Monday, January 4, 2016

He is someone who I will be life long friends with

 We really have all been blessed these past few years and I will be really sad to see my mission end but luckly I still have many more months to go and enjoy it! We have been working with a great man named Cheng and he really wants to be baptized! We would do it but he is moving to Melbourne in a few weeks so he is praying about it to see if he should do it here or there. We have only been meeting with him for 5 weeks now but he never misses church and reads the Book of Mormon and takes the time to understand it!. He has learned faster than anyone I have ever taught. I will be really sad to see him go but he is someone who I will be life long friends with. I am so grateful for the chance to have spend time with him. And last week he brought his wife to church and we are going to start teaching her. 
Its been a great week and a great year. I love you both thanks so much for everything and all the support. I am always so grateful that you were my parents because you have taught me so well. 
Love Elder Hartley
The Firle Zone with a wonderful round of mission jeapardy!  
Absolutely hysterical!  Elder Anderson had the voice down!! 
Elder Hartley at the Chirstmas program.

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

We hope to have a baptism in two weeks

It’s been a great week and we have been really busy. The City Sisters had 2 people baptized yesterday and I had to interview them last week....first time in a room alone with a girl in a long time. It was weird haha.
We have been teaching a lot of people but they all are either going back to china for summer break (its that time of year here...weird eh) or else moving somewhere else to work. It’s kind of not ideal but its all good cause there are 1000000s of people to talk to in the city and honestly its really not that hard to find people to teach here. The hard part is finding people that live in our ward so we can teach them. Lots of times we teach them once or twice and then refer them to missionaries in there area that can take them to church. It feels like a sacrifice but I know that it helps other missionaries so I don't usually mind too much. Sometimes it is hard.
My companion is Elder Mikami he is from Oregon just graduated this year. He is the most willing companion I have had all my mission and very hard working as well. We get on really well, it’s been a great few weeks. We hope to have a baptism in two weeks with a man named Laurent but we might not because he his going back to china on the 3rd of January. It's the bishops call now.
Things are good for us now. Have a Merry Christmas,
Love Elder Hartley
 Love elder Hartley    
Today was another great day in the Australia Adelaide Mission!  Elder S. Gifford
Nielsen of the Seventy visited our mission while he was on assignment to
preside at a cluster meeting in the Marion Stake.  Our missionaries were very
blessed as he taught with great power and brought the love of the First Presidency.

Monday, December 7, 2015

Brent Malmburg emailed me today

Elder Pitcher, Elder Ruppe and Elder Hartley waiting patiently for dinner at the
mission home.  After dinner the new missionaries will find out who their
trainers will be. This is a fun, exciting night.



Its been a great week and lots has happened. My old companion was sent to the city south area and he is with Elder Henderson my old companion. He follows me everywhere its funny but we are really close. I have spent more time with Elder Henderson than almost anyone else here. I am still in the city north area and am training an elder from organ. Elder Mikami is great he wants to work hard and you would never know that he is knew its been great working with him this week. He is actually my first companion I have ever had in there first transfer everyone else had always visa waited. He have many people to work with and taught a great lesson to a man named Tsia this morning. He has been to church 4 times in a row and we hope that he will choose to be baptized on Dec 27 or Jan 10. I learned something new Wednesday night at the arrivers dinner when we were getting ready to leave. The Spirit was very powerful as the testimonies were born and I was taught more about the atonement in that moment. We have know idea how bad off we would be without it. I was sitting in the mission home and was feeling very grateful for all the wonderful people who were there. I am so grateful for everyone who has been placed in my life and have truly been blessed by the amazing examples from the people around me. I then learned that it is only through the atonement that the people around me are so great. Now not only am I grateful for the changes I have been able to make through Christ but I have even deeper appreciation because I realize that everyone I look up to and am grateful for is the way they are because they also use the atonement. It seems so simple now but I had never thought of that before. We never stop learning and I am pretty grateful for that cause I really like to learn more all the time now. I am so glad that everyone is so well off at home and that things are going well. Thanks for all you do (as always) you are all wonderful. Have a merry Christmas eh! 
Love ya...Elder Hartley


 PS Brent Malmburg emailed me today and says he is going to start painting a sign for me soon cause he is always 6 months behind so if he starts now it will be ready in time maybe haha cracked me up.
 Santa has arrived in Adelaide!
Lunchbreak for the new missionaries and their trainers.  The assistants did some
wonderful training as well as Elder and Sister Larkin. We talked alot about mission
firsts. Here is Elder Mikama and his trainer Elder Hartley.  Next is Elder Ruppe 
with his trainer, Elder Jacobson.  These missionaries will be trained well by these
incredible trainers. They are steadfast, valiant and work so hard. 
Listening intently as President Parker does some training on putting everything 
on the alter for the Lord. These missionaries are taking great notes so they can
let the spirit teach them as they review notes during companion study.

Monday, November 30, 2015

It feels great to be able to help and bless other areas and missionaries

It’s been a great week! I had a companion all week that I was able to work with like normal it was pretty nice. I had 4 this transfer it has been crazy. Today is transfers and Elder Johnson is getting transferred so I will get another new one tomorrow. I am really excited for the coming transfer we have many people progressing towards baptism. 4 were at church yesterday the city is the very best place for missionary work. We find and teach all day I really love it. We have been finding a lot of people that live in other wards and stakes that we teach for a bit get them on date and solid then refer them out to there actual ward. it feels great to be able to help and bless other areas and missionaries with solid people for them to teach. We also have a few people that do live in our ward boundaries that we hope to baptize this transfer. They are all Chinese. One of the recent converts from last year that we taught cooked us a real Chinese dinner this week and it was really good.  Its funny I am all the way in Australia but I think a trip to china would be better to see the people I have become close with rather than back to Australia. I am so glad everything is good at home and that the Lord is taking such good care of everyone.
Love you all have a great week Elder Hartley
Remember the church is true eh!


Thursday, November 12, 2015

So grateful for the chance to Him

It’s been a great and crazy week. My companion was put on special assignment last Wednesday so I have been in another trio with the other city elders (same area there are two sets here) We are still not sure if I will get a new companion or just wait till transfers in 3 weeks. The investigators we found last week one is really great he has been at church two weeks in a row! only problem is he just got on a plane back to china until February. I have his email and we will keep in touch while he is gone. I should still be here when he gets back. Its a tough few weeks here because it is the middle of exams so everyone is pretty busy and then after many will leave to china. We do have several people staying here and a few should be baptized in the coming month. It is so great to be back here, it has really helped me to see how much I have changed (I think that is often hard to really see) I had a cool experience to teach a lesson on a split. It was me and Thomas Bien a Chinese convert elder Pitama and I found and baptized last year. We were teaching this chines man about the God head and it was so cool to see Thomas teach and bear testimony. I remember the first lessons we had with him as he first began to find out God was real and loved him. It is a really exciting time here in the city and I love it. I tell press every week he is not allowed to ever move me again. I get to talk to elder Pitama once a week and he told me that Sam was baptized last week in Darwin that was also great to hear. I have really learned alot about the Lords plan and how we should never question it because it really is perfect. The things that have happened here the last 3 weeks have been so perfectly planned to help me and others around me. I love our Father in Heaven and am so grateful for the chance to serve Him. Hope you all have a great week. Love Elder Hartley 


Monday, November 2, 2015

Transfer time back to the city of Adelaide


On the plane headed back to the city of Adelaide

Its been a great week I am so happy to be back in the City..we found 8 new investigators this week. Sister Judy Bird and her daughter spoke at a fireside yesterday about there conversion story and I got to go to that. It was great to hear her story and I am so grateful to have been a small part of it. 
Love ya all and have a good week! Elder Hartley