I've been wanting to learn new things lately, so I guess it's time I entered the world of technology and learn how to blog! With Grady going on a mission I figured now is as good a time as ever! So, here goes!!
At the end of February, Grady got his mission call to Kobe, Japan. It was quite the experience, something you think about from time to time over the years, but it just was so much more amazing than I ever dreamed. We received the call on Thursday, February 12. He is in school in Rexburg, Lenzi is in school in Provo and the Mission Call came to Twin Falls--so it was a little bit of an ordeal trying to figure out where to open it. Lenzi wanted to be there, but had school on Friday, so she couldn't come to Twin. Grady was the gracious young man he always is and he agreed to wait until Friday afternoon and meet in the middle. I think it almost killed him, but I know Lenzi was so grateful that he waited for her! We drove to Pocatello and picked Grady up there, then we drove to Brigham City and met Lenzi at Maddox. I hadn't thought much about where we would open his call, and he didn't want to make a big fuss about it, so we thought we'd all just cram into the car. When we got to Maddox I went in and asked if they might have a private room we could use for a minute, just to open the call. They put us in this totally private room and let us eat there and everything!! It was really perfect. Before we opened the envelope I read an excerpt from a devotional address given by Henry B. Eyring entitled "Called of God". Here is that excerpt:
All my life, from the time I have been a young boy and as far back as I can remember, I have had experiences feeling of the Holy Ghost. … But I’ve never felt what I have felt as I have … participated in the assigning of missionaries. …
“We go into a room, and … it will be a two-or three-hour session and sometimes longer. Because of technology, it is possible for us to have your picture and the information about you displayed. And then quickly, on that same screen, all the missions of the Church with all of their needs are displayed. Within minutes, and sometimes less than a minute, the impression comes so powerfully that it would be, if it were a single instance, something that you would never forget. Can you imagine sitting there for hours at a time, having that happen time after time without interruption? I testify to you that it is real. …
“… In a world so large, the Creator … somehow not only knows you but loves you enough to ensure that your call is where He needs you to go to teach the children of our Heavenly Father.” Elder Henry B. Eyring of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “Called of God” (devotional address delivered at the Provo Missionary Training Center, Aug. 26, 1997).
After we read this, Grady opened the envelope. When he read Japan Kobe Mission", we were all rather stunned. We had all guessed different places, even marked them on a world map, but no one had guessed Japan. He goes into the MTC on May 6 and will be there until July 22--Almost three months!
Last Friday, March 20th, we took him to the temple. What a special experience that was. There I was, sitting next to Lenzi, with Grady across the room. Having two of my children in the temple with us was such a treat. The past couple of years have had some difficult stretches, but the sweetness of life always seems to break through the clouds. This is one of those moments I will never forget!
