September 27, Last MTC Letter

Jacob heads out on Monday October 1st for McAllen Texas!

Hola Familia,

   I'd just like to ask who do you take me for??? don't you know I've watched bear gryls and am an eagle scout.... I already have a phone card and i'll have a layover in Dallas from 12 to 1ish so I'll give you guys a call if I can remember everyones phone number. hahah. And also sorry about not getting pictures to you for two months the MTC computers aren't working out for me too well. hahah. But that's exciting about homecoming and little miss homecoming queen candidate. And I'm sure dad has went all out in making sure there's a good idea for all the homecoming events. It's funny when I get letters and e-mails it reminds me of my old self and how things used to be and now it feels almost like a dream. Haha But I got a great letter from Sam and Heston this week that had some great advice and i'm very grateful for that.  But I'm feeling like I have everything and am ready to head for Texas. And don't worry I've been pushing through this last week even though it's been difficult sometimes to focus but I'm finally feeling successful and like I'm figuring stuff out. (Except for Espanol) Pero mi idioma es no horrible pero le necesite ser mejor. I want to be able to talke with Sam or Saren in spanish and maybe get a little bit of a practice in before I hit my mission. Haha

 

Alrighty well I'm sorry I am not one of many details in my letters and emails. But the MTC has been an awesome place for me to be prepared for my mission. I've understood most of the lessons in PMG and my knowledge of the scriptures have been so so so much better I am getting closer and closer to the command I want over them in my lessons. I don't know if i told you this but I've been praying specifically to be educated in my dreams so I'm not wasting time. I know this is kinda a crazy concept to pray or think about but it has kinda worked I think. For example when I wake up in the middle of the night either a scripture, PMG lesson, or spanish is on my mind. and some of the elders in my room have said I sleep talk in spanish occasionally. But the coolist experience was when I woke up and had the impression I should read D & C chapter 11 - 12. And these are now some of my favorite chapters. Through chapter 11:7 I now understand what it really means to be rich and what to consider in the future for a job. I wanna work with the church somehow..... But I can't be dreamin offf in the future just yet. But yeah the MTC has been awesome some of my best friends in the older district above us just left and it's been a rough week without them. I've ran in to a guy who knows Glen and Brent. The 3 fingered Stake pres (or Bishop) it was cool to talk to him. Also I ran into an elder from McAllen and talked to him in Spanish he had nothing but good things to say about the area. It's been an awesome adventure and I've made some really good friends and learned things that have changed my life. Mat 10 vs. 39 is my story at the MTC. Sometimes we need to be taken out of the world for a bit in order to find ourselves in it and that's what's happened to me here i'm excited for all my friends to go through the conversiion process also. (Which never ends)

 

But I'm running out of time I think they'll let us email before we leave also andIi'll also talk with you when I get to dallas. I love you and things have been great so far with our investigators we've had 2 baptisms with both Jose's and a date with Luis. I'll be excited when they are real investigators in a week. I 'm excited to leave but i'm also gonna miss this place I'll always remember how I've felt here thanks to my journaling. I'm excited to perhaps share that with you when I get home. So it's almost time to say goodbye to the mountains...... it's almost gonna be as hard as saying bye to walker and ranger. But I love you guys too. haha :) Take care I love you all have a great week and don['t forget to seek revelation through studies and also focus on christlike atributes. 

Love you all

 

Elder Hobbs

September 19

Dear Family,

 It's good to hear from everyone and to see what they're up too. And yes I'm over my sickness finally. 


But let me tell you about my great week...... All my hard work is starting to pay off and it's awesome to see my progress. I've learned so much more about spanish and about the scriptures and how to apply them and teaching skills.  The Gospel/God/Commandments are all an IF.... Then..... Statement if we do something then god's going to do something. In all cases I've seen the if.... is usually a lot less than the then....... Also I've loved my temple attendance and I've found to make the most out of my visits if I try and focus on the characteristics of Christ and god and it seems to be so much more spiritual. But me and Elder Stock had two awesome lessons this week with Jose 1 and Jose 2 both of our progressive investigators have had the same name. haah Even though it's fake it's so so real at the same time. Both lessons we started out with a hymn and it really set it off the mood and we've really found out how to teach by the spirit ask questions, and make commitments and explain why they need to make those commitments.

 But i'm excited for the field and ready to leave. haha the language isn't as bad as it was before I've learned most of it through studying in spanish PMG and BOM and it's seemed to help a lot more then anything else. Well gotta go I'm excited to serve and get out of the MTC but I'll also miss the strong spirit that I've felt here.  I love you all so much and I love the pictures you sent me it's been pretty rough keeping the pictures of Maisie, Jacee, and all the other girls from getting around the dorm. Haha love you all have a great week. I've felt your prayers and have continued to be firm in my works. MAS ALLA
Elder Hobbs

p.s. and we did get to host it was awesome.

September 13

Well,
Guess who sent me pictures this week..... Maria i'm so grateful for that so now I can start my own little shrine with all my friends and a bunch of pictures of the girls. It sounds like life back home is still pretty crazy. haha It's crazy to think that i get my travel plans in a week...... I almost feel like this is my mission rather then knocking on doors and stuff. It's good to hear about the Idahoans I actually got a dear elder from Dori and Weston it's good to hear our family is doing better. And best of luck to Heston in the dove, duck, and possibly swan hunt shoot um dead for me. haha  I've been excited to be getting letters from my friends and seeing how they're doing it's been cool to feel like I'm not forgoten. haah I never would have thought I would have enjoyed receiving dear elders and cartas in the mission as much as I do. hahah so sorry to Sam and Saren for not writing you as much as I should have... and Heston or Sam I'm banking on Ranger being a trained retriever by time I get home.  I'll tell you about my week.

     It's been pretty crazy things have flown by so fast. We had an amazing lesson with Hermano Barton and at the start we sang hymns for an hour.... I never would have guessed that I was capable of that but it was really cool and the spirit was so strong durning the songs. After we finished singing he just asked us questions.... That's it... And he probably taught the best lesson so far, and the lesson we all needed. After he was finished I realized the things that were holding me back. He was truely inspired to ask questions that pertained just to me and come to find out to the rest of the class.  But we had a really cool TRC lesson that went well I like teaching lessons there so much because it's actually real I feel like. And during one of our progressive inv. lessons "Jose" asked me if I was getting paid to serve. I answered no. then jose said well that's gotta be hard for you to give up two years and leave your family. It made me think yes, yes it is. haha but then it made me think of that cheesy quote but only it didn't sound cheesy this time and I shared it with her. A family sacrifices a missionary so other families can have eternity. And I said I want you to have the hapiness that my family has. I was thinking about that all day and all week how blessed I am and that if we all work together and endure to the end we can enjoy eternity together. It was exciting.........
         But that's about it for the week.  Love you all and don't forget family home evening and scripture study. It's just like compainonship study in the mission Sam....
 SUS Hijo

September 6

Well Hola back at you mi familia,

This week was really really robotic but I learned a ton and have continued to feel the spirit since I've been here. I've ran into Josh Lipscombe, Conner Pendergast, Patrick Fishburn, Luek Frame, Jake Nish (just left last week), Ronnie Wardleigh, Lex Skeen, Tanner Meyerhoffer, and Braden Christensen. It's been awesome to see people here that I've known before the mission and to see them going at the work along my side i've also made some really good friends with people inside our district and a lot in are zone. I've started to really like to play sand volleyball 2 vs. 2 of course and play basketball every now and then.  I've had a pretty darn good week other then i'm at that time of year where I always get a cold during football season and huck loogeys all the time. Haha ever since day one everyone in my zone's made fun of me for coughing up my lungs every morning and now that i'm sick it's throughout the whole day. haha


 Heston said that Levi had an accident I feel horrible for him he always finds a way to get injured, and what's Sam's relationship status these days? And are my dogs still stayin happy? Also my Northridge companion's tried to give me crap that Fremont is 0-4 Que pasa? I hope all is going well in the family with work and school and everything else.  I would like to challenge you guys to have a family home evening every Sunday.  Maisie and Heston need to start going under way with mission prep in order to be ready. That's one thing I wish I would have done was to know doctrine and principles a lot better. But as i've learned these things it's all started to make sense why i've done things the way i've done them my whole life.  I've really understood our whole purpose in life a lot better (Moses 1:39) The doctrine of christ and how it can help everyone come unto christ (2 Nephi 31) And why there are positives and negatives and why things aren't just handed to us (2 Nephi ch2). Also Repentance has been made better known unto me and the purpose of it. The scriptures in General have been amazing to finally understand why we need them.... the bible to see Christ's life and the atonement and the example to follow. The BoM provides the "Straight and Narrow pathway" and how we can use the atonement through repentance and why we need to be baptised and what the sacrament is for us. If I didn't have the best understanding of these things chances are Heston and Maise don't either. So teach them and I encourage everyone to seek revelation in there scripture studies and start out with a question so your looking for something to learn. 
  In Elder Kapinschke(?) of the 70's talk he said something really cool that made me come up with a quote. haha he said we can teach anything if we don't have conviction of it in our own lives. I derived the equation....."Teaching with Conviction brings Conversion." I challenge you all to find Conviction in all doctrine and principles of this great gospel. Also, another awesome lesson we had from our teacher Hermano Barton was about our purpose in life.... And before he's said a quote to us. "If the lord needed mediocre teachers then studying and living the gospel averagely would be accepted." (probably slaughtered it. haha) But I realized that that can apply to the pupose of god.... To bring to pass the immortality of man..... This is not something of  no worth and therefore will be very very hard to achieve and we will have to commit 100 % because if we don't were just telling god that his purpose for us isn't that great. So I encourage you all this week to just try to be better in any way focus on a problem and do what you can to be better. The lord only asks for our best, and through the lord our best becomes better. So Repent(change) and become closer to the spirit. I love you all and remember you and will not bear to let any of you down nor the people of Texas. I love you all have a good week. If I wasn't inviting you to come to christ I wouldn't be doing my job so sorry for getting preachy on you all.haha