Week #17

This week was a blast! We taught a ton of people have some new investigators and we got Luz to the visitor center! Plus we had the missionary Christmas devotional. Overall just a really great week. 

First off I got mail from my aunts and uncles my friends and my parents on Friday. I HAVE THE BEST FAMILY IN THE WORLD. It is so comforting to know that I have so much support back at home cheering me on everyday! Thank you to the Clark, Basso and Jeppson family for the Christmas packages! It means a lot to me! Plus sorry mom I already opened them. Oopsies merry Christmas to me!

Also on Friday we had the Christmas devotional where our mission president and his wife read the story of Christs birth then missionaries would go and play Christmas music it was so awesome and after that it feels like Christmas now! Then that night we had the ward Christmas party. Very different because there was tacos and rice... but it was still fun and it reminded me of home. Plus I got to be one of the kings in the play! 

Then to cap my week off we got Luz to the VC!! She is the cutest little old lady. We walked around the temple grounds and the VC then went to a hand bell orchestra that was super awesome! Right before the concert started Luz taps me on the shoulder and gives me two pieces of hard candy, I give one to my companion and we both pop them in our mouths.. turns out they were cough drops.... now I know I won't be getting a sore throat anytime soon!

The funny thing that happened this week was during the concert. The members that helped us get Luz up there wanted to record the handbells and immediately post them to Facebook. They recorded the first song and then when it got down it went quiet, then hermano Marin's phone starts playing the song they just got done playing... heads were turning and we got a nasty look from the conductor. My companion leans over to me and says "who brought those noobs, how embarrassing" I started laughing pretty hard which drew even more attention us. But overall it was a great experience and Luz enjoyed it all! 

This gospel is all about progression, I have been  very impatient with my self from day one. I thought a light switch would turn on and boom I would become this hard working spiritual giant with a powerful testimony that I could share in Spanish. At the Christmas devotional when experienced elder and sister were sharing their testimonies I realized that I have made improvements small but obvious changes. Like a sunrise, everyday it gets a little more bright gradually getting more bright until one day it will be at its peak. It doesn't matter if you have been a member your whole life or got baptized yesterday. Everyday we have the opportunity to progress and make ourselves better and grow closer to our Heavenly Father. Tus is why I love this gospel so much now, because I know if I stay true and faithful the light within me will continue to grow bigger and bigger!

Have a good week everyone! Enjoy the holidays! Remember why we celebrate all of this!

Elder Clark 

Week #16

Week#15

This week was pretty good, it had some ups and down. We had many lessons this week and have some new investigators! But one of our progressing investigators canceled a visitor center trio like 30 mins before we were suppose to go. I had the opportunity to go on exchanges with an elder in his area (the beach) I have a lot of respect for them because no one and I repeat no one wants to talk to them. Plus they are on bikes which this leads me into my funny story

Since we were on bikes and and this elder kept on saying he was super bad with directions I knew we we are going to get lost at some point during the day. So we were biking to dinner and the Elder said its not that far it's just around the corner. So we start biking and biking and biking until I yell at him to stop and see when we need to turn at that "corner" we pulls out his iPad and looks. Yeah we went about 2 miles past that "corner" we needed to take. He just handed the map to me and said here you get us there. I told him no no this is your area you need to learn it but I told him we need to turn on that Aviation so please keep your eyes peeled for that street. We made it to dinner about an hour and 15 minutes late. My companion for the day was super stressed about the whole thing I told him not to worry that everything is going to be ok. And it all was. 

I am so grateful for this gospel. I know without a doubt that this church is the church Jesus Christ established. The more people tell me otherwise the more I believe that this is the true church. I am so grateful for all the support and all the prayers. They are helping me get through every single day with a smile! 

Have a great week!

Elder Clark 

Week #14

This week was super good! We taught a ton of lessons and I went on
exchanges with one of our zone leaders! Plus it was thanksgiving. I
have a lot to be grateful for. And to finish it all off I had my first
investigator come to church!! It's about time. Elder Holyoak and I are
working really hard and well together. Oh and we have 3 baptismal
dates! One of them will probs fall through but it's still good we are
inviting people to change and grow closer to Christ.
We had thanksgiving dinner with a less active family who love us but
won't come to church hmmmmm any ideas? Anyways they are super cool
family and their youngest daughter isn't baptized and we have
Christmas Day set for her! #getmoneygetpaid other than that we are
knocking on a lot of doors and trying to find new investigators we
found 7 this week!! Things are looking up here in the Hermosa Liahona
ward. Then exchanges with elder Rawlings my zone leader was super fun,
it rained that day and we were out grindin in the streets we were
soaked! We get a long super well just wish he was called Spanish
speaking so I could work with him.. Oh well still grateful for him and
his example!

Funny conversations we had this week was with a teenager. We had a
potential at this kids address so we knocked and just started talking
to him. He had earbuds in so we asked him oh what kind of music do you
like? He said Rap so I asked him what was his favorite rapper and he
said some super new rapper (I'm already out of the loop) I had no Idea
so I asked him if he was from here of chiraq or Harlem. He said no he
isn't from any of those places. So I asked where and he said
inglewood.. (It's about a 5 minute drive to inglewood.) then to
conversation kinda paused and he looked at me and said want to know
something about me? Me being me said fire away. He looked me dead in
the eyes and said "I'm a gangster"  me also being me just about said
"is that why you still live with your mommy?" Jk jk we just said
alright we'll have a good rest of your night buddy and left. You meet
the coolest people here. Blessed.
We took a priest out with us this week and we went to go knock on a
less active house and when we turned to go up the driveway the priest
said no way am I going up to that house. We asked why? He said my ex
lives there and the parents hate me.. He told us he got caught
cheating on the daughter in the very house We told him it would be
fine but he refused so we went and knocked on the door while he sat
and waited on the corner for us. Sweet sweet Fabian
Third and final conversation. We went to this one guy who we stopped
by early in the week and he said we could come back at the end of the
week. He was super cool and wanted to learn more. So we came back on
Saturday. We knock on the door and when he opens it he was so so so
excited to see us! He was just in awe that we were at his house. We
tried telling him that he told us to come back. We got a little
suspicious because he was not like that before. Then he said man you
guys do this in the rain???? Elder Holyoak and I looked up and elder
Holyoak says what rain sarcastically. I wanted to ask if his weed was
expired? But We are missionaries so we just said bye buddy have a good
night!
This wee was very eventful as you can see!

Yes Luz came to church!! First time I have had an investigator to
church!! The ward members did an awesome job of making her feel at
home. It was so cool to watch her finally take the sacrament because
we talk to her a lot about it and how it's a promise to God and and
Jesus to always  remember them. Plus we praised her some hardcore
blessings if she came to church and participated in the sacrament. So
grateful for her and her desire to grow closer to him! She is awesome!

Thanks for all the support and prayers! They help a bunch have a good week!

Elder Clark

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Week #13

This Week was awesome! My new companion is elder Holyoak, he is from
Chicago super cool elder that wants to baptize everyone. He reminds me
a lot of my friend McKay Keech. He is super blonde has blue eyes, I
told him Hitler would love him and another elder told him if he stood
butt naked in a wheat field he would blend right in. He is the
greatest and he loves to work hard but have a fun time doing it which
is just what I need. This week we have been working super hard we had
a ton of lessons I think close to 20 but not a lot of solid
investigators.. That's alright though because the lord is seeing our
efforts.

Nothing really to report this week:( sorry it was just a week of us
grinding with nothing really funny happening to us but For some reason
this week we have been seeing a lot of people just taking a break from
walking and peeing on a wall,trash cans whatever they just need to go.
Just when I think I have seen/heard it all this city still amazes me.

Since we don't have a lot of solid or prepared people that we are
teaching right now elder Holyoak and I are promising the lord that
every person we see we will talk to them hoeing that the lord will
bless our efforts and so we can find the elect and help them grow
closer to him. We are gonna try it out this week! So I will let you
know how it goes next week just please keep us in your prayers!

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Week #12

I hope everyone had a good week! I had a pretty good week full of lessons and funny moments. This was the last week of the transfer. Elder Jensen is going to inglewood, I am staying and getting a new companion! His name is elder holyoak <--- I think that how you spell it.. Oh well looking forward to meeting and working with him this transfer!! 

So we have an investigator that got out of prison and he loves talking about being in there, and he told us about fishing. We had no idea so we asked him and it's how the prisoners communicate while they are in their cells he told us all you need is a bed sheet, staples and a toothpaste bottle. We asked him if he could show us and we can make it with him. We started calling it arts and crafts with him. All you do do is take the individual threads from the sheet tie them to the toothpaste bottle and then a chair leg and start spinning. It makes a strong cord. Then they just slide it to from cell to cell passing notes or things! It's a great skill to have. 

Sunday night some drunk guy stopped us by yelling the usual "hey Mormons!" So we went over he sat us down. We ended up talking to him for 2 hours. He wanted to argue but all we did was bare our testimonies. My companion kind of started to argue. I kept a level head through all of it. After we talked about it and my companion said the spirit was not there at all. I felt the same exact way I think because I didn't let  this mans words shake me. All I did was share what I knew was true. I think I had the spirit with me the whole time. It was cool to me and it showed me just how powerful my testimony is to me. I never realized that I had a testimony like this, that even when people try to tell me otherwise I can share my testimony and to me it only makes me realize what I say is true. I'm going to try harder to bare my testimony more frequently because that is how you make it stronger. I have a testimony that this church is true, the gospel and all of its teaching were restored in the fullest, that Joseph smith was prophet of God and that we have a living prophet today. I know that God knows us each individually and loves us. This is my testimony.

Love you all I want you guys to have a good week!

Elder Clark 

Week #11

Another good week here in California! This week flew by. Still not
much success but we are working hard and doing our best. I guess the
Cubs won the series because all we could hear one night was "THE CUBS
WON THE CUBS WON!!!" That's all I know about sports rn and it is
eating me alive. Pero esta bien.

This week our ward mission leader took us to California pizza kitchen
when they got there it turned out to be their anniversary so we got to
celebrate with them! They have a cute little daughter named Belin she
is in first grade. I played with her and colored on the kids menu with
her. We were doing a crossword puzzle and she kept saying to me "use
your brain muscle head!!" I felt like I was with my dad back at home.
It was awesome

This week we have been really praying for tender mercies and that we
will be able to recognize them and be very thankful for them. One day
this last week we were walking and with literally ran into a women who
said "hey elders!" So I asked "how did you know we are elders?" She
told us she is a member but she is married to a Buddhist, and her
husband won't let her go to our church. She told us she wants to meet
with us at the church, and start coming back to church! We thanked the
lord so much for letting us cross paths with this women. That's not
even all we saw this week I could go on and on but I don't want to put
you guys to sleep. I am starting to see just how much this gospel
truly means to me. Everyday I learn something new or a part of my
testimony gets stronger. This gospel is truly amazing and it truly
does help and change people's lives for the better.

I hope you all have a good week!

Peace and blessings

Elder Clark

Week #10

This week has been really good! Went by super fast. We have been teaching more lessons but all of them but one aren't very solid. We are just hoping they realize the importance of this gospel. Heyo we set a baptismal date with a man named Juan Carlos! WOOHOO. We are excited for him and we are hoping to set it with his wife because she wasn't there.

Two things crazy happened to us we came up on a shooting at a play ground this week. Cops were everywhere so we just walked up to them to see what was going on they told us to get the H outta that area for our own safety. There was a little skip in our step walking back to the car. 

And then we were driving to Compton and the sheriff helicopter (the hawk is its nickname) was circling over us and someone in it was yelling something through a speakers so we rolled down the windows to listen and it was saying "everyone get inside lock your doors and windows there is a suspect trying to get into people's house right now. There was cops everywhere. It was chaos. It was an experience. 

I had the awesome opportunity to go on exchanges with Elder Vega! And Elder Pearson! Elder Pearson is one of my zone leaders, he is from Tennessee and he gave me good tips on how to set goals. Elder Vega is fluent in Spanish, he is from Puerto Rico! He is an awesome guy and he really helped me with questioned I had about Nish.

Then since it was the 5th Sunday it was a missionary centered Sunday. I had to give a talk on Joseph smith and why we need to have a testimony of him. I Wasn't nervous at all. It made me realize that I actually know more Spanish then I thought. I only stumbled like 4 times when talking. So this week has been a good Spanish week and your prayers are really helping me. 

I have gained a strong strong testimony about being exactly obedient. On Wednesday my companion and I came out after the alarm went off and came onto the couches and fell back a asleep for another hour. I got one more hour of sleep but that day I was so tired and had no motivation. We had a lesson and it bombed because it was like our tongues were tied both of us could speak Spanish or English. The day just seemed to go on and on. I know now that it is so key to be exactly obedient. I was grateful for Wednesday because it really made me see the difference. 

Thanks for all your prayers I know the lord is hearing them and really helping me out!

Peace and Blessings 

Élder Clark 

Week #9

Thank you all for the birthday wishes! I didn't just have a birthday I
had a birth week! This week has been really awesome! We have been
really busy but have found time to celebrate! On Tuesday we went over
to this awesome members house and he barbecued for me and I think I
ate about 5 pounds of food that day.. It was a blessing and a curse.

That same day (Wednesday) half of the mission got to go to the temple!
The Los Angeles temple is the best temple!! It was really cool because
in the session you go into 5 different rooms. That was a first for me
but the entire building is so beautiful. After I had the opportunity
to have an interview with my mission president. He is a stud. We had a
really good conversation and it was really motivating for me to try to
be better everyday.

Later in the week we had an awesome lesson with this couple they
received our message so well and we are looking forward to going back
this week and teaching them some more!

Funny conversation we had this week. My companion and I were walking
around in Compton we stopped at an intersection so he could pick up
Pokemon cards he found on the ground. SMH. When this car pulled up to
the intersection and he said "Y'all play basketball?" I said "Yes I do
sir!" He responds "Y'all seen that video of two Mormons in the hood
and they schooled our brothers?" "yes we have sir!" The man gives out
a big laugh and speeds always. The people here are fantastic

We are starting to have a little more success now. I think it's
because we are exercising more faith. As a companionship we talked
about some areas where we could be doing a better job in and we are
trying to fix them! I know that if we show and exercise more faith in
the lord  then we will see the lords hand in our lives helping us with
tough times and our struggles. It's because he is a forever loving God
and he will always want us to become better people and he will always
be there to help us make those needed changes so that we can grow
closer to him! I know that to be true, I have seen it.

Peace and Blessings

Élder Clark

Week #8

Yes yes tomorrow is my birthday, so I'm expecting birthday wishes and
cards from my millions of followers on Instagram, Twitter, you know.
Jk jk,this super cool member said we can come over and we will have a
little birthday party for me! Told him It can only be an hour long
because thats all we have for dinner then we need to get back out onto
the streets😁

This week we got dropped by what we thought was a promising
investigator. One lesson she was so passionate and ready to take the
steps towards baptism. Then the next lesson she said she has to drop
us because she has to stay with her Catholic roots. I was super bummed
to hear all of this. It felt like she was breaking up with us and this
was only the third time we have ever met with her. It affected the
companionship and it was hard to finish out that day and the next day.
Luckily we both realized it and we made adjustments so that we could
finish out the week going hard.

On a better note I had the opportunity to be a witness at a 9 year old
baptism! That was super awesome and the spirit was there so strong.
That got me more motivated to go out and see if we can get our two
progressing investigators baptized!

So this week started out really just not good but then turned into a
pretty good week. We got in contact with some potential investigators
and we have return appointments! We are still trying to get Beci and
Luz to church keep praying for them that they can attend church!

Peace and Blessings

Elder Clark