Cleansed from Sin because of The Savior

Good afternoon,

In the emails I just read, I heard that the weather back home has been hot the past few days. While it's starting to get hot in San Antonio, I haven't minded it too much. Hot during the day, but we aren't always outside.

Zachary, Adrian and France's were baptized this past week. We had plenty of support from the ward, and things went fairly smoothly. The fun part about preparing was setting up for it even as other people came in to sit down. We stole the piano from the Relief Society, set up more chairs, and did our best to clean up until the baptismal service began. Elder Bertelsen baptized Adrian while their uncle baptized the other two. And even as I have the tendency to get anxious during baptismal services and such, I had the chance to learn peace during the service.

Zachary, Adiran, Frances, Elder Bertlesen, Elder Black and Elder Hall

Sad news, Juan doesn't wish to meet with us anymore. I will be excited to hear when he listens to missionaries in the future.

Last week in preparation for the baptism that just happened, we exchanged with Elder Hart and Elder Bertelsen, several times. We had an exchange with them on Tuesday. Then we had another two almost immediately after. No matter how much you love those you work with during exchanges, it doesn't feel the same as when you serve with your own companion. Elder Black is great. Working with him has shown to me many of my faults, which with The Lord's help, enabled me to improve and become better.

Questions and Answers

 How has your tablet helped you in teaching this week? 

Depending on the particular time of day, it helps to lessen the amount of weight we carry when we walk to visit someone. Obvious as it might be, a quadruple combination of the scriptures is heavy! It's handy to be able to have the words of current day prophets available too.

We used our tablets to share pictures of President Monson to Zachary and his family, sister R and her kids, as well as a few others. What a tool we have to share restored truth, as well as pictures too.

Are you drinking plenty of water-at least enough?

I believe so. Water is delicious to me. It can be easy to forget to drink water, so thank you for reminding me of the need to drink water.

What words of council would you have for him(Brother W, before he leaves to serve as a missionary)?

To Bro. W, or to anyone else preparing to serve:

•prepare yourself to learn anything the Lord teaches you,

•love the word of God and anyone you meet, and

•trust in the promises of "Preach My Gospel"

 Have you gotten around to getting any new slacks? 

Yes, I bought a pair of black slacks and a pair of tan. I also bought some new tan socks and a few black ones.

Is there anything from New York you would like while Mom is there on tour with the MoTab?

A tie that is more unique to the area, and a picture of the Manhattan temple.

Oh, and a collapsing laundry basket, (this doesn't need to be unique to NY).

How has the Spirit helped you this week?

The spirit has helped me to be patient and humble in my thoughts. As I've learned, it doesn't take much to act humble on the outside, for example we can stay silent even when we feel jealous or proud about something done.

What I strove to do this week was to be happy when good things happened to other people. I was not asked to baptize any of the kids this past weekend. The Spirit helped me to realize that my worth as a missionary was not depleted nor was anyone else's increased because of who performed the ordinance of baptism. I had plenty of opportunities to exercise and grow as good things came to other people.

How are your people?

Doing quite well. The ward changes in attending size each Sunday, but the core people continue to come. Araceli, Sis. R's daughter, is preparing to be baptized and might even be baptized next weekend. We caught Jonathan and Sandra at home again, and we're hoping to see them more often in the future.

Elder Hall

Texas San Antonio Mission

Peace, Be Still

Good day to you all,

And a special salutation to fathers: Thank you for the positive example you have been to me Dad. Because of you, I know how a priesthood holder should act. In a world where God-loving fathers are rare, the examples of faithful fathers continue to shape the lives of their children and other people's children. Thank you!

Things are looking up in San Antonio, and the weather continues to change. Typically it feels very hot outside from the afternoon to the evening. Every once in a while we get rain showers that vary in intensity. When it rains, it feels intensely cold outside, but about the moment the rain takes a break, the humidity squeezes a hot sponge against you. There are plenty of puddles and lakes that form after a heavy shower, especially in the roads.

This past week we had a zone conference where our leaders walked us through teaching and learning using technology. We studied different doctrines surrounding Israel as a way to practice. With the IPads, we are able to access the scriptures in ways you can't using normal paper scriptures. We can also read talks from the prophets and "link" those to the verses we read in the Book of Mormon. As one of our leaders explained it, we are on the cusp of this digital change. Later into the meeting we taught each other in small groups how to use these devices in teaching. When using videos, the pause button is one of our best tools. 

In short, this week was successful because God helped me to become aware of what I was holding back from him. I must give him my heart. Only then can the trials change me to what I need to become.

How are Frances, Brother and Sister G, Juan and Sister C and her children doing?

We weren't able to meet with Francis, but we did talk to her towards the end of the week. Sister C seems to be doing well, and her kids are preparing for baptism. This may be short notice, but they should be baptized this coming weekend. Preparation and such for the baptism will take effort, but it will be worth the effort to help them to make the covenants of baptism.

Juan wasn't able to make it to church, which was sad, but that didn't seem to hamper his desire to be baptized. We've also met with Gloria, his next door neighbor, and she is interested in learning more. And as for Bro and Sis G, I didn't actually see them this week because of exchanges.

Questions and Answers

Are you able to get your scriptures on your tablet in Espan~ol?

Most definitely. 

This last week I went on two different exchanges. The first was the same day of our zone conference, where Elder Hilario came out with me, and Elder Black went with Elder Meidell. Elder Hilarios speaks Spanish, English and Russian, though I haven't heard his Russian. He helped me to understand accountability to our goals, and through his example how to show love to my companion.

This leads into my exchange with Elder Bertelsen.

That day was a little bit of a struggle, but like all struggles they can lead to growth. We talked through some of the worries I've had, and we came to a conclusion: Pride is like a paper shield, while we use it at times to protect us, it will not. That evening we participated in one of Las Palmas' activities, where we could put our discussion into practice. Elder Bertelsen helped me to understand more of the root of my worries, and I will work to let go of the paper shields that do not help me.

Coming back to the question, I've made the commitment to study the scriptures every day in the Spanish language. English is a crutch. Please help me be accountable to this goal.

Or is most of your work on your tablet from other sources of Church media?   

We focus on Gospel Library, and especially the words of prophets found in various digital books there. We can study the same way we did before IPads, except faster.

Have you even had the time to notice any funny or fun things? 

Sacrament meeting this Sunday started out with minimal participants. We sat somewhat close to the front. I saw a simple math equation occur: the longer the meeting went, the more people came in. By the end of the service, it was as if the initial families had grown and multiplied. 

The moral of that story, come early to church and you won't bump into anyone else who runs late. The Spirit of sacrament meeting often depends on us.

How has the Spirit helped you this week?

The Spirit has guided Elder Black and I to maintain focus on other people. When we worry about what we need to say, it makes it more difficult to sense the whispering so of the Spirit. I feel that an absence of pride and worry clears the way for Spiritual promptings. The Spirit helped me to let go of pride, and embrace the message of the restoration.

Elder Hall

Texas San Antonio Mission

You Never Stop Learning

Good afternoon Family, Friends, and others,

Missionary work is still progressing here in 10th ward.

What I'm now going to talk about is important for anyone who emails or would like to email me in the future:

Recently we received tablets. This means that I'm able to access mail during the week. From a missionaries’ perspective, we love to receive mail because it tells us that we are being thought about. I am glad for the support that I've receive so far in my mission. That being said, if I receive mail from you during the week, I can read it but I won't respond to it unless it is an emergency that I can help with, or responding would magnify my purpose as a missionary. Please do not email me expecting a response during the week. I want to focus on my missionary calling, this is a deep desire of mine. Don't hesitate to email me if you would like, but please do not be offended when I haven't responded. I will wait until P-day to respond.

For the sake of time, I'll start with questions:

How are you and Elder Black doing with the map and double territory to serve? 

We're doing well. Because we have plenty of ground to cover, we focus on meeting with the people who are willing and available to meet. Elder Black commented to me this week that in his experience, San Antonio the city itself has more work to do than his other areas. I believe he means that by more work, he means there are many ways to strengthen and lift members of the ward and the people of the area. Because plenty of people will hear us, we need to focus on finding those who will listen to us.

We're also working with old paper maps in an area that changes rapidly. We often laugh when we look for a street name we are given that isn't marked or simply doesn't exist anymore. Using maps online is handy, because it's more updated, but we can't reference those as often. It's enjoyable to learn how to travel in a city.

What is the biggest change you have experienced this week (mind, heart, and territory- whatever)? 

I'm learning to relax. Relaxing isn't really something you do when you have nothing else to do. Instead, it's a way of cleaning yourself mentally of things that simply don't matter. Elder Black is a great example of focusing on the most important things. His personality is more tranquil and calm. He keeps his eyes Jesus Christ, and does what he can to move in that direction without worrying how fast he's going.

What part of Salt Lake is Elder Black from?  

He says "West Mill Creek." Really, he lives much closer to the city than most people do, I suppose.

How are sister R, Omar and Brother H and his grandchildren? 

We're visiting Sister R and her family as well as Brother H and his family on a regular basis -- at least once a week. We haven't been able to catch Omar for quite a while. Because we can only find him by visiting him at home, it often takes a while to catch up with him. I see your prayers every day, especially with these families.

What are your thoughts on your coming 11th of June anniversary?

I feel quite blessed to serve where I am sent. It doesn't really matter if I move a little or a lot (to different areas), I can and do feel happy as I lose myself in the scriptures, and in the service of the families and people who live here. Time goes quite quickly in my perspective.

Briefly, this week we received little portable devices that will help us to work. I'm still getting used to using mine, and it might take a while to get adjusted to using it to study, but I'm not concerned about becoming a master all at once.

Last night on our way home we passed by a lady that was sitting on her front porch. Elder Black and I were ready to keep going, but we felt that we should go by. When we talked to her, we'll call her Mary for the sake of privacy, she began to tell us about her previous experience with missionaries who had visited her. I didn't know her, but I could tell her faith was strong. When we meet people like Mary, I feel renewed in my desire to find those waiting for the Restoration's light to touch them.

May your faith in Christ lead you to learn more about Him,

--

-Elder Hall

Texas San Antonio Mission

I'll Be Who You Want Me to Be

Dear Family, friends, and everyone else,

My thoughts reach out to you all. In a few days I will have served as a missionary for a whole year. This year has been one of the fastest slowest years of my life, and I am excited for another year.

Tony and Stanyelle and two of their kids were baptized the Saturday before last. I wasn't there for the event, but I am extremely glad for them. Thank you for your prayers in their behalf!

So this last Tuesday morning I said goodbye to Elder Drennan and I left with Elder Hart and Elder Bertelsen. As far as I know, he is serving somewhere close to the boarder. He was both excited to go there, and sad to leave the people here. It felt almost like an irregular exchange where we didn't leave the area whatsoever. I enjoyed working with them, and I could definitely tell that the strength I had was coming from a Loving Heavenly Father.

Thursday we had transfer meeting. Many missionaries have gone home this past transfer, and so the mission shrunk rapidly. The transfer meeting was good.  We only had a few missionaries come.

So now Elder Black and I are covering plenty of ground. I bought a cheap road map on Tuesday, and I've been using it to help navigate us from place to place. If any of you have used a GPS, don't take it for granted. I both love learning the roads of our area, and dislike that I get lost. But that's not a problem, since making a wrong turn doesn't ruin anything. So really, driving is usually only as stressful as you make it.

For now we're working on keeping the ward strong and helping people to progress towards baptism: that means teaching them about it, and helping them to understand why it is important for them. It's easy to get distracted from this, but as we remember why we are serving, our effort will go in the right direction. Don't let me forget this important point!

I love this work so very much. It changes us into who we need to be, not who we think we need to be. And as such, I'm working to stress less as we go from place to place, and to trust in the Lord with all my heart (Proverbs 3: 5-6).

Questions and Answers

We saw that there has been lots of flooding in parts of Texas- has it reached you and your ward people?    

Here and there, it has. Some of the families Elder Drennan and I were teaching are affected by the rain more than others. The same thing goes for the new families I've had the chance to meet with Elder Black.

And how has it been this past week with the transfers and combining the 10th ward work?

I little bit stressful. The ward was a tad bit disheartened at having less missionaries, but I know that things will go positively this coming transfer. A bunch of the work that we've been doing has involved being representatives of our perspective sides of the ward. I want to learn the whole north side of the ward right now, but seeing as that isn't too realistic, I'll be patient and rely wholly on the Lord. It is His work after all.

How is your new companion, Elder Black?

He's a great missionary. He expresses himself subtly in the work we do from day to day. While he likely has concerns and things to deal with, he doesn't complain to me or anyone else. It'll take some time to get used to the way he works, but I know that he can teach me many things.

What is he like? 

He's from Salt Lake City, Utah. He's quiet. He is quite musical, and he has played the piano since he was about 6.

How are your people doing? 

Sister R and her kids are doing well. We missed Omar this past week but he is still on our mind. We met with Bro. H's grand kids, and I felt good about the visit.

Are the dogs enjoying the hot weather? 

They still enjoy barking, that's for sure. The dogs on the north side of the ward seem to act differently than the ones on the south side. Elder Black demonstrates every time that we see dogs approach us that he knows how to respectfully ignore them. They then proceed to ignore us.

How has the Spirit blessed you this week?

A few days ago Elder Drennan gave me a priesthood blessing to help me cope with the change and to remember all of the things that I've learned. The blessing, eloquently and peacefully, has helped me to react better to things that usually trouble me. Jumping to another experience, one of our leaders shared with us that trials can stop being trials when we change to better overcome them. For example, sweeping the floor will seem difficult if do it with only your pinky finger, but it becomes less of a burden when we learn to use our hands and our bodies to sweep instead.

How about fun/funny experiences in this transition week?

When you serve as a missionary, you get used to having a companion. When you lose said companion, you feel a little empty. Since served with Elder Drennan for longer than I've served with any other missionary, it was hard to part from him.

Have you started using your tablets yet?

Not yet. Coming up this week, we should be getting them. I'll let you know about it next week.

No pictures this week, unfortunately. I'm hoping to get pictures from other missionaries, though.

--

-Elder Hall

Texas San Antonio Mission