Letter #85

What an awesome week to start the new transfer here in Roma!

So, to let you in on the news, you maybe already know, Im staying in Roma again but I got a new comp and his name is Elder Herrin. He's sick. He's from North Cal, probably like an hour or so above San Fransisco. Now I have 2 comps from that area haha. Elder Davis and Elder Herrin. Elder Herrin has been out for about 7 months, this is his 5th transfer in the mission and he is a good hard worker! The district switched up a bit also! We have a greenie in the district! He's sweet. Its funny to see him act the way I remember I acted when I was a greenie and was barely getting into the mission field just a couple months ago....

Church was crazy yesterday! As a district in total we had 13 people come to church and 7 new officially reactivated members to the branch. Its been really awesome to see this little branch grow. I love it and I'm really stoked that I have the chance to stay here and continue to see these miracles. It was really unexpected, but we got a new branch president! One of the senior elders just got called to be it so I'm stoked to see the new changes he has to bring to the branch.

Some elders in my district, their apartment got shot up this morning and so like 6 cops were surrounding their apartment and went through all the elders stuff looking for drugs. Just another day in the life of a Rio Grande missionary. Life is great!

Love you guys!

Elder Brian

My comp and I were committed to take selfies and wear matching ties everyday last week. Keeping commitments = blessings

Catching up with Elder Christiansen

Letter #54

Sad to see this day come but, I'm leaving South Laredo. This area was awesome! Im gonna miss it a lot. Now I'm just praying I go to another border town! Or maybe Corpus Christi would be pretty cool too haha. But all I know is wherever I'm headed is gonna be great and its where I'm meant to be!

Love you guys! Ill fill you all in on the news next week! And if you by chance send anything just shoot it to the mission office. Thanks!

Letter #53

Hey hey!!

Just last week we had interviews with Presidente Maluenda! He is so rad! I don't think I've ever talked to a more "in tune with the spirit" kind of guy in my life. He just knows whats up in life and I think that is awesome. He definitely picked me up off my feet and got me going again and ready to work hard. 

Every other day we play morning soccer at the cancha at 530 for like an hour and a halfish and this morning we played. It was sweet. Everytime we leave, its literally like we just stepped out of a steam room, just soaked. My pants and shirt arent even the same color. Just to give you a little picture of how humid and hot it is down here, we set the phone down on the bleachers and when we came back to leave, the phone was soaked and now its... broken. Haha. We didnt even set it in a puddle or anything, just the humidity killed it i guess. It wont turn on. Thats the second phone that has broken on me! And they both happened while I was playing soccer! Ni modo. 

Transfers are coming up again! Time is flying by. I'll find out this Sunday if I'm staying or going and I'll let you guys know next week! I love the mission. It makes me pretty sad just thinking how much time has gone by and how much time I have left. Live it up while you can.

Love you

Elder Brian

1. Homies at What-A-Burger

2. Zone Blitz in Zapata

Letter #49

Talk about a gnarly week! I'm not gonna lie, Dad, I'm still kinda shaking from that visit from you. Total blindside. So here's my side of the story:

So we get this random call and its a hispanic guy saying he is a long lost member that used to live here in Laredo and loved the missionaries and he had a friend that he would love for us to meet and he said he would like to bring us some food. So my comp gets off the phone, tells me the good news and we were stoked. I asked him like who it was, what his name was and all the deets and turns out my comp never even got his name haha but he said he sounded like a really smart hispanic dude with the way that he talked. So at first, I was like alright awesome. We have some good potential to get a solid new investigator with a solid member to help. So later on, we get a text and it said "Elders how many live in your apartment".... but it was in english. So me and my companion were like, hmmmm. Who is this guy? But we told him and we just went with it. So we get to the apartment and we are waiting and a car pulls up and a guy gets out and he's wearing a Vivint shirt. So i thought it might've been one of the guys that have been working down here. And he says "Elders! I have 2 things for you. Lots of food and....... I want you to meet someone. And right then Dad comes around the corner!! My stomach dropped pretty dang hard. I didnt even know what to think! Haha. It was awesome! I cant believe its been almost a year since i've seen you last. Lets just say, i had a pretty solid journal entry that night and not so good of a nightly planning. haha.

So that was the big crazy news of the week! We are working with a couple investigators, they arent too solid right now, but we'll have to see what happens with them this week. 

Love you guys!!

Elder Brian

Letter #48

Pretty solid week in Laredo! Transfer news came and I'm staying here in Laredo for at least another six weeks with Elder Christiansen!. I'm pretty stoked about that. I think Laredo might get the best of me by the time I leave. If not me, then at least my bike. ;)

Have you guys been keeping up with the World Cup?! Its all over down here and I'm about to go nuts. Its a good thing a lot of the members watch it so they keep us pretty updated haha. USA plays Ghana tonight. You all better be watching it!

 We found some really great people we're working with. We ran into an older lady a couple days ago just walking the streets and we ended up sitting down with her and had a great first lesson and she even came to church yesterday! Her name is Maria Elena. She has a baptismal date for the 6th of July and so far everything is looking pretty good! Keep her in your prayers please!

This week I studied a lot about prayer and how key that is in our daily lives. A scripture in Alma stuck out to me. In Alma 37:37 at the very beginning it says "Counsel with the Lord" And i thought about that a little and what counsel really means. Our prayers should be like a conversation with the Lord, letting him know how things are going, asking him for help and in the end, letting him come in and help you with those things. So Counsel with the Lord everyday!!

Love you guys!

E. Brian

Letter #47

Awesome week! Not too much success with investigators lately but,  just because the numbers aren't showing it doesn't mean it wasn't a successful week!

We went and worked in the outskirts of our area this week. It was awesome! For a second i felt like I wasn't even doing missionary work because of the trails and paths we had to bike on. Haha, it was like we were just mountain biking the whole time! But I'm not going to be the one to complain about it. We did end up finding a less active we didn't know about! She's really cool and I've got a good feeling we could get her back to church in no time!

Transfers are coming up next week! We've been hearing a lot of rumors that our area might be getting pink washed (when sisters come and take over) so I guess we'll see what happens. Our mission over the summer is supposed to be getting a ton of Sisters and by the end of the summer its going to be a half sister half elder mission. That's going to be weird. Especially cause I'm in a complete Elder zone right now!

​ If you send anything, just send it to the mission home. Thanks and love you guys!!!

Elder Brian

200 W. La Vista Ave.

McAllen, Texas 78501

Letter #46

What a hot week! We've definitely felt the summer heat here in Laredo this week. You got to love walking up to peoples doors and having them ask you if you would like a rag to wipe the sweat off your face. Haha!

One thing that our mission president is always really focused on is enjoying your mission. And I was kinda thinking about that a lot this week. And a quote came to my mind. I have no clue where it came from or who said it but it says "If you pile up a bunch of tomorrow's, you'll be left with a lot of empty yesterdays." We all need to make sure we "live in the moment" and enjoy your time wherever you are at because you will never know when its going to leave, especially here in the mission with the short 2 years that us as missionaries have.

You guys are awesome! Have a killer week!

Love

Elder Brian

Letter #45

Whats up?!

This last week was awesome. We had Cesar's baptism! It went really well, I don't have a pic to send. My bad. Ill try and get on that. It was really cool cause he even brought his mom and sister too! They seemed to enjoy it a lot so we're hoping they will be our next victims ;)

We aren't really working with anyone right now. Elder Christiansen and I cleared our board so its going to be a big week of finding! So we're hoping all goes well with that.

Love you guys!

Elder Brian

Letter #44

Good news!!

Hey guys!! This week was killer! The Morales family got baptized! It was awesome. Thanks for all the prayers! They are doing really good right now and are being taken in as part of the branch family. The members here rad. They love doing missionary work.

We had a miracle this last week. We weren't really working with anyone too solid and we were praying to find some prepared people. So we go to branch coordination with the ward mission leader and we end up seeing all the kids at mutual so we go talk to them and Miguel (one of the young men) had brought one of his friends. And we find out that his friend (Cesar) has been coming to church with him on and off for about 2 years and he came up to us and told us that he thinks its time for him to get baptized! So we started working with him and we had a first lesson. At the end he said a prayer and told us that what he was doing was right and that he believed with all his heart that Joseph Smith was a true prophet. It was sick! The spirit was really strong and we set his Baptismal date for this Friday! I have a strong testimony that the Lord answers each and every one of our prayers and if we are doing everything we need to be, following all the commandment and being exactly obedient, there is no way that the Lord can keep those miracles from happening.

I love the mission! Thanks for being there to support! I love you guys!

Elder Brian

Letter #43

Hey guys!

Skyping yesterday was awesome! It was good seeing you all again!

Everyone is probably saying I like gained a ton of weight or something but I haven't OK!! I've only gained like 6 lbs! And it all went to my face!  My pants still fit the same, my shirts still fit the same, my belt the same. Everything the same OK.  Sorry, that was bugging me, i had to get that cleared up haha.

I don't have to much to say today but the Morales family is doing great! They are looking good for their baptism this Sunday! The week right before the baptism is always tough so if you could keep them in your prayers that would be awesome.

Thanks a ton. Love you guys! Have a killer week!

Love
Elder Brian

Letter #42

Buenos Dias!

Transfers came and prayers were answered, I'm staying in Laredo with Elder Christiansen!! We were pretty stoked when we heard the news. Our whole zone is pretty much staying the same except for a couple dying missionaries who are headed home.

The week was pretty good! Nothing too much to fill you guys in on. Some weird drug stories but thats kinda the norm around here. The family we are teaching is progressing really well! Thanks for the prayers!

Thanks for the support and love! Cant wait to talk next week! Love you guys!

Elder Brian

Letter #39

Good news! We had a baptism last week! It was awesome. Jorge got baptized. We are still working with his mom. She's doing well, she just needs a little bit more time. She's awesome. She'll get there soon.

We are working with a guy named Brian right now. Haha, pretty ironic. He's doing great. He came to church last week and loved it. He's 19 so he's going to the singles branch so we've been working with that branch a lot this past week or so. He's looking really good for his date!

Sorry I dont have a ton of time today but I just want to let you guys know that I know that this church is true! That God loves each and everyone of us and he knows each of us and our needs. i know that Jesus Christ lives and that he really descended below every single one of us because he loves us and because of that we can be able to return to live with our families together again after this life. I love missionary work and i'm so glad to be out here. i love you guys a lot!

Always remember who you are!

Love

Elder Brian

Letter #38

First off, thanks for all the birthday wishes!! It was awesome, definitely felt the love ;) Its kind of weird telling all the people that I'm now 19 when I've been telling everyone I'm 18 my whole mission.

Conference was rad. I hope you all got a chance to watch it. I never really knew how blessed we really were to be able to hear from Prophets and Apostles of God every six months. I love it! I learned a lot. I loved Elder Ballard's talk on missionary work and I felt kind of guilty when he told the missionaries to make sure that you tell your family about your studies and the things that you are learning. I feel like i could do a lot better at that.

This week was good! Olga and Jorge are doing great. They are all set to get baptized this coming Saturday! We've been finding some good people. We have some people lined up with baptism dates, and we hope to work a lot with them this week, so I'll definitely keep you guys updated on that.

Earlier this week we went over to a members house and she threw a little party and we had mexican tres leches! It was so good! But for birthdays here, the mexican tradition is to smash the cake in the birthday mans face after the song. Its called a Molida. So the song ended and they smashed a cupcake in my face! And it wasnt just a little smash. It was like frosting up the nose, and I was blowing frosting out for the next couple days haha! It was awesome. Hopefully i can bring that mexican tradition home and start using it there after the mish. Im sure you guys would like that :)

Thanks everyone! You guys are awesome. Have a killer week and remember who you are!

Love

E. Brian

Letter #37

Word from Laredo!

This place is awesome. I might as well be living in Mexico cause thats what its like here. I can actually see Mexico from our apartment haha. I love it. The people are great. We're still trying to get to know the area and members but its a lot of fun. We are constantly running into people who we think are members and 5 minutes into the conversation we find out they aren't haha. Its a pretty good way to find people and get them to sit down and listen if you dont know if they are a member or not. My new comp is awesome! He's from Nashville, Tennessee. He's been out on the mish for one transfer longer than i have. He's really cool. Our apartment is nice. Its actually a lot nicer than the other apartment in Harlingen which was pretty surprising. Laredo, to explain what its like, its a bunch of Tire shops, Taquerias, and Flea markets. And a lot of Palm trees too. I thought Texas was just flat everywhere, but here in Laredo there are actually some pretty gnarly hills. Our zone is the smallest zone in the mission and the only zone without Sisters. Its kind of a sketchy area for Sisters to be in haha.

Right now we are working with a younger kid named Jorge. He's doing really well. He's been to church 3 times and his baptism is coming up really soon. We are working with his Mom too. She's doing great. And me and Elder Christiansen just found a young couple the other day while we were out working. They are awesome. Their names are Mundo and Cristina. We had a really good first lesson and set a good baptismal date with them for the 27 of April.

Thats whats going on here in Laredo! I love it. Thanks you guys for the support and the love! Have a killer week! And remember who you are!

Love

Elder Brian

Letter #36

Peace out Raymondville! Transfers are in and I'm going to Laredo! It was definitely a blindside transfer and I didn't see that coming at all. Only staying 1 transfer in an area is pretty rare here. My comp Elder Nichols is moving too. Apparently they are shutting down the area we just opened up and he is moving to Laredo also. And the funny thing is, we are going to be living together haha! Just not comps anymore. President Maluenda must just like me opening areas or something, because in Laredo I'm going to be white washing again. I'm stoked though. White washing is awesome, even though it can be pretty tough sometimes.

 

So from what I've heard about my area in Laredo is that its like Mexico again. Which I'm pumped for, I love the little border towns. And I'll be able to use my Spanish skills :) My area borders the boarder of Mexico. Supposedly the Rio Grande is in my area. We'll see. I'm hoping it is. And there is a huge conch (Cement soccer field) that all the zone plays soccer at every P day. So that's gonna be rad. Finally get to play some soccer. My new comp's name is Elder Christiansen. I know nothing about him and haven't heard anything either. But that will change real quick.

 

The week was great. Thanks for all the love! Have a good week and remember who you are!

 

And if you happen to send anything, just send it to the mission home until I find out the address of the new place. Thanks! Love you all

 

200 W. La Vista Ave.

McAllen, Texas 78501 

 

Elder Brian