The Work of the Lord!

Family Mine,

     Thank you so much for the wonderful letter! I looked at that picture of the Family (with Rees and Grandpa and Grandma, everyone in Sunday clothes) and said to myself...do I even know these people? You have all changed so much, but in great ways. I love you all so much, and am grateful for your wonderful and constant loving support. How is Tanner Law doing? Will you please give him my love and tell him that I am thinking about him? Thank you so much!

      Elder Strobel and I are doing really well--we don't really discuss many personal or companionship relation matters together (Elder Strobel isn't really the talkative type), but we both really care about the work, serve each other, and do our best to always feel the Spirit, and it works out. The Lord really puts you with all sorts of personalities so that you can learn to adapt, to be ready and willing to work with every different type of person. I am so grateful for the chance I have to serve a mission! 

      This week we were on quite a few exchanges, including with a missionary who said he has been to Stake Dances at the Stake the Christian Bowcutt is a part of (he knows where Aliso Vieho is!), and we had some neat experiences to teach about the Atonement. Knowledge about the Atonement of our Savior really is a precious gift, though for those of us who have always had it, sometimes we don't realize the peace that it truly brings. A great gift.

      Mother; Thank you so much for the package! I will use the shoes today, start giving out the pictures, and love reading the poems and sharing them with my fellow missionaries. Bill Brown made a Million...I have been trying to be like Bill Brown my whole life, and still have a lot of work to do, but I am so grateful that I heard about him from my youth! You look great, Mom. We were at a Family Home Evening, and this sweet old Baba looked at that picture of us two on the top of the Mountain in Maccu Piccu and asked; "Is that your Girlfriend?". I really wanted to say" No--my dad's!", but I bit my tounge and just told her that I would tell you. Thought you might appreciate that! I love you.

       Dad; as Mom would say, "you are a trooper!". I am so grateful for your example of hard work and dedication--if you can go to work sick, then so can I! Actually, I have been blessed greatly during my mission--I have not been sick since the MTC! (Knock on wood). The Lord protects his Missionaries. I love you!

      Rees; I love you Brother! You better start honing your 21 game...otherwise Ronnie is going to beat you! 

      Paige; You are going to Europe? What? When did that get decided? You are going to love it so much...if you had been in Madrid a week earlier at the Temple, you would have met a bunch of members from the Branch I am serving in right now! Crazy. Be safe, please. You are going to love Europe, it really is a wonderful place with wonderful people. If you walk around the streets of London saying "Здравайте", within about a half hour you will probably run into a confused and pleased Bulgarian--talk to him. I might know him! All jokes aside, you are going to love it. I love you! Also...HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I cannot believe that you are turning 17...You are turning into such a wonderful young woman. Just a quick story about you. Among some of my favorite memories are from the time that we spent together in Jazz Choir, I will always remember one morning looking across the Choir room and seeing you and Gracie Miller just laughing your heads off to each other and wiggling your fingers at each other, cackling "we are da wick!". You are so much more than a wick, little Sister, you really are the flame. Keep shedding that light! Now is the time to decide what kind of person you are going to be for the rest of your life--study the Scriptures, pray, seek guidance, be aware of what you watch and listen to, how you spend your time, and with whom you associate. Always show kindness, and I promise you with all the strength of my heart that it will always come back to you, if not from that person, then your Father in Heaven. Or me. I love you so much Little Sister. Shmuh!

      Ronnie; You are large, I love you, don't get schooled by Lizzie too much--it will ruin your reputation! I love you Brother!

       Lizzie! I love you so much. I love what Mom said about being good winners--you will find in your life that the Lord, as much as he blesses us, is also very competent at humbling us as well. If we can learn to take his correction with a humble heart, our whole life will be so the much more happy and fulfilling. That I know!

       I was reading in Enos this morning, and the 11th verse really struck me--I have been thinking (after Elder Klebingat came) about what it means to have "unshakeable faith", to have no "breaking point" or "last straw" when it comes to the Restored Church of Jesus Christ on the Earth today. It impressed me how Enos gained his--he did as he received answers to his prayers, and heard the voice of the Lord. Do we pray in such a way the Lord has a chance to answer us through his Spirit? Do we take time not only to speak as we pray, but also to listen (a key part of any conversation?). I know that as I have recieved answers to my prayers, my faith has grown so much). I love you all so much!

With Love,

Elder Hardy

(An old picture from Stara Zagora. I may have sent in already...)

Preparation Day Athletics...I haven't been so sore since Crossfit.

What happens when an Orange gets left in the bottom of the Fruit Bowl for too long...Otherwise known as modern art.

Elder Strobel is a fresh man.

Twenty Years

Family Mine!

       Thank you so much for all the wonderful notes! I cannot tell you how much it means to me to be your Brother and Son and Friend. It knocks me to my knees in desperate gratitude to my Heavenly Father every time that I think about the many blessing with which he has given me, most of all His Son, Jesus Christ, for the knowledge of His Gospel and his atonement, and for the exquisite blessing of having such a wonderful Family. Words just don't cut it, no matter how eloquent or free flowing or well-crafted. I love each one of you so much. 

       This week was a great week--we had the chance to be on exchanges with the Elders from Blagoevgrad, then we had a quick Skype-Mission council, and a GREAT weekend of teaching (we had a chance to meet with some very accepting and open-hearted people this weekend. So neat!) This Sunday we (Elder Howard and I with Elder Wilson (my trainee!) and Sister Ausen) sang "Savior Redeemer of My Soul as a quartet (I sang alto, felt like Blake Lynd), and it was a lot of fun. They are all great singers. Also, I turned 20.

      I had some wonderful missionary Birthday Presents on Saturday (lessons with progressing investigators!). When you are not a missionary, your earthly parents give you presents (and on the mission as well), but as a missionary you get birthday gifts from your Heavenly Father! I know it sounds funny, but it does feel strange to be 20. I still feel as if I have the knowledge of a 16 year old and the maturity of a 11 year old, but I am eternally grateful for this opportunity to serve a mission, because otherwise I am sure they would both be hovering somewhere around 8. I am grateful for every experience, the tough ones and the wonderful ones, that I have had so far as a missionary, and the many (of both kind!) that yet await me. Reflection back on ones life is very helpful, and I actually am very grateful for Birthdays, because they drive some of us more slow-off-the-jump sort of people to really think back, evaluate, reflect, resolve and commit. I am ready and excited to see what the next 20 years of life bring.

       Father; The work is progressing well, and the Lord has been blessing us greatly of late with people to teach. We use the progress record every week in a meeting with the Branch Missionary Coordinator, Sasho (the only one in Bulgaria as far as I know!). The Branch is by far the largest in Bulgaria, we get just under 100 usually every week. There are 3 American Families that live here with quite a few kids, and there are some absolutely wonderful members here, with burning testimonies of the Restored Gospel. During every Zone Training we (the Zone Leaders) lead about an hour of the training, and I have given lots of talks in the smaller branches in which I have served, but not yet in Sofia. We travel a lot with buses and Tramvais (trolley-like street cars?) and on the Metro, so we contact a lot in those places as we are traveling from place to place, and we still get a good amount of time a week to street contact or tract. Did I get it all? Father, thank you so much for your service and your love! I love you.

      Mother; thank you so much for your thoughts--I love you, Mother. Quick story--we were visiting an elderly sister in the branch, and she unexpectedly had fried us two HUGE plates of greasy potato wedges, and this visit was right after we had eaten dinner at home. It was the ultimate test of Missionary etiquette because not only did I have to finish my own plate, but also my companions, who was already feeling significantly sick to the stomach before coming to the appointment. I have NO idea how I ate all those potatoes, but I did it, and all I could think about the whole time was my young mother holding a big steaming plate of crepes! Thank you for all that you teach us and have taught us, Mom. Love you!

      Paige! I love you so much thank you so much for your thoughtful words! Plenty of people sang to me on my Birthday, so don't worry! The funny thing is that even the people who know NO other English know the birthday song in English, no matter how old they are, so it was sort of...strangely homey. Weird, but wonderful. I love you so much!

      Ronnie; that is an awesome list! I would put it up somewhere where you can see it frequently, and that way you will be constantly reminded of it. It may just be me, but I seem to forget even the most well-intentioned and sincere goals if I don't put them in a place where I can remind myself. Keep that elbow square! I love you little brother.

      Lizzie; thank you so much for your love and your thoughts! I promise you that diligence is more important than ability in almost every case, and the two together are an unbeatable combo--you have a lot of talent, little Sister, and diligence is the only one of the two we really have much control over, so go after it! I love you so much!

      I love the scriptures, and know that they are true. 15 minutes a day can change us from floundering fish in the Gospel to strong swimmers, and the more sincere the study, the quicker the acceleration. The glory of God is intelligence. Think about it. I love you all so much!

Your OLD younger and older Brother and son,

Elder Hardy

Candid Shot in the Mission Office

Photogenic? I think not.

From Stara Zagora. Have I sent this one yet? Probably not!

Christ Lives!

Family Mine,

     Thank you so much for the wonderful letter! I always love hearing from you, and it was great to hear some news about Rees and Jordan--I never hear from them, but that is probably a result of me not writing them, so there is no blame. I am happy for them, and that is wonderful to hear about Ashley--between the 5 of us (including Max), we will make that complex a Hardy-Alley sweep! I need to write them more. Big White...I am sure it was great, but surely strange with only 5. You probably fit in with all the other families there! No worries--family is forever, so even though it feels like we might miss a few moments together now, those few blinks literally cannot be compared with the happiness and oneness that awaits us if we are faithful. So lets be faithful! I really love all of you so much.

      This week was wonderful. We had the Zone Conference from Elder Klebingat on Tuesday, and I actually got interviewed by him (along with a lot of other missionaries) on Wednesday, which was a really neat close to almost 5 days straight with a General Authority. I know beyond a doubt that he was called of God, and that the Prophets and Apostles of the Church really are his servants, and love him with all their hearts. After that, it was exchanges with the Assistants (Elder Howard, the old companion! It was strange--he goes home in a few weeks. I don't like it when former companions go home. It makes me feel like a старо куче), then exchanges with the Elders from Pleven, and some great teaching experiences.

      We had a chance with Elder Howard to teach a man who is from Canada, was raised an Orthodox Jew at a private school in New Jersey, and now lives with his Bulgarian wife in Sofia. He really is open to the Spirit, and just kept commenting things like--"I feel so good when I am here," or "I just trust you, and I don't know why!", and similar things--I know that the Holy Ghost really exsists, and works in our everyday life, if we are open to it. We must never be ashamed of living righteously--it is like being ashamed that you have a clean room or that you can run fast or that you are very skilled in something (sorry for the weak analogies...)! It really is power, the most influential power on this whole Earth. We cannot be ashamed of seeking the truth, of seeking joy and light from our Father in Heaven through his Ghost, light that is only gained through righteousness and obedience to his commands. Shame for being righteous is a symptom of incorrect understanding of where true happiness and power come from. 

      Mother; busy busy busy! That is wonderful. As a missionary I have come to appreciate and be grateful for your astute and well-developed skills of planning and organization. I would love to have you as a guest speaker for a Zone Conference! I am glad that you are ok from your fall!  People usually think we are too young to be out on our own, though a lot of young people do study in other countries. They talk by Skype every night however, за разлика от нас! I love you so much Mother, have a great week!

      Father; thank you for the pictures, and the encouragement. I love you so much!

      Paige; I love you so much little Sister--can you make sure that Ronnie doesn't do anything too...Ronnie-ish on the slopes? I want him to be alive so that sometime I can show him how much faster I am than Him. I love you so much! Did you watch the FACE to FACE with Elder Holland? It is good--you should watch it. I love you!

      Ronnie; See above. That is a challenge. I love you!

      Lizzie; I am glad that you are happy. Learn from Mom how to be organized, and it will bless you your whole life, I promise. I love you.

     I have no more time to write, but I want you to know that I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. God our Father and his Son Jesus Christ have glorified bodies of flesh and bones, and the Holy Ghost witnesses of their divinity. I am so grateful for that pure truth given to us through the Restoration (D&C 130:22). The simple truths are the most important. I love you all so much. I'll send you another letter when I am 20, if that isn't too much for you to wait! 

Love,

Elder Hardy

Pictures from the Bulgarian Funeral from two weeks ago:

The First one is actually in the Church, right after the actual ceremony, the second is with Elder Sharp and his grandparents (and a random friend that snuck into the picture on the far left), and this is an alley right by the Church. Quite an experience!

Gravesides and German General Authorities

Family Mine!

     Thank you so much for the wonderful letter! It is always so great to hear about your goings on, and to hear that you are all safe and well. This week was a whirlwind for Elder Hardy, but a really great one at that. It started with a tearful goodbye to Stara Zagora, a long bus ride to Sofia with my first-ever missionary companion (Elder Taylor!), and then...лудница! The day after getting into Sofia, I was in a car (weird!) with Elder Sharp (one of the Assistants) driving down to Plovdiv to attend his great-grandmother's Orthodox funeral (long story short--his mother was one of the first members of the Church in Bulgaria, she moved to America and got married, but all of her family still lives in Plovdiv, which means Elder Sharp has a very confused-about-the-Gospel but absolutely wonderful Grandma and Grandpa and other family in Plovdiv). It was a very, very unique experience, in stark contrast to the one that is sounds like you help this week, Father. Wine, bread, candles, Gregorian chanting in an ancient form of a once ubiquitous but now un-used Slavic language, incense, the whole bit. A few words of consolation for the family, a quick chat with the very kind and goodhearted Priest (he has a copy of the Book of Mormon!) and then the family treated us and a large group to a very large lunch. All in all, it was a very enlightening experience, and a unique look into the very center of a Bulgarian family and how they deal with hard times, much closer than the white shirt and black badge usually allow us to come. It was neat to be able to discuss it with Elder Sharp, and to see his immense love for his family members, good, good people, looking for that which was lost, and not realizing it is standing in front of them, being born by their own Grandson, a spiritual giant himself. A very reflective experience. 

      Wow, time flies when you are writing! In other news, Elder Jorg Klebingat came again and we had a two-day long Mission Council/ Leadership training with him, and it was...incredible. Too much to write about, but one of the things he trained us on was how to really begin to memorize scriptures like we mean it--in the course of a one day training, and through a method that he taught us, I memorized the verse and chapter, book, story and main teaching of 26 scriptures. And in all actuality, and we had learned the method, that took maybe a grand total of an hour and a half! He spoke at a fireside Saturday night, and then during the Third Hour Sunday, and Zone Conference with him is Tuesday, so I have heard a lot of his teaching, and know that he really has truly been called by a Prophet of God to serve as one of his 70. 

      Mother; I am in the same apartment, the Sister Training Leaders are here in Sofia for the first Zone, and we actually will not be traveling out to the cities this transfer, but the District Leaders will actually be traveling IN to work with us, so I probably won't be leaving Sofia for the next 6 weeks period! That will be nice. In Bulgarian, we say Честита прическа, which literally means, "happy haircut!". Is that a new haircut? In any case, thank you for your testimony and your service. I love you!

      Dad; your pine-wood derby cars are sort of like yourself--they may not be fast, but they sure are good-looking! Sorry, couldn't resist. Thank you for the letter and for the pictures. How are the Whorely's doing? Give them my love. Thank you for all that you do for us!

      Paige; what a great opportunity to act so closely with your little Sister...cherish that memory forever, because pretty soon you don't get to bump heads with your siblings every day! I love you so much.

      Ronnie. I love you, you are a large man! You dwarf your dear sweet mother in one of those pictures. I love you so much, take care of your siblings.

      Lizzie! Wow, what a neat opportunity! I love that show, and the wonderful music and dancing in it. Always remember who you are, little sister. There will be lots of voices telling you otherwise, very quickly. You are going to do great, my heart just bursts with joy and righteous pride when I think about you. I love you!

       No more time to write, but I just want to leave you with my testimony that Christ lives, and that in actuality, this is his Church Restored upon the Earth. I know that it was lost, as prophesied by its first leaders, but has been restored in its glorious fullness. Let us stay with the Old Ship Zion! I love you so much!

With love,

Elder Hardy, Sofia 

Elder Strobl!