WEEK 45

For P Day today, we went to the temple and did baptisms for the dead. I was able to perform the ordinances in Spanish which was pretty fun! After getting some burritos and touring downtown Oakland, Oakland is falling apart sadly, so we headed back home. The drive usually always takes up most of the day so when we got back to Greenfield, we only had time to go grocery shopping and clean up the apartment a little bit. After trying to visit Brian and Cesar, they weren't home sadly, we met a cool man named Juan Carlos Lopez. He liked that we were preaching the word of God! We invited him to Church and explained to him that Church was a place where we could feel the love of God and remember Jesus Christ. We got his number and set up a time to call him, get his address and share a scripture. After, we visited with Susana. She told us she had been reading the Book of Mormon and had been loving it. She loved Moroni 10:32. She had also read some of the other chapters that we had left. She told us she is committed to getting baptized! Her desire is definitely growing! 

On Thursday, right as we were about to head out the door, we had two Jehovah Witnesses knock on our door. Right as we opened the door the lady said, "Ooh you guys live here". They were super nice! They gave us a pamphlet, and we told them we had a lot of respect for them. After, we tried visiting one of our friends this morning, but she wasn't home; we met a nice catholic lady who was somewhat interested. After studying and doing weekly planning, where we set up lessons with our green dots and reactivated a couple yellow dots, we visited with Francisco and Simon. Francisco is a recent convert who has a strong testimony of going to church and reading the scriptures; however, he experiences major pain in his leg, shoulder and head that prevents him from driving. We read from Alma 7:11 and explained to him that Jesus Christ experienced every single pain, affliction that we'll ever feel. We're gonna bring him a massage ball, a roller, heated rice, ibuprofen, and icy hot to help him out tomorrow . Afterwards, we tried visiting a couple of friends, but they weren't home. We met a cool man named Andres and taught him about the B.O.M and how to pray. After knocking on a complex and meeting a couple people, we had a really good lesson with Clemente. We read from Enos and talked about prayer, but then we transitioned into what Repentance was and how to apply the principle of Repentance in our lives through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. After we taught Susan a little more about the Plan of Salvation.

On Friday, We started off the morning by visiting an inactive member named Aryelle. She was baptized a couple years ago and hadn't been visited by the missionaries in a while. She's a goth who currently works at Hot Topic : she's actually super cool tho! We talked a little about the spirit world and read from Alma 40. After finishing daily contact, we went over to Francisco and Simon's house. While Elder Paxman worked on his shoulder, I explained to him the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I gave Fransico my message ball that I had for him to be able to roll out his shoulder, leg and back! He was super appreciative of it! Afterwards, we met a man named Salvador. He was pretty Catholic, but he was super nice! After, we waited for Hipolito at the church: a referral we had set up for a lesson. He ended up being a no show sadly . Our friend Liz wasn't home either, so we just went contacting for a bit. After, we taught our friend Camilo about the B.O.M and our purpose as missionaries. We also showed him and his friends the "Gracias a El" video. After, we tried visiting Clemente and Irma, but they weren't able to meet anymore. We ended the night by talking with Hermano Mateo. He told us his whole life story and his experiences with the missionaries. He had grown up a Jehovah Witness and his family still continues to: he even served a three-month mission for them! He said one day though, he found a card on the floor with information about our Church. He decided to call the missionaries up one day and the rest was history. He told us that he ended up talking with the missionaries for 3 months straight every day before getting baptized. Now, he's the most solid member I've ever met! He's so cool! We ended our discussion talking about the temple and the importance of temple sealings.

On Saturday, after going finding in the morning, we visited with Brian and Cesar. They were extra crazy today; they were trying to hit and fight each other. We tried teaching them again about the importance of loving one another, not swearing, and being peacemakers with one another. They weren't really listening but hey, at least we tried . Afterwards, we talked with Freddy for a while about how his job applications were going and how he was doing spiritually. He told us that he was reading and praying every day which was good to hear. Also, he showed us a fight that took place in his complex the following night which was pretty entertaining. Afterwards, we decided to continue to find and invite as many people to church as we possibly could. We tried visiting some inactive members but none of them were home (or they weren't wanting to talk). All in all, it was a pretty slow day.

On Sunday, after church (our usual friends pulled up as usual) we tried visiting a recent convert named Cesar. He was telling how he had begun losing faith in God soon after we was baptized. He was telling us how he believes there are too many religions and that the Bible has been fabricated time after time again. He was basically telling us he has a hard time believing that the scriptures are the word of God. We basically told him that the best, and only way, for him to be able to know the truth was by reading and praying about the Book of Mormon. After, we taught Susana about covenants and the covenant relationship she was about to enter into with God during her baptism. We explained to her the symbols used during baptism once again and testified of the importance of being baptized and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost. We ended the night by helping teach night church and then having dinner at Tony's house. 

On Monday, we had Zone Council and District Council in Salinas today; we talked about the usual things. It took a while though: we didn't get back to Greenfield until 3:30. While daily contacting, we got a call from Tony that his car was breaking down and that he needed to talk to us. He was able to get his car down to Greenfield thankfully. While talking in the chapel, he was telling us how stressed he was about everything going on in his life. He told us all the physical and mental problems he has to deal with, how he has to work two jobs, how it can be extremely difficult at times to have to take care of a brother and a son who have autism, a mother who has dementia, and a wife who is incapable of working, etc. He was telling us how badly he wished he could just start up his business at the farmers market in King City, but how he was unable due to the cost. I Instantly knew that we had to help him start up this business. His business would be so successful. I told my dad about it, and he agreed. My dad is the most incredible man alive! He was able to invest and help Tony that day start up his business! He now has the equipment and permits to get his business started! He's gonna kill it! After helping Tony with his car as well (it took a couple hours) we got a text from the Zone Leaders saying that we'd be having exchanges. I did not want to go, haha! After packing, we taught Susana about tithing, she was surprisingly super chill about it and then headed up to Chular to begin exchanges. 

For Tuesday, I was up in Salinas today with Elder Gardner. We met some cool people and taught some of the friends that Elder Gardner and Elder Bailey De Jesus were teaching. They have this one friend named Fransico who is way cool! He was a self-referral, and they had been teaching him for two straight weeks now! He is planning to get baptized soon! We also taught one of their friends who is living in an immigration camp! Apparently, he bikes to church every Sunday (and it's about a 15-minute car drive from the Chapel). We also gave a blessing to a lady we found in her Garage who was experiencing some sort of medical problem; it was a really cool experience! I had a good day with Elder Gardner in Salinas! I still prefer Greenfield over Salinas though. The weather is a lot better in Salinas though! 

-Elder Copeland

WEEK 44

Hey, guys! So sorry for a short email this week. The week was pretty hectic with transfers and P-day being moved to the last Monday of every transfer now due to the travel schedule at the MTC changing. I wasn't very diligent on journaling daily this week. 

My new companion is super cool! His name is Elder Paxman! He's from American Fork and we actually lived super close to one another! He graduated a year before and went to college at BYU before his mission. I got to stay in Greenfield which I'm super excited about!  We still have a lot of work down here as well!  We're gonna help inactive members return and we're going to continue to help our progressing friends!  We're still teaching Clemente and Irma; they're progressing a little more every time we go over and teach them!  We're still visiting with Susana every day! Her desire is definitely growing. She's starting to read and pray a lot more! We have other new friends as well that are doing great! 

We've had to clean out a lot of PMG this week from past companionships so that we could start on a clean slate once again. We're also visiting with Cristian and his family!  He and his siblings are so mature for their age, the complete OPPOSITE of Brian and Cesar haha. Spanish is still hard, but I'm getting better at it for sure!  

I'll make sure my email is better next week. The mission is extremely difficult, but it's good for me! I was also able to give a talk at the baptism of Abel, Tony's son. We helped Tony out this week as well by helping cut and trim down his tree! We talked with Siliva and Eduardo as well! We went to Silvia's friend's house, I believe, to celebrate the baptism of their son. They were Catholic and were super nice! I was able to dance around with them as well. 

I'll make sure my email is better next week! Me and Elder Paxman are working hard! I'm excited to see what we can get done this transfer!    Elder Copeland

WEEK 43

On Wednesday, after waking up and working out, we decided to go up to Salinas to buy some ponchos. The Zone was having a BBQ for the fourth of July but me, Elder Isaacson, and Elder Astle felt like doing our own thing. We still went and got the Zone Leaders cookies and drinks for the BBQ. While shopping, some homeless lady with wrappings around her arms (from drug abuse) asked if we could buy her cigarettes. We told her that we wouldn't buy her cigarettes, but that we'd buy her food instead. We ended up buying her some milk and cereal. It's so hard/sad to see what drugs and addictions can do to people. We invited her to get help and remove any harmful substances that she was partaking off. 

After, we found a cool little flea market where they sell ponchos, clothes, toys, cowboy hats and boots, etc. We found some ponchos with the Guadalupe Maria on it. Me and Elder Isaacson thought they were pretty funny, so we bought them; They're actually really cool! (Don't worry, we don't believe in the Guadalupe Maria haha) After getting some tough pictures and shopping, we headed back to Greenfield to put away our food and clean up our apartment. 

After talking with our families and using the computer in the church, we began our day. We visited with Hermana Zepeda to see if she could still potentially take Irma and Clemente to the temple. While at her house, Kevin and Hermano Mateo were there as well! Kevin was taking Temple Prep class and Hermano Mateo was there as well! (I still don't know exactly why Hermano Mateo was there, but it was a miracle) Hermana Zepeda told us she was pretty sick and most likely wouldn't be able to go anymore; however, Hermano Mateo said he'd be able to take them! He also told us he wanted to go have a lesson them! We weren't even planning on visiting them tonight; it was a miracle he was there and was able to go visit Clemente and Irma with us later in the evening. 

We first had a lesson with Susana. We talked with her for a little while about a variety of topics, and then we began going over the baptismal interview questions with her. She still isn't sure about Joseph Smith and there being a modern-day prophet (since she's heard some anti from her other church). It's ok though, we'll get her there! She just needs to read more from the Book of Mormon. After, we had a great lesson with Clemente and Irma. We brought them some apples and grapes which they loved. Hermano Mateo bore a powerful testimony on the importance of the Priesthood and how Jesus Christ gave the authority/taught about the commandments. He talked about how keeping the commandments has blessed his life (Law of Chasity, Law of Tithing, Word of Wisdom, etc.). We set up the temple trip for this Saturday and moved their date to the 20th of July to help them prepare and be ready for their baptism!

Thursday was the 4th of July. After waking up and working out, we headed to the ward breakfast! Susana, Clemente, Irma, Clemente, Brian, Cesar, and all came! Tony put on a parade for the kids as well! They were wearing funny outfits, car shaped boxes, hats, etc. It was really wholesome! While I was hanging out with Susana and the kids, apparently members in the ward were bearing their testimonies to Clemente and Irma on the importance of baptism! The members were asking if they were members; Clemente told them no but that they were working towards it . While heading out to play water games with the kids, we got a call from Elder Butcher asking if we could drive down to Bernal to drop off one of the cars for the other set of Elders who were on bikes since we had an extra car. It took about an hour to get down and two hours to get back because of the traffic. Me and Elder Isaacson got to drive down together the way there while Elder Astle drove the van; me and Elder Isaacson are homies! We think, act and feel the same way about missionary work and the mission as a whole. I also got to talk to my family and my extended family! I was so homesick seeing everyone party at our pool; it looked like such a great time! 

After getting back from Bernal, we headed down to King City to give the Sisters blessings and have a BBQ with Tony and his family. It was over 100 degrees today, so it was hot. After heading back to Greenfield and parking the car due to curfew, we decided to head down to the park on our bikes to watch the firework show! The park was popping off; the whole town of Greenfield was there! We watched fireworks with Susana and her little sister. We also got to talk to Generado, a recent convert of the church, and even talked to a man who had been taught by missionaries in the past: we got his number! We also got to say hi to Brian and Cesar. Brian and Cesar have Facebook now so we're able to message and call them now . It was one of the funnest nights of my mission! We may have broken the rules, but it was so fun! We spent time with progressing friends, new converts, and reactive a grey dot! Most importantly, we had a quite time as a companionship! Biking around with a bunch of fireworks going off after the show was so fun! Being away on the 4th of July was extremely difficult, but I had a good night!

Friday was a hot day today! Being in a trio is fun, thanks to Elder Isaacson (I love him so much: we need to serve together one day) but it's so hard to get work done since we're covering three areas. We started the day by visiting Susana in the morning; we were sweating buckets. After talking about music, how her fourth of July went, her plans for school at Hartnell, and talking about hot it was and was about to get, we began talking about the Book of Mormon and the importance of the Book of Mormon in our lives. We talked about Jeffrey R Holland's testimony on the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith and how they died for what they knew to be true (B.O.M). We read from the introduction of the Book of Mormon and told her about the story of Lehi and his family leaving Jerusalem for the Americas. We explained to her the difference between the Nephites and Lamanites and explained to her how Jesus Chris visited the Americas after his death and resurrection. We explained to her how he taught his gospel. We explained to her the way we apply the Atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives is through his gospel. After, we bore our testimonies on knowing Joseph Smith was a prophet because of the Book of Mormon, how prominent the Atonement of Jesus Christ is in the Book of Mormon. To end, we invited her to watch 3 Nephi 11. 

After, we visited Brian, Cesar, and Adan. We took some pictures with them in sunglasses: they were being crazy as usual. They were fighting and kicking each other . Also, they were dumping water and coke on each other! They're crazy, but I love them to death!  After, we headed up to Soledad to begin the day up there! I texted almost every single blue dot I could! I'm almost positive I'll stay down here in Greenfield for one more transfer; I'm going to be working a lot more with the inactive members down here! 

After visiting the friends of the Soledad Elders, we tried visiting Zarate. I had met Zarate before; in all honesty, he should have not been baptized haha. He drinks, smokes, and a variety of other things members of the church should not do . While knocking on his door, we saw some drunk man dancing next to his door. I went over and started dancing with him . He liked it at first, but then that's where things turned. He got up all in my face and started getting confrontational with me. I couldn't understand most of what he was saying, but he was essentially telling me that the devil was present and that I needed to get the "F" outa there; after, he started poking me in my chest. We got out of there really fast . 

After, we headed up to Salinas to give a baptismal interview for one of the friends the Zone Leaders were teaching. While Elder Isaacson was giving the interview, we taught a friend of the man being interviewed about the Book of Mormon. After heading back to Greenfield, we found out that Clemente wasn't going to be able to go to the temple anymore since Irma had to work the following day. We told him we'd plan on another day. Hermano Mateo told us as well that we could plan on going another day! We're going to try and visit them tomorrow instead!

Saturday was a very slow day. A lot of the day was spent up in Soledad in the other Elders' area. We found a guy.  After, we visited one of the friends the Soledad Elders teach named Mike. Mike is a homeless man that lives near the Soledad movie theater; he built a hut near the side of the mountain. His living condition is pretty sad but were pretty sure he chooses to live like this. We read from 2 Nephi 26:33 and explained to him how all are alike unto God regardless of our situation! After, we went and visited Johny and Kevin. We didn't have much time to talk with them since they were going out to eat but it was nice to be able to see them. After, I sent a message to every single greet dot possible and tried to invite as many people to church as possible. 

We were also able to go see this pretty cool car show that was taking place on Soledad main street. We stood out like a sore thumb, but it was alright haha: it was pretty funny. We were the only white guys there. This took a couple hours, but after we were able to go down to Greenfield and visit with Susana. We talked a little about the Three and Eight Witnesses again and how they support the Book of Mormon being true. We also talked about how the witnesses never denied their testimonies, even after many of them had left, and we explained to her the improbably of the Book of Mormon being man-made. But in the end, we really testified to her that the one and only true way to be able to know if the Book is true is by reading and praying about it. We also personally testified of what we feel like we have learned the most when reading the Book or Mormon (for me it's the Atonement). After, we hung out with Brian and Cesar. Elder Isaacson was throwing Jesus cards off top of the balcony, and they were going crazy over them . 

We ended the night by visiting a really cool inactive member named Roy. Roy has been a member for a couple years and used to be somewhat active. However, he told us it's hard for him to come since his wife is Catholic. Apparently, missionaries have tried talking to her in the past but haven't had much success. We shared a scripture verse from 4 Nephi 1:3 and talked about how Jesus Christ is the heavenly gift that Heavenly Father has given. We bore our testimonies on the importance of going to church and reading the Book of Mormon. He told us he's going to try and start coming again! After concluding with a prayer, he asked us if we could take a selfie: of course we were down! Later, without us knowing, he posted it on Facebook and tagged me, which was cool!

On Monday, we woke up, worked out, cleaned up the apartment and drove up to Salinas to sign Transfer Journals. Most of the people in our Zone were staying but a few were leaving. Elder Thompson, my first trainer and Zone Leader, had finished his mission. We got to sign each other's journals and say goodbye to one another. It was honestly pretty sad haha. After, we headed back to Salinas and said hi to Johny and Kevin. While we were talking, Johny put on President Nelson's proclamation about the restoration for us to watch which was awesome! After dancing with Johny for a minute, we had to help Elder Astle pack all of his things. He was not excited to leave as he wanted to stay in Soledad: poor guy! I actually felt pretty bad for him. We ended the night by bringing his things down to the Greenfield apartment. Since packing took so long for him, plus we had to do our laundry, we weren't able to get anything else done!      Elder Copeland

 

 

WEEK 42

On Wednesday, After shopping, doing our laundry, and cleaning up, we didn't end up doing much. I was still feeling pretty sick, so we didn't end up doing much. We walked around the streets of downtown Greenfield. It really is a mini-Oaxaca down here. We found some shops along the street; I was able to buy some souvenirs, an Oaxaca hat and a Greenfield Beanie.  Also, we found a little store selling a bunch of Mexican candy and chips! I bought a bunch to send home to my family. We spend the rest of P-day in the chapel talking with our families and using the computers. After the Missionary Correlation Meeting (where we talked about the importance of Love, Share and Invite, the importance of getting members involved in the work, and making sure converts are fully committed and ready to become a lifelong disciple of Jesus Christ before baptism).  Also, Brother Jones shared a funny story of how when he served a mission, he helped reactivate an area by playing for a local basketball team. After that we went and visited with Susana again. After watching Tik Toks with Susana, we asked her how her reading went with the Introduction, the Testimony of the Three and Eight Witnesses, and the Testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. She thought it was interesting and seemed genuinely interested in learning more about it! She had questions about the Urim and Thummim. We explained to her that the Urim and Thummim was an ancient tool used by prophets in the Bible, Book of Mormon, and Joseph Smith to be able to translate ancient texts. We also sent her "Topics and Questions" about the Urim and Thummim.  Afterwards, we showed her the Testimony of Elder Holland on the Book of Mormon and the martyrdom of Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith.  We ended by bearing our testimony of the Book of Mormon and how it has led to our personal conversion into our church. We also shared how the Book of Mormon teaches us about the Gospel and Doctrine of Christ, the Plan of Salvation, our purpose here on earth, etc. We invited her to watch Alma 31-34 and explained the Book of Mormon video.

On Thursday, we had interviews today in Salinas; we were up there most of the day. My interview with the President was pretty chill. We talked about how we can balance finding and teaching while also visiting inactive members! We also talked about the importance of helping people endure to the end and helping them become lifelong disciples of Christ. Also, apparently me and Elder Candida were the second-best companions in the whole mission when it came to finding and inviting people to church!  After, we had a training session with President Larson where we talked about the importance of teaching from the Book of Mormon. One really cool thing that he mentioned is that the Book of Mormon calls the Plan of Salvation "The Plan of Redemption" almost every single time. The Plan of Salvation was prepared from the beginning!  Jesus Christ is the reason we can be redeemed. He is the reason we can be saved from the Fall, as long as we can follow his Gospel and apply his Atonement in our lives. Interviews took up most of the day, but we were able to go looking for a couple hours. One of the ladies we found needed help getting her son out of the swing set 🤣; I helped lift him out. Afterwards, we had dinner with the Varneys.  The Varneys are counselors for President Larson; they're so awesome!  We talked with them for a while. Afterwards, we had an amazing lesson with Clemente and Irma. President Varney came with us, and he did an amazing job. He served his mission in Brazil and speaks Portuguese, but he learned how to speak Spanish so that he could come out and teach with the missionaries. We read from Mosiah 18: 8-10 and talked about some of the requirements needed to be baptized. We also talked about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and read from 3 Nephi 11: 33-41. We invited them to be baptized!  Irme was hesitant at first because she told us she was afraid that she wouldn't be good enough after being baptized and that she felt like she didn't know enough. We all bore our testimonies on the importance of having a desire to follow Jesus Christ, how we all still learn and grow each day, and how the Atonement of Jesus Christ can help us overcome our imperfections and weaknesses. President Varney bore a powerful testimony on how much he could feel their Spirit and how ready they were to receive the blessings associated with the covenant of Baptism!  We put them on a date for July 6th and they accepted! They are more than ready to be baptized: and they're ones who won't fall away. They have developed friendships with members in the ward, have testimonies, and have a desire to continue to progress and learn; desire > knowledge 

 

On Friday,I had exchanges with Elder Isaacson today! I was feeling pretty sick today but that's how I've pretty much felt the whole entire week. We put some posters up around Soledad and Gonzales and met some people! We walked around with Autumn and met some people with her! She is very ready to be a missionary! She was bearing her testimony and story with people; it was a super spiritual experience not only for her, but me and Elder Isaacson as well! She is leaving for Utah in a couple days, so we wanted to spend some time with her before she had to leave! Afterwards, she still had questions about the restoration. We watched parts of, "The Restoration," and explained to her the story of Joseph Smith once again. After, we had a dance party with Johnny. One of the funniest/best moments of my mission for sure: it was hilarious 😂. We ended the night by having Autumn record a video of her sharing her conversion story and testimony! We're going to have her send it to the Mission social media page! I really hope I get to serve with Elder Isaacson one day; he is amazing and so fun to be around. We think and act the same as well! We're going to be companions one day: one way or another. 

On Saturday, we had to help lift Hermano Villa out of his bed into his chair. Hermano Villa and Hermana Villa were attending a funeral for a close friend of theirs in the Spanish Branch in Salinas. We talked about temples and the importance of making and keeping covenants. Afterwards, I was feeling so sick. This whole week I've been so sick. It's been really frustrating since I haven't had any energy. I had pushed through it the whole week, but I physically couldn't today. I ended up sleeping from 10:00 to 5:00 🤣. I could have kept sleeping, but I was already feeling like I was being a terrible missionary.  I pushed through it and began our day. We visited with Freddy to see how he was doing. He was pretty frustrated since he still hadn't been able to find a job. He told us he's still trying! Getting a job down here is difficult! We're keeping him in our prayers!  He still had questions about "Heaven and Hell," so we explained to him how hell is essentially being cut off from the presence of God. We also talked about the importance of making and keeping covenants to bind ourselves to Heavenly Father. We talked about the Love of God and explained to him how God always answers our prayers, but in ways we may not expect or want (God is all knowing). We also explained to him how when we repent, we do it through action (reading our scriptures, coming to church, etc.) We invited him to church so hopefully he comes! After playing with Cesar and Brian, we visited with Susana. We got to hold her cats again, what TV shows she was currently watching, and how she felt about the Book of Mormon and the Word of Wisdom. While talking, she had to run inside to grab her jacket. However, when she tried to open the door, it wouldn't open. The door had gotten stuck.  We tried helping her and her family open the door for 20 minutes, but it wouldn't budge 🤣. We had to leave for curfew, but it was pretty funny.  She sent us a text later in the night though telling us that they were able to get the door open. 

 

   

On Sunday, I was able to sleep in a little; I was coughing up blood during the night hahah; I just haven't been able to get over this sickness. I was able to go to church though. Clemente and Irma texted us this morning saying they weren't able to go to church this morning; they had to help get Clemente's sister get her passport! However, Susana came, and she came the whole time! The sisters in our ward gave fantastic talks about the temple and the Covenant path! Brian, Cesar, and Adan came to church as well! After walking home with Susana and the kids, we were able to go administer the Sacrament for Hermano Villa and Sister Villa. Afterwards, we went to the park. We found a couple people, but they weren't terribly interested. After, we headed down to King City for night church. Only Hermano Mateo showed up, haha. We read from Mosiah 13 and taught about the Ten Commandments! We ended the night by having dinner with Tony and Adri.

Monday was a pretty hard day. I was still feeling pretty sick.  In addition to that, while at Zone Council, we got a call from President Larson saying that Elder Candia would be transferred today as a Zone Leader, because the companion he was replacing was becoming the new AP, up in Saratoga. So after the Zone Conference, we had to go back to Greenfield and help Elder Candia pack for his transfer. We had to drive up to Gilroy for Elder Candia to be dropped off with Elder Palmer and Elder Rosalez. They showed up pretty late, so we ended up coming home pretty late. I'm very grateful for the time I had with Elder Candia; I learned so much from him and I'm very grateful for the time I had with him! I seriously enjoyed my time with him!  I'm definitely going to stay in contact with him!  We ended the night by going to Greenfield as a trio of me, Elder Astle, and Elder Isaacson. 

On Tuesday, in all honesty, we woke up pretty late due to the fact we got home so late. After cleaning up and preparing the apartment for the week, we went up to Soledad. It was over 100 degrees outside, so not many people were wanting to talk. We decided to do our laundry, make some phone calls, and prepare for the rest of week. After, we headed down to give blessings to a family living in King City. Their story is pretty sad but miraculous at the same time. They were involved in a drive-by shooting and were affected by it pretty badly. The husband was shot in the chest twice (one of the bullets was an inch away from his heart, the Wife was shot in the leg and thankfully the son was affected.The husband was supposed to die, but he was able to survive thankfully. Before the blessings, we read from Moroni 7:27-31 and talked about how we can still experience miracles to this day! We also taught them about the Priesthood and showed them videos from Mathew 10 where Jesus Christ gave the apostles the Priesthood. After the blessings, we taught them about the Book of Mormon and shared our testimonies on the importance of the Book of Mormon and the peace and comfort that we have experienced from reading the Book of Mormon. We read 2 Nephi 31:20 and shared how through Jesus Christ, we can gain Eternal Life! They're really cool! The sisters are going to do great with them. After, we had a lesson with Clemente and Irma; it was a rough lesson since they had developed such a good relationship with Elder Candia. We started the lesson by reading from Mosiah 2:41 and bore our testimonies on how we receive blessings, both spiritually and physically, when we keep the commandments of God. It also didn't help how we had to teach them about the Word of Wisdom and the Law of Tithing. They had some concerns about the Word of Wisdom, specifically, when it came to coffee. I still believe that they will get baptized, probably just not this Saturday. They are still interested in visiting the Temple! So, we are going to try and go with them this Saturday!  

-Elder Copeland