Asparagus Fest and a Frog

Dearest Friends and Family, 

It was another good week here! We were able to teach a really good lesson to Brother Bogle. He is definitely closer to baptism than he has ever been. We were able to answer some tough questions that he has had for many years, and we are really excited to continue to help him progress. 

We got to drive through the asparagus fest this week. It was a bunch of small businesses that had booths that we could drive by. I got some delicious asparagus stuffed chicken. Yum.

The Frog Allegory:
Once upon a time, about a year ago, I was a brand new missionary. I was assigned to an area that included an odd little town called "Milton-Freewater", a town that was known as the "City of Frogs". Being a new missionary, I created a goal to find a frog, which might seem a bit strange, but I needed something to keep me motivated, and something to focus on when other things weren't going so well for me. So I started to pray that I would find a frog! Time passed, and eventually I was transferred away from Milton-Freewater, never having found a frog. 

A couple days ago we were sitting in the temple parking lot (because that's where we like to go when we need to get out of the apartment) and someone asked us to take a picture for them. When we did, I saw something on the ground...a frog! I picked it up, and when I did I was reminded of my prayers from a year ago. I know that this may be a funny story, but to me it was a lesson from Heavenly Father. He will always answer our prayers, but He will do so in His own timing and in His own way. I am so grateful for this experience to remind me of that lesson.

Moving Mountains...of Potatoes

Dearest Friends and Family,

We received our transfer information this morning! Against all odds Sister Bogle and I will be staying together another transfer...at least for now. President said that there will be a mid-transfer transfer in a few weeks, since our mission is supposed to receive about 30 new missionaries (reassigned missionaries from foreign missions). As for right now, we have lost a lot of missionaries and so there are a bunch of "tripanionships" and lots of people covering several areas at once until we get more missionaries. Things are kind of crazy! Despite it all, our mission had 10 baptisms this past weekend, which is pretty miraculous. 

We had the opportunity to help bag potatoes for our stake president, who helps run one of the church owned farms, part of Agri-Northwest. There were so. Many. Potatoes. They had an excess of potatoes that they decided to give to people in need.  It was so fun! We filled 1400 bags with potatoes at about 25lbs per bag. Needless to say we were left pretty sore and with greater respect for the honest work of potato farmers around the world.

We made some good progress on the new Richland Facebook page! Considering that we started from scratch, the page has made significant growth in the last few days. If you want to take a look, it's found at "The Church of Jesus Christ in Richland". We are hoping to get the returned missionaries who are waiting for reassignments involved in helping us make content for the page. 

It has been a busy, good, week. Keep pressing forward! Life will be back to normal before we know it. 

Love,

Sister Jensen

The price to pay to become acquainted with God is a joy to pay

Dearest Friends and Family,

Happy Easter! We had a good Sunday testifying of the living Christ. It was wonderful! We also got to walk to the temple a couple times this week which was really fun.

Some exciting new things:
-the church is organizing facebook pages for different cities. So Sister Bogle and I are in charge of the church page in Richland! The church will be paying for advertising, so we have to create a professional looking page for the city. We are so excited to get started on it!
-we are now able to receive referrals to teach people outside of our area. So people who want to be taught from around the world who no longer have missionaries can now be taught by us!

Keep pressing forward. I know that the present circumstances are difficult for many, but there are good things coming. 

I recently heard this quote, said by a member of one of the original handcart companies. "The price to pay to become acquainted with God is a joy to pay." I think this hits the nail on the head. I know there is a reason we are still here, even if we are quarantined and our work seems limited. Hurrah for Israel!

Love,
Sister Jensen

Get It Sista!

Dearest Friends and Family,

I survived my second week of captivity! So far so good. Everyone is healthy and sane, for the most part.

Wasn't General Conference awesome? I was reminded over and over again that our Prophet, President Nelson, is called and ordained of God. My heart was so full that it was hard to sing the words to "the Spirit of God" and "We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet". It truly was an unforgettable conference. I like how everything tied back to the Savior, and to His Atonement.

 A couple highlights: Sister Cordon's story about the flashlight naturally led me to ponder if I am shining my light in a way that directs people to the Savior. I wondered how I can better direct people to Him, and I felt my question was answered by Elder Christofferson, who explained how I (and you) can be a better missionary. He gave us a simple three step plan-- express Christ-like love, show by example, use the Book of Mormon...which then led me to wonder how I can show by example when quarantined. I'm still trying to figure that one out, so I will let you know what I find. I also loved Elder Uchtdorf's, Elder Holland's, and President Nelson's talks. Okay okay yes, if I wasn't worried about boring you I would list every talk because they were all amazing. I know that as we each strive to hear Him and to heed His word, we will be protected and strengthened. When we focus on Him, we will have joy in our lives, regardless of our circumstances. 

Other news...the sweater is coming along nicely. We have had some fun adventures finding parks to visit, geese to chase, swings to swing on and wrangling tumbleweeds for the Bishop. (It was actually pretty funny, even as we were carrying some away more would come blowing around the corner. We decided to tag one of the weeds, since they are convinced that they all get released, blow in a huge circle around the neighborhood, and end up back where they were. It's an endless job!) We have been finding creative ways to have fun, as well as finding creative ways to find new people to teach. 

In between sessions of conference a man called us out of the blue. He said he was suffering from a loss, and he just wanted to pray with someone. We had to pass him off to the Pasco missionaries, but he has been humbled by the situation of the world and he is ready to learn! We also met a cute kid named Sammy while we were out tossing the frisbee. He kept creeping closer and closer, and so I threw it to him. He beamed and would yell "get it sista!" every time he would throw it. It was pretty adorable.  

President Nelson has invited us all to participate in a day of mighty prayer and fasting on good Friday, and I extend that invitation to all of you again! I love Omni 1:26. Serious, desperate, mighty, whole-soul fasting and prayer takes great effort, but that is how we can petition with God and He can provide us with blessings that He wants to give us. Trust Him! It has been made clear by the Prophet and Apostles that the situation with COVID-19 is temporary. Let's take the invitation to fast and pray seriously. I know that as we do, miracles will occur. 

Love,

Sister Jensen