Guten Tag!! Wie gehts Ihnen
heute?? I love being
able to hear from everyone!!!
And I’m so jealous you all get a whole week off of school!!!! Dad thanks for
your thoughts on Tithing. I'm sorry I didn't tell you last week but we had a
member of the MTC Administrative Directors give a fireside all about tithing
and what he had to say I thought you'd really enjoy. Brother Heaton said that
as missionaries we have to teach the principle of tithing, not money. We have
to help our investigators understand the purpose of paying tithing because if
they don't have a testimony or understanding of just that principle they will
not stay active. Tithing is something that is often taught from parent to child
and so as missionaries we have to create a tradition with our investigators
that is moveable from generation to generation. Last he taught
us how to study principles of the gospel with four questions: What has the Lord
said about Tithing?, How does the Lord feel about His children living the Law
of the Tithe?, Why should an investigator want to commit to pay the Law of Tithing?, and How do I feel about it? I've been answering these four questions
in my personal studies and my testimony of various principles has grown immensely.
I'd suggest to anyone who’s not sure how to start studying to begin with this. It’s
wonderful!!!
Last email I said we aren't allowed to listen to music and some people were
confused so I shall explain. In the MTC, specifically this week, there are 2080
missionaries. They don't want us all to be able to play music at the same time
because then it would be a chaotic mess and noisy. So no music in the MTC. Also
depending on your missions, they have different rules to what you can listen
to.
Now
time for odd stories throughout the week :) On Tuesday night we have
devotionals and the man conducting the meeting got up after the opening hymn
and said, “Thank you Elders for that wonderful singing." Yes, I am a man
now because I wear a tag and don't have two X chromosomes. And another Elder told me
that you have to take your fiancé hiking through the Appalachian trail to make
sure your marriage will work. So Mum and Dad, Lyndel and Mike, Andre and Ellen
get hiking because you're a little late!! ;) Sister Stowell, a Sister
that I room with and whose is in my district, took a shower the other night.
Many girls like to sing in the shower and so Sister Stowell thought she'd join
in on Beauty and the Beast songs and this one Sister told her to stop singing.
Sister Stowell explained that she liked to sing and just didn't have a very
good voice and the other Sister told her, "No, you're just trying to be
obnoxious." Lesson learned: the showers for some people are sacred time
and do NOT sing unless invited to. Sister Stowell ran out of the bathroom
before the other sister could find her. She was afraid for her well-being.
So Sister Noyes and I
had a fabulous lesson with Ming this past week, actually two fabulous lessons.
We got him to pray for the first time which was adorable. Apparently we forgot
to explain that you can pray out loud so when we got him to pray we all folded
our arms, bowed our heads, and waited. But nothing was being said.....I looked
up and saw Ming with his hands pressed together like the Japanese do when they
bow to greet people and his lips moving because he was praying, we just
couldn't HEAR him :) I laughed, which is definitely not the best idea to do but
it was just too cute and too funny. Afterwards we told him he could pray out
loud and he thought that was funny but did it in our next lesson, so we're
doing pretty good. Anyways, Sister Noyes walks out of our lesson with Ming into
our classroom and there was the biggest stench of fart you've ever experienced.
I turned to the Elders in the room and they said it wasn't them, that Elder
Hemsley or Hanson did it, so I went out to find them. When I found them Hemsley
pointed to Hanson and I told him, “Seriously, take it to the bathroom next
time." Yes, I am everyone’s mother here too. Here’s a way you can tell
you're on a mission with boys: Elders
Hemsely and Hanson told us that they do their planning in the bathroom,"
assume the position", and then proceeded to tell us who was in the left
stall and who had the right. Apparently Sister Noyes and I planning in the
classroom isn't productive enough :) And last, the Elders told us about the
"pine cone of fertility." When you hold it in your hands, ponder on
it, you will receive letters from girls in the mail. Kinda sounds like Aladdin
and his magic lamp. One of our Elders swears by it. He got three letters from girls
after holding it and thinking about it. HA HA! :)
It snowed this past
week!!! Sister Noyes got some pictures so I’ll be sure to send it. It was neat
to see all those missionaries who had never seen snow run around and play in
it. So I'm a bad companion, Sister Noyes’ Mum sent her a Willow Tree statue of
a mother, father, and baby as a gift. Sister Noyes put it next to her on the
air conditioning unit in our room. I was reaching for the area book and knocked
her statue off the vent and beheaded both the mother and the father. I felt
really bad and told sister Noyes to expect a gift from me once she gets off her
mission. She wasn't upset, more laughed than anything but that’s how you know
you're a bad companion when you break their gifts, two minutes after opening
it.
This Sunday for Relief
Society Sister Cheryl A. Esplin, Second Counselor in the General Primary Presidency
came and spoke to us. She said that if we take care of the Lords children he
will take care of ours (or our families :). We get to watch Music and the Spoken
Word before and it’s the most wonderful time of the year because we get to hear
MUSIC!!! If you can, watch last week’s episode where they sang "Come Thou Fount",
AMAZING!!! Some of the singers were even
emotional.
Last fun stories:
Sister Stowell, when teaching a lesson told the investigator that the Indians
from India gave us Turks from Turkey to eat for thanksgiving. And our speaker
last night said he told an investigator that he knew Christ milked the apostles
in his last days, instead of saying ordained, and bore testimony of it!! Too
funny, hopefully nothing that bad happens when I teach!!! KNOCK ON WOOD!!!
I love you
all! Hope you're enjoying your wonderful week off and I'll talk to you all next
Monday! Happy Thanksgiving family!! Love you
- Ariel Nell
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