HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELDER JENSEN!!

My week was so good :) Texas is still hot and humid but also still the best state ever, second only to arizona :)  Awesome thank you so much!! We'll be back at the office on Friday so no worries I can pick up the package now, thank you you are the best!! :) Also as far as pants, I love the dockers ones! Are there any other types that are more breathable? It get hot here haha. Honestly  though the dockers ones are good! I am still good with 34/36, I still fit pretty well into all my pants. Surprisingly (; Also, I am actually doing decently well on shirts, I take care of them! Maybe 1-2 new short sleeve ones from stafford but I really am okay on those :) ALSO THAT'S AWESOME!!! That is a really neat story about FamilySearch, you were destined to be a member of the church :) Wow though that is so great! It's neat to know I have pioneer history on both sides of my family tree!! Wow, that is so so cool!!! The whole Jensen thing too! Wow, yeah so we are invited to get our converts to the temple within one month because people that start family history and go to the temple within that time are almost guaranteed to stay in the church, so that is a large focus for us! We even have an hour to do every week and though we don't have loads of time, it's been neat to get to work on that! Wow that is so awesome mom, you are the greatest :) Thank you for being the greatest mother in the world, I love you so much!! I have been reflecting a lot this week. Literally one year ago today I was in Africa, that seemed like yesterday!!! I have been reflecting a lot in how much I have changed in the past year. I look at who I was then, and who I am now and am so happy and surprised. On my mission I have found my true potential mommy. 100% the gospel is true and it changes lives. I have gone from somebody without control to a priesthood holder who knows who he is and what he wants to do. I stand by the phrase I read about everyday in PMG, true doctrine, understood changes behavior faster than the study of behavior changes behavior. When we understand true doctrine, lives changes. I love my mission mommy, this is the best experience I have ever had. 19 years later I am so so so grateful to the wonderful example that I have to look to. It's been really interesting, every time I teach an investigator I think about you, the potential that they have to become strong members of the church who have children who eventually serve missions. That has been the secret to the work in this area, once we see their potential, we work harder to help them gain that conversion experience. Thank you so much for all you have done for me mom, I love you so much! Thank you so being a great example to me, I love you!!!!!

Elder Jensen

In Which Elder Jensen Accidentally Drinks Iced Tea... Oops.

Wow that looks so fun! I'm so glad that you guys had a good week in SC, can't wait to go visit next October :) Thank you also for your thought on work, I have found that to be so true. We have no success as missionaries until we get off our knees and do something about it. I know that to be true. Send everyone my love! This week was good. To answer your questions first, the week was good! We didn't do any service but did have a big meeting with all the District Leaders and we have started round 2 of working with the refugee kids from the school, we're starting with helping in their summer program. Rather than that it was a week focused on finding new people to teach which is always a blast!! Knocked lots of doors and we talked to ALOT of people. Elder Newby is doing well! He is such a great missionary, so proud of him :) Elder Smith is good, they both work really hard so that is awesome. The H-'s are good! We had a mini birthday party for Elder Newby which was fun. Accidentally drank the iced tea that a neighbor brought over which was a bummer BUT made up for it because she really loved the lesson we shared :) Sad part is, never had tried tea in my life before coming on my mission and this is now the second time I've had it on accident...oops haha. OH we also went to the Temple with A- this week which was AWESOME. Anyway, I am good, kind of an unexciting week but we are working hard and doing good. I've adjusted 100% to missionary life so now it's just a roller coaster that only goes up :) now I'm more concerned about getting un-adjusted to missionary life in a little over a year! I love being a missionary it is the BEST. I love and miss you guys so much, thank you for all that you do for me mommy, I love you lots. You're the best!!!

Love you!!
Elder Jensen

Hey dad-

Thanks for the ideas!! I will work to apply those ideas, we're super excited. I think the list of questions is good because it's something we haven't really tried! We've done a lot of creative contacting and talked to so many people and we're stoked to keep doing it!! Elder Newby has a plan to wake up every morning and yell "LETS BAPTIZE" and thus far it has been successful we are so stoked to get out and work as hard as we can :) We've found a lot of cool people. I have such a testimony of following the Spirit. I know now when it's with me and when it's not. IT IS AWESOME. The Spirit is great, it makes my mission feel like a roller-coaster that only goes up! I feel like I am now 100% adjusted to missionary life. I feel really good about everything and I am loving life :) Love you lots Dad!! Thank you for the great example you are to me. I am so grateful to have had such a great example of a great priesthood holder in my life, thank you for all you do, love you Dad!

Elder Jensen

 Post Planning Party

 At the Temple with A

The beautiful Houston Temple

Hey Mom!

Wow it sounds like you guys had an awesome week! I had no idea you all were headed to SC, that is so great. My favorite place in the world by far :) Please say hi to the family for me!! Tell Nonny and Lee and Aunt Sisi and Chris and Adelyne that I miss them a lot. I'm sure that it was a nice chance to relax and enjoy the great SC summer (totally understand how hot it is over there!) but really I'm so happy that you guys are having a great time. Also that is so great that you got to go to church in SC, sounds like it was an awesome program. We had a missionary come back in our ward and it was a super cool experience :)

Our week was good!! Tuesday we did more service, Wednesday we picked up Elder Newby, Thursday more service, Friday we had District Meeting, and Saturday we had more service. Another great week of tearing houses down and teaching people about Christ! Saturday was super cool, the operation we volunteer through is a 700 club christian organization called Operation Blessing and on Saturday the goal was to rebuild as opposed to tear down so we rebuilt this families house, made it all pretty, then did this cool house reveal where we all surprised them!! Super special feeling, loved it :) Other than that no super exciting things happened. We don't have a lot of people to teach so we knocked a lot of doors yesterday and have some awesome potentials that were working with. I think the coolest thing happened on Sunday. We went to the H- (Leiry, and all the little kids that were baptized) house and had dinner with them (thus the pictures!) and it was so neat to see because this Sunday we walked in and all the kids were playing together they were all singing "I love to see the temple" while C (the mom) and A (the aunt) were cooking together and laughing it was so cool!!! The gospel of Jesus Christ really does bless families. We know that we can live together forever and ever and that makes our lives here on earth worth it. I love being a missionary. I love and miss you guys so much!! Please tell everybody I love them lots! Miss you guys!!

Love, 

Elder Jensen

 Last Day Elder Jensen and Elder Smith get to spend with Elder Sharp

 Zone Service- bonus points if you can find Elder Jensen!

Elder "Happy Dragon"

Hey Mom!

I am super duper good :) Yes we actually do have P-day today. Normally we don't
but because transfers are this week we kept the week normal and will actually
not have to go home early, we'll stay out until the regular time. Anyway biggest
news, transfers came! I and Elder Smith are staying and Elder Sharp is going
home :( BUT the good news!!! We're getting another missionary (this is my fifth
trio, basically a professional at them now) and guess who it is?! Remember my
trainee? Elder Newby? HE'S COMING BACK!! He, Elder Smith, and I will be in
Houston 8 this transfer and I am SO excited, he is really one of my favorite
missionaries. Anyway so that was super exciting :)

This week was really good. We had P-Day and went to Cheesecake Factory with the
Assistants (sorry about the $$ I promise that was just a one time thing) because
it was Elder Sharp and Elder Fails (my trainers) last full pday!! It was fun the
assistants are really great, and they live in our apartment complex!! So we
always have a good time :) Then on Tuesday we had an exchange with the other
Elder Jensen in the zone and I went English missionary for a day, which was fun.
Then Wednesday we had service again, always fun!! Then Thursday we had district
meeting, and Friday we had a mission conference!! It was all about tenacity and
becoming more tenacious missionaries, I got called unto repentance a lot but it
was totally worth it, GREAT conference I learned a lot :) Then on Friday we had
an exchange with the VIETNAMESE elders in our zone!! SO much fun, it's crazy how
different they have to work. Lots of OYMing ("Open Your Mouth") people on the
street and asking where Vietnamese people live. I even got a new Vietnamese name
(because English names don't work so all elders have to receive a new name based
on their personality) so I am now ELDER PHUC LONG (pronouced foop-lawm) which
means happy dragon (or coincidentally gospel dragon as well) which I think is
super sick :) AND I got to teach English class so they all call me that now!
That was our week, Saturday was just exchanging back and then doing 4 baptismal
interviews. Sunday was the best day ever, 4 people got baptized!!! That super
cool investigator Amilcar and Leirys brother and sister and cousin. It was an
amazing service and lots of people from the ward showed up. It made it a great
service!! Then after that, the sister spanish ward in the stake had a play about
missionary work so we went and watched 7 missionaries from our zone preform in
that. Overall it was a GREAT week, I am on top of the world and so excited to
see what we do next transfer! I expect good things to come :)

Thank you so much for everything you do mother, that email gave me a lot of
animo (cant remember what that means in English can you google translate that
lol?) I think it's like inspirations. That made me feel like a much better
person. Thank you for always looking for the good in me, all of those skills are
things I am still trying to improve on! The last one especially...I have felt
the spirit so much as I teach, I honestly feel that I teach with more power and
always know EXACTLY what I need to say and do, the power of the Spirit is real,
I know that more than ever now. I love repenting everyday and being worthy to
have the constant companionship of the Spirit. Thank you for all you do for me
mother, you are the best example to me. You taught me to always love, never
judge, and how to always listen. I know that you taught me every point on that
list. Dad helped too, he taught me that and how to be a leader and work hard
until the job is done. Between the two of you, I learned everything I know!!
Thank you for your wonderful example. I love you a lot mommy. You and Dad
inspire me and our family makes every second out here worth it. I love this
work, I KNOW that this church is true and that this is what I need to do right
now in my life. I miss you all, love you lots!!!


Elder Jensen

 #BestZoneDoesService

 Houston 8th Ward Missionary Squad

A family they love being baptized!

Just a Quick Note

Just a quick note today...

Hey mama!

I'm doing well, my week was super good!! Same thing as last week haha, our zone had a combined total of 486 service hours, everyone was working hard! Then on our off days wednesday we had zone meeting together which is always a blast and on Friday picked up an elder who just had surgery and took him with us for the day. Rather than that it was a pretty normal week, lots of service and a lot of teaching in the nighttime :) Also, there was a change in the MTC so like 2 transfers ago we had a 7 week transfer, which moved everything back by a week so originally we did have transfers this week, but they were pushed back so the transfers will be next wednesday! No word on any changes yet, most likely scenario is that I stay with Elder Smith. But we'll know for sure on Monday! Also to answer your question, p days are pretty normal around here, we just email shop and then go play basketball or volleyball or something like that. It's our day to just chill and not be stressed or busy :)

 Elder Jensen's "Richmond Family"!

Elder Jensen gets to wear the "yellow shirt" :)

Hey first of all thank you thank you for your letters!!!! You're the best :) Aw wow that's crazy!!! Can't believe it's that hot, we've hit  104 a few times this week but it's still pretty nice. I'm glad you had a great week, Girls camp sounds like a blast!!! I'm so proud of you, that sounds like the best experience ever. You're the best :) also, that's a great question! So the best way to OYM ("open your mouth") is to just talk to people and get to know them! Ask how they're doing and get to know them, then you just have to find a way to work it into a gospel conversation, there's no magic bullet but it always works as long as long as you listen. There's a promise in PMG where Elder Holland says if we listen no matter what we will find something that highlights a gospel principle. That's the secret, just listening, still working on that myself :) I'm glad you guys are doing well miss you and love you all!!

This week was crazy!!!! So levy is still doing alright, we didn't see him at all this week but it's going bit by bit. We're also still visiting sandys family and now also leirys family too! Her little sister hasn't been baptized so she has a date and we're working to that :) We also found this awesome guy from venezuela named Amelicar! Golden investigator...he read the whole pamphlet we left him and when we came by he taught US the restoration so cool :) he will get baptized not this sunday but the next! Also transfers are not this next week but the week after, so in 2 mondays we'll drop Elder Sharp off at the mission office! So we actually only taught 10 lessons this week because we had a TON of flood service. It was absolutely crazy. So this area just south of us, Rosenburg and Richmond got flooded really bad these last couple weeks so they called in the army of missionaries to help. Our zone and Elder Escobars zone came so we had 50-60 missionaries everyday. It was the same thing over and over again this week. Wake up at 6:30 get dressed, pick up the english elders, drive 45min down to rosenberg, leave headquarters at 8AM and bust houses down from 8AM to 2/3PM then we speed home, shower and go out from 5PM-8PM then go to sleep then restart the next day :) I.AM.SO.TIRED. but its awesome, I love it :) we had such a great time and it's been such a great change of pace to do so much service, awesome week, love it out here :) our zone had a combined 487 hours of service in 3 days! It's been awesome, President Hall even came out this week to help, he was smashing out drywall like a pro! That was really the highlight of the week. And it looks like we'll be on this work rotation for the next 2 weeks (and maybe even longer we'll see) but yeah it was really awesome :) that's the story for this week! Anyways mom I love you so much! Thank you for everything you do for me, I hope that you are doing really good. Love you lots :) miss you lots!!!

Love you,

Elder Jensen 

 Doing tons and tons and tons of flood service!! :) He loves this- can you tell?

Dear Mom....

Hey Mommy!!

I can't even believe what a mission does for me. It has fundamentally changed who I am and why I do what I do. I love it because I know that it's preparation to become the best father and husband that I can become. Every time I go through a trial I'm okay, because I know that God doesn't give me more than I can handle and I know I'll come out the other side a better person. That's my philosophy now! Just work as hard as I can and trust in God and everything works out for the best :) I love it out here!

This week was great, we had Elder Foster from the 70 come and tour our mission (that's general authority #6 since I arrived here, Houston is either doing super good or super bad still can't tell) and he talked A LOT about working with members. He promised us that if we become a mission where we assist members with their missionary work we will baptize 300 a month. His testimony of member missionary work is so strong, he is the most successful Mission President that has been in the church in the last 30 years!! He served as in California and during his time, they baptized 3000-4000 people a year!! Can you believe that?! He was out baptizing most foreign missions. It was really awesome to hear him talk and to meet him as well. Rather than that we've been working with Sandy's family and also a new Recent Convert named Cleofas and her family, and were still with Levy 10 weeks later. We feel good about him though he continues to progress bit by bit. Rather than that nothing too excited, crazy storms and crazy people but that's just Texas :) 

Thank you so much for your message about David and Goliath, that's exactly what I need to hear. That's fascinating because that's all about missionary work. God doesn't just magically turn us into who we need to be, he plants us in good soil and expects us to work to achieve our potential. I know that's true because I see it every day. The harder we work the more people we find, it's as simple as that. I really have learned such great lessons about working hard and becoming the best missionary I can be. This week was a great week of learning and growing. Everyday it gets better and better. Tell everyone I say hi and miss them! I can't wait to hear how everything goes this week! You are the best mom ever and I'm sure the best girls camp director too, thank you for all you do. Love you lots mother!!! :)

Elder Jensen

 With all the "Elder Jensen"s in the mission :)

 With a new friend

Catching the coolest MP around helping the hermanas wash their car!