May 4, 2012

Hey everyone!

 

I'm now almost two thirds of the way finished at the MTC! Time really flies here. It really doesn't feel like I've been here for over five weeks now. Everything is going really well, including Portuguese. I'm learning it a lot faster than I expected. I can speak better Portuguese after less than three weeks of study than I could speak German after a whole school year! I've taught a little less than ten lessons in Portuguese now, and they've all gone really well. Tomorrow, I have my first TRC (Teaching Resource Center.) I'm really excited for that. I will get to teach members from the community who come to the MTC to be "investigators." They are all really good at it, and it creates a really authentic feeling.

 

On Sundays, after the fireside, they screen Church movies, and old talks from General Authorities for the missionaries to watch. Last Sunday, I watched a talk that David A. Bednar gave during a Christmas devotional at the MTC a few years ago. I think it was one of my favorite talks that I've ever seen. It's called, "the Character of Christ." I don't know if it is available to the general public, but if you can, I really suggest listening to, or reading it. It is all about, as the name suggests, the Character of Christ. Elder Bednar said that what makes Christ so special, is that in situations where all of us would turn inward, and be selfish, Christ turns outward. He mentioned examples from the prayer in Gethsemane, and also from when He was on the cross. Even while Christ was hanging from the cross, He was ministering to the criminals next to him. He was always more concerned with the well-being of others, than he was for himself. There are other great examples of this that he mentioned, but I don't have time to type them all now.

 

Everything is still going really well here, and I am really enjoying myself. I love being able to spend sixteen hours a day studying, learning, and teaching about the gospel of Christ, and there is nowhere else that I would rather be right now. I love and miss you guys!

 

Sincerely,

Elder Day