Eternal Perspective Leads To Eternal Happiness

Iaorana to'u utuafare!

The hardest thing for me on my mission is when people know the church is true, but they don't have the faith to follow it's teachings.  That can be for investigators or members.  Like you said, there is something missing in their lives.  And, they are missing the point of life.  We are here to follow the gospel, so that we can progress to an eternal happiness.  Sins ALWAYS lead to sadness.  Obedience ALWAYS leads to joy.  ALWAYS.  Right now we are working with a lot of children and young adults who know the church is true, but have a hard time stopping to smoke.  Sometimes, Satan gives people a little glimpse of happiness to blind them from the eternal sadness that awaits them if they don't leave those sins behind and follow Christ.  We need to live life with an eternal perspective, and then we will have an eternal happiness.  Anyways, thanks a lot!  I don't have a lot of time...again ha.  Today is transfer day!  We have been doing transfers all day.  My companion got transferred and I got a new companion, Elder Tumarae.  I am doing great!  Thanks for your support!  I love you!

Ua here au ia outou!

Elder Jessop

Tahitian word of the week: Faaitoito- "keep working hard"

One Week, Three Miracles

Iaorana to'u utuafare!

This weekend, I was able to go to three baptisms.  I went to a baptism in my old sector of the couple MATAIO, after that, one here at Papeete, and then, Tupuhina, who we teach, but who got baptized at Punaauia (my old zone).  It was really cool to see the light in their eyes.  They were all filled with joy, peace, and the spirit.  They are each different than when they started.  They ended their old lives and started their lives as disciples of Jesus Christ.  I'm so grateful for you all!  For your wonderful examples for me!  I love you all so much!  And, I hope you have an amazing week!

Ua here au ia outou ma to'u aau atoa!

Orometua Jessop haha

There ARE People Prepared!

Iaorana to'u utuafare!  

Thanks so much for the email!  That's so crazy that Cody is home (he just returned from his mission in France)!  And, he is perfectly right with the Tahitians speaking French ha.  It depends where you are from on Tahiti how different the French is, but it is different everywhere here ha.  I knew that, but I didn't know everything until we got our new mission president haha.  When we talk with them, we have to really think about what we are saying haha.  Sometimes it is because we mix Tahitian and French together, sometimes they throw in English words like ice cream, and sometimes it is just because the Tahitians changed their French a little, or a lot, I don't really know to what extent haha.  My companion and I talked to Soeur Bize last week and part of the time she was really confused haha.  And, as for ice cream: ice cream here is like ice cream in the U.S., but the French word for ice cream, glace, is when you put juice in the freezer and then eat it kind of like a popcicle.  I love Tahitians haha!

This week, my companion and I had a really amazing experience!  We found someone that God had already done almost everything to prepare and we had the blessing of helping her finish her preparations for baptism.  Actually, they're three, Tupuhina Hunter, Taimiri Hunter, and Elsi, two sisters and their cousin.  They went to a weekly activity that is kind of like efy, but for the young adults. Then, they came to a baptism in our zone and we took them to the visitor's center at the temple.  This week, we started the lessons with them.  The first lesson, we got to know them better and talked a little about God, faith, and the Book of Mormon.  Then, of course, we invited them to get baptized after they have received the answer from God that it is true.  They said of course they would want to!  Excellent Soeurs!  They had each read a little in the Book of Mormon before, so we ended the lesson with blessings to help them feel the spirit and love of our Heavenly Father.  Next lesson, they said that they knew it was true and we helped them fix their baptismal date for the 26 juillet (July 26).  I have never wanted to engage someone to be baptized the next week, but I know that these people have already been prepared by God.  Their faith and desire to follow God is incredible!  I am so blessed to help them continue to grow and strengthen their faith and follow our Heavenly Father!  I was able to feel just a glimpse of the love that God has for those sisters and for each one of us.  I know that God cares about us.  He knows us perfectly.  And, He is doing everything He can to help us have eternal families.  I know He lives and loves us!  Thanks so much for the love and support you give me!  I love you!

Ua here au ia outou!

Elder Jessop 

Recharging Our Spiritual Batteries

Iaorana to'u utuafare! Hey family!

I never saw tennis courts in Tahiti until I came here and now I know at least 3 different places that have nice courts haha.  But, there is almost never people playing on them.  I think most Tahitians are sticking to volleyball, ram, and soccer ha.  

Anyways, this week, I got to go to the temple!!!  President Sinjoux didn't have us go to the temple very much; he aways told us that missions are for the living, not the dead.  But, President Bize wants us to go every other month, so excited haha!  We went last week with our zone to help us with our goals for the zone and then Elder Tehanin and I went again this week with our ward missionary leader.  Needless to say, it was a wonderful experience!  We really got a new spiritual force by going.  It was like our spiritual batteries needed to be charged ha.  We had planned to go do a questionnaire in a neighborhood called the mission ha.  It is a pretty poor area and my companion and I felt God had really been preparing the people that live there.  Then, right before we did the questionnaire, I read Alma 32:1 and the first sentence in 2 and I felt even more strongly that there were a lot of people in that specific area that God had prepared for us.  We did the questionnaire and I have never had so many people accept the missionaries.  It was incredible!  The first house said no and to leave before we had said hello, the second was a member, oops, but every house I talked to after that accepted the missionaries...us haha.  This experience really stregthened my testimony of how much this work is really the work of God.  It's His!  (Moses 1:39) Our Heavenly Father is constantly working to help us receive eternal life.  And, He has called us all to help Him accomplish His great and marvelous work!  Jacob 5:71-72: I love in these verses that God is working, we are choosing to work with Him.  God had already been preparing all of those people and, through us, He will help them receive eternal life.  I know that God has prepared and is preparing people and, if we choose to serve Him, we can help God help those people have eternal life.  I know, also, that God is helping each one of us.  I know He loves us.  I know He loves you!  I love you!  And I love Him!  Thanks so much for all that you do!  Have a great summer week!

Ua here au ia outou!

Elder Jessop

Good Being Busy In Tahiti

Iaorana to'u utuafare!

My New Companion

So so so sorry about the last week and being late this week!  It was kind of like you said, the new responsibilities ha.  Being the zone leader here, we do a lot for the assistants, too.  And, because everyone from the islands came in for the reunion with our new mission president, Président Bize, we had a lot of work to do ha.  My companion and I did everything we could do to our e-mails, but, as you can see, we didn't get to ha.  So so so sorry!  Like I said before, it's different to be a zone leader and it is even more different to be a zone leader to sisters and the assistants ha, but it's so much fun!  I love it!  And I love my sector here, too!  I didn't know if I would like being in town, but I love it!  And I love being so close to the temple!  We take investigators there at least once a week, but I like to do it as often as I can!  The spirit there is truly amazing!  I am so happy that we can have an eternal family!  I love you all so much!  Thank you so much for all you do!  You are the best!!!!  Have a great week!

Concert in front of the temple...merveilleux!

Ua here au ia outou ma to'u aau atoa!

Elder Jessop 

First Obedience, Then Blessings

Iaorana to'u utuafare!

So, my new sector is another amazing one ha!  I love it!  And I love my zone!  I really like talking with the other missionaries and being able to serve them.  Being a zone leader just gives me the opportunity to help more people than I could have before and I love it!  It is a little weird following up on the assistants and asking them to do things, but they're great so it makes it easier ha!  My companion is a power house ha!  I said a little last time, but I didn't talk about him too much because I didn't know too much.  Just a little about my companion, his name is Elder Tehanin.  His mom is Tahitian and his dad is Samoan and he was born in New Calodonie.  His dad is the branch president of his branch of 7 members there.  But, Elder Tehanin grew up mostly away from his parents in Tahiti in Mahina.  And, like I said, he is a power house ha.  He teaches super powerfully and loves being out working!  We get along super well!  Also, it's super cool being so close to the temple!  It's in my sector and I like live 4 blocks away!  So, that is a huge blessing, too!  Anyways, just a quick story for the week.  One of our investigators, Lorna, has been taking the lessons for like a year, but, she hasn't been able to get baptized because her boyfriend (inactive member named Yan) didn't want to get married.  He just started being there for the lessons with his girlfriend and this lesson, without us even talking about baptism or marriage, they started telling us that they talked and want to get married soon.  Well, we can make that happen ha.  We talked with them about their goal to be an eternal familly and they are preparing for their marriage and her baptism in August.  Anyways, I loved the explaination of Yan about why he changed his mind about marriage.  He said that he wanted to wait and get a house for him and his wife and a nice car before they got married.  But, he realized that he has been waiting almost 20 years for that to happen and nothing has changed.  He realized a key concept: blessings come after the trial of our faith.  First obedience, then blessings.  He has the faith that when he starts to keep the commandments of our Heavenly Father, our Heavenly Father will be able to bless him and his family.  A lot of times, we are like Yan used to be.  We want the blessings before we overcome a trial.  But, the only way to grow and progress is to faithfully overcome the trial or keep the commandment.  I know that God lives and loves us.  And I know that He gives us commandments to guide us back to Him.  I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is His church on the earth and, if we follow it's teachings, we will have an eternal family!  I love you so much!  Thanks for all that you do!  Have a great week!

Ua here au ia outou!

Elder Jessop

Off to Papeete

Iaorana to'u utuafare!

This week was transfer week.  Elder Moller is staying in Taapuna, but I got transferred to Papeete.  Still Tahiti and it is in the middle of the "city" here.  My new companion is Elder Tehanin.  He is from New Caledonia.  We just barely made the change a couple hours ago, so I'll let you know more next week ha.  But, I am really excited to serve here.  Elder Tehanin and I are the zone leaders here and our zone is us, the 4 assistants, and then a lot of sister missionaries.  I was super happy and comfortable as a normal missionary, so the Lord had to throw me a curve ball to help me grow ha.  Anyways, I'm excited for the new sector and I will let you know more next week.

I don't remember if I have already talked about Denise or not, but we have an investigator, Denise, and the day before we went to her door, she had prayed for us to come.  After, we did two lessons with her and she has had some bad experiences in life.  She is lost and looking for help.  We started helping her find joy in coming to God, in learning of Him, keeping his commandements, and feeling His love in answers to her prayers.  But, her brother moved back into his house where she was living, so she had to move into town.  And guess what sector she lives in?!  MINE!!!!  haha!  I'm so happy to have this blessing to continue to help Denise build her eternal family.  Her family hasn't had a good opportunity to accept the gospel.  I really want to help this family receive that joy that Denise has started to feel.  I know that that joy can only be found in our Savior, Jesus Christ, and His gospel.  I know that God knows them and He knows me.  That's why I am here right now.  I know He does everything He can to help me be happy and live with Him again.  I know that it's the same for us all.  God loves us and He will help us become an eternal family.  Thank you so much for all that you do!  I love you so much!  Have a great week!

Ua here au ia outou!

Elder Jessop

Fun Fact: I love that the saying "it's a small world" is the same in French.  Especially in Tahiti, I say it all the time ha!