Dear Friends and Family,
So much has
happened this past week. It has been the hardest and most exciting week
of my life. This is the last letter I will be sending from the MTC. My 6
weeks is finally coming to an end and its time now to say goodbye to
all the friends I have made here. I went to in field orientation this
week and met one of the elders from the district. If any of you have
served a mission you probably have seen those videos. He was the one who
messed up that lesson about the law of chastity and the investigator
didnt think he was able to date. I met that elder.... He was actually
really nice but I was unable to get a picture with him. As I attended
the orientation it finally hit me that this is the last time I will ever
be in the MTC and I am really going to miss everybody. I am kind of
scared to be going out to the field and teach real investigators and in
spanish. I
finally met people that are going to my mission besides Elder Dyorich
and my companion who are both going there too. We met 8 sisters that are
going to Arkansas english speaking and it only took 6 weeks to find
them at the MTC. There are 23 of us missionaries flying out to Arkansas
on Tuesday. As far as I know the three of us are the only ones going
spanish speaking.
It is so hard saying goodbye to everyone. It feels like
everyone I have met here I have known for years. It is going to be so
hard to say goodbye on Monday when they all leave. It is crazy to think
that in a week I will be in Arkansas and sharing the gospel in a foreign
language. I never thought I would be serving a mission and it has been
one of the hardest things I have done. It has been extremely challenging
but on the bright side I KNOW that what I am doing is going to be the
best thing in my life. I am going to be able to give more service than I
ever could have given if I decided to stay. The people you meet while
serving a mission change your life and I am hoping that I am changing
theirs.
One thing I have learned this week is that we need to change
our will to match Gods will. I prayed this week that my spanish would
improve and the next day I taught a 40 minute lesson in spanish all by
myself. I was grateful that I was able to effectively speak in spanish
and it wasnt until my teacher came up to us after the lesson and scolded
us because we didnt teach with the spirit. I realized then that what I
prayed for was not necessarily what was best for the investigator... it
was just what I wanted. That night I prayed that I would be blessed with
the things that I need in order to effectively teach the investigator
and help him feel the spirit during the lesson. That next day I was able
to teach an elderly couple in TRC and although my spanish wasnt very
good I felt prompted to share a personal experience and I started to cry
because I felt the spirit so strong. They commented on our feedback
card that that was the best lesson they had received because of the
spirit that I brought when I shared that experience. After that lesson
we taught another investigator and the same thing happened. I realized
that on a mission it doesnt matter how fluent you are in spanish..... if
you are trying your best than God will give us in the very hour what we
shall say. D&C 100 versus 5 and 6. He did that with me and I was
able to bring the spirit to the lesson and touch their hearts. I
realized then that I needed to change what I prayed for. I know God is
helping and blessing me. I have seen it all throughout the 6 weeks I
have been here. I just need to do my part and believe that he can make
me a great tool for missionary work.
I thought I would end this letter with part of my testimony
in spanish. Yo se que la iglesia es verdad. Tengo aprender muchas cosas
aqui en la CCM. Yo se que Thomas S. Monson es el profeta. Yo se que el
libro de mormon es inspirado palabra de dios. Yo se que este Jesu es el
Salvador y Redentor. Estoy agradecido por mi amigos y familia. Estoy
agradecido por mi amigos aqui en la CCM. Yo se que el evangelio de
Jesucristo es verdad. Sabe ese cosas con todas mi corazon.
Love,
Hermana Larissa Johnson