WEEK #4 - MTC

Hai semua orang! (Hello everyone)

By the time I am 10 months into my mission, I expect everyone in this email list to be fluent Malay speakers, so I can just type my email in Malay ;) What a great week! In my first email, I talked about our investigator Hema. Well, it turns out she is actually my teacher haha. I am teaching "Kristina" and "Isabelle" who are also my teachers (Sister Anderson and Sister Yuen). It is a great experience to teach them, and it gives us missionaries a good feel for what to expect in Malaysia! During the first of the week, I mainly read from my notes. But now, I am able to go into the lesson with NO NOTES. I can promise everyone reading this email, that teaching a 30 minute lesson, all in Malay, over the course of three weeks, is evidence of God's hand in my life. No worldly form of instruction can ever compensate from spiritual help from above. I invite you all to ponder how God's hand is in your everyday life!

We are trying a new technique this week called "SYL," which stands for "Speak Your Language." You have to communicate only in Malay, unless you don't know how to say a word, then you can say that word in English. IT IS SO FUN AND HARD. I sound like a two year old, but it is such a thrill. Here is the picture my mom wanted me to do at the MTC! That is where Singapore is on the map!

Sunday was a wonderful day! For sacrament meeting (the hour of church where members are able to give a speech about a gospel principle), the topic is repentance. Simply put, God is perfect. We are not perfect, and God cannot live in an imperfect environment. So if we were to make one single sin (like saying something rude to your sibling, judging someone) during the course of our lives, we could never live with God again. Scary thought, right? That is why we need a Savior. Jesus Christ was chosen to be our Savior, and "atone" for our sins. To atone means to "pay for." Because we are human and sin, we can use Jesus Christ's atonement and be cleansed from our sin, if we try our best to follow Him. We follow Him by repenting. Repentance is praying directly to God, acknowledging what you've done, asking for His forgiveness, and trying your hardest to live more like Christ did. 

The scriptures say that: "He who has repented of his sings, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more." 

So this week, I challenge you all, including myself, to try a little harder, to be a little better! 

The sunday night devotional was great too! The speaker stressed that proper music can invite the Spirit into whatever environment you may be! So Elder Bowler and I decided to sing a hymn (a church song) all in Malay! He is a really good singer, so the Spirit was definitely there! 

Sister Yuen taught a powerful lesson in class! One thing that she said was: "Your family should not recognize you when you come back from your mission." Why do you think she said that? Because I will look more mature, or because I will grow 6 inches (I hope so), or because I will speak a different language? My family shouldn't recognize me because of the way that Christ has changed me. He knows who I can become, and it is His goal to get me there. So, hopefully I am not recognizable when I come back! 

I had the opportunity to host this week! Hosting is where you help the new missionaries who are coming into the MTC. You show them to their dorm and classroom, etc.  I was that new missionary just three weeks ago! I could totally relate to everything they were experiencing. But, the missionaries I hosted were super excited and are ready to serve the Lord! I put my sticker inside my journal for memories!

​As missionaries, we are given planners. Most missionaries print out pictures of church stuff and make that the front and back cover of the planner! This is what I did for mine:

On the right, is the Salt Lake City Temple in Utah!! It is the Temple that my parents were married in ;) On the left, is a picture of the Tree of Life! It is a story in the Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi chapter 8 (page 14). The Tree of Life represents God's love for us, and it may be hard to tell, but people are holding on to an "iron rod" that is leading them to the tree. The iron rod represents the word of God! ​So as we read the scriptures, we are getting closer to God! When we reach the tree, we want others to experience God's love too! That is the definition of missionary work. Your love for the gospel is measured by your desire to share it with others!!

Look! Some Malaysian money!

This email might be all over the place, so listen to this last thought:

I was asked this question: Why did you serve a mission? To which I replied, "Because I have been given much, I too must give."  

Saya mengasihi semua orang, ada bagus minggu! (Love you all, have a great week!)

P.S. give me ideas of what I should take pictures of to include in my next email!! 

hati hati!!

Elder McKayd LaRose

WEEK #3 - MTC

Selamat Tengah Hari! (Good Afternoon)

I don't have much time, so I will type quickly! This week at the MTC has been life changing! For class on Saturday, we finally were able to learn some grammar rules! So I realized that everything I ever have said was wrong haha. One time I was practicing how to talk to people in the street. My teacher was the 'stranger,' and I was trying to say "The Book of Mormon is the word of God." I actually told her that the Book of Mormon WAS God. Haha, my bad! She gave me an interesting look. Later that day we were asked to summarize the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ in one paragraph, in both Malay and English. Here is the English version:

God is our Heavenly Father and we are His children. He loves us and has given us the gospel to help us return to Him. The Atonement is central to God's plan. Jesus Christ willingly suffered for our sins, so that we can live eternally. The gospel blesses families and is given to us by prophets, who have authority from God. The greatest prophet we know of is Jesus Christ. He established His true and perfect church. Sadly, He and His Apostles were rejected. The Church was changed and truth was lost. Joseph Smith was visited by God and Jesus Christ and was told to restore Christ's church. The greatest evidence of this restoration is the Book of Mormon, which is another testament of Jesus Christ. Pray about the Book of Mormon with a real desire to know if it's true, and you will receive an answer.

If you'd like to see the Malay version, let me know :)

Sundays are always the best! Elder Bowler and I were able to teach Priesthood Meeting! We taught about understanding and recognizing the Spirit. In our church, we believe that God is our Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ is His Son, and the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit that testifies of God and Jesus. For some people, it is hard to understand how the Spirit confirms to us what is true. In the Book of Mormon, we read:

"But behold, that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually; wherefore, every good thing which inviteth and enticeth to do good, and to love God, and to serve him, is inspired of God." (Moroni 7:13, pg. 522)

If you have a good feeling about something that is right, then that is the Spirit telling you that what you feel is true! If you have a good feeling when gathering together as a family, that is the Spirit. Or, if you have a feeling of peace when reading the scriptures, that is the Spirit. 

But, once you have those feelings, it's your part to act on them! Become the person that God wants you to become! Hopefully that makes sense. 

The MTC raises 50 flags each morning around campus. We saw the Malaysian flag and had to take a picture! The Singapore flag was too stubborn to wave, so the next picture is a little wimpy haha.

Elder McKayd LaRose

WEEK #2 - MTC

Hello everyone!! Saya Mengasihi (I LOVE THE) MTC!
What a week! We were able to learn Malay for a total of 34 hours this week! I am now able to pray and bear my testimony in Malay! A testimony is simply an sacred expression of what you believe. I know that the Book of Mormon is true, and that Jesus Christ is our Savior! A testimony could be as simple as that :) The language is challenging, but as I rely on the Lord, the language becomes less of an assignment and more of a quest. On Saturday, we had our FIRST investigator!  We had to teach our message all in Malay. Me and my companion Elder Bowler made a mistake, though. We didn't ask yes or no questions. Instead, we asked her questions like: "How has religion influenced your life?" Or, "What do you think the purpose of this life is?" They sound like great questions, right? Well, if we could respond in english they would be! Our investigators name is Hema, and she responded with a really long answer that we had no clue what she said. She received a lot of blank stares from us! This is the aftermath of our first lesson:
We were practically dead! But, it was a great lesson and we were able to feel the Spirit!

On Sunday, we were loaded with spiritual lessons and activities throughout the day. The Sabbath is called the "day of rest," right? Ya....FROM TEMPERAL THINGS! We don't get a break on Sunday. But to be honest, how can we afford a "break" in the gospel? The Savior didn't say, "Come Follow Me...but you can take a break if your tired, or if there are other things you want to do." 

John 17:3 says, "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." We need to live the gospel for eternity!

For church, the topic was obedience and agency! Agency is simply freewill. It's the ability that God has given us to choose for ourselves, good or bad. 

I like to think of agency as a gift. How would you feel, if you made a gift for someone, and they either didn't use it, or just threw it away? That is how our Heavenly Father feels when we choose bad instead of good. If we follow Jesus Christ, and live a life that is pleasing to God, we will use our agency or freewill righteously. 

Of course, we all mess up. But there will always be a way to repair that gift that God has given us. Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we all can be cleansed from our sin and guilt. Jesus Christ willingly suffered and payed for our sins, so that we can keep trying and progressing. 

Here is one of my favorite quotes: "Is what your living for, worth Christ dying for?"

On Sunday night, we listened to a talk (aka speech) given by an Apostle of our Church, Elder David A. Bednar. It is called "The Character of Christ." I encourage you all to read or listen to it. It changed my perspective on life, and what the "pure love of Christ" really means (Moroni 7:47, page 524 in the Book of Mormon). Another leader of our church, Elder Neal A Maxwell stated, "There would have been no atoning sacrifice without the Character of Christ." It truly means that we turn out, instead of turning in. When we are having a bad day, when we struggle, when we are upset, we tend to want people to feel sorry for us. That is turning in. But what did the Savior do? When the Savior was on the cross He said to God, "forgive them, for they know not what they do." Jesus Christ just performed the Atonement, was given a crown of thorns, and was rejected before men. Instead of turning inward, He turned outward and loved the very people who mocked and scorned Him. When you turn in, you are selfish, self-centered, and self-observed. Turning out, like Jesus Christ did, includes selfless love, service, and compassion toward others, in the midst of personal tribulation. True conversion comes when self turns to self-less. After the devotional ended, I just wanted to sit there for another hour. It was really an amazing talk. 

On Monday, we started the day of right by doing some service at 6:25am! We had the full privilege of vacuuming 15 of the MTC's chapels haha. We then were able to go to the Provo Temple!

 

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I was also notified that our district (group of 8 missionaries) have the chance to clean the Temple! This only happens once a year, and is such a special and sacred event. The Temple is no ordinary building. It is not even a regular church. The Temple is the House of the Lord. Being able to maintain it to preserve the Spirit felt there is a huge honor. 

Tuesday was wonderful! Elder Bowler and I decided to sing in the MTC Choir. There were over 700 MISSIONARIES THERE. The power that those voices had was touching. We sang the song, "Where can I Turn for peace?" I ask you know, where do you turn for peace? What helps you be happy? It may be your favorite TV show, a game on your phone, or a best friend. But there is a different between happiness and joy. Happiness is temporary, but joy is lasting. I turn to the Savior to experience joy. I turn to my Redeemer for peace. It is a beautiful song, and we were able to sing it in front of the entire body of missionaries at the MTC, including some general authorities!
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During the rest of the week, we really focused on teaching Hema. We taught her about the Plan of Salvation. Have you ever wondered, "Where did I come from? Why am I here on earth? What will happen when this life is over?" We taught her that we lived with God as His children before we came to this earth. We were taught about the gospel and knew Jesus Christ volunteered to be our Savior. While on this earth, we are to experience joy!! That joy is found by following the example of Jesus Christ, and to experience the eternal blessings that come from being apart of His true church. During class, we read 2 Nephi chapter 31 in the Book of Mormon (pg 112). This chapter talks about the doctrine of Christ. Doctrine is more than just information given by the church. It is truth established by the Lord since the beginning of time. Our purpose as missionaries is to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. Jesus Christ is the only way that we can return to live with our Father in Heaven, and it is through those steps that we will have eternal life. It was cool to read it all in Malay. The Holy Ghost can speak to anyone's heart, regardless of what language they speak! I witnessed that this week when feeling the Spirit even though I didn't understand most of what was being said.
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I cannot wait for another week full of experiences to share!! Love you all, and I will see you later! Hopefully all the pictures came through! Met up with Monticello friend, Talon Black in the MTC!

Jumpa Lagi :)

Elder McKayd LaRose

WEEK #1 - MTC

Selamat Datang MTC! (Welcome to the MTC)

Hai, everyone!!

This is the first email I am sending out! I am super exited to share with you my first experiences at the MTC. For those of you who don't know, I am not in Singapore yet. For the first two months, I will be at a Mission Training Center (MTC), that helps us become missionaries. We learn how to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ, and for me, learning Malay as a new language! My emails will be seen as a travel log, but will be focused on the most interesting and important experiences.

Before I even arrived at the MTC, I got to see my brother Kyler who is on a mission in Colorado! Originally, my parents told me i'd be seeing my brother later on in the evening this past Monday. They told me we were waking up at 5:15am (having gone to bed at 2:00am the night before), to go hike with some friends. Well those "friends" happened to be Kyler and his companion! A companion is another missionary that is always with you. It was a wonderful surprise.

We hiked up a place called the Incline, which is a mountain that gains 2,000 feet in elevation from bottom to top. The entire way up the mountain were steps, some having a 45 degree incline for the next hundred feet!

It was great to be able to catch up on the past two years! It was a little weird seeing him right next to me. It has only been through skype that I've seen him. For all those ladies out there, he is handsome as ever, and is a returned missionary!

I got to spend the rest of my time in Colorado with Elder LaRose! I got to be with him and his companion, Elder Johns, at his apartment. In the morning we got to participate in the fourth of July parade! There were 40 or so missionaries walking the streets of Colorado handing out candy and pass along cards :) Pass along cards are simply little cards that have the website "www.mormon.org" on them. When people go to that website, they are taught all about our beliefs! If you haven't already, go check out that website! It will bless your life. There was one time where I got a Book of Mormon, and loaded a whole bunch of candy on top of it. I handed it to the nearest Singaporean-looking person. It was tons of fun!

The hard part was saying goodbye. I got to see him for two days, and then I won't see him again for another two years! He is a wonderful brother, and has been the greatest example to me and our siblings.

I was privileged to have my parents drop me off at the MTC. We got to visit the Provo Temple before saying goodbye. They have done so much for me over the course of my life. They have not only made me what I am, but who I am. They acted like I was dying, so yes they made my cry a lot haha. I am glad that I have parents who understand the purpose of a mission. and the responsibility I have to help others not only know who Jesus Christ is, but follow Him by being baptized and confirmed into His true Church. I love the quote that says a missionary is "someone who leaves their family for a while, so others can be with their families forever."

My view from the MTC - the Provo Temple

The MTC has been a bit of a blur! The first moment we got there, I received my name tag! I felt such calming power come to me as I put the name tag on! I am an official representative and emissary of Jesus Christ. This is my calling for the next two years. I will serve faithfully. Look, it is a Malay name tag!

We first went to our classroom, and our teachers did not speak a word in English. It was all in malay! So I sat there for about an hour, only recognizing the word "Elder" and "Sister" haha. My name is "Elder LaRose." Elder and Sister are titles, and are another word for "teacher." I felt so lost and confused, but I knew it is what the Lord has set for me to do!

My companion Elder Bowler from Las Vegas, Nevada

My District, along with my Branch President and His counselors

After our class time, we went to orientation. The mission president of the MTC greeted us, and we sang "Called To Serve." It is one of the greatest hymns we have about missionary work!

One thing I liked about the orientation is the new formula I learned.

This is a false formula: me + more = Christlike

This is the correct formula: me + Christ = more (more love, more trust, etc.)

No matter how hard we work, the greatest amount of energy needs to be focused on relying on our Savior. It is then that we can become as He is!

After the orientation, we had dinner. Don't worry mom, I didn't eat any junk food :)

We then went to a classroom and taught a "fake" investigator. An investigator is just a person who is interested in strengthening their faith and love in Jesus Christ. We teach them the proper way that they can grow in their beliefs! People were struggling with a belief in God, how families can be forever, and other things. The most important thing we shared with each of these investigators is the love that their Heavenly Father has for them.

We met our branch president on Thursday. A branch president is the presiding authority over a congregation. Most would think they are a Priest or Pastor in other Christina religions. Every sunday we will have church, and He will lead the meeting. I was assigned to be district leader over my district! A district is just a small group of elders that are going to the same mission. There are 8 in our district. I am in charge of being the mailman (giving the elders their packages and letters from home), and conducting meetings. I will also be helping those in my district with whatever physical, emotional, or spiritual needs they have.

We finally ended the night with unpacking! Today is now Friday, and I am still not unpacked haha. We are learning how to pray in Malay, and I am excited for Heavenly Father to help me learn the language!

Oh ya, I almost forgot again. IT WAS MY BIRTHDAY YESTERDAY!! I remembered it was my birthday when I was at dinner haha. I guess that is a good sign, I am fully emmersed in the work! Thank you to all who send me letters, it means a lot! And thank you family for trying to fatten me up while at the MTC. Krispy Kreme, cookies, packages of cookies, and candy. I will definitely need to share with everyone.

Love you all, and I will send another email next Friday!

FAREWELL

Packing was a nightmare. We were up till 3:00am trying to get everything I owned into two suitcases. It was brutal, but we finally got it figured out! We left that morning as a family to the airport. Unfortunately, Keldon and Londyn couldn’t come out to Utah, so I had to say goodbye to them there. It was really sad. They are amazing siblings and I have definitely grown with them! I love them so much. The airplane ride was good, Mom and Dad were on either side of me. Before going to the MTC, I got to spend time with Kyler! That will be in my next entry :) This is a very scary but also exciting time of my life! I love my family!