Crazy, just Crazy

Ahoj, rodino!

 

I'm so glad to be emailing you once again! Just think - in three weeks, I'm either going to be IN Prague or on the plane flying there (after a much anticipated phone call!) Crazy - just crazy. Time flies here - I'm learning so much, and I can't even tell you how excited I am to get to Czech. What an incredible opportunity!

 

Last week, I forgot to mention that we sang "Let Zion in her Beauty Rise" for Elder Packer of the 70 - he talked about the conversion process: how they need to hear, remember, understand, apply, and become to be converted. It was a wonderful address dense with wonderful advice. Then last Tuesday, we sang "Look at the World" for Elder Kikuchi of the 70. He was such an inspiring speaker, and the spirit was SO strong - he taught us that we need to master the first 3 lessons in our mission language so we can teach by the Spirit and with real power; he then shared his incredible conversion story (look it up - it's amazing!) when he was a boy in Japan. In response to this challenge, Sestra Brimhall suggested that we make a goal to master 1 bullet point of the first 3 lessons (God is our Loving Heavenly Father, The Gospel blesses Families, etc) a day until we leave - it fits perfectly! So each day we focus on learning that principle in Czech and then teach it to each other right before nightly planning. I'm really liking this goal - it gives me a focus that involves learning the Gospel and learning Czech simultaneously - it doesn't get much better! We taught each other the Great Apostasy this morning in the laundry room - again, I just feel so blessed by the Lord with how the language is coming along.

 

The Bulgarians, our former Zone Leaders, were actually delayed because of visa complications, but they received them yesterday and will leave this week! They are so excited, and we are so happy for them!Our new Zone leaders are the Croat/Serb trio - Elders Mattsen, Bell, and Schouten. They're great missionaries and are doing really well.

 

We're getting to the point now where we can actually communicate in Czech beyond the teach-the-gospel setting, which I'm really excited about. I want to really master the Czech language, and I'm so pleased that we are really starting to communicate in every setting.It's such a wonderful thing to speak and be understood! I've been creating a more challenging long term language study plan, which I'm hoping will challenge me without being unrealistic. But again, I am truly amazed at the progress I've made here. We have a little language oral assessment for the teachers to see where we are with speaking Czech. It's graded on a scale from 1-7, 7 being the best. I didn't feel super confident in it after I had finished it, but Bratr Johnson, who graded it, gave me a 4.5/7! Wow! I was so pleased - we were marked on grammar, vocab, fluency, etc, and I didn't think i had done too hot. But 4.5/7?! After 5 weeks? The Lord must be on my side - I couldn't have done that alone. Our teachers told us that Czech missionaries usually leave the mtc with a score of 3/7. This pilot program is hard, but it sure is rewarding and creates the perfect environment to rely on the Spirit and the Lord to carry me through.

 

We're continuing to teach Jarka and Milan, which are both going really well. Both of them "came to church" with us on Sunday and had good experiences. And the best news - Milan has a baptismal date! We're working on teaching him the commandment now - I hope he'll rely on his testimony and realize the blessings that will come from obeying the Law of Chastity, the Word of Wisdom, and the Law of tithing. He is such a wonderful person though and has good, honest desires to follow God. Jarka is progressing also - she didn't have a testimony of Christ before, but she told us after we talked about Christ a lot that she prayed and believes now that Jesus Christ is the way to God. How wonderful! Prayer really does work - God answers the prayers of his children. It's hard to remember sometimes that these are only simulations - boy, am I excited to teach the Czech people! I had a distinct /prompting this week about my mission in Czech - it was a feeling of love for the Czech country and people. How excited i am to serve there in their own tongue! I will get the language - it'll take time and effort, but I will get it! I imagined getting off the plane, being so overwhelmed, but just so excited to get to my first area to serve with a trainer who I pray is being prepared currently for me to arrive. It will be hard - but it will also be so, SO good! How truly excited I am!

 

As a district we are also growing in the language as we continue to grow closer. We've started setting a lot of SYL (speak your language) goals, including only speaking Czech for a couple long blocks of the day each week. I think we surprise ourselves at how much we really can say. It truly is a wonderful thing!

 

Gym continues to be a highlight of the day - the norm now is to go outside, usually with Starsi Salas, Gabrielsen, and Heath, and run, then play Kan Jam (kind of a mix between horseshoes and Frisbee golf) We have a lot of fun, and Starsi Salas and I really enjoy quoting our favorites movie lines to each other. Another of our favorite pastimes is to pick a Disney movie and theorize who each person in our district would be in the movie. It's very entertaining.

 

Thank you so much for your continuing letters of love and support. I love coming back to my room at night, snack on some trader joes food (or that delicious bread!) smile at dad's drawings and just read your letters. You are giving me such a  gift through those - it'll be weird only getting mail once a month or so in the field! (from what my teachers tell me, once a month is pretty standard ) SO I am just soaking it in now! Thank you thank you thank you!

 

Dad, I'm so excited to hear you're teaching with Sis. Smith for GD. That'll be a wonderful experience - let me know how your lesson goes!

 

Marmee, know that I am definitely still your happy boy and know who loves me! Tell my cows I say Hi!!! (dum dum)

 

My only requests are another bottle of tea tree, and maybe a few of Kimber's pics from new york. I'd love to see them! But other than that I'm good!

 

Know that I love you and think of you all often. This is the Lord's work on the earth today!!!

 

S laskou,

Starsi Mullen