Missionary Mom

March 24, 2013

**This is Elder Higgins Mom, every few months our bishop asks parents of missionaries serving from our ward to speak in sacrament meeting, it was my turn to share experiences from Elder Higgins, here's my remarks:

"When Jordan left on his mission I knew there would come a day when I might have the opportunity to speak about his mission in church, I have actually thought about what I would say.  Coincidentally it comes on a day when I am also teaching Gospel Doctrine class on what else?  Missionary work….

Three of the greatest days of my life were the days my children Justin, Jennifer and Jordan were born!  I am so thankful to Heavenly Father for the opportunity to be a mother.  Another great day in my life was when I became a missionary mom! 

Many of you know I like to scrapbook, Jordan mentioned this in his farewell talk….I bought this piece of scrapbook paper years ago, probably at least 10 years ago, I knew I would have the opportunity to use it someday, it says Missionary Mom can’t wait till they get called! Can’t stand to let them go! Can’t stop talking about them! Can’t stop worrying about them!  Can’t wait till they get home!  Pretty much says it all.  I am thankful for this brief opportunity Jordan has given me to be a missionary mom.

One of Jordan’s best decisions to prepare for a mission was his choice of good friends.  In his farewell talk he said:

“My friends also deserve my gratitude. You hear it said about marriage a lot, you know, they say, “Marry a person who encourages you to be the best possible you, you can be.” Well, it applies to friendship too, and my friends make me laugh, and they make me smile, and they’ve always encouraged me to be the best possible me, I can be. I owe them so much.”  Many of his good friends are serving in the mission field right now.  I am thankful for them and their influence on my son.  I would encourage all of you YM and YW to make good friends……..

Jordan has been out for 6 months, now.  On May 9, 2012  he received his call, it says in part, “You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  You are assigned to labor in the California Riverside Mission….you will prepare to preach the gospel in the Spanish language.  You have been recommended as one worthy to represent the Lord as a minister of the restored gospel…..As you devote your time and attention to serving the Lord, leaving behind all other personal affairs, the Lord will bless you with increased knowledge and testimony of the restoration and of the truths of the gospel” 

I have seen this come to pass in his service so far, I have been amazed at the opportunities for personal spiritual growth that come to a young man or young woman as they serve a mission.  As he was preparing his farewell talk entitled “Converted to His Gospel through His Church”  he voiced to me concerns of feeling inadequate in some areas of the gospel, obviously he had a testimony of the church or he would not have made the choice to serve a mission.  I told him that we spend our lives becoming converted to different aspects of the gospel….so far on his mission he has read the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, Jesus the Christ, and is currently reading Preach My Gospel and working through all the study opportunities there.  In his very first letter from the MTC he said “I enjoy studying so much, a lot more than I thought I would originally.  You can really lose yourself in the gospel here, which is what makes missionaries effective.”  He loved the MTC he shared this “I really do love it here, my companion is great! And the spirit here is tremendous, it’s like a constant buzzing it’s amazing!”

He was in the MTC for general conference when the announcement was made by president Monson lowering the mission age, he said “the MTC went completely nuts when president Monson made the missionary announcement and for the rest of the day everybody could not stop talking about it, some of the sisters were kind of mad seeing as they could have left and been home already, ha ha!  He shared some words from Elder Bednar who came to speak, “he said there was only one reason for the change in age, the Lord will hasten his work when his work needs to be hastened”

He has become converted to the temple, during his nine weeks at the MTC he was able to attend the temple weekly in one of his letters he said “I just got back from the temple.  I love it there.  It’s one of the things I look forward to most each week.”  He has some really special spiritual confirmations in the temple.  He currently has the opportunity to go to the Redlands, CA temple every three months.

“This is the Lord’s mission not mine.  The more I accept that the greater I feel as a missionary”  He shared the miracle of learning the Spanish language…..

He spent thanksgiving in the MTC and Elder Holland and his family came and did a devotional, and adopted the missionaries for the day into his family, Jordan shared with us that he is thankful for Family…he goes on….”I’m thankful for this Gospel and the opportunity to be a missionary.  I’m grateful for prophets and specifically Joseph Smith and the amazing things he did as the Lord’s servant.  I’m thankful for Jesus Christ and his love and sacrifice.  I’ve come to know him in the MTC so much better and I love Him!  So you guys can see why I had an awesome thanksgiving!

His first week in Riverside, CA  he writes…”We taught this really cool guy named Carlos, and the lesson was in Spanish so I don’t know too much of what went on but he asked how the dinosaurs fit into the gospel.  It was kind of funny to me because my last week in the MTC our district had a debate about this same topic.  We never really settled the debate.  We just ended it, after it got kind of ridiculous, by saying it doesn’t matter none of our investigators are going to ask a question like that.  Wrong!  Carlos was cool though I’m excited to see him again.

Jordan shared an experience on being obedient.  “We had kind of a cool experience last night.  We had just got done watching the Christmas Devotional and it was around 8:30, which is kind of an awkward time.  We didn’t’ want to go knock on doors, but it wasn’t time to go in yet.  We are not supposed to go back home until 9:00 unless we are in a lesson and we can stay out until 9:30.  We were faced with a choice to make.  We could go in early, which would mean disobedience to some degree, or find something to do.  So we ended up pulling into a parking lot and just talked to people there.  I ended up setting up an appointment with a girl named Vikki, who said she was looking for a church and was interested in hearing more, which was cool, but that wasn’t the cool experience I’m talking about.  My companion was called over by someone in a van while I was handing out cards and talking to people.  He talked for quite some time before I joined the conversation, but apparently this man was a former member of our church.  He had joined back when he lived in Ghana after being taught by some missionaries there.  He has been inactive for a while now, at least since he moved to California 9 years ago.  He said he has been super depressed lately, and feels like something is missing.  He called my companion over because he recognized us, the white shirts and ties, from the missionaries that taught him in Africa.  We talked with him, and asked if he needed anything.  He wanted us to pray with him and he wanted to see the missionaries, we will refer him to the English speaking Elders.  After we prayed he said he felt hope and he felt calm.  I’m just glad we didn’t go back early!

Elder Higgins has learned that lots of people in California have pit bulldogs, he’s learned that there are many people that want to bible bash and how he should and should not handle these situations.  He has learned about other religions and their beliefs, which has strengthened his testimony.  He was excited to know that his mission president allows the elders to have musical instruments and share their talents, so he wrote home before Christmas about his experience in a pawn/music store on P-day and how he came to own a “sweet acoustical guitar” he named Ramona.  Many of you know Jordan played in a band and I knew he would miss playing his guitar.  I have been able to send him hymns to learn to play.  He is learning about the Spanish people and their culture.  He is learning about real life experiences such as having broken pipes in his apartment and no water for two days and an infestation of ants because someone left a donut out…..he has learned how it feels to have doors slammed in your face and keep on going………….

He finished his 12 week training in Riverside and was transferred and is now serving in Murrieta, CA where there is a small Spanish branch.  They live in the home of some members there.  I am sure you may have heard the announcement in Feb of 58 new missions in one of Elder Higgins most recent letters he wrote “there is going to be a Redlands mission now, that means our boundaries are going to change, we are losing Redlands, Palm Desert, Yucaipa and Yucca Valley to the Redlands mission and Murrieta where is serving now will be going into the Carlsbad, CA mission.  The change will happen in July and if you are a missionary in one of these areas you will just transfer to the other mission.  Pretty crazy right?

Jordan’s Mission scripture he chose 2 Nephi 31:20 “Wherefore, ye must press forward with steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and all men.  Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father; Ye shall have eternal life.”

In conclusion:  he  writes: I heard a talk back in the MTC by Elder Holland, and he said we need to let the mission change us, not just pass through us.  I want to do that and so far I think I have…..I know that when I go up to someone and say, “Hey I’m a representative of the Jesus Christ”  I want them to recognize me as one, so they want to hear the message I can share and to do that I have to let the mission change me, I’ve got to keep bettering myself, you know an endure to the end type of thing….he goes on….The message we share of the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the most unique and marvelous message anyone could hear, and it’s either true or it’s not.  And it’s my testimony, something I can say, as a 19 year old boy, who doesn’t know much of anything, that it’s true.  I would have thrown in the towel and come home a while ago if I didn’t know. And it all boils down to a prayer I said about a book and an answer I can’t deny, and can only explain as a manifestation of the Holy Ghost."

How thankful and blessed I am to have the privilege to be missionary mom, I add my testimony to that of Elder Higgins…………

Bike wreck and lunch out!

Elder Higgins brother in law's parents were in Murietta for a wedding and took us out to lunch on March 19, 2012
We picked Chick-FilA

 

My Companion Elder Graves and I at the home where we live in Murrieta

 

Lunch is over, back to work......Thanks Palmer's for a nice lunch!

 

March 18, 2013

.....I did go on an exchange this week with our district leader, and his area is a biking area. I'm gonna go ahead and tell you that I got in a pretty gnarly wreck. I've lost all the skills I've ever had riding bikes. Here's the situation, my fearless leader, was going down this dirt pathway that lead into the road, but a truck was parked so we he had to make quick turn on the sidewalk. He made the turn with ease, and he was going pretty fast, probably like 30 mph, actually I have no idea, probably a lot less. The point is it was pretty quick, and he is a bigger guy, so I didn't think much of it. I can do anything he does right? Wrong. I didn't take into consideration that this was my first time on a bike in a while, a long while, and that my back breaks didn't work. I ended up on my back, right next to the truck. I did manage to not hit the truck so that was good. It was embarrassing though. there was construction workers on the next lot that came over to see if I was okay. I told them I've never felt better, with one of those hoot and hollers that makes any embarrassing situation seem okay. So yeah I played it off cool. I didn't have too many scraps or bruises either.

 

On a spiritual note, I find this temple trip to be one of the most edifying temple trips yet, and that's cause I'm starting to look at the gospel in a new way. So that was neat. We also picked up two new investigators. One just showed up to the church on Sunday in Menifee, and then their ward mission leader called us, and we've taught him twice now. He is really enjoying it! The problem is he can't come to church on Sundays because his boss makes him work. He also lives with his boss, so that's another problem. The other one is the husband of one of our members and he has been taught by many different Elders. We ate over there on Saturday, he is a super nice guy, all we can really do is prepare for our lessons with him, and pray that the spirit touches his heart.  We're going to have our first lesson with him on Tuesday. He came to church yesterday. So we'll see how this goes.......

Missionary Work in Murrieta

March 11, 2013

Hey everything sounds to be fantastic back home. That's good to hear! We tracted a lot this week! I had my first couple legit "door slams" this week. It is definatly making me a lot more forward with the our message though. I want to share it more than ever. We did meet one latino brethren, and he was a pastor for a penticostle (No idea how to spell it?) church. We talked with him for a while, and he was doing most of the preaching. It was cool though. We get to go to the temple on thursday, and I'm really excited! I've been pretty anxious to get back there since the last time. But other than that there is nothing much I have to share. We are working, and being obedient, and talking to lots of people, and not seeing much come from it. I try not to get frustrated, and I feel like I exercise (excercise? is that right? ejercer is the word in spanish, I'm losing the alot of my english spelling. I get confused a lot.. if you can't tell.) Anyway, I feel like I'm exercising patience, but I will go ahead and say that this is the toughest thing for me right now as a missionary. Not many people want to listen, and if they do, they are usually from another religion & want to prove us wrong. But hey, whattayado? Just keep on keeping on. That is what you do.

There is some really cool news about the mission though. There is going to be a Redlands California mission and that means our boundaries are going to change. We are losing Redlands, Palm Desert, Yucaipa, and Yucca valley to the Redlands mission, and Murrieta (where I am serving) is going to the Carlsbad California Mission. That change is going to happen in July and if you are a missionary in one of these areas you will just transfer to the other mission. Pretty crazy right? A part of me wants to switch over, that would be kinda cool.

But yeah that's pretty much it. The branch is awesome! I'm still learning a lot. I can't believe it's almost been 6 months already! that's crazy! Much thanks and love from the burbs of Murrieta.

Love, Elder Higgins.

March 3, 2013

Hey!

It's been another lovely week of missionary service here in Murrieta (Mur-town). We have a few more investagators we are teaching, so that's good. It just amazes me how much different the work here is compared to Riverside. Tracting is like 98 % uneffective in terms of finding new spanish people to talk to, so we have to work with the members a lot. Which is cool with me because the members here are pretty fantastic. One family brought a new family, and another guy they know to church, and we're probably going to have a family night with them this week or the next. And a lot of people have friends they are planning to talk with and invite them to church. So we'll see if any of these people turn into investagators. How exciting is that? Yeah. I haven't heard anything about those I was teaching in Riverside yet, but hopefully pretty soon. My spanish is actually getting quite a bit better, and it's because we speak it a lot during the day in normal conversation. Nothing overally exciting happened this past week. We met some mean people that weren't interested. We met some nice people that weren't interested. We taught a lot of lessons to less actives.

We did a three hour hike this morning. It was really pretty! It was nice to get away from the city for a little bit. We saw a lot of deer, and a few cayoties (What the heck? How do you spell that? coyote? kai yo te?) So that was fun.

We had a big nerf gun war in the gym today for P-day activity. They set up a bunch of tables, and chair racks, and stuff to hide behind, and then we had teams, and just went to war. It was really awesome! Our zone leader is a really big Tongan fellow, and he had it out for me from the beginning because I got a really sweet head shot on him the first game. Yeah. Represent. It was definately my favorite P day activity so far. I just really like this Zone. We have a lot of really good Elders.

I am going to have to say farewell now. What a shame. I'm still learning a lot. Preach My Gospel activities are teaching me a lot. The Church is still true. I wish you the best of luck! I wish I could send like a virtual hug or something. That would be cool. Pretend I did. Sweet. Ok. Love you guys

 

Love Elder Higgins :)

California is Picture Perfect!

California Sunset

My Guitar "Ramona"

Redlands, CA temple we go every three months

Tracting in Riverside

Riverside, CA



On the plane from the MTC to California November 27, 2012

My Companion and our Apartment in Riverside, CA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Testimony of the Gospel (and cleaning ...)

February 25, 2013

 

Hey!

Thanks for sending me some mail real quickly. I've successfully obtained a library card. By the time I'm through with my mission I'll have a little collection of California library cards. It will be the best! (The missionaries go to the local library to email letters home) Hey and I always forget to tell you thanks for keeping me updated with all my friends, and what is going on with all of them. Looks like Chris is doing good laying down his weapons of war. Good man! I have to do a better job at that as well. Tanner will be chillin' (serving) in California for a while. That's pretty wild. Do you know how long he'll have to wait for his visa?? & I hope Josh and Kenny are doing good in the ol' MTC! That's crazy about every one's mission calls recently. Jacob is going to California speaking Hmong? That's one of the craziest things I've heard! I met a few missionaries going to Minnesota speaking Hmong while I was in the MTC. I guess there are little communities all over the place! And Brooke is going to Boston! That's too cool! It fits her. I don't really know how, I can just see her doing really well there. Taiwan fits Josh Claflin as well.

I'm really digging the new area, even if I haven't had one Spanish street contact yet. I think the Lord really wants me to work hard at learning the language. We made a goal as companions to speak to each other in Spanish all day, as much as we can. It has been working out well, and will help me a lot. The branch is really cool! There are a lot of really good members and alot of them are willing to help us out with missionary work. It is weird going to church and having such a small congregation though, and I thought my last ward was small..... This one has it beat. But like I said the members definitely make up for it. They are champs!

So, we live with some members and they are pretty great! I haven't met the whole family yet, but I see Brother S a lot, he takes us hiking in the hills out front by his house every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, that means we have to wake up extra early.. and I still hate waking up. I thought I would get used to it, but I don't think I ever will. He is a pretty great guy! We live in a room, just like any other bedroom, and share the kitchen. It's a pretty sweet deal! There house is the cleanest house I've seen, and we have quite a few rules to keep it clean, and it's actually really easy to do. It's a concept I never got before but it's a lot easier to do a few, little extra things now, and not have to have a mass cleaning project later. I'm a fan! So don't be surprised if I come home a clean freak.

I have been reading Preach My Gospel all they way through, and doing the activities on all the pages for my personal study. It's really great! I've been learning a lot of cool stuff! Tell Jenn I've completed the reading chart for D&C that she gave me. I read the whole thing last transfer. It was great. There is a lot of really neat things in there. Well, that should suffice for know. Thanks for everything (Mom & Pops), for allowing me to come out here and do this, and everything! I've made it a goal to do more testifying in lessons, but why not do some testifying now as well. I have a testimony of Revelation, both personal and modern revelation given through the living Christ. The message we share of the Restoration of The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the most unique and marvelous message any one could hear, and it's either true or it's not. And it's my testimony, something I can say, as a 19 year old boy, who doesn't know much of anything, that it's true. I would have thrown in the towel and came home a while ago if I didn't know. And it all boils down to a prayer I said about a book, and an answer I can't deny, and can only explain as a manifestation of the Holy Ghost. So, there you have it. Thanks for everything. I love you all!

Love Elder Higgins

Transfer Day!

Send Mail to Elder Higgins at Mission Office:   Elder Jordan Dale Higgins
                                                                                 California Riverside Mission
                                                                                 5900 Grand Avenue
                                                                                 Riverside, CA  92504

February 19, 2013

 

Hey everybody!!

I got thrown a curve ball here, and got transferred to a new area. Both my companion & I got transferred. He went to Redlands, and I got shipped to the densely Spanish populated land of Murrieta. That's a total lie. There are only two Spanish missionaries that cover the whole area, & I'm told that we have a very humble Spanish branch here, and 1 investigator that we are working with. It should be very fun, hard work. I also hear that the members are awesome, and love to share the Gospel, and the branch is very "Mission" oriented. We live in a home with some members that attend an English ward. They seem really nice.  My new companion is from Ogden, UT. He is awesome. We are going to get along really well! And I can already tell he is going to teach me a lot! From what I've seen of him already, He is the kind of missionary that I want to be. So I'm excited to be in this area, and with him!!

Way way back, when I was in Riverside, like, last week, we had our best week yet. It was a good way to leave Riverside! I don't feel like I got any closure though.. I didn't think I was going to leave. We went in and taught E-- about The Atonement, and then presented her with a baptismal date of the 17 of March. At first she said she couldn't do it, but we talked through her problems, and we helped her think about the things that are most important, and where she wanted wanted to see herself in the future. By the end of the lesson she agreed to get baptised, and she not only agreed, but did so with a smile on her face. I hope the new missionaries follow up on that, and she gets baptised. I promised her I would come back for her baptism when she did! So hopefully it happens!! I defiantly have a strengthened testimony of the spirit & how it does, indeed, provide aid to the things we need to say. I'm going to miss that area, and I'm going to miss the ward, and G (hope she gets baptised too). All of it.....

Love Elder Higgins

 

 

February 11, 2013

 

Hey!

This week was interesting. We are running short on options for people to visit, so we spend a lot of time tracting during the day, and then we visit the few people we have to visit at night. We tracted in the rain on Thursday. It was partly miserable, partly fun. Our pipes in our apartments broke Saturday night. We didn't have water from Saturday night until this morning pretty much. It was pretty crazy! They dug the whole lawn outside. We also had an infestation of ants. Someone left a doughnut out on the counter one morning, and when we got back there was a huge trail of ants leading to the doughnut. They were going back and forth across three walls, near the ceiling, and then they ran down the wall to the counter top. There was a ton of them. It gave me the heeby jeebys. I almost ran over a kitten as well. That would have been sad! Yeah, and we had a few cops get shot, like you already heard. The one that died was shot a few blocks from the other Spanish missionaries apartment. They were running that morning and saw the street all blocked off, and the cops told them to go back home. Pretty crazy. I don't know if the guy has been caught but he isn't in the area any longer. So that's good!

It's crazy this is the last week of the transfer! I'm almost done being "trained". Yeeah! I'm glad that I'll be classified as a normal missionary now! :) I think I will stay in this area for another transfer. I think my companion will leave for sure, but who knows. The other missionaries say President Smart pulls some crazy moves every transfer. We taught G twice this week. She really enjoys our message, and reads, and prays everyday. She came to the baptism for the other Spanish Elders and loved it. She said "ohala me bautizo" I don't know how to spell in Spanish, but that translates to something like, "Hopefully I get baptized." And I think she will. .......

With love, Elder Higgins

February 4, 2013

Hey gang!

This has been a good week. Nothing super miraculous or out of the ordinary, but it's been good. One day as we were tracting we found a family that has been taught before by missionaries. We did a harvesting blessing with them, and they said we can come back. So hopefully that can go somewhere. One of the brothers actually got baptized, but has since gone inactive. I guess he doesn't want anything to do with this church anymore, and he had told the bishop from his ward to stop sending people to try and get him to come back. Which is sad. But later this week I was reading in Moroni, in the 6th chapter, 4th verse, and it talks about the members being counted, and recorded so they would always be remembered. We do alot to try and keep people active out here. It's tough because there are not a ton of members, but it's important that we remember them, and do our best to keep them here. It reminds me of Christ’s request to Peter to Feed His Sheep. That pretty much sums up missionary work. We are feeding his sheep, most of which don't want to be fed, or at least don't know they want to be fed or think they already are. Being counted and numbered is a small part of the reason we need organized religion. So we can have people supporting us. The bigger reason for organized religion being that we need to be working toward eternal life, and doing those things that are necessary to obtain it. Like making covenants, and receiving counsel, and correction, in a Godly manner. I kind of studied about organized religion because some lady said she doesn't believe in it. She said everyone is a hypocrite that goes to church. Which is lame! While people that go to church aren't perfect, the sincere ones are looking to change, and looking for a source of happiness, and that is what church is all about. Pshh.. What does she know?

I  had my very first baptismal invite. We got a referral to go and visit this lady, so we went and taught her on Saturday, upon arriving we learned she is not even in our area. She is in the other Spanish speaking Riverside area. Lame! We don't get to teach her now. But she agreed to get baptized on the 17th, and she came to church. She is really nice, and wants the Gospel in her life. I honestly think she will get baptized on the 17th. It was pretty neat!

Here's kind of a funny story. It's actually quite disgusting. We were in a lesson a few days ago, and while we were teaching I was playing with the cutest puppy ever. I shouldn't have been playing with it necessarily. We are supposed to eliminate all distractions before teaching, but this particular distraction was too cute to eliminate. So I just kept playing with it, and I don't think it has been potty trained yet because it ended up peeing on my lap, and my arm. It was really really gross. What's even more gross is for the rest of the night we didn't have time to go back so I could change. I just thought I would share that with you...........

Love, Elder Higgins