Week 7!

Hi Everyone

To answer my mom’s question, I can't get on FB or the family website. I also can't send pictures from the MTC, but I’ll send them the first week I’m out of here which is only a week and a half away! I keep flipping back and forth on how i feel about the MTC. It really makes me feel bipolar! Sometimes it feels great, an opportunity to learn and grow. Other times I just feel really negative about being her, and just want it to all be over. I think that’s pretty much normal. I’ve still got so much to learn. Christ continues to remind me of how far I have to go. Sometimes I feel a little down just because I know that the Cherry family has high expectation of me, as does the Dixon ward and I really don't want to let anyone down. With that in mind, I suppose I will have lots of opportunities to repent and become better.

I really do love the scriptures. There is so much comfort and rest that comes from focusing on what is on the pages of the scriptures. I never feel as good about life and what’s going on in the world around me as when I ignore all of it and focus on what I need to work on, learn or do in order to gain more of the spirit. Most of the time the spirit gives me revelation about what I need in order to grow, but this last week I felt prompted to ask an elder about his testimony, I didn't follow it right away, but then Christ made it even easier for me to follow that prompting and talk to that elder. I found out that he had no testimony and that made it very hard for him. We talked a lot and I feel like I helped him. I can tell that he has the right heart and I know he will be just fine. At the very next fireside the speaker told a story about an elder that didn't have a testimony and how he came to gain one through patience and diligence (and frustration!). It was exactly what he needed, and the miracle was that out of the 2,000+ people in the room he was looking right at my friend, and we weren’t sitting in front of him. The thing I learned was that I need to follow those little promptings of the spirit whenever they come, no matter how awkward it might seem. I feel like that is why I’m here for the 9 weeks, to help that elder. I know that my Spanish is sufficient, and I would've learned more out in the field. I needed to help that elder. I wish I had done a better job though. I could have been such a better example. I’m sadly out of time, but I’ll write you again next week.

Love to all,

-Elder Matthew D. Evans