Week 45 Sucky Surgery

Well, this week sucked. I found out that I have 2 hernias and that I have to go home to get the surgery. I should be leaving this week sometime. I hope as soon as I get home...I can have the surgery and recuperate, so I can get back out here on my mission and finish it strong. I do not have much to write about this week because mostly we stayed in the house all day because when I walk or sit my hernias hurt. 

I know that is a trial of faith and that when I get home and keep myself focused on going back out...I will. So, I need to pray, read my scriptures everyday, watch church videos, study my Spanish, and everything so that I can return to my mission with honor. 

Love you guys all so much and I hope that you can all pray for me because I am hurting right now and I need some guidance. Talk to you next week.

P.S. I found TAXI NUMBER 1!!!

Con mucho cariño,

Elder Jensen 

The Mondosa Family from Siqua. I love them so much. The helped me find help when I was hurting form my hernias.

Week 44  "Let's Keep It Going"

This week was amazing. WE GOT ANOTHER BAPTISM! WOOHOO! Daniel, the one that got baptized, has been working so hard these past couple weeks and he wants to progress in the gospel. He said that we are an example to him, but his girlfriend is the biggest. She wants to serve a mission and her example has shown Daniel the way. Now, he wants to serve a mission like us and because of that desire he has already seen so many blessings in his life. We are so proud of him and his choice. What a miracle!

I am loving it here with Elder Corey. He is a great example of how to be the best missionary. I am doing all I can do to be a dedicated missionary. 

Something interesting that happened this week was that they are starting to sell fireworks here in Sigua. Which I am so stoked about! (Mom note: Anyone who knows Alec knows that he is a sucker for fireworks. In fact, for most of his growing up years he wanted to become a Pyro-technician. This does make me a little nervous however. I quickly wrote him a letter after getting this and told him to be careful and to not set Honduras on fire...seriously! That would not look good.). I bought all these fireworks for like $2 here in Sigua. Photo below. I am loving it here in Sigua and excited for more good things to come. 

Doing laundry in a pila may suck, the food sometimes may not be great, the humidity and heat is just horrible, but I can tell you that even with all those things combined and more, there is nothing that compares to serving a mission. Blessings come from being obedient and the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only way to true happiness. A quote I love by Elder Jeffery R Holland is this: "Some blessing come soon, some come late, and some don't come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ; they come".  I love this quote, because I may not like the living conditions here in Honduras...but I embrace this gospel. I constantly see the blessings and I love it with all my heart. 

Love you all guys so much, a year is quickly approaching and I am very excited to see my family when I talk to them on Christmas. Talk to to you next week. 

Cheque Pues!

Con mucho cariño,

Elder Jensen

Week 43 Crazy Corey

This week was amazing and I cannot describe it in any other way. I received a new companion and his name is Elder Corey. He is from Utah and he has been a ton of fun. Actually, he is the District Leader, but it doesn't make a big difference. He is super fun and hard working.  I have shown him the area and we have already received so many miracles. We actually got over 54 contacts in just a few days. We are having a great time getting to know each other and have already became good friends. I am very excited for this cambio and am really excited to see all that Elder Corey and I can do together. 

This week was normal working week...we are actually preparing a man to get baptized this Saturday. Daniel has been growing a lot in the gospel and he has already expressed wanting to serve a mission like us. We are proud of his decision and we know that if he gets baptized and confirmed, he will become a changed man and I can already see him going out and serving a mission. He would make a great missionary.

We celebrated Halloween this year by eating Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip cookies with milk as a district to celebrate. They were really good!

Love you guys so much and miss you a lot. I am now approaching 1 year in the mission. It is getting closer and closer. Time flies. My feet are getting better and I am working more than I have ever worked with my new companion here in Stupendous Siguatepeque. 

Con mucho Cariño,

Elder Jensen

Week 42 Half and Half

The reason why this week is called Half and Half is because the week was half good and the other half not so good. The not so good half is Elder Seville and I did not have a good week at all. It is very hard to communicate with him. The other half is I am staying here in SPECTACULAR SIGUATEPQUE and I am the new District Leader! I am so happy! 6 of the 8 people in the district are leaving to go to other areas. So, 2 companionship's will open 2 new areas. How exciting is that!

Today we visited Las Cuevas de Taulabe (cave) and wow they were just fantastic. They were just so beautiful and I am so happy I was able to enjoy it with the my district and zone. 

I don't have a lot of time today, but I will write more next week.

Love you guys all so much. I am loving this area with my heart as well as my mission. 

Con Cariño,

Elder Jensen

Week 41 Spectacular Siguatepeque

As much as this week has been stressful, I have loved every minute. I love this area with all my heart. I would love to train a new missionary here, and I hope God gives that to me. The members here are just wonderful, the area is large and there is so much work to do. Just last Saturday night, we had a Noche de Talentos (Talent Night) with our ward family. It was so much fun. We laughed and we played and wow, I had a good time. I am so grateful that next week is cambios (changes). Elder Sevilla and I have had a lot of ups and downs. I love him and he is a great missionary, but I am ready to move on. All I am hoping is that I stay here. This place is awesome! 

I am having some difficulties right now, with my salud (feet). I have some kind of fungus on my feet that itches a lot. But, I am taking some medication and praying everyday that my health gets better. (mom note: Alec's feet have had many issues. 7 ingrown toenails and now fungus)

Before I end, I would like to tell you about a family that I love and are so dear to my heart, Familia Marinez. They are probably one of my favorite families here in Honduras. They bring so much joy to my heart. Last week, they had some difficulties in their family, but I prayed and fasted for them and God has blessed them in every way. They love each other and want what is best for each other. They are a blessing in my life, and they are part of the reason I want to stay here is because I want to see their smiling faces everyday. That is how much I love them. Picture is below.

This week was amazing and I am praying that next week, when changes come, that I can stay here in Spectacular Siguatepeque. 

Love you guys all so much. I miss you a lot, but I am doing just fine here. Talk to you guys next week.

And Remember... Sacrificio esta temporal, pero gloria es eterno!

Con Cariño,

Elder Jensen

The Echeverrie Family. Another favorite family of Alec's. The father contacted me on facebook to let me know about Alec's feet problem and that he was helping him get to a doctor to get medicine. 

Service work: cutting weeds with a machete?? 

Week 40 - 10 Months

Another week has passed by and I have now finished 10 months of my mission. I cannot believe how time is going by so fast. This week we went paintballing and it was so much fun. Siguatepeque is one of my favorite áreas now and wow I would love to stay here for awhile. The members and the investigators are just so amazing and I have been seeing a lot of miracles in this área. More than you can even know.

We had another baptism this week and I can tell that you can just see the light of Christ in his eyes. The only downside was that he couldn't go to church the next day to receive the Holy Ghost. So, the baptism is not complete. So we will have to wait until next Sunday so that he can receive it and make it complete.

We had Reunión de Zona this past Friday and it was so much fun. I learned more about who we are and who we need to become in order to be true disciples of Christ.  I love it. 

Sorry so short and fast, but I don't have much time to write you guys this week. But, I am doing awesome in this new área and I hope I get to stay here for a long time. Love you guys and miss you alot. Keep writing me and keep praying. See ya later.

Love,

Elder Jensen

Paint Balling on Pday

Reunión de Zona (Zion Reunion)

Week 39 Much Much Better

Elder Seville and I with the sister missionaries heading to a service project.

This week was just pure fun. At first, Elder Sevilla and I were not being very patient with one other. But, on Tuesday we worked it out. We had a good meeting with our zone leaders and it has been so much better with him since. We talked in depth about our feelings,  how much joy both of us feel teaching the gospel in Honduras! We found common ground. We have had so many gospel discussions and lessons with investigators this week I cannot even count how many. During the week, both my companion and I got sick with stomach aches, but we prayed and prayed for us to get better so we could visit with our investigators. Of course, Heavenly Father blessed us and we felt better and we were able to keep all our appointments. 

One Wednesday I had a lot of fun. I had interchanges with my zone leaders, Elder Johnson. This guy is awesome. For start, we have the same first name and practically the same last name. But, his attitude and his work ethic is so inspiring, plus he is so much fun to be with. 

Each day this week I have been able to explore the beauty of Honduras and the green that covers it. I wish you all could see it, man it is just spectacular. I love it here. It is has been pure happiness for me to get the opportunity to come here and spread the gospel and teach others. 

I would like to leave a thought from General Conference with you. I got to watch it in English, which I loved and I took about 7 pages of notes. I would like to share something I learned from General Conference, a little bit every week, starting today. Dieter F Uchtdorf said : "The spirit can invigorate our minds and bring us hope everyday. And that our Heavenly Father sees us who we are, and who we can become." That is so true and I know that as long as we live worthily to have the spirit with us always, we can do anything.

Love you guys so much and I am enjoying my time here in Honduras. My companion is good, my area is good, and last of all, my mission is good. See you guys next week.

Les quiero mucho,

Elder Jensen

P.S. I took some money out of my emergency account to get new USB. I did have a back up of my mission photos on my camera, so don' t fret. Also, I wanted to help out a family here in Honduras. They have done so much for us and they did not have any money to buy a birthday cake for the their daughter's birthday. I hope that was ok. I won't do that very often. Oh...and I would love a CTR ring for Christmas, but in Spanish HLJ. 

Lunch with my district

Elder Johnson 

Feeding a donkey

Smile! Peace begins with a smile. 

Beautiful Honduras

Beautiful Honduras