It's Autumn and the students are back at BYU-I!

Hey, family & friends!

It's autumn!  The temperature is dropping suddenly and the leaves are changing slightly.  But you know what the best thing about autumn here is?  The students are back!!!  Oh, how we've missed them.  We've gotten a LOT of work going in the South Stake, but it's great to see the other half of our area return.  Love all the college kids.... even if we do have to wait 10 minutes for them to cross the street.  Stinkinwhippersnappers.  

                                                          

So awesome, awesome things are happening!

 We found two solid new investigators!!  Stefanie and Chuck.  And we actually weren't the ones to find them!  The Spanish missionaries (who happen to be our district leader and his companion) that cover our stake were talking to their neighbors and saw Stefanie and Chuck outside.  Our whole zone has committed to be better at talking to EVERYONE we see, so they went over to talk with them, even though Stefanie and Chuck didn't speak Spanish!  (Props to the elders.)  They got their information, told them we'd be over there that night, and passed all that along to us.  We had a completely full day planned, so thought we'd just have to call them and ask to meet some other time.  Good thing our plans completely unraveled!  Just about everything fell through, so we had time to go see Stefanie that night!  (Chuck was at work.)  She's had a hard past, and sometimes doubts that God loves her, but we reassured her that God is our Father; He loves us more than we can ever imagine, and He allows bad things to happen to us to help us grow.  We got to come back and meet Chuck last night, and they're both willing to be baptized!  They're both very receptive and very humble, and we were able to testify (with the help of the bishop, who came with us last night) that through the Atonement of Christ, they can start a new, better life for themselves.  We know this Gospel will change their lives and help them through their circumstances.  Oh, and yet again, we see that God unravels our plans to match them to His plans for what we should be doing.  He knows what we should be doing way more than we do!

We got to meet with Maria again!  She feels as though this Gospel could be true, and has seen how it has blessed the lives of her step-children.  She also really admires how two twentyish year-old girls will devote a 18 months of their lives to preach about Christ, and really loves the "old-fashioned values" members of this Church have.  They're going on vacation, so we won't be able to see her and Val (her husband) again for a little bit, but we asked her to pray to know if this is all true and good.  We know that as she prays with a sincere desire to know, a willingness to act on the answer she will get, and faith that God will answer, she WILL receive an answer.  And knowing this Gospel is true, I know she will get a "yes!"

Kelton, Sarah, Sydney, and Logan are all doing well!  Kelton missed church yesterday, but he's working hard to be ready for his baptism!  Sarah and Syndey are getting more and more confident with their prayers, and are trying now to get on their dad's case to go back to church so he can baptize them.  We heard that Logan is finished with the Book of Mormon!  We want to set an appointment to meet with her and see how she feels about it!  A testimony of the Book of Mormon is key to testimony of this Church.  It's what we fall back on!  If the Book of Mormon isn't true, then this Church simply isn't.  But it is the pure word of God, and it can fill it's readers with the Holy Ghost, if we let it.

 We met a girl named Courtney yesterday and she fed us dinner!  She's married to a student at BYU-I.  She met once with elders a few days ago who gave her information to us, but one of them was apparently being a toolbox, so she  was nervous to have us over.  But she really likes us!  She's still apprehensive about taking missionary discussions, but we'll still keep in contact and see if she eventually will let us teach the lessons.  She's so fun, though!  Her personality and mannerisms kind of remind me of you, Amber! Super fun time with her! (Amber is Katie's sister in law, married to her brother Tyler and the mother of her 2 beautiful  nieces and adorable  nephew)

Hope you all have a great week!  Read 3 Nephi 14.  If we, as imperfect, limited human beings can love as much as we do, how much more can our all-powerful, perfect Father in Heaven love us and give us the things we need?  Not necessarily the things we want, but definitely what we need.

Love you all thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis much!!

 

 

-Sister Jacobson

Pics:

1. Adriana's baptism!!

2. That's Brita.  Her dad is one of our ward mission leaders. The whole family is awesome!

3.  Don't put your children in the paper shredder.  It's just rude