So I forgot to mention a couple of things last week - we've had a couple of CRAZY storms out here. Like, close to hurricane status. It was absolutely insane, and it reminded me of monsoon season back home. The summer weather here really varies...some days, it will rain all day, other days it will be blisteringly hot, other days it's cloudy and overcast, but really really humid. It makes life interesting, I suppose. And the other thing was that on my birthday, Elder Langford went behind my back and told our dinner appointment that it was my birthday. After dinner, they surprised me with cake, candles, and ice cream. It was so great - my companion is legit. Just saying.
I woke up on Tuesday and realized it was July 24th - Pioneer Day! I got excited and wondered what was going to be going on that day...I then realized that I'm in Massachusetts, and Pioneer Day is only a Utah state holiday that sometimes people in Arizona take part in. Oops.
Trainings and interviews with Pres. Packard were AWESOME this last week. He's an incredible, divinely-inspired man. He's got some really great visions for this mission, and I'm excited for it all! He's putting a huge front on working with the members to help them do missionary work (I'll come back to this topic in a moment) and he also wants us to become a "Book of Mormon mission" and to be "Book of Mormon missionaries" - we've been applying the principles he shared, and we've already noticed a difference! It's amazing. As I walked out of my interview with him, he gave me a very short piece of personalized advice that didn't really have anything to do with what we had talked about together. I'm convinced that he's been called by God and is inspired of Him in everything he does as our mission president.
We had a little phone conference with all the Cambodian-speaking missionaries in the mission this last weekend...all 6 of us. The reason being that the Water Festival is coming up next month! It's a HUGE Cambodian event, and Cambodians from across the country come to Lowell, MA for it. Every year, the Cambodian missionaries have a booth, and we get to basically proselyte there the whole day. It's going to be so awesome! So we're doing our best to coordinate efforts and make this all work!
Yesterday, our ward focused sacrament meeting as well as the combined 3rd hour on sharing the gospel with others. I was asked by the bishopric to speak in sacrament meeting, and then Elder Langford and I taught the 3rd hour, using principles from the Member Missionary Lessons, which were designed by Clayton Christensen (a member of our stake and the former Dean of the Harvard Business School) to help members in their missionary efforts. Both my talk and our lesson went very, very well, and now Elder Langford and I have a bunch of appointments in the next few weeks with members to teach more of the lessons! I love the push that has come from our ward mission leader, as well as our mission president, to focus on member missionary work. I'm so excited to see our ward progress and share the gospel with others!
Frank baptized his son David yesterday! It was unbelievable. I loved being there to see my most recent convert, worthily exercising the Aaronic Priesthood to baptize his son, who just turned 8 last week. It was really, really special to see. It's funny how the people you share the gospel with seem to work their way into your heart. I feel like this whole new compartment of my heart opened up that I didn't know was there, and I love these people and their families all the more. As I've helped them come closer to Christ, I've come closer to Him as well. This whole mission is a life-changing experience, and I'm so grateful, honored, humbled, and downright happy to be a part of it.
Elder DeLong
Monday, July 30, 2012
Monday, July 23, 2012
20 Years Young! ;]
I'm no longer a teenager! I'm officially 20 now! It's kind of strange to think about...okay, it's REALLY weird to think about. But at the same time, I like it a lot. I feel like this birthday was a major one for me, and a turning point in my life. All the changes I'm making to do my best to become more Christlike are starting to solidify, and I can finally begin that journey towards my eternal goal. It's a lifelong journey, but hey, every journey begins with a single footstep, right? =]
We've been having to do a car-share with the Lynn Spanish Elders, and that's been fun. It's been cool to be a walking missionary every couple days - I feel like I'm finally fulfilling the stereotyped missionary image. We might be getting bikes, actually...so that'll be even better! In all seriousness though, I am honored to be one of the Lord's servants. It's an amazing feeling to have people honk at you, curse at you, tell you to leave them alone, or just plain ignore you - yeah, it's a bummer that we don't get to share the gospel with them, but in a way, we are! They know who we are, and what we stand for. And I get to be one of "those crazy Mormons" for a couple years. I LOVE this. Being a missionary is the greatest. =D
Our investigators are doing very well, I'd say, especially Atong. She's from Sudan, and she's just about ready for baptism. Last week we taught her the Law of Chastity, and the week before we taught her the Word of Wisdom. She has so much faith, and she took right to these commandments with all her heart. She gave up tea and right there on the spot, and the next week told us she was done with her boyfriend unless he respected God's word (the word from her is that he does!) - she's a young, single mom, and she's just awesome.
I'm learning Spanish! Sort of. I've contacted a few people on the street and even got a referral for the Spanish-speaking sisters in Revere! It's been crazy, and I've gotten some nice compliments from other missionaries and native speakers on the quality of my Spanish, even though I don't know a whole lot.
Frank passed the sacrament yesterday! And his son David just turned 8 - he'll be getting baptized next week. =]
We have interviews with Pres. Packard this week, and I'm very excited to get some one-on-one time with him. This will actually be my first "official" interview with a mission president on my mission.
Thanks to everyone for their birthday wishes, cards, and presents. Much love to you all!
Elder DeLong
We've been having to do a car-share with the Lynn Spanish Elders, and that's been fun. It's been cool to be a walking missionary every couple days - I feel like I'm finally fulfilling the stereotyped missionary image. We might be getting bikes, actually...so that'll be even better! In all seriousness though, I am honored to be one of the Lord's servants. It's an amazing feeling to have people honk at you, curse at you, tell you to leave them alone, or just plain ignore you - yeah, it's a bummer that we don't get to share the gospel with them, but in a way, we are! They know who we are, and what we stand for. And I get to be one of "those crazy Mormons" for a couple years. I LOVE this. Being a missionary is the greatest. =D
Our investigators are doing very well, I'd say, especially Atong. She's from Sudan, and she's just about ready for baptism. Last week we taught her the Law of Chastity, and the week before we taught her the Word of Wisdom. She has so much faith, and she took right to these commandments with all her heart. She gave up tea and right there on the spot, and the next week told us she was done with her boyfriend unless he respected God's word (the word from her is that he does!) - she's a young, single mom, and she's just awesome.
I'm learning Spanish! Sort of. I've contacted a few people on the street and even got a referral for the Spanish-speaking sisters in Revere! It's been crazy, and I've gotten some nice compliments from other missionaries and native speakers on the quality of my Spanish, even though I don't know a whole lot.
Frank passed the sacrament yesterday! And his son David just turned 8 - he'll be getting baptized next week. =]
We have interviews with Pres. Packard this week, and I'm very excited to get some one-on-one time with him. This will actually be my first "official" interview with a mission president on my mission.
Thanks to everyone for their birthday wishes, cards, and presents. Much love to you all!
Elder DeLong
Monday, July 16, 2012
WE FINALLY HAVE CAMBODIAN INVESTIGATORS!!!
This picture was taken right before transfers last week. (Me, Elder Langford, Elder Swayse, and Elder __________) Elder Swayse transferred from our apartment to CT.
If you can't tell from the subject of this email, I'm pretty excited for our new investigators! I already talked about the Cambodian family we started teaching (the husband and wife are named Pat and Phoeun), and we also have another new investigator named Nuen. Of course, those names aren't actually spelled like that. I'm doing the best I can to put them into English! Yesterday, we brought Bro. and Sis. Sen (the only active Cambodian members in our ward) to our lesson with Pat and Phoeun, it was pretty great! It was wonderful to hear Sis. Sen's testimony of the Book of Mormon. I may get frustrated at my efforts to master this language, but I'm loving it more and more!
ALL of our progressing investigators came to church yesterday, along with a couple who aren't exactly progressing yet. It was awesome to have everyone there! A couple of our new investigators accepted baptismal dates as well! One is a woman from Morocco named Hafsania, and another is a 9-year-old boy named Sergio - his dad is an inactive member who is turning his life around, and now his son wants to learn and be baptized! =D
Darline had us over for dinner last night - it's so great to see her and her son flourishing as new members of the Church. They had two or three other families over as well - it was practically a party, with a TON of traditional Haitian food. We had a good time, and I'm excited to see them continue to progress.
I'm learning so much about life, about myself, about our Savior, and about the gospel. I'm finally learning how to grow and improve and change to be the man that our Heavenly Father wants and needs me to be. Most of the credit for this goes to the Spirit of course, but a large chunk goes to my companion, Elder Langford. I am learning so much from him, and the both of us are really growing. I'm technically his trainer, but I forget that most of the time. I'm grateful for the opportunity to grow into the man, missionary, and eventually husband and father that I'm supposed to be. Often times I feel like this mission is as much to help me as it is to help these children of God whom I have the privilege to serve.
Best wishes and much love,
Elder DeLong
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Welcome to the Packards!
Pres. and Sis. Packard are pretty awesome - I'm excited to have them and their family here in our mission! We got to meet them last Thursday. Their oldest son Brent is in the MTC right now, and will be serving his mission in Chile. Next is Angela, who has hydrocephalus and cerebral palsy - she reminded me so much of my sister, Keira. The two of them are even the same age. Angela can walk and talk and read well, so she's not quite like Keira, but I felt a very similar, special spirit about her, the same way I feel around Keira. The next youngest is Natalie, who is in high school, and she's the musically talented one. She plays piano very well, and is involved in plays and gymnastics and dance. Their youngest son, Michael, is pretty awesome. He can break-dance like nobody's business! When we got to meet each of them in person after the meeting, he read my nametag and gave me a big hug - my heart melted everywhere. He reminds me of my own little brothers. Needless to say, I missed my family a bit more than usual on Thursday. It was great getting to know them all, especially Pres. Packard. He was talking to us and I found myself loving him as my mission president already. I also received a spiritual confirmation that he's been called of God. I'm sure some of the missionaries are having a hard time switching their loyalties from Pres. Evans to Pres. Packard, but it's not a problem for me. Meeting him in person, I just knew - he had the same look of care and spirituality that Pres. Evans had, and that my old stake president (Pres. Gulbrandsen, who is actually currently a mission president in Argentina) had.
The 4th of July was INSANE here. We didn't have any teaching appointments, so we basically tracted and contacted people all day. It was cool to try and overcome my fears of talking to people, and I think I've finally made some progress! We then had dinner on the beach with a member family, and then changed into "street clothes" and headed down into Boston for the fireworks! We got to see part of the Boston Pops concert, including a performance from Jennifer Hudson! The fireworks were awesome, of course...and then it started pouring rain. We got soaked, and the fireworks went on, unhindered. It was a really great time! It was so packed with people though, it was NUTS trying to get out of there. The T stations were packed and we didn't get home until about 12:50 AM...we went right to bed.
We have a bunch of new investigators, as well as 3 who are actively progressing towards baptism. The work continues to move forward. Sometimes I feel like I'm just being dragged along for the ride without much effort on my part. I feel so honored and blessed to be here. I'm loving life as a missionary! It's been 7 months now and it keeps getting better.
Transfer texts came in this week - Elder Langford and I are still here (he's technically still being trained by me, but I don't consider him a "greenie" by any means), but Elder Swasey got transferred to the Rosindale/Dorchester/Quincy area of Boston. I'm sad to see him go, but it's not like I'll never see him again. It's just weird - he's been in our apartment since day 1 for me! Elder Castellano is coming to replace him, so at least we'll have someone who I know in our apartment.
I had a surprise visitor in our ward on Sunday - my stepuncle and his family were on a vacation in Boston, and my mom sent them my way. It was cool to see them and meet their family. To be honest, I don't really know them that well, but it was still cool that they came out to see me. Definitely unexpected, though!
Elder Langford has been under the weather the past couple days, and I'm starting to feel it a little bit...I should have known it was only a matter of time before I got sick, too. Good thing today's P-day. Nap time, anyone?
I had my first lobster roll yesterday - it was SO good! You know, I really hated seafood before I came out here, but now I love it. Clam chowder, lobster, mussels, even just fish and chips. Living in New England has given me a real appreciation for good seafood.
One of the most amazing parts about being a missionary is being completely guided by the Spirit (or seeing your companion act under spiritual guidance) and knowing that you were in the right place, doing the right thing, at the right time. It's incredible to be an instrument in the hand of the Lord as we take part in His work. I feel honored to be here and to feel His guidance in my life. I hope and pray that I can learn and grow as much as I'm supposed to, that I can help those who the Lord puts in my path during my 2 years, and that I can remain as strong and active as a missionary even after I'm released.
"May your wisdom be your armor, your compassion be your sword, may your strength be forged with mercy, your courage, lives restore."
Elder DeLong
The 4th of July was INSANE here. We didn't have any teaching appointments, so we basically tracted and contacted people all day. It was cool to try and overcome my fears of talking to people, and I think I've finally made some progress! We then had dinner on the beach with a member family, and then changed into "street clothes" and headed down into Boston for the fireworks! We got to see part of the Boston Pops concert, including a performance from Jennifer Hudson! The fireworks were awesome, of course...and then it started pouring rain. We got soaked, and the fireworks went on, unhindered. It was a really great time! It was so packed with people though, it was NUTS trying to get out of there. The T stations were packed and we didn't get home until about 12:50 AM...we went right to bed.
We have a bunch of new investigators, as well as 3 who are actively progressing towards baptism. The work continues to move forward. Sometimes I feel like I'm just being dragged along for the ride without much effort on my part. I feel so honored and blessed to be here. I'm loving life as a missionary! It's been 7 months now and it keeps getting better.
Transfer texts came in this week - Elder Langford and I are still here (he's technically still being trained by me, but I don't consider him a "greenie" by any means), but Elder Swasey got transferred to the Rosindale/Dorchester/Quincy area of Boston. I'm sad to see him go, but it's not like I'll never see him again. It's just weird - he's been in our apartment since day 1 for me! Elder Castellano is coming to replace him, so at least we'll have someone who I know in our apartment.
I had a surprise visitor in our ward on Sunday - my stepuncle and his family were on a vacation in Boston, and my mom sent them my way. It was cool to see them and meet their family. To be honest, I don't really know them that well, but it was still cool that they came out to see me. Definitely unexpected, though!
Elder Langford has been under the weather the past couple days, and I'm starting to feel it a little bit...I should have known it was only a matter of time before I got sick, too. Good thing today's P-day. Nap time, anyone?
I had my first lobster roll yesterday - it was SO good! You know, I really hated seafood before I came out here, but now I love it. Clam chowder, lobster, mussels, even just fish and chips. Living in New England has given me a real appreciation for good seafood.
One of the most amazing parts about being a missionary is being completely guided by the Spirit (or seeing your companion act under spiritual guidance) and knowing that you were in the right place, doing the right thing, at the right time. It's incredible to be an instrument in the hand of the Lord as we take part in His work. I feel honored to be here and to feel His guidance in my life. I hope and pray that I can learn and grow as much as I'm supposed to, that I can help those who the Lord puts in my path during my 2 years, and that I can remain as strong and active as a missionary even after I'm released.
"May your wisdom be your armor, your compassion be your sword, may your strength be forged with mercy, your courage, lives restore."
Elder DeLong
Monday, July 2, 2012
Happy 4th of July!!
I'm not 100% sure what our plans are for the 4th, but I know we get to stay out later than normal and see fireworks! We'll have to ask the members where the best place to go is. =D
Last P-day we went to the New England Aquarium, which was pretty cool. We also went to Quincy Market again, and I had my first ever authentic New England clam chowder...it was pretty dang good!
One of our investigators moved to North Carolina, so we had to gingerly hand him off to the missionaries there. Hopefully they'll pick him up and continue teaching him. He's so ready for the gospel; I just hope that he doesn't get "lost" in the midst of everything those missionaries are doing.
We are now teaching Esther's husband, Arnold! It's so great to be able to teach families and see how they draw closer together and closer to the Lord through the gospel. =]
Elder Langford and I are having a GREAT time out here. This is the first companion I've had that I've really felt close to. He's not just a companion, he's a friend, and I'm thankful for that. It certainly helps us do the work, both in the fun times and in the serious times.
We randomly got invited to a Cambodian BBQ on Saturday - an active Cambodian member from the city of Lowell called us and invited us to come - she and several others were going to be driving down to Lynn for it. We got there, and I couldn't believe it. There were SO many Cambodians!!! It was so great to be immersed in the culture for a while. I had duck meat for the first time, it was really good. Elder Langford ate a duck head, actually - brains, eyes, and all. Just grill it up, and it's ready to be eaten, apparently. We should have gotten a picture of it. =P
No new Cambodian investigators from that, unfortunately, but we tried. It was an awesome experience anyway!
Church yesterday was great - Frank got up and bore an incredible testimony. Then Damari got up and bore hers in Swahili (I love hearing her pray or speak!) and Frank translated for her. She knows English, but is much more comfortable speaking in Swahili. There was a new deacon in our ward who will be visiting here for the summer, and Hans took him under his wing and showed him around. I was so proud of him! And THEN, Frank received the Aaronic Priesthood during Elders' Quorum. It's especially exciting because his son, David, turns 8 this month, and this means that Frank is going to be able to be the one to baptize him! =D
As a mission in our companionships, we're reading the Book of Mormon on a schedule. Yesterday, we finished Moroni 10. Elder Langford and I decided to take Moroni's challenge, even though we both already knew it was true. As promised, God gave us an additional witness of the truth of the Book of Mormon and of this great work that we are in. I felt this sense of peace, assurance, and confidence come over me, and then I felt a literal swelling within me. It was an amazing shared spiritual experience that we were privileged to have together. My sense of purpose as a missionary has been renewed and strengthened, and I feel honored to be a part of this glorious work!
We now have a new mission president. Pres. and Sis. Evans left the mission this weekend, and Pres. and Sis. Packard took over starting yesterday. While we miss Pres. and Sis. Evans very much already, we welcome Pres. and Sis. Packard with open hearts and open arms. I'm excited to get to know them - we'll be meeting them this Thursday!
Much love and Godspeed!
"No unhallowed hand shall stop the work from progressing..."
=]
Love,
Elder DeLong
Last P-day we went to the New England Aquarium, which was pretty cool. We also went to Quincy Market again, and I had my first ever authentic New England clam chowder...it was pretty dang good!
One of our investigators moved to North Carolina, so we had to gingerly hand him off to the missionaries there. Hopefully they'll pick him up and continue teaching him. He's so ready for the gospel; I just hope that he doesn't get "lost" in the midst of everything those missionaries are doing.
We are now teaching Esther's husband, Arnold! It's so great to be able to teach families and see how they draw closer together and closer to the Lord through the gospel. =]
Elder Langford and I are having a GREAT time out here. This is the first companion I've had that I've really felt close to. He's not just a companion, he's a friend, and I'm thankful for that. It certainly helps us do the work, both in the fun times and in the serious times.
We randomly got invited to a Cambodian BBQ on Saturday - an active Cambodian member from the city of Lowell called us and invited us to come - she and several others were going to be driving down to Lynn for it. We got there, and I couldn't believe it. There were SO many Cambodians!!! It was so great to be immersed in the culture for a while. I had duck meat for the first time, it was really good. Elder Langford ate a duck head, actually - brains, eyes, and all. Just grill it up, and it's ready to be eaten, apparently. We should have gotten a picture of it. =P
No new Cambodian investigators from that, unfortunately, but we tried. It was an awesome experience anyway!
Church yesterday was great - Frank got up and bore an incredible testimony. Then Damari got up and bore hers in Swahili (I love hearing her pray or speak!) and Frank translated for her. She knows English, but is much more comfortable speaking in Swahili. There was a new deacon in our ward who will be visiting here for the summer, and Hans took him under his wing and showed him around. I was so proud of him! And THEN, Frank received the Aaronic Priesthood during Elders' Quorum. It's especially exciting because his son, David, turns 8 this month, and this means that Frank is going to be able to be the one to baptize him! =D
As a mission in our companionships, we're reading the Book of Mormon on a schedule. Yesterday, we finished Moroni 10. Elder Langford and I decided to take Moroni's challenge, even though we both already knew it was true. As promised, God gave us an additional witness of the truth of the Book of Mormon and of this great work that we are in. I felt this sense of peace, assurance, and confidence come over me, and then I felt a literal swelling within me. It was an amazing shared spiritual experience that we were privileged to have together. My sense of purpose as a missionary has been renewed and strengthened, and I feel honored to be a part of this glorious work!
We now have a new mission president. Pres. and Sis. Evans left the mission this weekend, and Pres. and Sis. Packard took over starting yesterday. While we miss Pres. and Sis. Evans very much already, we welcome Pres. and Sis. Packard with open hearts and open arms. I'm excited to get to know them - we'll be meeting them this Thursday!
Much love and Godspeed!
"No unhallowed hand shall stop the work from progressing..."
=]
Love,
Elder DeLong
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