August 14, 2012 (First Letter Home)

I do miss you guys, don't be silly. I love the MTC a lot!!!!!!!!!

 I am learning so much. I am learning so much about listening and about Christ. I am also learning so much from my district they are good Elders and I am so proud of them. My companion is a professional rugby player from New Zealand and I actually started picking up his accent and I can't help but talk like that. Tagalog is going pretty well. I can bear my testimony and say prayers and my companion and I have been doing teaching an investigator in Tagalog. The gift of tongues is real and I felt the spirit 100% guide my speech the last lesson, it was amazing!!!

The food here is good, I eat a lot, but it does not affect your bowels well at all. I am giving the Lord my whole heart and inspiration comes here so immediately. The Provo temple is amazing and I just love being here so much!!  I love you guys so much!!!! There are not words that describe how amazing it is and how much I am blessed. The best talk I have ever heard is called the "Character of Christ" by Elder Bednar. Everything I have been learning here has been testified immediately in my heart and feels and sounds so familiar as if the Lord has been telling me these things all along. I am sorry that I was mean entering into the mtc, I just could not wait to go inside.

I have learned a lot about how different people are, and how to attend to their individual needs. I have learned a lot about how important repentance is. I love it when I continue to realize that I have an immeasurable amount of things to learn, because I get to learn them with the Lord, and He is with me and I feel Him so close to me. The Lord has been preparing me for this the whole time and I need to completely forget about myself. Its not about me, at all. I must turn outward and through the atonement put on His Character and His love. Wow I have so much to work on, but I love it so much!

I pray for you guys and I love you so much. I am so busy and I love it. My companion is amazing and, wow, I don't know what else to say. I see Elder Vance a lot and he likes to talk. There are so many pretty sister missionaries here and they are glowing but I stay far away from them, ha ha.

Love,
Elder Blackham