Last email before leaving to Finland!!

WOOOT! I leave to finland this monday! It has finally come! Do I feel like I know the language really well? Not really. But it'll slowly come.  So my Flight plans are to leave at 6:30 am on monday which is super sweet because most of the time it's 3:30 am. Then I go to Dallas, then to England, and then to Helsinki! I'm super excited!! I just can't wait!!  This week has gone by super uber fast!!  I'm almost nearly packed, just a little more to go! 

I just recently read the entire book of Mark, and I love it! Jesus just has miracle after miracle and it's really such a great book. I would highly recommend if you have read it to read it!  

Not a whole bunch has happened this week, it just went by so fast. I usually teach about 3 lessons a day now, but they all go by pretty fast. I just cant wait to get in the field and teach real people!

I love my Savior Jesus Christ and all the he does for everyone! His atonement and the plan of salvation are real and are the key to real happiness!  

Sorry for this email to be shorter but not much has happened haha. I think it's just sort of getting hectic with about to leave and all.

Love you all!

Vanhin Ford

2nd to last P-Day in the MTC. week 7

So my best homie from Riverton left to the Ukraine, Goodluck ditty!! and the other elder is elder henderson, me and him became good friends. He lived on my floor and he's going to brazil, but since brazil is short pickings of the visa's he's got reassigned to Arizona till he gets it. His nickname was muscles cause he was my workout buddy







Terve everyone!!

This week had to be the fastest week in the MTC, ever. It just felt like I was typing last weeks email. Well first off I get my TRAVEL PLANS tomorrow, which i'm super stoked about. I really have less then a week in a half left in the MTC which is super cool!!!!  It's crazy how fast time goes when your looking back on it.  So yesterday I got to skype a real finn which was really cool. His name was Anton, he was a really cool guy. He served a mission in London. I couldn't understand much of what he said, but the muffle over skype didn't help. The funniest of that lesson was we asked him what "mantelimassa"  meant which is almond paste in finnish and had a good laugh trying to figure that one out. He tried super hard to come up with an answer, but it took him a bit. Makes me really excited to teach real people even though I won't know much of what to say. But I know how to bear my testimony which is sweet, and that's all I need. Not a whole ton has happened this week, especially since it went by so fast it felt like two days.  But that means the next week will be going even faster and I'll be off to finland!!  The language is still slowly coming but it's somewhat there. the hard thing about finnish is in order for some words to be said, you have to figure out the context of the sentence. For example the ending "ing" in english, there's like 5 different ways to say it in finnish and you have to apply the certain rule according to the context of the sentence. So it takes a lot of practice to be able to speak good finnish.  But that's where the Lord blesses, you try your best and he makes up for the shortcomings.    

So i've been studying a lot in Mark in the Bible.  There's just one story right after one story of Jesus performing miracles and a lot of the time the apostles will ask how he did it, and he gives the same response everytime. If ye have faith, anything is possible. Now there's more to it then just having faith that you'll have a Lamborghini the next morning. If your desire is sincere and it's to bless other peoples lives and it's in God's will then anything is possible!!

Well that's about it for this week. My investigator got baptized so I was pretty happy about that even though it was fake.  I'm the one that baptized her so I got my first baptism even though it wasn't real haha..  Anyway, I'm super stoked to be getting out of the MTC and into the real world!!!

Mina tiedan etta jumala elaa ya han rakastan kaikki.  koska jeesuksen kristuksen me voimme olla meidan perhe iankakkinen elama.  "I know that god lives and he loves all. Because of Jesus Christ we can be with our families for Eternity.  

Love everyone and thanks for all the letters!!!

Vanhin Ford

Two and a half weeks left in the MTC! Week 6!

Terve Everyone!!!

This week has gone suuuuppppeeeerrr fast. It just literally felt like it was last P-day. I'm doing great, I get my travel plans not this friday but next!!! I'm so excited!!  I mean, the MTC is great don't get me wrong, but I want to get out and teach those people of Finland! The Finnish is coming better and better. We almost have learned everything and then we get to go back and review which will be so nice. This is the way I see my Finnish right now. It's like building a sandcastle, except my foundation kind of sucks, but everyday we learn more and more rules and stuff about finnish so right now my sandcastle is kind of this big disorganized lump. There's stuff there, its just disorganized, so when I finally get to review then I can really start getting the foundation and organizing it. I know what I need to learn, now I just need to learn it.

Thanks Mom and Dad for the early birthday present! It was awesome getting that, and thanks for the Greenie package Dallin!!! haha its awesome. It's kind of funny, they give you gum in that package, and it's banned at the MTC. But the church is the one who makes them. haha it doesn't make any sense.  

OKOK, I need someone to confirm this for me and send me a Dear Elder so I get an answer. Apparently the watch that I won a few months back that I took with me to the MTC is worth 300 dollars. I know this because I was walking and some elder came up to me and was like "WOW where did you get that, those are worth a couple hundred bucks!! I didn't know if he was messing with me or not, but then I've got three other elders randomly telling me the same thing and I didn't tell them about my watch. SO SOMEONE GO TO EBAY AND TYPE IN "G-Shock Brisk edition". Tell me the price cause now I'm actually really curious. I won it in a contest hosted by the Drink company Brisk.  Anyway, that'll be sweet if it's worth some.  

Days are moving super fast in here though!! My finnish keeps getting better everyday, and Elder Nissen and I keep are usually teaching 2 30 minute lessons a day.  We have our investigator committed to baptism this saturday which is pretty sweet!! I realized I haven't told much of my companion. He's from Mesa, Arizona. Me and him get along really good, and we teach great together! He's really funny and can do a lot of great impressions.  The only funny thing is I'm not a morning person and it takes a while for me to get out of bed. But he's a morning person, and literally flies out of bed each morning and does an Irish jig on the way out.  So in the morning's is a struggle.  But it's all good!

I'm learning the more I let the holy ghost take control of the lessons the better. You cannot convert someone to the Church without the Holy Ghost let them know of it's truth! A couple of days back I was teaching one of my investigators and I started baring my testimony and I stopped thinking about the language and I could feel the spirit really strongly, and I bore my witness of the truthfulness of Joseph smith and I was saying a ton of things in Finnish I didn't know I could say.  It's amazing. My main goal is to become sensitive enough to the spirit where I can receive that witness when I am teaching real investigators in Finland!!  

This week I also saw the head coach of BYU football team here at the MTC. So right now there's this Tongan in the MTC that's 6-8, 410 lbs. HES HUGEEE.  Like i've never seen bigger hands. He shrinks everyone.  he's never played football before and the coach came in here and gave him a fullride. It's crazy.

Mina Tiedan etta, Jeesuksen Kristuksen Kirkko on totta, ya Joseph Smith palatettui Kristuksen malla, ja jumala rakastan meita.  mina rakastan lahetyssaanarialla, ja koska jumalan kirkko voin olla minun perhella iankakkinen, ja haluan kiakki ihmiset saada se.  

"I know that jesus christ church is true and joseph smith restored christ's church, and jesus loves everyone.  I love being a missionary and because of god's church I can be with my family eternally, and I want all people to receive that.

I love you all!! thanks so much for the love and support!!

Scripture of the day! D:C 100:5-8.

Week 5 :)

The famous MTC map!

This is Elder Seger who I was really good buds with, unfortunately he had to go home today due to medical problems. Im gonna miss the dude!

Hey everyone!!

This week has been awesome!! The days in here are really starting to speed up. It's crazy that I've been learning finnish for 5 weeks now.  So not a ton has happened this week, it's more the same ol same ol, because I mean thats what happens when your on the same schedule everyday. But it's been good none the less and the Lord really does bless! So yesterday I got to Host missionaries for the first time which was awesome! I got to be the missionary that rips the kid from the parents hands at the curb when there dropping them off. It was pretty sad seeing some of them leave there families. There was one missionary that's going to where my friend Elder Collin Gibbs is going in Chicago east side spanish speaking. He has a really cool story, a week before he came here he baptized both of his sisters and his parents are non members so he was the only member for a while. That was pretty emotional seeing him leave his family. But it's all for the Lords work! But it is a really fun job!! The Finnish is coming better and better. I'm memorizing Joseph Smith's first vision in Finnish, I've memorized about two paragraphs. It really sucks translating it over because finnish is so literal about things you have to reword whole sentence structures.  It's crazy that I only have 3 in a half weeks left! Then I'm teaching real finns!!  For any of you that have seen "The Best Two Years" when Elder Calhoun is in the bread shop getting bread, and the lady speaks to him and all he has is a blank face. That's exactly what's going to happen to me haha.. Like I'm understanding my teachers a lot better now, but they speak slower to then the real finns. Next week we are going to Skype real finns, that'll be interesting.  They talk soooooooooooo fast.  But, eh, I'm not nervous I'll get it someday.  

So this Tueday we had a suuper cool devotional. I got to do the opening prayer for the MTC devotional so I got to pray in front of 2000 missionaries. That was pretty sweet. I was kind of nervous that I would instictly say rakas tallivalinen isa, or Dear heavenly father in Finnish haha.  But it was all good.  But the MTC President called up an Elder with the last name of Ahmad. He's the first Elder to come out of Syria and the first Syrian missionary! He told a heart wrenching story of his father being a political prisoner, and his family's escape as the rebels were closing in to Lebanon. Absolutely amazing. The gospel is there! The Priesthood is there. Soooo coool. I couldn't help but wonder if I was somehow related to him back in the bloodline since Mom's side is full of syrians, maybe were distant third cousins!!. But his story was amazing! He actually had to give his Mom a priesthood blessing because she got shrapnel in her upper jaw and it had to be reconstructed. He had to watch over his two younger sisters, because his dad was taken as a political prisoner. Crazy, it shows how blessed our lives really are.  

My two investigators have both committed to baptism, and we got the one whos afraid of water to overcome her fear, so that's good. We have almost taught all the lessons! Teaching the law of chastity in Finnish was a bit of a challenge, but we pulled through!  I also finally got some pictures from the old hungarian district that left that I became great friends with, and there all in budapest! What's crazy is they took a picture in the same spot that I took a picture when I was in Budapest 2 months ago!!  

But some days in here can be a challenge, but that's good! You get the highs and the lows, but it all helps prepare you. In Either chapter 12 it states that the lord gives you weaknesses so that you may be humble. I really do believe that. A interesting picture is in the lobby of the MTC. It states, if you knew you could never fail, what would you do. At first I was like I would do everything, and invent everything, and cure cancer. But then I realized that wouldn't be the case. I wouldn't do anything. Because it's the failing that drives me to keep going harder. I remember a quote by Michael Jordan that said if it wasn't for the last shot I missed, I wouldn't be coming back to the gym stronger with a motivational to improve myself every time. The airness himself speaks wise words! 

So I just got back from the temple and got some bad news. One of the Elders in the other Finnish District who me and him go to the weight room all the time to lift is going home due to medical issues so I'm pretty sad about that because I have grown really close to him.  But I'm also happy for him because this is the best thing for him.  

But thanks for all the letters and support from everyone!! I love it all and it means a ton to me!

Mina rakastan kakki sinua!

I love all of you!

Vanhin Ford

Tommorrow is the halfway point in the MTC! Almost a month down!‏

Terve everybody!!

It's weird, this has been the slowest and fastest month. Looking back on it, it was super fast, but in the moment it can be slow. Weeks feel like days here, but days feel like weeks. It's weird. The MTC time is on another level.  This week has been really solid!!  The language is coming even better! If I had a dollar for everytime someone asked me where I'm going and I said finland and they told me that's the hardest language for an english learner, I would have a million dollars haha!  Yea it's hard, but mentally I grow a lot from it, and its progressively coming. Right now i'm trying to memorize the first vision.

"Kutsua miuta tulemaan luikse automalla hieta ottamaan vastaan palatettu evankeliumi uskomalla Jeesuksen Kristukseen ja hanen Sovituksensa. Tekemalla parannus ottamalla vastaan kaste, jahja ja pyhen hengen ja hestamalla loppuun asti."

That's the missionary purpose that I just memorized in Finnish. Finnish is a very literal language, also a very beautiful language. Like you say Mina pyhen hangensta, in english it would be "I have the holy ghost", but in finnish it translates the holy ghost is in me, or on me.  so I have to rewire my brain into thinking weird about how I translate things.   Elder Nissen and I are teaching half hour lessons everyday in pure finnish which is pretty sweet. Both of our investigators have agreed to baptism which is pretty cool even if there fake, but one of them is afraid of water so now we have to figure out how to get around that.    This week the Hungarian district in our district also left to Hungary which was pretty sad cause I became good friends with all of them, but yesterday we got 24 newbies in our district. Estonians, hungarians, latvians, and lithuanians.  So on my floor there is 12 languages being spoken, its crazy.  There's one guy learning Malagasy on the floor who walks around chanting so he can learn his language, and it sounds like some crazy african tribe is walking around outside haha.  

But I'm doing great everyone! I love it here at the MTC! Some days can be hard and long, but just like our Savior Jesus Christ, he had to experience the lowest of lows before reaching the highest of highs. Of course were never going to experience that low, but the lows here help you grow stronger! I have got into the groove of things here, my brain is starting to get use to the explosion of information everyday. I'm still tired though. always tired. I go threw waves of it. Like for example, today I did sealings (I did it as a child because missionaries can't be couples), and I fell asleep and the leader called on me to be a witness and my companion nudged me and I just sleeply walked over to the wrong spot haha.  I'm super excited to just get over to Finland. I just want to teach real people!! But my time will come fast. My workouts have been going great here to, I workout hard every single day. They got a gym and weight room here. The gainz are oli(big).  

Oh btw Jae, "Jae" in finnish means "verse" so thanks for that, cause now I remember the word so when I tell my investigator to find a verse I remember it. But it's more pronounced y-a-(soft) e. Thanks for all the letters and support from everyone!!   

way funny story. So in sacrament meeting this last sunday my branch president was bearing his testimony about the testimony, and it was a really powerful talk. Just as he was getting to the climax of the testimony and tears were streaming, he went to catch his breath and there was pure silence. Just then this hungarian Elder behind me starts snoring wayyyy loud haha. It was soooo hard not to just burst out laughing because he happened to do this way loud snore at the climax of the testimony.

This week we also had a great speaker, his name was Brother Katchum. I just thought of ash catchem from pokemon.  Anyway, he talked about how Satan likes to "push our buttons", or he knows things that if he pushes on us, it will plant a seed in our hearts of worry, and confusion or stuff like that. So just remember if you have stuff in your life that you worry about, don't let satan take it out of hand. God brings peace, and rest!`

Challenge of the week: Read the 4 accounts of Jesus death on the cross from the bible. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Learn about the atonement that took place, and pray to know of it's truth and I promise you'll be blessed!!

My new nickname is elder mantelimassa. That's almond paste in finnish haha.  

tarkoituksemme maan paallaa on valmistautua kohtaamaan jumala.  That sentence said we came to this earth so that we could meet God.  By the way, for anyone trying to translate finnish in google translate. I wouldn't haha. It's awful. There's to many rules in finnish to properly structure a sentence through a computer.  

Anyway, hope everyone's doing swell!!  If you wanna talk just shoot me a message

Mina rakastan kaikki!!  I love everyone!

Vanhin Ford.

Third week, third of the way MTC mark

Terve everybody!!!

Jumula rakistaa meita, ja me olemme lapset.  God loves us and we are his children.  So the language is finally starting to come. I can mostly understand what my teachers are saying to me in Finnish, but trying to say sentences is a whole different ballpark. There's SOO many rules, the only way to really get finnish down is through repetition and trial and error. I guess that's why it takes more hours to get down then Mandarin chinese. Anyway, We teach an investigator everyday now, and our lessons are up to 30 minutes a day now, its pretty cool. I'm really learning the importance of how it's important to learn to speak with the language of the spirit and love, before finnish. Because even if you speak broken finnish if you speak with the spirit, they can feel it.. I've come to this mindset, even if I don't know a lick of finnish when I make it over to Finland, it doesn't matter because I'm going to just serve people. I'll even act it out if I have to, but everybody understands the language of the spirit. If I spoke perfect finnish and didn't have the language of the spirit, the finnish wouldn't even matter.  Also, every thursday we have TRC (which are basically church members who speak finnish, or former missionaries), where we speak with other people besides our teachers in finnish. It's really fun, because sometimes I get tired of talking to my teachers all day.  But we do a lot of SYL, or speak your own language, which can be a bit tough. But a good challenge is always nice. this week has also been solid. Ive had two apostles in a week. M russell ballard, M russell neilson. They were good.  There names always confuse me, there to close. Are investigators lessons are up to a half an hour now which is pretty fun. We played a game with one of our investigators about the word of wisdom to help them. We had a good and bad category . We made a card that was called Manteliimasta, or Almond Paste haha.  And a bacon card, and she put it in the bad category, and then we had to explain that it wasn't against the word of wisdom haha. We also losing the last people in our zone, which our the Hungarians. There leaving this monday which is sad, because they live in the room next to use and are so fun. Then it'll be only the finnish zone. But next week we get 25 new elders. Hungarians, albanians, and estonians. It'll be sweet cause we will be the longest ones here, and i'll rule all the newbies with an iron fist. Just kidding, but sometimes the elders dorms can be a zoo in here haha.. So I restarted the book of mormon, and I was reading in first nephi where Nephi is told to build the ship. I noticed something. It's that the Lord tells nephi how to build the ship, but nephi had to put great efforts to build it, and even faced many trials on the way.  It's the same with our lives. The lord teaches us how to be our very best, but it's up to use if we are to build it as he commands.  There will be trials and tribulations but if we make it through, then we are blessed.  I've also been reading a lot on the atonement. I would recommend Alma 7:11-13. It talks about how Jesus suffered every sin so we wouldn't have to. Lately I've been focused on the atonement, and I've realize this. I will never be able to fully understand it. It's the same as if someone is in a serious car accident where they rollover 10 times. If I wasn't there to experience it, I can only connect it through experiences I've seen. But Jesus's atonement was SO great, that we really just cant comprehend it. We can however feel the love through the atonement, and through that we get a little of its understanding.  This week Vanhin Nissen and I were teaching one of our investigators and trying to invite her to baptism.  We repeated the first vision by memory to her in finnish, and you could really feel the spirit. It was super strong.  I think I said it last week, but if you really need a reasurrance of your testimony, read the first vision. Joseph smith History. But anyway, I'm doing great and it's great to be learning this cool language

  Thanks everyone for the love and support, it means a lot to me!

Also remember this, if your ever having a rough day, just remember what Joseph smith went through in Carthiage Jail. thats What Elder Ballard told us. Its very true, 4 long cold months in a tiny jail cell.

Love everyone!

Vanhin Ford

Week two- God blesses and Finnish is hard

Hey everyone!! So this week has been great.  Not a ton has happened, just studying hard everyday.  The apostle Russell M Neilson came to speak to us and his wife on Sunday, and it was a really good talk about desperation, and how it can be used to draw us closer to the Lord. Interesting topic but really good none the less. Elder Nissen and I teach two Finnish investigators every single day in pure Finnish for about 20 minutes, sometimes a half an hour. My finnish is slowly coming and improving. I can understand mostly what my teachers say now, and I can say a lot of simple phrases and sentences.  The classes can be pretty long though. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I have 3 3.5 hour segments of learning pure finnish. By the end of your day sometimes you have to get a mop and bucket and mop of your exploded mind.  But the lord blesses me so much. Sometimes you have to go threw those hard trials before you are given strength, because he knows it strengthens you. Other then that is was just a normal day in the neighborhood of the MTC. Actually, a chocolate milk exploded in my closet accidently. I woke up and heard a boom in my closet haha.  But my testimony has grown in so many ways!! I read Joseph Smith History which I would challenge anyone to do and its soo good, you really get a reassurance of your faith, and I had a really awesome temple sesh. My District is really fun, we get along all really well and support each other. My branch presidency is also really cool. The two counselors both served in finland in the 1950's. So yea there ancient.  Theres this funny counselor named Brother Leifson that gives the most anti climatic stories ever haha. One story he was like, one time I was at the Mesa Arizona temple and found a grapefruit, and it was the best grapefruit I ever had. Just randomly in the middle of a discussion. And thats all he says haha. Its hilarious.  But I finally feel like Im getting used to the MTC, which is great!! I've been working out real hard which also a great motivator for me.

But i'm figuring out why finnish is soo hard. It has a billion rules. and the 15 syllable words dont help. But it really is a beautiful language, and with the right amount of time I'll get it.

Thanks to everyone who's sending me letters, emails and dear elders. I love them so much and hearing your guys support means a ton to me. I'm going to try personally respond to everyone, but as you know time here is limited. There is no such thing as free time!!  I really do love it here at the MTC. it's very hard work learning finnish but it helps me grow in so many ways.  

Love to everyone

(Mina Rakastamme sinua)

Vanhin Ford

Scripture of the day:  Romans 8:18