Letter #96

Hey Fam!

What a week!

I don't really even know where to start, so many great things happened this past week, it was crazy!

So the teaching process with Meranda was awesome! She accepted everything that the gospel had to offer. The only big struggle we had with her was getting permission from her Mom to be baptized. So we had a great lesson on fasting and we set up a time and date to fast for it, us the Cavazos family and Meranda. So we fasted and after a couple days nothing really happened, but while we were in McAllen at 3 day training we get a text from her saying her Mom told her that she could do what she wanted with religion and it was her choice. It was a huge miracle!! So her mom signed the record. I gained a great testimony of fasting that week. So the baptism happened yesterday. It was awesome! Its been a while since I've had a baptism, it feels good to see it again. On top of that we had 5 other baptisms in the zone, which is huge for the Sinton zone! We are looking really good to hit our monthly goal of 7 in the zone. 

3 day training was awesome! We went down Monday night and I was paired up with Elder Shumway and Elder Johnson. We pretty much just traveled around the mission and worked wherever haha. We were driving the AP van so we had no mile limit! It was rad. One night we worked in a little town called La Joya, another night we worked in Donna, McAllen and another night we worked in Edinburg. I spent my nights at the AP's house with a bunch of other dead missionaries. Man, was that ariot! At the end of the 3 day training, I left having the nickname of Steezus. I don't really know why but I am now known as Steezus and not Elder Brian. 

Presidente Maluenda gave some great trainings on faith and finding and for like 2 hours he went off on how important it is to read books, scriptures especially but other books too. He said you should always be reading a book of some sort other than the scriptures. He said that's where he got almost all of his knowledge and why he is so successful. I definitely want to do that when I get back. 

So Elder Green is gone! His exit interview was last night, so he will be down there until he leaves so I am just left here to do transfers all alone! I can't really believe that I have only 6 more weeks left of my mission. It has gone by too fast. I love my mission so much and am so grateful for everything I've learned and still will learn. I'm slowly getting excited to apply everything here to life back at home. I love being a missionary and have really come to learn and know my Savior personally. Words can't express my gratitude for His sacrifice for me. I know He lives. I've learned how important it is to have a good positive attitude through trials and hard times. If you have to go through them, you might as well go through them happy right? I love this gospel and I know its true. I know Joseph Smith was called to be a prophet to restore the same church Jesus Christ himself established. I know the Book of Mormon is the word of God and we will get closer to our Savior if we read and follow its teachings. The mission is the good life.

Thanks for the support! I love you guys!

Elder Brian

Probably broke the Word of Wisdom on that one.... Ooops! Pretty good though.

The sweetest, most humble family ever.

Elder Steezus and Elder Casteez

Elder Christianson

Lunch at Godfather's Pizza.

*I'm only like 2 feet taller than them both. No biggie.

Letter #94

What up Fam?

What a week! 

So Elder Green and I have been fasting and praying that we would find someone to teach and baptize together and we almost lost hope, considering the fact that there are only 2 more Sundays in the transfer, but we got our miracle yesterday. So, we went by a members house Saturday night, and her niece happened to be there. We didn't think much of it, she wasn't too interested in talking to us so we just simply invited her to church. The next day, she was there! The fast and testimony meeting was really spiritual and after sacrament meeting we hopped on that and set up another appointment that same night, last night. So we go over and Sister Cavazos, the member, says that her niece could not stop talking about church! She loved it! So while she was out of the room, we gave the run down lesson to Sister Cavazos about what our plan was and told her that we wanted to set a BD for 2 weeks later and Sister Cavazos was down to help us out. So we taught the lesson and it was one of the most spiritual restoration lessons I've had in a while, it was sweet! We set the BD and she accepted it right off the bat. Her name is Meranda and she is 16 years old, Jr in high school. Im stoked to be working with some great investigators right now. Its the lessons like that that make the mission so awesome. God answers prayers, I see it everyday and I've gained a strong testimony of that out here. 

Just this morning we went out to Corpus Christi. It was fun! We didnt get to go to anything big, just a couple shops and came back. You cant do too much as a missionary up there but it was fun!

Elder Brian

Letter #91

Whats up everyone!

Its so weird being up in the north side of the mission, I've never seen so many white people! Its scary! I'm very intimidated and I feel like a greenie missionary all over again haha. It means I still have a lot to learn i guess.

My new area is a little town right outside of Corpus Christi called Robstown. Its gnarly. I'm here as a zone leader with Elder Green. He's about to go home, I'm killing him! I've never killed a missionary before, so we'll see how that goes. He's from Logan, Utah area. We cover the zone of Sinton. Its sweet. A lot of white people and a lot of farms. Now I really feel like I'm in Texas haha. We live in a house that a member has pretty much just given to the mission and we live with 2 other elders in our zone. Its pretty sweet. 

So far this week we've just been on a lot of exchanges with the new DL's so we haven't really been in the area too much. I love it though. Right now we are up working in a little town called Beeville and George West. Its the area that borders mission boundaries, closest to San Antonio. Its cool up here! The elders up here live in a trailer parked on the side of a members home haha! We had 4 missionaries in that little thing last night, it was so rad! It felt like we were at the dunes on a moto trip cause of the motor-home feel. They have a little pig in the backyard that runs around all night, its great. Pigs and motor-homes, you can't get any better than that.

I feel like so much went on this week but i cant remember it all haha. Time is flying! A lot of running around the zone, helping other Elders and Sisters. Its so weird working with Sister missionaries. I don't know how! I've never had any sisters in my district or anything like that except for 1 transfer when i was a greenie. So.... its a good thing my comp has been around Sisters like his whole mission, hopefully i can just dish that part off to him.

The mission is great! We are looking super good to hit our zone goal for the month of April! Love you guys! Have a killer week!

Elder Brian

Grandpa Brian would love this place ;)

Letter #71

It has been a tough week, rather humbling, but I don't think I have ever grown more on my mission this week than any other.

This week we went up to Corpus to hear a General Authority speak. It was awesome. Elder Foster of the 70 came up and he gave some great trainings on growing your relationship with the Lord and what really stuck out to me was prayer. I feel like I've struggled a lot with prayer lately but ever since that training and this week, I don't think I've ever felt closer to the Lord than I have in my whole life. Before this, a lot of the times I prayed and I got up and questioned if He even heard what I just had to say and if it was even worth my time to offer a prayer. It was definitely a struggle. I specifically remember having so many feelings of doubt, like I had no one to rely on and I knelt down and I cant even remember what I said but I just remember pouring everything out to the Lord, as if everything relied on Him and this huge feeling of peace came over me and at that moment I knew that He was there and He answers every prayer that we have to offer. Its all up to us, to be willing to offer everything and pouring out our hearts to Him as if everything relied on Him and that is when we will get answers.

I love this Gospel, I know its true with all my heart. I love serving a mission and becoming the man that my Father in Heaven wants me to be. There are still a ton of things I have to improve before times up.  I love the people I serve and I can honestly say that when you lose yourself in the service of others that is when you will find yourself.

Love

Elder Brian

BTW: Transfers are next week! So if you happen to send something, just send it to the mission office. Thanks!

Letter #65

I feel like the days and weeks just go faster and faster. Especially on the mission when you have so little time to work. This week we went up to Corpus Chrsti and we watched Meet The Mormons. It was an awesome movie and I definitely recommend you guys going to see it! And telling your friends about it too of course.

 

We are coming up on the end of another transfer. Its been really good working in Laredo! I could stay another, I could leave, but thats up to the Lord. I'll let you guys know next week.

 

To tell you guys just a little about how much we really get fed down here. Its ridicoulus. Missionaries do anything and everything to keep the weight off haha. Last week we took the advice from our leaders and went by and set up appointments with every member we could so that we could get to know them a little better and we ended up having 4 meal appoinments in one day. One at 3:00, another at 5:30, then 6:30 and last at 7:30. I dont know how I packed down that much food but it was a miracle that i did.

 

We are working with some awesome people right now. I feel like i kinda go through fazes of what kind of people i teach. A couple months ago it was a lot of young people and a couple months before that it was a lot of old people and now we are going through the faze of teaching a lot of single women with kids! I dont know what it is but, hopefully everything goes well and they make it to church this week! One of our investigators names is Erika. We brought over all the missionaries in the district and she cut our hair. It was cool. She's awesome and has a baptismal date for the 9th of November. If you could keep her in your prayers that would be great!

 

Have a great week! Love you all!

 

Elder Brian