The Errand of Angels: Week 15 I love being a giddy missionary! I was almost a squirrel killer!

Hi Everyone!!!!

 

I hope you are all well!!

 

I always LOVE to hear about your missionary experiences so please send them my way if you would like!!

 

So, I decided that missionary work makes me giddy. Yes, giddy. I am sitting here with a giant grin on my face just about ready to burst into a fit of, well, giggles. Why? I am that happy. Haha. It's strange. But AWESOME!! Wow, I love being a giddy missionary. I feel like a little kid of Christmas with so many presents and just wanting to tell everyone about them!! And wanting to play with all of them but there are so many that its hard to decide want to touch first!! I think that is a good picture!! Giddy and happy and so overwhelmed with blessings.

 

I think some of my pictures will also represent the lighter side of missionary work. Missionary work is not only spiritually intense but also just fun. The picture I included with this email is of the last day of last transfer - Sister Foster, myself, Elder Woodard and Elder Hendly (the missionaries in our ward).

 

This week was quite excellent. It was one of those weeks that I knew I was truly a missionary. It ended last night and I realized that I was pretty exhausted. Truly and honestly, I just absolutely love weeks like that and love being a servant of the Lord!

Christ and the Atonement is truly the center of everything. I think one of the biggest takeaways from this week was knowing that I was doing the work that Christ would be doing if he was here and loving the people as such. I know I still can improve, but this week I felt as though I had a deeper sense of charity for everyone I saw.
Okay, so on to the highlights!!!

WOAH, so I have really felt the power of prayer this week and the authority of being a missionary. We were at a less active, part-member family home. During the lesson with the member, her non-member mother-in-law and her children, the mother-in-law started clutching her chest and having severe, sharp chest pains. We asked if we should call 911, but the member said no... so we asked if we could prayer. Siter Mikolajcik, the member, and I knelt in prayer. I prayed that she would feel relief. After the prayer she felt instant relief. Wow. The experience was a catalyst for strong faith and blessings to that family. The member has been telling all her family about it. Yes, that is the power of prayer and faith. The power to know that when you kneel and offer a prayer that God will answer, especially as you l

 

We have had a HUGE increase in support from the ward. Our ward has always been VERY supportive, but I feel it recently jumped even higher. We were able to do splits this week (my first time and it was great!!! One member said she knew she was alive now so that she could testify of something to one of our investigators. Woah.) and teach with members during almost every lesson with our progressing investigators (plus, even some new investigators!). That was really cool. People are also realizing even more so how much we are trying to help the ward with activation and serving leaders and are very grateful. Members have also been giving us rides many places and the Bishop has called some sister ward missionaries to teach with us at night. I think the bikes have helped a lot because people have pity on us. Bikes are great! 

So speaking of bikes. I really do love biking. We have had some really awesome experiences biking and following the Spirit. It's interesting... I feel like I don't necessarily realize the Spirit in every day "where to go" type situations, but I try hard to pray and follow whatever little promptings come. We have had some amazing experiences on who to talk to and where to go this week, especially yesterday.
Yesterday we were kind of rushing to an appointment, which I try to not deter me from talking to people. I know that Heavenly Father put people in our paths. As we got closer to the place I promised Heavenly Father that I would talk to the next person we came across. We met a woman at a bus stop. She needs prayers and God's help more in her life. She knew God sent us to her. We set up an appointment for peace and blessings prayer. We made it to our appointment right on time.
Later that night we were biking home. We were all set to be home on time, but we passed a woman who had a black-eye and I knew really needed Christ (I have a yearning for all I see and a realization of what the gospel can do for them, but her I just felt it stronger)... Sister Mikolajcik said she also realized that. We passed her... biked for a minute... then I stopped. Sister Mikolajcik and I decided to go back. Sister Mikolajcik biked so hard and when she reached her said something simple but divinely inspired words, essentially... "We felt like we should come talk to you. We are representatives of Jesus Christ here to tell you that God loves you." The woman broke down in tears. We then talked to her about her life... it was a rough one. We walked for a little bit with her. Sister Mikolajcik gave her a copy of The Book of Mormon. I added my testimony to hers. She is currently homeless and has no phone number, but has ours so she can contact us. I was so proud of Sister Mikolajcik because I knew all her words were inspired... I could feel it. Amazingly enough, we still made it home pretty close to 9:00. Oh! And I really felt the power of doing Christ's work at that moment.
Our time was very much stretched this week. We hit more lessons that I have ever before had as a missionary. It was awesome!!!!! During the day I put the number out of my head and didn't let myself count. I tried and prayed for my focus to be... who does God want us to talk to next and how can we help them come unto Christ. Essentially I have been trying to fully give my will to God and striving to listen to the Spirit. I am not perfect, but I love seeing the progression and enabling power of the Atonement working in my life and in the Carrollwood B area.
Oh, and we are trying to flood the mission with copies of The Book of Mormon. Yes, flood. Everyone should have a copy :) Along with The Bible (of course!!!) We are helping members and less active members give them to friends and non-member family members. We are giving them to those we meet on the street and testifying. Wow, its been pretty cool! Sister Mikolajcik and I try to have about 5-6 copies between the two of us when we leave so that we can give to all. Its been awesome. One girl we met (her parents weren't interested but said we could talk to her... she's probably 10), just ate up our message and hugged her copy of The Book of Mormon to her chest like it was a treasure (which it is). It was so touching.
A kind of humorous note... I ran over a squirrel with my bike... we think it was just the tail because it rain away hopefully unharmed. I didn't realize that was possible... we had a good laugh after we decided we didn't damage it too much. SO if you see two sister missionaries biking and laughing, you may know why...
I am grateful for all mission rules. We recently gave away our investigator with a baptismal date (Luis, the one that we set up the baptismal date with peace and blessings). We have taught his sister who has kids and his other sister is a new investigator of ours, who also has kids. Luckily the Spirit spoke this week and gave me the realization he is YSA (young single adult). It was initially hard but felt so good turning him over to who needed to teach him. Plus, he was SO excited about the YSA ward (it even works with his work schedule!!).
Well, it was a good week! Busy week!! Honestly, I loved it!!
Your invitation for the week: Write three tender mercies of God and decide on something you can do to come closer to Christ this Easter!

Have a great week!!

Sister Jenkins

The Errand of Angels: Week 14 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hello Everyone!

 

Happy Day to you!! I hope that you and your children are getting a little taste and idea of how truly WONDERFUL missionary work is and how much HAPPINESS it can bring to your life!!

 

What a week! This week was absolutely epic!! TRULY, I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!! (Let's see if I can fit more ! in this email than last week's... :)

 

The picture is of me and my wonderful, new, lovely, powerful, epic, cute, fun, amazing 19-year old companion, Sister Mikolajcik!! She is truly great and I am so glad she decided to go on a mission at such a young age. Her story is awesome. She was praying about going on a mission even though it was 2 years away (previously women couldn't serve missions until age 21), and then the announcement in General Conference came of the age change... wow!! Talk about a miraculous answer to prayer. She is ready and awesome. She is so great and bold!

 

An overall feeling I had this week was one of power, confidence and accepting God's will for myself. I have been wanting to talk to everyone, but before I struggled sometimes having the confidence. This week I felt's God's power even more with me as I chose to just turn over my cares and worries to Him. I wanted to end every day knowing that Heavenly Father was absolutely pleased with my missionary work. Wanting to be a perfect (or as close to as possible) example to my new companion also really helped. I tried as much as possible to talk to everyone. At the end of the day I asked Heavenly Father, "is my work today acceptable to Thee?" Most times I felt yes and sometimes I felt as though there was something I could improve upon... then I told myself I would do better the next day. Then I did! Wow, this week was so awesome!!

This week I did not feel ashamed of my power as a missionary. When I testified, I did it with boldness. When I explained this to people, I did it with boldness. Sister Mikolajcik was a great example of me with bringing up "scarier" subjects and always bringing up baptism (she rocks, did I say that?!). Every investigator we have (well, progressing, new and some of the other) knows that we are here to help them come unto Christ through baptism and making other eternal covenants (promises with God). We have drawn the line and it is now their responsibility to decide if they will stand on God's side or not. This is a great feeling!!! I am hoping and praying so much people will come to God's side and I will do all I can, but I also feel al sense of relief knowing that they have the choice simply and boldly before them,.... its so cool!!

I want people so badly to experience the happiness, peace and blessings of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that families can be together forever (FOREVER... after death and for all eternity), and I know how to help families get there. How to prepare people to make those covenants (promises with God). I want everyone to have eternal joy. I feel like I am living up to my missionary scripture Mosiah 28:3 (http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/mosiah/28.3?lang=eng#2) and desiring all to feel of the joy of the Gospel - to have salvation! The blessings of God are truly available to all as we follow Him!! (http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/mosiah/2.41?lang=eng#40). I know that as a representative of Jesus Christ I have been called of Him to share His Gospel with the people of Tampa. ALL the people. God wants EVERYONE to have this happiness. That means YOU and that means all around YOU. Wow, you also have a great work to do!!

Sister Mikolajcik is a stellar missionary and I am grateful to have her as my companion. We have things to learn, especially since she only had 12 days in the MTC... wow!!! But she is prepared! She is not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ or her testimony! She is out here to be a missionary and she is awesome!!!!!!! Wow, I love her. Sister M. has some great insights and she teaches in a beautiful way. Oh, she really listens. That is a huge strong point of hers. She listens to the Spirit and to the investigator. Woah. It is powerful what inspired questions she has as she listens. I love it!!!!!

As we strived to be exactly obedient, work our hardest, be bold, listen to the Spirit, and talk to everyone, miracles happened, more so than maybe I have previously seen.

A couple highlights of the week:

We were doing a doorstep followup with one of our progressing investigators. He is very staunch of his beliefs. We met him about two months ago in inspired tracting - He had a copy of The Book of Mormon and asked us how he could know it was true. He has been caught up on the scriptural and logical side of things verses the spiritual. He has read The Book of Mormon extensively but has refused to come to church. Well, in our visit I asked if he really wanted an answer, what he was willing to do if he got that answer, and what he was willing to do to receive that answer. Then I told him that church was one of those ways to find out. He should be coming to church next week. Boldness is awesome.

Sister Mikolajcik was inspired to bring up the Word of Wisdom with an investigator of three months now. She has been struggling with some commitments but has a firm testimony of The Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith, and now President Thomas S. Monson (This is a cool story in itself...). We had an inspired member with us who testified of the Word of Wisdom (originally Stella said there was no way she was going to live it), and she said she would try it for a week like John 7:17 says (try and see). Wow! Earlier in the lesson we helped her gain a testimony of President Thomas S. Monson. She knew Joseph Smith was a prophet, and so we explained how we still have a prophet on earth today and that he a successor of Joseph Smith, etc. We testified. We asked her if she knew President Thomas S. Monson was the current prophet, she said yes. Woah!!!!!!! Wow, I love it. I LOVE IT!

We contacted a referral from a past investigator. He expressed desires to become a better man and that he had been praying for it and to be cleansed. We did the Peace and Blessings prayer. We felt inspired to invite him to baptism on April 30 - he accepted!!!!!! We still need to set a calendar. But it was awesome!!! I have never felt prompted to invite someone to bapstism on the doorstep, but I felt strongly that we should!!!!! SO COOL!!!

We did inspired tracting and found a man that I had seen before and knew that we needed to/we would teach him. Before we approached the door Sis. M. was inspired that this would become an investigator of ours. He did. It was awesome!!! So cool. I love God's work!!!

Truly this week was great!!! We got lots of member present lessons, all inspired on who should be there and all a HUGE blessing that they were there. I expressed to Heavenly Father that I really wanted to use the members in lessons and how they should be used. Woah. He blessed us so much!! In fact, when I was thanking a member yesterday at church I could not hold back the tears. This is how God's work is meant to be done. Wow. We had a member call us Monday night and said she invited a friend over for dinner with us that she had given a copy of The Book of Mormon to. Woah!! We had been encouraging the family with missionary work and reaching out to them and this miracle happened. Other investigators made an instant connection with the member we felt inspired to have. Honestly, miracles happened right and left. Woah, woah, woah! We even had a member teach on her birthday evening (we didn't know) because she felt inspired to. And she was perfect for the lesson and inspired!! Her daughter taught with us later in the week and was perfect for that lesson! (She felt very inspired to come with us even though she was soo busy).

 

If the members are used right, I feel like they essentially teach the lessons. I have seen miracles this week when we had the right member there to bring social conversion, etc. but they happened to be able to calm all concerns about a committment that the investigator had. It was so cool!!

 

I am so proud of Sister Mikolajcik for working so hard! Because we worked hard. We talked to lots of people on our bikes (so awesome!!!). Sometimes I chickened out and didn't talk to someone then promised Heavenly Father I would talk to the next person. And then I did. And then we got great referrals for us and other missionaries! I am encouraging Sister M. to talk to others as well and she is doing great at it.

 

Anyways, it was a great week. I am exhausted but am so happy. Thank you, everyone!!  

Sister Jenkins

The Errand of Angels: Week 13 Excited/Trainer/Biker

Hello to all my wonderful friends!!

I am excited for the start of a new week. I always love starting the week again, not only because Preparation Day (we get 8 hours to prepare for the week by doing laundry, emails, cleaning, etc) is quite refreshing, but also because I love starting fresh and striving to reach new goals! I cannot express how exceptionally excited I am to see the work continue to progress and hasten in the coming months! 

So.... transfer week! I finished my 12-week new missionary training and will be training a new sister in and staying in my area (I am in Tampa btw, in case you were wondering). And I will be on car share!! Which means... I get to bike every other week!!!

I am so excited to train and to be on car share! I am so excited about car share because it will give us even more opportunities and encouragement for members to teach with us! Plus, you get to talk to everyone while at stop lights, etc.... AND get in better shape at the same time! Although, I am trying to run every morning on our noisy, screechy, yet still wonderful treadmill! I feel so blessed to have one at our apt complex gym!

I will miss Sister Foster - she was an AMAZING trainer and the right/perfect one for me! She is going down South to Venice. But what a great experience it will be to have the opportunity to take what I have learned from Heavenly Father, my leaders, Sister Foster, and others, during these past three months, and impart of it to another missionary! Yay! I have been praying a lot for her and the new sisters coming in :) And for my leaders in regard to receiving inspiration for the mission.

This week was really good (if you couldn't tell by all the explanation marks used in this email). I was not perfect and there are things I definitely learned that I could improve upon for this coming week, but I am so excited to do so! I There are blessings tied to every commandment from God. I love that blessings are tied to obedience, especially as a missionary. I am excited for this opportunity to have the Holy Ghost even greater in the work and to become more Christ-like and obedient :) I am so excited to lead by example with the new missionary and help her see how obedience brings blessings and how working hard brings a greater capacity to work, how talking to everyone allows Heavenly Father to work through you and to find those who are searching, how prayer brings inspiration, etc... Wow, I feel like I need to take a breather in my mind because of all the excitement! Haha...

Anyways, so a couple highlights from the week:

We invited one of our investigators to be baptized in a member present lesson (she was the one that went to the baptism a few weeks ago). She has been reading and praying about The Book and Mormon and has felt its true up until now, but doesn't feel like she has received an answer. When we first asked her to be baptized it was a pretty adamant, "No, I don't need to because I have already been baptized," which is a pretty common answer. Due to the Holy Ghost inspiring the member and us, the Spirit touched her heart and she went from being entirely against the idea to accepting the invitation to pray to know if its the right thing to the do. I felt as though having a member at the lesson and the right member was KEY! I am so grateful to Sister Foster, myself, and the member for listening to the promptings of the Holy Ghost.

We finally were able to have a member present lesson with one of our investigators (we have been trying and trying to have one and it just hasn't gone through). She came to Bishop's house (followed us there) and had dessert with his family. She really opened up about her life and the trials and blessings. Wow! I now feel like working with members is so KEY to success as a missionary. I understand that it is not the only "key," but my eyes were really opening last week to how important members are and I am so excited to use them even more. Wow, really all I can say is "wow" and "hurrah for Israel!" Nothing can stop the work from progressing. We are on the winning team.

Today I read about the 58 new missions opening (http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/list-of-58-additional-missions-created) and then the article about "Members Key to Productivity of Extra Missionary Force (http://www.lds.org/church/news/members-are-key-to-effectiveness-of-increased-missionary-force?lang=eng)." My heart has been so touched by the blessing I have in my life to be a missionary now. A missionary at this time when the work is hastening. I am so proud of the Elders and Sisters choosing to serve... who were waiting so patiently and then jumped on the chance to serve a mission as soon as they could. I am a tad bit older than most missionaries out, but am so glad I waited to go on a mission until it was Heavenly Father's time. He knew that I needed to come now. And I always want to be a missionary NOW. A missionary at all times and in all things I do - a represent  and servant of Christ. I cannot thank Heavenly Father enough for being a missionary at this time preparing the way for a greater surge of missionaries. I love the work. I love my Savior. I love being His missionary.

We really need the member involvement in the work! So members, get to work! Share the gospel by your examples and by words! Invite people to come to church, activities, to read The Book of Mormon, to come to your home for FHE, for dinner with you and the missionaries, to be baptized... anything and everything! The works is hastening. The last days are here!! The Gospel of Jesus Christ is for everyone!

My invitation to ALL of you is to make a family mission plan (FMP). Pray/fast about a goal date (for example, April 1 or General Conference (even better)) and then pray on how to do it, get local missionaries involved, and INVITE. 

A couple ideas are to write your testimony in a copy of The Book of Mormon or The Bible and to give it to someone or to have a less-active or non-member acquaintance of yours in your home with the missionaries for dinner, or FHE, and/or a lesson. You are key to investigators having a social experience at church and to be retained as members. Even if someone knows the gospel is true, it is sometimes hard for them to go to church if they don't have friends. I know that as you do this, you will be inspired how to. Heavenly Father will bless you in this effort!! I KNOW HE WILL! This is His work and He will open doors for you, help you know what to say (D&C 100:5-8http://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/100?lang=eng), and will not let you fail. In order to harvest, first seeds need to be planted and nourished. You may be part of all or just one of these processes. 

You are all awesome! Keep up the good work!!!

Sister Jenkins
(Pictures will be added later in the week because Deba was having problems with her computer and I am away from home where the Flash Drive is with earlier pictures she sent, until the middle of the week.
Sister Jenkins Sr.)

The Errand of Angels: Week 12 We are on FIRE!

Hello Everyone!!

Guess what?! I love being a missionary!! (Surprised, right?) Guess what else?! I hit my three month mark in a couple days!! Crazyness! Serving the Lord makes time fly by. You should try it sometime ;)

Let's see... the weather here is still a balmy 80 degrees (I think... we never really see the forecast).

The bugs here are still EVERYWHERE... yay... wahoo... I dislike bugs. But lizards are everywhere too and very fun to chase, so I guess it evens out.

Members are still pounding food down us (yay for girl scout cookie season! Yum!).

We had three otters in the pond by our house and a giant turtle (looked like a sea turtle)... like 1 square foot or more and had flippers... epic!! Poor guy must have been lost though.

These  birds also wander around our complex

And the work is still awesome!!!!

Here are some highlights:

We had a less active at church for the first time since they moved into our ward (congregation) boundaries. The members reached out to them in love and friendship. It was awesome! We met with them for the first time earlier this week.

Our recent convert passed the sacrament to us on Sunday!! Sister Foster cried. I had a HUGE smile.

In Relief Society they asked me a question about converts. I started crying. I was sitting next to two recent converts (one was baptized in July and one was Sharon, our baptism my first week in the mission). Sharon put her arm around me and said that she will never forget me... even into her 80s that she would never forget me and that she loves me. More tears. She answered tons of question in gospel principles class on Sunday. She rocks. So do all the recent converts!! I love them all. And all the members. Man, being a missionary is awesome!

We met with the investigator that attended the baptism last week. We were doing a mixture of How To Begin Teaching and the Holy Ghost Dialogue (essentially all we had said is that we aren't perfect teachers) when she stops us dead in our tracks and kind of chastises us for saying we aren't perfect teachers, but then she essentially said it didn't matter what we said because she knew that she would receive her answer from the Holy Ghost and that she would receive it as she reads and prays about The Book of Mormon. Wow. I am glad that we know she fully understands all of that :) She also calls me "the preacher" jokingly because I gave a talk at the baptism that she really liked, and feels like I talk like a preacher. Yay for the Spirit at the baptism!

This week we have been focusing on a couple things, and one of those has been flooding the mission with copies of The Book of Mormon. I think almost every dinner appointment this week contained either doing a Family Mission Plan, committing to do a Family Mission Plan, and/or writing testimonies in copies of The Book of Mormon and giving them away to others. We have heard some awesome missionary experiences from members the last couple weeks :) It is awesome to hear how the gospel of Jesus Christ has blessed people's families.

Before going on... The gospel is truly meant to bless families, which I love!! I know that as families turn their lives unto Christ and His teachings, that they will find greater joy and peace. I also know that families can be together beyond the grave. Marriages and families can last for the eternities, and that death will not eternally part them. I am so excited to be with my family for time and all eternity. These blessings are available through the gospel of Jesus Christ :)

Back to highlights... We did exchanges this week (for 24 hours you switch companions and so either you stay in your area and another missionary comes to work with you or you go to their area. I went to an area that has just opened up again and with a sister who has been out four weeks... Sister Kenagy from Washington. The exchange was awesome and Sister Kenagy is absolutely on fire as a missionary! It is difficult to not have her positive attitude rub off on you :) She had the goal to stop and talk to everyone. This is also one of my goals, which I haven't been the best at the past couple weeks. With both of us working on this we saw amazing things!! Yay for double-greenie fire!! (FYI, new missionaries are sometimes called "greenies"

No, it isn't a chipmunk at her complex.
It is Deba with a mouthfull of Skittles.
It is part of a game. (Maybe she won't trust
me with posting on her blog anymore.)

Before I go on to tell a couple stories, I just have to say that biking as a missionary is awesome. A. Exercise releases endorphins, which equals a happier Sister Jenkins, B. I LOVE working out, and C. there are so many people to always talk to! Wow! It's probably similar for the car missionaries in the sense that there are plenty of people to talk to, I guess I just noticed it more while on a bike.

We started the day with teaching a lady at a bus stop. Strange, yes. The woman would not let us go to her house for legitimate safety reasons. But she went from being nice but not really interested in our message, to praying with us and receiving a copy of The Book of Mormon. It was awesome. I know that the gospel will help her overcome her drug addiction she is fighting.The bus came at the perfect time too. What are the chances? 100%!

We contacted a referral we received earlier in the day and prayed with her. Her dog barked the entire time which was very strange for me (normally all animals immediately have their voices silenced by the Holy Ghost). The dog began barking when the prayer started and stopped when it ended. Regardless of this distraction the woman was crying during the prayer. The Spirit really touched her. She loves missionaries and know that there is something different about members of the Church. She wants to have the missionaries over for dinner and was ecstatic to give a referral!

But, another shout out to Sister Foster, my current companion, she rocks!!! I love her so much!!! She loves the work, I love the work. We have been talking to everyone the past couple days and it has been so much fun!! She will be missed as my companion if she gets transferred next week. I love this work! When the focus is right, Heavenly Father blesses you with an increase measure of joy.

Invitation: I can't forget one of these :) Think about five people who you would like to see come unto Christ more. Pray for them and opportunities to help them with this. Either reach out to them yourself or send the missionaries to them (www.mormon.org).

Have a great week!!!!

Sister Jenkins

The Errand of Angels: Week 11 Project Purification sounds like a spiritual marathon

Hello Everyone!

I love being a missionary!!!! If you need a little more happiness in your life, find someone to share your testimony with or someone to serve. Heavenly Father will bless you with an added measure of joy :)

I am so grateful to be here and I LOVE the work. I know that I am here because Heavenly Father wants me to be and I want to ensure that I am always using His time wisely and following the Spirit. I also realize though that I have much to learn and we cannot become perfect in a day (or even in the first three months of being a missionary... wow, is that anniversary coming up soon?!).

There are many miracles in the work because it is God's work. 

A highlight of the week was definitely baptism of our awesome 13-year old investigator. Not only was it exciting to see him get baptized (he was so ready!) by his grandfather, but we also had an investigator who came that absolutely loved the service. We gave her a church tour afterwards and she felt at peace, at home. It was beautiful. I am excited to work more with her. She is very humble and sweet and keeps on reading and praying about The Book of Mormon. Oh, and I gave a talk about baptism at the baptism. Our investigator come up afterwards and complemented me by saying, "You are a preacher!" She is so cute. She is from Jamaica. I totally appreciated her compliment. Yay for the Spirit!

Also, this week has been cool in regard to realizing the very wide variety of people we are teaching. I am so grateful that Heavenly Father has entrusted such individuals to us. I am especially grateful because some of these individuals have a lot of barriers to overcome and it makes me feel comforted to know that Heavenly Father is on my side and that the Spirit is the one that has to convert and not me. I love seeing people slowly become closer to Christ and slowly become converting. This work is so rewarding. Wow, I love it.

My mission zone is doing something right now called "Project Purification." Essentially for the next 40 days (now 32 days) we give up everything distracting us from the work and dedicate ourselves to do everything that we can to find success in the Lord's eyes. This has been a challenge because its changing hearts and habits. You have a list of these things and it sort of develops over time as you add to it. I have learned that I have much to approve upon. I am grateful to learn these things at the start of my mission. Every morning you promise to do or not do the things on your list and every night you follow up with Heavenly Father about how it went. I have not been perfect at this over the last 8 days, but I am so grateful that I am doing this because praying about each of those things specifically has helped remind me to do or not do those things, especially when the time comes to make the choice. Wow, I love it! I have felt an extra measure of help from my Heavenly Father in the work, but also an extra measure of pressure from the adversary because I am trying so hard. Luckily, I have the gift of the Holy Ghost and I know that Heavenly Father will not let me fail if I turn to Him and allow the Atonement of Jesus Christ to enable me with power every step of the way.

I love how the Atonement is described in a talk, "His Grace is Sufficient," by Brad Wilcox (http://www.lds.org/new-era/2012/08/his-grace-is-sufficient?lang=eng&query=his+grace+sufficient). My invitation to all of you this week is to read this talk and write in your journal what you can do to be more "changed by grace" and "learn Heaven."

Trusting in Christ enough to use his Atonement at all times takes faith. I am grateful to a Priesthood leader of mine who shared with me his testimony of faith this week. Here are some quotes he shared with it. I hope that he doesn't mind me sharing his testimony. It was so simple yet so beautiful and powerful:

 "To have faith is to have confidence in something or someone.  The Lord has revealed himself and his perfect character, possessing in their fulness all the attributes of love, knowledge, justice, mercy, unchangeableness, power, and every other needful thing, so as to enable the mind of man to place confidence in him without reservation.   (Bible Dictionary, p. 669)

 “Faith is a principle of action and of power, and by it one can command the elements and/or heal the sick, or influence any number of circumstances when occasion warrants.  Even more important, by faith one obtains a remission of sins and eventually can stand in the presence of God.  All true faith must be based upon correct knowledge or it cannot produce the desired results.  Faith in Jesus Christ is the first principle of the gospel and is more than belief, since true faith always moves its possessor to some kind of physical and mental action; it carries an assurance of the fulfillment of the things hoped for.  . . Where there is true faith there are miracles, visions, dreams, healings, and all the gifts of God that he gives to his saints. . .” (Bible Dictionary p. 670)

I'm thankful that the first principle of the gospel is faith in Jesus Christ. What a blessing to know that Jesus Christ is always available to us and that through Him we can obtain our fondest desires. He is the source of all good things. What a blessing it is that He invites us to come unto Him.  What a blessing that He allows us to extend that invitation to others.

Here are some thoughts from my Mission President:

"A simple, eternal truth is that our true happiness is found in seeking the happiness of others. 

We know that Alma and the sons of Mosiah “were men of sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God. But this was not all; they had given themselves to much prayer, and fasting”… Alma 17:2-3They were not content to casually prepare to be missionaries. There is a price to pay to know God-and they paid it. We can say the right words and teach correct principles, but to preach with power, we must pay the price…we must demand more of ourselves every day. Ask yourself if what you’re doing today is getting you closer to where you want to be tomorrow. If you want to be as good as Ammon, you need to demand more of yourself. 

“Since time is so precious a commodity, we must not be dismayed when the time permitted to savor success seems so small on occasion.  High moments are soon followed by fresh challenges.  It could scarcely be otherwise, for none of us would for long want to be banqueting over our blessings while others stood without, waiting for the touch of our lives and talents.” Neal A. Maxwell.  

Sisters and Elders “wherefore you must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ” 2 Nephi 31:20. never being content with what was OK yesterday. I promise you that as you demand more of yourselves, your capacity to work will increase. ..and ‘angels will be round about you to bear you up.’"

I know that through the Atonement of Christ we can become better each day. He will help us. He will enable us to become our best selves and then tomorrow become even better. Do not get discouraged if improvement and perfection does not come today. Just like it mentioned in the talk by Brad Wilcox, we are learning Heaven. Learning takes time. Changing takes time. Christ will help us every step of the way.

I love you all! Thank you for your support and prayers!!

Sister Jenkins

The Errand of Angels: Week 10 PIZZA CHALLENGE WINNER

Hello Everyone!

Oh how I love the Lord! As a missionary I am supposed to "love the Lord and serve him the very best that I can." This is what I am striving to do every day of my mission.

So today I am sick at my own fault. Pride. Oh the Jenkins' pride. It runs deep. Real deep. Deep like 4 lbs of pizza deep.

There is this pizza challenge where three people eat a 28" pizza with 5 toppings in 60 minutes. Obviously I wouldn't stand for the Elders telling me I couldn't do it. So I did it. Well, I had two crusts left and a little piece of pizza. I gave up trying to pound it down as quickly when one of the Elders had to step out 3/4 of the way through his second slice. I almost finished though. See attached picture for the "before" pizza picture. Anyways, I will push through the pain to share the gospel today!

Oh and btw, all the missionaries and the pizza place owners were very impressed with me. Mission accomplished. Pretty sure I will now be extremely humbled and learn my lesson from the sickness. Already wondering if my pride was worth it... Well, at least it was fun!

It makes me sick just looking at this. Blek. Those are my little crusts. Truly not very much left. The other slice in the picture isn't mine.

Anyways, what a different week this has been since last week. Wow! Our companionship started out right this week and it helped magnify the Spirit. It was awesome to get home and know that we spent the day following the promptings of the Holy Ghost to know where to go, what to do and what to say. Wow. Our week wasn't perfect, but there were many days where that was the case. Third week in a row with 30+ lessons. This week was great though, because there were days when we had hardly any lessons but we knew we were spending the time exactly as we needed to. What a blessing!

Some highlights of the week:

We have four investigators who have now said that they are going to read The Book of Mormon and pray about it. All of them were already reading but had chosen not to pray previously. We are so excited to hear the results from their prayers!

We had an appointment fall through this week, which meant we had a little extra time for an appointment that we had before it that we knew we were going to have to start late. We were planning on teaching about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with a less active family. Well, the 15-year old son had a friend who was there so we taught all of them. The Spirit was very strong and everyone was involved in the lesson. The friend was hanging on to every word of the First Vision. The friend felt like the Restoration was "heartwarming." We explained this was the Spirit. He said he would read The Book of Mormon, pray about it, and possibly invite his family to take the discussions - he wants them to. Another blessing of having a lesson fall through.

We were heading to another appointment that I was quite nervous about. This was the second visit and on the first visit the person had tried to "Bible bash" a little... essentially share scriptures they thought disproved our message. Which they didn't. We believe in the Bible and the gospel of Jesus Christ on earth today is the same gospel that existed in His day. Anyways, while travelling there Sister Foster felt like we should talk about eternal families and The Family: A Proclamation to the World (http://www.lds.org/topics/family-proclamation?lang=eng) instead - what an inspired change! I felt great about the change and the lesson went marvelous. The person even shared that they now better understood scriptures from the Bible about the family and did believe that family relationships could be eternal (which previously they did not believe it). The Spirit was really strong. I am so grateful for promptings of the Spirit and for Sister Foster who is willing to act on them!

Sister Foster is really awesome. I truly do love her and she is great. I am so grateful we have each other and the Spirit to help teach others.

I know that families can be together forever! Marriage can last beyond the grave. I really know that to be true. We have this available to us because of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Speaking of families, my niece, Morgan Irons, is awesome: http://www.lds.org/church/news/an-incredible-young-lady-wins-national-scholarship?lang=eng (FYI, so are all my other nieces and nephews).

What will a Harry Potter wand do in the hands of a Mormon?

With Valentine's Day coming up, I want you to think what you can do to show your love for the Lord more. http://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/4?lang=eng

FYI, here is a video of my Mission President: http://mormon.org/bruce/

Have an excellent week!!!

Sister Jenkins

The Errand of Angels: Week 9 Their testimonies strengthened me as a missionary.

Hello Everyone!

So guess what is so cool?! Elder Neil A. Anderson will be presiding at our Stake (no not a wooden stake and no not a delicious slab of meat... a Stake consists of multiple congregations) Conference at the end of March :) It will be wonderful to have an Apostle at our church meetings. Our current Stake President is going to be a mission president soon, so we will get a new one. So cool! I feel so blessed!

I feel like Sacrament Meeting yesterday was for me and Sister Foster. We had 20 people bear their testimonies during the time and all were so powerful and perfect for missionary work (and for comforting me). During the Sacrament I was praying so hard for one of our investigators who didn't make it to church (don't worry, its not the 13-year old... he is rock solid for his upcoming baptism). Side note, I don't think I have ever prayed so much or so hard for others as I have on my mission, except when Dad was going to get his heart surgery. Wow, praying for others' eternity with such fervent effort is amazing. I feel so blessed for this opportunity. Anyways, so I was praying for this investigator and honestly quite tearful just desiring her to come unto the beauty of the gospel. Then Sacrament Meeting testimonies hit and I was blown away with how many people I have had the opportunity to touch or other missionaries to have the opportunity to touch. I may not be able to fully understand the extent of how my work will affect those I teach, but I know it will be tremendous.

We had a couple less actives bear their testimonies and one hasn't done so since she was 17 and now she is almost 50. Her testimony was beautiful and I could not be more proud of her.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the meeting:

"Grace and truth are my friends"

"I attend church alone, but I am not alone" (she is the only member in her family)

"With the Lord I can do hard things" (coming from a woman who has experienced many health issues, but is still standing firm in the faith)

"Do all you can to stand"

"How do you ever learn if you don't let go of the walls?" (question his daughter asked him while they were at a skating rink for her birthday)

"I am mortal and learning each and every day"

"If you seek the love you will feel it"

Many people shared their stories of the missionaries finding them and joining the Church. One man and his wife prayed to find the true church and the next day the missionaries knocked on his door. He said he was a tough nut to crack, but he had now been a member for many, many years.

One other great quote from the day, "Act as a honeybee and look for the sweet in the thorniest of bushes." This was mentioned as we discussed how our words can have power to affect others and so we need to choose to present our words in a loving and supportive way.

I am so grateful to be a missionary.

Also, I am so grateful for all the life experiences that prepared me for now and to relate to people. It makes me wonder if I had any life experiences to NOT help me on my mission, but for other times. I have been truly blessed to be able to relate to so many and have something to talk about with almost everyone. I am sooooo grateful that God has been preparing me my entire life up until now to serve a mission. I have no doubts this is where He wants me to be. I am so grateful that I realized this was God's will and followed the prompting to serve. I will never regret this decision. There is no place than I rather be at the front of the battle field fighting for the eternal salvation of the souls of men! My mission is already going by way too fast.

So, to add to all the other testimonies born in Sacrament Meeting. I know that God is our loving Heavenly Father. I know that the Gospel blesses families. I know that God answers prayers. God has answered my prayers and because of this I know that the Bible is the word of God as far as it is translated correctly. I know that The Book of Mormon is the word of God as well. I know that we having a living prophet who directs the Church today. And I know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is once again on earth in its fullness preparatory to the second coming of the Savior.

FYI, we beat 30 lessons this week. 31. Woo! Twas Awesome.

The biggest challenge we face is working with people that don't have an open heart when they read The Bible, The Book of Mormon or pray. They confess to know God and to want to come closer to Him, but then refuse to take the steps that can bring guidance to their lives and help them know for themselves that our message is true. When you have questions about the truth, invite the Holy Ghost into your life by prayer and study of the scriptures with an open heart, willing to act on the answer you receive. God will answer your prayers. He may not answer in the time or manner you expect, but He will answer (James 1:5 and Moroni 10:3-5).

My challenge this week: Share a truth you know to be true with someone else. Maybe that Jesus Christ is your Savior. That Heavenly Father loves everyone on earth. As you do this, especially about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Holy Ghost will testify that it is true. You can change someone's life, even if it is a family member or a person you are passing on the street. You can and should pray for strength and inspiration. Heavenly Father will bless you with those. Hesitant about doing this? Here are great suggestions for being a missionary yourself: http://www.lds.org/liahona/2013/02/a-word-for-the-hesitant-missionary

Enjoy the picture of the gator sign we found :)

Have a great week! 

Sister Jenkins