Ya gané‏

¡Hola!,

Well it was a very good week. We had divisions with the missionaries who were emergency transferred here and I went with Elder Gallini who is a 7 foot tall Texan with a month in the mission. It was way awesome but the weather was so hot. i think it was probably the hottest day of my mission and the humidity was unreal. It was fun to be with a new missionary and not only focus on the people we are teaching but also help the missionary. it made me want to train again. But the coolest part was when President La Pierre called about a problem in one of the areas and we had just started talking to this lady, but I had to answer it so i left him there and he looked at me like I was  crazy, but by the time I finished the call he had gotten to known her and taught the gospel of Jesus Christ and set a return appointment, so that was cool to see.

Then, we went to Posadas to do some visa stuff for Elder Ollerton and we had to walk all the way across the bridge which doesn´t look that long, but it is. Luckily I got the classic Argentina Posadas mission foto of these buses that say orgulloso ser misionero and on the back servicio international. Perfect for missionaries here. haha We also got to talk to president a little about stuff that is going on in our zone and also our little group in Ita Paso. He told us that we just need to focus on helping individuals more and less on just trying to raise attendance and all that. He talked about how when the church started not everyone was a Brigham young and there were a lot of crazies but look at what came out of it all. That is what can happen here even if it is just a couple of youth we help who later on build it all up.

But when we got back to the area I was just feeling kind of down and I couldn´t shake myself out of it and that night I prayed hard and received some help but I was just so tired that I didn´t understand it until the next morning when I started talking to Elder Ollerton at the end of our weekly planning. I just started talking out about how sometimes I just am not very content and I don´t feel like I have had a whole lot of success especially recently and then he said that the important thing is that he respects me and he knows the zone respects me and lots of other stuff that helped me out a lot and that I have done a lot of great things on my mission and then I said " i think i´ve already won. I´m already a better person. The rest is just gravy." And it may sound crazy, but that helped me feel a lot happier and it is now going to be the theme of the rest of my mission. I have the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am trying my best to live it. I am trying so hard to help others people have it and if I work as hard as I can and try my best than I have already won. if the people accept it then that is just gravy. I had never thought about it like that but it is way true. The Doctrine and Covenants talks about how great our joy will be with those we bring unto Christ in heaven, but that is just added to the infinite joy of being there in the first place. I have already helped so many people and even if they don´t all accept completely what I teach i know i have helped them and will continue to diligently do so. So if I just keep doing that then I have already won. The rest is just gravy. So me and Elder Ollerton use that as our catch phrase. I say " Ya ganamos" and then we do jamongaru which is when you put your fingers together and then do this snapping thing. (impossible to explain I will have to show you one day) and then he says "Gravy, baby!" haha It is pretty sweet.

This week Cirpriano told us his real doubt. he has some kind of strange belief of who Jehovah is. We tried a bit to explain to him, but he was just blinded by his own logic and trust in his own intelligence. And it may have been a bit direct but I read him 1 Nephi 13:24-29 and explained how the Bible has had parts plain and precious taken from it and told him we need to depend on the spirit and that he has tripped from the problems with the Bible. Then, I bore my testimony to him of prophets and the Spirit and how we need to trust in those things and not ourselves, but he didn´t want to listen. It was interesting to see how I totally logically understood what he was trying to explain, but did not feel the Spirit testify of the truth of what he said because it was not true. But when i bore my testimony I could feel the truth and I hope he could feel it too.

Things are progressing here slowly, but steadily, but the most progress has come from me. I just decided that I am going to be happy no matter what people choose to do. Wish i would have learned that one earlier, but I´ve got my whole life to try and keep the attitude of just seeing the positive and realizing that no matter what happens with other people´s decisions I have the gospel and I am doing my best and if we are doing that than we have already won.

Changes this week. Crazy how fast this change went. Elder Ollerton is going to La Paloma to be ZL 1 and I am staying here and Elder Sanchez who is dying this transfer will come with me. He is way cool and I am way excited to learn from him and get work done here! Also, my zone just ate another zone so we are way bigger and we are going to have to do divisions this transfer with a companionship 6 hours away, so that will be an adventure. Excited for new challenges!

I love you all so much!

Con amor, Elder Hawk

Ya gané

Ozuna Family

orgulloso ser misionero
(proud to be a missionary)

Playa Paraguaya‏

Hola,
I never thought I would be on a beach in Paraguay, but there I was. On the beach. In Paraguay. I love this place. (the pictures are in drop box). We played volleyball with the two zones in Encarnacion and the Gringos won. So that was sweet.

This started out as one of the most frustrating weeks of my mission. We had leadership council on Tuesday and then on Wednesday we had emergency transfers in our zone so we were stuck in centro until like 7 o' clock and then once we finally got on a colectivo (after a very drunk man threatened to kill us) we arrived to find the church full of giant ants. Also, our air conditioning broke and it was quite hot and humid. Then we had our zone meeting on Thursday (which was actually way cool. We had a testimony meeting and it was very powerful) and at Thursday after lunch we had 0 lessons and 0 time in our area. But on Friday we just decided to go out and have ourselves a day. So we did.

We had a few good lessons and then we went back to the street where our apartment is (which is this tiny crappy house that we are finally going to change next week!) and the lady who lives right in front of us said hello so we decided to talk to her. She lives in the house that I have seen every day leaving our house for a month, but  a house that I have never contacted. So we start talking to her and she just starts telling us about how hard her life is with her husband in prison and her 8 kids and working two jobs, etc. She said she just sees us smiling all the time and she wants to be a person like that who just smiles and laughs. It was maybe the saddest thing I ever heard. But the happiest thing she ever heard is when we told her about the power that the Spirit can have in her life to be a constant friend and to guide her and direct her in all she needs. (This was when I began to remember that without the Spirit I am nothing) We gave her a book of Mormon and she said she was excited to read it. She was way happier and more full of hope after we left.

Then we went to teach a family we found with a recently reactivated single mother who has a very difficult life. The husband of the investigator wasn´t home, but we sat down and the wife just started talking with the member and Lilian (the investigator) just started to completely open up and the Sister Barrios gave her way good advice and said that the feelings she gets with the missionaries is the Spirit and invited her to church and everything. We didn´t even do anything, but Lilian said she had only told her parents some of the stuff she told to us. Then on Sunday after a difficult morning we went to visit her and her husband again in the evening. We taught them about eternal families and the Spirit was so powerful. We asked them how they felt and Lilian said that her husband almost never lets people in and doesn´t like talking a lot but with us he just feels a serenity. They said that we seem wiser beyond our years and that we just have experienced so many things and I told them that it is not because of us, but it is because God helps us and supports us and helps us to be more than we are. Something I needed to be reminded of. Then at the end they said that they understand it all very well and I just looked at them and realized that it is because they are not learning but remembering. I had only felt like someone was remembering what I was teaching one other time in my mission. Then they said that when we talk they feel like it is Christ teaching them. That felt really good because that is our whole purpose. But more than anything I have realized again that I am nothing. The Lord does it all and all I can do is try to be His instrument.

I am way excited for the progress here in our zone and in Ita Paso. I am so grateful to be a missionary.

Con amor, Elder Hawk

Gonzalez Family

El que no sirve, no sirve‏

Hola,

The title of this email was my favorite quote in conference. It doesn`t really translate as well in English, but it basically means that if someone doesn`t serve others they aren`t worth anything. But not that harshly. It is hard to explain. haha

Conference was probably the best of my life. My questions were very thoroughly answered. We set up a room for all of the gringos to listen to it in English which was really good. The message is more powerful in your own language and by the voice of the person really giving the talk. So we were all listening in there and every time a Latin guy would talk we would run into the other room to listen in Spanish and then run back to the English room when he finished. haha. I especially enjoyed the MTC priesthood quire and an awesome priesthood session, but it did make me miss Dad, Parker, Tanner, and Grandpa thinking of how we would always watch priesthood session together. My favorite talk was by Eyring in priesthood session. One of my questions was "How can I help others to achieve their potential?" and he hit it on the head. I was thinking of all of the amazing men who have helped me to improve and strive to reach my potential. I am grateful that the Bishop was inspired to make me home teaching companions first with Dad and then with the high priest group leaders. Three amazing men right there. I think now in the mission, and as a leader especially, it is my turn to help others to reach their potential. I have been trying to do it the whole mission, but I really want it to be my focus now.

This week I was in a division for two days with a brand new missionary and it was way good to be able to try and help him and the people at the same time. The new generation of missionaries coming into our mission is awesome. It is cool to be able to work with them and try to help them learn from some of my experiences. But I learn more from the new missionaries than they learn from me.

This week we had a crazy experience when I was in divisions and we finished our lesson early and there is this other neighborhood that is farther from our tiny area, but there are some recent converts that live there and we hadn`t planned to go and it is a bit dangerous and creepy to go there at night cause they don`t have power and so there is no light, but I felt like we should go and so we went. Right as we turned the corner we see a young couple. We had taught the woman but the man wasn`t home so we went to talk to him and I was sure that was why I felt we should go, but then our recent convert comes around the corner at the same time and is way angry and yelling and his son is trying to stop him. So we go over to him and he is saying something about how he is going to fight with his neighbor because he lied and said he stole something. So we calm him down and take him back to his house and sing a song and pray and read the scriptures and he totally calmed down and even prayed at the end that he could forgive his neighbor and that they could settle their differences. I was grateful we got there just in time cause it would have been big trouble if they had started fighting. I am grateful I followed the Spirit to prevent anything bad from happening and also that it helped to calm down our recent convert.

Also, in conference they talked a lot about receiving revelation and on Sunday after conference we took our zone`s numbers for the week and they are all just having a lot of difficulties and we haven`t been able to totally help them yet. So we started talking and then said a fervent prayer together asking for guidance, and right after we realized that the problem wasn`t asking for references or working with members or inviting people to be baptized. Those are only symptoms of the deeper problems that we have which is really just a lack of faith. A lot of missionaries, myself included sometimes, loose faith that they can have success. But we need to have faith that we can work miracles even when all the odds and problems and even the history of the area are against us. We are making good plans for this month and the leadership council is tomorrow so we are really excited for that. I am very grateful that I can receive personal revelation to help myself and others because I definitely would have no idea what to do without it and things would never turn out very well. All that has gone well in my mission is because I sought revelation and received it and followed it. All that has gone bad is because I have not done that. The Lord is so willing to give us the revelation we need. We just have to ask.

Con amor, Elder Hawk

Una semana purete

 Hola,

Well this was one of the greatest weeks of my mission. It seemed like every door we clapped on was just a miracle. We clapped on Cirpriano´s house and his sister had been baptized a few months ago and he said he was way excited to talk to us cause he always wanted to check out the church and talk with the missionaries, but he thought he had to be invited by us first. I almost did a fist pump mid-lesson. He is way excited to learn more and way pumped for general conference.

We also met Romina. We talked a bit about her life and she said that she was single when she was 7 months pregnant with her child who now is like 8 months old and I was just trying hard to listen to her and feel the Spirit and the question came: How did you feel when you were pregnant with your child? After that she just completely opened up and told us about how she had considered aborting her child and her first husband with whom she had already separated was not letting her see her first child and how she made the incredibly difficult decision to move away with her new child and another man to try to make a better life for her new child. She cried when she talked about how much she regretted considering taking the life of her child and how horrible she felt for being with a man that she wasn´t married to and how she has no hope and is afraid of God and doesn´t want to pray to him. And then the words came and we told her how she is a child of God and He always wants to help her and the second time we visited she was a lot better and at the end of the lesson she offered one of the most heartfelt prayers I have ever heard. My eyes started watering when I heard it and after I was just thinking about how if everyone felt the same way when they sinned that there would be a lot less sin in this world. It is always amazing to see how I learn more from these people than they learn from me.

We also had a baptism on Saturday: that was a baptism of the branch's but because we are basically the church leaders here we were responsible for organizing it all. One of the churches had a broken water system so we had to change it last minute and then we couldn´t find the key for the baptismal font.. So we entered in from the back door where the people go in to be baptized and started trying to break it open... Which did not work. There is a pretty sweet video which I will show when I get back. But finally the branch president from the other branch came and opened it for us cause he found the key. Crisis averted. We almost were gonna do it in the river which would have been sweet, but the important thing is that she got baptized. She is so tiny.

Elder Ollerton got sick this week so we were stuck in the apartment for the day, so I made a new map for the area using the google map print out that someone else had made. I had to use my math skills to make an exact copy only 3 times bigger. Also, I made Elder Ollerton soup but we had nothing to measure the water, so instead of eye balling it I took measurements of the container and poured it in until it reached the point of 1 liter. Needless to say I was pretty pumped about that. haha.

Today we gave a training in our zone meeting and we drew in 20 bricks on the wall each one for 4 years of life and drew in a half brick to represent the mission to show how we need to take advantage of every minute. We also talked about how if we lose time in little things every day that it adds up to a lot. Everyone left more excited to work so we were pretty happy. The Lord helped inspire us with that one. It is crazy that I have less than 11 months left. I don´t want to think about it, but I am so grateful for this time I have to dedicate everything to the Lord. I love being a missionary.

Con amor, Elder Hawk

More pictures of the well

                         

The Bricks of our Life

Baptism Day

Mi presidente es un jefe‏

Hola!

Well it was an awesome week yet again. We started out in divisions with the Elders in this tiny little unit of like 10 people that is falling apart cause one family is doing crazy things and offending everyone. So that was interesting. But they called yesterday and settled their differences with the family; and a super inactive member came to church who will probably end up being branch president cause he is excited to start working and helping the church grow. So that was way exciting!

This was also the week of President LaPierre because I think I spent more time with him in this week than in like all of my mission combined. He showed up to San Pedro on Tuesday and talked about the problems they were having and later talked with the crazy member; which helped out a lot. Then we had interviews with him on Friday. We were talking with him about some of the struggles in our area and the problems with some of the members and he said: " You are not meant to be just a couple of young men knocking on a few doors. You are the defenders of the faith.. and the faithful. You are fully commissioned. Do what you need to do. I trust you completely." It was powerful and we asked him if we could write it down after he said it. ha ha In my personal interview we were talking about the mission and he asked me to talk about how the mission is compared with the vision that he has because he knows he doesn´t see all that really goes on, so he asked me a lot about that. We talked about a few other things, but at the end he asked if there was anything else and I said "Just thank you." And he looked at me and said; "It´s not me." And began to describe how he has been sustained and supported in his time as mission president like he has never felt before. He talked about how ideas come to his mind that he knows could never possibly come from him. And then he said that when things start to go good and he starts to feel a little bit prideful that the Spirit whispers to him
 "It´s not you." I didn´t know what else to say to him, but I saw humility in its truest form. He wasn´t saying it to try to look humble, but because he truly believes it and he lives it. I realized that while I have improved that I also need to recognize that it´s not me. It´s always the Lord.

Later, he gave a talk in district conference and talked about how life is a trial and sometimes the greatest trial is the church itself, especially the members which I thought was very interesting. And he always talks using cool stories and is very expressive and at one part when he was talking about how being a member of the church can be a trial he looked at everyone with big eyes and his hands stretched out to the side and said "Welcome to the university of eternity: the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints" and then talked about how it isn´t easy but it is where we learn and prepare for eternity.

Then on Sunday he came to our little group and talked about how we need to see the different clashing personalities that we have as opportunities to improve and learn about ourselves. Everyone was just like mesmerized listening to him. Afterwards he hung around awhile longer and we got to talk to him a bit more just casually. As they were about to live Sister LaPierre asked him what he did with the keys and he said that he had given them to her and she said she didn´t have them and they had a tiny argument and it was pretty funny. I don´t say all of this to try and praise him or anything, because the biggest thing I learned is that him and Hermana LaPierre are just so real. In the interview, in front of a congregation, with a group of missionaries, casually talking one on one they are always the same. They are constant. They don´t try to seem like more than they are or puff themselves up, but they just are who they are.

I am so grateful that the Lord sent me into the best situation for me with the mission president I need. He is a great man.

In other news we dug a well this week. I am still a bit sore. I think Elder Ollerton will be sending pictures for me to Mom and Dad so you can forward them to everyone else. I love you all and am so grateful for all of your support!

Con amor, Elder Hawk

Elders Hawk and Ollerton with Jorge after digging a well! 

"We ended up at 21 feet down so far!!"

Ita Paso no "Un tipaso"‏

Ba´e la porte chera´a (Not sure if it is spelled right but it means what´s up in Guarani)

Well it has been a pretty sweet week getting to know the area and my new companion. We have to walk a lot in this area cause there is one big neighborhood and then a few smaller ones far away. The Elders before have contacted every house here like 5 times, so we are trying out some of the other neighborhoods. It is weird to have an American companion after over 6 months of Latinos. It is fun to be with someone who has had a lot more similar experiences and we have a good time together. Today in our zone meeting we were super pumped cause we planned one of the coolest meetings of my mission. Here the church is super small in some places. Two areas have less than 20 members that go to church and ours has like 30. The topic of the meeting was helping strengthen our groups or branches. So we played the newlywed game with the missionaries to get to know us better and then talked about how our relationship has a strong effect on the members. Then we had a discussion about the challenges and ideas to strengthen the church here and at the end we did a practice where a superhero member moved into the ward because of our fervent prayers and we had to ask him about his conversion experience and got to know him to figure out who he was and then asked for a reference with his conversion experience fresh in his mind. It was way funny because when we did the demonstration and the beginning the Elder was Spiderman and when I figured it out I said "I have always said that with much power comes much responsibility" and everyone started laughing and we used it to receive the reference of his friend whose father had recently died in a terrible accident. It was fun and I think it will really help the missionaries to realize how to better involve the members in the work by using the Spirit.

The area is beautiful. It is like 45 minutes away from the city part and there are some way pretty views. (But I forgot my connector to download photos. Sorry..) The missionaries before were working way hard so there are several recent converts we are working with, though some of them have some pretty serious problems. The Velasquez family was way prepared to get baptized and President LaPierre had done their baptismal interview and was way excited about them and they got baptized, but haven´t come to church in two months. We went to their house and Elder Ollerton doesn´t know them super well either so the thought came into my mind to just start to share with them about my life and gain their confidence. I talked about a few of my funny experiences before the mission and we were all laughing and then I talked about my family and shared about Jace. I got choked up a little bit when i told them that as a five year old I always wished that he would get better when we crossed the cattle guards. But we talked about eternal families and the huge blessing they have to have found the gospel. They opened up more and we are going to help him dig his well on Saturday. I hope they come back.

We also had a sweet experience when we showed up at a house and the daughter of a member who doesn´t want anything to do with the church and who I had never met was sitting with some kids doing a school project. We shared them about the cool story where you fold a paper and then rip it and a cross comes out. I´m not sure how to explain it, but she loved it and is another step closer to accepting the gospel. Bu the coolest thing we did is have a meeting with the active members and we were going to just talk about all the problems and say what we needed from them, but right before I felt impressed to just introduce topics/problems and let them talk about it and come up with their own solutions. They left a lot more excited and we had way better ideas than what we could have thought of. If the members really follow through there is going to be a huge amount of success here.

I´m loving life down here and I am way happy! I love you all!

Con amor, Elder Hawk