So on Sunday was moves call because it was transfer time!! Every six weeks there are moves call and missionaries get moved around.  Søster Frampton and I were praying we would stay together!! Well the Lord answered our prayers!!! We are staying together and staying in Stavanger!!!

I am going to be "killing" Søster Frampton off! This is a missionary term and means that I will be her last companion before she goes home!! She goes home January 2nd!! So crazy!! I am so grateful that I get to be with her!!

I am still feeling sick, but the sleeping problem has gotten better!!! I learned that drinking water before bed makes you stay awake and I had been drinking like a whole water bottle before bed...

THIS WEEK WAS GREAT!!

We met with Magne (the man I called Marco) and Søster Frampton had me teach the lesson in Norsk!! Usually she does all the talking because once the person starts talking I have no idea what they are saying!! However she is starting to have me become more involved which is good, but scary!!  We taught about keeping the Sabbath Day Holy and when I started to talk and teach him he got this little smile on his face!! Magne has always pestered me about speaking Norwegian.  The lesson went great!! We asked him if he would come to church on Sunday and he said he would try!! I honestly wasn't sure if he was going to because he tends to forget things ALOT due to the amount of drugs he used in the past.  So only Sunday would tell if he would come or not!

Søster Frampton and I have been praying to find people to teach and who we can help! Our investigators are starting to lose interest or become lazy which is really frustrating and sad. We always pray before we leave the apartment and we pray to find people who need us.  That day we were going to contact for an hour around Sentrum (this is what the center of town is called) and as we were walking we stopped this girl who looked like she was in a rush, but we stopped her anyways.  We introduced ourselves and started talking about the Book of Mormon.  Søster Frampton was talking at that point and we noticed that the girl had looked like she had been crying so Søster Frampton stopped talking about the Book of Mormon and said to Åse (the girl) that her Heavenly Father loves her and knows what she is going through!  She told her that every day we pray to find someone that we need to talk to or meet before we leave our apartment and that we know that we were supposed to meet her (Åse) today.  As Søster Frampton was saying this Åsa started to tear up and cry!!! It made me want to cry!! She kept talking with us and we talked more about the Book of Mormon and gave her a copy of one!! We made plans to meet with her again this week!! I hope that it turns out well and we do meet with her!! That was such an amazing experience!! Søster Frampton and I walked away and were like what just happened!!! The Lord does hear and answer our prayers!!! 

Norwegian's do not celebrate Thanksgiving, it is an American holiday!  So today the missionaries are getting together for a missionary Thanksgiving dinner!  Me and Søster Frampton are in charge of making sweet potatoes!  In the ward there are multiple American families so the ward decided to have a Thanksgiving Feast last Saturday up in the mountains at a cabin!!

 The food was so good!

We went to the cabin for the day.  It took about 2 hours to get there and was in a town called Sirdal.  It was a lot colder there compared to Stavanger!  Missionaries could go if they had an investigator going and Casper was going so we could go!!! It was so awesome!!! The food was yummy and it was great to mingle and talk with people in the ward!! It was even greater to see people making an effort to sign and include Casper!! 



Elder Gunther and Elder Griffin went with us

 

It was much colder here!!

 

Su and Daniel!



Church on Sunday was crazy, but amazing!!! Miracles happen I tell you!! Well first off Casper passed his baptismal interview!! He is officially getting baptized on Sunday November 30th!! Søster Frampton and I are so excited!!! Casper is seriously so great!!

He has such a strong testimony!!  MAGNE came to church too!!!!! Also Teresa a less active member that Søster Frampton and I visited came to church as well!! As well as many of the other missionaries investigators!!! It was such a great day!!! 

So after a lesson not too long ago Casper randomly asked Søster Frampton and I if we could come over to his house and help him get rid of all his alcohol!! We of course said yes!! So Sunday Søster Frampton and I along with some of our ward friends Jørgen, Linn, and Ingrid (I just love those people they are awesome!!!) went to Casper's apartment.  He had so much alcohol!!! They were in huge fancy containers!!! It was so much money's worth!!! He had probably 20 plus bottles!!! Casper took one and poured it down the drain, and then we all joined in!!! I am so proud of him!!! He is just so awesome!!! Prior to doing this, he told us that all the money that was going to waste kept crossing his mind because let me tell you alcohol here is not cheap!!! Søster Frampton and I mentioned him giving it to friends or selling it and he said I can't do that because then I am helping others break the Word of Wisdom!! He is just so awesome!!! He makes missionary work so rewarding!! I am so blessed to have been able to teach him and be a part of this great experience!  Casper gave Søster Frampton and I souvenirs to keep after the alcohol dumping!  The Tiki souvenir is one of the alcohol bottles.

So my goal is to be done with the Book of Mormon by Christmas!!! So I can start it again from the beginning on January 1st!! I would love to invite everyone to start the Book of Mormon with me on January 1st!! As time gets closer I will post a reading checklist to help people stay on track!! I would really love for all to try this with me!! I know that reading the Book of Mormon has blessed my life greatly and each time I read it, I get something new out of it!! If you need a Book of Mormon let my mom know and she will gladly get you one!!  Read the Book of Mormon with an open mind and heart!! 

I never fully appreciated or understood how much the Book of Mormon has impacted my life or meant to me until I came on my mission!! I would also like to invite the non-members who are reading this to just give the Book of Mormon a try!! I am not trying to convert you in any way! I just know how much happiness and comfort the Book of Mormon has brought to me and would love to share it with you!!

JORDAN’S TIDBITS:

·         Everyone here wears reflectors and neon jackets at night!! It is a total normal thing where in America people would look at you like you were a weirdo!! I even have some reflectors too!! haha

The bright green thing is a reflector

 

·         It gets literally pitch black here around 4:30 in the afternoon....

·         I feel like Stavanger is my home!! I am getting so close to the members here and making lifelong friends! It is going to be a sad day when I am transferred!

·         Missionary work is the best!!! It is hard, but so rewarding!!

·         I am starting to feel comfortable being in Norway!  Hearing Norwegian everywhere and every day is normal now!  I may not understand what is being said, but it isn't weird to hear it or see it everywhere!

·         Søster Frampton is so awesome!!! I just love her and I am grateful to be with her!! She is so awesome at giving me compliments when I speak Norsk and being so supportive and encouraging!!!

·         Letters take about a week to get to me

·         Packages take about 2-4 weeks maybe more depending on size and weight

·         I love love love seeing pictures!! 

·         WAFFLES!! Way better here than America!

·         Peanut Butter from Norway is WAYYY better!!!!  Everyone knows how much I LOVE Peanut Butter!!

So YUMMY!!!

 

·         I took this picture to show the jumpers that all the little kids wear here

 

 

·         Instead of bread we eat this…. Knekkebrød

 

 

INVITATION FOR THE WEEK:

One small prompting can change lives for the better!!! This week I would invite you to live by this quote!  A prompting can be very small or very big and if you aren't careful you could totally ignore or miss out on an awesome prompting!! It could be as simple as the thought to call someone or a strong feeling to do something!

Jeg er glade dere!!!  

GOD KALKUN DAG!!! HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE!!!(:

Being a missionary has made me really think and be grateful for many things especially the small and simple things that I have come to realize I took for granted before my mission!! Being a missionary is such a blessing and one that has forever changed and impacted my life for the better!! I am so grateful that I have the opportunity to do this!! I love this gospel and I am so grateful that I get to share with people the joy and happiness that it brings me in my life!

****Cherish the times you have with your loved ones, family, and friends!!! When you are with them, be with them!! Try to avoid being on your phone or social media! Enjoy the time and the moment! You don't realize how important they are until you aren't home anymore!  I have come to realize that I took for granted just the simple thing of being able to text my mom whenever I wanted!****

xoxo

Søster Peterson

AN APPLE A DAY DOES NOT ALWAYS KEEP THE DOCTOR AWAY!!

Hei Hei!!!

Luckily the internet was not down this week!!! Happy day!!! 

So this week was very interesting.... 

On Monday we did a picture scavenger hunt with the Elders! Obviously Søster Frampton and I won!! My favorite picture would be the one where I went into the window of a store and posed with a mannequin or the one where I had to climb onto a boat!! Both of those were very sketchy considering they were both probably not allowed!

 

On Wednesday we had a Zone Leader Training Conference so I got to see Søster Johannessen and Søster Hoggard!! So great to see them!!!

The zone leaders talked about ways to become better missionaries and methods we could use when teaching.  And guess what!!!!!  They used quotes they had found by Mark Ogletree!!  I was like - oh my gosh I know him!! It was so neat!  (Brother Ogletree - YOUR FAMOUS!!)

On Thursday Søster Frampton and I took a boat to go have lunch with a member and we brought a less active and her nonmember sister with us!! It was so cool!!

The boat ride was beautiful!!! The member's house we ate at looked like it was from a magazine!!  She is very fancy and loves high class things. We ate by candlelight and had very fancy silverware and plates!  On the boat ride back the boat was having problems so Søster Frampton and I were stuck on it in the harbor for an hour..... If you ask Søster Frampton she says we were sinking and on the Titanic hahaha, but it was a good possibility the boat could have stopped working on the way back and we would have been stranded in the fjord.....

On Friday I went to the hospital/doctor..... I hadn't been feeling good all week and one of the elderly couple missionaries whose wife is a nurse thought I could have appendicitis.  Well false alarm of appendicitis, so the doctor had to take blood and stuff and she said she didn't think it was my appendix and that it's something else so she gave me medicine to take and said if it doesn't get better to come back in 3-4 days.  Well the doctor gave me medicine which is basically a laxative to clear out my system.  I have taken all four out of the box over the last 4 days and not one has worked... So I am heading back to the doctor today... total bummer!!!

 

On Saturday we went to an International Fair at the International School here and helped out!! So fun!!!

 

We also visited a less active member and his wife and they are so sweet and old!! They kept feeding us sweets and loved to talk!! The wife even gave me a pair of wool socks she had sewn herself!!! 

Contacting is contacting still not very much success...

I do love the members of our ward.  This is Evelyn and her cute son, Gabriel. 

She is a new convert to the church. 

 I just love Miriam!!

And this is one of my friends in the ward!  She is awesome! 

Her name is Celine.  She teaches us Norsk!  I love her!

 



Casper's baptismal date is pretty set!! For November 30th!! I am so excited!! We asked him why he wanted to be baptized and a member of the church the other day and his response made me want to just hug him!! (Missionaries can't hug the opposite sex) He told us that he felt and knew by the Holy Ghost that the Book of Mormon and the church was true!!! AHH!!!!! So excited and happy for him!! 

While teaching the other day I signed the closing prayer!! So scary!

I have learned that on a mission the things, places, and people your mother tells you to stay away from do not apply!! hahaha

I walk up and talk to sketchy people all the time and it kills Søster Frampton!! Also when I was in Sandnes not too long ago we went to visit a less active and OH MY!!! He lives way out in the middle of nowhere!! Perfect scene and set up for a scary horror movie especially since we were walking!!! We came to a pitch black dirt road and started walking down it, then we second guessed ourselves that we were going the wrong way so we called the guy to come meet us.  I was freaking out cause I thought for sure we were going to die. We are huddled together on the side of the road talking and I turn around to see a man just standing behind us!! He didn't say a word or anything!!! Just stood there!! I flew about 5 feet in the air and shoved Søster Hudson in front of me! I was certain we were about to get kidnapped or worse!! Turns out that was the less active.... We went down the dark road with him to his house which was way sketchy too... Let's just say I was very happy to head home after that lesson and talking to him!! 

Jordan's Tidbits:

·         Recieving letters are seriously the best thing ever!!! I love love love letters!!!



·         I have learned that when you eat at someone's house, start with a little bit because 99% of the time they give you seconds even if you are full!! The same goes for dessert too!! Always start with a little!!!

These were some pazookies with Nutella we actually made!!  Yummy!!

·         Thank you for the sleeping advice!!! I am for sure going to try that!!

·         Prayers do get answered!!!! Sometimes right away and sometimes at times when you least expect them too!!

·         If you do what you are supposed to and have faith, God will make up the difference and help you!!

·         Angels are real!! I have felt some of my guardian angels so much recently, it is so surreal!!! So grateful for the experiences I get to have!!!

INVITATION FOR THE WEEK: 

Find a way to do service for someone every day this week! It doesn't have to be something big! It could be as simple as texting someone!!

Loved hearing from people about how they are doing with the invitations!! It makes me so happy!! Please keep doing them and telling me about them!!

Here are some extra pictures from the past two weeks since I couldn't

post pictures last week :)

Søster Frampton and I had a date night!!  haha

A beautiful church in Stavanger

Love the colorful houses on this street

 

Sandnes

There are statues all over Stavanger

Oh... we meet again!!

Truffle Dwarfs

Have a great week!! You all are the best!!!

xoxo

Søster Peterson

LET THERE BE DARKNESS!

I would like to apologize for the short letter and no pictures this week.  The library where we email had an internet outage and was closed, but luckily we are able to have a little time at the Church, but six other missionaries have to write as well so we don’t have a lot of time to write!! Total bummer!!! I will send the pictures next week and reply to those that I didn't get to as well!! So sorry!!!

As the winter is slowly approaching and daylight savings kicked in, it gets darker earlier.  Also where I am it is either cloudy or raining everyday so I can totally understand how people get depressed easily here!  However I did see the sun twice this week!!! It wasn't out for very long, but it was nice to know that the sun still exists!!

I spent most of the week in Sandnes because Søster Frampton had to go visit other sisters.  It always seems tough when I go there.  Maybe it is because I am not on my normal routine or because I am not as familiar with Sandnes.  It is times like those when I find myself praying a lot.  This week was extra special!  I know my Heavenly Father is mindful of me and surrounds me with the angels I need to help me each and every day.  I do miss Søster Frampton and Stavanger very much when I am not there, but I realize I need to get used to going to different places.  Just to give you an idea, Sandnes is about 20 miles (16 km) north of Stavanger.   

Things are going great with our investigator Casper that has a baptismal date!! He is progressing very well and he told Søster Frampton and I that he finally sat down and started to read the Book of Mormon and loved it!! He said he got the best feeling and he knows it is true!! Søster Frampton and I were so excited when he told us that!! Pawet another one of our investigators prayed out loud with us for the first time!! I was so happy and proud of him!!! He prayed in polish, but that was okay!! We are just glad he finally prayed with us!

Scripture I really loved this week!!

I was Reading in the Book of Mormon in 2 Nephi Chapter 33:1-2.  It says: 

“1 And now I, Nephi, cannot write all the things which were taught among my people; neither am I mighty in writing, like unto speaking; for when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men.

 2 But behold, there are many that harden their hearts against the Holy Spirit, that it hath no place in them; wherefore, they cast many things away which are written and esteem them as things of naught.”

 It talks about how the Holy Ghost carries the message UNTO the hearts of the people, but not INTO their hearts.  I really liked this because with many of the people here, they are stubborn and always reject us and this scripture helped me a lot because it made me realize that I can do all I can, but if the people aren't accepting or ready for my message that it isn't my fault.

Jordan's Tidbits:

·         Norwegians have dinner around 4:30 or 5

·         H&M is the popular store here

·         I will never understand why Norwegians do not close their blinds or curtains!! Day or night they are always open!!! They never shut them!! I can always see into people’s houses and rooms!! So weird!!

·         Norwegians wear their wedding rings on their right hands.  They also have the same ring.  (Husband and wife) It is just a simple gold band.  So pretty much all of their rings look the same.

Thank you everyone for the emails, letters, love, support, and prayers!! They mean more to me than you know!!!

I am going to start adding weekly invitations or challenges to do! I would really appreciate it if you did them!!! It would be awesome to hear your experiences that you have with them!!

INVITATION FOR THE WEEK:

**Smile to everyone you pass by or come in contact with!!**

Love you all!!

xoxo

Søster Peterson

MESSAGE FROM MOM:

I wanted to thank all of you who keep Jordan in your prayers!  In the upcoming months the nights will get longer and the days will get shorter.  The weather will also be turning very cold.  The Norwegian people are wonderful but many don’t feel the need for the Gospel or Savior in their lives, so the missionaries can potentially get very discouraged.  If you could keep them in your prayers, I as a missionary mom would be so grateful.

Jordan mentioned she was having a hard time sleeping.  She said, “I’m having bad sleeping problems since I've been here... any advice? We go to bed at 10:30 and I try, but when it's time for bed my mind just keeps going!”

I smiled when she said that, thinking – welcome to motherhood!  Haha

My advice was maybe try drinking warm milk and a piece of toast. 

Her response, “eww... we don't eat bread!” hahaha!  I thought that was funny.  SO – any advice on how to relax her mind before bed would be appreciated J

2 MONTHS DOWN!!!

HEI HEI!!!

So today is my 2 month mark!!! Wow!! I cannot believe it!! Time has flown!!!!

So this week.....

This week on Monday we had a ward and young single adult activity, Søster Frampton and I taught country line dancing!!

It was so fun and everyone loved it!! After the line dancing, they had bobbing for apples and a donut eating contest on a string and you couldn't use your hands!! It was so fun and everyone got a good laugh!! Let me tell you bobbing for apples was.... well the best way I can explain it is “GO BIG OR GO HOME!!!” hahaha.  My whole head ended up going under water in the bucket!!! Søster Frampton was dying!!! I was not expecting that to happen!!

 

 

 

On Tuesday we had sign language class!  Norwegian sign is way different than ASL, but I am slowly picking it up!  It really helps me with vocab and learning words too!  Oh my!!! Want to hear the best news ever!!! Casper our deaf investigator has set a baptismal date to get baptized!!!! Søster Frampton and I were so excited and wanted to jump for joy!! We waited till after he left and then did a happy dance!!! The spirit was so strong! It was such a cool experience!! I am so so excited for him!!



It was also Søster Frampton's birthday on Tuesday!! I made her waffles (we eat them with jam and goat cheese) and I put sticky notes and signs all over the apartment and then wrote the lyrics to the Taylor Swift song 22 because she was turning 22!! It was a great day!! The elders made her brownies and we ate at a member’s house and they made her a traditional Norwegian cake!! It was to die for!! Best thing ever!!!

On Wednesday we had zone conference so all the missionaries from the cities that are in my zone came to Stavanger and the Mission President talked to us.  I got to see Søster Johannessen, Sorensen, and Hoggard from the MTC!!! It was like a mini reunion!! So great to see them and talk to them!!

President Evans gave great advice about making sure we have a strong faith and a solid testimony of Jesus Christ! On Sunday it was fast Sunday which means we fast for two meals and have a purpose in mind when we fast. It can be for a specific person, etc.... On fast Sunday instead of people giving talks in church, it is opened for the congregation to come up and bear their testimonies.  I made a goal for myself to bear my testimony every fast Sunday on my mission.  For me this is HUGE!!! Considering I hate public speaking haha and because I would have to do it in Norwegian!! Well it came time for testimony meeting and I wanted to die!!! I have a girl in the ward that I have become friends with and had made a pact with her that if I did it so would she.  Her family feeds me and Søster Frampton every week!! They are so awesome!!! The girls name is Eddel.  She is very shy, so I was nervous that she wasn't going to do it with me! 

I sat by her in sacrament and we both went up together!! I was so so proud of her!!!  When I got up to speak I was so scared!! I just wanted to die!! However I did it!!! I was so proud of myself!! Especially since I had to do it in Norwegian!! After church many people came up to me and told me how good I sounded and how they appreciated my testimony and it made me feel so good!!  I am so grateful for the support and encouragement I have!!  I am so blessed and grateful for how the members of the ward have made me feel welcomed!! I love this church and gospel and I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to be a missionary and share it with the people of Norway!

 It still is raining in Stavanger, no surprise there!!  The language is coming along!! Slowly, but surely!  I am learning a lot!  Stavanger has the hardest dialect to understand and pick up, so everyone has said that it is good I started here because everywhere else will be easy!!  Søster Frampton is such a great help!! She is so awesome!!! 

Funny stories of the week:

• We were teaching with one of our investigators named Magne.  He is so nice and has been in and out of jail and used to have problems with drugs, so he is very hard to understand because he can't open his mouth a lot! He doesn't really understand English.  We asked him if he would say the closing prayer and he didn't want to (most of our investigators are hesitant to pray and are embarrassed to) and so I said, “you say it first than I will say one in Norwegian.”  He said okay!! I haven't talked a whole bunch in our only Norwegian lessons because I have a hard time understanding what is going on and he wanted to hear me speak Norwegian.  When it was my turn to pray I looked at Søster Frampton and said “His name is Marco right?” She thought I said Magne so she said yeah!!!  I called him Marco at least 3 times in the prayer!!! hahahahah luckily he didn't say anything about it, but Søster Frampton was dying!!! It wasn't till after I was done praying and saw her trying not to laugh that I realized his name was Magne..... Then I wanted to compliment his jewelry because he was like decked out!! So I asked Søster Frampton how to say jewelry and when I said it to him he got a look on his face and looked very surprised! I looked at Søster Frampton and said “what did I say wrong?!” Turns out I told him I liked his makeup!!!!  Turns out jewelry and makeup are very similar words if pronounced wrong. Jewelry is “smykker” and makeup is “sminka”.

Søster Frampton is the best!

Just doing a little shopping!



• Me, Søster Frampton, Søster Hudson, and Søster Hornbeck went to get pizza on Saturday night! Søster Frampton and I went to their city to help them for the day.  Søster Frampton knows and has learned that if she dares me to do something I will do it.  There was a couple next to us that was leaving and had all this food left!! So she dared me to take it when they left and bring it to us to eat.  As soon as they got up I checked to make sure no one was watching and grabbed the two garlic breads that were still untouched on their table. Søster Frampton was dying laughing and the other Søster’s I'm sure thought I was crazy!! We ate the breadsticks than Søster Frampton told me to get the rest of their pizza that was still left that they hadn't finished. Norwegians eat everything with a fork and knife and cut it up so their mouths hadn't touched the pizza, so I checked to make sure no one was watching grabbed the pizza's off their plates and we all ate it!! hahahah it was the funniest thing ever!!!

• Me and Søster Hornbeck were bonking and a guy came to the door and in Norwegian I said that we are missionaries from Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Before I could say anything else he started shaking his hands and head and said “no no no no no no way jose!!!” and closed the door.  I started busting up laughing because I had never heard that one before!!

Jordan's Tidbits:

·         Norwegians don't celebrate Halloween..... but we did get to decorate a pumpkin!

 

·         Norwegians don't celebrate Thanksgiving

·         Norwegians celebrate Christmas (God Jul) on December 24th and Santa actually comes to their house

·         Norwegians are already stocking the stores and decorating for Christmas!!

·         I will have a Norwegian baby stroller for my babies!! They are the coolest/best things ever!!

·         I had to get a registration card to use as I.D. in Norway and you aren't allowed to smile!!! I got it in the mail and I about died!!! It looks like a mug shot!!!!

·         The desserts here are deadly!! They are so good!!! You can't say no!!! 

This is the Norwegian "KitKat".

This is a Norwegian "pop tart", it has cinnamon butter on the inside!!

 

·         Invite the missionaries to your house!!! They appreciate it more than you know!! Especially if you feed them!!

·         Attach pictures in your emails!!!  Love getting letters too!!

·         I love and miss everyone!!! You all are so awesome!!!

·         Many people have asked me if I have met with the blue haired guy yet... sadly no because he got sick so hopefully this week!!

·         Live life in the moment!! Don't rush!!

·         Norwegian styles are very interesting and different than Americans.... They love to wear short shorts and tights and they love to wear their Nike tennis shoes with everything!! Doesn’t matter what the outfit is!

INVITATION FOR EVERYONE!!!!!

·         If you are a member of the church I would like to challenge you to invite/bring a nonmember to church or a church activity this month

·         If you are a nonmember I would like to challenge you to text or ask a Mormon about the church or about something they believe that you would like to know

Love you all so much!!! Thanks for the love, prayers, and support!! Means so much to me!! Have a great week!!

xoxox

Søster Peterson

www.mormon.org