Anziano JarDee Nessen Italy Rome Mission : October 3rd, 2016 // #40 of 2016

October 3rd, 2016 // #40 of 2016

Hi Everyone!

General Conference...Wow. President Monson is my hero. I love that guy. Truly, we are so blessed and fortunate to have a prophet here upon the earth today. The messages were powerful, truly powerful. If I pulled one thing from the conference, it would be the importance of prayer, and praying from the heart. I hope you all were able to catch a session or two. It is definitely worth the two hours. Here in the mission field General Conference Weekend has become like Super Bowl Sunday for me!

This morning at 7:00, we shipped Elder Borough off on a train heading towards Rome. He has finished his mission and will be returning home tomorrow morning. It was a pleasure to serve with the Southern Californian. He taught me many things, many things, but strangely enough he never had to use many words while teaching me those lessons.

I've never learned so much, from someone who spoke so little. It was a pleasure to see how he finished his mission, working just as hard as he was over a year ago when I met him for the first time. I hope to finish my mission the same way. He is a disciple, and I love the kid.

If I come home 1/4 of the man that he is going home as, I will consider the time here in the mission field well spent. Lucky for me, he will be attending BYU Provo and so we will be able to meet up in the near future. Again, what a pleasure it has been to serve with Elder Borough.

This last week was a good one, a real good one actually. Here are a few of the things that happened this last week.

Monday morning, we got all of the missionaries here in Bari together and we played some volleyball. It was a lot of fun and we had a good time. Tuesday morning we had a District Meeting at the Senior Couples apartment. They cooked us a whole bunch of pancakes with real syrup. I was in heaven. I ate my fair share of them, and they even made me a Mickey Mouse pancake. The district meeting was powerful. Elder Borough gave his last training and the spirit was very strong. We all walked away from that meeting ready to take on another week.

Tuesday evening we were doing some park finding, and we came across a woman who was around 60 years old and her two daughters. We began talking with them and shared a short video on Jesus Christ. They wanted to know more, but sadly we didn't have enough time. We set a return appointment and were able to see them later on in the week and teach them the Restoration. They were the first people that I have taught in a long time that actually understood the Great Apostasy. We testified that God has indeed called Prophets and Apostles in these latter days. We testified of the power of the Book of Mormon and the importance of a modern day prophet. They were pumped, and we were as well. Sadly they were unable to make it to General conference because one of the daughters is getting ready to have another baby, and the other daughter had to work. We will be seeing them this week sometime, and we plan on teaching them about the divine plan of happiness that our Father in Heaven has prepared for each and every one of us. We are excited for this family. They are humble and they are willing to listen.

A few weeks ago, Elder Borough and I, met a family in the park and we taught them a lesson on the park bench. We have tried to set up another appointment with them since that day, but they are really busy. Friday evening they asked us if they could introduce us to their entire family and some of their relatives. We said, "OF COURSE!!"

Friday evening we met these two families, and even some of their friends. We walked for a good while and Elder Borough and I answered all of the questions that they asked us. It was awesome. They praised us for what we do, and all of them have a desire to learn more. At the end, we sat down on some steps and we shared a message about Jesus Christ. Elder Borough and I testified that Christ loves us, that He knows us and that He will fight for us. They bought us some really awesome gelato and we headed home. As we were saying our goodbyes they were saddened that Elder Borough would be leaving but excited that I would be remaining. They asked, "Are you allowed to come to our home and eat lunch with us?" I just smiled and replied, "I mean, if you really want to yes..." Haha. That family is incredible, and I am hoping to see them again sometime soon. They have a light about them, and honestly I feel like they should already be Mormons.

To close out this email today, because I am low on time once again...

I would like to share what happened on Thursday when we traveled out to Trani to see Lucia and Marianna. The week before last week, we found out that Lucia was pregnant. Last Thursday we sat down and I said..."CONGRATS!!!!" and the room stayed quiet. We then discovered that she ended up losing the baby. I felt like an idiot for being so insensitive and wanted to crawl into a hole... We had planned on teaching them the importance of the Sabbath, but instead pulled an audible and talked about the mountains that we climb in this life.

That morning, I had studied many different scriptures that promise that the Lord will fight for us. We may go through some hard times and shed a few tears, but He has promised that He will never abandon us.

One of my favorite scriptures comes from the Old Testament. It's found in Exodus 14:14 which says..."the Lord shall fight for you". We testified to them that often times trials come our way when we are approaching a major event in our life, such as baptism, and that trials may come our way shortly after we have made sacred promises with the Lord....but we also testified that we will never go through those dark and sometimes even painful times alone. It was a powerful lesson, and the spirit was there with us, guiding our words and our thoughts.

Family and Friends, it is my testimony that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the World. He loves us, with a perfect love. He knows us. He knows of our fears, of our doubts and of the wind and the waves that come our way in this life. Sometimes we feel as if we are in a boat out at sea that is being shook, driven and tossed about by the wind and the waves of this life...but let us remember that that wind and those waves obey His voice. We my be tried, and even stretched at times, but He will always be onboard, ready to lend a hand or calm the troubled waters. HE truly, truly, loves us. I pray that each of you will feel of that love today.

I wish you all a wonderful week. I'm praying for you and I'm grateful for all of the love and support that I receive from each of you. Be strong, and Be Kind. Take care.

Much Love,

Jard