Querida familia,
Sorry your let hasn't been feeling well dad, it sounds like you're powering through it like a boss though, way to take the cake in the fit-bit comp! Savy I'm happy you're back with the fam! Now that grandma and grandpa have straightened you out ;), be an amazing example to your friends and stay out of trouble!
Monica wasn't able to make it to church yesterday, so she hasn't been confirmed yet, but next week for sure. I hope things start going well for her. This week her husband softened his heart a little bit and agreed to start taking lessons from us starting tomorrow. Her sister in law is also starting the lessons with the missionaries over in Donna. It's been great to see the impact of her good example and willingness to share the gospel.
Also, something I've been studying is how we should speak. I've been listening and have realized that many times we say things about other people that we probably ought not to say or wouldn't say if they were in the conversation with us.
D&C 40:27 Thou shalt not speak evil of thy neighbor, nor do him any harm.
Literally a commandment of a Lord here that we're given. Speaking evil, even in jesting, of other people breaks down our personal integrity and makes it difficult to trust other people. If we are not speaking positively of other people, how can we expect them to speak positively of us. Jesus shares with us in the parable of the sheep and the goats;
Matthew 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
Even if it seems harmless if we joke around about others behind their backs or speak rudely, we , in essence, are saying it about Christ. They are children of God and Christ experienced everything they have to. We can choose to lighten that burden for our neighbor, or increase the load they bear. In the same action we will be doing it to Christ. So remember always to speak with language that edifies others and builds them. Try your best to see the best in those around you and you'll feel happier.
I love you guys and hope you have an amazing week!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
Monday, March 14, 2016
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
March 7, 2016
Querida Famlia,
I got your birthday package and loved it! Thanks so much, I'll have candy for weeks now. The cadbury eggs really made my day. I'm also really excited to have that music to play for musical numbers and prelude. Please thank sister Honey for me, I don't have her e-mail. Catania Holman also sent me a package, so that was super nice of her. She left a very sweet letter, a bunch of candy and a tie. My companion was jealous because it was his favorite brand and favorite color, but I'm keeping it for myself! I also got very nice letters from Grandma and Grandpa, Savy, the Browns, and the Gonzo family. I've been very chiflado by all the support I'm getting but I'm happy. It really helps me to keep pushing on through the hard times.
Monica Zendejas got baptized this week! We have had a heck of a process with it all but considering everything, the baptism went pretty smoothly. I'm really happy for her and for her family. She is a great mom and has some of the most loving kids of all time. I am going to miss them a lot when I leave this area. I have absolutely loved it here. I haven't written much specifically about this area, but so far it has been my favorite of the mission. This last week especially was really fun. We have kind of a crazy housing setup that makes it so we get to go see the other elders in the district practically every day. We have gotten along really well and none of us want to leave. We still haven't gotten our transfer calls, but I hope we all get to stay in our areas. It feels like home working with the guys here. Well, literally just got the news in the middle of emailing, Elder Madsen and I are staying together here! We're going to have a great next transfer, I'm really excited!
Something I've been learning this week is the importance and power of gratitude. I'd noticed that my prayers weren't as sincere as I'd like them to be and I wasn't feeling very happy. I studied about prayer in Preach My Gospel and realized I was overlooking being grateful to my Father in my prayers and throughout the day. I took some time to just think of 30 things I was grateful for and my attitude changed almost immediately. I've been happy and now realize how much the Lord blesses us with. We just tend to forget sometimes. So if you're feeling down or frusturated, just take some time think of 30 or 50 or 100 things you're grateful for. The more time you spend thinking of those things, the happier you'll be. A grateful heart is a happy heart :)
D&C 123:17 Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.
I love you guys and hope you have an amazing week! Don't forget to thank the Lord for what you have and give to others so they can enjoy it too!
Con mucho amor, El Elder Jenson
I got your birthday package and loved it! Thanks so much, I'll have candy for weeks now. The cadbury eggs really made my day. I'm also really excited to have that music to play for musical numbers and prelude. Please thank sister Honey for me, I don't have her e-mail. Catania Holman also sent me a package, so that was super nice of her. She left a very sweet letter, a bunch of candy and a tie. My companion was jealous because it was his favorite brand and favorite color, but I'm keeping it for myself! I also got very nice letters from Grandma and Grandpa, Savy, the Browns, and the Gonzo family. I've been very chiflado by all the support I'm getting but I'm happy. It really helps me to keep pushing on through the hard times.
Monica Zendejas got baptized this week! We have had a heck of a process with it all but considering everything, the baptism went pretty smoothly. I'm really happy for her and for her family. She is a great mom and has some of the most loving kids of all time. I am going to miss them a lot when I leave this area. I have absolutely loved it here. I haven't written much specifically about this area, but so far it has been my favorite of the mission. This last week especially was really fun. We have kind of a crazy housing setup that makes it so we get to go see the other elders in the district practically every day. We have gotten along really well and none of us want to leave. We still haven't gotten our transfer calls, but I hope we all get to stay in our areas. It feels like home working with the guys here. Well, literally just got the news in the middle of emailing, Elder Madsen and I are staying together here! We're going to have a great next transfer, I'm really excited!
Something I've been learning this week is the importance and power of gratitude. I'd noticed that my prayers weren't as sincere as I'd like them to be and I wasn't feeling very happy. I studied about prayer in Preach My Gospel and realized I was overlooking being grateful to my Father in my prayers and throughout the day. I took some time to just think of 30 things I was grateful for and my attitude changed almost immediately. I've been happy and now realize how much the Lord blesses us with. We just tend to forget sometimes. So if you're feeling down or frusturated, just take some time think of 30 or 50 or 100 things you're grateful for. The more time you spend thinking of those things, the happier you'll be. A grateful heart is a happy heart :)
D&C 123:17 Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.
I love you guys and hope you have an amazing week! Don't forget to thank the Lord for what you have and give to others so they can enjoy it too!
Con mucho amor, El Elder Jenson
Feb. 29, 2016
Querida Familia,
Sounds like y'all had a good week, sounds like a fun little fit-bit competition. Keep it up dad, you'll catch Greg soon. I also hope the missionary efforts you're putting in as a stake start to catch fire. Also, good luck having Savanah back in the house, I'm glad she'll be able to be together with you guys for the end of the year.
I got the birthday wish from Cristian! Some awesome sisters in the zone told me that they had a member he was friends with, so that was super cool. Thanks Cristian!
This week I was pretty much a little misionero chiflado . A family of recent converts in our ward set up a little surprise birthday party for me and it was awesome. Hermana Josefina Morales cooked tons of carne and Mexican food and Ruby her daughter made a sweet cake for me. They decked their house with decorations and invited some of their family. Her Cousin Cindy bought me a ton of candy and little gifts which was super nice. They absolutely love the missionaries. I'm super lucky we have awesome members here in Weslaco.
This was a good week for me and Elder Madsen. It feels like we're really becoming good friends. It's fun to work with him, and I think this week we really opened up a lot more to each other. Usually when I get to this point with my companion, I get transferred out, so hopefully I get to stay here for a change! Hopefully we have a good last week of the transfer.
We made a lot of progress with our investigator Monica. She is absolutely amazing. She is pretty much going through Hell right now with her family for trying to learn about and become Mormon. Her family has stopped talking to her and her husband is fighting against her but she still continues with faith. She bore her testimony to us in a lesson the other day, and she is definitely ready to be baptized. She will hopefully be able to be baptized next Sunday. She wasn't able to come to church because of some pretty serious problems that went down in the morning. When we went over to talk with her yesterday afternoon, my heart broke for her as she told us what she is going through. She asked me not to share any details of it, but I will say that she is one of the toughest cookies I know. I hope her and her kids can eventually find peace in living the gospel. If I was in her shoes I would've given up long ago, but she never quits. Her example of faith gives me strength to carry on.
I can see because of her that the Lord is really preparing people to hear the gospel. Elder Madsen and I are not great teachers, our lessons have mostly been crazy with her, but she knows the gospel is true and she acts faithfully upon everything we teach. We are so privileged to watch the Lord do his work. Truly no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing. All we've got to do is open our mouths and the Lord, even in our weakness, can make us into great instruments. So don't be afraid to share!
Sounds like y'all had a good week, sounds like a fun little fit-bit competition. Keep it up dad, you'll catch Greg soon. I also hope the missionary efforts you're putting in as a stake start to catch fire. Also, good luck having Savanah back in the house, I'm glad she'll be able to be together with you guys for the end of the year.
I got the birthday wish from Cristian! Some awesome sisters in the zone told me that they had a member he was friends with, so that was super cool. Thanks Cristian!
This week I was pretty much a little misionero chiflado . A family of recent converts in our ward set up a little surprise birthday party for me and it was awesome. Hermana Josefina Morales cooked tons of carne and Mexican food and Ruby her daughter made a sweet cake for me. They decked their house with decorations and invited some of their family. Her Cousin Cindy bought me a ton of candy and little gifts which was super nice. They absolutely love the missionaries. I'm super lucky we have awesome members here in Weslaco.
This was a good week for me and Elder Madsen. It feels like we're really becoming good friends. It's fun to work with him, and I think this week we really opened up a lot more to each other. Usually when I get to this point with my companion, I get transferred out, so hopefully I get to stay here for a change! Hopefully we have a good last week of the transfer.
We made a lot of progress with our investigator Monica. She is absolutely amazing. She is pretty much going through Hell right now with her family for trying to learn about and become Mormon. Her family has stopped talking to her and her husband is fighting against her but she still continues with faith. She bore her testimony to us in a lesson the other day, and she is definitely ready to be baptized. She will hopefully be able to be baptized next Sunday. She wasn't able to come to church because of some pretty serious problems that went down in the morning. When we went over to talk with her yesterday afternoon, my heart broke for her as she told us what she is going through. She asked me not to share any details of it, but I will say that she is one of the toughest cookies I know. I hope her and her kids can eventually find peace in living the gospel. If I was in her shoes I would've given up long ago, but she never quits. Her example of faith gives me strength to carry on.
I can see because of her that the Lord is really preparing people to hear the gospel. Elder Madsen and I are not great teachers, our lessons have mostly been crazy with her, but she knows the gospel is true and she acts faithfully upon everything we teach. We are so privileged to watch the Lord do his work. Truly no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing. All we've got to do is open our mouths and the Lord, even in our weakness, can make us into great instruments. So don't be afraid to share!
Feb. 22, 2016
Querida familia,
Happy birthday on Wednesday Brandon!! Also Nathan Brown's birthday is on the 28th this Sunday, so if you could wish a Happy Birthday to him for me that'd be great! I will try to send him a letter today, but might not have time with the zone activity.
So great mile-marker in my Spanish this week! Apparently a few nights ago Elder Madsen woke up in the middle of the night to me sleep-talking! And not just any sleep-talking, but Spanish sleep-talking. I don't remember any of it, in fact all the dreams I remembered that night were in English. But t'was pretty funny.
We also had the great opportunity of meeting a Jewish WWll Holocaust survivor a few days ago. Her name was Maria Pascua and she was taken prisoner when she was 7 years old. She watched 300 men get shot all at once and was present the night of a severe bombing in the war. Over 10,00 people died that night and she watched it all. She saw some pretty awful things while she was there, and she still has nightmares from it even today. She has been through a lot in her life and it was super interesting to hear about all the amazing things she's done. It makes me very grateful for my life at 7 years old, in fact my whole life. We are very blessed to live in freedom and relative peace. She wasn't too interested in the church for various reasons, but she said she wanted a Book of Mormon to read and learn more so we left one with her.
We also had the opportunity to hear from a general authority this week! The whole mission got together and he gave us an amazing training. It was Elder Corbridge, the Elder who wrote "the 4th missionary" talk. It was fantastic. He has a knowledge and command over the scriptures that really helps bring the spirit and enlighten the understanding. I realized as a subliminal message from his talk that the quality of our scripture study is more important than the quantity. That's a pretty basic and universal principal. Sometimes I think I have to read a whole bunch of different things and go fast to cram everything into our tight schedule, but really simple and focused studies always seem to be the best. If we treat the scriptures with great value and care while we study then others will be able to see that in us and realize their importance as well.
We had Monica at church this week! We had a few others promise us they'd come even the morning of that didn't show up, so that was a bit upsetting, but we were super happy to see Monica and her kids there. She'll probably be prepared for baptism in the next few weeks here. She's got a few struggles with her family, but her heart is good and she definitely wants the gospel in her life more abundantly.
That's about all for this week, we've met a lot of cool people and have continued on in the work. I love you all so much! Have a great week and save me a piece of banana cake!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Happy birthday on Wednesday Brandon!! Also Nathan Brown's birthday is on the 28th this Sunday, so if you could wish a Happy Birthday to him for me that'd be great! I will try to send him a letter today, but might not have time with the zone activity.
So great mile-marker in my Spanish this week! Apparently a few nights ago Elder Madsen woke up in the middle of the night to me sleep-talking! And not just any sleep-talking, but Spanish sleep-talking. I don't remember any of it, in fact all the dreams I remembered that night were in English. But t'was pretty funny.
We also had the great opportunity of meeting a Jewish WWll Holocaust survivor a few days ago. Her name was Maria Pascua and she was taken prisoner when she was 7 years old. She watched 300 men get shot all at once and was present the night of a severe bombing in the war. Over 10,00 people died that night and she watched it all. She saw some pretty awful things while she was there, and she still has nightmares from it even today. She has been through a lot in her life and it was super interesting to hear about all the amazing things she's done. It makes me very grateful for my life at 7 years old, in fact my whole life. We are very blessed to live in freedom and relative peace. She wasn't too interested in the church for various reasons, but she said she wanted a Book of Mormon to read and learn more so we left one with her.
We also had the opportunity to hear from a general authority this week! The whole mission got together and he gave us an amazing training. It was Elder Corbridge, the Elder who wrote "the 4th missionary" talk. It was fantastic. He has a knowledge and command over the scriptures that really helps bring the spirit and enlighten the understanding. I realized as a subliminal message from his talk that the quality of our scripture study is more important than the quantity. That's a pretty basic and universal principal. Sometimes I think I have to read a whole bunch of different things and go fast to cram everything into our tight schedule, but really simple and focused studies always seem to be the best. If we treat the scriptures with great value and care while we study then others will be able to see that in us and realize their importance as well.
We had Monica at church this week! We had a few others promise us they'd come even the morning of that didn't show up, so that was a bit upsetting, but we were super happy to see Monica and her kids there. She'll probably be prepared for baptism in the next few weeks here. She's got a few struggles with her family, but her heart is good and she definitely wants the gospel in her life more abundantly.
That's about all for this week, we've met a lot of cool people and have continued on in the work. I love you all so much! Have a great week and save me a piece of banana cake!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Feb. 15, 2016
Querida familia,
Nobody at church this week. Failed gameday, but there's hope for next week!
I have been learning a lot in these past few weeks, but most importantly is that we must always do our best to teach in the way of the Lord. He is so patient in the way he teaches, and sometimes it's hard to be so patient with everyone when you just want them to accept the gospel and be happy right in that moment. People take time to change. Sometimes it's the temptation to try to force them to change for the better, but that disrupts God's plan. We learn little by little, here a little and there a little. Not everything all at once.
I learned that lesson from Elder Madsen this week. As I stood back in a lesson and watched the way he taught patiently, the spirit inspired me to think on the way the Lord teaches me. I took a long time in my life to change and be converted. In fact, I'm still continuing in that process. Not one time has the Lord ever used harsh words or tried to force me to change. He just stands there warmly with arms wide open and reaching, waiting for me to take my shaking, faithful, sometimes fearful steps toward Him. So that's what I'm going to try to do as I teach. Stop being frustrated when the people don't see clearly, and just love them for those courageous steps they are taking at their own pace.
I'm very grateful for prayer as well. I'm starting to learn the difference between prayer and sincere prayer. I say prayers many times a day and have throughout my whole life, but I have not always understood a faithful prayer. I'm still learning how to have real prayers, but I can recount two experiences this week when I got specific counsel and instruction from the Lord that I needed for the work. As I was praying, I followed the counsel of some leaders and paused to give the Lord time to talk to me. When I did, it was silent and still at first, but two thoughts came to my mind.
The first being that in order to serve and love my companion more, I needed to start listening more intently to him when he talks. The second that I wasn't doing well my part in the mission meetings we were having and that I needed to start participating more. I wrote those things down when the came to my mind, and as I have tried to apply them, both have benefited me greatly and I know that they are both specific and personal counsel from the Lord. From this and other experiences, I realize that a prayer of faith usually comes with some instruction and guidance on how to improve. We just have to listen for it. The Lord will never force knowledge on us, but he is always willing to give to the sincere seeker.
I am very grateful to have the Lord as my guide and teacher. Despite all my doubts, fears, worries, and stresses, he is always there smiling and encouraging me to keep walking forward. I love Him and I know He lives. Nothing would work if that fact were not true. Through Him we have life and through Him, everything is possible.
Love you all and hope you have a great week! Thanks for the picture of Hillary Brandon, and great work Cristian! She looks like a keeper to me!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Nobody at church this week. Failed gameday, but there's hope for next week!
I have been learning a lot in these past few weeks, but most importantly is that we must always do our best to teach in the way of the Lord. He is so patient in the way he teaches, and sometimes it's hard to be so patient with everyone when you just want them to accept the gospel and be happy right in that moment. People take time to change. Sometimes it's the temptation to try to force them to change for the better, but that disrupts God's plan. We learn little by little, here a little and there a little. Not everything all at once.
I learned that lesson from Elder Madsen this week. As I stood back in a lesson and watched the way he taught patiently, the spirit inspired me to think on the way the Lord teaches me. I took a long time in my life to change and be converted. In fact, I'm still continuing in that process. Not one time has the Lord ever used harsh words or tried to force me to change. He just stands there warmly with arms wide open and reaching, waiting for me to take my shaking, faithful, sometimes fearful steps toward Him. So that's what I'm going to try to do as I teach. Stop being frustrated when the people don't see clearly, and just love them for those courageous steps they are taking at their own pace.
I'm very grateful for prayer as well. I'm starting to learn the difference between prayer and sincere prayer. I say prayers many times a day and have throughout my whole life, but I have not always understood a faithful prayer. I'm still learning how to have real prayers, but I can recount two experiences this week when I got specific counsel and instruction from the Lord that I needed for the work. As I was praying, I followed the counsel of some leaders and paused to give the Lord time to talk to me. When I did, it was silent and still at first, but two thoughts came to my mind.
The first being that in order to serve and love my companion more, I needed to start listening more intently to him when he talks. The second that I wasn't doing well my part in the mission meetings we were having and that I needed to start participating more. I wrote those things down when the came to my mind, and as I have tried to apply them, both have benefited me greatly and I know that they are both specific and personal counsel from the Lord. From this and other experiences, I realize that a prayer of faith usually comes with some instruction and guidance on how to improve. We just have to listen for it. The Lord will never force knowledge on us, but he is always willing to give to the sincere seeker.
I am very grateful to have the Lord as my guide and teacher. Despite all my doubts, fears, worries, and stresses, he is always there smiling and encouraging me to keep walking forward. I love Him and I know He lives. Nothing would work if that fact were not true. Through Him we have life and through Him, everything is possible.
Love you all and hope you have a great week! Thanks for the picture of Hillary Brandon, and great work Cristian! She looks like a keeper to me!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Feb. 15, 2016
Querida familia,
Nobody at church this week. Failed gameday, but there's hope for next week!
I have been learning a lot in these past few weeks, but most importantly is that we must always do our best to teach in the way of the Lord. He is so patient in the way he teaches, and sometimes it's hard to be so patient with everyone when you just want them to accept the gospel and be happy right in that moment. People take time to change. Sometimes it's the temptation to try to force them to change for the better, but that disrupts God's plan. We learn little by little, here a little and there a little. Not everything all at once.
I learned that lesson from Elder Madsen this week. As I stood back in a lesson and watched the way he taught patiently, the spirit inspired me to think on the way the Lord teaches me. I took a long time in my life to change and be converted. In fact, I'm still continuing in that process. Not one time has the Lord ever used harsh words or tried to force me to change. He just stands there warmly with arms wide open and reaching, waiting for me to take my shaking, faithful, sometimes fearful steps toward Him. So that's what I'm going to try to do as I teach. Stop being frustrated when the people don't see clearly, and just love them for those courageous steps they are taking at their own pace.
I'm very grateful for prayer as well. I'm starting to learn the difference between prayer and sincere prayer. I say prayers many times a day and have throughout my whole life, but I have not always understood a faithful prayer. I'm still learning how to have real prayers, but I can recount two experiences this week when I got specific counsel and instruction from the Lord that I needed for the work. As I was praying, I followed the counsel of some leaders and paused to give the Lord time to talk to me. When I did, it was silent and still at first, but two thoughts came to my mind.
The first being that in order to serve and love my companion more, I needed to start listening more intently to him when he talks. The second that I wasn't doing well my part in the mission meetings we were having and that I needed to start participating more. I wrote those things down when the came to my mind, and as I have tried to apply them, both have benefited me greatly and I know that they are both specific and personal counsel from the Lord. From this and other experiences, I realize that a prayer of faith usually comes with some instruction and guidance on how to improve. We just have to listen for it. The Lord will never force knowledge on us, but he is always willing to give to the sincere seeker.
I am very grateful to have the Lord as my guide and teacher. Despite all my doubts, fears, worries, and stresses, he is always there smiling and encouraging me to keep walking forward. I love Him and I know He lives. Nothing would work if that fact were not true. Through Him we have life and through Him, everything is possible.
Love you all and hope you have a great week! Thanks for the picture of Hillary Brandon, and great work Cristian! She looks like a keeper to me!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Nobody at church this week. Failed gameday, but there's hope for next week!
I have been learning a lot in these past few weeks, but most importantly is that we must always do our best to teach in the way of the Lord. He is so patient in the way he teaches, and sometimes it's hard to be so patient with everyone when you just want them to accept the gospel and be happy right in that moment. People take time to change. Sometimes it's the temptation to try to force them to change for the better, but that disrupts God's plan. We learn little by little, here a little and there a little. Not everything all at once.
I learned that lesson from Elder Madsen this week. As I stood back in a lesson and watched the way he taught patiently, the spirit inspired me to think on the way the Lord teaches me. I took a long time in my life to change and be converted. In fact, I'm still continuing in that process. Not one time has the Lord ever used harsh words or tried to force me to change. He just stands there warmly with arms wide open and reaching, waiting for me to take my shaking, faithful, sometimes fearful steps toward Him. So that's what I'm going to try to do as I teach. Stop being frustrated when the people don't see clearly, and just love them for those courageous steps they are taking at their own pace.
I'm very grateful for prayer as well. I'm starting to learn the difference between prayer and sincere prayer. I say prayers many times a day and have throughout my whole life, but I have not always understood a faithful prayer. I'm still learning how to have real prayers, but I can recount two experiences this week when I got specific counsel and instruction from the Lord that I needed for the work. As I was praying, I followed the counsel of some leaders and paused to give the Lord time to talk to me. When I did, it was silent and still at first, but two thoughts came to my mind.
The first being that in order to serve and love my companion more, I needed to start listening more intently to him when he talks. The second that I wasn't doing well my part in the mission meetings we were having and that I needed to start participating more. I wrote those things down when the came to my mind, and as I have tried to apply them, both have benefited me greatly and I know that they are both specific and personal counsel from the Lord. From this and other experiences, I realize that a prayer of faith usually comes with some instruction and guidance on how to improve. We just have to listen for it. The Lord will never force knowledge on us, but he is always willing to give to the sincere seeker.
I am very grateful to have the Lord as my guide and teacher. Despite all my doubts, fears, worries, and stresses, he is always there smiling and encouraging me to keep walking forward. I love Him and I know He lives. Nothing would work if that fact were not true. Through Him we have life and through Him, everything is possible.
Love you all and hope you have a great week! Thanks for the picture of Hillary Brandon, and great work Cristian! She looks like a keeper to me!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Feb. 8, 2016
Querida Familia,
Happy Baptism Jordan! I love you buddy and I'm glad it went well! What good news about Cristian too, I hope everything goes well for them! I almost started crying as I read that, it made me very happy. I've prayed for you guys a lot throughout the mission, so I'm super happy to hear how well your all doing.
So I totally met David Archuleta yesterday. He just decided to pop into the English ward for a friends baby blessing so I saw him in the hall, shook his hand, and talked to him for like 30 seconds. I guess I can never wash that hand again. President Maluenda was also there, so that ward was definitely the place to be!
I have done a lot of learning and a lot of humbling this week. It's funny how easy it is to get prideful. Not necessarily that you think you're better than others, but in comparing yourself to others. I've felt the spirit a lot this week and felt the lack of several times as well. It's been a little bit of a roller-coaster. Elder Madsen and I are doing well. We had a silly fight this week and I got pretty upset with him. I was slow to forgive for a few hours and i realized that that is the quickest way to lose the spirit. He who withholds forgiveness is guilty of the greater sin. I felt super bad then apologized and everything's good now. We are kind of funny ducks. We're not always super loving, but we always forgive each other so that's pretty cool. We're working on some things together and overall it's been pretty fun. He's a very good guy and does a lot of deep thinking.
This week we're organizing a family night for the ward to try to boost the unity and help the members trust us a little more. We have super awesome members here and they've been very willing to jump in and help. Everyone here is very giving and most of them love the missionaries too which is great! We've enjoyed a lot of different types of Mexican food, so needless to say it's been a good week for me! I absolutely love Mexican Food.
Something that a little bird whispered in my ear during sacrament meeting this week was that I need to be more willing to participate in meetings. Sometimes I get shy and nervous to speak up and try new things in front of other people, especially in a new zone, but I've begun to realize how selfish that is. The leaders are doing their very best to help us have animo and success in the work and I imagine it makes it really hard on them when there's not much participation. It will take some humbling, but that's what I'm gonna work on.
I've been reading in the new testament this week in the book of Matthew and Mark and I have to say it's been an amazing experience. I've never really seriously read the bible much before the mission, and I love learning about the Life of Jesus Christ as depicted by the 4 Gospels. It's very poetic to read and I find myself amazed learning of the Character of Christ in how he reacts in many different situations. I am in awe at all the things he went through prior to his Crucifixion. Immediately after taking upon himself all the sins, sorrows, sicknesses, and pains of the entire human race in the garden of Gethsemane, He is betrayed and taken prisoner. Not only that, all of his friends and apostles scatter leaving him utterly alone to face the wrath of mankind. He is prosecuted unjustly and then tortured and killed. All of the while he had the power to release himself from this great bondage. But what did he do? He suffered it all with Godly patience. He voluntarily did that all without complaint or worry for himself because of his supreme love towards us. And what are we? Unworthy creatures even lower than the dust as King Benjamin puts it in the last discourse he gave during his reign. We have done nothing to deserve that love, and Christ never owed us anything. But still he chose the dark path so that we could walk in light. I am so eternally grateful to call myself a disciple of Him and for the opportunity I have to learn to follow Him each new day. What a fantastic plan we're all a part of. I love you guys very much and I'm very grateful to be a part of your family. Have a great week!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Happy Baptism Jordan! I love you buddy and I'm glad it went well! What good news about Cristian too, I hope everything goes well for them! I almost started crying as I read that, it made me very happy. I've prayed for you guys a lot throughout the mission, so I'm super happy to hear how well your all doing.
So I totally met David Archuleta yesterday. He just decided to pop into the English ward for a friends baby blessing so I saw him in the hall, shook his hand, and talked to him for like 30 seconds. I guess I can never wash that hand again. President Maluenda was also there, so that ward was definitely the place to be!
I have done a lot of learning and a lot of humbling this week. It's funny how easy it is to get prideful. Not necessarily that you think you're better than others, but in comparing yourself to others. I've felt the spirit a lot this week and felt the lack of several times as well. It's been a little bit of a roller-coaster. Elder Madsen and I are doing well. We had a silly fight this week and I got pretty upset with him. I was slow to forgive for a few hours and i realized that that is the quickest way to lose the spirit. He who withholds forgiveness is guilty of the greater sin. I felt super bad then apologized and everything's good now. We are kind of funny ducks. We're not always super loving, but we always forgive each other so that's pretty cool. We're working on some things together and overall it's been pretty fun. He's a very good guy and does a lot of deep thinking.
This week we're organizing a family night for the ward to try to boost the unity and help the members trust us a little more. We have super awesome members here and they've been very willing to jump in and help. Everyone here is very giving and most of them love the missionaries too which is great! We've enjoyed a lot of different types of Mexican food, so needless to say it's been a good week for me! I absolutely love Mexican Food.
Something that a little bird whispered in my ear during sacrament meeting this week was that I need to be more willing to participate in meetings. Sometimes I get shy and nervous to speak up and try new things in front of other people, especially in a new zone, but I've begun to realize how selfish that is. The leaders are doing their very best to help us have animo and success in the work and I imagine it makes it really hard on them when there's not much participation. It will take some humbling, but that's what I'm gonna work on.
I've been reading in the new testament this week in the book of Matthew and Mark and I have to say it's been an amazing experience. I've never really seriously read the bible much before the mission, and I love learning about the Life of Jesus Christ as depicted by the 4 Gospels. It's very poetic to read and I find myself amazed learning of the Character of Christ in how he reacts in many different situations. I am in awe at all the things he went through prior to his Crucifixion. Immediately after taking upon himself all the sins, sorrows, sicknesses, and pains of the entire human race in the garden of Gethsemane, He is betrayed and taken prisoner. Not only that, all of his friends and apostles scatter leaving him utterly alone to face the wrath of mankind. He is prosecuted unjustly and then tortured and killed. All of the while he had the power to release himself from this great bondage. But what did he do? He suffered it all with Godly patience. He voluntarily did that all without complaint or worry for himself because of his supreme love towards us. And what are we? Unworthy creatures even lower than the dust as King Benjamin puts it in the last discourse he gave during his reign. We have done nothing to deserve that love, and Christ never owed us anything. But still he chose the dark path so that we could walk in light. I am so eternally grateful to call myself a disciple of Him and for the opportunity I have to learn to follow Him each new day. What a fantastic plan we're all a part of. I love you guys very much and I'm very grateful to be a part of your family. Have a great week!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Feb. 1, 2016
Querida familia,
Feliz Cumpleanos esta semana Jordan! I'm so happy for you buddy and I wish I could be there at your baptism. Please send me pictures! What an amazing thing. All of our family will have been baptized by the end of this week. Next step, everyone in the temple. I'm so glad I have you all for a family. I couldn't have asked for a better one. I'm also super happy to hear about Courtney and Luca! They are such a great family and I hope Thierry and Alex will also get to receive the blessings of the Gospel very soon.
That is some crazy stuff going on at home. I pray for you guys every day, so I know the Lord will protect you but be smart and stay safe!
So once again, Elder Jenson was transferred. I'm starting to get the idea that President Maluenda is scared of me destroying an area so he has to move me around so much to keep that from happening. ;) Elder Faris stayed behind just like Elder Angles did. Elder Angles and Elder Robinson both went home this week, so that was kind of sad for me as well. But the work continues! I'm now serving in McAllen Zone in the city of Mercedes, TX. I'm in another Spanish area called Indian Hills. It's a super nice area and the members are awesome here! I've only been here for a week, but the love and support from the members is very evident. I know we will have success here, I'm excited to work with these people. My new companion is Elder Madsen. He's a gringo like me and has been on the mission for just over a year. He's from Colorado and he's a pretty smart guy. We've gotten along great so far, let's hope we keep it up!
This was an area that Elder Robinson worked in a while back in his mission, and he always told me about it. It's really fun to see now 6 months later all the stories that he would tell me about, and meet the people in person. It's like I'm getting to watch the movie after reading the book.
My district right now is all Elders, so the only interaction I have with sister missionaries is at zone meetings. It's fun hanging out with the other Elders, but I definitely wish we had some sisters to talk to every once in a while. Sometimes we get a little rowdy without hermanas to keep us in check!
Right now we're working with a sweet lady named Esperanza. She came to church this Sunday and is very excited to be baptized. She definitely has the gift of gab and loves to tell stories. Every time we go over it's a great opportunity to practice my Spanish skills because she speaks about a thousand miles per hour; it keeps me on my toes. She has a social butterfly type of personality and always makes us feel welcome when we come over. I just have trouble understanding from time to time because my gringo ears are still a little slow. For the most part I can understand and have conversations with people, so it's getting to be a lot of fun being able to connect with people and learn about their Spanish culture.
Something cool that I have learned over the past few weeks is that people, for the most part, respond really well to pure doctrine. We talk with so many people everyday and we're expected to deliver the message of the restoration in a way they will understand and receive it. Many times we get nervous or worried about what to say and how to present the message as to not offend them, but that never works. Fear kills everything. As I have felt love for the people and showed that to them by listening and letting them know I care about their thoughts, they open up a lot more. Then we simply teach them about the priesthood and the restoration and they accept it very well. I've learned that the things we teach people are not weird or foreign, but the message is something familiar to them. After all, they did participate in and know about the plan before this life, so the things we teach are not necessarily new. We're just here to remind them of God's love and help them return to him. What a great privilege it is to be a member of the church and know what we know.
I love you all very much and I hope you have a great week. Be safe, trust in God, and keep sharing the gospel. Y'all are a kick-butt member family and I'm grateful for your wonderful examples. The missionaries there are very lucky. Peace!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Feliz Cumpleanos esta semana Jordan! I'm so happy for you buddy and I wish I could be there at your baptism. Please send me pictures! What an amazing thing. All of our family will have been baptized by the end of this week. Next step, everyone in the temple. I'm so glad I have you all for a family. I couldn't have asked for a better one. I'm also super happy to hear about Courtney and Luca! They are such a great family and I hope Thierry and Alex will also get to receive the blessings of the Gospel very soon.
That is some crazy stuff going on at home. I pray for you guys every day, so I know the Lord will protect you but be smart and stay safe!
So once again, Elder Jenson was transferred. I'm starting to get the idea that President Maluenda is scared of me destroying an area so he has to move me around so much to keep that from happening. ;) Elder Faris stayed behind just like Elder Angles did. Elder Angles and Elder Robinson both went home this week, so that was kind of sad for me as well. But the work continues! I'm now serving in McAllen Zone in the city of Mercedes, TX. I'm in another Spanish area called Indian Hills. It's a super nice area and the members are awesome here! I've only been here for a week, but the love and support from the members is very evident. I know we will have success here, I'm excited to work with these people. My new companion is Elder Madsen. He's a gringo like me and has been on the mission for just over a year. He's from Colorado and he's a pretty smart guy. We've gotten along great so far, let's hope we keep it up!
This was an area that Elder Robinson worked in a while back in his mission, and he always told me about it. It's really fun to see now 6 months later all the stories that he would tell me about, and meet the people in person. It's like I'm getting to watch the movie after reading the book.
My district right now is all Elders, so the only interaction I have with sister missionaries is at zone meetings. It's fun hanging out with the other Elders, but I definitely wish we had some sisters to talk to every once in a while. Sometimes we get a little rowdy without hermanas to keep us in check!
Right now we're working with a sweet lady named Esperanza. She came to church this Sunday and is very excited to be baptized. She definitely has the gift of gab and loves to tell stories. Every time we go over it's a great opportunity to practice my Spanish skills because she speaks about a thousand miles per hour; it keeps me on my toes. She has a social butterfly type of personality and always makes us feel welcome when we come over. I just have trouble understanding from time to time because my gringo ears are still a little slow. For the most part I can understand and have conversations with people, so it's getting to be a lot of fun being able to connect with people and learn about their Spanish culture.
Something cool that I have learned over the past few weeks is that people, for the most part, respond really well to pure doctrine. We talk with so many people everyday and we're expected to deliver the message of the restoration in a way they will understand and receive it. Many times we get nervous or worried about what to say and how to present the message as to not offend them, but that never works. Fear kills everything. As I have felt love for the people and showed that to them by listening and letting them know I care about their thoughts, they open up a lot more. Then we simply teach them about the priesthood and the restoration and they accept it very well. I've learned that the things we teach people are not weird or foreign, but the message is something familiar to them. After all, they did participate in and know about the plan before this life, so the things we teach are not necessarily new. We're just here to remind them of God's love and help them return to him. What a great privilege it is to be a member of the church and know what we know.
I love you all very much and I hope you have a great week. Be safe, trust in God, and keep sharing the gospel. Y'all are a kick-butt member family and I'm grateful for your wonderful examples. The missionaries there are very lucky. Peace!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Jan. 25, 2016
Querida familia,
That's super awesome! I was wondering who that girl was in the hike pictures with Brandon. Thank you guys for being such awesome member missionaries! I love you all a lot. I'm very happy to hear about Cristian and Hillary. I will pray for them and hope it works out. Mostly I hope she's a good girl because I don't know her. I will trust that the Lord will guide Him to make the right decision. He's a stud.
So last week of the transfer, we'll find out in a few hours whether or not I stay or go. This has been kind of a hard transfer as far as the work goes, but I've learned and grown in many ways personally. It's really hard to stay animado and have a good attitude when there is very little visible success in the work. We found so many people with good desires and good hearts, but nobody has kept the commitments we leave them and because of that, they don't progress. The most rewarding thing for me as a missionary is to watch someone take a step towards Christ and act in faith. When people act faithfully on their own accord it motivates me to be a better missionary and more faithful myself. But we haven't been able to help anybody in a significant way. It was a transfer full of seed planting, but I suppose that's part of the process as well.
Today we exploited Elder Faris's talents with the oven and make amazing pizzas. He's going to open his own shop in the future and I know he will have great success. He's an amazing baker. Also one of our new investigators- Hermano Netro Tabon- Is a baker. He has a house full of bread and baking supplies, and every time we go over he feeds us delicious homemade rolls and pan dulce.
We had an amazing experience with one of the Members in a different ward this week. He goes to the Mission 2nd ward, but he lives in our area so we payed him a visit. His name is Alan and he has cerebral palsy. He can hardly move anything except his face, so the only way he can communicate is through blinking. It was a really neat experience trying to talk to him and understand him through his alphabet blinks. He got baptized in October and has been faithful ever since. He has such an amazing attitude in such a difficult circumstance. He was always cracking jokes and had a great sense of humor about everything. It makes me more grateful for the simple things that I have like control over my arms and legs, the ability to speak and communicate, and even to go to the bathroom by myself. So many things we take for granted, others don't get to enjoy. All we can do is try to cultivate and attitude of gratitude in whatever circumstance and we will be happy.
At his house I also got to hold a baby sheep and it sucked on my finger. Absolutely a life-changing experience. Way better than a dog.
I love the gospel, and I love feeling the spirit. I don't always feel it strongly, but every so often the Lord gives me new light and new knowledge to help me grow and be better. Heaven knows I have a long way to go before I'll become like Christ, but I'm determined to find joy in the journey. I'm here on earth, might as well enjoy it. As Presidente Maluenda says,"Disfruta la mision." Entonces, lo voy a hacer.
Os quiero muchÃsimo, y espero que tengáis una buena semana. Casi cada dÃa pienso en vosotros y vuestros ejemplos para mÃ. Seguéis adelante en compartir el evangelio y tengáis buenas actitudes!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
That's super awesome! I was wondering who that girl was in the hike pictures with Brandon. Thank you guys for being such awesome member missionaries! I love you all a lot. I'm very happy to hear about Cristian and Hillary. I will pray for them and hope it works out. Mostly I hope she's a good girl because I don't know her. I will trust that the Lord will guide Him to make the right decision. He's a stud.
So last week of the transfer, we'll find out in a few hours whether or not I stay or go. This has been kind of a hard transfer as far as the work goes, but I've learned and grown in many ways personally. It's really hard to stay animado and have a good attitude when there is very little visible success in the work. We found so many people with good desires and good hearts, but nobody has kept the commitments we leave them and because of that, they don't progress. The most rewarding thing for me as a missionary is to watch someone take a step towards Christ and act in faith. When people act faithfully on their own accord it motivates me to be a better missionary and more faithful myself. But we haven't been able to help anybody in a significant way. It was a transfer full of seed planting, but I suppose that's part of the process as well.
Today we exploited Elder Faris's talents with the oven and make amazing pizzas. He's going to open his own shop in the future and I know he will have great success. He's an amazing baker. Also one of our new investigators- Hermano Netro Tabon- Is a baker. He has a house full of bread and baking supplies, and every time we go over he feeds us delicious homemade rolls and pan dulce.
We had an amazing experience with one of the Members in a different ward this week. He goes to the Mission 2nd ward, but he lives in our area so we payed him a visit. His name is Alan and he has cerebral palsy. He can hardly move anything except his face, so the only way he can communicate is through blinking. It was a really neat experience trying to talk to him and understand him through his alphabet blinks. He got baptized in October and has been faithful ever since. He has such an amazing attitude in such a difficult circumstance. He was always cracking jokes and had a great sense of humor about everything. It makes me more grateful for the simple things that I have like control over my arms and legs, the ability to speak and communicate, and even to go to the bathroom by myself. So many things we take for granted, others don't get to enjoy. All we can do is try to cultivate and attitude of gratitude in whatever circumstance and we will be happy.
At his house I also got to hold a baby sheep and it sucked on my finger. Absolutely a life-changing experience. Way better than a dog.
I love the gospel, and I love feeling the spirit. I don't always feel it strongly, but every so often the Lord gives me new light and new knowledge to help me grow and be better. Heaven knows I have a long way to go before I'll become like Christ, but I'm determined to find joy in the journey. I'm here on earth, might as well enjoy it. As Presidente Maluenda says,"Disfruta la mision." Entonces, lo voy a hacer.
Os quiero muchÃsimo, y espero que tengáis una buena semana. Casi cada dÃa pienso en vosotros y vuestros ejemplos para mÃ. Seguéis adelante en compartir el evangelio y tengáis buenas actitudes!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Jan. 18, 2016
Querida familia,
Last week of the Transfer!! Who'll stay who'll go, well we'll find out next week. This last week was amazing and a little crazy too. We had a lesson with the Garcia family (new investigators) outside of an old mobile home in a rural woodsy area. It was going alright, but we were having trouble helping them to understand the importance of the gospel. As we were talking it grew darker and darker. It was about that twilight zone time of the night, and there was a weird feeling in the area. As we were finishing up the lesson, the son of about ten years old started running around and being crazy. He was lighting fire-crackers, rolling tuna cans, climbing trees, and a whole host of other things. We had just finished the lesson and committed them to say prayers on their own that night when we heard the loud shriek from the boy,"Se me quebro el brazo!" We all looked over and saw him laying on the floor moaning and crying. We ran over to him and His Grandma reached down to pull up his sleeve. It looked like he had his whole arm inside his shirt because the sleeve looked limp and empty. When his grandma pulled up the sleeve, we saw that his arm was still in the sleeve, it was just bent at some pretty funny angles and wobbled around like a noodle. His mom jumped in there," YA VES HIJO! YA VES!". Elder Faris and I stood there dumbfounded and had no idea what to do. Finally they decided to put the poor boy in the truck and rush him to the hospital to fix the broken arm. We still had no idea what to do. We gave an awkward goodbye to the mom who remained behind and left. It was a super weird night, but it was kind of funny how it all went down. The boy is alright now, just a little tired after the cast and pain meds. We'll continue to stop by them this week and see how they're doing. They are sweet people; I hope they will progress well in the gospel this next week.
I've had a blast with the Elders in the apartment this week. Elder Faris especially is an amazing guy. I don't think I've written a lot about him, but he is a great missionary. He's almost 23, so it's been different with the large age gap between us, but he is very patient and a great friend. He's an amazing cyclist and has biked hundreds of miles along the Oregon coast. He's also an amazing baker and always brings homemade treats to his district meetings. He's a "domestic champion" so to speak because he can cook, he can sew, knit, write music, clean, and tell a good campfire story. He's a real funny guy and very natural socially. He understands people and knows how to teach them with love and in a way that they understand. I've loved working with him and he's taught me a lot. Same as with Elder Angles, I wish I had one more transfer with him, but I'm pretty sure that he'll move up to be a zone leader next transfer. My guess is Corpus Christi, but we'll see. Who knows, maybe I'll be the one to move out. Whatever happens I know the Lord's got it all planned out already.
The work is great, the people are good, but we're having trouble getting people to come to church. Our plan this week is to stop by all their houses on sunday morning with duct-tape and potato sacks, tie them up, throw 'em in the trunk and bring them ourselves. Sometimes life would be a lot easier if we could just take away other people's agency. But alas, God gives us our agency and is patient with us so we must do the same to others. I see why Satan got so frustrated when he couldn't just control everybody and make life happen exactly how he wanted. Good thing we have a loving and patient God!
I'm very grateful for Jesus Christ and his example to me everyday and I'm grateful he gives us new opportunities and second chances every day. I mess up a lot, but step by step I'm beginning to see the marvelous plan of the master unfold. He wants us all to be happy and we can be. All we've got to do is try to be like His son and enjoy the journey. I love you guys and I hope you have a fantastic week!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
P.S. Great career choice Jordan, I hope after you use your first paycheck to buy those kids that you'll have money left over to feed them too!
Last week of the Transfer!! Who'll stay who'll go, well we'll find out next week. This last week was amazing and a little crazy too. We had a lesson with the Garcia family (new investigators) outside of an old mobile home in a rural woodsy area. It was going alright, but we were having trouble helping them to understand the importance of the gospel. As we were talking it grew darker and darker. It was about that twilight zone time of the night, and there was a weird feeling in the area. As we were finishing up the lesson, the son of about ten years old started running around and being crazy. He was lighting fire-crackers, rolling tuna cans, climbing trees, and a whole host of other things. We had just finished the lesson and committed them to say prayers on their own that night when we heard the loud shriek from the boy,"Se me quebro el brazo!" We all looked over and saw him laying on the floor moaning and crying. We ran over to him and His Grandma reached down to pull up his sleeve. It looked like he had his whole arm inside his shirt because the sleeve looked limp and empty. When his grandma pulled up the sleeve, we saw that his arm was still in the sleeve, it was just bent at some pretty funny angles and wobbled around like a noodle. His mom jumped in there," YA VES HIJO! YA VES!". Elder Faris and I stood there dumbfounded and had no idea what to do. Finally they decided to put the poor boy in the truck and rush him to the hospital to fix the broken arm. We still had no idea what to do. We gave an awkward goodbye to the mom who remained behind and left. It was a super weird night, but it was kind of funny how it all went down. The boy is alright now, just a little tired after the cast and pain meds. We'll continue to stop by them this week and see how they're doing. They are sweet people; I hope they will progress well in the gospel this next week.
I've had a blast with the Elders in the apartment this week. Elder Faris especially is an amazing guy. I don't think I've written a lot about him, but he is a great missionary. He's almost 23, so it's been different with the large age gap between us, but he is very patient and a great friend. He's an amazing cyclist and has biked hundreds of miles along the Oregon coast. He's also an amazing baker and always brings homemade treats to his district meetings. He's a "domestic champion" so to speak because he can cook, he can sew, knit, write music, clean, and tell a good campfire story. He's a real funny guy and very natural socially. He understands people and knows how to teach them with love and in a way that they understand. I've loved working with him and he's taught me a lot. Same as with Elder Angles, I wish I had one more transfer with him, but I'm pretty sure that he'll move up to be a zone leader next transfer. My guess is Corpus Christi, but we'll see. Who knows, maybe I'll be the one to move out. Whatever happens I know the Lord's got it all planned out already.
The work is great, the people are good, but we're having trouble getting people to come to church. Our plan this week is to stop by all their houses on sunday morning with duct-tape and potato sacks, tie them up, throw 'em in the trunk and bring them ourselves. Sometimes life would be a lot easier if we could just take away other people's agency. But alas, God gives us our agency and is patient with us so we must do the same to others. I see why Satan got so frustrated when he couldn't just control everybody and make life happen exactly how he wanted. Good thing we have a loving and patient God!
I'm very grateful for Jesus Christ and his example to me everyday and I'm grateful he gives us new opportunities and second chances every day. I mess up a lot, but step by step I'm beginning to see the marvelous plan of the master unfold. He wants us all to be happy and we can be. All we've got to do is try to be like His son and enjoy the journey. I love you guys and I hope you have a fantastic week!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
P.S. Great career choice Jordan, I hope after you use your first paycheck to buy those kids that you'll have money left over to feed them too!
Jan. 11, 2016
Querida familia,
I'm very sorry to hear about all the tragedies in town, I will pray for the families there. Great job home teaching Jacob! Way to get a head start on that. That's something we're working on with our ward right now, so thanks for setting an example. We had the second set of interviews with President Maluenda this week, and they went great! He gave me some good advice in the interview, and I learned a lot from the trainings that were given by our leaders. The biggest things would be that life is a lot easier and a lot happier when we are obedient and selfless. When we think of ourselves, life gets kind of frustrating. However, when we focus our thoughts and actions on the benefit of others, everything seems to be bright.
This week was rough with our investigators, we had to drop several of them, and very few are progressing. On the brighter side, our work with the less-actives is going much better! We had two families and a recent convert less-active come to church, so that was pretty rewarding to see! Hopefully these last two weeks in the transfer go well.
This week I also got to go on an exchange with one of the Zone leaders, and it went super well! It was my first time being "senior comp" for everything and was a little stressful, but it was a lot of fun to work with Elder Lindsey. We got Elder Faris back yesterday, and today we spent some time Jamming on piano and guitar.
The sisters had a baptism this week for a 20 yr old guy named Alex, and he's pretty awesome. 1 Hour after his baptismal service he asked if he could come out proselyting with us, so we took him for the rest of sunday night. He did great and bore testimony of his baptism to several people. He's got a heart of gold and is going to join the military soon. I hope he stays active after he gets shipped out. He'll be a great member of the ward wherever he serves.
That's about all I've got for you this week. Thanks for the video, that was really fun to hear your voices and watch ya'll in the snow. Keep being amazing and remember; if you're ever feeling down or frustrated, just pray for those around you, or do something nice for someone else. You're attitude will change in an instant. I love you all!
I'm very sorry to hear about all the tragedies in town, I will pray for the families there. Great job home teaching Jacob! Way to get a head start on that. That's something we're working on with our ward right now, so thanks for setting an example. We had the second set of interviews with President Maluenda this week, and they went great! He gave me some good advice in the interview, and I learned a lot from the trainings that were given by our leaders. The biggest things would be that life is a lot easier and a lot happier when we are obedient and selfless. When we think of ourselves, life gets kind of frustrating. However, when we focus our thoughts and actions on the benefit of others, everything seems to be bright.
This week was rough with our investigators, we had to drop several of them, and very few are progressing. On the brighter side, our work with the less-actives is going much better! We had two families and a recent convert less-active come to church, so that was pretty rewarding to see! Hopefully these last two weeks in the transfer go well.
This week I also got to go on an exchange with one of the Zone leaders, and it went super well! It was my first time being "senior comp" for everything and was a little stressful, but it was a lot of fun to work with Elder Lindsey. We got Elder Faris back yesterday, and today we spent some time Jamming on piano and guitar.
The sisters had a baptism this week for a 20 yr old guy named Alex, and he's pretty awesome. 1 Hour after his baptismal service he asked if he could come out proselyting with us, so we took him for the rest of sunday night. He did great and bore testimony of his baptism to several people. He's got a heart of gold and is going to join the military soon. I hope he stays active after he gets shipped out. He'll be a great member of the ward wherever he serves.
That's about all I've got for you this week. Thanks for the video, that was really fun to hear your voices and watch ya'll in the snow. Keep being amazing and remember; if you're ever feeling down or frustrated, just pray for those around you, or do something nice for someone else. You're attitude will change in an instant. I love you all!
Jan. 4, 2016
Querida familia,
Thanks for fasting for me boys! The Lord is keeping me safe here for sure. I may have needed your fasts because we had some rough weather the last few days so riding in the street has been a bit dangerous. Everything is alright though, and the weather is great again! I love hearing about your missionary experiences, we love it when members sacrifice to come out with us; they are way more important in the lessons than the missionaries are for many different reasons. The most being that the missionaries are temporary and the members are permanent residents. Fellowship is much better with the help of the members. Keep it up! I'm also glad Cristian found a good girl. I've been praying for him and for Brandon to find girls that are as amazing as they are. Right now I'm serving with an Elder named Elder Galloso and he reminds me a lot of Cristian. He was badly burned as a child and as a result has only one full arm and the hand he has the fingers are burned off. He has many physical struggles, but he has the heart of a lion just like Cristian.
I've got an interesting adventure for you this week. Last Monday night we stopped by a Less active for a family night and they ended up not being there. We were a little put off for that, but as we were leaving their house I saw something in the road a little ways off. Upon further inspection, I found that it was a nice fat snake sitting there. I thought it was alive but the head ended up being crushed. I pointed it out to Elder Faris, and somehow we came up with the great idea of bringing it home with us. We crossed the street to contact a referral. He wasn't interested, but he gave us a plastic grocery bag so we could carry the snake home; we didn't tell him why we wanted it... Anyway, we picked that 4' long sucker up and carried it around with us the rest of the night to all of our appointments.
Then we got home and put it in the fridge to prank Elder Galloso and Elder Johnson. They didn't open the fridge for a while that night and Elder Faris and I were dying trying not to laugh and give it away. Finally Elder Galloso went to open the fridge, stuck his face right in there and froze. All he said was," Oh freak..." And just stood there blank faced. Elder Faris and I died laughing and the other guys enjoyed the joke. We left it in a pan in the fridge for 3 days and then we finally found some time to cut it up. We wanted to make the skin into a leather hide for our planners.
Elder Faris took out all the intestines and stuff while I studied Spanish, then pinned up the hide to dry. After that we had the grand idea to cook it up and see what it tasted like, so we did it. Surprisingly it tasted almost exactly like chicken. It was pretty bony like a fish but the taste was still good. Today the hide finished drying and we sprayed clear acrylic on it to seal it up and harden it. It turned out super cool and I think we're going to frame it instead of using it for planners, and post some of the "surgery" pictures with it. That's about it. My first meal of roadkill and my first meal of snake. Viva Tex-Mex mission life!
Regarding the missionary work here, things are going pretty well. The people here are absolutely great; they have great hearts, but very few people will come to church with us. This week we're going to focus on teaching the importance of the Sabbath day. I hope that helps fix the problem. People can't enjoy the blessings of coming to church if they don't come. We also have a unique problem with trying to help less active members get to the temple. (Deleted--"no man's land")
I'm loving life and having a blast with these guys. I had a few days in my first two transfers that were really hard emotionally; I've had many times like that throughout my life. However, these last few months I haven't even had one. As I've focused on serving others, my worries and problems have been disappearing and life just becomes great. I still have hard days, but I still enjoy them and they don't drag me down like they did before. One huge blessing of the gospel for me right there. I can't tell you how great it is to be out here. Life is simple, the missionaries are great, and I get to watch the Lord's hand work in other people's lives every day. What more could anyone ask for!? Happy New Years, and have a great first week of school everyone! I love you all and I'm praying for you always!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
Thanks for fasting for me boys! The Lord is keeping me safe here for sure. I may have needed your fasts because we had some rough weather the last few days so riding in the street has been a bit dangerous. Everything is alright though, and the weather is great again! I love hearing about your missionary experiences, we love it when members sacrifice to come out with us; they are way more important in the lessons than the missionaries are for many different reasons. The most being that the missionaries are temporary and the members are permanent residents. Fellowship is much better with the help of the members. Keep it up! I'm also glad Cristian found a good girl. I've been praying for him and for Brandon to find girls that are as amazing as they are. Right now I'm serving with an Elder named Elder Galloso and he reminds me a lot of Cristian. He was badly burned as a child and as a result has only one full arm and the hand he has the fingers are burned off. He has many physical struggles, but he has the heart of a lion just like Cristian.
I've got an interesting adventure for you this week. Last Monday night we stopped by a Less active for a family night and they ended up not being there. We were a little put off for that, but as we were leaving their house I saw something in the road a little ways off. Upon further inspection, I found that it was a nice fat snake sitting there. I thought it was alive but the head ended up being crushed. I pointed it out to Elder Faris, and somehow we came up with the great idea of bringing it home with us. We crossed the street to contact a referral. He wasn't interested, but he gave us a plastic grocery bag so we could carry the snake home; we didn't tell him why we wanted it... Anyway, we picked that 4' long sucker up and carried it around with us the rest of the night to all of our appointments.
Then we got home and put it in the fridge to prank Elder Galloso and Elder Johnson. They didn't open the fridge for a while that night and Elder Faris and I were dying trying not to laugh and give it away. Finally Elder Galloso went to open the fridge, stuck his face right in there and froze. All he said was," Oh freak..." And just stood there blank faced. Elder Faris and I died laughing and the other guys enjoyed the joke. We left it in a pan in the fridge for 3 days and then we finally found some time to cut it up. We wanted to make the skin into a leather hide for our planners.
Elder Faris took out all the intestines and stuff while I studied Spanish, then pinned up the hide to dry. After that we had the grand idea to cook it up and see what it tasted like, so we did it. Surprisingly it tasted almost exactly like chicken. It was pretty bony like a fish but the taste was still good. Today the hide finished drying and we sprayed clear acrylic on it to seal it up and harden it. It turned out super cool and I think we're going to frame it instead of using it for planners, and post some of the "surgery" pictures with it. That's about it. My first meal of roadkill and my first meal of snake. Viva Tex-Mex mission life!
Regarding the missionary work here, things are going pretty well. The people here are absolutely great; they have great hearts, but very few people will come to church with us. This week we're going to focus on teaching the importance of the Sabbath day. I hope that helps fix the problem. People can't enjoy the blessings of coming to church if they don't come. We also have a unique problem with trying to help less active members get to the temple. (Deleted--"no man's land")
I'm loving life and having a blast with these guys. I had a few days in my first two transfers that were really hard emotionally; I've had many times like that throughout my life. However, these last few months I haven't even had one. As I've focused on serving others, my worries and problems have been disappearing and life just becomes great. I still have hard days, but I still enjoy them and they don't drag me down like they did before. One huge blessing of the gospel for me right there. I can't tell you how great it is to be out here. Life is simple, the missionaries are great, and I get to watch the Lord's hand work in other people's lives every day. What more could anyone ask for!? Happy New Years, and have a great first week of school everyone! I love you all and I'm praying for you always!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
Dec. 28, 2015
Hola Familia,
Hace poquito que hablamos en Viernes, entonces no necessito decir mucho. No mas, seguimos con la obra misional. Despues de la video charla, me puse un poco mal pero solo permanecio por como quince minutos. Ahora estoy como "back on track" y disfrutando todo.
Ayer tuvimos una visita con un hermano que se llama Noe Benavides. Tuve compasion para con el a causa de su circunstancias y calidad de vida. El tenia muchos desafios creciendo y por eso no tiene mucho fe ni esperanza. Espero que podamos ayudarle a venir a Cristo y recibir la luz del evangelio en su vida.
Muchas vezes me frustro cuando las personas no vean la importancia y grandeza del evangelio, pero Dios siempre me da la paciencia. Me doy cuenta que no estimia el evangelio de ser bien importante por mucha de mi vida, pero ahora puedo ver. Necesito recordar que el evangelio toma tiempo para funcionar por lo general. A pesar de todo eso, Dios me bendice con amor para mi projimos y le amo a la gente aqui.
Esta manana yo estudie la parabola del arbol de olivos alla en Jacob 5. Fue el primera vez en toda mi vida que lo entendi muy bien. El espiritu me ayudo a entender las implicaciones de los acontecimientos. Es un capitulo muy hermoso. Yo les invitaria pero solo con la ayuda del espiritu santo. Sin ella, va a ser bien dificil.
Tambien, esta manana yo y los elderes de mi cuarto jugamos futbol con la familia Ramoz alla en la cancha de Palmview y fue muy divertido. Mi equipo jugo muy bien y ganamos cada vez como si fueramos "destroying angels"!! Me encanto, y ahora estoy listo para la proxima semana. Voy a trabajar bien duro y en unidad y obediencia con El Elder Faris.
Hasta aquel entonces, cuidanse y recuerdan el amor del Salvador siempre. Si siguen obedientes, El les va a bendecir. Les amo mucho y seran en mis oraciones. Tenga una buena semana y disfrutan el comienzo de la escuela.
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Hace poquito que hablamos en Viernes, entonces no necessito decir mucho. No mas, seguimos con la obra misional. Despues de la video charla, me puse un poco mal pero solo permanecio por como quince minutos. Ahora estoy como "back on track" y disfrutando todo.
Ayer tuvimos una visita con un hermano que se llama Noe Benavides. Tuve compasion para con el a causa de su circunstancias y calidad de vida. El tenia muchos desafios creciendo y por eso no tiene mucho fe ni esperanza. Espero que podamos ayudarle a venir a Cristo y recibir la luz del evangelio en su vida.
Muchas vezes me frustro cuando las personas no vean la importancia y grandeza del evangelio, pero Dios siempre me da la paciencia. Me doy cuenta que no estimia el evangelio de ser bien importante por mucha de mi vida, pero ahora puedo ver. Necesito recordar que el evangelio toma tiempo para funcionar por lo general. A pesar de todo eso, Dios me bendice con amor para mi projimos y le amo a la gente aqui.
Esta manana yo estudie la parabola del arbol de olivos alla en Jacob 5. Fue el primera vez en toda mi vida que lo entendi muy bien. El espiritu me ayudo a entender las implicaciones de los acontecimientos. Es un capitulo muy hermoso. Yo les invitaria pero solo con la ayuda del espiritu santo. Sin ella, va a ser bien dificil.
Tambien, esta manana yo y los elderes de mi cuarto jugamos futbol con la familia Ramoz alla en la cancha de Palmview y fue muy divertido. Mi equipo jugo muy bien y ganamos cada vez como si fueramos "destroying angels"!! Me encanto, y ahora estoy listo para la proxima semana. Voy a trabajar bien duro y en unidad y obediencia con El Elder Faris.
Hasta aquel entonces, cuidanse y recuerdan el amor del Salvador siempre. Si siguen obedientes, El les va a bendecir. Les amo mucho y seran en mis oraciones. Tenga una buena semana y disfrutan el comienzo de la escuela.
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Dec. 21, 2015
Querida Familia,
No, I haven't received the packages yet, but we have our Christmas party tomorrow so I will check then. I have to say, Jacob's winter safety tips absolutely made my Christmas season! Only problem is that there aren't any bears rattlesnakes or icicles out here for me to worry about. But I will try to spread the word! This week was super fun and we killed a tlacuache at some random guys house the other day. It was pretty brutal. I took a video but it's too long to send, so I'll send pictures. We don't have any set plans for Christmas yet because we're whitewashing the area, but we might need to call in the morning time around 8. When we work it out with one of the members, I'll have them text you the details.
So like I said last week, I am often very surprised by what happens on the mission. I found out last Monday night that I was actually being transferred again and that Elder Angles was staying in Colegio Sur. I am now serving in a small town called Penitas just outside of La Joya. My companion's name is Elder Faris, and he's a musical genius on the guitar! Our apartment is about 1 mile away from the border of Mexico and It's super fun here! It reminds me a lot of Kanab just without mountains. The Pop. is about 4,000 people and casi todo es en espanol! My first Spanish area of the mission! So far I've been able to keep up pretty well with the language. I still speak pretty slowly and don't understand all the people I talk to perfectly; but I can carry on a conversation pretty decently. In fact, our ward is pretty small and they didn't have a Gospel Principles teacher this last Sunday, so Elder Faris and I taught the lesson all in Spanish. That went really smoothly and it was fun to have a lesson with our investigators in the church. There is a different Spirit teaching in the church from teaching in the homes.
I'm sad to have left Elder Angles, but I learned a lot from the time I had with him and I think the Lord is blessing me with this time to develop the attributes he taught me for myself. We are living in a 4 man apartment for the first time, and I like it a lot. There is always a fun spirit in the house with two companionships. Luckily all the Elders in our house are great missionaries so we don't really have any arguments. We're all working hard and loving the mission. I've felt the spirit very strongly throughout this week and I am learning to love God. As I learn more about Him and His nature, I feel the desire to be obedient and become more like Him. He is becoming my best friend and a real Father in my eyes. I can't tell you how many times I've felt the Spirit come and warm my heart throughout the day as I just walk around or ride my bike pondering on different scriptures. The hand of God in everyone's life is undeniable, but sometimes we blind ourselves to it.
I love reading and learning about the gospel and this week specifically about the Millenium. in 2 Nephi chapter 30 near the end it describes how life will be when the Lord returns. It will be a time of great peace because v.15 "the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." As I imagine the world as it will be, I am filled with hope and excitement. I know as long as I do my best to fulfill my calling, I will become clean enough to live at that time with Him when all things shall be revealed.
I love the people here, it is a very different culture from even McAllen just 20 minutes away. I'm pretty much the only guerro en the whole city except Elder Johnson the Greenie in our apartment. The people here are very humble and they take conversations about God very seriously. They are very respectful and loving people, and I love being around them. Many live in very humble circumstances which makes me sad, but I know the power of the gospel to help people improve the quality of their lives. I just try to have a more eternal perspective and it helps me to be happy.
All I can really say is that life is great. Just learn and keep the commandments and everything will be alright. As long as I maintain my relationship with God and strive to be worthy before Him, I don't need to worry about anything or anyone around me. I love you all a lot, and hope you can feel the love God has for all of you this Christmas. Have a great week and a Merry Christmas!!
Love,
El Elder Jenson
No, I haven't received the packages yet, but we have our Christmas party tomorrow so I will check then. I have to say, Jacob's winter safety tips absolutely made my Christmas season! Only problem is that there aren't any bears rattlesnakes or icicles out here for me to worry about. But I will try to spread the word! This week was super fun and we killed a tlacuache at some random guys house the other day. It was pretty brutal. I took a video but it's too long to send, so I'll send pictures. We don't have any set plans for Christmas yet because we're whitewashing the area, but we might need to call in the morning time around 8. When we work it out with one of the members, I'll have them text you the details.
So like I said last week, I am often very surprised by what happens on the mission. I found out last Monday night that I was actually being transferred again and that Elder Angles was staying in Colegio Sur. I am now serving in a small town called Penitas just outside of La Joya. My companion's name is Elder Faris, and he's a musical genius on the guitar! Our apartment is about 1 mile away from the border of Mexico and It's super fun here! It reminds me a lot of Kanab just without mountains. The Pop. is about 4,000 people and casi todo es en espanol! My first Spanish area of the mission! So far I've been able to keep up pretty well with the language. I still speak pretty slowly and don't understand all the people I talk to perfectly; but I can carry on a conversation pretty decently. In fact, our ward is pretty small and they didn't have a Gospel Principles teacher this last Sunday, so Elder Faris and I taught the lesson all in Spanish. That went really smoothly and it was fun to have a lesson with our investigators in the church. There is a different Spirit teaching in the church from teaching in the homes.
I'm sad to have left Elder Angles, but I learned a lot from the time I had with him and I think the Lord is blessing me with this time to develop the attributes he taught me for myself. We are living in a 4 man apartment for the first time, and I like it a lot. There is always a fun spirit in the house with two companionships. Luckily all the Elders in our house are great missionaries so we don't really have any arguments. We're all working hard and loving the mission. I've felt the spirit very strongly throughout this week and I am learning to love God. As I learn more about Him and His nature, I feel the desire to be obedient and become more like Him. He is becoming my best friend and a real Father in my eyes. I can't tell you how many times I've felt the Spirit come and warm my heart throughout the day as I just walk around or ride my bike pondering on different scriptures. The hand of God in everyone's life is undeniable, but sometimes we blind ourselves to it.
I love reading and learning about the gospel and this week specifically about the Millenium. in 2 Nephi chapter 30 near the end it describes how life will be when the Lord returns. It will be a time of great peace because v.15 "the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." As I imagine the world as it will be, I am filled with hope and excitement. I know as long as I do my best to fulfill my calling, I will become clean enough to live at that time with Him when all things shall be revealed.
I love the people here, it is a very different culture from even McAllen just 20 minutes away. I'm pretty much the only guerro en the whole city except Elder Johnson the Greenie in our apartment. The people here are very humble and they take conversations about God very seriously. They are very respectful and loving people, and I love being around them. Many live in very humble circumstances which makes me sad, but I know the power of the gospel to help people improve the quality of their lives. I just try to have a more eternal perspective and it helps me to be happy.
All I can really say is that life is great. Just learn and keep the commandments and everything will be alright. As long as I maintain my relationship with God and strive to be worthy before Him, I don't need to worry about anything or anyone around me. I love you all a lot, and hope you can feel the love God has for all of you this Christmas. Have a great week and a Merry Christmas!!
Love,
El Elder Jenson
Dec. 14, 2015
Querida Familia,
Holy Cow, lots of surprises in that letter! Thanks for letting me know what's happening at home, I love hearing about it even if it does make me a little trunky. Mostly it just makes me excited, I can't believe that the Kings are moving to Vanuatu! I was shocked as I read that! I hope y'all didn't go broke buying their life away! I am super excited for them! Tell them good luck for me and that I love them. Bro King was an awesome last seminary teacher! I'm glad to hear about Brandon and how things are going. Keep up the awkwardness; I don't want you to be married when I get home. Maybe all three of us could share a wedding in two years when I get home. Sure would help on the decoration expenses... I hope Brandon and Cristian find the right girls soon though! :)
This week was great as always and a little bit unexpected. I'm slowly but surely learning that things seldom if ever go as expected with anything. But it all works out pretty well in the end. The Lord is watching over us. This week one of our most solid investigators, Vanessa, got back with her boyfriend and stopped meeting with us. She didn't come to church on Sunday either, so we're very sad about that. I hope she starts coming back again soon.
On the other hand, two of our previous investigators who we thought we were losing are coming back super strong! Bernie and Damion, grandma and nieto, two of the very best people I've ever met. Bernie got to come to church and go to the adult classes for the first time two weeks ago, and ever since then she has been pursuing the gospel faithfully. I'm so excited for them, I wish you could meet them. Damion is only 8, but he has the spirit of a man. He is going to be a great leader in the future. He is already sharing the gospel with his neighborhood friends and they are starting to listen to us with their families. They truly are two of God's finest children.
Then we have solid Louis. He's 69 and is always there. He seeks after gospel knowledge more than any other materialistic possession on earth. I love watching his testimony grow as he reads and prays about the Book of Mormon. He is absolutely amazed by some things we take so often for granted being raised in the church. He is one of my favorite people on earth. Even if we stopped visiting with him he would still progress on his own and be baptized. He loves coming to church and our ward family is great for him. The members here are amazing. Such faithful saints! Many of them will stand through the tests we will all face in the near future. I just love the people in this area so much!
On another note, I'd just like to mention that this week we picked oranges at a members house. Needless to say, it's been a rough winter... ;) We've had about 4 or 5 days this whole winter that I've had to wear a sweater. Other than that it's been in the 70's and 80's and absolutely beautiful.
I had some hard times emotionally this week, but I was able to make it through with the help of the Lord. Sometimes I naturally start comparing myself to other people and that really makes things awful. I just try to remember that I'm not perfect right now but I can be someday. God still loves me and he will always be patient. I think that's where faith comes in. It's frustrating to be so imperfect right now, but if we trust in the Lord's promises, we know we can become perfect through Him over time. Just keep trying to look for Christ in the world all around you. In 2 Nephi 11:4 Nephi writes
"Behold, my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the law of Moses been given; and all things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world, unto man, are the typifying of Him. "
Everything bears witness of Him, in the world around us. All we have to do is search and have faith; He will provide! I love you all so much and I'm super excited for these next two weeks! Have fun over the Christmas break and we'll talk to you on the 25th!
Holy Cow, lots of surprises in that letter! Thanks for letting me know what's happening at home, I love hearing about it even if it does make me a little trunky. Mostly it just makes me excited, I can't believe that the Kings are moving to Vanuatu! I was shocked as I read that! I hope y'all didn't go broke buying their life away! I am super excited for them! Tell them good luck for me and that I love them. Bro King was an awesome last seminary teacher! I'm glad to hear about Brandon and how things are going. Keep up the awkwardness; I don't want you to be married when I get home. Maybe all three of us could share a wedding in two years when I get home. Sure would help on the decoration expenses... I hope Brandon and Cristian find the right girls soon though! :)
This week was great as always and a little bit unexpected. I'm slowly but surely learning that things seldom if ever go as expected with anything. But it all works out pretty well in the end. The Lord is watching over us. This week one of our most solid investigators, Vanessa, got back with her boyfriend and stopped meeting with us. She didn't come to church on Sunday either, so we're very sad about that. I hope she starts coming back again soon.
On the other hand, two of our previous investigators who we thought we were losing are coming back super strong! Bernie and Damion, grandma and nieto, two of the very best people I've ever met. Bernie got to come to church and go to the adult classes for the first time two weeks ago, and ever since then she has been pursuing the gospel faithfully. I'm so excited for them, I wish you could meet them. Damion is only 8, but he has the spirit of a man. He is going to be a great leader in the future. He is already sharing the gospel with his neighborhood friends and they are starting to listen to us with their families. They truly are two of God's finest children.
Then we have solid Louis. He's 69 and is always there. He seeks after gospel knowledge more than any other materialistic possession on earth. I love watching his testimony grow as he reads and prays about the Book of Mormon. He is absolutely amazed by some things we take so often for granted being raised in the church. He is one of my favorite people on earth. Even if we stopped visiting with him he would still progress on his own and be baptized. He loves coming to church and our ward family is great for him. The members here are amazing. Such faithful saints! Many of them will stand through the tests we will all face in the near future. I just love the people in this area so much!
On another note, I'd just like to mention that this week we picked oranges at a members house. Needless to say, it's been a rough winter... ;) We've had about 4 or 5 days this whole winter that I've had to wear a sweater. Other than that it's been in the 70's and 80's and absolutely beautiful.
I had some hard times emotionally this week, but I was able to make it through with the help of the Lord. Sometimes I naturally start comparing myself to other people and that really makes things awful. I just try to remember that I'm not perfect right now but I can be someday. God still loves me and he will always be patient. I think that's where faith comes in. It's frustrating to be so imperfect right now, but if we trust in the Lord's promises, we know we can become perfect through Him over time. Just keep trying to look for Christ in the world all around you. In 2 Nephi 11:4 Nephi writes
"Behold, my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the law of Moses been given; and all things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world, unto man, are the typifying of Him. "
Everything bears witness of Him, in the world around us. All we have to do is search and have faith; He will provide! I love you all so much and I'm super excited for these next two weeks! Have fun over the Christmas break and we'll talk to you on the 25th!
Nov. 30, 2015
Querida familia,
I am learning so much here. I am starting to really feel guided by God, and I realize that the people I am meeting are placed there specifically for the benefit of both parties. I am coming to know that God knows us all as individuals and has a very perfect and marvelous plan for each of us. My companion has taught me so much through studies, but mostly through his example. He is courageous and loves God a lot more than he fears man in every situation. He reminds me greatly of the character of Nephi and his pure desire to follow the Lord in all circumstances.
This thanksgiving was one of the best I've ever had, and also one of the best days of my mission. On Thanksgiving, we were invited to join the Salmond Family for turkey Mole dinner. Brother Salmond is the 2nd councilor in the stake presidency; absolutely and amazing man! He has a great Hispanic wife and two beautiful young daughters.
We Began eating and making usual dinner conversation. I learned that his wife's family was from Mexico City, and that she was a convert to the church. She converted at 18 yrs old, learned English, and was living in SLC when she met Bro. Salmond. Brother Salmond was from Logan up in northern Utah. He met his wife through a relative's referral from work, and they were married 6 months later. They told me they were fairly new to the area and had only been living here for about 2 years. Nothing was significant really, it was just a regular dinner conversation. Then we got to talking about his occupation. He told me that he worked for CES as an institute teacher. I responded immediately," Hey, my dad works for CES too, he's a seminary teacher." He then explained that he worked for the college, and was actually the CES coordinator for all of southern Texas.
That's when the bells went off. Now, where had I heard that term before? CES coordinator for southern Texas. I remembered dad's job opportunity from nearly 2 years ago to be the CES coordinator for southern Texas. It seemed like a pretty sure thing (having talked to Gary Montuya) but another family was unexpectedly selected to be transferred in our place. Something about southern Texas being the midpoint between his family somewhere by Idaho and her family in Mexico City.
I looked over at the wife--check. She fit the description. I looked at the husband--check. Logan is near Idaho. At that point I began to get very excited. I stopped the conversation and asked some more clarifying questions. They were definitely the family I had heard about. I related my thoughts to them and told them the story of our family from nearly two years ago; all the excitement over the job transfer and the disappointment we felt when another family was chosen instead.
We were all very excited to talk about and see all those coincidental occurrences. Their house probably would've been ours had we been selected instead. While I didn't get to spend thanksgiving with my family, I practically spent it in my house! Would-be house anyway.
As we were talking sister Salmond was very excited about it all and even began to get a little emotional. She started to tell us more about her family's side of the story. For them, the job transfer was unexpected and she was very hesitant to move. She was worried about the area and was unsure of whether or not this was the place she wanted her family to be. The church leaders told them that they had a spiritual confirmation that this was the area their family needed to move to. They said that, but she didn't fully accept it for what it was. Me coming over and sharing our side of the story, she told us, was an answer to her prayers and that she knew now that this was really the Lord's hand guiding her family.
I know too that He is guiding all of us in our paths. "My name is Jehovah. I know the end from the beginning; therefore, my hand shall be over thee." Abraham 2:8. He is watching out for me and for you in everything we do. He knew us before we were born, and loves us like no other. I love Him too and I love this marvelous work. I love you all and hope you have a great week!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
I am learning so much here. I am starting to really feel guided by God, and I realize that the people I am meeting are placed there specifically for the benefit of both parties. I am coming to know that God knows us all as individuals and has a very perfect and marvelous plan for each of us. My companion has taught me so much through studies, but mostly through his example. He is courageous and loves God a lot more than he fears man in every situation. He reminds me greatly of the character of Nephi and his pure desire to follow the Lord in all circumstances.
This thanksgiving was one of the best I've ever had, and also one of the best days of my mission. On Thanksgiving, we were invited to join the Salmond Family for turkey Mole dinner. Brother Salmond is the 2nd councilor in the stake presidency; absolutely and amazing man! He has a great Hispanic wife and two beautiful young daughters.
We Began eating and making usual dinner conversation. I learned that his wife's family was from Mexico City, and that she was a convert to the church. She converted at 18 yrs old, learned English, and was living in SLC when she met Bro. Salmond. Brother Salmond was from Logan up in northern Utah. He met his wife through a relative's referral from work, and they were married 6 months later. They told me they were fairly new to the area and had only been living here for about 2 years. Nothing was significant really, it was just a regular dinner conversation. Then we got to talking about his occupation. He told me that he worked for CES as an institute teacher. I responded immediately," Hey, my dad works for CES too, he's a seminary teacher." He then explained that he worked for the college, and was actually the CES coordinator for all of southern Texas.
That's when the bells went off. Now, where had I heard that term before? CES coordinator for southern Texas. I remembered dad's job opportunity from nearly 2 years ago to be the CES coordinator for southern Texas. It seemed like a pretty sure thing (having talked to Gary Montuya) but another family was unexpectedly selected to be transferred in our place. Something about southern Texas being the midpoint between his family somewhere by Idaho and her family in Mexico City.
I looked over at the wife--check. She fit the description. I looked at the husband--check. Logan is near Idaho. At that point I began to get very excited. I stopped the conversation and asked some more clarifying questions. They were definitely the family I had heard about. I related my thoughts to them and told them the story of our family from nearly two years ago; all the excitement over the job transfer and the disappointment we felt when another family was chosen instead.
We were all very excited to talk about and see all those coincidental occurrences. Their house probably would've been ours had we been selected instead. While I didn't get to spend thanksgiving with my family, I practically spent it in my house! Would-be house anyway.
As we were talking sister Salmond was very excited about it all and even began to get a little emotional. She started to tell us more about her family's side of the story. For them, the job transfer was unexpected and she was very hesitant to move. She was worried about the area and was unsure of whether or not this was the place she wanted her family to be. The church leaders told them that they had a spiritual confirmation that this was the area their family needed to move to. They said that, but she didn't fully accept it for what it was. Me coming over and sharing our side of the story, she told us, was an answer to her prayers and that she knew now that this was really the Lord's hand guiding her family.
I know too that He is guiding all of us in our paths. "My name is Jehovah. I know the end from the beginning; therefore, my hand shall be over thee." Abraham 2:8. He is watching out for me and for you in everything we do. He knew us before we were born, and loves us like no other. I love Him too and I love this marvelous work. I love you all and hope you have a great week!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
Nov 22, 2015
Querida familia,
Hola familia! I'm super excited to hear the kid's recital, hope they do great! My advice is to practice hard; That's all I got ;). How are your lessons coming mom? Are you performing in the recital as well? Also for some reason Connor Hille's name has been coming to me a few times this week. Is he on a mission right now? Que lastima Cristian busted the green bean! Oh well, I guess everything has it's time to go. Hey, if you were planning to send a package for Christmas, please include various office supplies like those nice markers from stampin up and some cardstock and things. I'm trying to get more organized, but I don't have a lot to spend on that kind of stuff. If you weren't planning on sending a Christmas package, that's okay, just mail me some nice cardstock paper please!! :) Tambien, thanks for the letters Jacob Jaxon and Jordan! Y'all are awesome artists!
My Address now is:
4105 North 24th Lane apt #9
McAllen,TX
78504
This week was probably one of the best on my mission so far. I got to go for a 3-day exchange over in an area called plantation and met some really cool elders. I've been studying a lot lately and learning especially about the gospel. I learn much from Elder Angles's example and right now we are working on a theory about note-taking. I hope Elder Angles becomes a scientist when he grows up. The world needs his brain! We have been making a lot of changes to stay organized, and we're gonna make this area rock.
I've also been studying music a little bit on the piano we have and that's going well. I'm teaching myself to play improve a little bit and I've noticed how much more productive I am when I control my schedule rather than just play for fun. Planning is very important.
I feel very blessed and even a little chiflado to have the people and investigators that we have. They are such good examples to me and Love them a lot. We are teaching a girl named Vanessa right now. She is an 18 yr old girl and is living the gospel very faithfully. We found her just walking outside of her house, and she has taken to the discussions very well. Everything we've taught her she has faithfully accepted, and she has completed every commitment that we leave with her. She is a courageous example for those around her in her life. She lives in very hard circumstances and has a lot of struggle with family and friends, but still she pushes on with her faith in God. She reminds me of King Lamoni from Alma who, when taught by the missionaries, prays immediately and is willing to give up all his sins to know God. There are very few people who have as great faith as she does. I love going over to visit her and her family. We hope to help her to get baptized near the end of next month; maybe even sooner.
We are also visiting with Louis. He is an amazing old man. He's 69 and has a heart of pure gold. He is fairly poor and lives in humble circumstances, but of what he does have, he gives freely. He is hosting a homeless family right now that is consuming almost all his money, living space, and time. He pretty much gave them his whole house and now lives entirely in a closet spaced room so that they can have more room for their kids. He instantly loves everyone he meets and I feel respected like a king whenever I go over there. I imagine that is how it would feel to have been with Christ when he was on the earth. I love him like my adopted grandpa. He also pursues gospel knowledge voraciously. He has read the bible many times and is finding so much new light and truth through the Book of Mormon. What an amazing book we are blessed to have and so readily accessible. I love reading the Book and I feel so close to Christ as I do. I know that it's true.
I have so many other experiences that I could share but the most prominent in my mind is the ever-present ambiance of love I feel on my mission. I feel love for God, I feel His love for me, I feel love for the other missionaries, I feel love for the ward members, I love our investigators, and I love Christ. I feel so happy knowing that He's forgiven me and continues to forgive me as I repent and come unto Him with full purpose of heart. There is nothing so great as helping someone else feel that forgiveness and abide in the love of the Savior. What an amazing gospel He has given us to share.
Thank you for being the amazing family that you are! I can't wait to see you next month! Happy Thanksgiving!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
Hola familia! I'm super excited to hear the kid's recital, hope they do great! My advice is to practice hard; That's all I got ;). How are your lessons coming mom? Are you performing in the recital as well? Also for some reason Connor Hille's name has been coming to me a few times this week. Is he on a mission right now? Que lastima Cristian busted the green bean! Oh well, I guess everything has it's time to go. Hey, if you were planning to send a package for Christmas, please include various office supplies like those nice markers from stampin up and some cardstock and things. I'm trying to get more organized, but I don't have a lot to spend on that kind of stuff. If you weren't planning on sending a Christmas package, that's okay, just mail me some nice cardstock paper please!! :) Tambien, thanks for the letters Jacob Jaxon and Jordan! Y'all are awesome artists!
My Address now is:
4105 North 24th Lane apt #9
McAllen,TX
78504
This week was probably one of the best on my mission so far. I got to go for a 3-day exchange over in an area called plantation and met some really cool elders. I've been studying a lot lately and learning especially about the gospel. I learn much from Elder Angles's example and right now we are working on a theory about note-taking. I hope Elder Angles becomes a scientist when he grows up. The world needs his brain! We have been making a lot of changes to stay organized, and we're gonna make this area rock.
I've also been studying music a little bit on the piano we have and that's going well. I'm teaching myself to play improve a little bit and I've noticed how much more productive I am when I control my schedule rather than just play for fun. Planning is very important.
I feel very blessed and even a little chiflado to have the people and investigators that we have. They are such good examples to me and Love them a lot. We are teaching a girl named Vanessa right now. She is an 18 yr old girl and is living the gospel very faithfully. We found her just walking outside of her house, and she has taken to the discussions very well. Everything we've taught her she has faithfully accepted, and she has completed every commitment that we leave with her. She is a courageous example for those around her in her life. She lives in very hard circumstances and has a lot of struggle with family and friends, but still she pushes on with her faith in God. She reminds me of King Lamoni from Alma who, when taught by the missionaries, prays immediately and is willing to give up all his sins to know God. There are very few people who have as great faith as she does. I love going over to visit her and her family. We hope to help her to get baptized near the end of next month; maybe even sooner.
We are also visiting with Louis. He is an amazing old man. He's 69 and has a heart of pure gold. He is fairly poor and lives in humble circumstances, but of what he does have, he gives freely. He is hosting a homeless family right now that is consuming almost all his money, living space, and time. He pretty much gave them his whole house and now lives entirely in a closet spaced room so that they can have more room for their kids. He instantly loves everyone he meets and I feel respected like a king whenever I go over there. I imagine that is how it would feel to have been with Christ when he was on the earth. I love him like my adopted grandpa. He also pursues gospel knowledge voraciously. He has read the bible many times and is finding so much new light and truth through the Book of Mormon. What an amazing book we are blessed to have and so readily accessible. I love reading the Book and I feel so close to Christ as I do. I know that it's true.
I have so many other experiences that I could share but the most prominent in my mind is the ever-present ambiance of love I feel on my mission. I feel love for God, I feel His love for me, I feel love for the other missionaries, I feel love for the ward members, I love our investigators, and I love Christ. I feel so happy knowing that He's forgiven me and continues to forgive me as I repent and come unto Him with full purpose of heart. There is nothing so great as helping someone else feel that forgiveness and abide in the love of the Savior. What an amazing gospel He has given us to share.
Thank you for being the amazing family that you are! I can't wait to see you next month! Happy Thanksgiving!
Con amor,
El Elder Jenson
Nov. 16, 2015
Querida Familia,
This week was super awesome, I am having a blast in this area. Our district is getting closer and more friendly, so that is fun, and my dad (elder Robinson) also got transferred down to this area so I get to see him every now and again. Elder Angles is a pretty cool man. He's very business minded, organized, and focused. He's not really the type of guy that expresses his emotions very much, but we have a pretty good relationship. He really has one of the most unique minds I've ever seen before. He has a very interesting perspective on the world and I learn a lot when we talk. It reminds me of talking with Jacob, he's a very intellectual man.
We had a rougher time with our investigators this week, but I felt like we still had great effort. A few of them dropped the lessons with us and we only had one that came to church, but hopefully this next week will go a little bit better. Some days I wish I could just make people's choices for them, but I've got to be patient and let free agency have it's turn. Serving and helping here opens my eyes to a glimpse of what our Heavenly Father feels when we make choices for ourselves. I worry a lot about how the people are progressing and if they'll continue strongly in the gospel after we're gone. I can't imagine what it will be like to have kids to worry about... All of this makes me very grateful for the patience that God has had and still continues to have with me. If only we could all just make the right choices all of the time!
The recent news with the church actually hasn't affected us at all. Nor has the world news. We haven't had to deal with any people who are particularly interested in that stuff so it's been pretty calm. However, I imagine it will only progress to get worse. I don't really worry about that stuff too much, we already know all the bad stuff is going to happen, so best enjoy the good times while we have them and just trust in the Lord! And then enjoy the bad times too! :)
Spanish is coming a little bit better. I can follow conversations pretty well, but I still feel like a child in my comprehension and when I speak. I just try to be patient with myself and not get down when I don't understand anything. Most of the time I just smile and try to show the people that I love them through my actions.
So something super cool--the Blasdell family actually moved into my ward the same time I transferred down here. I met them yesterday! Jill Blasdell and Greg Glazier, but I didn't meet her husband. Bishop asked me to bear a brief testimony during sacrament meeting and I mentioned I was from southern Utah. They approached me after the meeting and asked me specifically where. Turns out they know you guys, they know our house, they know the Townsend family and all about Kanab! We should be going over to have dinner with them sometime this week and we'll take some pictures then.
All I can say is that life is good in the service of God. I don't have to worry about too much and I can just enjoy learning about the gospel and helping other people. Couldn't ask for much more except to bring my family with me. Can't wait to see y'all at Christmas! Have a good week and enjoy the snow-Love you all tons!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
P.S. -Go out with the missionaries sometime this week if you can. One of our members came with us and absolutely changed the heart of one of our investigators. You all have something unique that the investigators need to see and hear, so make sure that you take the opportunities that come!! Love you!
This week was super awesome, I am having a blast in this area. Our district is getting closer and more friendly, so that is fun, and my dad (elder Robinson) also got transferred down to this area so I get to see him every now and again. Elder Angles is a pretty cool man. He's very business minded, organized, and focused. He's not really the type of guy that expresses his emotions very much, but we have a pretty good relationship. He really has one of the most unique minds I've ever seen before. He has a very interesting perspective on the world and I learn a lot when we talk. It reminds me of talking with Jacob, he's a very intellectual man.
We had a rougher time with our investigators this week, but I felt like we still had great effort. A few of them dropped the lessons with us and we only had one that came to church, but hopefully this next week will go a little bit better. Some days I wish I could just make people's choices for them, but I've got to be patient and let free agency have it's turn. Serving and helping here opens my eyes to a glimpse of what our Heavenly Father feels when we make choices for ourselves. I worry a lot about how the people are progressing and if they'll continue strongly in the gospel after we're gone. I can't imagine what it will be like to have kids to worry about... All of this makes me very grateful for the patience that God has had and still continues to have with me. If only we could all just make the right choices all of the time!
The recent news with the church actually hasn't affected us at all. Nor has the world news. We haven't had to deal with any people who are particularly interested in that stuff so it's been pretty calm. However, I imagine it will only progress to get worse. I don't really worry about that stuff too much, we already know all the bad stuff is going to happen, so best enjoy the good times while we have them and just trust in the Lord! And then enjoy the bad times too! :)
Spanish is coming a little bit better. I can follow conversations pretty well, but I still feel like a child in my comprehension and when I speak. I just try to be patient with myself and not get down when I don't understand anything. Most of the time I just smile and try to show the people that I love them through my actions.
So something super cool--the Blasdell family actually moved into my ward the same time I transferred down here. I met them yesterday! Jill Blasdell and Greg Glazier, but I didn't meet her husband. Bishop asked me to bear a brief testimony during sacrament meeting and I mentioned I was from southern Utah. They approached me after the meeting and asked me specifically where. Turns out they know you guys, they know our house, they know the Townsend family and all about Kanab! We should be going over to have dinner with them sometime this week and we'll take some pictures then.
All I can say is that life is good in the service of God. I don't have to worry about too much and I can just enjoy learning about the gospel and helping other people. Couldn't ask for much more except to bring my family with me. Can't wait to see y'all at Christmas! Have a good week and enjoy the snow-Love you all tons!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
P.S. -Go out with the missionaries sometime this week if you can. One of our members came with us and absolutely changed the heart of one of our investigators. You all have something unique that the investigators need to see and hear, so make sure that you take the opportunities that come!! Love you!
Nov. 9, 2015
Querida Familia,
Thanks for the pictures that you sent me, I can't believe it's cold already over there! We're still out in regular short sleeves. It is actually starting to cool down to a nice temperature between 75-85 degrees most days now. Way to go on the lost tooth Jordan! Just knock out one more and you can ask for your two front teeth for Christmas this year! I love you guys and I get so excited when I see your pictures. I can't wait to see you guys again at Christmas, but I'm absolutely loving the work here.
Drumroll please...
Presidente Maluenda, the mission president, surprised us this last week in a few ways. I knew that Elder Robinson was probably going to leave the Flour bluff, but come to find out last Monday night, I was being transferred too. The Bluff was whitewashed again, but I firmly believe it's the will of the Lord. Monday night we packed until one in the morning, then got up at 3 AM to drive down to McAllen in the mission HQ. I was also asked to accompany a musical number for all the transferring missionaries and president's family the night before of a song I had never played. It was alright, but I only had 15 minutes to look at it before we shared it with the congregation. It was kind of fun to have such a crazy day!
I have been transferred to the area of Colegio Sur in the Mission Zone! It's down right next to McAllen, and I'm loving it here! My Companion is Elder Kevin Angles. Already in just these few days being together I can see it's going to be a good transfer. We communicate pretty well and both of us are striving to be very obedient. He shared with me that he plans on becoming a police officer after his mission, and it totally fits his personality. I have never met someone so obedient and quick to hearken to the will of the Lord. The very smallest of details in the mission he follows with perfect exactness and even goes beyond the mark. He also has shown me what it really means to "feast on the words of Christ". He has been waking up super early the past few years, sometimes even at 2 or 3 in the morning, just to have a few more hours to study the gospel. He focuses every detail of his life on the future he'll have with his family and they are going to be so blessed for his preparation. Last transfer I prayed at the end that I would get a companion that could help me learn and develop more diligence and obedience. It has been such an answer to my prayers.
As we have been striving to work together and be exactly obedient, the Lord has blessed us with much success. We fulfilled almost all of our goals and had a lot of people show interest in learning of the gospel. The people here are primarily Hispanic, Caucasian is definitely not the majority at all. I've had the chance to speak a lot more Spanish, and it's been great! I'm serving in an English ward right now, but I get to talk with people in Spanish every day. The people here have been very humble and kind to us for the most part. Many of them have their center focus on the family, so they are much more receptive to our message.
We're working with a man named Louis right now and I think he may be one of the best people I've ever met in my life. He's 69 years old and has the spirit and excitement of a child. He is super loving and gives so much to us despite his humble circumstances. He studies the gospel ferociously every night. Each time we go over there he's got detailed notes on chapters he's studying and many questions for us to discuss. I see through him that inasmuch as we will seek we shall find; knock and it shall be opened; and ask and we'll receive. He is progressing so quickly through his great study efforts and the change in him is a miracle to watch.
I have so much more to write about, but I just don't have time. I wish I could just send you a constant live stream video of my life here. It has been absolutely amazing. I love y'all and can't wait for you all to serve missions of your own! Start preparing now!! Have a great week and study the scriptures mucho!
Con mucho amor, El Elder Jenso
Thanks for the pictures that you sent me, I can't believe it's cold already over there! We're still out in regular short sleeves. It is actually starting to cool down to a nice temperature between 75-85 degrees most days now. Way to go on the lost tooth Jordan! Just knock out one more and you can ask for your two front teeth for Christmas this year! I love you guys and I get so excited when I see your pictures. I can't wait to see you guys again at Christmas, but I'm absolutely loving the work here.
Drumroll please...
Presidente Maluenda, the mission president, surprised us this last week in a few ways. I knew that Elder Robinson was probably going to leave the Flour bluff, but come to find out last Monday night, I was being transferred too. The Bluff was whitewashed again, but I firmly believe it's the will of the Lord. Monday night we packed until one in the morning, then got up at 3 AM to drive down to McAllen in the mission HQ. I was also asked to accompany a musical number for all the transferring missionaries and president's family the night before of a song I had never played. It was alright, but I only had 15 minutes to look at it before we shared it with the congregation. It was kind of fun to have such a crazy day!
I have been transferred to the area of Colegio Sur in the Mission Zone! It's down right next to McAllen, and I'm loving it here! My Companion is Elder Kevin Angles. Already in just these few days being together I can see it's going to be a good transfer. We communicate pretty well and both of us are striving to be very obedient. He shared with me that he plans on becoming a police officer after his mission, and it totally fits his personality. I have never met someone so obedient and quick to hearken to the will of the Lord. The very smallest of details in the mission he follows with perfect exactness and even goes beyond the mark. He also has shown me what it really means to "feast on the words of Christ". He has been waking up super early the past few years, sometimes even at 2 or 3 in the morning, just to have a few more hours to study the gospel. He focuses every detail of his life on the future he'll have with his family and they are going to be so blessed for his preparation. Last transfer I prayed at the end that I would get a companion that could help me learn and develop more diligence and obedience. It has been such an answer to my prayers.
As we have been striving to work together and be exactly obedient, the Lord has blessed us with much success. We fulfilled almost all of our goals and had a lot of people show interest in learning of the gospel. The people here are primarily Hispanic, Caucasian is definitely not the majority at all. I've had the chance to speak a lot more Spanish, and it's been great! I'm serving in an English ward right now, but I get to talk with people in Spanish every day. The people here have been very humble and kind to us for the most part. Many of them have their center focus on the family, so they are much more receptive to our message.
We're working with a man named Louis right now and I think he may be one of the best people I've ever met in my life. He's 69 years old and has the spirit and excitement of a child. He is super loving and gives so much to us despite his humble circumstances. He studies the gospel ferociously every night. Each time we go over there he's got detailed notes on chapters he's studying and many questions for us to discuss. I see through him that inasmuch as we will seek we shall find; knock and it shall be opened; and ask and we'll receive. He is progressing so quickly through his great study efforts and the change in him is a miracle to watch.
I have so much more to write about, but I just don't have time. I wish I could just send you a constant live stream video of my life here. It has been absolutely amazing. I love y'all and can't wait for you all to serve missions of your own! Start preparing now!! Have a great week and study the scriptures mucho!
Con mucho amor, El Elder Jenso
Nov. 1, 2015
Querida Familia,
This week was absolutely great! We had so many meetings and extra activities, but they were all worth it. This week we had our first set of interviews with the President. I didn't really know what to expect for it, but it was amazing! We had great trainings by the President's Assistants, and the interview went really well. He was very friendly and listened very well. I shared with him some problems I had and things I was worried about, and he gave me great council and some things to study. I can't wait to apply those things in this next transfer. Speaking of this next transfer, Elder Robinson is going to be a District Leader! We're not sure where yet until tonight, but he got sent down to McAllen to receive a training. I'm super excited for him and I hope he does well. There is a chance he'll stay on the Bluff, but I don't think it's very likely. He'll probably move more in central Corpus. I'll be holdin down the fort on the Bluff and I can't wait to meet my new companion tomorrow!
We got the organ in our house, but it's a lot bigger and heavier than I was expecting. I will definitely not be taking it around the mission with me. Instead I will search for a small keyboard I can practice on and use that. The organ is great and works, but is just a little out of tune. It was perfect for Halloween night! Lots of scary music at our house the last few days. It was a really good and fun week with Elder Robinson. I'm gonna miss him.
We were kind of slow on investigator work this week because we had a lot of extra meetings, but we are starting to get the work going better here. We got a new ward mission leader, and he is going to be great! He's a very faithful man and he's not afraid to do his very best which is awesome. We're making family mission plans with some of our members this week, and I think working with the members diligently right now will bring a lot more fruit for the missionaries who come in the next few months. I'm learning that missionary work is really supposed to be lead by the members. We viewed a statistic for the church this week that showed percentages on baptisms around the world. Of the people found and fellowshipped by members, 66% of all of them were baptized, but of the people found and taught by missionaries alone, only 2% of people accepted baptism. That is huge. I can't wait till the ward here is lead by member work. It will be amazing.
My Ponderize Scripture for this week is in Helaman 3:35
"Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God."
I feel like this scripture is a good example of what's supposed to take place as we progress and endure to the end after Baptism and Confirmation. The more steps we make in Christ's direction, the more humble, faithful, and happy we will be. I love the concept of eternal progression, and I'm grateful for Jesus Christ who makes is all possible. This week I've really felt the love of God for me and for all of His children. The more we understand how important people are to Him, the greater desire we will have to change ourselves and share the gospel. It's just great!
My preference on moving is wherever the Lord wants. I would rather you guys stayed in Utah so that I could visit you while I'm in college and stuff, but if you feel the Corpus beach calling, I won't stop you! In Utah my places would be Salt Lake or Kanab. I love Kanab, but Salt Lake will be a lot closer to college. That's my 2 cents, so take it for what it's worth and pray about it! I'm excited for you guys if the move does end up happening. Have a great week and keep being the awesome family you are. I show people all the time and they love seeing pictures of you guys. I love you so much!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
This week was absolutely great! We had so many meetings and extra activities, but they were all worth it. This week we had our first set of interviews with the President. I didn't really know what to expect for it, but it was amazing! We had great trainings by the President's Assistants, and the interview went really well. He was very friendly and listened very well. I shared with him some problems I had and things I was worried about, and he gave me great council and some things to study. I can't wait to apply those things in this next transfer. Speaking of this next transfer, Elder Robinson is going to be a District Leader! We're not sure where yet until tonight, but he got sent down to McAllen to receive a training. I'm super excited for him and I hope he does well. There is a chance he'll stay on the Bluff, but I don't think it's very likely. He'll probably move more in central Corpus. I'll be holdin down the fort on the Bluff and I can't wait to meet my new companion tomorrow!
We got the organ in our house, but it's a lot bigger and heavier than I was expecting. I will definitely not be taking it around the mission with me. Instead I will search for a small keyboard I can practice on and use that. The organ is great and works, but is just a little out of tune. It was perfect for Halloween night! Lots of scary music at our house the last few days. It was a really good and fun week with Elder Robinson. I'm gonna miss him.
We were kind of slow on investigator work this week because we had a lot of extra meetings, but we are starting to get the work going better here. We got a new ward mission leader, and he is going to be great! He's a very faithful man and he's not afraid to do his very best which is awesome. We're making family mission plans with some of our members this week, and I think working with the members diligently right now will bring a lot more fruit for the missionaries who come in the next few months. I'm learning that missionary work is really supposed to be lead by the members. We viewed a statistic for the church this week that showed percentages on baptisms around the world. Of the people found and fellowshipped by members, 66% of all of them were baptized, but of the people found and taught by missionaries alone, only 2% of people accepted baptism. That is huge. I can't wait till the ward here is lead by member work. It will be amazing.
My Ponderize Scripture for this week is in Helaman 3:35
"Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God."
I feel like this scripture is a good example of what's supposed to take place as we progress and endure to the end after Baptism and Confirmation. The more steps we make in Christ's direction, the more humble, faithful, and happy we will be. I love the concept of eternal progression, and I'm grateful for Jesus Christ who makes is all possible. This week I've really felt the love of God for me and for all of His children. The more we understand how important people are to Him, the greater desire we will have to change ourselves and share the gospel. It's just great!
My preference on moving is wherever the Lord wants. I would rather you guys stayed in Utah so that I could visit you while I'm in college and stuff, but if you feel the Corpus beach calling, I won't stop you! In Utah my places would be Salt Lake or Kanab. I love Kanab, but Salt Lake will be a lot closer to college. That's my 2 cents, so take it for what it's worth and pray about it! I'm excited for you guys if the move does end up happening. Have a great week and keep being the awesome family you are. I show people all the time and they love seeing pictures of you guys. I love you so much!
Con mucho amor,
El Elder Jenson
Oct. 26, 2015
Querida familia,
This week was absolutely awesome. And a little bit Crazy, but overall lot's of fun. It's really hard to find people on our own efforts here. People just don't want to talk to us when they see us. We are really trying now to work with the members, but it's a slower process than we had hoped for. Good opportunity to learn more patience.
We had a small tropical storm blowover this weekend, so all of our meetings got cancelled. It didn't end up being to bad, but it was still pretty crazy. It was a blast riding out in the rain! While we were out riding we got a tornado warning message on the flour bluff and it turns out we were riding right towards it. I don't think it stayed very long or did any damage, but it was still a little bit cool and freaky... About five minutes before the warning came, we set a baptismal date with a new investigator so that was great!
We had the mission tour this Friday from Elder Dupe, and African man 70, and it was amazing! I learned so much about the mission and how to improve, but most importantly I felt the fire of the gospel again and I felt the Holy Ghost very strongly. I love learning about and reading the doctrine of Christ through the scriptures. If we really know our scriptures and focus our studies on those, then we need not fear teaching in any circumstances. The song also went great! I didn't have a ton of time to practice the piece and I haven't really played for a while, but I just had faith that the Lord would help me and He did. It was great and really helped bring the spirit. Didn't even mess up ;).
I'm actually going to finish my first reading goal of the mission today! I set a goal this last transfer to finish the whole book of Mormon, and I will finish this afternoon. I have only ten pages left. I want to tell you that I know it's true. I do not have a perfect testimony of all things, but I cannot deny that of the book of Mormon. I also know from what I've been reading and learning that God really does keep his promises. Always. That book is the greatest source of truth and light that I've ever read and I love it. Using the Book of Mormon with the bible, we can stay safe from the winds of the world and return safely to live with our Heavenly Father.
I watch the people here struggle in their unique circumstances and I just can't help but feel the love God has for them. He knows us all as individuals and whatever difficulties we're facing-he's always reaching to us with arms wide open. It just makes me sad to see how easy it is to come unto him and be happy yet so many people choose not to grab hold of the rope. They just don't understand what their missing! This gospel is the greatest thing on the planet but because of Satan's strengthening grip on the world, men esteem it as a thing of naught. It is as easy for us to look and live as it was for Nephi's family to follow the liahona through the wilderness. Alma gives his son Helaman a neat perspective on this in the end of alma 37 if you want to read about it. We have the books and the prophets there at the ready whenever we want, but so few exercise faith and search the scriptures. It's a seemingly small thing, but of course it is by small and simple means that great things are brought to pass.
I love you guys so much and hope you have a great week. The family is looking great, and I'm super glad Jacob is fulfilling his football dreams! I'm also stoked for your piano lessons mom, you're gonna be great! We'll jam when I get home; just don't quit. I'm grateful for my beautiful family and I hope y'all stay safe!
Con Amor,
El Elder Jenson
This week was absolutely awesome. And a little bit Crazy, but overall lot's of fun. It's really hard to find people on our own efforts here. People just don't want to talk to us when they see us. We are really trying now to work with the members, but it's a slower process than we had hoped for. Good opportunity to learn more patience.
We had a small tropical storm blowover this weekend, so all of our meetings got cancelled. It didn't end up being to bad, but it was still pretty crazy. It was a blast riding out in the rain! While we were out riding we got a tornado warning message on the flour bluff and it turns out we were riding right towards it. I don't think it stayed very long or did any damage, but it was still a little bit cool and freaky... About five minutes before the warning came, we set a baptismal date with a new investigator so that was great!
We had the mission tour this Friday from Elder Dupe, and African man 70, and it was amazing! I learned so much about the mission and how to improve, but most importantly I felt the fire of the gospel again and I felt the Holy Ghost very strongly. I love learning about and reading the doctrine of Christ through the scriptures. If we really know our scriptures and focus our studies on those, then we need not fear teaching in any circumstances. The song also went great! I didn't have a ton of time to practice the piece and I haven't really played for a while, but I just had faith that the Lord would help me and He did. It was great and really helped bring the spirit. Didn't even mess up ;).
I'm actually going to finish my first reading goal of the mission today! I set a goal this last transfer to finish the whole book of Mormon, and I will finish this afternoon. I have only ten pages left. I want to tell you that I know it's true. I do not have a perfect testimony of all things, but I cannot deny that of the book of Mormon. I also know from what I've been reading and learning that God really does keep his promises. Always. That book is the greatest source of truth and light that I've ever read and I love it. Using the Book of Mormon with the bible, we can stay safe from the winds of the world and return safely to live with our Heavenly Father.
I watch the people here struggle in their unique circumstances and I just can't help but feel the love God has for them. He knows us all as individuals and whatever difficulties we're facing-he's always reaching to us with arms wide open. It just makes me sad to see how easy it is to come unto him and be happy yet so many people choose not to grab hold of the rope. They just don't understand what their missing! This gospel is the greatest thing on the planet but because of Satan's strengthening grip on the world, men esteem it as a thing of naught. It is as easy for us to look and live as it was for Nephi's family to follow the liahona through the wilderness. Alma gives his son Helaman a neat perspective on this in the end of alma 37 if you want to read about it. We have the books and the prophets there at the ready whenever we want, but so few exercise faith and search the scriptures. It's a seemingly small thing, but of course it is by small and simple means that great things are brought to pass.
I love you guys so much and hope you have a great week. The family is looking great, and I'm super glad Jacob is fulfilling his football dreams! I'm also stoked for your piano lessons mom, you're gonna be great! We'll jam when I get home; just don't quit. I'm grateful for my beautiful family and I hope y'all stay safe!
Con Amor,
El Elder Jenson
Oct. 19, 2015
Querida familia,
Thanks for everything you guys do for me, sorry I forget a lot! Sometimes there is so much on my brain that I can't write everything I want to in the time that I have. I'll try to take more pictures this week. I recently started wearing my camera on my belt, so I'll do my best to remember it. I'm super excited for Savanah to be in school, she's such an awesome girl! Her letters make my day when I read them. I can't believe Jacob is 12 already and passing the sacrament! I wish I could be there to see it! Good luck with finding a place Brandon, I hope it goes well for you. I used to think that St. George was too hot of a place for me to live, but now I know better... I haven't heard anything as far as female friends go from Brandon and Cristian. Any updates??
I am writing several people right now. Today I just found out that Anthony got ordained a priest and is going to the temple this week to do baptisms! I'm so excited for him. He is making a lot of good choices and has a lot of good friends. I hope he'll decide to serve a mission soon!! I'm also writing Karissa Schmid from GHA. She is absolutely amazing and just put her papers in this last weekend! She'll get her call soon and it'll be neat to see where she goes. Jennie Bowman also keeps up on writing me, and it sounds like school is going great for her. Catania Holman writes me pretty often and is such a good girl. She is planning on serving a mission later on, but she is a super good member in her ward and is already doing missionary activities and prepping herself. I've got a few others that write me on and off, but those ones are pretty regular now. I love hearing from them and it makes me happy to see all the good choices they're making! I can't wait for them all to get on missions.
Yeah me and my companion are getting along pretty well. We have some hard days, but most of the time it's awesome! I'm really trying hard to communicate well and fix problems rather than just hide how I feel. I wish I would've done that more before my mission. It's really debilitating when you don't communicate well, but I never tried to because it made me feel uncomfortable. This last week we've been getting along great. The work is slow, but we're trying to work together with what we've got.
We're working with Marion again; the tall black man we met my very first day of the mission. He told us not to stop by anymore several weeks ago, so we stopped teaching him. We decided the other day to go and see how he was doing, and he just broke down. He really want's a change in his life, and we're really the only friends he has right now. I hope we can do better this second round of teaching. He's an awesome guy but has lot's of hard things he's going to have to overcome to get baptized. I know we can do it, it'll just take a lot of work.
This week we are having a surprise mission tour from a general authority on Thursday, so that is going to be super cool! The zone leaders asked if I would get something to play for a musical number when he comes, so I'm gonna try to work on the cool How Great Thou Art piece we bought before the mission. It'll be interesting, but we'll see how it goes. It's hard not to be able to practice very much, but it's okay. Also, James, our new convert, has a practice organ that his mom is giving away. I'm gonna talk to them this week and see if I could have it! If I get it I'm gonna haul that thing around the mission with me, because I really want to be able to play the organ in church instead of the piano. It will also be nice to have an instrument in the house to play on Halloween!
I was wondering if you could buy that Josh Wright piece -Rachmaninoff piano concerto 2 mixed with Abide with me tis Eventide- and mail or email it to me. I really love that piece and want to learn it. Also if you have any good recipes with flour and basic cooking ingredients I could tryout that would be great. I bought a lot of cooking supplies for making cookies and there is a lot left over, so I want to put it to good use. Maybe bread, pancakes, and French toast; stuff like that.There was something else I needed to ask you, but I've forgotten. I'll try to remember and write it down this next week. Tell me if you think of it...
I love you guys a lot and hope life goes great this week! Keep your clay centered on the gospel and your pot will be beautiful!
Con Amor,
El Elder Jenson
P.S. My Ponderize Scripture is: 1 Corinthians 10:13!
Thanks for everything you guys do for me, sorry I forget a lot! Sometimes there is so much on my brain that I can't write everything I want to in the time that I have. I'll try to take more pictures this week. I recently started wearing my camera on my belt, so I'll do my best to remember it. I'm super excited for Savanah to be in school, she's such an awesome girl! Her letters make my day when I read them. I can't believe Jacob is 12 already and passing the sacrament! I wish I could be there to see it! Good luck with finding a place Brandon, I hope it goes well for you. I used to think that St. George was too hot of a place for me to live, but now I know better... I haven't heard anything as far as female friends go from Brandon and Cristian. Any updates??
I am writing several people right now. Today I just found out that Anthony got ordained a priest and is going to the temple this week to do baptisms! I'm so excited for him. He is making a lot of good choices and has a lot of good friends. I hope he'll decide to serve a mission soon!! I'm also writing Karissa Schmid from GHA. She is absolutely amazing and just put her papers in this last weekend! She'll get her call soon and it'll be neat to see where she goes. Jennie Bowman also keeps up on writing me, and it sounds like school is going great for her. Catania Holman writes me pretty often and is such a good girl. She is planning on serving a mission later on, but she is a super good member in her ward and is already doing missionary activities and prepping herself. I've got a few others that write me on and off, but those ones are pretty regular now. I love hearing from them and it makes me happy to see all the good choices they're making! I can't wait for them all to get on missions.
Yeah me and my companion are getting along pretty well. We have some hard days, but most of the time it's awesome! I'm really trying hard to communicate well and fix problems rather than just hide how I feel. I wish I would've done that more before my mission. It's really debilitating when you don't communicate well, but I never tried to because it made me feel uncomfortable. This last week we've been getting along great. The work is slow, but we're trying to work together with what we've got.
We're working with Marion again; the tall black man we met my very first day of the mission. He told us not to stop by anymore several weeks ago, so we stopped teaching him. We decided the other day to go and see how he was doing, and he just broke down. He really want's a change in his life, and we're really the only friends he has right now. I hope we can do better this second round of teaching. He's an awesome guy but has lot's of hard things he's going to have to overcome to get baptized. I know we can do it, it'll just take a lot of work.
This week we are having a surprise mission tour from a general authority on Thursday, so that is going to be super cool! The zone leaders asked if I would get something to play for a musical number when he comes, so I'm gonna try to work on the cool How Great Thou Art piece we bought before the mission. It'll be interesting, but we'll see how it goes. It's hard not to be able to practice very much, but it's okay. Also, James, our new convert, has a practice organ that his mom is giving away. I'm gonna talk to them this week and see if I could have it! If I get it I'm gonna haul that thing around the mission with me, because I really want to be able to play the organ in church instead of the piano. It will also be nice to have an instrument in the house to play on Halloween!
I was wondering if you could buy that Josh Wright piece -Rachmaninoff piano concerto 2 mixed with Abide with me tis Eventide- and mail or email it to me. I really love that piece and want to learn it. Also if you have any good recipes with flour and basic cooking ingredients I could tryout that would be great. I bought a lot of cooking supplies for making cookies and there is a lot left over, so I want to put it to good use. Maybe bread, pancakes, and French toast; stuff like that.There was something else I needed to ask you, but I've forgotten. I'll try to remember and write it down this next week. Tell me if you think of it...
I love you guys a lot and hope life goes great this week! Keep your clay centered on the gospel and your pot will be beautiful!
Con Amor,
El Elder Jenson
P.S. My Ponderize Scripture is: 1 Corinthians 10:13!
October 12, 2015
Querida Familia,
Thank you for the advice mom and dad, I did fall into that attitude a little bit this week and had some hard times. It frustrates me terribly sometimes when I'm not perfect, but that's okay for now. We have good leaders here in the mission, and that's exactly what we talked about in district meeting today. I am going to focus on what I can do and not what is bothering me. So I will keep on going and just try my best to improve.
I absolutely loved seeing and hearing from you all this week! I did get the letters from the boys the other day, they made me so happy! Jordan's spelling is on point! I think this is the first time since I've left that I've really felt like I missed you guys and being home. Not in a debilitating way, I'm not homesick or anything, I just want to go have dinner with you guys or something, then come back. I love looking at the pictures you sent with me. The work here has been slower these past few weeks, and we haven't had really anyone to teach. We are really trying to work with the members to get the work going. Aside from that, things are going great!
This week we got to go to the USS Lexington historic WWII museum. It's a giant aircraft carrier that had all sorts of military planes, weapons, and guns on it. I'll send some pictures. I was thinking of Jacob the whole time! He would have loved to go there. We probably wouldn't have been able to get him off the ship. I'll have to take him sometime after my mission.
Mom, thank you for teaching us to make cookies. We made almost 100 cookies this last week. They were delicious. We're trying to help James get some fellowship from the ward, so we made cookies and took them around introducing him to some members on the Bluff. It was a lot of fun, I just hope the ward will pick him up and love him as much as we do when we're gone. He's like our adopted grandpa. He is so funny; whenever we visit I make sure to have a pen and paper to write down some of the things he says.
I LOVE seeing the kids on the piano. Sounds like their teacher is doing a good job! I hope Savanah does well in Salt Lake. The change will be good but I don't know how I feel about her being so close to all those crazy Mormons... I love you guys all so much and hope you have a great week! Oh also, Holy Cow. You guys had a tornado. I have to say the pictures were super cool. I kind of hope we have one over here just so that I can watch it...
Con mucho Amor, El Elder Jenson
Thank you for the advice mom and dad, I did fall into that attitude a little bit this week and had some hard times. It frustrates me terribly sometimes when I'm not perfect, but that's okay for now. We have good leaders here in the mission, and that's exactly what we talked about in district meeting today. I am going to focus on what I can do and not what is bothering me. So I will keep on going and just try my best to improve.
I absolutely loved seeing and hearing from you all this week! I did get the letters from the boys the other day, they made me so happy! Jordan's spelling is on point! I think this is the first time since I've left that I've really felt like I missed you guys and being home. Not in a debilitating way, I'm not homesick or anything, I just want to go have dinner with you guys or something, then come back. I love looking at the pictures you sent with me. The work here has been slower these past few weeks, and we haven't had really anyone to teach. We are really trying to work with the members to get the work going. Aside from that, things are going great!
This week we got to go to the USS Lexington historic WWII museum. It's a giant aircraft carrier that had all sorts of military planes, weapons, and guns on it. I'll send some pictures. I was thinking of Jacob the whole time! He would have loved to go there. We probably wouldn't have been able to get him off the ship. I'll have to take him sometime after my mission.
Mom, thank you for teaching us to make cookies. We made almost 100 cookies this last week. They were delicious. We're trying to help James get some fellowship from the ward, so we made cookies and took them around introducing him to some members on the Bluff. It was a lot of fun, I just hope the ward will pick him up and love him as much as we do when we're gone. He's like our adopted grandpa. He is so funny; whenever we visit I make sure to have a pen and paper to write down some of the things he says.
I LOVE seeing the kids on the piano. Sounds like their teacher is doing a good job! I hope Savanah does well in Salt Lake. The change will be good but I don't know how I feel about her being so close to all those crazy Mormons... I love you guys all so much and hope you have a great week! Oh also, Holy Cow. You guys had a tornado. I have to say the pictures were super cool. I kind of hope we have one over here just so that I can watch it...
Con mucho Amor, El Elder Jenson
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