Italy at Last

(Anziano Wilkinson)

So as many of you already know, I have finally made it to Italy! And if my mom hasn't already told everyone, my first area is Pisa! After thirty-some hours of lugging my bags across two continents and an ocean, I have made it in one piece, thank goodness! By now I'm mostly over the jet lag and am settled in. We really hit the ground running when I got here, cycling all over in the hot, humid weather to reach appointments and what not. I was severely sore for the first few days and I have to drink my weight in water just to stay hydrated, but I can promise all of you back home, there are few things cooler than riding through the streets of Italy on a bike!

We travel by train a lot in this area; the ward boundaries are quite large (yes, pisa has a ward, thankfully!). So one of the prime ways to find people to talk to is on the trains. Italy is a tough crowd to talk religion with though; finding people who will listen to you, let alone who are interested in your message is very, very difficult. The work is difficult, but evidently not impossible, or else I wouldn't be here! My trainer is Anziano Robinson and he and I get along well; he's been a great help for me as I've tried to figure this place out. He's on his 12th transfer, so he's pretty seasoned already.

Sunday night we had an extremely heavy rain storm, which flooded a good potion of the streets and in particular, ours. The water even reached our apartment building and flooded the basement floor (we're okay though, we're on the third floor). Our bikes we're not so lucky on the other hand, since they were in our tiny little garage space. We had to wade through the water a bit to get them out or else spend an hour walking just to get to the church and then another hour to get back. It just occurred to me that I am completely understating the severity of the flood; I'll just post pictures. Oddly enough, this sort of thing isn't really uncommon in Italy I guess, since the emergency infrastructure is well equipped, enough to have cleared out basically all of the flooding within 24 hours. I'm not sure why they don't just fix the gutter system instead, but oh well; this way is for fun for missionaries!

But really though, we are having a great time in Pisa and I can tell that it is going to be a great experience! Until next week, Can't wait to hear from you all soon!

-Anziano Wilkinson

Giving 100%

(Elder Cummings)

This has definitely been the fastest week yet.  Last Monday my companion and I were making jokes about how it was almost P-day and we were right.  Time flies.  Time flies FAST.  Two weeks from tomorrow Elder LaRose leaves for Milwaukee and I leave for Fresno the next morning.  It is strange to think that of all the companions I will have on my mission, he will be my companion for the shortest period of time.  Hmong Elders don't get transferred much.

I have been thinking a lot this week about what God expects of His children.  It is often said by missionaries that they haven't come on a mission to give less than 100%.  That is a great attitude, but it comes from the wrong mindset.  What is two years in the scope of eternity?  It doesn't matter how hard we work for two years if we don't continue to work for our whole lives.  A better way of looking at it that I am begging to appreciate this week is that we have not entered this mortality to give less than 100%.  We entered this mortality with the intent of returning to live with our Father in Heaven.  That is done when we surrender our whole soul, all the desires and intents of our hearts, to the will of the Father.  It is done when we give 100%.

In 3 Nephi 27 is one of my favorite chapters of the Book of Mormon.  In this chapter the disciples of Christ in the Americas are praying together asking what the name of the church should be called. Christ appears and teaches them.  Whenever I read this chapter I think about how it applies to me.  I substitute myself in for the church.  If I am Christ's I aught to act like it.  Specifically in verse thirteen Christ says "Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you--that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me."  At baptism we covenant to follow Christ's example and the example he has set is a perfect commitment to do God's will, not our own.  If we want to be saved, to return to live with God again, that is what we must do.  We must give all we are to do what God's will.  God loves us all and only desires our happiness.  Disobedience to God's commandments show that we don't really believe He is an all knowing God who want to best for us.  Our actions are an expression of our commitment and understanding.  If we want to understand more we need to be willing and actively trying to live better.

I know that God lives, I know that He loves us, I know that we are His children, and although I may not always live it I know that God wants what is best for us.  Obedience is the way for us to receive any and all promised blessings.  Obedience is how we come to know God.  Obedience brings us into His presence.  All through my mission and throughout my life I intend to be more obedient with every passing day, or in other words I want to know my God better.  I promise you all that if you commit to being more obedient to the will of the Father, if you give 100%, there will be blessings.  The windows of heaven will be open and there will not be room enough to receive them.

I love this work.  I love this church, and I love my God and King.

I hope you all have a great week!

     - Elder Jared Cummings

Last Post

(Elder Slade)

Dear friends and family:

This is the second-to-last email I will send to you while I am on my mission. I only have one more P-day after today, and that P-day will be spent packing and looking forward to seeing all of you just two days later.

Elder Storm and I have had a better week than we had last week, but we're still a little frustrated with the progress that we have been making. We worked really hard, and we were able to improve (progress) in many key indicators, but one key indicator that has notoriously stayed the same is investigators at sacrament. This is the second week in a row that we haven't gotten anybody to come to church; as a matter of fact, these are the only two weeks that Elder Storm and I have been together that we have gotten no investigators to come to church.

Sonia is our only solid investigator right now - her and her nine-year-old daughter. We have been working with them for a week or two now, and she came to the baptism of Alicia and Alvin on Saturday. She loved it, and the chapel tour we had with her afterwards; and she finally offered a prayer, for the first time in 3 or 4 lessons, because of the spirit that she felt there. She was solidly committed to come to church, but unfortunately she took a cold medicine the night before that caused her to sleep in several hours. We were disappointed, but we're going to keep teaching her and get her to church this Sunday so that she and her daughter (and her mother) can be baptized on the 12th. (After I go home... sad face.)

I performed the baptismal interview for Alvin on Thursday, before he was baptized with his girlfriend Alicia on Saturday. (They aren't my investigators, I'm just mentioning them because I did one of the interviews.) It was my first baptismal interview, and it will probably be my last...

Thanks,

Elder Slade

Parable des grenouilles

(Sister Cummings)

Hello everyone! I'm reporting live from the apple store in Laval, Quebec. The Sun is shining and it is a wonderful and beautiful day! My new companions, Sister Rawlings and Sister Meldrum, hailing from the state of Idaho and the province of Alberta respectively, are amazing! They always seem to have a smile on their faces, even when they are force fed all sorts of the Latin or Haitian food that seems to be stuffed down our throats. Not that its a bad thing but the members here LOVE to feed the missionaries. On an average we have been getting at least two dinners a day, though we try to eat healthy ( I even used yogurt in my egg salad sandwich instead of Mayo! Look at us go!) at this rate I may just in fact be rolling home. Whats worse is all this food is so darn delicious that even though force fed, you just HAVE to adore it!

So other than just having way to much delicious food this area has a lot more going for it! The Spanish is going surprisingly well, I can understand most anything that people say and I am able to read and also understand, I haven't quite grasped speaking yet but with the French that I do know the Spanish is coming pretty quickly. I am sure that God has a hand in that.

This week I would like to share a story that was shared in Relief Society this past Sunday and how I was able to apply it. It is called the story of the Frogs.

There was once a race between four frogs. Everyone came to see who would be the fastest and most daring of them all and after everyone had lined up on the line the starting gun was triggered and the four frogs started hopping the fastest that they could. Before too long they came to the first obstacle, a road, the crowd gasped and yelled out "look out! You can't cross that street you are just a frog!" One of the frogs stopped and said "your right, I might get hit" and didn't continue farther.

Meanwhile the three others continue hopping along, hopping along and sure enough they reach the second obstacle. A hole. The crowd reacted much as before yelling out "Oh no! You can't jump that! You are just a frog." Another of the frogs stopped and said "your right that hole looks way to big for me" and stopped.

The last two continue and are neck and neck until they make it to the third and final obstacle. A giant tree. The Crowd in awe says "oh there is no way! You can't climb that! You are just a frog" And one of the two frogs stops and says "This tree is way to tall, your right, I can't climb that" However the last frog made it all the way to the top in no time and after making his way back down the crowd surrounded him cheering and asking "how did you do it??"

The Frog didn't answer.

He was deaf.

The meaning of this story is to show the importance of persevering to the end, and though discouragement comes, whether from a human being or another source, to not give it heed. I can testify of the importance of this principle.

In moving to this new area there are not many people to teach and invite to baptism. However after hearing this story my two companions and I decided to not get discouraged and to not get pulled down by what everyone was telling us. And the Lord has helped us. For not long after making this resolution we contacted a potential investigator and met with her to teach her the first lesson. During which she asked "How can I know if this is true?" After answering her that she may find the answer by praying and receiving the answer herself, she started crying. She mentioned that she had been searching for a church for the past seven years; studying with five different religions including Jehovah's Witness. She said that to each one of them she had asked the same question and each one had tried to prove to her using scriptures and scientific evidence why it was there church that was true. However she had never had someone just tell her that she could go directly to God and ask him. The spirit was so strong and we committed her to be baptized.

The moral of the story is don't give up hope. Don't give into discouragement. We are each one of us exactly where we need to be at exactly the time which we need to be there. I love each and every one of you and I am grateful for each and everyone of you. Please pray for our new investigator Vanessa as she prays to find out what is the truth. I pray for you.

Love,

Sister Cummings

District Leader

Dear friends and family:

This Tuesday I found out that I would be the new district leader for the last few weeks of my mission. I was shocked, but I did my best to give a good district training on Wednesday morning and to find out the needs of the district. I trained about accounting, and being responsible for our efforts, instead of being creatures of circumstances.

We started the week very enthusiastically. We were excited to work hard, and determined to have a turnaround from last week, and to help our investigators progress and be baptized. We had a goal of two baptisms this week, and we still have a goal of five baptisms this month. We fell short, and now our teaching pool is even worse than it was before. We stopped teaching almost all of our investigators, including the three who had been to church several times who could be baptized. (Lucia, Jessica, and Maxime.)

Elder Storm and I feel like the biggest mistake we made this week was that we were so focused on our goal of baptizing, that we didn't stop teaching investigators when their desires and priorities changed. They came to church, and kept some of the commitments we left with them, but ignored others and hung on to a few things in their lives that they didn't want to change. We loved our investigators too much, and so we kept teaching them and we didn't put forth the extra effort to find the remaining investigators who could be baptized at the end of this month.

We are both really bummed about the way that the week turned out. I hate to say it, but despite working hard, we put our efforts into the wrong thing, and we didn't seek the revelation from God that would have corrected us earlier in the week. We're a little discouraged because now we don't have the investigators that we need to meet our baptismal goal, but I'm not going to give up or slack for the last part of my mission.

I'm really excited to hear about the changes in my family, with a new sister, and another brother going off to college. Everything will be different when I finally come home and meet up with everyone again.

Thanks,

Elder Slade

Drum Roll Please

So as it turned out everyone who emailed me guessed it... I have in fact been transferred... Which is pretty stinking hard. I have spent nearly an entire half of my mission in the amazing area of Lemoyne. I am so grateful for all the amazing people here but as it turns out I will be headed back North of the island and serving in Laval. Laval is still a French area but unlike other French areas there is no Spanish ward covering the area. So my mission call has changed a little bit and I am going to be teaching in Spanish. The Lord sure works in funny ways because by golly, I have never even taken a spanish class... But hey, apparently God needs me to be there.

Not going to lie my heart is kind of hurting in leaving Lemoyne. I have been in this area longer than I have ever been in New Jersey. So when I was asked to give my testimony instead I asked if I would be able to sing. It has always been easier for me to sing my testimony and I prayed for a good long while that I would be able to do it. So I ended up singing "Where can I turn for peace." The spirit was so strong and I was so grateful to have been able to at least leave one last thing for this ward that I have grown to love.

Don't get me wrong. I am going to love Laval. I will be in a trio for the second time on my mission, so I will be leaving my beloved Sister Ladd. *sigh* I am so grateful for everything that she has done for me. For the example that she has shown me.

There is a scripture that has really touched me so much. It is in Alma 29:10

"And behold, when I see many of my brethren truly penitent, and coming to the Lord their God, then is my soul filled with joy; then do I remember what the Lord has done for me, yea, even that he hath heard my prayer; yea, then do I remember his merciful arm which he extended towards me."

I am so grateful for the wonderful examples these people have shown me as I watch them grow closer to God. They have shown me through their testimonies the way to grow mine. I am so glad that I have been granted a stay so long here and to learn so much. I love you all and I thank you for the prayers you send my way.

I am loving it!

It could definitely be said that Elder LaRose and I have the MTC down.  As of this morning the group that entered the MTC with us are the oldest missionaries in our branch.  We have been here all of six weeks.

This last Tuesday I got a surprise package in the mail from Fresno, California!  The Hmong Elders I will be serving with sent me a box full of Hmong candy and seaweed and some REALLY hot peppers.  Apparently the Hmong eat crazy spicy food with every meal.  The heat grows on you after a while.

To make the week more interesting, for our Sunday Evening Devotional yesterday the MTC invited the Nashville Tribute Band to come do a concert for all the missionaries.  They are an LDS Christian/country rock band.  The choir sang backup on three of their songs.  That is definitely unprecedented at the MTC.  It was neat to see how the Spirit was invited by the music they played, even though their music is not what is typically considered as spiritual in the Church.

Having the Spirit, also called the Holy Ghost, with us has been the topic of much of my thoughts and scripture study this week.  We believe that God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three distinctly separate beings who are united in one purpose.  That purpose, as described in one of my favorite verses of scripture, is "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39).  With that in mind, every time that the Holy Ghost influences our lives, or anyone's life, it is for the purpose of bringing us closer to God.  If we spend our entire lives turning inwards and focusing on our own needs then we will be prompted about things that help bring to pass our own immortality and eternal life.  If we spend our lives turning our focus outwards, to others, then the Holy Ghost can prompt us into action to help accomplish the work and will of the Father in bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of all those we come into contact with.  the influence of the Holy Ghost increases exponentially when we strive to serve others.  We will always be nearer to God as our attention moves farther from ourselves.

Elder Jake Wilkinson, my cousin, is leaving the MTC this week to serve in Milan, Italy.  He and I were born on the same day and we entered the MTC together on June 8.  We have seen each other around pretty regularly and that has never failed to brighten up my day.  We are the best of friends.  I love him and I know he will do great things with the Italian people.

He shared something with me yesterday that I want to share with all of you.  God has not called me to serve in Fresno, California because I know Hmong, will learn Hmong, or even can learn Hmong.  I have been called to serve in Fresno, Jake has been called to serve in Milan, and since the foundation of the church over one million missionaries have served in various missions all over the earth, and all of us have gone where we have because the Lord needed someone who could love the people the way the people needed to be loved.  Success as a missionary comes from the love you feel for all of God's children with whom you come in contact each day.  Learning to love others completely and liberally is one central purpose of our mortality.  I am grateful for the chance I have over the next two years and the rest of my life to apply this truth.

Three more weeks to Fresno!  I can't wait!

love,

Elder Jared Cummings