Veteran Missionary

Malo Soifua!!!

Today on the Elder Hill Show:

 ** Zone Conference was amazing

 ** Interviews with Pres are always the best (and I almost got out of it this time without him talking about my going home soon)

 ** I drive a spaceship now hehe

So starting at the bottom of the bullet list, our car got upgraded to a 2022 Nissan Rogue, and man, is it a nice car. It's got features I didn't think were even possible, and it's so much fun to drive. There are only two or three in the mission fleet right now, and Elder Clifford trusts me enough to handle it (the APs drive the other one). I promise I'm a responsible driver, but it still is so fun to drive such a cool car haha.

Zone Conference was fuego as always. Pres Holmes talked a lot about our role as children of Abraham. He helped us understand what the Abrahamic covenant is and how we are essential in bringing it to fruition. It was a really cool lesson, and we were all blown away (and hyped up).

After the conference officially ended, we celebrated beating another mission record by getting shakes and watch the sports movie classic "Remember the Titans". It was a fantastic movie, and we all had a great time.

This week was really good, and we saw a lot of miracles. We beat our finding goal, and I think we set a new record for this area. Whatever the case, spirits are high and the work moves forward. Our next goal is to get some of our awesome friends to actually make it to church haha, instead of just saying they will and then ghosting us. Baby steps, though. Baby steps.

Mafaufauga faaleagaga: Being a Veteran Missionary. In my interview with Pres Holmes, we talked a bit about the fact that I'm by far the oldest missionary in my district, and one of the oldest in my zone. We talked about how I'm a "veteran" missionary, whether I like it or not. I spent the last 20 months or so learning and growing, developing my skills. Now it's the time for me to turn around, return the favor, and do everything I can to help the elders and sisters around me improve and grow. I'm on the way out of this mission, and so it's the least I can do. I guess this thought is both a reflection and a mark of gratitude for getting this far, and gratitude to all those who have helped me grow so much (heaven knows I needed it). 

So yeah, if you're reading this, you probably helped me grow into who I am now, and I thank you so much for it. I'm by no means perfect, but by the grace of God, I'm in a place better than I frankly thought possible or even imagined. 

God is good all the time, and all the time God is good

Alofa tele lava atu ia outou uma,

Elder Hill

Ata:

 - A lady I taught in Queens got baptized yesterday!

 - Found a Navajo sticker on a light pole, which I thought kinda funny cuz I'm on the wrong side of the country for that 😂

 - Pizza with Elder Parks on our exchange (pretty fire pizza)

 - Pretty flowers

 - Downtown White Plains

 - Cool statue of Harriet Tubman that's on temporary display near our apartment

 - Pics from Zone Conference (table pic & pic with Fairfield, Westchester, and Bronx zones)

 - From last Monday but we helped clear out a lady's house and she's a hoarder of untold proportions

Relief Society President

Malo Soifua!!!

Today on the Elder Hill Show:

 ** PLEASE PRAY FOR ALL OF OUR FRIENDS THAT ARE PLANNING ON BEING BAPTIZED THIS MONTH (more below)

 ** I'm now in Westchester, and my district is comprised entirely of Sister missionaries (with the exception of my companion and me)

 ** The work here is very different than Queens, and it was honestly pretty tough getting used to it, but it's working out, and we're seeing some success from it

 ** Found a couple cool people this week, and we have a goal to baptize someone this transfer, so hopefully our friends decide that baptism really is a good idea

Our mission had another record-breaking week this past week. We had over 540 friends on baptismal date, about 520 to church, and we found over 3400 new people. Truly an incredible work is being done by the Lord in this mission, and I'm just grateful to have a front row seat and to witness it and be a small part of this great work.

Our goal for this month is 140 baptisms, and we're currently at 60. We have a LOT of people who are preparing for baptism next week, and we need EVERYONE to pray for them that they overcome their roadblocks and are able to be baptized 🙏

In other news, I am now serving in Westchester (just north of the Bronx), and it's great. We live super close to the mission office, so use that address if you wanna send me anything (I can just go over and pick stuff up whenever it comes):

700 White Plains Rd Ste 315

Scarsdale NY 10583

United States

My district has three companionships, two of which are Sisters. They're all fire missionaries and I have no problems with it, but it is a little strange walking into district council and seeing no Elders haha. I'm the District Leader here, and that title carries with it a subtitle of "Relief Society President", which I think is hilarious (my "son" Elder Fanning was DL here, and he told me all about it haha)

I'm going to be completely honest, it's been a struggle to adjust to this area. It's a lot like when I served in Connecticut, but the big difference is that now the vision and expectation is so much higher. That's a very good thing, but it does add some stress to me to try to figure out how to be the most effective. On Rego Park, we could ride the trains or street contact and find tons of people. Where I am doesn't really have public transit, and the streets are pretty quiet comparatively. There are a few good spots, but they're starting to recognize us more and more. We tried knocking as well, and we found a little success in the neighborhoods and more success knocking in the projects. We actually found some way cool people there!

I definitely know that I'm supposed to be here though. This whole zone has been trying to raise the vision for what we can accomplish, and so it's no surprise that Pres Holmes transferred in a few missionaries from popping areas to give a spark of life and energy to this area. We've already seen it pay off, and I'm honestly really excited to see what happens. It'll be hard work, for sure, but it's gonna be epic.

Two highlights for friends that we found this week:

First, Will is this homie I talked to on the street a few days back. The actual street contact was okay, and he seemed pretty interested so I taught him and set up a return appointment. In that return appointment, he became so fire. We read Alma 34:32 and talked about the purpose for life. When we asked him how we can "prepare to meet God" he began listing off parts of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! We flipped over to 3 Nephi 27:16 & 20 and taught him about the GoJC, specifically baptism. He said "I was baptized when I was very young, but I was never really BAPTIZED because I never did of of my own will." We invited him to prepare to meet God by being baptized in a few weeks, and he accepted! We set the expectations for lessons and church, and he said he'll get work off to make sure he can come. He's a fire dude, and I'm excited to keep working with him.

Second, Charlotte & Co. We knocked her door yesterday, and her 10-yr old son Christopher answered. He ran and got his mom, and she came to the door. We invited her to church, and she said she hadn't been in about a decade and would love to! We taught her about how the BoM can bless and strengthen her family, and she was more than willing to take a copy and start reading it. We also promised to bring a kids BoM for Christopher when we come back. They're a super awesome family, and I have so much faith and hope for them.

Mafaufauga faaleagaga: I was reading 1 Nephi 16 this week and studying Nephi's experience with the Liahina and his broken bow. I spent a while reading it and re-reading it, looking for principles and lessons, and I'm found some cool thoughts that I really liked. Here's a few that I found (there's definitely more in there, but I don't wanna give you all the answers):

 - Being faithful doesn't mean you won't face hardship

 - Take the time to prepare effectively (do it right so you don't have to do it twice)

 - Be ACTIVE in solving your own problems (be patient but NOT complacent)

Remember that Nephi said, "Wherefore, I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men" (1 Nephi 6:6). In addition, Mormon said, "I cannot write the hundredth part of the things of my people" (WoM 1:5). So if these things are meant to be of worth, and for every story in the BoM there are at least 99 that weren't included, why were these stories chosen? What's in them that makes them "of worth unto the children of men"? 

Read the book and find out. It's that simple.

Alofa tele lava atu ia outou uma,

Elder Hill

Ata:

 - People here need to fix their street names (there's also Quarropas, Mamaroneck, Dekalb, and Bloomingdale)

 - The crib (my apartment, the "Avalon at White Plains" one, both inside shot and outside)

 - Lots of pretty spring blossoms

 - Great stuff

 - Finally got my wings, and I didn't drink a red bull or hear a bell ring

 - Beautiful cars in this person's driveway

 - super cool building that we were contacting around (there's a bunch of little shops and cafes, and people were just milling around, so we walked over and tried finding some of 'em)

 - I've never seen a coy sewer before (didn't know a sewer could pull off being coy), but there's a first time for everything I guess 😂

Farewell and Steady On, My Love

Malo Soifua!!!

Today on the Elder Hill Show:

 ** Week 6 Grind is absolutely real, and I love it

 ** Our friend plays the organ, and she's way good haha

 ** Had some absolutely incredible lessons this week with two of our friends (AGTG)

 ** Transfer News: I'm moving to Westchester! I'm dipping out of the city and heading just north of the Bronx

Sorry if the subject line is melodramatic, I just it was fitting and kinda funny 🤣. 

This week was week 6, and it was a ton of fun. We had some tough days of working hard, but it was so much fun, and we saw a lot of success.

We were referred a super nice Taiwanese lady named Hannah, who graduated from Julliard with a degree in piano performance (which is huge btw). She's played the organ for decades, and she volunteered to play the organ in our church meetings. We don't have a current organ player (we just have the organ play itself each time), so that would be really nice to have her there haha. We're working on building her testimony of the restoration, but she's making progress!

We have another friend that was planning on consecrating herself a saint in the Catholic Church, but after we taught her about the Restoration, she prayed about the BoM and Joseph Smith. After her prayer, she said she believes that the BoM is true and that Joseph was a prophet! She accepted a baptismal date, and we're super excited for her. She may be moving to Florida soon, but we'll make sure she keeps in touch with missionaries there as well.

Our other friend Myriam is absolutely elect. We taught her about the Law of Chastity and the Word of Wisdom, and she's willing to live both of them in order to be baptized! She's been to church twice already, and she's enjoying reading in the BoM. I'm sad I won't be around for her baptism (more about that below), but I'm so excited for her. We had her pray about baptism, and when she finished we let the silence rest and the Spirit speak. After a moment we asked her how she felt, and she said she could barely answer because she was crying. The Spirit was so strong, and she agreed to set a date for her baptism this month. God is so good, and He is so good all the time.

So yeah, I'm being transferred to Westchester. I'm sad to leave this ward, but I'm honestly super excited to go there and work hard. There are some amazing missionaries in that zone, and I'm looking forward to it (also my new apartment building has a pool table, so I'm excited 😂).

I made my rounds saying goodbye with members and friends we're teaching. It's always sad to go, but I know I'm going where God wants me.

Mafaufauga faaleagaga: I was asked to bear my testimony and share a few thoughts in sacrament meeting yesterday, and it was an incredible experience. As I sat there, preparing to go up and speak, I had a small vision of sorts. I suddenly pictured myself standing up to speak in church, but instead of my ward here in Queens it was my ward back home in AZ. It was a strange experience, but it made the moment so much more special. 

I spoke about purpose: God's purpose for us, our purpose for life, and my purpose as a missionary. I didn't have much time to prepare, so I let the Spirit speak for me. It was a powerful moment at the pulpit, far better than if I had tried to put my own words down on paper. I gained anew a testimony of the Spirit and of personal revelation.

I know Heavenly loves all of us, and all that happens in life is part of His plan. To paraphrase Nephi (reversing his statement), I do not know the meaning of all things, but I know that God loves His children.

Alofa tele lava atu ia outou uma,

Elder Hill

Ata:

• Week 6 District Pics
• Leadership meeting with the DLs and ZLs
• No ball playing apparently
• Elder Hughes and me for our exchange pic
• Rodrigo and us
• Elder Blackham with some amazing food that Indira and Patrick made for us
• Random chicken graffiti (these things are EVERYWHERE in Queens. Literally everywhere)
• Farewell pic with Indira and Patrick
• Pic with Sis Sanchez and her daughter
• Last accountability call with the gang 
• 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Clearing Trainssss

Malo Soifua!!!

Today on the Elder Hill Show:

 ** Had Interviews with Pres Holmes, and it was fire like always (except for when he kept talking about going home soon 😑😭)

 ** We've been hitting the grind with train contacting this week, and it's been super fun

 ** General Conference was SO GOOD

First things first, I need all y'all's help. Our mission has a goal of 140 baptisms this month, and we're all super excited to make it happen. My only request is for ALL OF YOU to pray for the missionaries and friends here in NYC. Pray that we'll be able to find those who will get baptized. Pray that our friends will be able to overcome their roadblocks. Pray that we can hit our goals and bring salvation to "some few souls" here in the greatest city in the world. Thanks, love y'all.

Interviews with Pres Holmes are always amazing, and this one was no exception. The part I hated was when we first sat down, and he turned on his laptop. He pulled up my profile on the missionary portal, and said, "....wow.... I'm gonna miss you." Not gonna lie, that one hurt. He asked me about some of my plans for after the mission, and it felt soooo weird. I'm trying so hard to avoid that line of thinking, but it just keeps coming back up. Just gotta keep grinding, keep clearing train cars, and focusing on God and others.

Speaking of clearing train cars. Our new goal is to clear train cars, meaning we talk to every single soul in our car before we get to the next stop. It means we have to be fast, effective, and talking with EVERYONE. We've had our ups and downs with it, but we've had a lot of fun and seen some awesome miracles. The grind is real, and the miracle is real.

Mafaufauga faaleagaga: General Conference was literally so amazing. They get better every time (maybe I just get better at paying attention lol), and I definitely learned a lot and had some questions answered. Definitely go and watch any/all of the sessions or talks when they're made individually available. They can change your life.

My favorite quote was a thought inspired by Elder Jörg Klebingat when he spoke on courage and faith. I paraphrased his words and added a little of my own:

"May it be my lot to be counted worthy to bear shame for the name of Christ. As weak as flesh may be, let my spirit yet be more willing. May I never feel the need to apologize for what I know to be true."

Alofa tele lava atu ia outou uma,

Elder Hill

Ata:

• Lots of beautiful sunsets from the same subway platform (ft. Manhattan skyline in the distance)
• Candy LEGO tank (ahhh, the memories)
• Pics from P-day at Flushing Meadows Corona Park