3/09/16
Holy cow where do I begin??? Okay, first off, mom, the big bag was a very, very good idea. Second off, Spanish is really, really hard but I know I can do it. It's getting so much better. It has been pretty weird here as far as weather goes, super super hot (I got burned kinda badly on my neck cause my hair was up that day...oops) and then it'll be like today and yesterday where it's super cold and crazy windy! I love it though. I wish you guys could all be here with me to experience it and see how pretty (and smelly) it can be!
We had some super funny moments as a district this week, got some good laughs in haha. XD My district is awesome. We all feel like we are a little family of our own (and all of us but Hermana Gucake are going to the same mission if i didn't already say that).
Also, i don't know if I said this already - in my sleep the first night apparently I kept repeating out loud, "trabajo...trabajo...trabajo" which means work work work!! looks like even in my sleep I know what's up. haha ;)
The first Sunday was awesome because I didn't have to speak haha ;) but this Sunday was Fast Sunday (oh and we fast for dinner and then breakfast here, so on Sunday we eat lunch right after sacrament) so we all had to bear our testimonies. I went up and started to do it in spanish and then all of a sudden my mind went blank. I felt like Elder Brown the day before in class when he couldn't speak spanish and yelled "THE GIFT HAS LEFT ME!". It is not a joke. El Don de Lenguas is real, hombre. So real. It is crazy. I am FAR from being perfect at spanish, but me and mi compañera can give whole lessons now with just a few notes and scriptures. I know the mission objetivo, moroni 10:4-5, the primera vision, and the invitacion ser bautizado all in spanish, and (on a usual day) can bear my testimony in spanish. No, itIs not very good spanish and i probably sound a lot like a five year old, but I can still do it! and that is a huge blessing.
Yesterday we had a devotional broadcasted from the Provo MTC to all of the other CCM/MTCs in the world. He talked about how a missionary is called and then went out into the audience and let people ask questions, then he answered them. The Spirit was so strong during that meeting, as it is during all of the meetings. I thought yesterday about how mom said when I was getting my patriarchal (WOOOOOW spelling...plus spanish keyboard...y'all know what i mean XD) blessing and how well the patriarch has to be living all the time to be that in tune with the Spirit to give those blessings and then I realized, we need to be living the same way on missions. We depend on the Lord for everything - where to go, what to say, when to do/say it, EVERYTHING, and that was a bit overwhelming at first to think about, but we are doing our best. And that is all the Lord can ask of us. There was something awesome said in one of our devotionals this past week - it was a broadcast from Provo by Elder Holland - and he said in effect, that the only question is "How much do you love the Lord?" and if you do love Him, "THEN FEED. MY. SHEEP." it was intense. but it was awesome. Got us all fired up and wanting to learn as much as we can. That is the biggest thing to remember. If you love the Lord, you will have a will aligned with His. If you have a will aligned with His, you will love all of God's children so much all you want is to give them the happiness this gospel gives you. When you have that love for the people, that is when el Don de Lenguas comes, because you are forgetting yourself and doing the work, learning the language, doing your best at everything so that you can be the best servant possible for your master. That is when you learn the language. That is when you speak with the power and authority of God. That is when you have His Spirit to always be with you. That is when you become who He wants you to be. I think that is another reason learning a language on the mission is such a blessing. You are forced to rely on God. You can't rely on your own knowledge and be prideful. You HAVE to be humble and you have to submit to the will of God because otherwise you will not be a successful servant. What kind of servant is told by their master to do something but then doesn't do it cause they think they know best?? A bad one...
Through it all, this has been a fabulous week. I've learned a lot about myself and about how God works, and I've learned to trust in Him in so many ways. Exact obedience my friends. If we strive to live our lives as perfectly as we can, repenting when we make mistakes, and constantly trying to be better, I know the Lord will bless us and work through us to help bring about His great and marvelous work. I know this gospel is true and that we are representatives of the Lord. I know this with all my heart and am striving my best to be more like Him. I would challenge you all to do the same. I love you all so so so much!! I pray for you everyday...please pray for the missionaries in the field and help their investigators to listen to the Spirit and allow it to teach them all things, because by the power of the Holy Ghost, we may know the truthfulness of all things.
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Love love love, Hermana Karra Gourley
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