Roughly, here is my farewell talk. This is the last time I will be updating my blog before I leave. My bestie Kenzie Keicher is updating my blog!!! Love her!

 Feel free to write me or send me packages! My MTC address is:

Sister Ashley Morgan

JUN17 NH-MAN

2009 N 900 E Unit 155

Provo, UT

84602

Throughout our lives, we each have trials and experiences that God places before us that teach us and prepare us for what is to come. Through obedience to the Lord, I have been able to overcome obstacles in my life that have molded my testimony into what is it today and have prepared me for the future, specifically, my mission.

         I feel like the Lord has carried me to this point, where I have been called to serve in the New Hampshire Manchester Mission, and will be leaving in 10 days. This mission covers most of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, and parts of New York, and Massachusetts. I couldn’t be more excited to bring the light of the gospel, and eternal happiness, to the people in these areas.

When you obey God’s commandments, and strive to become more Christ-like, He guides you. As I’ve prayed, The Lord has answered through scriptures, miracles, and life experiences. Every time I go to the temple and ponder in the celestial room, I always open to a random scripture for guidance. Tuesday when I was with my mom, I opened my scriptures to Daniel chapter 2. As I read this chapter I knew that it was an answer to my prayers as to what I should speak about. In this chapter King Nebuchadnezzar was troubled by a dream. He called in all the magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, and Chaldeans to help him interpret his dream. When none could, he ordered that everyone who failed to interpret the dream was put to death. God revealed the interpretations and meanings behind King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream to Daniel in a dream. The following day Daniel went to the king and revealed to him the meaning of his dream. The king dreamed of an image where the head was gold, the arms and breast were silver, his thighs brass, his legs were iron, and his feet were made of clay. The king then saw a stone cut without hands, which broke the image into pieces. The stone that smote the image became a great mountain and filled the entire earth. Daniel revealed to the king that the different metals and clay were different kingdoms, and that the stone cut without hands was a kingdom that would never be destroyed, and would fill the entire earth. The kingdom that would never be destroyed is the kingdom of God restored in the latter days. It is my job as a servant of the Lord to help fulfill this dream where the gospel of Christ will reign from all corners of the earth. When I read this chapter, I knew that God had called me to serve a mission and that I would play a part in spreading the gospel.

         Both of my parents served honorable fulltime missions. My dad served in Seville, Spain. My mom served in Roanoke, Virginia as an American Sign Language missionary. The example they set for my siblings and me has been huge. Both of my parents always tell us stories about their missions, and how they were the most rewarding times of their lives. They talk about the testimonies they gained while serving the Lord, and the satisfaction of being able to spread the gospel to people around the world. Because of their strong testimonies, we’ve been brought up in homes where missionary work is of crucial importance. It is their examples that have inspired me to choose to serve a mission.

When I was 9 years old, my parents decided to get a divorce. I never thought that this would be the case with my family; never before did the thought ever cross through my mind. Our bishop in Colorado counseled us to move. He felt inspired that we would be able to move on with our lives if we started fresh. When I was about 10 years old we took a trip to Seattle where my Mom’s mother lives where we stayed for a period of three weeks. I only have one memory of this trip. The memory of utter loneliness and despair lingers in my mind still. I felt alone. I had never felt more abandoned, or more pain than I did at that moment. Everything became so real, and I knew that my life would never be the same. We ended our “vacation” early and went back home. Our bishop repeatedly counseled my mom to move. He told us to move to Utah, so we did. We only lasted for a period of three short, painful months. Coming back to Colorado was safe for us. We didn’t feel broken and we felt like we could make things work. The bishop told us again to move to Utah. I was 13 when my mom got a call from her close friend about a rental home on the corner of Harvard Ave and 13^th East. She decided that we would try once more, to move to Utah. The bishop promised us that we would be able to move on, so my mom trusted him. If you ever hear my mom tell this story, she always compares it to a black hole, and that’s because that’s exactly what we were jumping into – a black hole. It wasn’t until a year after moving to Salt Lake City that I finally had a realization of the real power of the atonement. I was walking down Harvard where it hit me that I do not have to feel this anymore, and that I have a loving Heavenly Father who sent His son Jesus Christ down to the earth to go through all the pain, loneliness, and suffering that I felt, and that anyone on the face on the earth would feel. I didn’t have to feel this pain, because someone else, our savior Jesus Christ, had felt it for me. It was no longer in my hands, because it was in the hands of the Lord. It was in this moment that I gained a foundation of the true power of Christ’s infinite atonement. I knew that even though I had gone through years of confusion and sadness, I would never have to dwell on that.

When I think back to this story, I think about my mom. I think about her unwavering faith in priesthood authority, her strict obedience to counsel she was given, and her anchored testimony of Christ. She is my example. In the scriptures they repeatedly talk about revelations and blessing that come after a trial in faith. My mom is walking evidence that the Lord blessed those who keep their faith through trials.

I also think often about my dad, and his love for his children. Despite the geological difference between my dad and I, I still talk to him everyday. He knows what goes on in my life and makes an active effort to make sure we are happy and to make sure we know that he loves us. My dad is quick to defend the gospel. He knows of its truth and has a strong testimony of missionary work, and the impact it has on the missionary’s life, and the lives touched by the missionary.

My parents are good people. They’ve given everything they have to their children. They’ve loved us with their whole hearts. I feel so blessed to have been given so much throughout my life. They’ve invested 20 years into making sure that I know that God loves me, and that I know that my parents love me as well. They’ve invested their money into me, and almost all their time to making sure that I become successful. Starting in 10 days, the arrows of love that always pointed towards me will be turned and will point toward the people in the New Hampshire Manchester Mission. I will love and serve the people in my mission like my parents have loved and served me.

         This last Monday when I was waiting for my mom to pick me up from the temple, I felt prompted to go to the family history center. One of the missionaries led me to a computer and pulled up my family tree. I was shocked that my tree ended at my grandma. The missionary showed me how easy it was to put in a name and request temple work. It was amazing – that day I was able to find the work for many of my ancestors. I came home and told my mom about it and she told me that our ward already had a baptism date set for the next morning. When I did the work for my ancestors it gave me a whole new perspective on temple work, and missionary work. All I want is to be able for my family to be sealed to each other for the rest of eternity. I want to share the gospel with the people of my mission so that someday they can be sealed to one another and partake of the blessings the gospel. I want to share the gospel with others because it brings me so much happiness. Fulfilling King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream is part of my dream, to share the happiness of the gospel with everyone, and have the ability to bring to others what my family is brought to me. I want the people to see that this church is all about change. Through Christ’s love for us, we can become perfect.