A NEW BEGINNING (week 8)

Welp. Its over. Or should I say, just beginning.

Hi! Can any of you believe that my MTC journey is already over...? I can't. On one hand it feels like I have been here forever and on the other it feels like I still have some time left. But either way it feels nice for a scenery change. The MTC truly was an amazing Social, Physical, Mental, and Spiritual experience for me. I made some new friends, got really good at volleyball, and walking from one side of the campus to the other. I grew my knowledge in Korean, but most importantly I massively grew my testimony of Christ. The MTC completely changed my outlook on The Atonement of Christ. I am sure some of you have seen that from my previous emails. But like all good things they have to come to an end. It doesn't mean the next thing won’t be greater. Trust me these next 22 months are going to be one the most infuential parts of my entire life.

The MTC experience.

     As I said the MTC has definitely set me on the correct path on what to do when I get out into the field. It has taught me a lot of lessons and truly strengthened my testimony. However, I would not want to be here again for 8 weeks. It gets to a point where it’s the same thing every single day. I am not ignoring the blessings I have felt while I have been here. I am aware there will be moments out in the field where it will feel like the same thing but the blessings I will feel out there knowing I will hopefully be making a difference in people's lives will be way more impactful.

-Korean

     As much as I would like to say I am fluent in Korean, I'd be lying. Instead I like to say "My Korean is great and it is always getting better!" In fact I have applied it a lot to how testimony works. Growing a testimony of Christ is actually very similar to learning a language. You can study, pray, act upon, and teach each of them to grow your skills but you will never stop getting better. I wont forget that. The Korean language has been something I wanted to grow every single day even if it was just 1% better. That will also be the same for my testimony. Here is something interesting. The more I've noticed my testimony of Christ grow and the more I teach it to others, the more I've noticed my Korean grow as well. Hmm... Interesting. I cannot wait to serve the people of Korea and show them my testimony of Christ through my Korean and of course The Spirit.

-Eugene Oregon

     My biggest takeaway from this reassignment has been this question:

"Is that actually how you spell Oregon? or is it Oregen?"

All jokes aside, I really think this will be a beneficial moment for me. One of the best things I have been told, and maybe some of you can attest to this, has been that there is something I need in my reassignment. I don't know what that is I just have to have faith in God it will benefit me in some way. I wish I could push my mindset onto some others in my district as they have been struggling. It really breaks my heart to see some of them feel like all their effort in learning Korean has gone to waste because they won’t use it for a while. I want to just tell them all the good that will come out of the reassignment but they dont want to hear it. I had a great conversation about this with my Mom. She said most people just want to feel validated. They already know its going to be a good thing but sometimes they just need to be heard. I think I am good at listening to people who are struggling so I think I've helped.

-MTC Takeaways

     Here are some of the most beneficial things I have learned here at the MTC.

1. Believing in the Atoning Sacrafice of Jesus Christ.

2. Learning to love others and understand myself and testimony better.

3. Understanding the only way to be "The Message" of the gospel is to teach with The Spirit. 

-Spiritual Thought

     I recently listened to a talk by Elder David A. Bednar that he gave at this most recent general conference titled:

"They Are Their Own Judges."

Basically his whole talk was about how we shouldn't be fearing The Lord's judgment upon us after the resurrection. It should be seen as a good thing. My favorite quote was when he said , "Ultimately we are our own judges." The choices we make on earth and in the spirit world will put us in the most comfortable kingdom. However, to get there he talked about this thing called "Godly fear" and "Righteous Fear.” Here is what he said:

     "Many of us may expect that our appearance before the bar of the Eternal Judge will be similar to a proceeding in a worldly court of law. A judge will preside. Evidence will be presented. A verdict will be rendered. And we likely will be uncertain and fearful until we learn the eventual outcome. But I believe such a characterization is inaccurate."

"Different from but related to the mortal fears we often experience is what the scriptures describe as “godly fear” or “the fear of the Lord.” Unlike worldly fear that causes alarm and anxiety, godly fear invites into our lives peace, assurance, and confidence."

"Righteous fear encompasses a deep feeling of reverence and awe for the Lord Jesus Christ, obedience to His commandments, and anticipation of the Final Judgment and justice at His hand. Godly fear grows out of a correct understanding of the divine nature and mission of the Redeemer, a willingness to submit our will to His will, and a knowledge that every man and woman will be accountable for his or her own mortal desires, thoughts, words, and acts in the Day of Judgment."

"The fear of the Lord is not a reluctant apprehension about coming into His presence to be judged. Rather, it is the prospect of ultimately acknowledging about ourselves “things as they really are” and “as they really will be.”

Take what you want from this but I am going to continue to study what he said.

-Conclusion

     Its been a great 2 months here in the MTC but there is more to come. I again want to thank everyone for messaging me, emailing me, and keeping me in your prayers. One cool thing was pointed out to me by my dad was, when I was 9 years old about this same time at the end of October, we moved to Bountiful after living in Saratoga Springs for 9 years.  Now 9 years later I am going to live in Oregon/Korea. I Guess that's another reason why 9 is my favorite number.

I love you all so much and I am so excited for this next chapter of my mission. Wish me luck!

Love,

Elder Christensen

Last Picture with my District