November 30, 2015

As you all know, last week was really hard for me and while being here I have realized plenty of places where I have seen many weakness. I thought that I knew the Savior before I came on my mission but this week I have learned what it means to truly rely on Him. I rely on Him every single day and I have come closer to Him than I ever have before and I know that I will only continue to draw closer to Him and to learn more of Him each day. During part of my personal study I have been reading "Our Search for Happiness" by Elder Ballard and I have learned a great deal from reading his experiences and how he explains the gospel in such straightforward terms. One thing that has stood out to me this week and has helped strengthen me is when he wrote about how much our Heavenly Father loves us. I know this and even though this sentence is so simple, it means so much to me. As I study the Plan of Salvation and teach it to our investigators, it didn't hit me until today how perfect this plan really is. This plan shows us how much our Heavenly Father loves us. This plan is all about us coming to Earth so that we will be able to receive a body and to learn of the 5 pieces which this gospel entails: Faith in Jesus Christ, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost and Enduring to the End, after this we are able to return home to our Heavenly Father and live with him once more. He has provided the way for us and has told us what we need to do in order to live with him again. Not only to live with Him again but also our families. Our Heavenly Father wants the same from us, we are his children and he wants us to return to live with him too. Sometimes I don't think we realize that He is our literal Father and that we have inherited some of his divine attributes, it is for this very reason that we are able to become like Him. We have the potential to be like our Father in Heaven, how amazing this is and this is all possible through the atonement. Jesus Christs Earthly Ministry was to teach his gospel and to do the Atonement. Our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ knew that as humans we would fall short and that when- not if- we made mistakes that we would need to be forgiven. Because we have such a loving Heavenly Father, he provided us with a way to be forgiven and because our Savior loves us just as much, he was willing to be the way in which the Father was able to fulfill his plan. We are asked to follow our Savior and his example. We are asked to be perfect even as our Father which is in Heaven is perfect, but even though we are asked this, our Heavenly Father knows that we are not perfect. He only asks us that we try our very best each day and to be better tomorrow then we were yesterday. 

I am on a mission to serve others and to bring them the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that even though I don't know everything, I know enough. I know that my Heavenly Father loves me and I know that through the Atonement I will be able to do all that the Father has asked of me. For like the Savior I will say, Not my will be done, but thine. I am so grateful for this gospel and even though I fall short sometimes and have my weaknesses, I know that my Heavenly Father will take me where I am and mold me into the person that he needs me to be. He will make me stronger for "when I am weak therefore I am strong" He makes weak things become strong and I will strive to be as Nephi and say, I know that whatever the Lord has commanded of me, I will be able to do. For the Lord has performed many miracles so if he has commanded me to build a ship, I will build a ship. (This is like 1 Nephi 17). I know that the Lord continues to perform miracles even now for he has not forgotten us. If he was willing to perform miracles for the children of men before, why can he not do the same for us?

My purpose for why I am serving a mission is what keeps me going. I am here to share this gospel so that those I share it with will be able to partake of the promised blessings that are in store for us. I have left my home for a short period of time so that other families may be with their family for forever. This is why I am serving. I know this gospel is true with all my heart and I have learned so much since I have been here.

                                           My Companion Sister Solongo

English teaching is going well and I will write more about it next week. I just wanted to take the time this week to share my testimony

                                   Sister Kerby and Sister Nelson

                                    English Teaching Companion

Entrance to

University

                                                

                                                                                                                                      Love Sister Kerby

November 9, 2015

сайн байна уу!

It is officially my first week in Mongolia, crazy I know! I have already been here for about 4 days now and it has been an interesting couple of days. So far I love it! The people are so friendly and even though I have no idea what they are saying to me I already love them. It is definitely a different place here but it has been exciting. My pday was actually supposed to be yesterday however that didn't happen because they called us and told us to come to the Mission Home so that they could drive us to the Mongolian hospital where I had to get x-rays and blood drawn... that was a fun experience. When they did the xrays they didn't even protect the parts they weren't xraying so if I don't die from the radiation poisoning it will probably be from the pollution in the air... haha I am just kidding. They only use coal here so most of the time the air quality isn't the best and we have to wear masks, but so far it hasn't been too bad. 

 

Although I did get sick on Sunday because we had to run a couple blocks to our church building so that we could get there early and greet people so the cold air and everything didn't help. On another note the food isn't too bad, although all the fat they use is going to take some getting used to. My companion and I went to this little restaurant and I ordered this ramen soup and when I got it, it looked nothing like the picture of course and there were these chunks of fat in it... I guess it adds flavor right? Another thing I tried is this candy they call airag (that’s not how you spell it but that’s the Mongolian English version of it) anyway, that is the fermented milk candy that they have that tastes as my teacher quoted, "A petting zoo in your mouth" or "baby vomit", gross I know but now that I have tried it I can officially agree with her. It is definitely not my most favorite thing in the world and it will take some getting used to. 

 

The transportation here is also crazy. We take the bus a lot and I am not kidding when I say that it feels like I am riding the bus from Harry Potter! Sometimes though it is so packed that you can't even move, you pretty much will move like 2 inches but then you will bump into the person next to you and they will stop you. They don't have any laws when it comes to driving so its pretty much do what you want, but somehow they make it work. I am just thankful we don't have to drive here. The taxi system is pretty cool here, its not even really a taxi. You basically just stick your hand out and then someone will stop and give you a ride. If they feel like making some extra money then they will stop for you and then you can bargain with them the price you want to pay.

My companion is so cute! She is this tiny little Mongolian missionary and she is so fun. Even though we don't understand each other all the time we get along great. She has been extremely helpful in teaching me the language and I know that I will learn a lot from her. It has been hard learning the language, not going to lie but I know it will just take time. I am also looking forward to teaching my first English class here. Sister Nelson is actually going to be my teaching companion since we have the same sponsor and are at the same University so it will be nice having someone from my MTC district with me. She is actually in my ward as well so I see her quite a bit. Since this is such a small mission I have actually seen most of my district quite a few times since I have been here so I consider myself lucky. I have missed them so it has been nice to see them the few times I have. 

I haven't taught any lessons with investigators yet, I actually have my first lesson tonight and I am really nervous for it. We met them at church on Sunday and they seem really sweet so it shouldn't be too bad. All I know is that no matter how simple and short my testimony may be, I believe it 100 percent and I know they will be able to see that as well. 

I hope everyone is doing well and that you have a great week! I love you all and will write to you next week!

хаиртай шүү,

кэрбий эгч

Ninth Week in MTC

сайн байна уу!

This week is going by so fast, it's crazy how these last few days are just flying by. I am supposed to leave in just 6 days. I just want to thank you all for the support that you have shown me and the encouraging letters that you send me each week.

So this email is going to be a little short, but I wanted to share a few things that I have learned here. We had the opportunity on Tuesday to hear from Elder Neil L Anderson, this was one of the most powerful experiences I have had. I was 3 rows away from where he was speaking, and it was incredible. When he stepped in the room and we all stood, there was an overwhelming feeling of the Spirit. It was so neat being able to hear from an apostle of God in such a close setting like this and to know that the message he had was specifically for us. 

He shared with us these 4 topics: Sacrifice, Opposition, Adversary, and Deliverance.

When he spoke of sacrifice he mentions how we all give up something in life. "Sacrifice is an eternal principle" We continue throughout our life to sacrifice things. For example he mentioned how we all had to sacrifice something to come on a mission. What really stood out to me though was when he asked the question, "Is my sacrifice enough?"

This is something that I had been pondering before and wanted to know that if what I was doing was enough. D&C 97:8 says every sacrifice is accepted of Him. No matter how big or how small our sacrifice is to the Lord it is enough, we are enough. What we are doing is great in the eyes of our Heavenly Father. As we are doing as we should with diligence, a sincere heart and real intent, it is enough. We also can't compare ourselves to others. We will meet some exceptional people in our life but that doesn't matter. Who we are is perfect and God takes us where we are in our life right now and He will mold us into the person who he desires and needs us to be. Discouragement, doubt and fear are our biggest enemy and Satan uses this tool to his advantage. We should only be comparing ourselves to ourselves. Who we were a year ago is different than who we are today and who we will be tomorrow is different than today. We are not the same, we continue to get better each day and that is what our Heavenly Father asks of us. Every sacrifice we make, the Lord gives back 1000 times more. Keep that in mind the next time you ask, How can I give this up? Because what we gain in return is worth far more. I for one am thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who is so anxious to bless His children. I know he loves us with an unimaginably and unconditional love. He knows us, he knows our needs even before we ask him. He knows our desires and he will answer our prayers. He will come unto us if we need help, but it is us who need to come unto Him. 

We are enough. Heavenly Father will take us as we are. As we turn to Him and ask for his assistance in our life, His hand will be there to lift us up. Heavenly Father will not take our trials from us, but he will be there to strengthen us so that we will be able to bear them. This is how we are able to grow in this life for without trials, there is no need for us to change and become more than we are. Trials allow us to humble ourselves and turn to our Savior for help and recognize that we can't do it on our own.

This truly is the Plan of Happiness and it is perfect. I am grateful for a prophet and the fact that we get to be led by one today. I know Thomas S Monson is the current prophet on the Earth today. He is God's mouthpiece and he will help guide us back to our Heavenly Father. I am grateful for the 12 apostles and I know that they have been called by God. They are His servants and what a great responsibility they hold. What better way to show that Heavenly Father loves us than the fact he gave us a prophet. We are able to know God's will through our prophet and we need to recognize what a great blessing this is. Heavenly Father has not left us alone. I am so grateful for this gospel and for the joy it has brought to my life. This gospel is true and I know that with all my heart. I am excited to be able to share His message with those in Mongolia who are being prepared right now to receive it. My only hope and prayer is that I will continue to be worthy, diligent, obedient, and have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost so that I may be able to reach and teach EVERY single person that my Father in Heaven needs me to reach at this time. I am not perfect, I have my shortcomings and my weaknesses but through the beautiful gift of the atonement we are able to overcome those faults and become better each day. We are not perfect but we are destined to become perfect, not by ourselves but through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for the enabling power it provides. It is more than just a cleansing power, which is one of its great gifts but it also gives us the power and strength to do so much more.

 

хаиртай шүү,

кэрбий эгч