Hey mom, I'm glad to get at least some mail. I haven't gotten any mail from my friends yet. I see all the other Elders in my district getting 1 and sometimes 3 letters or packages a day. I'm getting kind of discouraged in that aspect. Maybe God is just trying to teach me patience. I was excited to get a letter from Dad. I just mailed a letter to Josh and Cara today, so expect it in the next couple of days.
I can only e-mail, on Wednesday's (my P-day) and also write letters. I'm super busy here at the MTC. I love it though. despite the fact that I'm exhausted. I've learned more than I have in probably a year. Imagine what can happen in the two years I'm gone.
Figure I should tell you about my companions and my district. We are staying in the Addison Pratt building. My companion Elder Stainback is funny. I like him a lot. He's also our district leader and I District leaders' companion. So we're in charge of the other two elders we room with, (Elder Henrie and Elder Marcelo) I think you'd like Elder Marcelo a lot. He's super funny and makes me laugh every day. He's a story teller, he uses his hands to talk so it's more dramatic. He's just a comical person. And he along with Elder Stainback and Elder Henrie are going to the best mission in the world. The California Santa Rosa mission!!
The other 5 elders are going to serve in the 2nd best mission, the Arizona Tucson mission. Two elders in that mission I get along with famously. They're names are Elder Quist and Elder Childs. I'm going to miss them when it comes time to leave. The other 3 Elders in my district are Elder Handerhan, Elder Winger, and Elder Brown. They've had a couple of disputations among each other so my companion and I had to step in and try to resolve it. So far they're doing well.
My district is doing this new thing in the MTC called the Pilot Program. What we do is we have lessons during the day that teach us the doctrine, and then use what we learned in simulated investigator visits. By the time we leave the MTC we will have a total of 26 discussions. I feel it's good to do things that way because we get a feel of what it's going to be like in the mission field. We get the experience to start out with. So that's cool. I can tell I've grown because of this, and it's only been a week.
I'm so blown away about how much I've learned and how the Spirit works to help you in your preparation and teaching. My companion and I have prepared awesome lessons for "investigators" that we've taught. Some of the time we don't even get to the lesson. We talk about something completely different. It's amazing how the spirit works. I've never felt the Spirit so strong before. I love it!
I had the opportunity to give a priesthood blessing to 2 elders in my district, which drew us even closer together. We're like brothers to each other, every one of us. I love it. Elder Stainback is like my little brother cause I give him all sorts of crap and pick on him a lot. All in good fun though.
Thank you for the $10. I'll use it wisely. Tell dad thanks for sending my immunization records as well. Write me more! I love getting letters. When I got that letter from Dad it was like a huge weight was lifted. I like feeling like I'm not forgotten.
Anyway I'll let you go, I love every one of you and I urge you to study the Book Of Mormon as a family. I know it can help all of you draw closer together. I've used the Tree of life Vision found in Chapter 8 of 1st Nephi in most of my lessons to "investigators" then I invite them to read 1st Nephi 11 which explains the symbolism of that vision. Read that as a family and discuss it. I invite you to :)
