We don't have to walk alone

 

2-15-21

Hello beautiful people, 

Transfers have come and gone. I have now been in Kaw Valley for 6 weeks. I am staying here with my current companion Elder Unsell (I'm happy and content about that). My district leader who lives with me is leaving. I'm so sad - Elder Forbush is gonna be a district leader and a trainer whitewashing into an area. (District leader- responsible for a group of missionaries, trainer- training a brand new missionary, whitewashing- two people going into an area together with no prior knowledge.) But yeah, that is exciting.  Also, I have a friend being made an STL (which is a leadership position for sisters).  She's gonna do great! 

Another Note: we made contact with people that we've been out of contact with (that were on date for baptism so we seriously needed to be in contact with them). So yeah, that was a huge blessing. But our way of contacting was door knocking grey dots (please read my past emails for an explanation of grey dots). So Elder Unsell and I were out knocking in 10° weather, and then Elder Hooper and I were on exchanges and went out knocking in 2° but it felt like -16° because of the humidity and wind. But yeah, changes are coming.

Spiritual thought: 

A lot of this is references and quotes from a BYU devotional called "It Is Not Good That . . . Man Should Be Alone” by Kevin J Worthen. In reading it, I learned a lot. 

"Very little that is positive is solitary. When was the last time you laughed uproariously? The last time you felt indescribable joy? The last time you sensed profound meaning and purpose? The last time you felt enormously proud of an accomplishment? Even without knowing the particulars of these high points of your life, I know their form: all of them took place around other people." - Dr. Martin Seligman

These questions were heart opening and soul searching questions for me. I think often we can tend to think we have to do everything at once and be perfect NOW. In the words of Russell.M Nelson, "Perfection is pending." 

We don't have to do anything alone, nor should we. Heavenly Father wouldn't have given us friends and families if that were the case. Now sometimes we lose dear loved ones or friends, and that is all about God's timing. It's like a chapter book where you laugh with some characters then cry with other characters. Then at some points you turn a page and a character leaves. (There's a lot of that in the mission). But sometimes characters can come back, and sometimes they don't. 

But the point is we don't have to walk alone. A perfect man already did that. He walked up a hill carrying a cross and kept walking up the hill to accomplish his Father’s will because he loves you and me. To think that you need to walk alone or are unworthy of love is completely disregarding wounds and pains of loneliness that the very Son of God closed himself in a private garden then on a public hill.

 I am afraid I'm guilty of feeling unworthy and at times I disregard the love and gift of the Atonement. I'm terribly mistaken at times. None of us should walk alone. Even when it feels like we are alone, we are not. Heaven's angels are always near on both sides of the veil, and the Holy Spirit is always lovingly nearby. 

Love you all, 

Elder Hedrick

He calleth them all by their names

February 8, 2021 

Hello everyone,

How is everyone? I hope you are doing great. Alex and Julee are on date for baptism on February 20th, and Eli had his date bumped back to March 20th so yeah, they all have work, but they're all willing to work and I'm super excited for them. So yeah, please, please, keep them in your prayers!!!

Superbowl Sunday was a tad bit slow - fast Sunday (so no food or drink until 6pm). Then we couldn't contact people because of the superbowl. But it's cool; the four Elders I live with are funny. This one member gave us these huge cinnamon rolls- they were huge like as big as my head, crazy stuff. Kaw Valley is currently covered in a white blanket of snow; it's 7° and feels like -7° because of the humidity. This Californian is freezing! But I'm doing good. 

Here's the spiritual thought: 

In the talk, Am I a Child of God? by Elder Brian K. Taylor of the Seventy in the April 2019 General Conference, he says the following, 

"Moses learned of his divine heritage talking with the Lord face-to-face. Following that experience, ‘Satan came tempting’ with subtle yet vicious intent to distort Moses’s identity, “saying: Moses, son of man, worship me. And … Moses looked upon Satan and said: Who art thou? For behold, I am a son of God.”

Here's my question, why would Satan tell Moses he is a son of man when the Lord just told him he was a son of God? Because he knows Moses is a man and could fall to fear and doubt, Satan knows you and knows your weakness. Please never forget you are a son or daughter of loving Heavenly parents, made in their image. 

Psalms 147: 4 says the following, "He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names." 

 

So if God knows the names of every star, why wouldn't he know your name? Why wouldn't He love you? He made you and you are special to him. Always remember your faith and your identity of being a child of God will touch the lives around you. 

 

Love you all! 

 

Elder Hedrick

Angels on our left and our right to bear us up

February 1, 2021

Hello everyone, 

It has been another week in Kaw Valley. It's snowed, rained and been foggy recently. It gets down to about 24 degrees at night plus the bone chilling humidity of the Kansas oatmeal air. So things are moving here in Kaw Valley. We finally got over 20 lessons this week, and we found a new person and got him on date for baptism. His name is Elisha, and he is planning on being baptized on the 20th of February. He has a long road ahead of him, but we’ll help him all we can. So please pray for him!  Alex and Julie are doing good. They are a younger couple we're teaching. They are amazing. We invited them to be baptized on the 20th of February, and they both said yes! So 3 baptisms are planned as of now for February 20th! Also, Tamera is doing good. She is such a sweetheart! Please pray for her and her anxiety, she's very stressed out with work and Covid and everything going on in the world. 

We had a zone conference in Wichita, and Elder Rassen from the quorum of the 70 was there, (a high-ranking church authority). And he gave a lot of good advice about raising our vision as a mission. Zone conference was nice because I got to see some old friends from Manhattan and the Salina area. The Elders I live with are fun, my companion is funny, he breaks everything by accident, but we still love him. My district leader is sarcastic like me and is just a wise old owl (even though he's been out as long as me, and he is so smart!) Elder Hooper hates physical contact so I try to hug him as much as I can. 

Well, here is my spiritual thought: Angels 

In the book of Mormon, Jacob 7:5 says the following, "And he had hope to shake me from the faith, notwithstanding the many revelations and the many things which I had seen concerning these things; for I truly had seen angels, and they had ministered unto me. And also, I had heard the voice of the Lord speaking unto me in very word, from time to time; wherefore, I could not be shaken."

So basically Sherem is this bad guy that is speaking bad about Christ and trying to destroy Jacob's testimony and his faith. And Jacob has great faith. He heard the voice of the Lord and has literally seen angels. I love when he says, "For I truly had seen angels, and they had ministered unto me." 

I now ask you, who are your ministering angels? Because I know for a fact that angles are real and can witness them in my own life. Heaven is close, and Heavenly fathers Angels are even closer. I also believe our friends and family on the other side of the veil are ministering to us. President Joseph F. Smith said the following:

“I believe we move and have our being in the presence of heavenly messengers and of heavenly beings. We are not separate from them. … We are closely related to our kindred, to our ancestors … who have preceded us into the spirit world. We cannot forget them; we do not cease to love them; we always hold them in our hearts, in memory, and thus we are associated and united to them by ties that we cannot break. … If this is the case with us in our finite condition, surrounded by our mortal weaknesses, … how much more certain it is … to believe that those who have been faithful, who have gone beyond … can see us better than we can see them; that they know us better than we know them. … We live in their presence, they see us, they are solicitous for our welfare, they love us now more than ever. For now they see the dangers that beset us; … their love for us and their desire for our well-being must be greater than that which we feel for ourselves.”

Please remember you're not alone. Christ and Heavenly Father are with you. His spirit is with you. Angels are here now and today and forever to bear you up. I have seen angels in my life from both sides of the veil; they are real, and they cheer us on. I have never felt closer to my family that has passed in any other time than now. President Eyring said the following, "The Savior has promised angels on our left and our right to bear us up. And He always keeps His word." I testify that the Savior always keeps his words and that his Angels are here on our left and right hands and here to bear us up! 

Love you all, 

Elder Hedrick

Don't pass the Samaritan on the way to Jericho

 

Hello everyone, 

It has been another week here in Kaw Valley, Kansas. It has started to get colder again, and I think we should be getting snow sometime soon. I still live with 3 crazy Elders, and they are all doing amazing. Our teaching pool is growing. We now have Alex and Julie and a young couple, and they are excited to learn. We have Tamera, bless her heart, she is kind but she has really bad stress and anxiety so please keep her in your prayers. Also, the little girl in my old ward in Manhattan is doing much better now, so thank you for the prayers.

We had exchanges this week with our district leader who we live with. So an exchange is when missionaries swap companions for the day and work with one of the young mission leaders. Elder Forbush is my district leader, and we had a great time on exchanges. We went to knock a couple doors that were previously interested in North Topeka. For those of you that don't know North Topeka, it's a really sketchy place. But we weren't mugged or shot so that's good. 

On the exchange we're driving back from sketchy North Topeka and this woman’s car was broken down with a bad flat tire. My District Leader pulled over, and we asked her if she needed help, and she said no. She told us she had someone coming, but she really appreciated us asking. Elder Forbush, my district leader, did something I wouldn't have done -  pull over and check on this woman. He taught me right then and there never to pass someone in need - don't pass the Samaritan on the way to Jericho. 

A quote I read this week by Reyna I. Aburto goes as follows, "When it comes to healing, don’t we all need Him desperately? Are we not all beggars? Let us follow the Savior’s path and increase our compassion." I love this quote. It reminds me not to deny or pass people; we're all children of Heavenly Father and we have so many opportunities to help one another. I'm glad we didn't just pass the woman on the side of the road. Always remember the worth of a soul in the sight of God; then helping others in need will come naturally. 

Love you all, 

Elder Hedrick

Difficult Days

 

Hello Everyone, 

This week has been a week. So basically I'm in a ward with 6 missionaries in it. The Kaw Valley sisters, the Kaw Valley Elders A, and the Kaw Valley Elders B. I'm Kaw Valley Elders B. Basically this area was made up of both the other two areas and the old Kaw Valley B sisters area. Long story short, our teaching pool is weak. We have a lot of heroin addicts and old, sexist men that we are teaching. So yeah, we are trying to find on Facebook, but Facebook is putting us in jail because we have been trying to friend more people. 

It's fun/interesting living with three guys. I don't have brothers, and before this area I just lived with my companion. There are a lot of laughs here. I would like to say there’s never a dull moment, but I'd be lying if I said that. Also my heart sucks; I got diagnosed with Long QT Syndrome a couple months ago and yeah. So trying to figure things out with doctors in California is like trying to stuff a turkey through a beaker and getting teeth pulled at the same time. 

I'm praying for Topeka and the people here, that's for sure. I'm trying to give my all. It's not always sunshine and rainbows, I'll tell you that. I can't wait for the Covid vaccine to work miracles. It is so difficult being asked to do this work in these circumstances. I just try to remember Isaiah 40: 31 - “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” It's hard when we don't know the timing of the Lord. 

Also, a family in my old ward in Manhattan has a little girl who has meningitis and is seriously sick and has lost almost all of her vision. Please please pray for her!! 

Here is a spiritual thought for you all from famous author A.A. Milne. This story reminds me of how to love and show compassion for those around us. 

"Today was a Difficult Day," said Pooh.

There was a pause.

"Do you want to talk about it?" asked Piglet.

"No," said Pooh after a bit. "No, I don't think I do."

"That's okay," said Piglet, and he came and sat beside his friend.

"What are you doing?" asked Pooh.

"Nothing, really," said Piglet. "Only, I know what Difficult Days are like. I quite often don't feel like talking about it on my Difficult Days either.

"But goodness," continued Piglet, "Difficult Days are so much easier when you know you've got someone there for you. And I'll always be here for you, Pooh."

And as Pooh sat there, working through in his head his Difficult Day, while the solid, reliable Piglet sat next to him quietly, swinging his little legs...he thought that his best friend had never been more right."

• A.A. Milne

Sending thoughts to those having a Difficult Day today, and hope you have your own Piglet to sit beside you.

Love you all, 

Elder Hedrick

Kaw Valley

 

January 11, 2021

Greetings, 

 

So this has been a week. I'm in Kaw Valley in Topeka, Kansas. It's a change for sure. Saying goodbye to the little apple was difficult - not gonna lie. But you know life goes on, and so must the show. My new area is beautiful, and the people are nice here. 

 

I live with four Elders, and they're all great. It's strange – the sisters live right across from us. We can see into their kitchen when we stand in our kitchen. My new companion is Elder Unsell.  He's amazing; he's been out for 3 months, and his original assignment was to the islands of Barbados. Saying goodbye to Elder Newman was tough. 

 

Facebook is working out. We've found some people here with potential, and back in Manhattan we found Carly aka the best Facebook person ever found, but the work moves forward here in Kaw Valley. 

 

Spiritual thought: 

(It's been a hard week, so it's your turn to send me a spiritual thought please:)

 

Love, 

 

Elder Hedrick 

Bye bye L'il Apple! Miss you in the saddest fashion!

Hello everyone!  

 

The transfer doc has dropped, and Elder Hedrick is….. leaving the Little Apple. It's been one heck of a ride. I've been here for six months, and I have fallen in love with the people here. But I'll go where I'm needed; like I say last week, "Goodbyes make my throat hurt.” We have worked so hard this transfer and built up a teaching pool, and now we actually have one. I testify that Facebook finding works!! My companion is also transferring out.  So we are writing good notes for the next people working our area. 

My companion dislocated his shoulder rough housing with me. (I say an angel protected me like Nephi hehehe.) But yeah, I had to pop it back in. There's a first time for everything. But this week has been good; we've taught a lot and contacted many doors. So it's exciting and busy. I'm sad to say goodbye, but I'm happy for my time here.  

Spiritual thought:  

"Why can't sorrow be so kind 

As to hide away and stay confined? 

And leave us only thoughts of bliss, 

Of joyful things to reminisce." 

 - unknown  

I'm glad for my memories here. I'm gonna be homesick for Manhattan, just like I'm homesick for Fair Oaks. Wherever you go, remember that all the people there are special. Talk to everyone - the stranger the better. We're all sons and daughters of Heavenly Parents. Please remember that. Don't let the worldly places you go leave their mark on you when you were sent here to leave the mark of Christ's light on the place you go. I love you all so much. I love Manhattan and am sad to turn this page on my mission because I know Manhattan won't be there. But I'm excited – the best is yet to be!  

Love you all,  

Elder Hedrick