Familia!
Who would've ever thought that they were real??? "Sleep tight" they say, "Don't let the bed bugs bight." How in the world are you supposed to sleep tight when you know there are bed bugs all over the place? Did you even know they were real? I sure didn't! With Elder Kloepfer being in a trio we had to add another bed to our apartment. The housing coordinators went to a home they recently shut down in Phoenix and grabbed a bed from there and brought it over. The funny thing about it is that Elder Oscarson and Elder Forson, another missionary that we live with, fought over who would take the new bed. I won't lie, it was a pretty nice bed, but definitely not worth it. Elder Oscarson won the debate, but in the long run, Elder Forson definitely won. Elder Kloepfer escaped with 0 bites, the rest of us got 1, and then Elder Oscarson looked like he had chicken pox. Someone has to provide a meal for those little guys though, right? So, this week was fairly eventful. Lots of teaching, throwing away some beds, spraying our apartment, and meetings. Life is good.
This week we went on exchanges back to Phoenix, man I love that place. The people you meet there...they're incredible. Some of the craziest stories from my mission come from Phoenix. The thing that I love about it though is that pretty much everyone there speaks Spanish. I've definitely missed serving in a Spanish ward and so it was nice to get back into it a little bit. I was so stoked to finally get a home cooked Mexican meal and then we had Sandwiches.... at least they put Jalapenos on them haha. It was a little bit of a different exchange and I just tagged along with two elders. One of them had PTSD and about an hour into the exchange he had an episode. Luckily the companion had been there for a previous one and knew how to take care of it all. We had to wait there while he came out of it himself. We went back to the apartment and the elder who had the attack went to sleep for a bit while the other elder and I talked for about two hours. We then went to dinner and the other elder still wasn't feeling too well so I went back to the apartment with him while his companion went out to do visits with a member. The elder I was with didn't want to go back to bed because he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep throughout the night if he did, so I had the chance to just sit and talk for about 3 hours with this elder. The first elder I talked to had been out for about 23 months, the second didn't have too much time in the field. It was a day that I won't forget. I sat there in the first conversation picking the elders brain who had been out for 23 months, trying to learn all I could from him before he went home. Then in the evening it was a complete role reversal as this younger missionary asked me questions about my mission. It was nice to reflect on the miracles that I had seen, the lessons that I have learned, and the change that I've gone through. My entire perspective of life has been change by these last 20 months and I know that there is still much to learn in the months to come.
Yesterday Jasmine asked me if I would baptize her. I'm so excited for Friday. Its a day that has been in the works for a very, very long time. As I've thought about this entire process that we've gone through with her, I've been able to reflect a lot about the answers I've received as we've met with her. I counted and we have had about 70 lessons with Jasmine in the last 6 months. In preach my gospel, there are 4 lessons that missionaries usually teach before baptism.... and we've had 70. It was amazing as we would cluelessly spend time before lessons wondering what we could possible talk about with her and then as we kneel in prayer instantly we knew what to do. I remember, time and time again as we prayed for her I would just have an overwhelming feeling come over me and know that it was all in His hands and that He would take care of it all. He definitely has, and I know that He will continue to take care of her. I know that our Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ will always be there for us. They are not a light at the end of the tunnel, rather they are the light that guide us through. It has been clear to see this simple truth through Jasmine's journey, and I know its a truth that applies to us all.
I love you all!
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
Monday, April 28, 2014
Monday, April 21, 2014
Week 87: The Miracle of People
Familia!
Man, what an awesome time of the year. Easter is incredible. The past several months have been awesome for our mission. We went from the Christmas lights at the Mesa Temple, to the open house of the Gilbert Temple, to the Easter Pageant. Life is good as an Arizona Tempe Missionary.
We were able to go to the Easter Pageant three times this last week. We went once with Jasmine and her roommates, once with our investigator Christian who will be baptized on the 3rd, and then another time with a couple of our member's friends that we are going to start teaching. The entire thing was so powerful. Its incredible to not only hear but see all of the things leading up to the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I'm so thankful for the life that He lived. Because of Him we are able to be who we were created to be. Because of Him we don't have to be weighed down by the difficulties and struggles that we find in this life. The most powerful part was the ending scene as Christ in His resurrected, perfected form rose high above the stage. I think so many times in this life we lose track of why we are truly here and get caught up in the mundane things of the world. It was a blessing for me to recognize what truly was important to me this Easter Season. I look forward to the day when He comes. I know as we apply His sacrifice to our lives we will all be ready for that glorious coming.
This week has been an awesome week for Jasmine. She has really struggled a lot lately at knowing what she needed to do and this week was able to take a step back and really gather herself. We met Wednesday after going to the Easter Pageant with her and had a really good conversation with her. I asked Jasmine what she wanted God to tell her, what answers she was seeking for. She listed a couple of different things and then I asked her, "Ok, now what does God NEED to tell you?" She sat there for a few minutes thinking about it and I felt a prompting to go over the baptismal interview questions with her without her knowing. So, I started, "Jasmine, do you believe that God is your Heavenly Father?" and continued down the line. She bore testimony of what it meant for her to be a daughter of God. She bore testimony of Jesus Christ as her Savior and Redeemer, as her friend, and she bore testimony of the Restored Gospel. We talked about the commandments, and how they are God's guidelines to help us become. She testified that she lives the commandments out of a love for her Father. As we finished going through the questions, we were able to bear solemn testimony of what she had just told us. We told Jasmine that what she needed, she had already received. She told us that she had really avoided asking about Baptism with an earnest desire to receive an answer and that it was something that she would do. The next day was huge for Jasmine. She was able to spend a lot of time journaling and praying about what her next step was. We met later that night an had a lesson that I will never forget. She told us that after several hours of praying and journaling she felt like she needed to call her parents. They were at work, and so she called her dad first and said while crying, "Dad, I think I'm going to be a mormon." He responded, "Well why are you crying?" haha. She expressed to him her fears that she had, that she didn't want it to tear apart her family, and he said, "Jasmine, I want the best for you. If this is what is going to bring out your best and help you find the best, its what you deserve." She later got ahold of her mom and told her mom the same exact thing. When Jasmine became a Christian, her family was not very happy about the decision that she made and it caused a lot of tension in her home. Her mom told her, "Jasmine, I'm thankful that we are getting a second chance to do things right this time as a family." Then she preceded to tell us, "so, I guess that I'm ready to get baptized." She said she had a lot of concerns and a lot of unanswered questions, but she knew that it was what God was asking her to do. I have been forever changed from the opportunity to know Jasmine. Her faith is incredible, and has changed the way that I look at a lot of things. Her number one desire is to do her Father's will, and she will always put her own thoughts and desires to the side to do what she knows needs done. She is going to make a huge impact in this church, and is going to help so many others come to know Christ in a more meaningful and personal way as she has done for me.
One of my favorite things that I have been able to on my mission is to develop everlasting friendships with people. Whether that is people from Coolidge, Tempe, Phoenix, or Casa Grande, I will forever be changed by the people I have met. It is a miracle to me that from a mere 2 minute conversation on the street, you can become so close to people. Thats how it all started outside of the ASU institute with Jasmine. Everyone that we meet in this life was placed there for a specific reason and purpose. We become more fully who we are meant to be as we learn and grow from them. I know I am more fully who I am meant to be because of Jasmine.
I love you all, thank you for everything you're doing.
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
Man, what an awesome time of the year. Easter is incredible. The past several months have been awesome for our mission. We went from the Christmas lights at the Mesa Temple, to the open house of the Gilbert Temple, to the Easter Pageant. Life is good as an Arizona Tempe Missionary.
We were able to go to the Easter Pageant three times this last week. We went once with Jasmine and her roommates, once with our investigator Christian who will be baptized on the 3rd, and then another time with a couple of our member's friends that we are going to start teaching. The entire thing was so powerful. Its incredible to not only hear but see all of the things leading up to the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I'm so thankful for the life that He lived. Because of Him we are able to be who we were created to be. Because of Him we don't have to be weighed down by the difficulties and struggles that we find in this life. The most powerful part was the ending scene as Christ in His resurrected, perfected form rose high above the stage. I think so many times in this life we lose track of why we are truly here and get caught up in the mundane things of the world. It was a blessing for me to recognize what truly was important to me this Easter Season. I look forward to the day when He comes. I know as we apply His sacrifice to our lives we will all be ready for that glorious coming.
This week has been an awesome week for Jasmine. She has really struggled a lot lately at knowing what she needed to do and this week was able to take a step back and really gather herself. We met Wednesday after going to the Easter Pageant with her and had a really good conversation with her. I asked Jasmine what she wanted God to tell her, what answers she was seeking for. She listed a couple of different things and then I asked her, "Ok, now what does God NEED to tell you?" She sat there for a few minutes thinking about it and I felt a prompting to go over the baptismal interview questions with her without her knowing. So, I started, "Jasmine, do you believe that God is your Heavenly Father?" and continued down the line. She bore testimony of what it meant for her to be a daughter of God. She bore testimony of Jesus Christ as her Savior and Redeemer, as her friend, and she bore testimony of the Restored Gospel. We talked about the commandments, and how they are God's guidelines to help us become. She testified that she lives the commandments out of a love for her Father. As we finished going through the questions, we were able to bear solemn testimony of what she had just told us. We told Jasmine that what she needed, she had already received. She told us that she had really avoided asking about Baptism with an earnest desire to receive an answer and that it was something that she would do. The next day was huge for Jasmine. She was able to spend a lot of time journaling and praying about what her next step was. We met later that night an had a lesson that I will never forget. She told us that after several hours of praying and journaling she felt like she needed to call her parents. They were at work, and so she called her dad first and said while crying, "Dad, I think I'm going to be a mormon." He responded, "Well why are you crying?" haha. She expressed to him her fears that she had, that she didn't want it to tear apart her family, and he said, "Jasmine, I want the best for you. If this is what is going to bring out your best and help you find the best, its what you deserve." She later got ahold of her mom and told her mom the same exact thing. When Jasmine became a Christian, her family was not very happy about the decision that she made and it caused a lot of tension in her home. Her mom told her, "Jasmine, I'm thankful that we are getting a second chance to do things right this time as a family." Then she preceded to tell us, "so, I guess that I'm ready to get baptized." She said she had a lot of concerns and a lot of unanswered questions, but she knew that it was what God was asking her to do. I have been forever changed from the opportunity to know Jasmine. Her faith is incredible, and has changed the way that I look at a lot of things. Her number one desire is to do her Father's will, and she will always put her own thoughts and desires to the side to do what she knows needs done. She is going to make a huge impact in this church, and is going to help so many others come to know Christ in a more meaningful and personal way as she has done for me.
One of my favorite things that I have been able to on my mission is to develop everlasting friendships with people. Whether that is people from Coolidge, Tempe, Phoenix, or Casa Grande, I will forever be changed by the people I have met. It is a miracle to me that from a mere 2 minute conversation on the street, you can become so close to people. Thats how it all started outside of the ASU institute with Jasmine. Everyone that we meet in this life was placed there for a specific reason and purpose. We become more fully who we are meant to be as we learn and grow from them. I know I am more fully who I am meant to be because of Jasmine.
I love you all, thank you for everything you're doing.
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
Monday, April 14, 2014
Week 86: The Book of Mormon, What a Book!
Familia!
The late nights, the early mornings, man I love transfer week! This transfer was one of the biggest that we have ever had. To start the process of transfers President Toone said, "Alright, now we are going to try to keep this one small." Its funny how it always works out like that. So, after one of the biggest transfers that we have ever had, President and Sister Toone let us know that they had a Mission Presidents Conference in Texas they were headed to so they were turning the mission over to us three. So for four days Elder Kloepfer, Elder Oscarson, and I ran the mission. Lets just say I was real happy to see President and Sister Toone last night. Those two are incredible. They wanted to meet with us at 7:30 last night to catch up with the mission and talk about some of the things that they had learned while they were away, so over a dinner and brownies we spent about two hours last night just talking to them. They are huge examples in my life and I think one of the biggest blessings that we have as assistants is to be able to spend so much time with them.
Once the craziness of transfers had all wrapped up, we finally had some time to work in our area which was awesome! We haven't really had any down time the past couple weeks where we could just go out and find more people to teach. With the time that we have had in our area we have just been going to teaching appointment to teaching appointment, but it was nice to be able to settle down for a second and get some things figured out. We were able to find two awesome new investigators which have a ton of desire to learn more about the Gospel. Christian is a Christian, pretty cool, and Brandon hasn't had a ton of religious background. They both really connected with the idea of having a modern day prophet. How thankful I am to be guided by a Prophet of God. I know that at any time Christ's church in its fullness has been upon this earth, it has been guided and directed by a prophet.
This week as we met again with Jasmine several times we were able to have a ton of progress. Conference was so crucial for her, and so we were excited to follow up with her and see what answers she received. As we met with her on Wednesday, we had a recent convert from another ward come and bear powerful testimony of what the Restoration means to him. Jasmine told us that she might believe that President Monson was a prophet, but she just had these other concerns that were holding her back. The way that Jasmine gets answers is pretty incredible. She sits down and prays and writes in her journal and what she writes is exactly what her answer needs to be. She hadn't really had an opportunity to journal yet, and so we invited her to take some time to do so. When Jasmine is really seeking for answers, she likes to go to the temple, so Friday before we met again she spent all afternoon there. As we met Friday you could tell that there was something a little different about Jasmine. She told us as she went to the temple and prayed the thought came to her mind that she should write herself a letter from God, so she sat down and started to write. It was awesome to see as she read us the letter she wrote and walked us through what her thoughts were as she was writing. Part of the letter said something along the lines of, "Jasmine, I need you to put all your concerns in a bag and just put them aside." She said after she wrote that it took about 20 minutes until she really felt like she had done so, and then she continued to write. The next portion started, "Jasmine, why would I not work in the same way that I have always worked? Why would I not call a prophet to guide and direct my people? Why would the authority not be important? Why wouldn't I call President Monson to be a Prophet?" She said as she wrote these questions the spirit just came in so strong and confirmed to her that President Monson truly was a modern day prophet.
It has been amazing to see the process that Jasmine has gone through the past 5 months. The Book of Mormon is known as the Key Stone of our religion and it is pretty easy to see why in the journey Jasmine has been on. As another witness of Christ, The Book of Mormon strengthened the faith that she already had in Christ. As her faith was strengthened she was able to come to know that the Book of Mormon truly was scripture. As she came to understand this key element, she later was lead to know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that we are lead and guided today by President Monson as well acting under the direction of Christ as our Prophet on the earth today. All of these miracles were made possible through the Book of Mormon. I'm so thankful for this book of scripture. There truly is no concern, no doubt, no problem that cannot be overcome by this book. Hand in hand with the Bible we can come to understand our Savior in a deeper, more personal level than through any other means. I'm thankful for the life that He lived, and the records that we have to learn of it.
You're all the best!
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
The late nights, the early mornings, man I love transfer week! This transfer was one of the biggest that we have ever had. To start the process of transfers President Toone said, "Alright, now we are going to try to keep this one small." Its funny how it always works out like that. So, after one of the biggest transfers that we have ever had, President and Sister Toone let us know that they had a Mission Presidents Conference in Texas they were headed to so they were turning the mission over to us three. So for four days Elder Kloepfer, Elder Oscarson, and I ran the mission. Lets just say I was real happy to see President and Sister Toone last night. Those two are incredible. They wanted to meet with us at 7:30 last night to catch up with the mission and talk about some of the things that they had learned while they were away, so over a dinner and brownies we spent about two hours last night just talking to them. They are huge examples in my life and I think one of the biggest blessings that we have as assistants is to be able to spend so much time with them.
Once the craziness of transfers had all wrapped up, we finally had some time to work in our area which was awesome! We haven't really had any down time the past couple weeks where we could just go out and find more people to teach. With the time that we have had in our area we have just been going to teaching appointment to teaching appointment, but it was nice to be able to settle down for a second and get some things figured out. We were able to find two awesome new investigators which have a ton of desire to learn more about the Gospel. Christian is a Christian, pretty cool, and Brandon hasn't had a ton of religious background. They both really connected with the idea of having a modern day prophet. How thankful I am to be guided by a Prophet of God. I know that at any time Christ's church in its fullness has been upon this earth, it has been guided and directed by a prophet.
This week as we met again with Jasmine several times we were able to have a ton of progress. Conference was so crucial for her, and so we were excited to follow up with her and see what answers she received. As we met with her on Wednesday, we had a recent convert from another ward come and bear powerful testimony of what the Restoration means to him. Jasmine told us that she might believe that President Monson was a prophet, but she just had these other concerns that were holding her back. The way that Jasmine gets answers is pretty incredible. She sits down and prays and writes in her journal and what she writes is exactly what her answer needs to be. She hadn't really had an opportunity to journal yet, and so we invited her to take some time to do so. When Jasmine is really seeking for answers, she likes to go to the temple, so Friday before we met again she spent all afternoon there. As we met Friday you could tell that there was something a little different about Jasmine. She told us as she went to the temple and prayed the thought came to her mind that she should write herself a letter from God, so she sat down and started to write. It was awesome to see as she read us the letter she wrote and walked us through what her thoughts were as she was writing. Part of the letter said something along the lines of, "Jasmine, I need you to put all your concerns in a bag and just put them aside." She said after she wrote that it took about 20 minutes until she really felt like she had done so, and then she continued to write. The next portion started, "Jasmine, why would I not work in the same way that I have always worked? Why would I not call a prophet to guide and direct my people? Why would the authority not be important? Why wouldn't I call President Monson to be a Prophet?" She said as she wrote these questions the spirit just came in so strong and confirmed to her that President Monson truly was a modern day prophet.
It has been amazing to see the process that Jasmine has gone through the past 5 months. The Book of Mormon is known as the Key Stone of our religion and it is pretty easy to see why in the journey Jasmine has been on. As another witness of Christ, The Book of Mormon strengthened the faith that she already had in Christ. As her faith was strengthened she was able to come to know that the Book of Mormon truly was scripture. As she came to understand this key element, she later was lead to know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that we are lead and guided today by President Monson as well acting under the direction of Christ as our Prophet on the earth today. All of these miracles were made possible through the Book of Mormon. I'm so thankful for this book of scripture. There truly is no concern, no doubt, no problem that cannot be overcome by this book. Hand in hand with the Bible we can come to understand our Savior in a deeper, more personal level than through any other means. I'm thankful for the life that He lived, and the records that we have to learn of it.
You're all the best!
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
Monday, April 7, 2014
Week 85: The Missing Peace
Familia!
This week was one to remember, that's for sure. Conference was incredible. There really is no better way to end a week than to hear from the prophet and apostles.
Since conference was coming up we wanted to prepare all of our investigators and recent converts as best we could. I found it was the most prepared that I have ever been as well. We spent a lot of time meeting with Jasmine this week to prepare for conference and it was definitely worth it. We talked about the role conference plays in our life, read a couple of talks, talked about different ways to prepare, we tried to do everything we could think of. She even decided that all week when she would usually be listening to music she would listen to conference talks. We promised Jasmine that President Monson would speak about something that would be specific to her, something that she needed specifically at that point in her life. Since day one Jasmine has talked about how important it is to "Love God, Love everyone else, and nothing else matters." Pretty incredible that President Monson spoke the entire time about that isn't it. Before conference started, Jasmine said that she was just so torn inside. She has been being pulled in two directions for the past 4 months and she had no idea what she needed to do. She said that she just wanted to finally feel some peace. As President Monson closed the conference he said, "May God bless you, may His promised peace be with you now and always." Its pretty incredible how powerful conference is. Its amazing that even though its a message given to the entire world, it is designed specifically for each and every one of us. I'm so thankful to have a prophet of God on the earth today.
And so between conference and preparing our investigators for conference, the rest of the time was spent working on the transfer board for transfers this week. I'll tell you what, it was quite the process. Usually transfers seem to go fairly easy, this one was completely opposite. President Toone's vision the entire time has been for Elder Oscarson and I to spend the last two transfers of our mission out in the field training. Well, this transfer coming up being Elder Oscarson's 2nd to last, it was time for him to go. The more we talked about it however, the less right it felt. However, we continued forward with the plan. We moved the entire mission around to where we thought things were right and thought we were pretty much finished by the time Sunday Morning Session of General Conference rolled around. As we met after General Conference, for some reason we still felt really uneasy about it all. We couldn't figure out what it was and it seemed like we moved everyone around in every single position. Still, nothing felt right. As we moved Elder Oscarson back to serving with me, things started to feel a little bit better but still not the confirmation we were seeking for. And then it finally came as we put none other than Elder Kloepfer in a trio companionship with Elder Oscarson and I!! Things are good here in the Arizona Tempe Mission, I'll tell you what. I've always felt like someday Elder Kloepfer and I would serve together, but I didn't really want to say anything to President Toone to sway his opinion one way or another, I always wanted it to be something that was straight from God. Who would have known that little 'ol Keane and Kevin would one day be serving together as Elder Kloepfer and Elder Jurgensmeier. I'm stoked! I know that good things are in store. There is a ton I know I have to learn from both Elder Kloepfer and Elder Oscarson, I know that miracles are going to happen.
I love you all! Thank you for all your prayer!
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
This week was one to remember, that's for sure. Conference was incredible. There really is no better way to end a week than to hear from the prophet and apostles.
Since conference was coming up we wanted to prepare all of our investigators and recent converts as best we could. I found it was the most prepared that I have ever been as well. We spent a lot of time meeting with Jasmine this week to prepare for conference and it was definitely worth it. We talked about the role conference plays in our life, read a couple of talks, talked about different ways to prepare, we tried to do everything we could think of. She even decided that all week when she would usually be listening to music she would listen to conference talks. We promised Jasmine that President Monson would speak about something that would be specific to her, something that she needed specifically at that point in her life. Since day one Jasmine has talked about how important it is to "Love God, Love everyone else, and nothing else matters." Pretty incredible that President Monson spoke the entire time about that isn't it. Before conference started, Jasmine said that she was just so torn inside. She has been being pulled in two directions for the past 4 months and she had no idea what she needed to do. She said that she just wanted to finally feel some peace. As President Monson closed the conference he said, "May God bless you, may His promised peace be with you now and always." Its pretty incredible how powerful conference is. Its amazing that even though its a message given to the entire world, it is designed specifically for each and every one of us. I'm so thankful to have a prophet of God on the earth today.
And so between conference and preparing our investigators for conference, the rest of the time was spent working on the transfer board for transfers this week. I'll tell you what, it was quite the process. Usually transfers seem to go fairly easy, this one was completely opposite. President Toone's vision the entire time has been for Elder Oscarson and I to spend the last two transfers of our mission out in the field training. Well, this transfer coming up being Elder Oscarson's 2nd to last, it was time for him to go. The more we talked about it however, the less right it felt. However, we continued forward with the plan. We moved the entire mission around to where we thought things were right and thought we were pretty much finished by the time Sunday Morning Session of General Conference rolled around. As we met after General Conference, for some reason we still felt really uneasy about it all. We couldn't figure out what it was and it seemed like we moved everyone around in every single position. Still, nothing felt right. As we moved Elder Oscarson back to serving with me, things started to feel a little bit better but still not the confirmation we were seeking for. And then it finally came as we put none other than Elder Kloepfer in a trio companionship with Elder Oscarson and I!! Things are good here in the Arizona Tempe Mission, I'll tell you what. I've always felt like someday Elder Kloepfer and I would serve together, but I didn't really want to say anything to President Toone to sway his opinion one way or another, I always wanted it to be something that was straight from God. Who would have known that little 'ol Keane and Kevin would one day be serving together as Elder Kloepfer and Elder Jurgensmeier. I'm stoked! I know that good things are in store. There is a ton I know I have to learn from both Elder Kloepfer and Elder Oscarson, I know that miracles are going to happen.
I love you all! Thank you for all your prayer!
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
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