September 24, 2015 -- "Without the humility of a young 14 year old boy"

So this past week has flown, as has every other week I have been here! Hmm so what has happened since I talked to you last? Well, I have probably learned 5 more words of Czech, forgot 300 words of English, and grew a ton spiritually! 

We are very blessed here at the MTC with wonderful speakers that teach us many wonderful things. The spoken word guy?( something to do with BYUtv I am not totally sure) came and did this thing where he would talk about lyrics of a song then we would sing it. It was very spiritual! We sang "Praise to the Man" and that just got us on the Joseph Smith roll, so that night we were about to choose from movies and me and my companions were all feeling the Joseph Smith movie. We all came out bawling. I thought I would just put in the letter I wrote to my Branch President this week because I don't have a ton of time left:

"Thank you for your reply. It has been wonderful getting to know you more. This past week has been wonderful! I am so blessed to be in a place as great as the MTC! The spirit here is amazing. And I am so grateful I get to feel it everyday, multiple times a day. I thought I would share a thought that has been going through my mind throughout the past week. When I was younger, I had a wonderful testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. As I grew older, my testimony started to diminish as I would talk to my non-member friends about things I was unaware of. Though I always continued to have faith I started to realize that if I didn't gain a better testimony of Joseph Smith I would not be able to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ effectively, something I held so dear to my heart. This week was a changing point of the diminishing testimony of Joseph Smith. It seemed like Heavenly Father put everything in place to strengthening my testimony of Joseph Smith to a point where I can say that I know Joseph Smith is a prophet of the only true church on the earth today, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Without the humility of a young 14 year old boy, none of the things I hold dear would be possible. Next to God and Jesus Christ, I owe him almost everything I have. I know without him no one would be able to have the keys to gaining Salvation. I am so glad I can be apart of the same cause as he was to bring the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world.

Sestra Baxter"
I challenge you all to read Joseph Smith history if you can. I know if you pray with sincerity of heart you can know that Joseph Smith was a true prophet also by his fruits, The Book of Mormon.

I am so sorry to be that annoying missionary.  But I just love the spirit. Like it is the very best!! I just want everyone to realize how great it is to be alive, how great it is to be renewed, how great it will be to meet our Savior and our Heavenly Father, and how great it will be to become as them.

Thanks for all your love and support. I love to get pictures, though I haven't gotten a ton. 


LOVE YOU ALL
Sestra Baxter

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September 10, 2015 -- "We are seriously like Avatar the Last Airbender."

Ahoj Fam and Friends,

You are the very best! Like there has not been one missionary on this earth or will be one on this earth that has a better support system than me. Literally, I cannot thank everyone enough for you time, money, and examples getting me here. The Dear elders pile in everyday (which sometimes I feel bad for my Starsi's) Thanks for the sports updates(GO DUCKS), articles, poems, touring ideas. fun earthly facts, song lyrics, stories, and thoughts of your hearts....They are beautiful! Each one of your lives is so unique and to think of all the events in your life have lead you to where and to who you are now. It is beautiful. Heavenly Father has molded us, his spirit children, with different situations in life to be who he wants us to be. I know He is all knowing and He knows each of our beautiful spirits which is how I kind of wanted to go into my letter today. 

Wow, I have been so blessed to be around such spiritually blessed people. Of course I have been my whole life, but I don't think I have ever understood that we are literally spirits as much as I do know. I can not think of a better way to put it. We are seriously like Avatar the Last Airbender. We are all avatars on this earth.Though we need to accomplish elements we MUST become in touch with our spiritual being before we can fully use the powers of the elements. No it is not easy to get in touch with our spiritual beings, but it is essential to control and get in touch with it to become the Avatar we and our Heavenly Father wants us to be. 

The language isn't any easier! Oh my heck, it is hard. Nor are teaching lessons by myself. I am so grateful to always be with inspiring people, listen to inspiring songs, listen to inspiring talks, reading inspiring scriptures, getting inspiring emails and Dear Elders! Because I need to stay inspired, I am defiantly at the best place to feel the inspiration. Wow, I pray so much Heavenly Father probably gets annoyed! (You don't have to write me back and say Heavenly Father doesn't get annoyed I was just trying to explain my point.)  I am so grateful that I can have a relationship with someone as great as God and know that everyone can gain a wonderful relationship through prayer! 

So that investigator I told you about was actually my teacher. She is so cute and kind. Her name is Sestra Donaldson not Vendee! Also I have another teacher named Sestra Godfrey she is pretty good too! She is more firm which me and my Starsi's need. Yes there is also Bratr Knapp.

Fun things me and my companions do in the MTC: (Shoutout to Carrie Nelson's suggestions) 

• check the give-away boxes on all the floors of the MTC. (Better than Instagram giveaways because you actually can win.) 
• We also like to sing song in the showers which is GREATTT! (Also I have attached a list of song lyrics I would love to have but no pressure.) 
• Oh, I love to play that sand volleyball. And yes Mom, I am actually doing a decent job at playing--even though you pretty much told me I was bad one time) 

I feel spiritually uplifted, with a slight sign of a the District 51 plague (aka the common cold). But otherwise I'm great. The package was also fantastic like everyone was so jealous. And I also went through the temple for the first time with glasses. Wow. I thought it couldn't get anymore beautiful. Also, did you guys know you can pretty much see BYU's campus from the temple-what?? (B-west hurry and transfer here I might be able to see you from the temple.)  

Love everybody so much!
 

September 3, 2015 -- "Oh my Starsiiiieeees."

FAM FAM FAM

First week down here, it been amazing!! I can't lie to you guys, but as soon as I stopped looking back, I couldn't help but smile my most sincere smile because this is where I am supposed to be. I will miss you guys so much but wow its good to finally say "I am here" and not say " I am going to the Czech/Slovak mission and am speaking Czech and I am leaving August 26."  

Thanks for all your letters and love( Earlier this week I was going to send to you guys stop sending "dear elders" because the starsis felt so sad. I was getting five a day. But they all have gotten a letter now so you can keep them coming)! 

You guys are the greatest support group. So break it down. . .  I got there . You dropped me off, but I seriously couldn't even cry if I wanted to because off the exciting vibes this place gives. FIRST DAY was amazing. I got the cutest companions: Sestra Thriot and Sestra Coons are going to Bulgaria. They are great. 

Sestra Thriot is from Coalville and has graduated from BYU. She is short and blond with freckles, in other words, "darling." She is such a Christlike example to me. Sestra Coons is from Arizona. She is great also. She has brown hair and is maybe like an inch or two shorter than me.  She also has made it through two years of BYU She is always keeping Sestra Thriot and me in line like knowing the way, places, etc. etc.  We always say " Sestra Coons always keeping us in line" :) 

Oh my Starsiiiieeees. YAY I spend most my time with them. It is hard to describe my relationship with them because sometimes I am their mom. I read them their letters from girls or their moms out loud (so they get the effect of having a girl read it to them). I separate fights and make sure they all feel loved. Also sometimes I am their big sister and help them decode their letters from girls and give them advice.  Sometimes I am their little sister because I am not allowed to be alone. They make sure I make it to class, lunch, and they take me wherever I need to go and are so kind and protective in the process. As hard as it is being a solo sister, I do feel the blessings of being in a room with so many priesthood holders everyday!  I also have this teacher Brother Knapp HE IS SO GREAT.  Being a solo sister I don't have a companion to work with in class, so I have to work with the teacher. 

I have been thinking a lot lately that there were so many things that could have kept me from coming to the Czech Republic. Like I seriously had Taiwan on my papers three different times. Another thing that would stand in the way is I do not learn well with others. I get left behind. I think Heavenly Father truly knew I needed one on one instruction to learn this language and hence made me a solo sister. 

I LOVE VENDEE my investigator. She is so patient with me! Brother Knapp said that she didn't feel loved after we taught her once. I bawled hysterically for such a long time thinking I offended her. Yeah, I have cried quite a bit, but then remember, this is the best place on earth I could be. I feel the overwhelming gratefulness that this is finally happening. 

I love my zone, too. I am running out of time. I also love this temple. I love Jesus for sure! Oh, I need MY CAMERA, that bag, and I hope it has a card reader in it.  Jade and alana  hayden thanks for all your letters. I'll write you next week. bryso love you dude stay away from girl i'm sorry i told you otherwise. love you. mom and dad you are the best. Elder oaks talked i love him,way good spirit. Watch character of christ. I'm out.

Love you.

Sestra Baxter