Sister Jessica Garfield California San Fernando Mission

Good morning everyone! This week was definitely a little interesting between Sister Semenyuk and I.  I can happily say that, by the end of the week, we understand each other a lot better and are making each other laugh. God answers prayers for sure. Favorite Spiritual Thought: I enjoyed this past week's lesson in come follow me. One of the questions it asked was "What teachings do you find in John 3:1–21 that might have inspired Nicodemus to follow Jesus and be born again?" Verses 11 and 12 stood out to me. I thought it was so interesting that Jesus mentioned that they had testified of truth but that Nicodemus hadn't received it. It made me think of how we decide if we are going to share our testimonies of Christ, and the people we testify to decide if they will receive it and act on it.  Favorite Miracle: This was just a couple of little things, but they were miracles to me. Yesterday at church, we learned who the ministering brothers are for two less-a...

Happy Valentines Day! Favorite miracles: Abel, the guy from last week, called us! He wants to meet with us this week!  We also got to see Sister Howard and Sister Flinders at this Jewish family history event yesterday where Sisters Howard and Semenyuk were helping translate Russian documents. It was so cool to see the spirit of Elijah in these people who aren't even members. But it was also great to hear how well the Hollywood Ward is doing right now. There were so many tiny miracles that Sister Howard and I saw during my last week there that have turned into huge miracles now. What a blessing. : )  Favorite Spiritual Moment: This week, we got to go to the temple after interviews. It was such a wonderful experience. I had prayed before the session to feel God's love and a confirmation that these things are true, and the Spirit just washed over me the whole time we were there. I hope that all of you have the opportunity to go to the temple very soon. I know that...

Hello everyone! Surprise! They moved our P-day to Thursday this week and didn't tell us until Sunday night. To any of those who felt abused, neglected, or forgotten, I apologize. ; ) That's not the only surprise of the week for me though. On Wednesday of last week, I got a call from the mission president saying that there was going to be an emergency transfer. Sister Flinders got sent up to Hollywood, my last area, and I am now training Sister Semenyuk! It was a crazy day of unexpected packing and a whole lot of driving, but we're all settled now. Sister Semenyuk is from Kazakhstan and Russia. She is 23 and is learning English, and she's doing a super great job. It's so much fun to serve with her! I've been having fun teaching her a lot of things about America like how to order at a fast food restaurant and what the Super Bowl is. It's been a really cool experience so far, and it's just another witness to me that the Lord really does guide our tran...

Hey everyone!  This week was so good! This area is super great - there are a lot more neighborhoods and open complexes, and the people here are soooo much friendlier than in Hollywood. We've had a lot of success just trying to contact formers and people with interest from the past, because we've been going by, talking to them or whoever answers the door, maybe knocking a few doors nearby, and talking to everyone we possibly can on the street. And Sister Flinders is so great! This is her first week, but she already has a really good idea of what she's doing. She works really hard and has an incredible ability to follow the Spirit. I'm super impressed with her. Favorite Spiritual Thought: 2 Nephi 10:24 " Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved." I read through ...

Howdy! Transfers are tomorrow, and it looks like I'll be saying farewell to Hollywood. I'm heading off to a place called Westchester, in the Inglewood zone. I've never been there, and don't know tons about it, but I've heard good things. (Fun fact about Inglewood: the Savex lip balm that my family uses so obsessively is actually made there, haha.) Something super fun about it is that I'll be in the same zone as Sister Pinter for her last transfer! It also looks like I'll be whitewashing again, because I am training a new Sister. I'll meet her tomorrow. Sister Howard is also training (and so is Sister Pinter, haha); she gets to train a Sister from Kazakhstan who can be her new Russian-speaking companion! I know that she'll do a great job. : ) As much as we've struggled with this area, I think that I will miss it more than I expected. Sister Howard has been an amazing companion. I've learned so much from her. We may not have had tons of s...

Hey everybody! I think there's a quote from Mark Twain or someone like that which goes something like, "The coldest winter I ever knew was a summer in San Francisco." Well, brothers and sisters, that is definitely not the case for me, seeing as I grew up in Utah and am serving a little further south, in Los Angeles. But I do think I can honestly say that the wettest weather I've ever experienced has been a mission in sunny California. It has rained so much this winter! I mean, it's nothing in comparison to the rain Sister Howard is used to, being from Washington, but I've never seen this much water in the streets in my life. Our parking pond just keeps getting bigger and bigger. ; ) The nice thing about it though is that right after it rains, it's actually really pretty here since you can see the sky! Honestly, it's a lot of fun since it still isn't constant. But it's definitely different than what I'm used to, haha. Favorite Script...