April 22, 2011

I GOT MY TRAVEL PLANS!!!

Holy cow! This week has been a great one! I'm going to speak about Argentina before anything else. Wow. We met w/ the Argentine Consul on Friday last week and Tuesday this week. He went over any questions we had about Argentina... It's definitely different. Not anything to be super worried about, he told me face to face that my mission is going to be very cold, but I have the most beautiful landscapes in all of Argentina. Yaya! Hahaha! So, anyways, our Visas have been signed, fingerprinted, and are just in the process of being issued to us. And that brings me to my biggest news: Travel Plans!!! I have all the info! I leave on May 2nd, as planned, at 1:50 pm from the SLC Airport to Atlanta, GA. I'll be at the SLC airport from probably around 11:30 to 1:50, so around there is when I'll call your cell, mom. Be ready! I think it's at the SLC airport that we call... No se.. Anyways, We get to Atlanta at 7:32pm and leave at 8:40 for Buenos Aires! Don't land in Argentina until 7:45am the next morning. Gonna be a looong flight. After that, our Mission President is supposedly picking us up... Hopefully... Hahah! NEVERMIND, WE CALL YOU GUYS WHILE WE'RE IN ATLANTA... So that time will be around 7:40pm Eastern time... Mom, send me a DearE right after this confirming that that will be ok for you to do... After our mission pres. picks us up, it's a 12 hour bus ride to Neuquen!!! WooHoo!! NOT. 12 hours in a car/bus I'm not even driving??? Gimme a break! Ha! Jk, I'm definitely excited. It's going to be a GREAT experience, no matter how exhausting. So that's it! We're flying on Delta, and... Oh! I was appointed Travel Leader over the 7 of us going to Neuquen. They'll be giving me a emergency info packet with everything I need, phone numbers... to call in case there's an emergency and we're plummeting towards the earth over Bolivia in the airplane. ;) That's when I give the Mission Pres. a call and say we'll be a lil' late. There's been a delay! Hahah! Don't worry mother, we'll all be fine! :) :) :) 

Well, thank you for sending that package with the Easter stuff and clothes, and especially the memory card holders! I'm sending the shirt back because it's one of those tight, stretchy ones... I'm looking for one of those Nike Dri-fit ones that still feels like that, but it doesn't stretch and fits like a normal shirt. Sowee.. Thanks though! Let's see... in your DearE before you leave today, will you have access to email on the cruise? If I needed to contact you guys, that would be important! If there's any information I've forgotten in this email, you'll need it. I'm not so sure the call in Atlanta is going to work... You'll probably be on a plane back home, I'm guessing. ;/ Well, we'll see. 

Man, so this week has been crazy. First full week as Zone Leader has been exhausting. There's been a few nights where I don't get until 11:30! I KNOW! Late!! Ha! ;) There's just so many people seeking counsel and asking questions and solving problems etc, etc, etc. We got our new zone on Wednesday. 10 Elders. They're all great. Some of them don't really know why they're here, so my Branch pres. told me to look out for them. We took them on a tour of the MTC last night, and it was hilarious. I hope I didn't look that shell-shocked when I came in here. One tentatively raised his hand and said: "Can I ask you a question?"

"Go for it."

"How old are you?"

"Ha! You tell me!"

"Umm.. I'm going to guess 22?" 

"Hahaha! No, I'm 19, and probably younger than you are." 

It's amazing the change the MTC has on you... I talked to H. Douglas about this last night as well. He says the amount of time you have immersed in the Gospel truly changes your countenance, and it's not that you look older, it's that you look so much more mature, smart, and other things. I can only imagine, because I felt the same way towards my first Zone Leaders. We can speak Spanish pretty fluently now. It's insane. Sometimes I'm in a lesson talking about the Plan of Salvation, and I have these strings of beautiful, unbroken Spanish - Talking at the speed of... not a native, but definitely not a Gringo. Which brings me to something else with the language.. 

We got to see Elder Richard G. Scott!!!! HOLY cow. I have NEVER felt the Spirit as strongly as I did when that man entered the room. It was incredible. You could just SEE the love, bursting from him to all of us, it was truly a humbling experience. He spoke a lot about the Spirit, gave us a lot of scriptures to study, and then asked how many were going to be speaking a different language. Almost EVERYONE in the room raised their hands, this is about 2200 missionaries. He then said this: "I am now speaking to you as an Apostle of the Lord, with all the blessings, power and keys with that calling. I invoke upon each of you, in the calling of my holy Apostleship, the Gift of Tongues. I promise each of you, that you will have no problem in learning the language, and that if any of you have been having problems, I think you'll find it a lot easier now." When he said those words, particularly thet Apostleship, Gift of Tongues, my entire body started buzzing with heat. It was NOT the temperature in the room. This was that blessing, coming upon me, the blessing Yo tengo ahora. Yo puedo en Espanol con mucho simplicidad, y con esto don, puedo hablar con la gente de Argentina con mas poder y con el Espiritu Santo, cual es muchisimo importante por nosotros, misioneros... Haha! It's very fun, although he did not say that it would come without studying and hard work, but I testify that I felt the Spirit that night, more powerfully than maybe ever before. I know that that was a true gift, and that through my faithful studying and pondering and praying, Heavenly Father will bless me with the power to speak w/ the Tongue of Angels to his wonderful sons and daughters of Argentina. 

I have such a testimony. I want all who are reading this email to read this, then read it again. Know that Elder Jordan Evan Cuthbert has a testimony of this Gospel. I wasn't always the lovey-dovey churchy type. I went, yes, I read my scriptures every now and then, yes, I prayed when I found it convenient, yes. But now... Now I'm different. I've had experiences here that I've only shared with a few special people outside of the MTC. Experiences that have shaped me into the man I am today. I have no fear to go to Argentina. I know that what I'm teaching is true. I LOVE this Gospel. There is no where I would rather be. Christian Andrew Springer, you get those papers in as soon as you can, my bud. This mission will be the greatest thing you've ever done. Jared, my brother, I love you. I'm so sorry for not being the brother I should have been. Learn from my mistakes, and now, learn from my example. Be a strong leader, be a Captain Moroni, who you know is my hero. Read Alma. IT's the longest book, but man, it's incredible. Also Mosiah. To everyone else, I love you. I only have one more email after this one before I leave to a foreign country, foreign language, and foreign people. Before I don't understand anyone, before I'm put in situations to do things I've never done before, and many other things. But I'm ready. The Spirit changes you. It changes your life. I love my Savior, Jesus Christ. I love you all, and I can't wait to see you all again, AFTER I have fulfilled my greatest calling in life - that is, a mission. A day wasted... I never want one of those. I'm a go-getter. Don't think for a second I'll ever have a second off. I promise you all that I will work every second I have. I know that through my service you are all blessed. I have already seen the blessing to those of my closest friends and family. Times up... Write me a DearE today mom, before 12, it will hit me today.

Love you all, write me.

Elder Cuthbert

Pics!

MAY SECOND. MOM, I leave on May SECOND!

Hello everyone!



Wow, what a week. Every week is great, and I never cease to be amazed at the many things I learn here. We were actually thinking about it yesterday... We've been here for 7 and a half weeks doing the same thing every single day, and it feels like... maybe a week at the most. Problem is I can slowly feel myself losing sleep, due to our new roommate which I'll get into later. How's everyone doing? I've got some cool news! I've been called to be the new Zone Leader for our zone. It's the biggest calling you can get here at the MTC, but at the same time, the most time consuming and the responsibility is huge. Elder W. will be the other zone leader, which I'm a little worried about. Not much, but he has been being a butt lately, haha. The zone leaders are pretty much the go to people for anything in the zone. They have all the responsibility for what happens in the zone, conduct weekly interviews with all the D.L.'s, etc. That position begins on Sunday for the remainder of my time here, which ends on MAY SECOND. MOM, I leave on May SECOND, not May third... Ha, looks like I won't be able to give you guys a call at the airport... :( Dang it.

Quick thank you to Aubs for all of the food. Your rolls you send me have made me famous... Along with the homemade kettle corn, the choc/bberry bread, and all the other deliciousness... But honestly, those rolls are to die for. I would take those bad boys over almost anything! Thank you so much, I love you and your family so much! I'm writing you today, so look for a letter tomorrow...

So before I forget, something I forgot to mention in my last email is that last week... I gave my Zone Leader a haircut!!! Wait, that's not even the best part! I did it with sewing scissors!!! Hahaha! It took FOREVER just to get his bangs done, but I did it, and dang... He looks good! Ha! ALSO. Mom, since you guys are leaving on your cruise, I need my stuff pronto, unless you want to spend $70+ on shipping to Argentina! I need my other pair of jeans (Abercrombies), A watch, some SD card covers, did you get my letters about the backpacks? There's this one called the "Heckler" (I think, this could be the name of the Elder...) It's a The North Face backpack. All black, looks comfortable, and looks extremely useful. Anyways, send me some DearE w/ what you find, PUHLEASE. Ha, you can send DearE's, it's ok.

So we got a new roommate... Elder C. He's been here for 12 weeks. He was supposed to leave 3 weeks ago to Mexico, but he found out he has this thing called Irritable Bowel Syndrome, which is pretty much the most terrible thing ever, because he... excuse me... farts about ever ten seconds. It's terrible. It's terrible. I hate it. It's terrible. Wow, I think I might be venting right now? Yeah, I am. He farts constantly, he has no sense of privacy, he's very... loud. Also he doesn't flippin' go to sleep at 10:30! He stays up and reads his letters from his gfriend until like 11:30! If that's not the case, then he's happy to talk about her to me, and tell me their whole life story on how they got together, stuff like that. I don't mind listening, I'm a great listener, but I want to go to bed! Anyways, they ended up reassigning his mission to New Hampshire which is... oh shoot... the home town of his girlfriend. You want to know what else? Mission rules state you can't write, email, or contact anyone of the opposite sex inside your mission boundaries, which means he's pretty much done for. I feel terrible for him, but at the same time, happy that he's finally out of here on Monday. He's been w/ us for 2 weeks now? Somethin' like that. I'm glad he'll be leaving, he's been cooped up in here for too long, and it's starting to show. I can only imagine. I'm starting to beg to be out of here, and today was the first step into walking out of here. We got to visit with the Argentina Visa people, do our fingerprints, and on Tuesday we're doing the final step to receive our Visas which is signing the application in front of the Argentina Consul. It should be pretty cool. I'm so excited to get to Argentina. I know enough Espanol that I could get by, in no way am I fluent. On a 1 to 10 scale I'm probably a 5... Good enough to survive, but I'm continually working to improve.

I was a host missionary on Wednesday who helps the newbies in with their luggage and shows them around campus on Wednesday. Just my luck to get a native from Tahiti who doesn't speak a lick of English. Me. "Ok, you need your Book of Mormon for class, so why don't you get that out."

Him.'Oh, ok."...... He's just standing there. Didn't understand a word I just said.

Me."Your scriptures, you need them."

Him."Ok."..... Still...

Me."Book. Of. Mormon. Script. Ures. Mor. O. Ni."

5 minutes later...

Him"Oh! Preach My Gospel?"

Ha, it was frustrating, but we finally did it and I got him to his class in one piece. That's exactly how it's going to be for me when I get to Argentina. I won't understand a word! It's going to be the craziest, most exciting experience of my life.

We have our first 'baptismal date' at the MTC. It was such a cool experience to ask: será bautizado? And she said, yes! Awesome stuff. Everything is in Spanish now. No English, ever.

The Hermanas in our District are probably the most sensitive girls I've ever seen in my life. I don't think they're 21... Ha, one of them has at least 3 crying sessions a day. My teacher H. Maxwell brought it up that he can tell that I'm frustrated by the softiness of their personalities, and told me I need to humble myself and begin to love more.. It's hard, because I'm not here to make best friends. W/ the Elders in my District, yes, but that's just because we're Elders, and understand each other. The Hermanas are always on roller coaster of troubles. But my teacher is right, I do need to be more humble, patient and loving. I've been doing a lot of scripture study this past week. I'm trying to read the BOM front to back before I leave. Halfway through Alma right now.

Everything else is good, I'm a steady 193lbs... I can't help but think I was always supposed to weigh this much, hahaha.

Love you all. Please send your letters. You don't understand how happy it makes us to receive letters.

Amor



Elder Cuthbert

April 8, 2011

Hola mi familia y amigos!!

 

Man, I'm tired... Fell asleep a couple times at the temple today. Ha, I've been working extremely hard this past week, and we wake up at 5:30 to get to the temple. There's never enough time to sleep. Every day I feel like I'm losing more and more, but I don't want to take a nap, because that mean's I'm losing extra study time! Anyways, had a great time at the temple today, food was as good as always. I got a TON of whipped cream on my waffle, along with omelet, bacon, quiche, chocolate milk, and water. Mmm.

 

Wow, a ton of stuff has happened this week. I'll start off w/ last Pday I guess... Last PDay during my personal time I decided to study leadership. I'm in Mosiah right now, and at the time I was reading Chap. 2 of Mosiah. GREAT chapter. Holy cow, I learned more about leadership in that one chapter than I have almost anywhere... For one... Go and see how many times the word "serve" or "service" is written. I think King Benjamin is trying to tell us something... ;) I spent 1 hour and 45 minutes on that scripture chase and study. It was great.

 

So Gen. Conf. was SOO good!!! Oh my heck, you guys! I loved every talk (although the marriage ones were getting a little boring. There were three of them.) Ha, during the marriage talks, Elder G. and I would just tilt our heads back, shake them and then listen.. as best we could. Ha, marriage is such a good thing to talk about, and it made me think about a lot of things, but I'm here to serve a mission!! Hahaha. So that was interesting. Can I just say the Church is true? Man, I know it. I had been praying for the past 2 weeks on how to know how to receive revelation, feel the Holy Ghost more, and have my teaching guided by the Holy Ghost. Is it just a coincidence that EVERY single one of my questions I prayed about was answered in FULL DETAIL in one or several of the talks?? I think not. I learned so very much this Gen. Conf. It's such a good thing they make us sit in uncomfortable chairs so we stay awake. If I hadn't have stayed awake, I would have missed out on a lot of things pertaining directly to me. One other thing that was mentioned was the fact that we shouldn't discredit all of the little experiences we've had in feeling the Holy Ghost and knowing the church is true. That's something I questioned during the last few weeks here at the MTC, was How strong is my testimony, really? How do i REALLY know that what I'm teaching constantly is true? I was told during Pres. Uchtdorf's talk that I don't need an angel to come down, I don't need some dramatic experience to get me on my feet and proclaim the Gospel is true. Little by little, line upon line, precept upon precept, the feelings of a testimony and the HG will testify to me that what I'm doing is true, and that my testimony does indeed grow through these little experiences. I'm confident in my testimony that I know the Church is true.

 

So GC was incredibly good. Wow, if you didn't listen to every talk, go to the church website and listen to them... They can all help us out incredibly.

 

So you know how I said Elder G. was leaving like... 3 weeks ago? Well, he actually had to stay because of some health issues. He left Saturday night to go on his mission. He called the ones who he loved most into his room to talk to us. I was very humbled and gratified to be one of those people. He gave us the  most powerful testimony I've ever heard... There are so many things I wish to talk about, if only I had the time to say them... All in all, he said to not waste time. To WORK. That the Savior loves me, to not have any regrets. All my track buddies, if you're reading this will know that this also comes from Coach Wyatt... No regrets. Afterwards, I waited till everyone was out of the room, and then I went up to him, clasped my hands on his shoulders, looked him directly in the eyes and said: We ARE Helaman's Stripling Warriors. We are on the battlefield, side by side. I wouldn't pick anyone else to fight on my side but you, Elder G. Never forget that. We WILL win this battle, this war. Don't you DARE give up. If you do, you'll be leaving me alone which I can't do.    I'm going to miss Elder G. the most. I hope the pictures were put up on the blog by now.. He's the short, stubby, amazing Tongan. Hahaha! Just kidding, he's not stubby, the kid's a stud. Love him to death.

 

Espanol is coming along well now. All lessons are completely spoken in our mission language, and Elder W. and I wouldn't have it any other way. We were supposed to give a lesson in English last week, but when we tried.. It just didn't work - So we went back to Spanish. How's that for over-achieving?? Haha!

 

Want to know how the BOM is true? Look up Acts 7 & 2 Nephi... (1?) The chap. in Nephi about Joseph in Egypt. Anyway, I want you to tell me why it's so significant. Look at Moses, and what he does, particularly when he talks about killing the Egyptian overseer who was beating the Hebrew. If you can't figure it out, write me, and I'll tell you. :) It's incredible. Joseph Smith couldn't made this up, or caught this. It's incredibly significant.

 

So on Wednesday Elder W. and I were at the TRC for our teaching appointment, and we had the opportunity to teach a FAMILY about the first lesson in Spanish. It was SUCH a cool experience! I love teaching families! It's so much easier, I think. Anyway, the Espanol flowed, and we had a lot of fun.  Thank you so much for the package mom!! It meant a lot! And all the mailing supplies... You're an angel! Haha! Oh, regarding the backpack... Ha, you were right... I don't like 'em. I've realized at how extremely picky I am, and it's not good! BUT, I've been seeing a lot of good Dakine (particularly the APEX, I think it's called. It's a lot sportier looking) and Old North Face. Take your time, I just need one before I leave the MTC, which is in 3 weeeeeeeks!!!!! Haha! Fun, Fun, Fun!! I'm so excited to get our of here, but I'm spending my time wisely, I promise! I've learned so much this week about teaching with power and the Spirit. Everything needs to be through the Spirit, w/out him, we can't teach.

 

How is everyone at home? I'm so thankful for the people who send me letters and packages, I feel so much love. :) Thanks to all of you for your continued support and kindness. I wouldn't be able to do this w/out the help you guys give. I feel like I'm forgetting something... Ha, dang it. I hate that. I always feel like I have so much to say, and when I get here... Everything just leaves my mind! It's driving me insane! Oh, had a 30 min. conversation w/ a couple guys in the zone about TopGear... Hahah!!! Dani, Chris... You guys know what I'm talking about! It was very fun to talk about it.

 

I go to bed exhausted, every night. My body, mind and spirit is always so drained... This work is exhausting, but it's worth it, I know that. I love this Gospel, and I continue to strive to become better every day. I love all of you, and pray for you all every single night and morning. I hope you can feel that. Send me a letter - tell me how you're doing. Have a question about something? Ask me, I will do my best to help and answer. I'm here for you all, because I love you.

 

Well I've got thirty seconds on the clock... I hope I haven't forgotten anything!!!

 

Les Amo!!!!!

 

Elder Cuthbert

April 1, 2011

I'm ready to leave!!! Ha!

Today marks the halfway point in my time here at the MTC. It's gone by so fast, but at the same time, I am SO ready to be out of here and into Argentina. This week has been so busy, Santa Vaca! (Holy cow!) I guess I'll begine w/ Saturday I think it was? No se...

Anyways, we were eating breakfast that morning when H. Thompson, one of the Hermanas in our District asked me for a blessing. I asked what was wrong and what I could do to prepare myself as best I could. She's been having some health issues, and the doctors have absolutely no idea what's wrong w/ her... She asked for a blessing of comfort. So for the next hour and a half, I buried my nose in the scriptures.. Looking up any and every example of how to receive the Holy Ghost in fulness to give someone a true blessing. I was worried, because I usually think too much about what I'm going to say, and the words never flow. So for the next hour and a half, I studied how we receive the Holy Ghost, through prayer, meditating, asking, things like that. It was such a good study time. When the time came to give her the blessing... It came. :) During the blessing, I was saying to myself: "What the heck?? What's going on? How did I know to say that?" I can testify that I know that through the scriptures, we can receive any answer we have. That's something I've learned here. I never liked reading the scriptures at home... Don't know why, just didn't. But here... I've learned to love them, because they truly are the fulness of the Doctrine of Christ. They contain the things we need to do to be happy. If we have questions, go to the scriptures, it will be there. It was an incredible blessing.. I was so thankful for the opportunity to give that to her. Also, that same day was the first day where Elder W. and I focused COMPLETELY on studying, and learning, and being completely productive. We didn't have a minute to spare that day! It went by so quickly.. I know that when our days are busy, and we plan effectively for every minute of the day, we become more productive, and are blessed more because of it. I learned and grew so much that day.

That night, Elder C. - our Zone Leader - asked me if my faith has ever been shaken... I told him of course, but why does he ask? He went on to say how he loves being here, how he loves to teach and learn about the gospel, but knowing 100% that everything is true is difficult. He said he's probably 99% sure of everything, but that 1% has been bugging him. We spoke in the hallway of our dorms for about 33 minutes. It was a deep conversation. I told him that if he feels good about being here, then he has nothing to worry about. Those who aren't worthy, or don't have a true intent to be a missionary, won't be as happy as he is. The Lord loves each and every one of us, and I know that to be true. He also was worried about not being forgiven about all of his sins. This is when I looked him in the eye and said: "The Lord wouldn't let you, in good conscionce (?) be here if you weren't worthy. The Holy Ghost would not be in your life, and in a place like the MTC where the Holy Ghost and Spirit of God is everywhere... You would feel like crap." I won't go into to much detail of the things we talked about, but it sufficeth to say that I began to have many questions as well about my faith, and if I truly am dedicated to this Gospel. That started a long scripture chase, one that is still going on today. But everything I'm doing here is good, and that's all that matters. I'm happy, and that's all that matters. How could it not be true? The BoM is way too complex to have been designed and written by one man. It would be impossible for him to do anything in that level of detail.

Sunday was good. Fast Sundays are always hard here, because it's a lot of study time, and no eating time! For me, that's definitely been a struggle. I love Sundays here, the Spirit is always so strong. Does it sound strange that I talk in this way now? It's amazing at how just one month in the MTC can change so many things... I'm surrounded by the Gospel, 24/7. The only conversations I have is on Gospel topics, or things that in some way, relate to us as missionaries. It's incredible... Weird to think about, but incredible.

Kass is home now, isn't he? How's he doing? Is he adjusting to life alright? I bet he is... Ha.

The Hermanas in our district started to snap at us a couple of days ago. It was hilarious because all the things were so trivial and insignificant. Women and their sensitive feelings... ;) Hahaha, just kidding. No but seriously, it was very strange at all the things they were complaining about. Very frustrating as a D.L. to handle that kind of thing, because I have no direct authority over the Hermanas in the District. Anyways...

I'm a steady 190 lbs. right now. crazy, huh? Don't know if I'm growing, gaining muscle or what, because I can't see where it's goin'! Whateva!

Tuesday was my first hard day.. It was just... difficult. I don't know what happened, but I snapped at everyone, my pride was out the roof, and my attitude was terrible. I spoke with one of the Elders who has been DL before, and he told me a lot of good things. I decided I need to become better at serving people. And my attitude needed to change. Everything here depends on your attitude. What is it Pres. Hinckley said?... "Happiness and Misery. It all depends on your disposition in all circumstances.. somethin' like that." Ha. Anyways, I know that's true... And BP! Christian A. Springer. When you get here into the MTC, have a good attitude EVERY DAY. No matter what the circumstances, be HAPPY. It will go such a long way.

I was released as DL last night... It was sad, because I care deeply for this District. But Elder G. is going to make a great DL. The food at the temple was amazing, as always. :) Those waffles... Ah.

How is everything at home? Haven't received any letters from anyone lately, except for wonderful Aub & Fam! Love you guys! I love everyone else too, of course, never forget that! Ha, I don't care if you don't have much to say to me... Send me something. I want to talk to everyone, it's such a happy moment to open that mailbox and get some mail. Well, time's almost up. Oh! I have been forbidden to speak en Ingles from now on at the MTC. We'll see how it goes. It's incrediblly difficult, because it takes SO much energy to just THINK OF THE FLIPPIN' VERB AND CONJUGATIONS!!! Ha, anyway, I don't speak English anymore. English? What's English? Ha, anyways... I love you all. Never forget that. You all mean a lot to me, I pray for you all every day. I have so much fun here, you have no idea. BUT I AM READY TO LEAVE THE MTC!!! i'm using this time wisely to study and prepare though... Ok time's up.

LOVE,

E. Cuthbert