Week 39: Happy Mothers Day!

Elle's new companions. Sister Pickup (Wellington, Utah)
 and Sister Leininger.(South Ogden, Utah)

(One side note Liana and I wanted to add. Last Friday April 29th was Elle's 9 month mark or half way point. We as a family have witnessed so many blessing to our family because of her missionary service. We want to thank all of you who have helped her and especially those of you who help Elle each month so she can spread the Gospel message. We can't wait to see how things go for Elle these last 9 months.-Todd & Liana)

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to the most amazing mother that I am blessed to have. Also to all the other women in my life that have done so much for me, it is the small and simple things that make the biggest difference. One thing that I have learned thus far on my mission is I have so many amazing shining examples in my life and my mother Liana Jackson will always and forever be the number one! She is the one who taught me how to work hard and how genuine love is what others need from us. She taught me I have a Heavenly Father who loves me even more then she does (I find it super hard to imagine this sometimes, all the time). She taught me the importance of doing the things I have committed to and not doing a job half way, but put all I have into it. She taught me the importance of serving others and loving all of Heavenly Fathers children even when it is hard, I could go on and on.

Jeffery R, Holland in 1997 gave a talk called "Because She Is a Mother" (Click Here to read) and I love this talk. He tells of an experience of a young mother which says, "One young mother wrote to me recently that her anxiety tended to come on three fronts. One was that whenever she heard talks on LDS mother hood, she worried because she felt she didn't measure up or somehow wasn't going to be equal to the task. Secondly, she felt like the world expected her to teach her children reading, writing, interior design, Latin, calculus, and the Internet--all before the baby said something terribly ordinary, like "goo goo". Thirdly she often felt people were sometimes patronizing, almost always without meaning to be, because the advice she got or even the compliments she received seemed to reflect nothing of the mental investment, the spiritual and emotional exertion, the long-night, long-day, stretched-to-the-limit demands that sometimes required in trying to be and wanting to be the mother God hopes she will be. But one thing, she said, keeps her going: "Through the thick and the thin of this, and through the occasional tears of it all, I know deep down inside I am doing God's work. I know that in my motherhood I am in an eternal partnership with Him. I am deeply moved that God finds His ultimate purpose and meaning in being a parent, even if some of His children make Him weep. "It is this realization," she says, "that I try to recall on those inevitably difficult days when all of this can be a bit overwhelming. Maybe it is precisely our inability and anxiousness that urge us to reach out to Him and enhance His ability to reach back to us. Maybe He secretly hopes we will be anxious, “she said, "and will plead for His help. Then, I believe, He can teach these children directly. Through us, but with no resistance offered. I like that idea," she concludes. "It gives me hope. If I can be right before my Father in Heaven, perhaps His guidance to our children can be unimpeded. Maybe then it can be His work and His glory in a very literal sense." 

This last week I was able to get a new companion and to my surprise I received two! I am in a three pack! I love three packs so much! They are a lot of fun, hard to teach and do things sometimes but you learn and grow from them the most. My two companions are Sister Pickup and Sister Leininger. Sister Pick up is from Wellington, Utah and is one transfer a head of me. She is such a great missionary and I am so lucky to be able to work with her. She is excited to work hard and to find those of Heavenly Fathers children who are ready to except this Gospel message. Sister Leininger is from South Ogden, Utah.  She came out a transfer after me. She is so amazing and loves missionary work and loves to work hard and do all that she can to please the Lord. She went to BYU for a year before her mission. I am so very lucky to be able to serve with these two sisters! I have so much to learn and I think they are going to help me a lot! 

The Alderwood Ward is doing well! Brother Coles is doing amazing and I am so excited to be able to get to be a long with him for the ride. He has taught me so much and I am so thankful I am here for it all! This week the weather has been really nice. We have been able to talk to a lot of people, share our testimonies, and hear their stories. We have a lot or appointments set up for this next week. Hopefully Satan decides to take a vacation and maybe it could be this week. I think it would be beneficial for quite a few people. We met this couple from the Bronx, New York and they are super cool! Eddie and Cocoa, they are super nice and love learning about all different religions. They are going to be going back to New York soon but said that they would love to talk and to hear more. Oh side note, we got NEW PAMPHLETS!!! They are amazing! So this is what we used with them. One of the pamphlets has The Family: A Proclamation to the World in it. This is what we used to contact them and it worked like a charm. Well it worked because of Heavenly Father, but it was awesome! I have such a strong testimony about sharing truths that we know like that. These are the things people need to hear! 

This week is going to be super crazy and busy and going to fly by so fast. I am so excited to be able to work with my new companions!

I love you all so much and hope that you have an amazing week! 

Happy Mother’s Day!