March 30, 2015

Hey guys! I have more and more good news for you this week! haha It was an awesome week! Just fantastic! The transfer is almost over... one more week. Call outs are this Sunday. I am hoping that I stay here with elder S for obvious reasons. haha This would be a great place to finish strong. We just have so much going on in the upcoming weeks. Each week from here on out, there is like some big event here. Something to look forward to every week. Its pretty unreal. Conference will be awesome this week! I definitely cannot wait for that! B and N will be in town as well as D, so we are going to try to watch a couple sessions with them. 

President Richards came to my district meeting this last week. haha That was pretty crazy! But it was a really good district meeting and he actually gave us some key insights to our next lesson with J. So that was pretty cool. After the meeting, he took us all out to Cafe rio. That was pretty great too. I didn't eat a ton because I knew we were going to the N's for dinner that same night. They make lots of food, really good food. haha President wanted us to invite bro N to speak in one of our leadership meetings. I hope that happens while i'm still here! So, in my last interview with President, he said we should sit down together on Apr 1st and talk about my plans after the mission... so I have that fun conversation coming up this Wednesday... I can't believe that's here already. I need to get my temple recommend renewed as well.. time flies. I tried to tell President the other day that we should push back our going home conversation so I could just focus on the work and stuff, but he said that would not be a good idea. haha So we are meeting this Wednesday .. what do you do? I tell you what, life is much easier when I just think about my mission.... I'm all about playing point by point. One by one. So after I open that door with president this week, I will close it back up again so I can focus. I don't have too much longer... only seven more letters home... It's pretty crazy.

So the good report about bro P - this is just too good! haha We have continued to meet with him regularly this last week. Our first lesson this week with him was when we taught the gospel of Christ.  As we talked about the gospel and as we got to talking about baptism, we emphasized the doctrine of baptism and then retouched on the priesthood authority. It was all making sense to J and he felt the spirit and we turned to him and told him, "Bro N holds that priesthood authority," and  asked "brother P, how would you feel about having bro N baptize you?" And he was stoked about it! He is all about getting baptized. And then, bro N expressed how honored he would feel to be able to perform that ordinance and how he would do everything he could to be worthy to do so. It was awesome. Bro N is the perfect member to teach with, let me tell you! haha He always shares personal powerful testimony and just let's J know how much he loves him and he invites. He has told us on more than one occasion "if i'm going to do it, then i'm going to do it all the way" haha and he does. He keeps the commitments we extend, he is in 1 Ne 14 last we talked to him. He responds with faith quickly and exactly. It's awesome! I hope I can do the same as I receive messages from the Lord! People who are so ready to act on the message we share deserve missionaries who will equally, if not more readily, act on the promptings they receive in order to help the investigators. We are determined to do all we can for brother P as well as our other investigators. There is so much to do! 

So yeah, lots of good things happening here. It is cool to be a part of it. So the next few weeks -game time! This is my game face >:I Very focused. haha So keep these four people in your prayers.  

And I think that is pretty much my report for the week. It was a great week. We are going to continue working hard here. There is so much to do. We are constantly looking for ways we can help the people we are working with. We maintain daily contact with them, which is good. Anything and everything to help them.  This ward is fantastic. 

Have you seen the church's new Easter video. It is also good. It's called, Because He lives. You will like that one too! 

Well, it was good to talk to you guys today! I hope you guys have a great week and a revelatory experience at the Lord's general conference this weekend. I am very excited! 

I love you guys,

elder Hinkle

March 23, 2015

Hey guys!  Our week was amazing! So many good experiences.  We are working with several people. They are in a most important stage of their life. We are aware that the decisions they make now will impact them possibly for eternity; we are very focused on helping them. This is game time for them and for us! Literally, the fourth quarter. So pray for them!

So...conference is in two weeks! What's up!? General conference and Easter! So sweet! We are going to try to watch conference, at least one session with each of our investigators! It's going to be such an awesome day! I am excited! I remember thinking last conference that by the time we had conference again I would almost be going home... it is crazy how fast that has come! And with all that is happening, time is certainly not slowing down. I remember thinking that it would be really close, but I am still in-between the start and the end, which means I'm in the middle! And it feels like that. I feel like I have been very blessed, I feel very focused and I feel like I am in a very good place right now to do the work of the Lord. And I look forward to watching conference with our friends here, I invite you to prepare now to receive the revelation you want to receive in general conference, and I remind you of the promise that if we are seeking direction from the Lord, answers can be found in general conference if we seek them. And remember to noise it abroad through out all the land that the Lord is speaking to all the people of the earth in two weeks time! That is very exciting! 

I have something for you to do tonight as you read my letter. There is a video on lds.org called 'Because of Him.' Watch this video; it's like two minutes long. As you do, think about how Jesus Christ has affected your life. And pay attention to how you feel to recognize the holy ghost. When the video is over, go around in a circle and complete the sentence "Because of Him.....(insert how Christ has affected your life. One sentence) And as you listen to each other, pay attention to how you feel as all of you bear testimony of Christ. That's the holy ghost. I will tell you what's on my mind now. You don't need to elaborate past completing the sentence but I have some more time to write so I will.

 

Because of Him, I can be my best. It means a lot to me that I can rely on the atonement of Jesus Christ in order to be at my best for these last few months. I rely on Him daily because my best is required daily. And because of Him my mission has been the best two years of my life. Now it's your turn.

I love you guys,

elder Hinkle

March 2, 2015

Hey guys! It was good to hear from you today! I enjoyed all of your letters! It sounds like you guys are doing great and that is good news! 

 

Elder S is cool. He is a lot quieter than elder B. But he is a good missionary. He is from Utah, pretty close by. He went to Solitude to snowboard. We have been having great success here together. A lot of really good things have been happening here despite the crazy weather. We had a big ice storm yesterday. I have never seen anything like that. haha Everything was just crystalized in ice. Everything. The cars were covered in sheets of ice. The snow on the ground was frozen. It was like someone poured magic shell stuff over everything. So weird. Everything was shut down. Everyone but the missionaries, of course. The ice just meant that everyone else was together and at home. Good time to knock on some doors. Elder S and I would race up the steep driveways trying not to slip and fall back to the start of the driveway. Then, on the way down we came the closest to snowboarding either of us has been for the last two winters. It was a fun night though. I am one of those people who likes to do missionary work and doesn't want the mission to end. 

So the first two days of the week, elder B said goodbye to pretty much everyone. And that sums up those two days. Then, elder S got here Wednesday and we got to work. We met a less active member that I have never met before. So that was a miracle! We went in and had a good visit getting to know her. Her husband was a little less social but he was cool too. He is not a member. Once it was time to leave we were invited to stop back again and she said Saturdays are good. So we will be looking to get in with them again this week. Maybe we will take some cookies. Anyway, that was good. 

The next day we had a very productive day. We found two new investigators! I had met them on exchanges with elder Plumb and the return appointment was this last Thursday. It went very well. The night we met him last week was below freezing cold, let me tell you. Crazy K had taken his dog outside for as long as he could stand to be out there and then we found him. Boom. As we sat down with him Thursday, we asked him why he let us come back and he said that anyone who is outside sharing a message from God in 8 degree weather has something worth hearing. haha Blessings of the cold! So we taught them more. They had never heard of us before but were pretty open to the shortest summary of the apostasy/restoration. Then, we taught them about the role of the holy ghost and gave them some home work. We are going back this Wednesday to discuss the restoration in further detail. It will be good! 

Oh man, I forgot to tell you... so I went to transfer meeting this week and there were a lot of missionaries that I know that went home. A lot. Then, two of the elders that I came out with went home as well. It was awful. Two elders that I came out with and served around for like the first six months of my mission. Man, it was so weird. Both went home to have surgeries... it was sad. I am so grateful that I am able to and have been able to wait to have surgery. I would not want to go home early. But man, seeing them go home early made me feel much more grateful that I have been able to stay out and have not experienced any complications. That would be the worst. 

Anyway, we are working hard to find new investigators and more people to teach! We will find them! B and N are doing great, as usual. As time gets closer to their baptism, we are continuing to pray for them. They are the best. Just an awesome couple with a lot of faith. They have been through some really rough stuff and it is great to see that the gospel is really bringing some light into their lives. That is really cool. 

That is so sweet that Tyler sent in his papers this week!!! That's huge! I am stoked to hear where he gets called to serve! After being a missionary for so long,  I know that will literally be one of the best things ever! That's just awesome! Way to go, Tyler! It will be cool to be able to see him before he leaves and I am sure I will be so jealous... haha So let me know where he goes! That's too cool! 

I am all about finishing strong for the next few months. There is so much packed into them. General conference is in like four weeks. Thats what's up! I can't wait for that! It's like the last week of this transfer. But yeah, I have been working hard to do as much as I can with the time I have remaining. As time goes on, it has been easier and easier to do the work. And it has become more and more enjoyable.  And I know that as long as I stay focused on the Savior and the work that there will be no distractions that can get into my heart. But I do remind myself of that often. I must remember. There is a phrase in the book of mormon "I would that ye should". The prophets often say this when they are inviting us, the reader, to do something they want us to do. In my study, the most common thing they want us to do is to remember what they wrote when we put the book down. We must all remember what our focus should be. 

Oh, I have to go, I will talk to you next week! 

I love you guys!

elder Hinkle

February 2, 2015 Super Bowl

So, as you were watching the super bowl you may have noticed some elements of the competition. There were two teams. Each was led by a coach who was full of wisdom and experience. Well... ok, just go with me on that one. There is no way to be sure. There was one team that was the good team. The coach of the good team will represent the Lord. He is our coach. Through out the entire game, he wears a mic. Through this mic, he talks to his representative on the field - the quarterback. His name is Thomas S. Monson. He's an all-star. Really, really, good. He was on the cover of the Ensign a couple times! The quarterback is the coach's way of making things happen on the field. And the coach is always talking to the quarterback. Except for sometimes, when the team doesn't run the plays he calls, then he gets all mad and rips off the mic. haha For just a moment, the team would be in a state of apostacy. Fortunately, that won't ever happen again because he has put the his team in the game. Led by president Monson, we are all on the team. And this is key, our team wins the game. How we win is by running the plays the coach calls... so the coach tells the quarterback and then the quarter back calls it out. It is then, our most important duty to run the play. The success of the play depends wholly upon the members of the team doing what they are supposed to do. We must sustain the prophet by following his counsel. By running the plays he calls. If he calls out do not drink coffee, then we don't drink coffee. If he calls out don't watch inappropriate media, then we follow his direction. If he calls out to share the gospel with all the world, we respond with all the effort and enthusiasm of a receiver in the super bowl. As we follow the commandments and run the plays we will win. And I testify that we are indeed led by the Lord. That president Monson is His chosen prophet today and we have the world's best play book in the book of mormon. I testify that if we live the gospel, we will not fail in this contest of life. 

January 19, 2014

Hey guys! The Aussie open starts today! That's what's up! Oh man... this is probably the last slam I will miss for the rest of my life... haha I'll be able to see the French live. I can't believe it's that close.. man.. Well, it sounds like you guys are having a blast right now... As I am writing this, you are probably on the mountain! That's awesome! When I get home, I am going to follow Nephi's example and go up to the mountain often... Now every time you go up to the mountains you are going to think of Nephi, right? Or is that just me? haha 

We taught gospel principles yesterday and brother (coach) N was in our class. He is so cool. He is the most humble guy. It was awesome to have him in class; he knows what's up. There seems to be a lot of cool people in our new ward. I'm looking forward to meeting more of them. I have been here for four days but not really. I've been out of the area a lot....  

Elder B is cool. He is doing great work here. He is fun to work with and I think we will have a great transfer. He has been out for about three months so far... it's weird. He has been out for about as long as I have left... almost. ugh... Everyone asks me how long I have been out as they are getting to know me... and I have to say twenty months... then, they all tell me things like "Oh, you are on your way home" or " you will probably die here" (finish my mission here) haha It's so weird... I feel like four months should be considered a good amount of time but you know, no one really thinks it is... haha Even Jenna apparently... who is already getting excited for it. ha 

So Monday and Tuesday last week were good. My last two days in FS. Our preparation day. We were going to tour Camden yards, the O's stadium, but it rained really hard. So we bought grapefruit and ate them. Not as fun but I think they may be going today.. not sure. haha So those two days, we mostly went around and I said bye to people and set up return appointments for the people to get to know the new guy. It was cool. We stopped by brother K's house and they were home! haha So we go in and chat for a bit. Anyway, as we were setting the return appointment, his daughter was like "yeah, come over Saturday and we will feed you pizza!" haha And brother K hopped on board so they had at least one sweet appointment Saturday. We saw brother K at the single adult fhe. If all went well then he was ordained yesterday and could be sustained at stake conference, which I will be at because we are in the same stake! So that will be fun! 

So I got here Wednesday, got all set up and then we went and visited some people. We had dinner with the F family. He is like the head chef for the naval academy. So we feasted! It was amazing! Elders get fed really well here. It's awesome! We have a dinner everyday this week! That hasn't happened to me in forever! haha And we are a full car area! We are the only set of missionaries in the ward. It is a nice set up. I like it. Turns out the F family are also the parents of a less active guy in FS.

Thursday, we attended a funeral.... that took up a lot of time. We were involved in set up and a member picked us up, so we were waiting for a ride from him and we stayed for lunch... That took up a lot of time. That night we taught a potential family about the book of mormon. They were investigators but they weren't super interested... we had a really good book of mormon lesson with them though. The spirit was definitely there, they just think they are too busy... but they do like it. And we brought a member who lived in the area and they knew each other. So that was really good. 

Friday, we had a leadership meeting in Frederick. I left with the zone leaders at seven in the morning and we got back around five thirty that night... craziness. haha It was a really good meeting though. I have a much better idea of what I am supposed to do/going to do. Effective meeting. haha And then I came back. We taught the G family. They are friends of some progressing investigators here, the soon to be G family. The G's are waiting to be married, then they will be baptized. Just waiting for family to be at the wedding... Anyway, we taught their friends. We had a great lesson but they are not really interested in joining any church. They just like hearing about it... so that was a little disappointing but that's ok.. The G will continue to see them. We also got invited to dinner by this guy named Mark. He is not a member. But he called us up and said elders, I want to feed you. Come over for dinner, but don't worry about preparing anything to teach. We just want to feed you.. haha So we went over to assess the situation. Really nice family. Not interested in hearing our message right now but we asked them who they know who needs a message about Christ. The 18 yr old daughter was like "Could I have some time to think and pray about it and then give you a list?" We said that would be ok. haha They want to have us back and feed us again. We will see. 

So yeah, that's the week. This next week will be good too. I need to get my bike fixed so I can go on exchanges. 

So yeah, I've been out of the area a lot and I'm still kinda playing catch up. I'll have to tell you more about it next week, once I get to meet more people. 

Anyway, I hope you guys have a good week this week! I will talk to you next week! Also, elder M just emailed me back. Brother K was successfully ordained a priest in the Aaronic priesthood. That's what's up.

I love you guys, 

elder Hinkle

January 12, 2015

Hey guys! How's it going? We have had a really good week this week. It's pouring rain today, but that's alright, we will be inside for a while at least. haha That's crazy that Fed hit 1000 wins. That is so many wins. Wilson is going to go nuts with that. I'm so glad it looks like he will still be playing when I get home. Good news. 

We got a bunch of snow Tuesday morning. The day before was freezing but green. We went to sleep and we were awakened by a text from the mission office saying that all cars were grounded for the day. haha It wasn't even 6:30am yet and they were already grounding the cars. We looked out the window and everything was dusted with snow. There was a good amount for Maryland. We could still see the tips of the grass at that point though. haha More came later. It snowed pretty much all day. We went around for hours just shoveling driveways and stuff. We went out to a members house and asked to shovel theirs. Then, we asked if we could just take their shovels around the neighborhood. We shoveled so many driveways! haha It was cool. The member we borrowed shovels from is friends with one of her neighbors on Facebook. I guess they posted how grateful they were for whoever cleared their driveway. Something was happening, so it was a big help. We had an appointment to teach this guy named J about the book of mormon. So we walked there with our shovels. Whenever we would see someone shoveling, we would run up and help them finish. It would seriously take us like two minutes. A guy would be starting to shovel and then we would run up - all three of us, because one of the traveling assistants was with us - and we would finish it off so fast. haha It was fun. We made it to J's house. He is one of those people who never asks for help so we had hoped we would be able to shovel his driveway too, but he beat us too it... but that's ok. We went in and had a really good lesson about the book of mormon. 

By the way, I am getting transferred. So that will be fun. Plus, I hear that they have an awesome youth program there. So things look good. I will have to let you know more about it next week. 

I learned a great lesson this week. God is in control of the situation. He knows his sheep and he is in charge of his fold.  But the lesson is - don't murmur! Murmuring is bad.... and it's very easy to do.... it's awful...  but I must clarify... we were not as Laman and Lemuel...We didn't just purely murmur... when Lehi's family hit challenges they murmured. Nephi, on the other hand, was a man of action. He used his agency to act and affect his surroundings. And through him a miracle was wrought that saved the day. I think we were a mix of Laman and Nephi last week... We kind of murmured a lot... But we were set on taking action. We took a lot of action... and it payed off.  In every situation when adverse events occur, the correct action is to do all you can and trust the Lord to help you. The correct thing to do is, never to murmur, ever... haha So yeah.... easy to say, harder to do. There is also a fine line between murmuring and discussing. I think the line is drawn when we stop talking about action. When we just sit back and criticize and complain... that's a waste of time... 

I am excited for this next transfer. It's going to be weird to be a district leader. I'm not sure how I feel about that. But it should be cool. Naturally, I'm one to just keep to myself more... but I won't really be able to do that.... it will be fun though. I am always happy to accept the Lord's call to serve. 

Did you guys read the first presidency message for the month of January? Please say yes.... it was fantastic. President Monson's message has made me think a lot this week. If any of you in the family have not read it, I invite you to read it.  President Monson is a modern day Nephi. Obedience has always been a hallmark of the prophets. It is the first law of heaven. When God tells us to do something we must obey. And we must do so cheerfully. It is the only way to make the best of things. The doctrine of obedience combined with our desire to be truly happy demands that when the Lord asks us to do something, we say yes quickly and completely.  President Uchtdorf taught us that if a plane charts a course that is off by one degree it will end up hundreds of miles away from it's intended destination. Every time the Lord invites us to do something, be it a call from a prophet of God to serve a full time mission, or an invitation from the bishop to perform an undesirable calling, or a text from the mission president telling us to do something - we are forced to adjust our course. Either we accept the invitation and continue flying the straight and narrow path, or we reject the invitation and we alter our course by one degree... if we do so we will not end up where we had intended to be or where the Lord invited us to be... as you read president Monson's address you will see what I am saying....  This is something that I am convinced is true. 

Anyway... I've gotta run. I hope you guys have a great week this week! It was fun to talk to you. 

I love you guys!

December 22, 2014-Merry Christmas!

Hey guys! Merry Christmas!! Three days! haha  It will be fun to see you guys on Christmas! We have a pretty packed day - we will be going to two people's houses for Christmas dinner. One at three and one at five. haha Then, we will see the L family a little bit before we skype home. And we may try to see some other people. We will see what we can set up. It will be a fun day. This week is pretty crazy. It's a really weird week; we only get like two normal days to proselyte. Crazy. 

Brother K was confirmed in church yesterday! That was great! His home teacher, brother N confirmed him, which was good.  We did everything we could to have a member of the branch baptize him... I do not know if that is a world wide thing or a mission thing but it sure does make a ton of sense. Missionaries...we come and go pretty quick. I would not be surprised if I am transferred in three weeks. The members stay in the area with the new member. So if the members perform the ordinance, then there is that connection within the ward. Ideally, it is a home teacher or close friend in the ward. We have done everything possible to get brother K a lot of friends in the ward. And he has a ton of them.  Oh yeah, and we had like sixty people there at the baptismal service. Awesome turnout! President Richards came and it was a really good service. After the service, the B family, the other people being baptized, invited us and bro K over to their house for lunch. And so we went with them and we had a good time. And then, yesterday, they were all confirmed. Brother K wanted like everyone in his confirmation circle though.. haha It was funny. And his home teacher was voice, so that was great! So now he has the gift of the holy ghost! Plans are in motion to have him ordained to the Aaronic priesthood. as soon as possible. And then we will get him involved and transitioned into full activity in the church. That's what its all about. We have a lot more work to do to help brother K. But he is on fire and things are going really well. 

That has taken up most of our week. It's been a lot of work for brother K. The week before the baptism, we know, is like a spiritual fifth set tie breaker. Just like the time leading up to serving a mission, just before you leave... satan gets desperate and tries hard. We were very aware of that, so we redoubled our efforts to strengthen bro K in the Lord this week. With faith that if we did all we could, then the Lord would help him. Like elder Sam Wong's talk from conference, "when Jesus saw THEIR faith He healed the man with palsy," we spared no expense in meeting with him every day and getting things in order. We made sure brother K was our priority this week. And that was good. We are glad that everything went so well. Several members remarked that the baptism was a very spiritual experience and they really enjoyed it as well. Awesome.

It was a good thing to have the baptism so close to Christmas. It has caused me to reflect a lot on receiving the gift Christ gave us. That is exactly what brother K did this weekend as he received the sacred ordinances which literally allow him to receive the gift of the atonement of Jesus Christ. That is exactly what we do when we worthily partake of the sacrament of Christ each week in church. Talk about embracing the gift. 

This Christmas season I have reflected a lot on what Christmas means to me this year. The themes of faith, trust, and love stand out in my mind. The prophet Mormon tells us "God declared unto prophets that Christ should come. And by declaring the word of Christ unto the chosen vessels of the Lord, that they may bear testimony of Him, the Lord prepareth the way that the residue of men may have faith in Christ that the Holy Ghost may have place in their hearts." This Christmas season, I celebrate that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been declared to the world. And even more, the fullness of his gospel has been restored to the earth! What a blessing it is to have prophets, to have the gospel declared, that we may know about Christ and have faith in Him! What a great gift! The prophet Mormon tells us through faith in Christ, we may lay hold upon every good gift. There are a lot of good gifts out there and through faith in Jesus Christ, we can have them. The prophets have told us about the gifts Christ can give us for a long time.... gifts of hope, peace, joy, overcoming our weaknesses and mistakes, living with our families forever. Just to name a few. All gifts, which mean a lot to me personally and seem to resonate with most of the world. So I celebrate that we have the gospel and know of Christ. Because we know of him and his gospel we have the opportunity to have faith in him and lay hold on every good gift. 

There are many invitations the Savior extends to people. The one that seems best fitting to me for the Christmas season is "be of good cheer". That is my invitation to all of you. Do not be distracted by all of the commercial christmas stuff. Rather let the birth of Jesus Christ and his life and his atonement, rest in your minds, that you may be of good cheer. When we remember Christ, we will be of good cheer. 

Our family has so many reasons to be happy. I am glad I am a full-time missionary right now. Because as the prophets have declared glad tidings of joy to the world, I get to help take the word of Christ to people who have not heard it yet by bearing testimony of Him, so that other people can have faith in Him too. It is definitely a memorable Christmas to see the fruits of the work of many missionaries and members in the life of brother K. That is what it's all about. Helping people to come unto Christ and experience the same joy we have felt. 

Merry Christmas again!

Love you guys,

elder Hinkle