D & C 122:8

Hej hej!

This week was pretty great. We did lots of finding work and were able to talk to tons of people. Our most positive investigators where out of town so we didn't really get to meet them. But that enabled us to spend a little bit more time with some investigators that we haven't really been able to devote a lot of time to because of other things going on. We had a couple of break through lessons with some people. It was just a really good week.

We made pumpkin bread! The don't sell pumpkin puree in Sweden so we had to buy a pumpkin and roast and puree it ourselves. The bread turned out great. A little reminder of home.

This weeks scripture is a pretty special one for me. It's one that has helped me through a lot of things in my life. We all go through trials and sometimes we wonder why it is that God has allowed us to suffer so. We feel that the pain or grief is undeserved or unwarranted. Yet this simple verse can change our perspective completely if we are willing to let it.

For context, the verse follows a string of verses containing  very serious trials that could potentially afflict Joseph Smith but then continues to end with:

"The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?"

We must always remember that the Lord Jesus Christ was the most perfect person to ever live. The most undeserving of pain and suffering. But he suffered more than we ever could. For us to assume that our lives are unfair is to consider ourselves greater than Christ Himself. In the face of affliction, we must humble ourselves and look to Christ Jesus for our example and our strength.

I hope you all have a great week!

Love,

Äldste Cummings

Puzzles, Sacred Cigarettes, CTMM

(Sister Ellsworth)

Hey!

This week was fun! Sister Selman and I went on another adventure. So here in Portugal they have Chinese stores that sell super cheap junk... Kinda like the dollar store and it's literally a missionary's favorite place. We went hunting to find something to help one of our investigators understand how the Restoration works and that being part of any church doesn't save you. So we found this little puzzle book with lots of little puzzle pieces. It worked out that we took one piece from each page to create a new puzzle that didn't make any sense at all. Kinda like this:

So on our way to our lesson we found two of our friends and one asked why I was carrying around a kid's puzzle book. I explained that the puzzle was broken and asked them to fix it. The Jose and Zé, two grown men started to try to put the puzzle together without 90 percent of the puzzle. It was so funny to watch them argue about where the pieces go. Then we explained how we created the new puzzle using parts of the old puzzle, in the same way how people created churches using parts of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Then we gave them the rest of the puzzles and explained how God restored all the pieces of the Gospel.

We also met with one of our investigators that has problems to stop smoking and we came up with the classic idea to make some celestial cigarettes. We took an empty box of cigarettes and decorated it with pictures of Christ and inspirational quotes. We passed Rodrigo by and told him that we had a surprise for him and we wanted him to guess what it was. He laughed and said... "Hm... What is the most rediculous thing I can think of..... Something you guys would never do... I know! Sacred cigarettes!" We looked at each other and started laughing and showed him the box. He looked at us and was like.. Seriously? and then busted up laughing!

Other than that it was a week of lots of work!

Love you guys,

Sister Ellsworth

​

BATISMOOOO!!!

(Sister Ellsworth)

WHOOOOO!!!!!

We had a miracle baptism this week!

One of our friends Elton who was marked for baptism next week called on Tuesday and said he was going to move to Germany on Friday. We were like..... what..... So we asked him if he wanted to be baptized before he left and he said that he wanted to receive an answer from God first. So we fasted like never before and on Wednesday we met with him and asked if he had received an answer and he looked at us completely distraught and said that he hadn't and that he wouldn't be baptized. I thought a little bit and asked him what he did to look for an answer and he responded that he prayed and then went to bed. I was like... did you read the scriptures..? Or listen for the Holy Ghost? And he said no. We smiled and explained how if we want to talk to God then we pray but if we want God to talk to us then we read the scriptures! Elton didn't even wait for us to finish. He dropped to his knees and said a long silent prayer. After he was finished he sat back in the chair, grabbed his Book of Mormon and let it fall open.

It opened to 2 Nephi 31. He started reading in verse 13 which says:

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I know that if ye shall follow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real intent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel.

Elton start to laugh! He look at us and said "Well, I guess God wants me to be baptized in Portugal!!" So we ran to get everything organized, called our District leader for an interview and called President for permission to confirm him and on Thursday night Elton was baptized!!!

WhOOOooOOHOoOOOO!!

My comp and I are also writing a song because both of us are going to stay here forever. It goes to the tune of Let it Go.

The lights glow bright on the airplane tonight, no companion to be seen.

14 hours in isolation, and for the first time, I'm in jeans.

You feel like crying when your mission bids goodbye.

They didn't let me extend, heaven knows I tried.

Don't let me go, don't make me leave,

I still haven't made it to AP!

Just 6 more weeks and then I'll see...

Family!

I won't go.

I won't go.

You can't make me pack anymore!

I won't go! I won't go!

I'm gonna stay here in Portugal!

And I don't care what President will say

Let this song be sung!

We were never gonna train anyway.

It's funny how the mission makes you gain 15 pounds

and the fear that now controls me is when the plane hits the ground!

Still some time to see what I can do

To teach some lessons to the foobs (foob = fubeca =lazy investigators in Portuguese slang).

No job no school no boys for me! I'm free!

I won't go! I won't go!

You can't make me pack anymore!

I won't go! I won't go!

I'm gonna stay here in Portugal!

And I don't care what my family will say

Let the mission roll on!

My faith is growing from my head until my feet!

My soul is reaching out to every person in the street!

The thought of going home is like a death sentence.

I'm never going back.. The mission is my life!

I won't go! I won't go!

You can't make me pack anymore!

I won't go! I won't go!

I'm gonna stay here in Portugal!

And I don't care what my boyfriend will say

Let the mission roll on!

We were never getting married anyway.

​Haha we walk in the street singing this song and duet it with the other sisters in our district.

I love my mission... so very much... I'd love to say that it's the best two years but they're only going to let me stay for 18 months... I've learned so much about who I can be and who others can be and why we're here and why everything is so important. I'm so grateful for every day and I'm grateful for a companion who loves running. (I have never ran to so many appointments or buses in my whole mission... The people here in Costa know us as the Maratonas, the Mormon marathoners.)

Love you all!!

Have a great week.

Sister Ellsworth

Isaiah 28:10

(Aldste Cummings)

Tjena!

This week was really fun. All of the lessons we had scheduled this week all had to cancel and reschedule so we spent basically the whole week talking to people on the street or proselyting door to door. We found a lot of people who would like to meet with us so that's great!

Last Monday we were just walking back to the church building to do something when someone called for us to stop. We turned around to see a girl we had contacted about 8 weeks ago chasing us down. When we first talked to her, she said she wasn't interested, but then she kept seeing us around town and saw us meeting with someone at the library and her desire to meet with us and learn about our message continued to grow until she was willing to literally chase us down to stop and talk to us. We're meeting her today. No effort is ever wasted when you're doing the Lord's work.

Another fun thing that happened this week, we switched companions for the day and I was paired up with Elder Fronk, a missionary who's been our for just over a week now. It was super fun. We just spent the day walking around the streets of Jönköping talking with people. Because he's so new, I had to do all the talking. My Swedish improved by leaps and bounds just because of those couple of hours. Super good time.

The scripture I chose this week is a pretty simple one with profound meaning. No one receives everything all at once. This life is intended to be a learning experience for us. We learn by doing and by making mistakes. The things we learn from our actions and experiences enable us to have more experience that add knowledge on top of what we have. Whether it be our faith, our understanding of the gospel, or even learning a new skill, we have to be patient and willing to work for it. You can't put a roof on top of house if the house isn't built yet. Everything has to be built little by little from the foundation up.

Love,

Äldste Cummings

Week of Miracles

(Sister Ellsworth)

This week was a blast! The October chill of 75 degrees left and it was back in the 85-90s! Whoop! I have seriously forgotten what cold is like. On Monday Sister Selman and I went to Belém with Sister Carr and her greenie, Sister Bleyl, and Sister Brockbrank all of which are from my MTC group. We joked around about the good old times in the MTC and when we thought we knew what we were doing. Granted, a year and  a few months later I still have no idea what I'm doing but that´s okay! There's still two more months to learn! In Belém we went to this awesome restaurante called Pão Pão Queijo Queijo (bread bread cheese cheese... weird I know) And had some awesome food. Then Sister Selman and I rode the riverboat up and down the River Tejo.

We found two families this week!! One is a family from Brasil and they have a little two year old boy that is literally the cutest thing ever. He loves to steal my planner and draw in it while we´re teaching lol.

On Tuesday the Elders bought our District Pizza before a Workshop that we had with the AP´s and  ZL's. (Deus vos-abençoe) Then we had a day where we had 10 appointments marked with a few of them being double booked and every single one fell through. It was sad but the next day we set out to find new people. While we were following up with  old contacts and ex investigators this drunk guy comes staggering up to me and introduces himself as Charlie. Surprised, I asked him where he was from because Charlie is not a Portuguese name and he said he was from outer space and that he was stuck here on earth for 3 years. Trying not to burst out laughing, we pretended to be very concerned and asked him what space was like and how he got stuck here. He said that his parents were Priests and Nuns from the Catholic church. Oh man. I love drunk people. We gave him a card and told him to pass by the church someday and we could help him figure out how to return home. hehe. #planofsalvation

The next day Sister Selman and I decided to go break in a rather untouched area called Charneca. After about an hour of contacting and visiting some old contacts and less actives, we were walking past an old abandoned lot that had this cat sitting in the middle of a dirt path just staring at us. Sister Selman looked at me with a grin and said "Do you want to go on an adventure?" I was like heck yeah! So we start following the cat. We walked and explored until we found this huuuuuge white mansion. Like you know the old English estates on Pride and Prejudice? Like that. I looked at Sister Selman and I said "I dare you to knock it." She looked and me, scoffed, and said "Is that a challenge?" She marched up to the door and knocked and an old Portuguese man opened the door. We smiled at him and started talking. I asked him about the history of this old house that apparently the Portuguese Salazar had built it as like a vacation home. Then he gave us a tour!! It was awesome! #makingfriends

Later that day we were back in our main area and we got a phone call from this guy that went something like this:

Dude: "Hey I'm here!"

Sisters: "Oh.. hi... uh... great! Who are you?"

Dude: "I'm miguel, You're the missionaries right?"

Sisters: "Yes...."

Dude. "I met your friends in  Angola. They gave me this number. I'd like to meet with you to talk about your church."

                                 *exchange of surprised and excited looks between the sisters*

Sisters: "Great when can we meet with you?"

Dude: "Well I'm getting off the airplane from Angola right now. I'll be in Costa da Caparica in an hour. Does that work for you?"

Sisters: "Sure!"

Then an hour later this guy gets off the bus with his suitcases, sits down with us on the closest bench and says, "Teach me everything you know. I want to be baptized." We were like... YES SIR. Now he's marked for baptism and eating up everything we teach him. WOW!!

The thought that I can count how many weeks I have left on two hands.... I've entered into the phase of denial. So I might not come home. The only way I'll go down is kicking and screaming.... Sorry fam. But that's life. It's not fair ;)

Giant ice cream cone

Sister Selman is a babe! This is her last transfer and we are killing it. Everything. MUHAHAHA!

​Including me. I died in the park. Actually I was just chilling while we were waiting for the Sisters on Pday and Sister Selman stole my camera.

Love you guys!

Sister Ellsworth  <-- forever

Psalms 46:10

(Aldste Cummings)

Tja!

This week was great. We've been super busy teaching and visiting members and all. We've been running around all week trying to fit everything in. It was tough, but having too much to do is better than having nothing to do!

A miracle happened this week! The woman who was just baptized a couple weeks ago has been getting seriously painful migraines almost daily for nearly 10 years. They haven't been able to figure out what's causing it. When she was confirmed, she received a blessing that her physical situation would improve and the doctors would be able to find a way to help her. Just this week when she went to the doctor, they ran some tests and found that she has a benign cyst in her brain, applying undue pressure on her central nervous system. Now that they have found her issue, they can operate and improve her condition! It's incredible how much the Lord cares for each and every one of his children.

Sometimes it's important for us to take a little moment and remember what the Lord has done for us and how much he loves us. When we allow ourselves to get distracted with everything going on and everything we have to do, we deprive ourselves of the calm security that lies in recognition of the Lord's tender mercies and his everlasting love for us. I would encourage all of you to take a couple minutes this week to relax and ponder on God's mercy and love and seek for ways you can increase your faith and trust in Him.

Have a great week!

Äldste Cummings

Hot air balloon contrasted with a beautiful Swedish sunset.

Elder Martineau and I.

Our authentic American dinner: Barbecue chicken and corn on the cob. Swedish corn has absolutely nothing on classic Illinois sweet corn, by the way.

A beautiful old building here in Skövde.

Hebrews 12:9

(Aldste Cummings)

Hello all!

We had a super busy week, this week. We were running around all over the place, it was crazy. No real super big news. We just had some really good lessons and are really excited for how our investigators are progressing!

The scripture I thought to share this week is pretty significant. It teaches us a number of things. First, It teaches us that God is the father of our spirits. Hence why He is often referred to as "Heavenly Father." This means that He has more of a vested interest than we might initially assume. He is our father and loves us accordingly.

Secondly, it teaches us that life comes through obedience and submission to God's will. We see this theme throughout the bible. Christ often says that anyone who believes on His name will not die, but shall live. Clearly, he didn't literally mean that belief in Him will save you from mortal death because even his apostles were killed. Rather, his meaning is figurative and two-fold.

1) Through Jesus Christ, we can receive eternal life after death. Through Him, we have the opportunity to live forever in a perfect and immortal state.

and 2) life on this earth is most enjoyably lived when founded in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Belief in Him, submission to the Father's will, and active service in their name is what makes our life bearable and even joyous. We find happiness through Christ.

I would encourage each and one of you to take time this week to assess your relationship with our Father in Heaven and make goals to make the necessary changes in your life to come closer to Him.

Love,

Äldste Jesse Cummings