Week 81 Blitzing in Bellingham

Hello family. Yes, everything is okay with me. I got emergency transferred because of Elder Milner. He sprained his ankle and couldn’t drive. Now he is doing a little better, but I still am the one driving us around everywhere for now. This week went pretty well. Our trio went down to two after yesterday. It’s now just Elder Milner and me. A little sad but I enjoy it just being us. I kind of got sick of being in a 3 pack for 3 transfers. Well anyway, let’s get to the week, shall we:

Elder Milner, Elder V, and Elder Hammond

Monday

We had a great p-day. We got to email in the morning, however, I did not get to email because some of the computers were not working and so since all the rest were taken up, I had to email on Tuesday. After, we then went to Coconut Kenny's, a restaurant in Bellingham. We had a good time there. It was Elder V's last time. Then we drove up to Winco and went shopping. From there we went and washed the car, which has always been one of my favorite things about B-ham is the free car wash. After making our red car look nice and shiny, we then went back to the church and played games. The vertical coordinators came up with the Eastmont elders and played basketball with some of the other elders. The rest of the missionaries played a game called Signs and another game, but I don't know what the name of it was. We had a good time. Later that night, we went and had dinner. Then for the rest of the night we went and saw some people.

Tuesday

We started the day with helping at the food bank. With this one in Bellingham, we usually just sort food, and that's what we did here. After, we then went to the church and did our mormon.org time. I got to email at that time. After, we then had comp study and then went and saw some people. Later that night, we had a lesson with our 8-year-old that we were teaching named Laihloni. We taught her about families and temples. After her lesson, we then went and had a lesson with a less active named Irres. She also fed us dinner. We just taught her the restoration. After, we then drove to the church and had our meeting with Bishop. That ended the night.

Wednesday

We had district meeting. It was pretty nice. We had President come up and be a part of our district meeting, only because I got ET'd and needed an interview since he did Arlington's on Tuesday, and I wasn't there anymore. However, I didn't get to hear Elder Brown’s instruction. But I got to hear Shaylas. She's a member from the Laurel Ward who is really close with the district. After district meeting, we went to the family history center, and Elder V did My Plan. From there, we did comp study. Oh, and we had lunch after district meeting too. After comp study, we went out and saw some people. We had a lesson with Jason French, an investigator they have been teaching. We just talked about the Book of Mormon and understanding it. We also taught tons of people that day and picked up 5 new instigators too. Later that night, we had dinner, and then we went and saw some more people. We also had a lesson with Fabian, an investigator, and put him on date for April 7th. That's how we ended the day.

Thursday

We started with comp study. Then we went and saw some people in the top part of our area. Nothing big happened so we went to the Laurel Ward for a district blitz in the zone leaders’ area. We had lunch at a taco truck and then went out to go tract in their area. We tracted a couple of apartments and got a couple potentials for them, but no investigators. After helping them out, we then drove back to our area and started to see more people in our area. Later that night we had a lesson with Laihloni. We taught her about learning and serving in the church. After her lesson, we had dinner. Then we drove out to Sudden Valley and saw some people. We were going to have a lesson out there, but it got canceled. So, we drove back home and ended the night.

Friday

We started the day with blitzing in Bellingham Bay’s area. We had a good time! Elder Milner and Elder V went and tracted somewhere in their area, while Elder Brown and I went somewhere else in their area and tracted. Elder Brown’s comp went with one of the Spanish Elders and went to some appointments. Can I just say, it snowed a lot this week! We got snow almost every day this week. It was so weird. Elder Brown and I had a good time though. We went tracting in one of the streets by the college, and I recognized some of the streets we went down because it was my old area. After the blitz and helping to find people, we then went home as soon as we could because the snow was coming down really hard, and we can’t drive in snow. So, we came home and had lunch, then we went into comp study and did weekly planning while Elder V packed his suit cases. After planning the whole day, we then went out and saw some people before we had dinner. Later that night, we came back home and did the rest of weekly planning.

Elder Brown and Elder Hammond

Elder V packing

Saturday

We started by helping Justin, a person in the ward move to his new place. He used to be a member but got excommunicated, but he's making his way back! Anyway, we helped him move. Then we had to leave to go to a lesson with a recent convert named Hoiet. She's from Vietnam. We taught her the word of wisdom, the law of chasity, and the law of tithing. After, we went to our next lesson with Crise, our investigator. We taught him about the plan of salvation. From that we then drove all the way to Linden to watch a baptism happen for the YSA Ward. I got to see a few members from my time serving there. It was really cool! After, we then drove back home. Elder Milner got changed, and then we went to Laihloni's baptism. It turned out great. She liked it, and Elder Milner baptized her. Later that night we had dinner with Brother Shank at a restaurant named Anthony's. We had some good food there. After, we then went to a lesson with Avorie. She's a 9-year-old we have on date for baptism coming soon. We just read scriptures with her. After, we then went to the ward mission leader’s home and showed him the progress record. That ended the night.

Laihloni's baptism  

Sunday

Sunday was a sad day... Elder V is dead... (not for real though) He is just on a plane ride home. We started the day with church. After, we came home, had lunch, and then went to a lesson with a less active member named Holland. We read scriptures with him. After, we took Elder V to the church, and he got picked up by the AP's. After that sad moment, Elder Milner and I went home and did personal study. Then we went to dinner all the way down in Sudden Valley. Just so you know, that's the end of our area. After dinner, we drove all the way up to the Laurel Ward and helped them find 2 new investigators with the YSA sisters. We went and tracted some apartments in their area and helped them find 2 new investigators. It was great. After, we then drove back home and did our accounting with Elder Brown. 

Elder V's "Funeral"

Well, this week has been really good number wise. We picked up 7 new investigators this week. It was pretty great.

Before I finish, I want to share a spiritual thought. From the Infinite Atonement:

"One Sunday morning, our teenage son stood with two other priests to administer the sacrament, as they had done on many prior occasions. They pulled back the white cloth, but to their dismay, there was no bread. One of them slipped out to the preparation room in hopes some could be found. There was none. Finally, our troubled son made his way to the bishop and shared the concern with him. A wise bishop then stood, explained the situation to the congregation, and asked, "How would it be if the sacrament table were empty today because there was no atonement?" I have thought of that often - what would it be like if there were no bread because there had been no crucifixion, no water because there had been no shedding of blood? If there had been no Atonement, what would the consequences be to us..." 

Let’s ask ourselves where would we stand without the Atonement, brothers and sisters. Brother Tad L Callister goes on to say that we would become a follower of Satan, that we would not be able to get back to our Heavenly Father because that's what it really means. The Atonement if you look at it, it really looks like At-one-ment, as the book describes and as many have studied about it. The Atonement means that we are reuniting ourselves with God once again. Because Christ took the world’s pains and sins upon Him, we are able to repent and go back to be with our Heavenly Father.

Hugh Nibley says it best: "The word really does mean when we write it out, at-one-ment, denoting both a state of being 'at one' with another and the process by which that end is achieved." 

Sometimes we have to try to understand why God did these things and when we do, it gives us great joy and gratitude to our Savior and our Heavenly Father. I know that this is true, and I hope we can truly ask ourselves this same question. If you do, you may find something different then what Brother Callister says. I leave these things with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Elder Hammond

Week 80 ET to Lake Wattcom Ward in Bellingham

Um,so I got ET'd, (emergency transferred...) Yeah, that was fun. It was so unexpected, hence the reason why it's called an ET. That all happened on Saturday. Anyway, let me explain this week.

Monday

We had p-day. We started with going and picking up Sholtes. Then we all went to Winco and went shopping for the week. After, we then went to the library and emailed for four hours. That was long. From there we went to the post office, got some boxes, which I'm sending one home this week. Then we drove to the stake center and played some games with Sholtes. Elder Call got a game called Age of War. It’s a pretty fun game. Later that night, we went on an exchange with Sholtes. Elder Allsop went to Sholtes with Elder Jolly, and Elder Call came with us to Lakewood. So, we went to dinner. After we had a lesson with the Lawson's. We taught them about the Holy Ghost and the Godhead. After, we went and saw some more people. Then we ended the night with coming home.

Tuesday

We started the day with a lesson with an investigator named J.R. We talked about the Book of Mormon with him. He was a former from the past, but he said he didn't remember much from the lessons. After the lesson, we went to BW's with the zone leaders. We had a fun time there. Then we went home and had comp study. After, we went and saw some people in Carols Creek and the Lodge. Later that night, we had dinner. Then we went to our lesson with Jordan and talked about the priesthood with him. Then we went down to Sholtes and exchanged back.

Wednesday

We had district meeting. Elder Oaks instructed on Faith, Hope, and Charity. After, we went home. We had lunch and did comp study. We went and saw some people after, and later we had a lesson with Nikki. We just read scriptures with her like normal. After, we had dinner. Sister Schwagert was our dinner for that night, and she made sure we had a good Valentine’s dinner. After, we went and saw some people before our meeting with Bishop.

Thursday...

So, um, I don't know what happened Thursday. We had nothing planned, and Elder Oaks was really depressed, so we stayed in all day, except in the morning for a move we helped someone with. It took us 4 hours. After, we then stayed in the apartment for the rest of the day... I don't why! Elder Oaks never told us why he was down, plus he's the senior comp so he would not get up to go do the work. He slept for most of the day. Later that night we did get up to go have dinner with Brother Noe at Junk Yard Grill, my last time getting to go there. That really ended our night, besides going back home and chilling...

Friday

We had the food bank. After, we went home, had lunch, and sat in the apartment again. We thought that the work was going to happen, but Elder Oaks just sat there and did nothing, so we gave up on him and went to go study. Later that night, we had a lesson with Harlie and Jordan. Elder Oaks planned it out! If he had enough energy to do that, why didn't we go work for the day? Ugh, it made me so mad. We taught about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. After we went home and ended the night.

Saturday

I got ET'd to the Lake Wattcom Ward in B-Ham (Bellingham)!!!! I am so glad I'm back in my birth area. The assistants called me up that morning and told me to pack my bags because they were going to pick me up in like an hour to go to B-Ham. Elder Milner sprained his ankle, so I went to a baptism in Mount Vernon with the assistants. After, we switched me with the B-ham zone leaders, and they drove me to my new area with Elder Milner and Elder Valencic. I am now their designated driver because neither of them can drive. The whole day we went and saw people and had lessons during the day. I really can’t remember who they were with, but this area is doing pretty well.

Sunday

It snowed up here. We had ward council and church in the morning as well. The wind picked up and pushed a lot of trees down up here. We went and saw a lot of people. I'll talk more about the people next week, because I don't know the area yet.

Well, that's this week for you, I just want to end with a spiritual thought. I haven't done one in a long time, but I've been reading The Infinite Atonement, and I want to share some words from it. 

Talking about the Atonement, Tad R. Calaster said:

"A person studying the Atonement is somewhat like the man who retreats to his mountain cabin to enjoy the scenery. If he looks out the window to the east, he will see the snow-capped peaks of the Rockies; but if he fails to examine the view on the west, he will miss the crimson-streaked sunset on the horizon; if he neglects the scene to the north, he will never see the shimmering emerald lake; and if he bypasses the window on the south he will fail to witness the wild flowers in all their brilliant glory, dancing in the gentle mountain breeze. Beauty besets him in every direction. So it is with the Atonement. Regardless of our vantage point it is glorious to behold. Every principle underlying it, every consequence flowing from it, rewards our intellect, animates our emotions, and enlivens out spirit. It is a doctrine for all seasons..."

Such a doctrine must be studied with that much depth and focus, otherwise we cannot fully understand why God, our Father in Heaven gave it to us through his son Jesus Christ. Brothers and Sisters, I ask, have you ever studied the Atonement with so much depth? If not, I challenge you to do so. I know it will help you, and as I've been doing it, it’s helped me to really see how much my Savior loved me, to do this marvelous work for me. I know He lives, and I leave this witness with you all in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Elder Hammond

Week 79 Happy 18 Months!

Hello everyone. This week was a rewarding week to begin with, but then ended with sadness. It’s crazy how even when you feel you are on cloud 9 how the mistake of one person can change the outcome of your week on your mission. Let me walk through the week with you.

Monday

We had a pretty fun p-day. We had some members in the Sholtes Ward let us come and play on their pinball machines. That was a lot of fun. We also did some shopping and some emailing in the morning before we went over. After playing to our heart's content, we then exchanged with Sholtes, and I went with Elder Call to his area. We went and had dinner at a member’s home and then went and saw two members before the night was over, however one was not home and the other was not wanting to talk at the moment. After that, we went home and ended the night.

Tuesday

Still in sholtes…we started the day with going and seeing some people. They have a hard time finding new people to teach, so we went and saw a lot of people that had been taught in the past. After seeing quite a few people, we then went back to their apartment and had lunch and comp. study. Then we went and saw a couple more people before we went and helped at the food bank that night. After the food bank, we had dinner at Subway and got some good sandwiches. After, we went to the church for a meeting we were supposed to have, however no one showed up. So, we went back to the apartment. I packed up our things, and the other elders came back so we could exchange back. That ended the night.

Wednesday

We had district meeting, and Elder Oaks instructed on virtue and diligence. It was a great meeting really. After, we had lunch together as a district. Then we went back home and did some planning and had comp study. Then we went to our lesson with John. We had a church tour with him and then taught the gospel of Jesus Christ to him. He has talked with his boss, and they are looking for someone to cover for him on Sundays so that he can come to church. We told him to pray for it, and we will pray as well that they find someone soon. After, we then went to Nikki Decker's home and read some scriptures with her. From there, we went to dinner with Sister Schwagert. After, we went and saw some people close by her before the night was over. We ended the night with having a meeting with Bishop.

Thursday

We started by seeing some people in the city, however, every person we saw was not home, and we were walking around. So, after trying a couple of homes, we then went home and had lunch. We did comp study as well. Then we went and drove out to see some more people. We went and saw a new family that just had moved into the ward. Their name is the Scott family. They are a young family and have one kid, but they have one kid coming along the way. We talked with them and turns out the wife was investigating the church in the Federal Way Mission. So, we talked about the 10 commandments with her and now we are teaching her! She just needs a couple more lessons. Her name is Kayla Scott. After meeting with them, we ran to the Millers and looked over Sister Miller’s family history work. We talked about with how it’s already been done. Now she just needs to put it all in the computer. From there, we went to dinner, and then we went and saw some more people for the rest of the night.

Friday

We went and helped at the food bank. After, we then went to MOD and had lunch as a district. Really good pizza joint, I highly suggest it. They are in Utah. After, we went back home and had personal study. Then we planned out the night before we went to go do service for Jack Jenkins. He wanted us to go and help clean out a greenhouse he owned, so we went and helped him with that. After, he took us to dinner, and then we went back home, got changed and had our lesson with Jordan. Harlie was with her dad. We talked to him about the priesthood. After that lesson, we went and saw a couple of people before we called it a night.

Saturday

We started the day with weekly planning. Then we had lunch at Wendys, on the way to Sholteses for a blitz. During the blitz, we went and saw people with them and tracted some streets. The sisters did the same thing in a different part of their area. We weren't able to help them find anyone to teach, however, the sisters found a couple good things for them. After, we then went back home and had comp study. Then we went and had dinner with the Lawson at Costco. I saw the Glens. They are from the Stilly Ward. It made me really happy. After that, we went and saw a good amount of people before we ended the night.

Sunday

We started with having comp. study. Then we went to the church to have our meeting with Brother Lytle and to print of progress records for the ward council. Then we had ward council. After, we went through the church service, and that's when the whole world came tumbling down. Sister Mathis pulled us aside and told us that Orion was smoking again, and that he was not fully telling us the truth. He still swears; he's still taking drugs; and he's still doing things he shouldn't. We told her we would talk to him and try to help him. After church, we had a meeting with the ward mission group. Then we went home, had dinner, and then went to go see some people with George Topance. We went to go see Orion, and when we met with him, he was not happy to see us. I wish we handled the situation better, and I feel that I was the whole reason why it didn't go like it should have. We wanted him to tell us what was going on, but he wouldn't tell us, and I told him, “That's okay, you don’t have to tell us, but we do want to help...” Well, we can't help if he doesn't tell us, so... that wasn’t really smart of me. I know, however, when we talked, he felt the spirit, so I hope he took what we said to heart. I really love that kid! I love all my investigators! I just really would hate to see another run away from the church because they don't believe in a certain principle or commandment of the gospel. The spirit has told me not to give up on him, so I won’t. After, we then went and saw some more people before we came back for accounting.

Well, as you all know I have now been out for 18 months. It’s very exciting, however, with how this week went, I just wish I could have been more excited for that. Thank you for everyone's help and support. Have a good week, and I'll see you soon!

Elder Hammond  

Week 78 Saturday Makes 18 Months!!!

Hello everyone! This week has been a crazy week, and I'm really glad it’s p-day because I need some time to relax. No big news to tell you for this week. So, I'll get right to it.

Monday:

We started by going to the SAC and working out. Then we went down to Sholtes’ apartment to hang out with them. We took pictures by the resort. Just so you know Washington has casinos. Las Vegas is not the only place with them. Something I learned when I came here, to be honest. After checking out the resort, we then went to the outlets and did some shopping in the mall. We had a great time and got some cool things. I got some new socks and some more things for working out. After, we then went to Cabellas and walked around. The other elders hadn't been to this one before so we went for them to see what it was like. Then we drove to the Walmart close by the stores and did our shopping for food. From there we went back to the church to email and ended our p-day. After, we then had Elder Wolfe exchange with us. He is one of the zone leaders in the Stillaguamish Ward. It’s so weird to think my old area is now a zone leader area. That night we went to dinner, and then the rest of the night we went and saw some people. We also had a lesson with the Lawson family. We talked about the Godhead. Max, their kid, was confused on why Jesus Christ was a part of the picture. Well, that didn't take long to explain, judging by the fact that everything testifies of Christ. I mean we wouldn't be here if that wasn't the case. 

At the Resort

Tuesday:

We still had Elder Wolfe with us, so we did missionary work... like we always do.

We went and saw some people far in our area, only because we had miles to do it, and it was the end of the month so we needed to use up some miles. No one that we went to see were home. We did see Brother Curtis, a less active. Elder Wolfe wanted to go see him. I forgot to say Elder Wolfe served in this ward so he knows a lot of people. After seeing Brother Curtis, we then went home, but got Jamba Juice on the way. PS, I love Jamba Juice, just so you all know. I had a peanut butter, banana, protein shake. It was so good. After lunch we then had comp study. Then we went and saw some more people. We went and saw one of our old investigators named Jan. We had been teaching her before, I guess, but since I've been here, I have never taught her a lesson. But Elder Wolfe was teaching her when he was here, so we went and saw her. The last time I saw her, she did not want to see us at all, and she got really mad at us. This time we went over, and she was a lot happier to see us. We talked with her for a good amount of time, and we asked if she would like us to start coming over again. She said she would love that. So, sometime soon we will go over again and start teaching her. She said she had been on a lot of medication, and I think at the time we went over she had lots of medication in her system. So, she was in a lot of pain, and that's why she got mad at us. That was back when Elder Milner was here. Later that day, we had a lesson with John, one of our investigators. We taught him the plan of salvation and put him on date for the 13th of March to be baptized. He accepted and said he would try to make an effort to be ready for that day. After him, we then had a lesson with Hank, Brother Mathis's father. We taught him the restoration and put him on date for the 10th of March. It’s kinda funny. Sister Mathis told us today that he wants his date to be moved closer. Fun stuff. After, we went to dinner. Then we went to see a lot of people before we exchanged back and had our meeting with Bishop.

Wednesday:

We had district meeting in the morning. Elder Oaks instructed on faith, and diligence and how we can apply both to using members to teach. We also talked about God’s will, and why we follow it. After, we had lunch at Dairy Queen. Then we drove to Jack Jeckin's home and made pizzas from his wood burning stove. It was pretty great! He brought a non-member friend, but he wasn't interested, sadly. But oh well, we tried. Later we went to the church to meet president wilding and Orion there. President came to interview Orion for his baptism. After them meeting for an hour, President told us he would have to talk to Salt Lake before Orion could be baptized. After, we then went to a lesson with Harlie and Jordan. We talked about the Book of Mormon. That was the last thing we did that night.

Thursday:

So Elder Babcock got sick, so Elder Oaks had to go to MLC with Elder Wolfe while sick Elder Babcock stayed with us for the day. So, we stayed home with him until the blitz with Sholtes. Once we got down to their area, Elder Babcock and I stayed at their apartment while the other elders went and saw people in their area. Later, we then went back to our house with Sholtes, got a little bit of lunch, and then took Elder Jolly with us to our lesson with Ariel. Elder Call stayed with Elder Babcock. We talked about the plan of salvation with her. After the lesson, we went back to the house and chilled. Sholtes got a ride home, and we waited for the others to get back. Once they got back, we went to BW's with the other elders and all the northwest zone leaders, from Bellingham to Arlington. It was great. After, we then had a lesson with Harlie and Jordan. We read scriptures with them. That ended our night.

Friday:

We started with serving at the food bank. After, we then went home, had some lunch, and then planned out the rest of the day. From our plans, we went and knocked out every person we had down in the Villas, the apartment complex next to our house. After, we came home and did our personal study before we went and saw the Sudweeks and Tasha, both investigators we haven’t seen in a long time.  The Sudweeks invited us to come over on Sunday, which would have been great if Sunday wasn't the Superbowl. Reason why I say that is because once Chelsie, the mom, realized that was Sunday, she texted us Sunday morning saying that we actually come over, and they weren't coming to church because of it. Tasha had to run to pick up her son who was in day care. So, we didn't get to meet with her, sadly. So, we just went straight to dinner after that. Then we drove home and did weekly planning for the rest of the night.

Saturday:

We went and saw some people close by in the morning. Then we had lunch, did comp study, and then we went and knocked out all the names we had in the Lodge. Then we drove out to see one of our potential investigators named Kelly. Kelly is a cool guy. He works at a retreading tire company. We talked about the restoration, and we asked if he was interested in learning. He said he was kind of interested, but wanted to stick with what he believed in. He also said he'd think about it. We left him with a Book of Mormon as well. From there, we went and had dinner.  Then we had a lesson with Patrick. We read 3 Nephi 13 with him and helped him understand. After, we then went home and ended the night.

Sunday:

We went to the high priest presidency meeting in the morning to go over with them the ward mission process. After, we then went and had a lesson with the Hayes. We taught them the restoration. They enjoyed it. From there, we then went to the church to have ward council. After, we went through the services of church. During 2nd hour, we met with Orion. This kid, I am telling you, has made a great change in his life. I have never seen one of my investigators make so much change in their lives to be a part of our Heavenly Father’s church. We told him to stop smoking, and he has been doing just that. In fact, every time he feels the temptation to smoke, he goes and works out. He also had some other things that he was struggling with, and he has totally forsaken those behaviors. He now is applying the atonement to his life so much that I can see a change in his countenance. It’s truly amazing. And now he is one of my great friends I have on my mission. After church, we then went home and had comp study. Then we went and had our lesson with Shollon. We talked about learning and serving in the church. After, we then picked up our priest that was coming out with us for the night. His name is CJ. we took him to dinner with us and then went and saw some people with him before we went home to account for the rest of the night.

Well, that's the week for you all. Sorry, no baptisms, and no pics this week either. I will have some for next week for sure. Just so you all know, on Saturday, I will have been out for 18 months!! I never thought I would make it this far. I'm so excited. Love you all, and I'll see you soon.

Elder Hammond

Week 77 Gabriella's Baptism

Hello everyone! Another good week has passed, and I have so much news to tell you! This week our investigator, Gabriella, got baptized!!! I could get use to baptizing people every week! It’s pretty nice. In fact, why doesn't the whole world just join the church now? It would make my job easier. 

Gabriella's Baptism

Anyway, to add to that news, we found out that the mission is finally getting technology. By April, every missionary in this mission will have a smart phone in their hand. Mom and Dad, you should have already received an email about this. It is said that all the missions in the USA will have smart phones by July. So, this time we are actually getting technology. Unlike the last time they told us that, which was 3 years ago. So, that will be interesting. We get to choose 4 options, I think, from Samsung. So, when the time comes, that will be fun to learn how it is all going to work out. More pressing news, and this is some sad news for Kyler and the Fuller family. I'm sure he remembers the mission president. Effective July 1^st, the Federal Way mission is getting dissolved, and the Tacoma and Seattle missions, will take over parts of that mission. Happy news for Justin, the Washington Vancouver Mission will be gaining some new stakes from the Seattle mission. To go with that, the Washington Everett mission is expanding as well. We are receiving 3 stakes from the Seattle mission. The Shoreline Stake, the Bothelle Stake, and the North Seattle Stake. Very exciting and sad news for others that served in that mission. I'm sorry, but soon it will not exist. So ya, that is the big news from this week. If anyone has questions, please ask me, and I will try to answer them the best I can. Here is the week's outline:

Monday

We had a normal p-day. We emailed, and then we went shopping. After, we went to the church and played basketball for the rest of the p-day. Pretty normal stuff. We had the Sholtes elders with us for the whole day. Later that night, we went home, got changed, and then had dinner. After, we then went and saw some people over by Jovan. We did not have any success. So, we came home and did some area book work. 

Tuesday

We started the day with a lesson with Ann. With her, we talked about learning and serving in the church. She understood it pretty well. After her lesson, we went to go see Jovan, but he wasn't home. We then stopped by someone close by, but Joe wasn't home either, so we went home and had lunch. From there, we went and saw some formers in Carols Creek before our lesson with Ariel. Ariel is a less active who was baptized in Georgia, but that was back when she was 8. Once her parents moved here, like a long time ago, her family went less active. We had met her brother before thinking the family wasn't in the church already and started to teach him. Through meeting with him, we met Ariel too. Later, her brother, Atreal, dropped us. So, we taught Ariel about the Book of Mormon. She really liked it and said she would read it. After, we saw some more formers in that area. Then we went and helped Sandra Brant, a member in the ward, move some boxes. Then we went back to Carols Creek and saw some more people there. Then we went to dinner. After, we went and tried to see the Sudweeks and Patrick, but they all were not home, or they didn't want to open the door... so we then went home and ended the night.

Wednesday

We had district meeting. Elder Oaks talked about the ward mission process again and how we can work with members to teach new investigators. After, we then ran home and had lunch. Then we planned the day. Then we had comp. study. After, we went to have a lesson with our investigator, John, but we had to go on splits with that lesson because Orion and Gabriella's lesson was at the same time. I stayed with Brother Topance and had the lesson with John. We taught him about the Book of Mormon. Pretty good lesson. After, I was able to go to a little bit of the other lesson and teach Orion separately. Later that night, we had dinner. After, we then saw a couple of people before we had our meeting with Bishop. The meeting was the last thing for that night.

Thursday

We had zone conference this week. They told us half of the stuff I just gave, the other things they gave to us in a conference call to the whole mission on Friday. They also talked about the ward mission process and how to effectively work with members. After, we went from that to our lesson with the Millers. We showed them the Mormon message, the Temple is a Beacon. That lesson took us straight to comp study. After we then went to dinner, which then took us to our lesson with Jordan and Hallie, Chelsie Duff's kids. We picked up Hallie as a new investigator, and she is really excited to get baptized. She asked when she could, and we told her she could get baptized on the 24th of February. She was happy for that. That lesson was the last big thing for the night.

Friday

We went to the food bank and helped there. After, we then ran home and had lunch. Then we went and had a meeting with Melissa. We started setting up family search for her. After, we then went to our lesson with Orion and Gabriella. We talked about learning and serving in the church. Then we went and had dinner. After, we went to go see Patrick, but he wasn't home. So, we went and saw some people around him before the night ended.

Saturday

We started with weekly planning, that took up most of the morning and into lunch. Then we had to move where the font was because no one was watching it while it was getting filled. Sadly, that's a rule that Brother Lytle doesn't understand. Before the baptism we had a meeting with Brother Lytle. Then the baptism happened, and I spoke at it. Everything went great! After that we drove to have dinner with Sister Schwartz. We had a good time there. Then we went and saw people before the night was over.

Sunday

We started with stake conference, and Salt Lake shot a broadcast to us to see during it. Really good talks were given. After, we went to the Hammond's for lunch. Then we went and saw some people around them. Nothing really interesting. Later that night, we had a lesson with Shollan. We showed her the new Mormon message. It’s really good. I recommend it. After, we had dinner and then went to go see some people before we went in for accounting. For the rest of the night, we played Monopoly.

Well, that's my week. I hope everyone had a great week. We'll see you soon.

Elder Hammond