what a great week it has been.  glad to hear that all of you are doing well and happy!   Happy happy happy! 

we had an awesome experience on monday night! we went to teach a new investigator her name is Heather and we met her at Cermack ( a store here like a market)  and she live in a rougher part of town. so we taught her and the lesson was super good! and spirit strong.  (it was a really hot night and i felt so bad for their family because their house is so run down and there were roaches coming out of the walls. it was SO gross!)  so we left thier house and started walking to our car. (it was dark by this point) and Sister Pankretz decided to knock on just one door. so we did and no one answered, but then as we were coming down off of that porch there was this man walking.  and he was weeping, just baling, dears running down his cheeks, and so we talked to him and he was histerical.  he was a hispanic and we asked him his name and he said "well, i go by many names." and so we said, well what name do you prefer?  he responded L-U-I-S.   (weird that he spelled it out haha) but anyways all of a sudden sister Pankretz and I felt the spirit make like a huge bubble around us. like there were angles surrounding us and protecting us from what ever was going to come. he was really  struggling and just kept saying i will never be forgiven. i will never be forgiven. we asked him, why are you crying?  "i have done a lot of bad things in my life and i can never be good.  I am just a sinner."  we just talked with him and then he dropped his phone and he said. i saw you. i saw your light and i had to come to you. sister pankretz and i looked at each other like what?  he said i just had to come to the light.  (that was cool to hear) (remember it was almost completely dark, especially in this area, there was maybe one street light half a block down.)  so right after he just started telling us "get out of here! its not safe! get out! leave!" so we said goodbye and sister Pankretz and I followed our own promptings to get out and got in our car and went home.  it was crazy! I dont know why we were supposed to run into him but we did. and i felt so safe surrounded by the spirit, yet so unsafe at the same time. it was a weird phenomenon.  pretty cool, if you ask me. 

Tuesday we went and let mutual for the young men and young women. we played jeopardy all about missionary work with them. it was So much fun. and it was great to see them get so excited during role plays.  so much fun!  

this week we spent a lot of time at the Lewis familys house. they are a part member family and Sia - the mom - is less active. but she has 6 kids and they are 12 to 9 months old and SO funny! i just love them! we have been helping them prepare for the primary program that was yesterday. and they are just so awesome. the last time we were there they didnt want us to leave. i just felt so loved and welcomed and it was great! i love them and they did such a great job on their parts in the program.  

As Cody Owens said "i am no longer a baby missionary! "  i am out of my training!  I have reached 3 months on my mission, and am surprised at how fast it has gone. crazy!  to celebrate (sort of) Rosa, our Abuleta Mango out here, bought us Garretts Popcorn.  the famous chicago Popcorn! it was So delish!  we had the cheese and caramel and a caramel nut flavor. so yummy!! 

Then on Saturday we had an aweomse lesson. well you see. Teri dosent know that she is investigating the church. but she is.  we dont have "traditional" lessons with her, but we are teaching her through service (she is the one that lives in the barn) so we went to help her pick apples. they pretty much have a mini apple orchard on their land. so we picked apples and made pies and cobblers and crisps.  and taught her about the book of mormon. we wrote our testimonies in a copy of one and gave it to her and she loved it. she felt the spirit as she was reading them. it was so cool!  

And sunday!  ( my favorite day of the week)  even though it was rainy. this raniy day did not get me down! (insert mamas and the papas song here - monday monday) .  it was the great primary program. it was so cute and the spirit was SO strong! it was aweomse. pretty sure i shed a couple tears.  

then  later that night we went to find an investigator Nellie at the laundromat. She told us to meet her there. so we went and didnt find her. so we went back to her house and went back to the mat. then we thought she was at another one. so we went to that one and she wasnt there. we really wanted to see her.  and so we decided to go home. but we passed by the first laundry mat again and sister pankretz slowed down as we passed to see if i could see her, and if she had not slowed down, then i would probably be dead right now.  just one block later we came to an intersection and  right before we were about to cross( becuase we had the green light) and car from the right came half way into the intersection.  i know that my side of the car would have been smashed. but sister pankretz was very alert and stopped promptly and all is well.  just another example that everything happens for a reason.  

also. puppies. puppies are so cute! a member in our ward just got this puppy. we went over to see it. SO CUTE!!  

the church is true. 

everything happens for a reason.  i love being a missionary!  i love sharing Gods message.

love you all!  

Sister O'Neil 

9/9/13

I LOVE SUNDAYS!!   

the spirit the whole day was amazing!  I hope that you had a great sunday this week as well, because mine was superb. and if it wasnt as good as you hoped i give you persmission to live vicariously through me :)  because mine was amazing. and i hope i can serve it justice.

 So.. I had the opportunity to sing for our ward, and i sang the song "Savior Reedeemer of my soul" an arrangement by Rob Gardner so beautiful. so I had a few practices that went well and then on sunday i found out that it was my friends farewell as well. so that was exciting. she gave a great talk about her decision to go on a mission and talked bout our friend Kazia. the spirit was so strong. i loved it.   and then it was my turn.

for some reason when i had woken up i didnt remember that i was going to be singing that day. usually it is always on my mind and i worry about it. but yesterday i was just getting ready - doing the routine and then it was like a bus hit me or something.  It was so weird. i remembered that i was going to be singing and then i just go SO NERVOUS!!  night and day difference. so strange. anyways. so i was pretty nervous all day and then i got up there to sing and the usuall feelings that i am about to pee my self came and then i started singing and everything was good.... I really love singing.  and it was fun. 

none of our investigators came. i was pretty bumbed about that. but they will. next week! i know it.  we cant force them. 

I got a lot of very nice compliments and questions. i think my favorite compliment was " i didnt know that, that BIG of a voice could come out of you! thanks for sharing your talent." 

and then the sunday got better from there.  we went to stop by one of our investigators.  Her name is Susie Sherrick and she is just hilarious. she has this spunky personality and is just fun to be around.  SHe used to be a voice instructor and she has sung with many jazz bands and things, so we talk a lot about music. she loves Barbara Striesand.- just her music. not what she stands for.  (she makes sure to tell me that everytime:) haha )  and so we went over tos ee her becasue we havent seen her in a while and she has been sick with that stomach/flu virus thingy going around.  so I sang my song for her and she was impressed and i was nervous then too because i knew that she has all this experience and teaching time.  but she told me she wished i could have been her student.  - a sweet comment.   And then because of her sickness we offered for her to recieve a blessing, and so two brothers from the ward came over to give her one, and it was a-mazing!!  the spirit was SO strong in there and Brother Perea sat down after the blessing to tell her somethings. Sister Pankretz and I got nervous because he prefaced by saying " i am going to be blunt and honest with you."  but he proceeded to tell her how precious and valueable she is to our Heavenly Father and just how much she is loved.  he told her that there was an emptiness inside of her and that this gospel could fill it. and then he told her to be the one to fix her family problems. anyways he went on, and it was all by the spirit. - we had told him nothing about her. he came and met her for the first time 10 min before.  he just knew exactly what to say to her. and she was just so filled with the spirit she was crying. it was a beautiful moment to behold and she just could feel of the love that her Heavenly Father has for her.  

It is amazing what kind of difference we can make to someone elses life, when we are living worthy of the spirit. He didnt know what she was going through.  He just listened and bore testimony.  It was a great experience to be there for and a learning example to know that we are truly loved by our heavenly Father. He IS in the details of our lives and he knows when we need help.  He will not leave us as orphans, he is always there.    I hope that i can develop this kind of sensitivity to the spirit, that i can bring this light and fulfillment to someone elses life.  it is an amazing blessing the Lord has given each of us, and i am grateful for the people in my life who have helped me to feel of this love.  I am grateful for our talents and this time that we have to share them with others.  I know that we are loved and watched over.  we are his sheep and we are the one that he will come after. THe church is true.  All is well

Peace' N' Blessins

Sister Jenny O'Neil   

9/4/13     Email from Sister Jennifer O’Neil of the Illinois Chicago West Mission

Ok Fam and friends, sorry for the lateness. Monday being a holiday we didnt get to email because the libraries were closed and Yesterday was Zone Conference, SOoo today is preparation day :) 

what a fun filled week it has been. so busy.   where to begin...

out here in the country there are these big fields with corn and soy beans, it is really pretty and there are a lot of picturesque spots, and it is kindof like Idaho just a lot more green and prettier. anyways there is this one road. Orchard ave. that we have to travel on to get to one part of our area and on one side it is just a giant feild of Soy beans. and they are green about to turn brown - and when they turn brown they harvest them. anyways these feilds are a green with spots of a light yellow/almost brown with a shine that is just so beautiful and one day as we were driving i was just looking out and the wind was hitting them just right that it looked like the ocean. it was beautiful. I just was stairing at them and pretended that i was sitting on the beach watching the waves.

so i told you that i am singing on sunday. still happening. BUT my friend Hillary Zapata just arranged for her farewell to be that day! so unbeknownst I am singing at her farewell! super fun!!  it is because next week we have the primary program and then stake conference and then general conference. and then she leaves. so she has to have it this week. and my other friend Leeza Pearl has been in town, spending time with Hillary before she goes on her mission to Bolivia. So it has been fun to see leeza a few times. She is the hilarious girl who was my neighbor/roommate at school. anwyays she is awesome.

Sister Pankretz has been using my singing as "bait" to everyone we come in contact with. all this week and last she has been telling people "And she is going to be singing on sunday!(while pointing to me) so you should come! you dont want to miss it. she is an amazing singer!"  we actually have seen a lot of people become interested and more excited about possibly coming to church. so hopefully i can practice and the spirit will be with me and in that meeting so that all who come can really feel of that spirit. I am excited! ill let you know how it goes.

Ok so this week was Rosa Ortegas Bday! I LOVE Rosa! she is just amazing!   but to celebrate she took US out to dinner. kind of backwards but fun! so she took us to the famous Giordanos for stuffed pizza and then to this store for mexican cookies. ( it is like a ralphs or vons with an emphasis on mexican food)  she was just so funny. they play awesome music in there so Tina Turners famous song came on and Rosa was just dancing down the hall ways. with no shame - fully committed!- haha so funny. i took video. she just has an awesome cheerful attitude about all things. and just knows how to always have fun.  - the small moments- they keep ya going. 

On Saturday we went and visited a less active D'Etta. I might have told you about her before. but, she is funny. she has no teeth and always sits in the same chair when we come over. and her apartment smells really bad, BUt we love her and i have grown to jsut love being with her that the smell has become less poignant. -miracles happen- ha! - so she has a hard time trusting new people in her life so it has taken a while for her to warm up, but she finally gave me a nick name!  sister Pankretz has been called Monkey all this time and just the other day she called me Giraffe.  haha i like it!!   Sister Pankretz and I in the middle of july started to do different activities with her, instead of just reading the BOM with her we changed it up, so we had singing time, and watched a movie, and played hangman and scripture pictionary. just different activities and such and it has made all the difference! she has really changed and it has been so cool to see.  she is so much happier now and she even bought new sunday clothes to come to church! she is going to try and come "just for me."  to hear me sing. I am excited for her and keep praying she will just have that continued courage to come to church. if she comes it will be the first time for her in over 30 years to come to church. 

on sunday we had a miracle! Sia Lewis and her family came to church!! it made my heart jump for joy when i saw them walk into Sacrament! they are a part member family and have 6 kids. they are half black- half polinesian kids and just SO funny. they all have these huge afros.  everytime we go to their house all the kids are ALL OVER the neighborhood. and all of them see us and yell its the sisters! and come running. it is fun! reminds me of when i used to play all day in the neighborhood with all the kids. so fun.  so they came and she bore testimony. and it is just wonderful! so exciteed for them! 

Then on Sunday night there was the COOLEST STORM EVER!!!   these big clouds rolled in from the south east and north and all converged right over our city.  you could see them coming. and when they did it was so cool. it was just a lightning storm. so it was silent and there was no rain. all of the clouds were just lighting up . non stop pretty much. just so cool. we probably stayed outside for 2 hours just watchin the storm.  - we got bug bites- but it was worth it.  SO COOL!

Yesterday was an amazing day! (zone) Conference days go So fast. and it makes me sad because there is so much to learn and i always feel so uplifted. its so cool. President Fenn talked to us a lot and i really loved everything he said, but he did focus on 2 Nephi 31 and just disected how there are 3 witnesses to the Gospel/ or Doctrine of Christ in this chapter. 1. the Father 2. Jesus Christ and 3. Nephi and then later in the chapter a 4th witness will come to each of us through the power of the Holy Ghost. It is SO cool to see in the scriptures. it is becoming so much more important that investigators and less-active members understand that baptism is a life-long committment that they are making.  not just something we do and never have to got o chruch again. through baptism we are baptized into his kigdom. and that comes with responsiblities.  anyways. zone conference was good and we got to see a lot of our fellow missionary friends. so it was a really good time. i loved it.  

We ended the day with an amazing lesson with Our newest investigators! Its a family!! Ruby and Jesus (hesus) and their 4 kids. the previous owner of their home died in the home so they have been experiencing a spirit that has beent there and so they had someone from the catholic church come and bless their home, and they still had problems. so we offered for a preisthood holder to come and bless it for them, so brother McNeil came and did that for us and you could just feel the amazing peace in their home. it was so cool.  night and day difference. ( obviously, it was done by the right authority.. duh!)  He left right after he said the prayer and Jesus was just like " can they come back! it was so peaceful when they were praying . can they spend the night?" haha so funny. but we know that they felt the spirit (meaning Holy Ghost) and that because of their faith this other spirit of the man who died left their home. we then taught them from 3Nephi 11 and it was amazing! the teenage daughter stoped doing her homework and all the kids were around quiet and paying attention and we all took turns reading. and they had awesome questions! so it was just an amazing lesson, filled with the spirit. i was so grateful for that! so cool!!!  and they said they will come to church this week as well and we invited them to baptism and they are going to pray about it. i am just so excited for them!! YAY!! chruch is true,.

ok i have written enough!   

i love you all. Thank you SO SO SOOO much for you letters and things they make a big difference.  

thanks for the love and support and just everything.  

All is well. 

Peace' N 'Blessins

Sister O'Neil