¡Hola mis queridos!
This week has been one of a lot of growth, for me personally, other Sisters in the Mission, and the Mission as a whole.
I will start with a little analogy of sorts.. So once upon a time I was 15 and my birthday wish came true, I received a cellular device that allowed me to talk to literally anyone at anytime. I had a blast, texting and calling people and for the first two weeks it completely occupied all my attention. Now, the reason I received the phone was not really to text and call everyone I knew in the whole world, it was to prepare me to receive my license and gain the trust of my father in order to drive the car to school in the mornings and to work, and to everything else I had been begging rides for in the past. So I had a long sit down with my dad (which by the way, I did not appreciate at the time) and we discussed some rules with respect to the phone. Now, I'm going to compare these rules to the Law of Moses, but please do not take this the wrong way. They were very particular and if I didn't obey them, there were specific consequences. I will give you a few examples:
We are not to text before homework is finished, during FHE, mealtimes, school, other family activities, or after 9pm.
We are not to use the phone within our bedrooms unsupervised.
We are not to use the phone as an excuse to not spend time with company.
We are not to exceed 80 sent messages per day.
Half of the sent messages are to be to boys and the other half to girls.
Now, to some of you these sound weird, to others they make sense, when I first heard them I hated them, but they make sense to me now. They were each put in place to teach me a specific principle in using the phone. Such as: The phone should not take priority over your family. It can be a destructive tool and should be used with caution. It is not meant to control us, but can if we let it. We must use it as a tool and not be ruled by it. It shouldn't be used as a dating device or as a way to spend the whole day with someone else instead of the people you are around. Things like that.
Well, after a few years, I had finally learned my lesson in all of the rules and had recognized the guiding principles to utilizing a phone. My father lifted the rules and I began to govern myself. I left for college and grew to a point that my phone was a menace and I preferred to spend time with my friends in person than to be attached to it every waking moment. I really only utilized it to communicate with family and friends that were still in Oregon and to listen to music. It became a very minimal part of my life, so much so, that when I visited for Thanksgiving and found that all my siblings were on their devices for most of my visit, I was a little sad. I had learned that the phone was supposed to augment the relationship I had with them, instead of take away from them.
Now, why am I sharing all this? Well, this week we had a Zone Training Meeting, and a few of the rules the Mission had prior were lifted. They could be compared, in a way, to the rules my father had set forth, or to the Law of Moses. They were absolutely necessary at the time and have helped us grow as a Mission to be obedient and follow the example of Jesus Christ. However, we have learned the principles behind such rules and are moving towards a more principle based way of Missionary Work. In fact, the bar hasn't been lowered at all, it's been heightened. Companionship Unity, and unity with spirit has increased in importance as well as the accountability. We will be growing a lot during this time of change and it will serve to prove our conversion to the Lord and to His laws. Our obedience is still an outward expression of an inner commitment to follow Christ, but that expression is decided between companionships and the Lord.
I am so excited for this all because I know it will help our companionships have more unity and that the blessings we will receive are going to be even greater than before. We will continue to see "miracles of biblical proportions" as we move forward with faith.
If you are super curious to know our "rules," read the Missionary Handbook and Preach My Gospel, because that is what we have been instructed to do -- go back to the basics. :)
Also this week, many pictures... Hermana Whitlock has been transferred to Tampa, so it is just Hermana Greenberg and I now. :( we are excited for her, but sad to see her go to a new area. I know she will bless Tampa immensely!
Con mucho amor!
Hermanita Jensen
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