August 4, 2015 - Provo MTC

Well, lets start off with the big news first, I got my Travel itinerary for the Brasil MTC! I will be heading out on the 11th of August and spend the remainder of my time at the MTC down there. It has been really cool having the opportunity to come to the Provo MTC. I got to see quite a few people form Vacaville and talk with them. I think this has helped my adjustment to being away from family and friends. I could not have asked for a better district or companion. I just feel so blessed. My district is super dedicated and we are all trying so hard to improve in not only the language of Portuguese, but also the language of the spirit. I am also appreciative that my group is one that actually goes to bed at 10:30. We couldn't fall asleep for awhile because the other districts were running around outside and laughing like a bunch of girls. I heard somebody washing their face and made the joke that they were just out there splashing water on each other. One of the guys went out to use the bathroom and when he came back he told us all to look outside. They were splashing each other with water! We all broke out laughing. My district leader is Elder Neilson, he is from Texas and is really funny. My companion is Elder Nelson, which confuses a lot of people outside the district. I keep finding more similarities between me and my companion. We both play piano and trumpet, and want to be engineers.

Now to talk about the language. It is very difficult and challenging, but I am already more confident in Portuguese after one week then I was in Spanish after two years. Our teacher is awesome. His name is Irmao Lemprele and he is part of Vocal Point. He is super helpful and patient with us. Which is great because he uses it a lot with me. An average day includes at least 9 hours of language study and probably 3 to 4 hours of doctrine study. We have also already done three mock investigator lessons in Portuguese. They never had us teach a single lesson in English and our first lesson was on day three. 
 

The first Sunday was a Fast Sunday. I thought that fasting was hard at home, it's nothing compared to here. They have you fast and expect you to continue studying. Everyone said that you just had to make it to Sunday, then it got easier. Correction, make it to Sunday dinner. After that we had devotional and Sheri Dew spoke. What I got from it was that we need three basic things. 1 - To know that Christ is true, 2 - To know that the Holy Ghost is real and, 3 - To have a testimony of the actuality of the administering of angels. After that we got to watch a movie. It was a talk by David A Bednar and it was called the characteristics of Christ. It was all about turning out to others in our difficulties and not focusing inward. It was an awesome talk. I'd recommend that everyone watch it, but for some reason it is only shown at the MTC.

 

Our branch counselor, Brother Nilson, taught our District lesson on Sunday all about cor, or the Culture of righteousness. He taught about how we need not only have a testimony but we need to be converted. He also taught about the rules. Everyone here says that we need exact obedience, but he said that we need to be so much into the culture of righteousness and on Christ's side that we should never even come close to breaking the rules. The next day he came in and took our district on a special field trip to the room he had studied Spanish in and bore his testimony that only through God is all of this possible.

The main focus of the MTC has been to prepare to serve others and as I have strived to do this I have found that my love for all has increased, especially for my Family and Friends. I don't think that I ever truly appreciated what I had been given. I have literally been blessed beyond measure and way beyond what I deserve. What I find amazing is that I feel love for the people I will serve in Belo Horizonte and I haven't even met them! I'm doing everything better in the MTC. I am praying better, bearing my testimony better, learning better. There is one exception to the rule though, I am definitely not sleeping better. I have a slightly red, sleep deprived look in my eyes, but apparently its all the rage here.  I don't think I would trade this experience for anything. I have felt the spirit so strong here.

 

In companionship study me and my companion were talking about the power of the atonement and he started telling a story. There was a man walking in the sand and when he died he looked back and saw two sets of foot prints, Christ turned to him and said that's when I walked beside you. The man then noticed that one of the sets of foot prints disappeared. He turned to Christ and asked him what happened. He said, That is when I carried you. That story was just amazing and so true. I wish you could all feel the spirit I felt when he said it. Rarely has it been stronger.

 

From,

Elder Quain

 Arriving at the MTC

 

Elder Quain-Karren-Nelson-Hollingshaws

 

 

Elders Hollingshaws & Neilson