Monday, April 3, 2017

Elder Joaquin Costa- "You must be baptized!" OOOOOOH!!!!!

Hey Family!
We had a really awesome week with General Conference and all the other miracles that we saw!
Elder Dayley and I had a lot of good experiences in our area this week as well and I am really excited to see what will happen this week because of those experiences. Actually tomorrow we have like close to 10 appointments that we need to go to so we are trying to put together a member split so we can hit all of the appointments. So really excited for that!
So our week was really good we had a good start playing basketball and stuff with Elder Rawlings, Halverson, Olive, and Dorman which was good we were going to go on a hike, but had to cancel it.
We then had our family home evening which was good C came and is doing really well he actually now has a job which is a big thing for him. He came and was actually asking about the Priesthood and we talked to him about it. He wants us to get him a paper that has all the different "positions" in the priesthood so he can understand. Haha He is so awesome still going strong!
That was our Monday though! Tuesday was really cool I was actually up at the mission office most of the day because we had MLC so for my birthday I spent it planning with the mission president and the other leaders what our goals as a mission should be and what not so that was fun... Haha I did get to receive both packages from the Grandparents and yours as well so that was cool, we walked in and Sister Bangerter is the senior missionary that runs the desk at the mission office and mail and all that and she loves when she sends mail out in a bag when the Zone Leaders bring them back so we did and asked her for exchange I could go get the packages early and she said "Yes!" So I got the packages on time! :)
So after that we drove all the way back, had dinner with some of the members and then walked around for a few minutes and then we were done for the day!
Wednesday was pretty good we had interviews for the whole zone with President Haynie which is always fun for us because we are there the whole time guiding traffic for the missionaries. It was funny since they interview us every transfer this time it was just going to be short interviews and Sister Haynie originally wasn't going to be there, but then she did come, but she only interviewed Sisters.... I guess we are not good enough.... :(
So that was good after that we went and worked a little bit in Harbor City for an hour then went to dinner and then we went and dropped off a bed frame to the Sisters because they are in a trio and one of them didn't tell us that they were sleeping on the floor with a mattress... O.o goodness gracious, President was not happy when he heard that.. and we had no idea!\
Also that night we met with C and talked about The Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with him again and he forgot a few points of it, but he has a testimony of it which is awesome! He knows that the Church is true he was actually still looking for jobs and he would get offers to be a long distance truck driver, but he noticed he would miss a lot of church so he decided against it! WAT!!!
So that was our Wednesday and Thursday we planned really quick for Weekly Planning and then we headed to go work! We met with a family that we hadn't seen in a while, the C's we met with the mom and the daughter, the father was there, but he never gets into the lessons... unfortunately, but the Lord will change that at some day and time! We talked to them a little about the plan of salvation and would add in a few points of the gospel of Jesus Christ and invited them to be baptized and so we are going, back tomorrow to see them and see how the reading and praying went and invite them to a certain date for baptism.
That was the only large thing that happened on Thursday as well because planning took a little bit of time because we were planning for ZTM, but it was good we were glad we had the miracle of meeting with the C's again! 
Friday was ZTM and it was really cool! We gave a training on how to use the Book of Mormon more and to have a testimony that as it says in the introduction "...Those who pursue this course (ponder, and ask) and ask in faith WILL gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost." I like how it says WILL gain a testimony if they do those things. We invited the missionaries to think over their own testimony and to see if they truly know that this will happen. I know in the course of my mission I always had in my mind well if they read the Book of Mormon and pray about it then they might receive an answer, which is not the case they WILL receive an answer if they do what Moroni said to ask in faith, with a sincere heart and with real intent. If they say they didn't receive an answer it's either the Lord has not willed it yet to be, or they are lacking in something. I realized that and now I am committed to have that testimony now! It's been a great experience I have noticed more the power that comes from the Book of Mormon!
That was a good meeting we had some good miracles too from that our phone exploded with miracle texts which was awesome to see all the missionaries having these experiences.
So after that we had some miracle experiences! We were out in a very affluent area (our mission president doesn't like it when we say rich) and we were walking around and getting denied a lot, but we saw this one lady outside of her porch and she was just smoking and she was in front of the house of a less- active member that we were trying to visit so we talked to her and she said she got a Book of Mormon before that she lost it, but she got it from her neighbor so we testified of the Book of Mormon to her and this guy walks out of the house behind her, HUGE! LIKE VERY MUSCULAR DUDE!! AND I WAS LIKE WOOOO! WE ARE DEAD MEAT!!! He just stood there though and listened and so we asked if we could come back and the lady said, "Yes of course!" and the guy didn't say anything so I complimented him on his beard, because he had a pretty nice looking beard and he was like "Oh thank you so much!" and started talking about how to grow a good beard and so I got the news now and am going to grow a beard some day!! :) Just not a BYU... :( Haha So that was a cool experience we are meeting them both the ladies name is T and the guys name is A so should be cool!
After that we tried some more people, but because of the lack of the sunlight and the day was getting late, people get more and more mad if you are at their door step, so not much else happened after that experience, we knocked on this door and this HUGE DOG comes out and starts eating at the door! O.o I was like oh my goodness that poor door! Luckily it was there because that could of been my leg!
So that was a fun night and day!
Saturday was the start of General Conference and it's probably super funny to see missionaries when they are going to General Conference because it looks like the long awaited time for a movie to come out and they are going to the midnight showing! We were super excited to go and I really loved this conference because of the messages given especially the subjects to each session seemed to flow a lot! Saturday seemed like the Plan of Salvation day because most of the talks I felt like had some form of connection to the Plan of Salvation! My favorite talk though that day was probably Elder Russell M. Nelson's talk when he talked about his study in the topical guide so I decided to do that! Especially since he said he is a completely different man because of it! Also when he chastised everyone for only saying Atonement and not focusing it back to the person that performed that event which is the Lord Jesus Christ!! So I am never going to do that again! I feel like if I do now I am going to be struck by lightning or something!
Our day was booked because of conference on Saturday, but we did get some good views that day because the stake center is on top of the Palos Verdes Hill which always is the most beautiful drive if you take the coastal road! 
So that was Saturday and Sunday was just as GOOD!
My favorite talk on Sunday as you probably already know is Elder Costa's talk where he just invited any investigators watching to pray, read the Book of Mormon, go to Church even if you feel uncomfortable with the new situation, and be baptized! Haha I thought it was really AWESOME! Elder Dayley and I were like OOOOOOOOH! Inside not on the outside because we were in the chapel. I loved that talk our investigators had to leave after the morning session because their kids were getting bored so they went home and watched it on the TV which I am hoping when we go by there they heard him say that! After Conference we went and worked in our area some more and we met some pretty cool people! We met this lady named S and she is really smart, she helps those looking for jobs in software development and she has a degree in that as well, but she wanted us to come back which is awesome! I actually expressed to her that I was thinking about going into Computer Programming and she gave me a few pointers. I was like sweet two blessings in one! Not focused on the second too much though!
So our Sunday was also filled with miracles as well we got a call from one of the referrals we got and we set up a time to see her on Thursday which will be cool as well!
That was the run down of the week! 
The area is still really awesome and Elder Dayley and I are still having too much fun! It was funny when I was in my interview with President Haynie he tried to talk to me about school stuff, but luckily I reverted him back to a different topic, haha! I have enjoyed and am still enjoying so many experiences! We actually had this long talk with a guy we met just Yesterday before we went in and he had his baby daughter blessed in the Church while he was still in Utah and he actually was never baptized his father was, but went wild and crazy with worldly things and so it surprised me to see this guy, because he is so nice and everything and because of the action of a parent he is faltering in the Gospel. It made me think about how glad I am for my parents and also made me think what an impact it would make if I were to do the same as this guys father, so I have made that commitment to do everything read, pray, go to church to make sure that doesn't happen I always worry about the amounts of missionaries that return home and fall away from the Church and I am determined that it doesn't happen to me. I know that will come from serving these last few months with all my heart, might, mind, and strength and to always remember that it is the Lord's work, I am just privileged that the Lord allows men and women to experience this and I know that the Lord needs instruments in his hands. It's a humbling experience. 
I am happy to be able to share all these experiences as well! I will keep trying my best to remember them! 
I know that the Church is True! I know we have living modern day prophets and apostles that lead and guide us under the direction of the Lord Jesus Christ! Keep being awesome and I love you all!

Love,
Elder Jacklin 
Haha we have a joke too because I was talking about humility and we always have the joke of "Yes I AM THE MOST HUMBLE MISSIONARY!!" In the most prideful way possible, haha! Don't do that that's still prideful! >:( haha
Love you I have not clue why I put that in there! Sorry I am just going crazy today!

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