So...today's our last day here! And today I'm two months old already! We leave at 3:00pm Utah time and fly out tonight! It's sooo weird to think I've spent basically my entire summer here and now I'm finally leaving. But we're all so ready.
Monday night was our last night with Brother Thrap, one of our teachers. In honor of his last night, he sang "Let it Go" in Thai (he promised to do it a long time ago but we didn't think he actually would haha). We've really gotten attached to our teachers, they are all incredible people with incredible spirits and it's through their examples as teachers and friends that I've been able to become a better teacher and missionary here.
Tuesday was our last big devotional here! And wow was it a good one! Elder John Groberg came to speak to us (for those who don't know, he's the missionary that the movie "The Other Side of Heaven" is based on) about testimonies. We are always sharing our beliefs, whether we realize it or not, through what we say, what we do, what we sing, what we pray, what we write, and who we are. It was an inspiring devotional, but in my opinion the coolest parts came after he spoke. When all the missionaries in the MTC sang the closing hymn "I Know that My Redeemer Lives" and we're now several thousand strong, the Spirit hit me like a wall. We are truly God's army here, preparing to be sent forth to the nations to declare the truth and serve God's children. I'm so grateful to have been here for that. After the hymn, we went to our classroom for our "devotional review" with everyone in our district, and MAN my district is just so strong spiritually. 9 weeks with the same people 24/7 has given me an in-depth look into the lives of the 13 other people in my district, and I love them like they're my family.
Wednesday we got to host again! Hosting is one of my favorite things here, so I'm so grateful we got to do it one more time here. Some of the people I hosted and some of the people others in my district hosted got me thinking about how amazing it is that PEOPLE CAN CHANGE. While here, I always was so prideful about not wanting to change because I like who I am, but God has our end in mind and if we allow Him to improve us, we will never be disappointed with the result!
Thursday was my Dad's birthday! Happy birthday Dad! :) We had our last lesson with our investigator that night, so it was a little bittersweet. One powerful lesson I've learned here is that I am not the author of my success, the Lord is. When I commit myself to the work and focus on studying and being productive, I'm demonstrating my desire for the gift of tongues and the other blessings I've been promised as a missionary.
Friday was In-Field Orientation!!!! This is the infamous all-day workshop that takes place the Thursday or Friday before you enter the field. We've been looking forward to it for nine weeks haha...well, it was good. Nothing new, necessarily, and to be frank I think the majority of it was directed to missionaries going english-speaking or stateside, but there were definitely some good insights there.
Saturday was our last day of class -- another bittersweet moment. We got to say goodbye to Brother Shipley, Sister Stolworthy and Sister Hirschi, as well as our other teachers like Brother Chamberlin and Brother Yuen. Again, it's crazy how close we've all gotten. I've never once doubted that they genuinely care about me and love me and want to help me be the best missionary I can be. I'm so grateful for all of their insights, advice, and mostly their testimonies and their love for the people of Thailand. They have changed my mission and my life more than I can say and I love them more than I can express.
Sunday was our last everything! Last temple walk, last sacrament meeting, last time in our classroom together, last dinner in the MTC, last devotional...crazy! It was so much fun and crazy busy but all in all I can say this has been a great learning experience. In a lot of ways, the MTC is a refiner's fire, and as hard as it's been I'm grateful to have grown by being here for nine weeks. I didn't want it, but I think I needed it.
--
Sister Zoller
Monday night was our last night with Brother Thrap, one of our teachers. In honor of his last night, he sang "Let it Go" in Thai (he promised to do it a long time ago but we didn't think he actually would haha). We've really gotten attached to our teachers, they are all incredible people with incredible spirits and it's through their examples as teachers and friends that I've been able to become a better teacher and missionary here.
Tuesday was our last big devotional here! And wow was it a good one! Elder John Groberg came to speak to us (for those who don't know, he's the missionary that the movie "The Other Side of Heaven" is based on) about testimonies. We are always sharing our beliefs, whether we realize it or not, through what we say, what we do, what we sing, what we pray, what we write, and who we are. It was an inspiring devotional, but in my opinion the coolest parts came after he spoke. When all the missionaries in the MTC sang the closing hymn "I Know that My Redeemer Lives" and we're now several thousand strong, the Spirit hit me like a wall. We are truly God's army here, preparing to be sent forth to the nations to declare the truth and serve God's children. I'm so grateful to have been here for that. After the hymn, we went to our classroom for our "devotional review" with everyone in our district, and MAN my district is just so strong spiritually. 9 weeks with the same people 24/7 has given me an in-depth look into the lives of the 13 other people in my district, and I love them like they're my family.
Wednesday we got to host again! Hosting is one of my favorite things here, so I'm so grateful we got to do it one more time here. Some of the people I hosted and some of the people others in my district hosted got me thinking about how amazing it is that PEOPLE CAN CHANGE. While here, I always was so prideful about not wanting to change because I like who I am, but God has our end in mind and if we allow Him to improve us, we will never be disappointed with the result!
Thursday was my Dad's birthday! Happy birthday Dad! :) We had our last lesson with our investigator that night, so it was a little bittersweet. One powerful lesson I've learned here is that I am not the author of my success, the Lord is. When I commit myself to the work and focus on studying and being productive, I'm demonstrating my desire for the gift of tongues and the other blessings I've been promised as a missionary.
Friday was In-Field Orientation!!!! This is the infamous all-day workshop that takes place the Thursday or Friday before you enter the field. We've been looking forward to it for nine weeks haha...well, it was good. Nothing new, necessarily, and to be frank I think the majority of it was directed to missionaries going english-speaking or stateside, but there were definitely some good insights there.
Saturday was our last day of class -- another bittersweet moment. We got to say goodbye to Brother Shipley, Sister Stolworthy and Sister Hirschi, as well as our other teachers like Brother Chamberlin and Brother Yuen. Again, it's crazy how close we've all gotten. I've never once doubted that they genuinely care about me and love me and want to help me be the best missionary I can be. I'm so grateful for all of their insights, advice, and mostly their testimonies and their love for the people of Thailand. They have changed my mission and my life more than I can say and I love them more than I can express.
Sunday was our last everything! Last temple walk, last sacrament meeting, last time in our classroom together, last dinner in the MTC, last devotional...crazy! It was so much fun and crazy busy but all in all I can say this has been a great learning experience. In a lot of ways, the MTC is a refiner's fire, and as hard as it's been I'm grateful to have grown by being here for nine weeks. I didn't want it, but I think I needed it.
I love you all, and I love this gospel! I'm so grateful and humbled, really, to be going to Thailand and to be leaving TODAY.
1. district picture
2. picture with our Nong-thais!
3. another pic with our Nong-thais! We were only gonna get like one picture with a few of them but then suddenly they all piled in and wow I just love these missionaries so much! we have an amazing zone, and AMAZING missionaries going to Thailand!
--
Sister Zoller
No comments:
Post a Comment