Week 6 Pictures

Week 6

HI!

Happy Thanksgiving!  For the morning devotional today we got to see Elder Russell M. Nelson up close and personal. It was great.  He is so personable and friendly and amazing.  His talk was great!!!!  (By the way, Tuesday's devotional we sang in the choir- "Come Thou Fount" ---best song ever and then Elder D. Todd Christofferson came!!!!  IT WAS SO GOOD.)  We had Thanksgiving dinner in the cafeteria.  I am so GRATEFUL for the food and all those people that had to work and cook today to provide for us.

I am very happy here.  I feel the Spirit so strong everyday whether it's when I am reading my scriptures, when I am singing songs, when I am praying, when I am teaching, even when I am just walking around.

Something that Elder Christofferson said really hit me. I am a companion to Christ. I am a companion to the prophet Thomas S. Monson. I am a companion to the apostles. Elder Christofferson thanked us for serving along side with him and the other general authorities. The Spirit of Christ is always with me. I am always wearing his name next to my heart. In his talk, he said not to worry whether or not you are feeling the Spirit. He said our thoughts will oftentimes turn into the Lord's thoughts. They will be one and the same. I just need to open my mouth and trust Him to lead me and guide me. I have an apostolic duty to preach the gospel to the world. I have been set apart for this. Incredible to think about it. And very comforting too.

I know with all of my heart that Christ is my Savior. He suffered a lot for my sins, pains, afflictions, sorrow, sicknesses (Alma 7:11-13). He is there for me. He is there for all of us. His hand is always reached out. We just need to grab it. He wants to help us sooooo badly. We just need to humble ourselves and let Him into our hearts to take away the pain and the doubts and the insecurities. He is there. He loves us so much. He knows what we're going through. He knows US INDIVIDUALLY.

Have a good week. Lift your heads up and be of good cheer for He is always with us.

Love,
Hermana Laura Johnson

Week 5 Pictures

Week 5

Hello,

So my new roommates are great. So total in my room are 6. Hermana Marshall and I. Hermana Smith (from Georgia going to Salt Lake Spanish) and Hermana Chevalier (from Montana going to Riverside, CA Spanish), and then Sora Komar (from Russia/Washington State (both her parents died in Russia she was in an orphanage for 3 years and then a family from Washington adopted her and brought her to the states, introduced her to the church-she got baptized went to BYU-I and is now on a mission) going to Romania!) and Sora Sam (from Sacramento area, CA going to Romania). They are great girls. And we love sharing clothes.

So on Saturday we do the TRC-Teaching Resource Center where people come and to the MTC and volunteer to be taught. Hermana Marshall and I taught this one lady from Peru. Her accent and Spanish was beautiful I could listen to her forever. We had the sweetest experience. We were talking to her about the importance of scriptures in the gospel of Jesus Christ. We told her about the opportunity we have to receive revelation through our scripture reading. Some things led to another and she shared with us a very special experience about how the missionaries found her family. How she wanted to be baptized for the longest time growing up. Her dad asked her what she wanted for her quincienera (15th bday-super huge celebration for the girls in Latino cultures) and she said the only thing she wanted was to be baptized into the Mormon church. Her dad finally let her. She then had a desire later in life to serve a mission. She approached her dad and he finally let her...she served in another part of Peru. She was in Utah at BYU. Her dad came and visited her, saw how happy she was. Finally accepted the discussions and got baptized!! She was crying when she was telling us. It was so precious and so incredible to hear about it.

So then we went into our next appointment and it was way good....this week's speakers were really good on Sunday and Tuesday night. The choir song on Tuesday night was great. We sang "Be Still My Soul." One of my favorite songs.

Yesterday we went to a workshop where we usually just sit in a bigger room and watch video clips of General Conference addresses and other things. But Hermana Marshall and I were pulled out of the classroom and were asked to teach an investigator the first lesson in Spanish.

Her name was Andrea. She was from Mexico.We were pretending we were in California. The Spirit was so strong. My companion and I were blessed with the gift of tongues...I honestly believe that....and the gift of interpretation of tongues. Andrea was speaking so fast....somehow those slurring of words meant something that I could understand. 45 minutes later we came out of the room overflowing with the Spirit and gratitude and excitement for our callings as missionaries of the Lord. When I recited the First Vision to Andrea...I struggled remembering it at first...but then the words of the account came easily out of my mouth. I paused at the right moments. My voice was shaking, my heart was pounding. I was sharing this beautiful experience in a different language other than my own. I was sharing it by memory. It was the MOST INCREDIBLE THING EVER.

I know with all my heart that this is where I am supposed to be and that the "Lord is always in the details" (from a devotional talk). I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that he restored Christ's true church on the earth today and that we have the fullness of his gospel. INCREDIBLE.

Love,

Hermana Laura Johnson

Week 4 Pictures

Week 4 Letter

Family and Friends,

I love you all. Thank you for your support and for your prayers. This e-mail is going to be short which I apologize. There is so much I want to say! I wish my fingers could type as fast as my brain forms sentences.

I love SPANISH. I am using it more and more now. I am trying to stretch myself and humble myself to learn more from my teachers and my district.

I love the schedule here at the MTC. There are incredible Devotionals and Firesides each week to help strengthen us as missionaries. We have been told many times for general authorities that the prophet personally and the other apostles pray for us at least once a week in the meetings on Thursday mornings. Not only that, but billions of prayers are offered for missionaries and/or missionary work every endowment session in the temples around the world. Reminding myself of this helps me work harder and be more determined to do my best to prepare for the people that I will come in contact with in Spain.

Speaking of Spain, 10 Spain Visas came in Tuesday night. My "Barcelona Buddy" Elder Watkins got his visa and so did a couple hermanas that I met...plus 7 others. The 3 I talked to said that they turned in their applications in June, july, and August. Elder Watkins told me that the travel office lady said they will be coming faster now. One of the Hermanas had to get reassigned to Temple Square because she had been waiting for so long and her 9 weeks were up in the MTC. Her and the other hermana (who was a native Spanish speaker-so she was only here at the Provo MTC for 3 weeks) were reassigned to Temple Square for a couple weeks. But now they will be headed to Spain (not to the MTC but straight to Barcelona) flying out on Monday. Elder Watkins turned in his visa application in August. He entered the Provo MTC the same day as me-Oct 12. He is headed to the Madrid MTC on Monday to finish his training there for the next 5 weeks before he heads out to Barcelona.

The 2 Hermanas that I met before I entered the MTC are still waiting. Hermana Stephensen turned in her application in August, so she'll probably be next. Hermana Jorgenson turned hers in Oct 7th, my companion turned hers in Oct. 12, and mine was turned in Oct. 17th so we'll see how it goes.

I will have to tell you more next week. I have so many thoughts and experiences I want to share with you. One thing I want to leave you with this week is my testimony. It's growing little by little everyday. I still can't believe I am on a mission. I made it! It's finally my turn. I want to make it the best I can. I want to be the best I can. I know that Heavenly father loves me and he expects my best. I also know that when my best doesn't seem good enough, that Christ will take over and cover the rest. He is close to my heart (literally on my nametag :)) He loves me and suffered for me in the garden of Gethsemane. I know that he is my Savior and Redeemer.

I love the Book of Mormon. Please read it everyday if you are not!!!!!!! It's great!!!!!

until next time.

Con amor,

Hermana Laura Johnson

MTC Pictures

Week 3

Wow!!!!!

Cannot believe I'm 3 weeks in....on my fourth week now. Crazy! I love it here. I am way glad to be here.

Where to start....so much has happened and there is so much I want to say but so little time. So my companion and I were supposed to leave the MTC a couple days ago. Our departure date was Nov 1. But we don't have our visas so it didn't happen. I was talking around with other people about it. Two girls who are also going to Barcelona didn't get their visas, finished up their 9 weeks here, still didn't get their visas, so on Tuesday they just left for Temple Square-their reassignment until their visas come. They said they turned in their applications in May and June. Really, who knows when I get there, but I know that I will someday!!! Maybe in time for Christmas?...I don't know! Maybe in 2012! Honestly though, Hermana Marshall and I were talking about it and we are kind of glad that we are staying here. We have great teachers. We are just getting more comfortable with the schedule. We can still be companions. We like it here. Provo MTC is a good place to be. It's all on the Lord's time now. We are his servants and like the hymn says, "I will go where you want me to go dear Lord." That's how both Hermana Marshall and I feel. When it's meant to be we will make it to Spain.

On Sunday the speaker in Relief Society was Elaine S. Dalton!!! General Young Women's President for the church. Her talk was amazing! (we always have THE best speakers for Relief Society). She told us sister missionaries that we are now living the Young Women's theme that we recited every Sunday. We are "standing as witnesses of God at all time, in all things, and in all places." We are standing on higher ground than the rest of the world. I am holding the Savior closer to me than ever before. He is right under my name and over my heart on my name tag. I have this opportunity to serve him completely and faithfully in exact obedience for the next 18 months of my life. Basically, an incredible opportunity and experience.

Sister Dalton also told a story about her and her husband going running together. They were going up a hill and she thought to herself, I am so good with hills and I am going to smoke him up this hill. She's doing really well and next thing she knows, her husband is speeding past her. She is shocked because normally he is not good on hills. Feeling discouraged she called up to him and said that she was going to go back down to the car and wait for him down there. He sprints back to her, grabs her hand, and says "you never make a decision to turn around when you're in the middle of a hill." It's the same distance down the hill than it is up the hill. When you're in the middle of trials you cannot give up. You have to push up the hill to make it to the top. She said together with him holding her hand they got to the top of the hill to see the most incredible sunrise ever. She said it was worth the humiliating run up to see that great view. Christ will hold our hand and help us up the hill if we just give our hand to him. His hand is always reaching out to us, we just need to take it. He can and he will help us no matter what.

The advanced class elders left on Monday and Tuesday. It was sad to say good bye and see them go. All of the friends my comp and I made these last few weeks are gone now out in the field. We were happy for them but sad to see them go. Here at the MTC, so many people are coming in and out all the time! Hermana Marshall and I were talking about it and we were amazed that the MTC is always at its fullest capacity. They never get a break. Thousands of missionaries are always here from around the world. It's incredible to think about!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This institution will continue on forever. Missionaries are being sent around the world doing good everywhere!! Representing the Savior everywhere. Helping people everywhere. It's AMAZING.

SOOO super funny story. I was at dinner and this elder sitting at the table behind me burps really loud. I laugh really hard because it was so funny. He was embarrassed and kept apologizing. We had a recent devotional speaker talk about table manners. She even set up a table in the gymnasium and showed us how to set the table and how to use utensils appropriately. It was really funny. So I turn to the elder and say something about him working on his table manners. To which he says, maybe you will have to write me to remind me to have better table manners....I was like, "are you serious?!" And he was like yeah...hahaha I was like ummm no that's okay sorry. Then he went on to tell me that he is a few years older than the average elder so it would be worth my while to write him and then he asked me if I was sure and I said yes I am positive...good luck on your mission....hahahahahah.....yeah....random...lol

Anyway, another lunch time, the president of the MTC walks up and asks if he could sit down next to me! Of course my district and I said yes. President Brown sat with us and asked us a little about ourselves. He gave us incredible scripture references for the Atonement and faith in Jesus Christ. He was just pouring out some knowledge on us. It was so exciting. We were taking notes. And then him and I had a special moment. He asked me why I decided to go on a mission. I told him a little about last summer and he looked into my eyes almost peering into my soul. He got teary eyed and I got teary eyed. He gave me advice. Then he says, "If Sister Brown were here I would have her hug you." It was so cute and so special.

Then a couple days ago, the 1st counselor in the MTC presidency sat next to us-President Mciff (?)... He told us all about himself and about his missions that he has served with his wife. Hermana Marshall and I shared with him what we were thinking about how the MTC is always at full capacity all year every year. He says, "As a matter of fact, it's over capacity right now." There is construction around campus so that's why people have like 6 in one room (like us). It's incredible to think about. All of us young people and even he said there are more senior couples then ever before right now, all here at the MTC working towards the same thing. Incredible.

I love seeing the senior couples. They are so cute. A couple sat next to us at dinner yesterday and the wife was trying SO hard to only speak Spanish to Hermana Marshall and I. They are preparing to go serve in the mission office in Santiago, Chile. She is so excited and kind of nervous at the same time. She said her son is also in the MTC preparing to go to Mexico. She said they think he's been trying to avoid his parents around mealtimes haha. Mom, Dad!!! You should go!!!!

Our favorite roommates from Ecuador and Mexico City left for Pocatello, Idaho's visitor's center this week. :( we were so sad to see them go. We love them SO much. They had a little testimony until like midnight the other night and it was SO special. The Spirit was SO strong. It was incredible. What a blessing to have great roommates and examples like them.

2 new roommates going to Romania!!! One's from San Fran area and one's from Seattle area. Super cute girls. We'll see how it goes.

Love you all! Love this work. Love being a missionary. Love my life. Love my Savior. :)

Con amor,

Hermana Laura Johnson

Week 2

Dear Family and Friends,

The days are going by faster. I can't believe I am already starting week 3... I have had such neat experiences being here. It's been incredible. I can't imagine where else I would be right now. I know this is where I'm meant to be at this time. I can't imagine my life without serving a mission and having this incredible opportunity...

I love my family so much and am so grateful for them. I can feel your love and support and I often put your names in the temple when I go every Thursday morning. There is so much I want to tell you...yet only 30 minutes available...well now 22 from reading other e-mails.

I love getting Dear Elders thank you so much to those who have sent me some. :)  dearelder.com then type in Laura Eve Johnson Spain Barcelona Mission (pretty sure that's how you do it...)

I have pictures that I am sending home to get scanned and then put up on the blog!! They are great.

Weeeelll....so we have to prepare a talk for every Sunday just in case we get called up to the pulpit. This last Sunday it was on baptism. I was really proud of my talk because I felt like I am getting better at writing in Spanish and that it made really good sense. I applied it to missionary work and our purpose...I ended up not getting called up to speak, but instead my companion did. She didn't finish her talk...so I let her use mine...everyone LOVED it. So apparently it was really good haha! We haven't told anyone the truth yet...

I talked my companion into joining the MTC choir with me. I am SO glad she agreed. We had practice on Sunday then performed on Tuesday night at the MTC Devotional. So the week before the speaker was Elder Richard G. Scott!!!! So cool to have an apostle of the Lord speak to us. This time it was Brother Hallstrom who is in the Presidency of the 70. His talk was so good! And the song we sang was "Precious Savior, Dear Redeemer" but a unique version of it. It was beautiful I was so excited to be in a choir again. I was even on the big screen and other friends told me later that they saw me. It was an incredible experience with the spirit so strong in the gym.

Speaking about the song, the choir director on Sunday told us about the meaning of it. He mentioned that it came from the book of Mark in the New Testament. The winds were raging and the boat was flooding and the Master was sleeping. Someone shouted "Master, carest thou not that we perish?" A cry for help. Us singing this song was a cry for help. It was beautiful. The story following the song following the meaning. It was very special. Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father know us by name. They do care about us and if we perish. This is evidenced in the story of the First Vision. One of the most important words that was said, was "Joseph." Heavenly Father called Joseph Smith by his name. He cares so much and is very aware of us.

Sunday night we have an MTC Fireside and then a film...we can choose which films to watch. The first Sunday we watched "The Legacy" and then this last Sunday we watched the newer version of the Joseph Smith movie. I loved it; it was my second time seeing it...But anyway at the fireside Brother Allen spoke who is the Missionary Director of the church...and he spoke about hymns. He spoke about the highs and lows that missionaries have...constantly...and he urged us to turn to our hymn books and look at the lyrics of our favorite hymns. He mentioned, "I am a Child of God" "As I Search the Holy Scriptures" and some others. He also mentioned that often times he wakes up in the morning with a random song stuck in his head. THAT TOTALLY HAPPENS TO ME...a lot. Anyway he believes that this can be inspiration...some personal revelation from our Heavenly Father. He recommended that we write down the song as soon as we wake up in our journal that should be next to our bed. It was so cool hearing that and I was so excited to take that advice and apply it to my life. So the next morning, I woke up with the song "Nearer my God to Thee." It was beautiful as I went over the lyrics in my head and wrote down my feelings about it in my journal....anyway, if any of you are like me and wake up with a song stuck in your head (hopefully a church song haha) then you should consider writing it down!! It's kind of amazing. Bro. Allen also said that we shouldn't be scared to sing songs and use the hymnbook more in our lessons. Even if we aren't good at singing it still has an amazing affect on the person we are teaching. Hermana Marshall and I were encouraged to do this before so we had already been using them in our lessons with our two "investigators" (our two teachers acting as investigators-real people that they taught on their missions). I think it's been a huge help because it really invites the Spirit in our lesson and we would ask them how they felt afterwards. Usually Hermana Marshall and I will sing and the investigator will follow along reading the words.

One thing that has helped me a TON has been reading el Libro de Mormon out loud for 5-30 minutes a day. This has really helped me to speak Spanish better and feel the Spirit more. I am finding that I am better understanding what I am reading as well. I highly recommend this to anyone who is trying to learn a language-it does miracles. :)

I am trying to figure out how to mark my scriptures like color coding and stuff. If you have any suggestions and think your technique is great, let me know!!

I got my travel plans a few days ago...they said I won't make it to the Madrid MTC because they don't have my Visa yet...(just read an e-mail from my mom that my application didn't get sent until Monday, October 17...) So I will most likely be here at the Provo MTC for the full nine weeks. I am just really grateful that I am in the intermediate Spanish class, and that I have a great companion who didn't get her visa either...

Today I got my Patriarchal Blessing shrunk and laminated at the copy center. I am so excited!!! I have always wanted to do it.

I got new roommates yesterday. One is from Georgia going on her mission to Salt Lake City speaking Spanish, and the other one is from Montana going on her mission to Riverside, CA speaking Spanish. It's cool because they are beginning level Spanish, my companion and I are intermediate, and our other roommates are advanced! We help each other out a lot. It's been great speaking Spanish. I LOVE IT.

I just finished memorizing Doctrine and Covenants 4 in Spanish and now I am working on memorizing the First Vision in Spanish. I will let you know how it goes!

My time is up. I love you so much. Thank you again for your support and prayers. This is an amazing work that I have the opportunity to be a part of. I am so lucky and blessed to be here. My heart is full of gratitude and love for my Savior and this work.

Con amor,

Hermana Johnson

Week 1

Family and friends!!

I love it here and I am so excited that I am no longer the newbie missionary. More missionaries came yesterday and it's great to say welcome and bienvenidos to them and to see the bright neon orange stickers on their name tag and no longer on mine. Everyone said to get through to Sunday and here I am and it's Thursday already!!!!! TIme flies. I love it here. It's been great and my companion is great!

My companion is Hermana Marshall from Logan, UT she went to Utah State, her minor is also Spanish. We are on the exact same Spanish level which is great because I was nervous that I would be companions with someone better than me or not as good as me. It worked out perfectly.

Our roommates are awesome. Two just left this week. :( so sad. One was from Dominican Republic going to Fort Lauderdale-Hermana Escorbores, Florida spanish speaking and the other is from New York...an asian/latina girl who is going to Canada spanish speaking-Hermana Camejo...(hilarious girl!!!!). The other two girls, one is from Mexico City going to Idaho, Pocatello spanish speaking-Hermana Garcia (gorgeous) and her companion is from Ecuador going to the same place-Hermana Jijon (adorable). It's been a cool experience living with girls who speak spanish fluently. They try to help Hermana Marshall and me and it's been so fun speaking with them and trying to understand them and dancing with them and laughing with them. It has been such a neat experience that I consider myself lucky because I could've just had other American roommates trying to learn Spanish too. I just feel really blessed.

I got a few letters already. My mailbox is #122. It's been great hearing from friends. I think the best mail though was a package from my former Hall Advisor from Wyview. She had all of my amazing Bldg. 17 girls write me notes on 3x5 cards and she packaged them all up and sent them off to me. My companion gave me a great idea to read one a day. It's been so sweet. I just want to thank all my girls for being awesome. I am glad I got the opportunity to get to know them and be their RA.

I see a lot of people I know here at the MTC. Whether they are teachers, or work in the copy center, the bookstore, and the cafeteria. I see people on my way to the field for gym time. I see people in the temple like from freshmen year. It's been great catching up and seeing familiar faces.

On Sundays we have temple walks and we took great pictures. I am going to send them home so they can be scanned and put on my blog. Every Sunday we are supposed to have a 3-5 minute talk prepared according to an assigned topic and be prepared to give it. The branch presidency will call on anyone for the 2 talks every sacrament meeting. It's great to be all nervous and scared but totally ready to rely on the spirit-huge testimony builder.

On Tuesdays we have devotionals. This last Tuesday it was Elder Richard G. Scott an apostle!!! It was AMAZING to hear from him. He talked all about hearing the promptings of the Spirit and relying on the Spirit to teach people what they need to know. It was an incredible talk and I felt his love and God's love for me so strongly. It was so neat when everyone in the room stood and sang "Called to Serve" It was awesome.

On Thursdays I have preparation day (p-day). I already decided that I love it. I love wearing jeans. And I love going to the temple. And I love taking a nap. And I love writing e-mails and letters. It's been great....though I love every other day of the week too! :)

I was teaching an "investigator" turns out she's our other teacher-Hermana Christensen. It was such a cool experience relying on the Spirit and teaching her in Spanish with my companion. We are a great team. We both felt the Spirit strongly. AND honestly it's incredible how sentences were coming out of my mouth that quickly and that they were understood by others in the room. It's great. I am learning more and more about Spanish and about the gospel. We taught her four times and I asked her if she would be willing to get baptized...it was awesome...she said yes. :)

I had a really cool experience the other day (the days all blend in together...I feel like I barely get to sleep when the next day starts right up again)...anyway Tuesday night the Branch President asked me to give the closing prayer in our meeting. The guy who did the opening prayer gave it in English and then the lesson was in English so I knew that I had to give the prayer in English...can I just tell you that it was actually kind of hard for me?! I always pray in Spanish now...personal prayers, companionship prayers, prayers in class, prayers for food...it's weird. I didn't really think about it until then. Obviously, I was able to do it...but it was just different...it was an awesome feeling.

My time is running out. There's so much I want to say. I have to take notes throughout the week to help me on my p-days to remember what to write to you. I love you all. Thank you soooo much for your support and love for me. Please don't forget that God loves you and is mindful of you and your sorrows, pains, and joys. Pray to Him and He will answer and help you. :) I know this personally from many incredible experiences.

Con amor,

Hermana Johnson