Christmas Skype!!!

It was wonderful to talk to Silas on Christmas. It didn't seem like almost 5 months since we've heard his voice. His letters and emails keep him close to home while he serves the Lord.

We love Silas!

Merry Christmas!

So this week has been really great. Elder Edward and I are getting along really well. He's from Billings, Montana and he's been on a mission for just over a year. I've been getting to know my area a little better so that's good. East Long Beach is really nice compared to North Long Beach. In fact, most people I talk to about where I just came from gasp is disbelief, haha. One lady said that her job doesn't let her go there without Police escort. She's a social worker. Another asked me semi- jokingly if I had to do drugs while I was there. But it wasn't really that bad, in fact I liked it a lot.

It has been really amazing to feel the guidance of the Spirit as a missionary. On Saturday we had a lesson with a guy who hasn't gone to church in awhile. His name is Chris and I didn't really know much about him so I just opened up my scriptures and shared what I saw. It was in Alma 59 I think and I just talked about how the Nephite army was facing an innumerable enemy and the first thing they did was pray. I told him that even though they were already afraid and thinking about what they needed they had to pray to God to receive strength and comfort which they did. It was just really great because afterwards Elder Edward said that Chris wasn't really sure why he had to pray formally because he thinks about what he needs all of the time. So the Spirit definitely leads missionaries to do certain things sometimes. It's really important to try and listen to what God wants us to do all of the time.

My apartment address is 5551 E 23rd St., Long Beach, CA 90815 so you can send things there now. I like my apartment. It's a lot smaller than my first one but it's nice enough. I'm excited to talk to you tomorrow! I can't wait to hear how old Ella sounds and just how everyone is doing.

It kind of stunk to move right before Christmas but the stress is leaving so that's good. I just wish I would've had time to write everyone a Christmas letter. Hopefully my voice will be a good enough present, haha.

Love you!

First Baptism!!!

Well this week has been very good! Yesterday was Tammy's baptism and it was pretty stressful but amazing as well. We had a huge turnout and everything ended up going according to plan and it was really spiritual. There was another 18 year old girl and her 17 yr old brother who the other Elders baptized and they were really nice.

 

As the program was going on and the talks were coming to a close I started to get really nervous. I was worried that I wouldn't say everything right or maybe I wouldn't be able to pick her up that great but I said a prayer that I would be comforted. I definitely felt peace come over me as I got up and walked into the font. My voice was a little trembling a little but I did it and Tammy started crying afterwards becasue she was so happy. I don't really know how to explain the simplicity and importance of baptism. As I was getting changed I just knew that that baptism counts forever. There aren't many things we can do on earth that are eternal but I know that baptism is one of them. I'm really grateful to have been a part of Tammy's decision to change her life and have a fresh start.

 

One thing that is sad is that I won't be able to teach her daughter that wants to get baptized too now. I am being transferred! I leave tomorrow to East Long Beach. I am going to be with Elder Edward in the Woodruff ward. It has been really weird packing up all of my stuff and getting ready to leave my first "home" but I'm excited for it. Usually transfers are 6 weeks but this one was 5 because of Christmas and just all the new missionaries that are coming in soon. We're getting 100 new missionaries in the next year. 36 in march.

 

So send everything to 6500 E Atherton St Long Beach 90815 aka the mission office.

 

Elder Gallagher

Hello from Long Beach!

Hey Everyone,

This week has been really great! I thought of some more things I could use for Christmas! Maybe a little photo book of family pictures. That would be really nice!

So on Sunday those same two people came to church and they really liked it again! Sovandy is the Cambodian man who already knows a lot about everything and will probably get baptized after he gets home from his trip in Feb. And Tammy is getting baptized on the 16th!!! I'm so happy for her and she actually went with a family from the ward to the L.A temple to see the lights. Her daughter wants to go to church now too so we're excited to go and teach them together.

Right now I'm kind of sick but I went to the temple so that was nice. As time went on I started feeling better ha but now I don't feel that great. Just a cold so don't worry. I'm going to try and post pictures up of the temple for everyone. I bought a card reader!

So I can't think very straight so I don't remember much of this past week but I'm just really excited for my first baptism! Tammy is really nice and I know that this will bless her life forever.

It's really weird having such warm days in December! It makes it feel like I haven't been here long at all. It maybe feels like fall some days but other than that it is t-shirt weather. 

We got to meet with one of the brothers from the temple presidency and I'm pretty sure it was Matt Capone's mission president. President Larkin? That would be fun to ask the Capones. He was a pretty nice man.

Transfers are next week on Tuesday so there's a chance I'll be moving right before Christmas. That would stink but I'll be okay. I'll know next week when I email you.

I'm trying to think of one funny story for this week...

So Elder Jacobson and I were riding our bikes in the bike lane and this black guy was wearing a suit and standing on the side so we stopped next to his car and started talking to him. His shoes were more polished than anything I've ever seen. We asked him his name and he said Harvey. I remembered Elder Sudbury talking about a crazy church guy they found while I was in Compton one day and this was him. He was moving his hands all weird while he talked about our churches. I think Dad would really like him because he was probably the most animated person I've ever seen. He had like 20 Bibles in his car. Just one of many very interesting people we meet on the streets. 

Love you all! I have to get off soon! Sorry I didn't write more. Next week I'll be able to talk about the baptism and transfers. Have a great week!

Love

 Elder Gallagher

 

Monday!

Hey!

 

So this week has been really great. I can't really remember what happened in the beginning so I might start yesterday and go backwards. Sunday was probably the best Sunday I've had here because two of the people I'm teaching came to church! We've only had one lesson with them and they both came!

 

First I'll talk about Tammy. We met Tammy because we looked at a list of people that missionaries had already talked to a little bit. We knocked on her door and she said that she hadn't really had a conversation with the missionaries but she had said they could come back. So we set an appointment and she said that she could do it a week and a half later which is pretty lame so we didn't think too much of it. Jump to a week and a half later. We have a lesson with her and we mainly just talked about how God loved her and that Jesus Christ was so important. She told us that the night before we came by the first time she was praying so hard for someone to help her. She just needed someone to help and make her happy. When we met her we asked her if she needed any help. We do that to almost everyone but I was really asking her if she needed her garbage taken out or her plants watered or anything. She called us angels at church because I really was an answer to her prayer. She wants to get baptized this upcoming Sunday but it might be next Sunday. I would be so grateful to be the instrument that God used to change this woman's life. The Ward was awesome at making her feel at home too which I was so nervous about. Having people at church is so stressful because you want it to go perfectly even though no one is perfect ha.

 

The other person who went to church is a Cambodian man named Sovandy. He just got married and he actually went on Mormon.org and asked for missionaries to come and teach him. He said that he was researching the church because the way he respected his professor who graduated from BYU. He went to Georgia Tech so I guess that professor really stood out. He knew a lot and really wanted to learn about the way we live our lives. He came to church and people thought he was a member ha ha.

 

So we get to meet with them on Wednesday so wish us luck! Yesterday we also had a baptism! Well it was in our ward but I never taught the guy. Elder Jacobson baptized him because he started teaching him on the other side of the ward. It was a good baptism. Harvey Adams is the guy who was baptized and man is he big. He is a huge black guy and it was pretty funny to watch him get baptized. I bore my testimony of how grateful I am now for the sacrament. Being able to start a new week fresh and clean is something I'm taking a lot more seriously.

 

I'm going to go and buy a thing to connect to the computer so I can post pictures again. Sorry I haven't been very good about that. Well the woman who I helped quit smoking is still doing great which is just so awesome. Prayer and scripture study was a huge difference with every other time she has tried to quit. That built my testimony a lot because she really didn't think she could do it.

 

Anyways, I have had a good week and I hope you all did too. I'm sure I'm going to miss you all a lot more as we get closer to Christmas. It was pretty nice because Elder Jacobson's family sent him two advent calendars so I get one too :)

 

 

Elder Gallagher

Thanksgiving!

Hey Everyone,

This week was a pretty good week! It was nice to have Thanksgiving but kind of weird to be a missionary during the holidays. I'm emailing everyone a lot individually today so I think this might be a short email this week. Elder Jacobson and I are doing pretty well. We're both really new missionaries so it's been fun. I can now see that Elder Sudbury trained me really well. I'm pretty comfortable contacting people now and I think I'm getting better and better at teaching.

We actually found people this week! One was a referral and two we found from the area book. They were on a list of potential investigators from earlier this year. We commited that couple to be baptized on the 8th so we're hoping that'll work out! They didn't come to church so we might have to push it back. You know church is at 8am? I'm thankful that we only had church at 9, hah. Our other investigator is pretty hard to get a hold of. It is really nice to have people to go by though. We have been contacting a ton of people on the street trying to reach our goal of talking to 125 random people a week. We've done pretty well!

On Thanksgiving we went to two dinners so I was very full. The two families we ate with are very great families. One of them, the Adduru's are Phillipino so we had a pig too. They're really nice people and I'm glad they invited us over.

This transfer is only 5 weeks instead of 6 because of where Christmas falls on the calender with everything. We also get to go to the temple this transfer which will be really nice. So one of these weeks I'll email Wednesday instead of Monday. As soon as I find out I'll let you know. Hopefully I'll find out a week in advance but if I don't email that's why. Don't worry!

I'm still really liking studying my scriptures. That is something that I wish I had done regularly. Reading brings peace and happiness. I love learning about the scriptures too. I wish we could read any church book but missionaries are only supposed to read the canon and a few other books. I want to read One Eternal Round pretty bad. There is so much to learn and I'm just excited to learn as much as I can about God and everything basically.

I am thankful for everyone's support and the love that I feel everyday from and for you. I'm sorry it took me leaving on a mission to really think about how my relationships with you are the most important part of my life. I love my family! I hope everyone gets better if they are sick and stay better. Does that make sense?

Love you,

Silas

New Companion

Hey everyone,

How is everyone doing? Did Dad end up going to LA in the beginning of Nov? Is it pretty cold? I had a pretty good week even though we don't have any real investigators. Elder Porter, a member of the 70 came to our mission and spoke on the Atonement. It was a very powerful talk and I really enjoyed it. He talked about the Savior suffering in Gethsemane and on the cross for us. Without the Atonement there would be no way for us to progress and be saved. It is so important to try and understand what Christ really did for each of us personally.

This week was my first week with Elder Jacobson. We're both getting along pretty well and working hard. It was kind of sad saying goodbye to Elder Sudbury. I probably didn't appreciate how much we got along and became friends. He was really good at teaching me how to teach people and he's already back in the area so I might see him today.

One thing that I have learned on my mission that I will bring home is the ability to control my attitude. Doing this much work is not exactly "hard" but if you are discouraged or mad the days seem double in length. I'm appreciating the outlook I have on each day as I see some missionaries having a rough day. Each day really is a gift and an opportunity we have to serve the people around us. In Elder Ballard's talk from general conference he talked about serving others. He said that we should pray everyday for the chance to help someone. It is really powerful to recognize the spirit guiding my efforts as I pray to find people who are ready to follow Jesus.

The other night, Elder Jacobson and I were riding around (still always on bike) and we see a lot of people and a lot of the times we pass them. We passed a bus stop and I could kind of see from the back that there was a person in there. I really felt like we should go talk to him so I made Elder Jacobson turn around and we went back. The person was actually a man named Jeff who I had already talked to and we had called last week to see how he was doing. He told us that he decided that God wasn't real because of all of the trials that he went through in the past ten years. He thought that God turned his back on Jeff. It was sad to see him at that point in his life but I knew that the spirit prompted me to go and talk to him. I was able to tell Jeff that God really was there and that He was putting us in his path to bring him closer. Ultimately he still didn't want to hear about the message but it was still powerful for me. Sometimes it is really hard to feel the spirit but I know that as we live worthily and pray for that guidance we can experience it. Of course, after you are baptized you have that gift of being able to have the presence of the Holy Ghost always. He has really brought me peace when I'm stressed or sad. I just know that everything is going to turn out alright.

I hope everyone at home is doing well! Did Noah get my card?

Love you! I have to go...

Silas