Week 88 - July 27, 2015

This week we had the leadership council in Alcobendas with President and Sister pack and let me tell you, they are incredible!  They are ready to work and it was an incredible meeting!!  Lots of things were discussed in regards to the mission and what we can do to get better.  It was a great council and a lot was done.  The main focus of the meeting was working with members.  We have made a goal to work a lot better with members in the mission.  It may be a slow start, and not a lot of apparent success at first, but the fruits will come and we will truly be able to edify Zion and unify the church here.  The church is relatively young and so member work is exactly what we need to do.  President Pack is an inspired man! 

We gave a zone training on Thursday and it was amazing.  We asked the missionaries for their ideas of what we can do to get better as a mission and as missionaries.  We got a lot of participation and it went extremely well! 

We had to get up early every single morning though and I am exhausted.  It was a crazy week for me as well but I gotta keep working hard! 

But it was an amazing week.  The things are going great in the companionship, we are unified, we are working hard, and things are going well in the area.  We are trying so hard to continue to find new people to teach.  It's been difficult lately, but we are continuing to chug along with those we have. 

Lolo is considering another baptismal date, the 15th of August!  He is still wanting to know better, so pray he can get a spiritual confirmation that this is the true church.  We have been talking to him about Thomas S. Monson and the church organization this week and he asked us where he could find information on President Monson and he spent a couple days listening to his talks in a locotorio.  He says, "I love his words."  They make him emotional and he loves it.  Things are going good with him.

Will is finishing up school so he hasn't really been able to meet but he and Lolo both came to church on Sunday. 

Honestly with the trainings and everything there wasn't a ton that happened this week.  Just know I'm happy, doing well and the work is moving along. I still love every second of this work. 

I love you so much!  You guys are the best!!! 

I love you!

Love,

Elder Jarrett Anderson

Week 87 - July 20, 2015

Going to be honest my fast didn't turn out to great.  We went to visit a family from the ward and she had bought a lot of supplies to make us a traditional food from her country.  I went to the bathroom and prayed and asked what to do and the answer I got was "eat her food".  Sometimes we need to sacrifice our wants for His wants.  It was a great meal and we discussed their friends and they are going to start to talk with 3 families they know and we're going to try to have a noche de hogar with them!!!:) and the family was so grateful for our visit.  They were so happy to have us over.  

It was a good week. We continue to work with Talia, the new one from Peru.  She can't come to church but is progressing. In September she will be able to start coming to church.

Will wasn't baptized this weekend.  He is struggling to make the decisions.  Doctrinally he knows it's true but he doesn't have family nor friend support.  I'm praying really hard to know what we should do to help him.

We found Juan again in the park!!!  He is really sad he can't meet with us and we talked about the faith the come to church. (He is working a lot) and he is actually going to try to find another job so he can come to church!!  He has such faith and we are really excited for him.  Keep praying that he can find a way to come to church!! 

We had zone conference this week!  It was an introduction the Pack family and Elder Peterson and I were asked to conduct the meeting.  It was an amazing meeting and the Packs are amazing!!!  I am so excited to work with them for the next couple months!!  They are so inspired and are going to do amazing things here in Spain.  Now I didn't really get to the notes because I was asked to translate the meeting.  So I was the Spanish to English and English to Spanish translator for 4 straight hours.  The night before and all morning I was praying for the gift of tongues, interpretation of tongues, translation and whatever other gift I might need to be able to do it.  It was an amazing experience.  Absolutely amazing. Whenever we prepare (in prayer and study) and then come humbly seeking the Lord's help, He can bless us.  I translated for 4 straight hours without stopping once, without getting lost, and without forgetting words.  It was an unforgettable experience.  I just want to testify that the gifts of the spirit are real.  I couldn't have done that alone.  So seek ye earnestly the best gifts!  Bless the lives of others through your gifts! They are real! 

Love you all!! Have an amazing week!:)

Elder Anderson 

¡El reino de dios o nada! 

¡Hurah por Israel!

Love you!!!:)

Week 86 - July 13, 2015

So cool you got to see my companions!  That's just really weird to me.  I feel like they are just in different parts of Spain. 

To answer your questions i should be getting the package this week!  We shall see:) and I bought a really cool leather bag:) It matches my scripture cases.  It's really cool!!! 

It was a good week.  Getting used to a new companion is always fun:)  He doesn't really talk too terribly much and so I'm trying to get him out of his shell.  I told president pack, "I hope I'm not talking his ear off with all my small talk!"  He's a great missionary though and I'm excited to serve with him.

Still have yet to meet President Pack.  We will be going to the temple on Wednesday and then going to a zone conference with him so I'll finally get to meet him!  I'm really excited:)  I did get to talk to Sister Pack on the phone, she accidentally called me and she has the coolest accent ever! haha:)  She's a true Louisianan. 

We started to teach one of the investigators of a companionship that got shut down during the transfer and she is awesome!  Her name is Talia and is from Peru. (from Trujillo. the same city and part of the city as Elder Esquen!) So that's cool:)  She is doing really well.  We have had some very powerful lessons with her and although she has some doubts about one of the commandments we are helping her gain her own testimony of these things.  She's great and is progressing well.  The only bummer is that she has to work sundays (during the summer) so for a while she won't be able to come to church. 

Vilma and Vanesa are both now on vacation but they are still both super excited for their baptism the 12th of September.  I just hope I don't get transferred before that day gets here! 

Lolo is starting to disappear and it's really sad.  We are going to keep trying with him. 

Will is just the greatest.  In the lesson the other day baptisms for the dead was mentioned and he told us, "Yeah, I've already been doing my family history.  I just can't find a few things on my mom's side but I'm looking!"  He is the greatest investigator I've ever had. and he's a great friend.  He's the nicest guy and I love meeting with him. 

It's been a good week and it was just another week of getting lost in the work.  It flew by.  We've also got another assignment from the Bishop.  He was sent a list of 20 families from the European area offices and so he asked us to find these people.  The relationship is great and we are continuing to work hard with the ward. 

Cool experience.  In sacrament meeting (and the Bishop had told us what the program was before because my companion was speaking).  Some people didn't take the alloted time and there was going to be a lot of time left.  So I sent a text to the Bishop that said, "If you need someone to talk to fill time, I can" and so they announced that I would speak and I walked up there having no clue what I was going to say.  So I walked up with a prayer in my heart and the thought came, talk of the hope of the atonement.  So I began to speak, and the words came.  It was incredible.  I testified of the love of Christ and how we can find hope in Him. 

I wanted to share that because I want to simply testify of the promise found in Doctrine and Covenants 100:4-6.  Trust in the promises of the Lord.  Every time I have opened my mouth as a missionary, it has been filled.  Not once has the spirit left me with no words in my mouth.  Not once.  My mouth has always been filled. and they aren't my words, rather those of the spirit.  I've learned of my true nothingness as a missionary.  I am a weak servant.  Alone I cannot do this but with His help, we can be instruments in His hands.  I have learned to gain a true trust in his promises because he never fails us. 

I love you all!!! Have an amazing week!! 

Love,

Elder Anderson

¡el reino de dios o nada!

¡hurah por israel!

Week 85 - July 6, 2015

Well another transfer has come and gone!!  I cannot believe our two transfers together are over.  It's been amazing and I'm so grateful to have served with Elder Cahoon.  He was an amazing missionary and was an incredible example of obedience.  I learned so much fun with him.

I will continue here in barrio 5 but my new companion will be Elder Esquen from Peru, but he lives in Sevilla (in the south of Spain).  He is an awesome missionary!  He was in my district in Torrejon and I'm super excited to be with him.  Yes, he is a native so my Spanish will improve a ton! 

This week was an interesting one.  The last week with your companion is always an interesting one.  But it was great!!  We had an amazing companionship.  Just absolutely loved each other.  So much fun!!  But we finished strong!  Will is now praying about the 18th for a baptismal date.  PRAY FOR HIM!!!  He is SOO close!  All he needs is a little push from the spirit and he will be there.  He is awesome!  Just a great friend, and he will be an amazing member! 

Vilma and Vanesa are still doing well.  Vilma left this morning to go get married in the Philippines and she will be back in August.  Vanesa is doing well but she will be going on vacations and so she will not be baptized until August. We just need to have patience.

Pray a lot for Lolo, and Juan.  We haven't been able to meet with them very much.  Just pray that we can meet more with them. 

I have been able to have some incredible experiences on intercambios.  I have learned on my mission what it truly means to minister to people and how we are the hands of the Lord on the earth.  As I am acting in the name of the Lord, I have been able to truly bless other missionaries, lift them up, help them improve, and help them feel the love of the Lord.  It's kinda like my "home teaching" to the other missionaries haha:)  I love blessing the lives of others and helping them receive the blessings of the atonement.  I went on two intercambios this week.

We had a lesson with a woman named Rosa, she's met with missionaries for 3 years.  She was very shut off at first but we went in on Saturday very humbly and simply testified, followed the spirit and asked some very inspired questions that allowed her to reflect, and the spirit hit her so hard!  She said, "I understand now, I'm changing what I think now" keep her in your prayers.  We meet with her on Wednesday!! 

I love you all!!  Have an absolutely amazing week!!  Thanks for everything.  You're the greatest family of all time!  I've been so blessed to be born into our family.  Thanks for your examples. 

Invitation for the week!  Say a prayer of all gratitude.  Asking nothing, just thanking our Father for all he has given us.  I did it last night and it was a very tender experience.  Count your many blessings!  And name them one by one :)

Love you!

Elder Jarrett Anderson

¡El reino de dios o nada!

Week 84 - 3 transfers left.

Dear family,

Wow another week has flown by and this is the sixth and final week of the transfer.  Elder Cahoon will be home next week.  Wow it has flown by. 

The best part of having the iPad's has been the access to the words of the modern prophets.  My studies have been more effective, and my testimony of the restoration has been strengthened so much.  I have come to an even greater knowledge that we have living prophets.  This is a divine work. 

I probably will not be receiving my package until the next zone training.  I don't know when that will be.  We shall see!

There will probably not be baptisms this week, possibly Will but the chances are slim.  He will get baptized, it is just a matter of when. 

Elder Cahoon is doing great.  He is not trunkee at all!  He's doing so well at working hard until the end.  We are super sad President Jackson is leaving.  We are excited for the new president.  (Sister Pack is from Louisiana!!) but President Jackson has been such an influential man in my life.  I am so grateful for having served under his direction.  He is one of my heroes!  But President Pack will be amazing as well. 

It was a slower week in regards to the work.  The weather was just ridiculously hot.  Like extremely, extremely hot.  Haha the app is definitely right.  Maybe even under by a few degrees haha but we (as always) just kept on working hard.  That's been something I've been so grateful for, many of my companions are extremely diligent and have great desires to work and we do that, simply work really hard.  I've absolutely loved serving with Elder Cahoon.  He is a stud!!! 

Vilma and Vanesa are doing well. They are reading, praying, and progressing.  They weren't able to come to church this week, but they will be coming next week.  They love our visits and love coming to church.

Lolo has been having difficulties meeting with us lately, but he is trying to find a time where he can bring a friend of his to start listening to us.  So, although it's hard to meet, he still has desires to listen, and even share the message with others. 

We have also been meeting with a less active man named Marcos, and his big doubt is wheether or not Joseph Smith was a prophet.  We have, little by little, been talking through the first lesson (the restoration) with him to help him understand it and we got to the Joseph Smith part and we talked a little bit and then we watched the Joseph Smith movie (the long one) on my iPad.  It helped him visualize things better and he understood a whole lot more.  It was super cool!  We then (as always!) challenged him to read the Book of Mormon and pray.  He is excited and wants to know.  Therefore, he will receive his answer.

This Sunday I had been asked to speak in sacrament meeting and I was told "whatever topic you feel" and so I began to prepare a message, had it all planned out but then Thursday I had a feeling to only teach the restoration and to not worry about planning it.  Trust the spirit and just get up there and bear testimony of the restoration and Joseph Smith.  I was extremely nervous.  It went against everything I know in regards to planning is important and I was like this is crazy!  Why would I feel like this? Sunday rolls around and I'm freaking out but I said a prayer right before going up, asked for the gift of tongues and to be able to stay calm and I went up and shared what I felt the Lord needed me to say, as directed by the spirit.  It went amazing.  I felt the power of the spirit working through me and the words just came.  Afterwards a woman who was visiting from Valencia came up and said to me "that is exactly what my husband needed, thank you.  He needed that more than anything.  The Lord has answered my prayers!"  As well, Marcos came up and thanked me and was really happy and it helped him with his doubts of Joseph Smith.  As we do our part to be worthy of the spirit and seek his direction, and follow the prompting we get no matter if it goes against our best judgment, it will always work out, and it will always bless at least one life.  The spirit will always allow us to bless the lives of others.  That is priesthood service and I'm so glad I am learning how to magnify my priesthood while I am here.  It will bless me for forever. 

Brothers of mine, always, always, always seek the guidance of the spirit.  Seek to understand how it works, how to recognize its promptings.  Seek to always follow it and you will be able to serve in the priesthood and bless others in ways you never could imagine.  Never forget you hold the power of God.  Always seek his guidance and you use it.

I love you all!  Have an amazing week! 

¡Hurah por Israel! 

Elder Anderson

This is us with Romeo.  He is the owner of that sign in La Puerto del
Sol (downtown) and he waved us down yesterday and we became best
friends with him.  He loved our message and talking with us.  And then
we got free pictures at his sign with him.  Haha!  Super cool guy. 

We're gonna meet with him on Friday!

Week 83 - Happy, Happy Birthday!! (to Me)

Study Time in the Piso

This week was a rough one. I was sick for a couple days. We stayed in
one day. But me being hard-headed, I didn't want to stay in the first
day and so I endured a day with the biggest headache ever.

The truth is there isn't a whole ton of time to write today because we
went on an extravagant journey with a member from one of Elder Cahoon's
old areas.  We went to El Escorial and went up to the mountains in the
north part of Madrid.  Super fun!!  I'll send a couple pictures!!  El
Escorial is a palace type place that was built in the 1500's and is
where all the kings of Spain are buried.  We couldn't go inside because
it is closed on Mondays (all museums, historical sites, and all
tourist places are closed on Mondays in Spain, that's why I haven't
been able to go to any cool places on any p-days.  but that's okay!)
We went up into the mountains on a drive and it was
beautiful!!  The mountains here aren't like at home but it was still
really cool!  Amazing p-day!!

I also cannot believe I've been out 19 months and that tomorrow I'll
be 20.  I just can't really comprehend it right now.  It's insane.

Now a couple of things have changed with the investigators.  Vilma is

not married, but the trip she is going on this summer she is planning
on getting married to the man she is living with.  The Lord truly
prepares the people at the right time.  This trip was planned, and the
marriage planned long before she knew it was a requirement for
baptism.  So she will be married legally once she gets back and will be
able to immediately get baptized!  As I have said over and over and
over this is the Lords work!!!

Lolo is trying to decide and is still warming up to the idea of
getting baptized.  He struggles getting to church but is reading and
doing what he can.  He loves the Book of Mormon and meeting with us
and the message.

Will is finishing his finals and then has a trip, but will be
attending church where he is going to be.  He is the best investigator
in this world!!  But that will leave us with only a week to teach him
everything if he is going to get baptized on the 4th of July.  So I
believe it will be later on.  But he's just a matter of when.  We had an
amazing lesson 2 with him on Monday and it answered a lot of
questions.  He is tearing through the Book of Mormon.  He will also
be moving to Provo in a few months.  So we will be living like 45
minutes apart!!!  It's gonna be so cool!!

Also, I read the talk you read last week about staying by the tree! And
we read it with a less active returned missionary we are helping out
whose name is Jon.  He's from Venezuela.

We'll have an amazing week!!!  Hope all is well back home!!  Love you all!!

Love,
Elder Anderson
¡Hurah por Israel!

Sent from my iPad

Week 82 - June 15, 2015

Dear family,

You and I mom are thinking alike. Since the iPad's have come I have gone insane with reading the words of the living prophets. It's been amazing and my testimony of the restoration truly has been strengthened! 

Well it turned out to be an absolutely amazing week.  As we have been following Preach My Gospel to the T we have been able to see how this truly is the Lord's work.  He is at the helm and I have no doubt about it. 

We started off the week meeting with Will, our friend from California, who by self-initiative has been investigating the church for a while.  We taught lesson one and we discussed it in good detail due to his fairly deep knowledge of the church and its structure and our beliefs.  It turned into a lesson that filled in the gaps for him and answered a lot of his questions.  He had some good questions and more than anybody I've ever seen had a sincere desire to know.  We invited him to read and pray and he accepted, taking specific note on how to pray based on Moroni 10.  ( sincere heart, having real intent, and having faith in Christ) and then Sunday a miracle happened.  He came to stake conference on Sunday at Pavones and was telling us afterwards how much he enjoyed it.  We were talking about the temple and its purposes, and he then told us, "Well I read what you asked me to read, and I think I received my answer.  I know it's true and I know Joseph Smith was a prophet."  He explained some of his situation and the potential difficulties he might face if he got baptized and as we started to tell him about how if he decides to get baptized, and he immediately said, "Oh, I'm getting baptized!"  Tonight we will be discussing his fecha.  We are thinking it will be July 4!!  It was a very powerful experience there by the temple.  He just simply needed missionaries to tell him to read and pray and he received the answer because he tried the promise with the 3 necessary elements. 

Vilma and Vanesa are also doing really well.  This week we were able to set them with a set fecha and they are both excited and preparing well.  Vilma will be baptized the 4th of July and Vanesa will be baptized the 18th of July.  We taught the Word of Wisdom yesterday and Vilma will be giving up coffee as they have both committed to live it. 

Lolo is doing good, he just struggled getting to church.  He is still on date for the 27th but we will see.  We may need more time for more preparation.  But he's doing well. 

We are working well with the ward and have a solid relationship with both the Elders Quorum President and the Bishop.  We are continuously receiving assignments from them on things we can do to help the ward and we are truly strengthening this ward. 

We had the leadership council meeting this week at the mission home, the final one of President and Sister Jackson.  It was a powerful meeting.  We discussed the digital age, the importance of preparation, our two biggest weapons (the Book of Mormon and Preach My Gospel) and many other things.  My absolute favorite part was when president Jackson simply read passages from the Book of Mormon.  The room was silent and the spirit was so powerful as he read the words of the prophets. That night for thirty minutes we started to plan the zone training that we were to give to next day.  We got up the next morning and planned from 7:00-10:45 and put together the zone training.  It went amazing.  The spirit was strong and helped us transmit the message and it was powerful.  I learned so much and it was really fun as well.  The most powerful part was when we tried to replicate what President Jackson had done with reading the passages.  We asked everyone (if they wanted to) to stand up and read a "power passage" from the Book of Mormon.  They stood up one by one and it was one of the most powerful moments I've seen.  The Book of Mormon brings such a sweet spirit as every verse they read testified of Christ and of his divinity and his purpose.  Amazing experience. 

For the spiritual thought this week, I wanted to talk about something else we talked about during the leadership council.  President Jackson in his mission president's meeting in Germany he went to a month or so ago, Elder Bednar was speaking and was saying we have a very old group of apostles, and something we need to do is carefully listen to their last words.  In the council we read the last words of some prophets such as Nephi and Moroni and I went and read the final words of L. Tom Perry and it was touching: 

     "We want our voice to be heard against all of the counterfeit and alternative lifestyles that try to           replace the family organization that God Himself established. We also want our voice to be heard in sustaining the joy and fulfillment that traditional families bring. We must continue to project that voice throughout the world in declaring why marriage and family are so important, why marriage and family really do matter, and why they always will.

My brothers and sisters, the restored gospel centers on marriage and family. It is also on marriage and family where we can unite most with other faiths. It is around marriage and family where we will find our greatest commonality with the rest of the world. It is around marriage and family that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has the greatest opportunity to be a light on the hill.

Let me close by bearing witness (and my nine decades on this earth fully qualify me to say this) that the older I get, the more I realize that family is the center of life and is the key to eternal happiness."

Families are eternal, and that's our message.  I've tried my best this week since readimg that to simply testify to the world that families are eternal.  Sometimes it's hard.  It's definitely not popular and it takes boldness to defend because some people are against the family.  But let our voice be heard!! Defend families.  It's what the lord needs. 

Love you all!! Have an amazing week!!

Love,

Elder Jarrett Anderson

¡Hurah por Israel!

Elder Cahoon, Javier, Elder Anderson

Javier's brother

Sent from my iPad