November 30, 2015 Eggnog season!

Hello everyone,

Well it's been crazy! We didn't know transfers until they happened on
Tuesday, and President literally went through every companionship as
we are all sitting there waiting. It was so intense! He would read the
area and the missionary staying would stand up. Then he would read out
the new companion in the area, then you got up and sat next to your
new one. It was bad waiting for it, but defiantly brought excitement
to the meeting. My new companion is Elder Waites, he just left his
first areas Crescent City, and it certainly is different down here
than the tip top of the mission! He was surprised it is kinda cold
here haha. He's a short little half Japanese guy, and is super chill.
His Ward he was in at home is in Joplin, Missouri, so he says he's
from there, but his family moved there three weeks before he left.
He's lived in Beijing, New Delhi India, Zimbabwe, you name it. He's a
bit more cultured than I hahaha.

Well as you can see it is egg nog time, so I buy egg nog every week
and it brings me joy. We are starting our new Christmas video
initiative, "A Savior Is Born." Many of you have probably seen the new
video. Check out Christmas.mormon.org. It is a pretty sweet
interactive site. I can't believe it is my second Christmas out here,
it's bringing me back to greenie days. It doesn't go slow that's for
sure!

We had thanksgiving at the Maldonado's in our Ward. They have a bunch
of kids, like 6, under 11. It is interesting there and sister
Maldonado had 7 pies for us! Haha she was expecting 4 elders but now
the Ward is only us two, so it's shaking things up a little bit.
Thanksgiving we played the Turkey Bowl in the morning with the ward,
simply two hand touch football. We pretty much had permission to play
sports all day, so we did, and we hurt for about 3 days after. It hurt
so good! We also climbed the hill next to the stake center here, and
that made it worse. I have pics.

For district meeting, we talked about the first couple principles of
the plan of salvation. Sister Moore is in the YSA Ward here and I
asked her to teach about the Fall. Well what does she do? She brings a
box of jelly belly jelly beans, that has about ten good flavor a, but
for each good flavor, it has a bad flavor bean that looks just like
one of the good ones. There was stinky sock, skunk spray, dog food,
lawn clippings (which I actually liked) and everything else. Let me
tell you, the relief society room smelled like barf and weed and lots
of things mixed together hahaha. I think the point was knowing the
good, but also the bad, opposition.

It's been a good week, and we didn't teach so much, as it is pretty
hard a holiday week. But I'm so excited to work with these new
investigators we have now with the combined areas. It is going to be
an adventure. I hope you all know I love the savior, and this time of
year is such an amazing time to share him, and show his light through
us. I pray we all can.

I love you all.

Elder Janson

 Me wearing Johnson's glasses

Us holding my companion Elder Waites

Me walking up the hill

Going up the hill next to the stake center!

Festival of trees service! And thanksgiving

November 23, 2015 Crazy transfers this upcoming week

Hello family!

It's been such a good week! We had a great lesson with Charles again,
him and his girlfriend didn't come to church but that's ok. He really
wants to learn and has deep concern about why terrible things happen
like recent terrorism. He is in the Air Force and has seen so much of
the world and the bad things that happen. We taught the plan of
salvation and his girlfriend helped teach even though she hasn't been
to church in forever, but I feel we helped her as well to remember the
spirit she once felt.

We had an awesome stake conference! It was good to see all the
missionaries in our zone right when we figured out the news for
transfers. It turns out in our Ward it is going down from 4 elders to
just 2, and I'm the only one staying! It's crazy because that happened
in my greenie area too, everyone left and I was left to lead out the
whole Ward and I had no idea what I was doing! But now I have a better
idea what to do. It will be cool to pick up the other elders
investigators in our Ward. We have a couple named the Creswell's and
Ron, the husband, is basically a dry Mormon. he is waiting for his
wife to be ready. In gospel principles he says the most deep stuff
haha stuff I didn't even know about the gospel. In this combining of
areas, president told me I still have a car, so I can continue to be
fat :). What's dumb about this transfer is president changed it so we
knew we were leaving or not on Saturday, but we didn't even know where
we were going or who our companion will be. We find that out tomorrow
at transfers. So I don't know who my companion will be! I was pretty
irritated when I realized the policy change, but I'll be fine haha.

One night this week I was having a tough time and expressed it to the
other elders and the YSA sisters. They helped me feel a lot better and
I just was discouraged and felt I was doing much in this area.
Eventually I consented to a blessing haha and Elder Johnson gave me
one. It was one of the most comforting times of my life. It is amazing
to have the Holy Ghost so close to you and feel angels literally
lifting everyone. I know they are there when we need them and that the
power of God is right within our reach, we just have to reach out in
return. I love you all! Have a week of beautifulness!

Love, Elder Janson

 Zone pictures!

District "Bacon"!!

Elder Matthews, Me, Elder Sutterfield

November 16, 2015 Service Week

Hello everyone.

This week we did lots of service for a bunch of people. We go to the
Opportunity House, a thrift store run by a local church, and they have
some awesome stuff there! That's where we found the beautiful bacon
plush toy you may have seen in our pictures last week. Anyways, we
help them organize all the donations they get, which is a lot! I've
never seen so much turnover anywhere! You go there one day, and the
next, everything's different. They are pretty popular. We also go help
at the same organization's homeless shelter and make the dinner our of
whatever food they have on Wednesdays and Saturdays. It's a good
opportunity to get out and do something besides be in Proselyting
clothes! Haha

The other night the member had to bring us our dinner to the church,
so we ended up sitting there and making a series of raps about
missionary related things of course :) if you desire to see a video of
this ask individually haha. We have some serious freestyle skills.

We met a super cool guy named Charles who actually lives in our
apartment complex. I've never taught anyone who lives near us before
haha because usually they see us so much they are sick of us. But he
wanted us to come! We met him and his girlfriend who is a super nice
girl who is less active in the church. We brought our Ward mission
leader Brother Hansen and she recognized him so they struck a
conversation. Charles is an awesome cook and seriously wants us to
come for dinner. So we are! He recently made us bone marrow that we
ate today. It was interesting haha and super good though.

I hope you are all doing well and know how much the gospel can change
your life. It doesn't always happen quickly for someone to come into
the church and the gospel, but when they do, they don't regret it. I
love it so much and I love my savior!

Love you all.

Love, Elder Janson

 Me and Johnson chillin in the car today

Elder Matthews and Elder Sutterfield, also in our Ward, a pretty

hilarious picture

November 9, 2015 Zone Conference

Hello everyone!

It was a pretty good week of workin! We got to go to Fairfield for
zone conference and see a couple other missionaries, and see
president, the APs, and the tech elders. It's always fun to have a
little time to get to see the leaders of the mission and realize they
haven't forgotten about ya! We talked a lot about having "greenie
fire" all throughout our mission, not to let the light diminish. That
is something I'm struggling with, is just feeling burnt out and stuff.
It's nothing serious, it's just a way of missionary life.

If you could all pray for Christina, our investigator who got hit by a
truck and broke many bones. She is really our only investigator but
she is doing better and should be released out of the hospital soon.
She will have to be in a wheelchair for a couple months, so that
changes our baptism plans for her. But there are no coincidences. She
is definitely wanting to learn.

It's interesting how opposition comes out of nowhere. We were walking
around the other night, I think Friday, and we had a great night
talking to people and they actually were home and actually answered!
The last guy we talked to was some man who was at a moved away members
home and we figured out pretty quick he was way drunk and was telling
us how Joseph smith was not who we think he was. Blah blah blah blah
stuff I've heard a million times, and eventually we just walk away.
Haha sometimes we get some humorous rejections.

Another good piece of news is that we have a little mini gym in our
apartment complex. Elder Johnson doesn't want to run so I run on the
treadmill, which before the mission was the bane of my existence, but
now, at least I'm running a little! And there's weights and stuff so
I'm not as fat now. :)

I'm grateful for all of you, and I'm also grateful for the efforts of
the members here and how much they care about the missionary work.
They are serious about it! Remember how important you as normal people
play a part in missionary work. (Missionaries aren't normal people.) I
hope you all can do your best to hasten His work.

Love you all!

Elder Janson

Me wearing Sister Haefeli's jacket...

Us at Tommy Butler's house, he's an awesome member!

 Elder Hacking who is AP and my past zone leader, is going home!

Me pretending to be Elder Johnson, just wearing his glasses lol

November 2, 2015 Halloween

Hello people.

Well I had my last Halloween of the mission! Haha like that means
anything. We drove through a neighborhood and saw so many people trick
or treating, and while we are trying to give a dinner message there's
knock after knock. It was pretty funny. That night we weren't allowed
to knock doors of course. That might cause some problems as you can
imagine :)

Our fast and testimony sacrament meeting was one of the best I have
ever been too! Vacaville 4th Ward proves to be such an amazing Ward. I
felt the spirit like never before, and everyone just built on the
spirit even more. A recently returned sister, Sister Bosler shared her
testimony and shared Mosiah 2:41, a scripture I know well, but this
time it hit me so hard and I knew it's true! We are happy when we keep
these commandments and follow the gospel, that is what it is designed
for! The other elders in our Ward have an investigator couple Ron and
Wendy who have investigated for years. They are awesome and she just
isn't ready to commit. Ron, on the other hand, is what you call a dry
Mormon. Haha comments he makes in gospel principles class make me and
Elder Johnson look at each other like, "why is he not baptized!?" Haha
he knows so much and has the best comments about the lesson. Soon they
will be ready. Our investigator Christina came to church. We found her
by a member going home teaching and she was there with her mom, and
wanted to learn more. Pretty crazy to see someone so prepared. The
members in our Ward were super inviting to her and she has a date for
December 12th. Quickest progressing investigator ever!

Just as I felt the spirit confirm to me the truthfulness of the
testimonies being bore Sunday, I remember when I felt the strongest
impression of the truth of the Book of Mormon. I was at EFY trying to
figure out what to do with an hour of personal study! (Ironic right?)
and I was reading the Book of Mormon, and basically wanted to know its
truthfulness. As I read, I had a simple thought go through my head,
"you already know it is true." I remember that still, and I will never
forget! Sometimes our answers are simply to be reassured of truth we
know and treasure.

I love you all and hope life is good in the hood!

Elder Janson

 Chillin Halloween night with the sisters haha cuz we can't do

anything else.

 Missionaries using iPads :)

October 29, 2015 Temple Week!

Hello family!

Today we went to the temple and I've now hit all three temples that I
can go to on the mission, Medford Oregon, Sacramento, and Oakland. I'm
very proud of myself! Haha it's cool here because the members have two
temples within an hour of them. It was a quick drive. Brother Miller
took us in his Ford Flex, which feels like a very roomy spaceship we
told him. The members here are way nice to missionaries, possibly
because sisters used to be here, and people like sisters more :). Now
there are four elders in our Ward, so that's always interesting at
dinners.

The YSA sisters had a baptism of Rodney, the guy in the picture,
and he is the most golden investigator I've ever seen! I had the
opportunity to give my first baptismal interview as a district leader,
and it was amazing! The spirit was incredible and he had an amazing
testimony, especially of the prophet Thomas S. Monson. He was able to
watch general conference and said that was what really helped him know
the church was true. It's crazy to see this guy change his life. I
didn't know him that well, but I feel as if I already love this guy.
It's crazy how the gospel does that. We watched him get baptized on
Saturday, and me and the other elders in my Ward and the YSA sisters
sang Be Still My Soul for it. I did a solo, mom you would be proud,
I'm trying to get out of my singing shell haha. It was a sweet day.

There's a very interesting member in our apartment complex who knocked
on our door one morning and simply handed me some lyrics to hymns he
had written, but to the tune of actual hymns. He also believes there
was a Book of Mormon temple in Vacaville... Haha you meet all shapes
and sizes out here.

We finally have a couple people you could call investigators. One is
this lady Alex with 4 kids who is super nice and probably will be at
the trunk or treat! And this lady Kristina was there when the home
teachers went to see her inactive mother and she immediately anted to
talk to us. We had a lesson with her and she is very willing to learn.
It's a good thing! I feel very blessed to be out here. Something I
noticed this week in studies is that everything we do in the church
revolves around Christ. I mean, I knew that, but I feel as a kid I
never realized how vital the savior is, and how important it is to
know he is divine, he is the son of God, the God of Israel, the father
of those who accept his gospel and became heirs to his kingdom and
glory. God our father set up this plan, and his Son Jesus Christ is
the main way he puts that plan into action. I realized this week, I
love Christ! I felt it in the temple today, I feel it as I testify of
him, I feel it as I take the sacrament, and I love it! We don't just
do these things for fun or whatever, we do it because Christ lives, he
loves us, we can learn to love him, and he will come again! Think of
the overwhelming joy we will feel when we see him again, when he comes
to earth to reign. I know these things are true, we are to be
converted to Christ, not to the church, not to the prophet, not to the
missionaries or anything, but Christ. (As Elder Christofferson put it)
He is the author and finisher of our faith, I testify that in the name
of Jesus Christ!

I love you all, have a good couple days, then I'll email again :)

Elder Janson

 The Vacaville Zone at Rodney's baptism! He's the one with the

thumbs up haha

Picture at McDonald's with terrible lighting, we look very holy at least

Us at the Sacramento Temple today!

October 19, 2015 Welcome to Vacaville

Family,

So first, it's pretty hot here every once and awhile! It's a big
change from constant 60s. But it's cool. It rained yesterday and it
looked just like Florida rain. It was sunny and pouring at once, and
we entered a wall of  we saw before we were in it!

We have barely any investigators here, and our area is tiny! We still
have a car, and Elder Sutterfield, who I served with in Santa Rosa, is
now in my same Ward again! There are still 4 elders in Vacaville 4th
Ward, which is a more rare thing now. It's pretty fun though! Our area
covers just a little, it goes out of the main town for a couple miles,
but we never go out there. Something I've noticed about here, is in
our area, there are a million apartment complexes, it's pretty funny.
Many go to the Travis Air Force base, which was in my area in
Fairfield. My area borders my old area in Fairfield. It's about 10
minutes away, and all the other missionaries are within that distance
as well. Crazy stuff!

I think the goal now  is some new investigators. It's a bit sparse
compared to Eureka. I didn't like Eureka that much, but we did teach a
lot! It will be an adjustment for sure, but I'm excited to be with
Elder Daniel Moroni Johnson! We both have super Mormon names! He is
from Whitehorse Canada in the Yukon. He's a weird Canadian again, and
my past companion Elder Achal from Canada is my zone leader now. Haha
it's fun to be around these guys again.

I hope all is well with all of you! Love you guys!

Elder Janson

Saying bye to Elder Thomas and Sister bender and Siufanua

Sister Bender!

Sister Siufanua!

 

 Me and my comp, Elder Johnson

 We had a terrible clogged toilet incident at the church Saturday

night.... Hahaha

October 12, 2015 I got transferred!

So friends and family,

First order of business is my new address will be:
901 Sara Ct, Apt 9,
Vacaville, CA, 95687

So it's crazy! I've been saying earlier how I wanted to go to
Vacaville and now I go! I'm a pretty good guesser :). I'm honestly
very ready to leave Eureka, it's making me go crazy! Haha but it's
been such a great time here. I went on splits with Bro Espinosa this
past Wednesday and he is the Elder Quorum president, about to have his
first kid! Anyways, I told him what we were going to talk about with
Wayne and he totally just made everything we talked about in the
lesson lead to that topic. He's a very good talker and can segue way
anything haha. Anyways that was sweet.

Happy birthday mom! Had to get that in :). You're the best!

So the Ward I'm getting transferred to is Vacaville 4th Ward. I hear
Vacaville is like a mini Utah in our mission and there are five wards
there and it is smaller than Gainesville I believe and is the smallest
stake in our mission, geographically. I'm so excited! I hear that Ward
is awesome and I'm follow up training Elder Johnson, who came out with
Elder Thomas just one transfer ago! So he's pretty new haha. I'm his
"mom" as we say in mission lingo. His second companion. It will be
sweet! And there's still 4 elders in this Ward despite the shrinking
size of the mission. Hopefully that's a good thing! I'm just oh so
excited for people to get Johnson and Janson mixed up....

I thank you all for your support! Check out my pictures! They are the best!

Love, Elder Janson

Climbed strawberry rock again!

Last zone meeting of the transfer!

 Sister Rose, saw her every week!

Picture with sis Chand, she's an interesting one definitely

October 5, 2015 Real Busy!

Hey family and peeps!

All I can really say is that it's been busy! We helped some new members move in on Wednesday night and they seem like they will be a sweet addition to the Ward. He's got kids that seem normal! So that's always good.

We had our first interviews with President Wright on Tuesday, and man he is just so funny to talk to! Anything you say he just smiles and chuckles with a jolly old guy laugh hahaha. I'm grateful to him for his help and definitely know it's gotta be hard to be in his shoes. So much goes on in a mission like drama, meetings, interviews, driving everywhere. It probably can make you go crazy! But he continues to be jolly! We then had a training for finding right after that, where they just trained us on contacting people and how to do it better and to have a spirit of love. It was pretty sweet! Just the zone and the mission leaders.

On Thursday night we had I think the most spiritual lesson I have ever had in my mission. I told Elder Thomas he is lucky to get something like that his first transfer! We were seeing Cameron, a returning member and his friend he is fellow shipping, Robert. I can't remember if I talked about them to you guys. Anyways, they were in a hotel room waiting to move into a group home this past weekend. Cameron has been through so much in his life and is still recovering from addictions. But I've never seen someone more attuned to the spirit and wanting to change. He said he will quit all drugs to baptize his friend Robert. Anyways, in the lesson we didn't do much. I read some from Alma 36 as I felt inspired to do, and that hit hard. Then we showed a video about how the Savior Wants to forgive. By that time the spirit overwhelmed us and I started tearing up. Cameron and Robert expressed how if this man could come back to Christ, they certainly could. The love in the room was indescribable! All I could think to do was testify that I know what we teach is true, and I knew they were on their way to it. I could barely speak as I choked up. Everyone in their could feel it as an angel was descending on us and was right there with us. We ended with a prayer and Cameron wanted to do a circle, where we each said a prayer out loud in turn. He started and I ended. I've never felt like I so personally spoke to my Heavenly Father. It was incredible. I felt we should leave a blessing on their temporary home and did so, and the confirming witness of the Holy Ghost overcame all of us. We stood and just embraced. We had barely met these men! But we loved them, and I think I finally understand how we love as Christ does. In general conference, in one of the talks, I can't remember, they spoke of how we need to have the Holy Ghost, and whether they said it or it was an impression, I felt I needed to have the Holy Ghost, and that would then make it possible to "see through the lords eyes" and see this child of God as their heavenly parent sees them. I could truly love them! That right there was a direct answer to a question I had written down before the conference.

I know with all of my heart that the spirit will be there when someone has a sincere heart and intent to follow Christ. I know Jesus is our savior. I hope you can all come to that knowledge as well.

I love you all!

Elder Janson

 Taylor, the 10 year old right in front of me is getting ready for baptism 

Elder Smith, my last comp, and Elder Southwick, a greenie!

Me and Elder Jones, current AP and my past zone leader, who goes home in a week!

 Super awesome quote from conference 

September 28, 2015 Teaching all day

Family and friends,

This week was crazy! We taught the most lessons I've ever taught in a
week, 26. We were just doing work! We have been working really well
with members, we went on splits Wednesday and Thursday night and got
multiplied lessons done each time. Elder Thomas went with Bro
Bugnacki, in the bishopric, and Bro Espinosa, elders quorum president,
to see Wayne, our investigator getting baptized in two weeks. He is
such a cool guy and just sleeps a lot so we have to call him and wake
him up for church. Good stuff. It was funny for Taylor, the 10 year
old girl we are teaching, the only thing left to teach her really was
law of chastity. So I told sister bender that, and she was like, "oh
I'll just teach it, don't worry!" So that blessed girl taught the
whole thing and me and bishop just sat there. Haha she is a brave
greenie. A great teacher too!

I went on exchanges with the elders in Fortuna, a town 20 minutes
south of us. They are in my district, so I went with Elder
Sutterfield, who I lived with when I was first born! (Started the
mission). He's a very talkative funny kid that gets on a lot of
missionaries nerves but it's hard to get on my nerves real bad so we
get along. They live in a members side apartment and they have a game
room upstairs from the garage that they use! We played foosball, and
dad, you have taught me great skills, they were all impressed at my
foosball skills. Anyways, it was pretty fun to play that, after our
work day was over of course :).

We had my second 7 lesson day in my mission! That was Thursday I
believe. Man when you teach that much in a day you can think when you
get home to save your life. It is great to busy on a mission though.

Thank you all for your emails and support! Just know I know this
gospel is true and will bless any who accept it and fill there lives
with service in it.

Love, Elder Janson

The cutest little baby husky ever! Members in Fortuna just got it

 Very large burrito I ate

 

 We found a new way to wear our name tag

 Us attempting to take a picture of a lunar eclipse. It was awesome!

It's the tiny extremely faint blurb of light to the right of the

street light.

September 21, 2015 The year has past

Hello everybody,

Well it's been a year! That's not weird at all haha. It was just a
crazy week of work! We set like 4 new baptismal dates! One for this
guy named Mike who loves Mormon history, then for Joe, and Wayne (who
came to church yesterday!) and Taylor Mabry, the 10 year old girl
getting baptized next month. I don't know where all of these dates
came from, but we are not complaining! A lot of them just changed
because many of our investigators need more time to progress. Taylor's
mom is a member who's records we haven't found yet, and it's always
interesting going there. It's a mad house full of animals. I now know
why my parents didn't want too many animals. They are gross! Haha

We did some fun service with a member and the sisters came too. We
moved a bunch of rocks and killed his stupid plants he didn't want.
That is the fun we get as missionaries, yard work! Haha it's crazy how
the tables turn.

We have splits with members every week and it's actually going really
well. Bro Espinosa and Bro Flores came. Bro Espinosa is a young
married guy, and his wife is about halfway pregnant. He went on a
mission as well and it's always nice to have him there. We had great
splits though and each went to a lesson that didn't fall through.
Usual believe it or not. I went with Bro Flores to see Wayne. We saw
him another day, Saturday, and he accepted a baptism date for October
10th, and he had no objections really! He's a older seemingly lonely
guy, but he came to church and everything, in his old suit! Haha
hopefully he keeps doing well. He is reading our pamphlets and the
Book of Mormon, so he's getting farther than most!

Other than that, there's just been some crazy things going on in the
zone. When I say there are crazy people us here, I mean, there are
CRAZY people up here. And it affects the whole area. The zone has been
having some issues with just having the spirit with them even in our
apartments. If you could just pray for us to continue to be
strengthened against the opposing spirit, I know it will help. I know
there is evil and it is real, but I also know that just as real is the
Holy Ghost, the most powerful spirit on the earth. If we seek him and
the Father and His Son, evil can't overtake us. "Be not overcome of
evil, but overcome evil with good." Romans 12:21. If we choose to
flip on the light switch, the darkness can't be there, but we have to
do it! I know it is up to us, and Christ is there to lift us if we let
him. Don't be discouraged! Turn on the light! And darkness will flee
like the coward it really is.

I love you all!

Elder Janson

 The south part of our area, King Salmon next to Humboldt Bay.

Elder Thomas