Shut up Satan! - January 22, 2020

Hello Family and Friends,

Long time no see, how's everyone doing? We had our preparation day switched to today, because monday was a holiday, and president Mutombo likes us to work on holidays, and yesterday was zone conference. So here we are preparation day on a wednesday, it's a little weird, but here we go!

This week has had a lot of little testimony builders were some nights all of our lessons would fall through, but something would happen and we would be right were the Lord needed us. 

Like yesterday after zone conference, due to the messed up bus system yesterday, my companions bus pass not working, having to find a store we could find change at to buy a pas pass, to taking a really slow bus ride, we didn't get back to our area till pretty late. We had one lesson set up for 7:00 and our other appointments fell through. So we went to our one lesson with a returning member who hasn't been to church in a really long time. We usually go over every tuesday and our lessons are spiritual and then we try to extend an invitation and she rarely keeps them. But we learned in our zone conference the importance of following the steps in preach my gospel found in chapter 11. So we decided to put that into practice and it we had a miracle. We taught her the doctrine and importance of the sacrament and extended the invitation to come to church, promised the blessings of the sacrament, and testified to her of our testimonies of the sacrament. She then thought a little bit, went on a small rant, and then waited a moment, and said "The spirit told me I needed to go to church! And I'll be there on Sunday!" I almost flipped out because we dont know how long it's been since she has attended church, maybe even longer than a year, but it was so cool and so spiritual. And then best part is shes coming with her husband whi we wre also teaching!

Then we left her house and had no plans but we trusted in the Lord and let him direct his night for us. We felt prompted to stop by another family we are teaching, no answer. We then felt prompted to stop by another house and we knocked and he opened. He was on a video chat with his "lady friend" we are also teaching. Apparently she just went into the hospital and he wants us to go with him to visit her one day this week!

We then were feeling pumped and we contacted this man on the street who is literally so cool. He asked us if we were missionaries and then he said that he and his friend want to become missionaries too. We got his contact information and all 3 of his facebooks (because for some reason Latinos like to have a lot) and have an appointment with him tomorrow afternoon! The best part was when we came home that night I was looking through his profiles and he posts lots and lots of bible verses, and then one that was posted the day we met him was James 1:5! It was so so cool!

Funnies:

1. Met a man on the bus who said he was heading out to west baltimore for his job. When I asked him what he did, he said that you could call him a salesman of sorts... 

2. We were walking in the street one day and I went up to contact a man who was standing between two cars with his back to me, as I went up, I saw water running down by his foot, and realized that this man was peeing in the street. So I called an immediate abort mission and made a 180 and walked away from him. My companion who didn't know what I was doing, tried to go up and contact him. I couldn't yell at him and tell him not to go over there. So I had to get creative with my hand signals, but he finally understood and we walked away without contacting the peeing man. But just imagine if you saw us, and black man peeing in the street with 3 white teenagers standing behind him trying to act out that this man was peeing! Hahahah

3. We met Richard again in the street, the homeless man we helped push his wife up a hill in a wheelchair about 3 weeks ago. But he was with some other dude who was asking us questions, but was really trying to bash us. But after a little bit, Richard yelled at him, "These are my brothers, shut up Satan! Shut up!" And then anytime his friend tried to talk again, Richard yelled even louder, "Shut up Satan!" It was pretty funny and we eventually just walked away, but we know that Richard has out back!

4. We had a 3 week meeting this past week and afterwards President Mutombo took us all home. We fit 5 elders and 2 sisters is his Toyota Highlander, so it was pretty tight. But luckily I got to sit up front and be President Mutumbo's co-pilot! He was rocking some nice aviators and we just were able to talk for about 2 hours because the traffic was so bad! But he is so funny and I love him so much!

I love you all and I hope all of you have a great week! Catch yall on Monday!

Elder Jorgensen

 

1. Me and Bruce Lee at graffiti alley

2. Graffiti alley again

3. May or may not have been pulled over by a cop while we were with a member. All is good, just a warning!

January 13, 2020

Dear Family and Friends,

How has everyone been doing! It's been a fun time here in the city, but the city's been a little depressed these past couple days since the ravens lost! But it's a perfect time to teach them about Jesus and how we can find joy regardless of our circumstances! 

This week has been a good week though. We've been able to talk to a bunch of people because it actually warmed up a lot. Its was 70 on Saturday which was really nice. But it was quite the contrast because it actually snowed on Tuesday! Pretty crazy!

We've had a lot of small tender mercies that happened this past week:

We are visiting this lady who had been inactive, but ever since we started visiting her she has been coming back to church, but we've tried to put a big focus on her husband. And ever since I've been here in Baltimore we have tried to set up a lesson with the husband, but he keeps avoiding us everytime. So this past week we kinda showed up unannounced at her house, and she came out and said that she was about to leave and another day would be better. But then her husband came out and whispered something in her ear, and she told us to come in. So we went in and they fed us and we taught them the Plan of Salvation and it was so cool. It was so cool to see how the Lord truly softened his heart and we were able to help them out.

We stopped by Brad and Darleen's house this week at 7 on Monday night and she told us it was much too late for that and she said we could come by Friday in the afternoon. So that's what we did. And she opened the door, a little surprised that we remembered, and told us that she doesn't have time and she would let us know when shes ready for a message. We then talked for a little more and she completely opened up about some trials she was going through  and she started breaking down crying and she asked us to come in and say a prayer for her. So we did and then we shared some scriptures with her and you could see the burden that was lifted off of her. As we were leaving, she asked why we didn't pray to Joseph Smith if he was our main guy. I then told her that Jesus was the main guy of our church and we pray to the father through him, and that is why we are called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. She then felt really bad she called us mormons and said that she knew God sent us to her house that day! I really love being on the Lord's errand!

Sorry this is short but I love you all and I hope you all.have a great week!

Elder Jorgensen

Milagros - January 6, 2020

Hello Family and friends,

How's everyone doing! It's been a fun week getting adjusted to this new companionship, but we've already made so many connections its insane.

 Elder Nelson is from Arizona and it turns out that he lives 5 minutes away from where I used to live. If we would have stayed in Arizona we would've gone to the same High School! So crazy!

Also our new Elder just came from the CCM in Mexico, and he had both of my teachers in the CCM, Hermana Torres and Hermana Lechuga, and he was in my same Classroom! So crazy!

This week has been super long and tough at times because a lot of our lessons fell through this week, but that gave us so many opportunities to talk with so many people!

We were walking around one day and this guy named Brad, just stopped us on the street and said that he has seen us around a lot and he has always been interested in what we do! He also asked us for a Book of Mormon and said he was looking for a Book that could answer some of the questions he had in life! Super awesome and we have a lesson with him tonight! 

We were also walking and we ran into this lady named Darleen, who just shared all these things with us about how she has had such a hard life and really tough experiences, but every time  she felt like God was with her and saved her life so many times. She started breaking down crying and just bore such a powerful testimony of the reality of God and his love for all of us! She even said her old husband was a member of the church! And she would love to go!

The story doesn't stop there, we called up Brad on Sunday to set up an appointment. And he told us we contacted his mom. We were a little confused and then he said his moms name was Darleen! It was so so crazy! He even said they were reading the Book of Mormon together, and his mom was reading faster than him! Such a blessing showing that the Lord just places elect people in your path and exact obedience brings forth miracles! The only thing is they speak English so we will eventually have to pass them off, but it was definitely a blessing from the Lord!

There were also so many cool things that happened... like usual!

1. We were knocking on a door of someone we were teaching, and this random dude just came up to us. He asked us if he could knock the door too. We asked him if he he lived there, he said no, and we asked him if he knew anyone who loved there, and he said no. But he just knocked anyway, and then waited a little bit and then just walked off! It was so so funny, just knocking doors with a random dude! Haha

2. We were walking home one day and there was this guy who was pushing this lady in a wheel chair. They were going up a hill and he was really struggling. So we went and helped him out and we would go like 15 feet. And then say a prayer of strength, and then keep going. We would go 15 feet again and then say another prayer of strength again. And we did that all the way up the hill! The next day we saw him and we greeted him and called him by his name and they were so surprised that we remembered his name! So cool! 

3. A homeless man came up to us and asked if were were Christians, and we said yes. He then told us how he was Christian and how a big part of Christianity is charity. And then he asked us for money. We said we don't have anything and he told us we weren't Christian's because we didn't give him money and he walked away! Pretty funny!

I hope everyone has a happy new year and will have a blessed 2020! I can't wait to see what this year has in store!

Elder Jorgensen

Pics: 

1. The bay

2. The generations 

3&4. Happy 2020

5. Me and President 

"For unto us a Son is Given." - December 30, 2019

Friends and Family,

Let me start out this email by announcing some exciting news! I'm having a son!!!!!!

Well not just me, but I will be trio training this next transfer and I am so excited. My new companions name is Elder Nelson and he has about 9 or 10 months on the mission! We are both super excited and its going to be so much fun!

Anyways how was y'alls Christmas? Mine was absolutely fantastic! I was able to call my family and my sister Callie was able to join us too from Temple Square so that was a huge blessing! Such a fun time! We then went out and worked like a normal day which was really good! We helped build an dresser and then loaded it in a truck and then had to get a file cabinet from an upstairs bedroom, around a tight corner, down some stairs, out the door, and into the truck! Let's just say it was an interesting time and there were only like 2 or 3 holes/dents in the walls!

But then we went and talked with a lot of people, and it was so funny because almost everyone we talked to, told us to go home and spend time with family! We told them we were spending time with family by talking with them! But it was a fun day, and an interesting Christmas for sure!

Funny Moments:

1. We had a district gift exchange for Christmas this past week, and I definitely got the best gift. It basically a blanket but in the form of a mermaid tail. And the best part is it said one size fits most kids, so it fits perfectly! :)

2. As we were walking one day there was this huge dog who was up on a fence just barking at us. We walked by because the dog could hurt us because it was in a fence, but after our lesson we were walking back and somehow the dog had gotten outside of the fence! So we quickly darted to the other side of the street and had to go full James Bond mode to make sure the dog didn't see us. We were ducking around cars, garbage cans, and basically anything that could hide us. Luckily after a little bit, the owner came our and put the dog in the fence, and we walked normally back to our car. But it was a fun time going spy mode!

3. We were contacting people in the streets one day and we started talking to this man from Honduras. We were talking about what we do as missionaries, and then he stopped us and asked if I was from Spain. I said yes I am from Spain, and he completely believed me! I eventually told him I was just a gringo from the United States, but it was a pretty uplifting experience.

4. So the member we just happened to run into in a gas station last week, we were finally able to contact him this week! We had a lesson with him in McDonalds and then he said he wanted to come out with us. So he spent most of the afternoon with us and he's a really funny dude. He is trying to learn English and he likes American music, so we were walking in the streets and he was singing Brittany Spears and Rhianna songs to us! It made the walk really fun!

I hope everyone has a safe and fun Christmas and I hope everyone has a great new year as well! I love you all!

Elder Jorgensen

Pics:

1. My mermaid tail!

2. So glad I was able to meet up with my family on Temple Square! Blessings for sure!

3. Cool thing Baltimore! Also can you see the homeless man!

4. Another family home evening we had last night!

The Homeless Man Rap Battle - December 23, 2019

Dear Family and Friends,

Happy Christmas week! It's so crazy that its 2 days away from Christmas already!

This week has had its bumps, but there was definitely some really really really fun and hilarious times. 

This week we had Zone Conference and it was so enlightening and really good! There were two things that were shared that were so so good. 

1. Whenever we see the word "GIVE" we sometimes automatically associate it with the word "GIFT." So whenever we see the word "GIVE" in the scriptures we can switch it with the word "GIFT." And then we were told that when we are "GIVEN" commandments, we are actually "GIFTED" commandments. God gifted commandments to each one of us personally, because he knew they would bless us so much. And when we have the mindset that we are gifted commandment, aren't we more willing to be able to follow them?

2. We were given this question to ponder on and I invite all of you to ponder on this question too, Since Christ gave his all for me, what can I give back to him this Christmas season?

We also had a missionary activity with some members in the Branch this past Saturday. They donated a bunch of little snacks and drinks and then we put little snack bags together and went to a street corner and started handing them out. We also had copies of the Book of Mormon and pamphlets, and it was a really really great activity. I stood on the edge of the street and was the first one to greet the people and it was so much fun! I talked to so many people and I met so many fun and interesting people. But we were able to share a lot of good messages and I felt really really good afterwards!

Here are some really funny things that happened this past week:

1. After we had our zone conference we went and sang Christmas Carols at a Senior Living Center. And it was so much fun talking to my old ladies. The funnies thing was we were talking with them and they kept on saying how "Christmas just isn't the same nowadays. The young people are now getting fake trees and focusing gifts rather than the baby Jesus. And the songs on the radio is crap, these Disc Jokeys never play the old Christmas hymns."

But they were so very appreciative that we came and were so respectful and sang the good ole Chrostmas hymns. There was even an old lady who was crying, I felt so so good. Such a positive and uplifting experience. Joan, Gretchen, Gale and I are pretty much best friends now! :)

2. At the activity we had this Saturday, there was this one sweet old black lady named Ms. Sherrie Carrie, and we instantly became best friends. She was telling me about her family and she shared that she has a grandbaby who has autism. But I shared with her how much I love those children and how they truly are celestial children. And so we immediately bonded over that and then as she was leaving I told her to tell her grandbaby that I love her, and she said, you already know I was going too! 

3. Also at the activity there was this homeless man that hung around with us the whole time. And he was just being weird, but it was pretty funny. And then right before we left one of his friends came over and he challenged him to a rap battle. So we had to white homeless men having a rap battle, so I laid down a beat for them and they went at it. It was so so funny, about as good as you could expect from two white homeless men. Lines that didn't make sense at all, but they rhymed so, it's considered rap. And we were all getting so into it, we were hyping them up like nobody's business, and it just made me laugh!

4. Also at the activity on Saturday, I had two other men sing for me, and one of them even did a little dance. And then there was another lady who just gave me a hug out of nowhere when I told her what we were doing! Oh man, I love the people of Baltimore!

5. At our Zone Conference during lunch, we just saw our mission President running down the hall like he was on a mission. He then came into the gym a couple of minutes later in a full blown santa costume. (So just imagine for a second an African man running around in a Santa costume.) And my favorite part was, he was running around saying in his accent, "Black Santa is here, to bring you presents because I love you, hehehe!" Best mission president ever!

Love you all and Merry Christmas,

Elder Jorgensen

Pics:

1. Our activity 

2. Black Santa

3. La Rama Alameda

4. Our table again, and a photoshopped santa joined us!