Well, it has officially been four whole weeks here in the good old MTC. I'm still alive and well and learning sweet Chinese.
This week was really a great one, and went by seriously so fast. It started out with Christmas... Yes it is august and yes it is no where near Christmas. BUT, when you're in the MTC for 9 weeks, you start getting creative. The Elders in our zone that have been here for 6+ weeks were starting to feel this way. So alas, we get Christmas in the summer. So August 25th. The morning started with a nice sing-a-long with Santa and his elves on the way to breakfast, caroling around the tree after breakfast, and ended the day with a secret Santa gift giveaway. haha they were taking this whole thing very seriously. It really was so fun though and was a nice change of pace to our normal long Thursdays.
Honestly team, I don't even know what has happened this past week. We've learned a lot, taught a lot, and studied even more. The days are starting to all blend together!
Here are a few things that have stood out to me from this past week. First, teaching Yvette. Yvette is what we call a "gold tag investigator." These investigators just walk around the MTC on their way to and from appts and such and any missionaries are allowed to teach them and talk to them and such. SO, that is how we have Yvette. We have been teaching her for a couple weeks now, and she does not speak Chinese and so we get to teach her in English. At first, I was pumped because we could actually say what we wanted to say and teach her and talk to her without any problems. But this week, my mindset changed a bit. I found myself wanting to speak Chinese with her, and teaching her principles using the exact sentences I use when teaching Chinese. It hit me this week how much the Lord knows us. He knew I would be able to learn Chinese, but more importantly he knew it would be the best thing for me to teach his gospel in this language. With our lack of knowledge in the language we teach simply yet profoundly. We teach our investigators the basic principles of the gospel, and really that is all they need. As members of the church, sometimes we over complicate things. I know I do. And especially want to when I teach. But, the gospel really is so simple. This is where we came from. This is where we want to go. This is how we do it. We can do all of this through Jesus Christ. That is the message we are teaching. It was a cool realization to know that the Lord really does know me and knows exactly what I need, even when I don't know it myself. And right now, I need to be learning and teaching in Chinese.
One of my favorite times to practice this is in TRC. I talked about this a bit last week, but it really is the best. We get to teach real people. They aren't pretending to be anyone but themselves. And we can just talk about our savior and this gospel. One of the biggest things I've seen in the progression of my Chinese this week is that our lessons feel less like lessons and more like conversations now. I am able to really talk to these people about their needs and respond as they ask questions. It is starting to come more and more. I've felt the gift of tongues so much too as I have been in lessons. I try to memorize a certain number of vocab words and phrases a day, and many times I have been in lessons and had no idea what my investigator was saying, and then they will say the one word that I know and I will be able to understand everything they have just said. It is amazing to see the hand of the Lord in all of the little details of missionary work.
We got all new teachers this week because our other teachers HATE US. j/k they actually just all started school, but still it was sad. But we love our new teachers! They are both BYU students and super cool. Something funny for this week... So our teacher Elder Griffin started at BYU this week and we were giving him some advice. He got back from his mission about a month or so ago and so he is just still in sweet missionary mode. So we were trying to help him out. Elder Driggs, trying to say "I have an older sister you could date," says "Wǒ yǒu yīgè gēgē" which means "I have an older brother." Our teacher replies, "Ya I've gone back and forth, but I'm not that desperate yet." hahahaha so many tender moments always.
Well I am just chillin' here in the MTC aka missionary village. Seriously, it is so easy to forget there is a real world out there. Until we go on our temple walks and I am reminded I live a solid 2 min away. Every time we go to the temple, my district always jokes "Breakfast at Sister Richards' house after!" Or when I look at the mountains and see the leaves changing colors. Everyone please go on a nice long drive through the Alpine Loop for me, with your windows down and blasting music. Sweet music:(
Life really is amazing here, and this week was especially so. There were so many spiritual highlights of this week. The first thing that I really loved this week was from a Sister Missionary Conference we had Sunday morning. The speaker shared, "the Lord is not only hastening his work, but also strengthening families by having both father and mother serve a mission." I had never thought about a mission in that way before. I've thought about how it will help me and my future and my testimony, but I had never thought about how it will impact my future family! I am serving this mission to bring people to Christ. But those people are not just the people in Taiwan. They are also my future family and children. How cool is that?
The next is just about our purpose as missionaries. In Moses 1:39 we learn that God's purpose is to bring to pass immortality and eternal life of all of his children. As missionaries, we are bringing forth God's purpose, and inviting his children to come to Christ. In our Tuesday night devotional, Richard J. Maynes, of the 70, reminded us that many seek the truth, but don't know where to find it (D&C 123:12). We are bringing them that truth. But how important is it that we find those people? This applies to everyone and not just missionaries. We need to open our mouths and fear not. One of my favorite scriptures is Joshua 1:9 which says: be strong and of a good courage. be not afraid neither be thou dismayed. For the Lord thy God is with thee, whithersoever thou goest. This especially hits home with me as I serve my mission. I must be strong and fear not because Heavenly Father is with me and He is my strength. He will be with me every moment of every day as I preach his gospel across the world. He will be with all of us no matter what we are doing or where we are.
I love this work so much, and would not want to be anywhere else! It is hard, but in the words of Hermana Kfullms, "Anything is worth it for the salvation of souls." I know this is what I am supposed to be doing and wouldn't give this up for the world! I love you all so much and hope you are all doing well with the start of school and all that that entails! Please let me know if there is anything I can do for any of you! Have a great week and keep in touch! And hit me up with some healthy food if you feel so inclined;)
xoxo
Sister Richards
李姐妹
Lǐ Jiéměi
2- temple walk
3- twin day
4- welcome to the MTC 2nd cuz--Elder LaPlante
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