What do you get when you throw pasta into the ocean?

Apostasy!

Wow, has it already been another week?? I feel like I was just here writing to you all! Time is flying by on the mission...I hit my 7 month mark last week. I still feel like I was just in the MTC! So strange. Well, it's been a fun week full of finding and appointments! We have made a bunch of contacts with some ladies in the area doing house, and we're working hard to make things come of it. I've really discovered that doing house where there are actually houses is really effective, because people can see our happy smiling faces! No new investigators as of yet, but there are about 6 people who we've talked to and/or gotten phone numbers from, and a lot of them have potential...we'll see what happens!

We had an incredible appointment with our "golden family" the other day. We taught the plan of salvation to Chris, and he was asking a MILLION questions! Every question he's ever had in his entire life about God and our purpose. The incredibly beautiful and miraculous thing was that every question he asked was answered by the scriptures and the plan of salvation. It was really a testimony to me about how scriptures teach things that I never could as a simple sister missionary. They are so full of power-they are from God.

On Sunday we had a cool experience...we wanted to go and visit a family in our ward about getting involved in our missionary work, and when I asked the husband if we could stop by and visit them he said, "hey, why don't you come over for dinner because we're having a friend come over that we wanted to introduce to the church, and you can teach her." WOW. That was the first time we've ever had that happen between the two of us companions. So we go over and when I first met the lady I looked at her face and it completely threw me off-she looked EXACTLY like Mom 10 years ago! Yeah. So we talked to her about the church and gave her a Book of Mormon. We're hoping to do a family home evening with them sometime soon. YAY! This is how missionary work is supposed to happen!

The members in Pescara are really catching onto the fire. It's incredible. We were really excited when our investigator Nino came to church on Sunday with his new member wife Iolanda. He had an incredible experience, and the spirit was so strong when the stake president spoke. Nino jumped out of his seat at the end and ran up to meet the bishop and stake president and they immediately made friends and ended up hugging in the end. Yay! He's making so much progress. If you had known Nino before I came here you would have thought that he was a hopeless case. Now he's excited to start praying with his family every night, and he's reading in the scriptures with his wife nightly. It's such a testimony to me about example-his wife is incredible and loves him so much and wants them to do this together and eventually get sealed in the temple when it's built in Rome.

TEMPLE NEWS...so the first presidency had their big meeting last week to approve the temple, and then yesterday the commune in Rome got together to approve the permesso. We have been praying with all our hearts daily for this temple, and things are going forward! There will be a temple in Rome! Who would have ever thought? So much good is going on here. I love serving my mission, I love my companion, I love Pescara. It's definitely not easy in the slightest bit, it's probably the hardest thing i've ever done in my entire life...trying to convert catholics. haha, but it's true. I know it with all my heart.

I read an ensign article the other day about a pastor who converted himself to this church. He said that above all to be effective member missionaries we need to be an example of our religion, and live it. Second, we need to know and understand what we believe. What is the purpose in living a religion if you don't even understand it? The gospel makes sense...it's simple. If you don't understand it, then I suggest reading Preach My Gospel along with the Book of Mormon. It will change your life.

Have a wonderful week!

baci e abbracci,

Sorella Jenessa Miles

A lesson on the Holy Spirit

Today in Seminary was Meditation Friday. It is a day that the students have to catch up on their reading and we do Scripture Mastery. I gave a short lesson on the Holy Ghost and then had the students talk about their part.

Afterwards I read parts of this week's letter from Jenessa. It was so quiet that you could have heard a pin drop as the students learned how Jenessa was led by the Spirit. Thanks Jenessa.

Heeeey everbuddy!

Another week come and gone my goodness! I can't believe i'm already writing again. We've had a fun pday so far...we woke up early and ran out to the ocean to watch the sunrise, and we did our personal and language study out there.

This last week has been INCREDIBLE. We had zone conference on Thursday, and we had an incredible training from our zone leaders that I think will change our entire missions. All they talked about were the key indicators (our numbers) and what we can do to bring them up. It's really true, the higher your key indicators, the higher the baptisms!

I read this talk the other day, don't ask me where, that says that we need to be talking to at least 10 people a day about the gospel. So we made it our goal to talk to 10 people a day, and try to give out a book of mormon every day. So the day after zone conference, Friday, we went to go to an appointment, but our investigator wasn't home, so I said, "it's probably because Christ wanted us to find someone else". We felt prompted to go to a palazzo, and we rang everyone, but no one let us up. As we were walking away, a lady at the door was staring at us, and so we introduced ourselves and she kept saying she already had a religion, and "all roads led to Jesus," and we were losing her interest. Finally, I felt prompted to ask her "Do you read the bible?" and she said daily. Then I handed her a book of mormon, and said that it was another testament of Christ, scripture like the bible, and I told her the story of Joseph smith. She got really quiet, and the spirit was emanating. We asked if we could come back and teach her, and she said yes. Wow.

On Saturday, we started off the day by going to our inactive miracle friend Antonio, and we found out that he actually isn't inactive, he's not a member. Apparently he was baptized, but he wasn't confirmed, but he told us that he would like to recieve the Holy Ghost. I was so shocked! We might have to rebaptize him because we don't know if they have his records from his baptism 5 years ago. Crazy.

That afternoon we went to meet up with a potential investigator at the park...after waiting for a half hour we decided to give up. As we were walking away instead of letting us get sad I said, "It's probably because God wanted us to find someone else here!" As we walked through the playground, I saw a man with his wife and son, and I walked up to them and before I could get 3 words out in english he said, "I speak english! I'm from Maryland! Are you mormons? I see you everywhere! I've talked to your elders before, but nobody has ever told me what you're about!" We were more than happy to do so, so we explained to him the entire first lesson. He loved it all, and when we got to the Book of Mormon we invited him to read it and pray to know if it was true. He said, "I don't think you can convince me, but I will pray about it to know for myself if it's true and then be baptized if it's right." We were okay with that. Then I told him that they're building a temple in Rome, and that his family can be sealed forever and he was SO EXCITED! We had already talked for an hour and a half by that point, so he said, "okay, we'll meet next week and you can tell me about God's plan for us and how I can live with my family forever!" Wow. He and his wife are so great...he's already been following the spirit his entire life. He said he had prayed to know where to go about 5 years ago for work, and he felt the most random need to go to China, where he met his wife. He said "I KNOW that's why God wanted me to go to China...so I could meet my wife!" Oh I love them all so much!

It's true that 100% obedience brings blessings! We have 4 new investigators in less than a week, which is the norm for missionaries to find in an entire TRANSFER in Italy....all just by trying as hard as we can to do 15 hours of finding work a week, talking to 10 people a day, giving out 3 BOMs a week, and having members at every single lesson. The harder we work, the more we are blessed! We're also trying to be bold, and we are weeding out our investigators to find those would want to be baptized, so we can spend more time finding the golden investigators. We just tell them that's our purpose, and it's actually helped us to overcome a ton of "icebergs" that have been keeping our investigators from progressing.

My companion sister Crandall is incredible. She is such a blessing, and she is the best missionary ever. I am learning so much from her and her untiring diligence in becoming better!

"If you want a thing bad enough to go out and fight for it, work day and night for it, give up your peace and your sleep and your time for it. If only your desire makes your aim higher never tire of it. If life seems all empty and useless without and all that you dream and you scheme is about it. If gladly you'll plan for it, fret for it, sweat for it, pray with all your strength for it. If you only go ater the thing that you want with all your capacity, strength and sagacity, faith, hope and confidence, stem pertinacity. If neither poverty nor pain nor famine and gaunt, can keep you away from the thing that you want, if dogged and grim you besiege and beset it, you'll get it!!!" -Vaughn J Featherstone.

I love you all so much. Questo è il lavoro del Signore. So che sono qua per portare i suoi figli alla vita eterna. So che con tutto il mio coure che questa è la chiesa restaurata, e questo è il lavoro meraviglioso. Vi amo, e Dio vi ama anche...non mai dimenticarla. Voi siete sempre nel mio coure, e i miei preghiere.

Baci e Abbracci!

Sorella Jenessa Miles

ps, if you don't understand italian, 'google translate' works incredibly well! ;)

The Plan of Salvation

Here they are...my Seminary students. Some are hiding but there are 29 in the picture (the girl (Heidi) in white is really not wearing a hat). Look at those happy faces. I love it when people are happy. It brings me a lot of joy.

Yesterday and today was a lesson on the Plan of Salvation. I must say that I thought it went really well. The students were asked to get into groups and look up the answers to questions about The Plan in the scriptures. After they drew an illustration of their part and then were asked to do a presentation. They were absolutely wonderful. It was a challenge to do a presentation with 20 minutes of preparation and stand up in front of everyone.

See if you can answer the questions:

What is our relationship to God? Hebrews 12:9
What is God’s plan? Moses 1:39
What is the difference between God’s plan and Satan’s plan? Moses 4:1-4
How will agency effect eternal progression? 2 Nephi 2:27-29
Using the scriptures you have read, describe how The Plan affects you and everyone on earth.

According to Hebrews 1:1-3 what was the assignment that God gave to his Son?
How do the stars, planets, and the earth remain in their places? D&C 88:41-47
Who was the earth created for? Isaiah 45:12, 18
For what purpose did God create the earth? Abraham 3:24-25
In whose image were Adam and Eve created? Genesis 1:26-27
When you think about the creation and look at the creations of God around you, what does this testify to you?

What was the state of Adam and Eve in The Garden before the Fall? Moses 3:15-25, 2 Nephi 2:23
What were the events that led to the Fall and what is the Fall? Moses 4:19-31
What is the state that Adam and Eve were in after the Fall? 2 Nephi 2:22-25, Moses 5:11
What would happen to us physically and spiritually if everything remained in a fallen condition? 2 Nephi 9:6-10
Since we face so much temptation in the world today, what can we do in cooperation with the Lord to change our natures and resist evil? 1 Nephi 2:16; Mosiah 3:19: 4:1-3; 5:1-2; Ether 12:27

What is the purpose of life on earth? Alma 34:32; 2 Nephi 2:25
Why was it necessary for us to come to a physical earth and get a physical body? D&C 93:33-34; Moses 1:39
What are the consequences of the Fall of Adam and Eve to all mankind in mortality? Helaman 14:16, 18
What are the blessings that await us if we keep our second estate? Abraham 3:24-26; Mosiah 15:23-25
Since Satan will eventually be cast into outer darkness, why did God allow him and his followers to come to earth and tempt us? D&C 29:39How can we distinguish good from evil? How are we to judge right from wrong? Moroni 7:12-14
Why was a Redeemer chosen even in premortality? What would result if there were no Redeemer? 2 Nephi 9:7-10
Why did Jesus Christ need to come to earth and take upon Himself a mortal body? 2 Nephi 2:6-8; Alma 34:9-16; John 1:7
Who will be saved through the Atonement? Alma 11:40
How does the Atonement help us overcome the effects of the Fall? 2 Nephi 9:3-13
On what conditions can we be forgive of our sins and bring about the plan of redemption in our own lives? Alma 42:9-15

What is the difference between physical death and spiritual death? How are we rescued from each one? What is our part in overcoming spiritual death? 2 Nephi 9:6-23; D&C 29:40-44
Where do we go when we die? What important works that we know of are going on in the spirit world? Alma 40:11-14; D&C 138:11-17, 19
What will we be like when we are resurrected? Alma 11:42-45
Who is the Great Judge? D&C 137:9Where will we go after we are judged? Why will people be placed in those places? 1 Corinthians 15:35, 39-42: D&C 88:28-32

i frutti degli operi‏

Hey all my buddies!

Another week has come and gone...mamma mia! This mission is going by super duper fast...I can barely even believe it. Well, I had a big 3 month conference in Rome last week (it was actually a 4 1/2 month conference for me, but they didn't do it last transfer because there were only 5 of us). All the missionaries that have been out in the field for 3 months get to go to the President's villa and be spiritually uplifted and eat good food and see our MTC family. We had some trainings to keep our spiritual fires burning, and to help us to remember just in case some forgot why we're here. We watched the Joseph Smith movie, and this movie about a guy named Billy Peck-he was a real go-getter! I heard some incredible stories too. All missionaries have said that 3 month conference really changed their missions, and I can see why. It was an incredible experience.

This last week has really been a test on my positivity goal, but I've been really good at keeping it up! You all would be proud of me. We had some really hard days where all of our appointments were being cancelled, and other fun stuff like that, but I tried to look for the good in every situation. You can always find good or bad in anything, so i've just decided to find the good. Positivity shows your faith!

So we had a couple of really cool experiences yesterday. We had an incredible appointment set up to teach our investigator Angela who is making a ton of progress with a member, but angela cancelled on us! So we decided that we were going to go and find this inactive member that I had spent hours searching for with my last companion, and the last sister companionship before me had spent months searching for her. Then one day her cousin shows up at church with an address. I told Sorella Crandall that the address didn't exist, but we decided to go anyways. When we got to the little city at the top of the town, I decided to go straight back to the street that we had searched on before. We were looking for a road called "Via del cocone" but after being on a bus for 2 hours with a bus driver who stopped everyone on the street to ask where it was with no one knowing, we decided it didn't exist. So we go to the street that rhymes with it called "via casone" that I had been to before, and again we see the number doesn't exist. So we start wandering around and I felt prompted to turn down the next street, which I didn't even think had the same name. So I was wandering down it, and I kept thinking to myself "this doesn't make sense, I should turn around..." but I kept wandering closer and closer and couldn't turn around. Then we find the number 72...but her name wasn't on there. So we just start buzzing random apartments to ask, and someone lets us in with out even asking who it was. So we walk towards the Palazzo, and there on the door was her name. We ring the citifono again, and again we get buzzed in. We walk up the stairs and ring the doorbell, and you will never believe the surprise on the face of Megan Johnson when she opened the door. She said, "oh look......the sister missionaries found me." Yep, that's right we sure did! She served her mission in Pescara about 5 years ago and came back and married one of her old investigators who has no interest in the church. It's a sad story, and so all the sister missionaries have been so fixated on finding her and bringing her back to church. She still has her testimony, and so i'm really excited to work with her. God in his many miracles have brought us to find this sister, and it has to be for a reason.

That was a really long story, so i'm going to get off here and leave you with a last bit of cool news. So my companion and I have been working really hard to get new students to come to english class, and out of some sort of miracle we've had about 10-14 new students in the last couple weeks. We open and close with a prayer, and at the end, we always do a spiritual thought. It was my turn yesterday to do the spiritual thought, so I figured that I would tell them a story...about a young boy named joseph smith. About 30 people were there last night, and everyone listened intently to the story, and afterwards I invited everyone to stay behind to watch the Restoration with us, and learn more about the church. About 8 people stayed to watch the film, and I bore testimony and the spirit was strong. It was an incredible experience, we're hoping that some of those people who stayed will become new investigators!

I loves you alls!


Sorella Jenessa Miles

pictures:PINK VESPA! My fav

3 month conference with my old MTC district!

We're gangstas

Beautiful Pescara

Seminary

Tomorrow is the start of another week of Seminary. I really am liking this new calling. So far my class is busting out at the seams and I am wondering if they will all stay? It is really fun to be up in the morning and ready to go with my wonderful kids. I really miss having my own children at home. Jonathan would probably say that I am substituting the Seminary kids for my own. Unlikely. I only see them 1 hour a day but I am looking forward to getting to know the students this year.

I think often of Jenessa and what she is doing. It is exciting for her to be on a mission at this time. We are praying for her and hope for her success. I am using a picture of her tomorrow in my Seminary class because I am doing a lesson on the Plan of Salvation. It will be a fun experience for the students who I hope know how to work in cooperative groups. Maybe the fun will happen when they try.

Kristen is getting ready for the wedding and is giving me a lot of advice on my Seminary class. After all she took a course at BYU I on teaching Seminary. She will substitute for me when I go to CT. I am looking forward to some relaxing Lily time and spending time with Cherie and Keith. I love their little family. Cherie has it lined up for me to do a half marathon. I wonder if she is joking?

Kent is moving on. I don't know where or when but he is moving on. I hope he doesn't pull a disappearing act on me. Likely not but maybe.

Working Hard Until I Drop‏

Hello my dearest family!

I love you all and pray for you every day! I hope things are good for you-things here are going great! I LOVE being a missionary!! This has been such a good last week. It's really a miracle to have the goal of just being positive all the time! It makes me happy...I just view every single situation as a learning experience from God. "We just lost an investigator, God wants us to find the elect!" "I am so sick right now...God wants to teach me not to eat 10 day old yogurt!" Just stuff like that. It makes me learn to laugh at myself. I've learned that when you're positive, you're showing your faith in God, and when you complain about the trials God sends your way, it's a form of pride in showing that you don't accept the trials God is giving you to grow. Yay for positivity! (and yes...I did eat 10 day old yogurt. I know.)

Um, i'm so bursting with joy right now I don't know what to talk about first. Well, my new companion is so incredible, I love her with all my heart! Her name is Sorella Jana Crandall, and she is from everywhere (she's a military kid). Most recently though Germany. She also went to BYU-Idaho and studied photography. We have a lot in common, and we have a lot of fun together. We've made a goal to do at a minimum 15 hours of finding a week. Our appointments have been cancelling on us, so we're almost at our goal after only two days! haha We've had some incredible experiences though. We made the goal to give away one Book of Mormon each a week, and we already fulfilled that goal the first day...we gave away two in less than an hour. We're having a lot of success, and we're finding the elect! There was one guy sitting on a bench, and I just felt like we had to go talk to him. He was really young, and we generally avoid talking to men our age (Italian men...no need to say more) but I really felt something pulling me to him, and I had been praying really hard that morning to be led to those searching for the gospel. So we went up and started talking to him, and he said that he's searching for happiness because he's had so many bad things happen in his life, and he said he tried the JW's, Catholics, but none of them had what he was looking for so he asked if he could come to church this sunday with his girlfriend and see if we have it. I gave him a Book of Mormon and promised him that it has the happiness he's looking for. Now i'm praying every day he comes! He gave us his phone number too, so we'll call him and give him a little reminder.

We had a funny thing happen yesterday while we were doing house...we were ringing a citofono, and we did our little spiel, and the guy started yelling, "WHO ARE YOU? WHAT DO YOU WANT?" and we just looked at each other and were too scared too answer and he started screaming "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" We BOOKED IT out of there and were laughing so hard as we ran down the street. It was funny.

Um, what else. Last night we went and got pizza with three of our english class students/potential investigators, and the pizza was burnt, and one had anchovies on it! SO GROSS. We were so disappointed we decided we deserved better pizza so we stopped at another place on the way home and got more. Then we went to eat it and it was SO NASTY! I've never had bad pizza in Italy before. It was such a bad pizza night! I don't know why I told that story-I think it was just really ironic.

Our investigator Belinda is making a lot of progress. We're going to challenge her to baptism again tonight. It's been incredible to watch her grow from absolutely no faith or belief in God, and now she believes in God and Christ, and wants to know for herself that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet. Slowly but surely!

Wow, this has been a long email. I love you all lots! I'm off to Rome tomorrow for a 2 day conference for all the newer missionaries. Apparently we get to watch the new Joseph Smith movie and be spoiled and spiritually uplifted for a day. Yay!

I love you all lots! So does Jesus, read 3 Nephi 9:13 until the end of the chapter...it's incredible! Such a powerful promise of happiness for those searching for it. Also read President Uchtdorfs priesthood talk from last May. I read it this morning and really asked myself the questions. Do you have anything in your life that you feel is keeping you from being the best father, mother, brother, sister, husband, wife, member, missionary, or priesthood holder that you could be? What is it? Are there any grudges holding you back from focusing on the important things in your life? You CAN change. When christ was lifted up on the cross, he was crucified for your sins, and they went with him. You CAN change.

Lots of bunches of loves and hugs!

Sorella Jenessa SMiles