Kissing up to Mom is Always a Good Idea

Hello!

This week flew by. I'm officially halfway done with my provo mtc experience! Yesterday 50 new missionaries joined our branch so there's alot of new missionaries to get to know. We are now the biggest branch in the mtc and will probably be the biggest branch they'll see all year!

I'd like to wish my mom a happy birthday the other day!! I'm going to tell you all a little bit about my mom real quick. She's the best! She is the most selfless person I've ever met and always looks to help others. She doesn't need anything except her family in order to be happy haha. She is super loving and would sit and talk to me about anything for hours. I would be such a loser without her haha! She's taught me to be thankful for all that I have and to enjoy the small things! Hope you had a good day mother.

So a few days ago was July 24th so we got to watch a movie about the pioneers! We've also had many discussions about them throughout the past week. I've always loved the pioneers and their stories but I've grown to be even more thankful for them lately. The trials they went through were insane. They stayed faithful even after deaths in the family, being driven out of their homes, walking for miles in the heat and snow, and even after Joseph Smith was killed. They were truly converted and knew that they would be worth it in the end! Our time here on Earth is so short and we need to make the most of it! We are all so blessed in our lives and many of our blessings come because of the sacrifice of those who lived before us. Hopefully we can take advantage of our situations and bring happiness to those around us!

On Tuesday Elder Carter and I had TRCs which is teaching members who volunteer to come to the mtc. We gave two lessons but one of them really stuck out. Since we teach all of our lessons in Tagalog, we still have to write down a few phrases and words but each lesson we know a little more and things go a little smoother. I'll admit it's pretty hard to not be able to express how you feel during a lesson haha! I can understand most things the investigator has to say but speaking and putting sentences together is pretty tough. But anyways, we went in to the lesson with a plan but after talking to the member for a few minutes we both put away our notes and just tried to teach to the needs of the member. It was super cool because the spirit was so strong and we both thought of good scriptures to use and spoke surprisingly well! It was a big testimony builder for me for sure! I'm so thankful we were able to have that experience because it truly taught us that the language hardly means anything. If we have faith and rely on the Holy Ghost that's when we will get our message across the best!

We also watched the Restoration video on sunday during a break time. It's seriously a solid movie and I'm pretty sure you can go watch it downtown for free! Go with your families and watch it! Joseph Smith was a total stud. I know that he was a true prophet of God and restored Jesus Christ's church for these last days. It's so cool to see how many miracles he was able to be apart of in his time here. I know that miracles still happen today just as much as when Joseph Smith lived and even when Christ lived. We just need to look for them!

Well that's about all I've got. I have tons of fun with my district and learn a ton from them every day! I'm loving it here and I'm excited to get to the Philippines. I love this gospel and the happiness it brings me every day here in the mtc! Hope you all have a good week!

Love Elder Reber

I just have to add that Parker also sent the fam an email. This is where we hear all of the crazy stuff that they are up to. There are numerous pranks- messed up OCD elder bedrooms, fake dear elders written, and experiences with weird flavored jelly belly's-- missionary moms those were a hit! I for one love to hear and see that Parker is doing so well with everything but also remembering to have a lot of fun along the way! What a great kid he is- super lucky to be his mom!!  

PS It's good to see that after a few weeks of being away from me, Park still knows how to get straight to his moms good side!