A mission should not be the highlight of your life but the foundation for the rest of your life

Hey family and friends!

I love it here at the MTC during this wonderful Christmas season. It was snowing a little today and it left a nice little amount snow on the ground which made me think of my white Christmases at home in VA!

It has been a crazy week but lots of uplifting moments and memories. We are receiving our new missionaries tomorrow. 19 total and 4 of them are sisters. One of them is going to the Belgium mission Chinese speaking. President Baker said it is the first one that he has first heard of going to Belgium! The mandarin speakers are everywhere I guess.

 Last Tuesday we were able to hear from Elder Hallstrom of the 70. His talk was really powerful and it really reminded me of why am I here on a mission.

He talked about how it is my choice where or not this mission will change my life. I want this mission to change my life so I will be 100% obedient to receive all the blessings I can.

He also talked about how we need to expect to get answers which I really liked because sometimes I think I will not get an answer so I don't because I am fearful.

I need to have what I want my investigators to have. That is why I am here at the MTC to gain a better testimony myself. I can only convert people to the level of my conversion.

I am going to choose to be happy! I am pretty good at this one but there is always room for improvement. Don't let other people determine your happiness!

He also talked a lot about sometimes missionaries don't progress because they put limitations on themselves. It is not God but their own fears and worries. I really felt like he was talking to me during this. I have hit a wall with learning and it is because I am scared of not being good enough. i am scared that I won't be able to learn this language which is foolish because God is on MY side. He will help me!

Elder Hallstrom also stated "A mission should not be the highlight of your life but the foundation for the rest of your life"

I agree! The mission is teaching me great study skills of the scriptures, language, doctrine! I am becoming a scholar I feel like!

In our district meeting afterward we talked about what we all learned.  I talked about how my friend told me the MTC is a refiners fire for the missionary. God is burning off all my sharp edges and is smoothing them.

I need to learn as much vocab as I can because then God can steer me in a wider direction.

 

Our progressing investigators are doing great! (These are our teachers who take on roles of people who they taught and we teach them now) We are finally connecting with Pan which is good because we have visited with him 6 times. He is doing awesome! She quit drinking tea without any problem. This was our biggest concern with her.

I was reading in Jacob 7 I like how in verse 7 it says " I could not be shaken". i want to be like Jacob. When someone comes and tries to shake me I want to be firm in my beliefs!

On Sunday for Relief Society Sister Elaine Dalton CAME!!!! It was amazing! She really focused on how one virtuous woman can change the world! I as a sister missionary am part of the change that can happen in the world. She showed us a cool youtube video of a flash mob in a California mall but it was all Christmas music! It was amazing to see all types of people stop and listen! you should try to find it!

I am doing a lot better this week! I am re focused and ready to learn. I have felt that because I have so much potential Satan has been really trying to get me down. I will not let him win so I have kept my chin up! I can do this! I have been promised so many blessing and they will come but I first have to work on the input and let God take care of the output!

Today I was talking with the worker in the mail room and he asked me where my family lived. I gave him a confused look and then he asked again and it clicked. My English is going but my Chinese is improving LOADS! Sometimes as I read back over my journal I think this doesn't make sense because it is in English grammar. I am sure that you have noticed that in my letter. Oops

I am so excited to go to Taiwan. I only have 5 weeks left and I feel the pressure to learn the language! I am starting to fel a real love for these people. I am feeling a genuine care about them and their needs as I am teaching these progressing investigators. I want to help them so badly and when they don't do their commitments I am sad because I am just trying to help them better understand the gospel!

I love this church! I love being a missionary during this Christmas season! The spirit is so strong here. The feeling I get while being here is one of peace and joy. I am constantly being reminded of the reason for Christmas. Christ was born as a baby to die for me and my sins! Oh how my heart is so happy and grateful for him!

The 12 days of Christmas are going great. No one is even guessing it is me! The boys I mean Elders are all like it has to be one of the girls! It also helps me not focus on myself but on others!

This work is not about ME it is about others and how I can bring them this message of hope faith and love.

I love this church! I know it is true! I hope we all remember the reason for the season. It is all about that baby who was born in a manger who came to atone for all of our pains suffering sicknesses and afflictions. Read Alma 7: 11-14.

Love,

Sister Latimer

Lei jie mei

The Reason For The Season

Hello family!

This week has been AMAZING! So many spiritual experiences and so many answers to my prayers.

Sunday Sister Reeves from the Relief Society general presidency came and talked to us. She talked about how no one can leave a mission the same person they came as. Every single missionary’s life will change for the better as a result of their service on a mission. That really hit home for me. I feel the change inside of me and I love it. This is the best thing I could be doing for my life right now. I am becoming the person God wants me to be and nothing could be better. :)

Monday in class Brother Anderson shared a letter with us from one of his investigators. This man had made some mistakes and is slowly making things right and is starting to read his scriptures more. AS he read that we could all feel the love that Brother Anderson has for this man. He wanted to read this to remind us why we are here learning the language. A love for the people starts by learning the language. You need to feel the words you speak not just say them. It really reminded me that there are people in Taiwan who need this gospel and I need to know the language to help them! :) Brother Anderson said from this point on it's up to us to work harder. He can help us learn new things but we have to use it on our own to remember it! How true is that. So we are making goals as a district to SYL MORE!! ( Speak your language)

So Monday in class we read the BOM together but for the first time in Chinese! The spirit was so very strong! We even talked about it in Chinese! Strong testimonies were born about what we had read and I realized the spirit has no barrier to languages! You can feel the spirit no matter what language you speak! I love the fact that I am learning Chinese!

Sunday President Baker gave a talk about how lucky we are to be learning Chinese! 20% of the world knows Chinese! How blessed am I to be a part of helping these people and we have only scratched the surface!! He read us some of David O McKay’s dedicatory prayer at Tiananmen Square in China! There was not a dry eye in the room. He is such a powerful speaker and when he speaks he commands everyone's attention. I love this church! :)

At this time I am reminded so much of the reason for the season. It's all about Christ. Being here is the best place to remember this. I am excited because a general authority who is well known will be speaking at our devotional. I will let you know next week who it is! :)

Our older generation left this morning at 4:30! I am so sad to see them go. I can't believe that I am at my 1/2 way mark here in the MTC! I don't feel ready at all! I feel 20 steps behind in my language study. But I know God will make up the difference when I am in Taiwan.

I went to the temple already and loved it! It gives me peace and rejuvenates me for the coming week. Also some sealing because we are going to go as a district one day and do sealings. So much fun!!

On Saturday we took our "investigator" to a "baptism." It was amazing. She got teary and said she felt the Spirit. All of the district has now set a date with her to be baptized. Sister Anderson and I have her date at the 6th of January and the boys’ dates follow a few days after. We are thinking of doing a group baptism. It is great to be able practice teaching an investigator. We treat them as real and are now attached to ours. We are doing great with our girl investigator. Our boy investigator is having a hard time, but last night we finally got him to pray after meeting with him 7 times!

Another funny story.

Elder Kime was in a lesson and told the investigator that next time they would bring the government but he meant to say husband! Also he said all the churches are true! We get a kick out of telling each other the mistakes we make in lessons! Laughing about it is the only way to go because we are all trying.

The church is true! I know that Joseph Smith is a true prophet. I know that God and Jesus Christ did in fact appear to him. I know that the BOM is true! I know that President Thomas S Monson is the living prophet today!

I love you all!

Remember the reason for the season!

Sister Latimer.

12/4/2012 - half way through the MTC

 Dear Family!

The MTC is so great! The spirit is always so strong here and I love being around so many people who have such a strong desire to serve the Lord. 

We are a little sad this week because the older generation is leaving next Tuesday which means that MY group will be the older generation. This marks my halfway point in the MTC. It makes me feel that I have not learned as much Chinese as I should. :( It's ok because I know it will come it will just take time and I need to learn to be patient.

I love Sundays here at the MTC. It is so spiritual and uplifting. I really understand the phrase just make it to Sunday. If you can make it to Sunday you will feel totally better after Sunday.

My roommates and I are getting so close. We have started to say nightly family prayers which have really bonded us together. I feel that unity is starting to build. One of the Sisters in my room Sister Burrows’ brother died while he was on his mission and his birthday was Monday. It was really hard for her but she made it through. Her brother went to Romania and both him and his companion died from carbon monoxide poisoning.  It was in the Church News.

 

I love gym time!! it is a great time to relieve stress and forget about Chinese. This past week I have jogged a mile twice with the help of my Cambodian sister Payne (she is going to Cambodia). I also have rowing competitions with the elders in my district. I usually lose but it is fun anyway. I have lost 8 lbs.

Today we are going to the temple which I love because it really lifts my spirits and helps me put things into perspective. I love the feeling I get when I am at the temple and the peace and reassurances I get while I am there.

Funny story from this week

So you have to know in Chinese there are 4 tones. So it's all about the tones and the right letters. 

So Mao is cat and yao is medicine. Sister Anderson sometimes says mao and I started thinking that but she would immediately correct herself.  So we are role playing with one of our zone resources teacher. I start because I know more conversational Chinese.  I ask him what he did that day and he told me that he was not feeling well so he had stayed inside all day.

I said, Ni chi mao ma? (Which means have you eaten a cat)

instead of

Ni chi yao ma? (Have you eaten medicine)

It took me a second to realize what I said but as soon as I did my companion and I could not stop laughing. Our teacher was trying to get us to be serious but we were having a laughing moment.

That is one of the many moments I experience here and think this is why I am in the MTC 12 weeks not 9 because I get medicine and cat mixed up. The good thing is that I try. That is really all that matters. I will get this language down!

It's been a rough week but not. There are times when I feel down and there are times when I feel on top of the world! I was thinking about it and realized that part of the problem is I need to have more faith in the Lord. I get really impatient and frustrated that I am not learning as much as I want to. I have to remember God sent me here and he will help me in that moment and time I need it. That will be in lessons.

I talked with President Baker and he really helped. He reminded me that patience is a choice. It's not that you run out of patience it's that you chose not to have patience. I am working on that.

Also my roommates and I love our happy thoughts. Every night before family prayer we read one. Each day the one we read seems perfect. I am so grateful you took the time to make those. They have made my days better and have lifted me up when I need it. The girls say that you are so thoughtful!!

I sometimes get discouraged and think I could be in school right now and it would be so much easier! I then think about how much I have grown and how I would not change this experience for the world! This is making me the person I WANT to be! I am so grateful for that.

I really have become comfortable here. I joke with all my zone and they joke right back. The Elders in the district have seen me at my best and worst and I have also seen them at their best and worst. We are a FAMILY!! WE may drive each other crazy but at the end of the day if any of them were in trouble I would do anything for them! I always thought that they randomly put the sisters in zones with elders, but after talking with the sisters it is no coincidence. Each sister feels that those Elders were meant to teach them! I feel the same way. I love all the elders in my zone but there will always be a special place in my heart for the elders in my Zone! We all want to meet up after the mission and want to be at each other’s weddings!

I need to focus on the here and now. That is hard I sometimes worry about what will happen after my mission! I need to remember that God will take care of me. All I need to worry about is being worthy and he will take care of the rest. Live in the present and quantinize it! I think that is how it is spelled!

I know this church is true and I am so glad that I have it in my life! I am grateful I have the opportunity to consecrate 18 months of my life to God. I know that this is where he needs me! I know he loves each and every one of us. I know that Joseph Smith is a true prophet! I know that Christ suffered for you and me! I love this church and am grateful for all the blessing I receive because of it!

Love,

Sister Latimer