Thank you for the wonderful letter! It looks like things are doing great at home. I always love to hear about your comings and goings. Always remember what a blessing it is to be a family! There is no better place to feel the Spirit, there is no better place to grow, there is no better place to have meaningful enjoyment. Happy Birthday to Ronnie! More about that later.
This week was one full of travel, but also full of wonderful blessings! On Tuesday I traveled to Ruse to be on exchanges with Elder Duncan (which was wonderful!), then right from there Elder Stakebake and I met up in Veliko Turnovo to do exchanges with the Elders there! We got back into Varna Friday night, exhausted, but excited. The next day, a wonderful young man, who had been being taught by the other Missionaries in Varna, but with whom I had made friends with in Church (he is studying chemistry!) asked me to baptize him; it was a little bit of a surprise, but a happy one! It was a great experience, and it was wonderful to see his face, to see the Spirit and cleanliness that radiated in them. What a blessing it is that our Heavenly Father has given us, to be able to be born again, every Sunday if we choose, if we are desiring! We are also preparing for the baptism of our wonderful investigator this Saturday! Please keep praying that she will be able to resist the desire to drink coffee. A long, great week.
Mother; we usually do spend at least a part of our week traveling--not every week, but because there are 4 other cities in our Zone, we do have to travel at least 4 times for exchanges, not including baptismal interviews of people that are taught by the District Leader in any given city. We are VERY acquainted with Bulgarian buses and trains! They serve in Varna, Stara Zagora, Sofia, Plovdiv and Sliven. They are wonderful! The dishes that you ate are called Shopska Salad (the cucumber, pepper, tomato), the casserole thing is called Мусика, and the rolls with the feta are called мелинки, and the feta cheese is called сирене. I think the other thing is called a кашкавалка, but they make them in a lot of different ways, so I am not sure. I love you so much, Mother. Thank you for being such a faithful Mother in Zion. I will always be grateful! Also, your package got here! I should have it by tomorrow. Thank you so much!
Father, thank you so much for all that you do. We gave Branch Council a go this week, and I couldn't help but think of the Ward Councils that you have. I hope ours become a little bit more like yours, but we are making progress! I really do love the members here--they are so strong, so full of faith. I love you Dad, have a great week!
Paige, I feel your pain about AP History! It is something that you will discover more and more as you continue in your education--there comes a point where studying really makes the difference--those that read the textbook are those that really get a good, deep understanding of the topics, and those who don't survive with the surface material, but lecture alone doesn't suffice to cover the depth and breadth of the topic. I am grateful for the study skills that we learn from studying the Gospel--it takes effort to truly study a topic, but I promise it will make the whole class more meaningful and even fun, when you know what is going on. You can do it, ask for the Lord's help not only to succeed, but to have fun while doing it. I love you so much little Sister! Who is you teacher, by the way?
RONNIE! I don't have the sufficient time today to do your birthday wish justice--I will think about it this week and then write it next week. I love you so much, little Brother. Seek for the things that bring lasting joy and progression, and I promise you that you will never regret it. I promise you that, for I have seen it in my own life, and especially in the lives of not only people that we work with, but also in the lives of other Missionaries. I love you little Brother!
Lizzie; I love you little Sister! I think you are sweet enough to just go as yourself for Halloween, and you would be the sweetest thing in that building, but that is my personal opinion. I love you little Sister.
This week I have really been pondering the true meaning of humility--I sometimes take things so seriously, especially when it comes to how missionary work should be done, that I forget the importance of working together, listening to the advice of a companion. This week I really have been trying hard to do things OUR way, not just My way, and being honest...it has been hard from time time. Shamefully difficult, actually. I bear my testimony, however, that we have had the Spirit powerfully however, because we truly have had UNITY, not just agreeance or partnership. What a blessing! In relationships with those we love, we must always be willing to yield to the other, and ESPECIALLY to the Spirit. As we give our will to the Father, he makes more of us than we can ourselves. A great, tough principle! I love it. I love you so much, have a great week!
With Love,
Elder Hardy
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| Baptism! He truly is great! |
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