Feel the Burn 2018

July 9, 2018

Hey all!

Allow me to kick this shindig off with an introduction of my new companion.

*ahem*

(For added effect, listen to Pump Up the Jam by Technotronic as you read this paragraph.)

He's from Buffalo, New York, he was a cameraman for the Bills, he payed for his mission with bitcoin, his Spanish sounds like Russian, he's an advocate for local-level socialism, he's a prime example of someone who might be a lizard man ruling the government, he wrestles, he plans on working for the FBI, he plays dirty, he decided to become a master at checkers for some reason, if you tell him to walk slower he will walk faster, he only plays games that he will win or be able to cheat at, he keeps bringing up political topics and I keep telling him not to, he believes that he is a master of manipulation, it's his way or his way, he laughs in the face of fear, he loves himself a good hot sauce, he loves himself period, he has a tendency to rock a pair of Ray-Ban aviators, he has been known to describe his physical appearance as a Russian crackhead, he does not like being called Elder Putin, he also decided to become a master of 20th century war history, he has a black older brother serving in Africa, he likes rap, he graduated early, he can be a strategic liar, he enjoys alcohol-free beer, he has a heart of gold, HE. IS. ELDER BURNARD. 

By the way, all of that is true...well, the lizard thing was a joke--but the rest is true! He's a riot.

This was a bit of a crazy week. On Tuesday we took a train up to Alicante to have our "Meet President Galli" conference! "Galli" is said like like "galley", if you are familiar with the word. He's a really passionate and funny guy. It will be fun getting to know him more. I am very unsure about a lot of things that the Barcelona mission was doing before that they are now trying to make us do as well (the conference comforted me a little in that aspect), but I will do as I was told by President and go from Preach My Gospel, the Missionary Handbook, and the scriptures, and just be patient and obedient until more changes come.

Wednesday required a little more work on the old area's apartment which took up quite a bit of time, and the rest of the day was spent exploring our new frontiers that we've gained from the recent area consolidation.

Thursday we went up to Murcia to have our zone council meeting and zone meeting.  We have a big zone now: 30 missionaries in the region of Murcia, Spain. Pretty much all of us, except for one zone leader are the remnants of the Málaga mission in Barcelona. I imagine that will change very soon. Once again, I was comforted in some things, but a little unsettled with others. I was skeptical when we learned that the focus of the transfer is based solely on baptism because I don't want anyone to start to cherish the ordinance more than the convert, but I trust we'll have the right mindset about this. It's also really fun to get dramatically hyped about "Bautigena" which has become the rallying cry of the Cartagena zone.

There really isn't much to report for the rest of the week. We weren't able to meet with the few investigators that we have, though we were able to stay in contact. Most of our time was spent out and about, looking for the elect. We received two referrals from Church HQ, buuut the house didn't exist. Almost.

Elder Burnard and I keep moving right along with what we've got. We hope to be able to really get to work in our own area this coming week.

On the spiritual side of things, I would just like to take a moment to write about the Articles of Faith. I have decided to memorize these thirteen statements that pretty much sum up the beliefs of our religion in Spanish as a language practice. As I've been doing so, I have started to recognize different things that I hadn't thought about before. To start, they are SO easy to memorize by the time you're an adult. It makes me laugh at how much I struggled with knowing them when I was a wee lad in Primary. Another thing I've noticed is how practical they can be. They are organized and worded in such a way that provides a simple, but powerful explanation of what we believe as Latter-day Saints. We should appreciate them a little more. I'd like to invite anyone reading this to take a look and become familiar with them, be it again or for the first time. I'll attach a photo.

The 4th of July was pretty normal. No fireworks or anything, but I listened to all of the patriotic-ish songs that were available as I got ready for the day. I love my country. You really learn to appreciate it when you are an ocean away for over a year.

Alrighty, I'll wrap things up now. You've all been great, tip your waitresses, I'll be here next Monday. Thank you!

Elder Jensen :)