Hello family and Friends and greetings from the great state of Ohio!
This week has been very crazy and one of the longest in my entire life! I can't believe all that has happened, and all that is going on in my life. On Tuesday I ended up getting really sick and I had to spend the day in my room. I was given a blessing and was feeling better before I even knew it. The power of the Priesthood is truly an amazing thing! On Wednesday night I had to say goodbye to Kolton, and all of my MTC friends. I truly grew to love it there, but I am so happy to be able to be out here on my mission and to be able to serve the people of Ohio. Thursday morning was the day that we all flew out to this great state. We were supposed to all be up by 1:30, but we slept in! So we had a Home Alone moment and had to run and pack really fast to be able to make the bus that would be taking all of us to the airport. I was so happy to be able to hear from you Mom and Dad and I love and miss your voices.
Our flights were crazy and felt rather long. We had two flights to get us here and over thirty missionaries flying over. So we filled a lot of seats in the planes and we were all stared at and watched by many people around us. We also had another Home Alone moment at our layover. Our first flight was late so we had to literally run down the airport to be able to catch our next flight, but we did catch it and all was well. Once we got of the plane our Mission President, President Vellinga, and his wife were there. They greeted us and were so loving and kind and excited to see us all. We then went and had dinner and had a welcome orientation. Our president then interviewed all of us before letting us go to bed early. The mission home is very nice and Ohio is beautiful! I have never seen so many trees and green in my life, but it is very, very, very flat.
The next day we were all woken up at five in the morning so we could all go over and see the Kirtland temple and all of the other church history sites. The drive there was long and I was able to take a very nice little nap on our way there. Once we got to Kirtland I immediately became overwhelmed with the spirit that I felt there! It was so cool to be able to be where all of the saints had lived and to be able to go into and see our church's first temple in these latter days. I was amazed that I was able to stand where my Savior and Father in Heaven had once stood and to be in the places and rooms where many of the revelations in D&C came from. There is a great power here in Ohio and I love it so very much.
After our fantastic tours we all were taken back to meet our companions and trainers. I was very nervous about meeting my companion and I was scared that I would get one that wasn't kind or motivated. When I met my companion I realized that I didn't need to worry and that President Vellinga's promise was true, that I really will love my companion and he will love me. His name is Elder Steele and we are almost exactly alike. He so amazing and he is just like a brother to me. He helps me so much and we have a fantastic time together.
I am serving in the Perysburg East area and am living in a town called Oregon (except here in Ohio it is pronounced "Or I gone"). We have one the nicest apartments in the mission and I love it. I guess we are really spoiled here with our nice apartment, and our fancy car that we get to drive. We actually have one of the biggest areas and we cover tons of farm land out by lake Erie, so that is why we get the car. The ward that we serve in is the Perysburg ward and there are over eight missionaries in the ward. The ward members are amazing and I love all of them so much. They have already provided so many amazing meals and they just keep on dropping food off at our apartment. I haven't had to buy any food yet.
I have already done lots of service and tracting, but sadly we have no investigators. We got tons of doors slammed in our face, people being very mean, and a lady yelling at us as we walked down the road. It is hard because I know how much happier they would be if they would accept the gospel, but everyone does have their agency. When people don't answer we leave a pass along card just in case. One home didn't answer so we left one with a picture of Jesus on the front. We walked to the next house and I ended up turning around because I heard a door open. The lady at the previous house came out holding our pass along card and had the most annoyed look on her face. She stopped on her driveway and right in front of my face tore up the picture of our Savior and dropped it on the ground and stomped on it. My heart just dropped. I was so pained to see someone so willing to reject our Savior, Redeemer, Lord and King. This experience was very hard but taught me a very important lesson. I realized how loving our Father in Heaven truly is. He had to watch His Son die and be killed and could do nothing, just as I had to watch His picture be torn and could do nothing. I can only image the pain and sorrow God felt, compared to the pain that I felt. How great our Father in Heaven truly is!
Missionary work is harder than I could have ever imagined, but there is nowhere else I would rather be than here in Ohio. I love being able to represent the Lord and I am so happy every time that I get to put on my name tag. It is very difficult and great at the same time. I miss home, but I have found so many amazing people that support me. I love our ward, I love our bishop, I love my companion, I love our mission president, I love the people of Ohio (no matter how hard their hearts may be) and I love My Savior and King. They are all with me and helping me, along with all of my family and friends back home! And for that I am grateful.
I know this church is true and that our Heavenly Father and His Son, our Savior, lives. They love us all and we are all their children. I love them and I am so happy to be able to serve them for this short time in my life. Missionary work is fantastic and I love being able to grow so much from doing it. Here is my missionary tip of the week: Refrain from discouragement. Be strong, be happy, and learn to smile and press forward. The work may not be easy but the joy and blessings are great!
I love you all so very much!
Elder Brown
Outside the Kirtland Temple
Elder Brown and Elder Steele
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