March 28, 2011
Dear Family and Friends,
I'm getting transferred!!! I'm going back to OKC 1st ward that I was in before I came up to Woodward. And I'm shotgunning the area and training a new greenie missionary!!! (Edit from Mom: I think “Shotgunning” refers to transferring to an area where both of the prior missionaries have moved out, so you don’t have anyone to orient you to the current state of the missionary work there.) The sisters that were there before weren't disobedient or anything like that, but one has finished her mission and the other was a Spanish-speaking sister that was there for a transfer but she is going back Spanish so there are an even number of Spanish sisters. So I am "shotgun training"!!!!! And guess what, my companion Sister Grant is also training a new sister missionary!!! We are so excited! We were MTC companions and now we're both co-senior companions out here, and next transfer we'll both be training!
Recently I've been studying the Word of Wisdom in detail and thinking about how I can live it more fully. I decided to give up sugar to help someone to quit smoking because I felt like I had cravings for sugar and some of the same mindset that this person had about smoking. As a missionary one of the pamphlets we hand out is about the Word of Wisdom and it promises a lot of blessings that I wouldn't normally associate with the Word of Wisdom. Some of them included increased confidence in the future and in myself, more self-control, and more ability to feel and recognize the Spirit.
In the last week as I have lived the Word of Wisdom more fully I have seen those blessings in my life. I feel like I am better able to focus on the Spirit when my body isn't constantly craving a sugary snack. I don't want to be addicted to food. And I have also gained a renewed testimony of prayer. I have asked specifically for Heavenly Father to help me not to crave these foods and I haven't. I know that repentance/change is a process, and something we can't do on our own. I have seen my prayers answered in a very tangible way. I am so grateful for the blessings the Lord gives us.
Love,
Sister Lila Jenson
Monday, March 28, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
First time Lila gets yelled at: "You're going to hell!" New pics, too!
This week was amazing! We were in Oklahoma City till Friday night!
Each day this week while we were in our LTM (Leadership Training Meeting) in the City we talked about two of the following topics and it was amazing!
1. Doctrine of Christ
2. Role of the Holy Ghost in Conversion
3. Revelation through The Book of Mormon
4. Revelation through Church Attendance
5. Revelation through Prayer
6. Teach People, Not Lessons
7. How to begin Teaching
8. We Invite, They Commit, We Follow up
I learned that I need to always seek learning from the Holy Ghost. President Taylor told us to split our papers in half and on the right to put things that the Spirit was teaching and on the left any other notes that we wanted to take. After I left the LTM (Leadership Training Meeting) and looked back on my notes I realized how much more significant the notes on the right were to me. I learned a lot of things that I needed in order to be a better missionary, things that I needed to do to better help the people in Woodward, and I also learned doctrinal things that were important for me to understand.
The Spirit taught me a lot this week. I have been wondering for a long time why it seemed that people who committed serious sins seemed to have a deeper connection with the Savior and a stronger testimony of the Atonement. So I had always half wondered about how that could be, and how that pertains to someone like me who hasn't committed serious sin. When President Taylor was speaking about the Doctrine of Christ I learned/realized that pain doesn't exalt us. Suffering for sin doesn't exalt us. The telestial kingdom is for those that suffer for their own sins. Also independence doesn't exalt us. It's only asking for the Saviors help and "doing all we can" which is having faith, repenting, being baptized, receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. That's what it means when it says "after all we can do."
I also finally have a sense of what a "broken heart & contrite spirit" means. A broken heart means a willing heart--just like after a horse is broken it can help with the work. When our hearts are broken, we are able to help with the Lord's work because we are willing to be directed. A contrite spirit is being willing to ask for help, and knowing that we need to rely on the Lord.
A new method that is being used in missionary work is something my mission president calls "Real Play." We pray and then one of the missionaries takes on the role of an investigator, really trying to empathize and understand the feelings and concerns of the person we are teaching, all hopefully through inspiration. The other missionary asks inspired questions, listens in love, discerns in the Spirit, and teaches the doctrine that is applicable to whatever the concerns of the person are. Anyway, while we were doing this we were teaching about prayer. I said several things about prayer that I had never thought about--that prayer is a gift for us to be able to feel close to our Heavenly Father, because He is always there for us; prayer allows us to feel that closeness. After I saw that that didn't really click with our investigator's concerns, the Spirit told me "that was for you." I am so grateful to be able to teach the gospel because as I am teaching I learn so much that I need, not just what the investigator needs. I love being taught by the Spirit!
Saturday we had checked on people and then went tracting. We talked with a couple for a while teaching about prophets and the restoration. As soon as we mentioned Joseph Smith, the husband flipped out, and turned from a calm accepting person to yelling at us pointing his finger at us and telling us that Joseph Smith was a liar and a false prophet and that he was in hell right now and that we were going to hell as well. And that he read the Book of Mormon and that it was "nauseating." Sister Grant and I just listened and then bore our testimonies that we knew what we knew through the power of the Holy Ghost. We commented that he was very emotional about what he was saying. And he seemed to realize how crazy he had gotten and turned back into his chill accepting self and told us before we left that we had the light of Christ in our eyes and that we were doing a wonderful thing as missionaries. Well, that was my first time someone told me I was going to hell--I feel like I'm a real missionary now! ;) But in all seriousness the Spirit leaves when people yell. And the Spirit testifies of truth and I felt it leave when he started to yell at us and declare Joseph Smith was a false prophet.
The next day we were going tracting again, on that same street and we met a wonderful man who bore his testimony of prayer and relying on Heavenly Father. He shared that three days before his grandfather died he had said, "There are other sacred texts and we just need the right man who is guided by the Lord" to bring them out. And we were able to share with him that the right man had been chosen of the Lord and we got to share about the Book of Mormon with him. It was a wonderful experience where we both were "edified and rejoiced together." He strengthened our testimonies and we were able to share and add to what he knows and believes.
I love having the privilege to learn and grow and be taught by the Spirit.
Love,
Sister Jenson
Friday, March 18, 2011
Trying to strengthen a small branch
Hi Family and Friends,
In my OT study I'm currently in Psalms and I noticed how often he talks about the temple and having to be righteous to go there. One of my favorite verses was Psalms 27:4 "One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple." I love this verse. Being able to be in the temple all my life is a goal I have as well. I always want to be temple worthy. Reading these verses has also helped me in thinking how I can and will explain about why people have to be worthy and have a temple recomend before they enter the temple. I have been amazed at how much doctrine actually is sprinkled throughout the old Testament. For example the counsel to not buy things on the Sabbeth Nehemiah 10:31,13:15-22. That's in the OT whereas it's not in the NT or the Book of Mormon or even in the D&C.
I first heard about the earthquake on Friday and because a lady asked where we were from and when she heard I was from WA she said that a tsunami was going to hit there. I was like "what?" and she explained about the earthquake in Japan, but I heard from several other people that it didn't hit the west coast very badly and I was happy to hear that.
We had a great Sunday. A less active member that we invited came to church!!!!!! And everybody was so happy to see her. She said she's going to start coming every week! And the first counselor in the Stake presidency was there and gave an excellent talk about inviting people who are less active to come to church and he promised that if we did they would start coming. The high priest that was speaking with him talked about the dedication and consistency that was needed in Visiting Teaching and Home Teaching and shared his experiences with helping people come back to church. President Baclawsky said that the stake presidency wanted Woodward to become a ward and wanted to expand the building here, it's like 1/4 - 1/8 of a normal building-- it's REALLY small. But that in order to do that average Sacrament Meeting attendance needed to be 80-100 people, we average 50 right now.
It gave me a lot of hope for this area and I am really excited to try and help this branch to grow. I love this branch and I know that they really need the people who are less-active. We need them also, because when people join the church they need a large support group and the branch just isn't big enough to help any recent converts right now. And because of that many recent converts, like 90% of them in the last 5 years have quickly left the church. In between the two speakers Pres. Baclawsky asked me to come up and bear my testimony and I did and it was a great oppurtunity because missionaries don't usually go up and bear their testimonies in fast and testinmony meeting, so it was nice to be able to do that.
Our mission president wants us to "Focus on Christ 2011" and I know that is so important. As a missionary I have noticed how often people will say "I know that the Chruch is true. I know that Pres. Monson is a true prophet, etc" but they won't bear their testimony of Jesus Christ being our Savior and Redeemer. Really, everything else is an appendage to that. I know that bearing witness of Jesus Christ is so important and it will bring the Holy Spirit faster then a testimony of anything else.
Love,
Sister Lila Jenson
In my OT study I'm currently in Psalms and I noticed how often he talks about the temple and having to be righteous to go there. One of my favorite verses was Psalms 27:4 "One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple." I love this verse. Being able to be in the temple all my life is a goal I have as well. I always want to be temple worthy. Reading these verses has also helped me in thinking how I can and will explain about why people have to be worthy and have a temple recomend before they enter the temple. I have been amazed at how much doctrine actually is sprinkled throughout the old Testament. For example the counsel to not buy things on the Sabbeth Nehemiah 10:31,13:15-22. That's in the OT whereas it's not in the NT or the Book of Mormon or even in the D&C.
I first heard about the earthquake on Friday and because a lady asked where we were from and when she heard I was from WA she said that a tsunami was going to hit there. I was like "what?" and she explained about the earthquake in Japan, but I heard from several other people that it didn't hit the west coast very badly and I was happy to hear that.
We had a great Sunday. A less active member that we invited came to church!!!!!! And everybody was so happy to see her. She said she's going to start coming every week! And the first counselor in the Stake presidency was there and gave an excellent talk about inviting people who are less active to come to church and he promised that if we did they would start coming. The high priest that was speaking with him talked about the dedication and consistency that was needed in Visiting Teaching and Home Teaching and shared his experiences with helping people come back to church. President Baclawsky said that the stake presidency wanted Woodward to become a ward and wanted to expand the building here, it's like 1/4 - 1/8 of a normal building-- it's REALLY small. But that in order to do that average Sacrament Meeting attendance needed to be 80-100 people, we average 50 right now.
It gave me a lot of hope for this area and I am really excited to try and help this branch to grow. I love this branch and I know that they really need the people who are less-active. We need them also, because when people join the church they need a large support group and the branch just isn't big enough to help any recent converts right now. And because of that many recent converts, like 90% of them in the last 5 years have quickly left the church. In between the two speakers Pres. Baclawsky asked me to come up and bear my testimony and I did and it was a great oppurtunity because missionaries don't usually go up and bear their testimonies in fast and testinmony meeting, so it was nice to be able to do that.
Our mission president wants us to "Focus on Christ 2011" and I know that is so important. As a missionary I have noticed how often people will say "I know that the Chruch is true. I know that Pres. Monson is a true prophet, etc" but they won't bear their testimony of Jesus Christ being our Savior and Redeemer. Really, everything else is an appendage to that. I know that bearing witness of Jesus Christ is so important and it will bring the Holy Spirit faster then a testimony of anything else.
Love,
Sister Lila Jenson
Monday, March 7, 2011
Teaching pagans and potheads...very interesting!
Dear Family and Friends,
I love my companion Sister Grant because she loves people and it makes tracting fun. We talked to a guy the other day named "Doc" and he told us all these amazing stories about how he fought in Vietnam, managed power plants, was a truck driver, worked on the oil rigs, and raced cars. He was also super emotional. "I'm just a boob!" He started crying twice in just the 30 minutes we were talking to him. He also talked non-stop and just loves to work and always be doing things. He's someone that I would get exhausted just hanging around. I am starting to love meeting new people, too. It's amazing how different people are and how many stories they have.
This week we also talked with a self-pronounced pagan. He was telling us that Mormons are "preppers" because we prepare for things. He also said that his path of paganism includes all paths and that our path is just one of them. He was very much a relativist, everything to him is relative. There is no right or wrong, but everyone perceives things differently and what they perceive is real to them.
It's amazing because even as I come across all these new ideas it doesn't shake my testimony, but yet reinforces it. I know that this gospel is true, that Jesus is the Son of God and that it is only through Him that we are saved. He loves us and has provided us the straight and narrow way so that we can return to live with our Heavenly Father.
Oh, and I taught someone on pot for the first time that I know of. I'm getting over a cold currently and I couldn't really smell, but I knew something was weird and I was pretty sure I was smelling drugs! It's amazing how drugs make a person not really care about the world around them. He was chill to the point of not having an opinion about anything. So it was interesting trying to teach him the gospel.
I know that Heavenly Father wants us to not take things into our bodies that dull our senses because it keeps us from being active and learning and growing and becoming like our Savior.
"If you judge people you have no time to love them" Mother Teresa.
I know this is a true statement. As a missionary I teach people who are not married and living together. As a missionary I know this is a very serious sin, but I have also seen that, where before I might have been prone to judge and look down on people, now I see that their living together doesn't really affect how I treat them. I love them and I am working hard to help them. If they were married I would still love them and work hard to teach them. I will never judge or look down on people I see in church ever again. I know that people who come to church have made an effort to change and to learn how to better themselves and we should accept them with open arms and help them make that transformation.
I'm grateful for the Savior and the fact that He accepts me and is there to help me grow and become better. I hope I can emulate and help all those around me to grow.
Love, Sister Lila Jenson
I love my companion Sister Grant because she loves people and it makes tracting fun. We talked to a guy the other day named "Doc" and he told us all these amazing stories about how he fought in Vietnam, managed power plants, was a truck driver, worked on the oil rigs, and raced cars. He was also super emotional. "I'm just a boob!" He started crying twice in just the 30 minutes we were talking to him. He also talked non-stop and just loves to work and always be doing things. He's someone that I would get exhausted just hanging around. I am starting to love meeting new people, too. It's amazing how different people are and how many stories they have.
This week we also talked with a self-pronounced pagan. He was telling us that Mormons are "preppers" because we prepare for things. He also said that his path of paganism includes all paths and that our path is just one of them. He was very much a relativist, everything to him is relative. There is no right or wrong, but everyone perceives things differently and what they perceive is real to them.
It's amazing because even as I come across all these new ideas it doesn't shake my testimony, but yet reinforces it. I know that this gospel is true, that Jesus is the Son of God and that it is only through Him that we are saved. He loves us and has provided us the straight and narrow way so that we can return to live with our Heavenly Father.
Oh, and I taught someone on pot for the first time that I know of. I'm getting over a cold currently and I couldn't really smell, but I knew something was weird and I was pretty sure I was smelling drugs! It's amazing how drugs make a person not really care about the world around them. He was chill to the point of not having an opinion about anything. So it was interesting trying to teach him the gospel.
I know that Heavenly Father wants us to not take things into our bodies that dull our senses because it keeps us from being active and learning and growing and becoming like our Savior.
"If you judge people you have no time to love them" Mother Teresa.
I know this is a true statement. As a missionary I teach people who are not married and living together. As a missionary I know this is a very serious sin, but I have also seen that, where before I might have been prone to judge and look down on people, now I see that their living together doesn't really affect how I treat them. I love them and I am working hard to help them. If they were married I would still love them and work hard to teach them. I will never judge or look down on people I see in church ever again. I know that people who come to church have made an effort to change and to learn how to better themselves and we should accept them with open arms and help them make that transformation.
I'm grateful for the Savior and the fact that He accepts me and is there to help me grow and become better. I hope I can emulate and help all those around me to grow.
Love, Sister Lila Jenson
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