Last email from the MTC!!

Well a lot has happened this week. Let’s start with Tuesday. After I was finished emailing I went back to my room and read in the scriptures in French and English just trying to learn some French until it was time for choir. Last week the choir teacher told us that Tuesday was going to be special. I thought there was going to be an awesome speaker but when we got to choir there was a camera crew there. It was kind of weird but he told us that on the Saturday session of conference, you know how there is a little thing between the two sessions; they were going to discuss the MTC and how many missionaries are here now. So they asked us to sing this song and they filmed us and we are going to be in the thing! So be sure to watch for me. The speaker that night was not an apostle but was still a great speaker. His name was Scott D Whiting, of the Seventy, and he talked to us about swallowing our fears and having faith and how we have the Holy Ghost to comfort us and guide us so we just need to trust in the Lord. Wednesday I got a letter from Jared and Rachel and Tori and Garrett. It was awesome!! It totally helped me during the week and I am so grateful for them. Oh and Jessica, one of Derek’s friends came in to the MTC and it was fun to talk to her and find out where Michelle was going on her mission. I also saw Tasha Singer, she is a teacher here and it was cool to talk to her as well. The rest of the week was the same but Saturday I was preparing for our lesson with Yann and I was kind of stressing out because I was not ready. The Lord blessed me because we had a sub. It was an awesome spiritual lesson. I learned so much from him. His name is Fere Wilcox and he taught us about scriptures and how important they are and how Christ quoted scripture when he was tempted. It was awesome. He told us not to let our lack of faith limit what the Lord can do and that Satan is angry when the weakest member gets down on his knees. Sunday was awesome! Our choir teacher told us that next Sunday for Easter we are having some members of the 12 come speak to us! It is going to be great. Brother Allen spoke to us about our missions and it was funny and powerful. Monday was a regular day but I did get my travel plans!!! I leave the US April 1st. It’s a direct flight which is awesome!  I love you all so very much and keep up the great work at home.

Week 4

I am just so happy I can get your mail okay.  So this week has been the best week ever!  Tuesday after p-day we had a devotional like we do every Tuesday and Sunday night. I sang in choir and it’s a blast. We had Paul V. Johnsons of the Seventy come and speak to us. He asked where we will be in 2015 and we wrote some goals down for us. Then he told us how we can tell our investigators about Christ and how He loves everybody because He atoned for our sins and pains and died for us. It was a very powerful devotional. The next day we taught our teacher who has been pretending to be an investigator named Yann.  I spoke so much French! It has been coming so well to me. I am so thankful for the Holy Ghost for helping me with the language. But that night we had a sub come in because our night teacher was sick. We talked about Alma 31 in a mission way of how to pray and have charity. It was awesome and he shared some personal experiences with his mission and how it was hard but with the Lord we can overcome our trials and have the best experiences. Then we watched the Mormon Message Mountains to Climb and I recommend watching. It was amazing. The rest of the week was normal here we taught, ate, learned and we did service. Then it was Sunday already St. Patrick ’s Day haha. We wore green in our district. In sacrament meeting we learned about having faith in Christ and we talked in priesthood about the Holy Ghost compared to the force from Star Wars. It was awesome. Then it was Sunday devotional and Robert P. Swenson, director of missionary services, spoke to us. He asked about the reference of stones and rocks in the scriptures and he told us how we are all like sedimentary rocks and how by little pieces of faith and trails that pressure us we can learn experiences and form into this solid rock and be solid in the Church.. So yesterday we spoke French alllll day.  It was kind of hard but really fun. We are speaking French every day till we leave for France on the 1st of April it its coming so fast. We learned about the Holy Ghost and how we need to invite him by prayer if we want him in our lessons. We taught Valentine, she is our night teacher, as an investigator and we taught her about Christ and how he is so important to her and how she can overcome anything through Him. Well that leads today HAPPY  BIRTHDAY MOM!!!!!I hope your day was great!! I just went to the Temple. I only have one more Temple trip then no more for two years because the Temple in France it not yet built yet. And we are doing laundry. :(

Week 3

So this week was not so good. Tuesday when I got done emailing the family I went and cleaned my room and that was really great. It was so nice to just clean my room. Then Brother Adkitiaus spoke to us on the 3 kingdoms of glory. It was amazing. Then Wednesday I started to get sick. It was awful! I took some medicine and hoped it would go away. But the next day I went to the nurse to finish up all my shots and after I got back got this huge headache. I threw up and doing that in public bathrooms is nasty!! I got to sleep for a couple of hours and then I was fine. It was awesome. The rest of the days have been pretty much the same. I did hit a French block but my zone leader told me I was the best missionary he has seen. He said I work so hard and study so hard. He then asked me if I can pray in French, and testify in French, and conjugate verbs.  I said yes and he told that is awesome. That I have already met the branch president's goal for us. Ohhh my branch president is President Mangum. I don't know if he is related to our patriarch or not. He told me I met the Lord's goal as well. I just need to trust in the Lord and keep working hard. So gym time at the MTC is super fun! More and more French missionaries have been playing volleyball and right now we try and only speak French. It's so fun to hear everybody scream FRAPPE THE BALL!!!! Which means to hit the ball. It just makes my day. I love it. Sunday we had a devotional on our purpose and it was great. We learned how to connect with our investigators and how we can get them to connect with God. I am super excited to serve in France and hopefully the French are ready for me! Got a letter from Aunt Michelle and it was awesome, loved it. Love you guys and cant wait to talk to you later.

First pics from the MTC

We got a SD card in the mail from Elder Allen today.  Here are a few pics.

In class

The boys in front of the Provo Temple.

We are thinking this is Elder Allen and Elder Kochel

The trip to San Francisco

Thinking of Grandma Jones

where they ate lunch

Alcatraz

Golden Gate Bridge

Elder Allen and Sister McQuay!

Week two in the MTC

So a lot has happened to me in just one week!  After I emailed my family I had to go to dinner and then choir practice. It was so much fun.  We had a devotional that night and Elder M. Russell Ballard spoke.  It was amazing! He told us that we don’t need to stress ourselves because we grew up with the gospel and we know it. He stressed that a lot and he told us that the Lord has always trusted the youth of the church and he has all the trust in us. He also said we are a miracle and we need to love every minute of our mission. The next day I was sitting in class and I had to go to the travel office.  They told me that I was going to go to San Francisco on Thursday to visit the French government building for my visa.  I was super excited about that. On Wednesday’s new missionaries arrive and I saw Sister McQuay!! It was so much fun to see someone I knew from back home.

 Finally it was Thursday!! I had to get up at 4:30am to catch my flight. It was a total of 10 missionaries who went and we had so much fun. When we landed in California we went straight to the French building for our visas and I got to talk a little French. It was awesome! San Francisco weather was so amazing!!  I kind of did not want to go back to Utah hahah.  After getting our visas we asked our driver to take us to the Golden Gate Bridge.  It was really foggy but I could sort of see it, it looked so cool.  Then we went to pier 39 and ate food and we saw Alcatraz from there.  It looked so spooky with all the fog.  Before we left the MTC we were handed some pass along cards and we got to go around while sightseeing handing pass along cards to people and talking to them about the church.  I can’t wait do it in France!!  After that we went to the Ghirardelli chocolate factory and we got some chocolate. (Don’t be jealous Derek!)  It was delicious. Then it was back to the MTC and our little field trip was over.

 The next day was March 1st and nothing really special happened that day just a new month.   I found out I leave for France the 1st of April and there are a total of 30 missionaries going that day. The next day we got 2 investigators and Elder Kochal and I have been teaching them in French.  We also got a new teacher named Soeur Sandhervall.  She is amazing and so much fun.  Sunday was fast Sunday and the spirit was so strong in our fast and testimony meeting.  It was all in French.  We had a devotional where the Temple president came and talked about our investigators and the role of the Temple with them.  We also watched a broadcast of David A. Bednar called Characters of Christ.  It was soooooo goooood!  I learned so much and I know how to be the best missionary because of it.  I suggest you try to find it and watch it. The link is: http://www2.byui.edu/Presentations/transcripts/religionsymposium/2003_01_25_bednar.htm

Yesterday was just a normal day at the MTC nothing happened just learning and eating and teaching our investigators. Oh and we learned the first vision in French and I have it memorized!  Thank the Lord for that talent of mine. Today was another great p-day. We went to Temple but instead of doing endowments I did sealings and I had to be a son and I loved it. The couple who came in did their own family names. Well that was my week hope yours was just as great.

Love you guys so much and miss you all.  Aurevoir!!!!!!

1st Letter!!

We received our first letter from Elder Allen this week.

Hey mom So the MTC is amazing and I love it here the French is comming to me slowly but I'm getting it. My companion is from Canada and is his name is Elder Kochel and he is the funniest guy I have ever met. My district is amazing we help each other with French and we have a great time so we don't get too stressed while being here 24 /7. We came up with some songs to help us learn some vocabs in French.  It is so much fun. So my P-day is Tuesday while I'm here at the MTC and today we went to the temple and the Provo temple has an amazing view when you look out at Provo. The spirit is so strong here and I am learning so much. The food could be a little better but it is okay. There is snow everywhere and it snows everyday I'm loving it. I can't believe how much I missed the snow and all. It's cold up here let me tell you nothing like Texas. Oh and on Thursday I get to go to San Fransisco for my visa and I'm super excited. Well I am timed for how much time I get and one thing they tell me that when you dear elder they print your email and I can read it before I get on here and write you so I'm not wasting time reading. I love you guys so much and miss you all, have fun with the store and give my love to them as well.

Love Elder Allen

Elder Allen and fellow missionaries at the airport on their way to get their visas!!!