Week 93 - June 9, 2025

For P-day today, we went down to Soledad, Greenfield, and King City!  Since it was Elder Isaacson's final P-day on the mission, we wanted to go visit the area, since it was our favorite area, and we went and visited the people and members we served!  We started the day by visiting and helping Tony set up his farmers' market stand!  He's still recovering from heart surgery, so we helped him carry some things for him!  We also got him some propane gas for the stoves he'd be using!  It was so good to see him, Adri, and his family again!  It had been a while, and I truly miss them so much!  It was fun to walk around Tony's house again!

After helping Tony set up, we headed over to Greenfield to say hi to Bryan and Cesar!  They totally remembered us, and they were so excited to see us again; they had grown a lot in the past eight or so months!  They had bikes now, so they were riding them around and doing tricks with them!  They have definitely gotten even crazier since I had been there!  They were cussing up a storm!  The church is a really good influence on them thankfully!  Since their parents are always working, don't speak much English, and don't really give their kids much time, they're always on their phones and the internet, which is the reason they act and behave the way they do!  I'm super grateful the missionaries are able to go and minister to them!

After saying hi to Bryan and Cesar, we went and said hi to Susana!  She was doing good!  She had just gotten her associate's degree and was now moving down to Santa Cruz to begin school down there!  I hadn't seen Susana in almost eight months!  The last time I saw her was when we went to the temple together!  After talking and catching up with her, we went down to Soledad to say hi to Vicki and Johnny!  Elder Isaacson and Johnny had grown a close relationship while he was serving down there so it was super cute to see them reunited again!  Vicki is an absolute sweetheart as well!  We talked with them for a while and caught up with them!  After taking some pictures with them and Sergio, we headed back down to visit with Silvia!  Silvia was doing really good, and she was so happy that I was able to come down!  She's planning on coming down to Utah one day to go to a General Conference which would be awesome!  After getting some ice cream for Bryan and Cesar and a drink for Susana (I wanted to show my appreciation and love for them), we headed back down to King City again to try some of Tony's food that he was cooking up at the Farmers market!  I was super invested watching him the whole time; it was genuinely entertaining!  He cooked up some fire trip tips, pasta, and pizza for us!  He was also frying up some fries!  I didn't try any since I was on a pretty serious cut by Elder Isaacson and the customers.  He had loved them!  I'm so happy for Tony and how far he has come!  He's had a really hard, and still continues to have, a really hard life but he never gives up!  I love the people down south so much and I'm so grateful I was able to serve down here for six months!  The people and area down here will always have a special place in my heart!  I'm glad I'll be able to stay in contact with them and connect with them after my mission!  This was one of my favorite P-days of all time!  And while driving home, Diego let us know that he wanted to baptize Daniel, since he had just recently received the Priesthood, and that he wanted to take us up to his ranch on Saturday before the baptism!  Me and Elder Isaacson were stoked to hear this! 

On Thursday, we began the day by waking up super early so that I'd be able to work out!  Elder Isaacson had his outbound devotion so we had to go to the church pretty early so that he could set up for it!  He gave a really good testimony on the importance of sacrifice and serving God's children and how important the Plan of Salvation and the Atonement of Jesus Christ is to every single one of us!  After, we planned the baptismal pamphlet for Daniel's baptism and then we had to go get the oil changed at the mechanic shop near town; while the car was getting worked on, we daily contacted our friends and we may or may not have looked into the drama going down between Elon Musk and Trump 🤣; after getting our car maintenance finished, we headed over to the church to go over his baptismal service with him and how he could spiritually prepare for it!  I also felt inspired to read 3 Nephi 15 and 16 with him (which talks about the Lost Tribes of Israel and how the other fold of "sheep" were those in the ancient America's). We read it to help him better understand the relationship between the Book of Mormon and the Bible and how the two have crucial rules in testifying about the life, teachings, and ministry of Jesus Christ!  He's really beginning to better understand the importance and the significance of the Book of Mormon and how it allows us to grow closer to the Savior and better understand him as our Savior and Redeemer!  I'm super proud of Daniel and how far he has come!  I'm so excited for his baptism on Saturday! 

After teaching Daniel, we headed up to Gilroy so that Elder Isaacson could do a baptismal interview for two guys that Elder Astle and Elder Rushforth were teaching!  They were two funny dudes from Mexico that had found the church through members of the branch!  We're going to go to their baptism this Sunday and support them!  After taking a picture with them and hanging out with Elder Astle and Elder Rushforth for a second, we ended the day by visiting with Juan and Dora at the chapel! We talked with them for a while and then we showed them spiritual resources that they could use to help them better feel the Spirit throughout the day!  We went over the importance of reading the Book of Mormon every day and how videos allow us to better visualize and see the stories of the scriptures!  We showed them the "For God So Loved the World" Bible video, which they really enjoyed!  We ended the lesson by bearing our testimonies on the life of Jesus Christ and how crucial it is for us to follow his example!  When we better apply what he has taught us in our lives and when we try to better understand him as Savior and his role in the Plan of Salvation, we'll have so much more peace and happiness in this life!  I'm so grateful for the Savior and his role in the Plan of Salvation!  Juan and Dora are, too, as well! We'll keep praying and working with Juan!

On Friday, we had to head up to Mission Home in San Jose since Elder Isaacson was going to RMTC!  RMTC is essentially just a zone conference for the missionaries heading home!  So in 6 weeks, I'll be able to go and experience it for myself!  While he was at RMTC, I served with Elder Johns and Elder Pavon for the day in Elder Johns area!  Me and Elder Johns have served with each and around each other for some time now so it was nice to catch up with him again!  Elder Pavon is only in his first transfer; he's a super nice kid from Honduras who has only been in the states for seven weeks! He had pretty good English, but he definitely still preferred Spanish, so we spent the whole day talking with one another in Spanish haha: it was actually kind of fun!  While serving together, we visited a couple of the recent converts in their area; we taught a nice kid who had just been recently baptized and his family about the Plan of Salvation!  His mother, who's a member, was from the Dominican Republic!  I've only talked to like two people from the Dominican Republic during my time as a missionary, so it was pretty cool to get to know her and her culture better!  She loved how I had a friend (Elder Johnson) who was serving there; their Spanish is definitely a little different, but I really enjoyed it!  She shared with us her conversion story and how she had been taught by the Sister missionaries in the Dominican Republic but was never too interested in learning until she got to the states; apparently some "handsome" missionaries came up to her, so she wanted to listen to them, and the rest is history!  They were a super nice family, and we were even able to snag a picture with them!  

After, we went and found and talked to a few people; we had some crazy guy come up to us and tell us that we don't need commandments anymore and that all we had to do was follow Jesus.  He was going on and on about how Mormonism can't save anymore and how all we need is the Bible!  He was kinda picking on Elder Pavon, since he was a foreigner and still struggles with the language barrier, so I stepped in and defended him; I was able to get the interaction haha.  After, we went and visited a returning member in a part member family; this is where the day gets bad.  So as I was going to sit down on the couch to show them a video, I pressed my hand way too hard on the top of my phone that was placed on the edge of my Book of Mormon; while doing so, I heard and felt a snap near my phone; I go to look at my phone and the whole thing was SHATTERED!  I was definitely freaking out but we were still able to teach the lesson on the importance of coming to Church to better understand the Savior and who he is to us personally; luckily, we were only 20 minutes away from the Mission Office so we were able to go there and pick up a new phone for me since they have a bunch.  I'm so grateful for Google and how I didn't lose any of my photos, emails, etc. that I had on the phone that I had broken. 

After getting my new phone situated, we headed back to the Mission Home to pick up our companions and head back to our areas!  While leaving San Jose, me and Elder Isaacson stopped by and said hi to Ivette (a recent convert that we know) and caught up with her and took some pictures with her! I've gotten a haircut from her before, and I've seen her a bunch of times at night church, so I know her pretty well!  I've also made tortillas with her and her kids haha!  She got Elder Isaacon a poncho from Mexico as his farewell gift which was super nice of her!  We ended the day by driving back to Hollister! 

We had a really good Saturday!  After waking up and working out, we headed to the chapel to set up early for the baptism and prepare the talk I was going to give!  We also had to go and print out the baptismal pamphlets!  That took up the entire morning until lunch.  After lunch, we headed to the chapel and waited for Diego to take us to his ranch so that he could show us his chickens!  We were waiting for a while until he let us know that he had gotten stuck in traffic coming back from Salinas; instead, we just decided to drive ourselves up there! Diego and his family had a pretty dope ranch!  It wasn't too big, but they had some milking cows, sheep, horses, a pony and of course the cocks (aka fighting chickens).  I was able to get pictures with the horses, the cows, and I got to hold one of Diego's chickens!  

While walking, one of the cows came up to me and started licking my jackets 🤣; luckily, I was wearing a jacket, but it still got pretty muddy!  Diego showed us where he keeps his chickens and the difference between fighting ones and non-fighting ones; the ones used in cock fights are a lot more athletic, colorful, and lengthy!  He had a couple which were pretty cool! 

After hanging out at Diego's ranch, we headed back to Hollister with him to get ready for Daniel's baptism!  His baptism went really well!  I gave a talk on baptism and the importance of making and keeping covenants!  If you think about it, without the ordinances and the Priesthood, making covenants with God would not be possible!  Diego was also able to baptize Daniel!  It was Diego's first time ever baptizing anyone!  He did a great job, and he had a great experience doing it!  Hermano Montuy and Hermano Carter gave great talks on the Holy Ghost and how receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost allows us to receive the light of Christ!  A good amount of ward members were able to come and support Daniel!  I'm so proud of not only Daniel, but Diego as well!  They have come so far in such a short time!  I still remember my first time seeing Daniel sitting in the chapel and introducing myself to him!  I remember him telling me how had made too many mistakes in his life to change and how he wasn't worthy of God!  It took almost 3 months of constantly teaching and helping him, but we were finally able to help him get baptized!  He has grown to understand the gospel so well and I'm so glad I've been able to help him!  Diego is another blessing as well!  I still can't believe it started out as him coming up to us at a random Panda Express!  Look at where he is now and what he is doing!  The mission has definitely been a crazy experience!  You often hear stories like this not as a missionary, but it doesn't really hit until you're actually the one on a mission going through experiences like this!  It really has been a crazy experience! 

We had a really good Sunday!  We began the day early by going to Branch Council and discussing the needs of the branch and our friends!  After, we were able to go help and prepare the sacrament!  Diego, Daniel, Eddy, and Martha and Alfredo Lepe Jr were all able to come to church!  We had Diego bless the sacrament for the first time and he did great! Diego is doing absolutely amazing!  Daniel was also able to be confirmed and received the Holy Ghost; Hermano Montuy gave a great blessing!  Daniel has changed so much in the past 12 weeks and I'm so proud of him!  Elder Isaacson gave a great farewell talk as well!  He talked about the importance of prayer, sacrifice, and his experiences as a missionary and the love he has gained for God and his children!  I love Slade and I'm definitely going to miss him! 

After church, we came back and got ready for the day!  Elder Isaacson wanted to make a farewell post on his Facebook so we went to the church so he could make and publish his reel! Afterwards, we took Elder Isaacson to say goodbye to Maggie and Henry!  Henry was pretty sad to see him go, but he's happy that I was staying!  I'm definitely going to be busy hanging out with him for the next six weeks!  After, we headed up to Morgan Hill to watch the baptism of Elder Rushforth and Elder Astle's friends!  It was a really good service!  The man who got baptized and confirmed was hugging his brother right after, and it was one of the most wholesome moments of my mission!  It'd help me to better understand and see the joy that we are able to give and bring people as missionaries! 

Afterwards, we drove around the backroads of Hollister and watched the Sunset!  Elder Isaacson and I wanted to get one more drive in before the transfer roster!  To end the night, I found out that my new companion would be Elder Fuller in a NEW area in Los Altos; I was pretty surprised and a little frustrated at the same since I'd be leaving an area I really like! I was so confident that I was staying; In this email alone I was talking about how I thought I was going to stay; I was able to have pretty good success while serving down here and I really wanted to help nurture and take care of my recent converts; I also felt that It was a pretty good area to "die' in and that I had more to give down here.  Luckily, Sister Carlton and her new companion will take good care of them. 

President Larson called us and explained to us why he had to shut down our area; I guess there aren't enough Spanish Elders coming and too many are heading home!  He told us we did great work down here and that he had to close us since our area was the smallest.  It makes sense why they had to close it and luckily, I'll still be able to stay in contact with everyone down here!  It'll probably be good for me to get a change of scenes for the final six weeks of my mission!  I was able to talk to Elder Fuller for a minute, and he seems like a good guy!  I'm gonna go up there and help get their progressing friends baptized and confirmed!  It'll be a good challenge for me!  I really enjoyed my time down here, and I feel so blessed that I was given the opportunity to serve down here with Elder Isaacson!         Elder Copeland

 

Week 92 - June 7, 2025

 For P-day today, we went down to the Redwoods since Elder Isaacon had never gone before!  I've been twice before, so I had seen it!  You kinda just reach a point in your mission where you've done everything and everything is just kinda boring!  Not to sound negative or all, but nothing really excites me or makes me happy out here anymore!  Gratitude has taken me a long way!

I talked to my family for a second today since they were at Disneyland!  It made me pretty trunky seeing Navy at Disney haha!  It's ok though!  

After the Redwoods, we went and drove past the boardwalk so Elder Isaacson could see!  For the rest of P-day, we took a nap, wrote our emails, went shopping, and talked to our families!  The craziest thing that happened today was seeing a couple at the church parking lot doing something very inappropriate in their car 🤣; we were shocked and disgusted at what was happening!  The couple in the car noticed that we had seen them and were pretty embarrassed haha!  Like seriously, people don't use common sense or common courtesy anymore!  Who's going to do that in a church parking lot during the day 🤢🤣; they definitely saw us laughing and pointing at them!  Overall kind of a basic P-Day!  I only got 7 more P-days out here, so I'm kinda just wrapping things up!

And for this email I'm basically gonna summarize everything that happened, since it was a pretty slow week!  Elder Isaacson is pretty trunky, which I don't blame him at all, so we really haven't been doing much!  I've just kinda been doing whatever he wants to do!  

On Thursday, we quote "weekly planned" and then visited the Lepez Martinez Family.  We talked with Martha and her family for a while.  Apparently, a realtor who lives down here in Hollister had sold them a refrigerator that doesn't work (it cost them $500) which they were pretty upset about which is understandable!  After talking to them for a second, we had a good lesson with Juan and Dora.  We talked to Dora about her baptism and how she felt!  She told us she had never felt better and that she was feeling a sense of peace in her life that she has never felt before! She's doing so awesome and has already become integrated into the Branch!  Juan was there, too, so we began to teach him as well!  We explained to Juan why covenants are necessary and how we are blessed when we keep and make them!  We went over the Atonement with him again and read from the Book of Alma!  We also went over the Gift of the Holy and how it's necessary and how it blesses us!  Juan desires more peace and comfort in his life so we are trying to better help him understand how the Holy Ghost allows him to receive that!  We tried giving Juan a date and invited him to pray about getting baptized and making a covenant with God.  He told us how he still doesn't feel ready yet and how he's currently just watching!  We tried explaining to him the importance of having faith and acting on certain things, even if we don't have a perfect knowledge or aren't quite sure of a certain thing, and we bore our testimonies powerfully!  The gospel of Jesus Christ is the greatest blessing any person can receive!  We tried our very best to help him understand the importance of getting baptized and how much it would bless him and help him out with his day-to-day life, but he kept telling us he just wasn't ready yet; I was pretty frustrated after the lesson because of how close I know he is and because of how much it would help him!  We are going to continue meeting with him and keeping him in our prayers 🙏.  Elder Isaacson was pretty bummed that he didn't get to see him baptized before he left! Hopefully I can get him baptized next transfer so that he can come back out with his family! 

On Friday, we basically only taught Diego at the church!  It had been a couple weeks since we had last seen him, so it was good to talk with him again!  We went over the Plan of Salvation with him again and the importance of temples!  He was able to retain some of the knowledge that he had already been taught!  He also for some reason kind of went on a tangent on how war is evil and how the adversary wants us to fight and be contentious (which he's right about haha).  He also for some reason let us know that he had been shot, we didn't get the story behind it, and he showed us his wound on the back of his back 🙃.  It was actually pretty crazy!  He also told us some pretty sad/scary things that were happening with his sister (I guess her ex-bf was threatening them) so he asked us to keep them in their prayers!  We also went over the way we pray with Diego, and he seemed to understand it 🤣; hopefully he prays with a little more reverence.  We always have interesting but good conversations with Diego!  We also got bashed by some dude on his doorstep, but we just bore our testimonies on the Book of Mormon.  

On Saturday, we basically just invited as many people as we could to church!  Elder Isaacson also had to give a baptismal interview to one of the Sisters' friends named Cresencio; Crescenio really wants to get baptized but he's going to have to wait until he figures out his marriage situation with his wife in Mexico.  Apparently, he's not married to his wife in Mexico. He's also moving to Washington in a couple weeks to begin work!  The Sisters are going to have the missionaries teach him!  I have faith that he'll be able to get baptized one day! He's a really good guy!  Later that day, we taught Daniel again at the church with Hermano Montuy!  We explained to him the Apostasy, the Restoration (we showed him President Nelson's proclamation on the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: it's one of my favorite videos of all time), and re-explained to him the story of Joseph Smith and his prophetic calling from God!  We shared examples of scriptures found throughout the Book of Mormon and Bible with him to better help him understand the importance of prophets and the commandments!  It was a long, but effective, conversation with him!  Hermano Montuy was able to help out a ton and he bore his testimony on the Priesthood Power and how blessings throughout his time with cancer have helped him to heal!  He also bore his testimony on the Restoration and importance of missionary work and how missionaries (he calls them angels) were sent to him and his family as a kid and how his life was forever blessed and changed because of the missionaries that taught them!  Daniel definitely felt the Spirit!  Hermano Montuy got pretty emotional, which is really not normal for him, and definitely was a powerful moment not only for us, but him as well!  After our lesson with Daniel, we went over the baptismal interview questions and he passed them all!  He was now ready to be baptized the following Saturday which we were so excited about! 

 

On Sunday, we had a really really good fast and testimony meeting!  So many members were able to come up and bear their testimonies!  It felt like almost every single testimony was indirectly pointed towards Juan since they were talking about how much they've been blessed because of the missionaries, the covenant of baptism, and the gospel as a whole!  We're hoping Juan was able to learn and feel something special during the testimonies that were given; I definitely felt and learned a lot!  Daniel and Diego were able to come to church as well!  After Sunday School, Juan and Dora came up to us asking for help!  Dora is trying her absolute best to try and find a job so that she can help pay their rent!  They were really struggling and pretty stressed that they weren't going to be able to pay their week's rent!  They asked us for help, so I informed President Starkweather, and he was able to get them the help they needed thankfully!  We are going to visit with them the following day and help them look for a job for Dora!  The rest of the Sunday was pretty chill!  We helped the Lepez family dig a trench for their water pipe and then we went over and had dinner with Nordstroms at their house!  They are about to leave on a mission, so we were able to give him some advice!  

On Monday, we had Zone Council in Gilroy!  We talked about our divine worth as sons and daughters of God and how the Plan of Salvation allows us to live with our loved ones forever! Apparently, the Zone Leaders had sent messages to the parents/family of the missionaries in our Zone so that they could make videos and then show them to us during the Zone Council!  Well, everyone had their family send them a video except mine 🤣; I guess no one in my family saw the messages that we sent so I was like the only missionary during the whole thing that didn't have a video made for them 🤣; everyone was thinking that I didn't have a family or that my family didn't love me during the whole thing!  I had to explain to them what I did!!!  Instead, Jacob Empey made a video and sent it to me instead 😆; overall it was a funny, but kinda embarrassing, situation!  It wasn't a big deal at all!  It was pretty funny, and I gave my family a hard time about it (jokingly of course). 

Afterwards, we had District Council and went over our areas and our progressing friends!  It was Elder Isaacson's final district council, so we all went around and talked about our mission experiences and the things we've learned and have gained since being out here!  There's many things that I've learned and come to better understand throughout my time as a missionary, but gratitude and the Plan of Salvation really come to mind!  After District Council, we headed back to Hollister to begin the day!  We said hi to Henry and brought him a Sprite and Reese's!  We also brought him some ties and showed him how to tie them!  He's seriously the best! Afterwards, we went and visited Claudia and her family!  Elder Isaacson had a PVCP bull that he roped on during his time as a missionary; he wasn't going to bring it home with him, so he just gave it to the Poras girls!  They were having fun with it ahah!  After, we went over to the Kratzers to have dinner and share a spiritual thought with them!  We ended the night by visiting Juan and Dora at the church!  We helped Dora with job applications, and we informed as many members of the branch as possible about her situation!  Hopefully they'll be able to look around and maybe help her find a job!  We aren't going to stop until we help find a job!  Juan asked us why members of the church are always so nice and willing to serve and help others!  We explained how the church is very family-oriented and how we treat everyone as if they were a part of our family! We also explained to him how the Savior was the perfect example of service and how service allows us to help others! We also re-emphasized the importance of the Atonement and how the Savior can help strengthen and guide us during difficult times in our lives!  We always have good conversations with Juan and Dora!  I'm so grateful for them!  Juan is soooo close!

Tuesday was Navy's birthday, so I got to call and wish her Happy Birthday!  I can't believe she's one year old!  It's crazy to think that I was a missionary when she was born!  I've been out here a long time haha!  

We were finally also able to get in contact with Eddy and teach him with the English Sisters!  Eddy is very low functioning due to the strokes he's had in the past!  We were asking him if any females were home so that the sisters could come and he looked at us and said, "Yeah, there are two right there!"  We look over and it's the Sister Missionaries.  We are trying our best to help him.  The Sisters stood at the doorstep, and we very simply taught him about God being our loving Heavenly Father and the importance of Jesus Christ and his role as our Savior!  He told us he was frustrated with his current situation and how he wasn't healing physically and how he couldn't do the things he used to be able to do because of his condition and eyesight!  We read from the Book of Mormon and explained to him how the Savior allows us to be spiritually healed even if we aren't able to be physically healed: that gave him a lot of comfort!  We also taught him how to pray; he had never learned before, so we said pray out loud and had him repeat back after us!  I feel so bad for Eddy, and I really do think the gospel and a covenant relationship with God would bless his life!  

After Eddy, we came back to the church and watched the Restoration movie with Daniel to help solidify the story of Joseph Smith!  It was the first time I watched it in Spanish!  He understood better now why we have baptisms for the dead and the importance of the temples after learning about the story of Alvin Smith!  After watching the movie, we explained why the gold plates were returned to the Angel Moroni after the translation of the Book of Mormon (Faith), the law of Tithing and where the money goes to, and how the Spirit allows us to discern between good and evil: We had him read Moroni 7! After going over the questions with him one more time, he fully committed to getting baptized!  It was a long lesson, but we just had to clear up a couple things before!  Afterwards, we went and said hi to Morris and his wife while they were eating dinner; we ended the night by helping teach English Class and giving a blessing to the members of the Spanish branch!

Also, a really cool thing happened this week!  For some reason, the number we use here in Hollister was added to a group chat of Hermano Mateo and the members and missionaries serving in Arroyo Seco (Greenfield).  Apparently, the whole time while I've been gone from Greenfield, Irma was pregnant!  It's the reason why they haven't been as active, and I had no idea!  Apparently, Clemente and Irma were in the hospital because their newborn baby girl was there dealing with some pretty significant health problems!  I knew instantly that the Elders up in Palo Alto needed to go and give the baby a blessing!  I was able to get the number of Clemente and text him!  He was super happy to hear from me!  After texting with him for a minute and figuring out his situation, I asked him if it would be OK if the Elders up there could pass by and give his baby a blessing!  He said yes and I was able to get into contact with Elder Perschon and his companion and let him know about the situation!  Elder Perschon was able to get permission and to give Clemente and Irma's baby a blessing! He told me it went really well and that they were so grateful that he was able to come!  The baby is doing a lot better now and they'll be heading back to Greenfield on Thursday!  Truly one of the biggest miracles of my mission!  Idk why our number was added to this group chat, but I know it was for a reason!  I'm going to continue to stay in touch with Clemente and his family!  They are such amazing people who have truly helped me see the good in others!  They'll always be in my prayers!         Elder Copeland

Week 91 - June 2, 2025

 For P-day, we had to wake up early and help Sister Nosack pack her things up; she was going home early to serve as service missionary!  I know she'll be great at that, and we hope the best for her!  It was a very difficult situation, a lot even I didn't know about, but hopefully everything gets a little better for everyone!  After working out and talking with our families, we headed up to Gilroy to hit some golf balls with Elder Rushforth and Elder Astle; we went to the range that we had gone to at the start of last transfer!  After, we made a stop at Sonic and then headed back to Hollister to talk to our families at the church! 

We were also able to visit with Dora and talk to her about her baptism!  Juan was supposed to come but he wasn't able to since he had gotten off work late and was tired! We talked a little bit about how job searching is going, her family and her story!  She explained to us her life story and how while one day while working at her job, she was praying and seeking guidance from God!  Apparently while doing so, a Dove hit her window and apparently stared at her!  At this moment, Dora knew that she needed to make more time for God and find a church!  So, from her point of view, God sent a dove towards Dora as a sign!  Now I don't know if it was God or not, but it helped her find us eventually, so we'll take it!  Dora is so awesome and has such a strong testimony of the gospel and in the Savior!  She has come such a long way since I've entered Hollister, and I'm so grateful I've been able to help her progress!  We expressed our gratitude and love we had for her, and she felt the same!  We explained to her the temple, endowment, and eternal marriage!  We are going to try and get Juan progressing faster!  We explained to her that we want to help Juan get baptized so that he can receive the same blessings that we have received!  She said she'll talk to him while they go up to Los Angeles this week to visit her family! We are going to try and get him baptized before Elder Isaacson leaves so that he can receive the peace and joy that comes from the gospel, which Dora told us he needs more of!

Thursday me and Elder Isaacson were very sick; we've been sick for a while but today was especially bad.  We spent the whole day resting and cleaning up the whole apartment!  Since the Elders had moved out the day before (and the apartment had never been cleaned properly since missionaries are the dirtiest people I know), the apartment was pretty gross!  I dusted, cleaned, and organized the whole apartment!  I also got the bathroom clean for the first time in probably years 🤣; we also had to clean the car for Zone Conference the following day!  Overall, super slow day but ooh well!  We were just trying to heal up and get better for the rest of the week!  Gabino also sent me a text saying that he was giving a talk at church the following Sunday which made me super happy!  He is the best! 

On Friday, we woke up super early so that we could work out, get ready, and head up to Salinas for Zone Conference!  It was an ok Zone Conference!  We talked about teaching and relying on the Spirit!  A sister missionary made a comment I didn't like about how only "members of the church" carry the Spirit with them and that's why it's so important we keep our covenants while around those not of our religion!  It was the MOST judgmental and untrue thing I've ever heard!  As long as you're a good person, avoid sin, and do your best you can have the Spirit with you!  Another Elder talked about how we have to pray first when teaching someone so that the Spirit can be brought! He basically was saying that out friends shouldn't pray with us to begin with since we have the "Spirit" and they don't!  I was pretty fumed during the whole thing!  Too many missionaries have the "holier than though attitude" because we're right and everyone else is wrong!  Just because someone isn't part of our creed of Christianity doesn't mean that they aren't good disciples of Jesus Christ!  A lot of the missionaries view people in such a bad way!  They view them as misguided and wrong just because they have different beliefs than us!  It's so WRONG!  I have a testimony of the church, and I know the church is true, but I'll never put myself above others just because I have a different belief than them! I'm simply here to serve those who are in need and help those who are interested learning more about our Church!  I'll never go robot mode and pretend to be someone I'm not!  I'll always be myself and have genuine conversations with those around me!  I am NOT here to Preach or teach the gospel!  I'm here to share the gospel and help others understand what we believe in, listen to what others believe in as well, and invite others to find out for themselves!  I could write a whole book on this! 

Anyways, we finished the rest of the Zone Conference where we talked about using Preach My Gospel, the importance of carrying the Spirit with us as missionaries, and repentance! President Larson always gives very insightful and detailed trainings which I'm very grateful for!  You can definitely tell and feel that President Keys is over us as missionaries!  Also, I think missionaries way overthink what the Spirit is and isn't!  At times, we'll question ourselves on whether or not it's the Spirit talking or if it's ourselves!  One thing I've learned on my mission is too not OVERCOMPLICATE it!  If it's good, it comes from God!  I always love using Moroni 7 (it's a really good chapter)!  We don't need to be praying every 5 minutes!  Prayer, of course, is something good, but if you have to pray about every little thing, you are not putting your trust and faith in God!  Don't overthink it and just do it! 

Anyways, after, we went to the 7-11 gas station in Salinas and got In 'n Out with Elder Astle and Elder Rushforth!  We talked for a while about our thoughts and feelings on Zone Conference!  We're gonna go the Pinnacles with them the following Wednesdays!  After, we left Salinas and headed back to Hollister to begin the day!  We drove the backway up the mountains, and we saw some pretty good views!  California definitely has a lot of natural beauty!  

After navigating the windy backroad roads, we headed back to Hollister to begin the day!  We came back and had to finish cleaning up the apartment before it gets shut down soon!  After, we went and visited a couple people and had a really good lesson with Veronica!  We just had a casual conversation about eating random food and how she once ate iguana while in Mexico haha!  

After, we talked about how our church does humanitarian aid and how the church is centered on serving and helping others!  We explained the Law of Tithing and the blessings that came from sacrificing 10 percent of what we earned!  We went over how the gospel changes the way we act, think, and behave and how a positive lifestyle change comes from the gospel!  We bore our testimony of the Doctrine of Christ and how we know it to be true!  We also shared Dora's story and how God communicates with us!  Gave her a physical copy of the Book of Mormon and marked Alma 32 for her to read!  It was a good lesson and me and Elder Isaacson taught her the right way (by being genuine people, getting to know them, and showing them that you care for them, finding out what interests them, etc., and then applying the gospel to their lives).  If you go straight into teaching/preaching mode, you'll never have success as a missionary haha!  You need to have genuine conversations with the person you are talking too!  We are not here to preach and teach the gospel but instead, share the gospel and have genuine conversations with others!  I have a lot of thoughts about this haha!  We ended the night with a couple contacts!

Saturday and Sunday were both pretty slow days; we visited a referral named Oscar Garcia!  He just recently moved here from Oaxaca and is looking for a church to join!  He seemed interested and was super nice to us!  For these past couple of days, we weren't able to get much done; we visited the Lepez family and helped them fix their drying machine!  We visited Perla and Mitchell and invited them to church but of course, they didn't come!  Only Eddie and Daniel were able to come to church!  It was good to see Daniel again!  It had been a while since he had come, and he enjoyed the service!  We had lost contact with him for a while since his old phone stopped working; however, when he got his new number, he reached out to us, and we were able to get back into contact with them! During second hour, we talked about the Priesthood, Priesthood ordinances, and covenants!  We talked with him and Hermano Montuy after church, and he told us he's interested in getting baptized!  We still have to help him understand the teachings of the church better but for the first time since meeting with him I can actually see him getting baptized (maybe).  Juan and Dora weren't able to come since they were in Los Angeles visiting their family and Diego was pretty sick today!   Something's going around because everyone is getting sick, including us; the rest of the Sunday was pretty slow and laid back, but we were able to go up to Freemont peak and see the sunset!  It's only about a 100-yard hike straight up hill but the view was gorgeous! It made me appreciate God's creations even more!  Gabino also let me know that he was able to go up to the temple for the first time with members of the ward over in Las Colinas!  I was super stoked to see the photos he sent me and how well he was doing!  Gabino is seriously the best and I'm so proud of him!

On Monday we had District Council!  We talked about sacrifice and the blessings that come from sacrifices!  My favorite saying for sacrifice is, "Giving up something now for something greater in the future!"  I've gained a strong testimony on sacrifice during the mission!  It also makes me appreciate the sacrifices my family have made for me!  I'm so grateful for them and I'm so blessed to have all of them in my life!  Sacrifice also helps us to understand the importance of the Atonement since it's the largest sacrifice ever given by anyone! The soldiers who died for us, the pioneers who crossed the plains, the leaders of the church, etc., have sacrificed and given us so much!  Because of the sacrifices of others, I have all that I have!  I'm very grateful for the sacrifices of others that have blessed me and shaped me into the person I am today!  I hope that my sacrifice as a missionary and spending the time I am as a missionary allows me to serve and help others while also allowing me to become a better person!  

We also got a picture in front of a Patriotic mural since it was Memorial Day!  The rest of the day was pretty slow since it was Memorial Day and no one was home or wanting to talk!  

We went to Lupita's Market and found a couple people!  We talked with some guy named Josue for like 30 minutes haha; he kept wanting us to read and read in the Book of Mormon with him haha.  We eventually had to leave.  

We went over to the Kratzers and had dinner with them!  Sister Kratzer had gone and visited Erika that morning and tried to invite her to dinner/talk to her; she talked to her son instead!  She said her son was very kind but that she wasn't willing to talk to any of us anymore because of the Law of Tithing!  We are still pretty sad about Erika, but we did all we could with her!  Hopefully down the line she can come back into contact with the missionaries! The gospel would bless her life so much!  It's gonna sting for a while!  We ended the night by finishing with a couple contacts!

On Tuesday, we began teaching and finding some new friends!  We were also able to meet with Daniel and have a really good lesson!  We explained to him the Kingdoms of Glory and how we better understand the concept of "Heaven and Hell" because of the Scriptures and modern revelation!  He agreed with what we were teaching, and he had even heard about this concept before!  After, we went over the baptismal interview questions to see how he felt about being baptized potentially!  He was good on all the commandments and agreed with all the questions we asked him except Joseph Smith; he's still not entirely sure if he has a testimony of the Prophet Jospeh Smith and his story!  We bore our testimonies on the importance of reading and praying about the Book of Mormon to gain a testimony of Joseph Smith!  It's the reason I have a testimony in Joseph Smith!  The Book of Mormon is the MOST important tool for conversion!  Since he had a little more time, we read from 3 Nephi 27 since it's one of my favorite chapters in the Book of Mormon!  Every time he's able to meet with us and read the Book of Mormon, he definitely feels a special type of the spirit he doesn't feel anywhere else!  Daniel is very well read in the scriptures, and he understands the doctrine very well!  After, he explained to us how he felt that he still needed to get closer to God, so we went over covenants with him and invited him to be baptized June 7th!  He accepted and he seemed genuinely excited about getting baptized! Daniel has really warmed up to the church and he's going to be a fantastic member of the church!  We just have to help him further understand Joseph Smith so that he can have a firmer testimony in him!  Pray for Daniel and pray that he progresses! He really needs this in his life!  After Daniel, we went and visited an inactive member of the Branch named Juan; he was pretty drunk outside of his home but we talked to him a while; he was pretty hard to understand since he was talking so fast and he was drunk, but we helped him understand how all of us are children of God and how we are equal towards him!  He loves reading in the scriptures, so we opened the Book of Mormon with him!  To end the night, we visited a couple more people and taught English Class!  Dora was able to come, which was amazing!  She is seriously so cool!  She had even gone and helped the sister missionaries teach a lesson the day prior!  I love Dora!  We are going to try and meet up with her and Juan soon!              Elder Copeland