8 Months Today

March 23, 2014

So this week was pretty great! We were able to teach quite a few lessons this week. They went really well, and I could definitely tell that the Spirit was there.

We went on exchanges this week, and we had a great day. We didn't teach a whole lot of lessons that day, but those that we were able to teach were really good.

The temple was awesome! I always love going to the temple. I can always feel that my Heavenly Father loves me and is there for me. Even though we only get to go twice a year, it uplifts me so much and helps me get through the trials and joys of being a missionary.

We have an investigator that is going through some hard times, but through it all she has seen that God has been there for her. She is really starting to see how the gospel is blessing her in her life. She has expressed that she wants to be baptized, and that she knows the Book of Mormon is true and knows how the gospel can continue to bless her life. (Now if only we could get her to come to church.)

Our "tree of life" went great, and we had a good turnout (about 30 people, including members and non-members). There were almost as many non-members as there were members.

I had an amazing time at the fireside we had last night. It was an Easter Fireside and I was able to sing with the choir. It was a great night!

I look forward to what this next week has in store for me and I hope to hear from everyone soon!

Love always,

Sister Jennifer Rose

March 16, 2015

This week has been great so far. We have had some really great lessons, and I could DEFINITELY tell that the Spirit was there. My companion and I have been doing great so far as being able to teach people and being able to help those of God's children on their journey back to Him.

This weekend we have a baptism of a 9-year-old boy who is super smart and super excited to be baptized with his 8-year-old sister. He loves all that we have taught him and he soaks things up like a sponge.

On Tuesday we had an amazing lesson with an investigator and her daughter. She is seriously one of the most amazing people that I have met, and she has definitely been through a lot. She is super interested in learning and reading the Book of Mormon. The Spirit was so strong, and I was able to bear strong testimony of how the Book of Mormon and the gospel has blessed my life. I am SO very grateful to be a member of this church and for the opportunities it has given me to help bless the lives of others. There is such an amazing joy that everyone can find in this gospel and for the blessings that we can all have.

I am looking forward to tomorrow when we go to the temple. I absolutely love going there, and I can ALWAYS feel the Spirit there.

Tonight at an assisted living facility, we are doing a "Tree of Life" experience. We are going to explain Lehi's vision of the tree of life, and how we can connect it to our lives today. It should be great, and I will send pictures of it.

This week has been very eventful... my companion was hit on (TWICE) by one of the Elder's investigators. It was pretty funny! Apparently it's not the first time that this has happened to Sisters before.

Also, my companion accidentally popped one of our tires this week as we were driving to our dinner appointment. LOL 

Me and Sister Dana

On Saturday, it was Sister Dana's 21st birthday, and I made a sign for her and gave her a present. It was really hard to hide it without her seeing because I am with her 24/7, but somehow I managed to keep it from her. That night for dinner we had "Bacon Explosion", which is 1 lb of bacon bits with brown sugar and 2 cups of cheese melted in the middle of 4 lbs of sausage wrapped in 2 lbs of bacon that was woven together, and topped with BBQ sauce and grilled. It was absolutely amazing!!! It was a heart attack waiting to happen, but it was definitely worth it!!

Bacon Explosion

March 9, 2015

Hey Everyone! 

So... I did get transferred, and I am in the Scioto (sigh-ota) ward. It is actually called Grove City, and it is just a little outside of Columbus. My new companion is Sister Dana originally from San Franscisco, but left on her mission from Alpine, UT. She has been out for 17 1/2 months, and she goes home next transfer. She will be my 3rd companion that I have sent home.

My new address is: 

                4219 Kathryns Pl

                Grove City, OH 43123

This week has been pretty good, even though it was sad to have yet another companion of mine go home. I have been so very lucky to be able to learn a lot from my companions, and those that I serve around. I know that the Lord puts us with the companions that we have so that we can learn how to be better and it prepares us for the rest of our lives. I am so grateful for this AMAZING opportunity to be here in the OHIO serving God and His children.

I look forward to what lies ahead in this journey for me.

I love all of you and look forward to hearing from you soon!

Love always,

Sister Jennifer Rose

March 2, 2015

MAN I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS WEEK IS TRANSFERS ALREADY!!! I FEEL LIKE I JUST GOT HERE YESTERDAY!!

This week has been great because we have been able to teach someone at least 1 per day. We have also had a few people bail on us as well, but that's life (and people's agency!)

We have been able to find a few new people, but for the most part, it has been getting in contact with those who have been taught in the past.

I truly believe that we have the power to affect people's lives for the better or worse depending on the "seeds" that we "plant" and the impressions we give to everyone. 

I realized this week just how much the Atonement applies to me, and how if I rely on my Heavenly Father I can truly make a difference in the lives of those I talk to.

Each and every week, as well as each and every day, I grow to love the people here in Ohio more and more. The more I grow to love them, them more I want to help them come closer to their Heavenly Father and their Savior.

We had the chance this week to have a district meeting where we were shown how to use family search, and I learned some things that I didn't know before. Like how you can attach sources from ancestry.com to my family tree. I know that as we help those that are here on this earth, as well as those who have passed on to come to know their Savior, that we will truly "watch for the day when the Savior will come" with those we love.

I have learned over this past week that if we are truly "all in" doing the Lord's work then we will be blessed for it. I am SO grateful that I am able to be out here in the Great OCM serving my Heavenly Father!

I hope to hear from everyone soon! DON"T FORGET TO WRITE!!!!

LOVE ALWAYS, 

SISTER JENNIFER ROSE

February 23, 2015

I haven't "frozen" yet, but it's only 4 degrees right now with a low of -8 degrees. We got about 6-8 inches of snow on Saturday, so we weren't allowed to use the car because the roads were TERRIBLE. So we had to walk everywhere. (that was fun [NOT!!]) I definitely have to wear layers when we go outside because the wind chill definitely gets to you!

Just a little bit of snow!

On Monday (16th), we had a birthday party for a sister in our district. We played "knockout", chair soccer, line tag, and "sharks and minnows". It was a lot of fun! We had a lesson with a part-member family, and they are super awesome!

On Tuesday (17th), we had Zone Conference and I really enjoyed it. I learned a lot from it. We had a couple of other lessons as well. One of the lessons we had, she is actually a friend to another investigator of ours. She is 15 and she is super awesome and super prepared! We went on a mini exchange for about an hour with the Powell ward sisters, so that we could get to know the people that they were teaching (but now we are teaching them).

On Wednesday (18th), we did some service for a lady in the ward, and we shoveled her driveway as well. We met a few potential investigators. We also had a lesson with one of our other investigators who is super sweet (and she decorates cakes for a bakery and is REALLY good at it!) We met some of the other investigators that we "inherited" from some of the other sets of missionaries.

On Thursday (19th), we had a zone conference follow-up where we had to come back and share some of the things that we learned and had applied from Tuesday. We met a bunch of potential investigators that will hopefully become investigators (2 return appointments for tomorrow, and 1 for Tuesday). We also had a lesson with a less-active sister in the ward.

On Friday (20th), our lessons that we were supposed to have weren't there (darn it, but hopefully we will be able to meet with them another time.) We did our weekly planning and we also had a couple of other lessons with some of the investigators that we "inherited". One of them was a little bit crazy, but the other was super good and we helped her understand more about the church.

On Saturday (21st), it was snowing A LOT, and we got about 6-8 inches of snow. We had a lesson with a less-active sister in the ward. She only lives about 2 minutes away from our apartment by car, but because it was snowing we had to walk and it took us a half hour to walk there. A member of our new Polaris ward took us out to dinner and she was super awesome. She was SUPER willing to take us to our next appointment and then take us home from there.

Yesterday (22nd), we were supposed to have a lesson with one of our investigators a 14-year-old girl, but she wasn't there when we went over. We don't have church until 1pm now which really stinks. In church we talked a lot about caring for the poor and the needy, and we also talked about the fall of Adam and Eve in gospel principles. We had a missionary fireside all about Christ and His teachings. It went really well, and I had a lot of fun singing in the choir. Afterwards, we took President Daines' daughter home and she gave us some hot chocolate. It was delicious! 

Today, we will be going and playing basketball with the missionaries that are at OSU. 

I hope everyone is doing well, and don't forget to write!

Love Always,

Sister Jennifer Rose