Sister Alyssa Johnson: MTC - Week 5

We hit a month this week! I've been gone a month so that means I only have 17 left Mom!

This week has had its ups and downs, but overall it's been a pretty good week!

Thanksgiving was on Thursday and it was pretty good! We started the day with a devotional from Elder Neil L Anderson from the Quorum of the 12 Apostles so that was cool! He did a really good job and was soo nice! Then we had our Thanksgiving Lunch and it wasn't too bad.. nothing like Thanksgiving dinner at home.. but not too bad. After lunch, since Sister Cahoon and I were were station leaders for the service project, we had to go help set up the stations. Then we had an afternoon devotional about service. Finally, we got to do the service project! I was bummed because I really wanted to actually help with the service project, but we were quality control so we just had to walk around and help people if they needed it.. and so we didn't get to help at all. But it was fun going around and talking to everyone! Then we had our peanut butter and jelly sack dinners in our classrooms..lol..but after we got to watch Ephraim's Rescue! I love that movie!! Then we had our evening devotional and it was incredible! It was so fun! At the end of the day, we all got to go outside and walk around like the middle of the MTC and they had all the Christmas lights on!! It was like a small temple square!! SO pretty and fun! Our zone all got in a circle and were singing Christmas songs (more like yelling singing.. but it was sooo fun!!) I love my Zone! It got me sooo excited for Christmas :) Great day!

On Friday, Sister Cahoon and I taught our investigator and we taught her about the Atonement! I love the Atonement so I was really excited! I learned how to share my story of my family's accident, when I lost my 2 older sisters. It was so cool! I had been praying the entire lesson that the Spirit would be with us and help me teach. As I started telling my story, the spirit was overwhelming! I felt like I was getting a giant hug! It was sooo powerful. After the lesson Sister Cahoon and I were talking about it and she told me that when I was sharing my story, she was saying a silent prayer in her heart that Alexis and Amanda could be with us. She said she felt the spirit so strong and the thought "we are here" came to her mind! I was blown away. I know that Alexis and Amanda were with us during that lesson and were helping me!! I am so grateful to have help from both sides of the veil and to know that Lexie and Manda are with me helping me every step of the way on my mission...I am so blessed!!

Also we got a new assignment on Sunday! Sister Cahoon and I are now Sister Training Leaders:) So yeah we are no longer the music cordinators! But we are excited to serve and to be chosen to do this! So we are STL's and that means that we have to go to meetings now, and we get a phone!.. I mean we don't use it hardly at all but we get one! we also do interviews every Saturday night with each of the girls. One on one interviews to make sure all is well and that it’s going good. So the district that is leaving leaves in a week.. and so we will be over our district and the other, and then we will get new missionaries! So we get to welcome in new missionaries into the zone next Wednesday when they come! We also, on the new people's first day, we get to do a welcome devo thing with them. We did it our first day here, but the stls and zl (zone leaders) gather with all the new people and we do get-to-know-you games and then give them a little tour of the campus and tell them about the MTC. I am excited because I remember when I first arrived at the MTC and the nice STL helped me so much; I am so pumped to help the new sisters – because the MTC can be scary and a bit weird at first – but we will make sure they are loving it and having fun.

On Monday in class, our teachers all went to different rooms and we had to practice "door knocking". It was soo hard but also really cool. We had to try and teach them and tell them about the Gospel so quick! We tried our best, and hahaha they did slam the door in our face a couple times so that's cool. We did well with some of the doors, but others were a train wreck. I guess that is how it is in the mission field though, so we learned a lot!

It started snowing this week! I love the snow! But it does make it kind of miserable during the Temple Walk and walking outside because it is so cold.. but it is super pretty so its ok :)

Being on a mission has taught me so much! I have only been gone a month, but I have grown so much already. I am forever grateful for this opportunity to serve as a representative of the Lord for the next 18 (now 17!) months! I love this Gospel so much!

Thank you sooo much for the letters and emails this week! And thank you for the prayers as well! They help so much! I love you all so much & I am praying for you! Have a great week!!

xoxo

Sister Johnson

Also, everyone needs to go watch the new Light the World videos that the Church put out! They are soo good!!