Week 21 - The Second Area and the Firstborn

Hello All!

    I hope you've all had a fantastic week!  I know I have.  It's been crazy, of course, but also awesome.  I am indeed no longer serving in Raymond, which is kinda sad, but I know that I'm not supposed to be there anymore.  Hopefully, I did the work I was sent there to do, and if I didn't...I'll be back!  I am so grateful that I was able to serve in that wonderful area, that I was able to learn the things I did, and, especially, to meet and teach the people I did.  I know I was meant to meet them, and I hope they were meant to meet me.

   

My new area really isn't too far away from Raymond at all.  I am now in the Lethbridge West 12th Ward with my new companion (and first "son") Elder Law from Ogden, Utah.  He is awesome, and we're getting along really well.  He's a big theater geek and we have lots to talk about that way, but more importantly, he's a really hard worker and has such a desire to be a good missionary.  I'll barely have to do any work to train him.  We've spent the last few days just trying to familiarize ourselves with the area and the members of our ward.  It's been fun.  Ha ha, luckily, the last Elder who was here left us with some good records and a solid idea of what we're doing.  What we've learned so far: We have an awesome Ward Mission Leader who we've been able to meet with on a couple of different occasions already; he's really on the ball and is not afraid to do what needs to be done and say what needs to be said.  The ward is really awesome, and a lot of people seem really willing to help in the work and support us. (Including dinners every night!  I didn't think I'd get that in too many other areas besides Raymond.)  Our apartment is great.  We have some awesome investigators, and we're in a walking area!  Ha ha, it'll really get us acclimatized to the winters here. ;) (Don't worry, we're keeping warm, and we may actually get a car soon.)

    I really just want to report on the two progressing investigators we do have: Ben and Beth.  They are awesome, that's about all you need to know.  The previous missionaries have been meeting with them for a few weeks now, but they've been being prepared for a lot longer than that!  I don't know a ton about them yet, but they've accepted the gospel wholeheartedly, and they are on date to be baptized on the 1st of January.  Is there a better way to start a new year?  I submit that there is not!

    Sorry to be so brief today, but I'm sure I'll have more to add next week!  Before I do close, though, I want to leave you with a scripture that really hit me this week.  It's D&C 58:27-28.  Coming into a brand-new area with no idea what we're doing can be hard, and it's easy to be discouraged and get lazy on a lot of the little stuff, but that's not the way to be.  In this scripture it says that "men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many good things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them," The power is in us to accomplish so much good wherever we are, all we have to do is be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and this is a pretty good cause.

    I love you all so much, and I hope you have a great week!  Be good.  Have fun!

Love,

Elder Hafen