Baptism of Fire!

Wed Aug 26- last email from MTC:

This last week I did a doctrinal study on baptism of fire. I guess I didn't really understand what it meant. So I found a talk by Loren C. Dunn and read it and some scriptures and it really helped my understanding. I just want to share one specific thing that I learned. As we allow the Spirit of God to cleanse us and sanctify us, our hearts start to change. Our desires are different and we only want to follow the will of God. In Alma 5:14 Alma asks "..have ye been spiritually born of God? Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have you experienced this mighty change in your hearts?" I know that as we repent of our sins and allow the Spirit to do its job and cleanse us as if fire, we can have this mighty change of heart and our attitudes about everything we do will change. In Alma 13:12 we read about high priests that are called and the change that occurs within them concerning sin because of the fire of the Spirit. "Now they, after being sanctified by the Holy ghost, having their garments made white, being pure and spotless before God, could not look upon sin save it were with abhorrence..."
I hope that we can all have this change in our hearts and constantly feel the fire of the Spirit, so that we can hate sin, and only desire to follow strictly the commandments of our God. I know that the Holy Spirit has that power because I have felt it in my life and that is the greatest feeling- to know that I have used the Atonement in my life and have allowed the Spirit to burn me clean.
Last night for devotional we had the extreme privilege of being visited by an Apostle of the Lord. Elder Richard G. Scott came and bore simple witness, as a man with the mantle of the Apostleship, that Christ lives, and he knows it because he knows Him. What a great blessing. I know that I felt within me the fire of the Spirit confirm to me that there is nothing more true. I also know that Richard G. Scott is truly a special witness of Christ. The most special thing for me was when, with the power of an Apostle of the Lord he conferred upon me (all in the MTC) the Gift of Tongues to make it easier to speak and bear testimony in another language. He also invoked upon all of us a blessing of protection by an apostle of the Lord as I used good judgment and am righteous. He literally said the words a shield of Protection. I know that as I am worthy and choose to always follow the Lord's will through the promptings of the Spirit, I can receive these blessings.
I can't even explain how I felt last night- but it was the best feeling ever. I am so extremely happy to be where I am studying the gospel of Christ, and have my testimony of His sacrifice continually grow stronger and stronger every day. This is truly the Lord's work. I hope to do the best that I can in order to be an effective tool.
I leave on Monday for Argentina. I am sad to leave the people that I love here. But I am excited to go meet new people that I know I will love just as much or more. I can't wait to share with them the joy that I feel from the blessings of this gospel and knowing that I can be saved and return to live with my Heavenly Father because of my Savior Jesus Christ.
Thank you all for your love and support! I feel it everyday. I love you- my family, so much.
Love, Hermana Carmen Dunford

Dios quiere que seames felicidades!

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

hello my wonderful family. It has been a very fulfilling week once again. Although I have felt sick (I am seeing the doctor today) all is well and amazing!
Last wednesday night I had an amazing experience in the TRC. We taught a man who was a Muslim and didn't believe that God was our Heavenly Father. Anyway my companion and I developed a charity for him and really wanted him to have his own spiritual experience so we had him pray to the Father to ask for a confirmation that this man, Rusty was truly a son of God. It was so powerful, and my testimony was also strengthened with the love my Heavenly Father has for me and all of His children. Also I learned a great lesson, because last week on preparation day I didn't prepare for how I should have in order to teach a lesson. But my companion and I said a heartfelt, sorrowful prayer in order to be completely worthy for the Spirit to guide our lesson. I learned how merciful God is and how he was able to see our desire to teach with power and give it to us, even if we didn't prepare as well as we should have.
Rusty said we were very powerful teachers and that we would be amazing in the field. Our teacher also sat in and said you know you really taught the investigator to his needs so I can't really say anything to have you improve. Wow, I am so grateful for the help and guidance of the Spirit, because I am definitely not that powerful.
Hermana Godfrey and I have also seen the many many blessings from having a united companionship. Last night she said that she learned after last week that we were also blessed with the spirit so strongly because of the love we have for one another and the work we have done in order to be united in teaching with the Spirit. Hermana Godfrey told our district, you know we are really best friends. I agree! I love her so much and am so sad we won't be able to serve together in the field because she is serving in Buenos Aires West. But I am grateful for the many lessons I have learned from her and the friendship in the gospel that we will have forever.
Sacrament on Sunday, we sang Acompaname (Abide with Me) and with the accompaniment of this really really good piano player it sounded amazing! I also love singing like that. Whenever we have a bit of extra time we go and sing hymns with and our love for music really draws us closer and nearer to the Lord. I love how the lyrics of hymns are truly testimonies or doctrine and they are very powerful and inviting to the Spirit.
So the MTC has such a rumor mill. every Tuesday for devotional there are always whispers going on about an apostle having to come to speak, because it's due time. Last night we were going to have President Packer speak. So people are lining up really early and anyway, It was Spencer V Jones of the 70. Very good speaker, but it is a little funny to see how some people really are a little disappointed.
Yesterday we watched a devotional from Elder Jeffrey R Holland that he gave before Preach My Gospel ever came out. It was so amazing. He said Never go home. Give everything I can because the mission is the greatest gift for me right now in my life that God could give me. There has also been a lot of talk about making sure we really teach the Savior and His Atonement, because that is truly what the Gospel is. If we really do fulfill our purpose as missionaries by inviting others to come unto Christ then many many more people will accept His gospel and be able to receive the many blessings that God is so lovingly giving.
I love the scriptures so much. So to prepare for our TRC this evening Hermana Godfrey and I have been studying the reading assignment the investigator was given. Alma 40-42. Verse by verse everything is powerful! I am so glad that I am finally learning how to truly study the scriptures, with an open heart, and allowing the Spirit to teach me the powerful words and also the insight to what they are saying. I love the Book of Mormon with all my heart. More than I ever thought I could. And the best part is that I am continuing to love more each day.
The other day we went to a TE to teach an investigator whose brother died. (Well that is the scenario anyway). But this investigator (teacher) said his grandma died and so we taught him about the hope that we have in Christ's atonement and that every soul will have the opportunity to hear and accept the gospel of Christ. Anyway it was really good because the teacher's grandmother who wasn't a member really had just died and he said he took comfort in our lesson. That was definitely the most real teaching we've had I think also because he is a Native spanish speaker and we struggled to understand everything. But it was a good testimony to me that I could understand enough though, and that I will be able to teach in a week and half when I am in Argentina. Yikes!! haha The time here truly has flown by.
Yo se que este evangelio es la evangelio verdadero de Jesucristo. Si nosotros lo seguimos, recibiremos muchas bendiciones de nuestro Padre Celestial. Dios quiere que seames felicidades, y es por este razón que nosotros tenemos la expiación de Jesucristo, a fin de que volvamos a Dios y vivemos con nuestras familias para siempre.
I love you all very much and am grateful for this opportunity. I challenge us all to make every effort we can to draw all those around us closer to Christ and I know we will help them! We will also help ourselves. That is what is so great, we never go without being blessed for our efforts. Have a fabulous week
Love, Hermana Carmen Dunford

Deme Una Tarjeta! Wed Aug 12 letter

Hello my amazing family. I love this time that I get to write to you. It's fun to be pen pals in a way- except Curtis, I'm still waiting to hear from you :).
Ok so this last week was another great week. Each week I am growing closer to the Lord, to the teachings of the gospel and to the amazing people in my zone!
Last week we finally auditioned to perform for a large meeting and she said she will definitely use us and that I was a great accompianest (sp?) anyway that made me feel awesome, she kind of went on about it! haha. But the sisters are so wonderful we have truly become SO close. I love having so many close friends where we all work hard to bulid our relationships with Christ and learn to become the best servants that we can be.
In order to start making Spanish more prevalent before it is the only language, we started playing a game in our district called Deme Una Tarjeta! it means give me a card. We all started with 15 cards and when we hear someone speaking in English we say that and then whoever has the most cards wins. The first day was brutal but it was almost literally in all Spanish- so neat to see how much it helped. However since more time has passed and we do have to speak English for some things, we have been a little more lacksidaisical with the rules. But when we remember to speak in Spanish is really helps.
We have been teaching so much lately! It really helps to teach and bring the Spirit and try and address the investigator's needs even if they aren't really investigators. The scenario for this week's TRC is a blank teaching record so we don't know anything about them, except that they aren't supposed to have a Christian background. So we have taught 3 Buddhists and one Muslim. It is crazy to try and explain God so we really don't. We want them to have their own spiritual experience. With one investigator we kept insisting that he prayed because it was so important. He could tell from our boldness that it was something really important he should try. Anyway he finally agreed to pray and ask if he was a son of God. It was a neat esperience. Tonight we have the TRC where we teach a volunteer not a teacher. So far every time the TRC experiences have been phenomenal. We always get golden investigators because they agree to all the committments and the Spirit is truly so strong. I hope tonight we get another Golden. It is nice after all the pretty tough teaching all the teachers who want to make it as hard for us as possible.
Another thing we learned was how when we felt like we didn't know where to go next with the lesson to always fall back on the Book of Mormon. Every lesson it's a new experience, because when we focus really hard on one thing we forget to incorporate another. However,I know the Spirit helps us to remember all things we need to say so the investigator hears what they need to.
Last friday I had to go do fingerprints so that I could get my Visa for Argentina. Also today the consul came and we had a meeting so that he could meet all of us and clear us for entrnace to the country. It was neat to hear more about the country. He talked a lot about the cow, and said that every grade in school from 1-7 he had to write a report about the cow. It is what made the country more open to the rest of the world. Anyway he was very nice, and about half of the missionaries there are leaving tomorrow because now they will finally be cleared! I'm excited for them but also a little sad because some of them are my good friends and I will really miss them.
Last night Elder Lowell M. Snow of the 70 came and spoke to us. What a great man. He gave us what he is learning currently, and said better learn it now before you're past your prime. So he has a check list of things he strives for everyday. Here they are: I will choose Him (Every decision we make shows that we choose the Lord or ourselves) I will help HIm do HIs work (The Lord is out there laboring and we can help Him or not) I will take His spirit for my guide (I must have the spirit of prophecy and revelation for me- WOW) I will become His true disciple ( I must not only be unified with the church by attending and going to meetings but I must be converted to the Lord which is an individual intent and effort) I will seek to have His image in my countenance (Some missionaires a long time ago in Germany that couldn't speak any German, were let into a house and had a baptism because "of the virtue in their faces") I will exercise His power (Jaocb 4:6, and God is anxious to give me His power and He will if I will choose Him). I thought that was a great checklist we can all work on, and it will be great for me to help others also become converted to the Lord by choosing Him.
I challenge us all to choose Him every day. We can either go to sleep for ourselves or we can chooose Him and read and study the scriptures. We can watch a movie that we maybe shouldn't, for us, or we can choose Him and spend time doing service. We are either for the Lord or we aren't. Every day I am striving to make every decision for the Lord. We are here to help build His kingdom; no matter what the work of the Lord will go forward yet we can decide now what our part will be in helping it along.
I love you so much. Good luck with everything- I'm glad Dad and Mary you had good birthdays. Good luck Nelson with Law School! ooh new adventures are always so exciting. Curtis good luck with football- show them all you've got! and Lauren good luck in the final weeks of your pregnancy. Mom good luck with all the work you do! I love you all so much and am truly very grateful whenever i receive a letter. It's always a little something extra to brighten my day.
Love Hermana Carmen Dunford

MOM- ONCE AGAIN THE SKIRTS ARE FANTASTIC. THANKS FOR PASSING ALONG OTHER'S WORDS. IT IS SO NICE TO HEAR EVERYTHING. I MIGHT EMAIL AGAIN A LITTLE LATER IF I CAN THINK OF SOMETHING ELSE TO SAY. NO NAMES YET FOR THE NEW CAR. CARLOS...HMMM NOT FEELING IT . LOVE YOU!!! :)

Wednesday, August 5 Letter

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Dear Family
Hello! I love you so much. Seeing pictures of you this week made me so happy and I've been so proud to show to everyone the pics. Thanks for being so good looking! :)
On Monday we were able to watch the Finding Faith in Christ DVD in Spanish. It was so good. Earlier that day we taught a lesson in Spanish and I really didn't do that well. I felt pretty discouraged. But we watched the video and I realized that just as Peter had faith to walk on water and allow the Power of the Savior to perform a miracle, so can I have faith in Christ to allow a miracle in my life- being able to teach in Spanish, to the investigator's needs. That for me will be as miraculous as walking on water. I really hope that we can all exercise that great faith in our lives, porque con El Señor, nada es imposible! It is something we need to ask for, and work on, which in itself takes faith. But I know that with hard work, and obedience the Lord will bless us with faith and then we can be filled with it and be able to see miralces in our lives. I am grateful for my Savior, and the great sacrifice that he made, that through him I can change daily to become more like him.
On Sunday my whole district bore our testimonies, it was so powerful. I know that it is a tremendous blessing for me to have so many people that I love so much in such a short amount of time and that we are able to work together to learn and strengthen our testimonies. I said Mi distrito es el mejor distrito del CCM. (Everyone was shaking their heads haha) and then I said lo siento. We also got a new District leader, Elder Hardy and Elders Thompson and Unker are the new Zone leaders!
Elder Hardy and I are related! We finally compared pedigree charts and we have the same great great grandfather, Oliver Cowdery Dunford. We think that makes us 3rd cousins once removed. We aren´t sure, so if anyone knows could you tell me? But his mom's maiden name is Shelley Dunford I think. Anyway it is really fun to always call each other cuz and make jokes and talk about the family name. He also said the Dunford side of the family is the fun side, I thought that was funny.
So on Thursday the Sisters in my zone and I will be auditioning to perform The Olive Tree- such a great song about missionary work and working hard to bring God's children back to Him. I will be playing the piano, so wish me luck. It sounds really good so far though.
Also in two weeks Hermana Godfrey and I will be singing Abide with Me in Sacrament. It is so fun to sing with her because our voices blend so well- she is amazing, I never thought my voice would sound so good! We get compliments practically daily, so that's neat. I am so glad we have music and the way that It can bring the Spirit.
On Sunday we had Kelly and Katherine Mills come speak, President Mills is the head of the International MTC's, He was also the President of the Nagoya Japan mission. There are 16 MTCs in the world! It was neat to see pictures of all them. They were very nice and happy people and everyone was laughing a lot. They also sang a lot of songs and sounded amazing!! But one thing President Mills said is that we need to "focus on the edges and the center will take care of itself". As we focus only on serving those around us we will automatically become better servants of the Lord. He showed us many pics of missionaries that changed dramatically in their countenance from before to after the mission. It was neat.
Last night we had the privilege to hear from Merill J. Bateman. He said so many powerful things. There are three things required for a missionary to receive the Spirit. it was Obedience which leads to cleanliness, diligence in the work (diligence means to steadily and quietly perservere), and we must ask for the Lord's guidance. And having the power and authority of the spirit means we can know what to do, know where to go, be able to perceive other's thoughts, and have our testimony confirmed through the witness of the Spirit. WOW. what amazing blessings. He said he got these principles from reading about the four sons of mosiah. What a great story. We can learn so much from how they taught and relied on the Lord to have success with His children.
In Spanish, I already have a word I say all the time. Instead of saying you know? or you know what I mean? in English, I say sí? like, yes? you agree? at least that's what my mind is saying. haha, I already say it so much.
In the Referral Center we set a goal to get 10 referrals. We were only at eight and it was time to go to dinner, but we decided to make just those last calls, and the last two calls made were two more referrals! With strong faith and expectations for a worthy goal to be me, I know the Lord truly does provide miracles!
I am grateful for everyone's letters and love. Thanks so much. I challenge us all to bear our testimony to someone this week- no matter whom, because everyone is in need of feeling the Spirit. I promise that you will be blessed if you do this, because your own testimony will be strengthened and you're sharing the gospel of our Savior Jesus Christ. I know this is the true gospel and I know that with obedience and righteousness we can return to live with our Father in Heaven and be with our families forever, because of the gift of the power of the Priesthood.
I love you all, and again, am grateful for your support.
Love, Hermana Dunford

Wednesday, July 29 Letter

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Hello! I can't believe that this is four weeks now in the MTC! Every day and week seems to mesh together and even the days are going quickly now. I am so grateful for all of the letters I have been getting! So much wonderful support and love and I feel so uplifted.
I love the MTC- I can't wait to get out and be able to teach, but for now, feeling the Spirit so often and learning so much is definitely the best. Every day seems to have a theme! For example, we'll have a lesson on prayer, then the devotional will be on prayer and then I'm like yeah I definitely need to improve my prayers! Yesterday it was the Book of Mormon. We went to a meeting and a teacher trainer chastized us for not studying it as thouroughly and often as we should be. Then last night we went to devotional and the talk was on the Book of Mormon and how it is such a miracle! Elder Robert K. Dellenbach spoke on its importance as our most powerful tool in bringing others to Christ. It is the Keystone of our religion, as Ezra Taft Benson said, because it is a witness that Jesus is the Christ, it contains the fulness of the gospel and it testifies of the truthfulness of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or as I should say now, La Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Ultimos Dias. I know that the Book of Mormon does in fact contain the fulness of the gospel and that with daily reading it will immensely bless our lives. Elder Dellenbach said "Too often we forget our daily feasting!" I challenge all of us to feast daily on the words of the Book of Mormon, because I know we will be blessed as we draw closer to Christ and follow the principles of His gospel to receive the greatest gift of eternal life! I am grateful for all the ways the Book of Mormon has blessed my life.
Recently I was feeling a little discouraged- I guess its a little harder than I thought to learn a new language! But I was reading in the book of Mormon (I recently just started again) in 1 Nephi 1:20. It says: "....But Behold, I Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, becuase of their faith to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance." Wow- there was a verse in Nephi I had never noticed before yet in my daily reading the Spirit led me to have it mean so much in my life at that moment. It was another time that I could recognize that my Heavenly Father loves me and will always be there for me! Hermana Crawford and I were talking about tender mercies and how basically everthing I have here is a tender mercy- my amazing companion, my district that I love so much, my zone where everyone loves each other and works hard, and the fact that I am able to be here learning and preparing to teach and serve the people of Argentina. Because of my faith I have been chosen and the Lord will make me mighty unto the power of deliverance. What a great blessing. I strive to work as hard as I can to have that faith so I can receive that power from God.
Last week I was able to once again teach in the TRC. It was the most powerful experience I have had here. I connected so easily with the teacher and expressed my love for her and that we wanted her to be happy. We testified of the importance of the atonement and that it truly saves us if we are repent, are baptized, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end. The spirit was so strong as I tesified of its influence in my life and that because of our Savior's great sacrifice I can return to live with my Heavenly Father and have the fulness of joy. I then asked if she would like to be baptized and she agreed. Even though I knew she was already a member, it was the greatest feeling that through the Spirit of the Lord I can help others come to Christ. It was truly a blessing to me to be able to know for a surety that that is why I am here. Also the teacher said she really needed that. It was the best experience!!
Yesterday we had an Elder leave early (a week before he was supposed to go with his district down to Argentina) because of health problems. He has such great faith because he knew that whatever the reason, because he was being obedient the Lord's hand was is in it. He is such a great example of faith, to know that whatever happens it will be alright. He understood better than I did! I am glad I got to know Elder Phelps, he is such a wonderful example and taught me to always trust in the Lord. Every Sunday we get to go watch Music and the Spoken Word. It is so awesome and great activity for the sabbath.
Ok. A little bit about the everyday experiences at the MTC. The weirdest thing I ate this week was a salad with turkey, pineapple, blueberries, cinnamon almonds, and bbq ranch. It was actually very delicious! For gym we now play Bump or lightning (basketball) like every day. Its so fun. I like breakfast the best because I can make what I want! The other day I had cottage cheese and peaches with peanut butter toast. This Elder said it looked like I had ordered something and it was prepared for me! haha it was funny.
We have a word we always say in our district- cuyo. it means whose. and it just cracks us up every time. Also Los monos de Fe means the monkeys of faith, and whenever we have a game in the classroom that is a team name, or Los tiburones de diligencia.
I love my district and my teachers- it makes it easier because we get along so well!!
Hermana Godfrey and I will be auditioning to sing in a large group meeting upon much encouragement for others. I'm excited but we still have to go sing a song. Every time in class we sing a hymn it really does sound amazing- I'm surprised! Hermana Godfrey's harmonies are seriously so beautiful.
Have a wonderful week and live the gospel! It is true! It brings us true joy!!!
Love, Hermana Dunford

Yay!! Pictures have arrived

Hermana Dunford and Hermana Godfrey

Carmen's District: Elder Carpenter: "I really admire him- he supported his family for 2 years, and then still came on a mission at 23!"; Elder Glazier: "quiet and funny, and going to my mission"; Elder Gibson: "AWESOME! such a strong testimony", going to Buenos Aires West; Elder Hardy: "makes me laugh so hard, we have so much in common, we're excited to be friends back at BYU some day", also going to Rosario; Elder Thompson: "nickname Elder Guapo, his is awesome, but pretty cocky! haha"; Elder Jacobs, tall one: "he is so funny. And cool, and always trying hard." [he is one who already left for the Dominican Republic MTC]; Elder Unker: "was totally inactive right before he came, but turned himself around. Also hilarious"; Hermana Godfrey: "I love her!" - going to Buenos Aires West [Carmen talks about her quite a bit in letters]; Hermana Dunford.

Full on shot - Hermanas Godfrey and Dunford

Sisters in Carmen's zone: Hermanas Crawford and Crook (companions and going to Buenos Aires South); Hermanas Dunford and Godfrey; Hermanas Good (New Mexico) and Waldrop (Buenos Aires South), companions.

Carmen with her cousin (OK- 2nd cousin), Hermana Waldrop!! [they went into the MTC the same day and are in the same zone - we didn't know about it beforehand. H. Waldrop's mother is my cousin Heidi Johnston Waldrop- Heidi's father Ed Johnston is my mother Jean Johnston Fillerup's oldest brother. Pretty cool - or Muito legal! (new phrase I learned from Carmen's cousin Trent who is fresh out of the MTC in Brazil, serving in Rio de Janeiro.)