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Jan 24: First 2 weeks at MTC!

Hello everyone!

The MTC is full of surprises. I wasn't expecting it to be so hard and long in the beginning but I also was not expecting to have so much fun here. The fun I've had is because of my companion and the other Elders in my district and zone. My companion Elder Kaku brings out the goofy side of me so we've been quite outgoing and fun together as a result. The other Elders in my district are Elder Gull who's from all over the U.S. and Elder Richardson who's from Arizona, they will serve in the Denver South mission. Elder Gull is so intelligent and spiritual at times and so weird at other times, he's hilarious. Elder Richardson was quiet the first few days but now hes coming out of his shell which is awesome. The most powerful and testimony building experiences I have had so far were hearing the stories of conversion of Elders' Richardson, Gull, and Kaku, they have all been through so much to get to where they are now and their stories truly inspire me. In my district there are 7 Sisters: 3 of them going to the Toronto mission, 1 going to Colorado south and 3 going to the Nashville mission. There were some mental and physical health issues with some of the missionaries in the beginning but with the help of some priesthood blessings we are all doing great now. It has really been an I opener to me to realize how many missionaries struggle with home sickness, depression, and other issues like that. I feel really blessed because I don't struggle with those things so I can help strengthen others who are struggling.

Being sick last week was not fun to be honest. I got a wicked soar throat starting Monday. Every time I swallowed it felt like I was swallowing broken glass (I had to stay hydrated so I needed to keep swallowing). I was aching and pretty tired and the long MTC schedule did not help. On Wednesday night it was quite bad, I had a really hard time sleeping because it hurt so bad every time I needed to swallow. Then I woke up feeling groggy and I was shaking all morning so I went to doctor and they checked my temperature and it was 103 so they did some tests including a chest x-ray. Long story short, the cold I got Monday turned into pneumonia so I spent that day and the next day from 9-4:30 in one of their sick beds. By Thursday evening the antibiotics and Advil were working pretty good so I could concentrate in class again. I could go to class and everything after that I just had to take it easy. Today I feel great except I have a lingering cough that comes out once in awhile. 

Other than that the MTC has been great! Our district has ipads in the MTC. The Toronto mission does not have tablets yet but we are being trained with them in the MTC because the Toronto mission will have them soon (I don't know how soon though). Ipads are super handy for a lot of things and sometimes distracting because they have photobooth on them haha. They have a ton of restrictions on them of course. We can't go on google search of any type, just lds.org and ldsmail and such. Overall I think they will be a huge blessing and a wonderful tool for missionary work. For example, imagine how great it would be as a missionary to send your investigator an encouraging email and attach a video to help them in between visits? Or Skype them and read a scripture with them? It's going to be an amazing tool as long as it is used correctly and responsibly.

What an amazing missionary experience you had with Jonathan mom! You are truly an incredible example of what it means to be a missionary, you are a natural! I know the Lord prepared Jonathan for you, and you were already prepared so you could give him that Book of Mormon. Whether he really reads it and is changed by it or not, you planted a seed of faith in him which he will not forget. In the MTC I've learned that we can't worry too much about finding the right people and saying the right things, it's the Lord's work we are simply his tools. All he asks of us it to do our best to invite and help his children come closer to God. And God, through the Holy Ghost, will do the rest of the work. I know that most of the people I will work with if not all, will have already been prepared by the Lord in many different ways before I meet them. I can't wait to get out there and find those people!

I love you all so much! I love the gospel! I love my Savior, because of him everything is possible. Because of him we can change, we can heal, we can live together as families forever, we can experience joy and peace. All he asks of us is to come unto him and be like him, and we learn how to do that in the scriptures and with the help of the spirit. But to put it in simple terms, he asks us to love others, to turn outwards. Everything worldy, wicked, or sinful, is an act of selfishness and pride. It is like the cookie monster when he said, "I want Cookie now!" The Savior is the opposite. Everything he did, he did for others and for the will of the Father. I am striving to do my best to be like him and turn outwards. It's amazing how I've grown the most and experienced the most happiness for myself when I was focused on others! Everyone is a child of God, we are all on the same team, so let's help each other out.

I love you guys!

Till next time,

Elder Johnson





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