July 28

Well not much to say this week it's been a great two years it's literally been a flash! Thanks for the e-mail you sent me and for all your love and devotion and support you've given me over the years to help me be the missionary i am. I'll be excited to see you and sad to leave but just as i accepted the call to come so will i accept the call to come home. Les quiero muchismo. Y les veremos pronto. 

Elder Hobbs

Jake will arrive home Wednesday July 30th-HOORAY!!!!

July 21

Dear Friends, Family, and fellow servants of the lord,

I felt today would be a good day to send out an e-mail and to describe a little bit about what my mission has ment to me. I will be ending my mission on the 30th of this month. My mission has been the greatest blessing of my entire life. I am eternally grateful for the temporal, spiritual, and eternal lessons i've learned and blessings i've received. Of the which i'd like to share some of the most important things i've learned for you to apply in your missions or life.

-Success begins with the companionship

   If you cannot love those closest to you it'll be real hard to have true love/charity for those you teach and come in contact with. As well a husband and wife dictate the success that the family will be likely to have. The companions that i've got along with the best and worked in unity with were often those that i saw the most success with. Never waste your time being ununified because it'll affect your work/stewardship.

-Making and Achieving Goals

   I've learned from Presidente Maluenda that a goal without a plan is a wish. I can have a goal to baptize 5 people in a month but if i don't have a solid plan than it's just a wish or desire. The plans need to involve all aspects of the work.... finding, teaching skills, member relations, personal obedience, receiving and contacting referrals, and teaching pool of investigators. I can as well set a goal to be a professional Pitcher in the MLB but if i don't have plans to pitch everyday, workout, get recruited by colleges, get myself known, and learn different pitches. Than it's just a desire or a wish. Goal, Plan, then MAKE IT HAPPEN! It applies to everything.

-Killer Instinct/Make it Happen attitude

   At the end of the day you just gotta put on your pants and get stuff done. A good example is Moroni in Alma 51 runs train on the realistas that wanted to have a king. Moroni didn't wait to see what would happen. He didn't have an attitude of we'll see what happens. He went and cleaned the inner cup of the Nefitas because the lamanites were coming to battle. We cannot wait around and wait for life to come to us or baptisms to come to us or baptismal doubts to solve themselves we need to go forth and make it happen and get it done!

-Having a good Attitude

 In the Truman G. Madsen discourses there's a story of Joseph Smith that talks about him telling a close friend that if the mountains of Nova Scotia were piled on top of him he would have the faith that he'd come out on top..... The world has so many downs but the nice thing is we have the chance to choose when to get back up. "Your area doesn't make your attitude, your attitude makes your area" (Revised Quote book  of Elder Hobbs).

-The Atonement is Real

  I have a testimony that our Saviour Jesus Christ Lives. And because he lives we will too after this life and we will all have the chance to live again with our families. Through the Atonement we can become clean of our sins, our short comings and errors. And all those we see on the street and road as well our entitled to those blessings as they obey the ordinances of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that we are called to teach.

Elders, Brothers, and Sisters the mission is like an unending well of knowledge and experiences we are the ones who decide how much water we want to bring up from the well. It requires lots of effort but you can never receive or learn enough there's always more. The only catch is a mission is a limited amount of time so aprovechenla! Take advantage of every moment you can! I love you all and look forward to seeing you all. For some sooner than others. Enjoy your missions, enjoy your lives, and always know that your Father in Heaven loves and cares deeply about everyone of you!

Elder Hobbs

July 14

What a week!!! Things have been great here in Texas there's been a lot of talk about the border lately from members and contacts of all kinds of crazy things going on i'll give you more details when i get home so i don't dive to much in to politics. The other Announcement i have for you is that i am not really going to have souveniors of my mission due to the fact that i went shopping for them early today and it reminded me of the strong dislike i have for shopping. haha but thank you for the letter nothing like reading a big long letter i as well got the opportunity to read Maisie's letter that's great that she's been hitting the ground running and getting a lot of great work done in the MTC. I'd love to work in the MtC but seeing that there's no reason to be in Provo for me  quien sabe. Maybe when i transfer there when i get my associates here at UTB in Brownsville.

But we had a bapitsm this week with Araceli the granddaughter of the member we've been working hard with and we were as well supposed to have a baptism with Isa she got married on Satruday and was planning on baptism this sunday but get this. So thursday she twisted her ankle bad enough that when she wwas walking she couldn't even fit into her shoes, then at the reception she got shot with a BB gun by the neighbors who were mssing around and then on the way to the baptism the next morning they got a flat tire to there car. Crazy! Satan sure had a few tricks up his sleeves. but next week she'll be planning on getting baptized along with another grandkid of Polo we will be looking good to have a baptism. As well i found a family from Utah that is just visiting for the summer and i'm gonnna get them to the ogden temple open house and even bribed them to go to the Treehouse Childrens museum.

Love you all have a great week

Elder Hobbs

July 7

Well I'm glad you were satisfied with your last letter because that's the last detailed letter you may be getting. haha jk 

Well this week has been really good. We had some miracles in the church with members bringing some family members and as well a former investigator came and had a great experience. We will be planning on having 2 baptisms this upcoming sunday. We decided to put off Araceli's baptism for this week due to her mother getting out of prison so she can see and support it. Her mother is already a member and has supported her through letters in her progress towards the gospel.

We spent the 4th of July in our apartments to avoid being hit by a potential drunk on the road and as well being shot or hit with fire works. We cleaned up our apartment real nice. I've prided myself in cleaning and leaving apartments nicer then I found them since about half way through my mission. So I cleaned and took apart our vacuum, through away a bunch of clutter and cleaned up  any other problems around the apartment that were present.

I'm doing my best to stay focused and not get carried away with the future. Our president has been having us make plans in our personal study and I was just recently delegated that ability so it's going to be weird planning stuff but that's basically all I got for this week the gospel's true the church is true and I love testifying to people and letting them know the truth. I as well love changing things up in contacts and being real and bold with them not rude but bold. The work is true and we are always entitled to the blessings of the gospel as we keep the commandments and apply the scriptures in our life. if you desire success, happiness, whatever it is you have to be willing to do the things tha't';ll bring success to you you can't just expect it. Anyways that's my preaching for the week love you all have a good week!

Elder Hobbs

June

June 30

Querida Familia Hobbs,

How exciting another missionary down and another one to go whose going to make you cry the most so prepare yourself now for what's to come. I still remember that day like it was yesterday getting dropped off at the MTC and thinking mom why aren't you crying. Sometimes it's a little depressing being the middle child. haha But just to remind you of the words you gave me that day mom there's nothing to cry about the lord has made your children into men and women  of god. To give them up for two years is to give them the best experiences, lessons, and opportunities you have to offer. Just remember our father and heaven had to send us out as well to learn so the mission is no different! I'd invite you to assume your personal responsibilities as the matriarch of the family this week and to realize your daughter is going to be receiving and giving many blessings for herself and the family. It's not a time to weep it's a time to have joy!

This week we had zone conference and it was my last one so i got to share my dying testimony for sake of time i only got to have 1 minute to share it but i felt so much power from the holy ghost spilling out of my mouth as i bore my testimony. It was very fitting to be here in the harlingen stake center in order to go out with my testimony.... I've spent 10 of my 16 transfers serving in this stake so it'll always be a special place in my heart... Especially when i move down here in about 5 weeks! But it's been fun to reflect on the mission i've decided that there's a great analogy to describe the mission.... It's like drawing water from the ocean there's so much to learn and obtain but we are the ones to choose how much water we want to draw and the bigger the jug the more the work but the more the rewards you get what you put into it... the only catch is you only get to draw water once...... As i approach the end of my mission i know that i won't be a perfect person i will still have much to work on but i do know that i have water to satisfy my thirst and the thirst for my future wife and kids.

Anyways so that's been my little trunkiness thanks as well mom for your july 30th comment. Me and my comp are getting along great like i said he went to Northridge highschool and i've played sports against alot of his good friends and i already have a dinner planned at his mother's home. We have hit it off real well and he's a real humble hard worker i've learned a lot from him and it's my pleasure to have him be my last companion. As for investigators we will be planning on a baptism this week and 2 the following week and we have some people we're working with for the end of the month but they'll need to progress or we'll need to find some new people i really really want to have a baptism my last week of my mission so i'll be working hard for that i just want to find a prepared family that can enter into the temple in a year from now. So i'll need to get them to church in these next two weeks for me to be here and see it but if i'm not here ta wueno. 

But that's basically how life has been going on the mission.... i got to go to stake conference and see a lot of familiar faces members and even some old investigators of mine and others for the time that i've been here in the mission. As of Requests for the upcoming weeks i don't know if i should still be waiting patiently for that birthday package??? haha jk don't worry about sending me anything... I'd like for you to just make sure i'm registered and as well have some potential places for me to live up in USU if i decide that's where i need to be. Not to get too far into the future but i'm gonna want a lot to do when i get home so i was thinking it'd be fun to play demolition on the old roof in our attic.

Anyways i love you all and have a good week and tenga animo y felicidad mom your daughter made a great decision to bless her life!

Elder Hobbs

June 23

Well this week has been great we have had a lot of good stuff going on! I got my new companion his name is Elder Brock Embley he is from Layton and went to Northridge High. I have almost had every companion from Utah up to this point crazy.

Well we are teaching a couple of awesome people right now we have continued to work with a referral we got from some Dallas missionaries. We just found an active member who wants all of his grandkids baptized so we have been working hard on that one will be getting baptized in July and as well we are still pending a couple getting married so they can be baptized.

 I can't believe that my mission has 1 month left it's been a flash. President Maluenda has all the old missionaries begin to make plans with what they will be doing when they get off the mission so just a warning i may be e-mailing you about college things since that applies to future plans. I'd just like to invite you guys to make sure i'm registered for classes and just in case have some good leads with people to live with or apartments in Logan.

Anyways i hope your all doing well and working hard with the sister missionaries Have a good week love you all

Elder Hobbs

June 16

Wow whole world just got flipped upside down back home! I can't believe that my bishop will be released and my stake president what a crazy change. They may be releasing the stake president here in Harlingen as well he has been in for about 9 years and they have an unexpected stake conference here on the 29th in June so i’ve been thinking that's what they're up to this upcoming sunday. 

As for this week it's been really good. It was Elder Bawden's last week here in Texas and he has been excited and sad to go so we had a lot of members give us some special treatment through buying us dinner or cooking special meals for us so we’ve been getting the hook up. It's kinda thrown my stomach off a bit so i've had a real upset stomach all week in fact a couple days ago i woke up in the middle of the night and had to hurl my companion sang me some hymns while i was having my moment he couldn't quite  sleep during the night. haha

We as well had quite a few miracles this week. Through gettting to know all of the members we've found out  we have a lot of part member families to work with we have found an active member who has 3 grandkids that he wants to have baptized that lives with him. We as well have found out a couple other sweet part members and as well we received a super cool referencia from some dallas elders that were teaching a man that is just fascinated with the book of mormon and wants his children to be involved in church activities and we have invited them to be baptized and they're very excited about getting that opportunity so we're seeing lots and lots of miracles. I found out my new companion will be Elder Embley i've never really met him but i'me real excited the mission has been the best thing in the world i'm so excited for maisie to go and reap the blessings for those she serves and for herself and for her future family!

Love you all have a great week!

Elder Hobbs

June 9

Dear FAmily,

This week was great! We have continued to work hard with our auxilary leaders and have continued to try to get more involved with the units. we have recently created a map of all of harlingen for the ward units to see who there missionaries are and as well we will be fixing with one of the bishops to get a sign up sheet to feed the missionaries. I have continued to not have problems eating with members we get lots of food and we almost never have to cook for ourselves so all of my cooking skills i've acquired are being put on hold thanks to the generosity of the members in Harlingen. We have continued to find member after member in our area that hasn't been visited we cover basically half of the English ward and i'd say a third of the spanish ward i'm trying to suggest to the Assistants to split our area due to the overwhelming amount of members we have. haha but it's nice to have them all it's just hard to get those solid relations with limited time..... I've decided i don't want to talk to any members about when i go home in order to keep the conversation on missionary work... And yes Elder Bawden will be finishing up his mission not this wednesday but the following wednesday and he has been going on strong he's a great example of enduring to the end.

Right now our family we;re teaching is in need of some understood principles/commandments..... they are not wanting to get married and we haven't been able to help them get over that but they still love us a ton and feed us and even invited us to this big fiesta at his brother's house but right now we're trying to get the bishop involved and some other members who have been married/have a bit more experience being married.

I got the e-mail from all the friends it was good to see that everyone is working real hard on there missions and seeing great miracles and experiencing the gospel in there lives.... One thing i've learned recently comes from a talk from Elder Nelson.....

 Is that obedience to commandments = blessings every time    

 Lack of obedience to commandments= loss of blessings every time

So many people need so much help but they are digging themselves there own hole by not receiving divine help from the lord. Pride is the biggest thing that brings people down and putting themselves and there abilities before the lord. Or it's the lack of understanding those simple things so that's where missionary work comes in is calling people to repentance so they do those little things to change there life in order to put themselves on track!

I love you family thanks for sending me the pictures and keep working hard as member missionaries!

Elder Hobbs

June 2

Dear Family,

this week has been great we had the Torrez family show up to church they're are little miracle family that we had made the plans to find and we ended up finding brother torrez siting down on a bench at his house and there is 8 in the family! Pretty sweet right? The family loves us to death and all the kids have loved playing around with us and they;ve been reading in the scriptures and praying together up to this point and as well bro. torrez works at a restaurant and he invited us over to eat and he cooked for us so now we have a hook up to a super nice mexican restarurant and more importantly a super awesome prepared family. We made them some cheesecake for little anthony's fifth birthday they didn't have money so couldn't really throw a celebration but he loved it and we sang to him and had a good time he kept fighting with me to sit on my lap.... haha and i kept pushing him off and finally i gave in and said it's your birthday and my companion laughed his head off. So i already repented of that but it was a great night we've already had like 4 lessons with them and we are starting to make some marriage plans..... we as well have another couple that will be getting baptized in july that have been taught everything they are just waiting on there big wedding plans they came up with. As well Maria Ramos the mother of a member in our area got baptized this sunday by her son so we've been seeing lots of success and the lord continues to bless us.

We've continued to work hard with leadership in the wards we cover to get everyone op to par we've helped the elders quorum pres get families and assignments assigned for hometeaching and have been making some plans so that there are at least 2 to 3 companionships to each missionary area so that we can pick a night out of the week and just go blitz there areas with them to help home teaching get done and as well help us in fellowshipping inv and finding them friends. i can't tell you how much a friend helps an investigator in the church i'd take a solid couple of friends over a real solid spiritual confirmation almost every single time....

love you all have a great week!

Elder Hobbs

Rest of May

May 26

Well what a week where should I start.... We had 3 day training in McAllen and it went really really well I got to work with Elder Livingston again for the 3 days and spend the night with him and his companion at his apartment it was a blast to be with him again and see how much we've both changed since last I trained him he'll be a great friend of mine after the mission. I was as well put on the spot with what my biggest goal is right now as a missionary and president told me I needed to think about it cuz I don't have much time to be planning. haha it's crazy to be the 2nd oldest group in the mission it feels unreal... but anyways I told him that I wanna help a family join the church that can enter in the temple in 1 year!

   So me and my comp as we got home we made plans to find that family seeing that he only has 3 weeks left of his mission we had to make are plans pretty fast acting in order to include him on our plans..... i'll come back to that in a sec...

   So we as well had a marriage and a baptism back to back this last satruday and sunday! It's the first time I've helped someone get married on my mission so that was really really cool and the baptism was very sweet they're a great couple and the English ward has fellowshipped them really well. There names are Cody and Amanda. We should as well be having a baptism in the coming week with a members mother they've had to put it off due to the members sons being really really sick they have to drive far and they haven't been able to make it out here.

We've been working really really hard in the Spanish ward due to lack of knowing members in the past and even going to the ward so we've already gotten to know some auxiliary leader in our area that haven't been visited in months..... It's like putting Babe Ruth on the Bench.... So we're starting to get things rolling in the Spanish ward and getting to know all our members and i'll also come back to that in a sec....

Other highlights of the week is... I had 2 encounters with big huskies one of which ended with me kicking one in the face the other a little girl saved us, as well a blue healer and a lab chased us.. I smacked it on the head with my scriptures a couple of times and it luckily dodged my homerun kick. I've learned to take no crap from the neighborhood dogs. haha

So me and Elder Bawden made our plans to find this eternal family and wrote on the left things we'll repent of like little obedience things such as speaking Spanish more often, making sure things are clean and organized, etc.... And then we made plans of what we were going to do such as open your mouth to everyone, contact every referral, work on memorizing scrips, etc.... Basically a plan to be more prepared,consecrated servants to find a prepared family.

So the other day we were walking on the street to contact a referral and we talked to a man lying down on a bench in front of his house and come to find out this man had been praying for god to send him someone to show him the way. We taught his family of 8 the restoration and they loved it and he told us it was true and he prayed about baptism and is going to do it he just needs to get work off on sunday mornings and he has a date for the 15th of june! He will be in the Spanish speaking ward the one that we have been going hard in since I got here to know them all and gain there trust and now we already have 3 families excited to help fellowship and teach them we have a FHE with them tonight with some really boss recent converts. It's been such a testimony builder to me how fast the lord reacts to our prayers and our plans we make and how important it is to be able to have a channel of support when we do get blessed with prepared people/families so make sure your being that kind of family.

Love you all

Elder Hobbs

May 19

Dear Family,

Well everything is still going really really well! we've had a lot of fun working together me and elder bawden and we've seen a lot of success in finding and bringing people to church we're working on getting a guy off of alcohol and also getting a couple married and also a member is helping his mother that is really old get baptized she knows everything and has been interviewed she just needs to come to church this week when she's feeling better to get baptized the zone is looking good to hit it's goal of 10 we have 8 companionships so 16 missionaries. I also got to go see Sanny Benito my old area and everyone remembered me and I got to t talk with some that I had taught who were baptized and that was really really cool! good to see people still active in the church! but sorry I'm gonna write a smaller letter it's a busy p-day and I've decided I want to go to UTAH STATE for college after some suggestions and pondering it out a bit i'll be going there in the fall is the plan. I'll be doing a little bit of registration as well to day to get into some classes President has given me permission to do so.

Anyways love you all and have a great week!

Elder Hobbs

May 12

Querrida familia,

Well you've already heard from me. As i've said the new area is great great great! we've had comp studies every day with missionaries, we've planned out our schedule for the month, and have had meal appointments every single day! it's been great i've had literally no time to unpack my stuff all i have unpacked is my clothes.

I got an e-mail today from Adolfo a guy i helped get baptized in Brownsville he's a secreatry over there in a small branch that he moved into and is doing great it's so good to hear when those your such good friends with are still active in the church! I also got to run into a family i met here when i was in san benito and the little kid still wears the watch i bought him so he could have all missionary like attire and his grandma that i had taught is still real active and enjoying church so it's good to see the fruits of your labors!!! I'm so happy the lord has sent me back to my greeny zone and to be able to see how far things have taken off.

You never know of what kind of affect/effect you can have on people the scriptures are so true when they talk about how joyful it is to know you've taken part in the work of salvation so continue to be involved in the work of salvation familia hobbs and support the sisters and make sure they have people to teach and ask them who they'’re teaching.

Love Elder Hobbs

May 5

Dear Family,

This week has been a good one!  I'll be getting transferred from Robstown still waiting on where  I'll be headed to the whole mission is behind schedule for transfers so will see how it turns out!

I got the chance to say goodbye to Joyce and I about bawled she really complimented me on what I have helped her find in her life and it's such a great blessing to have met her and to have had the chance to teach her in my time up here in Robstown! She will be coming to Utah this summer so I'll be planning on seeing her sometime when she visits. She's the sweetest old lady and is my mother of southern texas. haha

Anyways it's been such an honor to have served here in Robstown zone

it's been an area that has battled a lot in the past and I've felt very blessed to have been here to see a lot of that mentality change we still have alot to change but I've gotten to see the average of convert baptisms double in the time since I've been here so I know the lord is hastening his work and is bringing his prepared to the knowledge of the truth.

I love you all and I'll be excited for the chance to visit with y'all this Sunday, But have a great week and take care!

con amor,

Elder Hobbs

p.s. I found out about transfers.... they still haven't given specifics on the area... but I'll be going back to Brownsville or Harlingen zone I'll let you know next week!