Ups and Downs

Hello! 

This has been a week filled with ups and downs.

Mom, I loved your story about the temple. There are those faces that just will never leave our mind. I'm glad you were able to be such a special step in the life of this woman.

We got a text from Fabiola this week letting us know that they would not be continuing to meet with us. I think earlier in my mission I would have taken off my shoe and thrown it as hard as I could at the nearest breakable object. Things like that text seem to happen all too frequently for me in my mission, but luckily the Lord is really strengthening me and helping me see the bigger picture. We have to know the sadness of people misusing their agency in order to truly cherish the joy of those that use it correctly in the sight of God. Maybe one day Fabiola and Rodrigo will come around, but today is not that day.

It was tough not seeing any investigators at church this week. Sometimes I expect to see an immediate correlation between the amount of hard hours I work and the outward, visible success I achieve. Thankfully, the Lord is really teaching me how to be humble amid adversity. And its not like he is leaving us blessing-less anyways. Remember Bruno from Bushwick? I was teaching him in December but then I got transfered. Well I got the fantastic news that he was baptized and confirmed last week! That really brightened my day. Unfortunately I couldnt go to the ordinances because they conflicted with the schedule here at Dyker, but it was wonderful to hear. I hope to return to Bushwick to say hi to my good friend.

Also, this week at church a member from the Midwood area (the ward next door to Dyker) walked into church with his girlfriend and children, all who have yet to be baptized. We still aren't sure to what part of Dyker he will move, but he is making a resolve to come to church this year. I see great potential in this. Elder Ibarra and I were also able to visit a less active family that I have spent the better part of 3 months trying to contact. They are very strong and provide great potential for real growth once they make the commitment to come back to church. So although it may feel like we aren't receiving the blessings we want, the ward is receiving the blessings it needs. We are really starting to gain the trust of the bishop here. I am excited to see what the future provides for us.


So today for P-day we are headed to Jamaica to visit a family that Elder Ibarra baptized. (Yes, jamaica is in our mission. jamaica, queens that is) We might head over to the rego park mall to do some recreational shopping and hang out with other missionaries. We will see.
Well, yous guys are awesome!!! Keep up the great support!!


Love, Elder Hogge

Happy Easter

Dearest family and friends,

This was quite an exciting week in the mission field.

Seems like there is a ton of great stuff going on back home. I am sooooooo excited for Neal!! How wonderful it is to see him take that great step in his life. I wish I could have been there to support him. I cant believe he leaves so soon for his mission!  I know he is going to do great. Mom it was awesome to see that picture at the baptism. That family looks so happy together! I can tell that those two missionaries are hard workers just from their appearance. I cant wait to be able to be able to apply what I know here and help out the missionaries back home with the work. Also, I got the package with the giant bag of beef jerky!! I was in heaven when I opened that up. Good choices mom ;)

So this was not a very typical week for missionary work here in New York. The reason for that is that two men came and visited the mission from wednesday to saturday. Their names are Brother Watson and Brother Droubay. And it just turns out that these two brothers were some of the principal writers of Preach My Gospel. That really caught my attention when it was announced that we were going to receive workshops from those that have taken such a deep part in the work. What they taught has changed my mission and my life. They focused on the doctrine of Christ. As a missionary, I had the small thought in the back of my head that I already had a good enough understanding of the gospel. But what these workshops did not only enlarged my understanding, but deepened my conviction to such a great degree. It is simple to explain what they taught, but how it affected me I cannot describe. Its one thing to read Preach My Gospel, but it is another to hear the principles explained by those who wrote it. I have learned so much from PMG but to hear it from the mouth of some of the best missionaries on the planet is truly amazing. They focused on how simple but powerful the lessons must be in order to affect the hearts of these people. So Elder Ibarra and I have tried out this principle. We started that weekend in teaching people. Amazingly enough, that Saturday we had the highest number of lessons than any other day. And we got return appointments for all of them! I know that as we apply what we have been learning we will see great miracles.

One of the things these brethren taught us was a door approach that missionaries have used that has brought them great success. When we talk to people at the door, we offer to come into their homes and leave a blessing on their house and family. It seems really simple but it is a great way to gain these peoples trust much quicker. We have been able to get into the homes of a few people this way already. The Lord has provided such a great blessing on the mission by bringing these two brethren here. 

This is Elder Ibarra's last week in the mission. We are going strong and its sad to see him head back to Mexico. But we have a lot of great appointments set up this week. I really hope to see the work really progress in this area. I have no idea what next transfer will provide but I'm sure we will see miracles. I love you all! Have a great week!

Love, Elder Hogge

Improvement

Dear Everyone,

In this past week, I have seen an amazing amount of improvement within myself and the area. It has been really cool to see. It takes a lot to see real growth within oneself, but it sure is rewarding to see.

I'm so excited to hear about all the new missions opening up! It is just fantastic to see the work to progressing so quickly. And I'm so excited to hear all about the missionaries from our very own stake heading off. Its funny to think about because they really have no idea what it is going to be like until they get there, and boy is it something different. It is definitely harder than one can ever expect. But if it were easy it wouldnt be rewarding haha. And I am glad that people back home still remember me :) I sure miss everyone a lot, but that feeling doesn't phase me anymore. It's more of a feeling of excitement. Absence makes the heart grow fonder I guess. 

As for this week, Elder Ibarra and I have been working our hineys off. Lots of fearlessing, lots of door knocking, lots of calling. Bit by bit we are starting to see progression. But one of the absolute best things about the mission is that success is determined by our commitment to find, teach, and baptize those who have been prepared for the Lord. Our personal success as a missionary is independent of the agency of other people. Sure it is great to see other people come unto Christ through us, but the Lord has specifically told missionaries through Preach My Gospel that doing the work with a willing and obedient heart is what will bring the most success in the mission. That's something that all of us missionaries in the zone have been learning. President is trying to stop all of us from being so prideful in focusing on the numbers aspect of the mission. I know that I am seeing that change within myself. It's funny cuz the more we stop focusing on numbers, the more natural the numbers come. President is a smart man haha. 

So last week, Elder Ibarra and I chased down a Hispanic lady with a little kid and a stroller. We gave our short but powerful message that the gospel can change the lives of her and her family, and she had a willing heart. We were able to visit her, her husband, and her two boys on Saturday. It was really exciting to see. Here in New York City it is pretty tough to find full families together. So we shared with them the family proclamation and committed them to read it together. We plan on coming back some time this week and teaching them how to apply what they are learning. Their names are Fabiola and Rodrigo. I really hope they have a desire to keep learning more about the gospel. I know that this is the kind of growth that the Lord is looking for in His church here in New York.

Well it has been a great week. We are really committed to bringing others to Christ. I know that these people will be blessed as they heed our message.

Love, Elder Hogge

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

Yep, Dyker Heights

Dearest all,

This week was an interesting week but a very good one at that.

Elder Goates and I stayed together at transfer meetings. But on Thursday, we got an interesting call. I hear the phone ring and I notice that President Calderwood is waiting for me to answer. Its always kinda nerve wracking getting a call from prez. So I picked up the phone and I have a chat with him. Turns out he wanted to make some post-transfer changes in my district. So he informed me that our companionship would switch a missionary with another companionship in Coney Island. So the next day Elder Goates left to Coney and now I am here with Elder Ibarra. He is a native Mexican that speaks Italian and English. Also, this is his last transfer so I'm going to be "killing" him haha. He's a great missionary and I am so excited for this change. I feel like the Lord is really helping me out with a native companion. He knows how to touch the hearts of investigators. This is exactly what our pool needed.

English class has been going very well. We are getting an average of twenty non members a class. We are starting to see the blessings of this service we are providing. After class on Thursday, a student asked us if we could do some extra tutoring with him. His name is Francisco and he arrived in New York from Guatemala only a month ago. Being only 17 years old with just an uncle that he knows here, I believe he is looking for some sort of fellowshipping. So we asked him if he wanted to come to the church on Sunday to do an English lesson. He gladly accepted the invitation. So as we were teaching him english, at the church, on suuuunday, we mentioned that there were sabbath services about an hour after the class. He said he would love to come. So Francisco joined us for church on sunday. I think he really enjoyed it. Especially because he found someone from his same small town in Guatemala that speaks the same native tribal language as him. So that was really cool to see and I think we will see some good progression out of him.

All is going well right now in Dyker. We are having a lot of fun. I have a great district and we all really work hard. Oh, mom I got the mini spanish preach my gospel. Thank you soooo much!! Also, I dont think I have gotten the other package yet.... But all's good here. Sorry its gonna be kinda short because I am on the express computer at the library (too many people) but I love you all a ton!! Keep it oxyclean ;) (brooklyn lingo)

Love, Elder Hogge

Re: Oregon!

Hello Family and Friends,

Mom (and others), I am so glad that you were able to go to Grandma West's funeral. Sounds like it was a lovely service. Being in a neighborhood such as New York, I often miss the small town feel.

This week was a great, snowy, root canal free week.

Tuesday I made a rendezvous with Dr. Lerman for part Dos of the root canal extravaganza. It was definitely less harsh that part 1.0. Dr. Lerman was quick and effective. I think the worst part for me was not being able to have an active conversation with him haha. But all went well and I am without cavity and without pain.

Thursday night we heard about a two storms colliding in the New York area. Though all the missionaries clearly remembered the last big storm that came our way, we were assured that it would not be as bad. Though we were indeed grateful for the opportunity to serve others during the aftermath of Sandy, we were glad to see that Nemo wasn't nearly as bad. We were very safe, and though the snow did pile up we did not see any harsh effects. The next day we had some opportunities to help out people in the snow. One of the more interesting things that happened was on our way to church. As we were walking to the services, we noticed some hasidic jews having a bit of trouble. One was in the car giving it all the power he could, and the other was hopelessly pushing it. As we saw these two men getting nowhere fast, we offered some help. Naturally, they politely declined. So naturally, we just helped anyways haha. we got behind that car with the more unfortunate jew and we began giving it some good heaves. After a couple minutes of slipping and struggling, we finally got that darn car out onto the street. They were both very grateful for our service.

We met with Evelyn, Ileana and Kenneth on Saturday evening. Just as a reminder, Evelyn (30ish) and Ileana (16) are sisters and Kenneth (10) is Evelyn's son. Evelyn and Ileana were baptized when they were 8 but went less active because their mom had a bad experience at church. We are really trying to help them see how the gospel truly changes each and every one of us. So we showed them a few mormon messages. Those were super cool. We showed the one with Elder Brown talking about the Currant bush. That one always gets me. And we also showed the one when the drunk driver killed almost all of the man's family yet he still forgave. That was very powerful to them. I think it really helped them understand why God allows things to happen in our lives and how we can really benefit from the trials that He gives us. Evelyn has school on Sundays for now, but Ileana and Kenneth came to church on their own! They are progressing bit by bit, and we hope to see Kenneth make the decision to get baptized soon.

It was a nice week. I feel like I am growing bit by bit, grace by grace. I can still very clearly see my imperfections, but I know that through the Atonement I am growing. I love the Gospel and I love all of you!!!

Love, Elder Hogge

Root Canal

Dearest Family and Friends,

This week has been quite the week both here and at home.

It is sad to hear that Grandma West has passed, but in the light of the gospel I know that it is only a transitory step in the plan that Heavenly father has for her. 

I was sooooooo excited to hear that Neal got his call!!!! It'll be a few more years till I get to see him again, but wow he is in for a treat. England sounds like a great place. Also I am super excited for Rachel to be heading out to Thailand so soon. I bet her dad must be so proud.

Well, last week I made an appointment to go to the dentist because i felt a little hole in one of my teeth. (You dont know how much willpower I had to use to call the dentist. The regular me would have avoided the dentist at all costs!!!) So last Wednesday I went off to the dentist to get that checked out. Boy was I in for a surprise. 

The dentist is a very nice fellow. His name is Dr. Lerman. We had a great chat and then we got started. After taking an x-ray of my teeth, he comes back into the room and tells me, "well, it looks like you've got yourself a root canal." NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! I'm glad I had at least some restraint because I was screaming in my mind haha. He could obviously see the worry in my face because he told me that it would be nice and smooth. So I reluctantly let him recline the seat back as he started working away at the tooth. The numbing was not very pleasant but I got through it easily. It wasn't until he mentioned that he was ready to drill into the nerve that I may have shed a tear of fear. He said "this is gonna hurt a bit" and began counting down from three while drilling. I dont know about you, but when a doctor has to count down from three, I know I am in for some pain. Turns out novicane does very little for drilling into nerves because at "1" I felt one of the sharpest pains I can remember. I literally had a mental image of rocks punching my brain as he got to the nerve. Luckily, that was the worst part because with access to the nerves, he numbed those up real nice and it was smooth sailing from there. So he worked away for a while till he realized what he had gotten himself into. Turns out the roots of my molars are very, very deep. Like we are talking grand canyon of the tooth world deep. He is used to seeing roots about 21ish millimeters deep but he said mine range from 26 1/2 to 28 millimeters down. So last Wednesday was only part one of the thrilling drilling experience. Luckily the worst has already past and next Wednesday will only require the rest of the digging. But I am so very glad that I went into the dentist when I did because it could have turned into an ugly infection. So I have definitely learned my lesson on this one.

So besides that interesting experience, this week in the field was pretty low key. I got to go on a couple exchanges with some of the elders in my district so that was fun. As for investigators, everyone just feels a bit stagnant right now. We are definitely trying our hardest, but we just need to get some more understanding on how to resolve their concerns.

But life is good! I'm munching on some pretzel M&M's right now so I am satisfied (now that I think about it eating these with a half done root canal may not be the best idea...... oh well) I'm loving the work. Its tough, but awesome!!! Love you all!!

Love, Elder Hogge