21st Letter 7-29-13

Dear Family,

This week went great! Elder Krogh and I get along well and work very hard! Elder Krogh is very shy though, so sometimes I feel like I talk too much-haha. It's kinda funny 'cause I feel like I used to be shy. Anyway, Monday night was a good night, we had dinner with the Condie's. The world wide broadcast on Missionary Work and just the overall importance missionary work is now has really gotten this ward moving! He gave us a referral and he even took us over after we had dinner to meet the family! Showed a lot of the trust from Brother and Sister Condie. This great work is blowing up and isn't gonna stop! Cool to know that the only thing left to come to pass before the Second Coming is the gathering of Israel! We all get to be a part of it too!! It is AMAZING!

Tuesday we had an awesome experience as well! We were walking towards these apartments where a potential investigator lives and on the way we walked through a park. I saw a lady with two kids walking and the son was smiling at me. I said "Hi" to the son and the Mom turned around and just by the look on her face and the prompting I received I knew she wanted to talk to us. I walked up to her and started talking to her. She has never heard of our church and knew nothing about us. We taught her about how God is our Loving Heavenly Father and that our gospel can bless her family! She loved our lesson and even told us a very personal story about God in her life! She asked us to come back and teach her more and even gave us her number! So cool!!

Wednesday and Thursday were pretty slow, but Friday I met my first Jehovah Witness... So I rolled up on my bike and right when I took my helmet off she said, "Don't waste your time. I'm a JW and have been one for 40 years." I said, "That's awesome! How do you like it?" She said she loves it. I then offered for us to help her with any service around the house and she said, "I should give you my number. You are the one that needs help!" (in a slightly evil and mean tone)- haha. I just said "Alrighty... Never mind," as she walked away... So that was a pretty funny experience!

Saturday we helped Dilma, our upcoming baptism, with her yard! I used the skills Dad taught me with weed barrier (black tarp?) on the ground and put the metal curbing in to separate the grass and rock. I would have to say it looks amazing! So thanks Dad! haha

Church was good! I met a family from Brazil and they came and talked to me in Portuguese! Brazilians are always so fun and happy! : ) Later that night we met with James (investigator) He is so ready to be baptized, but feels like he isn't worthy yet... We talked to him about the Pre-earth life and After life. When we talked about after life and the 3 degrees of glory we could feel the Spirit so strong. He always felt like there was only heaven and hell and that he was going to hell. We told him how much Heavenly Father loves him and that he wants you to be in heaven. He told us how much peace that brought him. We told him that this peaceful feeling is the Holy Ghost!

Mom thank you so much for the care package! The treats are great and the D&C video and Mormon messages are perfect! I'm sorry to say that the guy at Deseret Book kinda scammed you- haha. You didn't need to buy all those other church DVD's we get them for free out here... what a punk! I will send them back along with some other stuff I don't need anymore.

I'm glad to hear the Monster Burgers are still in business! Tell Grandpa and Grandma Porritt "Hi" for me, and that I love them!:)

I'm glad to hear you got to have a BBQ with the Haucks! We have some amazing Family! I miss all of them! Great to hear Steph is planning on going to UVU. I hear it is a blast there! Tell her I'm proud of her and that she will grow a ton being away from home. Going to the U for a semester was the best decision I could have made. I grew up so much during that time and if I wouldn't of made that growth I couldn't of done the things I'm doing now. Proud of you Steph! : )

Dad, I can't believe all of those boys are home from their missions already! Time really does fly! Can you believe I have been out almost 6 months?? Also, I think you are right. I see people out here that don't want to change in anyway. For me, I'm scared to come home! I do have forever, but I sure hope I will be prepared for the real life again after this great mission!

Amy, how was EFY? I bet it was fun! I wish I would have gone to EFY...

Again thank you for all the support you all give me! I love you all so much and miss you! This great work is hastening like crazy! Do all that you can to add to this great wave of missionary work! It's the time of a lifetime! Love you all!!

Love,

Elder Hauck

20th Letter 7-22-13

Photos: Top-with Elder Krogh, Bottom-with Sister Christensen

Otimo Familia,

WOW. Another big change! Okay so yesterday I got a call at around 3:30 from the AP's. They told me I was getting transferred. My first thought was that I got my visa, but it turned out an Elder in the Arapahoe Zone (my last stake) had to get sent home, so they told me they needed to do an emergency transfer. They told me they would be there at 4:30 to pick me up. They picked me up and brought me to my new area. It's Called Hampton Hills. It is way close to Tuscany and Copperleaf so it's pretty similar to where I was before. It was sad to leave Mccullough and Carvolho so fast. I was having so much fun with them! They are great Elders! So I left Arvada and I'm here now. Crazy how things can change so fast. The area we are in seems awesome! We live in a Apartment which is huge. We don't have a car, though, so I need to find one soon or just keep walking.

Last P-day was fun! We played basketball most of the day and cleaned up the downstairs of the Sumner's home. Tuesday we had a zone lunch with President Jones, the stake president. Their son married Stephanie Abraham. I talked to Pres. Jones' wife for a bit about all that and Saint George. Wednesday we had district meeting and district lunch at Sister Carla Christensen. I met her the first day in Arvada and she is from Bountiful and lived very close to Grandpa and Nana. I think they were in the same ward. When she asked for my name she said, "Are you related to Rick and Laura?" Small world! I guess she tried calling Grandpa Hauck, but they didn't answer. Sister Christensen is such a nice lady!  We then met with a non-member, Pat Tatmen. He served in WW2 so he told us a lot about that. We had a great dinner with a member. We then had a lesson with Gabe and Erika on the Plan of Salvation. She seemed to be very interested, but he is atheist so it was pretty difficult for him to accept. I can't understand why or how someone could not believe in God...It's ridiculous! Living life would be so much harder!

Thursday, we met with Rachel again.  She is awesome! haha. We had dinner with a non-member and showed her the restoration video. Crazy how strong the spirit was during the First Vision. Then for some reason the dog started barking right in the middle of it! Seems like something tries to disturbs the message from getting to the investigator! We then went to teach Tim again! I went with Brother Ride, an Elder in the ward. When we walked in they were all smoking. I tried to talk with them to help them figure out a way to stop, but Tim's girl friend kept saying that I was pressuring him. Brother Ride and I had to continue to tell them we are just inviting. They both have disabilities so its pretty hard to communicate with them. Friday, we didn't get much success. Had a training meeting with the mission for Carvolho, which took most the day. Saturday, we helped a non-member move rock to his backyard, then went to Arc for 5 hours! haha. The new "Just Serve" thing is serious and we really try to get 10 hours of service in every week.

The Arvada area was amazing! I loved starting to get to know the members and investigators. Sad I had to leave, but there must be a reason for all things.  New starts are tough, but I know I can do it. My new Comp. is Elder Krogh from Gilbert, Utah. He is quiet, but very obedient! Wish me luck this week and pray for me! My new address is 18507 E. Whitaker Cir Unit E. Aurora CO, 80015

Dad, you are right about it kinda being hard to be in a 3sum. Sometimes it was a blast, but teaching was very hard and sometimes we wouldn't agree on everything. It was a good experience though!

Crazy that Dallen Reber is already home! I bet he did a great job!! I bet Dad had a great talk as well! Obedience is a great commandment! I love the scripture in D&C 130:38, I think...how all blessings are predicated by obedience!

Mom, I'm glad you talked a lot about the sacrament in Sunday School. Since being out here I have really seen how beautiful it is! We really are renewing those sacred covenants we made at Baptism. I love partaking of the sacrament every week! Such a blessing!

That video of Emme crawling is so CUTE! I wish I could be there for all this growth she is having. I can't wait to see her and all of you again! : ) Glad to hear Papa Joe is doing well. Amy looks old in the picture! What the heck is going on!!??? STOP!

Where is Steph working now?? 

Dad, the experience I had last week definitely strengthened my testimony! It was scary to see someone influenced by a bad spirit, but overall it was amazing! Seeing this wave of missionaries in the world is also amazing to see! Missionaries are going to be on every block soon! haha. All of this shows how soon the Second Coming will be here! 

Elder Carvolho helped me a ton with my Portuguese! I would teach him the lessons and he would correct me when I mess up. I wish I had more time with him, but what happens happens.

I love you all so much! I pray for you every night and hope you don't change too much while I'm gone. How is the missionary work doing in Saint George?? Please look for opportunities to spread the gospel!

Miss you all so much! Take Care

Love, Elder Hauck

19th Letter 7-15-13

Dear Family,

WOW!! So a lot of changes lately! On last Monday Sister Lindsey took Elder Tonga and I down town and dropped us off at a church. There I said goodbye to Elder Tonga and the rest of the Elders I got close to. I got on a van and was taken to meet my new companions! One is Elder McCullough from Snowflake, Arizona. He is a stud! The other Is Elder Carvolho (Car-vol- yo). He is from Sao Paulo, Brazil!! How sweet is this??? So he has only been here for one transfer and has been helping me so much with my Portuguese! He is such a funny kid and teaches very well! We call ourselves the 3 Nephites, haha. We teach well together, but the area is giant and doesn't have much success! We usually drive around to less actives and potential investigators homes. A lot of them do not like us at all. I could probably say they are more mean than the other area I was in. We live with the Sumners and they are awesome! The address is, 6502 Quartz Circle, Arvada CO 80007. Overall I love my new companions and the area is good. We just have a lot of work to do!

So the first night I was here we went to the Allen's house. They lived up in the mountains so the drive was pretty long. The grandma there was out of her mind! Haha. Some of the things she said were hilarious. She prayed before we ate and said, "Heavenly Father, bless Joseph and Brigham that they can have a hot dog, Amen." Half the other stuff she told us about during our dinner didn't make any sense! So that was pretty interesting! During the week we did a ton of service at a local food bank and a donation store called ARC. We get around 10 hours of service hours a week! It is pretty crazy! Also met some cool families in the ward and knocked a lot of doors! Some of the less actives seemed to like us and want to have us back, but we will see what happens. There is one recent convert named Rachel, who is around 40, that we teach that is a little different. I guess she takes anything we say and blows it up so we have to be very careful what we say. I already messed up by saying I missed her at church because she didn't show up. She told us that she would be talking to our mission president about that, haha. It is pretty weird. We had zone conference which was pretty good. We have a tiny zone with only 3 sister companionships and 4 elder companionships.

Saturday was a pretty crazy. That night we went to a few less actives member's homes. The last one we went to Elder Carvolho and I had a bad feeling about knocking on the door as we walked towards the house. Elder McCullough knocked on the door and a man came out who used to be a member, but is now going to a church called The Covenant. We talked for awhile and could feel the confusion in his heart and spirit. I have never seen someone so lost.  It was very sad and hard to see someone like this.

Sunday went very well, and was pretty nice only having 3 hours of church instead of 8. We saw a ton of people that day and it was nice to meet everyone. The past few days it has been raining like crazy! Earlier Saturday we had to run from our car to a home and we were soaked by the time we stepped out of the car.

I feel like my teaching ability has gotten so much better in the last few months! I get to use everything I learned in my last area in this area! It feels really good to be improving. I can't even imagine the growth I will have by the end of my mission! I do miss my old area and the great people I met there, but it was time to move on.

Mom, I am getting letters from a lot of friends so don't worry about me. I have plenty of support out here and it feels great! : ) I am glad everything is going well with you and that your Sunday School class is awesome! Love you Mom!!

Dad, I do miss my area and the great people there! They were like family there! So sad saying goodbye to all of them! You, me and Mom are coming back here to see all these great people. Okay? It's hard starting over with relationships after feeling so comfortable in the last area, but I'll have to get used to it.

I hope the whole family is doing well! I love all of you so much! Tell Tanner Hafen good luck and tell Dallen Reber he's a stud! Tell the ward that I miss them. Miss you guys.

Love, Elder Hauck

18th Letter 7-8-13

Photos: 1-The Hahn Family, 2- Brother & Sister Lindsey, 3-Lilia's Family, & 4-Brother Scudder's Baptism

Dear Family,

This week has been pretty crazy! So we had a great P-day last week and Tuesday we saw Lilia and taught her about Baptism and just how our church meetings go.  She came to the baptism we had on Saturday and she loved it!! We have been teaching her a lot and she is so ready! We also had a 4th of July breakfast, which Lilia brought her whole family to! Joe had a blast and is continuing to soften towards us Mormons, haha. The Hahn's also came to the Breakfast and had a blast!

Wednesday we didn't have much success, neither did we Thursday because of the 4th and everyone out of town! We got to see some fireworks, which was way cool! They do it big here in Colorado even with all the fires!

So Saturday night we found out about transfers. I'm leaving to Arvada. I guess it is more of a country side. Elder Tonga is going to Copperleaf with a new Elder, and Tuscany is getting two new Elders, I think. Maybe Sisters. So that news was pretty sad... I told Lilia, the Lindseys, Hanhs, and all the other close families. Sacrament meeting was pretty sad with us both leaving because we have gotten so close to families that were always really against the church and missionaries. Elder Tonga and I shared our testimonies and both cried, haha. It felt like my farewell all over again! Crazy how I got attached to these two wards! Probably as much as I did with our home ward!

After church we went to see Lilia and her family. So sad seeing Alle, Lilia's 11 year old daughter, supper sad and she kept giving us hugs. Lilia took it well and said their must be a reason for it. I'm gonna miss her so much! She is probably the one I got closest with while being here! Dad and Mom, we need to come back and visit these great families when I get home! We also saw the Hahn's. I talked with them for awhile and I really encouraged the girls to take the discussions and really get involved with the Church because it will strengthen the love of their family! I know they will be members soon!  So sad. When we said our goodbyes Mary started crying and gave us hugs. That was tough seeing her cry. We then saw the Scudders and talked with them for a while. Chris Scudders testimony has grown so much in the past month! He expressed how thankful he was that we were the Elders that challenged him to baptism. Now he is working towards the Priesthood!

Chris's Baptism went great! We had it with two other youth and when Chris was baptized the spirit was so strong! Elder Tonga and I got to be the witnesses, so that was cool! His confirmation was on Sunday and I got to be part of that as well! His father in law was the one to confirm him.

We also had a great experience teaching the Restoration to a teenage kid. When we got to the restoration part of Joseph seeing God and Christ I recited the first vision to him. The Spirit flushed the room and I could see something change in the teenage boy. His eyes opened wider and he listened even a little more than anyone usually would. I was amazed by the strong spirit that was in the room at that time. I'm also amazed with how much teaching these great lessons has strengthened my testimony! I definitely see why they want you to be fully converted to the gospel after teaching this marvelous gospel for two years. I can't even imagine where my testimony will be by the end of these 2 years.

So today I will be leaving to Arvada. The transfers are different in the North mission so we go today instead of Tuesday's. I just hop in the transfer train and head there to meet my new comps! Kinda weird... haha.

I'm glad to hear you had a good cousin camp!:) I bet it was a blast! Dad, I'm sorry to hear about Dallen being robbed! That would be tough! I can't even imagine all the memories gone! I'm thinking of sending the journals home once I fill them up.

Sister Lindsey is awesome and really wants to meet you Mom! I'm glad she sent you some pictures!

Well this week is going to be a big change, but I'm ready for it! Kinda upset because they are moving me farther away from Brazil, since Arvada is North of here... haha. I hope you all are doing great and I love you all so much!

Take care,

Elder Hauck

17th Letter 7-1-13

Photos: Lilia at Zoo, Elder Tonga & I with the Scudder's, 

Mi Familia,

My family, this work is amazing! The broadcast really gave us a push! Last P-day we went to the Zoo with Lilia and her Family. Tuesday we taught Lilia and helped her paint  room in her house! During Dinner the Crookston's family needed some help cutting wood in the back. E. Tonga stepped on a nail and it went pretty much all the way through his foot. We went to Urgent care and he got a T- shot.  This week was hard to do work because E. Tonga couldn't  walk. We got crutches and kept working! Thank goodness for the amazing members that drove us a lot this week! E. Tonga's foot is healing and he can kind of walk now.

Wednesday we saw the Hicks and had a great lesson about the Gospel of Jesus Christ! The were very receptive and their was a strong spirit there! Her family is perfect for this church and they know it!:)

Thursday we had an amazing lesson with Lilia. We talked to her about baptism, eternal families, and apostasy. She told us she needs help with her husband to soften to the church. Lilia won't come right out and say it, but she wants to be baptized. It is just that she wants her family with her, which is understandable! We challenged her to slowly talk to Joe about the church and she has already been leaving a BOM on his night stand!!

We are having a baptism this Saturday!! Brother Scudder is ready and excited! Him and his family are in a picture.

The Hanh's are doing amazing! For some reason Tony's wife and daughters like us a lot- haha They actually listen to our spiritual thoughts and I think soon they will take the lesson! They are so cool!! Today we went to the animal sanctuary with them! Il'l attach some pictures. They saved bears, tigers, lions, and a bunch of other animals from cruel people.

Rest of the week went well and a lot of the Investigators are progressing!

Mom, what has brought me the most joy this week is probably the increase of help by the members! That broadcast got everyone so excited for missionary work! it is amazing!! Mom, I am definitely feeling joy here!

Denver has been hot, but this last week was pretty stormy! The electric storms are insane at night!! Lightning brightens the whole city! Elder Tonga and I are doing great! We teach a lot better together now and I really feel like members trust us! He has been out 6 months, so we are both pretty new. Some things about E. Tonga is that he cares so much about the people we teach! They LOVE him so much. I'm sad for when he has to leave because they will miss him! He and I have so much fun while we work. it makes the hard times not as bad. He also knows the bible very well, which helped me a ton because I didn't know it that well.

So it officially split today. President Toombs is the new one. I haven't met him yet, but I hear he is a good guy! I don't know exactly what will happen to me.

Dad your analogy of working out my muscles and working out my spirit is great! haha. The church does have some pretty potent stuff here to strengthen your testimony!:) haha.... You are the best dad and mom EVER!!

The broadcast was amazing and its amazing to see the intelligence and revelation of the First pres.  These changes they are making are making the work increase a ton!! it is weird hearing about the world out here. We don't hear too much with the cut off of technology, but when we hear something it is pretty intense! haha The World is falling apart!

Dad, the insight you gave on the Book of Mormon is perfect for me! Explaining it to some people is so hard, because they look at all the bad and complex parts of it. They read it with a negative intent and cant find the truth! it is so sad to hear people reject the BOM when I have received an answer of its truthfulness. They just need to humble themselves and pray in truth! Seeing this has also strengthened my testimony significantly!

Dad, your Portuguese is better than mine!

Shaye, that video was amazing! I bet the members loved it! Really touched me!

I hope you all are doing well! Have fun in Laguna, but not too much! I miss you guys and I love you SOO MUCH!!:)

Have a good week and please search for missionary opportunities!

Love, Elder Hauck