Monday, June 19, 2017

Week #54 June 19 2017


Hola Todos!

We had transfers this week and.............! I am staying! Elder Patience is also staying! This week we had a really rough week. I will admit, it really was a great week, but some things felt like there was opposition in all the world. Monday we actually had a pretty great day, though all the plans we had fell through except for the last part in the which after some patience, we were able to teach Frank(He is hispanic) and his two sons. It was actually a pretty awesome lesson about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It felt very naturally to teach in that setting for some reason. Tuesday, we met with a man named Guido who was stoked to learn and have a discussion about the Restoration, but, he had not read like he said and was very adamant that he read before so that he would be prepared. That was fine by us and very cool! We had an awesome mission conference with Elder Brent Neilson. Some cool thoughts were that Elder Bednar and Elder Oaks both wake up 4:30, Exercise and then study the scriptures. That is pretty impressive. As well, I also learned many other important things that pertain mainly to the missionary work. Then came Saturday, We had an awesome lunch with a member, but we had many appointments and they all fell through. Then, we had issues for setting up the branch activity afterwards, as well as other people going to the hospital all of the sudden. All in all, it felt like the world fell down on us. The good thing though was that we did have a successful baptismal interview. The activity turned out pretty well. Then came Sunday. Our investigator to be baptized next week was not at church because someone else went to the hospital as well. Then, we got cool ties for Father's day! We drove to York for dinner with our Branch President. We came back and then had a super awesome miracle! We were trying to find a referral and we get there after driving 45 minutes and the address doesn't exist, as well as we are in the middle of the country with no Hispanics in sight. We knock some doors and have no success. We go back to the car and find out that we needed a space in the street name and made way more sense. We decided though that we had to be there for a reason so we decided to knock one final door. We drive to it, and as we pull up, there is a car sitting in front of us who turns on and starts moving. That was really freaky and startling. It turns out there is a young lady that was looking for a job at the place we had decided to knock, and they thought we were the owners pulling in because they weren't home. We were able to share the message of the Restoration briefly with her and she was very excited to learn more. It was neat to see how we were guided exactly to the right place at the right time to find this child of God. Especially in an area (it was a referral for the English Sisters) that has not been able to find anybody in a while. Long story short, it was a long week, but we were very blessed. I am grateful for all the love and prayers!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie
$4 shoes that are like new!

Pants from my companion!

The best ribs in the world!





Monday, June 12, 2017

Week #53 June 12 2017


Hola Todos!

This week was sort of crazy! We started of the week strong, then went straight into district meeting on Tuesday followed by an exchange with the Zone Leaders. I went into Lititz for the day and my companion stayed in our area. (The secret is that I really never left my area because Spanish speaking missionaries cover everywhere!) we had a really good exchange and I learned lots! We taught two different people named Tim, one that I had found the last transfer while on an exchange. It was interesting to see how much he had progressed since the last time that I had visited with them. Sometimes when we teach, we really have to slow things down for people to be able to understand what the message is, and other people are a lot more able to comprehend what we are saying. A lot of it has to do with their desire and willingness to listen. Some people are brick walls while others thirst for what we have to share. Earlier on that exchange, we taught the other Tim, and it was interesting to see how much different he was to teach. This Tim was a history professor who had gone through a stroke. He knew his stuff for sure, but also was humbled to be able to listen. At first, we just answered questions, but as the lesson began, then questions slowed and he was able to follow surprisingly well. It was neat to see really when the Spirit hit him because the questions, these were sort of aggressive type questions, stopped and he seemed stunned in a way. I think it is interesting how key the Spirit really is to everything that we do as missionaries. We really are just crazy young people without it. The rest of the week was pretty interesting. We had a few days where we did all we could, we followed and adjusted our plans, and still nothing. But it is cool to note that we were still able to exceed the standard of excellence and have great success. All in all, the work goes on and I am grateful to be here.

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie

Week #52 June 5 2017


Hola! This week was another great week here in Lancaster PA! We are teaching like crazy up here! This week we had a pretty normal week, but it was very full. I think the interesting thing was the way that it was made busy this week. I have a hard time finding what to write because I have seen a lot of different things happen, and it is quite hard to figure out which happened this week and which did not. I will say that I wake up a lot happier if I get a slight bit extra sleep. This week we had a nice wide spectrum of just about everybody. We had people that were very awesome and excited to learn, we had those who did not want to listen to us at all, We had those who wanted to listen to us but didn't hear anything we said as we later passed and he was drinking and said today I do bad... We had those that we taught they smiled, but understood nothing. Then there were those nice tender moments of miracle where they said "I finally have the tools in my hands to follow God" It was definitely fun. Some highlights were the fact that Hno. Guerrero decided to invite all of his friends to hear the gospel. He wants the branch to be strong, and he wants to be able to say at the end that he did his part to give them the opportunity to hear.Because of that our week was full of him sharing his testimony with his friends and it was a beautiful thing. I feel like the real joy in sharing the gospel comes from doing it with those that you love the most. That was really the coolest thing this week. I just can't help thinking of all my friends and imagining what would happen if I did share the gospel with them? Don't I love them? And if they love me yet still don't want the message, then won't they respect that as well? I can't think of anything happier then inviting someone that you love, a friend, a family member, to enjoy what makes you truly happy. I just feel like I want to share with everybody, especially all of those that I know whom I am friends with. All in all, I feel the need to share and do what I can to bring this joy to the lives of others!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie

Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Week #51 May 29 2017


Hola Todos!

This week was the bomb! We worked super hard, and had miracles. I don't know why, but we were blessed abundantly. We had a very interesting week with district meeting, a special exchange, correlation, and finding tons of people this week. Basically the takeaways are: Seek the Spirit and follow the impressions. It is that simple and it works like a charm! the reason for the special exchange was for training purposes with some of the best missionaries in the mission. They came to train us for leadership because most of the leadership in the mission will be leaving in the next 2 transfers. On top of that, there is a lack of seeking of the Spirit in the mission. It seems that most of the missionaries are settling with what has already been done and are not seeking the Spirit for direction in how to approach the new pace of the mission. the big focus of late then has been to receive revelation, to teach the doctrine and help others to seek their personal guidance from the Spirit. Here is an example from the week. We are building the kingdom here! We have so many new and solid people that I don't know what to do with all of them! Yordy is super solid and will open up his family to finally being baptized. Giovani is very stoked for baptism and is ready to learn. Manuel is a little tougher, but he has high desire. If we have to move his date, hopefully it will cause the rest of his family to come around. We had a super awesome experience this week! Well, really the whole week was cool. We just were teaching like crazy and had an awesome exchange with the special assignment missionaries. Then we had a super awesome miracle after church. We had a fun branch activity with our investigators and then were heading to an appointment with a man some other missionaries said to stop by. We had tried by, but nobody was there until sometime last week his wife opened the door and told us a time to stop by. This was the appointment on Sunday. We get there and... nobody answers. So we move on to our back-up plan and go find the apartment of a less-active in the area. We then both decide to go stop by one of our investigators that we hadn't planned on seeing today that missed out on church. We pass by and there are a ton of people on the porch and we somehow manage to get in to the kitchen where our investigator is. She had been taught years ago by missionaries in Puerto Rico, and had loved it! We get in and she is cooking and it is a pain to do anything, but we get everything going. So, the main people that participated were her son and daughter(30's and 40's or something like that), her sister (who mostly listened and nodded, but didn't want to do anything because she already had her religion) and herself. We manage to teach and sort of shout teach just to be heard through the first parts, but they all were loving it. We get to the first vision and it is like Jesus calmed the sea. It was beautiful. Afterward, we invited them to be baptized and if they would like very soon with our other investigators on the 24 of June. They were all on-board! They seemed pretty excited about the prophets still talking with God bit and so we shall see what happens. The cool thing about all of this is that the son, Hector, is the referral guy that missed out on his appointment! I guess the Lord knows how to find people. Overall, that just was the cherry on top for finding this week.
I am very happy with my mission and know that it really is not mine. All I am doing really is doing my best to be obedient in all things, to seek and then follow the Spirit. I can't do anything unless I have the Spirit in this work because it is not mine. All in all, a great week!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie

Week #50 May 22 2017

Hola Todos!

I am having a little bit of writer's block so bear with me. This week was pretty stinking amazing. We have a pretty tough mission overall here out east. What I mean to say is that in some areas, it is very difficult to find people to teach, some where they find maybe one new person to teach a week. Our mission president has put a standard of Excellence of 2 per week and for some it is difficult to achieve. The interesting thing is that that standard has been established as a promise from the Lord that we will be able to find that many each week. I have seen this to be true. Pretty much since I got it in my head that the Lord always fulfills His promises, I have not missed a week to reach this standard; many weeks exceeding it. An interesting thing though is that the same applies with our goal setting. One sister pointed out that if we really have the faith to reach our goals, then we should be getting many more investigators because one should never have a goal not to achieve, or rather 0, meaning 7 per week. That was a very interesting thought! Once we started doing that, we started really striving to keep our goals, and for the most part, we fulfilled them. It doesn't mean they aren't a stretch, but we strive to do all we can to make it happen. I guess what I am trying to say is that the Lord magnifies our efforts and our faith. This week we were able to help our good friend Manuel accept a baptismal date and come to church. It is amazing how much people are able to progress by exercising faith. Then, on Sunday evening, we found this young man Yordy who had met before with missionaries and come to church 3 times, but we don't have his record anywhere. Also, it was weird to find out that he really had not been taught about the doctrines behind the Restoration. We simply taught him what we know and bore our testimonies. He accepted a date as well as Baptism and was very excited to meet with us again. I am grateful for the Spirit because that is the only way anything happens out here.

A couple random thoughts that all the women in the world might appreciate. Women were the last creation during the periods of creation, and it is interesting to note that the most precious parts of the creation were saved for last. As well on this note, Women are the portal to creation. These were some thoughts that were said in priesthood meeting this week.

I love you all!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie

Monday, May 15, 2017

Week #49 May 15 2017

Hola Todos!

This week was pretty great, though I am not sure what to write about being as that I said pretty much everything yesterday getting to talk to my parents. I suppose that is because the work goes on and doesn't stop. we welcomed some new people to our District this week as transfers were this past Wednesday. I and Elder Patience are both still here in Lancaster! Then on Friday we had a very long missionary meeting that was 2 hours away so we did not do a whole lot that day. It was pretty cool though in the meeting to feel the strong Spirit there. There was a moment that I received a very strong prompting and am grateful to know that our Father in Heaven communicates with His children. Sunday we had some very good meetings, though there was a little bit of a dispute on something, though I am not really sure what. Angry Hispanic women are not to be messed with, but I can say that repentance is for everybody! On a more serious note, Jose shared a really cool experience in Gospel Principles class. He shared how prayer really helped him be able have peace and give him strength. For some reason or other he really felt like he didn't want to come to church and I think he may have been a little upset with his spouse. he decided though to pray and ask for peace and strength. when he did, all of those bad feelings fled and he felt the strength to come. The Lord truly does answer our prayers when we ask in faith. I know the letter is short this week, but I got to forget myself and go to work!

I love you all and keep you in my prayers!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie

Week #48 May 8 2017

Hola Todos!

This week was interesting and not a ton actually happened. It rained and I think Past Subjunctive started to really click. I learned how to say the question, "What would it mean if our message was true?" I learned why no one ever understood the question and that was because I have been saying it wrong the whole time and never knew! It makes way more sense, and since then, people have been able to take that question way better. Also this week, I finally got my box back from the sisters that I made to protect my scriptures. I convinced them to decorate it for me because they made fun of how it looked before so they decorated it. The cost, though free, was a moth without my box. Worth it? It looks pretty cool. As you may have noticed, this letter is pretty practical. That is because I try to make the letters fell how it is to be on a mission. Though we have many awesome experiences, sometimes there is simple and pure joy in the simple things in life. Transfers did not really affect us this time as we are both staying! I am excited because we are on fire right now and we will see some pretty amazing things this next transfer. 

Okay some actually uplifting stuff! We had a neat experience teaching the Plan of Salvation yesterday to a man who has some very deep questions. It is sometimes hard to teach him because he comes up with questions that distract from the main point of the message and don't allow for principles that need to be taught to be taught. For this reason, he has not progressed when missionaries have worked with him in the past. It has been interesting to watch how as we carefully answer his questions, and hold others for another time in order to keep the focus, he at the end is much more satisfied. For instance, he at the end of teaching said that he had always felt that God wanted to save all of his children and not just a few. Also, we had a regional broadcast on Sunday and were able to hear some speakers fro the General Authorities. I don't have the name super well, but The first counselor in the Primary General Presidency gave some wonderful insights to having our own light of Christ in our lives, versus borrowing the light from others. One of the Seventy that spoke referred to 8 different repentance stories in the Book of Mormon. It was not so much the topic, but the Spirit that bore witness to me that Repentance is real, for everybody and helps us to be happy. The Atonement of Jesus Christ is for all of us and I am so grateful for it.

All in all, I love you and your support. Let us all keep an eye out for God's hand in our lives this week as we go forth and serve!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie​







Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Week #47 May 1 2016

Hola Todos!

This week was awesome! I heard that everything got rainy in Missouri, but here though we had some storms, it wasn't anything too bad. Also, drivers here are horrid! They do relatively well to avoid accidents, but it is a mess. Especially in the deep city. They also do this funny thing out here in the East. They have tons of parking/ no parking signs and for some reason people think that if they pull off just a bit and then turn on their hazard lights that they can park. Also, if they are about to do something they shouldn't, they raise their hand up and waive. This week though, was great! It started with Monday. We went to a family home evening after visiting Jose and Glenda. We were able to meet a new investigator who had come to church the previous day and had just moved from Puerto Rico. His family are all converts and are super solid. We had a wonderful lesson that just amazed me at how essential it is to feel God's love. When someone feels how loved they are by our Heavenly Father, there is no stopping the Spirit from guiding their thoughts and actions. Giovani is the same. He is ready for the gospel and is excited to learn. Friday was pretty great! Some other Elders had arranged for a tour of the church for some Juniors in high school. We were able to participate and it was a cool opportunity for people to see what we actually do and believe. I had the chance to share my testimony there and I was grateful for the power of the Spirit to carry the message across. Saturday was the Baptism! I love how things somehow always work out. Even when you are prepared, something goes amiss, but it always turns out alright. I had the opportunity to baptize Jose and got very wet myself because he is a pretty big man. He is like a gentle giant. The first try though his toe came up so we had to do it twice. The second time he went down, but coming up I basically hugged him as I hauled him out of the water. Despite all that, the look on his face and the smile in his eyes were enough for me. My companion Elder Patience baptized Glenda. She was good the first time and it was wonderful to be by Jose as he watched his loved wife go down as well. After the service, I had a meeting, then we were given pizza by a member, then we went to visit another to discuss some upcoming events and our day of course ended up not how we thought. We did make it to another appointment that day with a man who his wife is an inactive member. We were able to teach him and though he has been taught before, some very key parts were missing. We were able to share them with him and it started to make all the difference. It did get to the point where he had a lot of doubt and all I could do was bear my testimony. The Spirit was with me as I shared my feelings about the restoration, about the prophet Joseph Smith and about the Book of Mormon. It is interesting to note that whenever I get strong feelings from the Spirit, my language becomes clearer. My grammar no longer is a barrier and the words fill my mind as to what I need to say. Sunday came and we had a combined meeting with both sides of the branch. It is strange, we meet in two different groups, but are part of one branch. We had combined meetings and Jose and Glenda were able to be confirmed. I am just very grateful for the opportunity the Lord has given me to serve these people and help them find happiness in this life, and in the life to come. I love you all lots!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie





Friday, April 28, 2017

Week #46 April 24 2017

Hola todos!

This week has been a little gloomy in weather, but very productive! We were able to meet with Jose and Glenda pretty much every day and help them feel prepared. we will be having the baptism this Saturday and it will be awesome! I am grateful for the help of the Lord. It is amazing to see how he can change lives. I think of the way the gospel in it's fullness have changed their lives and it amazes me. Jose's family who has been Catholic their whole life and always have taught to avoid the Mormon Missionaries, are investigating the church. Jose's dad in Puerto Rico has never met the missionaries, but is reading from the Book of Mormon and from what Jose has shared, his dad is pretty much convinced that it is right and they are excited for Jose. I think it is also interesting to tell how they were found by missionaries. In an event they were at, they were basically segregated. They had other people with them, but no one came up to them and said hi except the Mormon Missionaries. They talked for a bit and then the missionaries asked if they could get in contact with anyone there for missionaries to visit them. Everyone at the table said no, even Glenda, Jose's wife said no. Jose felt though, "why not?" and thus we are where we are. Glenda to us the other day just said "Sorry," with a shrug and a smile. She says it with a funny accent as well. A thought from this week is that the Book of Mormon really is the keystone. It doesn't matter what question someone places, that is the key. If they understand that it is true, the rest falls into place. Also, "The Book of Mormon, combined with the Spirit, is the most powerful resource in conversion." PMG 104. I love you all lots!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie



Monday, April 17, 2017

Week #45 April 17 2017

Hola Todos!

So the subject is what our key indicators were for this week which means we had a wonderful week based on who these people represent. I apologize in advance because I don't have my camera on me and I'm not sure if I have any on my companion's camera. But, this week was super awesome! We had a very spiritual Zone conference on Tuesday followed by a super awesome day where we picked up many new investigator for the week! That is where the 6 comes in. I don't know about other missions as much, but here our standard of excellence is to find 2 new investigators per week, and sometimes that is a difficult, but doable task. So we had a super miraculous day and were able to find some new people to teach. Then we concluded the day with some very late night interviews. I was the last to go and mine ended at 10:45, which in missionary time is super late...It was very uplifting though. That day we finally began teaching the man named Noel and his son. We ran into them last Sunday and shared with them the Easter initiative video. It fit his needs exactly and it was amazing to see how the prophets really do receive revelation. We had one of the most spiritual lessons where I felt like everything was directed by a higher hand. I am excited because we will see him again today. But the really cool thing happened on Friday. I am going to take a cut from my letter to president:


Teaching- We had a super awesome week! We had this lesson on Friday with our investigators Jose and Glenda. It went well, but the cool part was near the end of it. We were helping resolve their doubts about baptism, and Jose still felt like he wanted to be baptized, but not quite yet. We new about that, but then we decided to ask his wife more directly. She said she had no doubts really, so we invited her to be baptized on the 29 of April. She accepted! This really surprised me because She is a lot quieter and I did not expect her to say yes first. Then, on Sunday after all the meetings, Jose comes up to me and says, I talked with my wife and prayed and I want to be baptized as well the 29th! He told us he had gotten a confirmation during one of the classes. President, the Spirit is real, and absolutely a member of the Godhead. I think sometimes we forget that in this work we have God on our side, literally His presence can be with us. There are moments where I just ask how, because my mortal capacity to understand is so limited to comprehend how so much power can be present to create these profound changes in people.

I do need to be going soon, but I love you all! Happy Birthday Mother, Yeah that's right, my Mom is awesome!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie




Week #44 April 10 2017





Hola Todos!

This week was full of miracles! Finally the weather warmed up and it feels great today! A couple of thoughts on conference(didn't get it last week):
-Eternal Life refers to the unending joy that will be present.
-Sin is like a scab, it hurts us unless we let the Shepard give us His medicine.
-In our time of need, be rooted in God
-We are here to gather light 1. Light of the Church, 2. Light of the Gospel, 3. Light of Christ
-How do we draw the power of the the Lord Jesus Christ in our lives 1. Learn of Him and His doctrine, 2. Recognize the source of power in the Atonement, Jesus Christ. 3. It is our choice to have faith in him and follow Him, 4. Keep covenants made to God, 5. Reach up to Him in Faith
-Discipleship is a state of being
-Faith is a Catalyst
-Virtue is cleanliness and incites to action
-Knowledge is personal testimony
-Temperance is balance
-Patience is relying on the Lord, Be still and know that He is God
-Godliness is growing like unto God
-Brotherly kindness is a hallmark of all disciples
-Charity is pure Love of Christ

More notes and thoughts coming next week!
This week the real miracles came when we found a man who has a friend in the church. He has lots of interest to learn and it was awesome to see his friend make specific time to come and be with his friend as he learns. Also, we had the perfect fit of a member for our investigators Jose and Glenda. Hermano Arocho came with us and helped teach a really personal lesson on the purpose of life. His wife who has been sick recently received some medication that has enabled her to function. It also just so happens that she has the skill set to help the children of our investigators. I thought it was a miracle that she was healed basically in the exact week in which we needed her. They came to church with their two children who are autistic and young. It was a great experience. I feel like finally I am teaching people who want to learn. Another miracle was that we have this relatively new investigator that we have basically no information on. Yet, we were able to knock a door, and due to the inspiration of the Spirit, my companion was able to find out that it would again be possible to find this young man. The Lord prepares a way for all things to be accomplished. Yesterday, we went about doing visits, but we were not having much success. Then we walk up to this man, and I invite him to watch the Easter initiative video #PrinceofPeace. Turns out though that I was not planning at all to invite him to see it at all. I was going to give him a card to look it up, but apparently the Spirit said differently. After we watched the video, I was amazed at how much this man needed that video specifically for him. He after seeing the video was very anxious to meet with us and learn more. These were a few small miracles that have taught me that He really is watching out for us.

I love you all!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie

Week #43 April 3 2017

Hola Todos!

This week was very long, but also pretty great! I forgot to tell you all about my new companion Elder Patience! He is from Prescott Arizona and has been out since October. He is a very diligent missionary and he speaks excellent Spanish. This week we had a super awesome miracle! We have been working with Jose and his wife Glenda. We taught them the Word of Wisdom this week and it was amazing how prepared people are. They are very close to baptism and it is exciting! -I keep getting distracted by all these people around me this week.-We were very busy and I will get a much better letter next week. 

Conference was wonderful! I Truly testify that the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles are prophets, seers, and revelators. I was impressed by all of the talks, but ones of particular focus to me was Elder Oak's address, and Elder Rasband's address. I think that something that impressed me was to always act on the first impression. Here is a short experience I had:
 I had a weird experience yesterday. I felt the impression to turn left instead of the planned right because there would be someone on the corner. We get to the corner and almost run into a man as we come around it. I offered the card for the initiative and was frankly but kindly turned down. Though I didn't see any success, I believe the purpose was to see if I would act, and I did.
I think that this is the key. The Lord is speaking to us always and will guide us. We need to act if we want to feel his guidance. I love how we are able to hear the Lord in our lives. I was once again reminded of the power of the Spirit. As I listened I received multiple confirmations of truth that I cannot deny. I know it and cannot deny the impressions I was given.

I love you all!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie

ps pictures will be coming next week!

Week #42 March 27 2017

Hola todos!

This week was long and eventful. On Monday I may have mentioned that we got to go to Skyzone after we had done emailing because one of the companionships had acquired 10 free tickets for an hour. (Missionaries find the weirdest stuff) So we went and had a fun time there, but sadly one of the Hermanas hurt her foot pretty bad. It was kind of ironic because she has just had problem after problem. She would almost be like another Job...Because of that, we really had adventures! So Tuesday comes around and she needs someone to take her to York and back as soon as possible for some odd reason. We then have to cancel district meeting but we still did Exchanges. I got to spend the day with Elder Fitzgerald. Here is an excerpt from my letter to president:
-First I need to report on the exchanges we had this week. I did not mean to save it to the end, but because of snow and a couple other things it just landed that way. First, on Tuesday I was able to spend the day with Elder Fitzgerald. He is a wonderful Elder with a bright testimony of the gospel. I was most impressed how loving he was towards the work. We were able to spend a lot of time talking and have a great exchange even though the day did not go as planned. I was impressed with his willingness to learn a few Spanish phrases and apply them to the work. I sometimes feel Spanish exchanges are not fair because the other Elder does not always have a whole lot to do, but both of these Elders really carried their role and were a great help.-
We then had exchanges with Elder Hopper
-Because of crunch for time we had the second exchange from Thursday evening to Friday. I was very impressed with Elder Hopper and can see the light of missionary work in his eyes. He knows the Book of Mormon is true and wants to share it with everybody he knows. I can tell that the mission has changed him and that he has felt the power of the atonement in his life. He made me want to be better. this doesn't mean that he was a dull companion, rather, he has learned how to feel in his skin to use his talents to serve the Lord. You have a fine set of Elders here.-
I am just going to skip to Sunday
-We had a super awesome miracle! We have been working with a golden investigator and his wife, Jose and Glenda, and he hasn't been able to come to church because they feel uncomfortable with their two severely autistic children. He came though! The reason she did not come apparently was because she did not have a dress to wear. He came and it scared me at first because he comes late which is okay because our meetings are reversed ish for some reason. We go into priesthood and an argument just about starts yup and I just think, OHhhhhh dear... There goes our hope! Turns out to be okay and we have a prayer and the Spirit settled in. At the end of the lesson we find out that hermano Arocho will be giving a talk and I just think... Ohhhhh dear, that is the man that has accidentally driven people away from the branch... It turns out that He gives one of the best talks on the Articles of Faith I have heard. At the end of the meeting I turn to Jose, and he just says to me, "I liked it a lot" (translated). Miracles come after the trial of faith!-
I used a lot from my letter to president because between that and the journal this is like the third or fourth time I am telling the story.

Other notes, one I realize I may have forgotten to tell my address and that is mostly because I was not sure if I would receive mail well there or not. My address is 833 Pleasure Rd. Apt E34
Lancaster, PA 17603.

I love you all lots!






Week #41 March 20 2017

This week was really interesting. Monday I got a haircut. Tuesday we got a foot and a half of snow. Because of that Tuesday we got stuck in pretty much all day and most of Wednesday as well. Basically until Friday nothing much happened at least that I can even remember. I mean we were out and about but the only thing I really remember is helping this lady who had a ton of snow blocking her car. Friday though, we got in with the Hope family and watched the Restoration with them. They loved it so we came back the next day to help answer some of their questions. Saturday was CRAZY! We get out early and find a man we had been trying to contact named Alvaro. We set an appointment for later which just added to our busy schedule. Comes down to it, we had a very miraculous day where things just happened that shouldn't have happened all on their own. It was great! We had another lesson with a Lady named Sylvia who is actually the friend of one of our less active members. We did not know that before the lesson. Oh, I almost forgot! Thursday we get a call as we are about to go and eat that we are late to a dinner appointment we were not told about. We hurry over there and turns out to be a family who has not been able to come to church because the man of the home has had to work on Sundays. Turns out that they can actually come! Also, as we are talking their daughter and her family are their waiting for her husband to pick her up. She leaves because her husband drives by and we ask if she is a member. Turns out she isn't. Then as we are speaking she comes back in because it actually wasn't her husband! We then are able to share a super awesome message that was very powerful, not because we were teaching better, but the Spirit was very strong. Sunday, we do a church swap with the Hope family and it was weird. It wasn't the actual church that made it weird, in fact it was very well organized and they did a wonderful job welcoming us. I felt overdressed as I was in a full suit and the Pastor didn't even where a tie. As the proceedings went on there were good things that were said, but something just felt missing. I felt like I was in a presentation for something rather than worshiping God. I was surprised at a number of things. First, it took them over half the time before they even started the sermon and they just didn't talk about much. They had very good fellowship one to another, but there was something missing. As the Sermon went on He proceeded to share a message using an assortment of scriptures focused on one at the very end of Mark. They kindly had a program to take notes with that followed along with the sermon. At the end I realized that nothing false was taught, rather I was severely disappointed because I felt like nothing was taught. I looked back and there was no doctrine taught. None. I found nothing false, but nothing true either. We later were able to go to our meetings in church and as we partook of the Sacrament there was a supreme difference. It was not because of things familiar, rather the Spirit was able to be present in the fullness. It was a wonderful experience overall. I am grateful for the opportunity we have to worship our God and that He has sent His Spirit to confirm the truth of all things.

I love you all!


Sincerely,
Elder Haynie





Week #40 March 13 2017

Hola Todos!

This week was pretty great! Monday I think I may have already told about, but it was a pretty great day. Tuesday we had Zone Training and we learned lots of great things there. Then I had the opportunity to go on Exchanges with the Zone Leaders. I went with Elder Blazzard and Elder Burtenshaw took my place here. We went back did a quick overview then headed out! We had some pretty great experiences and met some people. I decided that English people think differently than Hispanics. Like, it is a completely different type of missionary work! For some reason we always have miracles on exchanges. We found these two guys and taught them the Restoration and when we went to read from the scriptures one of them said, I have this really cool bible app on my phone that I really like because it reads to me. Come to find out it was the gospel Library app. I was amazed. While I was away, Elder Livingston had some pretty awesome miracles. All the people we had been trying to meet finally opened their doors and made appointments. I feel like the Lord was being very abundant in His blessings for us this week. Thursday we were able to eat steak from one of our investigators, the Hope family. We shared the video the Mediator, and then invited them to Stake Conference. Sunday was very uplifting. The Hope family was a little late to the meeting, but the Made it! They really enjoyed it. One of my personal favorites was that a 91 year-old recent convert was invited to share his testimony. He opens by saying of all my life I am the happiest I have ever been. He then proceeded to share his gratitude and belief in the Savior. Everybody was in tears. Another highlight was our final speaker Elder Dudley of the Seventy. He gave a wonderful talk about weeds and seeds. He told an experience he had as a Stake President when President Hinkley came as they were looking for a possible temple sight. Throughout the story, he really showed how prophets are truly inspired by God and empowered to do the work. Also, he used different instances of when President Hinkley Stomped on the weeds and when he would gather and then plant and nourish them. We should then symbolically stomp on the weeds of doubt and replace them with faith, stomp on pride and plant humility in the stead. It was a really great talk.

Well, I got to get going, but let it be known that God loves us and blesses His children. Also Romans 8 is wonderful but Spanish is a better translation. I love you all!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie

Week #39 March 6 2017

Hola todos!

This week was pretty interesting! We had cold and chilly weather but it was fun. So the run down of the week went kinda like this. Monday- our solid lesson fell through though we did have a pretty fun lesson over at the Diaz house. We finished teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and they all were very excited for the lesson Tuesday. The next day was cool because I directed my first district meeting. It went well and was pretty effective. Later we had another lesson with the Diaz family about the Word of Wisdom. Really there wasn't anything new for them. I just think, how do we learn it as a kid, but forget it so easily as we grow up?  Wednesday was a little bit of a trial of faith because pretty much all our set appointments fell through, though we did have a neat experience. We had just gotten done with a dinner appointment, then we are trying to visit as a back up to our teaching appointment and we found this lady named Jaime that talked to us for a bit. Turns out her husband is actually related to the family we had just had dinner with. That was a pretty awesome day by the end because even though everything fell through, the Lord had other plans. Thursday was great! A member fed us Empanadas...That says it all! I successfully, yet painfully ate 22 and broke the house record! Friday though was where the real miracle happened. We had this cool activity planned with the members to meet lots of people because of an activity that takes place every 1st Friday of the month. However, it was really cold and there weren't any people really out. Because of that we ended up back at a member's house. The miracle comes when we decide to go visit our investigator Jose on a day and time where he usually can't meet, at a time we hadn't planned on. It turns out he and his wife were home and had time. We shared the Plan of Salvation and it was amazing! I was so happy because they are very prepared! Saturday and Sunday were miracles because after long days and some walking, we finally were able to find new people to teach. All and all, this week was wonderful and miraculous. I love you  all and love to hear how you all are doing!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie









This was just a random door up 10 feet in the air. Honey, make sure you lock the back door!

Week #45 April 17 2017

Hola Todos!

So the subject is what our key indicators were for this week which means we had a wonderful week based on who these people represent. I apologize in advance because I don't have my camera on me and I'm not sure if I have any on my companion's camera. But, this week was super awesome! We had a very spiritual Zone conference on Tuesday followed by a super awesome day where we picked up many new investigator for the week! That is where the 6 comes in. I don't know about other missions as much, but here our standard of excellence is to find 2 new investigators per week, and sometimes that is a difficult, but doable task. So we had a super miraculous day and were able to find some new people to teach. Then we concluded the day with some very late night interviews. I was the last to go and mine ended at 10:45, which in missionary time is super late...It was very uplifting though. That day we finally began teaching the man named Noel and his son. We ran into them last Sunday and shared with them the Easter initiative video. It fit his needs exactly and it was amazing to see how the prophets really do receive revelation. We had one of the most spiritual lessons where I felt like everything was directed by a higher hand. I am excited because we will see him again today. But the really cool thing happened on Friday. I am going to take a cut from my letter to president:


Teaching- We had a super awesome week! We had this lesson on Friday with our investigators Jose and Glenda. It went well, but the cool part was near the end of it. We were helping resolve their doubts about baptism, and Jose still felt like he wanted to be baptized, but not quite yet. We new about that, but then we decided to ask his wife more directly. She said she had no doubts really, so we invited her to be baptized on the 29 of April. She accepted! This really surprised me because She is a lot quieter and I did not expect her to say yes first. Then, on Sunday after all the meetings, Jose comes up to me and says, I talked with my wife and prayed and I want to be baptized as well the 29th! He told us he had gotten a confirmation during one of the classes. President, the Spirit is real, and absolutely a member of the Godhead. I think sometimes we forget that in this work we have God on our side, literally His presence can be with us. There are moments where I just ask how, because my mortal capacity to understand is so limited to comprehend how so much power can be present to create these profound changes in people.

I do need to be going soon, but I love you all! Happy Birthday Mother, Yeah that's right, my Mom is awesome!

Sincerely,
Elder Haynie