A Week of Bike Miracles

My niece is on her mission in Oklahoma, Spanish speaking. We enjoy getting her emails and are glad she writes a nice letter weekly. In a recent letter in which she mentioned both things that happened to her and the lessons she learned, I was reminded of my mission to Argentina and my experiences and personal growth. Here’s the experience in her words:

This week was a week of bike adventures! Which basically means a week of bike miracles!

The Spanish speaking population here are pretty few and far between, so some days it’s a little tricky to find things to do, especially during the day. One day we decided to try to visit a family that hasn’t come to church in a while. They live seven miles away, so we biked out there and they weren’t home. But then we tried her neighbor, and she turned out to be a Spanish speaker! We gave her a Book of Mormon, and were even able to set a return appointment! We’re going back tomorrow!

On Saturday, it was cold and rainy. It was physically probably one of the hardest days of my mission. The first 45 minutes or so were kind of fun, but once the rain soaked through my boots and jacket, I wasn’t quite as excited to be out. We ended up biking about 10 miles and were outside in the rain for about 5 hours. But I think the hardness really made me appreciate more the love and sacrifices that other people have made for me.

I know my parents would have gladly ridden through the hills in the cold rain if it meant they could help me. And clearly the Savior sacrificed so much more than that for me. And it helped me realized how much I do love my Savior and how much I would give for Him. Most days it’s not to hard to get up and get out. But Saturday, I did not want to be out, I would have loved to stay inside in the warm. But as we were biking, I was thinking about what I would be willing to do for Christ, and that because I love Him, I was willing to stay out and bike the way back, and keep on talking to people. I am grateful to have had that experience, and I am grateful that usually I don’t have to bike in the rain, haha.

I love you all! Thanks for the love and the prayers!

Hermana Smith