We got the phone call this morning.
Sister Rowley called me and we conferenced in dad.
The three of us spoke for 25 minutes.
It was great to HEAR her voice.
To LISTEN to her joys and frustrations.
To reassure her.
To TELL her we love her and that we are so very proud of her!
as Sister Rowley is preparing to leave the MTC (early tuesday morning),
we want to remind you to put on (temporary) hold, any letters or packaging you plan on sending.
she will not be receiving any more mail at the MTC but she will send
an address update as soon as she is settled in DC.
Hold on…. here we goooooooooooooo!
I am certain that I am breaking several of Kylee's, err, Sister Rowley’s blogging rules
Here are a few of the photos (unedited… rule)
from the MTC that I have received (without permission to share… rule)
her desk for the last two weeks | yep, she is a missionary | missionary shoes | vending machine ice cream♡
Provo temple grounds | first package [greenie] | marking up scriptures | Washington DC Sister’s
Those priesthood stories about Honduras sisters! Made me think of dad and just how awesome missionary work is! I suspect dad cried a little bit. I know I did. But what's new, I cry every day here.
I loved how Elder Hales talked about the first general conference and that it was held only two months after the church was restored. ONLY TWO MONTHS! That spoke to me about the importance of general conference. It's such a blessing, which I've felt in the past, but I feel it even more so, now that I'm a missionary that teaches people that God loves us, restored His true church on earth, and gives us modern day prophets. One of my favorite lines from Elder Hales address: “the greatest blessings of conference come after it has ended and we live what we learn.” Obviously I didn't get it in his exact words, but I love that thought.
Elder Soares talk on meekness was great. Anything that includes Christ-like attributes is worth listening to. I loved that he said it is our duty to try to be perfect, to improve with each new day.
Sister Stephens was great - something that I have felt very strongly about, especially after going through the temple. I'm so grateful for the power, protection, and beauty that comes from the temple. When she mentioned that partaking of the sacrament is to not only to renew our baptismal covenants, but all covenants we make with God, my mind felt illuminated. I can't wait to take the sacrament again next week. I also can't wait to go back to the temple. Normally we would have gone today, but it's closed because of conference. I think we get to go next Friday. I'll miss having mom by my side.
Wasn't Elder Dube amazing! I could just envision dads remarks about how cool he was. “Stand close together and lift where we stand.” I loved that for so many reasons: members & missionaries must work together and likewise, I must learn to work better with my companions.
President Uchtdorf is always my favorite. Always so many one liners. And, I loved Elder Bednar’s perspective on tithing. So, basically I loved all this Saturday morning talks.
This family choir! I don't remember ever seen that before! So neat! As we were sustaining all of the leaders of our church, I was thinking about how this must have been the way that the grand council in heaven was. Where we all gather together and feel so much love for each other, agreeing to God’s plan. It was just cool to think about and it made me realize that heaven is so near to us on earth.
Elder Holland! totally made me think of grandma and grandpa. and also helped me realize that I need to be more patient with grandpa. I thought back to the night I got set apart and how hard he tried to say something. He’s different, but I still love him – I hope he knows that. And hello…. NieNie. Pretty sure I was the only one in the room crying.
Ballard was my favorite today, but it might be because I’m a missionary so it relates to my life perfectly right now.
Loves
Sister Rowley
FRIENDS AND FAMILY!
love you! all of you! thanks to those who wrote letters, they make all the difference. i think i've reached that pivotal point here at the mtc, i still get nervous when i teach and i always feel under prepared, but i'm learning to better teach by the spirit instead of focusing on teaching the exact doctrine we studied.
we had in-field orientation yesterday and i loved it! it took nearly all day long, but it was so great. it really helped reduce the stress that i sometimes feel when thinking about leaving the mtc and doing all of this for real. we got to break out into different groups and have different instructors. remember when we took pictures of ashley and her husband in provo mom? her husband was one of my instructors!
sometimes i forget that there's a real world out there, that my friends and family are still going to school and work and that byu games are still happening, and apparently a government shut down?
i had a really neat experience last night. we had a substitute teacher, brother collier, who went over with us the doctrine of christ. we then talked about teaching by the spirit and did a role play in which he played an investigator that he found on his mission but was unable to teach. his name was nick. brother collier told us to go in prepared to teach the first lesson - the restoration. i started panicking half way through because we still hadn't taught the restoration, but i learned SO much from that experience. brother collier challenged us to only speak up if prompted to do so by the spirit. i felt kind of annoyed that we hadn't taught anything about the restoration yet, and still hadn't spoken up towards the end. we ended up addressing repentance with him, and then taught him that god loves him, how to pray (he prayed right then and there!) and then we taught him a little about joseph smith, apostasy, and the book of mormon. at the very end of the lesson i felt prompted to bare witness of the truthfulness of the book of mormon and challenged him to read it. i felt that scripture description of the holy ghost. that overwhelming burning in my heart... i knew FOR SURE that what i was saying in that moment was true. listening to the spirit is essential in teaching. he is the teacher, not me. and thank goodness for that, because he knows a lot more than i do!
yesterday we talked about how the lord knew where i was going to serve and when from the very beginning of time. i love that. being here is exactly where i need to be. i love this gospel and i love everything i'm learning and feeling. i feel the spirit every single day and cry pretty much every day too. we watched THE COOLEST video clip last night with a map that shows how the church has grown and expanded over time. it reaches a certain year and then BAM! sooooo many temples and branches! what was so neat was that it turned white after that, after one dot popped up where a temple was built that dot would turn white. slowly but surely, this world is being prepared for the return of our beloved brother and savior. cue crying sister rowley.
i just love it here and love the lord. i even love the challenges i'm facing. i wish i had more time to write, but i don't. i'll write real letters to those who have written me. to those who have't DO!!! please! send me real letters or dear elder letters so i can read them this week!
love you all!!!!
- sister rowley
