Hola Familia!
I love it here at the MTC. I have learned and grown do much already and am so thankful for the opportunity that I have to serve the lord. The first few days were rough. Our teacher, Hermano Finnlay only speaks spanish to us, so it was a little rough not being able to understand him. It's incredible how powerful the gift of tounges really is though. So much has come back to me that I learned in High School. I now find myself being able to understand almost everything that people say in spanish, I'm still just not sure how to respond. The days are long and full of classes. I never though I could be so exhausted, but its a good exhaustion. Everything has started to get better though and I am more used to the schedule and how things work around here.
My companion is Elder Nelson. He is a stud.....but a little different haha. I love him though and have learned so much from him. He is from Henderson, Nevada, but his dad is in the military, so he travels the country. This summer he lived in DC, so he has had a lot of experiences in different areas. I have honestly learned so much from him though. He has such a strong testimony, and its always nice to have him around. He also has diabetes (not positive about the spelling) so we have a fridge in our room....kinda nice, we can keep things fresh you know? haha.
So far we have taught three lessons in spanish. At first they were very rough, but they have gotten better each time. Our "investegator" is Sandra, and she is Jewish so we have been teaching her about Christ and His love for her. We pretty much wrote out a script our first lesson, and it went well until we realized we were done and had only been in there five minutes. We asked her if she had any questions about Christ, which may not have been the smartest thing to do because even though I could understand the questions I had no idea how to answer them in Spanish. Even though our language isn't as great as it will be in the futures, its still an amazing opportunity. No matter how terrible our language may be right now, when we testify of the things that we know to be true the spirit is so strong. Even though there is a language barrior between us and Sandra, she can feel things when we testify. Its crazy how excited I get about teaching her. I know that she is a member and already knows everything that we have been telling her, but when her character grasps a concept and has a desire to learn more it brings so much joy in my life. I can't imagine how pumped I will be once I'm in Tempe teaching real investegators.
We have also had the opportunity to have several devotionals. Last night we were able to hear from Elder Neil A. Anderson. He answered a lot of my questions that I have had about my mission. He gave us a list of 10 things as missionaries we should do. My favorite was #10. He told us that we needed to testify of Christ, everywhere we go. I know that this is why I am out here. Our purpose as missionaries is to bring others closer to Christ by Faith in him and his atonement, repentance, baptism, recieving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. Christ is central to this plan. I know that he is my brother and my savior. I know that because he chose to walk the path alone, I don't have to and no matter what he will be walking beside me and carrying me in my times of need. We also were able to listen to a talk given by Elder Holland entitled "Missions are Forever." He told us that we truly are apostles with a lower-case a. I know this to be true. I know that I am a full time servant of the Lord and I am so excited for these next two years. Even though from my point of view now two years seems so far away, I am thankful for the opportunity I have to have these two years in my life.
The second day here I was put in as District Leader. I was a little nervous because I didn't want it to take too much time away from my studies, but it actually hasn't taken much time and has allowed me to get to know my district much better. My district is full of studs. Just like when I met my companion I was a little unsure about how they would be, but as I have gotten to know them I have gotten so close with them. Elder Duffy is one of my favorites. He is from northern Idaho and had the opportunity to play football for Utah State, but broke his back so he couldn't play anymore. His companion is also a stud, Elder Crompton. He his also from Henderson Nevada. Elder Morgan and Elder Wilcox are a companionship as well and they are two awesome guys as well.
I am running low on time... its a timed 30 minutes of email, kinda lame, but I would like to leave you with my testimony
I know that this church is true. There is no doubt in my mind of the trueness of this church. I know that I am here for a reason. There are people in Tempe, Arizona that need to hear the gospel from me, and I am so excited to share this Joy that I have with them. I am so thankful for my Savior Jesus Christ. I would not be anywhere near where I am today with out his atoning sacrifice. I will never be able to pay him back for all that he has done, but I know that a mission is a start. I am so thankful for all of you. I am convinced that I have been raised in the best family in the world. I'm not sure what I did in the pre earth life to deserve it, but I am so thankful for everything you all have done.
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
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