Sons of Thunder

Hello my dearest family,

I know it's late but I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I honestly kind of forgot it was Thanksgiving, it was just another normal day here in South Africa. Although we were watching a Mormon message from President Monson on gratitude. I loved part of what he said when he talked about just pausing and recognizing the many blessings we have each and everyday. Often times we forget to recognize the small things in life because are so busy. I do the same thing! Each day is a blessing from the Lord and it was a great reminder.

I've nicknamed our companionship the Sons of Thunder hence the title of the email. My companion is such a stud and we are finding a ton of success together. We also sing quite well together so that's where I came up with the name. This past week was one of the best weeks on mission so far! First off a couple of the lessons we had were some of the most spritual experiences I've had on mission so far. On Tuesday we met with this guy named O_____ and it was only the second time missionaries met with him and my first time meeting him. We were talking about prayer and he told us how he had been praying for help from God when the next day the 2 Elders knocked on his door. After relating that story to us, I told him that was a direct answer to his prayers. We then went on to introduce the Book of Mormon to him and I had a very overwhelming feeling to challenge him to baptism. After challenging him he accepted and said he wants to change his life. We are planning on having him baptized in January  

Then last night I thought I had a dejavu moment. We went to meet this Ma who has been taught by missionaries twice. This was also my first time meeting her. We showed up late for the appointment so she just wanted to reschedule. We sat down in her home and after we scheduled an appointment we asked how she had been doing. We got to talking and eventually she started asking some questions about the Book of Mormon. Then she basically broke down and started crying, she told us about all of the challenges she has been facing and how she has earnestly been praying to God for help. She has incredible faith. I shared with her some scriptures that have really helped me in my times of trial and she was very grateful. I'm so glad that we were able to be an answer to her prayers and act as a "tender mercy" in her life. Last night we had the chance to be there for her and encourage her. The reason I say it was a dejavu moment was because the exact same situation happened in Margate with Sister P______ who 2 months later was baptized. The Lord is mindful of each of us and will always answer our prayers in His own time. Our Heavenly Father really does care about us. I love the scripture in Alma 26:37 that says the Lord is mindful of each of us and his bowels of mercy are over all of His works. I have seen this manifest time and time again and I cannot deny it. The church is so true.

There is a quote that I love that has kept me motivated, especially in times where mission kind of seems long. "Don't count the days, make the days count." Sometimes we get caught up in looking at the future instead of being happy with the now! I'm guilty of this, the more I live in the "now" the more I enjoy life. Each day is a blessing and we should never take the sun rising for granted. It reminds me a lot of that talk President Uchtdorf gave in General Conference about enjoying time now and being happy with what we have been given.

Thanks for all of your support, you all are amazing and I hope you have a great holiday season!

Love,
Elder Summers