Tranfer and Happy 21st Birthday to Elder Seamons

We won't know until next week where Eric is being transferred. 

Hi everyone!

I am getting transferred! That is so crazy. I have been in miami since april/may and it is now the end of november. That is so crazy! I have been the district leader in this area for 5 transfers. I am happy that I was able to do a lot of good in this area. Elder Terry and I had an amazing week! We had 5 people come to church. Elder Terry is really happy about it. Carine and Dupont the recent converts are both doing amazingly. They are some of my favorite people ever. I will miss them a lot.

For thanksgiving on Thursday Carlo invited us as well as Elder Patino and Elder Furner over. He got coupons from his job that allowed him to get free food for thanksgiving. He got a turkey, potatoes, and an apple pie. He made it and it was good. He made it Haitian style, but it was still pretty good. He also made some rice and beans on the side that were kind of spicy. It was a good experience. By the way, I don't remember if I told you this but Carlo was back on Sundays for work. We told him that he should be baptized during the week, but he said no because he didn't want to miss church at all, even though it was just for a month because of the holiday season. They said they would give him work off on Sunday after January 1st. We told him that he should get baptized during the week, but he refused. He would wait until January 15th to do it. We told him that it was not good to put it off, but he still didn't listen. But then Elder Furner promised him that if he had faith God could help him get work off. A few days later Carlo called and said that his boss gave him Sunday off for now on. He came to church this last Sunday, and he will be baptized on the 4th of December! We are so excited that this man is finally getting baptized.

The Millward family, who is one of the young couples who is in the medical field and is studying to become a doctor, invited all four of the missionaries, the Hawkins family (a recent convert family), as well as Carine Sejour (our newest recent convert). It was a great event and everyone enjoyed it a lot. It was amazing to have american food for Thanksgiving. Because as much as I love Haitian food, It just didn't feel like home. But when we went to the millwards and it was pure american food, it was amazing. The Millwards live in an apartment in Aventura which is close to the beach. It is a beautiful city. We talked to Carine for a while. She told us about how everything is like in Haiti. She told us that it is a lot more slow placed country. All of the jobs work from 8-4 and then everything closes down for the day. She said that she had a lot more time to enjoy life. She told us that she was well off and had servants and care takers for a large orchard filled with fruits of every kind. She missed Haiti a lot. I feel bad for all of these good Haitian people who lost everything and came over here and struggle. A lot of them have a cultural shock when they come here. They have to struggle to get by every day. I admire the Hatian people a lot.

We are teaching some amazing people right now:

Elande is a seventh-day advantist that I met when I was first in the area when Elder Furner was my companion. It was not a good lesson and I debated with her. Elder Furner told me that that was bad, and I felt bad about the whole experience. Last Monday we passed by her house again and found her and her sister and we are now teaching them.

James, the Hatian man whose house we blessed a few minutes after he first moved in, is doing amazing. His daughter in Haiti is sick, but he sent money to help her and he is doing a lot better. He loves the restored gospel and the Book of Mormon. He is going to come to church on Sunday.

We felt inspired to talk a woman at the gas station named Cassandra. She said that she is looking for a church to attend and raise her son in. She wants to know why there are so many religions. She has a really sincere desire to come to church and partake of the blessings of the gospel.

I know that the church is true and that God is good all the time. There are so many people in this world, and the people are what make the mission and life worth going through. I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior and he is guiding and upholding this work. He is the light that lights up all things and he has carried me through so many difficulties and he has brought me to so many opportunities.

I love you all! Pray for me and the investigators in this area.

Carlo Joseph

Georges Verrier

Rosemonde

Robert

Cassandra

Leroni

Nancy

Ricardo

Euchine

Tido

Ernst Sejour

Love,

Elder Seamons

We have been experiencing a lot of Satanic opposition it feels like, but we know that is a good thing because it means we are super close to having great success."

November 21th, 2011

 

Dear Family and Friends,

 

This was a really interesting week.

 

We had a really good Zone Conference on inviting people to act with urgency. They did a role play and showed us examples of investigators who had a baptismal date and them wanting to put it off because they feel that they aren't ready. They showed us that if the person has the desire to be baptized, to follow Jesus Christ, and do their best, then they don't need to worry. They need God's help and blessings that they can receive as they receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. These people really need the peace that comes from that and they shouldn't try to perfect their lives before they make that promise with God. They are going toward a goal that they don't have the ability to reach. They just need to be living a certain level, and once they meet those qualifications for baptism, they will become perfect through years of study, prayer, church attendence, and partaking of the sacrament after having been baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost.

 

We realized that too often we justify people delaying change and we don't emphasize people excercising their faith enough. So we made a list of all the people that we need to boldy invite to baptism. We realized that half of them could potentially be baptized this week. The people that had reached that level of being almost ready were:

 

Roodschild, George, Carlo, Vanessa, Leroni, Rosemonde, Robert, Nancy.

 

We decided to focus solely on them for the remainder of the week. We experienced so much opposition.

 

The first problem is that we went to Carlo's house and he told us that his boss put him working on Sundays again because he needs extra people for the holiday season. He will be working on Sundays until January 1st, then he will have all Sundays after that off again. Carlo was very upset about that. Elder Terry and I talked about it and we decided that he is more than enough ready and since we know that he has an end to him working on Sundays, we should baptize and confirm him during the week so that he can have the strength that will come from the Gift of the Holy Ghost. The problem is that he heard from several people in the baptist church that Satan doesn't have control over anything, so they said not to worry because God stopped him because he must not have been ready. We were so frustrated because he isn't going to push against it. Carlo told us that Brother Laurent (a Haitian member of the church) told him the same thing, but then we asked Brother Laurent, and he told us that wasn't true. So Carlo was lying to us and saying that a member of this church told him that so he could justify what they told him in the baptist church. We were so upset about that.

 

Then we passed by leroni, Rosemonde, and Robert multiple times a day but they were never home. Also we did the same with Roodschild and luckily we have been able to talk to him, but it has been difficult. Roodschild knows that this church is true. He prayed if he should get baptized in this church and he described it as lightning hitting him in his heart and his head and having a knowledge just come to him. He is 13, so that is really awesome. But then he prayed about whether or not he should be baptized in another church, he was outside and the wind started to pick up and it started him. He heard a voice that told him, "Yes...Yes..." When Roodschild immitated the voice, it sounded very devilish and cunning. It was weird. We realized he was getting false revelation so we had him pray about this church again and he had an awesome experience and afterwards he said, "okay, I am getting baptized in this church." Getting to his house before that experience was really hard. We passed by his house several times earlier in the day and he wasn't there. Then I locked the keys in the car and we were delayed for about 2 hours or so. We have been experiencing a lot of Satanic opposition it feels like, but we know that is a good thing because it means we are super close to having great success

 

We have a lot of good things about to happen in the area. Keep praying for us.

 

Love,

 

Elder Seamons

 

ps.

 

Thank you so much Laurie for the Thanksgiving dinner food. I love you so much! Thank you so much for all of your support!

"We will up our game this week."

Dear Family and Friends,


Elder Terry was made the driver a week ago because Elder Furner was tickling me and I didn't like it so I ran away from him and I hit my hand against the wall super hard. It was hurting with every movement I did with it for at least 5-6 days. I couldn't drive after that because it hurt to turn the wheel, so I have Elder Terry take over. But then we got into an accident on Friday. We rear-ended a car in front of us. Elder Terry still had his driving privileges, which we were both surprised about, but he didn't want to drive anymore because he was very shaken up about the whole experience.

Elder Terry is a really awesome missionary. He is really creative person and he and I talk a lot together. We are getting along well.

I am eating better than I was. I bought some carrots, peaches, and apples and I have been eating them. I have still been eating some really good haitian food. I just need to cut back on candy a little bit.

We have this new investigator named Nancy who is really excited. She gave us sospwa, legim, diri, ak poul. I hope I can learn how to make some Haitian food before I come home. There are actually a lot of Haitians in Utah from what I have heard. Many of the members in the Miami Shores ward and planning on moving to Utah. Anyway, Nancy is looking for the true church and she wants to come. She visited the church with her friend up in Fort Lauderdale, and her friend got baptized this weekend! She has a date for the 4th of December. She is really discouraged about how her life is going right now. I know that our message can make her happier.

Our main investigators are Carlo, Georges, Leroni, Nancy, Carol, Bertony, the Louhidon kids, and Roodschill. Georges went to church last week and he was super excited. We have been showing him Mormon.org videos on the computer lately. The good news is that he is applying for the front desk job at the Marriot Hotel. It is looking really likely that he will get it. Plus, the pay is higher and he would be given every Sunday off because the other person who works there gets Saturday's off because she is a Seventh Day's Adventist. We are really hoping that he will get the position. Georges has worked so hard to get to where he is now and this would change everything for him. He really wants to get baptized so badly and he is exhausted every time he goes home from work.

Carlo was supposed to be baptized this coming Sunday, but he is putting it to the 27th, because a few members of the ward won't be there on the 20th. He wants Brother Richens, the ward mission leader, the Kovacivic's, Sister Monestine, the Victor's, and many other people to come. He is fully integrated into the ward and everyone says hi to him. It is so awesome! He has been having some back problems lately, but he is feeling a lot better. He loves making food for us. He is so nice. He said that he was going to make Mayi Moulen ak sos for us this week. Mayi moulen is like a corn meal substance that is made into a paste, but is then mixed in with a tasty sauce. I didn't like it before, but the way Carlo makes it is so good. We are very happy for him. Plus he agreed to give one of our investigators Leroni, a ride to church next week. Oh, and Leroni came to church yesterday! She had a really good time. She is a really funny Haitian woman that makes jokes and laughs a lot. She is awesome!

Roodschill is a great kid. He is 13 years old. He is the son of one of our former investigators, who said she is still interested in getting baptized. He says that he wants to get his life in order so that he can be "good with Jesus." He prayed about whether or not the Book of Mormon is true and whether or not what we told him is true. He told us that he had this feeling as though lightning went through his body and hit him in his head and in his heart. He told us that he will get baptized. He is a super awesome kid. I have never had any kid get that specific of an answer before since I have been on the mission. That was a great experience. Kiara Louhidon (she is 11) also received her answer. Alisha (she is 8) is a little upset because she has been praying and she hasn't felt anything. We told her that getting a spiritual witness is like seeing light, and we quoted Elder Bednar's talk about how it will either come suddenly like when a light is turned on and the room is illuminated all at once, or it will come gradually like a sunrise and it will come a little bit at a time. That helped her out a lot. They are doing well. Their mom just needs to get on the ball and get active again.

Carine is doing awesome! She got on the bus and came to church on time, even though her ride didn't go to church until sacrament meeting. She has so many member friends, both American and Haitian. We taught her about baptisms for the dead and patriarchal blessings last night and she is getting a temple recommend from Bishop Finlinson this week.

This week wasn't as good number wise, but we still have many great things happening. We will up our game this week. It has been a little interesting in the apartment between Elder Furner, Elder Patino, and Elder Terry, but things are still going well.

I also went to the post office to pick up the package with the toothbrush heads finally. Thank you, Mom. I love you so much. You have been so nice and you have been helping me a lot on the mission. I will never forget that.

Bye everyone! I have to go. I love you!

Love,

Elder Seamons

"I am so greatful for the experiences that we have been having. "

November 7. 2011

Hi Everyone! I am doing well.


One thing that I have been thinking about is the progress I have made on my mission. I sometimes feel like I could have put a better effort. Sometimes I go through the motions and just lose the energy that I had. I am on the tail end of the mission, so I am going to up the efforts.

I realize now that loving people and the relationships that you build is the best part of the mission. We can build people up, show them our love, and be their friends forever.

I want to be the self-less person I know that I am capable of becoming. With all of the responsibilities, emotions, and thoughts that I am trying to balance out, it seems almost impossible. The leadership wants me to follow-up a lot on my district, help them be accountable for the dozens of commitments that the mission has been giving everyone, make sure that there is a "steady, upward trend" in everyone's key indicators, and make sure that everyone is helping enough people be baptized. Baptisms are important because it is a soul who is receiving the necessary ordinances to gain eternal life. It is hard to keep daily contact and make sure that this happens. I will work it out though, with God's help. I know that I can end the mission on a high note.

Tonight we are doing a family home evening activity at Bishop Finlinson's house and Cindy, the Miami Shore Creole area's recent convert, will be there. Elder Furner is worried because she was sick and couldn't come to church to be confirmed. We don't want her to not get confirmed and go less active. I think she will be okay. Sister Finlinson is picking her up at 7:15 pm, and the activity will start at 7:30 pm. Hopefully Carine can come. She was confirmed yesterday! That is so exciting!

I am so greatful for the experiences that we have been having. We have had several people who have told us that we were the answers to their prayers or that they feel that God sent us there for a special reason. I hope that I can continue to bring people unto Christ in that capacity.

I love you all so much! Pray for me that I will be able to gain momentum and end on a high note in the mission. Pray for Carine and Cindy that they can stay active! Pray for Merline, Sister Grove, Stanley, Glindy, Cynithe, Malika, Antonetta that they can be reactivated. They are recent converts that have fallen away that were baptized in this ward not too long ago.

Love,

Elder Seamons

"This week was an amazing week. Carine got baptized!"

Dear family and friends,

This week was an amazing week. We had a lot of great things happen. First off, Carine got baptized! I am so happy. She is an amazing woman! Her and Ernst are still having problems, but we told them both that as long as they tried to become more Christ-like as individuals, read in the scriptures, and pray, then they would get closer together as a couple. We realized that as long as they pass the baptismal interview, it is still okay. Carine is for sure ready. She is keeping all her commitments. Sister Monestine, who does Creole translation for Sacrament meeting, told us that other members said that Carrine had been calling them when they didn't show up to church to see how they were doing. That is so awesome! Plus Duponte has not missed a week of church since the first Sunday he randomly showed up to church in August. He went to Carine's baptism yesterday. So did Carlo. He wanted to see because he loves baptisms and he heard that I was baptizing, so he wanted to see it, because he saw that I had to do it twice for the kid I baptized a month ago, so he said that I didn't have power when I did it. He has been feeding us a lot to make us "stronger" He said I did a good job yesterday. He told Elder Terry when he got in the area that Elder Terry would do his baptism because I was too weak. :) I thought that was funny. I am a little disappointed I might not be doing it because I have been teaching him forever.

Cindy also was baptized! She is the South Elder's investigator. She was an investigator that Elder Furner and Elder Clark lost contact with before I came to the area. We spent a lot of time trying to track her down, but then three weeks ago she gave Elder Shipley and I a call and now Elder Furner and Elder Hartman have baptized her because she is in there area. She is awesome!

By the way, the mission had 74 baptisms this month. That is pretty good.

Also, they enlarged the mission boundaries and more missionaries will be added to the mission from the Orlando mission.  Now we will have 160 missionaries.

Also, Roodschill, Alisha, and Kiara all received distinct answers that this church is true and that the book of Mormon is true! They are all kids. Roodschill said he asked if the Mormons were true and he had a feeling as though electricity went through his whole body and lighted his soul. For a thirteen year old kid, that is super awesome. He has a date for the 13th.

Alisha had the feeling, but she doesn't recognize that this is the true church yet. She asked "is the Mormon church true, or should I go to the seventh day church," and she had a good feeling and she assumed that meant that she should go to the seventh day. But she isn't quite sure yet. But she is positive she had a feeling.

Tido is okay. He is happy and he is excited to come to church some time. He forgave us.

Carine had a dream on Saturday night that if she got baptized without her husband, he wouldn't get baptized. We prayed in a room about what to do, and we decided in the end to have Carine focus on how she felt about the dream. She wasn’t exactly sure what the dream meant or what was going on.

We took brother Kovacavic to Carlo's house and Carlo invited him to his house to eat Haitian food with us on Sunday. Him and his wife came and it was an awesome experience. Carlo invited them both to come on Wednesday again to eat some more food.

Elder Hartman is going home because of some back problems. We are amazing that this is happening. Elder Terry, Elder Furner, and I will be in a threesome until the end of the week.

Bye everyone! I love you!

Love

Elder Seamons

[answer to some questions] I am driving.  Elder Furner is in the apartment with us and his Companion is Elder Hartman from Idaho. I am still the district leader.

Baptism of Corine

Sunrise with Elder Terry and Elder Seamons