The Promised Land

Happy Fourth Friends!! I don't have much time but just wanted to share a quick tender mercy.

We went on an exchange with sisters in Brewton AL. Our appointment fell through so we tried the neighbors to see if they knew if they were in town/meet them! She was not having it and barely cracked her door. As we were introducing ourselfs she said thanks and shut the door ha. We started to walk away and i knew we couldn't give up that easy. We went back and knocked it again. Gave here our info and asked for referrals. She pointed to her two neighbors. The first trailor was a no go. As we moved on to the second house, barbra greeted us with hesitancy but then something flipped and she let us right in.

We ended up teaching her the restoration and setting a baptismal date. The lord provides!! 

The love continued when we met an AWESOME guy while he was tanning his feet on the side walk. He reminded me of the hobbit. He ran and got his dog for us to show us his pride and joy.

Note to self: dont ask if you can hold a dog who come to find out was fed a joint for dinner the night before, because when you give the pup to your companion it may cry while peeing all over her. 

I hadn't laughed that hard in a long time!!

I love you all so much.  I know God is in the work of every piece of this Life. Keep reading. Keep praying. Keeping seeking.

Love Sister Jackson:)

Dark Stormy Nights at Waffle House

Hey Yall. Happiest of Mondays. 

This week had some wild storms and memories. It is the small moments where time stands still and you just feel gratitude to be out here, that i live for now a days. 

One happened on an exchange with Sister Baker. Its been pouring buckets lately here. One evening after eating dinner it was getting late and we both were drenched head to toe from from the day. We swung into waffle house to try to tract down one of our former investigators who we lost contact with that works there. We ran in there drenched. It was late and only the workers were inside. We ended up contacting every one of the workers all with individual heart touching stories. One girl had dropped out of highschool to take care of her mom who passed away. Another lady was in tears with nostalgia from her journey with God. It felt so natural to testify and teach as if i were standing there talking with my friends from home. How i LOVE this work. Later on i realized friends from home they really were. 

Another cool experience happened at a door step where we were able to talk to a kid from California who was atheist and had no desire to know if there was a God. After an hour back and forth of questions from the heavens he was able to say his very first prayer in his life. 

Afterwards he said "im confused." "I don't understand why I just did what i did." The spirit is so cool. Surely we were accompanied by it that day. 

I love you. Thanks for being the absolute best. Jesus Christ loves and lives. Be bold for what you love!

Love,

Sister Jackson

ALSO if you have some spare minutes go give Dealing With Uncertainty by Bruce C. Hafen a read. One of my new favorite talks:) 

Happy Fathers DAY!

Hello loved ones. I hope you all had a wonderful Father's Day. It was bitter sweet being away from home in the arms of my Hero of a Dad. Yet i felt such a love and closeness to my Heavenly Father. How grateful I am.

As i was studying for an Exchange this week i came across Romans 8:28 

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."

It hit home because in the chaos of life and the internal battles we all fight daily it comes down to the simple promise that ALL things work together for good when we love God. And when we truly truly love God with all that we are, our lives and purposes will fall into His will. 

I am grateful for the opportunity He gives all of us to find our selves and find out what His personal will is for us. It is a beautiful, intimate journey!

I love you all. Keep reading. Keep praying. Keep searching. You will find Him.

Sister Jackson!

 

Johnny my Diabetic buddy on and exchange in Brewton Alabama hah! 

Sister Hulstine and I reunited!

So on one of my last days in Madison we were driving home and there was a huge family reunion outside a house and i had the internal battle to pull over or not to talk to them( Huge groups intimidate me ha) Anywho we did and showed a mom and a nother lady the prince of peace video. Sister Hulstine my old comp sent me this pic and the son got baptized last week. Cool huh! 

This is Real.

Hello!!

Gosh this week was incredible. Elder Uceda from the 70 (spoke last conference about missionaries at Machu Pichu) visited the mission. I wish you all could just sit in on some of these meetings because at times the spirit almost feels tangible. I promise. It is the coolest. He is a humble, inspired man of God. 

One of my most cherished memories of my mission happened this week. Words can not and will never do justice but i am going to attempt to try. 

I went up to Tallahassee for an exchange with Sister Leavitte. We were in a smaller part of town and all our appointments fell through so we were just contacting. Inside some of the doors reminded me of my days in Africa. 

Many City workers were mowing lawns and such and as we stopped each one of them they were not interested. As we began walking back to where we had left our car to head to our next appointment we said lets try one more person. Then we met Gary. He said "so whats your message? I know God stopped me for a reason today." We began teaching the Restoration. So there we stood in the heat of the day with sweat running down our faces teaching and testifying our hearts out on that little sidewalk. Sister Leavitte handed him the pamphlet to read the 1st vision. He stumbled a bit as he read aloud. As he finished he paused and looked up with tears in his eyes. All he said was "wow. i really feel God at this moment." The spirit was touching him. 

Sometimes it is easy to doubt what you or other people are feeling. But in this day there is not a single thing someone could say or do that could detract from the reality of the spirit that he felt testify to him. The spirit that we all felt. It was undeniable.

Just as we finished the lesson his van pulled down the street to pick him up. God allowed him just enough time to hear this message. We all held hands as he prayed allowed. Before he left the spirit was playing its roll and I said Gary we have one more question for you. When you come to feel and know that this message is true, will you follow Jesus Christ and be baptized by his authority? Amidst the cars and yelling neighbors it felt as if us three were the only ones on the block as time stood still. With his humble teary eyes he replied "yes."

The sisters called me last night and said that as they went back to teach him, his cousin who had been baptized two years ago showed up saying she wants to go back to church and just wasn't sure how to transfer her records. They are now teaching His cousin and interested Non-member husband. 

Miracles. 

This work is real and I love my Savior. Thank you for the support and love you send me from across country. I love you all!

Sister Jackson:)

My two babes are companions. How i love them!

All About the Delivery

Happy Monday! WELCOME TO THE FAMILY ELLIE MAE. I can't wait to kiss her lil cheeks. 

This week I truly felt the awareness of God. I will tell you two simple times real quick!

Im not sure if you guys remember the lady that broke down in the laundromat that we prayed with right then and there. We lost contact with her for a bit then tried her one day and she was in a very very terrible place and there was not a thing we could say or do for her but pray. WELL, yesterday was a breakthrough. She came to church with her little daughter. She looked so good and i promise the spirit in the church brings out the best of people. It was fast and testimony meeting and as she sat there she leaned over to me and said something inside me feels i need to get up there (she has terrible social anxiety so i was totally taken back). I told her i would get up there with her if she wanted to go! So up we went!

As a missionary you always get a little nervous for what is going to come out of the mouth of the people you bring to church.  AND it was BEAUTIFUL. She was a completely different person. She was in tears with her story and the day the "sisters knocked on my door and saved me from the lowest place possible". That whole day she just thanked us again and again for saving her life. It was a humbling place to be that day. 

Second story: Sister Shank and I were both praying one evening and a pizza delievery guy knocked on our door (a loving member sent him). We ended up talking to him for a good while about the restoration and the Book of Mormon and set a return appointment with him for next week! Cool guy just searchin for peace in his life. 

I love you all. The Savior has trod the very path He asks us to follow. And i love Him for it.

Sister Jackson:)

Our pal Esther who just got back from her mission!

Staying In The Breeze

Hello family and friends! Transfers have come and gone and Sister Shank and I are here in Gulf Breeze for another. We are excited to hit the pavement and do our best to get this area flourishing. 

We mainly had another week of finding! We are in the push through phase of the work because as always miracles are abundant you just got to get out and find them!

After a long day of every single appointment falling through we got "stood up" at a park and we began looking for others to talk to. We ran over to a boy getting in his car and ended up having a great chat with him about the Savior and what he can truly offer. We watched the #Because of Him video with him and testified our lil souls out. I know we were meant to be at that park for someone.

I have felt such strength from my personal prayers this week. It really is a refuge and thats something i never experienced before my mission. Gosh what power genuine prayers can bring! I know the Savior has trod the very path he asks us to follow. And I love Him for that. 

I love you all dearly! Thank you for being such a strength and inspiration to me:) 

Last Monday we went to a Blue WAHOOS baseball game SO fun.

An exchange last week with Sis Mantlo! She hit her 19 months and so we celebrated with #3 best ranked tacos in AMERICA... good but debatable! 

Hey Hey

Hey my favorite people! I don't have much time this week but just wanted to shoot a quick email! We had two exchanges this week in Pensacola and Gulf Breeze! The sisters continue to amaze me. 

ONE cool tender mercy happened after a long day of tracting and on our way home we felt impressed to turn around and go back to a guy we saw. So after we knocked that last door we went back for him. He had just moved here from Alabama and happened to be roomates with a guy(Chris) from my first area who got baptized my first week in the field! It was crazy. He said he totally saw Chris's  life changed as he was baptized and wanted that too. So a few days later we went taught him the Restoration at a park and set a Baptismal date with him. Teaching and testifying to him with passion felt so natural. THE LORDS HAND IS IN THIS WORK!

I really do see the blessings of pushing and fighting through the long hard days out here. And nothing makes it more worth it then our Savior and doing it in His behalf. 

I love you all!

Sister Jackson