Week 8: My last week at the MTC (sort of...maybe) & quick jaunt to D.C.

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Everyone,

What an amazingly crazy and awesome week! Before I write about my time in Washington, D.C., I have to tell you about the talk that Elder Richard G. Scott (a member of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles) delivered just after the last time I sent out an email.

He came and spoke here at the MTC, mostly about how we can be closer to the Lord through scripture study and prayer and so forth. But the amazing thing was that the entire talk was pretty much him asking questions to the people who lined up at the two microphones. I eventually got up, realizing that the entire talk was going to be people answering his questions with him commenting on their answers. So when I got up to the microphone, it was just me, Elder Scott, and the 2,500 missionaries in the MTC. My face was projected on the big screen so everyone could see it and was broadcast throughout the campus to the overflow rooms. Needless to say it was a little nerve-racking. But I had to get up there because I didn't know if I would ever get a chance again to speak face to face with Elder Scott, one of the Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ.

He asked me to comment on a verse in the Doctrine and Covenants which says that you should not seek to preach the Lord's word, but first seek to obtain His word and then you can open your mouth to speak and the words will be given you what to say. I pretty much said that I believe that means that we must apply ourselves heavily to the studies that we do so that we might obtain the word of God, and thereby be able to speak it. Without study, we cannot have an abundance of the Holy Spirit and it is not us which teaches (or if it is, it usually goes really badly) but the Holy Spirit which speaks to the person whom we are teaching. So I said that with study, we can have the spirit and the spirit can then communicate to the person being taught the truthfulness of the message. He asked me a clarification question, and then I moved on. It was amazing though. I really felt like I was just talking to him, and like everything else was blurred out. When I sat down, I spent about the next half hour asking my companion over and over again if I was clear and if I answered the right question and so forth. I am so grateful to have had that opportunity.

And I went to D.C...

...to visit the Slovenian Embassy.

You know, them's the Slovenian rules in order to get a visa.

There is so much to say about it but I only have 15 minutes left to write.

I fasted the day before I departed so I would have the courage to open my mouth and would know what to say. When I got to the airport early in the morning, it was just me alone having to find my way around. I was able to speak with a couple of people, help a woman find her car, help a man who had fallen off the escalator, and speak with a woman from the Philippines who works in Saudi Arabia. I wish I could have given her a pass-along card, but for some dumb reason I had stowed my cards in my backpack. She disappeared before I was able to get them out. I sure got them out for the rest of the trip.

I ended up sitting next to two Mormons on my flight to Chicago, so I wasn't really able to preach the gospel to them! But when I was in Chicago, I felt strongly there were a few people I should give cards to. I wrote a note to them on the back of the cards and gave each of them a card with a note written just for them. Usually the note said something like, "God is your Heavenly Father and He notices you and appreciates everything you do." I spoke with one flight attendant on the plane about the Ankh earrings she was wearing. She said that she loved the symbol of the Ankh because it represents eternal life and eternal happiness, which is everything that she wants. I was really excited about this, and so I wrote on the back of another card that the doctrine of eternal life and happiness is central to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and that in this at least the Egyptians had it right. I asked another attendant give it to her because I wasn't able to get to the back of the plane again.

Then when I was on another plane, a plane from Chicago to D.C., I sat next to an agnostic astronomer with whom I spoke about the logic of the Gospel. I don’t think I did as well as I could have, but I did tell him that if he becomes interested in religion again, he should pick up the Book of Mormon to read. Then the same man whom I had sat by on my flight to Chicago, who happened to be a Bishop from Salt Lake City, helped me find my way to the Washington, D.C. North Mission President and his wife who were waiting to pick me up. They are such wonderful people, President and Sister Matsumori (I don't know if it that is spelled correctly)! First they took me to dinner. When we finished eating, we needed the check so the President Matsumori went to find our waitress. He couldn't find her, so he spoke with a different one. When he told this other waitress that he is a missionary, she said that she used to be an investigator of our church and she had wanted to join but her father had not let her. But now she was looking for that same feeling of truth and peace again and she was out of under her father’s control so now she could make her own decisions. She said that she would take the presence of the Mission President as a sign from God and wanted to be taught by the missionaries again. How cool is that!?! President Matsumori told me he was only there because of me and therefore said this is pretty much my first convert! Whoa. I actually did nothing, but he was really gracious about it. He is going to e-mail me to tell me how it goes with her. That was so awesome!!! The way it sounded, she is probably going to want to get baptized soon. : ) : ) : )

The Matsumoris took me to the Mission Home. The next day, after I slept wonderfully under their hospitality, the President had a fabulous senior missionary couple (who were on the first day of their own mission) take me to the Slovenian Embassy. All I really had to do was give my papers, my fingerprints, and then leave. Then this lovely missionary couple drove me to all the most important memorials, so I was able to see them at least. I was able to take pictures in front of the our nation's Capital and the Washington Memorial. They were so wonderful to me and so obliging. I really owe them a lot. It was a terrific experience.

President Matsumori asked them to take me to the D.C. Temple afterwards so I could attend one session and then he would pick me up. The Washington, D.C. Temple is just incredible! I was stunned by how beautiful it is on the outside and the inside. The stained glass, waterfalls, the walkway with windows overlooking the forest, the Celestial Room--it was, really was magnificent. I was so blessed to be there. I had lunch in the downstairs cafeteria and then went to the Visitors Center where the President called to see if I was ready to be picked up. While there, I spoke with the Sister missionaries who are assigned to the D.C. Visitors Center. They were wonderfully sweet and also obliging.

President and Sister Matsumori weren't able to pick me up, so he sent his three Assistants to the President to fetch me. They told me some fascinating stories about their work and really seemed excited to teach. They were also incredibly gracious. When we arrived at the airport, they took me to my gate and gave me some more pass-along cards because I had run out of the ones I had purchased from the MTC bookstore. On the tram to my terminal I met a woman whose mother is about to die. I spoke to her briefly about how we believe there are eternal families, and asked about her religious background. I gave her a pass-along card too. I really hope things go well for her and that she turns to God.

Then on the plane I think I really messed up because I had to opportunity to speak with someone but I didn't use it to talk about the gospel. Instead I just asked about his life for two hours. He was great though, and I gave him some pass-along cards too. I should have done better though… I hope he has another opportunity to hear about the Lord’s church.

Then when I finally arrived back in Salt Lake City, I was waiting for my car to take me back to the MTC. I spoke with a woman who doesn’t know much about our church but says she always notices something different about people in Utah--how they are somehow more thoughtful and considerate. I told her about how we believe that everyone is a child of God and is precious in His sight and how service is important in our faith. I gave her a card too, but I wish I had given her my Book of Mormon instead. I should have talked about Joseph Smith, but I fooled myself with the excused that I was too tired. I could have, should have done better. I ended up leaving my Book of Mormon with the driver of the car who drove me. I left a note in it for him about what parts he should read and how the Lord loves him.

It was an awesome time, but I could have done better if I had spoken more about the Savior and about the Restoration of the gospel. I will do better next time.

I love you all!

Sestra Ary