The Fun Continues!

Wow, another awesome week here in the Scho. Val! 

This ward still continues to amaze me.

The crazy backwoods people continue to amaze me.

And the Corn still continues to amaze me! (best corn in the world btw)

Elder Richins and i met some awesome families this week we really hope we can begin to teach! Some new families and some part member families.

We picked up a new Investigator named Brian! HE'S A SUPER COOL COWBOY GUY with a gnarly beard! We taught the restoration and we asked him to pray at the end. And after the prayer we try to make sure there is a silence so you can look witthin for an answer and feel the spirit. So while he is doing this... His Rottweiler lets out this high pitched FART! Inevitably we tried so hard not to laugh... annnnnnd hahaha Needless to say the spirit was gone. But a great lesson none the less.

I have also began to realize How Hilarious the members of this ward are! And its not just eh yeah he cracks jokes.. NO! They are Gut busting funny members! Most of the members in the Schoharie valley ward are Converts and have great stories.

One of them, Brother Roberts, Is so funny he came teaching with us yesterday and told us his conversion story. He told us he was really into devil worshipping and as he was looking for a goat head to put on his left wall and ran into the Missionaries! haha Now he's a member. But after our appointment, A Very distressed woman called us ranting about her son and how she needed help. So we met this lady at a ball park. Then she proceeded to tell us her life story and how she gave her sone the "silver spoon his whole life" and now he is just a wreck. This Whole time Elder Richins and i were  in a complete stupor of thought and could in NO WAY relate or help this woman one bit. But Brother Roberts came to the rescue! He being an EX cop and correctional officer gave her some great advice!....Then told us to think twice before meeting with her again! hahaha But the Point is, If he hadn't been there and he hadn't raised his hand to come teach with us in priesthood meeting, We would have never helped a woman change her heart and look to god, and would never had bonded as bros! hahaha

So as a missionary and Disciple of Jesus Christ, I am SOOOOOOOO Thankful for members Who come teaching with us and stand as a 3rd witness. It is so awesome! It is also great to get referrals:)

I hope you all strive to participate in some kind of missionary work this week! and if you get the chance, TEACH with the missionaries. WE LOVE IT!!<3

I Hope you all have an NY STELLAR Week!:)

Love ya Byyyyyyye NOW!

Elder Jepsen

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The first picture is of SECRET CAVERNS! A super cheesy cavelike place we went today! IT has a 100 foot waterfall. So naturally we had to take pictures and then get soaked by it:)

Whaddup! REBEL!... nah...

FACEBOOK! What what??

What a crazy week! So many great momentous things happened. I'll just list them there are so many!

- We found an amazing family to teach who are so unbelievably nice!

- I had the Best corn of my life!

- I got tackled by a dog.

- Taught a family of atheists.

- and so many great memories.

-oh... and we got... FACEBOOK!!

YEs! The New York Utica mission can now use Facebook to proselyte. It is such an amazing tool. Since we have such a large area we can use it to keep in touch with people on the very corners of our area! We can use it yo uplift and inspire our investigators in active families and in active friends and family back home. It was announced at Our Zone meeting on Thursday. Everyone was so excited. We were told to edit and modify our accounts. We have many rules and can only be on for an hour. SO if there is anyone you feel could use some help or you could refer us to please let us know! ADD ME!:)))))...or i'll Inevitably add you ha!

Besides that great news things are going very well here! Elder Richins and i have alot of fun but work very hard. We knock on doors a lot! And missionaries have been here for ages. So at one point or another almost everyone has talked to missionaries. Which get kind of annoying... "Have You ever seen missionaries before?" Person: "Yes...everyday...." hahahaha Sucha small town. 

But we love it! The ward here is amazing. And everyone is Hilarious!! ....I think its something in the water....

Anyway, I hope you all had a great week and Continue to have a great week this week! 

I Love you all! Til we write again..

Love

Elder Jepsen

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P.s Sorry my email was late... the computers at the church were MEGA slow. And the Libraries are never open because they hate God!...nah i don't know why haha

Picture: We went Cray fishing Yesterday!:)

Farms, Rednecks, Scooters and Mayhem!

HAPPY PLAY DAY EVERYONE! I hope you all had a great week.

We Sure did out here in Backwoods New York!

This place is so awesome!!! We live in the largest town in Schoharie county called Cobleskill Pop.~5000! It is so different from the city! People drive Tractors and really loud ford trucks with deer stickers everywhere here!

I am With, probably the Funniest Elder In this mission! Elder Richins. Hhaha Elder Richins and I came out of the MTC together and halfheartedly made a pact we would serve together, and here we are! It is so fun out here with him. 

We knock on doors almost the whole day but it never becomes too tedious because we are having so much fun doing it! haha Our first day together as a companionship we saw and experienced some pretty funny redneck crap up here! haha There are like super white redneck guys walking around spitting tobacco talking about tractors and barns. ITs AMAZING! 

haha Just Yesterday we ran into the funniest Redneck guy in a Roll-a-Round Scooter on a farm and talked to him for a while. Telling us how his 150 pound German shepherd scared off 2 70 year old Jehovahs witnesses. He said " I ain't never seen 2 70 Year old women run that fast in my life. They straight up dropped their bibles and ran into the car, while I tried to call back Winston (the dog) But instead of saying HEY WINSTON GIT BACK HERE I said HEY JEHOVAHS GIT BACK HERE!" hahaha we all laughed so hard. I then began to ask about the battery operated scooter thing he was riding. He Turns to me real fast and says YOU WANNA RIDE?! I laughed then he says No take it! He then MIraculously (i thought) gets up and goes into the shed and gets 2 more, One for him and The Richins. HE then proceeds to say LETS RACE! and takes off down the driveway. hahaha Man i love that guy. ( i'll post pictures don't you worry)

Our area We cover is very large. And most of it has been devastated by Hurricane Irene. You cant go a day here without someone bringing up the "Flood" This whole valley way covered in 4-6 feet of water. We helped clean out a members law office that had been completely underwater. and had just recently got the last of it out!

The ward here is amazing. There are so many funny/dedicated members here. On sunday we had to give the lesson on Eternal Marriage of all things... It went... pretty well...ish... There were some elders there who had some interesting views on it, and Spared no cost in sharing it haha. It was very contentious at the end. But, I got the last word in and Bore My testimony on how it all comes back to the basic principle of Faith in our savior Jesus Christ. Because it is through him that ALL things that were and are possible. 

I know that, that is so true! I urge you all the continue to pray and search the scriptures to further strengthen your faith! In turn it will help resolve all your concerns:)

I Love you all and Pray you all have an amazing safe week full of ways to practice your faith!:)

Love, Elder Jepsen

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 Good Ol Chuck and I bonding over a good laugh and Scooters! haha

 this is of our AWESOME investigator is cohoes! Esther is so funny! haha

This is a family in cohoes who are freakin dope! lovem

Cleaning out the Attorneys office in Schoharie from the flood!

Ps.The view from the car all day almost everyday

TRANSFERS!!!

Okay...This was by far the most Surprising/Shocking transfer calls I have ever heard! There are sooo many New Exciting things happening throughout the mission! President Wirthlin Told Us they are beginning to test the online proselytizing in our mission. And it will soon trickle down to the rest of us "lowly missionaries" hahaha. Also we now have traveling missionaries. Who travel across the mission helping and strengthen and help missionaries by going on 3 day exchanges. SUPER COOL! Much of our leadership across the mission is changing. And turns out im..

 BEING TRANSFERRED!!!!

But not too far.. I am being transferred to Schoharie. With my main man Elder Richins! We were in the same district in the MTC! What a stud. 

But Elder Davis is taking over this area and training. He will be such a sick trainer! This is the place to train. I am going to miss this ward so much! Every time we went to church or top a members house it served as a safe haven. They are so great. 

I am so grateful for all the wonderful examples i met here and all the great experiences i had; with  tripping in front of girls, getting rained on, being threatened by black people all that fun stuff. i'll miss it. BUT! Everyone has been talking up schoharie for me! and i'm super Exited! 

"i'll go where you want me to go dear lord.... i'll be what you want me to be."

BUt other than that this last week flew by! We had another Exchange with Troy that went very well! We had some sweet trainings on the temple, which actually Helped us with one of our Investigators... But no other crazy stories.. OH! Brother Peterson asked me if i could be in the circle when he Blessed his baby Jarom. I was so honored! The whole time i just couldn't hold in my excitement that i just got to hold a baby! haha (We're not aloud to hold babies on our mission)

A scripture that i have been using in EVERY situation lately in Ecclesiastes 3:1

To every thing there is a season , and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

I challenge all you beautiful children of our Heavenly Father to apply it to Every aspect of Life!

You Will see a change I promise!:)

I hope you all have a great week full of adventure! 

Love Always 

Elder NY Jepsen

MMMMbbbbbbyyye NOW!

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The First Picture is of Bro. Staples the funniest/ sickest magician in the ward! Such a sweet  guy!

The Second is of the wallers! The funniest Straight forward sickest example of what marriage should be!! haha

                                    

The Week of Weeks.

Library computer Nazis on the Prowl!

I may not have a computer for very much longer so i will try to make this brief.

We had a pretty good week this week, The highlight was Elder Dutson (in troy) and I were able to go on exchange. But we were bombarded with a sudden surprise when we heard A missionary had to go home because his Father was very sick... So Elder NEUS was sent to work in Troy until Saturday. We had A lot of fun in troy Reminiscing on the good days and talking to Ministers of church's and crazy people on the street. It was a good time. haha The work is going pretty well, still had many of our appointments cancel on us and one of our solid investigators dropped us but the work is what you make of it. And There were miracles. 

The ward spoiled us with dinner appointments this last week and one of them the Alexanders went down in history. Brother Alexander is a Dentist in Albany and was planning on picking us up and taking us to his place for dinner. But, by the time he got to troy.. A kidney stone hit. So we hop in the car and he is groaning and clenching in pain while driving 30 minutes to his place, trying to pass this stone. So in the midst of this pain he wails "ALWAYS DRINK WATER! if you don't you will get these. Promise me!"  We quickly responded we PROMISE! haha. Then inthe middle of the awkward drive i jokingly ask if he would like a traveling blessing and he says... Please.. THe i was like "oh okay"... so we proceed to annoint then I give him a blessing while he drove home.. It was.... Interesting.. But after the fact I think we were all pondering to ourselves, how great it is to have the authority to act in gods name with us at all times. So we finally get there and he lays himself on the garage floor and told us not to move him. So we ate! haha It was very good. We all go back safely and He ended up passing the stone!

I am so grateful for this restored gospel, and The miracles of the priesthood!

Our investigator Queen Esther from Ghuna finally came to church with her daughter!!!! Ah we were so excited. The ward did sucha great job of fellowshipping her! Her daughter loves and wants to go to all the mutual activities now! I love it!

Other than that it rained A LOT! This week and yes... We did get drenched. ANd another freakin car splashed me and ruined all my stuff! haha missionary work.

I hope you all have a great week! It will be what you make it to be:)

We have transfer callzzzz this week! We are super anxious! I will keep ya updated!

Love ya mmmmmmmBYE NOW!

ELder Jepsen

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P.s This is a picture of the Alexanders Pond! its amazing! we caught 3 fish!! :o

Water in places you didn't know existed...

Yo! Goodmorninwit-chu! - How they say Good Morning in troy.... even though its the afternoon.. 

But Hey! How's it goin?! 

We had a somewhat semi Eventful week this past week! Although Our Numbers had nothing to show for it.. some cool things happened. :)

First off, ALL of our appointments fell through. And most of our investigators wre no where to be found. Which honestly sucked, but didn't phase me until Sunday.. 

It has been raining on and off here like CRAZY!! And of course in the east this means.... HUMIDITY! ugh. ON Wednesday we plan this awesome day of Finding in North troy. The sun is out, it feels great outside. When all the sudden these massive Storm clouds come out of no where. By this time we had walked about 3 miles away from our apartment so the minute we see these clouds we turn around, and... IT POURS! I'm not talking a bunch of rain falls down and gets us wet. I'm Talking MASSIVE TROPICAL BEHEMOTH STORM! With rain coming from all directions. The water accumulated around us so fast there were rivers all over just dumping into the Hudson. Also the masses of cars splashing us didnt help much either haha. So we finally make it across the bridge to our apartment as we are bombarded by billions of Freakin Water Bullets! and the second we get inside.. it abruptly stops. The sun comes out. The birds chirp. Rainbows galore. And we both just SCREAM! WHAT THE CRAP?! haha It gets better;)

So with every inch of our body being completely drenched we struggle to change our clothes, and through them in the dryer. We put on fresh shirts and ties and put on Raincoats this time (because we've learned our lesson). And Head out to meet with this very interesting man we had previously met at a soup kitchen we volunteer with. So we arrive at our destination, A burger king. We shake his hand and apologize for our tardiness. Then we sort of start to have a Bible study, Jumping from topic to topic. He being very Impressed with us. After a while i feel prompted to tie the restoration into this study. And over time i break out the Book of Mormon and Testify of its truthfulness and Divine nature, Expecting him to come to this conclusion that this must be another Testament of Jesus Christ. But, When I pull it out of my bag and place it on the table..... No Joke... Clouds formed. The Lightning crashed, The rain pounded against the glass and His face was one of complete FEAR! hahaha Then he proceeded to bash with us. The spirit was gone. And The weather outside was getting worse. Elder Davis turned to me and said, We NEED to go.. NOW! Right when he said that the Lights went out. The Power went down in Cohoes. We took it as a sign and told him we needed to leave. So after Shaking his hand and taking his keys and grabbing his umbrella for him, we left. Having a great appreciation for the Tender Mercies of the Lord. Then a member came and picked us up and we helped someone push their car out of 2 feet of water... what a mess! haha WHATA DAY!

 I learned many a lesson that day! haha But other than that we had a pretty slow week. We participated in a lot of service this week, which i wouldn't trade for anything! We also had Zone Conference. WHich was great! Saw some familiar faces and great friends! We found out more about the ipads, soon to come to the NYUM! Which is great. I wish i could tell you more but... no time! Other than that a typical week in good ol Upstate New York! 

I hope you all have a Great Hopefully less wet than NY week!

Until next week! 

mmmmmmmBYE NOW!

-Elder Jepsen

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P.s This picture is a Of a picture of a members son on their fridge which i laugh at every time i go over. So i had to take a picture of it!

And last but not least is a terrible picture Elder Davis took of me being Miserable...

Gotta love it

"I've Never been in such a dark room with sister missionaries before.." -Me

We are Emailing in the dark family History center wit the sisters and another pair of Elders and i said that quote as we sat down aaaaand made things super awkward... I was embarrassed haha i was thinking out loud.... 

ANYWAYS, We had a pretty good week in our Albany North Area! we walked a lot (as usual), saw alot of crazies and beer cans!! haha Other than that we helped with many service opportunities this week. The first at city hall where we did a lot of weeding and met a typical Italian Guido! haha Then we helped out with the Soup kitchen. FUNNY STORY! 

So during the Prepping period of the meal, We decided to venture out of the smoking kitchen and upstairs into this massive protestant chapel to ease our curiosity. when we got up there we saw this glass container, and within it laid an old wood covered Cohoes Bible from the 1700's. we were so in awe we put our hands on the glass when... The Fire Alarm went off! Of coarse we jumped and with our adrenaline pumping we ran down the stairs. As we reached the bottom the whole kitchen had ran TO THE STAIRS... so we awkwardly stared at each other for a couple seconds when someone yells "Grab the fans!" So we all proceeded to grab fans, because the smoke had gotten up to the fire alarms up stairs at just the Right time! haha We ended up switching off all the breakers to get it to shut off! hahaha I thought it was hilarious.

We had a a great 4th of July! We helped a member pull some nasty weeds and KILLER VINES! Then had an amazing BBQ for Lunch, Then after that we changed and went to another BBQ with the Elders Quorum President. Where all the New move in families were invited to! It was so much fun! It was like a home away from home. I am so thankful for this ward!:)

Earlier in the week on a thursday, Elder Davis and I had been walking around in Cohoes trying Potentials and Former Investigators, as well as updating our records in the hottest day (as well as the most humid day) Thus far this summer. We came upon a potential Inv. Whose address was wrong so we decided to head up the other end of the street. Where we saw an older lady smoking on her porch., And as we walked by sweating like 2 cats in a microwave she said "Could you boys use some water?" I didnt even hesitate, I said "Ofcoarse we would love some!" Soon after we begin to tell her our purpose as missionaries and how this gospel can bless her life. She then proceeded to tell us how that day had been the worse day of her life. And she was debating to take her own life right before we got there. She took this as a sign and we taught her the Restoration. Then she began to pray, and the spirit was so strong. We set her with a baptismal date in August. 

I know the Lord knows all of us Personally. And is always aware of our trails and tribulations. He will ALWAYS help us in our Hour of need, if we Always put our unwavering faith in him. I know this to be true!

I pray we will all help others to come to this conclusion as well.

I love you all. God bless!!:)

Elder Jepsen

Crazy times in humid NY

First off I'm sorry my Email might be a little short today. The library is SUPER busy and people are beginning to get hostile over computers so i might have to make this quick...

We had a CRAZY week here!

Elder Hutchinson got to say goodbye to as many of the people as he could before he left. He seemed a little nervous and didn't want to leave, but I know he will do so well in his new area. 

On transfers day we drove down to Gloversville NY to Exchange so Elders Hutchinson and Longwill could go to transfers. Elder Garberg and I both worked in Gloversville and LET ME TELL YOU! It was soooooooo Hot and humid! I thought i was going to Swell up like a sponge and DIE!! But then a tender Mercy occurred and we reached our apartment right before 7 inches of rain came down in 15 minutes! Granted we were wet... but not 7 inches of soaking!

It ended up raining the whole ride to Schenectady then to Albany and Cohoes.

Where i Met My new Companion Elder Davis! He is really cool. He is from California and is 22 years old and NEVER BEEN ON A DATE! still blows my mind! haha HE is a very Diligent and Obedient Missionary and our District leader so we get along well. We have been walking everywhere trying many people, Updating our records the whole 9 yards to get this area the Pick-me-up it needs! Elder Davis isn't used to all this walking so he's pretty sore. haha I'm just glad its not me anymore! We have also done A lot of service lately! we helped 2 families move in 2 days and helped with our Ward mission leaders yardwork. Our boy Reptar the Rooster Helped us out alot haha. 

This sunday we talked a lot about Geneology and why it is so important. So my Commitment for all is to get lost in the addicting fun of Genealogy and find those super sweet stories of your ancestors with funky hair! You'll Love it!!

I hope You all have a wonderful spirit filled week!

Love,

Elder Jepsen

ps. This glorious picture below is of this she-bear/Hellhound that wanted my farmers tan flesh so bad it tried to eat through the fence.

This is probably the "Koolest" graffiti ever seen in NY!!

SHOCKED!

What a Crazy week!!

We got our transfer calls on Saturday, and found out Elder Hutchinson is being transferred!!!! He is Reopening the area in Owego. I was so Surprised.. haha I was sure we were going to be together for 2 but president had other plans haha.

So an Elder Davis is coming to take his place and be the District leader here. I was so re leaved when I heard he was going to be the district leader haha everyone said it was going to be me...WHEW! safe:)

But besides the crazy news, we had a pretty good week here!

WE KILLED A MOUSE THAT HAS BEEN TERRORIZING OUR APARTMENT! haha No worries ill post pictures;)

We also had a good meeting with the Bishop to update the Ward Roster, we went through all the names and contributed our info on all the people we have contacted and who has moved and whatnot. That was really good. I had been bugging our ward clerk and the bishopric about getting together and updating this HUGE roster as of late and they finally gave in haha. YES!;)

Then on Thursday we had our Zone Meeting. Which went really well, All the districts in our zone gave training's, it went really well. We have been pounding this new teaching method into our brains every Zone meeting and We are seeing great results from it.

We had many opportunities to go on splits a couple times this week and further the work in the area! Which i was more than happy about. We tried to contact one of our investigators with a baptismal date all week, but she wouldn't answer her phone so we drove to her house to behold a disappointing sight... All her windows and doors were covered and there were no trespassing signs all over and when we knocked on the door we saw someone peek through the blinds then slowly close them again.. Our investigator finally snapped.. we knew she was borderline crazy but, she lost it. The lord works in marvelous ways and does it all for a reason. We may not see this greater purpose, but he does.

Also we have been helping at a soup kitchen lately in a Protestant church. And it has been going so well, Everyone is always asking us questions and is curious about what we do. Granted half of them are Legitly CRAZY but eh, what do ya do. But after A Man named Ted a Bible thumper and a minister and I were talking about the times and about the bible (as well as this weird guy who always ties things back to the government). And Eventually i look up around us and there were people standing all around us just listening and nodding their heads in amazement. They couldnt believe such young men could talk about God in such a Mature, Sophisticated manor with such wise old men! hahaha IT was really interesting, Because i didnt think twice about it. It's what we do. As missionaries its our Duty to invite others unto Christ and to talk of Christ. 

It got me thinking though, About 200 years ago talking about God on a intellectual level was the social norm. But overtime people have put worldly things before god. They worship False gods. Too caught up in the Philosophies of men.

So It is all of our duties, as disciples of Christ to share that knowledge we have attained through Gods Good Grace to all men. As it says in Isaiah 61:1

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hathanointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to thecaptives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. 

I Pray that we will proclaim liberty to those who are captive, and spread the Gospel abroad!

I hope you all have an amazing week!

I love you all!

Elder Jepsen

This is the Erie canal! we snuck onto! 

And the DREADED MOUSE!... its not the ROUS but its close... (WARNING- a bit disturbing. ) 

....sorry for posting the picture. Jake would kill me if I didn't....

Rain...Rain and More Rain!

.... It's rained a lot here... Many a time have we been drenched in it's glory! haha We call it wife points. The longer we work in the rain, the hotter our wife gets! hahahahaaaa we walk everywhere... I feel 10x older than i actually am. I never thought i would ever have to complain about my Hips, knees, and ankles aching. But, its a daily occurrence haha

This past week was a good week! Just an ordinary missionary week! We worked hard taught some lessons, we have a new investigator with a baptismal date and also had to drop one of our other dates with an investigator. 

Oh Elder Hutchinsons birthday was Saturday so we got to celebrate it at a members house with Chinese food and good times! I made him cake which consisted of a Granola Bar and A Match(for a candle) It was pretty memorable! Hahaha 

After all the rain it flooded here! It was crazy! we walked by the Cohoes Falls, the second largest fall in the U.S. A (they pride themselves with that) And it was massive! I have some pictures i'll post! We also had an awesome Missionary man grillout at a members house and their random Rooster we name "Reptar" Shared some good times with us! haha Pictures to come! 

You  make the greatest memories when serving a mission and i wouldn't trade that with anything!:) My wish for all of you would be, To be full of gratitude! Never take what you have and the family and friends you have for granted! Count your blessings:) 

• Be ye thankful:Col. 3:15;
• I Hope you all have a wonderful week and Take care! HAPPY BELATED FATHERS DAYYYY!!!!! btw... LOVE YOU DAD!!!
• Love ya Byyyyyyyye now!
• Elder Jepsen

 Cohoes Falls, the second largest fall in the U.S.A

This is Reptar and his "ha right..."  face! haha 

He also puked when i fed him an angus burger... i thought it best if i didnt upload that.

The second picture is of FINN!!!! One of the many Troy chalk drawings. I just love the Message he shares. Couldn't have said it better..

Exchanges,Bullet holes,gay guys and Fun!

This week was so great!

We were so busy! We picked up 3 new investigators and our number of lessons doubled we tracked down many of our Less actives and some good times along the way in the Hot Humid climate of the Capitol land.

Earlier in the week i went on exchange with Elder Ledford in Downtown Albany. That was amazing! The architecture the sculptures the people it's crazy! I wanted to take pictures so bad but my camera died! uuughhh I was so bummed. But we had an awesome dinner with Janaro a member who cant speak English. That was hilarious. we couldn't understand each other but we had a good time! Then a giant storm hit and we had to walk from his house to the chapel about1.5 miles in the rain. I honestly couldnt tell if it was the rain or my own sweat, it's that humid...

Anyways after the exchange i was finally back with Elder Hutchinson and we taught lessons found new people and met a really cool guy named damain on the bus. He just couldnt stop praising the work we do. He talked super loud and openly just shared his secrets of why he doesnt go to church and his addiction to sex and whatnot. Then he begins to lift up his shirt and show all of his bullet holes ... he ad like 9 bullet hole sand a giant scar!!! I was like... geez man take a hint! stop breaking the law of CHASTITY! haha

Later in the week we were teaching a lesson with one of our new investigators on her porch, when her neighbor come out and and says... "oh yesssss.. The lord answered my prayersss" This guy had NOOOO problem showing off his sexuality as he passes back and forth saying "mmmmm" MMyou best get them off our porch before i do... as he smiles creepily... He said some other very inappropriate things i wont divulge. Satan works in some weird freakin ways... hahaha

So overall a good week:)

Anyways my computer is about to shut down... But i hope you all have a great week! and READ THE SCRIPTURES!

Love,

Elder Jepsen

This is actually where i email. an old church that is now a super SICK library with a Mastodon and terrible computers!

WHEW! This week flew by!

IT'S JUNE!! That's crazy! 

I hope you ALL had a great week this past week!:)

I know we did! We had a bunch of great stuff happen this last week, and let me just tell you first off the Lord DOES answer are prayers! haha Cause wow did he answer ours!

We Finally got a hold of All our investigators and scheduled appointments with all of them. We also had Some great lessons which was definitely a breath of fresh air.

One of our Investigators Ann, she is somewhat of an elderly lady. Loves it when we come over and Share the gospel with her. Besides her Vendetta with her neighbor across the street, (she thinks that her neighbor has it out for her, So she thinks because he is a judge he is power hungry)  She is pretty solid! She came to church this Sunday. and with it being fast and testimony meeting, She heard all the amazing testimonies of our members and she started to cry and cry! Then after the meeting i explained to her it was the Holy Ghost testifying to her that what she was hearing was the truth! Then she said " i absolutely love it here" She has committed to be baptized June 21st. We are so exited for her!

As the weeks go on the more and more I fall in love with the ward here! They are so good to all the missionaries here! We have 3 sets of Elders and 1 set of Sisters, And they spoil us all:)

We had an awesome meal appointment with these members the Alexanders. They have an Amazing house in the middle of the woods I was in heaven! We had so much fun. I just told them a bunch of my stupid stories which they thought were hilarious... I've been fed Mexican food after Mexican food! which i am so grateful for!! I have tried Rhubarb pie and Japanese Curry! 

AHHH it was sooo amazing! There is a reason we walk 10 miles a day now....

A little bit about my area, We live in Cohoes On historical Van Shaick Island In an old Factory. On the west side of our area we have Cohoes and to the North There is Waterford and to the East there is North troy (lansingburgh). The Burg is where we play alot of Basket ball and see alot of weird stuff... haha it's great! Annnnnd we don't go there after dark. There are shooting's and stabbing's there often. BUT we run fast so it's okay;)

There is a book i have been reading lately that i just can't put down! Its called The Highly Effective missionary by Dave c Covey.

And it has changed my idea of missionary work! IT just got me so pumped to just go out and work! It correlates  with Preach my Gospel and Helps with thinking outside the box. I love it! 

There is this ...Bold... Door approach that i want to implament soon so i will let you all know how it goes! ... haha

I hope you all have an amazing week! and Always strive to be Bold and Share your beliefs with others!:) 

Love ya all!

-Elder Jepsen

 Cohoes! a view from the Island!:)

Sweet Sweet Elder Hutchinson and I taking a selfie...

Planning...what's planning?

Happy belated Memorial day United States citizens! :)

Good news! its no longer freezing Btw!.... It's now terribly hot and Humid.. hahaha The irony..

Sorry my email is so late.. all the libraries were closed and i have been waiting for this creeper guy to stop watching "how to" videos on holes in socks...  So i can EMAIL!!! haha

Anyways... We had a crazy crazy week this past week. 

First, Everything we had planned had either fallen through or had to change due to spontaneous service opportunities. We helped a super nice lady with her yard work, Then help a couple move in, Elder Hutchenson said "wow i have never done so much service on my mission. i feel like a crippled old man" hahaha He is Hilarious! I work that guy so hard... I feel bad sometimes. But he is always willing to work its so great! The next step is just getting him to speak up more often! he is very quiet and shy, So we all try to get him out of his shell.

But whenever he goes to the "courts" in Troy he just opens up! he talks to everyone. I guess he is just a thug, who knows. Everyone who plays basketball there is Amazing! We usually play one game with them when we walk by. They call us CHURCH SHOES! haha 

We also had our service hour at the nursing home, We usually ride the bus because its too long of a walk, BUT we missed the bus due to watching a family of Asians fighting outside of a restaurant. So we walked.... and walked.... and WALKED! Then finally realized we weren't even walking in the right direction!! we walked 3 miles in the WRONG DIRECTION! haha so we had to walk another 3 miles to a bus stop to go home and it went the wrong way... hahahaha We quickly learned more about the bus system that day. 

I am slowly but surly learning more names of the AWESOME members in our ward. They are so great they feed us and tell us such great stories! haha I find the best question to ask is What is the craziest thing you ever saw on your mission? Never fails to amuse me! haha

The work here has abruptly ceased for some crazy reason! all our investigators are just no where to be found so we Tract and talk to people almost all day everyday!  But almost always after an appointment falls through. Things have been just crazy lately, One of our Zone leaders Elder Gemienart Became very sick overnight, So Elder Lords the other ZL asked us to go on exchange with them Because they had things that needed to be done that day. So elder hutchenson so Eagerly volunteered himself to be a Zone leader for a day! haha OH was I so happy he did that! haha once i heard what they had to do all day i definitely counted my blessings. They had to move all these things into all the sisters apartments and do all these training's, while I stayed in their super nice apartment and took a nice Jacuzzi bath and played mini golf. Hahaha it was .. uh.. ineffective haha

On memorial day our stake had a HUGE BBQ with an amazing turnout! We had burgers, investigators, slips and falls it was great! we all got super sun-burnt! 

I definitely learned that, even if things don't go according to plans, It happened for a reason. You might not ever know why god put you in the path of a lady who smells like dead cats, but he does it for a reason! and the best thing to do is to put your faith in him and listen to the spirit and just let it guide ya!:)

I hope you all have an amazing week! and start enjoying this summer!

And I promise i will post more pictures next week.. totes forgot my camera...

:)

Love Elder NY Jepsen

Culture Shock!

Well Good Mormon Everyone!:)

Allow me to expound on my CRAZY CRAZY week.

So Monday and Tuesday completely consisted of Packing all my junk i have accumulated in Massena, Then saying my goodbyes to everyone. Which was kind of hard, I had grown so close to everyone up there.

Then on Wednesday we had transfers! What a long and spiritual day! Many great missionaries in this mission went home last week... it was super weird to see them go. 

It took us 3 and a half hours to get to Utica from Massena, Then took us 2 hours to get to Albany. The van we came up in was the Zone leaders van in Albany. We had 5 missionaries and their MASSIVE LUGGAGE!! And guess who had to be squished in the back seat with all of it because no one else would speak up? .... Yes, yours Truly! haha .... blessings.

Anyways, Albany is HUGE! the buildings are amazing. we drove right through it... then straight to troy which is the epitome of Ghetto. haha its so great! Elder Pettit and I got to troy and met Elder stoddard and Elder Hutchenson. There they drove us to our apartment. And by this time i was VERY nervous because i just saw Troys apartment and... it didnt look so hot. So we get to Cohoes then proceed to the "Island" which is between the Hudson river. Right below a State park. Then, we go in the apartment and... its SO SICK! It's like a Super old penthouse! haha 

..Tender Mercy... 

Elder Hutchenson is from Rose Hill Utah and a studly soccer player. He is Hilarious!! every little thing he does. He reminds me of mr. bean! He has been out for about 2 transfers. And these last four days he is taking over an area for the first time and EVERYONE canceled or bailed on him. He was so discouraged he thought it was him!:( I told him that is missionary life and you will Always have some of those days! haha He is great. 

Cohoes Troy and Lansingburgh are completely different from my last Area! Did i mention it is ghetto? haha People come up and talk to us and ask us questions! we can talk to people all day its so nice! Now the next step is getting the Hutch to doing it by himself:)

The first Full day i was here, A strange guy named Dan came up to us and asked us If we like the German flute or Hermonica better then proceeded to play very loudly and sporadically.... Then he gave me some of his drawing and poetry. I wont go into too much detail on the poetry but let me tell you its just.... Great . The last one ends like "so ends the prickly  life of Larry the French Fry" hahaha But i digress.

THIS WARD IS AMAZING!! they are willing to teach with us and help spread the gospel. They are just eager to work! ah i love it. PEOPLE FEED US!!! i cant believe it. I have never just wanted to hug everyone in sight before in my life. haha

We had a great discussion in Elders Quorum yesterday, about secular things and spiritual things... which turned into a Debate. Then I pulled out a scripture i LOVE in Collesians 2:8. I urge you all to read it! IT reminds me not to believe in the deceit of men and of sciences. But to believe in Christ!:)

I hope you all have a great week!

And i look forward to telling you more zany stories of Albany next week!

Love always,

Elder Jepsen

 this is the bridge between Cohoes and Waterford- probably the least ghetto view you can find:)

our apartment! 

Ch ch ch ch CHANGES!

HEY! everyone, I hope you all had an amazing Mothers day!:) 

For me it was a PERFECT way to end such a crazy week by seeing My Mom and Dad and my sister. It was so great to hear their voices and see their faces. 

..they are still there so that's good.. haha We had A lot to talk about because this last week many things happened.

We had our Branch BBQ that we put a lot of time and effort into, and it turned out just Great! we had many many people show up and have a good time and share stories about Family History. It also boosted our numbers on Sunday so that was good too haha.

On Saturday Elder Neus and I Helped try to find Hypodermic needles in the parks up here with the Chamber of commerce (which was crazy btw) Then we helped this really nice lady with here big time yard work and changed her views of Mormons, YES! But after that we got a call from our Zone Leaders.... 

They told us the changes that are happening around the Mission and..... that I am being transferred to... North Albany. I think Cohoes to be more exact.. haha. It IS A Brand NEW walk area. I was in Shock! I am now going from the Smallest branch in the Mission to the biggest ward in the mission. It is definitely going to be different than the north country. I will be serving with an Elder Hutchenson. I am going to miss Elder Neus! It never felt like work when we were companions it always just felt like Chillin with your best friend. I'll miss that studly son of a gun! haha

It is sad to have to leave all the people I have grown to love and care for and all the weird back woods things I see up here but, I know I have been called there for a reason. And that is where the lord needs me:)

SO in memory of my Massena, where I was "Born" this email will probably be shorter than usual so i can just post pictures of the fun I've had the last 6 months!

Thank you ALL so much for all the love and support you give me! I promise i will always keep you Updated for the next 3/4 of my mission!:)

Love always the Northerner at heart....

Elder Jepsen

Keep NY NORMAL! (it's going to be a bumper sticker soon, just watch)

We work hard...

Splits with Elder Adam- They really bonded