First email From the MTC: Day 8

Hej Hej alla!! 

Hur mår det??

I love the MTC! It is such an amazing place. The spirit is so strong here. It was so hard to say goodbye to my family but once I did, I felt really calm. I was so scared I was going to be homesick but I haven't really been homesick at all. And I know that is because of the blessings I received and because of all the prayers in my behalf. 

Right when I got here they took my bags and gave me a huge bag of Swedish church and language books and then put me right into my Swedish class where the teacher didn't speak one word of english. I was really overwhelmed but calm. We had 4 hours of Swedish class that day and even by the end of the class I was able to pick out bits and pieces of what my teacher was saying. Then at the after the class we were told that we had to teach an investigator the next day in 100% swedish!! I was freaking out. That same day we were given our companion. Mine is named Äldste Hart. He is from Denver and he is pretty cool. We get along really well. So later that night we had to prepare a lesson in swedish. Our investigator's name is Isabel and she doesn't know if she believes in God. So we planned a lesson about the Plan of Salvation and taught her about how we are all God's children and how we have a purpose in life. It was our second day of class so it was pretty scripted but it went well. Then she asked if we could come back on friday and teach again. So we prepared another lesson which was also kind of scripted. Then she asked if we could come by monday. That's when it went really well. By this time I could say pretty good prayers in Swedish and I could say a few words in my testimony. So we prepared a lesson on the restoration. When we went over the Jospeh Smith story, she asked when the darkness was that surrounded Joseph. I didn't know the word darkness in Swedish and somehow I was able to know what she was saying. She said she felt that whenever we left and when we were there she felt happy. She said she didn't know if God loved her or heard her. And I know the spirit worked through me right then. Somehow I was able to utter in swedish that it was satan and that satan wants her to be sad. I bore my testimony to her that God was there and he listens and if she prayed she would feel his love for her. I also taught her how to pray. The spirit was honestly so strong in that room you could feel it. I know that those words came from the spirit. I teared up and Isabel teared up. 

Then the next day we had prepared a lesson for her on the doctrine of Christ. We were all ready to go and the first thing she said when we got in there was that she knew God loved her and listened to her but she doesn't know if Christ even exists.... So Äldste Hart and I looked at eachother and we didnt know what to do. And somehow, even stonger than before, I was able to teach her, completely in Swedish, that Christ did exist, and that he is God's son and he loved her. And I promised her that I knew that Jesus existed, but she needed to pray with faith to God to find out for herself. I dont know if I have ever felt the spirit that strong. You could feel it in the air. The gift of tongues is real. And im so extremely grateful that I am blessed with that gift. The language is coming along so well and I know it;s because Im learning through the spirit. 

So our zone consists of Nords, Dutch, Danes, and Swedes. The Dutch have been here the longest so they are the top dogs right now. The Nords only have 8 missionaries and they kinda keep to themselves. The Danes are all sisters who are super nice and there is one solo elder. He is really cool. And the Swedes are by far the coolest ;) But we are all friends and love eachother. The MTC is so fun and the residence hall is just like a pirates cove. We all barter and trade fooda and ties, it basically has a flowing economy. I don't really trade anything because I like all my food and ties. But one of my roommates, Äldste Carrigan, has a huge inventory and is pretty much the main merchant in the building hahaha. and there is a pull up bar and we have competitions to see who can do the most. I was tied for first then this little elder in my zone came and beat the record. So im currently working on that also haha. But I love it here so much and I'm learning so much about the gospel.

We also had the opportunity to listen to Elder Nelson last night in the devotional. I was dragged into singing in the choir by my district but I ended up loving it. The spirit was so strong and we got pretty good seats too so I didnt really complain. Elder Nelson talked on being a better missionary and about teaching the doctrine of Christ. It was an amazing talk and I'm so glad I got to listen to him. 

Anyways my time ran out a while ago and there is so much more I want to say and  I'm sorry if I didnt get back to everyone I promise I will soon. Thank you for all your prayers! I really can feel them and I am blessed everyday. I love you all and I hope you have an amazing week!

Jag ska kämpa på!

Love, 

Äldste Bailey