Week 4 – MTC

I love it here at the MTC not because of the food, or the classes, but because I love being with the people in my zone. The others are all going to Italy and it is really cool to hear them talk in it and we even sing in it too! I love them so very much and the fun we have is awesome. Laughter really is the saving ordinance here at the MTC.

I am the 2nd oldest missionary in our zone, and i think it is rather silly. I am stuck with all these young guns! I love the other guys in my district, but I am having a hard time getting the fire out of them. I want them to get as fired up about the Gospel as me, but I don’t think that is possible. Oh well.

My Romanian is actually coming along really well. I can now speak pretty fluently during lessons, and can respond to almost every question asked. There are some words that I still need to know, and have to look up, but that number is dropping faster and faster. I am not very good at conjugating verbs and stuff but I am pretty good at remembering words. I practice everyday with the stuff I don’t know so that I can be ready in the mission field. It is such a beautiful language. There are some not so pretty words, but put into a sentence it becomes pretty. The Romanian’s actually have a grammar rule called the pretty principle! We learn new grammar almost everyday we have class, and we practice it more and more.

There is something about sitting in a lesson though and feeling that spirit that really boosts my confidence and allows me to speak the way I can. I have had to stop talking and wait for my companion to come up with a sentence or two, before I can keep going so that he can get as much practice as me. I am trying to help him, but it is pretty hard. I never thought that the gift of tongues could apply to me, but I am seeing it happen every time I go in and teach a lesson. My goal is to be able to speak it just as comfortably in a lesson, outside of a lesson. We call it SYL, or speak your language. We have set goals, and I am going to work hard at it.

I won’t be able to talk on the phone at Christmas, but I think we get longer email times, so it is possible that you could be on the same time I am and we can chat that way. I will find out more about that.

There is still a lot of mystery surrounding Christmas here at the MTC, although I have been told that two, apostles and up, will speak at our Christmas devotional, and that it will be broadcast to all the other MTC’s. We could have the Prophet. Just saying.

I have to tell you something crazy that is happening tomorrow. So, the other day this guy comes into our class and sits down. He then explains to us that some people from Romania will be joining us in our classroom on Thursday along with the MTC president, and a member of the 70. AHHHHHHH!!!!!!! We are getting the top dog in our class. This has never happened before at the MTC, and we are the first group that he will ever evaluate. No pressure.

Today we went and cleaned the temple. I was put as a Security guard for people coming in the front door. I got to check temple recommends, while having a Temple Police badge around my neck. Super cool! So apparently they are making the Provo temple, earthquake proof which entails thirty, thirty foot holes drilled into the earth and then having the temple basically placed on it. It was super cool, and then we got a tour and got to see the celestial room, brides room, chapel, and baptistry. It was so spiritual. My job was actually pretty boring, but I read most of the last general conference talks and probably two hours of scripture study, in perfect quite, and spirit. Ah…so needed. It was such a spiritual break. I am counting my blessings and one of them is being able to go to the temple, even when it is closed. It opens the day we leave, btw.

I was told something that I want to apply in my missionary work right now so I can do it in Romania, and that is to not let the language be the barrier for you to spread the gospel. When I get off the plane I am going to tell my companion “I know this, this, and this all memorized, let’s get to work.” I want to apply what I know immediately and the rest will come. I just don’t want to be shy and let my trainer get all the fun. Oh, so I did a little math and I think that the combined number of baptisms between my teachers that served in Romania was under ten, and there was three that served there. It is going to be tough… I always keep in mind Alma 26, besides if the lord wants it done, it will get done in some way or another. I had one moment of home sickness that kind of hit me like a wave. I put on my gloves to go to the temple, and I remembered what it was like to be out on those trails in Cayuna. I missed it so much, well not really I am going to ROMANIA!!!! WOOHOO!!!!

Elder Oldham