January 9, 2017--Week 74

Hey Everyone,

This week has been SO fast. I am super bummed that it is transfers already. Time is going by too fast and I am really sad to see Elder Merritt go. My new companion is Elder Lee and I know almost anything about him except that he's just coming out of training. I’m happy that I'm staying in Jersey City where there are people to talk to and a ward that is functioning. 

This week we ate. And ate. And ate. One night, we had 3 meal appointments from 2 Puerto Ricans, and then a Filipino after. It was seriously the worst night of my mission. I ate more food than should be allowed and prayed that I could have an extra stomach. I am pretty sure there was divine assistance. The first picture below was our first appointment. The food in the photo is half of what we ate. Naturally, when we finished that portion, the sister asked, “Do you want more?”  At that point we had plenty of room, so we ate more.  After that she asked, “Do you want cake?" NO!! But of course we had to eat it too. After the first appointment we weren't sure how we would make it through the next, but somehow, we got to the next appointment and the brother has these giant plates of spaghetti and shrimp with a huge plate of bread (see second photo). Then the dessert followed.... By this point I was struggling to keep the food down and we still had to walk 2.5 miles to our next appointment and do it in 20 minutes. We decided it would be a good idea if we called another companionship of elders to come and help us eat the food because the was no way we would be able to eat a Filipino meal by ourselves. The whole way there, we tried to make ourselves throw up, but  couldn't. When we got there, he had more food than he has ever cooked because it was Elder Merritt's last day so he wanted to do something special for him. Then of course dessert followed. That night, we just could not sleep or be comfortable sitting, laying, or standing. It was literally the worst day of my mission (not emotionally—but for my stomach!). I wanted to die.

Life is good.  Thank you for all your prayers!  I hope you all have a great week and I love you all!

-Elder Nickerl

P.S.  The last couple photos are:

Saturday we had a HUGE snow storm so we spent the day shoveling snow for all our neighbors.  

Sunday, we cooked one last Korean dinner together and ate it while we listened to the transfer call.

January 2, 2017--Week 73

Hey Everyone,

This has been a really crazy week with all of the holidays, but it has been fun. I am loving everything here. Finding people has been really hard as usual. Everyone keeps cancelling appointments and being super flaky, but that's okay because that's how it usually is. Overall though I am loving life and am not stoked for transfers at all (which are next week).  

Anyways, I just wanted to let you all know that I know that this Gospel, the teachings of Jesus Christ, are really truly the secret to true peace and happiness in our lives. Even amongst all the trials in missionary work, I have never been happier in my life. I know that no matter what we go through in life, we will be happy and have joy, if we prioritize our lives to have Jesus Christ as the focus, nothing will go wrong. 

I love you all and have a great week!

-Elder Nickerl

December 19, 2016--Week 71

Hey mom (this can be my weekly as well),

I will try to answer all of your questions...

First, skype time, I’m not sure because we have A LOT of appointments and we got permission to go see the Korean branch and I don't know what time that will be. I would imagine around 4-5pm our time would probably be the easiest for us, but I am sure I will be able to call the day before as President Taggart has let us do before to schedule for sure. If not, plan for about 4-5pm my time and just know it will work out. I will worry about it later in the week. Along with the skype call now before I forget, I would like to teach a 4 minute version of the Restoration to the family. Maybe at the end or beginning. 

Second, my eyes are doing well. I get my right contact this past Thursday. My left one is doing okay.  It is better than having nothing in, but it is still pretty hazy…maybe at about 20/70 right now. It is VERY hard to put these contacts in and it requires a different kind of solution. I will explain the process on the skype call later. But the eyes are doing good. There is no rejection now in the right eye… Dr. Constad says that  if I continue to baby it and treat it, I may be fine indefinitely. So we will see. I also got a awesome blessing from Elder Merritt last week (pre-surgery) that had a promise that if I am obedient to mission rules and work hard, I will be able to stay in New Jersey to finish my mission. So I am trusting that. 

Third, the mission conference was fun on Friday. I got the big package that you sent then.  Thank you!  It was basically just a big get together with fun and spiritual stuff with the whole mission so I got to see all of my friends from the mission and spend some time with them. Sunday night we had a NJ wide Christmas fireside put on by the missionaries. I was able to see a lot of people there who I haven't seen in a really long time (Collin, Rocksan, a lot of the members from the Korean branch who I got to talk to) and it was super awesome.

Everything else this week is going really well. I am loving it here and I’m ready for the holiday season to be over—so that we can get back to our regular world, but this week should be awesome!

Love,

Jacob

P.S.  Here is a few pictures as well. Bart Oats (a 5 time super bowl winner O-lineman) is the bishop in a ward in NJ and came to speak to us this Friday. We got a picture with his super bowl ring. Then a picture with Elder Koo (my trainer) his other two trainees and I. Lastly, a picture from our ward Christmas party with our Asian santa :). I love NJ!!!

December 12, 2016--Week 70

Hi everyone,

This week has been a pretty great week. A little slow with the eye surgery on Wednesday, but everything went well and is almost back to normal as soon as I get the contacts that I ordered. They are a different kind than I have ever worn and so I am excited. 

The work in Jersey City is going to be picking up. We found a few new less active members to begin visiting this week as well as a new investigator from China. He is awesome. I will try to tell a little more about him next week. 

Anyways, I love you all and hope you have a great week! -Elder Nickerl

December 5, 2016--Week 69

Hey Everyone! 

This week has been awesome. Our investigator dropped us... But it's okay because we found a cool father-led family instead and also found a part member family who we are now working with instead. I am very excited for Wednesday so that I will be able to see well.  I know that the promise in my patriarchal blessing is being fulfilled here.  I feel very at peace with Dr. Constad. Elder Merritt and I have been constantly talking about how amazing he is.  (Side note:  Jacob is having a procedure on Wednesday that will stop the Keratoconus from progressing in his left eye.  After a few weeks, he will be able to wear a contact like normal without the pain that he’s been experiencing—and should be able to see nearly perfect in that eye.  Also, his right eye (the one with the transplanted tissue) is healing nicely.  We are so blessed that Jacob has an amazing cornea specialist within a few minute’s walk of his apartment.  He really has been blessed with a miracle!)

I am sending a few photos today:

1.  We found a dead bird while we were doing a trash pick up (our service project to kick off the light the world service initiative) so we had to pick it up and get a photo!

2.  The other missionaries we did our service with.

3.  We found this cool bear while proselyting in the park. This park has such an amazing view. This city is amazing. I think I would consider moving out here some day. I really do love it.

4.  We also found this in the same park. It was cool too. 

Anyways, I love you all and hope you have a great week!

-Elder Nickerl

November 28, 2016--Week 68

Hey Everyone,

This week was pretty awesome until I got a super bad cold on Friday. So that was a bummer, but other than that things are going great. And hey for transfers I get to stay!! And I am still with Elder Merritt which is awesome! I am so excited! We had a really cool investigator go to church this week. His name was Jeevan (G1) and he is hopefully going to be super solid.

Other than that, no news really. But I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and had a great week!

Love you all!

Elder Nickerl

November 21, 2016--Week 67

Hi everyone,

WOW!

This week has been the biggest miracle of my life. First off, I want to thank everyone who fasted and prayed. I will tell the story from my point of view here. I woke up on Wednesday morning with slight vision back in my eye and was thrilled. Over the next 5-6 hours, my vision went from a little bit blurry to 100% clarity and no redness in the eye. By the end of the day, I had put my contact back in and was seeing completely back to normal. And then ever since there has been no problems. I truly do know that is a miracle. On Monday, I asked the doctor to be straightforward with me.  His answer was, "I do not expect your eye to recover. I have almost never seen the eye go back to normal after a rejection like yours. It would take a miracle." Since God is a God of miracles, I was a little bit hopeful, but honestly my faith was a little lacking. But I know that as a result of the faith, prayers, and fasting on behalf of all of you, there was a complete recovery. I am overwhelmed by the love of God to allow me to continue to be able to do what it is that I want to be doing right now—which is serving a mission in New Jersey.

Other than the eye miracle, we had interviews with President Taggart this week. We went on an exchange on Tuesday, and then since then it has just been back to normal. We are struggling to find people to teach right now, but it will come because we are doing the right things. That is something that I am loving so much—recently I have come to realize that as long as I do exactly the things I am supposed to do, God will provide always. I am thankful for that. I truly do love this calling as a missionary. I am bummed that this is the last week of this transfer because I don't want any changes to come into this area here next week, but as always, God is in charge. 

I love you all! Thanks for all of your support!

-Elder Nickerl 

P.S.  I had pictures this week, but I forgot my camera so I will send them next week.

November 18, 2016--Week 66

Dear loved ones,

Thank you so much for your fasting and prayers!  There were a lot of people fasting yesterday—and I truly believe in the collective power of the faithful when united in a joint purpose.  As a result, we’ve been blessed with a couple of specific miracles.  Yesterday afternoon, I received a text from Sister Goddard, the mission nurse.  She forwarded me a text from Jacob which read:

“Sister Goddard, Another update:  Since about 11:00 this morning, my vision has rapidly been returning to the point that I can almost see back to normal.  I don’t know what is happening, but it is a miracle so far. —Elder NIckerl”

This afternoon, Sister Goddard updated me again to let me know that today Jacob texted her to let her know that he was able to put his contact in his eye as usual, can see, and that he’s back to work as normal.  

We also had an additional miracle when we found that with some convincing, our insurance will cover the cornea specialist that Jacob saw Monday.  He is a very well-respected physician, is the head medical director for the State of New Jersey Eye Bank, is a professor at Rutgers Medical School, and leads some of the most cutting edge cornea research on the East Coast—and Jacob loved and trusted him.  I don’t think it’s coincidental that Jacob was matched with this doctor by the emergency room last Saturday and that his office is only a few blocks from where Jacob lives.  

We can see the hand of God in so many ways this week.  Thank you, thank you for your prayers.  Angela

November 16, 2016--Week 66

Dear family and friends,

Instead of a group email, I’m forwarding the email that Jacob sent to just me this afternoon. Additionally, I’d like to share the details of what’s happening with Jacob right now and ask for your fasting and prayers.  

As most of you know, when Jacob was 12 years old he was diagnosed with a degenerative cornea disorder called Keratoconus.  When he was 13 he underwent a corneal transplant in his right eye.  Since that time he’s had several surgeries in his left eye—trying to keep that eye from going to transplant.  Anyway, he’s been blessed with good health and corrected vision for several years and has been able to lead a very normal life.  

Last Saturday morning, life changed for Jacob when he woke up with no vision in his right eye.  He’s a smart guy and knew exactly what was happening.  He asked for a blessing and then headed to the emergency room where after lots of hours and several doctors, it was confirmed that the endothelial layer of cells in his cornea are rejecting and detaching from his eye.  Unfortunately, it is normal that when rejections occur, they happen that quickly (literally overnight).  The ophthalmologist sent Jacob home with some heavy duty anti-rejection eye drops and asked for him to come back in today. This afternoon, Jacob saw the cornea specialist who confirmed that the eye is rejecting the transplanted tissue.  

So, what does this mean?  The doctor wants Jacob to try the drops for one more week before any decisions are made.  He said that in a few rare cases, he’s seen rejections reverse—but it will literally be a miracle.  He said that likely Jacob will need another transplant to correct his vision.  Over the next week or two, many decisions will be made about Jacob staying on his mission, pushing through the last eight months with little vision, having surgery while in the field, or coming home for treatment.  As you can see from Jacob’s email below, he does not want to come home.  He also doesn’t want to be a burden to companions or his mission president.  As we all know, having missionaries come home early for any reason, can be an emotional deal.  

Jason and I will be fasting for Jacob on Wednesday, November 16th.  We would invite anyone that wants to join us to participate in a fast for Jacob, the doctors, and the mission president.  Please also include him in your prayers.  

Thanks in advance!  We love you all—and we love this young man that wants so desperately to serve the Lord and the people of New Jersey!

Angela

Hey Mom,

I am sure that Sister Goddard told you already, but this morning the cornea specialist that I needed to see was not there. He will be there at 3:00 my time and I will go see him. The drops don't seem to be doing a whole lot. My vision is just as blind in my right eye as it was on Saturday. I am honestly having a pretty hard time with it all. When I asked for a blessing on Saturday morning, I was hoping to hear something along the lines of "I bless you with healing in your eye that will not hinder your work as a missionary" but that wasn't a promise God wanted to give for whatever reason. When I mentioned this to my companion who gave me the blessing, he said he wanted to say that, but God did not let him. What I do know, is that God is steering right now. I have done the things I have been supposed to do, and whatever happens is His plan. It sucks, but that is how things work sometime. 

I am really worried about what is going to happen after talking with the doctors. On the other hand, I feel very at peace with the doctors who have been caring for my eyes. I also have a very powerful promise in my patriarchal blessing that God will touch the hands of the doctors who are caring for my eyes and that I will be able to see…also that I will be able to see the things that I need to see--books, scriptures, things of this world. And right now as I can not see those things, I trust that God will provide. That's about all for my eyes. I trust in God and I know that the care I will receive will be what I need. 

Thank you for your prayers and support back home. I don't think I am going to send other emails today. I am just too stressed about what the unknowns will be and I can't focus right now. This is all of my pre-mission fears coming to life right now... But I love you! Good luck with your school work. I hope this morning went well!

Love,

Jacob

October 31, 2016--Week 64

Hey everyone,

This week has been COLD. The weather got cold again and it rained on Wednesday night and I don't have a waterproof jacket so all of the clothes I got were wet for like 3 days. And our apartment didn't have heat in the beginning of the week because it was broken. But it's chill because our heater got fixed on Saturday and so things are better now. So the morning routine is easier when I can actually wake up. 

But yeah, I love it here. The area is so sweet. I hope you all have a great week and I love you all!

-Elder Nickerl

October 24, 2016--Week 63

Hey Everyone,

This week has been SO cool! So many amazing things have happened and this is the coolest area I have ever been in. Jersey City is amazing. There are so many people to talk to so the time spent in between talking to people is like 0.5 seconds and we can easily teach like 7-8 lessons a day and find like 4-5 new people every day. So I will spare you the details on all of the contacting and finding, but I love it here. This is going to be a blast. 

Also my new companion Elder Merritt is so awesome. He is such a hard worker and is pretty much go, go, go at like 150% all day every day. It is so great. We get along really well and I can already tell that he is going to probably be my favorite companion that I have had this far. We have pretty much been skipping lunch and dinner every night and just eating at like 7:00 a.m. before studies and at 9:30 p.m. We just take a water bottle and a few protein bars and go at it all day. It's so awesome. Also we are running every morning. He is the first companion who I have had who will go running with me and so that is super great. We pretty much fast walk or run everywhere we go all day every day too so i am going to be in really good shape. 

We have some awesome people who we are working with, but I don't have time to type about them. I will try next week, but I am so happy to be here. 

I love you all and hope you have a great week!
-Elder Nickerl

October 17, 2016--Week 62

Hey Everyone,

Well this week was transfers and after a long time of being here in Toms River I'm off to a new area. It was pretty hard to say goodbye to a lot of people yesterday and it will be very hard to say goodbye to a few more tonight, but I am quite excited to go. I love the people here, but I do feel like I have done and learned what I came to Toms River for and so I am ready to go. 

My new area will be in Jersey City, which I know nothing about at all. But I think it is a walking area which is awesome. I don’t like being in a car and I am super excited to go there and walk. It's a super small area and my new companion is Elder Merritt. He came out about 3 months ago and just got done training. I have never met him and know nothing about him, but from talking to him on the phone last night he seems pretty chill so I am excited to go work with him. 

Other than the transfer news, we had a lot of really cool miracles this week happen so I will just share a few. We got a call on Thursday from a lady in a different ward and she told us that her friend and two kids would be coming to church this Sunday and wanted us to meet her outside beforehand. And she actually came with both of her kids! She loved it and is coming back and we are going to start teaching her. Or these elders here are... :) The other pretty cool thing was that we got a solid member referral last night. That is the first time I have ever gotten a referral when I asked for one during my mission and so that was pretty much another miracle. The sister in the ward is going to call them and we are following up on Tuesday (or these elders are)... :) 

I feel very good about my time here in Toms River and I feel like I gave it everything I had and I am very pleased with the progress that the Lord has allowed me to be a part of in this area. It is almost a totally different area than when I came here and I got to finish up my time here with another talk yesterday bringing my total number of talks given in my life to 17. I think when I gave four talks while I was a deacon it was an indicator of the number of talks I would give in my life. I love giving them though. Yesterday I spoke on Family History and I feel it went really well (half of the room was tearing up so I hope that meant it was good). I really do have a testimony of family history. I have learned how to do it here and as I was sharing the blessings that have come into my life as a result, they are almost innumerable.  I am so thankful for the opportunity to have learned to do it here so that I can go home and do it for the rest of my life. 

Anyways, I gotta run, but I love you all, thanks for your prayers and support!

-Elder Nickerl

P.S.  I finally found a railroad to take my missionary railroad photos!

October 10, 2016--Week 61

Hey everyone,

Wow this week went by fast! I can't believe it. We had a great time and went on exchanges with the Zone Leaders this week as well. We also had zone conference. I learned a lot about accountability and being accountable for the ways that we spend our time. I know that as we spend our time always trying to do not just good things, but the better and best as well, we can bring about miracles. 

I love you all and have a great week!
-Elder Nickerl

October 3, 2016--Week 60

September 26, 2016--Week 59

Hey everyone,

I hope you all are doing well. I don't have a lot of time... again. We have a few appointments at the most inconvenient times today making our email time super short. But that's life. 

This week's highlight was going to the temple with Rocksan. Such a great experience. We went with our bishop and his wife. Other than that, we are finding all day every day. Pray for us to be led to prepared people who want to listen to us. 

I love you all and hope you have a great week!

-Elder Nickerl

Oh PS—This week I was told I probably wouldn't go back to the Korean program. Super mixed feelings on that. I love those people, but there is no work there. So I am officially an English only missionary for the rest of my mission.

September 19, 2016--Week 58

Hey everyone,

Pretty crazy week. It is weird how God literally has just brought people to us this week. All of our own efforts seem like we are just wasting time, but then randomly, we will get a referral or an idea of where we need to be and suddenly prepared people come to us. It is amazing. God is real and this has to be his work. There is no way some of these people would get to us otherwise. 

This week has had too many cool things so I will just talk about a few and then if I have nothing to say next week, I will just pretend the things from this week happened next week and write about them then :) Just kidding, but really maybe I will do that. 

So we had the Philadelphia Temple dedication this week and that was amazing! We went and had an incredible experience. Rocksan also went (at a different time) with some members from our ward.  It was great that she went with them because it means she is transitioning away from missionaries and to the ward. We are going to go to the temple with her this week to do some work for her ancestors which will be a super great experience for her. She has been doing family history for a few weeks and has gotten very excited about all of it. She also has been teaching us the missionary lessons (First because then she can learn from preparing the lessons and second because then we can see what she does not understand) and it has been going so well. She could already teach Gospel Principles class, which would be nice since we don't have a teacher. She is so solid. 

Also, this week we found some really awesome new investigators. One family, a single man, and then a young teenager. I'll hold off on their details till next week, but they are all so prepared there is no way they all fall through. So we will see. Miracles are real all around—especially in the little details. 

Also today at Walmart, we found some Korean pepper paste (Go Choo Jang) and some Korean barbeque stuff so now we can make Korean food forever cause we stocked up a lot. I hope you are all having a great week and I hope you enjoy this next one. 

Love you all!

-Elder Nickerl

PS--Get stoked for General Conference in 13 days! Don't miss it :D  

Photos:  

1.  My favorite... Weekly planning on couch. Our couch is on top of our bunk bed so it's the best place to think and do weekly planning. 

2.  It's really nice to be able to have Korean food again. And now I'm learning how to make it so I will not have to go without again. I love life.

3.  I don't remember which day it was a couple weeks ago. And so we made french fries right before going to bed. Super bad idea... I hadn't made fried food in like 4 months and we have been eating super super healthy. I was pretty sick the next day. But hey they tasted good. But never again. 

September 12, 2016--Week 57

Hey everyone,

This has been a pretty cool week! It's the first week of transfers and I am now with Elder Gim. It's cool having a Korean companion again because he makes Korean food. So that's really awesome because I forgot how much I missed it. So good.

Other than the food being awesome, we have some pretty cool things going on. Rocksan is getting ready to go to the temple this next week, our members are getting more and more excited about missionary work, and next Sunday is the temple dedication for the Philadelphia temple.

We're working to find a lot of investigators because we have none. But they will come. It's gonna be great. This week it's going to be a flood of new investigators. You will see, just wait till next week. That's really about it for the week!  I hope you are all doing great! 

Have a great week!

-Elder Nickerl

September 5, 2016--Week 56

Hey everyone!

Here's the updates on the week. I hope this works okay, not sure how it works, but I saw the sisters doing it a few weeks ago and it looked like a quick easy way to email home, so I'm trying it out.  Let me know how this works out and if there are any problems or concerns with it. 

Just a quick thought on something I have been thinking a lot about. Last night we got our transfer calls and found out what was happening. I was a little worried because I feel like we are running out of new ideas and things to try in this area before we go to knocking doors all day every day when all of the sudden it just came to me--just as it did right before we found Rocksan a few weeks ago-- in a quiet reassuring feeling and it was as if I felt a voice saying, “Don't worry, you don't need to know what to do or where to go, because I do" and at that moment, I knew all would be okay because if I strive my best, God WILL lead the way and he will help us find those people who are prepared. I know it is true. I am really excited to see how things will continue to change here. I know that this is all true. God lives and he loves us. He will show us where we need to be and how to be the happiest in our lives, but we have to seek and look. Just like any parent, he won't give us everything we want, but he will teach us the way to be successful. 

I love you all and hope you have a great week! —Elder Nickerl

August 29, 2016--Week 55

Hey everyone!

So this week was pretty good. All my weeks are good though, are so that shouldn't be a surprise. Also I don't have P-Day today so my emails are sporadic. My companion had to go to his dying (when you leave the mission) trip to the Statue of Liberty today and so we are driving a lot and I don’t have a time to sit down and write. So this and all my emails will be scattered.
 
But yeah, Rocksan got baptized this week! It went really well and the ward was there to support the whole thing. Next week she is getting confirmed and that should go really well. Also our high priest’s group leader has officially returned back to church after a year of inactivity. So that is even better. Two great things and the ward is growing a lot. Other than that, we have been doing a lot of finding.

Elder Dube from the quorum of the seventy came and talked to our mission. He is SUPER funny and he is really personable. I had the chance to talk with him for a few minutes cause he went around talking to everyone in person. It was sweet.

So that's pretty much it. I hope you all have a great week!
-Elder Nickerl

August 8, 2016--Week 52

Hello everyone,

This week has been excellent except I remember very few details of what happened. I took no pictures and I have been super bad at keeping a journal, but what I do know is that we are seeing so many great things happen. We're super excited about the work. 

Sunday, church was cool. For the first time ever on my mission, someone just walked in from the streets and wanted to come to our church. It was a miracle. She loved it and says she is coming back.  She wouldn't give us any contact information because she hasn't made any commitments and she doesn't want us knocking on her door yet. But that is okay. If she is back next week, it will be an even better miracle. The ward is changing and is starting to trust the missionaries a lot more which is super great. 

Nothing else to report, but a cool thing I am learning is how the Lord helps us to build our talents. This lesson goes in great with our mission motto which is "Become". We are to become God's instruments. After looking back over my mission so far a lot this week and doing a lot of pondering and goal setting, I've realized how much I am changing through the experiences God is giving me. I am so thankful for each opportunity I have to make a choice and then receive consequences good or bad for doing so. I am noticing a lot of the same trials or experiences repeating in my life to help teach me a specific thing God wants me to learn. I feel like a lot of times, we can figure out what God wants us to learn from the trials we receive, then knowing what we should learn helps us to learn it quicker. I’m thankful for a Savior who makes it possible to make these decisions, and then overcome the negative consequences through sincere repentance. This life is great. "For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors." (Alma 34:32)

I love you all and hope you have a great week!

-Elder Nickerl