Week 3 - September 19, 2015

This week has been a ton of fun with a lot of cool experiences! Elder Harley, Elder Erickson and myself got to go up to Salt Lake City to appear at the Mexican Consulate and get our visas. No we aren't going to be able to go to the Mexico MTC, we will be staying in the Provo MTC. I am totally fine staying here, I think the food is better here anyways! While up in Salt Lake we had a ton of cool experiences, we talked to a young Asian boy at the train station and he said he was a recent convert and was thinking about going on a mission. We shared a couple stories with him and I think we were able to build his hope in serving a mission. We also saw another Sister Missionary at the consulate and she was going to the Mexico MTC and it was pouring rain outside at the time. She said we could get a ride back to the trax station if we wanted and we ended up going with them and she sent a picture of us to our moms which was really nice! Oh and by the way all they did to send us off to Salt Lake was give us a phone and dropped us off at the station and said call us when you get to Orem on the way home! It was a very interesting way of doing it. We also were talking to an old lady at another train station and she was saying how she has been abused in so many other churches and had sinned way to much to be in the Mormon church and she talked so much we couldn't ever reply to her. But while we were talking to here a trax worker that was picking up the garbage's (in the pouring rain) while yelling out random lyrics to songs. He walked by and was like "Elders, where are your rain coats?" We kinda laughed and said, "Oh we left them behind." He chuckled and walked off and started singing some church song! It was pretty neat. I feel like being a missionary you carry around this kind of glow and people are always attracted to you and it is just a very neat experience unlike any other. And I'm not even in the field yet! I can't wait!

We have been teaching a lot of lessons each day here in the MTC! Just this week we taught an investigator named Diana. She was really nice. We talked for a while and I asked her if she would be willing to pray. She was hesitant but we told her it was very easy and was just a simple conversation with god. She then said a very sweet prayer and when she was done, she said she could feel some kind of spirit or something, I told her it was the Holy Ghost and a little while later I asked her to follow the example of Christ and be baptized. She said she already was, so we explained our way of baptism to her and she started to understand and at the end I asked her again if she wanted to be baptized and she said she wants to know a little bit more about our church. I hope on Thursday this week I will be able to get her to commit to getting baptized!

Salt Lake City

Our classroom teachers also play the role of being an investigator and we go and teach them lessons. We taught Hermano Wolfe yesterday and the previous time he said we didn't connect with the investigator enough. So this time we really got to know him and we got him to say a prayer and then I asked him to be baptized and he looked at me and said yes.. he had watery eyes and said he felt the spirit really strong! I think he was getting into character a little too much but it was still an awesome experience!

We also like to have some fun when we are about to go to bed! I received a basketball hoop and some nerf guns in the mail and every night we play Pig or Horse or Speed, or shoot each other with the nerf guns! It is a lot of fun! The other day Elder Ainge found a jump rope out side and so he brought it  back to our residence. Elder Martinez was using it and was tossing it back to Elder Ainge when he wasn't looking, and it nailed him right where you don't want to be hit. He was in the middle of drinking water to wash down some pills he was taking and he spit them out everywhere! It was hilarious! Elder Martinez felt bad so he said he could do it back to him I guess haha. So Elder Ainge had a yo-yo in his hand and they had Elder Martinez turn around and they swung the yo-yo right underneath his legs! He dropped like a sack of potatoes! It was the funniest thing ever! They had to try multiple times to! They are pretty dumb!;) haha I guess boys will be boys!

My Room

We went to the temple early this morning and did initiatories. I saw one of my neighbors there working and he said he would tell my parents he saw me! It was a great experience and after wards we went and got a delicious breakfast at the cafeteria there! The MTC has been treating us well the past couple days and I can't wait to see what it has in store!
Love Elder Ivie

YoYo Kings