iPads and the Power of God
Familia,
Welcome to phase 2 of the NJMM. Haha aka-the future. They
are finally here!!! After 22 months and many jukes the iPads have finally
arrived.
The long night of apostasy is over and here comes the
lights and screens. Haha I don't know if you knew we were getting them. You
probably did. But wow are they awesome. I first learned that we were getting
iPads about a year and a half ago when I was being trained.
There were many dates set when we would get them but they
kept getting moved back and I honestly thought for a while that the iPads
wouldn't make it before I left. But to my surprise they called an all mission
conference this past Tuesday. We sat there for 8 hours through some trainings
and then around 3:00 we got them. So know they are in our hands and the work of
God is just taking off.
It was a pretty weird week having an iPad. I mean a real
handheld electronic device. The first few days I felt guilty just using it.
Like what in the world- it's been 22 months since I've
had my own phone or tablet, I can't use that! I felt like I was restarting as a
missionary. Ha but after it sank in it was pretty clear that this isn't the
"end" of missionary work like it has been. Missionary work is still
the exact same. You still teach people, knock doors, have disappointments,
contact people, see miracles, change lives, study teach, find, baptize, cry,
laugh. It really is all the same. The principles of missionary work will never
change, but the tools we are given change all the time. First we had missionary
discussions, then it felt right to have preach my gospel. Just as a phone, a
planner, a pen, paper, car, or anything is a help for us, the iPads are the
same.
Just another tool we can use to invite other to come to
Christ. It's been fun getting used to them. I remember sitting there on
Wednesday morning thinking "what in the world am I supposed to do with this
thing?" Ha there are three stages of using the iPads for the mission.
We are on stage one which is teaching a studying with the
iPads. So that all we do now. In a few weeks we will move to stage 2 which is
about converting our records and area book and planner and making them digital
on the iPads. They have all these cool programs. Stage three which will
probably come after the next 6 weeks which is online proselyting, using
Facebook and all that. But I probably won't be around to see it. Which is cool
with me.
Well family some things happened this week that can't be
explained except by the power of God alone. I can't describe everything that
happened but I have seen some things happen that have change my life.
I know for a fact I was called to jersey for a reason. I
have come to know for a very real sense of how much God loves us and how real
his mercy and justice is. Basically we found this less active guy in the street
about a week ago. He actually initiated it and called out to us,
"elders!" His name is D--- and let me just say this has been the
best, most spiritual week in the mission. There are some pretty interesting
things that have happened and it's been a testimony to me that I have been prepared
for jersey and meeting this guy and he has been prepared to meet us.
We saw him for the first time 10 days ago on Friday but
we were on our way to a lesson so we got his number and we set something up for
Monday. Well Monday comes around he calls us and for some reason I don't answer
it. Just felt like I shouldn't. I call him back about 2 hours later and I'm
like hey we still good to come by tonight at 8. He says yes. Well we go teach a
lesson to a different family up in Harrison and on our way back to the ironbound
my comp starts feeling pretty sick and is all shaky so we sit down for a
second. We are already late but we had to stop so we didn't know what it was.
Maybe the food or something. He couldn't tell. Well at this point it's like
8:15. Already 15 minutes late and I'm about ready to call this guy to cancel
and set something up for tomorrow. We talk about it together for a sec then my
comp jumps up and he is like "you know what no I'm fine. Let's go."
Sweet. So we go and wow we finally get there he invited us in, within 1 minute
he starts telling his whole life story and wow what a story it was. Baptized
when he was 12 almost went on a mission. Had his call and everything and then
fell away. It's been 15 years since he went.
Well so much more happened this week. I'll tell you more in detail maybe
when I'm back in 2 months. It's about 10 pages in my journal of all that
happened with him he last week. Well he comes to Church yesterday. We didn't
even invited him initially he just said he was going. He says elders this is
the first time in 15 years I have been in church and wanted to be here and I
feel great.
His son calls him later and asks dad is something wrong.
He replies you know son, I've never been better. Oh it was the greatest week.
He is a great guy.
Well can't believe mom and Chloe are just chilling in New
York. I looked you up. Where you are. It really is about 15 mile drive. (We went back for Chloe and Alexis to see each other after 2 years) Haha
have a great week in New York and the rest of the family in Utah. La Tierra
prometida. Haha well transfers today. My comp is leaving and I'm staying in the
ironbound! Haha so pumped to be staying. Prayers are answered. Transfer
conference is tomorrow. Well this is it. Last transfer. The beginning of the
end.
I'm doing great.
Thank you and I love you,
Elder Sumsion
Sent from my iPad
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| 16 paper planners vs 1 iPad! |
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| missionaries get trained on new iPads |
June 1st, 2015
T minus 1. Awesome comp. Awesome area
Here we gooooo. Well things are going great here. Transfers
this last week and Elder Marquez got transferred to..... guess where....
Clinton with Elder Aspinall. Actually its called Branchburg now so its a little
bigger. Elder Aspinall and I only got one together when we were both there
months ago and for the last year we have been saying that they need to stick us
together in Clinton again. Well like two transfers ago he got called back! And
I kept telling him that Im headed that way. Well I guess my boy Elder Marquez
is as close as he can get to me being there with him again. Ha so it worked out
great. They will be a good companionship. Haha well I was feeling a little
nervous at transfer conference. I prayed a lot and wow prayers are granted.They
called Ironbound Spanish...... Elder Welch with Elder Sumsion. Ha I stood up
practically laughing. No way. After President Taggart read our names, with a
smile he said, " we expect some solid work to be done," knowing that
we are both pretty old in the mission. I replied, "It will be done
President!" Haha so I am pretty pumped. Elder Welch was trained by Elder
Drewes a while ago and he only has about 5 transfers left. So yeah we are a
pretty old companionship so we are going to tear things up this transfer. And
we are both staying in the IRONBOUND. Sad to see some of my good friends leave
this last transfer. Almost the whole departing group were good friends of
mine.
Well we had a nice hot week this week with tons of good
stuff going. We got juked a lot but things worked out perfectly and we were
able to see at least three different less active families that I have been
trying to see in the last few months but haven't been able to reach them at the
right time. SO right off the bat we are already seeing miracles. For example,
on Saturday we got juked by a potential investigator, meaning that we set an
appointment with them and he wasn't there. So we kept following our back up
plans and we went and tried this recent convert's house which we have knocked
probably like 50 times in the past and called a bunch, but that day the front
of the apartment door was open so we went right up and knocked there door and
part of the family was there. Well we taught the grandma and the uncle. It was
like the saddest thing. There house was an absolute mess. Stuff EVERYWHERE just
in piles piles. The grandma is bed-ridden because she cant use her legs and
doesn't like going out much. Well we talk to them and its obvious things are a
little rough. She breaks down crying and its just the saddest thing. She feels
her family doesn't love her much and she has no friends and cant move but has
to stay in this super messy house all day. It was so sad. Broke my heart. We
taught her a bit and shared some scriptures on the Atonement and Christ and it
seemed to brighten her day. So we get to ward council yesterday and we ask if
someone can just call her and talk to her or maybe go by and the war council
made plans to do it. So now she will be taken care of by the help of the ward.
It was cool to see the ward council and missionaries work together helping and
reaching out to her.
On Friday we went and taught F- and P-. It was a great
noche de hogar with a few members of the primary presidency. They have been
having some marriage problems and it is just the saddest thing. So the ward has
learned about this and has been doing all they can to help them out. Well they
put on this video about a missionary on his plane ride home (great) and he is
telling stories about his mission to the guy sitting next to him. Its like
perfect for the situation because it talks about how he help this family learn
about the Gospel and forgiveness so they could work out there marriage. It was
awesome and then we all spent the next like hour teaching and testifying about what
makes us most happy. Pretty much all of us talked about our families and the
joy we get from them. It was so good and just loaded full of the Spirit. They
are doing better.
We left church yesterday and headed to a lesson and then we
had to walk from Harrison to Ironbound and it rained a ton! Ha we had nothing
with us so we got drenched to the core. It was crazy but fun. Lots of flooding
everywhere. Like all these main roads were closed off and cars buried in like
2-4 feet of water. There were cops everywhere directing people where to go.
Felt like we were being quarantined. Weird day.
Wanna give a shoutout to Jason Barth for getting baptized
this past weekend. So happy for him. Its a very spiritual thing to see two of
my good friends be baptized. Its a very close thing to me.
Well hope you are loving life and happy. Summer is here. Hot
and humid. Love you so much!
Elder Sumsion
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