Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Capitulo 1, Semana 5
Hola Family!
It's crazy how time can be a countdown OR a motivator. Four weeks down, TWO TO GO! Time to step up the game and get to work! This week has flown by (starting to seem pretty typical....) but it was a great one! This letter might be kind of scattered and not very cohessive - sorry in advance!:)
Two Elders in my district went to Las Vegas last week to get their Visas and were super pumped to have some real missionary moments. They left with a backpack full of copies of the Book of Mormon and actually gave out two! I was especially excited at how pumped Elder Dunn was. He has a hard time with the language and needed that little push to keep him going to know all the work will be worth it and now he (all of us) can't wait to get out into the field! We found out last week that one of the zone teachers that doesn't have a district yet (Hermano Talataina) was asked if he would choose a district to have teach him as an investigator and film the teaching for something in the future....and he chose my district. He was impressed with us and said we could set the bar for other missionaries that would see the videos! So last week we received a "referral" of a man named Jose. Now we have THREE investigators!
Teaching this week has been amazing. We taught Leonardo on Friday and took a "member" with us to the lesson. It went so well that HE asked US what day he could get baptized. Hma Richards and I were a little caught off guard and probably spent a good 10 seconds looking at each other before we said June 25th. haha I now have such a strong testimony of member present lessons! We took Pollo on a walk up to the temple while we discussed the Plan of Salvation and it was awesome. Seriously seeing HUGE steps!
OH! Coolest story. During language study on Saturday, Hma Richards and I wanted to shake things up so we went outside and "contacted". We were teaching some sisters and just doing introductions - where we're from, where we're going, etc. Anyways, when I said Tucson Arizona one of the sisters said, "Oh my gosh! I have a friend that lives there that was baptized a few years ago but has gone inactive - you have to find her!" She wrote down her name and contact info and it's sitting in my scriptures waiting for Arizona! FIRST REFERRAL FOR THE FIELD!
The Hermanas of my zone combined Brightly Beams and Come Thou Fount to perform in church and it was gorgeous. I love the talent that comes with Mormon culture:) Also, Hermana Richards and I got asked to teach our district lesson on Sunday with the topic "Faith in Christ". If anyone has suggestions/thoughts/stories/
In my personal study one day I came across D&C 8:2-3. At first I was confused why the story of Moses was used as the comparison. I think it's because not only the magnitude and grand scale of the miracle but also because in the story of Moses parting the Red Sea, Moses and the Israelites were actually IN the water (Moses had water up to his sholders) before the sea parted. For all miracles to happen, faith must preceed but so must action! We have to demonstrate our faith through our willingness to act on spiritual promptings. It was a little bit of a light bulb moment. You have to hope, trust, have faith, and ACT for miracles to happen!
Tonight is the first night Tuesday night devotionals are going to be held in the BYU Marriot Center! History in the making everyone! All 2,500 MTC missionaries taking a field trip to BYU. It's going to be similar to Moses leading the Israelites - pretty sure it's going to take a miracle too. I seriously came to the MTC at the PERFECT time - the west MTC campus opened and Tuesday devotionals moved to the marriot during my time here (that makes it sound like i'm in jail...ironic?:)) and I leave a DAY after the massive June 23rd Mission President Conference where the First Presidency and the 12 will be in attendance! Blessed!
My roommate Miya came into the MTC this last week!! I've seen her a couple times and it's been crazy. It's nuts to think three of the six girls in my apartment are in the MTC together, going to Arizona, Japan, and Africa! The work is moving forward! I also saw Brigham this last week and he actually helped us plan a lesson! He said to make sure Camron gets to Provo before September because that's when he heads to the Mexico MTC. AND Lillian is engaged! So happy!
One night at dinner, one of the options was pasta with shrimp. A few of the elders love shrimp and were trying to get Hermana Richards to eat it. She looked at them, eyebrow raised and said, "Oh no, I don't do no shrimp!" in that texan accent she has. Sass to the max - we're a great companionship:) Also, I am proud to tell you that even though we are inside for 9/10ths of our day, I have been blessed to be sporting a watch tan! I can feel it already - once I get to Arizona, I'll be back in black. AWW YEAH!
Happy Father's Day Pops!! One of my teachers said something the other day that I LOVE! He said, "Right now, while you're on you mission, you are set apart to literally act AS Christ. Then after the mission, when you get married and have children it is your time to act as Heavenly Father or Heavenly Mother." How well are we acting our part? Just food for thought. I think you're doing a pretty darn good job, dad!:)
Hermano Clarke shared this thought with us this week that applies to missionaries but I think it can be applied to everyone too! He said, "Don't be a 'liquid' misisonary. Don't let your companion/situation/area decide the kind of missionary you're going to be on YOUR ONLY MISSION!" Decide the person you want to be and then be that person! Set your standards and don't lower them for anything or anyone. Mom, I know you love the saying "Fake it til you make it" but I have a new one for you, "Act it til you are it!" On Saturday night, Hermano Clarke asked us to look out the window and tell us what we see. He said first he wanted to tell us what He saw. "I see everything. A beautiful mountain, clear sky, great weather and it's Saturday night - it's that time to kick back, relax and enjoy the weekend." Then he said "What do you see?" A world outside of your world. He asked "What on earth are you all doing here?! When you could be out there, in jeans and a t-shirt on a Saturday night, what are you doing inside a classroom, dressed in church clothes? You are all CRAZY." He then told us how loved we are by Heavenly Father. He sees our willingness to give up that outside world for 18-24 months and He is SO proud. Elder Parker then told us all how he felt - basicall put into words how we all feel. He said before the mission he was struggling with the fact that when he got back from his mission, everything would be different - he siblings would be grown up, people would be married/have kids, etc. But then he realized that in the end it will all be worth it! Its hard to think how much I"m missing and how different everything is going to be when I get back but I wouldn't rather be ANYWHERE else in the world or doing anything else because this work I am blessed to have a part in the MOST important work we can do. I have already felt a little bit of the love the Lord has for his children in just the 4 weeks I've been here and I feel like my hear can just burst with that love. This work is amazing and I am so happy to wear a skirt, in a classroom on a Saturday night, preparing to be the best instrument for the Lord that I can be. I LOVE MISSIONARY WORK. Todo sera vale la pena!
"Schoooool's out for summer", huh?! What are the plan? Nothing? Good. Study you Preach My Gospels and read your scriptures! Thanks for all the letters this week and I'm glad you go mine! (I wasn't sure it would make it with only one stamp even if it was heading to "America"...I grew up in Europe, cut me some slack.) Oh, and thanks for Brynn's letter! It was crazy reading about her adventures in the field! Keep them coming please! (maybe have the Roth's add me to her email list so I could just get them every week...?) Happy birthday again Sara! I'm so pumped you get to go do baptisms THIS WEEKEND! The temple is the greatest place on earth! Mom, are you still bagging at the commissary? I love you all family and pray for you everyday! You are the BEST!
Hermana Stewart
Que el Senor la siga bendiciendo a ustedes! Les amo muchisimo!
Capitulo 1, Semena 4
Time is so crazy here! It feels like I have been here for forever but at the same time, it has gone by SO fast! Somedays I feel like the MTC is my mission (depressing thought, I know). I've determined they keep you at the MTC for long enough so you can't wait to get out and so you know how to endure to the end! It's also weird to think life continues outside of the MTC walls...people getting married, having birthdays, wearing jeans - crazy things.
This week has been great! Hermana Richards and I had our mid-MTC crisis. We taught a lesson to one of our investigators (Leonardo) that was a little frustrating. We went in with a GREAT lesson plan. Like we were both seriously stoked and ready to commit him to baptism on the second lesson. We asked how his day had been and he said he had just slept all day because he had been out drinking with his friends last night. I didn't know the word "tomar" meant to drink, as in alcohol, so i made the mistake of asking if any of his friends were mormon...oops. Then Hermana Richards called him our old investigators name (Enrique), and our lesson was a little scattered. It felt like we had skimmed the surface of ALL the lessons but at the same time didn't teach anything and just confused him more. haha It's annoying to walk out of a lesson feeling dissatisfied but I think we're finally "friends" with Leonardo which is important. 20 minutes for a lesson is just not enough time. Afterwards we were overwhelmed with teaching just because it seems like all of the lessons are intertwined and you can't teach one without teaching all of them - which is great because they should connect, but frustrating when you don't know how to not get too deep into the material. But we made it through and all is well. I sometimes like when our lessons don't go as well as planned because if forces us to humble ourselves and realize we need to rely more on the spirit.
On Friday our district made a goal not to complain about anything. We have service every Friday morning - which usually consists of picking out and putting up the MTC flags...boss job, I know) - but today we walked in and the lady asked us to clean walls....what?! We had to scrub and then "dab" the walls dry in the main building. I think Heavenly Father was laughing as we smiled and scrubbed our wall instead of put of the flags. We decided to never make that a goal again. ;) We also had TRC where volunteers come in and we get to talk with REAL PEOPLE not associated with the MTC and teach them a short lesson. A few of the elders in my district were sweating like crazy and literally about to pass out before they went in but then came out with the biggest smiles on their faces! It was a BLAST. The spanish flowed pretty well and one of the sisters Hma Richards and I taught shared her conversion story with us. It was the most incredible story I've ever heard. If you're lucky I'll tell you someday:) Afterwards we all just wanted to keep teaching.
Sunday - understandably everyones favorite day at the MTC - was amazing. We had a great Missionary Conference, sang God be With You Til We Meet Again to the departing missionaries, and I bore my testimony in Spanish for the first time in a formal setting like that. I used to think it was scary doing it in English...it actually wasn't that bad! BORN TO SPEAK SPANISH BABY! We went on a temple walk (basically any time we are outside, it is heaven) and then broke our fasts at 5:00 and MTC dinner never tasted so good! After dinner we went to a fireside that is different than any fireside I've ever been to. The speaker did a monologue of Willard Richards in Carthaige Jail with Joseph Smith. Needless to say, I bawled. I think i've cried more at the MTC than I have my entire life. Then we watched a devotional by Holland called Such a Time as This. SO GOOD. He speaks with so much power - it's incredible.
Cool story. So during our mid-MTC crisis, Hermana Richards and I decided to take a walk. We were walking and and saw a group of elders by the fence of the MTC talking to a little boy. They told us to come over and meet their new friend. We walked over and there was a little boy with a spiderman helmet on that had been riding by the MTC and just wanted to chat. He told us his name, his age, what he got for his 5th b-day, what he ate for dinner, how sometimes he doesn't like his sister because she gives him wedgies..you know, the important things. He said one day he was going to be a missionary because he wanted to serve the people. He also told us he has a brother that's in the MTC getting ready to go to Russia. We asked what his last name was and we would look out for him and tell him hi from his little brother if we saw him. We had to go in for dinner but as we were leaving he said, "Thanks! You guys are my new friends and I love you!" Right as we walk into dinner I see Sister Parish (from germany) who is going to Russia and asked if she knew an Elder Oldroid going the Russia (not really expecting much because there are a ton of Russian speaking zones). SHE DOES! He is in her zone! So she took us over to him and we got to talk about his little brother for a few minutes! He was beaming when we told him the things David had said. Making a new friend from outside the MTC then finding his brother that's in the MTC - miracles happen.
Thanks so much everyone for the letters and for the postcard!! You all are the best. (Also, don't let this get around but I have said "y'all" a couple times thanks to my companion. Darn texans! Anyways, just thought the Atwoods and Jake might be proud.) I am seriously PUMPED that Emily is going on a mission! She is going to be amazing and the mission is going to be amazing for her! Keep me updated with where everyone is going! Dad, we go to the temple ever p-day and I only have two more of those (NUTS!) so if you send family names for me to do in the temple and think they will get here on time, i'd love to do them. Sorry about your baseball game Sara! Sometimes the Lord has to humble us though...watch that pride...i'm kidding;) Also, happy 11th birthday!! Only a year to go until Young Womens - woot woot! ;) Maren, there were WAY too many "muahahaha"s in your letter. somethings never change - you're one of them. Alright fam, keep the letters/pictures/prayers coming and I love you tons!
Vaya con Dios!
Hermana Stewart
Capitulo 1, Semana 3
Time is so crazy here! It feels like I have been here for forever but at the same time, it has gone by SO fast! Somedays I feel like the MTC is my mission (depressing thought, I know). I've determined they keep you at the MTC for long enough so you can't wait to get out and so you know how to endure to the end! It's also weird to think life continues outside of the MTC walls...people getting married, having birthdays, wearing jeans - crazy things.
This week has been great! Hermana Richards and I had our mid-MTC crisis. We taught a lesson to one of our investigators (Leonardo) that was a little frustrating. We went in with a GREAT lesson plan. Like we were both seriously stoked and ready to commit him to baptism on the second lesson. We asked how his day had been and he said he had just slept all day because he had been out drinking with his friends last night. I didn't know the word "tomar" meant to drink, as in alcohol, so i made the mistake of asking if any of his friends were mormon...oops. Then Hermana Richards called him our old investigators name (Enrique), and our lesson was a little scattered. It felt like we had skimmed the surface of ALL the lessons but at the same time didn't teach anything and just confused him more. haha It's annoying to walk out of a lesson feeling dissatisfied but I think we're finally "friends" with Leonardo which is important. 20 minutes for a lesson is just not enough time. Afterwards we were overwhelmed with teaching just because it seems like all of the lessons are intertwined and you can't teach one without teaching all of them - which is great because they should connect, but frustrating when you don't know how to not get too deep into the material. But we made it through and all is well. I sometimes like when our lessons don't go as well as planned because if forces us to humble ourselves and realize we need to rely more on the spirit.
On Friday our district made a goal not to complain about anything. We have service every Friday morning - which usually consists of picking out and putting up the MTC flags...boss job, I know) - but today we walked in and the lady asked us to clean walls....what?! We had to scrub and then "dab" the walls dry in the main building. I think Heavenly Father was laughing as we smiled and scrubbed our wall instead of put of the flags. We decided to never make that a goal again. ;) We also had TRC where volunteers come in and we get to talk with REAL PEOPLE not associated with the MTC and teach them a short lesson. A few of the elders in my district were sweating like crazy and literally about to pass out before they went in but then came out with the biggest smiles on their faces! It was a BLAST. The spanish flowed pretty well and one of the sisters Hma Richards and I taught shared her conversion story with us. It was the most incredible story I've ever heard. If you're lucky I'll tell you someday:) Afterwards we all just wanted to keep teaching.
Sunday - understandably everyones favorite day at the MTC - was amazing. We had a great Missionary Conference, sang God be With You Til We Meet Again to the departing missionaries, and I bore my testimony in Spanish for the first time in a formal setting like that. I used to think it was scary doing it in English...it actually wasn't that bad! BORN TO SPEAK SPANISH BABY! We went on a temple walk (basically any time we are outside, it is heaven) and then broke our fasts at 5:00 and MTC dinner never tasted so good! After dinner we went to a fireside that is different than any fireside I've ever been to. The speaker did a monologue of Willard Richards in Carthaige Jail with Joseph Smith. Needless to say, I bawled. I think i've cried more at the MTC than I have my entire life. Then we watched a devotional by Holland called Such a Time as This. SO GOOD. He speaks with so much power - it's incredible.
Cool story. So during our mid-MTC crisis, Hermana Richards and I decided to take a walk. We were walking and and saw a group of elders by the fence of the MTC talking to a little boy. They told us to come over and meet their new friend. We walked over and there was a little boy with a spiderman helmet on that had been riding by the MTC and just wanted to chat. He told us his name, his age, what he got for his 5th b-day, what he ate for dinner, how sometimes he doesn't like his sister because she gives him wedgies..you know, the important things. He said one day he was going to be a missionary because he wanted to serve the people. He also told us he has a brother that's in the MTC getting ready to go to Russia. We asked what his last name was and we would look out for him and tell him hi from his little brother if we saw him. We had to go in for dinner but as we were leaving he said, "Thanks! You guys are my new friends and I love you!" Right as we walk into dinner I see Sister Parish (from germany) who is going to Russia and asked if she knew an Elder Oldroid going the Russia (not really expecting much because there are a ton of Russian speaking zones). SHE DOES! He is in her zone! So she took us over to him and we got to talk about his little brother for a few minutes! He was beaming when we told him the things David had said. Making a new friend from outside the MTC then finding his brother that's in the MTC - miracles happen.
Thanks so much everyone for the letters and for the postcard!! You all are the best. (Also, don't let this get around but I have said "y'all" a couple times thanks to my companion. Darn texans! Anyways, just thought the Atwoods and Jake might be proud.) I am seriously PUMPED that Emily is going on a mission! She is going to be amazing and the mission is going to be amazing for her! Keep me updated with where everyone is going! Dad, we go to the temple ever p-day and I only have two more of those (NUTS!) so if you send family names for me to do in the temple and think they will get here on time, i'd love to do them. Sorry about your baseball game Sara! Sometimes the Lord has to humble us though...watch that pride...i'm kidding;) Also, happy 11th birthday!! Only a year to go until Young Womens - woot woot! ;) Maren, there were WAY too many "muahahaha"s in your letter. somethings never change - you're one of them. Alright fam, keep the letters/pictures/prayers coming and I love you tons!
Vaya con Dios!
Hermana Stewart
Capitulo 1, Semana 2
"There is no growing in a comfort zone, and there is no comfort in a growing zone." This is the MTC. This week was a little more relaxed but WAY harder. Always in a good way though!
Last Tuesday night, we had a district meeting with Brother and Sister Monson about that night's devotional. At the end of our discussion, Brother Monson got a little solemn and said, "If you all would like, you can write a small not to Tom about the passing of his sweetheart Francis. The funeral is Thursday and I would gladly hand deliver the consoling words of twelve great missionaries to him." WHAT?! I almost peed my pants. How do you comfort the prophet?! I'm telling you, my district has the hook-ups!
Anyways, thanks for the pictures and letters - they made my week! Madi, you ROCK the braceface and it looks like the trip was a blast. Especially sleeping in the camper - man, I miss that thing (heaaavy sarcasm). Mom would you find and send me Brynn's, Adam's, Camron's, and Stephen's addresses for me? Gracias. Also, clothes are still welcome. I love you all so darn much but I'll love you more if you don't go on any more trips without me. :)
Hermana Stewart
P.S. It shouldn't be "endure to the end" but "enjoy to the end!"
"I'm not what I want to be, I'm not what I should be, but I'm not what I used to be."
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