September 30th

Dear Family

It was awesome to hear from all of you! Mom be careful about your back, that's scary that you couldn't move for 2 days! It is true though that we all need to be praying for all of the little things, I've done that a lot since I've been out here and my attitude and everything is way better!! Dad thanks for the e-mail! It gave me inspiration to get out there and do what I came here to do! I've noticed that the days that I just think about home all day go by SO slow and nothing really happens, but the days when I give it my all and focus on investigators and finding people, the day goes by faster and I feel the Spirit so strong! This week was pretty slow, just because all of our appointments the whole week except one were cancelled. It's tough to ride around in the heat all day just sweating through my shirt, just to knock on doors and have people either ignore us or aren't home. Also we have had a little trouble with OYMing this week. It seems like no one in this area wants the gospel or wants to talk to us. We've had a lot of people ignore us and swear at us and stuff, but we try to just keep going and stay diligent the whole day! It's all worth it when that one person out of the whole day says they want to hear more about our message, and we get to set a return appointment! So the investigator that we got to teach this week was Brian. He lives in a pretty ghetto apartment complex.  He says he has a hard time understanding the Book of Mormon with all of the ye, thou, thine stuff! Whenever we read him a scripture we have to go through it really slowly and break down every single part so he can understand it well! We taught him the Gospel of Jesus Christ lesson and he understood it and the Spirit was super strong and it hit him really hard! We invited him to come to Church and he said he definitely would! But then at church we waited for him to come and were looking for him the whole time and he never came! We were really bummed about that but there's always next time! My comp. said that there are some pretty ghetto areas in New Mexico and there is a lot of crime going on right now. Our area is not too bad but there have been a couple break ins in the ward! The other day me and my comp. were studying outside because we had to water this lady's lawn, and while we were studying we heard a gunshot!! Haha that was really sketchy! I know that I am protected by the Lord at all times though! Serving a mission has blessed my life so much already, and from all of your e-mails, I am glad to hear that it is blessing all of your lives as well. I can't wait to hear from you all again next P-day! Love and miss you guys!
          

First Letter from ABQ

Hi Family,

That's awesome that Liv went to homecoming! How did she like it? That's one thing I'm going to miss about High School is going nuts on the dance floor! And thanks for cleaning my room;) I heard that the Utes got pummeled by Michigan, is that true? It's awesome to hear about all of your lives!

It's already been a week in Albuquerque! I am serving in the Cherry Hills area, in the Albuquerque zone! My companion's name is Elder Harral and he is awesome! We get along really well, he likes sports, he has a girlfriend, and we teach really well together! It's awesome to finally be out here in the mission field and serve! My companion said my area hasn't had a baptism in 6 years!!! That shocked me when I heard it but all that does is give me motivation to get more baptisms in the area! I have already taught a couple lessons to investigators, and they went really well! My companion said that I know the lessons really well and I am good at teaching for only being out for a week! That made me happy but I know that that is only possible because of the Lord! So instead of knocking on doors we do this thing called OYM which stands for Open Your Mouth! We go around and just talk to people who are outside. It is supposed to be more effective because then they can't slam the door in your face and you can't get the cops called on you for soliciting! I've already had a couple people ignore us or just swear at us and other stuff, but whatever you just gotta keep going! I've already seen the power of being obedient since I have been out here! There is a saying that goes "Obedience brings blessings, exact obedience brings miracles" That quote is totally true, and I have noticed that on the days where I be exactly obedient, impossible things happen, and that is one thing me and my companion are trying to work on, is being exactly obedient, so that we can fix this area up and get it going!

But anyways it is awesome out here and I'm excited to tell you guys about more of the experiences I have, and the people that I meet, and the spirit that I feel! I love all of you and miss all of you, and I hope you are all doing great!

Love Elder Summerhays

 

(Notes from me, (Shauna) Preston said he is serving in Cherry Hills and in a separate letter he said it isn't the greatest fun spot you'll ever know:)  Also I guess it's a good thing he doesn't know that Utah beat Michigan right?

Two Tender Mercies

This morning Preston headed down to Albuquerque.  We were able to talk to him for a bit before he boarded the plane.  It was so, so great to hear his voice and hear about his MTC experiences.  It was hard to hang up the phone. Then two things happened that made my day.  One I received this text from an anonymous woman:

And two, Bryan's sweet sister who happened to be staying in a hotel near the Albuquerque airport was able to run over and quickly greet Preston as he got off of the plane.  I am sure seeing a friendly face was so good for him.  Thank you Carrie!

                                   

MTC Week Two

The MTC really is amazing! The week that I've been here has been the most crazy, spiritual, exhausting, and awesome week of my life! I've studied the scriptures and prayed SO much and the spirit has been with my almost 24/7 since I've been here! Every day here is kinda planned out for us. The usual day is, we wake up, go to breakfast, after breakfast we have like 3 hours of study time where we can study the scriptures, preach my gospel, notes, stuff like that! After study time we usually teach "Investigators" which we were given towards the beginning of the MTC. After that we go to class which is usually 3 hours, where we learn how to be more effective missionaries and teach better. After that is lunch and after lunch is usually gym time. Then we shower and get ready and go to dinner. After dinner is more class time, and then we usually go back to our rooms and get ready for bed and write in our journals and stuff. It's been amazing to see how much I have grown spiritually in the past week! It's also been cool to teach the investigators and kinda get a taste of what the mission field is going to be like. Missionary work is all about teaching with the spirit so you have to have the spirit with you at all times to be an effective missionary! As D&C 84:85 says If you treasure up in your minds the words of life, the words that you need to say will be given to you at the exact time that you need them! That has helped me so much in my teaching and I'm so grateful for the scriptures in this work and just in life, as a comfort, a guide, and for the answers to anything I need! I love you all and miss you all, and I hope you guys are doing great! I pray about each of you every day and I know that this mission is going to bless me and my family and everyone greatly! Oh and by the way, on Sunday I heard the best talk of my life! It was given by Elder Bednar a while ago in the MTC and It was called The Character of Christ! This talk was unreal and I encourage anyone who wants to, to go watch it!

Love, Elder Summerhays

Our First Letter! (PS, my heart skipped a beat when I saw it!)

Hi Family!! I made it to the MTC safely and I'm doing great! The first day was a little bit rough just because it was new and I missed you guys and Riss more than I've ever missed anything in my entire life. The first day when I got there, the host that took me in led me to a place where I got some things that I needed, like the nametag and some resource books, and stuff like that, after that he took me to the room that I am staying in and I chose a bed and put my stuff on it. Then he took me to a classroom where we were introduced to our companions and our districts. My companions name is Elder Worley, he is super tall and a pretty big guy, but he is way nice and full of the spirit. After that we had a little get to know you game where we all stood up and told our names and missions and why we were serving. After that we were taught a little lesson and were given study time. By the way, the days here seem to be dragging on forever, but it's fine because I know that this is the lords work and it's what I need to be doing. After we studied for a little bit we went to a big meeting with all of the Elders and Sisters, and we met the MTC presidency, they all spoke and just welcomed us and kinda told us what was going on here and stuff. It was cool to see the diversity of all the Elders and Sisters. There were some from China, some from Tonga, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan, Japan, just everywhere! So after the meeting we went to the cafeteria and ate dinner, which was fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and peas. It was funny because my companion loves peas just as much as I do. He says he takes a frozen bag to school and just eats them right out of the bag haha! After dinner we went to a big room and we all sat down and a guy explained to us that we were going to be in 3 different rooms with 3 different investigators in them. We were supposed to kinda ask questions and teach the investigators in each room. It was just like what we do in mission prep but instead of 2 people teaching it was like 50 haha! So after we went thru all the investigators, we went to a zone conference and met our zone leaders and our zone, they took us on a tour of the MTC and then took us back to our rooms. There we got ready for bed and showered and stuff like that, and at the end of every night we have a zone prayer. It's crazy how much we pray here! One of the people in my zone said he tallied one of the days and said he prayed 24 times! Its really amazing how much closer that brings you to our savior! Then at the end of every night we have quiet time from 10:15 to 10:30 and then it's lights out. The second day was similar to the first except we had a lot more study time, and in the classroom we got assigned to these "investigators" that we are teaching today. It is kinda like mission prep, which I am glad I went to because this would be a whole new experience if I hadn't! Anyways I am running out of time, so I just want to end by saying that I know this church is true, and this has been the hardest 2 days of my life, and I miss you guys and Riss more than ever, but I know that this is what I should be doing right now and I know that I can do anything with the strength that the Lord gives me. The MTC is getting better each day and I am excited to get out there into the mission field and do the lords work. I love all of you, and tell Riss that I miss her and love her, and I'll be able to e-mail her on pday which is Thursday! Tell her I am praying for her and tell her to stay safe. I'm also praying about all of you and I hope you guys are doing good! I'll talk to you guys again on Thursday!

Love Elder Summerhays

PS. My favorite scripture is probably Ether 12:27 :)

We took Preston to the MTC yesterday.  It was the hardest day.  Each of us shed many tears as we said goodbye.  We are excited to get his first letter and will post it as soon as it comes.

He's a missionary!

Tonight Preston was set apart as a missionary.  It was such a great experience with a lot of mixed emotions.  He is excited to get to Albuquerque and serve. This is where I will post his letters and photos.  Enter your email on the right for notifications when we post his letters.