Jacobs mission report

http://youtu.be/QRwvq6pHWiw

This is the link to get to the talk we posted. This will take you to a u-tube location hit play and you should be able to hear his talk.

watch mission expirence

This was recorded at our family gathering on Sunday Sept 1st. there is no picture so just listen closely. Listen after his testimony there's more after that. Enjoy! I know we did. Thanks to all who supported Jacob and our family through his Mission.

Wow, What a week. The lord is pushing my limits until the end. We have had an extremely tiring and rewarding week. The lord really tested one of our investigators this week and we got caught in the middle of it. It was extremely stressful but many prayers and some much needed revelation helped the week and on a great note. This has been a great week. And it was my last full week. I feel so sad to admit that but I know they won’t let me stay. I will talk to all of you more when I get home about this week. There are some supper sweet experiences that I can’t put online for confidentiality reasons. I love all of you. Thank you so much for your support and trust over these past few years. This has been the best experience of my life. I which I could continue to serve her but the lord has other plans. Have a great week and I will see you all in the next couple weeks.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

This was a busy, busy week and it went by really fast. I am surprised to already be writing again. We witnessed so many miracles this week. we were out of our area a lot this week and put about 600 miles on our car just driving around from place to place. We had to drive way down to Missouri a couple times, but overall it was a really good week. We also spent a while in Illinois helping some missionaries out there.

                But the week ended really well. We saw the baptism of a couple young girls who we have been working with. They are an amazing family, the mom has been coming back to church and we have watched as the family has changed. The girls were so excited for their baptism and everything went well. We have another baptism next week. This is the only time that I have found someone just by knocking a street who is going to be baptized. I will talk a little more about them next week.

                I am so excited to be a missionary this is the best time in my life. I don’t have a lot of time left now but this week is already set up to be super busy. We are working hard. We are teaching a lot of lessons and I am amazed at how many people are ready to change their life’s for the better. I am so grateful for this work. I know that it is true. Have a great week.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

This was a great week. We spent a lot of time knocking doors and talking to people but it was a really great week. The baptism that was scheduled for Saturday got pushed back a week but for a legitimate reason. They will be baptized this week. And then we are working with a guy who will be baptized in a couple weeks. He has been smoke free for a week and a half and is progressing well. We are so excited for the way that the lord is hastening his work. The highlight from this week was meeting a lady who sees demons all the time. Apparently there where 20 or so flying around her house while we were teaching along with the 3 Jesus who were there. I love Iowa.  We meet so many people who are not willing go listen. The promise we have to offer is that anyone who truly pursues this church and asks god about it will come to know it is true. I know that that promise is true. I have seen it work and I have had it work for me. The work is moving forward. I love our savior and I am so grateful that I have this chance to be a part of this work. This church is true. The spirit tells us so. I thank you all for your love and for all that you are doing for me. I don’t have long left but I am making every minute count. I love you all have a great week.



--
Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

Hello every one? My letters are probably going to be getting shorter and shorter because I am having less and less to talk about. We set another baptism date this week. I have talked a little about the lady who has been investigating the church for 30 years. Well her soon to be daughter in law is now going to be baptized with her. There were some sweet miracles that we saw this week. The man we tracted into about a month ago, is giving up smoking and is working hard to reach his date of Aug 25. He is progressing quickly and I am excited to see him reach his goal. We also have a couple young girls who will be baptized this weekend. The only bad thing about this week is that we were up until 3:00 Am Sunday morninghelping take down the stage and chairs and buildings from the Nauvoo pageant. We got home, got a couple hours of sleep then went to our early morning church meetings. We were dead tired all day and we were fasting but the lord made things work and we still saw some great miracles. The lord truly is hastening his work. The number of missionaries is increasing tremendously and the lord is giving them work to do. I am so grateful to be a part of this work at this time. I thank all of you for your faith and your love. I am so glad the lord has blessed me with knowledge of his restored gospel. I know this church is true and that is it is the only completely true church. I am so grateful that the spirit has touched my heart and told me this. I love you all have a great week.

This was a crazy up down left and right week. We had a lot going on and a lot randomly things that we had to take care of. We spent a lot of time out of our area dealing with one thing or another. But overall it was a good week. I am so grateful that even though we were gone a lot the lord still let us get a lot of work done while we were here. We set another date with a guy who we knocked into. He is a really cool guy and has had a lot of cool spiritual experiences with the book of Mormon; I am so glad that the spirit had let me know that that book is true. It along with the bible contains the fullness of the gospel. I am so glad that i have both book and that I have thins chance to tell others about them.

               All of the people that we have baptismal dates with are progressing really well. They are moving forward and the lord is working on their hearts. The work is true and this church is true. The lord’s hand is in all things.

               I want to all to know that I love you. I thank your for your faith and for your prayers. I know that this church is true because the spirit of God told me so. And that same spirit will tell all who are willing to learn that it is true.

               I hope you all have a great week.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So I am completely unsure where to begin to describe this week. Well we had a baptism but it did not count for us. We were only going to be in Nauvoo one day this week and one day turned into 4 and transfers where this week but we are both staying.

               That was the short version now here is the long version. The week started well. We have some really solid people that we are working with and the lord is really blessing this area. On Tuesday we got word that we where needed in Nauvoo to help teach a lady. At the time we did not know what we were getting ourselves into. So this lady was from Russia and could not speak English. Her husband was also from Russia and could speak English and was an active endowed member. This lady was visiting Nauvoo and was friends with some people form the Nauvoo Pageant cast so she wanted to be baptized while she was in Nauvoo. So in a couple days we taught all of the lessons and then interviewed her for baptism and then had the baptism on Friday. It was really cool because many of the cast members where there and they sang a really awesome musical number. We only had a couple days to get to know this Russian couple but we really enjoyed talking with them and they are solid members. Because of all of that craziness we were out of our area a lot but we still managed to get a decent amount of work done. The work is pressing forward and we are finding people with soft hearts.

               I am so grateful to all of you for your faith and for your example. I hope all is well and look forward to hearing from you soon, have a fantabulious week.



P.S.


With the Nauvoo pageant going on we have the opportunity to deliver copies of the musical highlight from the pageant and a copy of the restoration DVD to people. we need names to send theses to people around the world. please send me peoples names and phone numbers (and address if you have them) by next week. the sisters in nauvoo will call them and ask them if they want a copy of theses things. the music is really cool and i know they will like it. please get me as many names as you possibly can. this is a great missionary opportunity. i need them by next Monday. that is the last chance. they can live anywhere in the world

SO as today is not our p day because it is transfer week (though they still ask us to email no Mondays) we have an appointment to get to and not a lot of time so this will be short.  (Really short because I have also been promising a lot of people that I would write them and have not done it yet) lucky this was a really stagnate week. Not much changed. We found a family that we are now teaching but other than that we did not have anyone drop off. So we are doing our best to try to find more people to teach and to bring people unto Christ. We spent hours and hours and hours knocking doors this week, which really is the least productive thing that we could do but it is all that we had to do. We talked to a lot of really cool people and I am excited to follow up with each of them this week. Transfers are this week but we are both staying here, which is exactly what we expected. I love this town. It is a great place to serve and the ward is amazing here. I will miss this place when I leave. Our 3 baptism dates are progressing really well they will each their scheduled dates. Other than that we are finding more people to teach and taking advantage of the summer weather by walking…… a lot….. It is sweet. I love you all thank you so much for your faith and for your prayers. I hope to have more time next week

This week was a week full of miracles. We have been working hard and there have been a lot of disappointments but there have also been a lot of really cool miracles. I am not sure if I already told this story but I will again and then I will add onto it. So about 3 months ago I felt like we needed to go talk to this family and things just never worked out for that to happen. Well about a month ago my companion was on exchanges and they happened to contact this family. The lady I talked about last week that we set a baptism date with. We worked with this lady off and on for the last month but she kept saying that there was this wall that she could not get past. No matter how hard she tried it would not go away and although she has been going for years she won’t be baptized. A couple weeks ago we again where on exchanges, there was a young man here who is a convert to the church and he is from the South Pacific a place called the keribus islands his name is Elder Teck. He went with Elder Austin to go see this lady. They got talking and she asked this young elder where he was from and he said the south pacific and she got excited because one of her grandsons who lives in Utah served his mission in the south pacific they got talking and to make a long story short her grandson was there with Elder Teck when he opened his mission call. When her grandson from Utah found out that elder Teck was going to Iowa he told him that he was to find his Grandma who was not baptized and baptize her. At this point elder Teck looked this lady in the eyes and said “I am going to baptize you”. She called her grandson and Elder Teck and him talked in his native language for a bit.

               A few days later we came by and tried to set a baptism date with her using this experience to help her understand that if God was willing to send a young man half way across the world to find her she must be supper important to him. She did not take this very well and was a little upset with us. She told us later that she could not sleep because of how upset she was at us for trying to push her when she was not ready. So last Sunday night she felt really sick and emotionally drained she was nervous about being baptized. She went into her room and laid on her bed and she says at this moment suddenly that wall disappeared. She finally felt free. We came back a few days later and she had already started getting things organized for her baptism. She was calling family in Utah and seeing when everyone could make it. The lord softened her heart and although she will not be baptized until after I am home she is progressing fast and is doing amazingly well. She is so grateful now that we sent that date with her and is eager to be baptized.

               Ok now for the second miracle. A few weeks ago we started teaching a young man who we felt was golden. Well he was progressing extremely fast and it seemed like nothing could stop him. Then suddenly he messed up and cut off all communication. We have been trying to get ahold of him for a week and a half. Yesterday we were driving and we saw him on the side of the street. We pulled over and he was supper excited to see us again. He has been going through some really bad things in his life and the environment he is in is full of all kinds of drugs and really bad things. So he is moving out and is willing to meet again and desperately wants to feel the spirit again and start progressing.

               Although along with all theses there was a lot of down turns our heads are up and things are looking great. I am so excited for all that is going on here in Burlington. We have a lot of really cool people here and things are looking up. We have been working hard and the lord is blessing us greatly. I love you all thank you so much for all that you are doing. I pray for you. Have a great week.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

this week in Iowa

This week was another up and down week. The young man who we have been working with who was progressing towards a baptism date of next week, slipped up and smoked again and now feels really guilty and has been unwilling to meet with us the past few days. We are praying for him a lot and there are a few members of the ward that are trying to help him understand repentance and how it is ok to start again.

               We did set another date this week though. With a young lady who has been coming to church for over 30 years. (When I say young I mean 76) she is still unsure if she is ready but we are working with her on this. She is an amazing lady and has a testimony already but if afraid for some reason of being baptized.

               Other than that we were out of our area a lot this week on exchanges and working with others. The lord is really blessing this area. We have so many hard working missionaries around us. I am so grateful for all that I am learning from them. It is amazing that half our zone is sister missionaries. I never would have imagined that to be possible. Also some exciting news for this week, we got a new mission president. I have not had the chance to talk with him yet but we will be able to in a few days.

               I thank all of you for all you do for me. I love you have a great week.

This week was again a busy busy week. We saw our mission president for the last time and we were running from appointment to appointment. The missionary work is so much better when you are busy like this. We could spend all day knocking doors but we would have little success. Like President Hinkley said there is a better way. I don’t know if any of you got the chance to watch the broadcast last night but if not you need to go online and watch it. It is really good and will help you be a better missionary. This work will only move forward if you step up and fulfill your calling. So that is my little plug for the day.

               Last Sunday there was a guy that came to church out of the blue. His family was visiting form Florida and they brought him with. We had 5 lessons with him this week and he is 4 days smoke free. He wanted to be baptized this weekend but he needs to show that he can stay smoke free. So he will be baptized next weekend.

               We have found a lot of new people this week and we are working hard with them. The work is really picking up and we are trying to stay on top of all of it. The work of the lord is truly hastening and I am glad that i have this chance to be a part of it. Again please do all you can to keep your local missionaries busy. It is the only way this church will grow. We cannot do it alone. I love you all. I am grateful for your letters and emails and for your support. I hope you have a great week.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

Busy, busy week. Our phone seems to be ringing constantly now. We spent a lot of time not working in our area and yet somehow the lord blessed us to be able to talk to more people and teach more lessons then we normally do. I will say missionary work is hard but it is also defiantly worth it. The summer heat seems to be bringing people out of their houses and into the streets where they are more willing to talk to us.

               It has been a very up and down week. We have been teaching a lot of new people but we have also been losing some people. It is always sad when someone decides that they don’t want to listen any more. They reject this message which could bring so much happiness into their life. But that is often how it goes.

               I am enjoying serving with Elder Austin again. He is a good guy and we work well together. I will admit I did not expect to be serving with him again and now he will be my last companion.

               There really are not any crazy stories from this week. The work is pressing forward and we are doing our best to help and talk to as many people as the lord places in our path. I love all of you. Thank you for supporting me and for helping me throughout the years. I hope all of you have a great week

This week was a crazy week. But we got a lot done and did a lot of really good work. So I did not expect this but I am back serving with Elder Austin from Georgia. I knew there was a chance of this but I did not expect it to actually happen. We are getting along great and things are going really well for us. We are supper busy and I have been spending way too much time on the phone each night but I am really enjoying staying in this town it is a really good place to serve.

                We still have a couple people who have baptismal dates and we set another one this week though they did not make it to church. But we are pressing forward and working hard. We have met a lot of new people this week and will have an extremely busy week. We have a few appointments and a few meetings so I am excited for what is up ahead.

                We have had to hit the ground running. I did not get trained for what I am doing right now so I just have to learn a lot really quickly as I go along but the lord is helping me and I know that this is his will. I have had to turn to prayer a lot and it has really helped. I love being a missionary so much. There really is nothing better than this. I love you all and I thank you so much for your faith and for your prayers and for all that you do. I am excited for this week up ahead. I hope all of you have a great week. Love ya.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

This week in iowa

This week was a really good week with a lot of surprises. We set a baptismal date with the daughter of a recent convert she is 18 and really likes her party life but she is willing to try something new for her son. We also were finally able to teach this lady who is really going through a hard time. Her circumstances have really humbled her and she is now willing to change and to be different. She is a great lady and we had an awesome lesson with her yesterday. She has been looking for a way to change her life and it just so happens that we have that. We are still spending a lot of our time working with less active members and recent converts. There are a lot of them here is this town.

            We also had a baptism this week for a young kid who has been going to church off and on for a long time. He is a really good kid and he will receive the Aaronic priesthood next week. I am so excited for him to be able to do this. He is 13 but really smart and willing to do whatever he needs to, to come closer to our father in heaven,

            Another cool thing that happened is that we had a funnel cloud rip through town. It did minimal damage just knocked over some trees and some branches. We were in the church for district meeting and where about to leave when the sirens went off and we decided to stay for a bit, lucky we did. The nice thing about Burlington though is that because it is so hilly and so close to the Mississippi it is extremely hard for a tornado to touchdown and even if they do it is hard for them to stay down so I am relatively safe. Plus we have a huge metal container that we can hide in in our basement if we had to.

            And finally we got transfer calls this week. So I am sad to admit it but I am nearing the end of my mission. It has gone by way too quickly. But because I was so close to the end I thought that I would be exempt from more responsibility, instead I have received more. The mission age change has really changed the whole dynamic of everything in the mission field. So even though I only have 2 transfers left I am becoming a zone leader and instead of transferring me they are keeping me here. Also normally if you become a zone leader you are put with another zone leader who will teach you how things work. Instead they are expecting me to train a new zone leader as well and I will be in charge of the missionary force working at the Nauvoo pageant in July. Aka my work load just doubled. I must have not been learning what I needed to so the lord wants to see if this will get things through my thick head. I don’t know we will see what happens. I did not expect this but we will see what happens. I am so grateful for the chance that I have to serve and to be a missionary. I love you all and I wish you the best have a great week.

--

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

This last week was the quickest busiest craziest of my whole mission. It was incredible, so much going on each day. The thing that made it the craziest is that this as you have all have herd from the news is tornado season. Well the one here was not even close to the size of the one in Oklahoma. But I will get to that in a minute. The week started off well. We have had a lot of appointments and have been talking to a lot of people. We will be having a baptism this week for a young kid who has been coming to church and wants to be baptized. For a while I was unsure if he was ready but I am sure of it now. He is a great kid and I am excited for this chance to teach him and help him improve his life.

               So other than teaching and talking to people, there is a tornado that hit. It was not bad at all. Just picked up some trees and threw them at houses. No casualties just a lot of trees everywhere. Most houses where not even damaged. And no it wasn’t in this town that it happened. It was about 70 miles south of here in Hannibal Missouri, about an hour and a half drive. We went down Thursday, Saturday and Monday to help clean up. I enjoyed it. On Monday we were working in a monsoon. I don’t think I have ever been that wet, literally dripping constantly for about 4 hours straight. But it was a warm rain so it was not that bad. There was a point where they cut off a branch on a tree and it slammed this guy in the head and knocked him out cold but he turned out to be fine.

               So I am now finally dry from yesterday. I enjoyed working down there but I am also happy to be here and doing regular missionary work. Other than the baptism this week, we are teaching a few people and we are hoping to help them all progress to the point of working towards a baptism date.

               I love this area. Transfer calls are this Saturday so we will see what happens but whatever happens I know it is the work of the lord. I love you all and I thank you all for all that you do for me. I hope you have a great week.

This is the temple from across the river.

More tornado stuff.

i drove through Carthage like 6 times this week i finally decided to stop and take a couple quick pictures. here is one.

This is my house right now. we live in the basement

this is Burlington. i love this town.

This week was a busy busy week for us. We were running from one place to the next most of the week. This transfer cycle is going by really quickly. We are working hard and getting done all that we can. Like Eric said as missionaries you always have people asking you for money. It happens all the time. I don’t know how many people I have had come up to me and ask for money or for help. We do all we can to help but there is always little that we can do for them.

                But I love this work. I love being a missionary. I love talking to people and doing all that I can to help them in their life. This work Is true. Things are going really well for us. There are a lot of people who are willing to talk to us but few really listen. We will probably have a baptism this week. If might get pushed to next week but we will see. A kid who has been coming for about a month wants to be baptized.

                We set a baptism date with another lady as well but she will not be baptized until August there is a lot she has to overcome but she has a desire and I feel like she will reach that date. Other than that all of our work is trying to help less active members return to church. We could have 2 wards out here is everyone on our list came. Right now we have just barely enough to make a ward.

                I love you all. The weather is doing well here. We have had a few tornado scares but none of them have touched down. I think it would be awesome to see. I love you all. I am so grateful for all that you do for me. I hope your week goes well. I pray for all of you. And I thank you for your prayers. Have a great week.



--
Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So I got the chance to talk to my family yesterday it was great to see them. I am glad you are all doing well and I thank you for all that you do for me. As for my week, things went well. We have a lot of people who are progressing though most of our work right now is helping less-active members come back into the fold.

               There was a 15 year old girl who we have been working with. She is ready to be baptized but Sunday morning she called her dad in Spain to ask if he would approve it and he said no. so we will keep teaching her and hope the lord softens his heart.

               We have a lot of people though with a lot of potential. The work is really picking up here. It is going to warm up again this week and we hope it stays that way. It makes our job a lot easier.

               There is nothing too big to talk about today. I talked to my family about most things yesterday, so I will end this here and just let you all know that I love you and that I miss you. The work is pressing forward and the Gospel is true. Have a great week.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines 

p.s
 D&C 124:88
 Let my servant William go and proclaim my everlasting gospel with a loud voice, and with great joy, as he shall be moved upon by my ^aSpirit, unto the inhabitants of Warsaw, and also unto the inhabitants of Carthage, and also unto the inhabitants of Burlington(that is where i am now the exact same city as william), and also unto the inhabitants of Madison, and await patiently and diligently for further instructions at my general conference, saith the Lord.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So this week was a busy week.  Rain, rain and more rain, but it was often warm enough for us to not have to where jackets so that was really nice. I really love this town. I am hoping that I am able to finish my mission here in the shadow of Nauvoo, but we will see what happens.

                Not too many highlights from this week. We found a lot of new people to teach and we have a really busy week planned out. I am enjoying working with Elder Berthold he is a great missionary and we are getting a lot of work done. We have been finding a lot of people and had a few cool miracles that have happened here. It is amazing that often those you think are least likely to listen and to join are often the most likely. We are teaching a lady that has told me several times over the past couple months that she will never listen to us. She is a really great lady and I am excited for the progress that she is now making.

                We have been talking to a lot of people and things have been going great for us. We had a mission wide conference with Elder Anderson of the 12 on Saturday and we received some amazing instruction. This week will be a great week. I have a really hard working companion and he is a great missionary. I love the work here and I love my savior. I love all of you and thank you for all that you do for me. Have a great week

So this week was a busy week.  Rain, rain and more rain, but it was often warm enough for us to not have to where jackets so that was really nice. I really love this town. I am hoping that I am able to finish my mission here in the shadow of Nauvoo, but we will see what happens.

                Not too many highlights from this week. We found a lot of new people to teach and we have a really busy week planned out. I am enjoying working with Elder Berthold he is a great missionary and we are getting a lot of work done. We have been finding a lot of people and had a few cool miracles that have happened here. It is amazing that often those you think are least likely to listen and to join are often the most likely. We are teaching a lady that has told me several times over the past couple months that she will never listen to us. She is a really great lady and I am excited for the progress that she is now making.

                We have been talking to a lot of people and things have been going great for us. We had a mission wide conference with Elder Anderson of the 12 on Saturday and we received some amazing instruction. This week will be a great week. I have a really hard working companion and he is a great missionary. I love the work here and I love my savior. I love all of you and thank you for all that you do for me. Have a great week

Hey family,

               Things are going great for me. I am still in Burlington. Things are progressing here. It is an amazing little town that I love serving it. I am now with Elder Berthold from Kaysville Utah. He is a good guy. He has been out for 18 months. We are working well together.

               We are still working with a 15 year old girl to try to help her be ready for a baptism in mid may. She is doing really well and I fell like she will make it, other than that we are just spending most of our time finding. We did have a cool experience where we went to talk to a guy who was not home and my companion was attacked by the neighbor’s dog which ended in us teaching the neighbor and we have a return appointment.

               I love you all. We want to make it to the temple today so i we do not have a lot of time so I will just end by saying that I thank you all for your prayers and your faith. I hope you have a great week.

-- 

Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

This week in (flooding) Iowa

This week was a good week. Most of our time was spent out in the rain. It rained a lot here the past few days and as a result of that the Mississippi is over flowing. Parks where we used to walk along the river are now under water. We have some sweet pictures that I want to show you. Burlington is built on a hill and the floods have never reached too far into town. Downtown has been flooded before but so far they don’t think it will be too bad. The have sandbagged most of down town. There are some buildings that used to be there that are now underwater or are mostly submerged but I guess this is normal for the people here. They think we are all weird because we are taking pictures of the floods and are acting like giggly little girls with how sweet it looks. I am enjoying it though.

                Well we got some news and my companion is getting transferred. He will be leaving me on Thursday. I have really enjoyed serving with this guy and I will miss him. Things are going good here in Burlington. We have been talking to a lot of different people and we will have a good number of appointments this week. Many of the people that we are working with are less-active members. There is honestly no use in doing missionary work if we can’t hold on to the fruit of that labor. And so we are trying to do as president monsoon directed and find the lost. We are still using a lot of our time trying to find new people as well though. I really love this town there are a lot of really nice people here and they are doing all they can to find peace in this hectic world. I love being a missionary and I love my savior and his great love and sacrifice. I love this work and all of the many chances I got to share my testimony. I am grateful for my parents who taught me the truth at a young age.  I love all of you and I thank you for your letters and emails. I hope to hear from all of you soon. Have a great week.

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Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So this week was a good one. It went by really fast but almost all of our appointments fell through. We had a lot of really good things set up but that is ok because this week will be the best of my mission. I am really enjoying this town. I will probably finish my mission here but we will see what happens, transfer calls are this weekend. We have a baptism set for next month with a 7^th grader. Her mom was baptized a few years ago and wanted this girl to have some time to decide for herself what she wanted. She is an amazing young lady and is very close to the spirit. Other than her we are spending most of our time finding, just talking to people in their homes and on the streets. I really enjoy this part of missionary work. You have to chance to see so many different walks of life and learn so much from it. It is like we are going around offering every person we meet $100 and we are just begging them to take it but most of them don’t want it. But that is ok we will just offer it to the next person. And pray their heart will be softened one day.

                The weather here can’t make up its mind. It wanted to be hot for a few days then it decided to get cold again and now it is back to getting hot. So we will see what this next week brings. People are finally getting out of their winter shells and going out and about and that gives us the chance to talk to a lot more people. I will say though that this town is where a lot of old people come to retire and have quick access to fishing and boating on the Mississippi. I have rarely met an angry person here though, most people are very nice and friendly and usually willing to listen at least for a little bit.

                My companion is doing really well. He is a great guy and huge ball of charity. He is always willing to serve and help others. I have really enjoyed serving with him. We will see what happens on Saturday. We both have been out for the same amount of time so all things are up in the air right now. But I know whatever the decision it comes from the lord. I thank all of you for your faith and for your prayers. I pray for you and thank you for all you do have a great week.

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Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So this week was a great week. I am finally getting this town down. It is amazing that by the time you finally start to figure things out they often move you. I have no idea how long I will be out here possible the rest of my mission but I will work as hard as I can none the less.

                I really enjoyed conference, some of the talks where much needed support for me.  My favorite was probably Elder Holland’s at the beginning of the Sunday afternoon session.

                Much of our time once again is finding people to teach. We did set a date with a 15 year old girl to be baptized next month so I am excited for that. She is really awesome and sincere. Other than that the work is pressing forward. It is warming up here and so people are much more out and about which makes the work much better and more productive.  I usually enjoy the cold but it makes things harder as a missionary.  I love this work. I love being a missionary. There is not much more to talk about this week. Most of our time was finding. But we are not doing the regular picking a street and knocking. We are praying and knocking the doors we feel impressed to knock and our productivity is so much better. The lord is truly hastening his work. I love this work and I love this gospel.  I hope you all have a great week.

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Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

This week was a good week. The weather is really warming up. It was also spring break this week so a lot of people where home. Not much has changed this week though. Much of our time was spent preparing for the baptism that happened on Saturday. It was a fun experience. The work is picking up here in Burlington Iowa. The people here are friendly but often uninterested. Like I said before many of them have been to Nauvoo so they feel like they already know what they need to know. But I am enjoying my time here. I have a great companion who really cares about the people and about the work.

                I am really enjoying being so close to Nauvoo. We will be going to help clean the temple next week. I love the Nauvoo temple. Once I find the charger to my camera I will take some pictures of it for you. You will read about a place in church history called Montrose also called Zarahemla. It is across the river from Nauvoo but because the temple is on the top of a hill, when you are driving down Main Street you are staring right at the temple. It is an amazing sight. I can’t wait for it to get green again because then you will get some really cool pictures from me.

                I love you all. I love this work and the chance that I have to be a missionary. I know this church is true. I have felt my saviors love as I have had the opportunity to testify to others of it. Thank you all for all that you do.

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Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So I can’t even begin to describe how this week went, things where crazy. We spent a lot of time running around like chickens with our heads cut off. I really like this town. There are a lot of really good people here. To start off we are going to have a baptism this weekend. The daughter of a recent convert will be getting baptized. She is a really smart girl. We really did not have to teach her anything because she was listening really well when her mom was taught. Other than that we are going to be spending a lot of time this week trying to increase our teaching pool. We really don’t have that many people to teach so we will be spending most of our time doing that. The ward here is great. It always takes a couple weeks to start to find out the dynamics of a ward but once you do the work is much more productive. Many of the people here are so used to missionaries coming from Nauvoo to shop that they all think we are from there. It is weird being right here in the thick of church history. Most people we talk to know a little about the church because they have visited Nauvoo or Carthage at one point. Because of that it is either really easy to start a conversation because you have something to talk about or it is really hard because they think they already know everything they need to know. But I am enjoying it. I love talking to people and helping others change their lives.

               The lord truly is hastening his work. I love being a missionary so much and I love this work. I know that this gospel is true. There is nothing better than this work. I am so grateful to be here and to be a missionary. I have a great companion. We only have a small toaster oven to use and somehow he managed to bake 100 cookies in it this week. I have found that it is hard for people to be angry with you when you have cookies. Thank you all for your faith and your prayers. I love you all. If you want to email me it is Jrgibson@myldsmail.net

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Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So I am now serving in Burlington Iowa right on the Mississippi river about 20 minutes from Nauvoo. I am now in the same area I was when I went home last time ( about 20 minutes west of it). There is a really high chance that this will be the last area I serve in. weather that is true to not I will continue to work as hard as I can and get all the work don’t that I can. I have already fallen in love with this town. There are a lot of really good people here. Many people come here in the hopes of escaping the craziness in Chicago unfortunately many of them bring that craziness with them. I don’t even know how to describe my first few days here. I am in a ward (they would call it a branch out west) of just over 100 active people. Much of the work we are going to be doing here is helping reactivate members of the ward. They have a lot of people that do not come any more. I am serving with elder Frost he is from Utah via Texas. We will both be going home on the same day. (which isaugust 30^th if anyone wanted to know). That means I only have a very short 6 months left and I plan to get as much work done as possible in that time.

The town here is about 23,000 strong. Wish is a little bit bigger then my last area. The biggest thing we run into here is our proximity to Nauvoo makes many people think they know everything they need or want to about the church. But there has been a lot of really good success here before we just have to work at rekindling that fire.

I am excited to be working here. We will have a baptism in 2 weeks. And I am looking forward to many more to come while I am here. I love you all. I hope this week is a great one for you and that you feel of my love.

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Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So I was thrown a curve ball this week. I am getting transferred on Thursday. I thought for sure that I was going to be staying here. But I guess the lord has his reasons. I will be staying as district leader and I will be in a ward, other than that I do not know much information. Elder Cox left this morning. I will miss that guy; he was a really good missionary. 18 hours from now he will be in Brazil.

                I was not expecting to have to leave things to Elder wood so soon. He is a great guy he works hard and is a good missionary. I will be spending some time trying to just turn things over to him. But I know that he can handle it all because he is a really good missionary.

                Things have been exploding here in Indianola, after the baptism this week the work has been picking up a lot. There are a lot of really good things going on. I will be sad to be leaving this place. I have really learned to love it. We have been working with a , lot of less-active members and we have a lot of people to be teaching. We are working with one less active member who is contemplating having his name removed from the church. We had a really log lesson with him last week and it went well. It saddens me the tiny things that people try to come out with against the church. They don’t understand the precious things they are missing by doing that.

                I love you all. So there is a policy change in missionary emails now. “Missionaries are to write to their families each week and are also now authorized to communicate by email with friends, priesthood leaders, and new converts.” This means that people no longer have an excuse to not write me because I can now quickly write back to them. Aka please email me and let others know that they can do that as well. I still only have a little bit of time to write but I will be able to have a reply ready for you by the next week. I love you all please share the gospel every chance that you can get.

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Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

This has been a bitter sweet week. We had an amazing baptism this week. A lady who had been investigating the church for a few years was baptized after church yesterday. She was excited to be taking this step in her life.  Last time I talked about how they predicted a lot of snow and we only got a little well this week they predicted only a little and we got a lot. I love the snow but it does hinder our work a bit thought it does give us a chance to serve people with shovels.

This will be a short letter this week. There really is not much to tell. The work has slowed down a lot but we have reevaluated and it will start to pick up again. It is amazing what a little faith can do. The weather has made things go a little slower but we will press through this week and change lives. There are a lot of disappointments in this work but a lot more blessings. I know that this work is true and that god is preparing the hearts of the people.

The work will press forward. Faith is the answer. It is the first principle of heaven and it was by faith that the world came into being. Without it we are nothing. I love you all. As always I don’t have much time but know that I thank you all for your faith and for your prayers. I know the Book of Mormon to be true I know that the bible is true I have read them both and I have felt the spirit touch my heart.

I love you all. Have as great week.

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Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

This is a picture of elder Austin my former comp.

 Elder Deering and Elder Gibson 

Picture of me during Christmas.

 

The beginning of this week went by really fast but then the weekend slowed down a lot. There were some really high points and some really low points. The work seems to have slowed down but I know part of that is because we need to work harder. We will have a baptism this week. It will be the first one the branch has had in a couple years. I am excited for it. We are going to have an area conference broadcast at the church on Sunday then the baptism will be after that. Many missionaries have worked really hard to help her reach this point and I am grateful that we have this chance to help her reach it. Other than that we are doing all we can to work hard and press the work forward. We have a few people that we are teaching but we are always looking to expand our teaching pool. We are spending a lot of time door knocking and talking to people. I will let you all know that the more effective way is threw the members so talk to all of your friends about the gospel and help them to learn and to grow. I have also decided that I could never live full time in Idaho or Utah. I love sharing the gospel. The Midwest needs as many strong members as it can get. I am not saying I will move back here I am unsure of what the lord has planned for me but I just hope to be somewhere where I can strengthen the church and help the missionaries. Anyway things are going well. We kept hearing all week about this massive snow storm that we where to get and then it ended up only being 6-7 inches. But we may get something again this week so we will see. Either way I am excited for this week we have a lot of really cool things planed and I feel like we will have the chance to find many new people to teach. Both my companions are doing well. They are hard workers and I am learning a lot from them. I love you all. I am so grateful for the gospel and for the chance that I have to be a part of all of this. Thank you all for all that you do for me. -- Elder Jacob Gibson

This week was a really slow week. We had a lot of meetings that took us away form our area. But the work is going well. We have a really busy week this week and I am excited for it. The lord truly is hastening his work. I just received word that my companion might be leaving soon. His visa is ready and now the church just needs to go pick it up and he can leave and go to Brazil. He will be missed but we will press forward with faith. Not this Sunday but next Sunday we will have a baptism in this area. The first one they have had in a few years. She is an amazing lady and has taken a lot of steps in her life to come closer to Christ. We are also hopping for a few more soon. The work is growing. We will be getting many more missionaries here soon and there are many areas that are opening up. Missionaries are going places that they have not been in a long time. There is a true excitement flowing in the work. Unfortunately the evil one always sets his kingdom up in opposition to the truth and there is much that we are struggling with but the scriptures say that threw faith all things are possible and I know that to be true. This week will be a week that will make or break this area for the next few weeks. We have a lot of really good potential investigators that we are working with and who wope to soon be meeting with regularly. Other then that things are going well. They are predicting a really big storm coming threw here in Thursday so that might hinder our work a little bit but we will press forward regardless. My companions are both doing well. Elder wood is a great missionary and so is elder cox. They are both hard workers and I am happy to be working with them. I love you all and I am grateful for all that you do for me. Have a great week. -- Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

So I am now serving in a tripanionship with Elder Wood and Elder Cox. Being with 2 companions really changes the dynamics of missionary work. Elder Wood has been out for about 6 months. He spent most of his time so far just south of Peoria Illinois. He is from Spanish Fork Utah. Elder Cox just got out of the MTC. He is form Idaho Falls Idaho. Both are really good missionaries. Elder Cox will be with me until he gets his Visa to go to Brazil. He put in for it in September and is still waiting for it. It might come soon or it may take a while so we will just work hard until it comes. Not much has changes in the last week. We have 3 investigators who are working towards specific baptismal dates. One of them is guaranteed to be baptized the beginning of next month. She believes it is all true and is excited to be making thins step in her life. The other is a couple from Africa. They are struggling financially. Our last lesson was just about finances. I am so grateful that my dad taught me a little about that I actually knew what I was talking about most of the time and I was able to help them greatly. Not much else has changed. A lot of our time is knocking doors again. We are working diligently to find those who our father in heaven is preparing. This letter is going to be short because I have a couple siblings who I need to write back so I will end it here by thanking all of you for your faith and for your prayers. I love you all and I thank you for all that you do for me. -- Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Moines mission

It is amazing how something as simple as the weather can slow you down so much. Our car was grounded a couple times in the past week which meant that we did a lot more walking which means we have less time to do regular work. During the summer it is ok to be walking a lot but it is hard during the winter because it is cold and people are not outside to talk to. But that is ok. The lord truly is hastening his work. We are going to be getting the first group of the missionaries that qualified for the age change this week. We are getting 17 new missionaries plus 9 people who will head to Brazil when they get their visas. That means that 26 missionaries will be training in our mission. I have been asked to be one of those again. I will be training a visa waiter. But because we do not know when the visa waiter will be leaving I am also getting a missionary who has been out for about 6 month. So I will spend the next little while in a tripanionship. It is going to be an interesting dynamic. Elder Austin is going to miss this town he has been here for a while but he is excited to be moving on as well. The work is going well. We had a lady push her baptismal date back a few weeks but I have no doubt that she will not reach the new date. She is an amazing lady and I am excited for this in her life. It is still going to take some work but I do not for see many problems at all. We are also working with a few other people but we are still unsure where many of them stand. We are working hard to bring people unto our savior. We have been spending a lot of time knocking doors and talking with as many people as we can. God truly is hastening his work. There have been many miracles in my life and I am so grateful for that. I will admit I am a little nervous about having to be with 2 other missionaries I have done it before for short periods of time and it adds a different dynamic to the work. It changes the way you do things and how you have to think and teach. But I am excited for all that this will help me to learn. I am excited to be a missionary and to be serving our savior. I know that theses things are true and I know that the atonement can and will change us. It will help us in miraculous ways. I am so grateful for that. I hope all of you have a great week and that you feel of your saviors love for you. -- Elder Jacob Gibson of the Iowa Des Miones mission.

So as usual I don’t have much time. I love being a missionary. There really is nothing greater then this work. I am learning that there are a lot of heard headed people here in this town. They are stubborn and unwilling to listen but yet the Lord is still blessing us. It may not be for a month but we will be seeing a baptism in this area soon. They have not had one for over 2 years so it will be exciting. One of the ladies we are teaching is doing really well. She is about 70 years old and she gave up coffee and tea and is staying strong, when she makes up her mind about something she sticks too it. Now she just has to decide if she feels February or March is right for her to be baptized. We have been praying for her a lot and she is doing really well. No matter the choice I feel she will be baptized. There are a few other people we are teaching but like Eric I am finding many of them are not listening to us for the right reasons. Many people are willing to listen but unwilling to make the necessary changes. Because of that we have spent most of our time finding new people to teach and knocking a lot of doors. But the lord is blessing us for our obedience and diligence. Transfers are next week and we are 99.9994638465893523% sure that one of us is getting transferred and 89.6453% sure it will be elder Austin he has been here for 6 months. But I am learning to love this town and learning to love the people here. There are a lot of really good people here and I am excited for all that is going on. I love you all. I am grateful for this gospel and for all the many ways in which we are abler to find peace and direction in our life. I know that this is true and that as we rely on our savior all can be fixed and corrected. Thank you all for your faith and devotion.

Hey Family. This week was a really good week. We have 3 people with a baptismal date. A couple who we found a few weeks ago was able to come to church this week (family emergency took them out of town last week) and they said that they really liked it. We are going to be teaching them again soon. My only worries with them are that they are younger and not married but that is our next goal. The other lady with a baptismal date is progressing really well. She has come to church 3 weeks in a row and is really enjoying it. There are quite a few other people that we are working with and we are hoping for many of them to soon be taking the steps that they need to. Elder Austin is doing well. He is from Georgia and so he is not used to this cold. He is taking it like a champ though. He is a really good guy and I am learning a lot from him. I am glad that I have this chance to be working with him. I love being a missionary. I love this chance that I have to just rely on the lord. I am learning so much and I am constantly changing and improving. A true believer of Christ looks for every chance to share the gospel instead of letting people come to them. We were talking to a Jehovah’s Whiteness lady yesterday and she vented about how must christens don’t take the time to go out of their way to share the gospel. We need to sacrifice for this. If we are not actively sacrificing to share the gospel and to lift others we will gain nothing. Charity is the greatest gift you can have. The scriptures tell us that without it we have nothing and we cannot inherit eternal life. You have the gospel which brings you so much joy the most selfish thing you can do is wait to be asked. You must active share. Why deny them the chance of this joy. I wish I had more to talk about. We have to go to Des Moines here is a few minutes so I don’t have much time but I will leave you with my testimony that I know that this church is true. The Holy Ghost has touched my heart and confirmed this to me. The promise for all who doubt this is that you will find that lasting peace in this gospel. I love you all and I thank you all for your faith and your prayers.

This week was a really good week. Last Monday we got a call from some missionaries. There was a lady who was in another room during one of their lessons and after the lesson she came out and said that she wanted she had been praying for guidance and she wanted to know more. That weekend she moved to our town. We called here to setup a time to go and ended up teaching here and her boy friend a few minutes later. They are an amazing couple, really sincere. A family emergency took them out of town this week end but they will be coming to church next week end. We also finally set a baptismal date with a lady who missionaries have been teaching for a few years. She told us from day one that she would never give up her coffee. Well on Tuesday we decided it was finally time to teach her the word of wisdom. The spirit was strong and we were able to describe it is a way that made sense to her and now we have her coffee maker in the trunk of our car, and she has a baptismal date for next month. There are a few other people that we are teaching but no one that I would really call progressing. But the lord is hastening his work. In a few weeks we are getting the first group of the missionaries that qualified for the age change. Our numbers are going to exponentially increase. I am excited for this change. The lord needs more laborers. There is a lot of work to do and not enough willing hearts. The weather is cold and we have been walking a lot. Many people are choosing not to listen to us but the spirit is still strong and lives are being changed. The lord’s hand is in this work. I am excited for the upcoming weeks and the work that the lord has ready for me to do. I love you all. I thank you for your faith and for your prayers.

This week was a sort one. We had a lot of meetings and a lot of little things that kept us from doing our regular missionary work. This upcoming week should be better though. We had a few people who came to church for the first time and I am excited about their progress. The missionaries that where here before me where hard workers and so it has made my job a lot easier. We are continuing to work hard and we spend a lot of our time trying to find new people. The branch is growing though. The members here are sweet and I am excited that I have this chance to work with them. Because of all the meetings I don’t think that I really have that much to talk about. I did get the chance to spend some time in Oskaloosa Iowa. That is a bigger town about a little over an hour from where I am at. I was with one of my zone leaders and we were able to teach some really sweet lessons. I am learning to enjoy this little town. I have been in much smaller towns before and I am excited that I have this chance. When we get complacent the lord stretches us. He will bend and try us and if we endure it well he will help us be better. I love you all. Thank you for all of your faith and your prayers.