CCM Colombia: Semana 3

taco tuesday

Hola,

Wow, what a week! My third week at the CCM has been a great week of improvement. I feel like I have finally gotten into the swing of things around here. My comp, Elder Redd, and I had a blast all week; we knew it was our last week together in a companionship. Today he left for the field! He will be serving in Bogota and he is already an incredible missionary. In response to any question I asked him, he gave me a full sermon. Not only did he arrive here fluent in Spanish but also spiritually prepared. We quoted our favorite Psych lines daily and it could not have been a better companionship for the first three weeks of my mission! Elder Redd asked me to give him a blessing last night. It was only the second time I have given a blessing. On the night I was set apart as a full-time missionary, my Stake President asked me if I would give him a blessing for his upcoming surgery. As you can imagine, I almost passed out when he asked me! I cannot remember anything I said in President Wirthlin's blessing, I sure hope he is still alive. This time, with Elder Redd, I was still nervous but I can remember everything I said last night. I felt the Spirit direct me and we all felt it so powerfully in our room. 

Everyday we wake up bright and early, read the Book of Mormon and Preach my Gospel in Spanish and English. As soon as we finish, we go right into speaking Spanish-only all day. Learning another language is not easy but it is coming along, slowly. I'm realizing that studying actually works! You were right, Mom. The other day when I finished teaching a lesson in Spanish, I was in shock when I realized what I had actually done. I somehow spoke clearly and was able to bear my testimony. It felt so good! The Colombia CCM is just straight up Spanish immersion. Everyday is a chance to get better and I think this week was a big step in that direction for me. My new companions are Elder Connolly and Elder Holland!  I love them both already because we've been roommates since we arrived in Colombia together. We are committed to working as hard as possible and we only speak English on Sundays. Sundays are my favorite day of the week because we listen to devotionals from General Authorities and Apostles. This past Sunday we listened to a devotional from Elder Holland and it literally knocked all of our socks off, as Burbidge would say! Elder Holland told us that this is the greatest work in the universe and he warned us to not screw it up. I thought he was actually going to break the pulpit because he was so intense! He encouraged us to pray a little more fervently and with more faith and then asked us to read the Book of Mormon daily. I encourage you all to do that. I have felt a change already this week from doing what Elder Holland said. It will bring more peace and strength throughout your week! Love you all.

TZ