Week #62: Expect the Unexpected

Aloha!

Biking!

Transfer Day

This week has been a good one. We got a call last Tuesday, the day
before transfers, and one of the assistants to the president informed me that I would not be going to St Helens but actually to the Fairway Village ward in the Vancouver East stake. So I am no longer in Oregon! But the Mountain View ward is right across the street, and a few
people I knew there have actually moved into this ward, so I was able to find some familiar faces. So far, this ward has been absolutely
amazing.

Hello from the store!!

The members here are incredible and super willing to help
out. My companion, Sister Sitala, has been out three months so she
just finished getting trained.  Oh, and we are biking! This is my
first time biking on my mission- I feel like a full fledged missionary
now. So we have a balance between walking, getting rides, and biking.







We have some awesome people that we are working with- Katrina, who is
engaged to a less active member, will be married in November and then
baptized a few days later! She is really neat. She has two amazing
kids also. And then we are meeting with the Boyd family- their mom is
a member but the kids hadn't ever really been to church. But they came
yesterday! We dropped by about an hour and a half before church and
their mom dropped them off, then we found them a ride home. Everyone
in the ward loved them! They are good kids.

Fun with new companion and kiddos!

We live with Sister Schott- she is awesome. She has two dogs, Jasper
and Desi, and also a piano :)

New BFF!

We had an awesome ward activity on Saturday morning- they did the
"ward Olympics" so there were all kinds of fun games. We even
participated a little bit. It was pretty awesome!

Little ghost making treats!

Other than that...I still am working on getting everyone's names down.
But they are amazing!

This week I've been thinking a lot about humility. We had a great discussion with Sister Schott this morning about taking responsibility or credit for our good choices, and about relying on the Lord. This is
something I've struggled to understand my whole life. As I've studied on my mission, I've come to believe that there is a balance but that it also is completely different than what the world would think.

Humility, I've found, is not ragging on ourselves. It  isn't refusing to be proud of anything we've done. It isn't passively just following wherever the Lord leads.





 Humility to me means understanding His plan, understanding His mercy and how He has made every good thing in my life possible, and then taking what He has given me and actively participating in my life.

Teaching the gospel

Remembering loved ones.

It means making decisions and seeking His guidance. It means understanding that His will is best, and choosing
to follow it because I know He loves me. It is active, deliberate, and disciplined. Humility to me is understanding that it's okay to be proud of good things I have done, as long as they do not make me prideful. I am proud that I came on a mission, that I chose to follow where God was leading me, because I have learned so much. I still have so far to go, but I have also come a long way and that is good! So humility to me is understanding He knows best and seeking His
direction, but also acting confidently and moving forward boldly because I know He is with me, and on those days when I'm doing my best, I can be confident that I am doing His will. Humility means not being hesitant or afraid because He has told me where I need to go. So it's really one of the most beautiful principles of the gospel.



Love you all! Have an amazing week!

Sister Jacobs

"The cutest little sister!"

My name is Denise Hobbs and I love the sister missionaries and we just got the cutest little sister!! I helped with transfers today and so I got to be with her most of the day today... her comps name is sister Sitala and they are in the fairway village ward in Vancouver Washington in the Vancouver east stake... she came over for dinner cuz I was in the car when their dinner appointment cancelled... she is a very sweet gal- who I love already!!! Just wanted to share a picture with she and sister Sitala at my house.... the missionaries call me Mama Hobbs as I do lots for them and I love them !!! Have a great night!!!

Week #61: Another Week, Another Transfer

This email will probably be pretty short- I've got a nasty cold and so my brain isn't up to 100% yet.

We found out about transfers this week! And both of us are leaving. We were pretty sad. Sister Frisch is going to the Mountain View Ward!!  I've been telling her all about it. And I am going to the St Helens 1st Ward. It will be awesome! I'm so excited- a lot of the missionaries in my district are ones I've served around before. And my mom will be in the same apartment as me! (Sister Girot- my trainer).  And it's her last transfer which is crazy.

This week has been very interesting. We had an awesome district meeting- President and Sister McAteer came! They surprised us. It was a ton of fun. And the Spirit was super strong.

On Wednesday, Sherry was able to meet Bishop and after she met him, the Spirit testified to her that she needed to get baptized soon! So she wants to try to come to church.

On Thursday we had an awesome district service project. We set up
temporary walls for an art festival that was going on this weekend. It
was a lot of fun- I got to draw the blueprints of where the walls went
so that they have it for next year. That was a ton of fun.

General conference was amazing! We watched a session with Brian, Lori
and the Nordstroms (and another one with just the Nordstroms), one
with Sister Dover, and one with the Bowens. It was so powerful! I felt
like the speakers were very bold and testified of the simple things
that we can apply in our lives to ward off temptation. I loved Elder
Cornish and Elder Schmutz's talks- I felt like they were really
powerful in both offering comfort that even in the crazy world we live
in, things will end up okay, but also testifying of the path we need
to follow.

We've also spent a lot of time saying goodbye to people and getting things ready for the new sisters coming in! They will have a lot of miracles happening.



I love you all- have an amazing week!
Sister Jacobs

Week #60 Meeting Lots of People

This week was really amazing, and really interesting. We saw so many
instances of the Lord putting us in the right place at the right
moment. And we were able to find a lot of new people! Because of the
move, we're working a lot more on the other side of our area, and
we've seen so many miracles.

14 months!

One morning we were walking down a street, meeting people, and we decided to go and knock on this door where a member used to live and this woman opens the door and she's on the phone and crying. She says "Sorry it isn't a good time" and closes the door. So we decided we needed to leave a note and so we did and just as we were going to walk away, she opens the door and apologizes for being rude (which she wasn't at all) and tells us what's going on and we just had no idea what to say. But she said we could come check on her in a while so we will probably invite her and her kids to the Halloween activity.

We also met this cool guy named Jim who is an expert at golf and the five-string banjo. He played a little for us, and it was amazing! And we just had an awesome conversation about music and missionary work-he encouraged me to learn to play by ear instead of just with sheet music, which really would be cool.

Beautiful Flowers

Another day, we were walking through an apartment complex and we see Abrielle! She and her dad came to the ice cream social way back but we hadn't seen her in a while. The funniest part- she doesn't even live in that complex. She was just out on the balcony right as we walked past- she was at a friend's house. So that was amazing!

Fortunate Delivery?

On Sunday night, we were walking through a different apartment complex and two kids ask us for help. They have a dog with them, who escaped from one of the other apartments, but the owner wasn't home so they were hoping to find someone to watch the dog. We aren't sure what to
do so we go to a member's apartment and they aren't sure either but one of them grabs a jump rope and proposes we tie the dog to a tree near their apartment. Well, we get the dog on the jump rope and we're walking to the apartment it came from, and we've made it maybe 100 yards and this car pulls up and it's the owner! So that was perfect.So we returned the jump rope.








Then, today, we're going shopping, and we pull up into a parking spot and this car pulls around us....and it's the Bowens! We haven't heard anything back form them for a while am it was perfect that they were there. The funny part- we were late going shopping because the other sisters were late coming back form a meeting because they got stuck
behind an accident. So it was definitely God's plan.

Twinkies!

Sherry watched the women's session of conference with us too! And it was so powerful. If you get a chance to watch it, do it! It was
amazing. One of my favorite thoughts came from Sister Bingham's talk-she said "share positive things about others and let the less-than-perfect fade away." I love that. I loved her thoughts on
charity and on looking out for others. That, I think, is the best way to encourage people to become better is to focus on the good and on
what they do well.

So my challenge to you this week is to look for the positive in everyone around you, including yourself! And like Sister Bingham said,
"the less-than-perfect [will] fade away."

Love you all! Have an amazing week!
Sister Jacobs

Burned out house we saw today!

Super Slug

Week #59: The Apple Family

This week has been kinda insane. Due to some unforeseen events and odd
circumstances, we ended up moving! We swapped apartments with the
elders (they live in a very nice area, and where we were is a bit
sketchy). So that took quite a bit of time to pack everything and
settle in. And, the elders left twenty two apples hidden around our
apartment (I got pictures of all of them- I'll attach them) for us to
find, along with some hilarious sticky notes, including one that says
gullible on the ceiling. The funniest part- Sister Staker grabs the
handle on the fridge to open it and the handle comes off! So she says,
"Oh no, I broke it!" Well, we open the fridge and there's a sticky
note saying "You broke it!" Pretty funny. The apples were everywhere.
But the apartment is much nicer!

We also had zone conference this week- our first with President
McAteer. It was pretty awesome! They talked a lot about JustServe and
about reaching out to people in the communities around us, and getting
to know them. President McAteer also talked a lot about faith. We all
studied Hebrews 11 beforehand. It was really neat! And there were some
great trainings.

We also had an awesome FHE! JC and his girls came, and the Crofts, and
the Nordstroms. We did a "missionary for the day" activity. So we
exercised, we knocked some doors, we did a "service project" (writing
notes to Sister Frisch's brother in Japan)....it was super fun :)

A couple members of our ward live in a retirement home right by the
church so we visit them, and this week it was so fun. First we ran
into the two single ladies, just hanging out and so we saw both of
them at the same time- it was so funny to watch them talk to each
other. And we saw them again later in the week, along with the Brams.

On Monday (sorry this is super out of order) we had a fun adventure-
we'd gotten a referral from the Spanish elders for someone. So we had
a member go with us and we drove there....and it was out of our ward.
And the address was a super out of the way auto body shop. Anyway, we
found the guy and he was pretty chill. Our member taught him the
Restoration! That was cool! And then we referred him to the elders, so
we aren't sure what's happened there yet.

Brian came to church too! That was way great! We had talks about
General conference, and a Sunday School lesson on the priesthood
So that was the week! And if there's one thing we've learned from this
week, it's that angels are really around us, protecting us. Whether
they're from the premortal life or they are those who have passed on,
they are here and they are assigned. The Lord definitely watches over
us! Never forget that!

Love you all! Have a great week!
Sister Jacobs

Week #58: We Saw A Ton of People!

I'm not even sure where to start this week. A lot has happened. We met
with Brian a few times, and he is doing awesome. It's amazing to see
how he is finding peace in the gospel at a time of turmoil in his
life! And he is so willing to read and study and learn.

From a text received this week that said "Missionary Sighting!"

We also went to the family history center with the Bowens and it was
pretty awesome! We helped them find some names for the temple, so now
all they have to do is be temple worthy! And they can too- we're
pretty sure all that's holding them back is church. They are so close!

We saw a ton of new people- we got a referral from Mormon.org for
someone and so we met her, and she is really nice! And the Spanish
elders found someone in our area who, they said, is really ready and
really humbled by life. So we are going to see how that goes! It's in
the sketchier part of our area, so we're definitely taking members
with us. We also met a friend of one of our young women on the street,
and it was awesome- she said she would talk to her YW friend a both
coming to church! And she did talk to her- we found out on Sunday.

We had our zone breakfast at the Crafts' house- that's where we got
the only pictures I have this week..... It was awesome! We have a
great zone, and there are some serious miracles happening.

So that was pretty much our week! My thought this week is from 2 Nephi
2:26- "And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may
redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are
redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good
from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be
by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to
the commandments which God hath given."

We talked about the Atonement in Sunday School this week, and this
verse stuck out to me. Our Heavenly Father has given us our agency,
our ability to choose, so that we could be free to act and so that we
could learn  and grow by experience, become who He intends us to be,
and then return to live with Him. But because of the Fall, we were
forever separated from His presence. That is why He sent Jesus Christ!
Jesus, through the Atonement, paved our way back to Him. He made it
possible for us to choose good or evil, eternal life with Heavenly
Father, or eternal death through sin. Without that Atonement, we had
no choice- we were doomed. But with it, we have the chance to truly
reach out full potential, to repent and change and grow every single
hour of the day. The opportunities given through Christ are infinite.
So I am grateful for His sacrifice! I am grateful for a Savior that
loves each of us so much that He would suffer for all that we would go
through. I know He lives! And someday we will all see Him, and He will
be overjoyed to see us, and to see what we have made of ourselves. So
make today the best you can!

Love you all! Have a fabulous week!
Sister Jacobs

Week 57: A Whole Lot Going On

This week has been pretty crazy! We got a call on Thursday that we
were going to have to take our car up to Vancouver...so we are walking
now! It feels like I'm back to normal actually. We haven't tried
crossing our area yet though.

Fun stuff that happened this week- we helped a girl in our ward learn how to crochet! Well, Sister Frisch helped her and I watched and kinda got the hang of it! We did some surprise service for some members which was awesome :) we also had our first district meeting of the transfer!


We did some fun service- someone we've been working with is replacing her roof! We couldn't help get the shingles off, but we could help get them into the trailer afterwards, so we did. There was a huge pile! And that was the day we were on exchanges too, so Sister Arbon and I had a fun day. She's actually served in the Columbia ward before so we
got to see some of her old friends. We got to see the Bowens and we invited them to church, and they came! It was amazing! And we stopped by mutual as well- they were having an unbirthday party.



And ARP was absolutely amazing- we had two investigators come, and the Spirit was
so strong! It was incredible! If you've never been to one of those
meetings, I invite you to go- you won't regret it.

We got to go to the temple visitors center with Beth and Cassie as well. We think Cassie might have driven the visitors center sisters a little crazy....some favorite quotes include "Sometimes I call him the Great Spirit because I get tired of calling him Jesus," "Can I touch your baby?," "I love your faces!" (To a random couple), and "can we go back in the temple and play reverent games?" (After going into the
temple atrium). It was still awesome though, and we know they felt the Spirit. And we definitely did! I love going to the visitors center.






We had an amazing lesson with Brian! We really got into the scriptures
and the Spirit was super strong and we invited him to set a date to be
baptized! He picked December 12 (happy birthday Catherine!). It was a
great day!

Saturday was our first full day walking (we dropped the car off in
Vancouver on Friday afternoon) and it went really well! We stayed
pretty close to the church, but we got to talk to a lot of people! It
was awesome! And Sunday was also really good- a ton of people came to
church! And we got to reach out to a lot of people. So it's been a
good week.

My thought for the week is on forgiveness. It's something I felt prompted to study a few days ago. I studied a talk by President Faust- his last one actually- from General Conference, April 2007. He tells quite a few stories about how people were able to overcome anger in moments of tragedy and forgive others. He quotes a specialist who said
"Forgiveness is freeing up and putting to better use the energy once consumed by holding grudges, harboring resentments, and nursing unhealed wounds. It is rediscovering the strengths we always had and relocating our limitless capacity to understand and accept other people and ourselves.” I think that is so true! Especially, at least with me, forgiving myself, frees up a lot of that energy. I know if I'm not worried about being angry with myself, or with others, I'm a lot more receptive to the Spirit and more willing and able to love
others.




I love you all! Have an amazing week!

Sister Jacobs

Beautiful Scenery from P-Day (below)