Week 24: Changes are coming!!

Halosztok!

Changes are a breauin'! The missionary broadcast was this week and there are a couple of changes in the missionary schedule! We have a lot more flexibility with sleeping and studies! It is super nice!

This week was a lot better with finding. We also got a let-in on Monday! It was perhaps my greatest tracting experience I had on the mission! We were looking at the Less Active list and we wanted to check up on one of them. It turns out that the less active did not live there but we were able to come inside the building! It was a 10 story and we started tracting and we got a let-in! It was a single mother living with her mother! The spirit was super strong as we testified of the Book of Mormon! After the let-in, we gave a prayer of thanks and gratitude for the opportunity to teach that family and we continued! We then found another lady who was in need of service and we talked to her for about 10 minutes. Then we talked to this one man who was smoking outside his door. He explained that there was no God and that his daughter died. I told him an experience of mine and we were able to get his number! We called him back and he said his wife is sick but he said he is interested! The spirit was so strong between me and Elder Gajdos! The love of this people and love of the gospel was strong as well!

Lili's baptismal interview is today!!! Super excited because her baptism is on Febuary 12th which is on a Sunday but everything is good with it! Seeing her grow and progress throughout this transfer has been awesome! 

I know that the Atonement is real and that God lives! I am grateful to be here and preach the Restored Gospel! The love I have for this people is incredible! Thank you for your prayers! I feel them everyday!

Sok Szeretettel,

Elder Ballard

On P-Day we got to walk next to the Danube and go to Heroe's square!!

You gotta take pictures of Graffiti in Budapest!

Week 23: Lots of Blessings

Halosztok!

This week was tough with a lot of personal growth but we do learn the most when we face trials! Perhaps one of the unique things as I listen to the members give prayers is the fact that they thank God for their trails! What a humbling thing to pray for! 

This week me and Elder Gajdos gave several blessings to members around the ward. Both me and him gave our first priesthood blessings in Hungarian this past week which was a great experience for the both of us! 

We were able to meet with our investigator Lili twice this week and she is progressing very well! She is just nine years old but her knowledge of the gospel is much greater than mine when I was nine! She will be having her baptismal interview next week!  We were not able to meet with a lot of our investigators this week because they cancelled but we will be meeting with them next week!

I know that God and Jesus Christ lives and that as we rely on them they will help us! As I continue to work everyday I feel their help! Thank you for all the prayers and I will talk to you all next week!

Sok Szeretettel,

Elder Ballard

We went outside to the Opera house and we tried this super good Vietnam restaurant!!

Elder Gajdos and I are taking pictures of ourselves in the apartment! 

We walked across one of the bridges on our way to zone conference this week! Super cool to see huge ice blocks in the river! 

Week 22: Sok snow! (Lots of snow)

Mi zu!

So it snowed a lot and it was awesome because being a kid from Vegas it is always exciting to see snow! The work has been increasing here in good ol' Kispest! We were able to meet with a lot of investigators this week! We talked a lot about the Plan of Salvation and our baptismal date Lili is progressing! Unfortunately we are postponing her date until Feburary 12th but we have high hopes she will be ready by then!

So I don't know if I told you all this story yet. But a couple of P-days ago while I was getting a haircut, this lady comes up to Elder Gajdos and says like she met with the missionaries a while ago but they lost contact! Gajdos Elder, being the awesome elder he is, talked about what we believed and she was agreeing with all of it! We exchanged numbers and we had the other Elders meet with her and she has come to church twice with her boyfriend as well! It is great to see and witness that there are people in Hungary being prepared for the gospel! 

The family we are meeting with is progressing super well! They are praying and reading together as a family! When we met with them on Friday they told us what happened on the night I called them. They said they came back from the hospital because the dad was in serious condition. It was on New Years Eve when I called them when they just got back from the hospital! I know the Lord has prepared them and I am so blessed to be able to meet and help them!

I know this church is true! I love you all! I hope you all have a safe and awesome week!

Love,

Elder Josh Ballard

More Christmas pictures

Lots of snow!

Helping a sister shovel snow.

Week 21: Cold Weather and Streeting in the Bélvaros

Hellosztok!

Holdiays are over and we are back at it again in Kispest! For P-day we went to Buda Castle to look at the gallery there! Super awesome experience! So much art and culture there! We did a lot of Area Book work this week and we are finding a lot of investigators and potential investigators from it! 

Cold weather here is crazy! The wind chill definitely chills you to the bones! Whenever we go out, it feels like preparing for war, we have so much gear on haha. 

We found 4 new investigators this week! Two were from the Area Book and the other two were from tracting before I came. We were able to meet with the two from the Area Book on Friday. They live in such poor conditions it made me reflect on how much I am blessed! The whole family came and listened to our message on the Plan of Salvation. The  mother was super receptive of the message and we are meeting with them again! The other two investigators that were found by tracting, we had a lesson with them yesterday and it was good! 

On Saturday we streeted at the Bélvaros and it was super fun but really cold! We asked people if you could ask any question from God what would it be? The answers mostly stemmed around the Plan of Salvation. I testify that the Plan of Salvation is true and it blesses lives! 

I hope you all have an awesome week! Jesus Christ lives and he is our Savior!

Love,

Elder Josh Ballard

Buda Castle's gallery 

Week 20: 2017...The Year I Was Just a Missionary

Boldog új évet!

I hope you all had a safe and fantastic New Year's! Hungarians love their New Years! There were so many fireworks that it reminded me of the Fourth of July! Since I live in the jungle of 10 stories it was tough for me to see all of them but I sure did hear all of them! 

On Monday we kind of did a tour of old Buda for P-Day! Super cool! We went to a Labyrinth underneath Buda and apparently Dracula is super famous down there. There were stories and myths about him and all. Then we went to the Houdini museum which was super cool as well! We talked to a magician and he did some cool tricks for us! 

This week was a finding week and we found 3 potential investigators and 1 new investigator! Two of the potential investigators we found on New Year's Eve! One we found by streeting and the other tracting. The potential we found by streeting was a néni who has children that have been asking which church is true! Me and my comp bore testimony of this restored gospel and Joseph Smith! We gave her a Book of Mormon and we exchanged numbers! We will be calling her today! 

Our bapt date, Lili, may need to postpone her baptism until the end of this transfer but we are meeting with her twice this week so it should be good! Ilona, our other investigator was sick so we couldn't meet with her but we did meet with our new investigator Misi from English Class! He brought his dad with him and his dad fought in the 1956 revolution against the Soviets!!! He showed us his 1956 card and told us how he was in jail with Nagy Imre because of the revolution! He also spoke English super well! What a cool guy!! Times like these cause me to reflect how blessed I am to be here and get to know these people!

I am so blessed as a missionary! Thank you for all your prayers! Use this time as the new year begins to find ways to grow closer to Christ and His atonement. I know his atonement not only cleanses but strengthens us! I wish you all a great week and a Happy New Year!!!

Sok Szeretettel,

Elder Ballard

Labyrinth pictures.

Elder Dixon was teaching the magician how to do things. 

Squad strolling to Buda Castle.

Buda Castle

We found some Sparkler's in the apartment so we lit them off.

Happy New Year!

A family gave us this super large pomegranate so we decided to eat it on New Year's. I still haven't finished it!