October 7, 2008

October 7, 2008

Ciao, Tutti!First things first, We're getting a Temple!!!! I don't think I've ever been so excited in my life! When President Monson announced that, all the Italian missionaries were sitting together, and all the sisters squealed in excitement! Ever since then, people have commented on the excitement the Italian missionaries showed when the Temple was announced. I am SO excited! It will be such a blessing to the people of Italy to have a Temple in their own country. It will be a great opportunity for us as missionaries to teach about the new building being built. I'm sure there will be even more opposition in Rome, but that only means the blessings will be greater. I've been crying for 3 days straight now because I'm so happy for the people of Italy. All us sisters are planning on going back to work at the open house and be there for the dedication. And how amazing would it be to see people I taught be able to go through the Temple for themselves!!!In addition to the announcement of the Temple, the rest of Conference was incredible! It's so great to listen to it as a missionary- it seemed like every talk was applicable to missionary work. My favorite was Sister Allred's comment that you all should send your missionary more letters! :) We talked in our class Friday night about Conference, and our teacher gave us time to pray about 3 questions we have, and she promised us that during Conference, all of those questions would be answered. All of the questions I had were answered multiple times! It's so amazing to have a Prophet on the earth today to lead and guide us as a Church, and us as individuals.So I liked your idea about a recorder. I bought one at the bookstore and will send you a tape later this morning, so you can hear my voice. I was thinking it might be easier if we both have a tape recorder and just send the tapes back and forth. Pretty much the whole tape talks about how excited I am for a Temple in Roma, but it's all I can think about!(you don't have to post this story on my blog- I think you 4 will be the only ones who appreciate this story) So the anziani in my district seem to think that I'm their big sister, and they torture me like they would a big sister. They told me the other day that I have an evil eye. They said it in Italian, but I can't remember the word for it. They said that when they're doing something annoying, I look at them with my evil eye, and they're scared so they stop! I know this story is probably shocking to you, since you can't even imagine that I would have an evil eye, or what you might call a hairy eyeball. I thought it was pretty funny.Yesterday we taught our first lesson completely in Italiano! Mamma mia- e molto difficile! But it was a great experience. It's amazing how, even when we completely butcher the language and have horrible grammar, as long as we have the Spirit with us when we teach, the message gets across and touches the heart of our investigator. I love Ezekiel chapter 4 when Moses is saying that he doesn't feel like he's a good speaker, and he doesn't know how he can teach effectively. I know I'm not a good speaker of Italian yet! But the Lord says that He's the one who made Moses' mouth, and if he trusts in the Lord, he'll be able to speak just fine. I know that the more I trust in my Savior, the better I'm able to speak. It's when I think I can do it on my own that it's non bene.The other day one of our teachers gave a spiritual thought on Matthew chapter 14, when Peter walks on water. He talked about the storms in life that each of us face. Learning Italian and being a missionary, though an amazing blessing, is somewhat of a storm because of how difficult it is. But the Lord always, always comes to us in our trials. He invites us to come to Him amongst the storm. When Peter was focused on the Savior, and the miracle of walking on water, he was able to walk. But when he focused on the storm, or the realities of life, he sunk. When I focus on the miracle of the gift of tongues and the power of the Savior, I am able to speak the language. But when I focus on reality, or how difficult it is, and start doubting the power of the Lord, I sink. I know it's the same with any trial in life. Focus on the Savior and the miraculous power of the Atonement, and miracles will happen.Sunday we had a musical fireside, which was amazing! But my favorite part was the closing hymn- Hark All Ye Nations. For the first 2 verses, they had the elders who sung in the Priesthood session of conference stand and sing. As I looked around at all these elders, I could help but cry. All the missionaries are a bunch of young people who don't know a whole lot or have a lot of life's experiences. But each of us has given up a significant portion of our lives and dedicated ourselves fully to the preaching of the Lord's gospel to His children. As I listened to the elders sing, I thought of the dedication and enthusiasm they have for sharing the gospel. Then all the audience stood to sing the 3rd verse, but I couldn't sing a single word because I was bawling. But I love the words, and I love being a part of this great missionary work! The word are:Hark all ye nations! Hear heaven's voiceThrough every land, that all may rejoiceAngels of glory shout the refrain:Truth is restored againSearching in darkness, nations have weptWatching for dawn, their vigil they've keptAll now rejoice, the long is overTrust in on earth once moreChosen by God to serve Him below,To every land and people we'll goStanding for truth with fervent accordPreaching His holy wordOh how glorious from the throne aboveShines the gospel light of truth and loveBright as the sun this heavenly rayLights every land todayI'm so honored to be part of this work, to be chosen by God to serve His children and preach His gospel. I'm so excited to be among the ones representing our Savior Jesus Christ. I'm so excited that the Italians will be getting a Temple! It will be such a blessing for them to be sealed with their families for eternity.I love you all so much! Thanks for your prayers and your love.Vi voglio bene!Sorella HawkeyPS Send me more letters!