Dear Family,
WOW, I have so much to tell you, I don't even know where to
start! In my zone, today was our first
P-Day, which is why I haven't written before now. It has been NUTS here at the
MTC, so much has been going on! Right
after I left you guys, I met my companion Sister Williams. She is GREAT. She is
cute and fun and very loving and sincere. Being at the MTC has been really
great for both of us. We have been learning SO MUCH. Like Dad said, you
are constantly going from one thing to another. The days feel like WEEKS, but
the weeks feel like DAYS. I can't believe it has already been a week, and that
I'm leaving for the field on Monday! OH OH OH!!! VERY IMPORTANT! I'm allowed to
call you guys before I get on the plane, so Monday morning at around 7:00, probably earlier, you should all be awake and expecting a call
from me!
We've been working really hard and studying a lot! I would give
you a run-down of my schedule, but it changes pretty often. We always get up at 6:30, have personal study at 7:00, breakfast, classroom
instruction for 3 hours, lunch, 3 more hours of class, and then dinner. But in
addition to that we have TONS of teaching opportunities! People come and volunteer to pose as
investigators for us to teach. And they are REALLY good! We have been teaching a DARLING Korean woman
named Kyong Ming for the last 3 days. She has a Bhuddist background, but never
had faith in Bhuddism. She struggles to believe that God loves all of His
children because of all the suffering in the world, and she is afraid to have faith
in a religion that is not the right one. But over the last 3 days we have
taught her to pray and she's been doing it on her own. We also gave her a Book of Mormon and she
read it, and when we came back we read it together. And we asked her if, when
she knew these things were true, she would be baptized. She said yes! It was a really neat
experience. We've had similar success with another investigator named Nathan.
He's divorced and remarried with two kids, and another on the way. He lost his
job, and had to move here because they couldn't afford their home. He had a
bitter experience with the Baptist church and hasn't communicated with God in a
while. We encouraged him to pray, and he has been. In fact, he got a job offer,
and he believes it is the answer to his prayers. He took the Book of Mormon and
he read part of it, and when we extended the same challenge to him of baptism,
he also accepted! And we told him we
would like to teach his wife and children, and he said yes to that too! It's funny how even though I know they are
actors, I feel so much love for them, and I really want them to be happy! J
I have been learning so much about being a missionary and how to
teach. I have some good fundamental teaching skills, but man I was just
scraping the surface! There is so much
to learn it can be a little like drinking out of a fire hose, but after every
class I have learned about how to be a better teacher, and I have seen my
teaching improve in every discussion!
Our district leader is Elder Pyne, who is SO great. So is
everyone in my district by the way, I can't believe how lucky we are to have so
many awesome people in our group! The
zone leaders are also in our district, elder Zahrabelny from Canada, and Elder
Tani from Hawaii. Also, Sister Williams and I have been called to be the Sister
Training Leaders for the zone. We just got two new districts yesterday, so we
had a ton of orientation and stuff to do for them. It's been really exciting
and fun! I'm glad the Lord trusts me to
be a leader of the other sisters, and I'm trying to set a good example for
them. I just had companion inventory
with Sis Williams last night, and we made some goals. We are pretty good at being obedient, but I
want to work harder at being EXACTLY obedient.
Don't worry, Mom--I'm getting up on time. Actually, I'm getting up way
earlier than that. We just always seem to be 5 minutes late to class every
morning. I told her that I wanted to do better than that, and this morning we
were early! :)
Man oh man, I had no idea how much a person could pray in one
day!! I feel like I'm saying a prayer
every 5 minutes. The spirit at the MTC is SO STRONG. No wonder there is an
unnatural amount of learning going on here! And we all just got priesthood blessings on
Sunday from the members of our district. Elder Smith gave me mine, and it was SO
wonderful. It's amazing how the spirit can tell them exactly what to say even
though they don't know me very well. It was Elder Smith's first blessing, and I
could feel his hands shaking on my head! It was adorable.
I know there is probably so much more to say, but I only have
ten more minutes!!! AHH!!!
To All Future Missionaries: MTC Tips
STUDY Preach My Gospel before. And don't waste your time. I totally regret
all the time I ever wasted. Don't do it!!
Bring a water bottle, or you'll get dehydrated, and that stinks.
Take into account that the missionary tag will pull down on your
shirt, and wear an undershirt if that's going to be a problem.
Sarah will have to accept that all the elders are tone deaf. But
if she sings hymns in the shower, all the sisters will join in and harmonize. It's awesome!
You can get your hair cut for free one time during your stay
here.
Also, you can get two articles of clothing altered for 50 cents.
Your relationship with your companion is important, but BE
OBEDIENT. Obedience brings blessings, but exact obedience brings
miracles.
Memorize scriptures so the spirit can bring them to your mind
during discussions.
Don't come thinking you know everything. That attitude will keep
you from learning in the beginning. Be humble!
Bring a watch.
Be open and honest with your teachers. They want you to
understand. Take advantage of their experience and ask them for advice.
Be open with your branch president. He loves you!
Don’t be afraid to tell your district when you want them to be
more focused and invite the spirit. We all want to be good missionaries.
We have an hour at the gym every day. They have basketball,
volleyball and foursquare courts, and they also have a track, elliptical machines,
and weight machines. It's great, and super fun.
Have Dad give you a blessing right before you go. I'm sad I can't get a blessing from him for 18
months.
Stay positive and faith-filled. It can be overwhelming here. Emily,
you'll especially need to remember this. Don’t get discouraged by all you still
need to learn. You can continuously
improve! Also, being positive helps you
be a rock for the other sisters to turn to.
We can't all be dissolving into a wreck with a missionary tag on.
Dad: Thanks for the bike
stuff, that's great! And as far as I
know, you can send me the pictures and newsletter stuff. That's awesome about
Abby and Ethan's talks. SO COOL!
Mom: Tell Chloe congrats
on her tooth, I'm glad she prayed and found it! And I'm super glad I didn't have to help with
moving, that sounds like really hard work!!! But go you guys!!! And good luck on Grandfather's video!!! OH AND MY PACKAGE WAS SO GREAT I LOVED
IT!!!!! Thanks so much!!! The mints keep
me alive during long classes.
Sarah: Write me. Also,
you will love it here. I was thinking about you all week, and I've been writing
down these tips for you guys every time I think something is good to know. You'll
be a pro when you get here! Also, Blake Ellis says hi.
Emily: Those goals sound awesome! How is the temple and scripture study going?
You'll do a great job as being the oldest, probs better than me! :) Good luck
with the start of your senior year, keep me posted on what's going on with you!
Hannah: I totally wish that I had the black notebook with your
story in it, but I don't. You should send me one! I am having a great time.. :)
Have fun starting high school!
Ryan: You should write me, too. Love you anyway though. Are you
starting 8th grade right now? Cuz that would be nuts. Let me know what's going
on!!!
Carter: I am so glad you asked me about what you can pray for,
so I saved this part for you. I would
really love it if you could pray for me to have courage. It's a little scary to
ask people to be baptized and stuff! And pray for me to find the people who are
prepared to hear the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And that I can have
the spirit with me to know what I need to do and say to help the spirit bring
that message to their hearts. My favorite thing to do at the MTC is teach, even
though at first I wasn't very good at it. The practice is so great, and I learn
so much. The minute I got to teach my first investigator on the first night
here, I knew even more than before that coming on a mission was the right thing
to do. I love teaching people and helping them come closer to Jesus Christ! The
work is hard, but it makes me happy, and the spirit helps me all along the
way!
Ethan: I love you! Write
me, buddy. I want to hear all about what you are doing right now, and how
popular you are with all your friends. :) And that is so awesome about your
talk. I want to hear about it, you'll rock it!
Chloe and Abby: Next time Mom sends a package or a letter, send
me some of your beautiful drawings!
I love ALL of you, and I wish I had longer to email right now.
Maybe in the field I will have more time, but in the MTC it's scheduled. If
there are any questions I haven't answered, ask them again so I don't forget!!!
I'm going to hurry and send some pictures!!! I love you all SO
SO SO much, and I miss you and I want to hear from you!!!
Elizabeth
Elizabeth
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