Weekend at the MTC

For our preparation day on Saturday, first we went looking for the 4 elders and 1 sister going to Mongolia. They entered the MTC on Wednesday April 15th. Before they came there were no Mongolian missionaries in the MTC. These missionaries will be in the MTC for three months and go to Mongolia in July.

We thought they had a class at 9:15 in the morning, but when we found them, they were doing personal and companion study and didn’t have a class until 2:15 in the afternoon. We went back in the afternoon and had a Mongolian class with them from 2:15 until 5:30 p.m. I enjoyed the class; it was very helpful. If I have a chance, I want to meet with them again, but their classes are usually during the day when we have our own training.

One thing I discovered by meeting with them was that the MTC has a program called TALL to help with learning a language. The teacher Marta gave me her logon so I could access the program. I wish someone had informed me about the program a week earlier.

With Saturday morning now free, we attended an endowment session at the Provo Temple. We’d never been inside this temple before.

In the evening we watched recorded devotionals. Elder Holland had spoken at the MTC devotional on Tues. April 14th. His talk was very down-to-earth and even feisty emphasizing the importance of not wasting the opportunity of serving a mission and of obeying the rules and not being stupid. He said going out by 2 or 3 together keeps covenants secure.

Next we watched the devotional by Sheri Dew from Sunday April 19th. She indicated that feeling the Spirit and hearing the voice of the Spirit are two separate things. We know we need to learn to recognize when we feel the Spirit, but then we need to go beyond that to learn to hear the voice of the Spirit, what it is telling us to do. She suggested getting on our knees and praying and asking the Lord to teach us what it feels like for us individually to receive revelation. The scriptures and purity will unlock the language of revelation.

Sunday morning we attended sacrament meeting, watched the Spoken Word, and then attended Relief Society. Sister Cook, 1st counselor in the YW presidency, was the speaker. She spoke about virtue which is now a YW value. The YW are invited to complete the virtue value along with their mothers and grandmothers.

After Relief Society a member of the MTC Relief Society presidency spoke about our dress. We are to dress professionally, not casually, and we are to dress modestly. That just about sums up what we need to know. The packet sent to us was misleading; she indicated we can wear lots of color. We are to fix up and look the best we can; we are to be our most beautiful self. She also said the layered look is not a professional look so when sister missionaries wear layers, only the hemline of the top layer is to show at the waist.

Sunday afternoon I worked on my blogs. In the evening we attended a fireside where Brother Allen, managing director of the missionary department, was the speaker. He had a missionary read Alma 26:27-31 phrase by phrase while he commented on it and applied it to us in an entertaining way. He also emphasized obedience, not letting Satan divert us from being missionaries, and returning home as disciples of Jesus Christ.

Finally we concluded the evening with a video of a talk given by Elder Bednar on Feb 1st, 2005(?). Missionaries are not just to go through the motions. They must have the Spirit with them. A missionary must have a change of heart and be converted. Missionaries are to open their mouths, and it will be given them what they are to say. If a missionary has no clue what to say, he is to bear testimony of Joseph Smith and the restoration. Joseph Smith will lead a person to Christ.

A missionary represents the Savior, his gospel, and his plan. Elders are sons of God and of the seed of Abraham with the responsibility to bless the seed of Abraham. When they return home, they are to continue with a lifetime of ministry.