Week #4 - MTC - What a Week!!

Hola Familia,

Thank you for the wonderful package this week. I really appreciate it!


A couple of wonderful things happened this week!  Our whole district has been having problems not just with the language but other stuff as well. Last Monday our whole district didn't study language study when we were supposed to and instead recieved priesthood blessings of comfort. I asked an Elder Gehoski to do mine. In my blessing he said that I would learn the language, that Heavenly Father knows me, loves me, and is proud of me. He also said that my burdens will be lifted off my back as I have been feeling them lately. This blessing was something that we all needed to have because it not only strengthened our district but made us better missionaries. 

On Tuesday, you will not guess who came to devotional. Before I tell you, you should know that we usually already know when we get into the auditorium where the devotional is being held, who is speaking.  But this time they didn't tell us beforehand.  So I guessed it was someone big and I mean BIG!  It was ELDER RICHARD G. SCOTT. He is a wonderful man and a great leader of the church. He talked about prayer and how we can be closer to our Heavenly Father. Some of the things he said were; to never feel unworthy to pray. Prayer is a sacred gift (never thought about that before.)  And make sure you to thank Heavenly Father that we CAN pray. Prayer is a personal relationship with our Heavenly Father.  One of the best things that actually happened at this devotional though, was Elder Scott pronounced a apostolic blessing upon all the missionaries that could hear his voice. When I think of that, it is like Elder Scott put his hands on each and every missionaries head. He blessed those that are learning a language that they will master it.  He blessed us that our mission will be a rich and rewarding experience.  And that it will bless the lives of our families to come. The Lord has called us to succeed and not fail. He wants us to grow and discover things about ourselves that we haven't learned before.  Most of the time, when we recieve answers to our prayers it is not on our knees it is in the quiet moments. We need to remember to pray, even when we feel like we can't.  Heavenly Father has called us to succeed gloriously. It was a talk that I really needed to hear.

As I have been here, I have felt the Spirit.  Sometimes, it is so hard to recognize it because it comes in so many different ways; whether it be through emotions, feeling peace, or chills up and down my body. 

I finally understand why we need to teach our investigators the way we do. Our purpose is to invite others to come unto Christ through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His atonement, repentence, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. If you picture a staircase the first step is faith, second-repentence, thrid-baptism, fourth-laying on the hands of the gift of the Holy Ghost, fifth- enduring to end. So, this week, we are going to teach our progressing investigator that we have now, about faith because that is the first step in the conversion process.  I really love personal revelation.  It's such a great tool. 

I'm doing really well so far and it has been a good week.  There are struggles with being a missionary but you just have to pull yourself up and keep doing the work. 

I did receive a letter from Elder Larsen on Monday. I was very excited. He is doing well and has been training for the past seven weeks. He has been teaching a lot. He told me that in the next seven weeks they expect five baptisms which is really good. He told me about one of his investigators named Devon who contacted them because they he has been going to church for three weeks, read the Book of Mormon all the way up to 2 Nephi, and was ready to have the gospel in his life. He took the lessons and got his baptism moved up a week because he was so ready. After his baptism, he got the priesthood the next day.  That week he went to the temple and did baptisms for the dead.  Then he was called to be the 2nd counselor in the Sunday School. I'm so proud and excited for the work that elder Larsen is doing in St. George, UT. 

As for stuff I need from home, I would really like my heart rate monitor, letters from my siblings because i miss hearing from them and any other stuff you can send me if you want to.

I can't believe I only have two and half more weeks at the MTC.  It has surely flow by. I only have 17 more months of my mission, weird. 

We get to go to the temple today which is way fun.  I started reading the Old Testament and am gaining so many insights. 

That is so exciting for Sydnie.  I will start writing Blake about some of the experiences that have happened here.  It is so amazing!   

On P.day now, we have 60 minutes instead of 30 to write to family. They did change the email policy so you can write friends too.  But I'm going to wait until CA to see what the mission president says.

Want to hear some funny stuff?  Well one of the Hermanas and I don't like to wait for the laundry machines. So we got up at 3:45 this morning to go do our laundry.  It was totally dark. It was way funny!!  She said,  "You Only Live Once at the MTC might as well have fun while we're here!" 

I did get the letter from Sister Williams today. Tell her thank you from me.  It really did bring my spirits up. I get Dear elders every day and can only read my email on Friday in the allotted 60 minutes. 

I'm so excited that Kellie is loving volleyball. Oh, one good thing that will happen is that I will get to call you from the airport on May 6th, so look forward to that.  I will give you specifics in the next couple of emails.  I get to leave before Mother's Day, which means I get to call you again on Mother's Day.  Twice in one month!!  

The food here is still gross but I still eat it, because if I don't, I will run out of energy and go into starvation mode.  I really love the fitness center they have here on the MTC campus. I lifted weights the other day and totally tore my muscles, like a good tear.   I love that soreness because it means I actually worked hard. I can tell I gained a little bit of weight.  But the hardest thing for me is going from counting calories to not counting calories at all because of all the cafeteria food. I can't wait to get back to making my healthy smoothies in the field and actually knowing and being in control of what I am putting into my body. 

I love to pray.  It takes me about ten minutes each night to say my prayers in english because I am so grateful for so many things. 

I love y'all, the gospel is true, read the scriptures, pray!
I keep y'all in my prayers! 

Love your,

Hermana Fitzpatrick

(Kenzer Lou)