Simana Duha!! Palangga ako ang MTC

Happy Friday!!!

This week was jam packed! But so much fun! I never knew how kapoy gid (exhausted) I could be! My companion had to punch me at the temple this morning because I was sleeping through the session! Those chairs are much too comfortable haha!

The language is coming along! I can bear my testimony, say all my prayers, and teach a short gospel related lesson!! It's so so cool. The gift of tongues is real.

 My companions and I have gotten so close I am so thankful for them and all of the fun times we have. Yesterday we were walking with the other sisters in our zone and Sister Adams ran ahead of us to try and do a heel click but her foot was really sweaty and it fell out of her shoe and she just fell. It was the most hilarious thing I've ever seen and we all just fell over laughing. I laughed so hard I peed a little! haha I don't know why I'm telling you that but it was too funny not to share. Everyone was looking at us like we were crazy. :) 

I have learned so much about myself and about the Holy Ghost and Repentance. When you have the spirit with you all the time you notice sooo fast when it's gone. But Heavenly Father is so ready and willing to forgive us if we are sincere. 

I said the opening prayer at church this Sunday, gave the talk in sacrament meeting and taught relief society with my companions! Apparently Heavenly Father knew I needed extra blessings that day.That was such a good day though the spirit was amazing.  Our branch president's wife shared an amazing testimony about how we can access the atonement of Jesus Christ anytime even for the small things like frustration in traffic as soon as you feel yourself getting angry or stressed out just ask to apply the atonement to that thing and let Jesus Christ hold it for you so that you don't have to lose the companionship of the Holy Ghost. She's much more eloquent than me but I think that's the basic idea.

On Tuesday Elder Christofferson was our Devotional Speaker. He said we have little 'a' apostolic authority and that the quorum of the 12 are all our companions. He talked about how much God trusts us to teach His children. It made me think about the people I'm going to be blessed to help. I made a goal to be ready day 1 in the field to bear my pure testimony and be able to teach just in case the person that needs me is ready right now. I don't want them to have to wait any longer. 

 

Our whole zone sang in the choir. The song was Joseph Smith's First Prayer with is really powerful always but when it's sung by only missionaries it just blows you out of the water. And a huge bonus is that the choir director is amazing and hilarious. I love him so much 

ALSO I WAS BAMBOOZLED! On day two at the MTC we met our first investigator and we've have been teaching him all week. His name is Adrian and he said he was from Iloilo in the Philippines and that he was just here on vacation. BUT THEN we walked into class yesterday and he was standing there in a suit with a nametag on that said BROTHER MARIANO- MTC Teacher! 

 

I wasn't actually that surprised :) thanks to my previous missionary siblings :) But I wasn't expecting him to be our teacher. I'm really glad though because he knows our strengths and weaknesses with teaching. Our other teacher is Brother Adamson and he is so awesome and patient with us. And he's always so excited and happy which makes learning fun. Both of them have amazing testimonies and they make me so happy to be a missionary. 

Fun fact about learning a new language is that you can't really speak the new language AND you lose your ability to speak your old language so you kind of just speak in really weird broken half English half Hiligaynon. It's awesome and really strange. 

I've been playing volleyball all week with my zone and I'm pretty good at it! I always accidentally use my feet though. #SoccerProbs Its really fun but I have bruises all over my arms and hands.

I still love it here. Disneyland isn't the happiest place on earth the MTC is :)

Kamo palangga ako!! 

Sister Zollinger

 

Sister Thedell and Sister Schenk

My zone

Become as He is

 

The MTC

Aunt Nora, Nana, Sister Zollinger, Nathaniel (brother)

Hello family!

I made it to the MTC. I have a nametag!! I feel super happy and blessed to be here. My teacher helped me say a few things in Hiligaynon. I tried my best. It's going to be so much fun. Soon I'll be a pro. 

I'm excited to meet my companions and get to work.

I love you all so much! 

Sister Zollinger 

Nana and Aunt Amy

Nathaniel, Sister Zollinger, Gideon and Dankia (cousins)

Aunt Nora and Aunt Emily

Lucky find!!  My cousin Elder Noffsinger just happened to be walking by when I arrived.

MTC Address

 

Hello!!

To send letters or packages to me while I'm at the MTC, please use the following address.  

Sister Caitlin Anne Zollinger  

JUN06  PHI-BAC  

2005 N 900 E Unit 168
Provo UT 84602

You may also send me an email:

caitlin.zollinger@myldsmail.net or go to dearelder.com and send a letter.  It's free and will be delivered same day.   I will be in the MTC for 7 weeks. 

Thanks!

Sister Zollinger 

Farewell Talk

Talk given in Silver City Second Ward on April 15, 2018

By Divine Design

Remarks taken from Elder Rasband talk - "Divine Design"

I'm really into art and most things crafty, so I'm going to give you a painting analogy.  You decide to do a paint-by-number.  So you go to the store and you get paint, brushes, maybe an easel, and a paint-by-number.  Then you go home and get everything set-up.  You have your water, and your newspaper, everything you need to do this paint-by-number.  Then you open your paint-by-number box and you take it out and the canvas is blank... no numbers... The artist or the creator had something specific in mind, but without the numbers, you're on your own.  If you're incredibly talented and may even really hard working you might be able to come up with something beautiful on your own... but it won't be what the creator had planned for you. 

Some of you may be thinking that you could paint a beautiful picture just fine without the numbers and then it could be whatever you wanted it to be.  You would work alone and have sole responsibility over this painting.  That isn't the point.  The point is to create something that was already planned for you.  Something that you know will be great! Our Heavenly Father has a grand plan, a divine design for each of us.  Alma 7:23 says "And now I would that ye should be humble, and be submissive and gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering; be temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the commandment of God at all times; asking for whatsoever things ye stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive."

I had a talk with my mom once about how in order to follow God's will for us we have to be submissive like a little child.  For some reason I didn't agree.  I thought I could do whatever I wanted as long as I was being righteous.  I quickly realized that I was wrong.  It's funny how fast correction can come.  Heavenly Father has important work for us to do that will help us realize our potential.  It's always better than what we can plan for ourselves.  

If we think we don't need God's hand in our lives guiding us, we're being prideful and if we reference our good friends the Nephites, pride leads to disaster every time.  Last month in institute choir we sang "My Kindness Shall Not Depart from Thee" and there's a line in it that says "the Son of Man hath descended below all things, Art thou greater than He?"  The first time I heard that I felt humbled to my core.  When we say we don't need divine design we are saying that we are greater than He.  When our Savior Jesus Christ performed the atonement, He didn't just suffer and die for us.  He divinely designed every tender mercy, a solution to every problem, and every act of kindness and service.  The Creator of the Universe is in the small details of our lives.  

Elder Rasband asks us, "What should you be looking for in your own life?  What are God's miracles that remind you that He is close, saying "I'm right here"?  Think of those times, some daily, when the Lord has acted in your life - and then acted again.  Treasure them as moments the Lord has shown confidence in you and in your choices.  Allow Him to make more of you than you can make of yourself on your own.  Treasure His involvement.  Sometime we consider changes in our plans as missteps on our journey.  Think of them more as first steps to being "on the Lord's errand."

When those times arise when you feel like you can't be confident in yourself, be confident in the Lord.  If God is for you who can be against you?  Elder Uchtdorf had a young adult devotional in January.  He reminded us to do the small things perfectly.  He said, "In a sense, your small and simple sacrifices are the dots of daily living that make up the masterpiece painting of your life.  You may not see how the dots connect now, and you don't need to yet.  Simply have faith enough for the moment you are living in now.  Trust in God, and "out of small things will come that which is great."

If you feel like Heavenly Father isn't guiding you are answering your prayers please give extra effort to the small things.  Read your scriptures daily.  I promise you so much power comes from spending real devoted time with the Book of Mormon every day.  It will change your life.  Pray morning and night and really talk to your Heavenly Father.  Try to picture Him sitting in the room with you.  One of  my favorite scriptures right now is D&C 6:14-15 "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, bless art thou for what thou hast inquired of me, and behold, as often as thou hast inquired thou hast received instruction of my spirit.  If it has not been so, thou wouldst no have come to the place where thou art at this time.  Behold, thou knowest that thou hast inquired of me and I did enlighten thy mind; and now I tell thee these things that thou mayest know that thou hast been enlightened by the Spirit of truth."  So even when you don't think He's listening, He is.  I think sometimes we just forget to look for God's hand in our lives.

So we're gonna do it now - take a look back at your life.  Think of the times you were gripped with a problem you thought would never end, and then think about how you overcame it.  Think of how much you've grown and changed from when you were a child, a teen, a young adult, and look at how much has changed in the past year.  If you're in a better place it's because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the work of divine design in your life.  If you still need to get to a better place, know that true and complete change can come through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.  I know there is no way I could have made it to where I am now without God's hand in my life.  Not all of the answers you are looking for will be given to you right away, but in the Lord's time and I promise that His time and His plan is so much better than our own.  

I want to talk about President Nelson for a second.  I think the timing and the experience and the characteristics of our prophets, when they are called is one of the biggest tells of Divine design.  I saw a post someone made soon after President Nelson became the Prophet that just amazed me.  Someone wrote it addressing President Nelson.  "I just wanted you to know that I sustain you with all my heart.  Speaking of hearts... it's interesting that you've been called to serve as the prophet of the Church at this time.  Your entire life has revolved around fixing other people's hearts, literally.  You performed the first successful cardiac operation in Utah.  You are known around the world as being one of the most important pioneers in the field of cardiology.  You repaired a bad heart valve and save the life of a precious prophet and president of the church Spencer W. Kimball.  You know hearts... maybe better than anyone on this earth.  I don't thinks that's a coincidence.  I don't think so for a minute.  Consider the symbolism and imagery involved as we live in a day in which the Lord states "The whole earth shall be in commotion and men's hearts shall fail them".  You just happened to find yourself positioned in these last days to help repair those spiritually broken hearts through your teachings, testimony, and love the the Atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ".  That makes me feel so safe.  I want you to know that I sustain President Nelson with my whole heart and if we follow him everything will be okay, we will be protected.