Fiona's Birthday

It was Fiona's Birthday and she happened to be in Spain. She lives in Ireland. We had her and a few friends over for the first Pizza Party of the summer. I made her a rasberry and white chocolate butter cake and She brought me flowers. It was a beautiful evening on my back porch. (My favorite spot in all of Spain.)

In case I haven't told you the story of my friendship with Fiona....it goes like this-

One day in church we saw a family that didnt look Spanish. This happens from time to time and we get very excited about the possibility of speaking english with someone. We nearly pounce on each person that is clearly not local! Fiona, her husband Ray and her youngest daughter Elli were on vacation or "Holiday" in Spain and went to church in our ward.

Dan invited t hem for dinner as some of our spanish friends had offered to come over and cook Pealla and we wanted all the help in the world eating it!

It was a fun night, but what was insignifigant about that night ended up being a strong spiritual connection for us shortly down the road. Dan sat between the Spaniards and the english speakers along with Brother Dixon and they began to translate our conversations. One of our Spanish friends asked Fiona and her husband about thier converstion story. She told a common story of Missionaries in her small home town. Her grandfather was a barber and they would get thier hair cut at the same time as they were teach a lesson.

Her granfather told the magical stories of mystical plates and angels. They were imaginative stories that the kids found fun to listen to. However Fiona found a conection with them, a truth she didnt understand.

Years later she visited a cousin who had already met missionaries and joined the church, and asked her a few questions 6 weeks later Fiona was baptised.

She told us how she had recently gone looking for the elders who had taught her grandfather and found that there was a mission reunion this exact week in Ireland and she was sad to miss meeting the Elder Christiansen and telling him she had the work done for her Grandfather.

We all enjoyed the fun story and much other conversation that evening. We said goodnight late in the evening as is tradition in Spain. We werent sure if we would meet again but we exchanged contact info and promised to write(luckily we did, and had dinner again as well as our family has plans of visiting them in Ireland). They had plans of returning to Spain and the kids and I were already preparing for our return to the states in hope of a summer in Spain, but no real for sure plan.

This was a tough time for our family. We felt like returning to the states was the right thing, but struggled with the wrongness for our family to be seperated. We prayed that all would go smoothly if it was right and that we would have the wisdom to know. We prayed Heavenly Father would lead us to the right place for us; and all went so smoothly we didnt feel a bump. We felt like it must be right, but as humans would like some sure sign...less than the strongest of faiths.

A few weeks after we arrived in AZ and went to our ward it split, and the very next week the high counselman was sent to speak to us on the new Temple being build near our home. The prayer in my heart constantly at that time was of guidance from the Lord to do what is best for my family in this challenging situation. I Prayed for assurity that we were doing His will.

As the Counselman stood he announced his topic, but said he felt impressed to share a story.

He began to tell us of how he was a young missionary in Ireland and how he taught a barber and how his grandaughter had recently contacted him but she would be in Spain while he was in Ireland.

I'm not sure if he ever talked about temples, or what anyone else had talked about that day.

What I knew was Heavenly Father used my new friend to speak to me. He Sent his servent High counselman (former Elder) Christiensen to tell me Fionas story just weeks after she had told me on my back porch in a country miles and miles away.

What I knew as my heart raced was that the Lord knew my frailties and my need to hear from him in a real way that the path I was on was the right one. That if I had not obeyed the promtings I recieved, and had been any where else in the world I would not have heard the message from Elder Christensen.

I know the Lord lives and is aware of us, each of us in our own trials and triumphs and wants the best for us despite our wrong turns and moments of weekness. He will provide the answers and fill our hearts if we have the desire and will to follow his lead.

I bear this as my Testimony and I thank the Lord for giving me Fiona and the oportunity to grow closer to Him.