Breaking Ground

Oi tudos!

 

This is going to be an exciting transfer. I have a new companheiro now! His name is Elder Miller. He is from Chester, Idaho and has been out just over 8 months. He is an awesome guy and has the greatest hunting stories. I've been taking lead in most of the work lately while Elder Miller is trying to get familiar with the area and people. It's stretching me quite a bit, but I am certainly enjoying the adventure!

 

This Saturday was the Fort Collins temple groundbreaking. Elder Rasband presided and dedicated the site, and it was a great event to be a part of. It is certainly turning heads in this area and opening the door for people to receive the Gospel.

 

We've been doing more tracting and referral searching, looking for new investigators. We have met some awesome people and look forward to teaching some new faces and families. We found a golden family! Their names are Saber and Arafina. They are from Africa and have lived in Colorado for about a year now. They have the cutest baby girl who has been born as long as I've been in Colorado. We invited them to church, and they excitingly accepted our offer. So yesterday when we waited for them to show up, it was quite disappointing that they didn't show up... When we went to visit them later in the afternoon to follow up with them, we found out they actually went to church! They just attended the wrong sacrament meeting. They loved the sacrament meeting and all the nice people they met at church. They are already considering baptism!! I've been so blessed with the people I've met and had the opportunity to share the Gospel with. As I've been able to meet with Saber and Arafina I've realized that I have something special and personal to offer them. My Heavenly Father has truly blessed me by putting me in the right place with the right people. God's way is the way!

 

Eu sei que meu redentor vive!

 

Picture - Elder Miller & I (like my homemade haircut?!)

 

Elder Alexander James Hamilton

Missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Centennial Ward - Greeley, Colorado

 

 

One Down

Bom dia!

Well, it's official: I'm through the first transfer of my mission! That was quick. (I know that I always talk about how fast time is going, but it really is!)


It was an interesting week with transfers. I don't know if I've mentioned my living situation or not, so I'll go ahead. I've been living in Sister Miller's basement, an older woman in the Centennial Ward. Along with Elder Maciel and I, we have been with the Greeley Zone Leaders: Elder Hanks and Elder Householder. On Tuesday, Elder Householder was called to be an Assistant to the President. He left on Wednesday, and Elder Hanks, Elder Maciel, and I worked through the rest of the week in a trio serving both the Centennial and University Young Single Adult wards. Elder Maciel was assigned to be the new Greeley Zone Leader. I am staying in Centennial (yay!) and will meet my new companion in Loveland today. The change is bitterseet for me. I am SO excited for Elder Maciel's assignment and know he will do great things. I will miss having him as a companion, but I am so happy to continue to live with him and Elder Hanks. I'm excited to meet my new companion and for the great work and adventures ahead serving in Centennial!

Here are some happenings of the week:

1) I cut my hair. By myself! Call me a true elder.

2) I don't have a driver door handle on my car. Last p-day, I chased after some elders who were trying to drive off with my car. While trying to stop them, I accidently ripped the door handle off. Everything is all right now and insurance is going to cover a new handle, but people know not to mess with me :)

The work in Greeley is expanding. There will be a new district in the zone and seven additional missionaries, making there 37 missionaries in the Greeley Zone. We have some great missionaries coming into the zone and good wave of new missionaries as well. We have some great work ahead, and I am so grateful to be apart of it.

I love having the Gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. It brings such joy to my life, and it is a privilege to see the miracles it brings into others' lives.

A gente se vê!

Elder Alexander James Hamilton
Missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Centennial Ward - Greeley, Colorado

Picking Up

Oi tudos!

 

Things are picking up again! We have met new people and are teaching some great families. This weekend was the Greeley Stake Conference. Elder Rhodes (area 70) presided and spoke, and he was great. President and Sister Brown also spoke and impressed the members of the stake with their vision for the Fort Collins mission. There were so many great talks; it will be a conference to remember. We started teaching Audrey this week. We have taught her the first two lessons, and she attended two sessions of stake conference. Yesterday, we invited here to be baptized. SHE SAID YES!! We are so excited and look forward to helping her be ready by the 24th.

 

The signs for our adopted streets are now up and all around Greeley!! It's great publicity and exciting for the members to see our signs. Here in the Fort Collins and Denver North mission, the missionaries participate in program called JustServe. He have the opportunity to do ten hours of community service a week participating in a variety of projects such as cleaning our adopted streets, building homes with Habitat for Humanity, volunteering at Weld's Food Bank, helping out at the Humane Society Animal Shelter, etc.  I have learned so much through this program.  I gained a better understanding of how important it is to serve and provide charity in the community. Through charity, we are able to help those who need help feel loved and important. As I serve, I have not only been able to help others but have benefited personally as I develop more Christ like love for God's children. I have found so much joy and fun through serving.   

 

That is all. Amo vocês!

 

Elder Hamilton

 

Riding the Tornado!

Oi!

 

What a week! In all honesty it was a little rough. Elder Maciel and I planned a great week full of appointments with our current and new investigators, but in the end EVERY appointment fell through... We also had to drop our baptismal date with Laura. She doesn't feel ready for baptism and has some obstacles to overcome. I know she will be baptized someday, but she needs time. On the bright side, we have an awesome new investigator! Her name is Audrey. She is roommates with some of the recent converts in the Centennial ward. We haven't been able to teach her yet, due to moving, but she has been to church twice and already desires to be baptized and have the gift of the Holy Ghost. We are very excited to teach her this week. We also have received some referrals from the zone leaders and spanish sisters that have great potential. Even in the hardest of times, it's amazing the blessings our Heavenly Father will pour upon us!

 

Saturday was exciting. Elder Maciel and I finished our Just Serve hours picking up garbage on 35th Avenue (we adopted 6 miles of streets that will soon have signs that say "adopted by the LDS Missionaries"). We hurried home to take showers before heading to an appointment. When I got out, I found Elder Maciel and Elder Hanks running up and down the stairs. Elder Householder and I joined them outside to see what was going on. There was a tornado warning and we stood outside to watch the storm begin. We watched the clouds begin to form a column. The sky was really dark and before too long, it was hailing  and raining so hard that we couldn't even see down the street. All the missionaries were ordered to stay in for the evening. Several tornadoes touched down in Northern Colorado. Two touched down in Greeley (one of them less than a mile from us), but there was no major damage. It made an exciting end to a crazy week!
 

Elder Alexander James Hamilton

 

 

A Brand New Car!

Hello!

 

Another great week flew by. Again. We had so many appointments this week, and it's been hard keeping up with it all by foot... (my bike has been in the shop.) Luckily, we have a car now!! It's a red Toyota Corolla, and it smells nice. I never thought I'd be so happy driving a grandma car. It's been a miracle for me and Elder Maciel. We are picking up 5+ new investigators this week, so we will really make the most of this car. We have a busy week ahead of us and I am so excited to meet new people and work hard!

This ward has provided a surprising number of Brazilian experiences. I've met a few members who served in Brazil, and it's been fun practicing Portuguese with them & Elder Maciel. There are also two young men in this ward who have been called to Brazil (I've been quite the horror story for Bryce and Ben's mothers). One of them, Bryce Richardson, gave his farewell yesterday. It made me think about my farewell and how exciting of a day that was for me. It's been fun getting to know the young men in this ward preparing for and leaving on missions.

 

We had a great lesson with Laura this week. We teach her at the Simpson's home (member family in our ward),they really help make the lessons powerful. She is a former Jehovah's Witness, and we have been working with her for awhile now. We had an awesome lesson on Alma 32 about how to develop faith. She knows so much and so easily recognizes the influence of the Holy Ghost, but she has a hard time committing to the Gospel. Brother Simpson did a great job at helping her realize how powerful her testimony truly is and how much Heavenly Father loves her. The spirit was so strong in the Simpson's home. She also accepted our invitation to baptism!! She will be baptized on August 17!

 

Sounds like there have been a lot of great missionary farewells in the last few weeks. I am so excited for all my friends who are serving right now and will be serving soon. When times get hard, it has been comforting and encouraging to know that I have so many friends along my side in this work of changing lives. I know that when I come out the other end two years from now, I will realize not only the great things I was able to do, but the great change the world has experienced from the valiant missionaries of our time!

  

Elder Alexander James Hamilton

 

                                                                             Picture #1 - Stuck at train stop for nearly 15 minutes!

                                                                             Picture #2 - Einstein

 

I Love Greeley!

Oi!

 

This has been such a great week!! Probably the busiest week of my life, in a good way. We have picked up a couple new investigators and the work is really starting to pick up here. I am learning so much and so fast, and I have seen so many miracles and blessings.

 

Andrew and family are coming along well. He is very receptive to our message and has such great desires to learn. In our last lesson with him, we brought Brother Johnson, our ward mission leader, with us. Brother Johnson helped Andrew relate our lesson to the blessings of gospel to his family, and he invited us and Andrew's family to come over for a barbecue this week.

 

Saturday was Colton's baptism!!! It was an incredible experience. After Colton came out of the water, he had the biggest smile on his face, and he radiated joy the rest of the evening. The next day, he was confirmed in sacrament meeting and he also received the Aaronic Priesthood and was ordained to the office of a priest!! It's remarkable to see the change the gospel has made in his life over the course of three weeks! I am so grateful to be here at this time and this place with these people. Colton is a great example to me, and he alone has made my reassignment worth it.

 

I have received news that my visa has been processed and approved!! It is expected that I will have my visa in the next couple weeks. While I am excited to go to Brazil, I am disappointed that I will have to leave Greeley. I love this city. The people, the ward, the 7Elevens, the missionaries, etc. I have big plans to make the most of the remainder of my time and see my investigators reach certain goals before I leave them. I have some big days ahead of me, and I look forward to the work. I love missionary work, regardless of the soil I stand on!

 

Tchau!

Elder Alexander James Hamilton

 

 

The Best First Week!

Hello everyone!!

 

Today marks my first week out in the field!  It still blows my mind the calling I've been given and the work I'm privileged to do.

Now that I've been around a little longer and have paid attention to my surroundings, I finally know where on earth I am! I am serving in the Cenntenial Ward in Greeley, Colorado. It is a nice little city and the people here are great. It's quite a diverse culture too, full of all different types of people and religions. The Centennial Ward is the biggest ward in the Greeley Stake, and the work is really starting to pick up here. Sometimes Elder Maciel and I don't how to keep up without a car, but riding a bike is helping burn off the great dinners the members feed us.

 

  

I have my first baptism this week!! His name is Colton Milliron and he is a stud! He is 15 years old and lives in Washington with his dad during the school season. He started investigating the Church because he desired to know the truth. He has been reading and sticky-noting his copy of the Book of Mormon.  He has such great faith. He committed to baptism after our third lesson! He is such a great example to me and has shown how much joy and change can happen as we can receive the knowledge of God's great plan and by following the example of Jesus Christ.

 

This week, I've realized how Heavenly Father has blessed me by putting me in the right place at the right time. The other day, Elder Maciel and I were riding our bikes back from a dinner appointment. Just as we were about to pass a 7Eleven, I was suddenly prompted that we stop and go to the ATM. I asked Elder Maciel to pull over. As I was about to enter the 7Eleven, a man from behind me asked, "where do you work?" I turned around and told him that I am a missionary for the Church. As we started talking, he mentioned that he was looking for a church and wanted some information on our church. I wrote down his name and address and told him that we would come by. We visited Andrew yesterday and met his wife and son. And his pets. He was far from our home and I know that if I had not happened to run into him at 7Eleven, we would've probably never met Andrew. It was a great experience for me and one among the many miracles I get to be apart of here in Greeley.

 

I am so grateful to be in the Fort Collins Mission right now. There are things that I've learned that I know I needed to learn here before I'm ready to serve in Rio. Talking about Brazil with Elder Maciel is certainly making me anxious, but overall, I'm just so happy and blessed to serve.

 

Godspeed!

Elder Hamilton