Yo sé que Jesucristo vive

Hola Mi Familia y Mis Amigos!

So much to say, so little time to write! So sorry if I leave out details, if you have any specific questions for me Dearelder.com me and I will write back! I have had a great first week here at the MTC! The work is tough, but worth it with all the spiritual experiences. Sunday was great to attend sacrament meeting for the first time, but then it was a little different than most Sundays I have experienced when we went right back to learning and studying for the rest of the day after that. Elder Sawyer and I blessed the sacrament and I was surprised at how well my pronunciation was after just a couple days. It was definitely my first gift of tongues experience. Our district continues to work hard and speak as much spanish as possible. I definitely struggle at times with the language but I am doing my best. I just love speaking, praying, and especially singing in spanish. I see Elder Chris Smith and Elder Jeremy Rhoads every so often and they are doing very well. I also saw Elder John Sherman and Elder Logan Smith for the first time today because they just got here. Also, there are a couple of Hermanas that might switch into our district, one of them is Hermana Hulme, Scott Hulme´s cousin. She is way nice and fun to talk to. When I struggle with the language it makes it easy to feel down or depressed, but Heavenly Father is always preparing us, no matter where we are in our lives. Sometimes that can be hard to recognize when we work hard and do not see immediate progress. I testify that with patience and hard work, we will see the fruits of our labors and we will rejoice when we come to a realization of who we have become. Tuesday has been my best day at the MTC thus far. That night´s devotional, from Elder Richard Hinckley of the Seventy, really hit home for me. He addressed multiple topics regarding missionary work including, ´´living up to the expectations of your mother, be tough! be not ashamed! and be bold!, Be the missionary that writes ´´I´m glad I did´´ instead of ´´I wish I had¨, lose yourself in the work, and finally, your job as missionaries is to teach the divinity of Christ." As a district, we held a testimony meeting afterwards to address these topics. Hermana Baek bore her testimony and humbly spoke of her circumstance with her non-member parents with tears streaming down her face. Her parents are totally against her decision to serve a mission, but she stays strong. Her testimony strengthens mine everyday. In my testimony, I felt impressed to share the story of Elder Budrough (spelling?) because he strengthened my testimony greatly as I was preparing to head into the mission field. After everyone bore their testimonies in English and in Spanish, we sang "Grande eres Tú" (How Great Thou Art). The Spirit bore testimony to everyone in the room that Jesus Christ is our Savior and loves each one of us. No eye was dry, no heart left untouched. Yo testifico que Jesucristo vive y él es el Hijo de Dios. A través de su Expiación, podemos ser limpios y puros. Thanks to everyone who has sent me letters this past week, keep them comin! They are such a strength to me and I love hearing about what is going on in all of your lives. I have the best support while I am gone and I am grateful for such great friends and family. Your prayers are much appreciated, muchas gracias!!! I love you all!

Until Next Week!!

Elder Stutz