Dear Family, June 23, 2014
I'm so glad to hear
things are going well! I understand your whole feeling about summer. It will be
gone before we know it. Someone told us yesterday that the local Meijer just
got their shipment of "Back to School" supplies. Can't we enjoy our
summers just a little bit?? Oh well. That's life, I guess.
Training is SO MUCH
FUN! I love being a trainer! I lucked out and got the best missionary EVER. My
trainee's name is Sister Brockbank! She is a hard worker and is so anxious to learn and grow and become
the best missionary she can be! I will probably be learning more from her than
she will from me. All I have on her is experience haha. Sister Brockbank will
be awesome in this area and we are going to work, work, work!
I have never been a parent
but I can only imagine how this is preparing me to be a parent. Sister
Brockbank is so patient with me while I make mistakes. The most embarrassing
thing happened 18 hours after I got her: the alarm didn't go off. I thought I
set our alarm for6:25am and as I laid in bed that morning, I began to
think that it had been light in our room for way too long. I dismissed it the
first time and went back to bed. The thought came back again, "It is WAY
to light in our room to be 6:30." Guess what the clock said? 7:19.
My inward reaction: Panic. Sheer Panic. My outward reaction: "Um. Sister
Brockbank. We need to get up. It's 7:19." Elder Faust had warned us
that we were going to make mistakes, I just didn't think mine would come so
soon. But that's part of the learning process, I guess. She hasn't lost the
phone on the Beltline yet so we're good. This is teaching me a new side of
humility and meekness. I am so grateful for the opportunity I have as a trainer
to walk close to God and learn by the Spirit. There will be mistakes but that's
why there's an Atonement. Repent and try again. Just better this time :)
Yesterday we had a
lesson with an evangelical atheist. That was.... interesting. I learned some
really good lessons from it: 1) We do not convince people, the Spirit does. And
2) Only people who have desire and real intent will receive that witness from
the Spirit. I was doing everything I could to listen to the Spirit, read from
the scriptures and bear testimony but we can only bring the Spirit unto the
hearts of people- they have to let the Spirit into their
hearts (2 Nephi 33:1). I also gained a further witness that people who live
without God are never truly happy. I felt bad for this guy by the end of his
talk. He was so unhappy. Why do people choose to be unhappy? Why do we choose
not to allow the Atonement to "heal our wounded souls" (Jacob 2:8)?
Satan really does want people to be unhappy and miserable like him and he's
succeeding. Quit it, Satan.
So basically our whole
lesson was this guy telling us that we can't know that things
are true. It was awful and he said awful things to us. While he was trying to
prove a point, I thought "I think there's a story in Jacob 7 about an
anti-Christ." I flipped over and listened to this guy a for a little bit.
When I glanced down at my page, this was the first thing I read: "And he had hope to shake me from the faith,notwithstanding the many revelations and the many things which I had seen concerning these things; for I truly had seen angels, and theyhad ministered unto me. And also, I had heard the voice of the Lord speaking unto me in very word, from time to time; wherefore, I couldnot be shaken."
BOOM. That my friends is the Spirit. I know the things I know
to be true, no matter what this guy or any other person will say to me. The
gift of discernment is amazing and once I got that answer, I stopped worrying
about trying to convince him and let the discussion die. I told my
companion and our member after the lesson, "Lessons are like dating:
you're only obligated to the first one." I have no desire to see him
again. But I wish him well and I hope he can find happiness someday. I am
grateful that Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers. I know He is real and
I know this is His church. I know that the Holy Ghost is real and it will tell
us truth.
I love you all so
much! I am grateful that you continue to do the things of God. We are so
blessed to have the Gospel! Keep up your awesome work!
Lots of Love and
Pineapples!
Sister Jensen
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