It Was A Great Week Because It Was Crazy Busy!

April 27, 2015

Dear Family & Friends,

It was a great week! It flew by because it was so crazy busy!  Our investigators are doing great. We have so many people we are working with. We have a couple that is so close to getting baptized!! I really hope I don't get transferred next week because there is so much about to take off here. Zaira is one of the people we are working with. She is awesome. She wants to learn so much and she is really taking this seriously. We gave her 'The Family: a proclamation to the world" and she loved it. She put it in a protective cover, hah. We have basically taught her everything. She wants to make sure she is making the right decision so we are really trying to help her receive an answer that it is true and she needs to be baptized. Hopefully we see a miracle this week.

We did a cool service project at Discovery Park this week. We picked up a ton of trash by the river. There was a bunch of people there. We found a rope swing down by the river and were swinging on it a little bit. We couldn't drop into the water though, haha. After we all ate some hot dogs and snacks. It was really fun.

Yesterday we had a really cool experience. We had an appointment with this family and when we got there they weren't home. Which happens a lot hah. So we looked around to see why we were there and we saw this lady a little ways down the street. We went over to talk to her and gave her a picture of Jesus Christ. She was so happy when we handed it to her. She just stared at it for a second and was just like "wow". Her name is Emma. We started talking to her and found out that she has such strong faith in Christ. She doesn't go to a church right now. She is searching for the right one. We shared Joseph Smiths story with her and related it to her life. She really liked it. She said that she has been praying for answers and said that it was no coincidence that we ran into her. We were just like YES!!! hah she asked us where the church is and said she probably can't come this Sunday but the next one. Hopefully we can go over and teach her some more too. She was a miracle find.

I have been reading in Our Search for Happiness. By M. Russel Ballard. It is so good! I have never read it before but I loved it. It describes what we believe in. Just the way he puts everything just makes sense. Great book. Anyone who wants something good to read. I recommend it.

Love you all!! Have a great week!

Elder Gammell

This Week Was Great - I Am Loving My Mission

April 20, 2015

Dear Family & Friends,

This week was great! I am loving my mission. We are working hard and trying to talk to everyone we see. One of my favorite parts of missionary work is street contacting. We talk to the funniest and craziest people when we are walking around. We talked to this homeless guy the other day that was a little borracho (drunk). He just went on talking about his life and his beliefs. We just sat there and looked at each other. Then he started laughing so hard he could barely breath so we just kind of snuck away. I was laughing so hard. Just had to leave a picture of Jesus next to him and hope he finds it hah.

We had a zone conference this week. It was really good. We talked about how we could find more things that we could do more right. We have been looking through the white handbook and trying to find more little things that we can do better. With everyone doing this we have seen the numbers of investigators and baptisms go way up in our zone! When we do the little things right miracles come our way. Oh ya, and we are getting iPads in like a month!!  So we are really excited about that!! The pamphlets we teach out of are on there and now they have like videos and stuff. It will be so cool and we can send emails off of them instead of waiting in the computer lab every Pday. They also rigged our cars up with these black boxes. They record if we are speeding or taking turns to sharp or stop too fast. Hah so everyone is driving a lot more carefully hah.

This week Zaira and Eloisa finally came to church!! That is HUGE!!!! They are reading, they have been to a baptism, and church now! Next step.....baptism :) Hopefully this week we can give them a date! We are really excited for them. We have a lot of investigators right now that are interested in learning but not in keeping commitments.

I just want to encourage everyone back at home to do missionary work. It's not just our calling. The members can do so much. That is what we are focusing on right now. Getting our members involved. We are all on the same team. Go find the people who are prepared to receive this gospel.

Love you all!!

Elder Gammell

We Had A Ton Of Great Miracles Coming Our Way This Past Week

April 13, 2015

Dear Family & Friends,

We had a ton of great miracles coming our way this past week. Our hard work is paying off. We have some really solid investigators. They are really close to getting baptized just need a little push you know ;) We are working on it though.

We are teaching an old lady named Graciela. She is 83 years old. It is funny she always cooks for us and loves when we come over. She knows it is true just is really nervous about accepting a baptismal date. The other day Elder Ward and I were on splits because he had a meeting somewhere else.  So I was with the English elders for the day. We went to visit her so my Spanish got tested because she knows NO English hah. It went great though.  I was able to understand everything she said and I talked to her the whole time. I love speaking Spanish. I just got to keep getting better and better.

I still have days where I feel like I forget like all of it hah. Then there are days where I'm like wow I'm fluent. Hah.

Yesterday I was able to give a priesthood blessing to one of the Elders here. He was running a fever of 103. We went over and gave the blessing. Then we went back and changed because we had to go do some service. And on the way they texted us and told us that his fever was back down to 99. Elder Ward and I were like wow that was fast hah. The power of the Priesthood is real.

It is cool to hear about everyone getting his or her mission calls back home. It feels like I just opened my call and now I have been out for 5 months!! My mission has blessed my life so much. I can't believe how much I have grown in such little time. It really is amazing. My testimony of this gospel has grown so much. I know that we belong to the only true and living church on the earth today. I have seen miracles out here everyday.

I finished the Book of Mormon again this week. Wow. I feel like it just keeps getting better every time. I love how every time I read it I always get something different from it and learn more then I did the last time. My testimony really is based on the Book of Mormon. I know that anyone who really seeks to find out if it is true will find out for themselves by the power of the holy ghost.

I hope everyone is doing great back at home!

Love you all!!  Elder Gammell

Hah, I am not in church clothes because it is p-day.    

Elder Gammell and Elder Ward

My First General Conference Of The Mission

April 6, 2015

Dear Family & Friends,

What a great week!! My first General Conference of the mission and it was so good! I got more out of this conference then any other one I have ever watched. Hah it is crazy how much more I learn when I don't doze off every once in a while. ;) My favorite talk was probably Jeffery R. Hollands. I don't know why but I just really loved it and felt the spirit so strong.  All the other talks were really good too! I can't wait to use what I learned from conference in my work this week.

I am getting all settled in now. We have some really cool investigators. Hopefully we can give them a baptismal date this week. That would be awesome! Hah. This week Elder Ward and I are really trying to speak Spanish at every opportunity. I think that will bless me a lot. My Spanish has gotten so much better. This will help me kind of reach that next level.

I am almost done with the Book of Mormon again. I love it. My testimony has grown so much. I know that it is true and will bless the lives of anyone who will pick it up.

Sorry its kind of short this week and I forgot to take my camera around this week so I have some older pictures this week again.

Love you all,

Elder Gammell