MTC Week #3 June 23 - June 30

Hey guys! Another great week at the MTC :) This week was particularly eventful and really awesome. 

It's funny how many people I know here. I finally found Micah Summers and Jacob Sawada, my and Nick's friends at BYU/roommates this week. Super cool to see them again. I also ran into a Sarah Waldron who's a resource teacher here for the other French class, and she says she knows Morgan and Alex and even goes to the Alamo I ward!!!  so crazy ahaha. 

I also ran into Uncle Steve too! Not many missionaries get lucky enough to see their uncle while on their mission! Super cool to talk to him. I meet someone I know every day! one of the pros to the Provo MTC I guess:)

This week was cool since it was the Mission President Training Conference. We ate in the gym while all the General Authorities used the big cafeteria and meeting building the whole week. Apparently the Prophet and all the apostles were here! I didn't see any, but it's cool to know, and one of our sisters in our district got to go sing for them. It was awesome since we got to be taught by the Mission President of Le Cote D'Ivoire

(Ivory Coast) in French, and he and his wife, President and Sister Geui, are awesome people. I'm sending a picture of us and him. They have the coolest accents, like a French/African accent mix and would roll a lot of r's, and were so loving and awesome. 

I even got to meet my mission president too!!! President Brown and Sister Brown came, and they are the coolest people ever. So kind and awesome, and spiritual like you wouldn't believe. We met with them for an hour; President Brown is a very powerful and spiritual man. I can't wait to serve under his direction, and I know he'll lead us in the Lord's work, and that he will send us where God knows we need to be every time. 

And my companion and I are also the new Zone Leaders! Super exciting week, not a whole ton of responsibility yet, or really none at the moment, but I know it'll be good for both of us, and I hope we can do well at leading our zone here at the MTC.

Our Elder, Elder Zhu, for some reason or another got 6 nametags compared to the usual 2. Some were in Mandarin so I guess it made some sense. Anyways, this week he gets a package with 2 more inside! So now he has 8. To celebrate such, we had Elder Zhu day yesterday, so everyone in our district got to wear a tag that said Elder Zhu. It was fun.

Having an awesome time here, probably too much fun! I know I'll grow if I push myself out of comfort and really consecrate myself to the Lord. Thanks for all the emails everyone, I miss you. I can't wait to server the Lord and the people of France, its only 3 weeks away! French is coming along well :)

Here is my group, exhibiting our "spirit animals".  I am a Komodo Dragon, apparently, according to the group.  I tied to mimic one as best I could, thus the placid expression and stillness, yet subtle ferocity in my penetrating gaze.

Bien, au revoir et passe une bonne semaine! Vous me manquez!! 

Sincerely,
Elder Laney

MTC Week #2

Week #2.

Week #2 was great! So much fun! I'm having a blast here at the MTC and I can't get enough of it. Or well I guess I really can't, because I can't get enough sleep either haha. But I fit in a nap here and there whenever there is nothing else to do (which is never, b/c I can always study but....). It's so fun and I'm having a blast with all the awesome Elders in my Zone. They are all really cool guys, with some real goofballs who are actually really awesome as well. We have tons of fun, and learn even more. We are all very close and help each other out. Mostly in our District, b/c we have the Best. District. Ever. The Elders I room with are the funniest and funnest people ever, and the sisters are really funny and awesome and dedicated. We learn a lot from each other, and are trying to do our best to learn French every day. 

Elder Zhu is probably the funniest person I've ever known, he's from China and makes everyone laugh all the time. He had this experience where they were trying to teach a lesson to our 1st investigator, and Elder Carlson and Him used cups with words on them as an object lesson. They stacked them up with a cup Labeled "Christ" and a cup labeled "God" at the top, and then stacked a cup with the name of the investigator on top of them. The investigator asked if he was higher than God, so Elder Zhu in an attempt to save the misunderstanding, pointed at the tower and said "L'eglise, tres bien!" [the church is very good!] and then he took the investigator's cup off and said "L'eglise, tres tres bien! Hospice [our investigator] tres tres bien!!!]. Haha, so the pretty much told the investigator that he and the church would be happier without him, and the investigator (a teacher pretending) just laughed for like 5 minutes. Haha, they are all super fun and we're having a blast.

I'm learning better how to teach and how to speak French even better than that (which isn't much since I'm a pretty terrible teacher, and in French I'm awful). But I am improving!!! Haha, we had a really good last lesson with our 1st investigator, and the spirit was really strong for me and my companion. We've been role playing since then, and my 1st lesson with our new investigator (our teacher playing a really convincing role) went really well! I learned to be friendly and now with some more lessons how to focus the lesson around them and for their needs, to try to really help them and make their life better. This work is about the people, and about helping them out and bringing joy and love and comfort and peace to them on this earth. I know I'm here to serve, and here to help, and I know I'm a missionary called of God. 

I love to sing too. I've really come to love hymns and songs, and trying to get better at singing since my range is quite terrible. But I love to b/c its really the most times I feel the spirit. Whenever I sing a hymn, and focus on the words of it, and really open my heart to joy and to love, I can feel the spirit every time. There's a reason we sing hymns, because the beautiful words describe so well through melody so much better than most words alone can. I love singing and the spirit is so strong. I've also learned so much about love, and just caring about everyone, and singing helps me open my heart to others too. It's awesome, b/c we sing a lot, and I love it. We sing at least 3 times a day, once before a lesson, and whenever there's a devotional we sing 2 verses of about 3 to 5 songs each time. I didn't understand at first, but after my first devotional I understood why, and that's because when you sing praises and about love and God and all that is good, it will be focusing you on the spirit and the spirit always comes. So we sing to bring the spirit, and then we pray for it anyways. I love it here, I learn so much.

I learn every day here, and should be learning more, and will do my best to forget myself and get to work as President Hinckley was told by his father when he was a missionary. 

To leave this message, I want to share a scripture. The spirit of God brings peace that cannot be found elsewhere. I know this and so does Nick, and you can be comforted by the Holy Ghost and by Christ's love for you. John 14:27 states:  "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."  So if you are every afraid, or scared, or sad, turn to Christ, and to God, open your heart truly, with all your effort, and put time into opening up your heart because it's not easy, but you know when you're heart is open to His love, and then he will comfort you. Christ wants to speak to you all, he wants to comfort us, and he loves us all individually and infinitely with such care incomprehensible truly. Elder Bednar gave a talk on love, speaking about how if one turns outward vs inward, when in pain you try to help someone else, you find the greatest joy, and truly adopt the character of Christ as best as one can. So open your heart to love and love everyone and you will always be happier. 

May we all be carried away with the happiness God brings. I love it here and am having a blast. Hope you all have a great time and that the next week is great! Make it one! If you're ever down, say NO to being down and just choose to be happy no matter what! And just try to love everyone b/c everyone is awesome. Lego Movie has it right. Love you all and I can't wait to get into the work, but I also am excited to grow and learn and prepare here at the MTC. I'm just 1 month away from France, and will be there sooner than it seems.

(A depiction of me by Soeur Vincent. It actually has an uncanny resemblance, even in its majestic simplicity.) 

Sincerely,

Elder Laney

MTC Week #1: Off to a Great Start!

Hey!!! This first week at the MTC was so fun. I'm having such a great time and everything is going so great. I'm with a lot of awesome Elders and it's so fun. I'm in a room of 4 people. My companion is Elder Kelsey, he's super cool and an awesome person, and very spiritual. He's from Orem and we get along really well. He just graduated high school two weeks ago too, and he's on a mission now! Crazy. Anyway, the other elders roomed with us are Elder Zhu, who is from China and is hilarious, and is 21, and Elder Carlson, who is from Utah and a really cool guy and funny too. We all get along great and have an awesome time, and we're all going to the France Lyon mission which is so cool. We're all in the same class too, for French and everything else, and pretty much do everything else with eachother. There are 4 sisters in our classes too who are all awesome people. Our branch is the funnest branch I've ever been in!!!

Classes are fun, I love the French language. I'm learning a lot here and getting so much out of everything I'm taught. I'm a little bit more advanced in French than most of our class, so its cool to work with everyone and all learn together while I teach them things and they teach me. We all work together and its the best learning environment I could think of. Our teachers are so cool, Frere Sybroskey sounds like this super friendly awesome French guy with the perfect facial expressions and everything. He's American, but knows French like none other. Soeur Echols is our other teacher and is super nice and also has a perfect French accent. I love learning from the two of them, and it's so amazing how the spirit can help someone learn in such amazing ways. I really do get a ton out of each lesson.

Days are long, hard, and our schedules are booked. We might find 10 minutes to hit the store a day if we're lucky. We've started teaching an investigator (or pretend investigator, since our teacher's have practically told us that he's being an investigator he knew really well to help us learn, but he is very convincing! Haha, but very hard to convince. I'm a terrible teacher. I mean so terrible. Nick, when you told me you were a bad teacher, now try teaching in French!! Haha, I get along, but our last lesson (2nd one) he told us at the end he was Truly Confused about all we'd been teaching him. Anyway, I know things will get better as the spirit comes more strongly to me and I learn to teach and invite the spirit in every lesson.

P-day's more lenient, and awesome, since we got to go to the temple this morning! The spirit was very strong there, and while there at one moment I was hit with a presence and spirit that was so strong, that told me what I was witnessing was real, and I couldn't begin to understand, but it bore such a strong feeling, and I need to really improve myself to understand the things of God and what He wants to tell me so badly.

I feel the spirit everyday here and it's so cool. I've gained multiple testimonies in the last few days about things I never even prayed to know. The spirit is strong with his missionaries, and we are all working hard. However, I know we can work even harder, and I'm going to do my best to be my very best. We got to see "The Character of Christ" speech by Elder Bednar, and it was so amazing. I've never watched that video, and I am so glad I got to. I may watch it again! Anyways, he teaches and reminds us that we aren't out here for us, it's not about me, but it's about everyone else, about serving them. I'm going to do my best to follow his council.  I know now that I need to, as he councils, turn away from inward selfishness, the natural man, and turn outwards, to God, and to others. My life has been so much about me in the past, and I am determined it won't be from now on. I want to server others, and I love everyone so much more now. 

Now that I am on my mission I know I just need to love every minute of it and not give up, and give it my best!

Sincerely,

Elder Laney (Josh, not Nick)

Je suis tres content ici, et vous me manquez beaucoup, mais je sais que je preche la parole de Dieu. Je sais que je suis ou je devais etre. Au revoir, et Avez une bonne somaine! 

On My Way to the MTC!

Bonjour! Baguette! Uhuhuh!!
It's finally time for me to go. It's been a long time in the running, but today I finally begin the adventure of an LDS mission. I will be serving the next two years in the south of France speaking the French language as a full-time missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My area includes pretty much the whole southern half of the country, twisting on its northern border to capture Dijon, dipping as it goes west, then up to grab Poitiers and a little above, then rounding down to include Bordeaux and hitting the coast. It then includes the whole half below that, including even a little bit of Switzerland up to right before Bern on the missions eastern border. And it includes Corsica as well! I may not go to every one of these locations, but will see a great deal!

I am excited to go, and can't wait. Today I enter the Mission Training Center (MTC) in Provo, Utah, which is pretty much the largest MTC worldwide. I'll be spending the next six weeks rigorously trying to learn French as fast as I can, as well how to be a missionary. Luckily I've had 3 high school years of French, so I got a head start. I'll be in France right before my birthday in July, and am so psyched I cannot contain myself. Its going to be a wonderful adventure, and I thank God for the opportunity to serve Him and his children, especially in such a beautiful place. I go now to spread the word of the gospel and to share the joy I've found in Christ with the world.

Au revoir! (until we meet again)

note: I believe my French stereotype evident in the entrance to this post will be greatly altered in my travels :) I can't wait to get to know and love the people of France and their beautiful language!

Just a few photos from my first day on the job!

Family selfie in front of the Provo Temple!

At the Provo Temple just before entering the MTC

Bye Bye family!! Off to the MTC!