4/9/12

hola mis queridos!! como estan?! wow this week is very very spiritual and there are many things that happen!! we are working so hard here and trying to get this branch up on is feet so that they can start to be self working...or like efficient? if that make sense!! my companion and i are representando ARIZONA!! BIG WEST in in ALLENTOWN! UH!!

so an update on how it is going here....we have a lot of ready people for baptism and we are teach them so they can be baptize on the 29 de abril! so cool! and tyler!!- mira, tenemos un senor que estamos ensenando pero el se regresa a Mexico, pues por alli en cuernavaca entonces se lo pedire su informacion y te lo mando lo mas pronto que sea posible! ok vos?! espero que sigas trabajando hasta terminar, no te olvides de gastar todo lo que tienes por la honra de Dios. te quiero mucho compa, te felicito que hayas cumplido una mision y que hayas tenido mucho extio. te vere...pues mas tarde jaja :) orale!!

so anyways, we have jeremias and his littler sister Rosalin that are getting baptize on the 29 and then we meet a new lady, Emilisa and she has many trials. her husband left her for another a month ago and she is very sad. well, we talk to her about the cleaning power of the atonement and forgiveness, but to not keep punishing herself and well make her life hard. so she tried to kill herself a couple time but she is ok, this happen before we meet her. but as we talk to her, the spirit was there and there are many times that i have invite people to be baptize and well this time i dont want to but i ask her if she belive that joseph smith see God and Jesucristo and she says yes, so i waited and the spirit got strong and strong and i tapping my comps foot so he will invite her and finally after like 30 seconds of her crying and him nervous, he spat it out and he ask her if she will be baptize by someone having the authority and she says with tear in her eyes yes! so cool!! so amazing! i find out that it is my comps first time asking someone to be baptize!! it is so cool :)

i also found out that Joaquin, from norristown, is progressing and he has baptismal date on the first sunday of MAY!! so cool!! the other elders in norristown that are there are teaching him, so that is so cool!! also, i will be going to the temple soon with elder reese because we are the elders that are involved in the conversion of vanessa and she is getting married and in the temple in may i think, so soon!! we had a very spiritual week and many many times i feel the spirit guiding me. i love it and am so grateful for the lord and his help in my life. we are getting so busy, have 7 more investigators and there are great potencial en them.

in alma 29:9 alma is glorying like ammon did and it is so cool becuase it is of the success of the others! in verse 13-14 it talk about that! it is so cool!! so i was with our district leader on thursday and friday, in REading. everyone is dominican or puerto rican so it is so cool!! we learned many things, and he is a very good elder! he ask me to teach him how to be a district leader and so we sat down and i trained him a little of what he can do to be a great leader. i not perfect and in that time i now know how much i learn as a district leader. it is so amazing! the lord made me so strong and i was able to be a good influence for him. i love the great example of jesucristo for us and the thing he did for us. his resurreccion is so importante! through his death, and his resurreccion we will live again. i feel the spirit so much on sunday and i have never feel that ever!! we had a great program and it was musical and we sang himnos and the 70 people of the branch were so excited to get out and spread the gospel! i am so glad that they are here, there are many less active but on saturday i fried my brain and took the ward list, found out who is active, and the one that are not, i looked for all the streets and put all the names that live on that street, for every body! it took so long but now it is easy for us to go on foot and visit them. i hate being in a car, i dont want to get PHAT!

Elder Kerouac! el domingo conoci a Rosa!! ella esta bien y te dice que te quiere mucho y que te extrana! espero que estes bien!! allentown sera como wilmington y filadelfia PRONTO!! te quiero PAI!

so i love this area, the work is so good and we have many things to do. the new branch presidente is so excited to get to work and the branch members are really special. there are so many things to do, and i know that the lord is ready for this area to shine :) we are working hard and i know that this work takes effort from all parts! without members the church is nothing. YOU run it, and YOU have to power to make miracles :) i love you all and hope you have happy EASTERSS! (nacho libre) 

Alma 31: 36-38

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Elder Gallego

4/2/12

LUCAS!!! estoy aqui trabajando en tu area y vaya, hay tantas cosas que me dejaste y te agradezco por esto!! espero que te encuentres bien y sepas que dejaste un legado aqui para yo seguir! gracias por tu ejemplo! te quiero pai !

Ok so to start this email i have to try to explain all of this in clear and good form so i am going to do it in a list because it is honestly, and i say honestly getting hard for me to write in english! but i will get this!

So my new area is Allentown, PA and it is so full of hispanic people!! i love it! we are having much success and the spirit is guiding our steps! my new companion is Elder Erickson from Gilbert, AZ he is great and has big desire to learn spanish and be a great missionary! i really feel his love and he is so kind! we are having so much work right now! we find 15 new investigators this week and we use the members to help us in the teaching! many people are new and talk to missionaries in the past but these people are very prepared and the lord is watching over us! my new address is 129 S. 8th St. Apt. 1A Allentown, PA 18101 no send package here it is really dangerous and i think people will steal them!

My old companero elder handley went to my old area, North filadelfia....punk. jaja he is so excited! they just baptized carlos, remember him from when i was in philly the first transfer and he is elvys friend!? well elder mailo baptized him last saturday and i was so happy to hear that! elder mailo got transfer to new jersey and the other 7 people that they have ready for baptism is this month! i am so glad for the success that elder mailo and i have! it was so good! the lord help us and now my old comp will be there to convert them and make them strong! we have like 10 people getting ready for baptism here, and will have more to come, there are many future converts here, and we found a few families here in allentown that are ready to get the gospel!

one is Felix and Greilys. Felix has diagnosed with cancer and he is looking for direccion and help from god. we have a very powerful lesson with a member, hno cruz, the first night and the spirit was so strong! we have invited 4 people to baptized this past week, and the spirit has really led us in the right dirrection. i think to alma 26:26-31 and ammon is glorying in god, for the success that they had! it was so much and he was so grateful,. and then in v 32-34 it talk about the anti-nefi-lehitas are the greatest loving people and that not even the nefitas had more love!! and to sum up how i feel, v 35-37. all these verses are how i feel the lord has helped me in my mission. i know that he help us when we look for him. like felix, sometime it take a big problem in life to look for god. i hope that everyone look for god everyday! we have to take the counsel of the profeta and apostoles and read, pray go to church, stay strong in family and endure to the end. the gospel is so simple. the doctrine will never change. god not change and neither will the doctrine. there is always much to learn and many time we dont know how to learn. so we use the gift we have of the holy spirit to guide us and help us every day.

like ammon i feel so blessed from the lord, to hear of the people that we found in other area that get baptized, that all are well, and that it is so joyful to hear those thing! i love this work and i know that like ammon and his hermanos, if we work that hard at anything, the lord will help us get success and help us to learn and grow and up to love the people that we know. the first night, we gave 2 blessing to people. one to a member, hno romero, that might have cancer, and it weird because when i meet him i ask him if he has been in phillly before and he say no, so he ask me if i been here before and i say no, and we both feel that we see eachother, i know it! he know it! we just dont remember where or how or when! it was so special, and i know that the lord has no coincedence...there is no thing as that. everything is part of his divine plan to help us in this life!

we were walking on the street on friday morning and my comp talk to a man and ask if we help him with his bags to his house. he say yes and so we walk with him for like 3 miles, haha all to his house! but he was so grateful to see us, and he say, his name is alfonzo and he is very blessed to be in our path, because we are servant of the lord and he loves us and will always guide us! we share a message with him on the plan de salvacion and he invite us back for another appointment!! it was so increible to see his face change, and the spirit work in him and help him know that we are there sent by the lord for him! i was so glad that my companero did that, it was so good!!

i am so glad that we listen to the profeta yesterday! there are many things that he say and that the apostles say that i wrote down and was able to feel the truth of their words through the holy ghost! i know that they recieve revelation from god and that if we follow their words and counsel then we will be for eternity bless buy the lord! i know that this work, wow, it is so true! i feel another fire lit in me, a more big desire to share the gospel of jesucristo and many things to do! we having 180 less active members in this branch and so there are so many time to fill with the 30 investigators that we teach, it is going to be hard, but we doing it!! the lord loves us, and we must love him too! like matthew 16 says at the end, he who give his life for me and my cause, will find his life! in chapter 19 it talk about the man that want to follow the lord and he say to him to keep the commandments, so he says that he does. well then the lord say to sell all he has, take up his cross and follow him. the man go away sad, because it is hard. i know it is hard, but i also know that it is possible. i had to leave everything that i love to do what the lord command all young men to do. i now know that following him is not easy, but it is much easier. i know that if you not give up, that if you dedicate the time need to study scriptures, pray sinceramente, and go to church, and really be example to all, the lord bless you forever and he make your burdens light and make things posible to do. i love the scriptures, i know pray work and i love it! and i know that la iglesia de jesucristo de los santos de los ultimos dias is true!! Everything will be alright, and it will all be worth it!

Elder Gallego

3/26/12

bueno, we are both out of here! so crazy...my comp and i are getting transfered tomorrow and well, we feel good. i feel good at least. I did what the lord want me to do here. all the less active are now active, and we had so fun here! the members are very sad that we are leaving...they like us a lot and feel like we have been together for more than only 6 weeks...time flies! this will be a big transfer and i am very excited for the new oportunidad to serve the lord and the people. i love the people here and i will always remember the big spirit i  feel when i am here. i really have grown a lot, in spiritual way and well, as misionero i have learned so much from my companero that is so young but so full of so many good things. he understand a lot of thing that i not understand when i was new misionero. i hope and pray that the lord protect the people here and that the members stay active and keep the fire that we were able to bring.

many told me yesterday that i have enough enthusiasm and excitement to run a world and that i can always put a smile on anyone face. well, i wont lie...i think that is true! and if i not able to put smile on someone face i can at least make myself laugh!! i just love to smile...you know that just a smile can change someone life? imagine the smile of Jesucristo and the effect it have on us! i cant start to think about how happpy i feel when i get to see him again. as we are teaching a man name Joaquin, we were able to teach the restauracion for the FIRST time this transfer.. barbaro no? it was insane how strong the spirit acompany us and help us teach this man! we have not been able to teach anyone a full restauracion lesson because they never let us in this transfer until him! well as we talk about it, and we feel the spirit i invited him to be baptize! he says no and explain why he has fear that he will sin again and he not know everything and i tell him that if he has the faith of Jose Smith then he can! my comp then back me up with a strong testimony and the spirit tells me to invite him to be baptize again! so i did and i told him that when he know this things are true will he follow the savior and get baptize by someone who holds the priesthood authority of God. he said yes!! so crazy!! we did not set a date, but he will progress, and we are leaving so the other elders can teach him! it was a great spiritual experience and i am so excited to see what happen with him!

on monday we went to philly, it was so good to see the ghetto again! i love it and my comp looked out of this world!! i took him to the ghetto to get a cheeseSTEAK (sorry that just how we say it...a little emfasis :)) and he was amaze!! it was good, and then we ran rocky stairs, take fotos eat DQ!!! and we take picture at Liberty bell with a mormon family! really nice and it was fun day! also we got to ride septa and that was awesome! i love septa!! so many crazy thing that happen!

on wednesday i had an exchange with elder reese and he and i had good time! i have not been with him since MTC and we have both grown a lot! we talk and laugh and really enjoy everything! he is a great elder and he will be staying to take over norristown with his comp Elder Hall!

yesterday the spirit was very strong. i translated and well, the americans lost haha all but 3 people bore testimony en espanol!! it was great! they were so good, the ward has been so nice to us and accept us and help us! i will miss this place a lot but the lord and people need me other area! i will never forget what i felt yesterday. i KNOW that he lives...i know that he lives. Alma 32:21. that is how i know. i am so blessed to be here, be misionero and share the gospel with hispanic and white people and blacks. i love them all and feel the savior as he help me in the work. the love that you have for those around you, you have no idea how much it mean to them. i dont either, but if we just love them and get to know them and not try to solve their problem but help them learn how to resolve it, then we will understand what it is and what it mean. i think the savior is great example and i know that he love me perfect and i know that i have many things to do better but know that i will have great time learning the rest of life :) i am so grateful for my father who teach me how to work diligently, and my mother who teach me to be loving and obedient, and my sister who teach me how to have fun and my brother alec who teach me how to learn and mi hermanito chandler who teach me how to be just like you older brother...CRAZY! also my grandparents and cousins and every family member for their teach in my life. You have no idea what it mean to me and i not know how to tell you, other that i just LOVE YOU!

become a member of the church, dont just be a member. BECOME who christ need you to become, discover who he is, John 17:3. i know he lives and loves me. 

-- 

Elder Gallego

3/19/12

Hola familia y amigos!! que tal? como les ha ido esta semana! te digo que esta semana me agarro chole por la mano pero bien fuerte y pues no me ayudaba mucho estar afuera toda la semana pero esta bien! ya se me salio la vida por atras y estamos bien :)

So! i hope that everything is good back wherever uds are! we are still working hard and trying our best to find peoples to teach! we had stake conference yesterday and it was good! forgiveness is really good to learn! heavenly father loves us and we need to love him! period! that means by our acciones and by the things that we do. i think about the great things that he has done for me and it was amazing! oh an the email last week, its Psalms 119 not proverbs...if you even looked at it you were really confused i imagine! sorry!

we will be having transfers this week so we are working hard! this week we taught a lot, and we are able to teach some new people but they dont want to come to church...its hard with the church being in english now so that does not help! translating is fun though! its just like beating a dead horse though with some of the people we were teaching so we chared testimony of what we know is true and we told them to call us when they are ready! they say that they will make their own decisions and dont want anyone to ask to be baptized again. the spirit really pushed me to invited josefina again for like the 30th time and she wants to call us when she is ready too, so this week we have no investigators but we are having success with less active!

all but 3 of our less actives came to church yesterday so that was good, i love less actives!! they have been the gold mine for the success i have been able to have with the lords help on my mission! they have the stongest testimony really when they get back in church because of all the trials they have been through with not having the church for a time. i know that the gracia de dios is good for all of us and that we cant EVER give up! Never back down from a trial, they come from heavenly father and he know you can do it!

as the week has gone on i have thought a lot about the special blessings that the lord has given me. i translated my patricarcal blessing to spanish so that i can comprehend it better, and it was so increible to see that the lord is so full of mysteries!! the blessing just has to do with my obedience tho, without obedience i dont get any of those blessing! but as i have strive to be obedient i see the blessing making sense an coming true in my life!! it is so amazing! read yours a lot and you will see things before that are amazing!

i think i have you coveered on suits for you mision alec...i dont fit into any of mine anymore!! haah the pants either!! so i will send those home to you and you can use them!! studd!  oh and the trees are starting to uhh...like the flowers are coming in...i cant remember that word...but yeah, i need some alergy pills or im going to die haah my alegies are intense here!!

Well, make it a good week. i Know that Jesucristo es the Savior and the redeemer. the atonement is real and the libro de mormon es True!! read it and make sure you feel it! Alma 7:13-15. its all right in our hands, now just take it and run!! i love being misionero and i love the lord so much. his love for me i cannot understand but i look at others and know that it is so powerful. he loves me and he loves you. be who he needs you to be! the gospel is real!! I love you all!! we are headed to philly so my comp can see the sights so we got to git!! Nos vemos y que Dios los Bendiga!

-- 

Elder Gallego

3/12/12

Hola!! HEY!!! how is everthing going? i hope to hear that it is well y that the lord is blessing life of you all!!

things this week were just straight up loca!! so much happened in this week!! to start off, it is presidente schaefermeyers birthday today, so i text him and tell him feliz cumpleanos verdad? well he says yeah i wish i could cancel this one i have so many already!! so then i ask him how old he is and he text me says "older that rocks and Dirt". :D he just cracks me up!! anyways...

on monday i had a big surprise exchange with the Assistants and they had no idea what was going on, just that i stayed the night with them and my comp was with elder reese y hall and i went to the assistants apartamento! that night we got 2 foot cheeseSTEAKS!! they were so good!! then we got up at 4:30 A.M. and headed up to Scranton for the Zone Conferencia ahi!! it was really good, and presidente talked about the jots and tittles of the law. when you get a chance go to proverbs 119 and look a the hebrew characters there...its so interesting how some of them are almost same but they are just a little diferente! so what he did was he asked us what some of the important things of that are, and well if its a letter, you have to make sure you write it good or it could be saying something different!! that is like the rules of the mission. all of the jots and the tittles, o sea, the small things make the biggest difference! like no chewing gum in public...the stupidest rule i have ever been given, but i have to follow it! exact obediencia brings milagros!! i know this to be true!! i have been thinking too about how i love this gospel!! it is so important and really has changed my life!!

sister schaefermeyer had us think about our very first time with feeling the spirit and i think mine was when i was sealed to my family in the temple! so that is a great testimony of how even little kids can feel it, and how much it can impact them. i wont ever forget that experience and cant wait to be sealed to my own family! the power is real!! anyways...i was there to talk to presidente about some things that i think would be best for the next transfer and where we should go. since this area is closing, well he is just keeping 2 spanish misioneros, i told him philly or wilmington. so we looked at some things and we are trying to see what to do. but as for now im still here and we are going to try to make some miracles!!

then we had a great day on wednesday, thursday was district meeting and we talked about christlike attributes and what we have to do in order to aquire them! charity!! its so hard but so necessary!! faith and hope are esencial!! i know this to be true!! then, friday we had our zone conference, and it was great!! i learned so much again, and know that as we prepare para the meetings, we will have our questions answered!! also, we were able to have church yesterday, and things are just so wierd!! i have not seen so many americans for a year and one half! every white person out here is puerto rican or mexican! so it was really wierd! and then having church in english, so wierd...i was translating though so i was able to actually comprehend it i think...it is been really bad lately with gospel things in english...im so lost!! i guess thats what happens though! i love it!! :) spanish is the BOMB!!!

anyways, i know this is true. we have the power of the priesthood, el libro de mormon es verdadero!! i finished it again today and i know that it is true!! read it, ponder it in your mind and in your heart and ask our father in heaven if it is true. you WILL recieve an answer!!

remember, this life is all about LOVE and OBEDIENCE!! it is better to be trusted than to be loved :) perfect love Moroni 8:15

Elder Gallego

3/5/12

que onda?! man!! this week was super fast, and super packed with a ton of stuff!!! but at the same time it wasnt...funny how that works. anyways, lets get down to business!!

this week, i was sick for 3 days, monday-wednesday! Totally MISERABLE!!! pero estoy bien ahorita!! we basically read a ton of the scriptures and doctrine!! i love studying the doctrine y los gran misterios de Dios!! so cool!!! i blew my comps mind like 8 times, the book of moises is so totally awesome!!

anyways, we were able to do some more less active hunting and really get into a couple of old investigators that dont live there anymore, so the area book cleaning continues with the wrong address and wrong number of phone with all the old investigators!! we were able to talk to a couple of senores en la calle and man they were super interested with our message! we talked them into letting us go by and teach them english but with the gospel!! they said ok!! so basically while we read the pamphlets in spanish and at the same time teach, we will tell them how to say it en ingles!! they will get converted thru learning English at the same time!! :D

on thursday, we finally left, and were able to go to district meeting. i was really led by the spirit in helping my district understand the importance of making and keeping committments! but all that starts with us! if we can make or keep a committment, how are the people we teach going to do it! the spiritual power of our testimony needed to be able to touch the heart of those people wont be there if we really dont do it! i love how the teacher always learns more than the students :) district leader can be so rewarding if you dont look at it as a way to manipulate other misioneros!! cool stuff!! after i went on an exchange elder call, one of the zone leaders. he basically got to know me, and i him, he is a great elder, we went through accountability and i learned about all the things that i have  to do better! i love learning from my leaders, especially when they tell me im not doing something right or the better ways to do that!

during the exchange, i was able to teach one of their investigators, christian mayorga. he is from peru and only speaks espanol, so they brought me, and i have never taught a more powerful lesson on my mission with a one on one type situation. this guy was so fixed on every word and was so so interested!! he was able to understand the restauracion and el plan de salvacion and the importance and our purpose on this earth!! he is going to be progressing to baptism here in the next month, and i am going to continue teaching him on facebook since the zone leaders know no spanish! such a cool experience!!

yesterday was the shut down of the brach. it was really sad as all were crying and it was a hard thing to watch, but we tried our best to help them know that the lord knows why and that he has purpose in all that he does. they will have the classes in spanish and the sacrament prayer in spanish every other week. this change is mainly for the youth, who need a bigger support than the branch has. so we dont know what is happening with us but we will be good!! :) i know this church is true, god live and jesucristo es Su Hijo!! dont be afraid to stand up for what you know to be true...you never know who could be watching or who could change their whole lives for one simple act :) the gospel helps us grow and we help the church run, without the members, the church is nothing. there is no church, the book of mormon is just a book. but we know that it is more than that, we know that the church is true and for that we are the power!! with God, nothing is impossible.. Remember that!! LOS QUIERO MUCHISIMO!!

-- 

Elder Gallego

2/27/12

Hola familia y amigos!! hola jace y brody! espero esten bien! los quiero muchisimo y los vere en ocho meses dudes!!

this week was good! it went fast, and there are a lot of things that happen. we have been working so hard, going through area book and cleaning it out! there is so many records from 2005-2007 and the people dont live there anymore and they dont have same phone number so we have been trying to visit every body! things have been slow but we are using our time good, and trying to share the gospel! all of the miembros know about the branch getting shut down and that they have to be in the english ward, a lot arent happy but others dont mind. it will be the next sunday that we go to the english building! we have still work hard to get to all the less actives and try to get to know them and see what we can do! we got a less active family of 4 to come yesterday and we had trouble finding new investigators.

i was also able to go to the dentist so they could fix my filling they put in 3 weeks back! it was really hurting so they put in a new one and said that if it doesnt feel better i need root canal, but it feels good ahorita so i think im good! it was cool though because i got to go back to philly! it seemed like a month since i was there but really has only been like 2 weeks. i was doing an exchange with elder hall. he is going through some rough times and i am trying to see what the lord can help us do to get him on track and finish his mission strong. elder reese is doing good, yesterday was the 2 year since his best friend committed suicide and he was a mess all day :/ it was sad. he is pushing through and we are keeping our heads high!

on friday it just decided to snow out of no where! it was a white out for like 30 minutes, but then the sun came out and melted it all away :/ we were so bummed, the weather has been so bad here! its like 60 degrees outside! i have been thinking a lot about what to do as a missionary to become the fourth missionary. basically means to become the missionary that actually changes from the inside as much as outside, in everything and being completely obedient so that the blessings come, and diligent! it all comes down to giving the lord my will, and following his. it is so hard, and is a process but i know that as we let go of our pride and think about what is best for others, and what we really need to do, as the lord teaches us we will come to realize something very important: our most important work in this life is ourself! we have to be converted before we try to convert others. yes conversion is a life long process, but i mean principles. for example: obedience. in my last area, i drove johns car from our apointment back to the house because he took his migrane headache pills that say dont drive and he was like passing out. so i drove home, after my comp and i discussed it. I didnt follow the rules, as it says we cant drive members cars. i talked to president about this, and he say that next time if it happens just call and explain to him the situation and he will say ok.

now as i think about that, it never came to my mind to call president and ask. i would be better to do that. i learned what i need to and now i know what to do next time. simple things that we think dont matter, they do. obedience is so key! so as i have thought about all of that, i realized the lord will never make a rule that will put someone elses salvacion in danger. i know that as we strive to follow the comandments the lord will bless us. i love learning, i love to see change, and when the change is good, even better. the lord lives, he loves us, and we are to look for him all the time! he is always there! i truly feel a love so big for my family, and now my two little sobrinos. i cant wait to see you dudes. we will have so much fun together and i will teach you espanol! i love you all, thank you for the support and prayers!

always remember, obedience brings blessings. Exact obedience brings miracles! Its hard but if we strive to be exactly obedient en vez de obediente, the lord will make miracles happen! Les quiero muchisimo!!

-- 

Elder Gallego