Fourth week in the MTC

Jiang Jiemei is an awesome teacher. Every time she teaches us, you can feel her love for us and for the Gospel. She has been having us do more practices of teaching an investigator on different topics. It is really helpful, because I find out what vocab I don't know, and what I do know. It is also helpful to find out what topics I am lacking in vocab, like Repentance. I don't know that much vocab so that subject was much harder to teach. It is great to hear Jiang Jiemei's testimony and to feel her love for the Savior.

Devotional this Tuesday we sang "How Great Thou Art." The speakers had powerful messages. They talked about what made a difference in their missions. Like how you come home is how you go out. I need to be focused on the right thing, that way I can share Christ love with greater power. One of the speakers said "I will get on the plane running and I will not stop until my mission is over." There was a story about one elder, he was really happy and was always enthusiastic, and he told his companion "sometimes I just have to kick myself out the door." it is during the hard days that we need to focus on what is most important, and with that focus we can serve with more love.

Wednesday we had an English fast, we were only allowed to speak Chinese. I didn't talk that much that day. I mostly listened and wrote down words that I didn't know so that I could find out what they mean. It was really hard, but it was a while after lunch that we pretty much started using English words. So it was hard to do, but something’s you just can't do in Chinese, when you have such a limited vocabulary.

This week I have noticed a difference in my speaking abilities. I have been practicing with Sister Hsiao, it has really helped. I try to say the words with confidence and focus on the tones. I am reading the Book of Mormon out loud and saying the words dramatically so that I can work on the tones and get them right and so that I get use to how the tones are suppose to be said. It has really helped. When we taught Lin Jiemei I was able to understand what she was saying. Before what she was saying I only caught random words, but I understood what she was saying this week. She has been praying, and reading the Book of Mormon and she said that she had felt this feeling that is different for when she goes to work, or being with her family. It is the same feeling that she gets when she talks to us!! This is amazing progress. She is feeling the Holy Ghost and can feel the difference. The next time we taught her. I knew that she wasn't feeling this awesome feeling when she was praying, so I tried telling her that if she prays I know that Heavenly Father will answer her prayers, I know that Heavenly Father is always listening, we just need to exercise our faith in Him, and ask for the things that are burdening our minds. When she was talking to us, I could feel that there was something that she needed to say, or it was something that we needed to tell her. But I didn't know what so say, so I shared with her what I could.

Sunday is the best. The elders were watching a Mormon message, and it was about how after Christ was killed the apostles went back to fishing. Then there was Stanger standing on the beach, and he told them to cast their nets on the other side. And they did they caught so many fish that it broke their nets. It was then that they knew it was Christ. He asked them, why are you back here, have I not called you to be fishers of men. (If the Savior wanted fish, he could get fish,) what he wants are teachers that will teach His gospel to the people who have not heard it. That’s what I want to do. I want to share Christ love with the people who do not know that Christ and Heavenly Father are there for them. I want to share that they can pray to Heavenly Father and they can receive an answer. They can have their guidance within their own lives. It is so exciting to be able to share that in a different language.

Jenny Oaks Baker preformed during the Devotional on Sunday, you could feel her love for the Savior, and you could see the strength of her testimony. We watched a Joseph Smith video after the devotional. It chronicled the things that Joseph Smith went through, and his faith was never shaken. There were really hard things that he went through, but he always knew that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are there. When he was in Carthage jail, he was suffering. Heavenly Father told him if he bore his trials well they should be but a small moment. I know that if I do everything I can to learn the principle of the Gospel, the language skills will come. I know that by studying the things that will help the investigator, I will remember the words and phrases that will help teach the lesson. Through this testimony I have the faith that I will learn the language in due time. As I focus on the needs of the investigator I will be able to understand them more.