Mini missions on mini missions and conferences galore‏

(Note from Mom: Someone texted me this photo and all the message said was
"Elder Jackson with Addison" Pretty cute, right?)

Hey everybody, just popping in to let you know I'm alive, Boston is well, and the mission is great! I've got some shoutouts so listen up:

SHOUTOUT to Matthew Crowder who is officially hitched! Hope you loved it man, and that you're ready to be a sick husband and father. 

SHOUTOUT to the Belmont Ridge Ward! (someone forward this to Bishop Lewis) I got a sweeeeet box a couple weeks ago and have been slowly consuming the chocolate on the road and late at night. I loved it. 

 

SHOUTOUT to everybody that worked to build up the church and spread the gospel in the East Coast over that last century. I was looking up Dad's old area in Stamford, CT, where he was the first spanish elder; now they have two Spanish wards there! He laid the foundation. So great.

This week we shipped off Elder Calvert home to Utah, ready to restart his basketball career at BYU. Were on our own with 2 weeks of experience! Fortunately we were well trained. We also had our masterpiece known as the Springfield Youth Conference mini mission extravaganza, where we assigned and organized mini missions for 21 youth in the Springfield Stake. Kicked it off with an MTC experience which we created and ran, finished it up with a testimony meeting on Saturday with the Packards. All in all it was an experience that built my testimony; many youth spoke about how they had a special connection with their missionaries and the areas they went to, which was something we chose,  not knowing them very well; just seeing their names and units. The Lord works through us.

Regional conference was great. I loved getting to see the tailored message for the East Coast, and loved seeing the photos of the recent converts. One of those pictures and stories we submitted ourselves to Salt Lake; the story of the mailman in Hingham who joined the church. Its a great story. Also, the shoutout to Ashburn stake made me proud. I was telling everyone in Lynnfield ward "THATS MY HOOD". You may remember Jacksons, the lynnfield chapel was where we went to church when we were on vacation here in Rockport two years ago. I had my first reunion there this past sunday on exchanges with the Lynnfield Elders. It felt like a very full circle to me.

We keep going here in Boston, busy as always. People are flocking to the missionaries right now after a fairly significant drought the last few months, and that has us all excited. I wish I could send photos but theres no card reader here and I forgot mine! So until I get a chance, I'm signing out.

Love you all! 

Elder Jackson

Just Road Trippin'

Hey all! Happy Patriots Dayyyyyyyyyyyyyy! Here in Boston it's a big deal because it means everyone gets to be even more patriotic than usual, and there's a Red Sox game, AND the Boston Marathon. Everything's gonna shut down in a few hours here, and the roads have already started shutting down, so we'll be taking the T in to watch the Red Sox game :) Jenna, eat your heart out. I'M FINALLY GOING IN FENWAY.

 

As the subject line says, this week was basically one big road trip. We put more than 1000 miles on the Black Pearl (our 12 passenger van) and did exchanges in places like Dorchester, Brockton, Franklin, Nashua, Billerica, Lowell, Providence, Central Falls, Waterbury, and Woodbridge. The nice thing about having three assistants who speak 3 different languages is that we can exchange into 3 different areas simultaneously and actually teach in the language! Good ol Elder McCann dominates the Spanish, Elder Calvert throwns down in English, and I unleash a little Portuguese. It's been great to learn from and help out the other missionaries.

One of the most tender moments of this week was in Brockton. I got to sit down with a man named Orlando who I helped, but didn't teach, when I was serving there. The elders were teaching him, but he reached a wall and wouldn't progress to his baptism. During a counsel session I was impressed to suggest that the elders talk to him about family history and temple work, and focus on how his ancestors were waiting for him to take that step. They did, and it clicked miraculously for him, and he was baptized. He then played a key role in Raymond's conversion, who also was baptized and just recently baptized his son into the church. Orlando is now the executive secretary/clerk of the Brockton Ward. When I left, he had little scriptural knowledge. This past week he was quoting D&C to me and explaining the Lord's promises to missionaries. And he learned English...in 8 months. I was amazed by his testimony and his expanded handle on the workings of the spirit; it felt a little Alma 26 to me. 

--Shoutout to Matthew Crowder who's getting hitched this Friday. It was nice knowing ya buddy. Remember the little people!

--Shoutout to all the younguns in Belmont Ridge ward getting their mission calls. Best thing you could ever do!

--Shoutout to Brother Han, who's running the Boston Marathon today.

--Shoutout to Sister Han, who I met miraculously at the Lexington reenactment at 6 am this morning!

What do you want to know about Boston? About the mission? Ask me questions. I'd love to find answers for ya. Love you all. Fica dretu! Te amo, cada um!

-Elder Jackson

No Sleep Til...‏

Heyyyyyyy everyone! Greetings from Weston! Well, technically Needham. Let me start off by giving you my new mailing address. 

757 Highland Ave #216N, Needham, MA 02494

This week was crazy. Transfers, receiving the new missionaries, making meals, departing missionaries, runs to the airport, missed flights, no sleep, and a whole bunch of training. I feel like I just had things figured out and now I'm thrust into a whole world of mission planning and organization that I never knew existed! Our time to proselyte and teach basically only comes on exchanges; we do so much work around the mission that we rarely go to church or teach in our actual area.

Church on Sunday was great and strange. Its weird to go from a tiny portuguese group to a fully functioning english ward.... at least I got to bless the sacrament and say the closing prayer! Then after church, we went (oh the irony) back to Boston to do an exchange where I went with (wait for it) the portuguese elders! It was good to be back. I joked that I couldn't stay away for even one week.

The boxes of donated clothes and shoes are already taking effect! I'll attach a picture here of Djeison in his new duds looking very missionary-like :) does my heart good to see that. He finally took his jacket off for the sacrament because he had a white shirt that was big enough. 

Djeison (on left) in his "new" Sunday clothes.  He wears a "Future Missionary" tag.

 

Mom reminded today of a mormon message that is really significant and personal to me. Elder Holland (my companions grandpa, I'll have you know... :) ) teaches about how sometimes the Lord sends us down a difficult path or dead end so that He can get us on the real path that we need, with the total surety that we are where He wants us to be. I've experienced that before and I know many of you have as well. His ways are mysterious but we need to learn to trust. Thats one of my greatest flaws, and I'm working on it every day here. Take a look. 

https://www.lds.org/pages/mormon-messages?lang=eng#wrong-roads

I love you all. Be safe and enjoy SPRRRIIIIINGG

-Elder Jackson

The Last Hurrah in Dorchester‏

 

What a week it has been.

P-day is reaching its end, and I'll be moving to my new area in about 20 minutes. All packed up to leave Boston, and its very bittersweet.

About three weeks ago President Packard approached me at a district leader training and let me know that I should pay attention to the training, because I would be giving it in a few weeks. He told me that the Lord wanted me to be his new assistant. So there you have it! The family already knows, but I'll be moving to Weston to work as one of the new APs in the MBM. 

Its been quite the journey. Starting wayyy back two summers ago when I got sick; the diagnosis, the mission delay, the waiting and the treatment for Lyme disease. Never feeling sure about going to Brazil. Getting to finally come on the mission, only to have the symptoms return a year ago. Coming to the portuguese program in Brockton, training, getting the pride humbled out of me by not speaking the darn language, learning, getting sent to Dorchester to open up the brand new area with Elder Rodrigues. Getting humbled again. Watching it grow. Working with everything I had, and seeing new medical solutions open up. New York, the lyme clinic, answers, and treatment. Medicine that finally worked. Clarity and joy, working in the city with a clear mind and great companions; the call to be a zone leader and all the things it taught me; surviving the Wicked Big Stawm of 2015; and now leaving the group I love for Weston, to serve the Lord with a mission president (or two) that's taught me so much already. I don't know for sure, but based on past experience, I would say the best is yet to come. 

Isn't that the real message of Easter? 

I'll tell you straight my friends, like we do here in Boston. The best is yet to come. The tomb is empty, because Jesus lives. Everyone will live again; salvation is free; eternal life is our goal. Push for it. Believe in it. Our Savior's with us, in the thick and in the thin. The journey to where I am now has proven that to me. 

Love,

Elder Jackson

Some Greasy Saxophone, Passalong Cards and Suzy's Foot‏

Happy Monday everyone! This is Elder Jackson's update from Boston, probably the last time I'll update you from minha casa, good ol' Dorchester. I love it all, from the black snow to the cachuppa to the lottery tickets that litter the sidewalks. 

Shoutout to mom and dad who are coming to BOSTON this weekend! General Conference weekend! Will we meet? Will there be spying? There's literally no way of knowing. 

This week was cool. We started off with a priesthood training for all the young men on how to do the sacrament. They came and hour and a half late, but you bet we trained them good. And yesterday the sacrament was 1000x better and more reverent. #success

A less-active man and his son came with us to tour the church and see where it was, and we read 1 Nephi 8 with them. Getting them there in the first place was miraculous. Also.... fun times when we figured out the son is already a member! Had us fooled!

Friday we road tripped down to Warwick, Rhode Island, (elder santiago's first time out of Mass in 22 months!) and had a spectacular musical/visual fireside for members and investigators down there. It was the first time in my life that I ever played cello, saxophone, and sang in the same performance. Best part was that I got to play a southern black spiritual on sax and I made it as greasy as possible, per President's request. 

This week a lady called us and asked for a priesthood blessing because she was going to have eye surgery the next day. She's cape verdean and we asked how she got our number, and she said someone left a card in her door back in October. That was us! Literally, it was the first time on my mission someone called back from a card we left. We went, gave her the blessing, and two days later zita (our RS pres)  was driving her to a follow up appointment at the hospital. Mysterious ways.

Last--- we have a lady we teach named Suzy. She burned her foot badly about 6 months ago, and has worn bandages and braces ever since, and struggled to walk. We gave her a blessing two weeks ago. We went back a few days ago, and saw her ankle bare, no braces or bandages or socks. She said she went to the doctor and they said the burns made amazing progress; she recognized that the change had started right after the blessing. It was the first time in my life that healing has happened so remarkably. Testimony builder right there.

Thats about it. Most likely next week I will be writing from a different location! I love you all, I love this work. Keep on and I'll talk in a week! Unless you're mom and dad. Because I know there will be spying involved.

love,

Elder Jackson

Jackson's update 3/23/2015, aka, can't think of a solid subject line

Boa tarde meus amados, I hope you all are warm and cozy wherever you may be! We're thinking of you here in Boston. And coveting your forecast...

Life is great here in Dorchester. This week we saw a bunch of people take steps forward in their progression. I got fed 3 plates of food by a Guatemalan couple, 1 plate from a Dominican woman, and 1 plate from a Colombian woman, all within 7 hours! #spanishprogram

We had stake conference here on Saturday and Sunday, which is boston is a BIG deal. The adult session on Saturday night was great and truly inspiration for everyone their. The first announcement was "look for answers to your prayers tonight", so you know its going to be good. And then they talked about councils! Ward, family, couple, companionship councils. It was unexpectedly revelatory for me. It fits hand in hand with our focus on creating zion, which requires the work and dedication and consecration of all to achieve a level of spirituality and closeness to God that can't be reached individually. And councils are truly a way for us to create that unity and try to seek the Lord's will. Family councils rock. 

Sunday was touching for me. Santiago and I each drove a van full of missionaries to conference, and then they worked on the portuguese translation while I shuttled our members back to the high council room which was the designated "Portuguese Room". At first the room was empty, but by golly, by 20 minutes into the meeting every seat was full and we went to get more. There were a few brazilians, but the vast majority of them were from our group. Most had never seen a large church meeting before, so we took them one by one to see the chapel and gym overflow--1200 members of the church seated there together. The Spirit was strong and they were all pretty blown away. I also learned that Elder Santiago is dope at translation. 

Other exciting news?
Raymond, who I taught in Brockton and who was baptized in December, baptized his 10 year old son Dimitri this past weekend.

Tonight we have a training for all the cape verdean young men on how to prepare, bless and pass the sacrament. Mostly its just amazing that we have enough to warrant having a training!

Prepping for General Conference, and the missions portable visitors center is coming with their new portuguese displays for the break between sessions on April 5th. SO PUMPED.

As for a quick spiritual thought? check this out. President sat with Elder Christofferson on a panel at Harvard law school. He was asked about coming to know God through prayer. Some wisdom:

"He also noted that we need to have real intent when we pray. He said that if you don’t have real intent, then you will not receive an answer because God does not want to condemn us. When God gives us an answer, we are accountable to follow it, so God, in His mercy, withholds answers until we have a real intent to follow His counsel and advice. I thought this was a particularly beautiful insight." 

Love you all so much.

-Elder Jackson

It's Official...‏

We are officially the indisputable champions! Of being snowed on! 108.6!

With another storm that passed yesterday we topped the all time snow record in the history of Boston. I have an inappropriate amount of pride that I was here for the worst winter ever. When my kids ask me about my mission, I can say I walked uphill both ways through 4 feet of snow to teach people about Jesus! Or something like that.

This week we had two great activities in the group: a trip to the temple on Tuesday with our recent converts and a VICIOUS cape verdean noite de integracao on Saturday night. 

Tuesday was great. We took PJ, Maria and Vanessa, Rosa, and the Frimpongs to the Boston temple for baptisms for their own family. They all loved it. I had the special opportunity to confirm Maria fontside for her grandmother-- a powerful experience.

On the more partying side of things, our noite de integracao was a huge success on Saturday. People brought their friends, there was a mountain of CV food, and two of our investigators got to come and enjoy some quality, deafening CV music and hopefully a little bit of the spirit :)

Boston is great. I love this place. I'll send you a bunch of pics to prove it to you.

Love,

Elder Jackson