Endure to the End

Hey Family,

Sounds like you're all doing well. that's great to hear. I am jealous that you got to go to the Bear Paw. That's my favorite you know. Breakfast on a mission plus breakfast in New Zealand equals pretty lame. I would love to have a Belgian waffle. But I can't! And I wouldn't even if I could because President destroyed me in basketball last week and has been making jokes about it all week. So I've been eating better. I'll show him today.

We had transfers this last week. Elder Ward went home to La Canada, California. It was an interesting experience being a missionary's last companion. He was good. Not too trunky. Elder Kaufusi and I made a gift for him to open on the plane that was funny as! Full of inside jokes. We stuck a bunch of stuff in this old as All Blacks sock that we found in the flat -- there were some dating ensigns that Elder Kaufusi's family sent to him for some reason, several references to finding his "next companion," and other great stuff. But enough of that. I learned a lot from Elder Ward. He was a great missionary and a great example of using the Atonement and being humble enough to change into what the Lord needs you to become.

The mission temple trip is this week. It's always split up into three days of different zones, and Elder Kaufusi get to go to all three! Yes! The temple. The best. I'm so excited. Half the questions I ask President Lekias, the answer is, "Well, if you'll pay attention to certain keywords or symbolism in the temple, you'll find the answer to your question." Then I'm always gutted because I have to wait for the temple trip... but now it's here! I'll definitely be pondering some things.

Rueben Paparoa got baptized on Saturday! It was amazing! He is choice as. Ever since the first lesson we had with him, he just been keen as to get baptized because he knew that it was all true. "As you come to feel what you are learning is true, you will desire to learn all you can about the message of the Restoration" (Preach My Gospel Ch. 3). That's the secret behind a lot of difficulties in life I think. In times of pain, heartache, grief, sorrow, frustration, and confusion, we need to do the things that will bring the Spirit into our lives. 

My testimony of the gospel principle, "endure to the end," has grown a lot in the past few weeks. Enduring to the end means having hope that everything will work out for your good. Whether it's a disease, a wayward child, a friend making bad choices, or our own mistakes, God will never put you through something you can't handle. "Whom God calls, God qualifies" (President Thomas S. Monson). You think of all the experiences in the Book of Mormon and you begin to understand that opposition is the Lord's way of making us like Him -- the refiner's fire. Jared and his brother and their families only made it to the promised land because of the fierce winds and rough waters. Without the pain and discomfort, they would have gone nowhere. I'm grateful that Heavenly Father gives me trials and humbling experiences -- it teaches me to trust Him. He knows what He is doing. He loves me. He loves each of you. Whatever we go through in this life, we can always look to the Savior, who says to us, "I finished my mission. I endured to the end. You can, too." He knows us. He understands our struggles. I promise you He does. We just need to learn to trust Him.

I love you guys heaps. Remember that! I am completely confident that the Lord will bless each of you as I do my best here. Let me know if there's ever anything I can do for anyone. Have a great week.

Love,

Elder Jensen

Weekly Report

1022 hours -- Elder Jensen reporting.

Dear Family,

Hello. How are you all doing? I'm doing neat as (this is one combination of
words you do not hear here; nor swell as). Time is like lightning right
now! It's ridiculous. I didn't even know time could go so fast. I was sure
while I was in Manurewa that things were moving as fast as possible. I was
just so busy, I thought, "This is crazy!" Now I just think, "Congrats Elder
Jensen, you've officially hit warp speed. Way to go."

Congratulations Megan! Way to go with the tumbling thing! That's mean
as. I'm so proud of you. It's great to hear how hard you are working.
I love you!

So the computer just rebooted and destroyed my email.... Therefore I
am just going to say have a great week! Love you guys. We've been
having heaps of miracles and soon we're going to be covering some
extra wards. One of them has heaps of Kiribati people. I love them.
And they love it when you speak the language. Okay I'm scared the
computer is going to turn off, so see ya later. Well, bye.

Ofa atu.

Love,
Elder Jensen

Zombie

Dear whoever wants to listen,

Hey, it's Elder Jensen again. Surprise! I bet you didn't even know I
was going to write. We had a mean as week! It was sweet. Lots of good
things happening. We've been finding heaps of new keen people. Miracle
after miracle, the Lord led us to the elect. We had quite a few souls
committed to come to church, and then the test of faith.... We cover
three wards, so yesterday we went to our Samoan ward (no, I don't
speak Samoan, but yes, I do sing in Samoan... oh yeah) at 9 am,
proselyted for the next couple of hours and then had to choose between
our two other wards that both start at 1. So we went to Takapuna for
sacrament meeting then left a bit early to make it to Aeroview and see
who made it to sacrament in that ward. It was gutting! Because the
important ones didn't show up! So we were just sitting there,
wondering what we did wrong and why Isaiah (getting baptized this
weekend) didn't show. As we talked about it, we figured that obviously
the Lord was trying to tell us something, but continued to be hopeful,
knowing that there was method to this madness. When we went to see
Saia later that night, he and his recently baptized sister, Kennedy,
said they were at church! We said, "No you were not," and they accused
us of not being at church. They got us! So apparently they just left
before we made it to Aeroview ward, which means Saia's still getting
baptized this weekend! What a miracle, eh? It may sound small, but the
Lord really does test your faith -- you can't let something small get
to you and weaken your expectations. When you stand firm, knowing the
Lord will provide, He delivers!

Lots of other great things as well. This guy, Fuz, wants to change his
life after his 22-year-old friend died in an accident. This lady,
Sister Cocker, is tired of her life and wants a change. This young
woman named Sherise read the whole intro and Joseph Smith account at
the front of the Book of Mormon and said she couldn't put the book
down! It is very inspiring to be a part of the Saviour's work. I know
He wants everyone home. As you read the Book of Mormon, pay attention
to the word joy and what it means -- joy always comes with EVERYONE
returning home.

My companions are great. Elder Ward from Los Angeles and Elder Kaufusi
from Provo. They're funny as to be with. We don't have heaps of time
to proselyte -- generally limited to evenings -- but when we do I
learn a lot from them.

We had two big meetings this week. We had a council with the zone
leaders and a conference with about a hundred missionaries. The
council was held at a historical site where there are some "Big Guns"
that protect the harbour of North Shore City. It's awesome. The city
conference was attended by a couple of general authorities. That was
amazing of course. Great stuff!

I love this work! The Saviour lifts us when we can't lift ourselves.
Love you guys. Ofa atu!

Love,
Elder Jensen

New Zealand

Dear Family,

I'm going to pull a Whitney and say, hi, I love you! Thanks for your emails, for your love, and for your prayers. Have a great week!

Love,

Elder Jensen

P.S. Just kidding. We had heaps of great miracles this week. A girl that we've been teaching was just baptized on Saturday. Her name is Kennedy. She was happy as afterward. Close call though -- just before the baptism started, she saw that her mom and family weren't there and she began to cry! So Elder Ward and I jumped in the car and hunted down the family. Luckily, they were almost ready and made it to the baptism right when the second speaker finished and and everyone was on their way to the font. When Kennedy stood up and turned around, her mom was there! It was great, and she loved receiving the Holy Ghost as well. You know one thing that's really stuck out to me as I have watched many people change through the gospel -- fear and shyness goes away! Because fear comes from a lack of faith and shyness is really pride -- you care too much about what other people think. Everyone has some of these, but just know that the gospel will change that. The closer you get to the Saviour, the more confident you become.

Kennedy's brother is now getting baptized as well -- the 17th. His name is Isaiah, and he's the man. He said it wasn't the baptism itself that really impressed him, but Kennedy's testimony afterward! And let me tell you, it was not the most eloquent testimony -- it was only two sentences and her whispering, "What do I say now?" Funny as, and powerful. It's amazing to see the effect a testimony can have on someone -- in this case, conversion! Don't ever underestimate the power of the Spirit in testifying.

Lots of other miracles this week, but I've got to go. Last thought: we receive the enabling power of Christ whenever we are striving to be like Him. Sometimes we fall short, and we can't even say, "I've done my best," but the Saviour is always walking there beside you, when you fall, when you falter, when you doubt. He loves you and He won't give up. The only one who can stop you is you. I love Jesus Christ. I love with the Spirit that fills our lives as we emulate His. The gospel is true. Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. The Book of Mormon contains the direction each of us needs because it is true. It is from God. Instead of looking at how far you have to go, look at how far you've come. Love you guys. Bye!