Second MTC Email

Hola!

 

This week has been wonderful! We taught M again this week. Our district is now doing HSI(Hablar su idioma) or Speak Your Language all the time. This means that we speak in Spanish all the time and every lunch we speak only in Spanish. It is helping us improve.

 

We received a new investigator (someone who is looking into the church) this week--Fabian. He is from Lima, Peru and is very confused about life and what his purpose is. We had a first lesson with him on Monday and a had planned a (what we thought was) lesson plan. But then he started talking to us. When he started talking, we knew we had to go in an entirely different direction. So through the guidance of the Spirit, we taught him an entirely new lesson and pulled in bits and pieces of the old lesson. It was amazing to me that my companion and I were able to stay on the same train of thought the entire time without conversing. That is one of the workings of the Spirit. We shared the First Vision with him in Joseph Smith's own words. What  a fantastic spirit comes when the First Vision is recited! (in Spanish)

 

Yesterday we had our first day teaching in the TRC which is when we teach members. We had no lesson plan, but we taught them about the Restoration, and becoming more yoked to Christ. I can't wait to teach there again! We have to completely rely on the Spirit and on the Lord for help. We are limited in the language and knowledge about the people we are teaching, but with God's help we are able to help them learn and feel of the Spirit and be taught by the Spirit. Each time we sang a hymn in these lessons the Spirit testified of the truthfulness of the doctrine in the hymn. Hymns and the Spirit are invaluable teaching aids! We sang If the Savior Stood Beside Me and Joseph Smith's First Prayer. The help that it gives us to feel of the Spirit is incredible. That is why they have us sing in church!

 

Yesterday was also our last lesson with Manuela.--we were "transferred" I will miss her sweet spirit! We now have an investigator named Eliana. We teach her tomorrow

 

The fireside Sunday night was by Brother Ted Gibbons--he spoke and acted as Willard Richards and bore testimony of the prophet Joseph. Then we were able to watch the movie Legacy. It was a pretty great day!

 

On Tuesday the devotional was with Elder Tad R. Callister (one of the church leaders)  He spoke on how the New Testament is a blueprint of the church and how our church fits the ENTIRE blueprint. When I have a chance, I will send you the notes I took from his talk.

 

This week I learned many things, but one of the main ones was that as we as missionaries(and as members) come closer to Christ and to the investigator(and our friends), the investigator by default will become closer to Christ( the distance becomes smaller)

 

I know that God loves us! I know that He hears and answers our prayers. I know that Joseph Smith saw God the Father and Jesus Christ and that through him the fullness of the gospel was restored. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that we have a living prophet today, President Thomas S. Monson. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I know that when we live by its teachings we can be truly happy!

 

I love this work! I love you all so much!

Love,

Hermana VanWie