GREAT WEEK AT MTC!

Hey everyone!
It's been a great week here at the MTC. So some exciting things happened. First, Elder Paul Sybrowsky from the Quorum of the Seventy came and spoke to us Tuesday. It was probably the best talk I've heard. It was super good, and I really like him. He talked about a lot of things, but one thing he said that I liked was when he said "we will astonish those we teach and we will astonish ourselves". It is just a really cool thought.

So this week was the new Mission Presidency training which was busy and exciting. On Friday night we had a special devotional, by none other that David A. Bednar. He spoke on becoming a "Preach My Gospel" missionary. He said we simple can not allow ourselves to teach lessons, we must teach people. Teach people according to their needs. It was really cool. The coolest part though was that he was there to speak to us, but in attendance were also, Dalin H. Oaks, Richard G. Scott, Neil L. Anderson, Jeffrey R. Holland, Russell M. Nelson and M. Russell Ballard. So it was pretty good.

We watched this talk on lds.org this week too by Elder Bednar. It was his 2008 General Conference talk (I forget which one) titled Pray Always, I think. It was really good.

So we got our flight plans this week. We leave July 4, and fly from Salt Lake to Dallas Texas, then to London Heathrow, then to Prague. So we're getting pretty excited right about now.

We hosted the new missionaries on Wednesday. The last Elder I hosted was going to L.A. speaking mandarin. I took him to his class, and in that class were George Charbadze and my other friend Michael Slawson! So I was pretty excited. It was really cool to see them. Well, next time you hear from me will be in the Czech Republic! Have a great week everyone!

-Starsi Salas

LEAVING IN 2 WEEKS!

Hey Everyone!
How are things. Things are great here! MTC is still great. I love it here so much. I'm still super excited to be leaving in 2 weeks though! It is already almost here! Czech time!

Well this week was great. Sean Roonie left the MTC today so I said bye to him last night. He was so excited to be going out to Ukraine. Tomorrow we get to be Host's for the new missionaries so maybe I'll see George come in or my friend Michael Slawson. I'm really excited for that.

This week is the New mission president seminar so a lot of apostles will most likely be coming. I'm super stoked for that. It should be a great week!

On last Tuesday, Rosemary Wixom, the primary president spoke to us. She was a good speaker. She talked about staying strong in the Gospel throughout our lives. One thing her husband said, because he spoke too, was that we should waste away our lives in the Gospel. I really like that saying.

One thing I realized this week is that I have done so many hard things in my life, that I could never have done without the Gospel. The MTC is full of things I could never do on my own. It's such a great thing.

We watched this movie on lds.org this week about Tyler Haws, who played basketball for BYU before he left on a mission. One thing he said that I really loved a lot is that we may not be good at something, but we have to work at it if we want it. I really want to be a good missionary so I see that I really have to work at it. Every day is a challenge. But I just keep trying my best.

Sorry I couldn't be there for Father's day, but I'm sure it was good anyways.
I love and miss you all!

Dobry Den!

Dobry Den! (Hello!)
How is everyone? It's been another great week at the MTC! That's awesome about George's talk and I will look out for him. Brigham and Ricky left the MTC on Monday but I got to see them a few times before they left and got some pictures with them. Has anyone heard anything about Corbin lately? I heard from someone that Peru got a new president who wants to kick out missionaries of all religions from Peru. I hope he can stay.

So everyone's questions:
Yes I do have the same companion the whole time at the MTC.

We go to the temple every Tuesday which is good and we've been doing different things there every time which has been really good.

We haven't gotten our visas yet but one of our teachers said we should in the next week or 2, so I'm not too worried.
I haven't gotten to be a host elder yet and I don't know if I will get to. It would be really cool though.

I don't get to do online chat with investigators. I think they have missionaries specifically assigned to do that for their whole mission, but I'm not entirely sure.

The language is still hared but its definitely coming along. It will come much faster once I'm in the Czech Republic and have no choice but to learn it all day. We go to the TRC every week which is cool because we teach return missionaries mostly about a topic for the week. Afterwords, we usually ask them about the mission and stuff so its always good. It is always a really good experience.

So last Tuesday, Elder Yoshiko Kikuchi of the seventy came to speak to us. He is from Japan. He told us his conversion story when was 10 years old and how the First Vision helped him to be converted. It was a really good talk. He also told us to master the first 3 lessons in Preach My Gospel because they are the ones most taught. Sunday night, Richard I. Heaton who is the administrative director of the MTC spoke to us. It was a really good talk as well. He told us that we should be quick to observe and quick to obey. I am excited to see who speaks to us tonight.

So, yes only 3 more weeks until the Czech Republic! I am extremely excited. The more I hear about the mission from our teachers and the TRC RM's, the more excited I get. The people sound super awesome and it just seems like a really cool place to be. There is one missionary here from the Czech Republic who is going to Canada, speaking Spanish, so he's told us a little about the country. I am just ready to go!

So not much else has happened here this week. I hope you are all doing well, and I will hear from you next week!
-Starsi Salas

Another Great Week at the MTC!

Hey Everyone!
Another great week at the MTC!
So at the Devotional last Tuesday, Allan F. Packer of the Seventy spoke. It was a really good talk with a lot of good points. His wife spoke first and said that the two things you must do before a mission are to learn how to work, and to learn how to get the spirit. I'm so glad I had many opportunities to do both. Brother Packer said that in order for someone to become converted, they hear what you are saying, they must remember it, they must understand what you are teaching, they must apply it into their own lives, and they must become someone new.

Fast Sunday was great. One of the best days here yet. I didn't hardly feel hungry at all the whole day. I know what it is like to be filled with the spirit. Ha its always something people say, but it really is real. Our MTC presidency spoke to us that morning for 2 hours. It was one of the best meetings ever.
Brother and Sister Wilkins spoke about faith. They said that faith in Jesus Christ motivates us to action. Without faith, we can do nothing, but with faith all things are possible. Brother and Sister Nally spoke about prayer. Brother Nally specifically talked about Joseph Smith and his first prayer. They said that prayer is the heart and soul of our religion. Brother Nally said it is important to memorize Joseph Smith's first vision and to recite it to others often. It is a powerful message.
President and Sister Brown spoke on the Savior's earthly ministry. It was really good. The Sunday night Fireside was good too.
Wayne Peterson, who used to be in the second Quorum of the Presidency spoke about the Nauvoo temple. He said that one time when asked what his crowning achievement was in the church, President Hinckley said that dedicating the Nauvoo temple was the most important thing he ever did.

I am definitely trying to improve my teaching skills because they are lacking. Czech is hard as always, but it is going well. Our teachers are really great, I love them. They help so much.

Elders Madsen and Holland are leaving in a week so I won't get to see them anymore. Oh well. I love and miss you all!

-Starsi Salas

Four Weeks Already?

Hey family!

How's it going. Hope this week was good. The weather here is finally changing for the better. We'll see if it lasts. For like a week straight it rained hard every single morning, and got super hot and sunny the rest of the day, usually after 2 or something. It was weird.

So last week at the Devotional we had Russell M. Nelson speak to us! It was awesome. He didn't really use notes and just sort of spoke by the Spirit. One thing I really liked that he spoke about was that everyone we teach will be weeping some way. Most people won't be weeping openly, but our goal as missionaries is to find out what is weighing a person down, and let them know how the Gospel can help them. Another great thing he said was that the best response is a brief response. We don't need to get extravagant and detailed with our words. We will likely confuse people.

The Czech language is still a rough language, but its coming along. All the people at the TRC keep telling us that they are impressed by how far we have come along.

On Sunday, we watched "The Testaments" the movie about the Nephites. It was really good and I like that one.

I will be at the MTC for 9 weeks total. Spanish is only 8 weeks and some other languages go for 12 weeks!

One thing I just remembered. I forget who but one of the speakers, either the Sunday fireside or the Tuesday Devotional, said that he gets bothered when people pray for the missionaries to find people to teach. He said that missionaries are supposed to be teachers, and the ward members are responsible for providing them with people to teach. I just thought that it was an interesting thought. I had never thought about it that way.

Well things are good here so don't worry about me. I'm safer here than at home. Love and miss you all!

s Laskou,

-Starsi Salas