Week 8: September 2, 2019

IN ONE WEEK FROM TODAY IM FLYING OUT TO BRISBANE! I'm seriously so excited, I think after being in the MTC for 2 months has gotten a little old. Last week Elder Christensen left to go to Canada, and he was only here for 7 weeks. So that means the companionships all got changed. I'm now with elder Pangilinin and Elder Packer again. Honestly this week has been one of the funnest weeks at the MTC, especially with the 5 TRCs haha. 

My first one we were studying a ton for, and we were teaching someone named Stacey. she told us she had some family problems in the middle of the lesson so I decided to just share 3rd nephi 18:21. This was totally off our lesson script but I felt like it was what I needed to do and it couldn't have been more perfect. After I shared it with her we just had like a 5 minute rapid fire conversation where she was asking questions and I was just talking back and answering, and my 2 companions were just sitting there and watching me. Honestly my best lesson so far because there's no way Elder Ensign was saying all that stuff. Some of the words I used were like stuff I didn't really even know and my companions said they felt the spirit so strong when I was teaching her and they could barely understand what I was saying. Such an awesome lesson, it was just what I needed to be able to gain some confidence in my non member TRC's because they really scared me before. I definitely couldn't learn this language without the Gift of Tongues and I'm so excited to get to share the gospel with the people in Brisbane next week. I know my Chinese isn't perfect but something Elder Packer said when I was being hard on myself after some of my TRC's stuck with me. Just imagine him saying this with an "Elder Holland 'singe your eyebrows type' of speech." He said "Elder Ensign, you're never going to have a perfect lesson. On the last day of the mission you're not going to have a perfect lesson. All that matters is I felt the spirit, you felt the spirit, and I know that she (Stacey) felt the spirit." 

I'm seriously so excited to get to go to Brisbane, I know that there are people there specifically for me to help. I know even though my Chinese isn't perfect that I'll still be able to have an impact on the people of Brisbane. There's nothing better I could be doing with the next 2 years of my life! The work must go on!

加油！加油！加油！

Elder Ensign

2 of my good friends elder Pinkney (right) and Elder Rigby (left) (Steffon from bear river, the tennis champ) left for Montreal Canada along with Elder Christensen who is not in the picture