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!
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!
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!
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.
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!
Elder McKayd LaRose
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