Mother's Day call setup in real time!

On Apr 27, 2014, at 9:21 PM, Jordan Stamps Jones <jsjones@myldsmail.net> wrote:

May 11th is Mother's Day.  Please when you email your family today, find out the best time of day to make your phone call home on Mother's Day.

Sister Lynda Jensen

Mission Secretary 

Korea Seoul Mission

Office - 02-734-3653  Ext. 2

Cell - 010-9553-3794

Oh! I forgot! When should I call on Mother's Day? They just sent out the message asking.

Dear Jordan,

That sounds great!

If you will call mom's cell 1-801-891-7489 about this same time on your 11th, we will be waiting for the call, which we will receive about 9 pm on the 10th. If you have access to Skype or another video chat we will try to facilitate that as well. Does that work for you calling on Sunday the 11th about this time?

9:15p I will let them know and hopefully it works out. I have no idea how they are doing this... Thank you for replying quickly!

9:32p I think it will work, but I don't think we'll know for sure until next week... sorry....

9:37p Thank you for being available! I look forward to getting the news to you next week!

Press forward with steadfast faith in Christ.

Best wishes,

Elder Jones

Week 20 (from Jordan)

Great to hear from you all! That was definitely the most creative email I have seen in a while. I only hope I can live up to it!

Things continue to go well. Transfer calls were Saturday. The whole district is staying. We did have that baptism yesterday. It went well, though our branch-iness showed. We had one RM give the opening prayer for sacrament meeting, bless the sacrament, give a talk, and then share his testimony at the baptism immediately following sacrament. The investigator also thought the water was deeper than it was. He ended up getting a bunch of water up his nose because he was surprised when he didn't reached the water immediately... It turned out alright. He is going back to Taiwan for a week today. We're getting in touch with the missionaries down there to make sure they contact him. He will be confirmed in 2 weeks, the Sunday after he returns. I have not yet met a Sister Hales. I am in the smallest area in one of the smaller zones, though. The sisters in our area are Sister 등 (Taiwan) and Sister 구 (Korea). Not quite a Sister Hales...

We mainly meet students on the street or on campuses when we go proselyte there. I haven't seen a great increase in interest about the Plan of Salvation, but, apparently, they discussed death the whole hour in advanced English class Saturday. I was in Beginning, so I don't know what happened exactly. I don't think any of the branch members were affected. I don't think there are any kids that age, but I am sure there were some in the stake. I think we'll hear about that at zone conference.

I have not yet heard about Comic Con, but I am happy to hear everyone had a good time!How does Hannah feel about being in the newspaper? It seems like Easter was fun, too. I guess the days of hiding eggs are over. How is the weather? We are switching between really hot and raining mildly currently. Wish Sarah good luck on the job and tell Rachel to do her best work on that lawn ;) Where will you donate the van?

It's good to hear FHE going strong. I look forward to reading that thought from Sister Urton. I can only imagine how good it was and how good the Easter talks were by Brother Travis and Sister Christensen. Tell them both that they are loved. Also, on a lighter note, I got a haircut a week ago... I miss Kelli's. She's really good at what she does.

Thank you for everything and if there is anything I can do to help, please let me know! I am working on sending pictures and letters, but there is not much time for mail... We can only do it when we are near the post office and not proselyting, so... not very often... Whatever the case, thank you, and I look forward to hearing about how things are next week!

Press forward with steadfast faith in Christ.

Best wishes,

Elder Jones

Week 20: To Jordan

Dear Jordan,


One score weeks and (on Monday, P-day) 4 days ago, our Jordan went forth from this house on a new mission, conceived in virtue, dedicated with the proposition that all men are children of God.

Now he is engaged in a great spiritual war, testing whether that man, or any missionary so conceived and dedicated can long endure. He is now met on that battlefield of Korea. He has come to that place to dedicate his life so that others may live in Christ. It is altogether proper and fitting for him to do this.

But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men and women living but spiritually dead, who struggle there, have a willingness to consecrate their lives, poor in spirit and waiting for power from above. The world will little note, nor long remember what he says there, but the people will not forget what he does there. It is for us the spiritually living to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which our ancestors have so nobly advanced. It is for Jordan with us supporting him to be there dedicated to the great work remaining before him, that from these our honored ancestors and ward members he takes increased devotion to the cause for which he can give his full measure of devotion, that he there highly resolves that the spiritually dead shall live again, that his nation (Korea), under God, shall have a new birth by baptism, and that the true church of God, by the prophets, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth.


Hope it wasn't too much.


We hope you are doing well and that you are healthy and safe. Thank you for your email and the information on how your mission is going. It is great to hear specific information rather than generalities. My director at work asked me if you have met a Sister Hales. She is the daughter of the division director (my boss's, boss's, boss). I told him that you had two sister missionaries in your district but that I didn't know much more than that. Please let me know if you have met her.


Did you have a baptism this weekend or is it scheduled soon? Since it sounds like you are teaching mainly students, where do you generally meet them? Has the ferry tragedy increased questions about the plan of salvation? Were any of the members affected directly by it? Have you had a chance to provide support?


We are doing well. I am sure that mom or the girls let you know how much they enjoyed Comic Con. Hannah was quoted in the newspaper. Easter was good. Everyone received a chocolate bunny. Bekah dyed 24 eggs and then we ate several of them at Robert's house but we made them into deviled eggs first. The girls enjoyed their Spring Break. Sarah will have this Friday off from school but she will probably spend most of the day watching movies. Before she can watch anything she has to do 5 chores. It seems to be working out. She may apply for a summer job at the dollar theater. Rachel has picked up mowing grandma's lawn. Sarah helped her this last Saturday. The van won't start so we will probably donate it if we can find the car title.

The ward family home evening was at the Tenny's house. We had the Tenny's, part of our family, the Urton's, the Herbert-Voss's, Scott Nelson and his kids, and the Clawson's. Sister Urton gave the thought. I will see if she can send it to me so I can send it to you. It was about a professor who was converted to the gospel in Germany.


At church, Kelli Christensen and Tony Travis spoke about the resurrection. It was quite moving. We have stake conference this coming weekend. We will have a visiting general authority, Elder Nash. He came a couple of years ago. When I was trying to find some information about your mission president, there was an article about Elder Nash visiting Korea.


Well, you can't spend all day reading my email, so I will sign off.

We love you very much. You are great and you are doing a great work. Keep working and following the Spirit.


Love,
Dad, Mom, Sarah, Hannah, Rachel, Bekah

From Grandpa Stamps

Keep up the good work. Glad to hear you are reading in Korean, learn to use Korean examples in your teaching. Glad to see the Chinese is useful.

Learn to know the names of those local spots.
We are all saddened by the accident.
Keep up the good work.
Grandpa Stamps

Week 19 (from Jordan)

To: Steven Jones <sajmba2002@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Week 19 - Close Encounters of the Missionary Kind

Thank you for the email! I did hear about the accident from a less-active member a few days ago. We ended up cancelling a branch party because of it. That was a bit of a bummer, but it seems like people are handling it well. There are fewer and fewer people looking dejected in the streets.

 

I hope everyone enjoyed Easter! We actually didn't know it was yesterday until some kids from another church came and gave us eggs... That was a little embarrassing... Other than some extra activity around churches and people carrying boiled eggs, there isn't really anything different about this week. The weather is getting pretty warm now, though. That makes is a little difficult to proselyte outside for a long time, but we're going to get white shirts today, so it'll work out.

 

It sounds like everyone will be doing/has done a lot of fun stuff! How did the BYU fair go? How was Comic Con? It's good to hear Bekah doesn't have scoliosis! Did you end up doing anything on Saturday? How did the eggs turn out this year? We didn't do anything special for Easter largely because of the ferry accident, but we did have the best Sunday ever despite that. We were out cleaning in front of the church (as usual for Sunday) and a family walks up to us and asks if this is "the church." Naturally we said, "yes" and asked where they were from. It turns out they are a member family on vacation from Hong Kong. It worked out extra well because we had Zack, our investigator from Taiwan, coming to church and they hit it off immediately. For the first hour of church we watched "The Testaments" in Chinese. The only dry eyes in the room were the eyes of some missionaries. It was great. Then, by the end of church, the dad of the family had recommitted Zack to baptism next week (he was already excited) and explained baptisms for the dead and some temple work. It was fantastic!

 

It sounds like the ward mission is going really well! I hope things keep going so well! I am also glad to hear that ward FHE is still going! We had that when I arrived, but we haven't had it since because no one has time for it. In a branch of 30 people, that doesn't take much... I really hope you get to keep doing that and that investigators get to make it. Sorry to hear about your walking, but at least it's good for you! I can testify of that! It is also exciting to hear mom doing more classes. I'm sure she's having a blast. It's probably also a bit stressful, but I'm sure she's doing great things :)

 

Still no word on Mother's Day; we're working on finding that out. The holiday still hasn't been mentioned in the weekly email...I don't have any questions as of yet, but I will think and get back to you on that.

 

We were teaching between 9 and 16 people, but now it is midterms/finals, so no one can meet. We're going to be trying for street lessons on college campuses between classes...

 

I don't have a favorite lesson, but the easiest is the first because of all the extra practice.

 

The only approach that has really had any success is: saying hello, being personable, bringing up the gospel or the fact we're missionaries naturally(!), share a principle, and invite them to learn more. Most people don't make it past the third step, but not everyone wants to talk in the first place either.

 

Zack: next week. Found the end of last transfer. Been reading the BoM every day since he got it 3 weeks ago (in Alma 20s!). He's really prepared to say the least.

 

There was the church historian a few weeks ago, but we were late and so sat in the back so we couldn't really hear anything... There is a mission tour this week by the area authority, though.

 

I think 비빔밥 remains my favorite so far. I'm reading in Korean, but we don't have much time for either... I have started reading PMG in Korean, though.

 

We haven't done much sightseeing, but we have gone to 동대문 and the palace at the center of Seoul. I forgot the name...

 

All the members are great, but the ward mission leader is especially hard working.

 

I hope that answers your questions. I thank you for your email and look forward to hearing from you again. Hopefully by then I will have information on Mother's Day...

 

Press forward with steadfast faith in Christ.

 

Best wishes,
Elder Jones

Week 19 (To Jordan): Close Encounters of the Missionary Kind

Dear Jordan,

 

Heard about the ferry accident today in South Korea. You might not even have heard about it. Hopefully there will be more survivors.

 

To answer your question, McCoy will be quarterback at BYU in a year or two.

Your last email sounded very animated/excited. Other than losing weight, we hope that you are doing well. We are doing okay. The girls are enjoying their week off. They have had a couple of sleep overs, they have slept in, and have been putting off their homework. Rachel goes to BYU tomorrow morning for the Chinese language fair. Hannah and Rachel will go with Ben to Comic Con on Friday. Robert wants to get together on Saturday. Sunday is Easter. Are there many or any celebrations of Easter in South Korea? Down in Ecuador, they had different activities for the different days including putting the ash on the forehead on Ash Wednesday. On Friday they would actually have volunteers be crucified but they wouldn't be killed. They would go through all of the different steps that are recorded in the Bible. I never saw the actual activity but it was always in the newspaper. Interestingly, there weren't any additional activities on Sunday except to attend mass. One of the two or three times that active religious people would attend (Easter, Christmas, and weddings/funerals/etc) in the other churches.

 

Tonight I will be going with the missionaries to teach the Dravid's family. They are the ones living on Sego Lily at the curve of the street. They are still teaching Kelton Neeley but they are on vacation for a week. They will start teaching a 9 year old in the house next to Pete's by Sego Lily. We will have the ward Family Home Evening on Monday and Sister Urton wants to present the lesson. I will get to buy ice cream and treats this weekend. Woo hoo.

 

Bonni still wants one of the girls to go to Denver this summer to help with her family. We will see if it will be Rachel or Hannah. Bonni still doesn't know when Chris will be returning from Afghanistan. I forwarded the email from Dallin. It was interesting to see how his current mission is different than Brazil.

 

Mom is teaching 4 classes in the evening so I get to ride the train to TRAX to a bus and then walk about a mile to get home on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Bekah finished her swimming class and according to the doctor, she does not have scoliosis (curved spine) 척추 측만증 (cheogchu cheugmanjeung). How close is the translation? or should I try 脊柱側彎 (Jǐzhù cè wān)?

Any word about Mother's Day yet?

 

Do you have a list of questions that you want to send us so that we will be prepared?

 

How may people are you teaching?

What is your favorite lesson?

Which approach has worked best for you to meet people?

Are there any investigators that are getting close to baptism?

Have you had any visiting General Authorities yet?

Have you had a favorite Korean meal?

Are you reading the Book of Mormon in Korean and Chinese out loud?

Have you done any sightseeing on your P-day? If so, where did you go and what did you do?

Do you have some favorite members in your area? Please tell us about them.

I did a Google search (you can stop giggling now) on your mission president. Unfortunately, there wasn't much out there. He will be your president until June of 2015 and then you will have a new president. Does he give you any counsel?

Fun things from the internet for your mission:

LOCAL LINGO

당근이지 [ dang-geun-i-ji ]- literally: It is carrot. Locally: You bet/Absolutely

거기 물 좋다. [ geo-gi-mul-jo-ta ] literally: Pure water. Locally: That place rocks! (maybe when talking about church??)

썰렁하군. [ sseol-leong-ha-gun ] Literally: It’s cold/empty. Locally: That’s a lame joke.

부카니스탄. [ bu-ka-nis-tan ] Slang term for referring to North Korea.

안녕하세요? Ahnyoung-ha-seyo, “Are you at peace?” (Greetings, Good morning, good day, hello)
반갑습니다. Pan-gap-sum-nida. “Nice to meet you.”
수고하세요. Soogo-ha-seyo, “Go work hard.” (Appropriate parting phrase)
좋은 하루 되세요. Cho-un haru dwa-seyo, “Have a good day.”
감사합니다. Kam-sa-ham-nida. “Thank you.”
예수 그리스도 후기 성도 교회. Ye-su Ku-ri-su-do Hoo-gi Sungdo Kyo-hway, “Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints”
선교사. Sun-kyo-sa. “Missionary”
한국. Hangook “Korea”
대한민국. Dae-han-min-gook “The Great United Beautiful Country” (Full name of Korea)
화이팅! Hwa-ee-ting! “Fighting!” (Go team! Huzzah! Yay!)

We love you and continue to pray for you. You are great!

 

Love,

Bekah, dad, Mom, Sarah, Hannah, Rachel

Week 18 (response to dad)

Hey everyone!

 

It seems like everyone is doing really well back home! I hope things continue to go well, and I look forward to hearing about the fun and growth you are experiencing! I am so excited to hear about Reilly and Brian's calls and I know they will be incredible! Any idea what position McCoy will be playing at BYU? Apparently my trainer's trainer is there as a... full back I think.... tell Sarah to have fun at Prom and mom to take pictures ;)

 

I am happy to hear that everyone enjoyed conference! I have been able to see all of the sessions, but one was in Chinese, so I didn't get very much from that one... I was busy contacting potential investigators... It was wierd only having an hour between each of the sessions instead of two, but I think it made things connect together just a bit better. The session I missed was the Sunday morning session which is always a really good one, so I look forward to watching that when we have time (probably over a few meals).

 

It seems like you and mom had a great time down in St. George! What was the conference on? It seems like you had the best time at the temple unsuprisingly :) It is always good to spend time at the temple. It is so incredible that there are so many so close to home. I can only imagine the struggle some people have gone through to get to the temple. It is staggering.

 

Say "hello" to Sarah for me and to everyone else! I look forward to hearing about how Comic-con is this year. I don't know if there is anything big happening... I am a little out of the loop (which is fine). I hope they have a great time there!

 

Yes, most of the missionaries in our mission now have been out for less than a year. Those who have been out for more than that are in leadership positions and so are a little more difficult to contact than those in the district, but I am still working on finding that information for you.

 

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We pray for you and hope that everything continues to go well. I am always so happy to hear about how everyone is doing and I can't wait to (at least) hear your voices next month!

 

Keep praying, Keep reading your scriptures. Keep doing what you know is right. Work hard in doing what's right because I am convinced that God helps you in an exponential relationship with how much work you put in. Much love.

Press forward with steadfast faith in Christ.

Best wishes,

Elder Jones