12/26/2016

Jacob got glasses!! 

WHAT A CHRISTMAS!!!!!!

This will be short because of time and we also talked yesterday!!! Ahhhhh it was so good. Everyone seems so old. Sometimes when I look at Ben, Will and Grace it seems like I've been gone for 100 years. It was sweet to flip flop spots with Sam hahaha. Kind of weird, but it was good. Ah it was the best talking to you. It always goes way to fast. But everyone seems happy and it sounds like it was a white Christmas in slc!!!!!! Ahhh the snow!!! Sometimes I wish we would get a few inches over here. But it really was the best seeing everyone!

So we had a solid week this week. We were in Bedford this last week. It brought back some good memories from the first of the mission! Ah it's so weird. Walking around the embankment talking to people and just having a good time. I did realise when I was there that I did struggle when I was in Bedford. But i learned so much!!! We were able to teach a cool guy this week! He is way cool, he is from Anguilla and he is a legend. He is like a pro sail boat man. Hahahah way cool! He came to church on Sunday and loved it!!! We also saw A, our Chinese friend, he also came to church!!! He enjoyed it!!! We were able to meet some cool people later on this week!

Lords Hand

I really saw the Lords Hand this week on Thursday. For our district Meeting, we wrapped a much of copies of the Book of Mormon and went to the town centre and started handing them out. We were having quite a bit of success! And I will give some background before I go on....so a few weeks ago, we had lunch in this pub and there was this girl that walked into the pub and I really felt promoted to talk to her, she looked like she was from South America. She started to walk away and I ignored the prompting....I felt awful. I tried to find her but couldn't. A week or so later, we were in town handing out these Copies of the Book of Mormon...and I turned around and I saw this girl! So I ran over and gave her this present. Her English was not the best, but I tried to speak some Spanish that I learned from Mr. Salles (East High's Spanish teacher) hahahaha and it somehow worked and then Elder Botta came over and spoke to her in Spanish. We set up a return appointment and and added her on Facebook and have been in contact. I felt so beyond grateful, knowing that the Lords had placed her in our path again!!!!! Even if nothing comes, I am so beyond grateful for that!

We also saw the Lords Hand this week as we prayed for the opportunity to help someone this week. To really Light the World. We received a call from a member telling us that there was man named John in the hospital who's ex wife is a member. He has been in the hospital for about 4 months and has been diagnosed with cancer...we knew this was our chance to light the World. We went to visit him. The miracle was when I recognised him and he recognised me. 4 or so months ago, we were asked to help a member move flats, John, was this members ex husband, we had met him a while ago and helped him move all his stuff into a truck a few months ago. A few days after we had helped him, he was diagnosed with cancer and has been in the hospital since. I knew that I was there at his home 4 months ago for reason and that I was here to visit him at this Christmas time. It was a humbling experience. Christmas is a sacred time as a missionary. I cannot describe the feelings the I have had for my Saviour. I know He lives, He is the light of the world. I really cannot believe that my last Christmas is over. I will never forget the experiences I have had on my mission in England over this time of the year.

I love you guys! You are the best! I hope the snow is light and dry up in the wasatch!! Send it hard for me! Remember, at least you know when your sending it!!!

No short cuts

Jacob

12/19/2016

It was a solid week out here in Duston! Life is good! It was a quick week and I still cannot believe that we are really skyping this week. It seems like just yesterday we were skyping on Mother's Day and also on Christmas. But I am super super excited for it. So be ready! It's always such a special time of the year. Especially as a missionary. I love the chance I have to share the message of Christmas with everyone. It has been so powerful to share the video with everyone on the street and just see it lighten their mood. It's such a powerful video.

 

We had our Christmas conference this week! Ahhhh it was so good. President and sister Stevens are the best. Seriously, I love them. They shared and bore powerful witness of Jesus Christ and really shared their own testimonies. It was so powerful! They really just have so much love for all the missionaries! I hope that one day I can be like them even in the slightest. They are so humble and loving. So I really feel so happy and blessed to be here with them. We also had some super fun activities at the Christmas conference. Elder Lindsey and I planned them all out and it was just super super fun! We had some wicked sweater olympics and it was super super sweet. Our district won by the way, hahaha we beasted out. But overall it was a super super great Christmas conference. I was sad leaving, I couldn't really believe that it was my last one, it made me sad. It seemed like just yesterday that Elder Ammermon and I were in St Albans last year. But it was fun and we all had a good time.

Sweater Olympics

The Winners!

The rest of the week was slow to be honest except for Sunday. We had a whole day of contacting on Saturday which was so gooooooood! Ah it was the best, but to be honest we didn't have much luck, at all. And I don't even want to complain because I know Andrew is just out beasting out in Russia. He is a great example to me. But we faced some major Opposition. And no one wanted to listen. It hasn't been like that for a while for me, it was a humbling experience for me for sure. I was grateful for it.

Cousin Andrew in Russia

Lords Hand

Well I really saw the Lords Hand this week in being reminded of my buddies and Andrew out in the field. I love reading Andrews emails and seeing his positive attitude and his ability to be happy. I couldn't even imagine trying to learn Russian. I saw the Lords Hand in being reminded that there is another parkin over here across the pond working hard to. I realized that in the Grand scheme of it all, we are doing the same work, no matter where we are, no matter what success we have. The Lord is mindful of what i am doing, what Andrew is doing, and all the missionaries are doing. I saw the Lords Hand in the knowledge that I have about Him, the knowledge that I know He lived, died for me, and lives now. I am so grateful for the chance I have out here 24/7 to become more like the Savior. It's the best,

I love you all! Sounds like the mountains got some snow. Hope everyone got some face shots and sweet lines up in the Milly bowl. I love you!!!! Talk to you soonnnnn!

No short cuts!!!

Jacob

12/12/2016

Well! What a week it has been! To be honest a lot of planning and not much time in our area at all...but it has been a solid week this week, we had some solid friends come to church and we also had some sweet miracles this week that we really were so beyond grateful for. So that was just brilliant. The Lord has been so mindful of us this week. Even with all the crazy things going on, so we are really really grateful. Life is good out here in Duston. It's so crazy that Christmas is coming so soon!!!!! Skype will be such a good time, I'm stokeddddd! But Christmas is always the best on the mission, I really have a testimony of that.

So first things first, on Tuesday we were blessed to be able to find 3 new friends that are way cool. One of them name is E and he is from Italy and is living with his family here! We were able to go and teach him and his sister on Friday and they both accepted baptismal dates! They are so willing and they love the Book of Mormon already. Tuesday night was a long night to be honest, we drove into London without satellite navigation, as it was stolen.....and it was an adventure to say the least. We did pretty well because we take the M1 all the way to central London, but once you get into central London it's a different story without a sat nav, especially trying to get to Kensington. Pretty sure 100+ taxi drivers honked at me and yelled at me but we just had a good time. We drove pretty aggressively and made it through, it was so brilliant though, we drove down oxford street and right past Marble Arch and everything was lit up with Christmas lights, so that was cool, we had a good time and to be honest it was meant to be that Elder Lindsey and I were together because we have spent about a year and a half in London combined so we could make our way through. But it did feel nice to finally arrive at the Hyde Park chapel. So that was a highlight of the week. We had a meeting and it was also super super powerful, I love President and Sister Stevens. They are the best. They always know how to lighten the mood and bring the spirit. They are special. We had zone meeting on Friday and it was nice to be with everyone in the zone all together!!! It was a powerful meeting and I learned tons.

We had a way cool miracle on Saturday. So we were helping a recent convert put up some curtain hangers, which was a bit difficult with the tools that we were given, but we made it work, it took a bit longer than we thought but it all happened for a reason because before we were leaving we started sharing the Christmas initiative video "light the world" and as we started it, a man came downstairs and we invited him to watch it with us. As we watched the spirit was super super strong. We left outside with the man and offered him a Book of Mormon. We talked for  quite a while about the Book of Mormon and the restoration. He was very interested! We were standing out in the English rain for about an hour testifying to this man about the restoration and the Book of Mormon. It was a lovely experience. We were able to extend a baptismal date and he accepted. He came to church the next day and expressed how he truly felt that this church was true and that it had to come from God. It was such a lovely experience. His name is "I" and he is a such an amazing guy.

Sunday was a sweet day. A, I, and a few other friends came to church! We had dinner at the Hirsts after church. They are such an amazing family, so over all it was a solid week!

LORDS HAND

I saw the Lords Hand this week in the ability elder Lindsey and I had to make it into London safely and on time, well almost on time. We were comforted as we knew where we were at certain moments and what we needed to do. I also saw the Lords Hand in "I", and how prepared he was to receive the message of the restoration. I saw the Lords Hand in the fact that it took us a bit longer to put up the curtains which made everything work out perfectly. I know that it all happened for a reason. It was so cool to see that the message of the restored gospel in a way, filled a gap in "I"'s understanding of religion in general. I love that the Book of Mormon is the converting tool through the power of the Holy Ghost. I have complete confidence that it can change the life of anyone that reads it to come closer to God and Jesus Christ, as long as we are truly willing to read and pray about its truthfulness.

Love you!

No short cuts

Jake

Teaching via Skype

12/5/2016

Another solid week here in Duston. Time is flying that's for sure. Sometimes I just can't even believe it. It freaks me out haha. But life is good. I'm happy. The mission is treating me well. We have seen some success this week in the small things I think.  But we are still pressing on and having a good time. It's been getting colder and colder each day. We are scraping ice off our windows in the morning which I love haha, every morning I hope to wake up to snow but it never happens. Hopefully one of these days. It's defiantly cold enough. J and K are doing super super well. K received the priesthood this last week at church! He is brilliant. He bore his testimony in church and is just a pioneer for his family. J is also a legend. He is learning so much and has sacrificed so much time even with all of his studies. They both seem happy and they really are seeing that the happiness comes from living the gospel. 

We are teaching a solid Chinese friend named A! He's a legend as well haha. He is from mainland China and he loves the gospel. He is learning so quickly but also has tons and tons of questions. He is really willing to act on his faith and do his best. He is such a funny guy. We love him tons! It's so crazy. I never would have thought I would be teaching so many Chinese people here. I love it. We have a cool miracle with the Christmas initiative! It is so powerful. I love it so much! We are able to use our iPads with Bluetooth speakers and play it on the street. It reminds me of last year and how spiritual it was and how happy it made people. I love it. It's truly inspired. The Christmas initiatives will really be so special to me for the rest of my life because of the impact that they have had on my mission! So anyways, we stopped this Romanian woman named "I" and she loved the video. She ended up coming to church and reading the Book of Mormon in Romanian and she loves it! So that was so cool! 

Lords Hand 

I saw the Lords Hand this week in "I"! We felt inspired to talk to her and it was so lovely to see that she was prepared. I have been finding it hard at times to teach people because of the language barrier with all the different cultures and languages here. But I've felt the Lords Hand in the ability we have to share everything in different languages with people on the street. I know that the Lord is mindful of all of us. It's the best! I love it. 

Sounds like it's dumping in Utah. Hahaha finally winter has come. Maybe it'll be a La Niña year. Which would be pretty sweet. I love you!!! Have a good week! 

No short cuts 

Jake