Tender Mercies in the TKM: Jerry

September 13, 2025 ~ barlowsintkm ~ Leave a comment

Elder Porter and Elder Barnett received a referral on a Saturday night, so they called Jerry immediately and invited him to church. The next morning, Jerry came to church for the first time. After church, the elders taught Jerry about the doctrine of baptism and confirmation and invited him to be baptized, and Jerry accepted.

Over the following weeks, Jerry met with the missionaries regularly and had contact with them daily. He had a smoking addiction for over 30 years and he said he needed help being able to quit smoking. The missionaries promised him that if he read the Book of Mormon daily and continued to come to church then he would be able to stop smoking.

My dear brothers and sisters, I promise that as you prayerfully study the Book of Mormon every day, you will make better decisions—every day. I promise that as you ponder what you study, the windows of heaven will open, and you will receive answers to your own questions and direction for your own life. I promise that as you daily immerse yourself in the Book of Mormon, you can be immunized against the evils of the day. – President Russell M. Nelson

From that point on, Jerry read the Book of Mormon every day and came to church every Sunday. With the help of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, he quit smoking.

At the first lesson the elders had at Jerry’s house, Jerry told the missionaries he was confused because he never sent in a referral so he didn’t know how the missionaries got his address. But he was very grateful for the things he was learning.

Jerry was baptized on June 19, 2025 as a member of the Dayton Ward. Jerry’s life has improved greatly after baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. He is a changed man and his countenance has changed due to the covenants he has made.

Tender Mercies in the TKM: Curnekia

September 13, 2025 ~ barlowsintkm ~ Leave a comment

Curnekia has had great faith her whole life. Through her many trials, Curnekia has depended on God to overcome her hardships. She sought peace through different baptisms in different churches, and in the beginning of 2025, she was baptized again in a different church. However, she still felt there was something more.

Curnekia had sent in several online requests to meet with missionaries dating back to December 2024. But for various reasons, the missionaries were unable to maintain contact with her. Finally, on May 8th, she sent in a referral responding to the invitation, “Would you like to become the best version of yourself? Meet with the missionaries to find out how.” With that invitation, she began to meet with Elder Andrus and Elder O’Brien.

The missionaries invited her to church and she attended with her husband, Tim, and her 18 month old son, Timothy. Though she faced opposition in coming to church and had to leave early, she still stopped to pay her tithing. Curnekia has had great faith and she truly loves the Lord with all of her heart. The Elders ending up passing off Curnekia to the East Ridge Sisters because Curnekia and her family lived in their area.

Sister Brizzee and Sister Petersen decided while they were on an exchange to go by and visit her. Unfortunately, the door to her apartment complex was locked and there was no way for the sisters to get in. As they were walking away, Curnekia opened her window and yelled at them to come back. They had a very spiritual discussion with her about proper priesthood authority and difference between her previous baptisms and the baptism into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. When they asked her if she would be baptized again, but this time with the proper authority, her face broke into a smile and she said yes. Curnekia was more than willing to meet up with the sister missionaries almost daily until her baptism.

Curnekia was baptized on June 28th, 2025 as a member of the Chattanooga Ward. It was a very sweet, spirit filled day. Curnekia continues to be an example to all those around her. She attends church each Sunday, and pays her tithing. She loves God and her family and she is so excited for the next steps of her covenant path.

Welcome to the TKM!

September 9, 2025 ~ barlowsintkm ~ 1 Comment

On August 20th, we welcomed 19 new missionaries to the Tennessee Knoxville Mission, and Sister Hunt followed a week later making it 20. This is an amazing group of new missionaries who are going to make a big difference in the mission.

We had a great group to welcome them to Tennessee, complete with the welcome posters from the departing missionaries.

We are so grateful for our 23 trainers this transfer! These new missionaries will get off to a great start with their support.

New Missionary	Trainer	Area
Elder Bona	Elder Nelson	Gray
Elder Empey	Elder Brown	Lakeway
Elder Morris	Elder Scott	Ooltewah/Collegedale
Elder Allred	Elder Tyler	Dayton
Elder Pelton	Elder Kaumavae	Sparta
Elder Banfield	Elder Bergesen	Poplar Creek
Elder Hoskins	Elder Kerby	Smoky Mountain
Elder Jarocki	Elder Carley	West Hills SP
Elder Larsen	Elder Robbins	Sevierville SP
Elder Collette	Elder Pack	Grove Park SP
Elder Harvey	Elder Richins	Lebanon 2nd SP
Elder Tillberg	Elder Youngberg/Johns	Dalton SP
Elder Roberts	Elder Naufahu	Franklin
Elder Pedersen	Elder Martin	Spring Creek
Sister Fuhriman	Sister Bowler	Marion
Sister Dunn	Sister Hornberger	Waynesville
Sister Hunt	Sister Hansen/Brizzee	Pleasant Ridge
Sister Blake	Sister Hernandez	Spring Creek
Sister Larsen	Sister Larson	Cookeville 2nd SP
Sister Ingebrigtsen	Sister Zogg/Williams	Grove Park SP

Welcome to the TKM!

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Tender Mercies in the TKM: Nathan

September 6, 2025 ~ barlowsintkm ~ Leave a comment

The missionaries had been knocking doors in Greeneville when they met Nathan., That day, they taught him about Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, and the Restoration. Nathan said it all made sense to him logically and recognized the Holy Ghost was bearing witness of truth. He said he continued to feel the Spirit every time he read the Book of Mormon, especially the book of Alma! As he learned, it was like he was going through the first of many new awakenings he would experience in his life!. There were also many miracles that showed Nathan that God was still there, and not giving up on him.

When the missionaries first asked Nathan to be baptized, he felt ready and excited to have that experience. However, there were things that prevented him from achieving this goal right away. Nathan relied greatly on his daughter Addy’s faith. He knew that this would be the best choice not only for him, but for his daughter’s future as well. He wants her to have a good life, and so he held tightly to the teachings of the Book of Mormon, his hope for the future, and the support of the members of the Greeneville Ward.

After exercising faith unto repentance, Nathan was baptized on May 31, 2025 and confirmed the following Sunday. He said he was so surprised at how happy he felt, he nearly cried. “He had finally been able to do this good thing the right way, as he put it. “I knew I was finally doing the right thing in the right way!”

Going to the temple was another incredible step for Nathan. He felt it was yet another awakening for him, and said it was a beautiful experience. He was so humbled to have been able to enter the House of the Lord. He truly felt that his ancestors were happier now that he knows the truth, and has been “saved for real.”

Nathan loves his church family in the Greeneville Ward and knows that they are always here for him if he ever needs them. He knows that in the struggles of life, he doesn’t need to fear because his church family and God will always be there for him.

When asked how he felt about the covenant path before him, Nathan simply said, “Rock ‘n Roll”!

19th TKM Family Olympics

September 3, 2025 ~ barlowsintkm ~ Leave a comment

On August 20th, 10 wonderful missionaries finished their service in the Tennessee Knoxville Mission. We’ve had the great privilege of seeing these missionaries change as they have served for the last 18 and 24 months, and they leave th TKM as lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ.

It was a beautiful day and this round of olympics had four events: corn hole, Kub, bocce, and of course, our Welcome Poster Contest.

Each team had the opportunity to present their posters to the judges. As you’ll see, they use that to try to influence the outcome.

In the end, there can only be one gold medal winning team. For the 19th TKM Family Olympics, that was the team of Sister Gabbitas and Sister Wilson.

Before heading to the hotel, the group filmed their final Tender Mercy in the TKM

We love these missionaries! They are prepared for their next steps in life and we can’t wait to see what Heavenly Father has planned for them!

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Companion Appreciation Day!

September 2, 2025 ~ barlowsintkm ~ Leave a comment

One of the greatest blessings (and adjustments) of serving a mission is having a companion who you are with 24X7. One of the primary rules they follow is to never leave your companion.. They are ALWAYS together. These companions are brought together for a short time, but during that time they are inseparable. We’ve seen that one of the greatest multipliers in missionary work is the unity that these companions build. They have to work for it and learn many important lessons as they do. They are together in the challenges and setbacks that inevitably come up, but also witness miracles and feel the spirit together every day. These powerful shared experiences will connect them for a lifetime. Some of their very best friends in life will be companions they served with on their mission.

Twice a year in the Tennessee Knoxville Mission we celebrate “Companion Appreciation Day” and yesterday, Monday, September 1st was one of those days. Missionaries were asked to do something that day to celebrate their companion. We had so much fun expressing gratitude and doing acts of kindness for each other. We saw pancakes, ice cream, a lot of Cook Out (IYKYK), doing dishes, making beds, and matching clothing.

We shared pictures all day long across the mission and it brought such a sweet feeling of love and unity. We love and appreciate all of these wonderful missionaries. It is one of the greatest privileges of our life to serve side-by-side with them.

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