Spanish is hard!! Letter 16

Hello, world! 

Spanish is hard. Everyone always says missions are hard, but when I was just speaking English I was just kinda like "kay this really isn't as hard as everyone says". NOW it's hard haha. Buuut I know that Heavenly Father knows I can do it! So I guess I can do it. :)

We have a really cool investigator named Blanca. I'm pretty sure she's already a member in disguise... (Just like you, Sylvia! ;) ) I didn't get a whole lot out of the lesson cause my spanish is verrrry broken haha. But apparently she was talking about how children seem to be different by the age of 8-- that's when they seem to know right from wrong, so it only would make sense for them to be able to decide on religion at that age. UM. YES. my companions were like "WAIT WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" haha she's super great, and pretends to understand when I try to help her find scriptures. I'm really excited to be able to actually talk to her!

For the most part, this week has been spent with sister Carlson saying her goodbyes! It was good for me, because then I was able to meet people...but she's really cool so I've got some pretty big shoes to fill!

The culture here has been way different too! Everything is deep fried, and every problem can be solved with Chile peppers. Like literally, people keep telling me if I eat nothing but chile peppers I'll be fluent hahaha. Maybe I'll try it :P

This has been a very humbling experience for me, and it's already brought me sooo much closer to my father in heaven! I'm so grateful for this opportunity. :)

I love you all and I hope things are going fantastic for you!! Don't forget to write me ;)

Love, Hermana Jensen

(Saying Goodbye to Hermana Carlson)

 Hermana Jensen didn't send any pictures this e-mail, but here are some from the NOM Facebook Page (from Zone Conference last Thursday):

Hermana Jensen?? Letter 15

Hola Hola familia :)

Sooo....transfers were this week and I'm sure you've all been counting down the minutes until I emailed you ;). I have been transferred from the Sioux City 2nd ward to the Sioux City Spanish Branch! I'm what they call a "zebra". An english sister with no Spanish MTC experience, who is now an hermana!! I was SOOOOOO excited when I got this news!!!

My new companion had been with Sister Riggs and I for a week prior because her companion was in Omaha, so it was awesome to get to know her better and even cooler to find out she was my new comp!!! We (Hermana Grubbs, Hermana Carlson, and I) are currently in a trio because sister Carlson goes home next week. 

These past couple days as a Spanish sister have been craaaazy. It's seriously such a roller-coaster. One minute I'm totally feeling the gift of tongues and understanding way more than I should be able to, and the next I'm stressing like crazy because I can't understand ANYTHING. It's been rough, not gonna lie. But I know I'm here for a reason!! But still, it's hard. Pray for me, haha. 

I forgot my planner (sorry, mom) so honestly I don't remember a whole lot from this week other than that. But we did have a cool miracle the other day! We were heading to transfer point and we had to get gas first, so we went to the gas station we always went to and it was closed? That never happens, haha. So we went to this one we've never been to, and this lady came over and asked if we could give her a couple of dollars. She said she was super embarrassed and sorry but somebody stole her purse and she just needed a few dollars to get enough gas to get home.

Sister Riggs gave her some money and a Book of Mormon and she just started crying. She went off about how she was really stressed but she felt like she just needed to swallow her pride and stop here and ask someone if they could help her, and then she found us. It was really cool! Things like this just make me soooo happy. I love that Heavenly Father shows all his children how much he loves them in little ways just like this! It's so cool to be able to be an instrument in his hands and to be able to see how it affects people. :) I love being a missionary!  

I hope you are all doing well and choosing the right and such! Also follow up-- who read the Book of Mormon this week?!! DOOO IT. please. It will change your life.

Love you all!!

Love, Hermana Jensen 

pictured: the old district (I don't know what is happening with my legs) 

Old companion and new companion! (Sister Carlson was still in Omaha)

 Sister Crandall

Sister Riggs, Jayde, Sister Jensen

Sign made by Sylvia! 

Sister Jensen, Penny, Sister Riggs 

School Spirit and Career Day

Here are the girls' cute school shirts and their career day outfits (Emily is a scientist, Jaiden is an artist, and Janelle is an author).

Read the Book of Mormon! Letter 14

Friends and Family!

This week has been...interesting to say the least. 

-I got cussed out for the first time haha. :P Some people called us like twenty times just screaming profanities at us. We thought it was someone who just found our card and hated mormons, but nope! It was one of our investigators!! They could have nicely stated they didn't want to go to church anymore and we could have worked through it, but nope, that would be too easy! It was really rough, not gonna lie. I have never been talked to directly that way before, and I really had a hard time with it. They were so great too! :( Sometimes I hate that people have agency haha. Luckily the church is true and I've recovered haha. 

-We were able to have lots of good lessons though! Most of our investigators are progressing so well, it's wonderful! :) We are soooo so lucky to be working with such AWESOME people! I learn so much from them. :) 

-I've noticed that I really love it when investigators pray. Their prayers are just so innocent and powerful. They have so much faith and humility to get down on their knees in front of us and let a nineteen year old girl teach them how to pray. That is definitely on my list of favorite things out here! That and the awkwardness that comes when they say they don't want to and we just sit there and stare at them waiting for them to pray. 

-We had zone training on Thursday and it was awesome!! I loooove zone trainings. They are always very inspired and I know EVERYONE can always get a lot out of it! I heard one missionary say it's kind of like our opportunity to really go to church and learn haha cause in normal church we're always stressing over our investigators. 

-I think since our week started off not so great, Heavenly Father blessed us a little extra near the end! We were SOOOO close to hitting standard of excellence (literally one number off) and we were able to witness miracles. :) 

Something that I have grown to love SOOO much on my mission is the book of mormon!! There is SUCH a power that comes from that book. It's amazing. We were visiting a sweet less active member the other day and found out she hadn't been reading for a reallllly long time, so we challenged her to really try that every day. Seriously, the next day in church, the entire meeting was on the book of mormon!! It was like it was planned just for her. :) 

This is why I love being a missionary!!! I want to challenge all you who haven't read in a while (you know who you are) to pull out that dusty book of mormon! Read it. Say a prayer and read it. I PROMISE it will bless your life soooo much. Let me know how it goes :) 

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

Love, Sister Jensen
My Sylvia leaving for college :(

---

Back to School!

First day of school pictures with my high school boys acting like dorks...

 

Updates!! Letter 13

Holaaaaa!

Updates on some awesome people:

Michelle is FANTASTIC. we love her. she follows through with commitments and rarely cancels and always comes to church! What a champ!! Buuuut... we have to teach the word of wisdom this week. Let's just say that's going to be an issue for sure. so....prayers would be much appreciated cause I'm a little nervous!! But I know that Heavenly Father softens hearts so hopefully he's been working on hers haha :) 

Lonny and Joviann are super great and also really hard to understand haha. Working with them has been hard and a little frustrating, not gonna lie. Lonny just wants to get baptized tomorrow, but he is nowhere near ready! And we've been told that it's micronesian culture to just jump into things that they don't really know a ton about so we're trying to work past that haha. Also he only comes to half of sacrament meeting and then waits till we aren't looking and runs away!! It's a problem. we're working on it hahaha. 

Tita!! Tita was a referral from headquarters, she's 15 and super fun :) we prayed specifically that she would be able to recognize familiarity from when she attended church with her family a loooong time ago and SHE DID!!! Wooooo. We are excited to get the young women involved with fellowshipping her!! 

Carter is awesome and reminds me so much of my little brother!! (cough cough, that's you Jase) It's really cool to see him begin to put things together and understand, but he's really worried about talking to his family about being baptized.... pray for him too!! He is fantastic though, and we love working with him!

For the most part these are our current progressing investigators.... we have SO MANY that aren't progressing! Ah it's so frustrating haha. But we still see so many miracles! For example....

Yesterday we went to church and met Randy! He has never attended church in his life and didn't know anyone there, he just came!!! does that even happen?!?!?! (back story, he met some of the girls going to girls camp a couple weeks ago and they told him where the church was they attended...but that's about it) He's SUPER prepared and ready to take the lessons! He's older, which is different for me cause so far everyone we have taught here (generally) has been pretty young. but I think it's GREAT that he's willing to still find the truth :) 

Missionary work is the BEST THING IN THE WORLD. I know I say that all the time...but it is!! It's absolutely amazing! I love it I love it I love it! :) And I LOOOOOVE sioux city haha. even though it's sketchy and we talk to super creepy people that try to get our number for the wrong reasons.... we love it. ;) 

Thank you for all your prayers and I hope things are going fantastic for all you wonderful people!! Love you!!!

Love, Sister Jensen
(Sister Jensen on an exchange with Sister Manning)

Cousin's Visit!

Our kids were SO excited to have their Aunt Alicia come visit with some of their favorite cousins -- Adria, Rella, and Calder!!  The thing that is nice about these kids is that you don't have to plan anything for them to do -- they just use their imagination and come up with their own fun.  In fact right now they are in the basement dressing up and playing "Studio C!"

They arrived Friday night around 7:00 p.m.  The kids went swimming and then had a movie party.  We had extra beds available but they still decided to set up a row of beds on the basement floor so that they would all be together!  It took a good long while for everyone to get to sleep!

Saturday everyone slept in.  I went running and passed a garage sale that looked promising and so I ran back home and loaded all of the kids in the van and they all went and picked out a couple of toys, which they really enjoyed playing with the rest of the day.  Jaiden and Adria fixed pancakes for breakfast and then the kids went swimming. 

Rick took Rella and Jenna shopping Costco shopping with him (our kids like to go try out all of the samples on Saturdays).  Alicia and I took the kids swimming and then we had a yummy dinner of hamburgers and hotdogs and salad along with fresh green beans and cucumbers from Shane and Alicia's garden and fresh squash from our neighbor's garden. 

Janelle arrived home from our trip up North with her good friend, Brea.  She and Brea had received VIP passes to meet the whole cast of Studio C and Janelle was SO excited to tell us all about it!  The girls went to the church to practice their song for tomorrow and then Alicia and I got busy doing hair since the girls had to be there at 8:30 the next morning.

My girls had been asked to sing in church this Sunday and since their cousins were going to be in town we decided to ask them if they would like to sing with them!  So Janelle, Jaiden, Jenna, Adria and Rella sang "The Miracle" in Sacrament Meeting.  They received so many compliments on how beautiful and touching it was. 

Here are some pictures from the weekend:

 

 Some pictures right before church...

 

 

Here are the kids dressing up as different Studio C characters from different episodes of the show.  Jaiden is Ann the Librarian, Adria is Scott Sterling the soccer player, Rella is playing Whitney in "Prom Dress Gone Wrong," Janelle is "USA," and Jenna is "Spencer the Baby."

 

 

 These kids crack me up!