Week #60 - MARCH GLADNESS

Howdy friends!!!! Yet again it was such a blessed week to be serving my Savior in the great state of Texas. This week included a ton of learning, growth, patience and leaning on my Savior. The mission is going so well and I love being able to serve here. 

Last week we found a high school kid who was out shooting hoops in his driveway. We went over and I played him in horse. We ended with a spiritual thought and he told us he felt something different aka the spirit. We asked if we could come back and he said for sure. Fast forward to this week and we saw him three times and he is doing so good. We gave him a Book of Mormon which he is reading through so fast. He just loves the feelings of the spirit that he is having. It's a miracle. Heavenly Father was able to guide us to Eduardo and now we get to help him find God. God is good. 

The family we are teaching is doing great. The 14 year old went to youth conference this past week and even bore his testimony. They keep coming to church and have read more than we thought they had. We are so thankful for them and any prayers going their way would be much appreciated!! 

We also went out tracting this past week and met a guy who had just moved here from New York. He said that he had been thinking about finding out more in Christianity and then we showed up. God guides my friends. We had a great talk with him and he invited us back. I feel so blessed to have Heavenly Father looking out for me and guiding me daily. 

We also had the opportunity to go do serve for the Houston Health Clinic this past week. It was so much fun. We basically helped teach kids to brush and floss their teeth. I loved it lol. I even got to see the Houston skyline for the first time in my mission. It's such a pretty city and made me miss Portland a little bit. Suburb life is a pretty plain life to say the least lol. 

I also got to go back on campus this week on an exchange!! I went to Prairie View A&M which is such an awesome school. It was really fun talking to college kids again and kinds bittersweet because my sister served in that area when she was in Texas for her mission. I guess Texas is part of our heritage now :) 

Anyways Texas is a good place to be. The gospel still continues to heal and Jesus is always the Christ. Life is moving fast and I'm so thankful for everything my Savior has done for me. I feel a magnitude of love from Him daily. The spirit guides and fills. I love you all and am so thankful for everything a loving Heavenly Father has given me. Prayers from Texas and God bless. 

Luke 1:37 "For with God nothing shall be impossible." 

Elder Jarrett Pinster

THE CITY OF HOUSTON SKYLINE

Elder Pinster and Elder Karren

Week #59 - LOVE YOURZ

Howdy to my dearest friends and family!

This week was a great week to say the least. We knocked many doors, biked too many miles, and served our Savior. I love being a missionary and sharing the good news that is the gospel. I'm slowly starting to feel more at home in Cypress and I thank my Heavenly Father everyday for the constant guidance He gives me. 

Here are some cool miracles for y'all this week:

On Thursday night we were out finding. We pulled up to an apartment complex and I felt like we needed to go to building 1. As we got out to that building, we saw the apartment management so we quickly hurried to the side of the building because they'd kick us out if they saw us. BUT as we came to the side, we saw a woman walking so we went and said hi. She told us that she was going to buy a lottery ticket. I asked what her lucky number was and she said "1." We talked with her and shared some scriptures. At the end we said a prayer and she invited us back the next day. God guides us all. It only takes "1."

Another cool miracle we had was we were able to get in with a family we've been trying to work with. We were able to go over and share a message about Jesus Christ and the Atonement. The parents both had tears in their eyes after we had finished because the spirit was just so strong. I love feeling the spirit as a missionary in lessons. It just makes life better. 

Lastly, I played a kid in horse this week while we were out tracting. When we finished the game, we asked if we could share a video with him. He watched it and afterwards said he felt something that was just different. It was the fist time he'd ever felt the spirit. We could see that he was feeling it. It was amazing as I had felt prompted to just go shoot with him and it turned into a gospel experience. I'm so grateful for the opportunities Heavenly Father gives us and for the fact that I haven't completely lost my jump shot :) 

On Sunday night, we also got to go to a "WHY I BELIEVE" fireside and I was able to see my Huntsville people again. It made my heart full to see all my friends. Chukwudi (who Elder Potter and I found) even came up to me to invite me to his baptism next week. My heart was made full beyond all fullness. I feel so loved. 

I feel happy. The gospel is true and the Savior loves us all. He lives and is here for us whenever we need him. The healing and cleansing power of our Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ is real. He leads and guides us daily. I feel overwhelmed with His grace. 

I love y'all and God bless!! 

Elder Jarrett Pinster 

Food Bank Fail

. . . We still knocked!

On exchanges with Elder Owens

President and Sister Peterson came to say hi on Friday at district council 

Week #58 - GROWTH SZN

Howdy y'all  This past week has been awesome. I got transferred to Cypress Texas! It's a huge suburb of Houston and I cover two family wards here. The bike life has continued unfortunately, but all is well still. 

My new companion is named Elder Clark! He is from Arizona and has been out almost 17 months. I knew him when I served up in College Station, so it has been fun getting back around him. Also Elder Hitchcock from Forest Grove back home is my new Zone Leader companion. I'm way excited about this transfer! 

Let's just say Cypress is a completely different ball game than anywhere else I've served lol. They have these huge gated communities here and the houses are huge. The people are very nice and the members are amazing. I've never really served in an area like this so it will be an adventure for sure! 

We are teaching a family here! They are super amazing and I already love them. They recently moved into the area and were looking for a church. We were able to stop by and get to know them this past week and I'm so excited about them. They even came to church yesterday and loved it. 

This week I have been really working on connecting and relying more and more on the Savior. I have needed him by my side constantly. I loved reading in Mark 4 this past week about Jesus calming the storm. We all have storms going in our lives but Jesus can and will calm them for us. He can tell them to be at peace and help us through it. His yoke is easy and His burden is light. He won't take them away completely, but He will ease the burden we are carrying. I'm so thankful for my Savior and the healing power He possesses. 

It's growth season down here in Texas. I love my Savior and I love the power He gives to me. I know that He is mindful of all of us and loves us each individually. I'm so grateful for the opportunity I have to serve and to become better. This gospel is so great and really can calm the troubled soul. 

I love y'all and God Bless! 

Elder Jarrett Pinster

Goodbye Sam Houston

Goodbye Elder Potter

A Texas earthworm???

Goodbye Rebekah!

Week #57 - BYE HVILLE!

Well this week was a week. I will be getting transferred from Huntsville tomorrow and it'll be a bittersweet moment. I loved my time in Huntsville. I grew, struggled, laughed, and really found out who my Savior is. I am so grateful for the people I got to teach and work with. I am full of gratitude and love for everything I have. 

This week we had some fun times as well. We had MLC on Tuesday which I loved because I got to see a ton of my mission friends again. On Wednesday, I got to go on an exchange with Elder Smedley (former comp from CSTAT). Boy was that a blast! It was like we never left each other. We got to teach some of our friends in Huntsville and go finding. I loved it. The people we are teaching are doing great. 

This week I finished reading the Book of Mormon that I started right before Christmas. The Book of Mormon is true. When I knelt down and read it, I felt the same spirit that I felt when I first found out it was true. The sweet spirit that came from it will be something I can never forget. The book is true. I'm so grateful for the truth that comes from the Book of Mormon. 

I also have been studying love and how we can love more like our Heavenly Father. I have come to know that in order to love more like God, we have to love God more. When we love God more, we come to love others more. The world always needs a little bit more love. So as we strive to do that, I'd invite you to love God a little more. 

These past six months have been a great time for growth. I feel the Savior's love. I'm so thankful to have been able to serve in Huntsville and had Elder Potter as my companion. I love being a missionary and am excited for what the future holds!! 

Love y'all and God bless!!! 

Elder Jarrett Pinster

A "Last Supper" in Huntsville TX

Found another native Oregonian ... far from home!

FUN TABLE SELFIE with Pinster, Potter, Smedley & Dennis

Campus Fun with Smedley, Pinster, Potter & Dennis

SMILE!!!

Smedley & Pinster

Week #56 - PRAISES GO UP

WOW. This week was probably one of my craziest weeks on my mission. God is good, The Lord is my light and the spirit guides. SO BLESSED. 

So, here are some miracle stories for y'all:

This week a woman we found tracting a couple weeks ago asked to get baptized!! Her name is Carolyn and she is the best. She is a single mother and calls us her boys. She has progressed so much. There is just a light that people gain when they become invested in the gospel. She has that light now. Carolyn has such a great heart. We taught her the Word of Wisdom this week and she goes "Can we fast to help with it?" WOW. SHE'S THE BEST. So any prayers for Carolyn will be appreciated :) 

Another amazing miracle happened. Saturday we were out doing some visits to people that our ward council gave us. Everyone we stopped by did not want to see us, even got told that we could be shot at due to the sketchy neighborhood. Lol I love Huntsville. Anyways we were feeling kind of useless but we had a prompting to stop by an active older couple that's in our ward. As we pulled in the man came out to greet us. He told us that him and his wife had split up two days earlier and he just felt shattered. We gave him a blessing and the spirit poured itself out into his heart. He told us we were an answer to his prayers. The spirit has healing him. I felt so much love as God used us as instruments in his hands. 

We also had a member bring a friend to church last week, she loved it, and is now taking the lessons! Plus!!! A family in our ward has a wife and two kids that haven't been baptized yet and we were able to have dinner with them last night and are going back to teach them!!!! GOD IS SO GOOD. Sometimes I feel like he blesses me even when I don't feel like I deserve it. He is just love. 

Elder Potter and I are growing even more than I ever thought possible. There is so much truth I've beheld to know that this gospel is true. It is changing lives all over Huntsville. I just feel love from my Heavenly Father. This church is true and I feel so blessed. God is always there. Love you all and God bless!!!

Elder Jarrett Pinster

Week #55 - ALL THE WAY UP!

Hello yall!! Wow, this week was a week to learn. I love how much you can learn on the mission and the opportunities for growth. We had tons of trials but the Lord is still providing. 

So to start things out, let me tell you about the week. Chukwudi and all our other friends are doing great. I love teaching them and seeing them grow. The gospel brings so much growth to people. I will never underestimate what the spirit can do for people. It can really change hearts. The teaching is going good and the Lord's love is abundant. 

So on Wednesday, we had Zone Conference. It was so uplifting. The spirit was there. Then we came home to have a lesson with a girl that we were sooo excited about. Well, she came to the lesson and it did not go well. She had pages of notes with Anti and all kinds of nonsense. Every concern she had we answered, but she kept running in circles. At the end we just stopped her, put a Book of Mormon on the table, and bore our testimonies of the Gospel. She was hard hearted and not ready to accept but man did I feel the spirit during it. I'm so thankful for the basic truths the gospel has given me. I have been able to have so many questions answered and not have to worry about things. I'm just thankful for the simple truths of the Gospel. 

ON AN EXCITING NOTE: Yesterday we had a girl bring a friend to church! They are both college students and the one that is a member has been less-active for quite some time. Well, her and her friend loved it. The friend even wants to learn more. We met with them this morning and she just ate it up. Heavenly Father will always open doors. 

Another cool miracle we had was when we went tracting Thursday night. We set out and went to this apartment complex. We decided to say a prayer with people we met. The first door that opened was a guy who had been dealing with depression. He said he was just praying to God about how he could overcome it. When we showed up he told us we were an answer to prayers. We felt the spirit together. Wow does Heavenly Father lead the work. 

I love being a missionary. Even when it's hard, it's still pretty good. I can just feel the spirit leading me as I go. The revelation has come and the miracles are happening. I love this gospel and the Atonement really does heal. God is good.

Love y'all and God bless.

Elder Jarrett Pinster

HOUSTON TEMPLE GROUNDS

FLORAL TIE SUNDAY

OREGON license plates . . . a long way from HOME!

Week #54 - GOD'S PLAN

Yet again, it was another blessed week in Texas! The Lord is good and He leads.

We saw some awesome miracles this week. I just love being out and doing my Heavenly Father's work.

THIS PAST WEEK ANNIE WAS BAPTIZED. It was such a sweet service and the spirit was for sure there. She's such a sweetheart. All her extended family came and her dad that is a recent convert got to baptize her. My heart was so full. I love baptisms. 

Annie's Baptism Day

Elder Pinster, Annie & Elder Potter

One cool miracle we had this week was a girl that I had talked to on campus about a month ago ran into us again on campus. We had a really good talk with her and set up a time to meet. On Thursday we met with her and she brought her Bible and wanted to see the connection from our beliefs to hers. She was utterly blown away by the Plan of Salvation that is in the Bible and how everything is in there. BUT WAIT. We ended the super good lesson with Jayla and a girl that was sitting right next to us at a table close by came and sat down with us! She told us she wanted to hear what we believe. We taught her the full restoration and a huge chunk of the Plan of Salvation. She felt the spirit so strong. It was amazing. When the lesson ended she asked for a copy of the Book of Mormon and if we could meet up again. People are looking for the gospel. I love the Plan of Salvation!!!! 

Another cool miracle we had was on Saturday night we were teaching our friend Chukwudi. He is dealing with a ton of family opposition and just struggling with it. At the end of the lesson, Elder Potter bore a short and powerful testimony and quickly said "let's pray but we need to kneel down." So, we all knelt down to pray in the middle of the student center at Sam. The spirit was soooo strong. He was blown away. He texted us later at 1am that night that he felt it and wanted more. He came to church yesterday and loved it. The spirit is the converter. The spirit will always lead.

Our week was mostly spent on campus talking to college kids and inviting them to Christ. We have some wonderful people we are teaching right now. They are all progressing so well. I love this gospel so much. I love being a missionary and I love you all! God bless!

Elder Jarrett Pinster 

The barber did me so wrong! 😂😂😂

With my guy, Elder Dennis

Week #53 - ONE YEAR MARK & SOME REVELATION

Howdy y'all!!!! 

Well, on this past Thursday I hit my one year mark and am now halfway through my mission. Words cannot describe the amount of joy, growth, and love that I have felt this past year. I have never had so many struggles and trials but I have also never been so happy. It really has been the best year of my life and I cannot wait for this next one. 

So to start off, this past week I have really been trying to gain more revelation from Heavenly Father. I have been constantly asking him throughout the day where we need to go, who we need to talk to, what they need to hear, and how can I be an instrument in his hands. It has changed my life. I have seen constant miracles. The fear of missionary work has faded. I am able to know and do exactly what he wants me to do. There is power and purpose. I feel changed and at one with my Father. Having an open heart with constant prayer has transformed my way of thinking about revelation. I have had countless miracles and blessing on my mission, but how many of them did I ask for? How many did I let Heavenly Father guide me to purposefully? I have found that when we are doing His work and asking for His guidance, He will provide and show the way. 

That being said, here are some miracles from this past week: 

We found our friend named Chukwudi. He is from Nigeria and a student at Sam. We went out to go tracting and when we got to our prayed about spot, it just didn't feel right. So we walked up the street and Chuks was walking by. We went and said hi to him and started talking. Fast forward to this next week and now he has a baptismal date for March 2nd. The Lord guides His work. He really does. 

Next, we had a friend we are teaching named Carolyn start progressing so well! She has read almost all of 1 Nephi and just loves learning. She is a single mother and even came to church yesterday. She told everyone there how much she loves having us over and teaching her. She is our biggest hype up. We absolutely love our friend Carolyn. She just wants the gospel.  We had her read 2 Nephi 31 about the Doctrine of Christ and when we came back she told us she wants to be baptized so we got that arranged for her :) When we teach her, the spirit tells us what to say and we end up meeting her needs every time. God is good. Carolyn is a Saint. The gospel heals the wounded soul. I love being a missionary.

Our family of girls is all set for this weekend. We are so excited! They cannot wait for it. It really makes my heart full to see the family learning and growing so much. The gospel is made for families and families are made for the gospel. My heart is so full. 

Miracles are everywhere. I had a conversation on an exchange this past week where out of no where the Elder I was with asked a question that had nothing to do with what we were talking about. As we talked more on the subject we both shared stories and feelings and it left us in tears because the spirit was so strong. It was the first time I ever cried from the spirit. All of that happened because he prayed to know what car conversation we needed to have. Miracle. Revelation. 

As John 6:68 says, "... To whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life..." I bear testimony that, that is truth. Christ really does have the words of eternal life. He has all the answers. He knows us individually and can answer any question we have for Him. We just have to listen to the spirit. If we ask, He will give. My mission is changing my life. It is changing my eternity. I love my Savior with my entire heart. This is the Lord's work. I love you all dearly and am praying for you. God bless. 

Elder Jarrett Pinster 

LASER JESUS

REUNITED WITH MY BOYS AT MLC
Elder Smedley, Elder Airth & Elder Pinster

Had to do laundry in the tub this week due to broken washing machine
and we didn't feel like walking 4 miles to the laundry mat.

BUFFALO WILD WINGS!!!

Selfie with my friend Charlie!

Week #52 - LET GO, LET GOD

What's up from Huntsville. This past week was a blast. I love being in Texas and serving my Savior. Elder Potter and I worked this week and I'd be lying if I said we aren't best friends. The work just flows. I absolutely love it. 

So some cool miracles for you this week: 

This week we were teaching a guy that goes to Sam Houston. Before the lesson Elder Potter and I had planned on reading Ether 3 with him. He came to the lesson and started talking about how he wasn't sure he could believe in the Book of Mormon. He told us that he thinks he would make himself believe it. He then saw the Book sitting on the table and told us he would just randomly open it and see if he would read anything that stood out to him. He "randomly" opened it to Ether 3. He then saw he had that chapter written down on our plans which were in front of him. The spirit was so strong as Elder Potter bore his testimony of the Book of Mormon. The chapter even had an exact verse he needed to hear. It was a very cool miracle with the Book of Mormon.

We also had a recent concert that in Huntsville tell us about how much the gospel had changed them. They told us how before they had found the gospel they suffered from depression and just felt alone. They then proceeded to let us know how days before we had found them, they had been praying for some kind of sign or acknowledgement that God was looking out for them. Days later the person ran into us on campus and their life has never been the same. I felt so much joy. I cannot not even explain how much. The gospel lifts burdens. The gospel will heal a wounded heart and let us know that he is there. Heavenly Father will lead you down the right path if we ask for his guidance. 

Another cool miracles. We give out scripture verses on paper sometimes on campus. On Wednesday we gave out some verses and a gave took it. Elder Potter told him it was from the Book of Mormon. The guy said cool and rushed off to class. An hour later he came back and asked for the whole book. He just wanted to read it and see what it could do. It was a cool miracle. 

I also got to go on quite a few exchanges this week with members in my zone. I love learning from other missionaries and the tools that they have. I even got to go to a lesson that was 100% in Spanish so that was pretty fun. I knew/said nothing but all is well. 

I absolutely love being a missionary. I just feel joy. We had a stake Correlation meeting yesterday and we talked a lot about Jacob 1:17. It talks about finding your errand with the Lord. Revelation and asking Heavenly Father will help us know what we need to do. I've tried to ask more, "Lord what will you have me do/say/go" and then let him direct the work. I feel so overwhelmed with his grace. He loves us. He wants what is best for you. The gospel will and does change lives. I know this because it is changing mine. Praying for all of you. Love y'all and God bless. 

Elder Jarrett Pinster 

CONROE ZONE MISSIONARIES
Left to Right Elders: Karren, Bishop, Doelling, Pinster, Dennis, Potter, Johnson, Owens, Darle, Owens, Olsen & Holland
Front Row:  Sister Balloogoie, Fleming, Sister Robb & Elder Robb, Sister Warr & Sister Schmidt

Pinster & Potter chilling after a long day

Polaroid picture of Pinster, Rebekah & Potter at the temple