Letter #5

An nyong hah sey yo!!!

 

So I don't even know where to start! This week has been incredible! One of my companions, Sister Kent left for Korea on Monday morning because she was in the older district. I can't believe how fast time goes! I was sad to see her go because she has become a great friend to me. I am happy to know that I will see her again in Busan, though! Now with the older district gone, we are the older ones...which means we are half way throught the MTC! CRAZY!!! It doesn't even seem real! My district celebrated our first month "anniversary" as we call them by playing ping-pong in our classroom with a mini, travel-sized ping-pong set. We had candy and watched Mormon Messages! It was a fun "party"...at least the funnest you can have while on a mission! haha!

 

On Sunday, the native Korean district sang a song for the branch as a farewell song. I had the opportunity to play the piano for them. It was fun to rehearse with them because it was all in Korean and they were so patient and kind to me. They are such grateful people and they always compliment me on everything I do. (When I bore my testimony to the native Korean sisters, they screamed with joy after each sentence I said! It was wonderful! They are so supportive and happy!) It is nice to have their smiling faces around to lighten my day and uplift me. My companions took pictures of them singing and me playing the piano because it was so funny to see all these Korean people surrounding a little blond, American girl. I guess this is just the start of looking out of place! They left with the older district on Monday, as well, and I am already looking forward to when more natives come.

 

On Sunday, one of the branch presidency members, Brother Stoddard, came and talked with my district during Sunday school. He shared with us stories about his mission in Europe. He had the opportunity to serve with Elder Jeffrey R. Holland. It was amazing to hear the story of how Elder Holland influenced his mission and what he taught him. I was so touched when he told us that while serving with him he felt a strong impression that Elder Holland would be serving on the councils of the church someday. He watched Elder Holland through the years in different leadership positions and he kept getting the same impression that he would be on the councils of the church. Finally when Elder Holland was called to be in the first quorum of the seventy, before becoming an apostle, Brother Stoddard received an impression that he was to tell Elder Holland about his impression that he receive all those years ago while serving a mission with him. He visited with Elder Holland, not knowing why he was the one to receive that impression all those years ago and why he had to tell him now, but while telling Elder Holland this story, Elder Holland's eyes filled with tears and it was one of the most precious things to him. He said that he was struggling to know if this calling was really right for him, and that Brother Stoddard's message was an answer to prayer. I was so touched by this story and how the Lord uses us to help others around us. If Brother Stoddard had not listened all those years to that prompting he had while on his mission, he would not have been there when the Lord needed him to comfort one of his children. Brother Stoddard then bore testimony to each of us that he knew that Elder Holland was an apostle of the Lord and that he truly is one of the most humble men that he knows.

 

I am grateful for the men of the church that lead and guide us. I know that they are men of God and that they are inspired and instructed by him! I love each one of you and miss you dearly! I hope all is going well and I am grateful for the love and support you show to me!

 

Sister Kersey

Pictures from Sister Kersey in the Missionary Training Center

Letter #4

An nyong hah sey yo!

 

I wish that I had a Korean keyboard so I didn't have to romanize every time I say something in Korean. Ha ha oh well!

First of all I just heard the news about Shannon and Loren! Congratulations! I am so happy for you both and am somewhat jealous that I won't be able to see the baby for so long! I also heard about Channing's father. I am so sorry to hear about her and her family's loss. Aunt Becky, please give my condolences to Ryan and Channing and let them know that I am praying for them. Also, I wanted to thank the Rasmmussens and Aunt Cindy for their kind words. That really made my day and I thank you for your support and prayers.

 

So this week was fantastic! I feel like each week gets better and better as a missionary! I am loving it! I have never been so happy and so cheerful in my entire life! Life is good. Last Tuesday we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the MTC. We were anticipating that day for many weeks because we knew that we would be getting someone great to come speak to us. Elder Holland and his wife, Elder Nelson and his wife, many of the seventy and their wives, along with eleven previous MTC presidents and their wives came to celebrate the event! It was incredible! They talked to us about the buildings of the MTC and who they were named after. Each is named after a significant missionary in the church. Then Elder Nelson ended the fireside with a dedicatory prayer for the five new renovated buildings on the MTC. It was amazing the blessings that were given in the prayer of having the enlightenment that we needed to fulfill our work as set apart missionaries while studying in these buildings. No wonder the spirit is so strong and the miracles so prevalent here!

 

The Korean language is still slowly coming. My focus this week is to learn more vocabulary. I have all the grammar forms down, but my vocabulary is weak. The minute I feel like I am finally getting somewhere, I am humbled once again when one of the native Koreans speak to me! I have a LONG way to go! I have tried hard not to worry about the language because I know that it will come if I just keep applying myself and not worrying about it.

 

My district and I have been growing closer and closer together. We go through ups and downs together. I am so blessed to have such motivated people in my district and with such strong testimonies of this gospel and missionary work. We all get along great and are loving and supportive of each other. It is a blessing because I see other districts struggling to get along and to stay obedient. I just can't stop smiling when I see all these young men and women sitting all together really trying to learn and feel the spirit during a fireside, lesson, or talk, even with others around them goofing off! They are amazing people! We also have our points where we are silly too! With eight hours a day together in a classroom, there are times (or many times) when we will have laughing attacks! And you can imagine how those are with me! I will be crying for twenty minutes because I am laughing so hard! It is fun and gives us a good break! I love them all! And I am going to miss them so much when we have to go our separate ways once we get to Korea!

 

The lesson that stood out the most to me this last week has been the scripture in Joshua 3:5. It says that if you sanctify yourself, the Lord will work wonders among you. I was impressed with this message and did research on sanctification. To sanctify means to make pure and clean. In Helaman 3: 35, sanctification comes from yielding your heart unto God. To truly be God's instruments, we need to become one with God, or sanctify ourselves to be taught by Him and to be like Him. In D & C 43:16, we are told that we are taught form on high and are endowed with power if we sanctify ourselves. My goal is to completely sanctify myself to God and become like Him so that I can be His instrument here upon the Earth. I know that by doing this, I will be able to teach others of Christ because they will see Christ in me.

 

I know that this gospel is true. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I am humbled to be His representative here upon the Earth at this time to teach and love the people of Korea! I hope that I can be His instument and bring those that are looking for the truth unto Christ! I love you all!

 

Sister Kersey  

Letter #3

An nyong hah sey yo!

 

So this week has been a great one! Lots of studying and so many uplifting talks! Mom thank you so much for my package! That made my whole week! I was smiling from ear to ear! It sounds like all is well at home and that makes me so happy to hear!

 

The language is finally coming!!! What a relief! It just suddenly seemed to hit one day. I still have SO SO SO much to learn, but I am hearing what I need to and being able to put sentences and thoughts together!

 

About 12 Korean missionaries came this week to the MTC to get ready to go back and teach. They are the most amazing people I have ever met! So extremely kind and so generous. They are always smiling and wanted to help everyone. They are so Christ-like and so willing to help us with the language. They always compliment us, even when we sound terrible. I feel so priviledged to be going to Korea and that I will be able to be amongst these wonderful people and learn and LIVE their culture. Their energy and smiles are contageous and I feel amazing around them!

 

I have been playing the piano every Sunday in church and it is nice to be able to contribute something to our tiny branch. Sister Shin, our brach president's wife came by the other day to check up on us sisters. She is so wonderful and uplifts us. She always stresses to us to just enjoy the MTC and not worry about the language. I have been doing that and if feels so great to just relax and learn.

 

I absolutely love the sisters in my branch! They are my new great friends and are always so uplifting. I am so blessed to have friends so quickly and already feel like we are family! I just can't wait to be on the plane on the way to Korea with them!!!

 

So rumor has it that tonight, being the 50th anniversary for the MTC, that someone VERY important is coming!!! There are 700 guests coming...I am pretty sure it will be the prophet and some of the apostles! I can't wait! I have joined the choir with my companions so that we can have a great seat for tonight and be able to sing! We are singing Precious Savior, Dear Redeemer. It is a beautiful song! It will be a great experience!

 

Anyway that is about all that has happened this week...not too many new things. I am loving being a missionary and I feel so blessed everyday to be here and by having this opportunity to get prepared to share the gospel of truth to the Korean people. I have never been so happy and have never felt so close to my Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ! This has already been an opportunity of a lifetime and it hasn't even really started yet! I know that this gospel is true and that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. I know that He knows and loves us all individually and is with us always to lift us and help us. I know that the plan of salvation is the plan that brings happiness to families and everyone in the world. I love you all!!

 

Sister Kersey

Letter #2

An nyong hah seh yo!

This past week was pretty discouraging for me. The Korean language seems to be getting harder and harder. With so much information to retain, I feel like there is not ever enough time to fully keep up. I guess that is why the Lord only expects so much from us and promises to do the rest.

I have loved that in this past week we have learned more about the gospel and not just the language. We have been able to have more time to practive senarios on one another as fist being the investigator and then being the missionary. I have learned so much from this experience and it has been a blessing to see how the gospel works from an investigator´s perspective. It helps me to understand their needs more and explain to them the gospel in terms that are simple.

I have been extremely blessed to have a wonderful district. There are nine of us (six Elders and three Sisters) in my district and it is wonderful to see that we already feel like a family. I am so impressed with the Elders in my district. For being 19 year old boys, they are spiritually on a higher level. I am so blown away with their selfless determination to do what is right and to put their heart and soul into the work. It is harder for my two companions to see their potential, but I am blessed to be able to and to have that open relationship with them. I know that they can trust me as an older sister and I view them as Colin and Dallin and so it is easy for me to love them and be patient with them. I just wish my companions had more patience toward them and their points of view. There is so much to learn from them if we just listen and let them express themselves. I look up to the Elders so much for I know it must be much harder for them to be doing this work than the sisters. They need the support and the uplifting words and I am glad that I can do that for them.

I also am so blessed with my branch presidency. President and Sister Shin are both from South Korea and converts to the church. They are so kind to us and I know that Sister Shin loves me because she always comes and squeezes my arm whenever I see her. She thinks that i am so beautiful because of my hair and complextion. Ha ha. President Shin is constantly smiling and he always stresses that if you just smile, you will be that much more effective everyday of your life. It will change your attitude and it will draw people to you. He always laughs at me because I can never get a smile off my face. Everyone thinks I am crazy because I am always happy even when things are hard. I´ve never noticed, but I am blessed to have that. Brother and Sister Jennings, the old mission presidents from Busan are the counselors in the presidency and I love talking with them about Busan and all of the weird, crazy, and fun things there! They talk A LOT (which I LOVE) so I know much about Busan already! Everytime I am able to talk to them, I become more and more excited!

On Sunday morning during Relief Society, Rosemary M. Wixom from the general primary board came to speak to us Sisters. It was exactly what I needed to hear, especially after struggling all week with the language and just feeling discouraged about myself. She is such a powerful woman and speaking with her after the meeing, she hugged me and her eyes just glowed! She taught us women that whenever we felt discouraged, to sing a primary song, because it teaches us what we already know about ourselves and what we believe. She reminded us of the millions of children around the world that are praying for us everyday! I am so grateful for those children! And mom, you are so lucky to be working in the primary right now! To help build these children´s testimonies ! She went on to explain that if you ever feel inadequate about being a missionary, or a wife, or a mother, to just remember that the Holy Ghost is your talent and beauty, and with His help you will ALWAYS succeed! Her testimony inspired me and was exactly what I needed to hear!

Later duting the MTC fireside, Clayton Christensen, a past member of the quorum of the seventy gave us a talk about being missionaries our whole lives. Back when he was a seventy, he and the other men in the quorum got together and went throught the Doctrine and Covenants and recorded all of the blessings that Heavenly Father gives to his missionaries (both set apart and member missionaries). The list was huge and very powerful! Some of the blessings that stood out to me were power and strength than no other man, your enemies will have no power over you, gates of hell will not prevail against you, your tongue will be loosed, your words shall be the Lord´s words and as scripture, you will never be weary or hungry, your joy will be great, and angels will be around about you to bear you up! We can ALL be missionaries and be able to have these blessings in our lives!

Well my time is short and I just once again wanted to express my love and gratitude to each one of you! Thank you for writing me and thinking of me! I love you and miss you all!

Sister Kersey

Letter #1

To my beautiful family and dear friends,

I cannot believe that I am here at the MTC as a full-time missionary! It doesn't even feel real! I only have 20 minutes to write this e-mail and I don't even know where to begin! I have absolutely been loving the MTC! The spirit here is so strong and the positive attitudes from all the missionaries is contageous!

I have two wonderful companions, Sister Baker and Sister Wells-Longshore! We are all very different, but I already can tell why we are together and what I need to learn from both of them! Sister Baker has taught me of exact obedience by wanting to be five minutes early to everything and Sister Wells-Longshore has taught me how to stand up for myself! They are both wonderful and try their hardest to be obedient and take this time seriously! I grately appreciate that.

I am in a wonderful district here. I am so impressed by the Elders in my district. They are so self-motivated and have such strong testimonies of this gospel. I was so touched my their strong spirits -  even as 19 year old boys.

The Korean language has been a struggle and I feel somedays that it will be impossible to teach anyone in Korea! The Korean language is the second hardest language to learn here at the MTC and I can feel it! I have learned how to read, write, and pray so far! Missionaries are truly taught from the spirit and I know that Heavenly Father has been helping me to learn. There is no way that I could learn this language at the rate that I am without His help! My companions and many in my district have been extremely home-sick and overwhelmed by all that is expected from us. I am grateful for the opportunity I had to go to school and work hard so that it does not stress me out or effect me negatively! I have felt completely at home here and I have been extremely patient with myself in learning the language. I am so grateful for this so that I can completely focus on the work and not dwell on what is happening at home. I can feel that all is well and that gives me comfort. 

I have been teaching a Korean investigator with my companions. We have already taught him two times this last week. He came from Soeul Korea and is here in Utah to learn English. It has been a very humbling experience for me. I have learned that the language is not what teaches of the truthfulness of the gospel, but it is the spirit. In a fireside given by Jeffrey R. Holland, I learned that if you first become converted and bring the spirit with you to your lessons, the Lord will do 99% of the work. As I was teaching Chway Moon Young (our investigator), I had the opportunity of bearing my testimony of Heavenly Father's love for us. Although it was only two small sentences long and I could barely pronounce the words, the spirit came so strongly into the room and I know that he could feel of the sincerety of my message! This was what Elder Holland was talking about! This is how I know that the church is true and that missionaries are truly God's instruments here on the Earth. All He needs is for our willingness and testimony and He will do the rest!

I am so grateful for each one of you and your love and support for me. I truly can feel your prayers every day. They are powerful and they help me not get discouraged. I am grateful for the strength that I have learned from two beautiful parents and their testimonies that have helped create my own.

Mom, thank you so much for the wonderful e-mail! Your testimony will give me strength! Thank you for your confidence in me! It has always brought me peace and made me strong!

I wish that I could tell you more because there is so much more to be said, but for now I want you all to know how much I love and appreciate you in my life and the examples you set for me! Until next week!

Britanie was set apart as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of

Latter-Day Saints on Monday, January 9th, 2012.

Her parents dropped her off in the Sacramento Airport Tuesday, January 10th.

She arrived in Salt Lake City that afternoon, and was picked up by 

her brother-in-law Jordan.

The next day, I dropped her off at the Missionary Training Center!

The Spirit was VERY strong at the MTC, and I cried as I drove away!

She was so HAPPY! We are going to miss her very much!