Ahh I have so much to tell you guys from this week! I apologize in advance for the scattered mess that will be this e-mail. Andiamo!
As always, I have to start off by saying thank you to everyone for all the emails, pictures, dear elders, and packages! I love seeing all the pictures and videos of everyone. I was DYING at the video of Moo face trying to kiss Madden...literally laughing out loud in the computer lab. So great! All the pictures were so cute too! You know I love to see my little ones, so thanks everyone :) Mom, the package this week was perfect! Thank you thank you. I got the credit card but I haven't been able to try it out yet. I think it should work though. Thank you for the little cards you included, I absolutely love them. And needless to say I loved the cookies. Nothin beats 'em. Funny story actually - so we have been trying for the past 5 weeks to get Sorella Gluck (the Sorella from Germany) to like American sweets. We tried everything. The brownies, the BYU ice-cream, the cake. Nothing has done the trick. But after eating one of mom's cookies she said "normally I think Germany has the better sweets...but for these homemade cookies, I make an exception." So there you have it. Living proof that mom's cookies have the power to convert nations :) Also, I was thrilled when I got my very first edition of the Nelson News! So thanks for that one too.
This morning we had such a special experience at the temple. So one of the sisters in my district, Sorella Vickers, is incredible and has done literally hundreds of family names for the temple. And it gets better, her family is from Italy! So this morning we were able to do some of those names for her. The 6 sisters in my district got to do the initiatory and endowment session for 6 of those names who were sisters. I hope that makes sense. Gosh it was incredible. There really is such a special experience when you do temple work with family names. And it was so powerful to do all those names together, and to know that we were helping those sisters to be able to live together as a family forever. It just made me so grateful for my sisters and for the knowledge I have that we get to be sealed together forever. I love you guys!
That actually goes along perfectly with what our Devotional speaker talked to us about on Tuesday night. He focused his whole talk on the family, and how we need to be prepared to defend the family and teach the doctrines about it. Again, I was just filled with so much love and gratitude for each one of you. I honestly feel so blessed to have you guys! Thank you so much for your righteous examples. I look up to each one of you so much, and I am so grateful that I have the knowledge that we get to be together forever.
Speaking of devotionals, I actually got to participate in the fireside last night! I was part of the musical number. It was Sorella Sorensen and I, and two other Elders. One elder sang, one played the piano, Sorella Sorensen played the violin, and I...turned the pages. Key role, I know. Haha the Elder who played the piano even insisted that I was announced on the program and everything. So I was the first official page turner to ever be announced at the MTC. Then for the rest of the night as everyone saw Sorella Sorensen and I they would all say "oh my gosh...you're the sister who played the violin! and you turned the pages! Oh it was beautiful!" Haha the song they performed was Savior, Redeemer of my Soul. It was beautiful.
This week I learned a lot about teaching by the Spirit. To sum up, the key thing that I have learned is that in order to teach by the Spirit I need to be focused on the investigator and their needs. Sometimes when I teach lessons I tend to get nervous and anxious about what I am going to say. I want to be lead by the Spirit, so I focus on my thoughts and my feelings to try and listen to what the Spirit is trying to tell me. But the only problem with that is that my focus is on the completely wrong person! If I am going to be able to help people I need to forget about myself and just focus on them, and the Spirit will tell me what I need to say. I have already gained such a strong testimony of this here at the MTC.
Also, craziest thing happened this week. Drum roll please...we received our travel plans! Everything is all set. On February 19th at 8:10 AM I will officially be in Italy! What in the world?! I'll be honest, I'm a little bit nervous to be heading out. I still just feel like I have so much to learn! But I am excited to get to work in Italy. But I do have a confession. So this is our general flight itinerary - February 18th at 8:30 leave SLC. 2:15 arrive in Atlanta, GA. 4:36 leave Atlanta, February 19th at 8:10 arrive in Rome. And what was my first thought when I saw this? "Wait...we're leaving at 8:30?! How am I gonna get Cafe Rio??" Haha haven't changed a bit. But I do get to call from the airport! I need to buy the calling cards here at the MTC so let me know if people want to/are able to do that so I will be able to get them before I go!
Since this is my last week here at the MTC, I decided that I really wanted to focus my studies on the Atonement. I have told you guys before that my whole purpose in being a missionary is to invite others to come to Christ, but I can't convert anyone past my own conversion. So this last week here I want to strengthen my relationship with my Savior. I am also hoping that through learning more about the Atonement I will be better able to rely on it in my life, and that I will be able to feel a little less anxious about going to Italy. So, I would like to ask everyone to help me out. If you find something new/interesting about the Atonement in any of your studies this week could you send it to me? I would really appreciate it :)
Thank you all so much for everything that you do! I love you so much.
Arrivederci!
Sorella Marsh
our musical number group!
No comments:
Post a Comment