Life Is Going Good:)

Hey everyone!!

This transfer is almost over and that means all my companions are leaving next week... I'm not crying. But for real, seeing my companion getting ready to go home and how hard it is for her to leave has made me realize how grateful I am to be here right now serving as a volunteer. I have found such a love for these people that I've never felt before. I really mean it, too. Being here is not always easy. Actually, it's really not. This work is hard. But it is so worth it, and that is why I love it and want to stay here forever. It's like the verse in the Bible, Romans 8:18 " For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us". Not that I'm suffering because I'm 150% fine, but the thought of it.

Anyways, this week was a crazy week. My poor companion, Sister Sorenson, has been sick all week and has been having to stay with the senior couple here:( We're hoping she will be better soon. Also, we had our drunk neighbor, Dima, give a concert a few nights ago in our stairwell. He asked if we had an extra neck tie. Exciting stuff!

We had Anton's baptismal interview this week, and he was just glowing after it! The light of his testimony and his faith is really amazing to see. His date is this Saturday, and we are all so excited for him!

We also had a really fun meeting with a girl named Emily. She is - you guessed it - not Russian! She is from New York, but she is here as a ballerina in the Russian ballet! Pretty much, she is the coolest person. She is also a very believing person, and it was so fun to talk to her about what she feels like her role is here. She tries to help those around her find answers in Christ, and she knows that even though she is far from home and a bit overwhelmed, this is where she needs to be. I learned a lot from her.

There were a lot of other wonderful meetings this week, but I wanted to spend a bit of time talking about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. What is it? It is all the Jesus Christ has does for us. It is how we can be forgiven for our sins, and not just forgiven, but have the slate wiped clean. We can receive comfort and help and guidance through the Atonement. We realize that we are not alone in the world. That is not God's plan. We are expected to try our best to be good people, but we will never be asked to give more than we can. He really is there for us. He needs to be, because there is not one of us that is perfect. Sometimes, we get too caught up in how imperfect we are, but that isn't the point of life. We all make mistakes! Sometimes we are not kind, we are not generous, we are not Christlike. But, if we repent every day and strive to be better, little by little, the Atonement works in us. We CAN become better, little bit by little bit. 

I love you all! Strive to be a little better every day:)

Sister Jones

Pictures:

Me and SIster Kofford (serving in Barnaul) at Zone conference last week. Sorry for the hair, that dang snoq

The view from our window

Giantttt icicles

Russian Harry Potter!!!!

Hello everyone! As per usual, I am freezing. That is my weather report, for those of you that were wondering. Now, onto the rest of my week)

This week we had the best meeting with Anton. We talked with him about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We talked through faith in Jesus Christ and why it is important, and how faith leads to action which is repentance! I have loved talking about and studying repentance on my mission. I have really come to understand what it is and why it is important to us and to me individually. Repentance to me just means change. To really desire true change, to confess the things that you did wrong that you don't want to do anymore to God, and then move on! We have a wonderful gift given to us by God to help us be better and become the people we want to be and our Father in Heaven wants us to be. It's so amazing! Then, we talked about baptism. When we got to that point, we stayed on that topic for a while and went pretty in depth about how, after we desire to repent daily and follow Christ, we are baptized. We do this to show our commitment to God and to make a covenant with Him that we will always strive to follow Him and do as He would do. Then, Sister Krumperman asked him to be baptized and he said yes! He even picked a date for the end of this month! I love meeting with him because every time we do, he is very happy and very expressive. Anton is a feeling person, and he immediately recognized the Spirit when he felt it. He is very special, and we are so excited for him!

We also have been having a really fun time doing lessons with Alina. She is so amazing! She loves learning more about the gospel and all the things that come with it. We've been having Dima, one of the youth in the branch, in on lessons with us, and he does an amazing job. She still doesn't have a set date, but she is progressing!

Another meeting that really stood out to me this week was a meeting we had with a recent convert named Sasha. She is just the greatest! She was baptized in August (I think?) and she lowkey intimidated me until our meeting this week. She is gorgeous, and very intense. But she is also very loving, and that was what was really cool about meeting with her. She is in her late 30s and she has two sons. We went over to her, and she has a lot of questions about the gospel and about Jesus Christ. She loves learning more and seeing how it fits into her life. At one point, I noticed her Harry Potter books on her shelf, and I said "Oh! I really want to read the Harry Potter books in Russian at some point! But we can't read them while we are here as volunteers:(" and that's when she said "Oh, here! You can have one! You can read it when you go back home!". It was really kind of her and I was also really happy because when I get back to America, I can read the first Harry Potter book in Russian! (sorry mom, I know you don't understand Harry Potter but I love it)

Those were pretty much the highlights of this week. I love being here! I love the Lord! I love His work! I love His children! I hope you all had a wonderful week as well!

Sister Jones

Pictures:

Me being upset because it's cold (but lowkey really happy because I love my coat)

McDonald's thinking things are "Texan" because they add cheese and bacon... actually they aren't wrong

Pretty hot chocolate:)

BOOO I Love Halloween!!!

Hello everyone! 

First of all, thank you all so much for the birthday wishes! I ate cake and sang, so it was pretty good;) The rest of this week was pretty good as well!

One of the highlights of this week was that we have a new investigator! His name is Anton, and he the boyfriend of a girl in the branch (Tania). We had a lesson with Alina (our other investigator) on the Plan of Salvation on Wednesday, and Tania asked if she could come and bring a friend. Alina also brought her friend, Nastia, which was pretty cool. That lesson was a wonderful lesson. The spirit was really strong, and it was just very powerful to share our own thoughts and feelings on our purpose in life. Anton was very moved by the whole experience. We also sheared what it means to feel the Holy Ghost, and after the lesson, he turned to us, looked straight at us and said "I felt it". He is very motivated to learn more, and wants to meet with us three more times next week!

We also celebrated Halloween with the branch this week! People generally know what Halloween is here, but they don't celebrate it. Halloween was so much fun! We all dressed up, and had a party! I was a doll, Sister Krumperman was Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, I was a doll, and Sister Sorenson was a skeleton! We had games, like who can tie up a person as a mummy with toilet paper faster, and who can eat the donut on the string the fastest, and we also had spooky treats (БУгощение, if you know Russian) and we had all the kids trick or treat around the church. It was so much fun and so cute! I love the people here! 

I hope you all had a wonderful week, and a wonderful Halloween!

Sister Jones

Pictures:

I am sorry I only have food pictures this week I am the worst but here is some really good borscht I ate (yes mom it is really good!) and our scary treats we made:)