Facebook Post - From Sister Bradely

A piece of my heart will always remain in Indiana. It is the place where I have come to know my Savior better, and learn of His ways and His gospel. My life is forever changed because of this experience and I now know that no sacrifice is too great in the eyes of the Lord, He has already sacrificed everything for us. I know that Jesus Christ lives. I know that we have an all knowing Heavenly Father who loves us and wants to return to Him. I know that Christ’s Church is once again established on the Earth and that He will come again.

Sister Bradley is HOME

Facebook Post - From Brother Heath Bradley

Today was incredible, Michelle and I surprised my sister on her brief layover in SLC on her way home from her lds mission in Indianapolis. It is hard to describe the feeling.  Jennifer Bradley Michelle Anderson Bradley

Indiana Facebook Page - WE Will MISS You

It's a tough thing to have to say goodbye to these very special missionaries who have been such a joy to serve with. On their way home today (February 28, 2018), and some earlier this month, are some really great young people who are going to do much to build the kingdom wherever they are. They have given us their best and we will love them forever. Good luck dear missionaries as you return home to serve in other capacities. We will MISS you.

This is it. - Email from Jenny

”I am called of God.

 My authority is above that of the kings of the earth.

 By revelation I have been selected as a personal

 representative of the Lord Jesus Christ.

 He is my Master and he has chosen me to represent him.

 To stand in his place, to say and do what he himself would say

 and do if he personally were ministering to the very

 people to whom he has sent me. My voice is his

 voice, and my acts are his acts; my words

 are his words and my doctrine is his doctrine. 

My commission is to do what he wants done.

 To say what he wants said.

 To be a living modern witness in word and deed of

 the divinity of his great and marvelous latter-day work.”

Bruce R. McConkie

I love Jesus Christ. Not only is He my Savior, but He is my Friend. He has stood by me my entire mission, and has helped me through the hardest and the best of times. I know this is Christ's Gospel, and I know that despite the imperfect people He works through, me being one of them, this is His Church. I didn't think I could love a place so much that I didn't know existed, but I love Indiana and these Hoosiers here with all my heart. God is inspired to take us at such a malleable age and to take us from our most selfish time of life to teach us His ways, His doctrine, and His truths. He molds us into the beginning form of what we can BECOME. This is a Gospel of becoming and growing to be more like our Savior, to leave our own idea of what we can be, and to submit to an all-knowing God. It is the best and most important decision we can ever make.

"And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall." (Helaman 5:12) I know the Book of Mormon is true, and that is will bring us closer to God as we abide by it's precepts. I know that when we build the foundations of our lives on Christ we CANNOT fall.

Forever Serving with a Smile,

Sister Bradley

P I C - Email from Jenny

1. The Lindsay Family (my ward mission leader and his family)

2. Jodi, the cutest lady ever!! So sweet!!!

3. The Cluff Family <3

4. The SHUFFS!!!! Love them!!!

5. Last exchange with the Zionsville Sisters! Me, Sisters Gotay, Sloan, and Weller

6. Bella and Brian

7. Sister Kinard!!! Love her so much!!!

8. Jadé, a youth we've worked with. She is so sweet and has a heart of gold!

Indiana Facebook Page - Setting up their Smartphones

Indy North zone set up their smartphones (Wednesday, February 21, 2018) and shared some great experiences they have had recently with using social media to do missionary work. They also had a inspiring visit from their stake president to discuss the stake's mission plan.

More pictures - Email from Jenny

1. Exchange with Carmel (Arlint, Gotay, Burrell, me)

2. That moment when someone let's you in after you knock on their door

3. We prayed for a miracle and God delivered...delivered pizza that is!

 4. The Lee's 

5. Exchange with Beech Grove (Willard, Gotay, me, Matheson)

 6. Are you on Jesus' team?

7. Starfruit!!!

8. You have arrived in 450 ft. *that moment when Google maps stears you wrong*

Makin' a difference - Email from Jenny

Well fam. Here we are approaching the last week of the end of my mission, and the prequel week to the rest of my entire life. It is definitely weird, I cannot lie, but I know my life's mission will never end, and I feel now that after 1 year, 4 months and 29 days I finally know what my purpose is.

This week was awesome, we had a LOT of cool things happen, these are just some of the highlights!

One afternoon, we stopped by this lady named Dee who told us she has no interest in the chruch and that she wants her records to be removed and that she thought they already were...so we found out the process and went back to her house to tell her what it was and she let us in her home (that is the first time that has happened) and then we talked to her for 2 hours...and she didn't mention wanting to have her records removed once! Woah! And she gave us some Zumba DVDs to borrow and said she'd give us some herbal tea when we came back.....I was like, "wait, what just happened?" when we came out. There was definitely a lot of heart softening that happened those few times we met her!! haha Heavenly Father knows who we specifically need to be sent to!

On Wednesday morning we were able to go to the temple. Usually, we go the day before we fly home, but the Temple will be closed during that time, so I got the chance to go this week! It was so beautiful and I was filled with so much peace and gratitude to my Heavenly Father for knowing that He needed to send me on a mission. As always, after that beautiful experience, we faced a TON of opposition, it never ceases! hah! We met a lot of mean people and even got dropped by someone we were trying to work with, not to mention it is Valentine's Day so it seemed everyone was at date night! haha We kept treking, and I felt prompted to go finding on a specific street. We started knocking and we ended up meeting Marisol. It turns out that she had a super good friend who was Mormon when she lived in Mexico. We gave her a Book of Mormon and she told us she would read it to her 2 children she just adopted! Wow!! Friends, we will never know the impact we will have on others! Let's share the love we have! :)

We've been working with this member and trying to help her become a better member missionary and it has been one of MY FAVORITE experiences of my entire mission! She has such a strong desire to improve!!!! Those are the most fun people to help, that's for sure! She is so cute too! We invited her to study and pray this week in a way that has been different from what she is doing, and when we came back this week she said, " I can see why they tell us to do this everyday, it's awesome!!!" :) We were able to help her make connections and really see how it is "by small and simple things that great things are brought to pass." She told us she is never going to just read the scriptures again, but she will STUDY them :) guys, I'm not makin' this stuff up, seriously, it's awesome!

I have been really reflecting lately as my mission is coming to a close. I read this in my studies:

"3 And it came to pass that he was obedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him.

4 And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness. And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents, and departed into the wilderness.

5 And he came down by the borders near the shore of the Red Sea; and he traveled in the wilderness in the borders which are nearer the Red Sea; and he did travel in the wilderness with his family, which consisted of my mother, Sariah, and my elder brothers, who were Laman, Lemuel, and Sam.

6 And it came to pass that when he had traveled three days in the wilderness, he pitched his tent in a valley by the side of a river of water.

7 And it came to pass that he built an altar of stones, and made an offering unto the Lord, and gave thanks unto the Lord our God." (1 Nephi 2)

I wrote in my scriptures, "would I give thanks after giving up everything?" I looked at that question and pause for a minute. I realized that I am much more like Lehi than I realized. The Lord commanded Lehi to leave Jerusalem as He commanded me to serve a mission. He commanded Lehi to leave EVERYTHING except his family, I was asked to leave everything, school, work and even my family and friends. Lehi went and did as the Lord commanded and so have and I, and then he made an offering to the Lord as I have offered my service in the

mission field as an offering to Him. And I can say that at the end of this time I have profusely given thanks to the Lord for loving me enough to send me to the foreign land of Indiana to change my life forever. I know that when we follow the Lord's council, no matter how hard or difficult it may be that we are blessed 10 fold. I know that God knows what is best for us, and I am not sure words can adequately explain the gratitude I have to Him at this moment.

Serving with a Smile,

Sister Bradley

P I C S

The Indiana Indianapolis Temple (actually located in Carmel, IN) oh, and me, I am there too :)

Church is Cancelled - Email from Jenny

Well, for the first time in my entire life, all of church was cancelled, all activities, everything. Seriously, everything. The fireside that night, all 3 wards in our building and several other buildings all didn't have church. That devious Indiana weather was at it again, this time with freezing rain (which I didn't even know existed until my mission) everything was coated in ice, it's like everything was glazed (kinda like how donuts are glazed haha). Crazy. Bring a friend to church day was supposed to be that Sunday too, but never fear! It has been postponed! Maybe someone who needed to attend wouldn't have been able to make it yesterday! :) 

Ladies and gentleman, friends and family, brothers and sisters, we have waited many many days for this time to finally arrive for the Indiana Indianapolis mission. I am pleased to tell you that technology, more specifically smart phones, have arrived! haha the joke at the beginning of my mission was "3 months" but that 3 months turned into years, and years into my whole mission, except the last 2 1/2 weeks! :) " Behold, and lo, I will take care of your flocks, and will raise up elders and send unto them.

 Behold, I will hasten my work in its time." (D&C 88:72-73) the Lord is hastening HIS work, He is helping us find HIS elect, and this is a glorious way to do it. The Lord has great trust in us.

I had a really cool experience contacting this week. We knocked on a door and this cute lady answered. I feel that is one of the most beautiful experiences I had where I literally felt the Lord speaking through me. Not my words, but His. Before walking up to the door I thought, what am I going to say? There are countless approaches, but I felt that we would be guided. I put my trust in God, and ended up bearing one of the most powerful testimonies I have ever borne. I know the lady felt it, and I felt it, and my companion felt it. We talked about prophets and I asked her, "Why do you think there aren't prophets anymore if God has always worked through them in the past?" She paused and you could see her mind opened to the possibility that God might work through prophets again. We gave her a Book of Mormon and invited her to read and pray and ask God, himself, the source of all truth. She took the Book of Mormon and now what happens is in her hands with the agency she has.

We taught Carla and she told us about this Anti-Mormon video she watched. From my experience all anti-Mormon literature is just truth twisted. We asked her some of her questions but this lady never ceased to amaze me. She told us some of the things it talked about and she said that it strengthened her testimony...God definitely chooses His elect, and when we have faith, nothing can shake us! She is starting to find answers to her questions on her own now! It is amazing to see how we are filled when we thirst after knowledge!!! :)

Today Mosiah 4:9-10 really stood out to me.

"Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend.

 And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye dothem."

My companion Sister Gotay would quote this man Dr. Jim and would say, "It's simple, but just not easy." In theory, it is easy to believe in God and in His great majesty and power. We are standing on this beautiful earth in a vast and ever expanding universe, surrounded with endless possibilities and God's endless love, and yet, sometimes I think we forget to do the only thing He asks of us.

"If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love." (John 15:10) What can we do to "try a little harder to be a little better" (Hinckley) and push ourselves the 2nd mile? To taste of God's love is most desirable above all other things. What can we sacrifice to feel it a little more? What can we do to share that with others? How can we make our lives more purposeful? I know that God knows all. I know that He wants us to repent and experience the joy that comes from it's fruits. I know that Jesus Christ lives and is my Savior, and that He love me enough to die for me so that I and you could have a chance to become better.

Serving with a Smile,

Sister Bradley

Picture time! 

 1. Exanges :) left to right: Eastley, Barnett, Gotay, me!

 2. We got free blaze pizza because they got Sister Gotay's order wrong! Booyah!

 3. t h e d i s t r i c t

4. This youth in our ward makes 3D pearler bead trinkets!