One Month Has Flown

IT'S BEEN ONE MONTH ON FRIDAY. The time has flown by faster than The Flash.
(I hope Freestone appreciates that reference)
The MTC has been great. Honestly, I cannot even express how much it has
taught me and humbled me. First off, prayers would be appreciated for
Friday because our district is doing an English fast and can ONLY speak
Cantonese. I was also made the Sister Training LEader this week, so pray
that I will be able to fulfill my calling well and that our district won't
feel homesick.
-We had a devotional on Sunday for Pioneer day by the Nashville Tribute
Band. *look them up! Especially the 'mission song' -you will cry. We were
able to sing a few songs with them, and it was one of those moments that
you try to capture so you can look back on it the rest of your life. Just
imagine sitting in a room with over 2,000 missionaries singing uplifting
songs about missionary work and pioneers. A member of the band asked how
many of us how pioneer blood and at least 3/4 raised their hands. Their
sacrifice was worth it.
-Our lessons and meetings on Sunday were about Faith in Jesus Christ's
Atonement. Our district meeting was so powerful. I don't think the spirit
has ever testified so strongly to me of the power and reality of the
Atonement. I could literally feel the presence of angels in the room. "The
Spirit cannot be restrained when pure testimony is shared." Our Branch
President said, "He saw you in the garden, and under excruciating agony,
said "For her I will." and he shed blood for you." The Atonement is so
personal. "For Golda I will."
I know Christ died for us. He did everything for us. He is the center of
this church, and desires to be the center of our lives. "All other
principles of the gospel are appendages of the Atonement of Jesus Christ."
-Joseph Smith
-A speaker last night told a story of preaching in France. His young son
said "If you want to know the truth about Joseph Smith, pray to God, He was
there!" hahahaha
Joseph Smith did see the Father and the Son in the flesh. I know he did. We
can all know for ourselves the truth of the restored gospel-what a
blessing. Personal revelation is vital to this church and to our
testimonies.
-"Perfect love casteth off all fear." Even though Cantonese is
intimidating, and I cannot teach a perfect lesson, or really explain well
what grace is in Chinese, I am striving to have love. CHARITY NEVER
FAILETH! Believe that Christ's grace is sufficient for YOU. Because it is.
-The gospel is simple. It really really is. If it wasn't, teenagers would
not be baptizing people in a language they have learned for only a few
weeks. The Spirit is the ultimate teacher and testifier of truth.
I love you all and want you to know that I know this is true. The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true. Jesus Christ was not perfect
because he converted everyone around him, in fact those surrounding him
rejected and killed him. He was perfect because he consistently chose
charity. His character became charitable. He loved everyone,
unconditionally. I know as we strive to follow his example (through reading
his words, remembering our covenants, and praying sincerely) the conditions
we set as sinners and mortals for not loving EVERYONE, will diminish. They
will disappear as we come to understand our divine potential and are
blessed by Heavenly Father to see his children as they really are. They are
our brothers and sisters. Charity is a spiritual gift Jesus Christ is eager
to bestow upon us if we ask. Thank you mom and dad for teaching me that,
and thank you everyone for the prayers and love! Ngoh ngoi leihdeih!!!!

-- 
*Sister Dopp

Week 3 and Elder Bednar

Ok, here's the third try of posting this email: 
3rd week of the MTC life!!!!! 

So funny story first. I was in a lesson with Bik Ji Muih and we were inviting our investigator (our teacher) to church. I said "Church is the opportunity..." then stopped because he looked confused. He repeated it back to me and I confirmed yes. We kept going and the lesson ended. Later, in CLASS, I said a word that I thought meant "where". It actually meant fish market because I did one tone wrong. hahah if that wasn't funny enough, he was also like "And by the way, "gaiwui" means chicken conference. And then it dawned on me. I had said "Church is a chicken conference." 

I am now terrified to use the word "geiwui" (gay woe ee) because it sounds very close to "gaiwui" (guy woe ee) which means chicken conference. hahahahahahahahahahahaha we were laughing SO hard. I know that church is not a chicken conference.

 The Cantonese is coming, now the hardest part is keeping up the progress as fast as in the first and second week. (Also not saying wrong tones) We just have to be diligent in studying and not be afraid to make mistakes. It takes a lot of time and is very difficult, but so worth it and usually very fun!

So the highlights of the week were....

Amazing district lesson on being a consecrated missionary. Seriously so good, Elder Mccusker taught and did so well.

ELDER BEDNAR CAME AND SPOKE ON SUNDAY!

So there is this amazing video they only show in the MTC by Elder Ballard called Character of Christ. Instead of having a live speaker come for the devotional, we watched the video of Character of Christ (which changes lives) as an MTC, since we had so many new missionaries and they allow the new missionaries to watch it anyway. (We all watch a movie after the devotional. The options are Character of Christ, the Joseph Smith movie, The Testaments, and a few other church ones) After the video, Elder Bednar himself walked in, alongside his wife. Everyone was shocked and immediately stood up. I thought we were standing to sing a hymn, then I looked up and saw Elder Bednar! I was like 30 feet from an apostle! I seriously couldn't even breathe for a second. He said he sometimes likes to surprise everyone and come to the MTC because he knows they show Character of Christ on Sunday nights. He did a Q and A session with the hundreds of missionaries and I learned SO much.

Just a few things I loved about it...

A) The Spirit is the real teacher. I didn't ask my specific question, but it was still answered through the Spirit

B) "Our yearning is to be more like the Savior, not because we're a missionary, but because we are a baptized member of the church. You took upon yourself his name long before you got a badge." Our responsibility as baptized church members are equal to that of missionaries, and we should all be anxious and engaged to follow Christ and remember that we took his name upon ourselves. As missionaries, we are also his representatives and invite others to come unto him.

C) A personal revelation I had was that I always wanted my investigators to have "a working testimony." I realized that a working testimony is a testimony working toward conversion.

D) "Charity can become spiritually instinctive." 

E) "A girl does ten things and nine of the perfectly. Then she obsesses over the one she did mediocre. A boy does ten things and does one mediocre and is like yeah!" haha I could not believe that came out of an apostle's mouth! When one sister asked how to be the best missionary she could all the time, he said simply "Be a good girl." Basically, do what you know is right, do your best, and don't worry about perfection. Be worthy, not perfect.

Elder Keeron (the one who gave the AMAZING talk on refugees was also there.) He said "Thank you for who you are becoming. You won't become it in one day, but thank you. The Lord will bless you and you will love the work."

It was a powerful Sunday!!!!!

Yesterday our devotional was so good too. My favorite quote was "Diligence is more important than intelligence." Which is very comforting for us learning Cantonese!

I also accidentally called dabbing, "dalloping". Can you all imagine how behind I am going to be in pop culture after being on a mission for 18 months??? hahahaha I think Nana Ruby is more uptodate than me. :) 

This week really was a week of so much growth and continuing conversion. My testimony of the church grows every day, and I know of a surety that Christ lives and Heavenly Father loves us. I love teaching people about their Savior every day. You don't really realize how miraculous the gospel really is until you teach it. I hope we never take it for granted. 

I have been reading the New Testament this week, and I invite you all to read it as well! I often ask myself now "What would the Savior do?" and learning about his earthly ministry is so important to knowing who he is and understanding his character. Christ taught us to look outward, to strengthen others and help them in any way we can. I KNOW that serving others brings the most happiness. My companion LOVES the song "Come Unto Christ." I love the words too...Come unto Christ. Come unto him, and by his grace be made holy again. He's calling your name, he's waiting for you...with arms open wide. Come unto Christ." I know that our Redeemer, our brother, Jesus Christ, wants us to be close to him. To use the Atonement and be sanctified through it. The Atonement and Plan of Salvation has never felt so real and miraculous to me. It is wonderful, wonderful to me. I hope it still is for all of you. If you simply ponder and pray about it, I know Heavenly Father would love to strengthen your testimony of a gospel truth, and I know it will help you recognize and feel the Spirit. 

Love you all!

-- Sister Dopp

A Privilege to Know Him; Week 2

Woah what a week! Time seems to fly by, but I also feel like I've been here
for two months!
Well, the highlight of the week was a devotional we had last night. After a
horrible lesson with our "investigator", really our teacher, who apparently
graduated from Julliard for acting, I was feeling a bit overwhelmed. Okay
our teacher didn't go to Julliard, he was just really good at acting like
an uninterested Asian man. How was I going to ever understand mumbled
Cantonese? How could I get my testimony across and teach with my tiny
vocabulary? How would I ever feel confident and prepared?
But I had to take a step back and remind myself A) I have been here for not
even TWO weeks. It's okay. B) Heavenly Father is going to make up the
difference C) I still have seven weeks to progress, and D) Charity never
faileth.
**Okay side note. Another companionship from my distrcit taught "Chris"
right before us. He asked what they did today and all Gu Ji Muih could
remember how to say was "we learned and ate." And we starting laughing so
hard because I said "That is literally what we do!" Maybe you had to be
there. But it was funny. Yep we basically learn, study, and eat. And it's
awesome.**
Even after all of those comforting thoughts, I still felt a little
overwhelmed. Then we had the most amazing devotional I have ever attended.
Try to find it, if they publish it online...it was given by Bruce C. Hafen
and was exactly what I needed. Exactly.
He shared a quote from a survivor of the Martin Willy Handcart
Company..."We came to know Him in our extremities, and the price we paid to
know him was a privilege to pay." Elder Hafen spoke of extremities;
experiences that challenge us and almost break us. But they also bring us
closest to Christ. Not only in a literal sense; we come to experience a
tiny piece of what he did in his mortal life, we are obliged to turn to him
and use and rely on the Atonement. It is a privilege to pay. We were
reading the Book of Mormon as a district, and I think it was in Alma 32,
but I am not sure, we were reading about Christ and faith and the
Atonement. I realized that Christ and Heavenly Father ask us to sacrifice.
(Really the only thing that is really ours to sacrifice is our agency, so
obedience is the biggest sacrifice we can offer Them) But Heavenly Father
and Jesus Christ never ask us to do something They haven't or would not do.
And They only ask us to sacrifice so that in turn, we can receive *something
greater*. Christ sacrificed everything. He was a god, and the only thing he
could sacrifice to be of worth to us and mortals, was pure understanding
and love. His *something greater*, was the ability to succor us, his
brothers and sisters. He created the earth and the heavens, yet he
sacrificed and felt all our ALL experiences, so that we could experience
what he had-eternal life and charity.
In Ether 12, two verses have the phrase "prepared a more excellent way."
Heavenly Father has prepared a more excellent way for us to come unto Him
and progress. Sometimes, often times, that means trials. Bruce C. Hafen
said, in response to Joseph Smith's experience in Liberty Jail as well as
the trials of the Handcart Company, that "Castles arose from weeds." Better
things come out of hardships.
I am sure I am not explaining this as well as I would like, but I cannot
put into words exactly how I feel. I know that I am slowly coming to
understand how necessary trials are, and how Heavenly Father blesses His
children. I still have much to work on, and these personal revelations
about the gospel were mostly from the amazing missionaries I am surrounded
by, but I am just thankful for the truth of the gospel and that I get to
share it!
Sacrificing 18 months of my life and learning Cantonese are a privilege to
pay to get to know my Savior.
-- 
*Sister Dopp

Pictures from the First Week in the MTC

4th of July Stadium of Fire at BYU

First Week in the MTC

Wow first week!!!!!! This week has flown by but I also feel like I've been
here for months. I feel very at home here and just love being a missionary.
My tuhngbuhn (companion) is Bik Ji Muih (Sister Briggs). She is from Midway
and is gorgeous. She cheered in High School and is so kind. I love her! We
get along really well. My district has NO Elders, just 6 Sisters. It's kind
of nice. We all know each other really well and I love them all. We are the
only people in the MTC learning Cantonese, and our zone calls us "the
Cantos". Our zone (5 districts going Asian speaking) is all learning
Mandarin and has been here awhile. They are the nicest humans! Bik Ji Muih
tuhnmaaih ngoh (and I) share a room with 4 sisters, going to Texas and
Ohio.
The food is good, there are salads and personalized wraps and fresh fruit
every meal and even almond milk and Life cereal.
Cantonese is extremely difficult, but Heavenly Father has already helped us
so much It is truly amazing how He has helped me remember, understand, and
get by.
We taught our first lesson in Gwong-dong Wa (Cantonese) on Friday. Yes
after TWO days. It went pretty well, even though we mostly just bore our
testimonies and read from our little brown book. I prayed in Cantonese on
Sunday and we've had 2 lessons since Friday. Tonight we're teaching our
investigator Katie about the Restoration and Joseph Smith.
Our teacher is amazing, he served in Hong Kong, and is so patient.
Yesterday our district had a laugh attack (like it was the weirdest
experience of my life. We could.not.stop.laughing) and he was so nice and
patient. I think we had just been studying for hours on end all week and we
just snapped. It was pretty hilarious, but it will not happen again! At
least in class!
The devotionals here are amazing and I have never felt closer to Christ.
The doctrine of Christ is everything we do here, and the Spirit is so
present wherever you go. It is incredibly hard. So incredibly hard. But it
is worth it. More than worth it!! Sometimes I feel like my heart is going
to burst from so much love and understanding. Yesterday after our laughing
attack, we had the most powerful lesson I have ever had. We talked about
how the doctrine of Christ should influence our teaching, planning, and
living. Everything we talked about was centered on Christ and I feel like
my testimony of the Savior has never been so strong. There is something
special and unique about teaching and bearing testimony as a representative
of Jesus Christ.
Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are so generous and kind to allow
teenagers and young adults to be Their representatives. Even with all our
weaknesses, fears, and shortcomings, They are still able to use us as
instruments in Their hands. They know that we are able to help our brothers
and sisters if we just rely on Them, and I am eternally grateful for Their
trust.
I will try to send pictures later today.
My address is
Sister Golda Cristine Dopp
AUG 30 CHN-HK
2005 N 900 E Unit 12
Provo, UT 84602
-- Love you all SO SO much.
"It is not an event of learning the language, it is a journey of loving the
people."
*Sister Dopp Douh Ji Muih*

Farewell Talk

FILLED WITH MERCY & FULL OF CHARITY

Golda’s Farewell Talk, June 27th 2016

The decision to serve a mission was a process that began as a six year old in Primary. We sang the song “I Hope They Call Me on a Mission” and I thought about all the young men and women in the ward who were leaving on missions. They seemed so old and tall and mature. I daydreamed about how I would look when I was their age, when I had “grown a foot or two” like it says in the song. As I grew up and pictured my future, I made many, many lists of goals and life plans. I’m sure all my friends, especially my mom, can confirm my slightly obsessive tendency to plan my future down to the detail. As in naming my future children detail. Don’t worry I’ve mellowed out. My life plans shifted slightly as I developed passions for different things. Dance became a big part of my life, and the visions of tutus and sugarplums became concrete aspirations for a professional ballet career. As I thought about the prospect of serving a mission, it seemed impossible to be able to give up 18 months of dancing when my career would already be so short. But as I attended church every Sunday and partook of the Sacrament and listened to lessons, I gained much needed perspective and inspiration. I gained a deeper understanding of who I was, and who God was. I learned about my savior Jesus Christ and how he could be a stronger presence in my life. I tried to center my life on Christ, not pointe shoes, pirouettes, perfecting flute scales, or studying chemistry. Although granted it was quite easy for me to not focus on studying chemistry. The more I focused on being a disciple of Christ, the more I realized that these other things could still be a big part of my life, and that Christ would help me accomplish and develop these talents and goals. Before every audition, I would read a favorite scripture and ask Heavenly Father for help to do my best. Before every ballet performance my friends and I would stand in a circle and offer a prayer together. The Young Women program; Personal Progress, allowed me to think about the gospel during more secular events like Utah Youth Symphony rehearsals or as I wandered museums.

    When I went to college, my perspective broadened and I began to think of the gospel as a woven tapestry. Every gospel doctrine is unique, but together they form a beautiful picture. Vibrant, beautiful, and complete. Sometimes I could only see a section of the tapestry, but I knew that they all connected to one common thread: Christ. If I ever had a question or doubt or weakness, I would think about Christ and how everything relates back to him. Hebrews 10:32 explains this better than I ever could... 32 But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions;

Skipping to verse 34 it reads,

34 For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.

35 Cast not away therefore your confidence.

    I found that as I held onto things that I already knew, I could strengthen my testimony of things that were just a belief. Beliefs that are of substance and that last. In Alma 32: 27  it says “But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.” Heavenly Father doesn’t expect us to take the teachings of this church blindly, he wants us to experiment upon His words, and exercise faith. Yet all he asks is a desire to know the truth, a “desire to believe.” That simple truth saw me through countless confusing, and discouraging times. Times when I needed to rebuild parts of my testimony, and strengthen my resolve to follow Christ. It helped me to keep going, even though I’m weak.

This past year in college, I prayed a lot (and confided in my trustworthy roommate Emmy) about whether to serve a mission. A mission made it to the final version of my life plan list after the missionary age changed to 19, instead of 21. But I was actually fearful that the answer would be no. As I prayed, I felt like ultimately the decision was up to me. So I decided to go ahead with my desire and told Heavenly Father to stop me if it was the wrong decision. So then I was nervous that I would either die or get married-the only two things that could stop me from serving.

    After I made the decision to dedicate 18 months of my life to sharing the gospel, there were many distractions and other opportunities. It was easy to second-guess myself or wonder if the sacrifice was too great, but I had to remember verse 35 of Hebrews 10, to “cast not away therefore your confidence.” I knew that going on a mission was the right choice, and I had to have faith in the peaceful revelation I had received earlier.

    Thankfully, Heavenly Father sent many tender mercies to help me remember that.

    A few days after sending in my papers, I was walking home from class to my apartment. It was around the time my call would be being assigned. I was about to push the button to walk across the street, when I had a very strong, significant feeling of peace come over me. The scripture “Be still and know that I am God” which is in Psalms 46:10 as well as D & C 101:16, came to mind. There is no way of knowing, and it doesn’t really matter, but I sense that that thought came right as my call was being assigned. There are 418 missions I could have been called to, and I knew that I would be assigned to the one I would most grow in, and a place I could best serve the people. The Holy Ghost witnessed to me that Heavenly Father would see me through this experience, and that I didn’t need to be afraid.

    Maybe this experience was a reassurance or foreshadowing of my call, because a few months earlier, in the Hawaiian Temple Visitors’ Center, we were looking at copies of The Book of Mormon in every language of the world. I noticed the copies that were in Japanese and Cantonese and told my mom, “I hope I don’t have to learn an Asian language.” Heavenly Father definitely has a sense of humor because I will be speaking Cantonese, a language with 9 tones and a totally foreign alphabet. But he also has mercy, and reminded me to simply trust in Him-to “Be still and know that I am God.”

In Doctrine and Covenants 121:45, which is the scripture I would like to focus on today, it gives the ways we can be confident in the presence of God. It reads,

Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.

When I read this verse, I began to start connecting it back to Christ, again picturing the woven tapestry. How did this verse testify of Jesus Christ? The overwhelming feeling I got from this verse was simply, charity-or the pure love of Christ.

The Atonement of Jesus Christ made possible a fulfillment of love. The Atonement wasn’t only about Christ’s physical agony, it was his willingness to suffer FOR us, and his humility to do the will of the Father. The Atonement was a specific instance, but it made possible an eternity of change, forgiveness, and love. Similarly, when we are baptized, it is not the end of our journey, but rather the beginning of our discipleship. Christ’s sacrifice did not mark the end of his presence in our lives, but the realization of his constant and perfectly understanding presence.

    Because of the Atonement, we can feel that same love toward others. Even though we will never experience another person’s sorrow, pain, and temptations as Jesus did, we can learn to love them even AS he did. We are commanded to “be full of charity towards all men” and because Christ has allowed us to progress and follow him, we can share in his charity and “be filled with mercy.”

    If there is a fullness of charity, there is not room for anything else. We will be outwardly and inwardly devoted to our Savior. Christ has “graven us upon the palms of his hands” as it says in 1 Nephi 21:16. I have not felt those nail prints in his hands, but I know that he is my Savior because of my inner convictions. We can all acquire the countenance of Christ, a noticeable outward characteristic of goodness and light, but it comes from a “broken heart and a contrite spirit”, or in other words, an inner change.

    Desiring to have the light of Christ in our lives is a constant effort and leads to unceasing faith. As the line in D & C 121:45 reads: “let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly”, I have learned that as we cultivate other Christ-like qualities, virtue will be the culmination that will help us follow Christ-even when nobody's watching.

    Charity is necessary for developing Christ-like attributes. Charity will lead to following commandments. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said, “the first great commandment of all eternity is to love God with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength—that’s the first great commandment. But the first great truth of all eternity is that God loves us with all of His heart, might, mind, and strength. That love is the foundation stone of eternity, and it should be the foundation stone of our daily life. Indeed it is only with that reassurance burning in our soul that we can have the confidence to keep trying to improve, keep seeking forgiveness for our sins, and keep extending that grace to our neighbor.”  Something that I have seen and been constantly taught is the truth of 1 Corinthians 14:8: Charity never faileth. When worldly solutions and easy fixes fail, charity never will. The Lord has asked of us, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” If everything He asks of us comes out of love, we know that the commandments are not a list of rules and restrictions or guilt-trips, but rather evidence of His omnipotent and eternal love for us.

    Because we adopted my little sister Xanthe from China, I have thought about somehow meeting her biological family and talking to her parents. I imagine her father would ask me “Did you love my daughter? Did you serve her and treat her as your own sister? Did you love her?” I imagine that my Heavenly Father will ask the same thing of me when I get to heaven. “Did you love my children? Did you treat them as the brothers and sisters that they are? Did you love my children?”

    I hope I will be able to tell Him yes. Yes I loved your children. I was filled with Thy mercy, and I am confident in Your presence. I belonged to the household of faith by choosing to experiment on and study your words. I belonged to the household of faith by attending the temple and being humble enough to be taught.

    I have much to work on, and I’m thankful I have 18 months to focus on my confidence in these desires. I know that I am weak. I am not a scriptorian or a master at language learning, or near perfect in my relationships and life in general. But I know that Christ lives, and I have felt his and Heavenly Father’s love for me, and I know that that’s enough. Charity never faileth.

I wish I could close with my testimony in Cantonese, but I don’t know any Cantonese (yet) however I’ll probably be crying too much to be coherent anyway, so you can just imagine I’m speaking Chinese.

Pictures from the Farewell