The Mortensen Tribe

Friday, August 23, 2013

Good Bye!!

Well I guess we are going the way of all other bloggers. We will not be posting about our mission on this blog anymore.

If you want to follow our mission please check out Carlene's Facebook page. We will be posting there in the future.

Naticia came for a visit and convinced me Facebook was fun if you set it up right so rather than trying to keep two things going we are transferring over to Facebook.

Therefore, as they say in Jamaica "It's Finished"

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Nicholas's baptism in the ocean in Ocho Rios. Sister Mortensen spoke on the Holy Ghost

Evan's baptism in Childress. Sister Mortensen (Grandma) spoke on the Holy Ghost via youtube at the same time as the above talk and baptism in Jamaica

Elder Mortensen and the Pugmire's at the Denbigh Agriculture Fair in May Pen

Sister Mortensen in her new hat. Elder Mortensen thought she was getting too hot. And she was!!

Sister Mortensen, Sister Clarke, Jada, Sister Andersen and Sister Hall in Sister Clarke's yard

Sister Mortensen teaching indexing to the young adults at the YSA conference in May Pen

Naticia, Peyton, Shelby and Grandma in Kingston at the airport when they arrived

Elder Mortensen going to church in Ocho Rios. It is upstairs in a commercial building

Thursday, July 25, 2013

ONE MORE YEAR!!

Yes it is official. The Lord has asked us to stay another year. This is an email we got from our grandaughter Jesslyn and Elder Mortensen's reply:

i love u too but why are u guys staying another year???? i wish i could come see u guys love u lots

jesslyn

Well, me and Grandma decided that really all we want to do is serve Heavenly Father. We know He loves all of us and He knows what is best for us. So, when our mission president talked to Grandma and I last Monday evening he told us that Heavenly Father wanted us to stay here in Jamaica for another year and help him, of course we said YES. Some of the ways we help our mission president and help Heavenly Father is finding inactive members and encouraging them to come back to church. Sometimes we find them in poor health and I give them a Priesthood blessing. We have seen miracles happen as the power of the priesthood has healed a sister with cancer, a sister with a huge sist in her stomach, and a baby girl with a large swelling on her face. Grandma and I also help the mission president with finding housing for all of the new missionaries coming to Jamaica. We found an apartment in Ocho Rios last week for the new sisters that are serving there. Mikasa and Michael helped us move in the refrigerator and stove when they were here last week. We also help our mission president and Heavenly Father by encouraging young people here to serve missions. When they get their mission papers from their branch president they are afraid they will fill it out wrong so Grandma sits down with them and goes through it with them. We also help them get their teeth checked and their physical passed and their immunizations taken. Some of the priesthood leaders have only been members for a year or two and I help them learn how Heavenly Father wants his church to operate. I teach them to study the church handbook that shows church leaders all over the world how Heavenly Father wants his church to perform. He wants us to have good families with a good mom and dad and happy and obedient children. Here in Jamaica there are too many families that don't have a dad and don't have obedient children so Grandma and I are here to show them that a family needs a good mom and dad and obedient children. When we have that, we have lots of grandchildren and we are constantly showing people here pictures of YOU, our grandchildren.

Jesslyn, we love you and miss you lots. Please tell all the other grand kids why we are still here. We will be home as soon as Heavenly Father is finished with us here. We are happy when we do what he asks us to do.

Love, grandpa

Friday, July 19, 2013

Sister Mortensen by some pretty pink flowers in Sister Anderson's yard

On the trail in the Blue Mountains

Getting ready for the zipline at Mystic Mountain in Ocho Rios

Sorina McNeil's baptism with husband Michael

Teaching Sister Bennett and her sister from Highgate

Adolyn and her friend in Ocho Rios

Transfer day in Spanish Town with 15 new missionaries

Saturday, June 15, 2013

This is Elder and Sister Mortensen near Highgate, which is part of the Ocho Rios Branch

President Lester and Elder Mortensen searching for inactives in the bush. Yes they are there.

Sister Mortensen helping Jodian Walker fill out her mission papers. She is one of six young people we are working with to get their mission papers turned in.

Beck, Tori, Ky, Jett, Tysen and Danette came to see us. This is them swimming in the Blue Lagoon

Tysen, Danette, Ky and Tori on the sailboat in Ocho Rios.

Missionary work is rough!

Beck and Jett with President Lester and his son Peter at their house and chicken coops

This is Sister Campbell with her new house from Food For The Poor. An organization the church works with here in Jamaica. You can also see her old house.

Sunday, April 14, 2013

They have some skinny cows over here. They need some good Black Angus

Celebrating Michael and Sorina's wedding. With her aunt and his Mom.

These chickens run all under our feet as we teach Sister Robinson and her grandchildren. 3 Nephi 10:5

Out to dinner with President and Sister Hendricks.

The prettiest sight in all of Jamaica. The Sea that is.

Elder Mortensen bringing President Lester's computer in for repair.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

This is an email we sent to some friends of ours that we met in the MTC. They are serving a mission at the Church History sites in and near Palmyra.

Well, hello from Jamaica. It was great to hear from you. It sounds like you are happy and that you will soon be very busy. We remember your sweet smiles from the MTC days, and we know you are doing a great work.

We are busy as well, but in a different way. The church is fairly young here, but there are a lot of inactives. Many of them are financially challenged and also lack the faith to get to church or to pay tithing so that The Lord can prosper them. When they are faithful and begin to prosper, quite a few emigrate to Canada, U.S. or England. So, it is a challenge to get the Branches active enough to become Wards and eventually have a Stake of Zion here in Jamaica. But we will have a stake. And then 2. And then more. And then a temple. Sister Mortensen and I are firm in the faith and we pray every day for the spirit to protect us on these roads and enlighten our minds so that we will know what we should say to these beautiful brothers and sisters as we visit them in their homes. Sometimes we just visit in their yard because there isn't room or chairs enough in their home, but we have a great love for all of them, and we know they love us too.

Anyway, we are enjoying the work as we are able to see testimonies grow. We are getting more Jamaican missionaries all the time. Our new mission pres. Is Jamaican. He is only 36 but served a mission here and is a great man. He starts July 1st. Our year ends in August, so we only have less than 6 months left. We have made many friends here and we always wave and smile as we travel around in our little truck. More people are getting to know about the church all the time.

Well, ya'll hang in there.

Love, Brother and Sister Mortensen