Kaden's 1st email

Hola mi familia!!

Did you guys get my letter? I'm having a blast here! I have been getting homesick quite a bit but now it's getting better. Heavenly Father has been answering my prayers time and time again here. I have been pretty overwhelmed the past couple of days but they said that if you can make it to Sunday it will only get better. When you guys dropped me off, time I think literally slowed down. It feels like the past couple of days have felt like a couple of months. When you guys dropped me off, my escort took me around and gave me books and sat me down before I even knew what was happening. All we have been doing is speaking spanish and teaching lessons. I know how to pray and bear my testimony in spanish. We started teaching an investigator named Carlos, who kind of believes in God. We taught our first lesson on Friday and another one on Saturday. Our first one we taught him about Heavenly Father and the importance of prayer. We taught him how to pray. On Saturday we taught him about families and how they can be eternal. We also introduced the Book of Mormon. It has been pretty difficult trying to figure out how to teach especially in Spanish but it is also very good because it forces us to learn spanish and learn how to teach. I have seen pretty much everyone here at the MTC. Its been awesome to see them. I have loved reading your letters and I am so happy everyone is doing great. Please keep sending them it really lightens up my day here. Basically all we do is study, eat, study, eat, study, study, study, study, and a little bit more studying. Oh and another really interesting thing is that they told us that we aren't going to be using backpacks in the field. They think they look unprofessional so I'm not sure what is going to happen. I also not sure if I am going to get a tablet. Yesterday was awesome! A lot of my prayers were answered. My branch president interviewed us yesterday and on my interview he asked about my family and I started crying. I miss you guys so much. He said that I was going through separation stage and that it affects everyone differently. He said for some it doesn't really affect them at all but he said for others he said it affects them a lot. He said to give it time and study as hard as you can and it will go away. It was so awesome to be able to talk to someone. It has been really hard to be able to study and focus when you guys are always on my mind. I need to lose myself in the work but I didn't realize how hard that really is. I always knew that going on a mission was going to be a very hard thing but I didn't realize why it was going to be hard. You have to focus and give it your all all of the time. Heavenly Father will bless you if you do that. Heavenly Father has been comforted me while I have been here and helping me through this hard time. Also I am singing in the choir which that was awesome! We also had a Devotional yesterday that was amazing. The spirit was so strong there that I was fighting back tears the entire time. I have gotten pretty use to crying about spiritual things now since I have been here. The speaker was President Swenson who works for the missionary department and is going to be the MTC president down in Brazil. He told me some stuff that was answers to prayers. The main thing was that my family would be watched over, protected, and comforted while I am gone. That sentence brings tears to my eyes. He also said that coming home from your mission is much harder than leaving. I don't really understand that but I will. I just want to get out into the field so bad. We then went and watched a devotional given by President Holland back in November. He is such a good speaker. I felt so inspired and I felt ready and wanted to work as hard as I could. I cried quite a bit because I wanted so bad to teach the people of Honduras. I felt like angels were around me helping me and begging me to go teach there descendants. My heart is so much more grateful for our older brother Jesus Christ and his Atonement. I have started to understand just a small amount how hard it must have been. For the past couple of days I have felt alone. But I still have Heavenly Father. For Jesus Christ he was by himself absolutely alone. How hard that must have been!! I have learned that it is through the hard times and the times that you just want to give up and go home that that is where testimonies are strengthen. It hasn't been easy here at the MTC but it will be worth it. I have started to understand the importance of trials in our life. They strengthen us and help us progress. So trials are a keep part into our eternal progression. In my letter I should have talked a little about my district. I also say Cory Nielson and Jansten Roney. I have such a respect now for returned missionaries. This is really hard. How did you do it dad? Tell the priests that they need to have a strong purpose and desire so that they can make it through the hard times. You need to find something that will keep you going when everything inside you is telling you to give up and give in. We need to set our focus on Christ and look at the big picture. Sometimes I get so focused on things that our happening right now that I lose sight of the big picture. Those are the really hard times but when I turn to my Heavenly Father, he helps me see the big picture. We also had companionship inventory last night and I broke down and apologized to my companion for not giving it my all. I told him that I was homesick and that it was really hard for me to study. He said that homesickness happens. I was so grateful for my companion. I think the one thing that my district needs to work on though is staying focused. sometimes we get off on weird tangents and it is really hard to come back and feel the spirit. I don't really know what to do because sometimes my district talks about things that aren't bad but they aren't what a missionary called of God should be doing. Sometimes I just want to say you are a representative of Jesus Christ and your talking about what? I don't want to get preachy but it's kind of hard. Its hard to feel the spirit in that kind of environment. I really need the spirit right now to comfort me and help me study and my district needs the spirit too. I love you guys so much and I hope everything is going really well back home. I have been taking pictures. Oh and why I sent a letter is that the MTC presidency told us to send a letter home the first night but I haven't had a lot of time so I didn't get it off until Friday so I hope you guys get it today. I am doing a lot better now. Please keep sending letters. Also please respond if you get this email right now because I only have about 20 min to email. We get 60 min every Monday to email. I can also call home when I leave the MTC so I'll keep you guys posted on that. Turn unto Christ he can help you guys, he helped me. I love you guys and miss you guys.

Love,

Elder Neuberger