"Motions of a Hidden Fire" July 13, 2026
That's the phrase Christ used to reference prayer.
Jeffrey R. Holland gave a life altering talk with this title, it's one of my favorites.
If you swap the language to Spanish on Gospel Library, this talk is titled
“Surge en el corazón”
“It Arises in the Heart”
That's prayer. That's been my prayers lately.
This week was the type of difficult that younger me prayed for. I knew my mission would be hard, I just wanted the type of hard that only Heavenly Father could help me with. Younger me had a lot of faith, this me has even more. Younger me thought that maybe if I had nobody but my Heavenly Father to help me then I could gain a deeper witness of His character and love. This me has experienced peace that can only come from my Father in Heaven. That doesn't mean anything is easy, but it does mean that everything is possible. God keeps reminding me and I'm so grateful for His love.
Last week I went to the temple with my companion. It was amazing. I love the temple with everything I've got. I'm so grateful Heavenly Father gave us such a sacred place for Him to personally teach us what we personally need.
Immediately after the temple my companion and I got sick… and we just got sicker and sicker… we are pretty sure we got food poisoning from some unwashed fruit we ate on the way to the temple… those lil tiendas will get you. We had a lesson right after p-day ended and my companion was definitely not okay… and I wasn't feeling very confident in my abilities as a missionary. Spanish is really hard. Satan likes to poke people and tell them lies. Good news is Jesus's name is on my chest and this is HIS work. Satan cannot nerf it, or us, or me if we are doing the Saviors work. That lesson gave me so much more confidence. We placed a baptismal date. My companion was praying to not puke or pass out the whole time… and God loves to answer those prayers. Miracles happen!!! Heavenly Father carries His servants. The next day we only left the house 1 time because we were sooo sick… but because of the miracle of technology, we found 3 new people to teach. This is God's vineyard, we're just serving in it.
We had a friend that I am going to call Cow. Cow’ wife has been a member for over 50 years. Cow's daughter served a mission. Cow prays to Heavenly Father everyday, multiple times a day. Cow has had a lot of experiences that have helped the Spirit truly testify of the truthfulness of this gospel. Cow was once in a COMA for 3 days and only woke up because his wife followed several promptings. Cow knows that this Gospel is true… Cow does not want to get baptized. And you better beeeellieeevvveeee it's been breaking my heart. His wife was joking with us like
“I'm sealed to my parents, but I wanna get sealed to him but HE doesn't wanna get baptized” We asked him to pray about baptism and his wife texted us that he felt nothing and doesn't want us to go back over there. So you better believe I went back there 2 days later and he was actually very happy to see us haha.
I'm trusting Heaven on this one. My God is a God of happy endings… so one day this family will get sealed. In the meantime I really felt the Spirit while teaching him, the Spirit spoon fed me the words I needed in Spanish and that was an answer to so many prayers.
Last week I was sad. Satan likes to poke people and tell them lies. I KNOW the Lord is using me to do some good work. But I felt as though I hadn't done much here. I was so wrong. I love this ward. It's growing so much. People are coming back to church after years of not coming and it's because the Lord directed us to invite them HOME! I was so blinded before by doubt and fear.
“A hardened heart is also a blinded mind. So open your eyes to see”
I can't remember if that’s a quote or not but it'll be in a song one day.
Now let me tell you about some motions of a hidden fire…
Prayer changes you. Prayer will change the night to day. Talking to Heavenly Father multiple times a day will change your entire countenance. That is a promise from a missionary. I have experienced it over and over again. Be intentional and honest and watch Heaven open for you.
Upon arriving to Peru, a little over a month ago, I was taken to the mission home and met my President and His wife. I was then the first from my travel group to have my interview with President and Hermana Peterson.
They asked me to say the opening prayer… specifically in English. And I started with those 3 words that I have said every day for my entire life.
“Dear Heavenly Father,”
I then paused for a long time to try and collect myself so I didn't start crying in front of my cool new mission President haha. But those ALMOST tears of exhaustion, relief, fear, peace, love, fire, joy, and pleading were the pieces of the most sincere prayer that nobody ever heard but God. But saying His name was all the comfort I needed… so if you don't know what to say to Him- I'd like to invite you to start there. He hears you. I PROMISE. He will change your life over and over again.
I'm officially typing in circles and my emails are probably the strangest ones you read but if y'all are genuinely reading these for the next 15.5 months then I might as well tell you how I actually feel and what my true experience is here. I hope from reading this you know that it's okay to be happy and sad, to find peace and to still have so many questions, and to feel confident but still nervous.
To finish this off, these are some lyrics I wrote about prayer in the MTC. I had no idea they'd apply so much to
my future circumstances but God often helps me write music for future me. He answers prayers over and over again.
“I'll fold my arms and bow my head
And trust that you've always heard what i said
So hear the words straight from my soul
When I am weary you make me whole
There's a sanctuary on my knees...
when it seems the whole world stops and its just you and me
Nothings greater nothings more
important than my time with my Lord
So Lord please forgive me when I fail to pick up the phone when i know you've sent your messages all day
At times I forget that you're just one call away
Some days I hit my knees and don't know what to say.
-
I'll fold my arms, and close my eyes
And I imagine what you'd look like if we could just facetime
What would you say, what you haven't said...
Where would you have me read or read over again.
I'll close my eyes, and say your name. Just to know that you are here and everything will be okay.
Silence the noise, help me feel at home.
I know you've got so much to say to me, I finally picked up the phone
So hear my tears as they fall and my heart as it beats
Fill my lungs with some air as I'm drifting off to sleep.
When I get up in the morning you'll make everything bright.
I bowed my head, said my prayer, and in your care I slept last night.”
You're all so loved and so missed!
-Hermana Anderson❤️
Google photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/oN6xtMVD1c4dShw66
Motions of a Hidden Fire: