Feb 13, 2012

Well this week went by really fast and all is well in Zion (if you can even call Utah that). Lilian is doing very well and is progressing nicely. Her boss did not change the schedule to give her Sundays off work at least until 4 so she was not able to come to church with us. Although she has a friend that goes to the Union Park Spanish Branch and that service begins at 9am so we went with her to that Branch and helped her around. We haven't been able to meet with her since then so tomorrow when we have our appointment with her we will find out how it goes.

In one of the lessons with her this week she said something that strengthened my testimony that the Lord and His angels are preparing people to accept this gospel. Lilian told us of how the missionaries had knocked her door several times before when she was living with her mother. She said her mom would always say she is not interested but the missionaries would persist and set an appointment. When the appointment time would arrive her mom would say "Lilian lets go to the store". Lilian would remind her mom of the fact that the missionaries were going to be arriving soon to which the mom would reply "I know and I don't want to be here". When we knocked on her door a few weeks ago she had been prepared and was listening when the Spirit told her "you need to listen to them". Later in the lesson she told us of how her mom noticed that Lilian had been changing she seemed much happier. She told her mom that it was because she is getting closer to God. Her mothers boyfriend did not like this answer and told her that she was being silly and she was making it up. Lilian snapped back at him one day he would understand because one day he will need God and he will be ready to listen. The senior missionaries (The Birds) are teaching her English and man are they loving her to death and it is great. Lilian is a lot happier now than she was the first time we met her. The gospel changes lives.

We have really been trying to solidify the testimonies of Rafael and Socorro. They are the parents of two girls that were recently baptized. They have listened to the missionaries before and liked it a lot. I believe the baptism of their daughter was the push they needed in order to get them more interested in acting and being baptized. We taught them the first half of the Plan of Salvation focusing on Adam and Eve and The Fall because they believed we were all born with the original sin from Adam and Eve and that's why babies need to be baptized. I have always struggled to teach the Fall of Adam and Eve but for some reason this lesson flowed really well as we worked as a companionship to resolve their doubt. We pulled from 2Nephi 2 and the articles of faith to explain that God knew Adam and Eve would eat of the fruit and that it was all part of the plan. I think a good analogy for this situation is a parents with their kids. Many times because parents know their kids so well they know exactly what their kid would do if they were placed in a certain situation. If the parents put a candy bar on the table and leave the room and then the kid eats the candy bar the parents are not normally surprised because well that's what a kid would do in that situation. Heavenly Father knows us so well that he knew Adam and Eve when placed in the garden would eat of the forbidden fruit. The lesson was spirit filled and they told us they are ready for baptism on Feb 23.

On Saturday night one of our stakes had the adult session of stake conference so we attended. They had 2 guest speakers one of which was Elder Franco from the seventy and the other was Elder Anderson from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He spoke on how we are living in enemy territory and how we are living in the great and spacious building. He spoke of how the Twelve and the First Presidency often speak of the next generation and how to help them grow up strong in the church. He mentioned that one of the most important things to do is to keep our homes and what enters them very sacred. We must also have a wakening unto God, or come to the point where we realize how much we really need him. He told us of how he taped the Super Bowl so he could watch it the next day when it was no longer Sunday. He said the half time show was full of glamour and things that he realized brought no eternal value. The things that now entertain the people of this world are things you would find in the great and spacious building. The key to avoiding all this he said was to have a deep and lasting conversion. The 10 virgins had lamps which are a representation of their testimonies and the oil was a sign of deep conversion. Our testimony must be so deep and rich that our children will not be able to deny the words of our testimony because the spirit will leave a lasting impact. The spirit will take the words unto the heart but there we must act and bring the words into our hearts. He truly is a Special Witness of Christ.

I have come to realize and realize more and more the truthfulness of this gospel. I can firmly testify that it is true and is the key to eternal happiness. Faith is where it all begins and I have come to understand that faith is a purifying principle. As we exercise our faith we are purified through the Atonement of Christ. I know this is true!

Love,

Elder Jolly

Jan 30,2012

I have no idea how I got over my anger issues all that I know is that I am hardly ever angry anymore. Being in a car is crazy not good for my health I am gaining weight again... this is not good. There is a lady in my last area who we were teaching who owns a little ceasar so we get free little ceasar whenever we want. We went on exchanges this week with the Zone Leaders and I was with Elder Bolling, he was introduced to the gospel by Mitt Romney because he worked on his campaign 4 years ago. He doesnt speak a lick of spanish. It was crazy we went into a lesson and the Spirit told me to ask her how she came to know Jesus was her Savior and she broke down crying saying how she didnt know because she was so far from God.  It was crazy we... well I since Elder Bolling doesnt speak spanish, testified on the Plan of Salvation and extended a baptismal date which she accepted. All this happened in 10 min and then we met some random guy on the street who we talked to and went into his house to teach him. 15 min later we were back outside and he was also on date for baptism. At the end of the lesson he told us "I feel so relaxed and kind of tired after that lesson, I feel really good". THATS THE SPIRIT! My email isnt long but I am super tired and want to have time for a nap today before Pday ends. BTW we have a new visa waiter, Elder Walker from Pleasant Grove (shout out to Hna. Purziani). Love you all and wow the church is true.

Love,

Elder Jolly

Jan 23, 2012

wow this week went by way too fast! If I can use one word to describe the week it would be... BAPTISM! We had the baptism for one of our investigators last night. His name is Alejandro Becerra. He was originally on date for the 29th of January but when we went over for the lesson with him on tuesday and he said he wanted to move it up to this past sunday and so we did and it was awesome. The work is progressing well in the area and things are starting to come together. Rocio Juarez, someone we are teaching came to church on sunday with her son and daughter. She had only planned on staying for an hour but her kids loved it so much she stayed the whole time. The branch did a great job of welcoming her and helping her feel at home.

How much snow did you recieve? On saturday it began to pour rain after about an hour it turned over to snow and dumped for the rest of the day. We returned home that night cold wet and beaten. Blessing of the day though (Inside joke to Hna. Purziani) is that we recieved a referral from a bishop and we checked up on it and turns out the lady is super interested and her son wants to learn too. On thursday we stopped by one of the potentials on our list and she brought up the fact that she has a strong testimony of the Virgin Mary. For a second I was shocked and didnt know what to say. She told us of how the Virgin had answered her prayer and healed her daughter. I told her that of course God would answer her prayer and it would be according to her understanding and so because at that time she believed in the Virgin Mary that God would answer her prayer in a way she would understand but then I opened to 3rd Nephi where Jesus Chrsit outlines how we need to pray in His name. We then switched the focus of the lesson to Jesus Christ and asked questions to get her to bear her testimony about Him. She did and it was a huge invite to the Spirit, which then took over the lesson. We moved from Jesus Christ to baptism and she accepted a date for baptism and said she knows it is something her and her husband need to do.

I was studying today in an article written by Elder Carl B. Clark, I believe that was his name lol. The article was about looking up to God and not to men around us. Too many people do things and make decisions based on what will bring them popularity or they do things so their friends wont judge them, but the article talked about how we need to look up and think, what is it that my Heavenly Father wants me to do. He relates a story of how he struggled to learn German in the MTC and he felt as if he was falling behind the other missionaries in his district, this left him feeling worried and scared. He knelt down and prayed and the answer he recieved was quite surprising, it was "I did not call you on a mission to speak German well, I called you on a mission to serve me with all you heart, might, mind, and strength. I feel as if too many times we get caught up in the world trying to please our fellowmen when it reality we should please and do the will of our Eternal Judge. The world expects perfection from us while all that our Heavenly Father expects is our best. What hope there is in knowing that perfection is not required, just a willing mind and heart that give their best, so give the Lord your best.

Love, Elder Jolly

Jan 19, 2012

Transfers!!! I have been moved out of Kearns and am now serving in the
Sandy zone. After seving in Kearns for 7 months it is time to begin a
new chapter in the mission. My new companion is Elder Schmidt, a great
missionary from california, who left from Japan for the mission since
his dad is stationed there right now. We cover the Sandy Galena
spanish ward. To give you a little idea of where my area is, if you
look on a map and find Sandy well we cover all of that city and part
of Midvale. Our area goes from I-15 all the way up to Snowbird ski
resort. It is different covering 9 stakes but the beautiful car helps.
When I arrived in the area wednesday we have a 2010 Mazda 3 but we had
to drop it off at the mission office later that afternoon since the
church was retiring the car and we picked up our 2012 Malibu that had
300 miles on it. It is my first time being in an area with a car for a
long time and I am really excited about it. The house we are staying
in is amazing. We have the whole basement of the 3 story house. It has
a full kitchen, a massive table to study at with nice business chairs,
a pool table and a nice bathroom. The landlords (Nelsons) are really
nice. Brother Nelson teaches economics at BYU and Sister Nelson is a
nurse. I am really excited to be here in Sandy. Although it was hard
to say goodbye to everyone in Kearns though, it felt like they were my
family.
We got a call Wednesday night infroming us that 2 visa waiters
were coming to the mission and that we would be training one of them.
He was an awesome Elder from Oregon. Elder Strand was his name, we had
him for 3 days before he was emergency transfered to another area due
to an elder going home. Elder Strand will do great with his new
companion because he will be able to speak more in lessons which will
prepare him well for his mission in Madrid Spain when he gets his
visa.
So this week was great! I recieved a text on saturday informing me
that everything was confirmed and the following day LIzzeth and Eric
were going to be baptized and Lizzeth had asked that I return to
baptize her. They told me of how Eric was not sure if he wanted to get
baptized so they had a lesson on saturday before the interview. They
all knelt down and had Eric pray to know if he needed to get baptized.
They said the spirit was so strong and when the finished the Zone
Leaders walked in and asked who needed the baptismal interview, to
which Eric responded "I do". The wedding was so spiritual and Lizzeth
looked great all dressed in white. The ward came out in force bringing
food for afterward and to help support them. Lucero and Gabby came to
watch. As I sat there watching the wedding I felt the spirit very
strongly and it testified to me that marriage in ordained of God.
After the wedding we all moved into the primary room for the baptism.
Now I thought there was a lot of people there last week but this week
the room was packed. There were chairs from the back of the room all
the way up to the edge of the font. We counted more than 90 people
that had come to support them as they made this sacred covenant with
God. After the baptism I talked with Lucero for a bit and some other
members, some of which joked about being mad that I had not stopped by
to say goodbye when I was transfered. I took some pictures with my
hispanic family the Espinoza's and then went looking for Gabby. Gabby
has been meeting with missionaries for more than a year, but moved out
of the area in october. She texted us last monday saying she had moved
back and needed spiritual help. We met with her tuesday and I said
goodbye. Well at the baptism she came up to me and told me that nobody
knew but that she had decided after church that day that she was going
to get baptized and she told she wanted me to come back and baptize
her. I jumped up and down for joy and everybody looked at me funny. I
loved teaching her but when she moved away it stank, so I was so
excited to see her move back and decide to be baptized. Lucero is
doing great and said the confirmation was amazing. She is excited to
return to Mexico in 2 months and share what she has learned with her
family. All in all it was an amazing week! I am so happy right now!
The work is true and the only way to know it is to live it and
experience the joy that comes from it.

Love,
Elder Jolly

Jan 8, 2012

Wow is the only word I can think of to describe the experiences we have had this week. As I said in my last letter Lucero brought up the doubt on sunday about the Word of Wisdom and not wanting to give up coffee. Well on monday we went back over and gave what I thought was a great lesson listening and asking inspiried questions but she refused to give up the coffee. She said there is nothing wrong with it and that she wants to continue drinking it because it is something she just likes. I told her, that if she knews this was all true why give up all the blessings for a cup of coffee. She didnt budge! We comitted her to pray and know if it was something she should give up. We left that lesson a little frustrated because she has come so so far and now she may reject the blessings because she wants to continue drinking coffee. I knew and had the faith she would get an answer I was just afraid that she would not recognize the answer but I was proved wrong. The next day we went over for the lesson with Lucero and she told us about how when she was praying she didnt get an answer but that the next day as she was sitting on the bus she was thinking of all the other drinks she could drink. She still didnt want to give it up and was pretty stubourn about it. Finally I told her that she has felt the spirit stronger in the past weeks than she ever has in her life and that she would not be baptized if she would not give up the coffee. She looked a little shocked but then we talked about how she knows Joseph Smith is a prophet but she is doubting the revelation he recieved and how that doesnt make sense. We talked about the Spirit and how it has changed her. She began to cry, which means I also began to cry and she told us that what we said makes so much sense. She told us of how everytime we are with her everything makes so much sense but when we leave doubts flood into her mind. We testified of how the spirit is teaching her in the lessons but the spirit leaves with us, she wont have that gift until after her baptism. She began to cry more and asked "and if the doubts still come after I am baptized?" Faith was the answer, you have felt this is true and no man can take what you felt away, it is engraven in you and you will never forget it. She accepted and said you Elders are right. All week long after that leading up to her baptism we would get random texts from her that would say something like "I am so so so happy, I can't wait to get baptized, I wish it was sunday". Everytime the texts would come in it would put a smile on my face.

Thursday came, the day which we usually have a lesson with Lizzeth after the english class. We were greeted by an unexpected surprise. Lizzeth told us that the missionaries in the area which she lives in (5mins away but out of the mission) had knocked her door. She told them she was already meeting with us and that she didnt want to switch Elders.  I told her I would take care of it and that if I needed to I would call up there mission president and explain to him. So other than that everything is a go for their wedding and baptism this sunday.

Sunday was one of my favorite days of the mission thus far. Lucero was so excited for her baptism and you could see it in her face. It was fast and testimony meeting and Hna. Chavez got up and bore testimony to Lucero of how after baptism the doubts will still come but they come for us all but we know this work is true and we cannot deny it. We ran around all church to classes inviting people. After church we went over to Jackie Pauta's with some other people and made Bandeja Paisa (spelling) and natilla. Wow it tasted rico rico rico. We went to the baptism early to set up and prepare. Lucero had asked me to baptize her so I began to get nervous as the baptism neared because the people just came and came and came. I had to run to other rooms to bring more chairs. Then the sister missionaries from Temple Square, who had taken us on the tour with Lucero showed up. They were jumping for joy because this was the first baptism they had gone to. Usually they teach lessons on the phone until the missionaries in that part of the world arrive, but they said they never hear what happens after that. The baptismal service started and there was not even a place to stand. We had set up more than 70 chairs and there was still about 15 to 20 people standing in the back. The first talk was given by Lucero's cousin who is a member in a different ward, it was the perfect way to invite the spirit. Afterward, three ladies from the ward sang her a speacial musical number called "Mi amigo hallare" or 'My Friend I will find". When the song ended the spirit was so strong and as we stepped into the font Lucero had the biggest smile on her face and then stopped half way down the stairs and turned around to hug her cousin Mariana who was waiting at the edge of the font. She began to cry. The ordinance was performed and as she looked at me after the ordinance with tears in her eyes I couldnt help but think of everything we went through together. She was crying as she stepped out of the baptismal font and right as they curtains were closed and I was stepping out she broke down. She just hugged her cousin Mariana for several minutes bawling the spirit testified to me that she had done the right thing and that her family who are not members will be blessed and changed by the influence she will have on them. After a few minutes as I was about to walk into the changing room I looked over at Lucero who was still in her cousins arms in tears and said "Always remember that the Lord loves you, and I love you too" She smiled and I went in to change. After the baptism the sister missionaries, Sister Chavez and Sister Intriago told us how they had talked on the phone with Lucero's mom for over and hour and that Lucero's mom is going to start reading the Book of Mormon, because she saw the difference it made in her daughter. Her influence is already starting to spread!

I will never forget these experiences, I will never forget these people, I will never forget what I felt. It is something that fills me with a feeling of.... well I dont know how to explain it but it is the Spirit. Hermana Espinoza afterward told me "when she came out of the water she looked different, her countanace had changed. Lucero confirmed what Hna. Espinoza said she told us that when she came back up she felt different, she felt new, she felt clean, what she felt was the love our Heavenly Father has for her and I know that! I feel as though my Heavenly Father knows who I am and sent me here to Kearns not to help change Lucero's life but that she could help change mine. She has honestly changed my life, she had helped me understand better the presecence God has in our lives when we strive to grow closer to Him. I pray the Lord will allow me to have more similar experiences during the last bit of my mission. I pray that you may all feel His love and know that our Savior lives!

Love,

Elder Jolly

Dec 26, 2011

Lol no it didn't make me homesick at all, I sadly but honestly have to say I dont think I have really ever been homesick or really missed you guys since I got out on the mission. I love you guys with all my heart but I stay so busy and this is where my heart is right now. I hope when you say I look more filled out that is a good thing and you are not slidding in a fat joke.  I forgot to show you the gifts I got from Jackie and Lucero. Lucero got me this wicked awesome hat that is like the alaskan ones (well it makes me think of alaska) it has the long ear flaps and the "fur" on the inside. I absolutely love it. Lol she walked up and gave Elder Bolivar and I a hug the other day and it was weird but it felt nice to get a hug. The other day this member asked us to give her son a blessing so we went over and as I shook her hand she leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek, it is a hispanic thing so it was not like a sign of feelings plus she is like 40 but I am almost positive I turned red and was left shocked and confused at what had just taken place. So I am going to tell of the experience at temple square again so you can put it on the blog.

This past week I have seen the Spirit of God change a person faster than ever. I have seen someone go from believing God exists to knowing He exists and loves her. On moday we had a lesson with Lucero and it will be a lesson that I will not soon forget. She had some doctrinal questions that we had to clarify, thanks to the women in relief society that decided to go super deep in the lesson on Exaltation. She was understanding the answers we were giving her but then I felt prompted and Elder Bolivar picked up on it to that we needed to change the focus of the lesson. I began to testify about how she had felt the spirit very strongly in the previous lesson and testified that it was her answer. I testified that through all the trials she has had recently she should not be happy but she is and that is because she is growing closer to the Lord. Elder Bolivar then gave a great analogy of how we are as a ball of clay and little by little the Lord sculpts us into what we need to become. There was a spirit there so strong that I honestly dont even know how to describe it. Tears flowed freely from all our eyes except Elder Bolivar lol but he was close. Lucero then offered the closing kneeling prayer and as she pleaded and gave thank there was this strong prescence of love. I knew in that moment and will never be able to deny that God loves Lucero and all of us because I felt him there in that prayer. She paused and began to cry and she recognized what she was feeling. At the end of the prayer we stood up and I looked her in the eyes and told her "I know you felt that and you cannot deny it" she responded that she has felt it and then excused herself for a few second to dry her eyes. That lesson and the Spirit felt was engraven into my heart and mind and I have found myself pondering on it over the past week. Amazingly that experience was not the only one to be engraven in my heart and mind that week. We had recieved permission from the Assistants to take Lucero to temple square for a personal tour with the sister missionaries there. The tour started and as we were sitting in front of the Christus statue Lucero whispered to me that we hadnt had a prayer and that she would like to start with a prayer. I told the sisters and we had a prayer. The tour went well and all was great but at the very end we had an experience that well I just dont know how to describe, I will do my very best but I feel like words will never be able to explain in exact detail what happened and what we felt. We went to a demonstration called "God's Plan for Us" in the which there were six rooms with a short video following the life of a family as the kid grew up and as events happened in their life and how families are meant to last forever. As we entered the last room which showed the daughter getting married in the temple there was a very beautiful spirit. The sister missionaries gave Jackie and Lucero some tissues for their eyes. The sisters then bore powerful testimony of the importance of families. I then bore testimony to Lucero about the light that has come into her eyes as she had learned and grown. I told her of how recently I had been praying for some things that I needed help with and that through her the Lord had answered my prayers. Elder Bolivar followed with and outstanding testimony and then Jackie's son Sergio began to cry as he shared his feelings with us. The sisters then asked Lucero if she had anything she wanted to say. She broke down in tears as she told us how she will never forget us and all that we have done for her. She told us how she had felt so far from God for 7 years based on decisions she had made but that now she feels closer than she has ever been before. Right then we kneeled down in that room all by ourselves and Lucero began to pray and that same love overcame us. It was almost as if our Savior was in that room, we could feel Him we just couldnt see Him. As we got up and left Sergio commented how he had neve Lucero looked and me and said "I know you have a question for me" to which I responded "yep" she quickly replied "the answer is yes, I am ready to be baptized". Lucero will be baptized on Jan 8th and become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and place herself on the path that will lead her back to the presence of our Heavenly Father. I know this work is true, not only is the doctrine perfect but the Spirit is real and it has testified to my heart that all this is true. Once you have had this feeling you cannot deny it because you cannot get rid of the memory of how you felt. Only the spirit can make you feel that way. I know God loves us for I saw and was a witness of Him showing his love to one of His precious daughters. May we all place ourselves in a position to be instruments in the hands of the Lord, so that we may take part in bringing to pass His work and His glory.

Love,

Elder Jolly

Dec 5, 2011

well winter has arrived or at least the cold. Today the high is 27 and they said the wind chill could be as bad as -1. This past week we were able to enjoy a wonderfull mission conference in the which Elder Christofferson spoke to us along with two members of the seventy. Elder Christofferson has such a sense of humor. He was constantly making jokes teasing people. The conference was a question and answer session in which he would allow us to ask him anything we wanted to know. I was grateful that the missionaries kept all their questions appropriate. One sister missionary asked him what his favorite scripture was and his response reminded me of something Bro. Adams used to say all the time. He told us he had many but one of his favorites was in Heleman 6 so we all opened to it waiting for the verse when he said "well I find that sometimes scriptures move around on me and it seems this one has" after a few seconds he responded "yep it did move, chapter 3". I couldn't help but laugh as I thought of Brother Adams in seminary saying the exact samething. It helped me realized that those called of the Lord are not perfect people and do not have a perfect knowledge, they are real people and the Lord uses what abilities they have. He doesn't expect perfection, just as close to it as we can get and the attonement will cover for where we lack. After the conference we left for the parking lot and I noticed that Elder Christofferson has a nice car, a for Taurus 2011 but Elder Holmstrom had the better car, he went for the Toyota Avalon.

transfers have come and gone and Elder Bolivar and I are still in Kearns together. I have mixed reactions about it. I love Elder Bolivar and a lot of the members here but I have been here since June and that is along time for a tiny little area like this. I am excited because I wont have to spend Christmas in a new ward but I think by next transfer I will be ready for a new area. I am now the missionary that has the most time in the zone. They call me the Patriarch.

We had an awesome lesson with Liz and Erik Moran on thursday. Lizeth had brought up the concern that she doesnt believe Jehovah is Jesus Christ so she asked that we explain it to her. Before the lesson she told us that she knows that Jehovah is God. Five minutes and 2 scriptures later a shocked look appeared on her face and the words "ooooh" came out of her mouth. She sat their shocked starring at the chalk board and the drawing we had made to explain the scriptures. She then asked "how did you pull all that out of the scripture?" It is amazing at the things the Spirit can teach us, but it all begins with opening the book and studying not just reading words. We talked about their wedding and they set a firm date for Jan 2 and they are excited about baptism on the 7th of Jan. They both were at church on sunday and loved it. Liz announced in Relief Society that she is preparing to get baptized. Other than that the work is slow. We are still teaching Lucero but she is on the soon to be dropped list in my head unless she stops being ridiculous. She said everything we teach her is exactly what she needs and she feels great every time we teach her but she doesnt like church. She told us of how she was super close to God about 7 years ago but then left him and is trying to make her way back and we have helped her along the way but she still refuses to go to church and baptism. Tonight we have a lesson with her in the which I intend to be blunt a bold. She needs to realize that the Gospel is not just good info. It is neccesary info to do neccesary ordinances. The moment we stop teaching her that "closeness" to God will be gone because the Spirit leaves with us. She needs to understand that where she is now in life is not a place that will save her a spot in the Celestial Kingdom. She may get offended but she needs to hear it so wish us luck...

The Christmas First Presidency Devotional was amazing. When they showed clips from the New Testament videos that are coming out there was a powerful spirit. President Monson gave an amazing talk on how we cannot lose the spirit of Christ in Christmas because without Christ there is no Christmas. Lucero went and loved it so poco a poco. Sometimes the work moves along faster than others and right now is a slow time but as our Ward Mission Leader said "Sometimes the purification of a missionary is more important that the baptism that comes at the end" (in spanish of course). This is a purifying work.

Love,

Elder Jolly