January 31,2011

We've had the chance to teach sever members, less active members, and recent converts.  We're still looking for new Investigators.  Its been pretty tough.  Door after door slammed in our faces.  We'll find success though.  I have faith that the Lord will help with that.  We've been spending a lot of time in a small town called Middle River. We have an investigator out there named Toni Porter.  She's the one who's son was baptized a year ago.  She's very intrigued about the Lamanites and the Jaredites so any family members that can send me Talks or Scripture References about them would be most helpful.  I've already picked apart Ether and Words of Mormon about the Jaredites for anything that she would find interesting.  She mostly wants to know about the level of Craftwork, (Metal working and such) travel, and geography records.  She reminds me a lot of Leslie and Molly.  I'm sure they would get along.  She's become like another mother out here for me.

 

We're helping this couple prepare to go to the temple.  They don't go to church for the long or very often because the wife (Sister Turnball) has an allergy to Parfumes and Cologne and I guess people wear a lot of it in our ward.  But they're awesome.  Brother Turnball reminds me a little of KJ.  Its pretty cool that there are so many people out here that remind me of my family.

 

This week we got hit with two MASSIVE snow storms.  We spent all day Wednesday and Thursday shoveling snow and pushing cars down the road.  We ended up carving path ways through the snow for anyone that wanted to travel the same way we did.

 

We taught a boy who is studying about all the different religions in the world for school.  He's in a type of prep school.  He likes what we have to offer the most because of the way we live our lives.  He says he would be baptized into the church, but he has a problem with the Word of Wisdom.  We're hoping to help him with that.  We should be taking care of it soon.  We had four Baptisms in the ward and have one more on saturday.  Its from the other two companionships in our ward, but we're hoping to catch them too.  Pray for us everyone.

 

I'll write back soon.

Love

Jess

January 24, 2011

This week in the Maryland Baltimore Mission has been a fairly eventful week.  I finally got my bike and was able to start riding it.  My legs still feel like rubber and my butt hurts, but they're in the service of the Lord so they are for good reasons.

 

We've been able to teach several lessons and we're striving to reach the Standard of Excellence in our teaching numbers.  Its taking time, but we will be there soon.  I have faith in the Lord and believe that he will place those people in our path that we need to meet.  We started the new member lessons for a young boy named Zack who was baptized in March of last year.  His mom is wanting to be Baptized soon, but she says that it might not happen till september so that her marriage can be official. (Whoever did it the first time lost the documentation and the marriage isn't official) She's set up a mission fund for Zack just recently so that he can start saving and preparing.  Its a great thing to see her so willing to do that for her son.

 

We're trying to get this man named Paul to be Baptized and I'm hoping that planting the idea of Temples in his mind will make him want to be baptized.  He talks about catholic cathedrals and how they're ornate and anyone can enter and I told him about the sacredness of the temple and how only those who have prepared themselves can enter.  He seemed a little curious about that idea.

 

There isn't much else to report this week, but I'm sure that I'll have more next week.  I love you all!

Elder Christofferson

 

Look what came in the mail today :)

January 17,2011

Hello one and all!

 

This is Elder Christofferson reporting from the Mission Field.  I suppose that I'll start from the begining and tell you everything.

 

We left Salt Lake International Airport at 10:30 AM (Mountain Standard Time) Tuesday the 11th and landed in Baltimore at 4:30 PM (East Coast Standard TIme) We stayed at the Mission President's (President and Sister Belliston) House the night we arrived.  Wednesday morning we went to a transfer meeting and met our trainers.  Elder Lyons from Merridian Idaho is my trainer.  He was trained by Elder Hayward who was trained by Elder Davies. (Originally assigned to the India Bangalore Mission) We spent the rest of the day getting me used to the area and settled in.  We had a brief lesson with an investigator named Paul.  Paul is a Catholic who usually goes to a Baptist Church.  He's paralyzed from the waist down and his hands are paralyzed.  Over the next few days we went meeting with a lot of potential investigators and some less active members.  We taught a recent Convert more about the gospel and cleared up a lot of the confusion the missionaries who baptised him had caused.  We plan to let him know that God does have a body.

 

We have two potential investigators who are on opposite ends of the spectrum that I plan to have baptised in my first month here.

 

Marty has been looking for the fullest religion for years and he loves everything about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  He loves how disciplined we are when it comes to the Word of Wisdom.  He'd be a great future member of the church and he has a lot that he could offer.

 

Rob is Atheist.  I'm going to be working VERY hard on him.  He doesn't believe in any religion of any kind, but his son is 11 and was baptised a year ago.  This is going to be a challenge, but I have faith that through the Spirit I'll be able to convert him.

 

There isn't really much else to report this week, but just know that I have all of you in my prayers.

Love

Jess

January 12, 2011

Hey Mom.  I'm in Maryland now.  The package isn't here yet, it may arive today, but I might not get it till tomorrow or the day after.  I'm not really sure yet.  My first area is called Perry Hall and my trainer is Elder Lyons.  We're going to go talk to an ivestigator named Paul in a little while.  He's accepted everything the missionaries before me have taught, but he doesn't think that he needs to be baptized so we're going to go try again.  The address to the apartment is

 

6 Dunhaven Place

Apt: TD

Nottingham, MD 21236

 

The Assisstants to the President said that I'll have to go buy a bike because they don't have any for sale which is a little depressing.  I'll be needing a bike we trade the car over to the other companionship pretty soon so I'll have to have one.  I'll just be able to start working out earlier.  There was no snow when we landed, but now there was like five inches when we got up this morning.

 

The first plane ride was fun.  I didn't like the feeling in my skull when we landed though.  We tried placing Book of Mormons on the plane, but nobody was interested.

 

Well I better be going.  I love you mom!

Jess

Friday January 7th, 2011

The District Presidency pulled me out of class yesterday and gave me the news about Jay.  While I want to know all the details.  Like who found him, how it happened, and what will happen to the children, I dont want you to tell me.  I told you before I left that if anything were to happen at home I'm going to stay here.  This is where I need to be and Christ is making it easier for me to deal with.  He needs me focused on the work at hand.  I'm not going to sit here and sulk about it, because thats not what I'm supposed to be doing right now.  I'm supposed to be bringing others unto Christ.  Now I want to give you that same challenge.  Russel M. Nelson gave a talk in this last Conference titled Be Thou an Example of the Believers.  He says that every member can be a missionary.  Your mission now is to help Hayden and Danielle feel of Christ's Love.  They NEED the Gospel in their lives and they need it NOW.  Don't let this moment pass you by for anything.  Families are ETERNAL and they need to know that.  They can be with Jay again and they can be with their Heavenly Father again.  The Plan of Salvation reminds us of this.

 

Do his temple work too.  So that he can recieve the fullness of the Gospel in the Spirit World.  Don't let his spirit wander without the opportunity to recieve the blessings of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

 

Alma 11:41-43

 

All things are possible through faith in Jesus Christ and his teachings.

 

Love,

Jess

January 4th, 2011

BLOG:  The MTC is awesome.  I'm loving it here very much though my companion and I butt heads over stuff that I know is true and he claims is wrong, but I know I'm right and dont think I need to prove anything.  Its another laundry day and our rooms were inspected this morning.  We spent an hour last night cleaning it up, but some guy from BYU inspects them and said that my pajamas weren't folded up properly enough for a passing the inspection with full marks.  Oh well I guess I'll try again and hope for a success.

 

Our District has been really humbled these last couple fo weeks by some fairly serious injuries and illnesses, but we are hoping and fasting that they will recover.  Our District here has become a family instead of a district and we love it.  We've spent a lot of time teaching mock investigations to other missionaries.  I'm one of the toughest investigators and have several different Profiles that I use. (Thank you to Role Playing Games.  No I don't have a character sheet) We need more volunteers to come to the TRC up here once in a while and we need more barbers and beauticians because it is virtually impossible to get a haircut around here before you leave.

 

I'm happy to hear how everyone is doing at home though its tough to keep track of it all.  I'm trying to keep busy around here and dont have much time.  I only get to write letters on P-Days in the MTC, but as often as I want when I get to the mission field.  Speaking of mission field.  I leave the MTC January 11.  No I wont give you the time.  I saw Ray Morley and Wally Osborn in the temple this morning.  It was good to see someone on the outside world.  Trust me you'd understand if you were here.  Don't forget that you need to be writing in your journals at night.  Thanks Cam for the advice on the spiritual journal.  It helps out a lot.

 

Be expecting more letters in the mail!

 

Jess