Transfers

Forgive my lateness!

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Jacob Alexander Brown [mailto:jabrown@myldsmail.net]
Sent: Friday, April 29, 2011 10:34 AM
To: Brown Family
Subject: Transfers

 

Hey everyone,

P-day was changed to today because of a crazy Mission President meeting in São Paulo, and it has been a really long week. We worked like nuts and I have had more experiences that will be difficult to forget. This transfer, I can safely say that I have felt more alone and more pathetic than in any other time in my life, as well as very comforted. It is a very hard thing to be doing your supposed "best" and still having doubts as to the sucess of your efforts. Oil doesn´t mix with water, but if we churn it really hard and long and fast, it seems to come together. That was basically the theme.

This transfer will be interesting for a few reasons: yesterday, as we prepared a few houses for new Elders to move in (we´re receiving 22 new missionaries in the mission! For the first time in months we´re receiving more than we´re losing), and we got the transfer call. Both my companion and I were transferred! It was really strange - Elder Melo (who was my comp. a few months ago) will return to the area and baptize all the people we prepared. I will be going to the city of Paranaguá, no litoral (the beach!) with my first companion on the mission, Elder LOTT!!!! It´ll be so awesome to serve together and we´ve got a lot of plans for this new month.

It has really been strange how quickly the mission goes by. Serving in my current position for some time now, it´s easy to get tired and sometimes discouraged, but I´m starting to learn about what it really means to "magnify your calling" - it means looking beyond, searching for even more revelation, following the Spirit more, and running faster than before. If you´re tired, you need to keep going. If you´re worried about yourself and your own desires, the work won´t go forward and you will feel alone. My advice to all that read this email, even though I´m just one more missionary - normal and sinful - is to not think about your own interests, especially in the Lord´s work. It´s not worth it. I´ve learned that this transfer - when we COMPLETELY give ourselves to the Lord and do His will, because we want to, we wil be blessed with all that we need.

Love you all. Let´s pray for a huge wave in Paranaguá to baptize the whole city. That´s figurative, of course - don´t pray for that, please.

Elder Brown

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