Week 3: Blessings at the MTC come in the form of Cinnamon Rolls

So sorry if some of the things in this email are things I have already written.. everything here in the MTC kind of just blurs together...

Also this is my last p-day in the mtc so this is prob the last super long email y'all will get because i'll only have an hour once I am in Eugene... NEXT WEEK!!! 

If you can't tell I am S U P E R  E X C I T E D!!!!!! 

Only a couple more days and I will be in the field helping actual people come closer to Christ!! AHHHH

I don't know if I ever mentioned that the sisters in my zone decided to fast our first Sunday here because we wouldn't have a fast Sunday in the MTC or not.. but it was absolutely terrible. I was STARVING!! Also I do a lot more here on Sundays then go to three hours of church and then go home and sleep.. so fasting is way hard.... but this past week we didn't fast and it was GLORIOUS!!! Definitely a way better Sunday... 

This week in choir we sang a song called "A Marvelous Work" I advise that EVERYONE look this song up because it is AMAZING!!! (Also I hit the super high note at the end which was fun)

My district is getting along well and we all definitely love each other.. but sometimes its hard to like them all... definitely a growing experience for me... but they are all going to be such great missionaries!!!

The devotional was almost way good! It was all about Joseph Smith and the Restoration of the church! Then we watched Elder Hollands talk titled "Missions are Forever." IT WAS AMAZING!!! And it definitely helped me to remember how important my mission is and that I need to do all that I can to try my hardest to bring others closer to Christ!!!

We got a new TRC this week but she canceled for our first one so we were only able to teach her twice this week... for a total of 50 minutes... way hard to bring someone closer to Christ in that amount of time spread over two days but that is okay. Her name is Chelle and she is so sweet!! I wish I had been able to teach her for longer... but that is okay. We invited her to read the Book of Mormon and I know that she will keep her commitment. If she does, she will definitely be able to grow closer to Christ on her own.

We learned how to teach the word of wisdom and chastity this week as well.. it wasn't nearly as awkward or weird as I thought it would be... so that was good. 

This week while Sister Crystal was working out in the weight room I sat on the floor and marked up my scriptures.. lol... I know I said I would try to work out while I was here but I don't quite see that happening... ever...

This past week I also had the opportunity to host new sisters who came in on Wednesday! It was definitely anxiety inducing at first but I am happy I was able to help them feel a little bit more comfortable here at the MTC!!

We taught Autumn again!! And although I am done with TRC already.. I get to teach Autumn one more time today! My last lesson at the MTC!!! Last lesson we invited her to prepare to be baptized and she said she will!!! YAY!! (I know it isn't real or anything but It was so exciting!!! ) I can't wait to actually teach real people!!

We also had the opportunity to teach in a room that is connected to another one by a one way mirror... kind of like the interrogation rooms you see on crime shows... lol... We taught an investigator as a class.. So one companionship started off in the room while everyone else watched on the other side and then we would swap out the companionships every 5 minutes.. also an anxiety inducing experience but I definitely learned some things... so that was good.

One of the nights, Sister Crystal and I decided to just walk around the MTC campus before we went in to go to bed and we talked a lot and got to know each other a lot better... shared some really personal stuff and such and I am so grateful for her!!!! She is seriously one of the biggest blessings in my life!!! We have grown so much together and I have definitely made an Eternal friend!!! 

Yesterday we had a workshop where they acted out a play about how missionaries should work with members and guess who was in it??? lol me.  They pulled me and my companion out of the crowd and made us act.. also anxiety inducing but I am learning how to deal with it better and I didn't hyperventilate so I would say I am doing great!!!! Not even sarcastically.. I am actually doing great! 

After the play some elders recognized us and we realized we are actually going to the same mission on the same day.. they are part of our travel group so we will def get to know them better on Wednesday. I found out that it really is just the me and the other sisters from my district and then a bunch of elders who are flying Wednesday so that super good!! We have run in to almost all of the elders.

I also just want to share an experience I had or I guess thoughts and feelings I had during my class yesterday. We were practicing questions and my teacher just kind of stopped practicing with us and talked to us about how we were Called to our mission to be ourselves. Not to be someone else. It was a good reminder that I need to act like myself even when I am teaching!! I should share the gospel not because I am a robot and am forced to but because I know that it is something that will make everyone happy and will bless their lives. I need to learn to love myself because Heavenly Father loves me and he sent me to Eugene Oregon because I am me. 

I love the gospel so much and I seriously cannot believe I have only been on a mission for three weeks. It kind of doesn't feel real yet and I know that Oregon will bring a lot of hard times with it but I also know that Heavenly Father is looking out for me and that I will be taken care of because I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!!

I also have been studying the question that is paired with one of the murals in the building I go to class in. It is a mural of Joseph Smith in Carthage Jail and the question is "How will I allow my experiences to help me grow?" It is a question I have really been studying and I know that as long as I put my trust in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ that all of my weaknesses will be made strong. I invite you all to read the talk "More Than Conquerors through Him That Loved Us" by Paul V. Johnson from the April 2011 General conference. It is incredible and has given me a lot of answers and peace in my life and I know that it can do the same for all of you!!

Blessings at the MTC come in the form of Cinnamon Rolls:

1. Last week I sent a picture and said it was a long story but here it is... after we got home on our first P-day, which was a way hard day for me. we found a box in front of our door that said "Enjoy this special treat for special sisters, we love you! Love, Sisters in room 119 :)"...Turns out it was cinnamon rolls. But none of us knew anyone who lived in room 119 that we knew of so I convinced the other girls to bring them with us and to go ask the sister in room 119 if they were actually supposed to be for us and that if they were we should at least say thank you. So, we took them with us and went to room 119 with the box of cinnamon rolls. Turns out it was a room full of foreign sisters who didn't really speak English... just imagine me and three other sisters asking these foreign sisters if they left the box for us... it did not go well... It was super hilarious for sure because they thought we were trying to give them the box but they didn't understand. So a couple of them kept reaching out for the box but there was one who understood a little bit better who kept pushing there hand down and saying no. Then they ask us to open the box and instead of sister Hepler saying never mind its okay, she opens it and shows them that it is cinnamon rolls... so now they REALLY want it. They kept reaching and the girl kept pushing there arm down for like ten minutes while we tried to explain until we gave up and said thank you and kind of ran down the hall. I felt really bad and felt like we should have at least given the sisters the cinnamon rolls after waving them in their face since we didn't for sure know if they were even ours... but we ate them anyways....💁 oh whale.... so then we just collectively decided that it was just a blessing from Heavenly Father because he knew we had had a hard day. A Couple days later and we are mentioning to the sisters who live next door to us who are in our zone and they say that they were from them. They accidentally put their mail box number on the box. I don't know if any of this made sense... maybe it was just funny to us. But it was F O R  S U R E a blessing!!!!!

2. On Thursday night, another sorta hard day for me, we were coming into our residence hall and some sisters were walking by with H U G E cinnamon rolls and told us that another Sister was giving them away on the third floor.. so we wen t upstairs and got one. Another blessing in the form of a cinnamon roll. 

I love ya'll and I promise my emails wont be this forever long every time... but I appreciate and love and miss all of you!!!!!!!

Only a couple days left in the MTC! My departure devotional is tomorrow night. Its all begining to feel real... weird right???

Part of me feels like I was just away at like EFY or something... but i'm not. I am on a mission and I can not wait to Serve the Lord by helping the people oregon come closer to Christ!!

I love this gospel and I know that Heavenly Father loves me and care about me!! He knows of my every need. All I have to do is ask. 

Sister Robertson

1. Huge cinnamon rolls

2. Sister Crystal and I

3. Sister Crystal 

4. Face masks with the Sisters

5. Sister Howes, Sister Crystal, and I

6. A pretty night and Sister Crystal

7. They made me sit in the sun but my neck was burning so this is how I ate.... 

8. The first cinnamon rolls experience

9. The Sisters and I (I'll eventually send a pic with the new sisters...)