree, but the gardener says, "I'm the gardener here. I don't want you to
be a tree. I want you to be a currant bush."
This week I feel like the Lord has been sending me the same
message. At the beginning of the week I was trying so hard to fight it. I kept
feeling like, "Lord, I'm such a tall tree. Why in the world would you cut
me down? I was growing so fast and so tall and I was going to cross that fence
and spread even more."
But the Lord said,
"I'm the gardener here. I don't want you to be a tree. I want you to be a
bush."
To which I initially replied, "Well, I'm the human being
here and I don't want to be a bush."
To which the Lord said, "But I am your Savior and
Redeemer. This is MY work. Not yours. I want you to be a bush, because you are
no use to me as a tree. I NEED you to be a bush. So just be a bush already,
please."
So I learned a lot about
humbling myself before the Lord and accepting His will. Many times in our lives
we will be called upon to be bushes. Sometimes that's because we have made
ourselves into trees and forgotten who really gave us the growth, but most
times I think it's just because our Heavenly Father and our Savior love us
enough to keep cutting us and trimming us and shaping us. Lots of times we are
a bush, but we're a little too fluffy or a little too scrawny or our branches
are tangled. Sometimes, we need to be cut back so that other bushes can grow
too. That's more of what I experienced. It was great that I was a tree, but the
Lord wants us all to grow. If there a just a few big trees amongst a lot of
bushes, the bushes won't get any sunlight. We all need the light to grow. I'm
grateful that no matter the case, the Lord loves us enough to chasten us. He's
not just cutting us down; He's trimming us back so we can grow into something
better.
Amidst all this botany, I got a
letter from Mary Poppins. She is doing so well. Her letter was just what I
needed. She told me that she got to go to the temple and walk around. She said,
"I didn't get to go inside yet, but the sheer power of that place is
amazing. It's great to know it's the one place the devil can't go." I know
that's true. The temple is heaven on earth and how blessed we are to have
it.
 |
| Don't forget to stop and smell the roses! |
Thanks everyone for the awesome
family reunion package! I loved it! Sister Vaughan and I love the crowns from
Medieval Times and I adore the earrings Steph sent. I'm trying to find a cool
way to display the fish. I think I've come up with something....I'll send a
picture if it works out.
I got to experience a miracles
this week with our investigator Rapunzel. She had a baptism date and interview
scheduled before I got here, but then she backed out last minute. We hadn't
been able to see her the whole transfer, but we had showed up at the apartment
complex where we were going to contact some potentials right as what appeared
to be a drug sell was going on right out front. We decided to pray and see what
we should do, if we should still try to contact these people or if we should
just move on to the next complex. When we finished praying, we both looked at
each other and said, "Rapunzel." So off we went.
We showed up right as she was
pulling into the driveway. We found out her father-in-law had just passed away
and she was in a tizzy trying to get things ready for the funeral. We asked if
we could help her and she put us to work making flower arrangements for the
tables. We talked with her and she just opened completely up about how
depressed she had been feeling and how when she saw our car she knew everything
was going to be all right because her friends the Mormon girls were here and
they would be able to comfort her. We were able to testify to her about the
comfort she can receive through the atonement, and it was all so fresh from
when I had the same experience a few days before. Heavenly Father knows each of
us so well, and when we listen to the Spirit and rely on our Savior's atonement
we can be instruments for bringing about such great good in the lives of our
brothers and sisters. How awesome is that!
The Von-Trapp’s just got back
from visiting their son in Oregon
And that's why it's ok to be
bushes. Because if He wants us to be bushes, you can bet it's because it will
make us happy, so then we can want to be bushes too and press forward with
faith.
I know the atonement of Jesus
Christ is real and available to all of us. I know we have a Heavenly Father who
loves us and wants us to access that atonement so we can live with Him
again.
Love,
Sister Burchett - A Happy Bush
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| We had Doctor's appointments in Roseville this week because we were sick so we got to leave the mission. |
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| I had to do a breathing treatment for my cough, but I'm all good now! |
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