Hello Family and Friends,
Elder Brown is turning 21 years old!
Would you take a minute to write him a line or two as a birthday wish?
I will print and mail to him so he has something special to read on his big day.
It can be short-and-sweet or as long as you want J
It means the world to me to know you all love and support Elder Brown!
Love,
Jennie
Just hit reply!
Well- at least he wrote a few lines!
Wow, I am really tired. We played soccer and I am actually not that bad anymore. It was fun to kick some other Elders and local kids - that´s what Pday´s for!
We worked like dogs to teach 21 lessons this last week, but it was tough. It seems like Heavenly Father´s trying to help us learn something, and it´ll be ok.
-Alex will appreciate this - in the middle of a lesson I heard "Starlight" (Muse) being played. Ouch. But I was still able to pay attention. Whew, close call.
- This was cool: it was raining REALLY hard and we were teaching Élcio and Claudio about how to not drink and smoke, again. We burned the stuffing out of them. But when it was time to go, there was about 6 inches of water on the street in front of their house. SOOOO we got plastic bags, tied them to our shoes, and succesfully crossed the street unwetted. It was pretty funny walking down the street with blue plastic bags on our feet.
I know Jesus is the Christ. I know He loves us. I know the mission is a time for us to learn and grow. I love it and am trying harder to enjoy it, not just put the shoulder grimacing to the wheel. I love you all and pray for you.
Let´s get ém!
Elder Brown
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Hey everybody! (dadadadeeeduh!)
This was a good week. The work in our area continues to truck on, and we have been receiving a lot of blessings from the Lord. People to teach, people with desire to be baptized, etc. Vilma was baptized!!! I´ve never seen someone so happy to be baptized, ever! Even among the members who are baptized as an 8 year old!
(time ran out to send pictures sorry)
This last week was one of the better ones of my mission. We didn´t have ridiculous numbers, we didn´t baptize 3 million 40 year-old potential leaders in the church, but we witnessed many, MANY people receive an answer about the BOM. We have been focusing a lot on helping the Zone (including us) to practice the teaching techniques that were given by the First Pres. and Council of the 12, and yeah, they knew what they were talking about. For example, a small experience:
I was on a division with one of the Elders in the Zone (in my second area!! Weird!!) and it was going great - he´s an awesome missionary. We left the house and starting talking with everyone about the BOM and we began to feel the missionary spirit even stronger. We then went to teach a lesson - at a house that I had knocked at at least 10 times when I was there 9 months ago! We were attended by Edvaldo, and he made it adamantly clear that we weren´t wanted there. We insisted (gently and kindly) and he reluctantly let us in. As we sat down and talked with him, we found out that he had not read the BOM, not prayed and had no desire to do either. He didn´t even believe that Jesus is our Savior. I scrambled to listen to the Spirit to find out what it is we could teach and we then discovered by listening that he is a heavy drug-user - crack, cocaine, everything. We prayed. We taught about Alma 36 (Alma´s conversion story - impressive) and tried to help him understand that God has for him. At the end of a very intense lesson, with us trying to help him let the Spirit into his heart, we invited him again to pray (at the beginning we had him prepare to pray at the end of the lesson) and he put up a wall - I won´t pray, he said. To make a long story short, he prayed. We waited at the end to recognize the Spirit. He opened his eyes, crying. He said he wants to believe. The seed has been planted.
It´s not all about baptisms, callings, crazy things, etc. It´s about helping ALL others that we meet recognize the necessity that they have to make righteous changes and choose the right. THAT´s where the joy in this work comes from.
Amo ser um missionário de a Igreja de Jesus Cristo. SEI que Ele vive e reina. Ele responderá a nossa oração. Ele nos conhece e ama. O Livro de Mórmon é o livro dos livros. NÃO TENHAM VERGONHA DESTE LIVRO!!!! Ele é a prova de si mesmo!
Google translate from Mom:
I love being a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ. I KNOW that He lives and reigns. He will answer our prayers. He knows and loves. The Book of Mormon is the book of books. NO SHAME IN THIS BOOK!! It is proof of itself!
Love you all. Ana´s getting baptized this week!
Elder Brown
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Hi All- I sent this to Elder Brown and he asked that I share it with you.
“A Glimmer in the Eye”
There they are, those two young men, that often pass this way, I’ve waved at them a time or two, then shyly draw away.
They look so happy, stand so straight, why do the people say, they’re really Joe Smith’s advocates and should be thrust away?
They’re young, they’re strong, they’re confident but there must be something more, for I’ve seen a glimmer in their eyes as I’ve watched them from this door.
And then one day, to my surprise, the door they chose was mine, I watched them walk up nervously from there behind the blind.
I met them at the small front door with the excuse my neighbors say, then looking down at their sweating brows… I bid the young men stay.
They stood there waiting patiently as I gathered the family ‘round, they made no sound when the seats were spent, but sat upon the ground.
What a sight those two men made there seated in the sod, but soon the smile left my face as they knelt and spoke with God.
They opened the scriptures to our eyes and testified with love, their faced seemed to beam with light as angels from above.
They said that we could know the things that they declared as true. I made a commitment to them then that’s just what I would do.
The weeks passed by, the visits sure, my stack of pamphlets grew, but still I hadn’t asked the Lord if the things they taught were true.
And then one night, I remember well, I had my wrest with God, but this time it was my two knees there planted in the sod.
And there it was, a still small voice, just like the young men said, I think I woke up half the house as I leapt up from my bed.
And then I rushed to the bathroom wall for mirrors never lie, and there it was, just like those men, a glimmer in my eye.
Many years have since passed by, but the memory still burns bright, and I must admit my eyes grow damp as I think upon that night.
But most of all of two young men whose love and lives have soared, and brought my family dressed in white to this alter of the Lord.
-Elder James R. Brown
Honduras, Tegucigalpa Mission, 1983
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Hi family,
I´m glad you got to see pictures from the Christmas Conference - it was great, and it´s nice being in the best mission in the world!
We just had a really fun Zone activity! We studied individually then practiced marking baptismal dates in different situations. To some Elders this may sound like a waste of time, but it´s working here - the whole Zone is markng more dates. We also decided that it was about time to make a "covenant" with the Lord, anti-Samson style. Samson couldn´t cut his hair, but we have to, so we decided to cut it reeeeal short. Some of the Elders were a little apprehensive, but it was hilarious and now we all match! Pretty! Yay!
Anyway, grunt, manly stuff.
This has been a great week! We didn´t have any dates two weeks ago, but now because of practice and focus we have 17!!! We´re excited to help tons of people to be baptized, and Satan can´t do anything about it!
Bullet points:
- we taught a lesson with this kid named Luis. He said he was waiting for us to come and that´s why he didn´t leave his house - he´ll be baptized. A perfect lesson.
- There´s this crazy church called the Governo de Deus (Government of God) and they are convinced that the world will end next year. So they carved 666 into their arms. Yep.
- We totally saw a drug deal with guns. nuts.
- We showed up at this inv. house, and he didn´t live there anymore. Yep.
- there were a lot of fireworks and inappo]ropriate draawings on the street.
- there were some elders baptizing dolls ].
No time. Love you all, go get ém.
Elder Brown
NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.
Elder Brown is in the upper-mid section slightly to the right in a red tie!
Leading the music during the nativity reinactment!
