TO BE MORMON IS TO BE HAPPY!

An incredible week to be a missionary! I love this time that I have to serve here en la Republica Dominicana! 

I am officially all settled in in my new house in the smallest little town ever! From our apartment you can see the beach and I eat my breakfast and watch the sun come up from my hammock! But living in the beautiful country comes at a cost.. we have to travel 1 hour to buy our food and write and do anything normal because there is nothing in this tiny little town! :) But I wouldn't change one thing! :)) I love it! We have lots of investigators and a lot of partial families in our rama's (branches)... Yes my companion and I have two branches! So we are focusing on completing these families and helping them to prepare for the temple!! My companion is so great! We both have some time in the mission so its just work work work. She is also so happy and crazy all the time. We both are just a giggly ball of energy all the time! Hahaha if you guys can imagine. 

Speaking of the Temple!!!! This Saturday morning I had the grand privilege to enter in the temple to watch the familia De Castro be sealed for time and all eternity! Such a big blessing and the sealer that did the ordinance is from our ward Piantini and was one of the first people in the DR to be baptized! such a special moment for us and for our Heavenly Father! :) 

In one of the sacrament meetings that we assisted this week there was a young woman that said the following "I am trying my hardest to follow Jesus Christ, and to be happy, because to be Mormon is to be happy!" I have been meditating lately a lot in my personal study about our purpose here on earth and the plan of HAPPINESS that our Heavenly Father has for us. And this frase (phrase) I feel like explains it all. I am so grateful to know that I am not of this world, that there is so much more. But most importantly that I have this great opportunity to prove myself worthy to my Heavenly Father and show Him how much I love Him! I love life and I love the happiness that this gospel gives us in this life! Please take a second to look at the big picture and love your life and thank God for all that you have! :))) 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY NEPHEW CAEL MAÑANA!!! TE AMO MUCH! FELIZ CUMPLE AÑOS A TI!!!

and Merry Christmas to the rest of you!!!!!! Here they don't celebrate Halloween and everything, I mean EVERYTHING has been decorated for Christmas here for about a month already, and we only sang Christmas hymns yesterday in church! Hahaha 

Love you all! Have a great week! 

xxoxoxo

hermana Jenson

The familia De Castro!

Temple familia sealing

The beach from our balcony (she says the trees are hiding the beach)

Sunrise from balcony

Some of the streets here in Nizao

This is a chicken foot, Yumm

NIZAO HERE I COME! :)))

This week has been so busy but by far one of the most rewarding and love and spirit filled weeks of my mission! I love being a missionary!

This week we got transfer calls.. and I will be gong to the south again! To the zone of Bani in a little town called Nizao right on the beach, my new companion is hermana Urmeneta from Honduras!!!! I am really excited and feel at peace with these transfers! 

Some other amazing NEWS!!! I just opened my email from hermana Moeller and the first thing that she said is that Carolina one of our investigators got baptized this week!!! We had taught her everything, then she had to go back to Canada! I will attach photos!! She said ¨it was something that I felt like I had to do now, I felt so peaceful during the whole day" its so cool to see how the Lord works in His own timing and in His own ways! :)) 

She is the short one in the middle! 

This week as well Vanessa had her reactivation interview and this coming Saturday we will all have the privilege to go to the temple to watch her be sealed to her whole family! Don't worry I will send pics later! 

This week was full of see you later's, to some of the people who are closest to my heart. Its incredible how God gives us these opportunities to become so close to people that they change our lives. I know I will never be the same thanks to this amazing area of Piantini and every child of God that I've come to know here! I am eternally grateful to my Father in Heaven! :)) 

Until next time! I love you all thank you for everything that you do for me! 

With all my love 

hermana Jenson

CAROLINA'S BAPTISM IN CANADA

Oh and more pics from the Temple.. Yes I'm the only american! :)) 

My district that I'm leaving....

THE HOLY TEMPLE

Another amazing week FILLED with miracles and tender mercies and other things to make you laugh! I love being a servant of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! 

So we have been working really hard with this couple lately Jose and Chelda. They are from Haiti and hardly have any money, and Jose has been saving up his money these last few weeks to be able to buy some church clothes for him and his wife and their baby girl! We have been praying for them like crazy and fasting for all of their needs. Well this last Saturday night we show up on their little street and they hear us greet their neighbors and Jose comes out of his house with a big smile on his face and a tie in his hand… ha I couldn't hold back my tears.. as he so kindly asked me to teach him how to tie his tie. Then him and his wife and daughter so lovely walking in the chapel doors the next morning! I love seeing this Gospel change peoples lives. Jose has now told his work that he can't work on Sunday and he and his wife have completely stopped drinking coffee! They are so excited to be able to enter into the waters of baptism! :) This church is a church of change! 

Also the family De Castro that I told you about the other week that they were sealed in the temple but one of their daughters was still inactive.. her name is Vanessa! well she will be reactivated this week and they will ALL be sealed the week following! I love being in their presence they are so happy and filled with the spirit as a family and it makes me so happy! They are so humble and submissive to the Lord! 

Something that I made my companion die of laughter that might make you guys as well: Well we were contacting and inviting everyone to come unto Christ one day this week, and we came to one house (that is gated). So we touched the doorbell and a little dog came out to the gate and then the owner opened the door. I started to converse with her from the gate while I was inviting her to come to church and hear our message I felt a little warm on my foot to my surprise her dog had started peeing on my foot.. so I stopped talking, being startled, and shook my foot. the owner said nothing as she stared at me and as her dog moved quickly to my other foot and finished relieving his bladder. Then without saying a word more she looked at us and shut the door!!! As my companion laughed I tried getting off the urine with a nearby leaf. ahhhhahahah I love being a missionary! :))) 

I was also able to enter into the Holy Temple this week and wow I have been so blessed, I am so grateful for everything that The Lord has given us, especially the covenants that we can make with Him! I love the spirit that accompanies us in the Holy Temple, the Spirit of revelation, of comfort.. of everything that we need! :)) 

This week we receive the calls for the next transfer, so we will see where the Lords needs me for the next little while! :)) We also have our interviews with President Nuckols and his wife this Thursday! :)) Yay! 

I love you all thank you for your continued support, prayers,and love.. they do not go unnoticed! :)) 

With all the love that I have! 

hermana Jenson

PICS:

THANK YOU PRIMARY FOR ALL OF YOUR CARDS!!! I LOVED THEM! :))))

TEMPLE VISITS MAKE HER SO HAPPY

HURRICANE MATTHEW

FELIZ CUMPLE ANOS A TI!!!! BUENO A MI MAMI!!!!! TE AMO TANTO MAMI!!! :))) 

For those of you who don't know it's my moms birthday today!! Call her and sing to her and give her lots of hugs and kisses for me! :)))) 

My mom is the most amazing woman I have met or come to know in my whole life. She is an amazing example of Christ like love and all of His attributes.. I give thanks to her for all that I know today and all that I am! She is the strongest woman that I've had the privilege to learn from and I am grateful for her faith! If you guys need a good pick-me-up or just a best friend my mom is the person for you! I love you mommy! Hope your day is the bestest! :))

Alsoooo…Happy Birthday in advance to my sisterrrrr DEENA KAYE!!!! I love you! On the 12th you guys can all call her and sing to her as well and tell her that I love her and do a little jig for me! :)) Deena has been my role model for years and my twin in everything (too much in the right mind) I love her and I am grateful for her enthusiasm and never ending support in all that I choose to do! :)) 

So this week was hurricane Matthew… wow lots and lots of rain and wind and more rain. I have gotten used to looking like a wet poodle while contacting! :) Here in the capital there wasn't too much damage but a few of our investigators houses filled up with water like whole neighbourhoods filled up to our armpits.. it was crazy..we spent a few nights helping people haul water out of their houses and clean and other things like that. A lot of our Haitian investigators have all their family in Haiti and still haven't heard from them if they are okay.. because the hurricane hit harder in Haiti. but please keep them all in your prayers and I know the Lord will bless us all! :))) 

One day this week we spent the whole day in the clinic with all the missionaries that are new to finish doing their visas..and because my companion is new, we spent all day there. I met some really cool people while there from all over the world and was able to talk to them about the gospel! :)) There are opportunities everywhere to share this amazing gospel! :))) 

We are struggling to find new progressing investigators so my companion and I came up with some new ways to find peole through our ward members. We prayed and fasted.. looked over our ward list selected 4 families to give books of mormon to so that they can pray and fast to give that book of mormon to someone or a family that they know! :)) We are really pumped about how some of them have gone and are ready to see the fruits of all of us working together in the work of the Lord! :))) 

I love being a missionary I love my Savior and Redeemer and I know that He lives and loves us! Never forget the simplicity of this Gospel! :)) 

Love you all! 

HERMANA JENSON

Oh and p.s. we are going to the temple on the 18th so I will be writing that day instead of Monday! :)) Love you all! 

miji y yo! :))

This is hermana Paloma.. a new member that just moved in and she made us THE BEST arroz con leche that I have ever had!! :))

LA CONFERENCIA GENERAL! :)))))) Oct. 2016

Gosh  I wish I had a billion hours to tell you all the answers that I received from conference and tell you all how much I felt the spirit and all how much I love these men chosen of God to guide us in these later days.. but I don't..so I will tell you some of my favorite things and some of the impressions that I felt! :))

From the womens conference  I loved Bonnie L. Oscarsons talk,, I felt so grateful to be a missionary to take this time of my life to really study the doctrine of Christ to be able to help others understand and come unto Him. There is no surprise that the world is so wicked, prophets for years and years have seen our day and told us all the things we need to do to prepare for these latter days… and here we are. We should be prepared, now is our time to put all of our preparation in action. Don't be surprised but go forward with Faith and understanding! "If we don’t teach our children and youth true doctrine—and teach it clearly—the world will teach them Satan’s lies."

Wow I am so grateful to be a missionary at this time and to know that when my mission finishes I will still be a missionary WE ARE ALL CALLED TO BE MISSIONARIES! We have the spirit to guide us to the people who are ready and need the gospel. Like Dallin H. Oaks said.. we cannot judge who is ready to hear the Gospel.. but we can be disciples of Him at all times and in all things and in all places! :)) I am also so grateful for the PLAN OF SALVATION.. Wow the understanding and knowledge that I have of this plan to me is one of my greatest treasures.. which many mentioned in their talks!

Gah just writing this is bringing back so many thoughts and feelings from conference I want to write them all…

Most of all I am eternally grateful for the Atoning sacrifice of our Lord and Redeemer Jesus Christ. That we CAN repent! :)) Please repent, its a gift that has been given us, let the atonement take its course in your life. Like Linda S. Reeves said that the real miracle in this life is watching the atonement work in the lives of other people, and in ourselves.. well I testify of that as a missionary I have been able to see this marvelous gift work in people and most importantly work in myself! It's beautiful. LET THE LORD WORK MIRACLES IN YOU! Many also mentioned walking out of the bishops office and being filled with JOY… this is all possible because of the atoning sacrifice of our Brother… Like Elder Russell M. Nelson said every day can be a day filled with JOY. I have a testimony of this repentance everyday, in every moment to be able to be cleansed fills us with joy! I know how it is to walk out of that bishops office and feeling the spirit so strong that you can fly, not knowing what else to do but feel grateful and cry because someone loved you enough to pay for the mistakes that you have made. I KNOW THAT MY REDEEMER LIVES. and I am grateful for Him!

Last thing.. if you are doubting and struggling with anything.. please do as Elder Ronald A. Rasband instructed us.. and humbly pray and fast to be able to REMEMBER the spiritual experiences that you have experienced in other moments in your lives!

I love this gospel sorry if these thoughts are random but I just want you to know that I love being a missionary I love teaching people the knowledge that I have come to love of this gospel and share my testimony with everyone here in the Dominican Republic!

with much love

HERMANA JENSON