"My mission has just progressed and gotten better and better and better!"

Saturday, February 7, 2014

Monday - Today was a great day! After a good emailing session, Elder Peterson and I went to the New Time Country Buffet, because Dan bought us a gift card for there.. Anyways we took down some food and while we were there a random guy came up and gave us $20 bucks, said he wanted to pay for our lunch, so nice of him! We thanked him a lot, he wasn't much for talking, just said, Keep doing what ya'll are doing! But man I am a wouse, I took down 2 plates and was stuffed.. I am just a skinny little white boy. After lunch we went to dodgeball, and when I was getting dressed, I was shocked, I have some little toothpick legs, my body is wasting away! So dodgeball tourney was awesome, lets here it for the Tally South district (our district!) We didn't lose a match this time and we took the championship! I was pretty decent out there.. in the championship game I was the only one left, against 2 sisters, Elder Welch, and Elder Christensen (Tally 2 ZL) so they were just going at me.. all I had to do was catch one and my whole team comes back in! So I was dodging and then they moved the lines up, so they could come a lot closer to me psssh, so still dodging, then I take matters into my own hands, nail Christensen, then throw it at Welch, he blocks it, he throws it at me, catch it, so he's out and the whole team is back in! So then we drilled the 2 sisters and then went on to win it all! It was a sweet victory to steal it from the APs :). The meal calendar lady didn't get the February calendar done, so my last days get no meals.. After that we had to do all of the transfer scheduling and tell everybody where they are headed, we have so many transfers, don't know where were going to get the miles for this! :) Peterson's problem :) I am going to miss Elder Peterson, I am also going to miss being a zone leader I really really enjoyed it, lots of good times! So after that we headed out, and we found this new less active lady, she is awesome her name is Sister Heffner, talked to her for probably 30 minutes on her porch, set up a return appointment, she says she was just praying the other night and knows she needs to get back into church! And then we payed a short visit to the Knudsen's man alive I love them, they are so awesome, going to miss them as well!

Elder Hintze & the Knudsen's. This family has been so sweet with the missionaries!

Tuesday - We had District Meeting in the morning! It was a good one, that whole district is being shaken up!

The Zone

The Zone (with more missionaries)

So after district meeting, we had an appointment set up with Cristina, and then she told us she couldn't make it after we already got there. We then went and we taught TR at his house this time, so we got a chance to meet his mom, we taught him the commandments of Sabbath Day Holy and Ten Commandments, and it was his birthday, so we went and bought ice cream and a bunch of toppings! But it was also part of the lesson, we made a sundae  and put nasty things like BBQ Sauce on it, just to show him that there are better and even best things that we could be doing on the sabbath! Then we did some family history with Eric at the church, still rocking and rolling with him! Had our meeting with Pres Campbell and then we ate some dinner. The February meal calendar didn't get passed around, so my last days ended with no meals from 1st ward! :( Then we taught Gonzalo it was good! Didn't get to sit down and have too much of a lesson, just talked to him about how he was feeling about church. I love that man like crazy!! Then we had our correlation meeting!

Wednesday - Transfer day!! We went to the train the trainers meeting in the morning! And it was good, the APs taught it.  And that is where they announced I was going to FSU with Elder Otu, and I would be the district leader... not even a suprise for me, but I was so pumped!!!! I was talking to President after, and he was so excited, he said to me, "You lucky dog, I would trade places with you if I could!"

Transfer Day: Elder Fredericksen, Elder Funk, Elder Hintze, Elder Milne, & Elder Otu

I love Pres and Sister Smith, they said I almost didn't come here, they had me in Pensacola as a Zone Leader, so finally one of the last moves that they made was putting Elder Otu with me, and it is working like a charm! I love Elder Otu, he is the man, we get along so good, and have been having so much fun! He is from Taylorsville, Utah, and he is a rugby player, he played for the USA Jr. National Team, so he is dang good. He is 20 years old, he used to box, plus he can protect me! :) He is awesome, we are going to do really great things here! So there have been some big big changes, Elder Milne, who was on FSU is now in my spot as our Zone Leader, so that is hilarious!

Elder Fredericksen, Elder Funk, Elder Hintze, & Elder Milne

Elder Hildebrandt & Elder Hintze

Sister Collett, Elder Peterson (photo bombing), & Elder Hintze

Elder Hintze & Elder Collett

Elder Hintze & Elder Udy

We got a new AP in Elder Palau, and so now get this... their proselyting area is on FSU as well, so now there are 5 of us, and now we will have someone to spend P-Day with so we are excited! So we got back to our place, and we just cleaned the heck out of it… Elder Otu is a very clean guy, so we went to town on that place, threw so many things out, so it is looking really nice now! We got a new companion in the shack out back, his name is Elder Browning, and Elder Cooper trained him... he is so awesome, so it is going to be some serious good times here!!! Oh also we got taken out to dinner by a member named Taylor Wilhelm he is the man!

Thursday - So it is a whole new experience for me... in the white washing... I feel so dumb hahaha, just becuase I don't know who anyone is or who the investigators are or who these appointments are with, so it has been a whole new experience, but we are getting the hang of it! So my emails might be a little bit more lame, because all we do is teach and then contact on campus... and that is my favorite part! It has been fun with Elder Otu. We are working it out together and it has been fun to teach him, we have had quite some good success, with campus you got lots and lots of return appointments and phone numbers... but rarely ever do they turn into anything! So we will see what happens, I will tell you about the lessons that we taught! We taught Dusty Young, he is the one that was just baptized and he reminds me so much of Cameron Coggins...so much! He is planning on going on a mission, and so we talked to him and read quite a bit about the Priesthood, and his preparation to receive it. Then we taught an investigator by the name of Brandon Klenk, 18 years old, student at FSU, very interesting, we just go to know him. And then in the evening, we had sports night with the ward! We played volleyball, it was so much fun! It is way different in a YSA ward, it is gossip central as well, all the members will go and stalk your instagram, twitter, and facebook, to check you out!

Friday - A lot of contacting! And some good lessons, we taught a member girl named Kirsten Christensen, raised in the church, parents are fully active. Then we did some family history with a man named Tremell! Then we taught a guy named Kahasim... he is a student at FSU! And then we taught Ryan Carter, he is pretty darn awesome I am glad that I get to teach him! We talked to him about his play... and he said his motives were to learn about us for the play, but it has totally switched and he has found it to be very enlightening, and he is now pursuing it for himself! So we taught him the Plan of Salvation, and it went so well, he understood and it was a very good lesson, he is really loving it! He will be at church, and he is reading the Book of Mormon like a champ! 

So now it is Saturday! Today we are going to be playing some basketball with some members from the 1st and 5th ward, so we are excited for that! And then don't know what else we will have plans to do! But life is so good, I thought that it couldn't get any better than the 1st ward.. but now I am here and my mission has just progressed and gotten better and better and better! So these last 4 months are going to go by very quick, Elder Otu and I are going to be working like crazy! I love you all and miss you!!!

Love,

Elder Hintze