Email 12/16/13

Crazy is the season, but we all still remember the reason! We have transfers this coming up on Wednesday and Elder Barrett is going to be transferred to Vancouver. I will be getting a missionary who is already in my zone, and has been in the zone for sometime, Elder Ehrenzeller. It is too bad, I was looking forward to spending Christmas together with Elder Barrett, but I know Elder Ehrenzeller pretty well and am super excited to spend this wonderful Christmas season with him! He is really funny and LOVES to work, so I don't think that I can go wrong with that! I will miss Elder Barrett, though. We have only been together for 5 weeks, but it feels like so much longer. He has really become one of my best friends and a man that I really look up to. Next transfer will be 7 weeks, to accommodate the week that we lost for our Christmas transfer. I don't think that I told you, but we lost a week so we wouldn't have transfers on Christmas day, and next transfer we will be making it up.

With all the commotion our zone saw much success. Elder Barrett and I were called up twice on Friday to do baptismal interviews for the next day! People are really beginning to feel the change that is coming in the world and will are responding positively. We are finding more and more people who are that much more interested in talking about their families, their religion, or something that they unknowingly know as a gospel principle. Sometimes I want to yell and shout for joy when they start on a topic like that, but then they would just get more freaked out, so I have to refrain myself.

Well, I told you last week that I would share some of my thoughts about the Savior this week (thanks for the subtle reminder;). In the introduction of the Book of Mormon there are two very intriguing topics. The first is found in the 3rd paragraph in saying: "It [The Book of Mormon]...tells men what they must do to gain peace in this life and eternal salvation in the life to come." Now this may not seem too special, but I see it as a blessing to the promise found in the last two paragraphs of the introduction. When one follows the instructions given in the introduction then we are promised that we come to know "that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world." This is the second of the two topics that I had mentioned. Both are highly intertwined into one promise-coming to know Jesus Christ is to have peace in this life and eternal salvation in the life to come.

There is nothing that I know to be more true. We have a loving Father in Heaven whose greatest gift to man is to dwell in His presence (D&C 88:4-5). One way that we take part in this is by having His Spirit to always be with us so we can live continually in His presence. As we know, though, that we sin in which we fall from the feelings that the Holy Ghost brings unto us. Our purpose here is to have joy (2 Nephi 2:25) and we are inherently seeking to imitate these feelings of the Spirit. Without the gospel perspective, we are lost, seeking for that which the natural man desires causing us to fall into deeper sin and self gratification. Therefore we needed a Savior, someone to teach us, either Himself or through His holy prophets, to bring us back into the presence of our Father, both in this life and in the life to come. His resurrection will bring us into the presence of our Heavenly Father after this life, and His Atonement allows us to return to the presence of the Father everyday. 

I know that I have drawn nearer to my Savior and how grateful I am to do so. This peace is so real, the presence of the Father through the Holy Ghost is only possible through my Savior, Jesus Christ. AND I LOVE HIM FOR THAT! How sweet is the passage in Luke "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." Jesus Christ is my Savior and gave his life for me. That is the greatest knowledge that I can speak of.

I love you all and hope you have a merry week!

Love,

Elder Hamblin

P.S. I am good with the packages I love you!

Email 12/09/13

I found my camera!! A missionary had it in his bag and didn't look in it for a few weeks, so here are some pics! I do have to make a request though--please do not post the baptismal photo anywhere. Th church has asked us not to post anything like that on Facebook or on any blogs and things like that. They want to keep the privacy of the individuals. Thanks!

 Today most of our zone went to Multnomah Falls and they were almost completely frozen over. We had a very good time there and that is why I am e-mailing a little later than normal. It was freezing there, but as we hiked the warm spirit from my fellow missionaries kept us all warm all the way to the top of the falls, and what an amazing time to be there.

I don't quite know when I will be able to Skype home. We have transfers on the 18th and I will find out a time for sure right after that. I think that it will most likely be around 3-4 your time, but I told Sister Hamblin to pick a time and I will make it work...I hope!

Well I don't have too much more time, there is much that I have to get done! Mother, let me think on my thoughts this week and I will get back to you next week. Just remind me, or else I will forget to write you my thoughts. I love you and hope that you all have a good week!

Love,

Elder Hamblin

Letters

11/18/13
Dear Family,
This past week was a miracle in itself as it started slow, but ended with a bang.  As I described in my emails, we have the best missionaries in the mission.  Well, maybe in the world.  But hey, they are pretty good.  I am grateful to be surrounded by such good missionaries.  I know that this upcoming Holiday season will be a white one here in Portland because of all the hard work being put in here.

You know I just realized that this is all in blue ink.  hmmm

Anyway, I wrote most of the highlights of my week in my email.  Sorry about that.  I was very excited about our missionaries and my new companion that I could barely control myself!  I am filled with a new excitement each transfer.  I just become more and more excited! 

We have been making a big push here in the WVM to find 200 new investigators and putting a big emphasis on our DL's.  We are blessed to be in Portland where there are many people to find and where the DL's are the best.  Now when we can find our light and let it shine full time, we will grow more than ever.

This hit me a Sunday or two ago.  A member of our ward was talking about light and my mind was turned to an experience dad told me.  There is a plant which dad has owned for quite some time which he keeps in his office.  For quite sometime this plant has not grown.  For the past few years, a move of offices and some new found knowledge of the plant allowed this plant to grow.  Continuous light is needed to keep this plant growing.  Until this point it was merely surviving on 1/2 the light, but it grew with full light!  Think on that :)

Love you all!
Love,
Elder Rex Hamblin


11/27/13

Dear Family, 

Happy Thanksgiving!  You know, this one is going to be really short.  P-Day we got very busy running around, so I apologize for not writing.  I thought I would still do my best at writing you this week (and actually getting it in the mail!)  This past week was a good one.  Everyone in our zone has been working really hard to find 30 new investigators.  Last week as a zone we found 24, so we are almost there!  Elder Barrett & I are knocking and talking to everyone we meet!  We were promised by Elder Ballard that if we would talk to 10 people everyday, the number of our baptisms would double!  That may seem easy, but it is very challenging...and fun!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Love,
Elder Hamblin

Email 12/03/13

Thanksgiving is always a special time of year. I think Sister Amanda Hamblin put it best when she stated that many of the people in the wards where she is serving are converts, and they love the missionaries! This love and gratitude was felt throughout this past week as we gathered together and remembered where we receive our blessings from. The members here are the best, and they show it! To be a member, especially here in Portland, you must be firmly grounded in what you truly know and allow that to literally dictate every decision that you make. The members here in the northeast section of Portland are some of the best people that I know. How grateful I am to have been able to spend such a wonderful holiday with these fine folks and friends.

This past week as we ate like kings, we still knew that we had a work to do. The missionaries in our zone are the best in the entire mission, and I am thoroughly convinced of that. We have been working hard to invite others to come unto Christ, and the missionaries are doing a fantastic job at doing so. They have been inviting many to come unto Christ a by being baptized and helping them receive the restored gospel through making commitments and covenants. I was particularly surprised to see how many people our zone has invited to be baptized and come into the gospel. This is the time of year when people are most focused on Christ, so why not invite them to come closer to Him?

Well, some missionaries MAY have found my camera, so I MAY send pictures next week. Don't be surprised if I don't, but I am just saying that it MAY happen. We will have to see if it really is my camera or not. It is great to hear from you every week and I love to hear all the festivities. I know that I could be better at describing what goes on up here, and it is guaranteed that as soon as I get off the computer that I will remember more to write. Writers block. Love you all!

Love,

Elder Rex Hamblin

Email 11/25/13

Well winter's greetings from the Wonderful Northwest! Many blessings are in store for this holiday season and I can't wait to see what is in store. If this holiday season is anything like the last, I believe that we are all in for a very special treat! This is a very grateful time (very appropriate for Thanksgiving) around Portland. People seem to be a little kinder and slightly more open, but still politically correct! I guess this is a very different experience for me since I have never been in the big city for the Holidays, but I am grateful to get such a marvelous experience! Too bad I can't share it all visibly with you all...I may or may not have lost my camera. It is yet to be determined, but I just haven't seen it in three weeks. I still haven't looked EVERYWHERE for it, just most of the places it would be. Sorry Mom...

Anyway, this past week has been amazing! Elder Barrett is working me to death! I have been working as hard as I can my whole mission, but now that I am with him, he has kicked it up to a whole new level! We cover an area with about 50,000 people in it, and I think that it is his goal to knock on every single door within our area's boundaries. I don't mind at all! We are working our tails off and are bound and determined that everyone is going to hear the gospel. We have also been working hand in hand with our WML and starting to work with the ward members here much more. It is just such an exciting time to be a missionary in the Alameda Ward! Did I tell you we got another set of missionaries in our ward? Now we have a set of Elders, a set of Spanish Elders, and another set of Sisters! The ward is doing their best to keep us busy, but our WML is really stepping it up. He is also the High Councilman over missionary work in the Stake, so he is trying to set the example for the rest of the WMLs in the Stake. Personally I think that he is doing more than a fantastic job at helping all six of us missionaries while doing a stake calling! I am pretty sure he is the best!

Well, I think this ol' brain has thought of everything that it can think of at the moment. Just one last thought. This morning in my personal study I had the impression to study inspired questions. I went to PMG and read from the Book of Mormon. As missionaries we are called to teach by the Spirit of the Lord and we must invite Him into our every thought, conversation, and action. As we are teaching we teach and testify all we can until we we have physically exhausted ourselves from trying to get the point across. That is not how the Savior taught. We must simply ask questions and let people answer the questions for themselves. Many times the questions that are asked are the questions that are on the mind of those to whom we are talking. It is not until we phrase the question for them that they are able to formulate an answer OR find out the means to which they can find their answer. A question is an invitation to act for yourself; the deeper the question, the more we are able to learn, and man have I learned a lot!

I love you all and hope that you all have a great week! Happy Thanksgiving! PLEASE go out and show someone that you are grateful for them, and not with words!

Love,

Elder Rex Hamblin 

Letter 11/12/13

Dear Family, Wow has this week flown by! We were extremely busy this week doing Stake reports, preparaing for Jacklyn's baptism, and getting Elder Olsen all ready to head for home. Add in an Elder's conference and our monthly MLC (Mission Leadership Council), and you have yourself a full week! I just channot believe that Elder Olsen is already going home, I honestly feel as if I need to go back to Milton-Freewater TO Elder Olsen once again. Ime feels like a running water in my hands or smoke from a flame, escaping. Well, enough about me. As I have already mentioned, this week was Jacklyn's baptism, a very special treat. Earlier, Saturday morning, Elder Rothwell (who is serving in my Zone/Stake) had 2 baptisms in the Tongan ward. We were privileged to attend the baptisms and watch the two wonderful converts make covenants with the Lord. The spirit was strong, although we could not tell what was being said. (The service was in Tongan). The Tongan's support each other very well and many people showed up and gave their support. It was an amazing experience to be a part of and to feel the love that they all have towards each other. Later in the evening was Jacklyn's baptism. The building was freezing as the heat did not work. But the spirits were bright as she prepared for the last minutes covenants with her Heavenly Father. She was slightly nervous, but she was more sure than ever. To hear their testimony afterwards was heart warming and touched everyone present. It was amazing and very humbling. I lvoe you all! (sorry this is SO sporadic, but I have been writing here and there over the last 4 days. I love you!) Love, Elder Hamblin

Email 11/18/13

Well hello there everyone! Portland is good, Portland is great, and Portland is the best! I just thought that everyone should know that, just in case anyone was wondering. This last week we had transfers, after I sent Elder Olsen home. That is a sad day to watch a missionary "die" but I think he will adjust well in the world again. He is too great of a man not to. Anyway I received my new companion Elder Barrett, and he is the man. I have been with many companions, and I don't think that I have had one yet who is as enthusiastic about the work as he is! He loves to knock on doors and there is not a single person whom we have passed by who has not been spoken to by Elder Barrett. This is going to be a short transfer (5 weeks because of Christmas) so I hope that we will be able to stay together for the next transfer too! We have seen many miracles, especially throughout the zone. Transfer weeks are always hard on finding new investigators and we expected that. Transfers are on Wednesday and Elder Barrett and I met with the District Leaders on Thursday. Up to this point in the week, we as a zone had found 2 new investigators. We talked with our DL's and discussed what we could do to help. We decided Friday we would find 5 new investigators, Saturday we would find 10, and Sunday we would find 5. We knew that this was a lofty goal, so we left it in the hands of our DL's to spread through the rest of their districts. I will let you know now that we have the BEST DL's in the whole church right here in our zone. Our phone from Friday to Sunday was flooded with texts from around the zone as the missionaries here in Portland put their trust in the Lord and almost exceeded our goals! Our DL's have the unique ability to really get the missionaries working and I am so grateful that they are so willing to work. Last night Elder Barrett and I were also able to contribute to our zone's goals. We were out tracting all day and had a little success. We just had an amazing lesson with one of our investigators with major heart problems. We talked with him about the Priesthood and asked if he would like a Priesthood blessing. He accepted and we were able to give him a powerful blessing. It was just after 8 when we got out of the lesson and we decided to go and try some former investigators. We had a big book full of them and decided that we would get started with some of them. Anyway, we were looking for 2 who were close together and missed their home. We kept driving and I realized that we were close to another's home. We parked the car and went up to his door and gave it a knock. When he opened the door, he asked if anyone had sent us. We told him no, and he said that a classmate of his was going to send us over! We just happened to be in the neighborhood! He let us right in and told us that he really wanted to know if there was a God or not. He asked us how we knew there was a God, and we were more than happy to share our testimonies of how we came to know God. It was an amazing experience to see the Hand of God in every detail of our lives! I love you all and hope you have a good week! Love, Elder Hamblin P.S. GO ELKS!! Don't worry, I still let everyone know where my hometown pride lies!