Parade

Family and Friends!

Well there is no getting past Mom! I'm sure there's a chance she has told yall that us missionaries in the New York South Mission were invited to attend a St. Patrick's day parade in the area most affected by Sandy. We got a mass text from the ZL's from the AP's from Prez on friday that let us know that we were going to be participating as honorary guests in the parade. What a wonderful experience!!! There aren't many other times in recent history that I can remember a general population of nonmembers giving such praise and ovation to a group of missionaries. Such a wonderful experience. [see link] Being on the edge of the mass of missionaries, I was able to interact with a lot of these folks. I dont think I have ever in my entire life heard a more sustained stream of "thank yous". As we walked for that hour, we saw mothers and fathers in tears, teenagers and young adults in rambunctious gratitude, and little children with happy smiles and cute waves. It's nice to know that the pure love of Christ really does penetrate to the very soul of those who are blessed by it. (Mom I'm sure you will be happy to see that in the video you watched, if you pause it at 1:28ish you will see a bright yellow beanie that you made bobbing up and down in the wave of yellow shirts)

I feel like the Lord is really testing us here in this pool right now. The Sunday before yesterday, we were able to see four investigators at church. That was such a blessing! But this week, none of them showed up. :( That is just one of the toughest parts of being a missionary: seeing someone soooo close, but not being able to overcome the obstacles of life. But life goes on. We are really starting to gain the trust of the members. When I first got here, the Bishop respected the missionaries, but I am not sure how much he trusted us. I know that one of the main responsibilities of a District Leader is fostering the relationship between the missionaries and the ward. So we have worked so very hard to strengthen our relationship with him. We are really starting to see the blessings of that. He is beginning to trust us with referrals for less active members and part member families. It is really cool to see this change. 

Despite strong efforts, we weren't able to see very many people this week. It had been gearing up for a great seven days, but every single one of our set appointments had cancelled. It was as if they all got together and decided this week would be the week they had other stuff to do. It was so very frustrating because all we want to do is help them. But the work must go on.  We are truly hoping this week will provide great results as we work with the members and investigators.

Well, I love you all. Thank you for your support and love. I'll talk to you next week.

Love, Elder Hogge