3 Baptisms

Dear family and friends,

So this week was a good week!!!  It was kinda crazy at the same time!!!!  So on Monday, we got a call at night from our mission president.  He told us that my companion, Elder Hunt was getting emergency transferred.  That was probably the worst news.  Him and I got along so well and we were like best of friends so it was awful to see him leave.  We had no problems at all and it was so hard to have to get a new companion.  But I will just push on and work hard. 

So my new companion his name is elder Au and he is from Hawaii.  He's a pretty nice guy and he's new in the mission about 6 months.  So it's crazy.  I got called by president and I just got to help him learn the language better.  And help him adjust to loving the culture and the people.  So that was pretty exciting and I  guess that will go well.  I will keep you guys updated but so far we haven't had really any problems just annoying at times... haha but that happens. 

So the work that we have had has been so good!!  We had the 3 baptisms this last week and it was so awesome!!  They were great and were super excited to get baptized which was awesome.  It was cool seeing their desire to follow Christ and make a good choice!!  So now we are moving on and working with our next people who are progressing and should have another 2 either the 2nd or the 3rd week of July!!  So just keep working hard and focusing on helping the people come unto Christ and it's so great!!!

So as for my personal study, I'm in Moroni.  So I'm almost done again which is really good.  And then I will be starting one more time to try and finish it before the mission ends!!  I have learned so much and just see everything from such a different perspective!!  The gospel is truly the most incredible thing and as we focus on it and just work hard to do the best and put the lord first in our lives, we will see so many blessings!! 

Remember na mahal ko kayo!!  Sorry if this email is a little short!!!

Hope you guys have a great week!!(:

Up to bat

Dear Family!

So first off, tell dad Happy Fathers day and thanks so much to him for and everything he has done for me in my life!  I've learned so much out here on the mission.  I've thought back to how dad applies it to everyday life.  So thank you so much dad for your great example to me and for the things you have taught me and the things you have helped me with!  It means so much and I love you!

 So this week - oh ya it was my birthday.  Kinda forgot about it!  But that's okay.  It was like any other normal day here, haha just missionary work.  And like I said, everything in the Philippines is backwards.  So here on your birthday, everyone expects you to buy a bunch of stuff and have people come over and eat it all.  I was like ya - no thanks.  So I just went out to lunch with the other elders and ate a little food.  Then I  just payed for it for my birthday!  Can't wait to get back to america for real birthdays!  Where people are supposed to give you stuff!!   hahaha So my birthday was pretty good.  Still gotta just love being a missionary!! (:

Apparently, it's not just American's favorite pastime!

So this week was kinda good!!  At first, the area presidency came over and he taught us some really cool stuff!!  Some stuff that I read about in a book that kimarie sent me a while ago.  So it was kinda familiar, but he talked about how we set limits on our selves and it lowers the work for the new people coming in because they see that we have a set limit on the things we can achieve.  And so he talked about how we can get rid of that and truly achieve greatness!!  I thought that was really cool and I'm looking forward to that!!  In our mission, we are struggling to achieve the goals we have set, baptizing at 2 a month per companionship. On the bright side though, we are doing it in our zone and in our companionship!!  So that's way cool.  Since January, we have hit the standard of excellence in baptisms!!  So I guess I'm an excellent misisonary. (: haha But that was really cool to hear!!  And also he told us a little bit about our mission.  We are actually the 2nd highest baptizing mission in the Philippines.  That was so awesome to hear!!  It's just great seeing us all come together and work on in bringing people unto Christ!!  Another big thing that he talked about was how we need to get the members more involved and teach them their responsibility becaause we are basically doing this on our own and we need to get them more involved.  So we will be working with that.  It's kinda hard in this area, no one knows what their doing.  But it's okay, we will work with them and teach them in a loving way!  That was basically the stuff we learned about from the meeting with the area presidency and it was great!!

The work here in this area is going really good!!  We had 6 investigators at church this week which was so awesome!  And then the really good news on this saturday we have 3 baptisms!!!  I'm so excited for that!!  I'll make sure and take some pictures for you guys and on another sd card also!!  My card got corrupted again thats why I didn't send pictures. But I'll make sure to get some out to you guys soon!!  I'll send some hopefully today as long as it doesn't get corrupted!!  That would probably set me off the edge!!  But it doesn't mean I don't love you guys.  I promise i do!  I hope you are all doing great!!  I love seeing the pictures of Sydney!(:  She is so funny I just miss you guys(:   Remember that the Lord comes first before other things and thats how you earn the blessings of eternal life!!  So put him first in all that you do!(: I promise it works out all in the end as long as we focus on him and just involve him in our life!!(:  The only request I have is starbursts in my package!(:  And I wanna see some pictures of the backyard and the pool and the firepit!!(: So I can show my fellow missionaries!~! (:  Oh and you're welcome - this email is long!  I felt like writing to you guys today.  So I actually put some time into it!(: Haha  I love you guys remember that the church is true!!  Think of some ways you can help the missionaries!  Or just pray for them! (: 

I love you guys!(: Mahal ko kayo!!(: 

Elder Hedman

Sabbath Day

***Sorry no pictures this week.  I'll have to make sure he remembers to send me some this week!

Dear Family and Friends!

So this week was kinda a crazy week!!  Oh OK not really nothing really happened at all this week.  But first off, I can't believe everyone is starting to get back from their missions.  It's so crazy how fast the time is going by.  I feel like yesterday I just left to come out here to the Philippines and now all the sisters from our ward are just getting back from their missions!!!  Also tell Jesslyn congrats on her mission call (Texas, Houston Mission) that is so awesome.  It will bless her life more then she even knows!!!

So this week not really anything happened at all.  This area literally doesn't have like anything to do at all .  So it's not really exciting.  But the work is pretty good so I guess that's okay!!  So we taught like 30 lessons to investigators this week.  That might be one of the highest if not the highest that I have ever experienced in the mission!  So that was really sweet!!  And I guess one thing that did happen this week was we had a broadcast in the whole Philippines.  So the church was in a different spot so that we could watch the area broadcast.  It was really good and there was some great messages that were delivered!!  The only bad thing that we have had such a big focus on here in the Philippines is just people not buying stuff on the Sabbath.  They just don't live it like at all.  And that was a big topic from the conference.  And then after we saw members at 7-11 and buying stuff.  Even leaders do it sometimes.  I'm just like are you serious?  So guess we are still going to be working with them there!!

This upcoming week should be pretty good!  We have a big conference with the 1st counselor in the area presidency.  So I'm looking forward to his messages and just learning from them and seeing what I can do to improve in being a missionary. It's always great when someone comes and tours the mission.  We get a ton of teachings and just learn a lot from what we can do to improve and become better! So I'll let you guys know how that goes!!  I hope that you guys have a great week and remember that the church is true!!(: Love you all!! Mahal ko kayo!!

Ingat kayo!!(:

Love Elder Hedman

The Church is True

So dear Family and Friends! This last week has been a good week!!!

So this last week was transfer week and I did get transferred!!! I am now in Palayan City! It is the capitol of Nueva Ecija, but its got nothing in it at all.  So that's pretty exciting. hahaa  We don't have like anywhere to eat and there is no real grocery store.  So that's pretty exciting!!!  And also I am no longer a Zone leader.  I am just a normal senior companion which is kinda nice.  It's relaxing and I don't have to worry and stress out so much.  So that will be nice.  My new companion is actually a foreigner!!  He's from Salt Lake City, the Woods Cross area.  He's actually coming from the India mission and is just waiting for his visa here in the Philippines before he heads back.  So he doesn't speak any Tagalog but that's fine.  He's way chill and we get along great!!  His name is Elder Hunt, and Samoan, but lived his whole life in Salt Lake.  So he's so cool and he was a zone leader over in India.  So we got some great work ahead of us!!  We have some baptisms coming up the next couple of weeks so that will be really good and I'm looking forward to that!  The area is pretty simple so I think I"ll be able to get in the process of working here really fast.  I hope that makes sense.  I can't remember my English at all.  It's awful.  The work here is going really good and I'm loving my study of the Book of Mormon.  I'm getting closer to finishing it.  I just got to sit down and finish it which will be really good!!  I want to try and finish it then start and finish it 1 more time before I finish my mission.  I think that I can do that. So that's going to be my goal!!!

Also in this area, I am roommates with the zone leaders here.  And Elder Panes and Elder Callister, are my room mates.  Elder Callister was in the same district with me when we were new in the mission.  It looks like this is both our last area.  So we are starting the mission together and are going to finish the mission together, which is actually kinda funny!!  So that's really cool.  I bet you will recognize him from some of the pictures!! 

Also this next next week, we are having a mission tour and elder Bowen from the area presidency is coming here to work with us and improve some stuff here happening in the mission.  It's so exciting and I'm looking forward to that!!  We have some great stuff to study in preparation for that so I'm looking forward to that!!  Other then that, I don't have any meetings anymore, so that's kinda weird!  But it'll be good!!  The people here in this area are pretty cool!  They are nice.  I miss my last area a lot but it's okay.  Just gotta move on and work hard!!  So I'll be doing that here for sure!!  The only thing that is kinda annoying, the leaders here literally don't know what they are doing.  It's kinda funny but wow its just awkward.  It doesn't feel like church.  We like run it and it was my first week.  So that was kinda annoying but that's okay.  I'll just learn from it and improve myself and it will keep me focused so I don't get so trunky!! hahaha  I can't believe everyone is getting home now.  That's so weird!!  But I'll still be here working hard to the end.  Or trying to at least!! haha  I love you guys.  Hope you all have a great week and remember that the church is true and it's the most important thing that we focus on in our lives!!  Ingat kayo!!

Mahal Ko Kayo!!!(:

Love Elder Hedman!

New Area - Palayan

Click on image to make it larger

So, he is in a new area!  This most likely will be his last area too.  Here are some pictures from his last area in Munoz.  He will sure miss the friends he has made in that area!  He sent so many that I can't add them all!

Tarlac

Hey sorry!  We had to go to Tarlac to talk with president so my email is late today!!  And I really have like 10 minutes to email!!  I'm sorry!!  So I'll just send you a short email and maybe send pictures next week!!  Again, I'm sorry!!

This week was kinda really rough.  I'm going to be stepping down as a zone leader so that might help I  think.  I'll let you know more about it next week for sure because next week I'll actually be able to email which will be really nice.  And I won't have like any reports so that should be good!!  But this week was pretty hard because the person that was supposed to get baptized in our branch, she actually turns up not to be married.  It's against the law of chastity and she leaves today actually to go to another country for 2 years.  So we were hoping that we could get her baptized before she left to go out of the country but it looks like that didn't happen.  So that was really sad and hard.  But I know it was part of the plan that our father has for us.  Me and Elder Surio had a pretty good week though.  We have 3 people who are 95 percent sure going to be getting baptized in the next month, which is really great!!  So that is really good for this area and I'm excited for that!!  I said goodbye to the members this last week which was hard!  I love the members here in this branch and they are really good!!  So I'm going to miss them!!  The work here is good and it's still a great area though!  We had some struggles this week with getting people to come and sit in on the lessons and finding the best time to teach our investigators.  This next week there will be changes so I'll let you know what is going to happen there!  I love you guys!! Sorry this email is short.  I really have like no time at all.  So I'll let you guys know next week and I'll email you next week!!  Have a great week.  Tell Sydney happy birthday also again!! (: 

I love you! 

Elder Hedman