MTC Week 9 - Off to Australia

In a few hours I will be leaving the MTC to begin the next chapter of this journey. I'm so excited. I bought a Book of Mormon and my goal is to give it to someone in the airport. I am just hyped to share this message with everyone in the world. I'm not afraid to share the truth with anyone. I know how much it will bless their life and I just can't wait to get to Australia and get to work.

This last week at the MTC was full of awesome experiences. The first one I want to share is about Trump. I got a picture with him this week, and I finally learned, after my 2 months here, what his story is. It was honestly a really humbling experience. I've been making him a bit of a topic of humor during my stay at the MTC and never really knew who he really was. However, what I learned was really inspiring.

Trump's real name is Bruce Nielsen. He is a missionary. He is not called to be a missionary but he is a true disciple of Christ and just has a sincere desire to share the gospel with others. He served his mission over 30 years ago and is still going strong. In his free time, he just goes and invites others to come unto Christ. When he moved to Utah years ago, he was worried about his kids. None of his neighbors were members of the Church and he wanted his children to be able to have some friends to play with who also shared beliefs in Jesus Christ. So, Bruce Nielsen went up and down the street and invited all of his neighbors to church. Eventually, they accepted the invitation and now are all members of the Church and have accepted the gospel. He just loves to share this message, wherever he is. He has a book thicker than the Bible. Each page in the book is dedicated to one family or individual that have accepted the gospel through his efforts. I was really humbled and inspired. Not called as a full-time missionary, Bruce Nielsen is a shining example of what a disciple of Christ looks like. Someone who loves the gospel so much that they are just bursting to share it. I want to be more like him. And it explains a lot about his behavior. He is always looking for what he can do, who he can help. This explains why he is always walking around doing things that it seems no one told him to do. It's because no one did. He just does it because he wants to and because he wants to help. What a great example. I'm still not sure what his calling is, but what I learned is that it doesn't matter. We can serve with our whole heart wherever we are. I hope we can all be a little bit more like Bruce Nielsen.

Our last few classes were a lot of fun. Our teachers told us a lot of mission stories and experiences and just got us really excited to go into the field. I feel like I've been here a long time, but it's flown by. I can remember the first day like it was yesterday. But when I look back to who I was, I feel like I have truly changed. This is a natural result of giving your life over to the Lord. He takes you and makes you better than you could make yourself. I have grown in lots of ways. My Chinese is coming along well. I was called up to give a talk in Church on the spot and I was able to give a fluent explanation of the importance of baptism in our lives. The words just flowed, I didn't even have to think about it. It was encouraging to see all the native Taiwanese Elders in the back smiling and nodding- they must have understood what I was saying.

I can also feel the Lord filling me with love. My capacity to love others has simply grown, and I delight in the service of others. I have a lot of work to do, but I know that God is by my side and He is taking my efforts and making me better every day. Another way I've grown is that I can now get my entire wrist above the basketball rim. Slam dunks incoming.

Here is a journal entry about another interesting event from this week:

Today in class things were winding down, it was one of our last classes at the MTC, and everyone was just getting ready to leave. The energy was pretty low and everyone was just excited for dinner in an hour. Then we went into the hall for a water break. Everyone was chatting and talking when we heard some groundbreaking news from another district. I don't know who decided to let it out this way but it was definitely the most dramatic way to do it. The Sisters come running up yelling 'WE'RE NOT GOING TO HONG KONG'. There were surprised faces, confusion, and tears when 2 missionaries in my district learned that because of the protesting going on in Hong Kong, they are being reassigned for the foreseeable future. The place they had been dreaming about, praying for, and learning to love was now ripped away from them unexpectedly. The place they read on their mission call was no longer their destination. An entire district of Cantonese missionaries going to Hong Kong were seen sitting in their classroom in a solemn circle, trying to process the news. The teachers were trying to simultaneously reassure everyone as well as get them to focus on learning Chinese, which now was the last thing on anyone's mind. The Hong Kong missionaries were told that they could learn where they were being reassigned to tonight. One Elder already found out and exclaimed to everyone 'I'm going to Ogden Utah'. We couldn't help but wonder how much Cantonese he would be speaking there.

Later, we all followed the one Elder in our district down to the travel office to learn where he was going. We waited out in the hall and saw his expression as he heard 'Idaho Falls'. Very different from Hong Kong. We respect all these missionaries' attempts to have a good attitude about what the Lord has in store for them. They've all been really excited about the new opportunity and are committed to working hard in their new assignments. And when they finally get to go back to Hong Kong, I'm sure that it will be a sweet reunion.

We had new missionaries again this week from all over the world. Once again it was a balancing act trying to speak to this native Brazilian. My companions and I ended up using Google Translate- we would speak Chinese into my phone and it would turn into Portuguese for him. He told me the rice was 'too sweet' so I gave him some salt and he poured it all over the place.

Another one of our new missionaries was Elder Finland's friend from Finland. This new Elder remembered Elder Finland, and told us that when he met him he never would have expected Elder Finland to serve a mission. His English wasn't perfect but what I understood was that apparently they met 5 years ago at an out-of-control disco party. If anyone knows anything about Finnish culture, maybe you explain this one.

I am glad I know some Spanish as well, it's been a lot of fun speaking Spanish to other missionaries.

I saw a true miracle this week. There's no debating it, God's hand is in our lives all the time. Here's my journal entry from that experience.

I am touched. One Elder from our district was called to the office and came into class late. We didn't know what it was about. We started reading the scriptures and were debating between a few different sections. We chose Moroni 8 which talks about little children and how they don't need to be baptized. We began to read, and after a few minutes, the one Elder who had left came back in and sat down. He didn't tell us what happened but he looked happy. We continued reading in a circle.

He read a verse: "But little children are alive in Christ, even from the foundation of the world; if not so, God is a partial God, and also a changeable God, and a respecter to persons; for how many little children have died without baptism!"

He stopped, looked up at all of us and calmly and humbly told us that he really liked the verses, because he had just found out that his 4 year old cousin had passed away. He knew that his cousin would go to live in the celestial kingdom and he would see him again. He said it was exactly what he needed to hear at that time.

We looked at each other without knowing what to say. There was an overwhelming spirit in the room as we realized how mindful God is of His children. The fact that we were prompted to read those scriptures right when this Elder found out that news was a miracle. He came in literally right when we were reading that. I know that God is mindful and loving of all of us. This was so amazing. And I am in awe of this Elder. His faith and his trust in God was an absolutely inspiring example. I am moved and my heart is full.

I was also really touched when all the newer missionaries wanted a picture with me before I left. Many came and asked for advice the last few nights or just wanted to share their goals and aspirations with me. I was able to share a lot of insights from my time here at the MTC, and I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to be a Zone Leader and really have a positive influence on these missionaries. I look forward to continuing to serve others, whether missionaries or not.

I know this is Jesus Christ's true Church. I'm going across the ocean to go talk to people in a language that is not my own so that I can share this message because I know how much it can help them. It will change their lives just like it has changed mine. I'm blessed to have this time to serve the Lord and see these miracles.

Another thing I will add is my story about Elder McGuyer. He is awesome and an inspiration to me. He has one hand and his favorite scripture is 'let not your left hand know what your right hand doeth'. He is insanely talented and athletic. And we played the piano together too. Whenever we play basketball he elbows me a lot

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