LAST WEEK IN THE MTC!!!!

WOW! Everyone I can't believe this is the last week in the MTC!!!! It is absolutely insane to me! I feel like I just got here but it also feels like it has been forever!! It has been quite the adventure here. Happy, sad, excited, frustrated! It has been purely amazing though! I have learned so much in these 6 weeks. I leave Monday for Florida!!! I can't even begin to express how excited I am. I am so ready to go. We leave at 4 am on Monday the 15th to the Salt Lake Airport. We fly out at 7:10 and fly to Georgia, have a lay over and then onto Florida. I am soooooo excited but also so nervous!! Here I come Tampa watch out!!!!!

 

Well this past week has been amazing! General Conference was incredible, the best one for me!! A few things that really stuck out to me was Elder Holland, such a powerful speaker, he said "What you know will always trump what you don't know." That really stuck out to me because of the learning spanish thing. I always think about all the words and phrases that I don't know and I get super frustrated. I just never think of all the stuff I really do know. So I really needed to hear that. I am going to change that and think of the more positive and think of what I do know and just open my mouth.  Another thing, Our Missionaries have increased immensely. Last year we were at 58,000 and now we are at 65,643 missionaries out in the field right now and to think that I am one of them. Also another 20,000 have their mission calls but just aren't out in the field yet and another 6,000 are in the process of doing their papers and interviews! How crazy is that?? It is absolutely incredible. This work is going to go forth and cover the whole earth. Its incredible to think about!! Another thing in General Conference was the talk by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf. We all have darkness that exists in our lives. We all have trials and tribulations but "Even if we feel lost; God will illuminate our darkness." We may have darkness, of course it exists but we need not to dwell there. Walk toward the hope of a brighter light. It does take an act of faith to open our eyes to the light but the Lord will always be there. With Christ darkness cannot succeed. We must walk to the light and out of the darkness. No one wants to walk in darkness so choose the Lord trust in him and you will succeed because you have the Lord on your side, or you are on the Lord's side. We must always choose to radiate the light for the ones who are walking in darkness that we may help others walk in the light and out of darkness. Choose the light! I love that talk so much and I so needed that. I was freaking out the other day because I felt I wasn't ready to go out into the field and teach real people and speak spanish. I just did not feel ready and I just didn't understand what I got myselft into. Well my teacher Hermana Beirdneau is the best teacher, we did our last final interview and she asked me how I was doing and I told her what I was feeling and she brought me back up and encouraged me to keep walking in the light and out of the darkness that I am a great missionary and that I can do it. It is hard but if we walk in the Light of the Lord we will be blessed. She changed my outlook completely. She put my words back onto me because I had told her in another situation that I was going to choose to walk in the light instead of the darkness and be more positive. And I needed to hear all she had to say to me. She is amazing!! And I am so grateful for her and her kindness and love for all of us missionaries. General Conference was amazing. Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God. I know this to be true with all my heart.

 

Well funny story my first district leader here got to know me really well after a couple weeks cause I started to be myself. And so he gave me the nickname of Sassofrass. That is what he calls me now. This happened the first part of the MTC and I kept forgetting to put it in an email. I am so proud of that name ha ha love it.

 

Also another funny story: So a couple of the Hermanas in my district forgot something in the class room when we were on our way to lunch. So they went back to the classroom they walk in and one of the teachers that isn't even our teacher is crouched down on the ground eating one of the Hermana's goodies. Her mom sent her an easter package and she brought the treats in to share and he was crouched on the ground eating them. They tried really hard not to laugh or say anything and so the teacher says do you know where Hermano Ellett is and the hermanas say no and they walk out. It was the funniest thing. I was laughing so hard when they told me that.

 

So another story: There is this Hermana in another district in our zone and her name is Hermana Sharp. She and a few of the sisters in her district were messing around in the residents and got into the big laundry bins and were pushing each other around in them well hermana sharp was in it and one of the hermanas pushed but then let go the bin slammed in to the wall and hermana sharps head whiplashed back and hit the brick wall. She ended up having a concussion. A really bad one. It took her forever to go to the doctors though because she was more scared of getting in trouble. But she was not good she was nauseaus dizzy and couldn't even walk straight or even talk right. She finally went and they said she had a concussion. She had to lay down and rest for probably about a week. And then she went to get a CTScan to see if there was any damage done on her brain. It took forever to get the results back and the doctor said it does not look good at all. If we do an MRI and that isn't good that you have to go home and cant leave on your mission to Sacramento tomorrow. She was devastated. She got the MRI done and she said it was the longest thing ever. They got the results back and we honestly all thought she was going home but she got the results and she could go she was cleared. She said that was the biggest test of faith in her life. She came back from that and she is like a whole different person. She has made a complete turn around and she now realizes why she is here and the importance of exact obedience and really loving your mission. It was really cool to learn from.

 

Oh I think this is the last thing but we had a devotional on Sunday night at Vocal Point which is the Accapella BYU mens Choir they came and spoke and sang to us. It was the most powerful devotional I think I have ever been to. Their music brought me to tears it was incredible. Also our Tuesday devotional was amazing to. He talked about revelation. And the biggest thing that stuck out to me was in your prayers not just saying, "Thy will be done" but saying also Thy time be Done. That was really big for me cause a lot I just want things right then and aren't willing to wait for them. And so that was really cool to hear and be able to use it in my prayers.

 

Well everyone I love you all and am so grateful for your prayers and support. I am so grateful to have such amazing friends and family. And if any of you are struggling please don't dwell in the darkness, seek for the Lord's light and he will guide you out of the dark you are in. He will help you. You all are amazing and I love every one of you. May God bless each one of you. Have an amazing week!!!

 

All my Love, Hermana Marisa Daines