Last Email! 01/26/15 Farewell Philippines!

Dear World,

So for those who now know...I'm coming home in a few days. I personally dont like emailing especially long emails but I'm going to this time for my mom!:) First things first the mission was crazy fast and the best time of my life. I grew to be a man of Christ here in the Philippines and I'm still growing and striving to become like him. You never really can bring yourself to the point of change unless you try. If you dont go out and serve others look at your past mistakes and change them we will never learn. PMG (Preach My Gospel manual) really helped me to understand that repentance and conversion is an everyday experience. You cant just one day say you are now converted to the gospel or you have now repented and dont need to do it again, but everyday we need to find the Savior and strive to become like him. I cant wrap my head around the fact that I will be seeing those who are back at home and the fact that I wont be seeing the people of the Philippines anymore. I remember being brand new in the misson and looking at people who almost had a year in the mission and I just thought they were amazing missionaries, but now I look at the new missionaries and I think that exact same thing. I love what our mission president says that "we have all come a long way from our snug little cribs" its so true. We dont know where people have started out at or what their situations were or are in life but we see the Light in them. I love looking at little kids. The veil is so thin with them. Its like you are almost looking into heaven. That is one thing that Christ wants for us. In order to enter into the kingdom we must become as little children. HUMBLE MEEK and ready to be taught. We need to basically ilayo our selves from the world. That can be hard to do. But I have seen that in myself and in others. I am so excited to continue this work at my home and well wherever I may end up. Life couldnt be any happier. This has been the Hardest hottest most exhausting 2 years of my life, but it has also been the most rewarding, exciting, and treasured experience of my entire life. Like they say I'm going home but not going back. I'm not going back to my old self but I'm coming home a new person. A person who is striving for perfection and now relying upon the merits of Jesus Christ. "for we are saved by grace AFTER all that we can do" I have put that scripture to use in my life and I love it so much. I dont know quite else what to say but I love this chuch. I know that this is the Church of Jesus Christ. I know that Joseph Smith is the prophet who was chosen to restore this gospel. I know that the priesthood power of God is real I feel it everyday and I felt it when I was sealed to my parents. This is His chruch and He is who guides it. I know I was called by a living prophet through revelation to serve here in the Philippines under the direction of President Monahan. I learned more than I can type in an hour limit so I guess this is where I will stop.  But I love you all so much. Thank you for the prayers and for your support to me while I went through my ups and downs! I will really miss the Philippines but I can say without a doubt that I gave it my all here and I will never regret my decision to serve a mission for the True Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

with love,

Elder Hansen

A Missionary Tradition

The Burning of an old Shirt!

1/19/15 Last week of Mission...

Mom thanks for a great email I will make sure I let them know that you said those things! II asked him to tell his companion and President Monahan and Sister Monahan that I appreciate their sacrifice and service),  as for me here in Philippines things are going great! It's weird to be honest that I go home in basically a week. It still doesnt seem real.. I just know that I need to work hard until the very end so that I can please Him. No one wants a missionary who doesnt have the drive to finish his mission faithfully. This week we did a lot of finding and found a really sweet investigator. Her name is sis. a. We talked to her one night on the street, I guess she saw us next door and she wanted us to teach her back then but was shy so she didnt talk to us...Our first lesson with her she really felt the spirit and is really willing to follow Jesus Christ. They also have a tryke so they wont have a hard time going to church and they could be a big help in that area once they are members! Sister L will be getting baptized on Feb. 14, 2015 and we are very excited for her. Her daughter is undergoing surgery right now so please pray for them. President just told me in his email to tell you "thank you for a great son and missionary" its true. Thank you mom for raising me to be a man of good standards and to have a backbone. I'm so glad I never really gave into temptation back then. I know its because of your loving guidance!:) I'm very excited to give you a great big hug and I hope youre excited as well. I miss and love you mom I'm going to work very hard this last week I promise I wont go down without a fight. haha I will return with honor and I promise I served with honor! This mission changed my life. Anyway I love ya mom and I hope you have a great week

nagmamahal,

 

Elder Hansen

 

So this is my last full week here in the field. I will write a good email to everyone next week but to be honest I'm really lazy with emails now a days! I just want all of you to know that I'm very happy right now but very scared to leave this place....I'm scared of Americans now....haha I will be very shocked seeing all of these Americans in one place hahaha I love you all!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy New Year! 2015 and 2 Weeks left on mission

01/12/15

 

 

Mom that sounds horrible about you getting sick...I'm sorry about that.  I'm glad that you are all doing great at home and that sounds like an awesome idea about praying for those things specifically, (we told him about praying for dates and people to have the missionaries teach) it is very true about what president said that missionaries pray all the time. Like we pray a lot haha I have gained a testimony of prayer here in the mission. To be honest I wasnt the most active kid in the gospel before the mission, and I regret that but now that I have changed I will just keep moving forward.  To be honest I am excited to come home as well but im not trunky and it doesnt effect my work here. I actually dont feel like im going home in two weeks.... it literally doesnt sound real when I say that. It seems impossible that I go home in two weeks.....our investigators are doing okay here we still dont have anyone progressing towards baptism but we will just keep working hard and it will happen. The sacrament attendance has increased the past weeks that I have been here. It has gone from 90s to now 146!!! So we are way pumped about what is happening there!

I have a great gift for all of you when I get home and I hope you cherish it forever . But I'm not going to tell you what it is until I get home!! Its something that you will be able to use forever. I don't know what else to talk about except for the fact that on sat night while we were sleeping there was an earthquake!! haha I was asleep and it woke me up but I was still half asleep and didnt realize what was going on and then I finally noticed that my bed was moving back and forth and I didnt understand why. The thought popped into my head that it was an evil spirit hahahaha but then I fell back to sleep. I thought it was just a dream until someone else was like did you guys feel that lindol last night?? and I was like what?? There was one pala? hahah and they were like yeah. No damage or anything but just a cool little story for you all! Have a great week and dont miss me too much!!

love,

Elder Hansen

 

(I love how he all of a sudden throws out a Tagalog word here and there!)

 

 

Happy New Year to all of you back at home!! I'm sure you all had a blast. We had a good time as well here in Aguilar. members treated us really well and the work went pretty good.  President emailed me and said that he pulled out the baseball ornament and said that he is excited to hang that up on a real tree next year. (We sent him a Baseball Christmas ornament that Riley signed as they have that in common) I love the Monahans so much.  The little choices change our lives. That is one thing I learned here in the mission. The Lord expects us to decide for ourselves and to chose the right. We should not have to be told to do all things but should be anxiously engaged. The work was good this week we had the E family go to church and we are working with our branch president on how we can help bro. X with his drinking problem.

The members,  I really like here. They are very nice to me and supportive of the work. I'm so excited though to go to the temple again! It has been so long since I have been there!!! I dont know why but I feel drawn to the temple right now and I miss it like crazy!

Thank you all for being such great examples to me my whole life. I am excited to be my brother's friends when I get back. I love you guys and miss you all but we will see each other soon

Love Elder Hansen

 

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ELDER HANSEN

URDANETA STAKE

URDANETA 3RD