6/6/2016 "That's totally barbaric!" - "That's missionary chess ;)"

Name that movie.

Let me start off by saying that if I miss another family reunion like the one you guys had this week, I'll lose my sanity. My heart ached for the good old days as I read about all the cool things you did! But let the record also show I'm so pumped you guys had an awesome time, sounds like you orchestrated some really fun things this year! I'm also glad my cardboard self was able to make it.

Quite frankly, my week wasn't as awesome as yours. Okay that sounds dramatic, but is there honestly anything better than a Hakes family reunion? You're right, preaching the everlasting gospel is a close second :) We had a mixed week of trials and triumphs, but that's okay because all things are for our good and shall give us experience! We seemed unable to generate a lot of work in some regards as Elder Anderson transitions to the area, but we also had some cool successes.

We found a new investigator named Dorothy! She lives in a trailer on a nearby highway and was referred to us by her friend up north in Jeff City who is taking the lessons. She is a sweet simple older lady who lives with her 15 year old son. In fact, when I say "older lady" and "15 year old son" that sounds kinda weird. I think he's her son... anyway she's pretty sincere and just looking for the right way to go. Taught her two lessons and she seems eager to come to church sometime soon.

REFER YOUR FRIENDS TO THE MISSIONARIES, YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN THEY'RE READY. A couple months ago our goofy young ward mission leader referred 3 people on the church website, a friend in Cali, his mom somewhere in the east, and some other person he knew. He called us the other day and told us his friend in California is getting baptized! It is literally that easy. Think of someone right now, whether you think they'll accept the message or not, and submit their name on mormon.org.

Elder Anderson is a real live jock and we started a workout program this morning designed to ramp up our verticals. Expect dunk footage in the near future. And soreness. We get along way good though and have fun doing the work together!

Had stake conference this weekend and it went well, we had a german member of the seventy who's name I'm not even going to begin to try and spell and he was a spiritual giant who taught with power. Anderson and I looked at each other and said "I didn't know President Uchtdorf was coming to stake conference!" Sounded just like him. Found myself with a lot of notes and thoughts about my own future family.

This week is jam-packed with leadership conference in Bentonville again tomorrow immediately followed by zone conference in Springfield on Wednesday. Excited!

Well I love you all, till next week
Elder T. Hakes


PS we played chess with two missionary action figures that Anderson found, so don't steal our idea

5/30/2016 Newness.

 Crew!

I've expended my time playing ball today. Yup, my new companion is a baller. Elder Anderson is tight and we've had a bunch of fun since transfers already! I'm so psyched for this next transfer, I can feel good things in the making and I'm ready to just tear it up. The longer I'm out here the more capacity and energy I have for the work. It's just become who I am.

Anywho it was bittersweet as Elder Horsley said goodbye to the ward and the people we teach. People like him alot! Transfers went great and I didn't realize till I saw Elder Anderson that I actually did know who he was, I'd met him a couple of times. We got back to the area and took a high dive into the work, he's got a lot to catch up on but it feels good to be senior companion again and conduct the work the way I want to haha! Forgot how much I had missed that. Being with Horsley as I went zone leader was the first time in like 7 months I hadn't been senior comp. Elder A. is great though, he's been out 9 months, was just serving with one of my last comps, Elder Henderson, and he's a great missionary and friend. He's going zl for the first time but is going to do great.


Gotta go, but had to tell you how awesome my temple trip this weekend was! We drove 4 hours to Owasso OK and met with my former Bishop Ogden to ride with him and his wife the next 2 hours to OKC for the Kress's sealing. We got right into the endowment session before it began. As I settled into my seat and let the familiar peace of the Lord rest over me, it really began to hit me what I was there for. I shed tears and marveled at what the Lord had accomplished through me in the lives of two blessed people. Let me tell you, baptizing a convert is great, but seeing them in the temple making covenants tops every experience of my life. That's when it gets real. That's when you feel like they're actually going to make it, when you feel like all your sacrifices paid off. It changed me, and the way I view my work. It was just beautiful :) I got to meet them in the celestial room and hug them and see their beaming smiles and bright eyes. I thought back on when I had first met them, when as a brand spanking new missionary I went to my first ever discussion in their apartment downstairs from us and I was so nervous haha! I thought of how they received us, how they learned, how Brother Kress almost turned us away... how we prayed our hearts out for a miracle, and then how we saw it take place and hearts were softened. I have seen the hand of the Lord over these people, and over me. Their sealing was perfect, and the first that Elder Anderson and I had ever attended. I sat looking into those mirrors through teary eyes and thought just for a moment that I could see eternity, and felt that everything in the world would be alright. Hallelujah!


We met up with the Cox's from Cleveland Ward in Tulsa and they fed us a killer sushi dinner before we hit the long road back. Can't tell you how good it was to see them, like a day hadn't gone by.


Played ball for hours on base at the fitness center with soldiers, felt so good to play again. Guess that's a good way to celebrate memorial day on a military installation!


Love you guys.
Elder T. Hakes

5/23/2016 Forget Me Not!

Another great week in the life around here :) This one was quite the blur, we really had a lot happen it was kinda crazy!

Malysia Joiner was the star of the show this week. We've been teaching her for probably two months and she's been learning and changing in a lot of ways! Friday when they were at wedding rehearsal we snuck into her house and replaced her old broken couches with some brand new looking ones that someone had donated to us! Don't worry we didn't go through the window, and we didn't break anything ;) When she got home and saw them she almost cried. I LOVE giving to people. Saturday was her wedding (she's been with her husband for like 9 years, just never had a ceremony haha) which was cute. They held it in Richland park and she had family and friends there to cheer her on! Our stake President Blau performed the ceremony and did a great job. Prior to the wedding I asked if I could be the best man... but they already had one, so they let me be a groomsman! Haha it was sweet :)  Then that same evening was Mel's baptism! Again it was just picture perfect and so well deserved for her. We are so happy. Then we had transfer calls that night, found out Elder Horsley is packing his bags and heading to Houston MO, the zone just south of us. He's bummed, but he'll likely end his mission there and love it. I'm getting Elder Anderson as a new companion, it will be his first transfer as zone leader and he's coming from Willard MO and he was previously serving with my good friend Elder Henderson! That's about all I know about him. I'm excited for the changes though! We are also absorbing the other ward into our duties, president is pulling the sisters out for the lack of work happening there and letting us pick up whatever was already going on. So we'll cover St. Rob 1st and 2nd ward, AND the Ft. Leonard Wood Branch. We are going to be crazy busy. As if we weren't already crazy busy. But I'm up for the challenge! Bring it on baby.

Sunday was another powerhouse Sabbath, we had 3 more baptisms for soldiers on base and it was marvelous to behold and participate in. One of the girls, Lindsey Davis asked me to baptize her. Then the branch president asked us both to give short talks. I almost yearn for that opportunity now, to stand and preach the things put into my heart. It went great! Sister Taylor from the mission office drove up from Bentonville to see the baptisms and it blew her mind seeing our little army operation, she absolutely loved it. It really is incredible. Then I confirmed Mel in 2nd ward and we had a great day teaching and saying goodbye to some people Horsley is going to miss.

So I'm here for another 6 weeks, which seems to melt by as if it were two days. In other news I'm tearing through the Old Testament and I can't even express to you how much I have enjoyed studying it, or how much I've learned. My faith has increased a lot from understanding the Lord's covenants with the House of Israel and the works of his ancient prophets. I love it! I hunger to read every morning.

I'm probably forgetting things, but oh well! I am determining how I am going to get to OKC this weekend for the Kress's sealing, I'm so pumped for that.

LOVE

Elder T. Hakes

5/26/2016 More Goodness

Hey Guys! Not a lot of time today, but enough to fill you in on the highlights!


I don't remember a lot of what happened this week :) Mostly this weekend we had a lot of great things happen. We spent time Friday helping our newest investigator Rocky Coleman from her moms apartment in Waynesville to an apartment in Richland. She told us she had people who could do it for a couple hundred bucks, and we said heeeeck no we'll do it for no bucks! So we recruited stake president Blau and a couple trailers and got all her things packed up and drove to Richland which is the northwest boundary of our area. We went ahead of her and thought we knew which complex to go to, but after getting there and sitting around for 30 minutes we figured we weren't at the right place. She wouldn't answer her phone so we didn't know what to do! We drove to a couple other complexes to see if her car was there, but couldn't find her. We drove in circles all around the tiny town of Richland trying to figure out where the heck she was moving to and why she wasn't answering her phone. We didn't coordinate this very well haha. We met back up with President Blau who also had a trailer full of her stuff and was out trying to look for her. We stopped at a gas station and got out to make a plan, we he saw a little red truck drive past that just might have been Rocky's mom. "Quick, go chase down that red truck!" Horsley and I sprinted to our truck and sped around the corner as fast as our cargo would allow, just in time to see our target take another corner a few streets down. "Step on it!" We followed down a residential street and finally came up behind the suspected truck at a red light, I jumped out and ran up to their window, and luckily it was Rocky and her mom or I probably would've freaked some people out! "We've been looking all over for you?!" We followed them to her apartment and found out she'd missed her exit and driven to the next town over and had to turn around AND her freaking phone was packed in the back of our truck hahah. It was honestly a miracle we found them.


Saturday morning we went fishing at Brother Nothum's pond with our ward mission leader Jaime Ratledge and a recent convert, Angelica Cottrell. Got some big ole bass! Spent the day moving Ratledge's friend and volunteering at the USO on post where we work the desk and rent out game equipment to soldiers who have some free time. Sunday was a blessed day, we finalized lessons and interviews for 3 more, yep countem 3 more soldiers getting baptized this next Sunday! Whoop! So stoked. Then at sacrament we had a whopping 7 investigators show up and like 4 less actives we've been working on! We sat surrounded by people we had gone out and shepherded and it was really rewarding. Then we skyped our good friend Sarah Melville from Italy and she is doing way good minus some minor heartbreakage! Then we ate and taught 2 more solid lessons. Runnin and gunnin all day.


This week is going to be so tight, we have 4 baptisms lined up this weekend, 3 on post, 1 for Mel Joiner who we've been teaching basically since I've been here and she is way excited. Mel is also getting married to her boyfriend she's been with for like 9 years. They have two kids and have been together since high school but they're finally officially tying the knot! So we've got her wedding Saturday afternoon (and I'm gonna be one of the groomsman hahaha) and then her baptism that night whoop! We also have a big ole ward party/picnic that morning! Brathen Anderson from the ward is opening his mission call Thursday night, we love that family and we're way excited for him. This is going to be one for the books. Then next weekend I get to travel to OKC for the Kress's sealing! #Blessingsouttacontrol


Love you guys!


Elder T. Hakes


World record ba$$
Victory cones with the Blau's after our moving fiasco
My boy Jake Joiner
Dramatic court shot

5/9/2016 Life is in the Details

Subject line? Not sure, it sounded good.

Another rushed week in mission, Monday was my birthday and it was awesome, we played ball with the zone couldn't ask for more. Tuesday we had mission leadership conference in Bentonville with President Loveland. We had a long drive and had to get up at like 3:30 that morning :( But it went great, pres even let us show my infamous window crash video at the conference as an example of what not to do. They got a kick out of it haha. I live my life to bring others mild entertainment. After the 7 hour long conference we went on exchanges with the assistants. I don't know if I mentioned, but my old companion Elder Murdock is the new ap! So I got to work with him again and play ball that morning it was so fun. I had forgotten how much I love that guy. I spent the afternoon with Elder Jones and we had some funny classic missionary experiences, we decided to ride bikes to our appointments but he got a flat and didn't have a kit so we ditched them and just kept walking to talking to random people on the street haha. We walked alongside a cool black guy named CJ who was heading to his shift at Buffalo Wild Wings as a cook, we told him that the other elders, Horsley and Murdock, were going there for dinner that night with a member and that he should spike their order with some blazin wings. He laughed and said he'd watch out for them. I don't think he followed through but we hoped. He did say he'd be game to meet with the missionaries though and gave us his number. Wednesday morning we drove back to St. Rob, then Friday we held a zone training meeting to roll out the things we learned from Pres at MLC. It went great and the zone is doing really well. We should have another round of big baptisms this transfer coming up the 21st! They've got several people on date which is great. Sunday was a normal crazy busy day with teaching soldiers on base at the branch and helping in multiple capacities in 2nd ward. Skyping the family that evening was so good! Have I mentioned how much I love them? They're the greatest in the world. I miss them but I'll see them sooner than I would probably like haha! The mission goes by way too fast. Well there's your quick peek into my life, in other exciting news I might be going to the OKC temple this weekend for David and Lillian Kress's sealing!!!! Remember them? They were literally the first people I ever taught and baptized on my mission all those months ago in Owasso Oklahoma. I'm so pumped for them!!!! So keep your fingers crossed.

Love ya'll!
Elder T. Hakes

PIX: This is Sam Walton's office the day he died, they put everything back the way it was in this cool museum in downtown Bentonville.

Also, the apartment building two down from us CAUGHT ON FIRE and there were a billion fire trucks on scene when we came home. Lucky it wasn't ours, or I would've lost all my... white shirts aaaaand our empty fridge. Coulda been tragic haha..

5/2/2016 Celebrate!!

 Hey weekly friends,

It's good to be 22 :) It's weird, and old-ish, but good! I'm grateful for my physical body that I was given 22 years ago, for a lot of health and strength, and especially for my mom for developing it and carrying it around with her for awhile! Oh and I guess for my dad too, he played a part. Life's neat!

This last week was great, we went to St. Louis on Saturday and that was perfect! It's like 2 hours from St. Rob and definitely out of the mission, but we got permission to go with our recent covert Tyler and another recent convert from December named Angelica! They both did baptisms for the first time and had a wonderful temple experience. On the drive there, well-intentioned Sister Gines typed in "temple St Louis" in her phone gps and it took us to some really sketchy neighborhood with boarded up buildings and the scent of crime in the air haha. We rolled up to street called "temple place" and saw nothing but what looked like the scariest elementary school with barbed fences and concrete playgrounds haha! So we took her phone and got us to the right place. I had such a good feeling wash over me as we drove up to the temple, I just felt at home. And really safe. And happy! Maybe because we had just left a street with signs everywhere that said "we have to stop killing each other", or maybe because the temple is a special place and I feel love for everyone I meet there. Or maybe a little bit of both :) The temple was perfect and a great relief from the world, per the usual. Then the Gines took us to see the St. Louis Gateway Arch which was waaaaaayy cool! I didn't even know it existed! I didn't even know St. Louis sat on the Mississippi River! Haha so I played tourist and oogled and aaaahd at everything, it was nice. Unfortunately rides to the top of the arch were sold out :( Or I woulda been all up in there. We also saw Busch Stadium where the Cardinals were playing and an old Catholic Cathedral that was really interesting. A day can't get better than that! Unless of course I wasn't wearing a suit and could go to the Cardinals game haha. Tyler also blessed the Sacrament for the first time Sunday and did really great, Horsley and I were like proud parents. We had some new investigators come to sacrament that we had met that week so that was awesome!!! Best birthday present right there.

Well, I need to go party. I'm Elder Hakes and I like to party.
I know what you're all saying from the other side of the internet, "Speech! speech! birthday speech!" Okay fine, stop begging :)

I want you to know my testimony of who I am, to commemorate my entry into this mortal world and my second estate. I know that I am of the race of God Himself. I know that He is my Father! That makes me His son. I knew Him and loved Him and wanted to be like Him before I came here. I was willing to make hard decisions and sacrifices and do whatever was required for me to love Him, serve Him, and be like Him. I adored Him. I admired Him. I rejoiced at the presentation of His Plan, and fought for it when others sought to destroy it. I trusted my Elder Brother Jesus Christ with every depth of my soul. I knew He could save me when I got lost. I knew I would get lost. I knew He could do it. I hoped He could do it. I wanted to be like Him too, the noblest and greatest of all of Father's children. I wanted to be as loving as He was. As strong as He was. And so I came here :) I set out on the most difficult journey any of us would ever make: the journey through mortality. I came to the world on May 2nd, almost two thousand years after my Brother and King, Jesus Christ. I was watching Him intently from the other side while he was performing our Father's work. I was cheering for Him when he was tempted, I was praying for Him when He was weak, I was weeping with Him as He suffered... for me. I rejoiced when it was over. I gloried in the triumph over death! I was eager to follow in His path, to try and be like Him, to help Him in His great work. I anticipated May 2nd, 1994, for a very long time. But it finally came! I came through a mighty line of priesthood holders and saints. I came with a foundation centered on The Christ I had always known and loved and fought for. I came blessed with gifts and abilities and strengths for the purpose of continuing the good fight, for waging for the souls of men. I came with many, many weaknesses. Weaknesses given to me to humble me, to cause me to remember Him, to cause me to continue to trust in Him, just as I had in the beginning. I am God's son! I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I will place my trust in Him forever. His grace is sufficient for me.


Twenty two years in the world and I'm still trying to do the things He asks. His mercy allows me to try every day, over and over, and grow line upon line, precept upon precept. Here's to many more years to come! Much more service to render. Many more battles to fight. I couldn't ask for a better team than the Hakes.


Much Love!


Elder Taylor Hakes
Arkansas Bentonville Mission
St. Robert 2nd Ward and Ft. Leonard Wood Branch
America

5/2/2016 The Best Birthday

Hey family,


Thanks for all the LOVE AND PRESENTS AND THINGS! I love guys and miss you a ton, I wish I could spend this day with you for sure. I appreciate all the gifts you picked out and I love every single one of them! You did great with the watch mom, it's perfect :) I'm impressed, that's two birthday watches in a row that you've hit right on the head, you've got good taste! I don't feel so lonely when I've got your gifts and cards all around me, I feel right at home. Special thanks to Hannah for the imaginary birthday scenario also, that REALLY made me feel right at home haha :)


Want you all you know that you're my favorite team. We're all in this together, and I wouldn't want to be in it with anyone else! Family is ordained of God, and this one's been given some serious blessings. Can't wait to see you again!


I also want you to know my testimony of who I am, to commemorate my entry into this mortal world and my second estate. I know that I am of the race of God Himself. I know that He is my Father! That makes me His son. I knew Him and loved Him and wanted to be like Him before I came here. I was willing to make hard decisions and sacrifices and do whatever was required for me to love Him, serve Him, and be like Him. I adored Him. I admired Him. I rejoiced at the presentation of His Plan, and fought for it when others sought to destroy it. I trusted my Elder Brother Jesus Christ with every depth of my soul. I knew He could save me when I got lost. I knew I would get lost. I knew He could do it. I hoped He could do it. I wanted to be like Him too, the noblest and greatest of all of Father's children. I wanted to be as loving as He was. As strong as He was. And so I came here :) I set out on the most difficult journey any of us would ever make: the journey through mortality. I came to the world on May 2nd, almost two thousand years after my Brother and King, Jesus Christ. I was watching Him intently from the other side while he was performing our Father's work. I was cheering for Him when he was tempted, I was praying for Him when He was weak, I was weeping with Him as He suffered... for me. I rejoiced when it was over. I gloried in the triumph over death! I was eager to follow in His path, to try and be like Him, to help Him in His great work. I anticipated May 2nd, 1994, for a very long time. But it finally came! I came through a mighty line of priesthood holders and saints. I came with a foundation centered on The Christ I had always known and loved and fought for. I came blessed with gifts and abilities and strengths for the purpose of continuing the good fight, for waging for the souls of men. I came with many, many weaknesses. Weaknesses given to me to humble me, to cause me to remember Him, to cause me to continue to trust in Him, just as I had in the beginning. I am God's son! I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I will place my trust in Him forever. His grace is sufficient for me.


Twenty two years in the world and I'm still trying to do the things He asks. His mercy allows me to try every day, over and over, and grow line upon line, precept upon precept. Here's to many more years to come! Much more service to render. Many more battles to fight. I couldn't ask for a better team than the Hakes.


All my love :)



Elder Taylor Hakes