Hi Everybody!!
So last Thursday night we got our flight plans where it gives us the time of when we leave and through which airports we would be going through. So we were so excited!! That high didn't last very long because the next day the travel office told us that we were being re-assigned to somewhere in the USA until our visas come in. The mission president in Mongolia thinks that it is going to take longer than two weeks to get the visas so he told the MTC to re-assign us. We were pretty shocked but we knew it might be coming since we were warned two months ago.
But I think anyway that the visas could still come in because no one really knows their exact status until they get them in the mail. So me and my companion prayed hard and fasted yesterday that the visas will still come in. I know that through God anything is possible. If it is His will it can be done. We asked some of the other members in our district but they didn't feel very positive about the idea and they didn't want to fast with us. I don't want to pray and fast against the will of God but what if He is testing us. Faith is a very confusing thing sometimes but then it can be very simple. But I feel very peaceful about the whole situation with the visas. That either means that they will come in on time or that it is for a good reason that I'm getting re-assigned. Maybe there is someone in the USA that needs to hear my testimony or there is someone that needs my helping hand. We are all a little nervous about teaching in English because we have been practicing so hard in Mongolian. But we'll get over the fear soon enough. The postive thing about being re-assigned is that we will get phone passes and will be able to call our parents from the MTC to tell them our destinations. We'll get that information tomorrow. So MOM, keep your cell phone on you at all times today, tomorrow and Saturday. Another positive thing is that we can watch general conference in English. We're trying to make the best of our situations. We are just so excited to go to Mongolia that we don't want to put it off any longer.
Anyway, some other things was that one of the apostles came and spoke to us. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland came and talked about how his mission changed his life. He said that we should embrace everything thing about it. We should embrace the gospel, the people, the scriptures, the teaching, the hard times, the trials, the good times and the learning experiences. Everything that will happen to us on our mission will be for our benefit and can help us become the people that God wants us to become, to reach our full potential. He said that as a missionary, or in other words as a disciple of Christ we get to glimpse a little of what Christ went through. We can walk in His path by feeling, acting the way He did. By taking the rejection that He took, crying the tears that He cried, loving the people as He loves them, teaching as He would teach, serving others as He would serve them. He also told us that missions are hard and that we should embrace that because salvation is not a cheap experience. Salvation will never be easy. If it was hard for Him then it will be hard for us. If you want to be His disciple then the road of salvation always goes through the garden of Gethsemne. Every disciple is expected to carry a cross.
He also told us as missionaries and as members of the church we are in a battle against the wicked and against Satan. He said that we don't have guns, or swords to fight with. We just have our words or the words of the gospel. So he told us that we need to open our mouths and speak to everyone about the gospel. We cannot be shy when telling others about the blessings and comfort they can receive through the gospel. He told us that our missions is Game-Day. We have been prepared, we have practiced and practiced for years but now we must deliver. We must give it our all to the Lord because we are on His time. We must give all our heart, might, mind and strength so that when we get home and get off the plan then we should collapse. (So just be ready for that Mom ;)
Quote: "As you walk your various paths, walk with faith. Speak affimatively and cultivate on attitude of confidence. You have the capacity to do so. Your strength will give strength to others."
Prophet and President Gordon B. Hinckley
The church is true so keep the faith!
Love, Sister Sumsion
Friday, September 18
Saturday, September 12
Less than 14 days until departure!
Hey Everbody!!!
The time is flying at the MTC. This week we started our Speak Your Language challenge where we only speak Mongolian to everyone, even to the missionaries not learning Mongolian. We would tell them in Mongolian and then we could translate it into English. On Monday, that only lasted till after dinner. It is very hard and very frustrating to do especially with everyone in the MTC speaking English. My companion, Sister Ellison and Sister Staib were the only three going strong. I snapped about an hour after dinner. I guess the stress got to me because I was in a really hyper mood and I got my companion rolling with laughter. My companion was a little frustrated with everyone else who was speaking english instead of Mongolian. She had put in her planner to be more patience. Well, I thought she was trying to be more patient because I was driving her crazy. It crushed me! I stressed about until the next night where I asked her about it. She said that the teacher had told her to study patience because she would have companions in the field that would try her patience. Man, I should have asked her earlier! Communication is very important so never assume something.
Last week at the TRC there were so many volunteers!! There was about four volunteers for every companionship (six total companions). There was also a cute little Mongolian family with a three year old baby. She was so cute!!! When I saw that family I could feel what it will be like in Mongolian. I felt a love for them even though I did not know them. It was quite exciting to feel that way.
We started our progessing investigator this week. Where one of the teachers acts like someone who is investigating the church. We adjust the lessons based on his needs and problems. We make several appointments with him and get to know him (or the person he is pretending to be). So far we taught him about God, how the gospel can bless families, prayer and a little about the Holy Ghost. That's all we had time for and he was pretending to be a Buddist so we have to start out about who God is and how to pray. We won't talk about the Restoration or the Book of Mormon until next time we teach him.
When I got my mission call, I was happy that I was learning a new language. I thought that since I was learning a new language that I wouldn't cry when bearing my testimony when speaking that language. I always, always cry or choke up when talking about my feelings and my feelings about the gospel. Well, when we were teaching the progressing investigator, I was bearing my testimony about how God can help strengthen families and how my family has been strenghtened. Man, I was choking up and it made me happy that I was! I feel like I'm more sincere when I cry. I think others can see that the gospel means a lot to me when I show my true feelings.
This week I've been reading the Old Testament. I decided to read the story about Solomon and the two women who claimed the same child. In the beginning of 1 Kings 3, Solomon is praying for wisdom and knowledge to judge and rule the country righteously. In verses six through 9 is where he asks. In verses 11 through 14 is God's answer. When I read these verses it brought to mind how we should pray and how God answers our prayers. In verses 6 and 7, Solomon shows humility, faith and realizes that his strength comes from God and how loving God is towards him and his father. Then in verse 9, Solomon is not asking for himself but for the benefit of the Lord's people. God replies in verse 11 and says that he is pleased that he asks not for himself and that he doesn't ask for riches and wealth but for spiritual things and worthy things. Then in verse 12 he says that he will answer his prayer and give him what he desires. Then in verse 13 and 14 he says that he will give him even more blessings, blessings that he didn't even ask for. Then in verse 14 he says that if Solomon is righteous he can keep this blessings that he has given him. This is how God is. He wants to bless us and to help us. He gives us more than we deserve. He has always and will always give us more than we deserve. He has blessed us with a body and the opportunity to learn and to grow and to reach our fullest potential. He sent his son to die for our sins. How hard must it have been to watch his perfect, sinless son suffer all the sins, afflictions, sorrows and sufferings of the world! But still he did not stop for he loves us and was merciful enough to give us an opportunity to return to him. He is merciful to even those who don't follow him and keep his commandments in his plan of salvation. I love my Heavenly Father so much and Jesus Christ who both love me enough to be patient with me and my weaknesses. They have blessed me with a wonderful family and wonderful friends. They have blessed me with this gospel and with the Atonement. I get the chance to take this wonderful message to the people of Mongolia who have never heard of Jesus Christ or a Heavenly Father.
The church is true, God loves you so keep the faith!
Love, Sister Sumsion
The time is flying at the MTC. This week we started our Speak Your Language challenge where we only speak Mongolian to everyone, even to the missionaries not learning Mongolian. We would tell them in Mongolian and then we could translate it into English. On Monday, that only lasted till after dinner. It is very hard and very frustrating to do especially with everyone in the MTC speaking English. My companion, Sister Ellison and Sister Staib were the only three going strong. I snapped about an hour after dinner. I guess the stress got to me because I was in a really hyper mood and I got my companion rolling with laughter. My companion was a little frustrated with everyone else who was speaking english instead of Mongolian. She had put in her planner to be more patience. Well, I thought she was trying to be more patient because I was driving her crazy. It crushed me! I stressed about until the next night where I asked her about it. She said that the teacher had told her to study patience because she would have companions in the field that would try her patience. Man, I should have asked her earlier! Communication is very important so never assume something.
Last week at the TRC there were so many volunteers!! There was about four volunteers for every companionship (six total companions). There was also a cute little Mongolian family with a three year old baby. She was so cute!!! When I saw that family I could feel what it will be like in Mongolian. I felt a love for them even though I did not know them. It was quite exciting to feel that way.
We started our progessing investigator this week. Where one of the teachers acts like someone who is investigating the church. We adjust the lessons based on his needs and problems. We make several appointments with him and get to know him (or the person he is pretending to be). So far we taught him about God, how the gospel can bless families, prayer and a little about the Holy Ghost. That's all we had time for and he was pretending to be a Buddist so we have to start out about who God is and how to pray. We won't talk about the Restoration or the Book of Mormon until next time we teach him.
When I got my mission call, I was happy that I was learning a new language. I thought that since I was learning a new language that I wouldn't cry when bearing my testimony when speaking that language. I always, always cry or choke up when talking about my feelings and my feelings about the gospel. Well, when we were teaching the progressing investigator, I was bearing my testimony about how God can help strengthen families and how my family has been strenghtened. Man, I was choking up and it made me happy that I was! I feel like I'm more sincere when I cry. I think others can see that the gospel means a lot to me when I show my true feelings.
This week I've been reading the Old Testament. I decided to read the story about Solomon and the two women who claimed the same child. In the beginning of 1 Kings 3, Solomon is praying for wisdom and knowledge to judge and rule the country righteously. In verses six through 9 is where he asks. In verses 11 through 14 is God's answer. When I read these verses it brought to mind how we should pray and how God answers our prayers. In verses 6 and 7, Solomon shows humility, faith and realizes that his strength comes from God and how loving God is towards him and his father. Then in verse 9, Solomon is not asking for himself but for the benefit of the Lord's people. God replies in verse 11 and says that he is pleased that he asks not for himself and that he doesn't ask for riches and wealth but for spiritual things and worthy things. Then in verse 12 he says that he will answer his prayer and give him what he desires. Then in verse 13 and 14 he says that he will give him even more blessings, blessings that he didn't even ask for. Then in verse 14 he says that if Solomon is righteous he can keep this blessings that he has given him. This is how God is. He wants to bless us and to help us. He gives us more than we deserve. He has always and will always give us more than we deserve. He has blessed us with a body and the opportunity to learn and to grow and to reach our fullest potential. He sent his son to die for our sins. How hard must it have been to watch his perfect, sinless son suffer all the sins, afflictions, sorrows and sufferings of the world! But still he did not stop for he loves us and was merciful enough to give us an opportunity to return to him. He is merciful to even those who don't follow him and keep his commandments in his plan of salvation. I love my Heavenly Father so much and Jesus Christ who both love me enough to be patient with me and my weaknesses. They have blessed me with a wonderful family and wonderful friends. They have blessed me with this gospel and with the Atonement. I get the chance to take this wonderful message to the people of Mongolia who have never heard of Jesus Christ or a Heavenly Father.
The church is true, God loves you so keep the faith!
Love, Sister Sumsion
Only 3 weeks left!
Hi Everybody!!
The weeks are flying and I can't believe I leave in three weeks. Next week Monday we are only allowed to speak in Mongolian. We'll see how that goes since I only know gospel vocabulary. But our teachers tell us that it will prepare us greatly and we won't be as shocked when we get to Mongolia.
Last week at the TRC we taught the gospel which is faith, Repentance, Baptism, Gift of the Holy Ghost and Enduring to the end. For some reason, I was really excited to teach that day even though I wasn't prepared more than normal. I bore my testimony all over the place during our lesson. The lesson went well but the poor investigator was really tired and I guess my slow Mongolian put him to sleep. He kept falling asleep throughout the whole lesson. So I guess it was just my luck.
We got a new teacher this week who got home from his mission two months ago. His accent is different and takes a little to get use to. But he is really patient with us and believes in us and sees great things. The MTC is hiring another Mongolian teacher so we'll have three! But we're not sure when he comes in.
We taught English for the last time this week and it is a great feeling to kneel in prayer with people from around the world. We taught a class with people from Tonga, Panama, Honduras and Cambodia. We taught them how to teach their investigators about what happens at a baptism. I was helping the two Cambodian sisters and they are sooo cute! One was explaining to the other, "You will then be immersed in the water for one minute." I told her that it was probably only a second. She realized her mistake but then she made a joke out of it. She said, "No, actually we'll baptize you for one hour because you have many sins and it will take along time to wash them away." They both burst out laughing and so did I. I love the internationals!
Last week we had a large group meeting where we talked about a missionaries purpose, which is to baptize. The teacher said that anyone can baptize. The capacity that we have to baptize will be directly related to our preparation, obedience and our ability to teach with the spirit. How many you baptize is not preordained, it is up to the missionary. Pres. Hinckley challenged the church to double the number of baptisms. That was back in 1999 and the numbers keep dropping. People have a misguided view of agency. You can influence people and how they use their agency. If you do a good job they have more of a chance of using their agency correctly. He asked us, "Does it make any difference on how we present the gospel, YES!!" If we don't teach with the Spirit then nothing will happen because the Spirit does the conversion. If the missionaries are disobedient, the Spirit cannot be there as they teach. The Lord has promised us that the field is white and ready to harvest and that there are people out there who are looking for the truth but do not know where to find it. If we ask for the Lord's help then He can prepare a way for us to find them. So DON'T go telling anyone that they are going to a place where it is hard to baptize. If they go on their mission thinking that they can't baptize then they won't. You must encourage them to work their hardest and to follow the Spirit and be obedient and they will baptize. The field is READY for harvest. It is not a time for planting seeds, it's a time for harvesting, we just have to find them.
Quotes of the day:
Elaine S. Dalton when she came and spoke to us:
"You must be willing to give up the life you have planned, in order to have the life that is waiting for you"
"We need to value the companionship of Holy Ghost that we will never let anything get in the way of losing that companionship."
"I can do nothing of myself and cannot even do hard things. But if I rely upon the Lord and His Atonement, I cannot only do the hard things but I can do ALL THINGS."
Proverbs 3:5-6
Sister Sumstion
The weeks are flying and I can't believe I leave in three weeks. Next week Monday we are only allowed to speak in Mongolian. We'll see how that goes since I only know gospel vocabulary. But our teachers tell us that it will prepare us greatly and we won't be as shocked when we get to Mongolia.
Last week at the TRC we taught the gospel which is faith, Repentance, Baptism, Gift of the Holy Ghost and Enduring to the end. For some reason, I was really excited to teach that day even though I wasn't prepared more than normal. I bore my testimony all over the place during our lesson. The lesson went well but the poor investigator was really tired and I guess my slow Mongolian put him to sleep. He kept falling asleep throughout the whole lesson. So I guess it was just my luck.
We got a new teacher this week who got home from his mission two months ago. His accent is different and takes a little to get use to. But he is really patient with us and believes in us and sees great things. The MTC is hiring another Mongolian teacher so we'll have three! But we're not sure when he comes in.
We taught English for the last time this week and it is a great feeling to kneel in prayer with people from around the world. We taught a class with people from Tonga, Panama, Honduras and Cambodia. We taught them how to teach their investigators about what happens at a baptism. I was helping the two Cambodian sisters and they are sooo cute! One was explaining to the other, "You will then be immersed in the water for one minute." I told her that it was probably only a second. She realized her mistake but then she made a joke out of it. She said, "No, actually we'll baptize you for one hour because you have many sins and it will take along time to wash them away." They both burst out laughing and so did I. I love the internationals!
Last week we had a large group meeting where we talked about a missionaries purpose, which is to baptize. The teacher said that anyone can baptize. The capacity that we have to baptize will be directly related to our preparation, obedience and our ability to teach with the spirit. How many you baptize is not preordained, it is up to the missionary. Pres. Hinckley challenged the church to double the number of baptisms. That was back in 1999 and the numbers keep dropping. People have a misguided view of agency. You can influence people and how they use their agency. If you do a good job they have more of a chance of using their agency correctly. He asked us, "Does it make any difference on how we present the gospel, YES!!" If we don't teach with the Spirit then nothing will happen because the Spirit does the conversion. If the missionaries are disobedient, the Spirit cannot be there as they teach. The Lord has promised us that the field is white and ready to harvest and that there are people out there who are looking for the truth but do not know where to find it. If we ask for the Lord's help then He can prepare a way for us to find them. So DON'T go telling anyone that they are going to a place where it is hard to baptize. If they go on their mission thinking that they can't baptize then they won't. You must encourage them to work their hardest and to follow the Spirit and be obedient and they will baptize. The field is READY for harvest. It is not a time for planting seeds, it's a time for harvesting, we just have to find them.
Quotes of the day:
Elaine S. Dalton when she came and spoke to us:
"You must be willing to give up the life you have planned, in order to have the life that is waiting for you"
"We need to value the companionship of Holy Ghost that we will never let anything get in the way of losing that companionship."
"I can do nothing of myself and cannot even do hard things. But if I rely upon the Lord and His Atonement, I cannot only do the hard things but I can do ALL THINGS."
Proverbs 3:5-6
Sister Sumstion
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