Small Girl In A Big City: Greetings From The Missionary Training Center!!

Hello dear friends and family!:)

So, I've been here for about 2 months now right? No? Only 2 days? Ok...

But really though, so much has happened these past 2 days it feels like an eternity! If you would've asked me last week, I would've told you the "T" in MTC stood for torture but now (and I am fully expecting many emails to say "I told you so" next week:)) I love it!!

I just want to testify that the Lord is there. He is waiting and ready to give us comfort when we need it most. He knew how scared I was on Wednesday, and He knew I would stand on the drop-off curb forever hugging my family if I didn't get some help. So that is just what He did, He sent me some MUCH needed help! One of my best friends, Sister Toomey (or whatever the Finnish word for Sister is, it sounded like "seesaw" to me... :)) was by some miracle my host! Out of the 637 missionaries that arrived at the Provo MTC on Wednesday, June 10th, 2015 she ended up getting me. This was the first of many miracles I have seen the past 2 days. Because I also ran into Sister Fouts and Sister Forbes (other friends from high school) not having been here 15 minutes!

My name tag. I think that might just be the biggest miracle of all. I get to wear a name tag that says I am a representative of Jesus Christ! What bigger miracle is there?

GAH! So much to say and so little time!

My District. My District is made up of 2 sister companionships and 2 Elder companionships and they are already like family! I might feel like the black sheep of this family;) But I still feel so a part of this little family (but nothing could beat my real family!) My companion. My companions name is... Sister Vassau! Yep, it happened! Sister Vassau and I went to elementary school together and somehow ended up leaving for the same mission, on the same day, and ended up as companions, WHAT!? And the other 2 sisters in my District are Sister Sam and Sister Hislop, we are just 4 little Utah girls headed to New York and we are too excited for words!:) The Elders in our District aren't going to New York with us:( But they are going to the Chicago West mission, which is probably the second coolest;) I feel like we are already getting to know each other and love each other really well and I love love love it!

The MTC did not hesitate did not hesitate to start packing on the training because we got teaching experience the first day! It's not as scary as it sounds though! We were in groups of over 50 missionaries and we were teaching 1 investigator but I had a special experience with the last investigator we taught. His name was George (uh... but in Spanish) and his son had died at 14, his wife had just been diagnosed with breast cancer, and he was struggling with depression. He didn't believe that the church was true, he thought it was a beautiful idea, but nothing more! I could tell that he WANTED to believe and I felt like I knew exactly what would help him, but I COULD NOT find the scripture I wanted to share! (Alma 32:27 because of course I found it afterwards.) So, I didn't share and I felt like I had failed George but I still felt a wonderful feeling! Because an answer to this man's problem did come to my mind, I felt like I knew how to help him, I just needed a little help. I saw it in myself that I actually might be able to do this, but I just need to get a little training (huh, I wonder where I could go for that *heavy sarcasm). So I promised myself that even though I am only here for 12 days that I'm not going to try to make it go faster so I can get it over with. I am here to prepare to teach the gospel, and boy do I need the preparation, so I need to be working my hardest to do that every second of this short time.

So when I promised myself and the Lord that, He decided to step in to help me... I have been pushed out of my comfort zone SO MUCH the past 2 days I couldn't count the instances with my shoes off. (And it will interest my family to know that includes praying... I have to make up for all the times I told my parents no to saying the prayer!) I swear, 9 times out of 10 I will be the one asked to say the prayer in a big group. The first few times I was like, "really...?" But now I have just accepted my fate!:) I also got pushed out of my comfort zone yesterday when we met our Branch President and his wife, President and Sister Lords, (shocker: I was asked to say the opening prayer) and Sister Vassau and I were assigned to teach Relief Society for the next couple of Sundays! I was expecting it just because that is the one thing that I was least willing to do, the Lord is testing my obedience! I know that the Lord has a sense of humor. Everything He does is for our good but I like to picture Him chuckling at my exasperation as I find out the next thing He has in store to help me prepare!

Oh and one last thing before I leave you all to your thoughts: we got iPads yesterday! They aren't the ones we will be using our in the field, just to use as practice here, but I'm not complaining! Technology is really a wonderful tool if we use it right (that was a not so subtle hint to use technology right and keep all y'allselves out of trouble!)

Oh, I could write so much more but there is not enough time in the world! I want every single one of you to just be here and experience this with me because that is the only way you can see how truly incredible it is!

I love you all so much and I thank my Heavenly Father every day for putting such wonderful people in my life!

I'd sign off with my mission language... but I'm already writing in it so you will all just have to imagine me saying this with a horrible New York accent;)

Love you to forever and back again, until next week!

Sister Jones