Bring it, Pocatello!

Hey, family& friends!! 

 

It was so great to see you on Skype!  Sorry the connection wasn't super duper, but it was great all the same!

I don't have a lot of time, so I'll try to update as quickly as I can!

 

I went tracting for the first (and second) time on my mission this week!  It was actually really fun!  Who knew door-to-door contacting would be so exciting?  We tracted on a street that we've been asked not to go on at night because it's the highest crime area in Pocatello (bring it).  Don't worry, we went during the day!  We found Kim, a less active member with a Methodist husband and two step-children living with her.  She and her husband have been through a lot lately with health problems.  She had questions about the Book of Mormon, and said that we were the first missionaries to be able to answer them!  They're going to be in and out of the hospital for the next while, so she said we could come meet her husband in about a month, but said we could come back every once in a while before then.  And we plan to!  Woo!

Steph, who we spent Christmas morning with, told us when we dropped off a thank you card to her that we had made quite an impression on her daughter.  We set up an appointment to begin teaching her when she's less busy in two weeks!  Ah!  We want to begin teaching the whole family together, if we can!  We teach about eternal families, and the best way to really do that is teach them all together so they can become an eternal family! 

While we were tracting yesterday, we ran into a 7th-Day Adventist pastor.  He was politely dismissive about everything, then later apologized for seeming rude because he was sick and felt miserable.  ....Then we caught it.  Sister Gale and I were up all night Saturday and spent all day yesterday inside listening to CES devotionals and General Conference talks.  But it's good!  Builds character.  And I sure learned a lot from the prophets and apostles!  And now I'm pretty sure I know what drunk feels like--that dizzy, after-sick thing the day after 24 lockdown!  And even with the holidays and the out-of-commission day we had, we still managed to teach a bunch of lessons and get good things done!

For this New Year, I want to emulate the example of King Lamoni's father in Alma 22:18.  I want to give away all my sins to know God more.  He has given me so much--the least I can do is give myself back to Him. 

I love you all so much!  Remember the Savior and His Atonement in all things, and all those New Year's resolutions can be yours! 

Love,

Sister Jacobson

 

Pics:

So there was this house we knocked....  (top of page)

 

 The sidewalk even celebrates Christmas!

 

 

District Service!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We're in Old Town

Hey, family & friends!  Merry Christmas!  Christmas is the best!

This week has been full of miracles!  Again!  On my very first day in the area, we met Ariel, whom we've met with every single day since and is so willing to learn and be baptized!  She's a single mother of a 13 month-old baby son (so cute!) and has been through a lot of hard things in her life, but has been strong through it all.  This Gospel is exactly what she's been looking for for so long, and the ward members are really embracing her.

Now.  About the area.  We're in "Old Town."  This is the place where we meet people like Simba, an old, black Vietnam vet who told us to beware of the fascist "Jesus-killas" and told me "right on, cousin" when I bore my testimony of how Jesus has saved me (with as much Southern baptist passion as I could muster).  Or like Miguel (we think), a guy passing on the street who sounds like Gwatto from Star Wars.  Or like that one girl who answered the door with no pants on.  We live in as close to ghetto as we can in Idaho, and I love it!  We cover just two wards, and work is pretty slow right now, but we see SO much potential!  Big things are happening here, and they're going to happen soon!

Our two wards are on their own hill, and we don't have a car.  So when we skype, try not to be distracted by my body-builder legs.

Even though I miss Highland, I was hit with this overwhelming wall of family and belonging here.  I'm constantly amazed at how much our Father in Heaven loves us.  He only asks us to keep His commandments, which is THE happiest way to live, and when we do, we get to have even more joy in the life to come!  Things are picking up here as we remain exactly obedient and keep working as hard as we can!

We're out of time, so I'll talk more about things over Skype and in emails next week.  Love you all so much!  Merry Christmas!

Love, Sister Jacobson

Pics:

  Sister McKnight and I are really good at decorating gingerbread men.
Sister Gale!  Cutie pants.  We also share an affinity for nerdy youtube videos.

This is what happens to Sisters after a long day.  (Or this is just what happens to me every day.)

 

Surprize Transfer!

Hey, family & friends!

 

I'm going to start off with some surprising news we got on friday.  I'm getting transferred tomorrow night!  I'm going to another part of Pocatello, and I'll be with Sister Gale, who is sweet and hilarious.  Because of Christmas and New Years', departing missionaries are leaving tomorrow, but new missionaries won't arrive until January 1st.  That means that there needs to be a preliminary mini transfer, if you will, which I'm part of.  She's currently in a trio with a departing missionary and Sister Riding, my mission sister)and Visa waiter to Brazil who will be taking my place!,(a mission sister is a missionary who was trained by the same missionary trainer, in this case Sister Kuhns, a Visa waiter is a missionary who is serving state side while they are waiting for their Visa to arrive to their assigned mission destination, usually Brazil!)   Fun facts:

 

-Sister Riding and Sister McKnight grew up in Texas together and are good friends

-I'll finally know what it's like to have a Sister Training Leader

-Sister McKnight and Sister Riding will be my Sister Training Leaders

-My new area is super sketchy.  I've been on exchanges there, and it's so fun!

- I'm excited!  Sister Gale's super great, and we're going to get WORK done in the area!

-So I don't know skype plans now.... but there are a few people they know we could do it at and we'll get you in contact ASAP!  Promise!

 

Kenzie got baptized!!  It was one of the most Spirit-filled baptisms I've ever been to.  The talks and the musical numbers were so tender, and her family, who once was completely against her joining the Church, was in attendance, supporting her decision.  She squeaked a "woohoo!" out after coming up out of the water.  She's so dang cute!  It's really been a pleasure and honor working with her. 

 

We got Bible bashed this week!  We got a referral for this really sweet couple, and they're willing to listen.... as they tell us we're wrong.  But we're going to go back, share our unique message of the Restoration, and feel the Spirit.  That's all we really can do--open the environment up to the Holy Ghost so others can feel the truth of our message.

 

Mission Leadership Coucil was amazing.  We set a vision for what we want to have happen as a mission in 2014.  The excitement in the room was palpable, and it was very inspiring.  It was right after the Sister Training Leaders meeting that President Brinkerhoff pulled me aside and told me the news. 

 

This transfer has helped me grow a lot.  I've absolutely loved being with Siter McKnight, being in the Highland stake, and our new North Zone.  I'll admit, I was pretty bummed to hear that I was leaving a week before Christmas.  But you know, Christmas is the same, wherever I'll go.  I'm excited for new lessons, new people, new growth, new everything.  Where the Lord leads, I'll gladly follow.  

 

...And Sister McKnight may or may not have opened all of the 12 days of Christmas presents you sent.  I mean, they WERE addressed to the two of us.... Sorry!

 

I sure love you all!  Keep faith in the face of change.  Change is why we're here!  Change is the Atonement in action.

 

Love,

Sister Jacobson

 

Pics:

 

1.  Kenzie's baptism!

2.  Snow picture!

 

Preachin' to Santa!

Hey, family & friends!

We got snow this week!  Wooooo!!!  Winter is finally here!  Everyone says it's colder than it normally gets here, but it really doesn't feel that bad.  Idaho's got nothin' on humid, bone-chilling New York cold.  But yes, I'm wearing my big coat, boots, and fleece-lined tights, don't worry.  And we're making the most of our hot chocolate maker.  And our car.  Going on exchanges in a walking area helps you appreciate things like motorized transportation with a heater.

This week we've been spending a lot of time finding more people to teach, and we were able to get into some houses finally that we haven't been able to in months!  We've been trying to see this woman named Venus and her family, and we finally got in to see them (side note: we are not above using the bathroom as an excuse to talk to people in their homes).  There are a lot of others with a lot of potential, so stay tuned for coming miracles!

 

We had zone conference on tuesday and I got to sing with my only living mission sister (aka she was trained by Sister Kuhns)!  It was super fun.  There was a talent show and a music program (which we sang in) after all the trainings from President and the assistants to the President.  And guess who the special speaker in the middle of the music program was.  None other than Wilber! He was amazing, as always.  We also got to witness him receive the priesthood yesterday.  I could not wipe the grin off my face either time we saw him!  It's so wonderful how tightly he's embraced the Gospel in his life.  As he said during his zone conference testimony, "[He's] in the Church now, and [he's] in it forever."

We had a great meeting with Kenzie about her baptism plans.  We're going to roll out a red carpet, have a fog machine, and she'll strut down in her baptism jumpsuit with her friend breakdancing behind her as she jackknifes into the font.  No, really.

How about that Christmas broadcast?  That little kid was winking at me.  Too bad I'm in a relationship with Jesus.

And finally, last night we got to help Domi and her host family decorate their Christmas tree!  It was so fun!  We got a 3-foot fake one from our neighbor which took about 30 seconds to decorate (shoutout to the ornaments Mom sent!), so it was good to get a little more decorating out of our systems.

As we've been approaching this Christmas season, we've been bringing a lot of our attention to Isaiah 9:6.  Read that verse and apply all the names of the then-coming Christ to how He demonstrated them in His life.  He, and the hope He brought with Him through His Atonement, truly are the reasons for why we celebrate.  

I love you all!  Keep reading scriptures, keep praying, keep strengthening your relationship with your Father in Heaven.  He knows you and loves you, no matter if you feel you deserve it.  As our prophet Thomas S. Monson said, His love is just simply THERE.

Love,

Sister Jacobson

Pics:

1.  We put the nativity on the CD player so baby Jesus could be serenaded by our singing Mormon Tabernacle Choir of angels.

2.  Even Santa needs the Gospel.

3.  Snow. (side note from NY, it was -6 in Pocatello today and in the 20's and 30's here in NY!)

4.  Here's that tag close-up you wanted! (Not quite the pose I anticipated!)

 

Great week! Crazy week!

Hey, all!

Great week!  Crazy week!

So, we found this really sweet man to teach!  His name is Fermin, and he's married to a less-active member of the Church, and they both really want to get into it!  They have a 5 year-old son and a 3 year-old daughter and a month-old daughter, and the two older kids could join WWE wrestling.  Suplexes and pile-drives and all; super funny!  Fermin is so receptive to the Spirit and is just so nice.  We're excited to keep working with him!

Thanksgiving was great!  Unfortunately, Sister McKnight was really sick that day and didn't really get to eat much, but we did go to two members' houses!  Then the next day I got sick.  But Sister McKnight went on splits to get our work done, and we were still able to make it to the baptisms.  Missionary work: 1 Satan: 0.  Nice try!

Speaking of Sister McKnight, her leg is getting a lot better!  Still pretty painful, but between physical therapy and resting it (with me going on splits) and everything, she has a lot more mobility with it, and we're hoping she'll be off crutches soon!  Woo!

Then....... Chriss and Gabby got baptized!!!!  Yayyyy!!!!  They were both wonderful, beautiful baptisms with lots of support from the ward.  Apparently, after they closed the curtain after Chriss's baptism, she just sank back into the water and stayed there for a little while.  She's so awesome!  Their confirmations were wonderful, too.

 I don't remember if I told you, but Gabby is in foster care right now.  Her real dad was baptized two weeks ago by a set of Elders, was given the priesthood last week, and was able to baptize her!  It was incredibly sweet.  AND her sister is living in foster care in Chubbuck (a nearby city) and, from what we've heard, also wants to be baptized.  It's so sweet to me to hear about this family being bound by the Gospel, one member at a time.  We know it will bless their lives forever.

With Thanksgiving still in the back of our minds, I've been thinking a lot about how much there is to be grateful for.  There's so much.  If we peel back the rush and business of our days and think for a second, there is little to NOT be grateful for!  I'm especially grateful for all of you.  Thank you for your prayers and support and love.  Thank you for helping me become who I am.  I can never repay everything you've given me.

Also, with Thanksgiving behind us, it's time to start listening to Christmas music!  (Side note: we may or may not have been listening to Christmas music since Halloween.)  (Also, the Eclipse version of "O Come All Ye Faithful" and "Need a Little Christmas" are pretty much the only songs we listen to.  Ever.)

I love you all so much!  Make a list of small things you're grateful for that you haven't thought about in awhile.  I'll give you a start: chocolate chip cookies.  Oxygen.  You know, the simple things!

Love,

Sister Jacobson

Pics:

 

Chriss!  (top left)

 Thank you for the package! (top right)

We LOVE soft things!  (the box we sent was full of warm soft wintery snuggly things plus hot chocolate and oatmeal packets)

  Also, I got my haircut.  Tada?

    

                                                                   (Because Gabby is in foster care, we can't include a picture of her online.  Suffice it to say she's adorable.)

Two baptisms!

Hey, family & friends!

I don't have a ton of time to write, but suffice it to say this has been a wonderful, yet interesting week.

We had two baptisms!  Wilber and Kaylee both had beautiful services and beautiful confirmations.  I'm so excited for their futures in the Gospel and so grateful to have been a witness to their strength and closeness with God.  How great is our calling!

Well, I certainly love all of you.  If you're holding onto past mistakes, let them go.  If you're excusing your behaviors because "that's just the way you are," change.  But accept that change won't come immediately.  This life is all about change, and though it's uncomfortable, it's incredibly rewarding.

Love,

Sister Jacobson

Pics:

1. Sister Kuhns, my mission mom, went home last monday!  Aaahhh!

2. Wilber's baptism!

3. Kaylee's baptism!

 

Aaaaawesome News!

Hey, family & friends!

 

Aaaaawesome news!  In several regards!

 

Tuesday, we got to speak at a stake Young Men's/Young Women's (Jr. High and High School age youth) activity on prayer and missionary work.  And Wilber, our wonderful Ugandan friend, spoke too!  He stood up and said, "My name is Wilber, I'm from Uganda, and I've come to the conclusion that this Church is true."  He related his conversion process and his excitement, and talked about what brought him here to America.  He said that he originally thought God had brought him here for education, but now he knows that he was brought here to find this Gospel.  THEN, everyone split into two groups: one pretending to be people that don't know how to pray, one pretending to be missionaries teaching people to pray.  Those two groups broke into little groups of 4-on-4 groups.  We were missionaries (obviously)..... with Wilber!  It was AMAZING watching him teach people to pray (even though they were only pretending not to know).  He said some amazing things about how when he prays, he likes to repent first because he doesn't want to enter God's presence unworthily (!!).  Partway through, the "investigators" broke character and started asking him real questions about prayer, his experiences, etc.  What a privilege to get to know him this way--we really didn't teach him.  He taught us.

 

Wednesday, we had another lesson with Chriss (side note: we've been seeing her every day, essetially).  She was expressing some more concerns about the Church, and we were answering them with "doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith," and the like.  All of a sudden, she gets really quiet for a second and says, "Something just dawned on me."  She then related to us how for the past year or two, she's been praying to strengthen her walk with Christ, and she suddenly realized that with us, she has been this whole time.  She then clutches her chest, closes her eyes, smiles, and when we asked her how she felt, says, "It feels warm in my chest and all down my arms. I want to just bask in this.  ........................Holy ----!"  Always a firecracker, this one.  But she recommitted to be baptized on the day we had scheduled her for, and proceeded to quit smoking her e-cigarette the very next day so she could!  She's absolutely amazing, and the ward has been welcoming her with open arms.

 

This week I've learned a lot about forgiving myself.  In church yesterday, many of the talks were on meekness, and I realized that I need to start applying that to myself more.  We so often as people are fine with forgiving others, letting them know how much we love them, treating them well, etc., and that's wonderful!  But truth is universal.  If we don't apply that to ourselves as well, we are not entirely meek, humble, submissive, or completely fighting off the natural man.  Feelings of guilt need not linger longer than when you've repented to your Father in Heaven.  He forgives you, so forgive yourself.  Let it go. 

 

Oh yeah!  Sister McKnight and I are staying together!  Woo!  And we're part of a new zone they're creating: Pocatello North Zone!  One of our zone leaders is going to be one of the soon-to-be former APs, and our district leader is going to be Elder Meier from my MTC district!  There's a whole lot going for us this transfer, and we're excited to be spending the hollidays together, too!

 

Well, I sure love you all.  Thank you for your prayers and support.  We sure need them!

 

Love,

Sister Jacobson

 

Pics: 

.Last district Sister picture

 

 Praying like Enos

Early am running in the snow with toe shoes!(picture at the top of the page)

 

Woooo!

Hey, family & friends!  

So, this is the second week on my mission that I've broken 20 lessons taught to investigators with a member there.  Two weeks ago, we taught 21, and this week, we taught 23!  Woooo!!  We've been so busy, it's ridiculous.  However, I'm eternally grateful for the Lord and His blessings on us and our area.

Taryn was baptized!! It was beautiful.  There was another baptism taking place in the church building right before, so getting the baptism clothes and everything set up before was a bit stressful, but it all came together in the end.  I feel like almost every baptism I've been a part of has been like that!  The Adversary does NOT want that important step to be made because he knows the eternal happiness they will gain from it and the associated living of Gospel standards after it, so he will stop at nothing to ruin that big day for everyone.  Luckily, Satan is nothing compared to God!

We taught a young men's/young women's class this week!  We related the Gospel to gatorball (that game I told you about that we play on P-days).  No big deal.  Actually, it was wonderfully fun.

Tons of crazy things for taking care of our Sisters!  Stress here, nightmares there, phone calls everywhere, and organizing meetings/musical firesides!  It's a wonderful thing to be a Sister Training Leader, though!  They all teach me so much and I'm honored (and sometimes confused) to be part of it all.

New investigator: Gabby!  Adorable little 12 year-old girl.  Fun story: her dad lives in another part of Pocatello and is being baptized this coming saturday and hopefully will be able to baptize her in a few weeks!

Chriss came to Taryn's baptism and to church!!  She felt peace at both!  Woo!

Everyone else is doing great, too!

Not a lot of time!  Sorry!

Love you all!  Buy and read "The Power of Everyday Missionaries!"

-Sister Jacobson

 

Pics: Mom, you're not going to like these...(She was very right! I don't like anything about snakes! This was the hardest blog update for me to work up due to looking at the snakes!)

           per Katie..."Snake fun !" (Is there really such a thing?)                    

 

Series of "coincidences"

Hey, family and friends !

I feel like I'm getting really repetitive with saying that this was another amazing week.  Nevertheless, it stands: this was another amazing week!

We asked Wilber how he feels about his baptism coming up.  He simply said, "I'm ready."  I think our insides did the Macarena.  He's just amazing.  Need I say more?

Chriss is making SO much progress!  We went over with a member the other day, and it turns out he's the perfect fellowshipper for her!  He was a convert to the church with a similar conversion story to where she is now.  She feels kind of guilty for investigating another church when she's been Catholic for 60+ years, but she's starting to recognize the change in her life.  He started talking about how while he was investigating the Church, he started reading the Book of Mormon more and more and didn't really know why, and Chriss said, "Oh, so maybe that's one of my signs!"  My insides got good at the Macarena this week.  She's been reading the Book of Mormon with increasing fervor, and she even told us that we had become a big part of her life.  (Cue the obligatory "awwww!")  We've been having more contact with her, brought her hot chocolate the other day so she could have that instead of coffee.... she's just so amazing!  We love her so much!

Kenzie's still solid.  Church was a party with her yesterday.

Halloween: locked up from 5:00-9:00 with our zone of missionaries in a stake center.  Pot luck.  Space Jam.  Wreck-it Ralph.  (The iron tear glands of Sister Jacobson may have been breached a few times during that movie...)  Yay.

Back to the good stuff!  Through many miracles, we found two new investigators this week!  One's name is Socorro, and she has three children.  She just moved into the area, and has been going to the LDS church off and on for 8-10 years now.  Exciting, no?  The way we found her is a neat story.  So.  There we were.  On exchanges.  Because Sister McKnight wasn't here, I got a bit lost, and we drove past the Elders that serve in the stake helping someone unload some stuff into their house.  We smiled and waved and drove away.  The second time I mistakenly drove that way and passed them again, we decided to get out and help.  Turns out, they were out walking and a lady picked them up for a ride (with her teenage son, so it was koshe) and told them they were going to help her friend move in (kind of against their wills).  So through a series of "coincidences," we were led to help her out, got to know her, asked her about taking the lessons, whabam.  She's awesome.

Another is a foreign exchange student from Italy!  She's been living with members here, has gone to church and seminary, and loves it all!  Protocol states she can only be baptized here with her parents' written permission, understandably, and her host dad told us later that her parents are coming to visit around Christmas!  We haven't talked to her about it yet, but how amazing would that be for her parents to be here to witness it?  She already feels the Spirit and knows it's all true.  She's an absolute sweetheart.  We're also playing tennis and eating barbeque (Texas style for Sister McKnight) with her and her host family today.  So fun!

Mission Leadership Council.  Always a party.  We got to ride up to Idaho Falls with President and Sister Brinkerhoff!  LOVE them!  Also, all the New York missionaries in the mission minus Elder Cook were there, so we took a picture.  Sorry, Elder Cook and associates!

Representing New York !

Began teaching Jim.  SWEETHEART.  We love him.

There is no way in under on God's green Earth that this Gospel is not true.  I know it.  I live it.  I love it.  And I never won't know it, live it, or love it.  Read Alma 5 and assess your "mighty change of heart."  Mine is changing every day!

So much love,

Sister Jacobson

 Always Study your white handbook!










The people weren't home so we taught their scarecrow!

Knee deep water: a mission theme ?

Dear family and friends,

Each week I just fall deeper and deeper in love with what I get to do.  My mission here is to help others, yes, but looking back, my mission has been changing me the most.  Taking stock of where I am now and where I was pre-mish, I've seen a completely different level of conversion to the Gospel in my life.  Would I have made it to where I am eventually?  Sure.  Eventually.  Reeeeally eventually.  Did I have a testimony before my mission?  Absolutely!  Was the Gospel the most important aspect of my life, infused into every molecule and gene that makes me who I am, what drives me to follow Christ's example as closely as possible and set all else aside?  No.  And I will never return to that.  The Gospel is my LIFE now, and always will be.

Anyway!  Awesome week!  Sister McKnight and I decided to set a goal for 20 lessons taught to investigators with a member present this week, which is a BIG number, and we got 21.  And more and more, we've been talking about how we really do nothing.  Absolutely nothing.  None of our success comes back to us.  We just work as hard as we can and remain obedient to the mission rules, and Heavenly Father blesses us with oppotunities and aid that we could never come by on our own.  He's so good to us!  It's like He loves us, or something!

Theresa's baptism was beautiful!!  The water was knee-deep (hmmm... mission theme?), and it took three tries to get her completely immersed (and the first time he dropped her on the way up.... oops), but it was absolutely beautiful.  And funny enough, because Kamryn had gone through the same thing, I was able to let them know a way they could make it work--lay her on the ground.  What's that?  Everything happens for a reason?  Oh, ok!  But yes, she's wonderful and so excited to be a part of this Church, but more importantly, to follow in Christ's example by being baptized by someone holding the priesthood authority of God.

Ok, so this week, we were knocking on one of our investigator's doors, but he wasn't there. So we started hiding against the walls next to their apartments so they couldn't see our tags and not answer. The second time we did, I kind of just threw myself into the wall. A few seconds later, the door next to us opened up and a girl straight out of India appears, wondering who knocked on her door. So then we proceed to get to know her and invite her to church as well as we could with the Hindi-English language barrier standing stalwartly between us. When Sister McKnight finally pulled out a pamphlet with a picture of a church service at the end of our discussion, she said she wouldn't come to church. But she was super nice!

Chriss is just awesome.  It's been amazing to see the Spirit working on so obviously!  When we first met her, she told us she was born a Catholic, she'll die a Catholic, and she had taken lessons from missionaries years ago and it didn't do anything.  We asked her and her daughter if they would try again, and when her daughter said no, we expected the same from Chriss.  "...Well, I guess we could try again."  We left her with a Book of Mormon that she said she probably wouldn't read.  When we went over the next time, she had read the first few pages.  We talked about the Restoration, and when Sister McKnight related the account of the First Vision, we paused for a while.  "...Pretty powerful."  Whoa!  And THEN we invited her to be baptized on a specific day, which at first she outright declined, but then after another pause, she said she would work on it.  Daaang!  We've been going over every few days to read the Book of Mormon with her due to her eyesight, and the workings of the Holy Ghost are deliciously apparent.

Read Alma 26 this week.  It's pretty much how I feel every day: indescribable.

I love you all.  I love the Lord.  I love His Gospel.  It means everything to me.

Love,

Sister Jacobson

Pics:

1. Theresa!

2. Awesome group of people.  We later did our best Adele impressions and ate brownies.

I'm not the one teaching

Dear family & friends,

So remember that one time I got to spend all day every day with an amazing companion spreading this amazing Gospel with amazing people?  Yeah, I remember that one time.

I don't even know where to start with the events of the week, so I'll give an outline first.  We taught 19 lessons to investigators alone this week, and 9 to members, less active or otherwise.  We're stricter on what we count as a lesson here than I have been with other companions, so that's a big deal!  We haven't been focusing on how many lessons we've taught this week, but we looked back and saw the results of focusing on really inviting people to come unto Christ through baptism.  When we focus on what we can do as missionaries that no one else can and work our hardest to achieve it, amazing things happen.
So, investigators:

Wilbur is from Uganda.  Waaaay cool!  We were talking about the Holy Ghost in our last lesson and said, "The more we get to know God, the more He will show Himself to us," through the Holy Ghost. He then went on to say that through the Holy Ghost, God sends us spiritual gifts as tools to help us get back to Him.  I had never thought of it that way before!  I swear, I'm not the one teaching.  The Spirit teaches our investigators, and they teach us.

Theresa is getting baptized this weekend.  She fed us dinner on saturday!  She has an adorable 5 year-old daughter who drew us pictures of her and flowers.  Love it.  She's so excited for her baptism, and she's amazing.

Kenzie (young single adult) was taught by Sister McKnight when she first got here.  Her parents don't like the Church, so she didn't want to go through with baptism and stopped taking lessons.  BUT.  Then we got back in contact and said she had been doing a lot of thinking and wants to be baptized anyway!  Woo!  She's so cute, too!

We're teaching a few 11-13 year olds.  They're all great!  Kaylie, Taryn, and Lily.  Go team.

We had some investigators with baptismal dates that aren't able to get baptized on their dates because they didn't come to church this week.  They're wonderful, but they're not quite committed to this Gospel yet.  We'll keep working with them if they want to keep progressing, but we can't help anyone want to progress--we can only help those who already want to.

There's a man, Jim, that we're going to begin teaching soon!  He's been married to an active member for 47 years, and took missionary discussions 30 years ago, but apparently his parents were kind of against the Church.  He's the sweetest man EVER, and we did a family home evening with them last monday.  We asked him if he'd want to take the discussions again, and he said yes!  Woo!

There are SO many things going on, but that should be enough to catch you up to speed, more or less.

This work is AMAZING.  I'm living a dream come true, and the harder I dig, the harder I push, the more I love it.  There's nothing I'd rather be doing than inviting people to experience that happiness, hope, joy, and peace that I feel.

Alma 26:12 

I love you all so much!
~Sister Jacobson

(This is how I do weekly planning.)

 

 

 

Ladies and gentlemen: it happened!

Hey, all!

 This is going to be the greatest transfer of my life.  Let me tell you a story!

 So once upon a time, Sister McKnight and I worked together at the Visitors' Center in Idaho Falls.  Since then, we talked about how much we would LOVE to be companions, but we probably wouldn't be able to because she's Spanish-speaking and I'm English-speaking.  Then she got put in an English area, and I got to see her at Mission Leadership Councils.  We talked about how much we would still LOVE to be companions, but it probably wouldn't happen. 

 

Ladies and gentlemen: it happened!

 She's the sweetest, funniest, most energetic, obedient, diligent, crazy, awesome, crazy awesome, healthy (running every morning?  Yes please!) missionary EVER!  We could probably power all of Pocatello with our energy and good times for a month.  Let's be honest.

 

 

 

So, amazing companion aside, I LOVE Highland also!  I've been in love with the area and the people here from day 1.  One of our wards is in the mountains, so we have incredible views, too!  And there are waaaay more non-Mormons here than in Rexburg!  We've gotten yelled at and Bible bashed up one side and down the other, and, to be honest, it's been super fun.  It's those ridiculous moments that you can either choose to let it discourage you, or choose to laugh it off, move on, and keep them in your good story basket.  We cover three wards in the Highland stake and a young single adult ward.  Way fun!

 We've found a bunch of new investigators and taught a bunch of other awesome people this week!  One is Sierra, an 18 year-old girl, who has been through a lot, but wants to be baptized.  There's also John, a man in his 70s with an awesome New York accent who always says we're "whacked" and has a huge crush on Sister McKnight.  I'll tell you more about our investigators as I get to know them more, but suffice it to say there are a bunch, and they're all wonderful. 

 This work is so amazing.  Every day, I realize more and more how blessed I am to be a part of sharing this glorious Gospel.  It truly is the only way to experience true happiness, and I feel that happiness every single second of every day, no matter my circumstances.

 I love you all so much!

 

-Sister Jacobson

Pics:

1.  Yes, I got to see Elder Cook.  His trainer was my last district leader!(Elder Spencer Cook is from our stake and he and Katie have known each other thru most of their school years! He just reported to the Idaho Pocatello Mission from the Mexico City MTC.. His parents are currently serving as the Mission President of he Chile Santiago South Mission)
2.  Sometimes we have to crawl through fences.  No big.
3.  Mountains of Highland.
4.  So much love with companions!

 

Brace yourself Poki!

Hey, family & friends!  

Doesn't it feel like I JUST talked about last transfers?  I don't know about you, but these past six weeks whizzed by.  Transfer calls came in and..... I'm gone!  I'm going to Pocatello!  Few fun facts:

-I'm going to Highland II, which is the other part of the stake Sister Barnett came from serving in.  She's told me a lot about the area and people and my apartment and things.  

-My new companion is Sister McKnight, who was in the Idaho Falls Temple Visitors Center my second transfer and we instantly became great friends there!  She became a Sister Training Leader in Pocatello a few transfers ago, so we've been able to see each other at Mission Leadership Councils the past few months.  There we confessed to each other our dream of serving together, even though she's a Spanish-speaker.  (I also confessed my undying love for her, but you know.... whatever.)  So we're really excited for the chance we have to serve together!  As one of the Elders said, "They put the two smiliest Sisters in the mission together.  There is going to be SO much energy in that companionship!"  Brace yourself, Poki; you're gonna get smiled into oblivion.  Or into conversion.  Hopefully the latter.

-Sister Barnett is going to be serving here with Sister Woods, from England!  She was also in the Visitors Center my second transfer there, and she's AWESOME.  Probably the hardest working Sister in the mission, which is hard to fathom being with Sister Barnett these past four months.  They're going to get WORK done!  

We recently figured out, we think, that I am the oldest mission-age Sister in the mission that hasn't trained.  Sister Barnett already has four granddaughters!  I guess I'm just infertile.  (Note: when you train, that missionary is your daughter, their daughters are your granddaughters, etc.)

-Sister Barnett and I have been coping with the loss of each other by screaming at each other as often as we can that we can't wait to be separated.  It's not working too well; it usually ends in arguments at the tops of our lungs over how hard of a worker the other is, how pretty the other is, and how much we love each other.  It's almost working!

-A less active lady we visit said that she was really going to miss me and said she could imagine me as the kind of person to put on a superhero cape and save the world after I get home.  Apparently, my secret identity of *Justice Girl has been compromised.  Gosh dang it...

-Mission President lives in my stake!  Not in my area, but in my stake.  We're going to be beeeest friends by the time I'm through there!  Or maybe he's moving me down there to keep a closer eye on me.  If all goes well, he won't discover my secret Sister army I plan to build up in the southern part of the mission to re-absorb the Twin Falls Mission back into ours.  We want our missionaries back!

I think that's all the fun news of transfers!  This week, we found a new investigator!  His name is Kobie, and he's 15.  His dad is less active, but Sister Barnett and Sister Woods will straighten that out.  He's agreed to be baptized in about a month, and he's super cool.  Kelton is being baptized this weekend, which I sadly will miss, but he's excited and solid.  We found another new investigator on campus, too!  His bishop called us, told us a cool story about how he found out Shane wasn't a member, and how Shane wanted to learn more and possibly be baptized!  We stopped by the new family we found and met the wife, but she said they wouldn't be in town for when we planned, so we're hopefully going to get in contact this week.  Logan is awesome and is praying about baptism.  

Being perfectly honest, I'm really sad to be leaving.  I love Rexburg, I love the people, I love Sister Barnett, I love the missionaries I get to serve around, I love everything.  However, my excitement is balancing it out fairly well.  This life is about progression, and change is an integral part of that!  I'm excited for the new friendships I'll be able to develop and the work I'll be able to do in my new area!  Life is too short to stay sad for too long, and missions are WAY to short to dwell on negative feelings.  Bloom where you're planted.  Lift where you stand.  Life is not about circumstances making you happy, but learning to be happy in your circumstances.  My circumstances are going to be pretty dang awesome in Pocatello, but even if I was sent to a black hole of an area, there would still be something to be grateful for!

Oh, and General Conference was amazing!  Exclamation point!  (Just watch that "exclamation point" talk.  I was ready to karate kick the church pew in front of us in half, I was so pumped up!  Also, watch Elder Ballard's talk again, too.  Soooo dang awesome!)  

 

Oh, and thank you SO MUCH for the package!!  Upstate New York honeycrisp apples.  I nearly cried with joy! Pic: Bonding with the apples!  Our zone of missionaries demolished them at General Conference!  Thanks again!

I love you all so much.  I know this is the Lord's work on the earth.  The Book of Mormon is true and it will change your life!  Seriously.  Just ask.  (Moroni 10:4-5)

Peacin' out from Rexburg,

Sister Jacobson

(aka Justice Girl)