Letter #8 - "The snow glows white on the mountain tonight"

IT SNOWED THIS WEEK!!!!

It was the coolest thing. Light and powdery little flakes. Unfortunately nobody wanted to go stnad out in the cold with me and watch it. It was reeeaaaallly cold though so I guess I can understand that. The snow melted the next day though, and we haven't had any since. Really I think it's unfair to have it be so cold and there be no snow :(

We did a skype TRC this week which meant we skyped a member of the church in Taiwan (!!!) and shared a message about the Atonement. It was crazy because the woman talked so fast and we only caught a couple words here and there to try and piece together what she was saying. We shared a message of the Atonement and how when we pray and ask the Lord to help us carry our burdens, He will. even though we didn't understand everything we could tell she had such a strong testimony and loved the gospel. She told us she was excited for us to come to Taiwan and wanted us to come find her!

The Atonement is so important too. It's been a hard couple of days, but I learned a lot and I came out of it with a renewed strength and faith in my Savior. He is my support and this week I learned to lean on him heavily. When I drop my burdens at his feet, He will carry me. And that's amazing.

Maybe the best part of my week was getting to interview 6/13 of the sisters in our zone o n Saturday night. My companion and I just got called to be the STLs (Sister Training Leaders), which basically means we look after the other girls, answer their questions, interview them once a week to make sure they're doing ok. And it was the coolest thing ever. I got to hear all about how their MTC experience has been. They all just want to serve and do the very best they can. All of them had something they were struggling with - whether it was the language or companion drama - and I tried to listen to them and to the Spirit and say the things God wanted me to say in order to help them.  In all the interviews, I got a prompting to turn to a scripture that I could share with them. Some of them told me that the scripture was exactly what they needed to hear. One sister even teared up a little, the spirit was so strong. I felt so blessed to get to be a tool in God's hand to help His daughters. I got to see through Hie eyes and see Him supporting them. It reminded me that God is helping all of us. He sends us little tender mercies to get us through the day or to tell us He loves us. His hand is in everything. My challenge to you this week is to look for it. Find the ways He has helped you, because He is most certainly present in your life, and He loves you.

Sometimes I wonder how a helpless romantic, an army cadet, a fashionista, and a book-loving nerd all got put together as roommates to spend nine weeks together and learn about the gospel in Mandarin Chinese. It's mind blowing sometimes. Probably the only thing we all have in common is our love for the gospel. But I love these sisters and I love this work.This week has been awesome and things are getting better all the time! We leave Dec 6 for Taiwan which is crazy!!! As thanksgiving comes up tomorrow, I am thankful to be here! I am thankful for this opportunity and for the Savior of the world.

Love you all!

Sister Daynes

Letter #6 - Hurrah For Israel

What even happened this week? Things go so fast. We're teaching 3 investigators and a less active. Some of our lessons are really rough but we push through it! I've noticed that when things are the hardest and when I feel like I can't do anymore, God will send me a friend who will say a kind word, or a scripture that touches my heart, or an answer to prayer. He gives me just enough to keep going and it's amazing.

Our teacher proposed!!! He was sooooo nervous the entire class period but he still had to teach and pretend to be our investigator, and when I shook his hand it was so sweaty! He asked us to pray for him and then headed out the door and went straight to go meet his girlfriend and propose to her. Of course she said yes. We were so excited for him!!!!

We sang Hurrah for Israel in choir this week. I love the story of Brigham Young and Heber C Kimball leaving for their missions to England, and even though they were so sick they could barely stand, they stood up in the back of the wagon and shouted "Hurrah for Israel!" 

Wilford Woodruff had a similar story. He was called on a mission to England and walked as far as he could, crossed the Mississippi river, and then kept crawling when he couldn't walk. When the prophet Joseph Smith saw him, he said "Well Brother Wilford, I see you've started on your mission!"

Wilford said, "Yes Joseph, but I feel more like a piece of shoe leather than a missionary."

Then Joseph commanded him to get up and walk. And by the power of God, Wilford did and headed out on his mission.

I might quote Wilford Woodruff a lot as he's my great-great-great grandfather and is pretty big in my family. He's a personal spiritual giant of mine. (Plus not too much is happening here in the MTC so this is my story for the week). My point is, sometimes I feel exactly like a piece of shoe leather. No joke. I can sometimes feel useless and lonely and insufficient. But I have a goal in mind - doing my part to further the Kingdom of God. It really is the best thing about my life. I am so grateful for the gospel. Hurrah for Israel!

Love you all,

Sister Daynes