The Gospel Changes Lives

This week has been filled with miracles upon miracles. It was so amazing to see the Lord's hand in our daily efforts. One of the special miracles that happened this week was being able to go to Gabe's baptism. We first taught him around Christmas time. We went over to someone's house for dinner and they were telling us about how they saw a friend post on Facebook about God when he told them he was atheist. So the person we were having dinner with invited them over to hear a message about Jesus Christ and we taught him the first lesson. He was so open and willing to hear everything and he immediately began reading the Book of Mormon. We taught him for three weeks and then we referred him to the missionaries that teach people in the Young Single Adult ward. He has been going there for the last couple of months and he was finally baptized last Friday. He is so awesome. He bore a powerful testimony after he was baptized, afterwards I was talking to him and asked him how he felt. He just said "Changed." I am so grateful to have known him and to be able to have seen the gospel change his life like it has mine. What a blessing. 

Another miracle we had this week was while we were playing some "Beat ya, Teach ya" at the park. That is where we challenge some people to a game of 2 on 2 and if we win then they have to listen to a message about the gospel. So after we won we started teaching the people we played, none of them were interested at all and it was pretty clear. However just as we starting talking another kid came up and started listening to us. After we finished he was the first one to ask for a Book of Mormon and he kept telling us how excited he was to read it. He kept thanking us as well. It was such a miracle to us and it was evidence of the Lord's continuous hand in this work. I am so grateful to be apart of it. This week we went on exchanges with the Zone Leaders, and I am so grateful to be serving with them. I was able to go with one of my favorite missionaries Elder Pennington from Aubrey Texas. He is so awesome. I can't wait to hang out with him when we get home. He will be a lifelong friend. I am so grateful for the people I serve as well as those I serve with. The Lord has placed me in the path of such amazing people. I love being out here.

Love,

 

 

 

Elder Hallmark



 Here is the Picture from Gabe's Baptism

 This week while we were driving we saw some beautiful clouds so I just wanted to send a pic

 So in the Laguna Creek 1st ward there is lots and lots of farmland. One of the biggest things they farm out here are Pears. These are all pear trees. I thought it would be mostly grapes because we are in california, but I was wrong. Just lots of pear trees.