Week 5 - MTC

Hello!

I love your letter. It sounds like the family is doing great. You all are so awesome. I'm so lucky to be a part of you all. Congrats on the wedgie picking contest Abbey...I always knew you had it in you ;)  (a joke award that Abbey won in her drama class!)  And danny, enjoy the netflix while it lasts....I'm sure mom will crack the the whip. But that hike sounds awesome. We'll have to go backpacking together once I get back. And jacky jack! I'm excited for you to swim. Ya, I dont think you need to do the summer program either. That would be such a great skill to learn to discipline yourself at your age and swim on your own. And no...I have yet to drink any chocolate milk while being here haha. I'm too scared of gaining that infamous MTC weight! And that's awesome you read that book. I loved that movie. And yes, we should definitely go visit the volcanoes in Hawaii. I would LOVE that! start saving bud :)

And holy smokes my time here is flying by. Yes, I definitely wish I had a few more months here (and at the same time I still cant wait to leave). 28 days?! We taught another native couple at TRC, and although I was surprised at how much we could pick up, there was a lot I couldn't understand and me and Ngaih Jimuih are getting more and more nervous about the language once we leave haha. But I absolutely love the people we have met from there. They are soo happy and kind. We watched a "I am a Mormon" video of these girls in Hong Kong...Search Stella on mormon.org and watch the video that shows up. So I cant understand most of what they say, but I would guess we can understand like 30% of it! Which is exciting for me haha. try watching it without the subtitles. It's such an awesome language!

We had such an amazing week here. We heard from Elder L. Tom Perry on Tuesday. He spoke about the importance of companionships, and then thanked the senior couples for their service. He spoke for awhile about how much they love the senior couples, and how essential they are to missionary work. He said they need at least double amount of senior missionaries...so once Jack graduates, eh? :) And then he talked about how to improve our teaching skills. One thing he said that I thought was interesting though was that the Book of Mormon is our greatest missionary. There are more conversions by and through the Book of Mormon than any other way. However, with all due respect to the Bible and Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants stands in a peculiar way above all. There is no book on earth as important as the D&C because it contains the word of God to those that dwell here and now. With that said, not to misunderstand the value of the Bible or Book of Mormon. But he encouraged us to study and know the Doctrine and Covenants. Interesting, huh?

We were also extremely blessed and my district was visited by two members of the 70, Elder Martinez and Elder Wong. They sat in on our class to observe us and give us some counsel. Elder Wong is from Hong Kong, so it was really neat to hear him and his wife bear testimony in Gwon dung wa. And then the next morning in TRC, Ngaih Jimuih and I got to teach his wife.Very intimidating. And since they're part of the older generation, they say some sounds a little differently, but we managed to do ok. But they mainly spoke about the power of prayer. He said that he knows the language is very difficult for us, but through prayer Heavenly Father will help us. I have more on that in just a little bit. He also spoke about how blessed we are to be called to Hong Kong, and I feel so blessed to go there.

We last night were also visited by......Elder Bednar! Can you believe that?! And supposedly we have another coming on Tuesday! I dont know what's up, but we are so lucky! They probably know we need all the help we can get, but 7 since I've been here. I cant believe it. I've learned so much. We watched the Character of Christ talk Elder Bednar gave, and then he held a Q&A. It's amazing the depth of knowledge that man possesses. There were some great questions, and he gave such inspired answers. A few things he said though that I want to pass on...He said, "I prophesy that if you pray every day for the gift of tongues, and if you have your family pray for you every day for the gift of tongues, you will receive it." So...will you please keep me in your prayers? Because although I love this language, I do feel like I will never be able to know more than or bear witness better than a 6 year old. Which sometimes is good enough. But I am struggling with it, and could use all the help I can get.

On that note, this week when we met with Bobo, we had a great lesson. Bobo knows the church is true and wants to keep the commandments, but keeps falling short, and doesn't feel like she's good enough in one way or another. And when I step back and look at the feelings she is having, I can absolutely relate to those feelings. I struggle with things. I know what I should be doing. I have an image of this girl I want to be, and yet continue to fall short in one way or another. Sometimes I feel like maybe I just dont have it me. I remember specifically feeling this in one of my math classes, Topology. We had a small class, and all the guys in there were really so brilliant. I had never put so many hours or so much of my heart into anything, but I was falling behind. My proofs were never very sound, and I was constantly feeling disappointed in myself and my abilities. I honestly felt like an embarrassment to the math program haha. And I'm sure these are feelings everyone can relate to at some point in there lives. But I remember during general conference that year, Elder Holland gave an incredible talk called "Lord, I believe." He said, "The size of your faith or the degree of your knowledge is not the issue - it is the integrity you demonstrate toward the faith you do have and the truth you already know." That talk has really meant the world to me. It pushed me through the semester and rest of the math program. It pushed me on a mission. It gives me so much more confidence and helps me recognize the faith I already have. And it's given me a different perspective on what struggling means. I dont want to look at struggling in such a negative way. When we struggle, it doesn't mean we're failing. It shows that we haven't given up. Last night Elder Bednar said that the Lord's law is based on line upon line, precept upon precept. Just do a little better today than you did yesterday. So it's been a tender mercy to be reminded of all of this as I've been starting to struggle more and more with the language. Anyway, sorry for the long letter.  I just typed my little heart out haha. I love you! Tell Nana and Gump hi for me! I wish I could have been there for the fun family activities. But I'm glad I'm here :)

Love,

Hannah