Being Grateful

This has been the most successful and effective transfer of my mission by a long-shot.  Not only were we constantly engaged in the work, but we were seeing success in our work.  I am grateful for the opportunity that I had to witness so many incredible miracles-even though I did not always play a role in bringing them about.  There is no way that I ever could have comprehended how much love that I could have for God’s children.  I am truly blessed and although I am still facing trials, I am at peace.  One of the greatest blessing from your letter this week (letter from mom)  was the awakening that came from your reminder to me of my impatience.  Although I didn’t seem to recognize this before, I am very impatient.  Just last week I found myself complaining about how impatient Elder Silata is.  It never even crossed my mind that the real issue was my own impatience.  This week I have strived to be more patient.  Although I am still impatient my patience was increased and as a result, so has my love for others-chiefly for my companion (but even for myself).

Nina & The Pharisee Children

With the increase of teaching experiences, that I’ve had these last few weeks, there have been many moments that I thought might offer a new perspective on missionary work.  I hope to capture a few of them in this entry:

NINA & The Pharisee Children:

Note:  This particular entry is somewhat fictional-the events are true and the people are real, however I have portrayed several experiences in one visit to capture the spirit of these visits rather than to accurately record the facts.

I have a tendency to envision Christ’s legendary ministry recored in 3 Nephi as I go about my missionary service.  I often find myself attempting to live up to some degree of Christ’s example of teaching.  However, sometimes it is a little shocking to witness the contrast between the teaching environments I find myself in here and the one described in 3 Nephi 17(feel free to take a moment to study this chapter-it should add a good background to what I’m about to share):

As we approached the door of our newest investigator, Nina, with Brother Day, I briefed him “Nina is a 21 year old African American women that we street contacted about a week ago.  Her mother was recently diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, and we gave her a Priesthood blessing.  Nina was interested in hearing more, so we taught her the restoration and she said she wanted to be baptized.  She came to the Trunk or Treat with us last night and she had a good experience.   She said, “Do all of these people go to your church?  The people here are so nice”.

Then Nina came to the door...

There was a pause-a moment of shock as we tried to get past her appearance.  She looked awful!  She was exhausted and she looked it.  She was wearing the same outfit as the previous night, except I would have guessed that she had endured a week-long pioneer trek since last night.  Initially she was a little cranky with us, but after a few minutes of us reassuring her that our message was important, her appearance didn’t matter, and that we would be brief and to the point, she permitted us to enter.  We stepped over Cool-Aid spills, dirty clothes, rejected toys and random morsels of food as we made our way through the entry way and to the living room couches.  We sat down reluctantly and I thought, “what happened?”-suddenly Nina’s 2 year old son, Jordan power-slid across the tile floor.  Then he proceeded to break-dance across the rug, gradually making his way to the fireplace which would become his stage as he performed a new form of interpretive dance.  Note:  Nina explained that Jordan had woken up at 8 am and had eaten his entire bag of candy from the previous night.  Nina had awoken to his rampage to find a pile of wrappers awaiting her.  She sighed and shook her head.  I glanced at my watch, noted it was 4 pm, then joined her.  Then, as if on cue, a merry band of toddlers paraded into the room-all of which were naked (stripped down to the diapers)-with an 11 month old baby crawling behind them.  As we taught the lesson- or at least attempted to teach it- we found ourselves yelling over the crowd of “Pharisee” children.  We didn’t stand much of a chance.  One of them was trying to pry my copy of the Book of Mormon from my hands, while another dragged off my backpack to the other room.  I looked over to my companion and saw that he wasn’t having much luck either.  He had given his scriptures to one of the kids and sat there completely oblivious as the little boy took his pen and began to decorate them with his version of “modern art”. (Either that or he had decided to make a few changed to the scriptures that were conveniently in his favor)  Jordan then wedged his way between my companion and I on the couch and dug his hand into the space between the cushions.  After a minute of digging he emerged from the pillowy abyss and waved a small, green plastic rectangle triumphantly in the air for all to see. 

“I found it”, he exclaimed. 

Although nobody seemed to have a clue what this mysterious treasure actually was (perhaps not even Jordan knew what he was holding), he certainly did find it.

Brother Day-who had become a little distracted at this point-took this opportunity to ask, “So, what do you have in that fish tank over there?”

Nina responded “There were some fish in it.  But now there is just an algae feeder-she then paused and began tapping the glass.  “He’s been there a few days without moving...looks like he’s a goner as well”.  Nina glanced at Jordan, and strangely there was no need for her to say anymore.  Without warning a clothes hanger cam flying from an unseen hand somewhere on the other side of the house.  The hanger smote Brother Day’s knee and then dramatically fell to the floor.  All eyes turned to a two year old boy standing in the corner at least 30 feet away.  “He has a good aim”, I said astonished.  “He does have good aim”, Brother Day admitted.  At that point, the front door flew open and the house was flooded with people of all ages.  Apparently Nina had a lot of family.  Pretty soon the house was filled with noise-Yes, even more noise than before.  A group of teenagers were having some kind of tea party in the kitchen while others gathered around the television.  Somewhere from upstairs, music blasted throughout the house while Nina’s cousin started working on a a tattoo.  I looked over to my companion and was unsure whether he was more enticed by the television or by the cookie dough that a 6 year old boy (who had just arrived) was trying to sell him.  At this point Jordan was celebrating his archeological discovery with plan-of-salvation-pamphlet-confetti.  Which had been produced by the kids in the other room (who were now enjoying my backpack).  They were more efficient than any paper-shredder I have ever seen!  The only problem was that they were developing their unnatural and unusual talents by practicing on something purchased by the widow’s mite.  (Not just that, but there is something very wrong with a gang of kids tearing up pictures of Jesus)  Although I rarely understand what goes on in Elder Siilata’s head, what he did next still amazes me.  He opened up his backpack and pulled out a bag of candy.  The children ran to him and he carefully distributed one piece to each of them.   A few moments later a fight broke out as four of the kids fought over a pack of skittles.  I looked over to the corner of the room and noticed that Jordan had managed to sneak away and was not sitting in the corner of the room with a pile of candy it appeared that somehow he had obtained everyone else’s rations without their knowledge.  He now sat there comfortably in the corner enjoying his spoils as the other children engaged in some kind of Toddler death match.   Two of them seemed to be preparing the littlest one to be used as a burnt offering in their heathen ritual.  Another boy turned to us and began barking swear words at us as though he were possessed by a legion of unclean spirits.  For a brief moment my mind drifted to the nearby pig farm (it wasn’t hard-the odor was quite powerful that particular day).  I supposed that if the pigs were to run away then the city of North Las Vegas would be forever grateful.  Just to be sure that these children really were possessed, we ought to have a bound them with chains and fetters for the remainder of the lesson.  If they broke free then we would know that there really was issuing.  I might have suggested it too if missionaries had such resources.  At about this time, Nina’s mother, an afflicted old woman whom we had given a blessing of healing to in a previous visit-began issuing commands from her bedroom.  It appeared that not only was she feeling better, but that she was now well enough to order Nina around.  She requested a special rendition of “cup of noodles”-and her word was final.  Our lesson came to an abrupt end-probably as we reached the scripture Matthew 19:14.  After that lesson, all I can say is if the kingdom of heaven is anything like what I witnessed in Nina’s home, then I might consider reserving a room in the other kingdom.  With my blasphemy I might earn myself a booth there anyway.  

Prior to this lesson, I never could have anticipated such terrible opposition nor comprehended how anyone could teach or learn in such an environment.  Now, I am beginning to understand that children-as sweet and innocent as they may appear-can be powerful tools of the devil in bringing about the destruction of mankind.  I would like to have a word with the prophet Moroni concerning chapter 8, verse 22.  Personally, I feel that Matthew 7:15-16 might more accurately describe what I witnessed in this home.  They may have been in sheep’s clothing-but their behavior certainly did not bear any resemblance to that of a sheep.  That is unless we are comparing them to some kind of terribly mutated werewolf sheep-but that is another subject entirely. 

~Elder Jensen~

Transfer This Week

I am being transferred tomorrow to Warm Springs to serve in the Las Palmas ward. My new companions' names are Elder Butler and Elder Phipps. I'm not sure who they are or why I am getting 2 companions, but this will be interesting. I'm still a junior companion as well - I'm hoping that there will be two junior companions and one senior companion, because I don't think that I can handle two senior companions bossing me around. According to my zone leader who served in this ward I am going to, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland's son was the previous Bishop in this ward. Also, this is the area where President and Sister Neider live, so hopefully I will get to see them a lot more. Other than that, I don't really know anything about what is going to happen tomorrow, or this week, or this transfer. I am pretty nervous about having two new companions in a new area (I've basically been in the same area for 7 and a half months since I can see my old area every week in Shadow Creek - we meet in the same church building and everything - I go to their baptisms and we talk to their members occasionally). Hopefully this change will be good (I don't handle change well). 

As for Thanksgiving, I was going to have dinner with about 4 different families (you can't just say no to your favorite members or to your investigators, or to less active members that you're trying to fellowship). But now I don't have any plans - or at least I don't know them... I hope that you have an enjoyable thanksgiving.

Elder Jensen

Bishop Rex Visits

I had a great visit with Bishop Rex last week. He brought us to Five Guys and we talked with him about our missionary experiences and about Ryan's experiences. It felt really weird to talk to him. It made me miss home a little bit, but fortunately things have been really busy so I didn't have enough time to get distracted by the visit. 

I got to go on exchanges to another ward for their trunk or treat and so this year I get to go to two. I have to be the chili cook off judge for both of them. I saw lots of neat costumes. The Bishop dressed up as a pinata and his wife hit him with a baseball bat as he walked through the costume parade and then at the end he busted open his belly and a pile of candy fell out. Then a swarm of children gobbled up the candy. I've never seen so many crock pots in my life - I literally only had one spoonful of each one and by the end I was full (probably 50 crock pots). There was one of them with caution tape on it called "the death chili". It fried off my taste buds for about 20 minutes (it had some ridiculous peppers in it).

Sincerely,

Elder Kyle Jensen

Every Member a Missionary and Service

In your email, you mentioned that the missionaries in your ward were struggling to find investigators.  We have run into similar problems here.  It is very difficult to find people who are friendly enough to talk to us, let alone let us into their home.  Recently there were some thugs show dressed up as LDS missionaries and robbed a man at gunpoint.  People have been even more unpleasant to talk to since then (when they don’t avoid us, they can be very rude).  So far every investigator that I have taught that came to use through street contacting (our own finding efforts) has dropped us after the first lesson.  The really sincere investigators almost always come through members of the ward-which is difficult because traditionally, members view the role of missionaries to be the finders.  The way I see it, the church is pushing more and more towards the idea that the members are the real missionaries, and the full-time missionaries are there mainly to assist in the work of the members.  So far on my mission, I have found that doing service for the members of the ward can be a really effective way to gain the trust of the members, which ultimately leads to teaching opportunities (whether it means they will be more willing to give us referrals, or if they are more willing to assist us in our efforts to find and teach, or even if it simply means that the Lord will bless the ward in one way or another).  I have done all kins of yard work for different members and investigators (although the most popular service has been been helping people load and unload moving vans).  I have to say that I am truly grateful for all of the work that I did at home.  I’m grateful that dad always made me help out with yard work and various other projects.  I am also grateful that Brother Mackay involved me in his yard work and other projects.  Because of those lessons that I learned, I was able to bless the lives of those whom I have met in the mission field.  Anyways, I am glad to hear that dad and Tyler have been involved in reaching out to investigators.  I am also glad to hear about all of the family’s involvement in missionary work.  It gives me a stronger testimony that families and individuals can change.  I know that I can change.  I can become more open and friendly with people-perhaps even outgoing.

Ether 12:27

In regards to the topic of service and its relations to missionary work, I have this to say:

1 Corinthians 13:1

Teaching, even when it is done masterfully, can only accomplish so much.  It has its limits.  At the end of the day our words will fade out of the minds of our investigators like a tinkling cymbal or sounding brass.  However, when we genuinely serve an individual-perhaps through the sweat of hard labor-their hearts are touched and they are forever changed.  Our actions have the potential to demonstrate charity in ways that words can never truly capture.  Ultimately it is our actions that bring us unto Christ.  Therefore it is through our actions that others may witness Christ’s love for them.  This is a plain and precious truth that I have learned.

~Elder Kyle Jensen~

Here is a link if you would like to know more about the Las Vegas robbery that he mentions in his letter:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/20/us/nevada-robbery/index.html

Reflection on Mission Experiences

One evening as my companion and I approached the apartment of a man whom we had talked to on the street earlier that day, one of the residents on the ground level yelled up to us “Good luck with that house” and laughed, while another mocked, “He’s definitely not interested”.   Although these rude remarks invited a burden of discouragement and even fear, a voice in my mind whispered “that is a good indicator that we are at the right house”, followed by a burning desire to serve the man who lived there.  I thought about Christ and recognized that his ministry was amongst sinners.   EVeryone has need of the Atonement, but Christ chose to be amongst those who were despised and rejected of men.  They were the ones who would receive Him; Christ could only dwell with those who were humble enough to accept His love.  Before the man even opened his door, I knew that he would invite us in.  When he did open his door, we were surprised to see that it was not the man we had talked to earlier.  This man was even more scraggly.  Nevertheless, he accepted our invitation to have a prayer with him. Inside his home he opened up and told us a little about his precious life.   To give just a basic image of his lifestyle I will mention that he was at one point a drug dealer and that he has spent some time in prison.  To be honest, he didn’t really need to tell us these things, because they were implied by his appearance, the appearance of his apartment, and by the appearance of his friend who we met earlier.  Regardless of his demeanor, I observed within him a sincere desire to come to know His Savior and Redeemer.  And what the spirit of the Lord taught me in this moment is perhaps best described by the scripture “thus the Lord did begin to pour out his spirit upon them; and we see that his arm is extended to all people who will repent and believe on his name”(Alma 19:36).  We taught this man about Christ and about prayer.  We shared our testimonies and asked him the question “If Christ were here, what would you ask of him?”-to which he responded, “I would ask him to help my mother with her trials right now” (I do not recall what it was she needed help with, but the point is that what he asked for was for someone other that himself).  I then proceeded to offer a prayer for this man and his family.  Although I do not recall the words that I spoke, I recall the deep sincerity that I felt and the power of the Holy Ghost that was woven into every work.  If I were to open my eyes, I would have expected to see Christ administering to this man.  As I consider the amount of faith that I had that evening and my connection with the Holy Ghost in those hours of pure service, I am left in awe.  I never could have imagined the ways in which the Lord can work through me.  It is truly wonderful to participate in this great work of salvation.  

To accompany my previous experience, I would like to relate an experience that I had earlier the same day.  As we visited with an investigator and recent converts, we met up with a member of Elder Fischer’s ward.  The member accompanied us to a few of our lessons.  In the lessons, because of the stressful nature of these short visits and my timid nature, I participated much less than I ought to have.  However, when I did speak, I testified boldly of Christ and of the truth of the Book of Mormon.  I spoke with power-the power of the Holy Ghost-and I touched the hearts of all those who were present.  Afterwards, the member told me “you had the most important things to say in there, you need to make sure that you say them.  Don’t let others take over the lesson, you need to make your voice heard”.  Since that moment, those words have echoed in my mind over and over again.  I have come to regard these words as the counsel of the Lord, and it has become my quest to give heed to them.

~Elder Kyle Jensen~

A Day Serving with the Zone Leader

On Wednesday I went on exchanges with Elder Poteet, my zone leader.  And as expected, it turned out to be a truly blessed day.   One initial observation that I made regarding this particular day is that the Lord blessed us with unusual success.  Many of the people whom we had previously attempted to contact were available, and many people that we met on the street were receptive to our message.  I believe that the Lord blessed us with these people because we had prepared ourselves to serve them. 

One of the sacred experiences that I had with Elder Poteet came as we street contacted a disinterested and somewhat intimidating man.  As the man bluntly rejected us, a young boy around the age of 8 passed by us on his scooter.  When he observed his neighbor’s response, he approached us and innocently said, “you can talk to my parents about Jesus!”  I suspected that his parents would not appreciate him bringing us over to talk with them, however, I was touched by the smile on his bright young face and by the sweetness of the words that had just proceeded from his mouth.  So I put aside my expectation of the uncomfortable nature of the situation that I would soon find myself in, and we asked the boy to lead us to his parents.  He led us a few houses down and then went inside to get them.  A brief moment later, an unhappy man came out to talk to us (he greatly resembled the last man we spoke with-covered in tattoos and piercings, shirtless, and he had a lot of facial hair).  We offered to say a prayer for him and his family and he told us that he was unreligious and shoed us away.  Before we left we handed him a picture of Jesus and asked him to give it to his son.  There was no baptisms or discussions that resulted from this experience, yet it was precious to me because it reminded me why I am a missionary.  There is sorrow in my heart as I consider the line from a familiar hymn “searching in darkness nations have wept” (264) and associate it with this young boy’s face, however, there is a hope in my heart that one day this boy will come to know Christ as His Savior, as I know Him.  In this moment I found a renewed determination to serve the Lord more faithfully by going out of my way to share my testimony of Christ with others.  I desire to proclaim that the truth has be restored, the dawn has come, and we are with the rising sun. Christ has risen, He lives, and He will come again.

~Elder Kyle Jensen~