August 15

´´Que te parece, (estoy) fine fine fine, very good very good very good.´´ thats a song that just about everyone knows, and when people ask me how I am I tell them that with the same mexican accent that the singers of that song say and the people get a kick out of it. I'm feeling extremly well and doing so as well. This week I got to go into Tampico for a capicitation Wednesday and Thursday to learn how to be a better teacher, we were in the classroom with Pres. and Hna. Call from 10 am to 5pm every day and in the night working with other misioneros. I felt like I was in the mtc all over again learning learning learning, it was fun. The traveling there wasn't, but it was good, I have alot of things I can do better.
There's promise that was made to Elder Ballard when we was a mission president by a 70s that if every missionary made 10 contacts a day, to get their direction and teach them later and apart from knocking doors, that the baptismal numbers would duplicate in 6 months or something like that so Pres. Call started that about a month ago or more, but no one has takin it serious but recently he has pushed it alot and the first of this week we decided it was time to put the hammer down and give it heck and we started off good, and then I went to Tampico and the numbers went down a little but we decided Saturday night that we had to at least achieve 100 contacts for this week so we had to do 34 on Sunday and we got in 35 and I feel like that may have been a turning point in the mission to help us realize that if we commit to something and put our faith in the Lord, everything is posible. There are so many children of Our Father that are waiting for us, we have to be the ones that go out and do it because members of the church are scared to talk to people about the church. They don't fulfill all of their responsibilities, even though D&C 60:2-3 clearly says that even what you have will be taken away if you are not more faithfull in opening your mouth, so we, as Elders of the House of Israel have to do it. And I love it I really feel strongly that if we do our part everyday, that the results will come to what Pres. Call has in vision, to have a baptismal service every week.
This week we have Zone Conference in the city Valles and thats where Elder Bante is as the Zone leader so we´ll see if I get the package or other mail. have a great week, I loved hearing about the dead calf and the fair, hahaha it would be so typical. I love you all, do you part in the Lords vineyard, be loving and smile, and if not, you really have no hope in this life :)
Elder Hobbs

Aug. 8th

.... the next changes wont be until 12th of September, so I'm going to last more time here in Mante, I came here the end of March, the time has gone by fast, but yet sometimes its seems long ago...and there aren't too many sister missinaries in the mission, maybe ten, but they keep the sisters in safe places, or more safe places and Mante is not included on the list of safe places for the sisters, people always ask us here if there are girl missionaries because they've never seem them, because they dont get sent here amongst the Gadianton Robbers. But i love this place, I've loved being here and seeing the progression of investigators and converts.. God is a God of Miracles and He wants His childeren to follow the gospel and asks us, members of the church, to be the ones to help them out. Thats awesome for the work going on at home, you all dont realize the greatness of what is happening with those families to help them know the gospel and go to church, its opening the pathway for alot more individuals to find the truth as well, maybe their family members in Mexico next or the ones in Utah but the fact of the matter is when we complete the links, theres always another to be completed until all have had the opportunity to recieve the gospel and have had a baptism. its Gods Will and it will be done, but the sooner one can figure it out and participate in the Work, the more blessings one will recieve and more faster will get done the work. May God bless you all to understand the importance of sharing the Gospel and help you keep on keepin on.
Elder Hobbs

August 1st

Let me tell ya that it was a week here in Mante. Its been fun, I love it here, I could live here in Mante I think. The thought has crossed my mind a lot , I could live in Mexico, I think Iwould like to find a job that allows me to live here but make money and doesn’t involve drugs and actuallly today we went to another weddin of investigators of the other companionship of the golden reference I found for them that will be baptised next week. It’s a miracle that God is working with His children, if you don’t believe in things like that its because you don’t know the Gospel of Christ or you don’t’ have faith like it says in Mormon 9. I sent some pictures.... the first day we started using bikes and it rained on us and we came home extremely wet and dirty, but then a strange thing happened, it started raining every day and we came home everyday wet and dirty.... then when I had my bike in the shop once, they borrowed me a bike that I used for a day, its an old timers bike and I really liked it and I felt very classy and would ride it with the posture as if I were and English Man, I enjoyed riding it..... pictures from the baptism of Gilberto, the boyfriend of Karem, and Luis, Karems brother and I were demonstrating ´´the double´´ baptising the two at the same time.... the other picture is Luis and Chikis, Chikis is 15 and is down syndrome and showed up at the baptism with his football helmet on and took pictures with it and doing the John Cena hand wave, and I still hold the belt as John Cena here in Mante, even though i have lost weight and about half my muscle stature. Chikis is Luis and Karem´s brother and He is my favorite friend I think, I love going to their house and talking to him, he´s extremely out of hand, but its getting to the point that he does what I tell him to do more than his own family, sometimes, I love Chikis, he´s got a sweet spirit. When we show up at their house he always yells and I thumb wrestle and arm wrestle him and he always wants to go at it until he wins but even when I don’t let him beat me he yells that he wins and puts his arms in the air histerically like it was the world championship .......... The other picture is from the talent show night that we sang the four of us in the ward combining various hymns and putting it into one, and this picture was when I was doing a hillbilly stomp dance in the song, there was a part where we sang part of put your shoulder to the wheel and I about knocked my companions over when I put my shoulder knocking them down, maybe I got a little excited being on stage.... and the other pictures are my of my ingrown toenail that i got cut open on Thursday, the doctor is a specialist, but i felt like he got a little happy cutting and about cut the the knuckle of my toe digging the toenail out and then cutting out the root of the toenail and stitching it back up, it bled for two days and he said that is normal, that it bleeds lot with the procedure he does, hey put me on an antibiotic and hes going to take the stitches out on Wednesday and he says its looking good, He’s checked it a few times afterwords and right now it actually isn’t bothering me extremely like in the begging. I’ve been walking and riding the bike with one shoe on my left foot and a sandal on the right because i cant put it in my shoe yet. but im expecting to be back to normal pretty soon, it hasn’t kept me back too much from working. so last year before the mision it was one side of my left foot big toe that was operated on and this year, the both sides of my right big toe. crazy.
I’m staying here in Mante again for the next change with Elder Murga still, I´ll be district leader for this change, Elder Remund goes home like the 20th of Agosto, to go to BYU again. I don’t know if I wrote it last week, but I think a huge principle I’ve learned in the mission is that it is impossible to be truly happy without following the Gospel or being obedient to what God asks of us, impossible.
Well have a great week, read your scriptures every day put God before the TV and he´ll bless you all more
love you all
Elder Hobbs

Pioneer Week

Thats cool about the float. Yesterday for the 24th of July we ate in the house of our converts huevos and chorizo con frijol and then we watched The Legacy with them, it was cool. its been along time that I've seen it. I noted that the people in the movie said alot of quotes from doctirne and covenants .
Today we were in the store eating ice cream and other misioneros from our zone came in and one of thems name is Elder Teahan from Sandy Utah and hes going home next week, its weird how fast time flies by. actually he says hes going home for two weeks and then he´ll be up in Logan going to Utah State for the fall semester and already has everything set up. and then Elder Goff has one change left and there's another misionero thats named Elder Remund that is from Missouri thats going home the 20th+ish of August to go to BYU, I'ive been living with him in the same house now for 3 months and it'll be weird to see him go home. and actually in the mission theres quite a large number of missionaries going home this end of the change and the next and theres not hardly any new misioneros coming in, so there will be some areas being closed down. I guess the youth of the church didn't hear Pres. Monson in general conference when he said that every joven with the capacity to serve a mission is called to the work. or maybe they heard but arent choosing eternal life (2nephi 2:27) or they're taking thier time to go to work. but the fact is Time is going by I'm already going to complete 13 months.

God is bringing to pass a marvelous work and is willing to do it, if we can learn to be dedicated in following to precepts which have been established by Him, i would hope that all take heed to what has been said, and fulfill the responsiblities that have been given to us, for it is the only way to find true happiness and peace of mind, through our Grand Mediator.
love you all and have a great week reading scriptures and visiting the people lacking faith and going to church
Elder Hobbs

July 18-Mante

No, you dont have to worry about me finding myself in a zoo on pday, that is that pday doesnt really exist in our mission. We have from 10 to 4 to try to get everything done, washing the clothes, writing internet and doing the grocery shopping, and cleaning the house... we really have no time to do anything else and alot of times we dont get all of it done in one day. We dont do much more. Actually I've never gone to a museum or ruins and that, the most I've done is go iceskating in the winter time.

We had the two baptisms this weekend, it was nice. It was the baptisms of Karems 13 yr old brother and her boyfriend Gilberto. I baptised him, and not thinking about it threw him in the water pretty hard and then the thought came to me that he´s pretty big sized so it´ll be hard to pull him out of the water so as I threw him in I tried lifting up hard also and the other misioneros were the witnesses and said that it looked like he jumped in and out of the water and had the expression on his face like he didn't know what happened to him. Theyre both excited to be in the church and follow Jesus. Karem gave a talk in the baptismal service and she has a pretty strong testimony and is very sure of herself for joining the church and is very excited for her brother and boyfriend. Then afterwords there was a talent show in the ward and it was funny, everyone was all excited and serious. We four misioneros participated in the activity by performing a song we called ´´remix misional´´ that is a mix of verses of hymns mixed together in one.

The time is going by extremely fast.
Have a great week
love Elder Hobbs

July 11th - Mante

We had a pretty great Sunday in church yesterday, 7 investigators and two have dates for this weekend and the church was pretty full. The gospel principles teacher wasnt there again so I taught the class about faith and action tying in principles of Mateo 7:21-27 ish of the difference in between the two houses and Juan 15:10-14 or 13ish and participating in the atonement through our actions of obedience and doing what is asked of us. I've ben reading the new testament and Doctorine and Covenants and have really enjoyed the two hand in hand.

That's awesome about Maisie and her softball, that shes playing so much and having such great success, who would of known 5 or 7 years ago that she would have become so great, and have had developed talents like that. I think its an eternal principle that all should be aware of is our own personal potencial, like the talk of Elder Uchtdorf in the last conference, that with practice and with time is how one learns and becomes great, and something that I'm trying to learn is the virtue of patiently waiting for the success.

I have already learned that principle and the talk by Richard G Scott "the sustaining power of faith in times of uncertainty and testing he talks alot about that aspect that when we have faith in the Lord but things dont quite go our way it helps mold us and better our character and basically it makes us more Christlike and closer to Him. and actually what its done is taken away alot of my pride and made me feel more love for everyone. Just last night I was thinking about who I was 3 years ago, 2 years ago, 1 year ago and right now, and its crazy, my knowledge of the gospel, my attitudes, way of thinking and treating people has miraculously increased more closer to how our Saviour would want us to be. And I speak spanish and teach in spanish I really dont believe I would've wanted to be sent to any other place, I dont know if I could do it, well I could it would just take a year like it has.

Well they sprayed some numbing spray on my toe and cut it out, I almost could have done the same thing, and they didn't give me anything just suggested to put iodine on it so I did and its healing fine. it wasnt that cool. You all have a great time and should follow the counsel of leaders and have family home evenings and invite less actives and non members and have familiy prayers and everyone should be studying the scriptures, and if not, your not really following the plan God has prepared for us to be successfull and bulit on the Rock in all forms. and read the talk of the first presidencye message about ´´im comiteted´´ and think what that means to be commited to the gospel and DO the things that are required of us, this could be a family home evening lesson for today, idea given from me, bye¡!
Love Elder Hobbs

4th of July - Mante

This has been quite the week here in Mante. There is so much stuff you can learn and do in the mission that you cant do or learn any other place. I got my ingrown toe nail yanked out on tuesday, it wasnt the same, or as intense like the one last year they took out. and then they gave me a pedicure in the same package, which was admitidling cool. We started out on our bikes Tuesday for the first time, and by the way we are the only ones here in this city with bike helmets and everyone laughs at us, ´´los insensatos hacen burla, mas se lamentarán´´ and it rained hard and we came home really wet and dirty , and then it happened again Wednesday and then the hurricane came in for Thursday Friday Saturday and took its leave Sunday. Yep, you all weren't to worried about your precious son in Mexico experiencing the hurricane weather in hurricane season. . all tied up with parties and the fourth of July. hahaha . no it wasn't horribly bad, where we're at it just rains alot, and actually the river flooded and houses were feet under the water but we survived, just wet all week. The hurricanes come in every year to flood the cities, instead of a flood every 30 years in West Weber like uncle Blair predicted. It actually gave us some service opportunities to help the people and hopefully that will soften their hearts more to prepare them for the gospel. We had some cool experiences and some others not so cool. and yes i got the package last monday and opened it up on thursday, thanks for the beef jerkey, its good, that farr west peppered jerky is pretty good. and Karem the convert bought me a cake and we ate cake at her house in the night to celebrate my one year out.


I actually had a dream last night that the mission was over and we were all home and Loren and Austin and I were waiting on Chase and Paul from the ward to get home and they said how they miss the mission and I was crying because I felt lost and wanted to go back. I think thats my prediction for the the next fourth of July, 2012.
Have fun and be good and preach the gospel
Elder Hobbs