Thursday, September 30, 2010
Boyz from the Hood at the MTC
Elder Dreyson Killpack
Elder Ryan Kimball
Elder Skylar Jensen
Elder Skylar Jensen
Friday, September 24, 2010
I Forgot the BIG NEWS !!! 09/20/10
Lucky, I got another reservation right after that one. So... The big news! Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, I get to be the senior companion over 3 greenies!!!!! All of the leaders are going to Richmond on those days for a leadership meeting, so since I'm the longest out I get to lead out! I'm nervous but also way excited! I really get to stretch myself and do new things and really be in charge... hopefully we will have the real senior companion aka the Holy Ghost. ;) but I am way excited, just wanted to tell you that and let you all know. Please pray for us: Myself, Elder West, and Elder Bobo, also Elder Augustine, but he is working with the spanish members so he's leading out on his own as well. I'm real excited for this opportunity, it sure is a time to grow and gain more experience!
I love this gospel, I love sharing it with others and seeing them change, see the light of Christ grow from the message that we have to share. What we share is true, there is no way 19, 20, 21 year olds can go out like this and change peoples lives if it wasn't true, if they didn't feel the spirit. I know, without a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is the Christ and that He lives. He is our Savior and Redeemer and He has suffered for us, so we could be happy, so we can do what is right. Don't make Him suffer anymore than He already has. I love my Savior, I love my Father in Heaven and I know He loves me, He loves all of us.
Again I love you...
Elder Hopkins
I love this gospel, I love sharing it with others and seeing them change, see the light of Christ grow from the message that we have to share. What we share is true, there is no way 19, 20, 21 year olds can go out like this and change peoples lives if it wasn't true, if they didn't feel the spirit. I know, without a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is the Christ and that He lives. He is our Savior and Redeemer and He has suffered for us, so we could be happy, so we can do what is right. Don't make Him suffer anymore than He already has. I love my Savior, I love my Father in Heaven and I know He loves me, He loves all of us.
Again I love you...
Elder Hopkins
Another Week Down 09/20/10
Hello from Virginia,
So as I said in my last e-mail... I love the life of a missionary! :) This last week was great, after p-day I went with the 1st ward elders, just went around seeing as much people as we could but it wasn't the most successful thing. Tuesday was brutal! We had our mission conference, and we had to be in Richmond, sitting in our seats at 8:30 in the morning! We had to wake up at about... 4:30 (fun stuff let me tell ya) and drive over to a member’s house that was going to give us a ride. We waited there for a little bit and then finally started heading down, not a bad drive, it’s like an hour and a half or so. Elder and Sister Sebrowski (don't know how to really spell it) were visiting. Elder Sebrowski is a member of one of the Seventies, I don't remember which one, but he is way powerful. We focused on our mission, our numbers, and how we can really improve. We pretty much got rebuked but we are doing such a great job! (of course we could be doing better, everyone can) It was great though, I don't have my study journal so I can't really tell you all that was said... Just know it was amazing!! ;) haha, that was pretty much our whole day, we didn't get back till like 5:30, then we went and visited some people so it was cool. Wednesday was way cool; we went onto the grounds again doing our lemonade stand. We were planning on ending at 2, so about 3 or so hours doing this and we handed out our whole box of copies of the Book of Mormon!!!! So cool, we got some return appointments, phone numbers, addresses, it was just a way successful day! :) After that we had some lessons, a dinner and a lesson with a recent convert in the singles ward, and then institute that night. Thursday was a lot of fun; it was Elder Augustine’s birthday! (Spanish Elder) and we went out to Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch! They had a deal, 18 wings for a low price. (I forget the price) So we all get 18, and there are 7 of us. Craziest thing, they don't bring out my sweet BBQ sauce and they bring out a ton of this mango habenaro (however you spell that) also this Asian zing. If you know me, I do not eat spicy things, so I did have my honey BBQ and this parmesan garlic, which was alright. I'm trying to eat the Asian zing and I am just dying... ha-ha, everyone else has the it and also the mango habenaro and they are dying as well. We all finish and there is still a lot of mango habenaro left, the Elders start saying how the Asian zing is a lot more spicy then the mango habenaro, so I'm like, alright I'll eat more! Haha, bad choice... I take half a bite of the mango habenaro and my mouth is just on fire; I don't eat spicy things, at all!!! So this spicy habenaro chicken is just killing me right then and there! That was all I could eat and I just couldn't handle it, it was so hot, then it started burning as it went down my throat and into my stomach where it sad and burned the inside of my stomach... hahaha, anyways... that was our fun time there. After that we had a few lessons. I watched a new Restoration DVD with Sara Richardson, the one who is engaged, and it was so amazing, I love talking about the Restoration! :) Friday nothing to special, we did meet with Cara Montagna who we have been trying to see since I've been out here; we had a nice dinner and talked to her. Her mom and brother are both members, the mom is Less-Active, and the brother is a stud, he's off and married, but has served a mission and is a second councilor in the bishopric in a singles ward. So ya, that's about it. Saturday we met with Torrey, a Chinese girl who is from Hong Kong, we met her at the lemonade stand, and she is just solid. :) We talked to her about the Restoration starting with Christ’s earthly ministry and the apostasy, then invited her to come to church. SHE CAME! See solid, so the next time we're going to commit her to baptism, she is so ready, she loves it! :) If you could, you could include her in your prayers. Thanks. That night, we met with Sister Kirby, who was less-active, but now coming to church every week and she is even going to the temple on the 8th! We were able to see fireworks that were going on right outside of her house, they were huge and we were so close it was awesome! Sundays are always amazing! After church (I was at the family ward this time) I met up with Tim Viar who is getting baptized in December because then he doesn't need his grandma's permission! We talked to him about the priesthood and being an example and he is way excited to receive the priesthood!! :) Later that night we go over to Brother Vance's house (who is engaged to Sara) to talk to him about Sara. Things are a little rough but we're there to help, he is such a great guy. The zone leaders took numbers while Brother Vance and I watched The Testaments! Always gets to me, you can feel the spirit so strong from that movie! :) Side note- Dad, Brother Vance's dad knew Dr. J!!! He knew him when he was a kid though, but still way sweet! :) And that was my week!
Sorry no time left, Mom, thank you so much for that story, I'll try and write more about it in my letter, but thank you for sharing that!
I love you all, continue to stay strong in the gospel, and continue to write! ;)
With love,
Elder Hopkins
So as I said in my last e-mail... I love the life of a missionary! :) This last week was great, after p-day I went with the 1st ward elders, just went around seeing as much people as we could but it wasn't the most successful thing. Tuesday was brutal! We had our mission conference, and we had to be in Richmond, sitting in our seats at 8:30 in the morning! We had to wake up at about... 4:30 (fun stuff let me tell ya) and drive over to a member’s house that was going to give us a ride. We waited there for a little bit and then finally started heading down, not a bad drive, it’s like an hour and a half or so. Elder and Sister Sebrowski (don't know how to really spell it) were visiting. Elder Sebrowski is a member of one of the Seventies, I don't remember which one, but he is way powerful. We focused on our mission, our numbers, and how we can really improve. We pretty much got rebuked but we are doing such a great job! (of course we could be doing better, everyone can) It was great though, I don't have my study journal so I can't really tell you all that was said... Just know it was amazing!! ;) haha, that was pretty much our whole day, we didn't get back till like 5:30, then we went and visited some people so it was cool. Wednesday was way cool; we went onto the grounds again doing our lemonade stand. We were planning on ending at 2, so about 3 or so hours doing this and we handed out our whole box of copies of the Book of Mormon!!!! So cool, we got some return appointments, phone numbers, addresses, it was just a way successful day! :) After that we had some lessons, a dinner and a lesson with a recent convert in the singles ward, and then institute that night. Thursday was a lot of fun; it was Elder Augustine’s birthday! (Spanish Elder) and we went out to Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch! They had a deal, 18 wings for a low price. (I forget the price) So we all get 18, and there are 7 of us. Craziest thing, they don't bring out my sweet BBQ sauce and they bring out a ton of this mango habenaro (however you spell that) also this Asian zing. If you know me, I do not eat spicy things, so I did have my honey BBQ and this parmesan garlic, which was alright. I'm trying to eat the Asian zing and I am just dying... ha-ha, everyone else has the it and also the mango habenaro and they are dying as well. We all finish and there is still a lot of mango habenaro left, the Elders start saying how the Asian zing is a lot more spicy then the mango habenaro, so I'm like, alright I'll eat more! Haha, bad choice... I take half a bite of the mango habenaro and my mouth is just on fire; I don't eat spicy things, at all!!! So this spicy habenaro chicken is just killing me right then and there! That was all I could eat and I just couldn't handle it, it was so hot, then it started burning as it went down my throat and into my stomach where it sad and burned the inside of my stomach... hahaha, anyways... that was our fun time there. After that we had a few lessons. I watched a new Restoration DVD with Sara Richardson, the one who is engaged, and it was so amazing, I love talking about the Restoration! :) Friday nothing to special, we did meet with Cara Montagna who we have been trying to see since I've been out here; we had a nice dinner and talked to her. Her mom and brother are both members, the mom is Less-Active, and the brother is a stud, he's off and married, but has served a mission and is a second councilor in the bishopric in a singles ward. So ya, that's about it. Saturday we met with Torrey, a Chinese girl who is from Hong Kong, we met her at the lemonade stand, and she is just solid. :) We talked to her about the Restoration starting with Christ’s earthly ministry and the apostasy, then invited her to come to church. SHE CAME! See solid, so the next time we're going to commit her to baptism, she is so ready, she loves it! :) If you could, you could include her in your prayers. Thanks. That night, we met with Sister Kirby, who was less-active, but now coming to church every week and she is even going to the temple on the 8th! We were able to see fireworks that were going on right outside of her house, they were huge and we were so close it was awesome! Sundays are always amazing! After church (I was at the family ward this time) I met up with Tim Viar who is getting baptized in December because then he doesn't need his grandma's permission! We talked to him about the priesthood and being an example and he is way excited to receive the priesthood!! :) Later that night we go over to Brother Vance's house (who is engaged to Sara) to talk to him about Sara. Things are a little rough but we're there to help, he is such a great guy. The zone leaders took numbers while Brother Vance and I watched The Testaments! Always gets to me, you can feel the spirit so strong from that movie! :) Side note- Dad, Brother Vance's dad knew Dr. J!!! He knew him when he was a kid though, but still way sweet! :) And that was my week!
Sorry no time left, Mom, thank you so much for that story, I'll try and write more about it in my letter, but thank you for sharing that!
I love you all, continue to stay strong in the gospel, and continue to write! ;)
With love,
Elder Hopkins
Friday, September 17, 2010
Oh the Life of a missionary... 09/13/10
Hello Everyone,
I sure hope you are all doing well, and I pray for you always. I love prayer, it really has a huge impact on the lives of others and is a great way (really the only way) to communicate to our Father in Heaven. What a great thing to have, a two way communication with our Father in Heaven, I say two way because he hears and answers our prayers, every single one of them, it is just so great! So anyways, the missionary life is so great, I love it and I am so excited to be out here. There are times when it is hard, of course, but I love trials, because thinking about it, we receive blessings after the trial of our faith. :) Ether 12:6, also as a missionary, you find out (or at least I have) that there are a lot of weaknesses that someone can have too! I do have quite a few weaknesses, but there is another great scripture that goes along with that. Ether 12:27, I absolutely love the scriptures and I am so glad that we are able to have them in our lives, they answer questions that we have and are always there to help us out in many different ways. :)
So the girl that I told you all about last week was set for baptism... key word... was. After we met she came to church and felt the spirit, and then went home and now she doesn't want to meet with us anymore. :( She had said that our beliefs just isn't what she believes in... Sad day. Although she didn't turn out all to good with us, she is in the records so she will always have missionaries there for her and who will always show up eventually. ;) Another person that we met from our sweet lemonade stand is a Chinese kid named Young (we don't know his last name, it's some crazy Chinese name). Young is an absolute genius!!! He is a golden investigator and I am positive that he is going to be baptized, we set him and he said yes! We started talking a little more and he says he wants to think about it. Not in a bad way, he just really understands that he is going to make a covenant with God and he really wants to work and be sure that he wants to make that commitment. He is a really great guy, I can't wait to meet with him again.
I'm so excited to be staying with my companions and in the same area, It is really an answer to my prayers. It is such a great area and things are really starting to pick up, we are starting to teach more and more singles and the ward is really getting excited about missionary work!! Which helps us so much!!! :) I ask everyone to study out of preach my gospel and you will see how even you can do your own missionary work. Be an example, do what is right and you will be blessed in so many different ways you won't even be able to tell them all! Preach my Gospel and mormon.org are absolutely amazing and the missionaries are really making a push to make these things become a part of everyones lives. Also praying, I might have said something in my last e-mail, but I'm not sure, so just remember to pray for missionaries around the world, pray for the missionaries in your area (or your missionaries who are out on missions) and pray for your own missionary opportunities and missionary work will EXPLODE!! :)
This week we were able to give a lot of priesthood blessings, every single on of them were for single sisters both in the family ward and in the singles ward, giving blessings is the greatest thing ever!!! Every male should be worthy to give such blessings in any situation, they are powerful and they work. They not only bless the person receiving the blessing, but also the one who is giving the blessing! I absolutely love it and we were able to give a bunch, I think it was just 5 in one week! :) :) Such great stuff. Really there hasn't been much else that has been happening, things are still the same, we talk to people, we teach them the gospel, we help members become and want to do missionary work, and we feel the spirit. I love it.
The Life of a Missionary... It has it's hard times, but it is the greatest thing ever!! I'm so happy, so blessed, so grateful that I have the opportunity to serve my Father in Heaven. I love it, I also love all of you, keep studying, keep praying, keep living the gospel, be an example in all that you do and you will be blessed. Good luck in all that you do and remember you are in my prayers. I love you all so much... HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!! :) :)
Love,
Elder Hopkins
I sure hope you are all doing well, and I pray for you always. I love prayer, it really has a huge impact on the lives of others and is a great way (really the only way) to communicate to our Father in Heaven. What a great thing to have, a two way communication with our Father in Heaven, I say two way because he hears and answers our prayers, every single one of them, it is just so great! So anyways, the missionary life is so great, I love it and I am so excited to be out here. There are times when it is hard, of course, but I love trials, because thinking about it, we receive blessings after the trial of our faith. :) Ether 12:6, also as a missionary, you find out (or at least I have) that there are a lot of weaknesses that someone can have too! I do have quite a few weaknesses, but there is another great scripture that goes along with that. Ether 12:27, I absolutely love the scriptures and I am so glad that we are able to have them in our lives, they answer questions that we have and are always there to help us out in many different ways. :)
So the girl that I told you all about last week was set for baptism... key word... was. After we met she came to church and felt the spirit, and then went home and now she doesn't want to meet with us anymore. :( She had said that our beliefs just isn't what she believes in... Sad day. Although she didn't turn out all to good with us, she is in the records so she will always have missionaries there for her and who will always show up eventually. ;) Another person that we met from our sweet lemonade stand is a Chinese kid named Young (we don't know his last name, it's some crazy Chinese name). Young is an absolute genius!!! He is a golden investigator and I am positive that he is going to be baptized, we set him and he said yes! We started talking a little more and he says he wants to think about it. Not in a bad way, he just really understands that he is going to make a covenant with God and he really wants to work and be sure that he wants to make that commitment. He is a really great guy, I can't wait to meet with him again.
I'm so excited to be staying with my companions and in the same area, It is really an answer to my prayers. It is such a great area and things are really starting to pick up, we are starting to teach more and more singles and the ward is really getting excited about missionary work!! Which helps us so much!!! :) I ask everyone to study out of preach my gospel and you will see how even you can do your own missionary work. Be an example, do what is right and you will be blessed in so many different ways you won't even be able to tell them all! Preach my Gospel and mormon.org are absolutely amazing and the missionaries are really making a push to make these things become a part of everyones lives. Also praying, I might have said something in my last e-mail, but I'm not sure, so just remember to pray for missionaries around the world, pray for the missionaries in your area (or your missionaries who are out on missions) and pray for your own missionary opportunities and missionary work will EXPLODE!! :)
This week we were able to give a lot of priesthood blessings, every single on of them were for single sisters both in the family ward and in the singles ward, giving blessings is the greatest thing ever!!! Every male should be worthy to give such blessings in any situation, they are powerful and they work. They not only bless the person receiving the blessing, but also the one who is giving the blessing! I absolutely love it and we were able to give a bunch, I think it was just 5 in one week! :) :) Such great stuff. Really there hasn't been much else that has been happening, things are still the same, we talk to people, we teach them the gospel, we help members become and want to do missionary work, and we feel the spirit. I love it.
The Life of a Missionary... It has it's hard times, but it is the greatest thing ever!! I'm so happy, so blessed, so grateful that I have the opportunity to serve my Father in Heaven. I love it, I also love all of you, keep studying, keep praying, keep living the gospel, be an example in all that you do and you will be blessed. Good luck in all that you do and remember you are in my prayers. I love you all so much... HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!! :) :)
Love,
Elder Hopkins
First Baptism!!!! Natalie Sikes 09/04/10
Here are some pictures taken before and after my baptism on 9/4/10. If it weren't for your son and his companions I never would have gotten to that point. It was the most amazing thing. Your son is so sweet and will have great successes in his life. He helped my father with a difficult task during the building of a shed and my father later told me that Elder Hopkins was very smart and logical and "seemed to know what he was doing and the best way to do it". As you can see by the piano pictures, my 3 year old daughter is quite smitten :) She always chooses Elder Hopkins to say the prayers.
Sincerely,
Natalie Sikes
Sincerely,
Natalie Sikes
round Two - 09/07/10
Hello Everyone,
So on Sunday we received our transfer calls! Pretty much the whole time I thought I was going to be leaving Charlottesville, but turns out that I GET TO STAY!!! I was sooooo excited after we got that call! So ya, that's what I wanted to start out with.
There is that exciting news, however, this is the real exciting news... Natalie Sikes... Got baptized on the 4th and confirmed on the 5th! She is now a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, how is sweet is that!? She is so solid and she loves everything about the gospel, she is just so excited and so happy to be a part of this church. :) Everything was so great, Elder Brockbank baptized her, and Elder Comer confirmed her, it was my first baptism and first time standing in on a confirmation, it was such a sweet experience! A cool thing about her baptism, the 2nd ward hasn't had a baptism for about a year or so, its like 18 months since the last baptism, so that's sweet. :) :)
Also, on that Sunday when she was confirmed, Elder Brockbank and I went to the singles ward and I had to teach the Relief Society... haha what an experience. I guess it went really well though, all of the sisters really enjoyed it, I taught on Recognizing the Promptings of the Spirit. Such a great subject to teach on, the Relief Society is awesome, it was my first time ever being in there but there is such a strong spirit in there, Daughters of God are amazing! :)
On Saturday, (sorry this is kind of all over the place) right after Natalie's baptism we met with an investigator who would go to the singles ward, her name is Whitley. We talked to her about the restoration and shared with her how we have the proper authority that God had while he was on the Earth. I was able to share with her the first vision, what happened to Joseph Smith after he prayed. About half way in her face just begins to glow, and she puts this huge smile on her face! After I shared that she said she wanted to cry, and quote, "I've never felt this good in my whole life" the spirit touched her and then we committed her to be baptized on the 25th of September and she said yes! Things are happening here and Charlottesville is going to explode, it's so great!
That is pretty much the excitement that is going on right now, like I said things are happening and I am so excited that I get to stay here and help out. Some of the missionaries leave today, one of the Assistants to the President that I got to know pretty well is leaving, his name is Elder Fraga, such a great guy, it's sad to see them leave but it is great as well, all of the missionaries that are leaving are so successful, not by baptisms but by many other ways. The way they feel and teach by the spirit, the way they help others come closer to our Father in Heaven, and so much more. (A Successful Missionary in PMG) I hope all of you are studying out of Preach My Gospel and your scriptures, you will be greatly blessed if you do and I promise you that you will. Also I hope that all of you have been able to go onto mormon.org. That is such a great missionary tool for everyone and everyone can use it! Well, there really isn't much more to talk about... I love you all, I love my mission and I am so thankful that I could be here now, I love my Savior, He is the Christ, He is the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, our Savior and Redeemer, and I know that He lives. He loves each and every single one of us, He gave His life for us so we could come to this Earth, don't let his sacrifice go unnoticed. I love this gospel... Again I love you all and I wish you all the best in whatever you do. You are in my prayers.
With love,
Elder Hopkins
So on Sunday we received our transfer calls! Pretty much the whole time I thought I was going to be leaving Charlottesville, but turns out that I GET TO STAY!!! I was sooooo excited after we got that call! So ya, that's what I wanted to start out with.
There is that exciting news, however, this is the real exciting news... Natalie Sikes... Got baptized on the 4th and confirmed on the 5th! She is now a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, how is sweet is that!? She is so solid and she loves everything about the gospel, she is just so excited and so happy to be a part of this church. :) Everything was so great, Elder Brockbank baptized her, and Elder Comer confirmed her, it was my first baptism and first time standing in on a confirmation, it was such a sweet experience! A cool thing about her baptism, the 2nd ward hasn't had a baptism for about a year or so, its like 18 months since the last baptism, so that's sweet. :) :)
Also, on that Sunday when she was confirmed, Elder Brockbank and I went to the singles ward and I had to teach the Relief Society... haha what an experience. I guess it went really well though, all of the sisters really enjoyed it, I taught on Recognizing the Promptings of the Spirit. Such a great subject to teach on, the Relief Society is awesome, it was my first time ever being in there but there is such a strong spirit in there, Daughters of God are amazing! :)
On Saturday, (sorry this is kind of all over the place) right after Natalie's baptism we met with an investigator who would go to the singles ward, her name is Whitley. We talked to her about the restoration and shared with her how we have the proper authority that God had while he was on the Earth. I was able to share with her the first vision, what happened to Joseph Smith after he prayed. About half way in her face just begins to glow, and she puts this huge smile on her face! After I shared that she said she wanted to cry, and quote, "I've never felt this good in my whole life" the spirit touched her and then we committed her to be baptized on the 25th of September and she said yes! Things are happening here and Charlottesville is going to explode, it's so great!
That is pretty much the excitement that is going on right now, like I said things are happening and I am so excited that I get to stay here and help out. Some of the missionaries leave today, one of the Assistants to the President that I got to know pretty well is leaving, his name is Elder Fraga, such a great guy, it's sad to see them leave but it is great as well, all of the missionaries that are leaving are so successful, not by baptisms but by many other ways. The way they feel and teach by the spirit, the way they help others come closer to our Father in Heaven, and so much more. (A Successful Missionary in PMG) I hope all of you are studying out of Preach My Gospel and your scriptures, you will be greatly blessed if you do and I promise you that you will. Also I hope that all of you have been able to go onto mormon.org. That is such a great missionary tool for everyone and everyone can use it! Well, there really isn't much more to talk about... I love you all, I love my mission and I am so thankful that I could be here now, I love my Savior, He is the Christ, He is the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, our Savior and Redeemer, and I know that He lives. He loves each and every single one of us, He gave His life for us so we could come to this Earth, don't let his sacrifice go unnoticed. I love this gospel... Again I love you all and I wish you all the best in whatever you do. You are in my prayers.
With love,
Elder Hopkins
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