Week #35

So first the update on our investigators:

Janet and Kenneth have been sick and we haven't heard from them. We have knocked on their door a few times and have called a few times and have had no response. I'm really hoping that they're doing okay. I'm pretty worried that they are avoiding us now and are no longer interested. Makes me really sad to see people come so close to the gospel and then fall away from it! We are going to do all we can to get in contact with them and hopefully they are doing okay.

Misty is doing really great! We went over to see her with a member and she loved our visit! She said that she really wants to come to the Mormon church because she knows that it is the only church that can help her be happy. I'm not sure how much she really knows about the Gospel but the fact that she has a desire to know if it is true is all she needs to develop a solid, unshakable testimony. We are going to see her this week again and will teach her the Restoration in depth. I'm really excited for that lesson.

Jennifer is doing great as well. We weren't able to see her this week because her daughter is sick but we're going to see her this week. She is definitely interested in what we are teaching her. So far she has struggled with keeping commitments but she said that she was going to start reading the Book of Mormon so we'll see if she was able to do that. 

Our most solid investigator right now is Terry. He is AMAZING! He came to church again yesterday and stayed for the baptism of a girl in the ward! He said that he felt the spirit really strong when he was at the baptism. He is working towards being baptized on the 2nd of April. Please keep him in your prayers. 

Thanks for the idea of inviting our investigators to conference, especially the women to the women's broadcast! That will be a huge testimony booster for them! I am getting so excited for conference coming up! I always love hearing what the prophet and apostles have to say. I always feel spiritually regenerated after each session! General Conference is almost like Christmas as a missionary and the best part is, you only have to wait 6 months for it instead of a whole year! 

Man I miss the family! I have been thinking a lot about you guys this last week for some reason. I wish that I could've gone on the trip with you guys! It's a little bit crazy to me that I've never met baby Noah! He's the cutest little bugger ever! I want to give him a big hug! 

This week was really great. We had a lot of success here in the Ashland area... The best area in the entire Nation, Maybe the WORLD!! I love you guys so much! Hope you have a great week! 

Love, Jack

Week #34

 We had a little bit of an interesting week. So it started out with us trying to see Janet and Kenneth but they weren't answering their door which never happens! I was honestly worried that Janet finished the Book of Mormon and then decided that it wasn't true! But it turns out they are super sick! Janet said that she has never been more sick in her whole life. Her son Gary and his family have been really sick with the same thing as well! They had to take their grand daughter who they have custody over to the emergency room twice in the last week! So we haven't been able to see them for a couple of weeks. Then we tried to see Misty but she had to go into the doctors for an emergency visit due to something that is wrong with her back. She had back surgery a few weeks ago and something was bothering her. We are planning to see her this week. 

Terry Is doing awesome!!!! He came to church yesterday which was great! He is really liking the church even though he is getting some resistance from the friends that he is living with. He told us that he is standing up for Mormons when his friends talk bad about us which is amazing! He is planning on getting baptized in April but we'll see if he is going to be ready by then. I know that he can be but we have to teach him about the Word of Wisdom this week. We love Terry and his desire to follow the Savior. He told us that he wants to be baptized in a river just like Christ was which would be awesome to see happen!

Jennifer is amazing as well! She said that she is definitely interested in what we are teaching her. She made the comment, "Well, I must be interested, I let you guys come back didn't I?" She is such an amazing person. Just like Terry, she has a true desire to follow the example of Christ. She has had a lot of trials in her life that have really prepared her to receive the message of the Restored Gospel. 

Elder Brewer and I have found a lot of Potential Investigators this last week as well. We are going to try turning them all into investigators this week. There are some amazing things happening here in the Ashland area!

Man I miss those trips with the family! I would do anything to be trapped in a car with the family for 12 hours! I was telling Dad that some of the greatest memories I have growing up take place in Deer Valley. I really miss our Park City house. My greatest memory from there is painting the little club house in the back yard. We had a great time doing that. 

Love, Jack

                                                           Elder Scoresby and Elder Brewer

Week #33

So this week was crazy! It went by so fast! Elder Bowcut is gone back to utah and is with his family now. That chump... haha! Me and him did get along really well but I was definitely ready for a new companion. We worked super well together and did a ton of great work in this area! Me and Elder Brewer are continuing the hard work and have already seen some great success in just 4 or 5 days. So Elder Brewer is a Mormon, from Springville Utah. He's an awesome kid! He's been out for one less transfer than I have which makes it pretty easy to relate to him. We teach really well together and get along really well.

We weren't able to see Janet and Kenneth this week. They weren't home when we stopped by but we're seeing one of their sons and his wife tonight again to teach the Plan of Salvation. Their names are Gary and Susan. They seem to still be very interested and look forward to seeing us. They are the kindest family and I really hope that they can progress the same way that Janet is! I'm stoked to teach them again tonight!

We found 2 great investigators this week! The first one is a 36 year old lady named Jennifer. Elder Bowcut and I tracted into her. She told us that her Mom grew up Mormon but when her mom married her Dad, who was a baptist, she changed religions. Jennifer told us that she doesn't fully agree with the Baptist doctrines so she is really interested in the message that we have to share. We taught her the Restoration and shared a Book of Mormon with her and she committed to read it. I'm really excited about Jennifer.

The second investigator that we found this week is named Terry. He is an older man with a pretty rough past. He told us that he got out of jail last year but he is way solid. He showed up to our appointment we set with him and he said that he would read the Book of Mormon. He also texted us Sunday morning and asked us what time we were picking him up for church. We weren't able to get him a ride but we promised we would get one for him next week.

We also had a SUPER cool miracle happen yesterday! So the Yates called us and told us that they went home teaching to a less active family named the Lemmings. I guess when they were over there, sister Lemming's daughter, Misty, who's not a member, had called sister Lemmings and said that she knows that Book of Mormon is true and that she wants to meet with the missionaries and take the discussions. We then called Misty and she told us that she has a lot of questions but that she wants to go to the Mormon church! We are going to go and teach her some time this week and I can't wait!!!! Their is so much good happening in this area, it is just amazing to me!

Well that's all of the amazing things that I can think of right now that happened her in good old Ashland, Ohio. I love it here and love the work that is coming forth. I love you all so much and am glad that you're reading the Book of Mormon. What's more important than reading the Book of Mormon is understanding it! If you don't understand something Ben, Coop, and Liza, then ask Mom and Dad. They are awesome and you're blessed to have parents with such strong testimonies. I love you all and hope that you have a fantastic week! 

 

Oh I also got to go to the temple this week! We went with the youth of the ward and brought a Recent Convert. He got to do baptisms for the first time which was super cool. We all felt the spirit really strongly! I love the Temple! 

Love, Jack 

Week #32

 Hi Everyone! 

We had a slow week this week and had a difficult time meeting with investigators. For whatever reason, everyone was either sick this last week or busy at work. We did, however, get to see Janet and Kenneth! They are still doing amazing! Janet is all the way into 3 Nephi Chapter 5 as of yesterday! She said to us, "you guys came early this week so I didn't have time to read as much!" Me and Elder Bowcut just laughed when she said that to us. Janet is really working on coming to know if the Book of Mormon is true. I'm hoping that she will be able to see the truthfulness it contains when she reads about the Savior coming to the Americas to teach the people. She feels right now that it is pretty much the same as the Bible, just with different names. In other words, she knows that the Book of Mormon is true, she just wants a strong confirming feeling. 

Elder Bowcut leaves tomorrow to tour Kirtland and to spend the night in the mission home. He flies home on Thursday. It is crazy to me that just 6 weeks ago me and him became companions! Time has flown so fast because of the hard work that we are doing here in Ashland. We talked to an Elder that was here right before Elder Bowcut and he talked to us about how "interesting" Ashland was. He was pretty much telling us that we have the worst area in the mission. It's funny how a mindset can affect the work in an area so much! 

We have spent a lot of time with the members of the ward this last week as Elder Bowcut prepares to leave. We had a member share her conversion story with us. She has been a member her whole life but wasn't really convinced that the church was true until a couple of years ago. She told us of the impact that a couple of Elders had on her which made me remember that I am here to strengthen the active members as well as the less actives and non members. I love the Ashland ward and all that they do for us missionaries. We are being fed a lot! The size of my belly is a testimony of that....

We really had a good week! I love you all so much! I'm slightly jealous of your 80 degree weather! I just want to be hot and sweaty again.... Weird I know, but true. 

Hope you have a great week.

Love, Jack

Week #31

Hi everyone! 

Carleigh's baptism went great! Her uncle performed the baptism and did a great job! Her Mom has been attending church regularly and yes her parents are married. They've been married for 13 years. Carleigh's whole family was at the baptism and at her confirmation yesterday. It was really great to see them all their. I don't know how interested her Dad is in the church but he has definitely warmed up to us coming over and "doesn't think we are creepy any more" according to Carleigh's mom. Hahaha apparently he at one time thought that we were super creepy which I find hilarious! 

We weren't able to teach Kayla, the lady that we tracted the other day. She said it was a bad time and it sure sounded like it. I could hear her 2 year old daughter screaming bloody murder in the other room so we will for sure try to see her this coming weekend. So far she is the only one being taught but hopefully we can teach her husband too. They only have one kid and she is too young to be taught. 

We have some SOLID investigators right now! I have to give you some background info before I tell you about them. So we found this elderly couple through tracting. They're very active in their apostolic church right now but are loving the Book of Mormon. A couple of weeks ago, Janet, the elderly lady, was in first nephi, and when we went over this last week, she was in Alma 30! She is just loving the Book of Mormon and is going to town on reading it! Her husband, Kenneth, is a very kind, gentle old man. Both of them are amazing. Anyway, a couple of weeks ago they told us that their sons might be interested in what we were talking about. Both of their boys are married and have kids of their own. We met with both of them this week and they both accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon and committed to read it! I think that they will follow the lead that Janet is setting for them. We are working very hard at getting them to know that the Book of Mormon is true. I will be surprised if at least one of these families doesn't get baptized! They're all so friendly and so open to the gospel! They would make amazing mormons!

Me and Bowcut are still getting along well but I can tell he is a little distracted by the fact that he is going home in a week.  I had a couple of dreams last week where I finished my mission and was going home, so that was a little weird but I'm dealing with it well too. He's sad that he has to leave this area because it is doing so well! Before me and elder Bowcut got here, the ward was struggling with missionary work but now it is really taking off. 

This last week we also got to set up a booth on Ashland University! We handed out 12 Books of Mormon which was insane because this school is known for being pretty anti-Mormon. We couldn't believe how successful it was and the whole ward kinda freaked out (in a good way) when they heard that we went there. People here had the mentality that no one wanted to hear the gospel but they are finally realizing that not everyone is anti-Mormon! We're having great success here and are loving the progress that has been made thus far!

I'm jealous that you guys have 80's this week! We had one day where it just barely hit 70 and I was walking around in short sleeves! It was amazing! I miss the arizona heat though. Can't wait until I get to feel it again. 

I will hopefully be able to go to the temple here in a couple of months with a recent convert to do baptisms for the dead. He doesn't feel quite ready yet but says that he wants to go while I'm here. 

Really having a great time here! Loving the work and the people. I miss and love you guys a ton! Have a great week!

Love, 

Elder Scoresby

                                            Carleigh and her family at her baptism

Week #30

Hi everyone! 

We had an awesome week this week! It was colder than crap, but we got through it. This area is still exploding which is so cool to see! We are having so much success with tracting right now. In my first area, we rarely ever did tracting and I was convinced that it was the biggest waste of time! But ever since I've been in this area, I have really seen how effective it is to tract! We focus on sharing a message of Christ and on helping people to strengthen their faith in him. There are still people that just slam the door in your face which is actually funny sometimes. Me and Elder Bowcut just laugh at the adversity. Makes life a little more enjoyable. We also have some great success stories from tracting this week! This last Saturday, we had been tracting for over an hour with very little success. We came to a house where a middle aged woman answered and said that her whole family was asleep but that she would love to have us come back the next day. So we went back there yesterday and she told us to come in, so we taught her the restoration.  She said she was really looking for a way to strengthen her faith in Christ. The lesson went really well and she is now a new investigator! I love finding people to teach! It is always so cool to be the one that brings people to the knowledge of the gospel!

Nothing really big happened this last week other than some great finding efforts. Me and Elder Bowcut are having a baptism this Saturday though!!! Carleigh, a nine year old daughter of a less active member of the ward is getting baptized! I will send pictures and will let you know next week how it goes! Hope you're all keeping warm in the promised land! (Arizona)

Love,

Elder Scoresby

Week #29

Hey Everyone!

So the family of four that we were hoping to teach on Sunday weren't interested which was a little sad. The Family that was trying to share the gospel with them were pretty upset about it too so we went over there and told them that everything was okay and that just because they chose not to accept doesn't mean they did anything wrong. We do have some other investigators that we are really excited about! We have a little girl that we're teaching named Carleigh. She's 9 and her mom is a member but is a returning less active. She is on schedule to be baptized this month on the 20th. We have this elderly couple, Janet and Kenneth, that we are teaching as well that are very actively engaged in the Pentecostal church that they are attending right now. They are working on reading the book of mormon and trying to come to know if it is true. I asked them this last week what it would mean if the Book of Mormon was true and Janet responded with "well I guess I would have to come to your church!" Me and Elder Bowcut were both so excited when we heard her say that! Those are our most solid investigators as of now but I will let you know next week what happens with all of our potential investigators and new investigators. 

There's only 4 elders in our district including me and Bowcut so it has been pretty easy to get to know everyone. My District leader, Elder Hutzler, Is from Mesa!! I think he went to Red mountain High School so we just talk to each other about how awesome mesa is! The other Elder in our district is from the Philippines! He's really funny but sometimes hard to understand. His english is way better than Elder Lau's though. I'm still a little worried for Lau taking over the area. I hope that he's doing okay. I don't know if I told you this but I'm in the same zone as I was in Massillon so I still get to see Lau each transfer which is fun! We haven't done any fun activities with our district though. We live like 30 or 40 minutes away and have a limited amount of miles each month so it really doesn't work out. 

I'm glad to hear everyone is doing good! Thanks so much for all of the presents! My favorite gift was the picture book! That thing is awesome! I also love the soft heart blanket!  It's funny though that a birthday on the mission just feels like a normal day which was kind of weird. Me and Elder Bowcut are doing really well though! We have a lot of fun together and give each other a hard time! It's great. 

I love you guys a ton! Here are some pictures!

                                                                 Jackson and Isaac in Massillon

                                                           Jackson and the Varners in Massillon

                                                                            Jackson and John

                                                     Jackson and Elder Lau and the Mullins kids

                                                            Jackson, Elder Lau, and the Mullins

                                                                 Jackson and Elder Bowcut

 

Jackson, the Mullins family, John, and Stacy