Dear most wonderful family!
Kyle: Thank you for helping me realize how much more I can be doing. Spanish progress is good, but not that good! It took me forever to decipher your letter, but it was okay because I felt like I was using my time to study scriptures, spanish, and communicate with family all at the same time. Fortunately I was able to print it out so I could actually use my dictionary to read it. I have much to work on, thanks so much for your example of diligence. Your letters have definatley helped inspire me to be a better missionary.
Dad: thanks for sharing what you are grateful for and writing about the week to me. I love hearing from you. The most important thing I need to hear right now is personal experiences when you choose to work harder or choose the right, and the blessings that come from it. Examples of you doing your best in your calling or working harder inspire me to be a better missionary. Spiritual lessons, and its good to hear how you are doing too.
Mom: I received 2 letters from you in the mail! the one sent Aug. 19th I got on Sept. 9th and the one sent Aug. 28 I got today! Thanks so much for writing me. So, good news, I think all the letters you sent in the mail will eventually get here! And I finally figured out how to print. Hma. Nielson and I took the printer apart and took out the jammed paper. :) I think that you will be very grateful one day for all of the time you spend with Grandma. From what she writes and what I´ve noticed, the time you spend with her makes her so happy. Thanks for being an example of setting your own list aside to help other people be happy. That means a lot to me. I´m so excited for Texas taking his first steps! Whohoo! And I celebrated Bethany´s 1st birthday here at the MTC. Josh said to congrats to celeste awhile ago about her pregancy. Does she know the gender yet?
So the days are so fast here at the MTC, you never really know what day is which unless it is p-day. This week has been wonderful! I think the thing I struggle the most with is how to be most effective. I don´t know what is most important for me to study to help my investigator or to help me learn spanish. We have had some hilarious problems with the water, but that´s okay because taking time to shower is a burden anyways. ;) and who says you need to flush? For lunch yesterday apparently I ate cow tongue. It was honestly some of the THE BEST meat I´ve ever had in my life. So good! I´m just glad I found out the next day. It´s a little bit tough to focus and study with my district because they get me laughing so hard. We are becoming super close, but really need to work on diligence. But we have realized this so our district leader helped us to set goals. We are working on being more positive about small things too. Despite little soccer experience, we are learning to work together as a team. I love it when everyone passes to everyone no matter how good they are. I love that the ones to score in our last games were the sisters in our district with no prior experience. I love my district.
I can see how preparation has paid off and I´m very grateful I have practice getting a lot out of my personal study and I´m grateful for good study habits learned from school. Hermana Nielson and I had the opportunity this week to help an elder who was struggling. The most drilled thing so far has been to teach with love. So we talked and listened for a while to help him overcome his stress. Afterward, we felt a great need to do something more for him. So we prayed with all our might and decided together to write a letter of encouragement and the our testimonies of our purpose and the atonement. I have much to thank Heavenly Father for, one of them being my testimony that through the atonement of Christ, we really can overcome all things. I think this helped him. I´m grateful for the example of my companion. We had the faith, but she inspired us to act on our faith.
A couple of experiences with teaching investigators:
We were in the middle of a rough lesson with Catalina, and I asked her in the wrong way if she wanted to be baptized. I felt humbled for not being patient enough to carefully consider how she would feel as I asked her in this way. My companion continued with patience, and asked her the right way. This time with greater humility and love, I asked her about a date. She was concerned that she was not ready. As I spoke I felt the spirit direct me to relate to her that I also didn't know if I was ready to be a missionary, but that I knew that if I am committed and willing, the Lord will take care of the rest. The spirit softened her heart and she accepted the date to be baptized. We must be very careful to invite the spirit. It takes a great amount of love and humility to teach with him there.
My companion and I were walking to breakfast yesterday morning and she happily blurts out,¨Estamos en México.¨ That completely brightened my day. I found myself excited and chipper enthusiastically telling everyone, ¨ Estamos en México!¨ For scripture study this morning I studied from Ch. 4 in PME about the feelings a convert needs to have from the spirit. The first scripture I read was about Alma pouring his soul out in both agony and praise. He is so pained at knowing the goodness of God and still sinning. As I pondered his feeling and what a convert has to feel, and I want t converts to understand how much God has done for them and be filled with gratitude. From a recent devotional I remember I have to be converted myself in order to invite or want that for my investigators. So I prayed and wrote down all of the things I am most grateful to God fro such as: God has a plan of happiness. I have a purpose. My family can live together forever. Jesus Christ lifts my burdens. Soon, I found great joy in remembering all these things and I want to keep that joy. Because if I can always be this grateful to God, the people will surely see it and desire it too. So every time I pray I am going to sincerely thank God with my whole heart for what he has done for me. I will have the spirit with me if I can retain gratitude. Right after this amazing personal study, we taught Carlos. That was the best lesson we have taught and it was completely because we had the spirit, and completely because I am so grateful to God for giving me hope that I couldn't wait to share it with Carlos. He could feel our love for him and forth gospel. He prayed and want to follow Jesus Christ. I hope we can help him in his life. Hna. Nielson and I said a prayer of gratitude after the lesson. The spirit of the Lord helps in all things. If I have the spirit while studying spanish, the I learn faster and can focus better . just like how 2 Nephi 33:8-9 says. he will consecrate our performance.
It would be nice if you could check my email and forward any that I really need? I don´t know.
Love,
Mo
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