I am excited for Britton's baptism!

Dear friends and family,

What a week this has been! How shall I start? Well, I wonder how many missionaries ever experienced going for days
at a time without any meetings? We would try to set up meetings withpeople, and then they would just fall through. It gets really frustrating, going out to talk to people, trying to find people who would be interested in hearing the gospel, and many people are really fascinated that we don't drink. (One day, we talked to a man, and he offered me a cup of beer. I told him we don't drink alcohol, and we never will. He said "pity") Then out of nowhere, Heavenly Father makes bare His holy arm, and shows that he is in control of everything. Our first meeting was on Thursday. We were having weekly planning, and we were trying to figure out how we can get more meetings, and more investigators. Then we get a call from a former investigator. Do you remember Oleg, about two transfers ago? He called us himself, and set up a meeting for that day. We go over to the branch for our meeting, and he takes some new Liahona magazines, and then asks us if we could talk for a little bit. He askes, "What happened after Joseph Smith saw God and Jesus Christ? We talked about how the priesthood was restored, and that because of that, the church was restored. He then asks, "What does the Gospel mean?" We were happy to explain the five steps of the Gospel, Faith, Repentance, Baptism, the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. We couldn't meet any longer, but we set up a meeting for Sunday.

Then an inactive member, Denis, we met with him after that. It isreally hard to meet with him, because he lives on a military base outside the city. Missionaries aren't allowed to go over there. I called him one day to invite him to a fireside, and he actually came! After that, he asked that we just call to keep in touch, and so we did. When I called him on Thursday, he was just about to call us, and set up a meeting with us. We were more than happy to oblige. He recently went through surgery on his leg and back, and after our meeting we gave him a blessing. Later that week, when we called him again, he said how he felt that blessing really helped him. He is such a nice man, and we hope to meet with him more, and help him come to church. Next, we had a meeting set up with a member, and we went over. We didn't expect it at the time, but her husband was there, and he is not a member. We ended up teaching him, and his wife was a great help. We gave him his own copy of the Book of Mormon. He had come to church a few times, and also other activities, but never met with missionaries. We planned a meeting later this week, and we hope all will be well. So we were hoping to have many investigators come to church, but in the end none of them were able to come. This just shows that Heavenly Father is still in charge, even when things are rough.

In my experiences, as I reach my year mark serving in Russia, I realize how important members are in inviting friends and family to hear this great message we share. Now having been on both sides, Missionary and Member, I see the struggles between them. When I return, I am going to do all I can to invite my friends to hear more about the gospel. I won't be wearing my tag, but this mission is just the start of my lifelong mission. I ask you to pray to know specifically who of your group of friends is prepared by the hand of the Lord to receive the restored gospel, and then invite them. Do not be afraid to ask, because what would be the worst they say, No? If they are truly your friends, you would want to share anything wonderful with them. What is more wonderful than the Gospel? Please do your part as a member, because it makes a missionary's work so much more easy. I hope everything is well with the whole family. Every once in a while I feel their prayers in my behalf. I shudder to think what missionary work would be here without those prayers. I love you all. I amexpecially excited to hear about Britton's baptism. I am so proud of him! This gospel is true, for without this gospel, I have nothing. Life isn't easy, it's not meant to be easy, but it is possible. Not only is it possible, but it is worth it.

Elder Hoggan (The Siberian Messenger)

I have a few questions to ask:
Who were the first members of the church in our ancestry? What is their conversion story? How did Dad and Andrew meet, and his conversion story? Is there anyone in our extended family that went to a foreign speaking mission?

Are we keeping the Sabbath Day holy?

I am SO jealous of you two! I hope that all is well, and that you are having a great time in England.
So here is the news from Elder Hoggan this week.

On Monday, we went to Lenta, which is a giant, Sam's club in Russia. It is about half an hour's walk from our apartment, but we take the bus. It was just an interesting time, because not two minutes from the store, the bags started ripping, and we were just thinking, what are all the other people thinking? Here are two Americans, dressed for a wedding, struggling to carry huge bags of groceries. It wasn't fun. So be grateful, you missionaries who are assigned a car. In shopping, you have to think about weight as well as price, because whatever you buy, you have to carry.

We met with Zina again, and we talked about the Sabbath day, and what it means. The Sabbath is not just church, but the whole day. Are we striving to keep the Sabbath Day holy? What are we doing after church? Do we turn on the football game, get out the waterskis, or break out the X-Box? I know for a fact that I wasn't perfect in keeping the Sabbath Day holy, but I realize how important it is. It is a time of reflection and rest. It is a time to see our past week, and see what we need to do better. That is why we partake of the sacrament on that day, so that we can repent. I can't live without sacrament meeting. A member yesterday shared how she is leaving for a few months, and there won't be a church building where she is going. She is devastated that she won't be able to take the sacrament. That was an example to me, as how serious the ordinance is. Without it, we cannot repent fully. No wonder we have it every week.

There is a member named Zina, not to be confused with our investigator, and we did some service for her. We went to the cemetery, and helped her clean up her daughter's grave. A Russian cemetery is a very pretty place. Almost every single grave is surrounded by a metal fence with a gate. There is a small table and bench nearby, so on the day of remembrance, like Memorial Day, people can sit and remember those who passed on. Some are very elegant and expensive, and others are pretty simple, but pretty much all graves have it. When we got there, we repainted the fence, and I repainted the letters on the gravestone. The grave was very well taken care of, and there were flowers and a nicely pruned tree growing. All around, there were other graves with rusty fences, and overgrown with weeds, that you couldn't see the headstones, which were about three feet tall. I saw how much this member loves her daughter, and I remembered that she just received her temple recommend, and she will be able to perform those saving ordinances for her daughter as well. At the end, we sang "God Be With You Till We Meet Again" and then she asked that I gave a prayer and blessing on the grave. It was a very touching and spiritual experience. I left, with a greater appreciation, and love for our Heavenly Father, who created such a perfect plan for all of us, that death is not the end of all. We left not with a feeling of sadness, but of hope, and faith, and joy.

This week, as we were about to go contacting, we planned beforehand where to go. As we left the apartment, Elder Duncan was walking the opposite way, which was the usual way we went to other parts of the city. I asked him if we were going to the street which we planned to go before, and we turned to go that direction. We took one step, and both of us stopped, feeling this strange feeling. Whatever it was, we knew that Heavenly Father was telling us to go another way. We were very careful in following the Spirit, every once in a while stopping and waiting for further guidance. We talked to a lot of people, but with no success. It was almost time for us to head back for one of our other meetings, when Elder Duncan talked to this man, and we struck up a long conversation with him. His name is Vladimir, and he was just an incredibly nice man, and we planned to meet him on Saturday. We called, and found out he was sick, but he asked where he needed to go for church. He was still sick then, so he wasn't able to meet this week. We hope to meet with him this week. I don't know what the results will be of that, but I know that we were constrained by the Spirit. It was like something had a rope around my heart, and was pulling me back. It wasn't like a dragging, but more like a safety line. I know that the Holy Ghost inspires us on what we need to do.

Yesterday, I gave a talk in Sacrament Meeting about Joseph Smith, and what his vision means for us. Imagine a time when it was really dark. You try to find your way around, but you stumble, and you know that you can't find your way. You turn on the lights, and immediately you know what is in front of you, and you know where to go. That is the Gospel. It is light, and for so many years people were walking around blindly. Why else was that time called the Dark Ages? No one had the light of the gospel. Joseph, while praying, was overcome by a dark force, which bound his tongue. What released him from his bounds? A pillar of light. The gospel helps us to see what will be, and where we need to go. It is comfort in times of fear, and warmth in times of cold. If it wasn't for that one prayer, I would not be sitting here, testifying that I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God, and that the Church and Gospel of Jesus Christ was restored through him.

We were contacting yesterday, with no success, when we stopped a man, and talked to him for over half an hour. He told us about all the bad things that had happened in his life, and asked, “Why would God let those things happen?” He wasn't bitter towards God, but just sad. He wanted answers, but he felt that he had never received one. He doubted that God existed, because He didn't answer his prayers. We testified to him that in fact God lives, and that He was his Heavenly Father, who loves him so much. I could see that he wanted it to be true, but it was hard for him to believe, for his life was not an easy one. We shared the Book of Mormon, and shared Moroni's promise about how we will receive answers, through the Holy Ghost. We shared Alma's explanation as to receiving an answer to prayer, like a seed growing in the heart. He really wanted to meet, and we plan to this Saturday.

That is one of the greatest joys of missionary work. You meet people, who are burdened with the trials of life, burdened with sin, and they yearn for relief. "Where is the Balm of Gilead?" They ask, because they need healing, and they know not where to find it. We know where it is. We have the Balm of Gilead, and it is our duty and our joy to share it with these people. You see these people as Christ would. These people are in fact children of God, and He loves them so much. You begin to love these people as Christ would. I wish I could love people with His perfect love. I strive to love those I teach, and talk to. You know that the only thing that will help is the Gospel, and you rejoice in being able to share it. It is such a sweet feeling. I pray that when I return home, that my missionary service will never cease. This gospel means so much to me, because without it I have nothing. Everything in my life is thanks to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Please share this news, because everyone is in need of healing.

I love you all so much

Elder Hoggan (The Siberian Messenger)
Старейшина Хогган (Сибирский Посланник)

I am grateful for the opportunity to fast....

(Hey, you wanted to know what to send me in a package? Well, there is this amazing dictionary written by Kenneth Katzner. It is a Russian-English Dictionary, and it is red. I would so love to have one. Other missionaries have them, and they are an amazing help to understand Russian.)

WHAT?! I can't believe you are in England right now! Could you tell Andrew I Передал Привет (Pere-dal Pree-vyet, Said hello) from Elder Hoggan? I am so jealous right now, but also, not every person gets to be in the lovely Siberia!

Here's what happened this week in the life of a missionary in the heart of Siberia...

It is officially summer now. It is so hot, and here we are wearing shirts and ties. I forgot how hot it gets here. When you think of Siberia, you only think of cold, ice, and funny hats. That is only for about half of the year. The rest of the year is sweat, hot, and tired. We have fans going on in our apartment, and we are still sweating.

Last Monday, we went to these giant letters that spell Барнаул. Kind of like the Hollywood sign. We took some pictures, and I accidentally fell and twisted my ankle. It was foolish of me. Don't worry, I am just fine. Heavenly Father does indeed take care of His missionaries, especially when they do something foolish.

Our investigator Zina is doing fine. We talked about obedience, prayer, and scripture study with her. She completely understood why we have commandments. Heavenly Father gives them to us so we can live a better way of life, and live happier. She takes dance classes on Sundays, which inhibits her from coming to the other meetings at church. That is our next goal, to teach about the Sabbath Day.

With the beginning of a new transfer, our biggest goal is to visit all of the members in our area. There are about 31 families, or more like last names. We hope to do this in order to strengthen the less-active, and also to receive new contacts. We just barely started, so no referrals yet.

What is the greatest thing is the member Maxim. He just recently received his mission call. He is going to be serving in St. Petersburg, and he leaves for the Madrid MTC in October. People were so excited to hear, because it was a very long process, which I was a part of. What I just saw, is that though we will be losing a member, the blessings from someone serving a mission make up the difference. A missionary's service doesn't just bless his family, but his ward, stake, and pretty much the entire church. It reminded me when I received my call. How happy I was that I was finally going to become a servant of the Lord. I couldn't stop smiling.

I was grateful for this last Sunday, as it was Fast Sunday. We fasted that we can have new investigators, that we can be led by the Spirit, and that all of our finding efforts will be successful. I never really understood how to fast, until I came out here on a mission. It is really a sacred time. I just thought about why fasting is a commandment, though it is not a question in an interview. Neither is scripture study and prayer. I realized that these commandments are just as important and they are crucial for salvation. No one could enter into the celestial kingdom without prayer. It is impossible, because it is only through prayer we have faith, repent of our sins, and speak with our Heavenly Father. Without reading the scriptures, we are not strengthening our faith, and it is through the scriptures we can receive answers to our prayers. Fasting is the same way. Fasting is sacrificing, in this case food, in order to receive more light and truth. I understand that some people cannot fast due to health reasons, but they fast in different ways and their offering is acceptable to the Lord. I realized that these commandments, prayer, scripture study, and fasting are necessary for salvation. We could not receive light an truth, which we need in order to return to our Heavenly Father. I am so grateful for the opportunity to fast.

I just love you all so much, and I hope all is well with you. The gospel means everything to me. It gives me happiness in life, and hope for the next. I know that this gospel is true with all of my heart. I am so grateful for the opportunity to share it with these wonderful people. (I am grateful for your examples, Mom and Dad, of being missionaries, thank you so much.) I love you all.
Elder Hoggan The Siberian Messenger