This week...

Jen's weekly entry:

One of the best things about a mission is that you get slapped in the face with humility almost on a daily basis. (Sarcasm) And it does almost feel like you've literally been slapped. But I am grateful for that because I am learning that sometimes, in certain situations, there really isn't a good or a bad; it just is something to give you experience. The good or bad comes in when we add emotion to it, and of course, how can we not add emotion to it; we are human. 

This past week was one of the more significant weeks of my time in this land thus far. I would like to write about my entire week, but since I'm only allotted a certain amount of time, I'll only share one of the stories with you.

In order to properly set the stage, I will give some background. It all started about 2 weeks or a week and a half ago. You see, one way we contact people is sharing with them pass-along cards; they have our number and the address of our church building on the back of it, along with the mormon.org website. 

99% percent of the time no one ever gives us a call (and we've talked to other missionaries about this and they said, during their whole mission, this has never happened). Well, about a week and a half ago, TWO people called us from the number on the back of our card and had wanted to set up a meeting with us to learn more. 

And as you can guess, of course we were ecstatic to set up an appointment and talk with them. Wednesday we had an appointment with the second caller, (now this second caller was very important to me because it was late at night and my companion wanted to go in because we had a lot of other stuff we needed to take care of but I had this prompting to go out and look for one more person - and it was him) and to say the least, it was nothing of what we had hoped for. 

He really came only to lecture us about studying the philosophy of the Bible. He asked us questions like what we thought about each particular aspect of Solomon's wives and things like that.  When he would ask us questions, before we even had time to answer, he would cut us off, and go to the next person and say, "since she has nothing to say, what do you think?" He would do that every time we tried to speak or at least answer one of the questions he asked.

Now, as any normal person would, I began to get frustrated BUT before I let myself become so, I had a revelation! "Do you know,"I thought to myself, "that he is a child of God and that you must love him?" (Again Sarcasm) But I really pondered about that statement during that meeting and so, I began to pray to God to help me love him and to know that God loved him and has a plan and a purpose for him. 

Love, in every sense of the word, is in no way easy for me to quickly possess. It is not a natural thing for me to do, especially if someone is attacking me without giving me a chance to explain or express my opinion. But I also know, that you can love someone without ever even liking them. As I prayed, in all earnestness, the anger and frustration completely left my heart. Mind you, the verbal attack did not leave me, in fact near the end it just seem to become more aggressive but comfort came to help me bear it with patience. 

After the appointment finished and we were walking back home, we (my companion, our joint-teach, and myself included) were all silent at first until I said, "Well, it's not a mission if we don't get people like that." Everyone laughed. As we discussed what just had happened I had another revelation (not sarcasm), God still wins. 

Whether or not that guy will ever want to know more or gain a testimony of God, his opinions do not determine the existence or reality of God and His love for us. "At the end of the day," our friend said, "I still have my testimony and I'm truly happy in my life."

After that experience, my companion and I were a bit worried about our appointment for the next day with the first caller. We had no reason to be because that appointment went great. He asked us really good questions and then actually let us speak to give him an answer. He's a super cool guy and I was truly grateful for both experiences because I couldn't have appreciated the second appointment as much as I did if I had not gone through the first. 

There's a quote that I like that says, "If you could see the size of the blessing coming, you would understanding the magnitude of the battle you are fighting." And since I don't think I could have said it any better, I will leave you at that. Hope you all have a great week! Transfers are next week which is crazy! I can't believe I'll be in my 3rd transfer already, we only get 12 and I'll be a quarter of the way done with my mission. My companion and I are pretty sure that I'll stay in Lelystad for at least one more. 

Love you all! 

If I can do nothing else...

Jen's Portion of this week's blog:

This week was a pretty great week! We got 4 new investigators and taught 8 lessons!  I realize those numbers don't seem that big, but for us that is a huge improvement. Neither of us have taught that many lessons in one week before.

It actually started out kind of rough, just for me personally. Last Monday evening I taught my first lesson in Dutch. It didn't go as well as I would have hoped but it still went okay being that it was my first time ever doing it. By the end of it, one of the guys said to me, "You don't speak it (Dutch) as well hahaha," then he turns to my companion, "Yeah, I can see you speak much better."

Now, usually, a comment like that would be have not bothered or hurt me as much as it did, but when you do absolutely all you can; when you put ALL your effort in trying your best and someone points out your shortcomings, a comment like that feels like a knife to the heart. 

I know that I can't speak this language as fluent as I would like yet. I must have patience. I will get better. I've only been out about 2 1/2 months in the land, and had about 5 weeks of "Dutch language classes" before then. I am a beginner. 

The previous paragraph was what I told myself to try and make myself feel better but it didn't really work. I was bothered by his comment up until Wednesday when I had to teach my second lesson in Dutch to another woman. 

On Tuesday, I was stressing out so much about being able to teach as clearly as I would like. I was praying non-stop that I would finally be given the gift of tongues and be able to speak without thinking about how to translate 

On Wednesday morning, I asked myself why did I really even care about what that random guy thought about me and my ability to speak/learn another language. Last week my mom sent me an email asking me about what I thought it meant in 2 Nephi 9:18 where it says - they have endured the crosses of the world and despised the shame of it. I thought it could mean that they are not ashamed of being persecuted for what they believe in; or have fear of persecution in general.

For the past few weeks I've been thinking about the verse in the scriptures which talks about fearing man more than God. And I've been analyzing that "fear" for myself. Caring about what that man thought of me meant that I was afraid of him; afraid in the sense of his judgment. I let his judgment mean more to mean than it should've. 

To let another's opinion of me mean more than God's opinion of me meant that I have feared man more than God. And I decided to change that. Thus, on Wednesday afternoon, we walked into the woman's house, and just as we sat down she immediately asked, "So, which one of you speaks better?" 

I could have easily let that question bring doubt into my mind about myself again but instead, I immediately thought to myself, "If I can do nothing else, (if I couldn't speak the language, if I couldn't teach as well as I would like) I will have faith." Faith that one day I would be able to do it. 

That lesson went incredible, I didn't stumble or stutter. I was able to speak and teach clearly my portion of the lesson and by the end of it, she looked over at me and said, "You speak really really well." 

So that has been my attitude since then. I have officially decided not to care at all about the judgments of others; to move on, and to keep trying. And if I can do nothing else, I will have faith. 

Oh, and Happy Belated Valentine's Day! 

Linda's Portion of this week's blog:

Jen challenged me to read the Book of Mormon everyday in one of her emails that have been  just between us.  I was really inspired to do it because I have seen the great change that has taken place in her life, while she has been on her mission and even though I have been a member for the last 24 years and 22 months of my 45 years, I can honestly say that doing anything on a steady day to day basis has been hard for me to do.

But I have been very dedicated to committing myself to doing this .  And I can honestly say that it does not necessarily mean that life gets easier.  But I have noticed small changes happening in my life, on the inside and on the outside.

I am the kind of person who loves to multitask and so instead of sitting on the comfy sofa to read my scriptures, I sit on the floor, with legs widely stretched out into a chinese split.  It's not perfectly there yet, but I know that with daily practice it will come to be.  Aside from this, I am learning to rely more on the Holy Spirit for guidance and this is seen in the relaxed expression on my face instead of the stressed out look I normally carry around because I am trying to do too much, 

On the inside I am starting to listen more to the still small voice as it guides me in times of great stress and am beginning to take more responsibility for why my life is not as amazing as I want and know it can be.  See, I have 2 children who I believe have sensory processing problems, and I homeschool them as well as I have a nursing toddler who is planning on being either a scientist or an engineer when he grows up, judging from the amount of water mixed with food experiments I clean up every hour.  That alone is enough to keep a person occupied 24 hours a day.  But on top of it I am taking online art classes to develop my skills as an illustrator so that I can illustrate the children's books I have written over the years.  And on top of that we are still moving into our home we bought back in Nov.2014.  So, can you see how easy it could be to loose my cool throughout the day?

Here are some scriptures that spoke to my heart this week:  

I must tell you that I have found that pieces of a scripture verse have made me loose my breath and this is what I share with you here:

...For I, the Lord, the King of Heaven, will be their King, and I will be a light unto them forever, that hear my words.

 Nephi 10:14

...He proveth all his words.  2 Nephi 11:3

...My soul delighteth in the covenants of the Lord which He had made to our Fathers.  2 Nephi 11:5

(I divided this verse into 2 parts to ponder throughout my day.)

Yea, my soul delighteth in His grace, and in His justice, and power, and mercy in the great and eternal plan of deliverance from death.  2 Nephi 11: 5

...Save Christ should come, all men must perish.  2 Nephi 11:6

...Come ye and let us walk in the light of the Lord.  2 Nephi 12:5

I know that as I exercise faith and show hope in these verses by the actions that I take in my life, that in the end it will all be alright and I will have lived a life that I can be proud of.

I have more to share on this matter but I am an oversharer and I have to watch that side of me.  If any of you want to hear more, just email me with your comments and I will share more. You can find my  email by going to my website at www.ruoiled.com and then clicking on the contact tab.  Or you can facebook me at 

https://www.facebook.com/linda.corderoiglesia

May your day be filled with light!

Sincerely, Linda

Half-way into my 2nd Transfer

Being on a mission is like having a real life but in a sped-up miniature version. Time seems to go bye so quickly yet slowly at the same time but then seems to skip as you look back on the week...I don't know if any of that made the slightest bit of sense but that is the best way I can describe it. 

This week was an interesting one, all of our appointments got cancelled but we still managed to make it a fun week. It a bit cold but still very beautiful outside. Some days we just couldn't help but smile because the sky was so beautifully perfect. 

My companion, Sis. Doxey, and I made a deal where every Monday, (our P-Day), we go to a local store in Lelystad that seems interesting and get a treat. Today, we went "Jamin: Dat Is Lekker", a chocolate/candy store we've had our eyes on for quite some time. We each bought a bag of various flavors of little chocolate eggs (I got about 20...don't judge); so far the best one is the milk chocolate Dulce De Leche. It was our valentines to ourselves lol. It was funny because when I went to pay, the cashier laughed at me a little because I couldn't stop smiling; I was just so happy to get a bag of chocolate. It doesn't seem like much, but you really learn to appreciate the little joys in life that bring light to your day. 

This week, I've thought a lot about the reason why we are here; on this earth and in this life. The first thing we teach people is that God is our loving Heavenly Father. And as it states in 1 John 4, God is love. For me, love is not always the easiest thing to possess, for others as well as for myself. To a certain extent, in order to understand or rather believe and come to know that our Heavenly Father loves us each individually, we must first have a relationship with Him. And anyone who knows relationships knows that they require communication. It cannot be casual or apathetic, it must be honest, constant, consistent, and sincere.

What is the most important thing we must learn while we're here? My answer: we are here to learn how to love. We must learn how to love God enough to be obedient and love others enough to forgive. At times, both are very difficult. Both are intangible and require sincerity and action. Both need time to develop and grow. And both demand an effort of understanding. 

My aim, on my mission, is to have people truly understand that and when they understand it, they will act upon it, hopefully. I used to think that in order to love God we had to be perfect. I am grateful that God, knowing our natural imperfection, still loves us anyways. 

Another thing that I've also learned on my mission is to condense and simply state a lesson about the Gospel. People don't give us much time to speak so, you learn how to say a lot in a very short amount of time. Here's one I learned from one of my favorite teachers at the MTC: 

       "Jesus Christ frees us from sin and death - He asks us to follow His gospel. Faith in Him 

        means believing and trusting Him. Repentance means turning to Him when we make

        mistakes. Being baptized and confirmed means covenanting with Him and receiving help. 

        Enduring means loving Him."

As always, I am running out of time. So, I'll end here. I love you all and miss you much! 

Kus kus kus (kiss kiss kiss) 

Just Some Thoughts....

Just Some Thoughts ~ from Jen

I'm always curious as to what goes on the minds of the people we contact everyday. Some act as if we're going to physically hurt them, others feel that it is their duty to condemn us to hell, and then there are those who are super sweet and nice. I always appreciate the latter. lol

I am well aware that what we do seems quite strange. It's almost as if we are in a bubble, outside of the world, yet we must interact with those inside of it. As we've talked to hundreds of people, and have taught a few lessons to individuals, particular topics kept popping up in my mind this week about belief, action, and remembering. 

In a talk given by M. Russell Ballard (I think), he said that "remember"is probably the most important word in the English dictionary. To remember God (and all that He has done for you in your life) is a strengthening of your faith and thus, forgetting God is the weakening of your faith. 

Countless numbers of people ask us what makes the Church of Jesus of Christ of Latter-Day Saints different from any other Christian church, when we bring up the Book of Mormon, they immediately shut the door or walk away right after saying something like, "so you say.." after we explain it is another testament of Jesus Christ. 

One time, after talking about Joseph Smith being killed, the wife of one of our former investigators said, "Just because he was killed for the church doesn't mean that the church is true, it just means that he believed in it enough that it was true." 

After she told me that, I have often thought about the purpose of believing and the power of believing. For most things that pertain to life and our existence the requirement is belief. Or rather a mere hope towards the direction of faith. Most of the time, all we can do is believe. 

We believe that we must do certain things to get particular results. We believe that if we get good grades or go to college we should be able to get a good job. We believe that if we are good people then we will have good returned unto us. We believe that if we love then we will be loved. 

We ask people to read the Book of Mormon and believe that when you pray to know it is the true word of God then you will get the answer that it is. But that answer only comes when you have a sincere desire to know it's true and that desire comes only with actually opening the book and reading it. It requires time and effort; the pondering of what you read. 

Some people think that we are here to "collect" them into our church. But we believe that it is not our church but Christ's church. And the only thing we aim to do is allow people to know that there is a way to an eternal peace that doesn't come from this world. We only want to share the happiness we gain from this gospel. And of course there are many who do join the church but then leave it because they expected that all of their earthly problems would be gone because they made a right choice. 

I can testify that that is not what happens at all.  In fact, it seems at times that your life becomes more difficult as you try to make more righteous choices.  But that doesn't mean you should just stop and give up, that just means that it's worth enduring because the more work you put into something, the more you get out of it. Right choices doesn't mean an easy way, it means the right choice. Through difficult times you can still contain happiness within yourself, knowing or rather believing that sometimes, difficult circumstances are for your benefit and betterment.

If we remember God and His infinite goodness and mercy towards us then we can believe that when we act or make the best choices we can; when we experiment on His word in the scriptures then we will receive His help when we ask or even cry out for it. Now of course, you may or may not agree with me, but that depends on what you believe. 

Thanks again (to everyone) for the birthday wishes! It was such a great day and a great week, I got quite a number of presents from the amazingly loving members of the Lelystad Branch. I love you all! 

Just some thoughts ~ from Linda.

I love the gentle way Jen shares the Gospel of Jesus Christ with those around her.  There really is no other way to share the truth.  I wish I could have gone on a mission but I was not raised in this Gospel and I did not know how to believe in God because of the abuse I endured as a child.  

That said, I have come to understand that believing is so much more than just a thought and it brings into our lives real proof that God lives and Jesus is the Christ and that He Saves, not just in the world to come,

 but here -  now--

 as I live in my daily, normal life.

  He saves me everyday from my natural self, it is natural for me to yell at my children first before I take time to find out why they are fighting.  He saves me from taking that action when I pray to Him each morning on my knees, asking for His precious help to see my children as He does.  

He saves me from the storm outside, allowing my electricity to stay on when all around me people are experiencing the same storm but have not prayed for protection and help to stay warm.  I often find myself praying for them too, but if you want to see God's hand in your life then ask Him for that.  

Belief is action. and without action there is no creation.

However, you can believe in the wrong thing and it will never be.  I can believe all I want to that my pencil will fly if I drop it but that will never change the fact that the law of gravity exists and must be fulfilled.

Joseph Smith is someone so near and dear to my heart.  I am so grateful for this Gospel that he died for and because of this Gospel I have been able to give my precious children such a different life than the one I had.  

I praise God now for the life I did live because when I speak to people and see their suffering, I know the pain they experience and I am able to know what to say to comfort them.  This gift comes from my experiences before I became a member.

  

Simply put, this Gospel that Joseph Smith died for, and the very one that has sent my precious daughter into foreign lands, to learn a difficult language, bicycling in the freezing cold to share it with all the precious children of our Heavenly Father's, is the reason I wake every morning knowing that everyday matters and I can write my own story with His help to overcome my weaknesses and that today- Yes, today is the day I allow and believe in Christ's ability to save me.

It is not just about the eternities, but it is about right here right now, knowing you and I matter to HIm and that He sent this Gospel to us to give us the tools we need to not just get through this life but to make our every moment one in which His presence and love is felt.  And through it we are created to be who He knows and wants us to be because His view is so much more than ours.  And with his help we are made more capable to live a meaningful life full of what really matters, not just for now, but in the eternities.

I know this to be true, along with the countless others who have accepted this precious Gospel of Jesus Christ in their lives.  You don't just believe it, you feel it within every fiber of your being.  And that causes you to love it.  It allows words like repentance , forgiveness, meekness, humility, and so many others that are in the scriptures, to have real meaning, value, and depth in our lives.  Fine houses,big bank accounts, in style clothes and shoes, and new cars, can't hold a candle to what it feels like to have your heart changed through the study and believing in this Gospel.

Of this I am sure and humbly share these precious things of my soul with you.

I know that there is nothing that God has given my daughter and I that He can't give you as well and if you are seeking to know this kind of strength in your life and you would like your own free copy of the Book of Mormon, you can click on the link below:
http://www.mormon.org/free-book-of-mormon

Thank you for reading and may you experience true answers to your prayers!

Much love and sunshine!

Linda

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