MTC Week 3

Malo Soifua! Hello!

I hope everyone has had a great week and has been getting more sleep than me :)) Going on week three at the Missionary Training Center and all is going well. The days are long but the weeks are so short, time flies when you’re having….fun? Okay, it’s a lot of work but we really do love what we’re doing which is the most amazing part about being here.

These days are full of miracles. Miracles with the language, within our companionships, with our lessons. We’ve been teaching lessons on the gospel of Jesus Christ in Samoan since day two but when we hit our week two mark this past Wednesday, we were no longer supposed to use notes while we are teaching. Which means somehow we are teaching in full Samoan…. MIRACLES I TELL YOU!

Our schedules are finally starting to sink in, we’re up from 6:15am-10:30pm everyday and when that “lights off” bell goes off we are like diving for our beds. We study and teach on the floors, barefoot, to prepare for the way we would in Samoa and it’s so fun. Two districts (or classes) left this week for Madagascar, Malagasy speaking, and those speaking Haitian Creole. As sister training leaders, my companion and I went to see them off as they left for the airport bright and early at 5:30am and it was incredible. Who the Lord calls He qualifies. After just 6 weeks here they are off and it opened my eyes to think, I only have 3 weeks left till that’s us heading out to Samoa! Ahhhhhh! But don’t worry, we play volleyball as a district each day preparing for the many games we’ll play with the Samoans.

We had some pretty sweet devotionals this week, Via Sikahema came and spoke to us about the influence we have on others (he played for BYU and the Cardinals and is currently a news anchor for the sports channel) and it was the neatest thing hearing from him. We all can be an example to others no matter who we are or where we came from. His upbringing was very different and hard and moved from Tonga when he was young but has been such a positive light in so many people’s life. It was very inspiring.

An interesting thought from this week that’s been weighing on my mind this week came from a sister in my district one night as we were saying “family prayer” in our residence. She prayed thanks for the hard day we all had that day as we taught our first lesson completely by ourselves, no notes. At first I was like what?! I felt so humbled by her saying that. But it really is through our trials and tests that we grow stronger and there would be no progression without them. I know that we are here to learn and to grow, and to push ourselves out of our comfort zone so that we can fulfill our purpose as representatives of Christ to the best of our abilities. So I’ve been challenging myself to feel more grateful for these days that are harder to get through because I know that I don’t walk this path alone and I will be made strong. Ether 12:37 says it so perfectly:

“And if men come unto me I will show up unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humbles themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have FAITH in me, then I will make weak things become strong.” – Ether 12:37

And I am weak! But I have faith. I challenge you to pick something that is hard in your life, see how through Christ you can be strengthened and give thanks for that trial! It’s amazing how you can feel. We never walk alone.

Don’t forget that!! I love y’all and miss ya tons!! Fa Soifua!!!

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Pics:

– The door to our residence

– The sister who we shipped off to the Marshal Islands this week! EEEEPPP

– A cold morning at the temple (we don’t have phones so we cant check the weather EVER)