Week 72: 201444444444!!

Familia!

2014....crazy stuff. I find new years on the mission isn't as exciting as back home. Everyone just went to bed. Obviously I wasn't just going to settle for going to bed on New Years Eve, so I set an alarm at 11:59 and started screaming "Happy New Years!!!" .....Nobody remembered it in the morning. Maybe I dreamed it?

Either way 2014 has been amazing so far, definitely full of miracles. As usually happens when a new year comes, I have been thinking about last year and all of the great things that have happened. I truly can say that my life for the eternities has been changed from the year of 2013. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity that I have had to serve the people here in Arizona. My testimony of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ has become ingrained in who I am. I have learned that becoming converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a constant process, and it comes only from applying His doctrines to our lives. I will forever be grateful for this last year, and I look forward to all of the opportunities that I have to serve Him in the year to come.

This week we finally got our videos out! I'm stoked for them. The "Meet your ASU Mormon Missionaries" was the first step in our plan, but we are planning to get a bunch of videos out with us around campus doing different things. Its going to be sweet. We're hoping that it gets the students a lot more involved with actively sharing the Gospel online. Especially working with the YSA it can have a huge impact.

This week as well I had a chance to go back to Casa Grande to baptize one of my investigators from about a year ago. I remember our lesson with Amber Powers was the very first lesson that I had when I got there. I don't think you can really describe Amber. She has fiery red dyed hair.....well I guess that describes her pretty well. haha. I was only able to spend 5 weeks in Casa Grande due to the shortened transfer, but being able to go back this last Saturday I was able to see a completely different person. Amber still had fiery red dyed hair, but who she was had completely transformed. As she grew closer to our Savior, a change occurred.

It is something that I have been able to see time and time again on my mission. As we allow Christ to enter into our lives and access His Atonement, we are transformed and become the person that our Father in Heaven knows we can be. It is something that He offers to each of us, and all we have to do is let the conversion take place.

Yesterday was our first fast and testimony meeting in the Town Lake ward, and so I wanted to bear my testimony. As I got up there I wasn't really too sure what I wanted to talk about, but then the topic of following the promptings of the Holy Ghost came to mind. I talked about experiences during my mission when I had followed promptings and to my view nothing really happened, but then other experiences that I had where I followed a prompting and miracles happened. I feel like sometimes we may never know the extent of things that happen as we follow promptings, but I know that as we do, great things happen.

After sacrament meeting our investigator Eric came up to me and said, "Hey man, what was that word you said in your testimony?" I wasn't too sure what he was talking about and so I said, "The Holy Ghost." "No no no," he said, "the other word." Eventually we figured out the word he was looking for was prompting. He said, "Ya man, I totally had one of those a week ago." Apparently Eric had a craving for a hamburger, and so obviously he wanted to go to his favorite hamburger joint. As he went and ordered his Hamburger, a family caught his eye. He just felt like he needed to talk to them, but he kept coming up with excuses. He continued to make excuses until eventually he left. About a mile down the road he thought about that family again and just knew that he had to go back and talk to them.

As he got to the restaurant the family was just about to get into their car. He ran up to them and said, "Look, I'm not sure why I need to talk to you, but I wanted to give you this." and handed him a Book of Mormon. The man got a huge smile on his face and in English Eric could barely understand he said thank you and gave Eric a hug. Eric told us that he had no idea that it was a "prompting" until we had talked about it but it made him realize that he was able to play a part in God's plan.

I find it interesting that our Heavenly Father relies on each and every one of us so much. To carry out His perfected plan, He works through us. I'm thankful for promptings from the Holy Ghost. I know that as we act upon them, no matter what result we see, a miracle has happened from our obedience. I'm thankful for all of you! You're all the best examples to me.

Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier