Dinner at the MTC!

MTC Missionaries

#3

Ah! This week has been filled with so many emotions!

So to start off, on Saturday when we went to the park, i got paired with Sister Davis-- and WE GOT LOST IN MADRID.

So we were talking to these men right as we got into the park, and one of them said he had been to our church before, and he had so many questions for us, but he wouldnt stop talking to let us answer!  It was sad and i just didn´t know what to do, because i want everyone i talk with to feel like i am willing to listen, but i felt like we weren´t really getting anywhere.

 So anyway, while we were talking to them (and getting awkwardly hit on) and trying to tell them about the gospel, i realized we were supposed to be at the fountain in the park to sing and i also needed to go to the bathroom!  So i told them i needed to use the restroom, so we went to a restaurant across the street.  When i came out of the one person bathroom Hermana Davis was talking to a 50 ish year old man.  After talking to him for about 3 minutes I realized he was drunk!  But he was so kind though, and even though we were late for singing i felt like we couldn´t leave him because he said he was dealing with depression and we were angels for talking with him and listening to him.  He cried and told us that even when a stranger smiles at you it brightens your day and touches your heart.  He was sweet!  So we stayed and talked with him.

Well long story short, we were too late for singing and everyone was gone by the time we got there!  And as we were walking out of the park we just met all of these awesome people!  So honestly I was so grateful for us being late because it made it so we met awesome people, and even handed out another Book of Mormon to a boy our age!

Then we got lost on the metro on the way back, but luckily a member saw us and helped us out! But yeah we got back to the CCM like 90 minutes late! Everyone was worried and looking for us and for that i felt terrible! But Sis Davis and i had fun, and we knew we´d get back eventually so we just laughed the whole time and had fun! 

OKAY. So Highlight of the week/month/mission-- I SAW ELDER GROVES!!!!!!!

It was amazing! So the 1st counselor in our mission presidency and his wife, Presidente Sullivan and Sis Sullivan organized this singing program for Christmas where us at the CCM and other missionaries around Madrid area sang!  I had no clue if Elder Groves was still in Vigo or not since ive been here. I couldnt wait all of last week, just thinking, ¨What if i get to see one of my best friends?!?!?!¨ So when we walked into the stake center and i saw him waving at me i just broke down in tears! I was so grateful to see him, and i just couldnt even contain myself!  Ah! Then i got to talk to him with my comp for a while, and one of the teachers kept saying you can talk later but you need to go with the other missionaries into the relief society room right now, and im just sitting there thinking, I can see those CCM missionaries whenever (too often in fact haha) I had my amazing Comp Sister B and Elder Groves and i was more than content with that! So i was kinda bad and just kept saying ¨im coming im coming...¨ but yeah anyway it was just wonderful to get to talk to him and he is just such an incredible Elder and person and friend!  Once we stopped talking i kind of started to break down again but Hermana Bennett comforted me-- SERIOUSLY I wish i had time/words to describe how amazing and Christlike she is!  She is such a strong person, I dont know how i could have a better companion, she´s become one of my best friends!

I have the best district in the world! We have six sisters and only 2 elders (Elder Anderson and Nyland), but the elders are the best of the best!  We can all talk about everything, and we´re just great friends! A little too close, because we just love talking and get distracted easily! But they all just have amazing testimonies and i pray we´ll be life long friends!  I feel so loved and beautiful around them, probably more than ever before in my life.  They are uplifting and wonderful and im blessed to know them.

Hermana Bennett and I sang on Sunday!  We sang (in spanish) nearer my God to thee!  It was amazing because at home i would´ve never done that. but sister bennett has such an amazing voice and she gives me confidence in mine! It´s wonderful.  Even though i kinda messed up on the song and sang the wrong verse (haha) i still felt so good about it because we did it!  I feel like here i can do and be anything and i feel like im growing so much! I absolutely love it. 

I feel the Spirit all the time, it is so in abundance here! This gospel is true without a doubt. 

God is mindful of all of us!

He lives!  I love Him and i love being a missionary!

And España is the greatest. Truly.  I cant wait until i can speak this language- i love it!

Love, Hermana Miller

Whitney teaching in spanish! 

Singing in front of the temple!

Preparing to teach in the park!

Teaching in the park!

#2
And then there were fifteen!

Ahh this week has been so crazy and amazing! Last P-day we got to go walk around Madrid (a place called Seoul I think) and this city is GORGEOUS.  We went into a gorgeous cathedral, and saw some incredible buildings!  This place is unreal. 

 

Also, last Saturday we went to el parque and it was AMAZING.

Seriously the Lord´s hand is in this work.  Right before we left for the park, one of the teachers told me and my companion to interrupt people even if they´re texting or listening to music because this message is more important than any hobby.  Which lead us to this experience...

My park companion, Sis. Andrus and I saw a woman sitting on a park bench listening to music, we just went up to her and started talking-- SHE IS SO PREPARED FOR THIS GOSPEL.

She only spoke Spanish, so in my Spanglish we tried to communicate with her, but it was just so difficult!  Her name is Maisabel (Said like Maribelle),  i tried to ask her if she like music, and she said yes, so i told her that we sing at 4 by a fountain in the park.  It wasn´t for another hour so i was sure she´d be gone by then, but she agreed to come see us.  I thought maybe she was just being nice, but i prayed she would come!  When we went to go sing- there she was!!! Ah we freaked out.  We went and said hi to her, then went to go sing.  So i went up to a Sister in my district, Hermana Samuelson, who speaks spanish very well, and asked her to go talk to her about the gospel. WE GOT A REFERRAL!!!!!!! She wrote down her information and also wrote, ¨Please call me!!!¨ AHHHHHHHHHH. We were on a spiritual high!  We also met a man named Juan, he is 81.  He also only spoke Spanish, but we talked to him to forty ish minutes! He loved us, but didnt really want to here about the gospel, so i just asked if we could practice our spanish with him.  After making some spanish small talk, i asked my companion to tell him about the book of Mormon (¨she needs to practice her Spanish¨ i told him) so we then talked with him about the gospel and ahhh it was awesome!  He said he would like to learn more, even though he thinks he´s too old for religion, and he gave us a thorough referall! I just love this work, and i love testifying of how happy it makes me, i just want everyone i see to feel happy like me! 

 

So to explain my title-- there are literally FIFTEEN PEOPLE AT THE CCM NOW.  Uh. 10 Hermanas and 5 Elderes.  I cried so much when the others left, the next time i see most of them will probably be on the other side, I just love them so much!  And im seriously obsessed with the Russian language, and now there are no more Russians/Americans learning Russian. And im sad about it.  Now who can i practice my limited Russian words on?! The first day they left my companion and I got called as the new Sister Training Leaders! So that was exciting, i am excited, i need to learn how to better put others before myself, what a great opportunity! Ha, but after i had all of those feelings of gratitude, i got into a funk for the rest of the day, and seriously i was just so depressed.  There´s no one here but my district and one other one and i just thought i was gonna go crazy!!!!! I looked at them all and was like, ¨i seriously dont know if i can handle being with only you missionaries.´´ i think they all can kinda relate because no one was offended (i think) when i said that. Ah, but that day this place just felt like a prison! I miss everyone who left...if it werent for my companion i wouldve had a nervous breakdown! but i think i´m over those depressing feelings now and im just trying to enjoy the small number we have here. Ha, its so funny to think provo has thousands and we have 15. Weird.

 

We have been getting better at teaching, there are so many things to cover and our limited language abilities make it difficult, but one of the Americans learning Russian said, ´´God is not going to let our limited language skills get in the way of moving His work forward.´´ and i truly believe that!  Yesterday was such a cool experience, Hermana Bennett testified in Spanish to one of our investigators, and it was such a simple testimony.  I´ve heard her testify of José Smith in spanish before, but the spirit was just so strong this time...we were both in tears and i could feel my testimony burning inside me! 

 

 

 

Okay so I want to share an experience i had on THE BEST THANKSGIVING EVER.

 

So in my setting apart blessing my Stake President told me that I would have the opportunity to bear witness of Joseph Smith and the Restoration everyday that i prayed to have that opportunity.  It meant a lot to me because my testimony of Joseph Smith is so strong and close to my heart.  So on thanksgiving day i woke up and had the prompting to pray to have that experience.  So in our thanksgiving devotional there was this huge bucket full of slips of paper, everyone´s said different things like, ´´Say why youre grateful for eternal families.´´ and stuff like that and most all of them were different.  So there were like 40 different things you could get.  As i opened my paper it said, ´´´Bear testimony on the Restoration and tell how it has blessed your life.´´ I just broke down crying. What a tender mercy!  God is mindful of us. I know without a doubt that I did not recieve that paper by coincidence.  And i was reminded by a small slip of paper that God is involved in my life, and in this work, and that our leaders truly are called of God.  We can immediately talk to Him through prayer! We are blessed.  So so blessed, even if sometimes we dont take the time to step back and see it- but life´s a lot more enjoyable if we do!

 

I love you all, thank you for your prayers in my behalf.  I can feel them strengthening me!

 

Love, Hermana Miller

#1

Hello from MADRID, SPAIN.

 I´ve already learned so much! I love it here! Believe me, there have been times of struggle and even doubt, but overall this is the greatest thing!

So for starters:  This is my first PDAY- 1 1/2 weeks into the mission- because of Thanksgiving and Spain holidays and such! I´ve been dying to write, but at the same time where do I even start?!

So I got THE BEST COMPANION HERE.  Seriously she has been the greatest tender mercy the Lord has given me! She is patient with my time issues (I struggle to be on time to anything, but here I really am being so much better than i was at home!), she is kind, and HILARIOUS. Oh boy is she funny! Oh and her name is Hermana Bennett and she is also from Utah. But saddest thing ever- she´s going to the Madrid mission.  She has honestly become one of my best friends so quickly, i told her we should probably just stop talking now because it´ll be too hard for me to leave her. But yes, I got lucky getting her as my first compañera!

There are only like 35 ish missionaries here at the CCM is España! It can hold 72 so we´re a small group.  It makes it so much more fun though, we all know each other so well and we´ve become close! I am so lucky to be at this MTC.  Seriously. We have 13 of us Americans that came together to serve in Spain, there are also missionaries from Tahiti that only speak French, and a few Sisters and Elders from Russia/Ukraine.  Although I can´t really speak with them we try to communicate and it´s so fun! Being here has made me want to learn every language, it´s frustrating having limited language abilities! There are also i think 6 ish missionaries from the US learning Russian, and they´re so wonderful!!! They leave next Tuesday and I´m so sad.  My companion, Hermana Bennett and I play soccer with the Elders from that district and an Elder from Russia for every physical activity and IT´S THE BEST THING EVER.  Seriously it is my stress reliever for the day.  We go to a concrete stadium like field a couple blocks from the CCM and I can´t play soccer pretty much at all.  Ha. I´m afraid of the ball.  But it´s the best, I just run up and down the field and scream whenever the ball comes near me and i try to distract the Elders so they make bad passes. Ha, i´m sure they get annoyed but they´re nice about it! Ha, my companion told me one of the Elders said to her, ¨Have you ever played soccer with princess peach?¨ Ha. I´ve tried to control myself after that.

I have had SO MANY EMBARRASSING MOMENTS since being here.  Honestly i can´t even write them all.  I´m sure me embarrassing myself is no surprise to anyone back home. Ha. So the food here, overall, is pretty good.  But i´m sorry I just can´t eat fish! Its a problem.  So one night i stood up, and i hadn´t eaten hardly any of my dinner (everyone said it was chicken but i had it in my mind that it was fish and i couldn´t change it), so i was going to go throw it away. So i get up, walk around the table and BAM. I start going down, I guess i ran into a chair, but luckily recover...my food wasn´t so lucky.  It was all over, and everyone was staring at me. Hahahha so i just start saying to everyone, ´´Lo siento, lo siento,´´ (Im sorry) over and over again. My companion and a couple girls from my district just burst out laughing, and an elderly missionary sister from Switzerland (whom became my good friend even though i could only say ¨Bonjour.¨) was DYING laughing, so that made everything even funnier! It was the best.

Teaching has been so great!  We teach two of our lovely investigator/teachers.  Our Spanglish is terribly frequent, but I think for the most part we get the message across.  We have had some frustrating moments, but also so many spiritual moments.  I can understand so much of their Spanish! I know they´re speaking slowly, but it still gives me confidence.  The hardest thing about learning a new language is when someone asks you a very personal question about the gospel, when they tell you their problems and ask things like, ¨How can I trust God again?¨ or ¨How can my family be happy?´ and things like that, and you have the answers in English but you just don´t know how to say it in Spanish.  It is HEART BREAKING. But the Spirit speaks louder than words, and this is Heavenly Father´s work, so I know if I put my trust in Him i´ll be able to help the people.

So each Saturday we have the opportunity to go the El parque retiro!  It is a GORGEOUS park in Madrid! We get temporary companions for the park, and we go and talk to whomever about the gospel for 1 1/2 hours! Its so fun!  It is so much more difficult than i thought it´d be to talk to people though! I thought, ´´once i get the nametag on, and am a ¨real missionary´ it´ll just come easily¨ but NO. Its still nerve wracking and intimidating...I was with a girl from Utah that I LOVE. Hermana Johns, we were on the plane together! Shes great.  But we were nervous, i could go up to people and compliment their hair and make small talk and stuff but it was so hard to try to talk about the gospel, i was so afraid of I dont know what!  But they said something so amazing to us in a devotional,

EVERYONE NEEDS THIS GOSPEL.  It is the Lord´s church.  It is for all of His children, i know that to be true.  So why have fear in sharing it with them? It would better EVERY SINGLE PERSON´S LIFE to have this gospel.  And when you see them, it may be their only opportunity for many years to hear the good news of this gospel, so stop being in yourself and SHARE IT.  We need to be bold in proclaiming this gospel!

IT´S TRUE. None of our efforts will be wasted!  We may not see the end now, but be obedient to the Lord´s commandments, and all will be well!  Our first night here we watched a devotional by Elder Bednar, he talked about how some of us worry ¨is it me or the spiri?´´but he said QUIT WORRYING ABOUT IT.  Just do your best to be obedient and choose the right.  As we do that The Lord trusts us to do what is right, and we may not get an answer EVERY TIME we pray about something, but that just means the Lord knows you will make a good, well thought out decision.  Knowing this has brought me so much peace.  In the park, i prayed about what walkways to turn down, and i was sad becasue i didnt feel especially inclined towards any one of them.  I thought maybe because i hadnt been exactly obedient in going to bed at 10 30, that maybe i wasnt worthy to recieve direction on which way to turn.  I now know that´s not true! The Lord just knows that i am trying so hard, and putting my best effort forth in this righteous work, so He trusts me to pick the path i think is where we should go.  I know He´ll direct me to those who need to hear his message, or he´ll direct them to me.

But from being here ive realized more than ever before the truth of Obedience brings blessings, but exact obedience brings miracles! Its not as easy to do that as i thought it´d be.  But as we try to show the Lord our obedience in small things, the Lord will know He can trust us with Big things! 

I´m out of time but I´ll finish emailing everyone next week!

I´M SO HAPPY HERE. I love the Lord!! HE LIVES.

Love,

Hermana Miller

Whitney singing at the Madrid Temple!