I'm doing well and eating PB&H

Dear Amazing family!

Thank you all for writing me! It was really good to hear from you. This last week felt so long! Sounds like all of you are doing well and are happy. A lot of things sound like they have changed, new kitchen table? How did I miss that? Sounds good. Alex sounds really grown up now. I want to write him soon and get that letter off. It sounds like my little family is doing great! I love you all.

Thanks mom for the information and tips. I will apply those things that Grandpa said in our area and we will see great things. Our area has picked up this last week, and I have seen so many of the tender mercies of the Lord. So that man that came to church a few weeks back we haven’t been able to get back in contact so who knows...About the temple, we had to cancel it for now because of stake conference and things like that. We are trying to replan it, but next week is in a different transfer and we can’t plan that far out really so we will see what happens. The Garcia family is doing well, they were sick and had some ride confusing in going to conference which was sad but we visited them last night and the first thing they asked us was, "What did the Prophet say?"
I took out my notes all in Spanish and we told them what the prophets taught us. It was really special because I was explaining what Elder Ecko taught about the book of Mormon. I told them that We have to have a testimony about the Book of Mormon by the power of the holy ghost not just "believe" it’s true. I testified to them and taught them about how trials will come but if our testimony is on Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon we won’t fall, even when "the devil shall send forth his shafts in the whirlwind." As I taught them about the Book of Mormon it was amazing because I could feel the spirit working through me. I could feel the spirit confirming my words to them. It was a special moment for me and I really was strong about it. They are so amazing though!

This week has been a lot better. We found 3 new investigators this week. We got 3/4 on our goal. Almost achieved it but we worked hard and the Lord blessed us. So I want to share with all of you some of the "tender mercies"I have seen from the Lord.

1). Sister Pintado dropped us this last week. It was really sad. She dropped us because she has to return back to Mexico due to health issues and she can’t do anything. As she was telling me this the thoughts were going through my mind, "DON’T LET HER GO." I asked her, "If we put aside you having to go back to Mexico, Would you want to be baptized?" She said yes, she said she knows this is all true and she said if she could stay she would be baptized. As she said that, I felt the biggest push inside again, "DON’T LET HER GO". The thing that was hard was I could tell half way through the lesson my companion gave up. He started to say things like, "Thank you for letting us visit you. It’s been nice knowing you." I wasn’t going to give up. She was worth fighting for. I told her that we would do anything to help her stay. I told her we would fast and pray hard that things will work out and that she will be able to stay. She said ok, and said "If I stay I want to be baptized." I did not want to give her up, I was willing to fight. After the lesson my companion said, "I don’t think she will go anywhere, I gave up in there." I told him never give up  if a person even has a slight sliver of desire. I told him that I would fight for her. That next day I fasted but due to health I had to stop it had some trouble. But don’t worry.

2). We found a new investigator this week sister Magallon. I have actually taught her before in the past but we found her again and she allowed us to come back. In our first lesson it went well and committed her to read. We then came back for the second lesson the next day. She hadn’t read due to a doctor’s appointment that previous night after our appointment. So we read with her and explained more about the Book of Mormon. While we were teaching her we could tell that her desire was not there anymore. As this was happening a guy walked up to us and was a friend of our investigators husband. He stood there and listened. He was really dirty and raggy. As I testified to our investigator about prophets and the Book of Mormon the guy stopped me and asked, "There are living prophets on the earth?" As he said that I could feel his true desire. It was amazing. I looked into his eyes and testified to him of living prophets. I told him that this was our message and we set an appointment with him. He said he would see because he doesn’t have a home or car and lives behind taco bell. We had the lesson in the chapel the next day and he didn’t show. We found him behind taco bell but he was so drunk he didn’t remember us. It was sad, we can’t teach him but it was a testimony to me. I really could see his desire. It remembered me of Alma 32 of when Alma is teaching people and then stops and turns himself to teach the poor in heart those that would listen.

3). District Meeting this week was powerful. It was the last district meeting in this transfer so I invited the senor couple that work in the employment center to come. I did the training on "How to resolve concerns" I wanted to make it more interesting and apply to the missionaries in my district. They have been having a lot of trouble resolving concerns about baptism with their investigators. I gave the training and taught about how to resolve concerns. We did it in English for the senior couple. It was such a powerful training. I taught them about my experience with Sister pintado. "DON’T LET HER GO" I taught them about revelation and how it is like football. The spirit will give us answers and guidance but we need to be ready to "catch" them. I told them that We have to love our investigators. I asked the sister senior couple to share her experience with raising her children and how if her child did something wrong the importance of showing an outpouring of love afterward. She told a story of her child jumping off the roof onto a tramp. He didn’t get hurt but she sat down with him and asked him why and that she cared about him. I used that to explain that our investigators don’t comprehend the importance of baptism and our message but we do. We have to take charge, we have to help them and then after show forth an increasing in love. The spirit was working through me. There were so many things that I taught that I didn’t plan for or remember. As we did the practice we did it that we would invite the person to do something but they would said no. We would have to figure out why and once we knew the exact reason we had to teach the doctrine to resolve the concern "without talking." We used pictures and a white board to teach. The purpose was to teach the importance of relying on the spirit. It was powerful. TO end I invited all of the missionaries to share their testimony. It was so powerful and the spirit was there. After one of the sister missionaries told me that she had never had such a spiritual district meeting in her whole year time she had been in the mission.

4). We were knocking doors one evening and couldn't find anyone. People were slamming doors on us and wouldn’t listen worth anything. My companion was losing faith and I told him that we can’t lose faith but keep going because the Lord will prepare someone for us. Right before we went back home I saw a lady and her little daughter walking out of her house. My companion said I don’t want to talk to her she’s leaving. I told him we need to. We crossed the street and I began to talk to her. It was a powerful contact. At the end I had the impression to promise her that she would feel the spirit as she listened to our message. We set the appointment for Saturday between the first and second session of conference. We ate at Chipotles after the first session. So good. We then brought a member that we usually don’t bring. We went to visit sister palacios. (she is about 28) As we walked to her door she opened it and told us to come in and sit down. I was like wow. As we taught her it was one of the most powerful lessons I have ever had. She began to tell us that her husband used to beat her and because of that has to take medicine and can’t see very well. She was a single mom of a little girl and a little boy. As she explained some of her trials the member told her that everyone of her trials or problems or questions these missionaries her have the questions. As the member said that the spirit enveloped the room. We testified to her about the restoration and about the book of Mormon and about Jesus Christ. I read to her Alma 7 :11-13 and told her that Christ can carry her burdens and her pains. As we ended the member invited her to a session of conference of Sunday to hear the prophet. She said yes really fast and wanted the time and address. It was such an amazing experience. That next day we planned to pick her up from her house and she would follow us to the stake center and 12:30. At 11:30 I had a weird impression to call her. My companion said no its too early. I didn’t think about it again and just went back to eating our lunch. At about 12:20 I needed to use the restroom before we left. As we were leaving the room the weirdest thing happened. I couldn’t hear anything but a phone ringing. There was a ton of people in the room but the spirit was tuning me into the ring of a phone. I was looking around to see whose it was. It ended and then one of the members said is this your phone. I said yeah! I grabbed it and someone had called us. I didn’t recognize the number so I called the number back. No one answered. As we were leaving it called again and it was her! She asked us where the church was she was lost. She had tried to get here on here own. We told her wait right there and the gas station and we would come! We got there and she was super happy and was all dressed up and had her kids! It was amazing! She followed us to conference watched it. It was amazing. All the sister members were talking to her and she felt really loved. It was good.

There were so many others but I don’t have a whole lot of time. I love you all. I am doing great. Healthy as a horse. Eating peanut butter and honey sandwiches for lunch and dinner haha. I love the mission. Thanks everyone! I loved the letter from Holly! It was like Christmas! I love getting letters from friends!!!! Talk to you all soon!

Love, Elder HIll