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