Learn to Laugh (September 23, 2013)

Hello everyone!

First off, Happy birthday to my amazing and wonderful mother! I love you Mom and I hope that you are having a fantastic birthday!

This week has been a rather interesting one, and a lot is starting to change in Ohio. Fall is upon us here and the leaves are starting to change. We are getting many colors around us from dark reds to bright and brilliant yellows. I am loving it! The temperatures are also starting to drop, as well as the humidity! That is also making me a very happy camper. My favorite time of the year is finally here, and I am enjoying every minute of it that I possibly can.

Sadly, the weather has not been Elder Steele's best friend because he became very sick this week. We ended up having to stay inside for four days of the week so he could rest and start feeling better. It was not the best and most enjoyable thing, but we do what we have to do. After about his second day of being sick I managed to catch it as well so we spent the last two days sick together. That was not the best, but after much sleep and recovery we are all feeling much better, and are now doing very well. While we were sick I was able to listen to Christmas music, which always lifts my spirits. So that made things feel a little better.

Earlier this week I found a little friend in our cupboard under the sink. He is a little black mouse and Elder Steele has named him Montrose. Yes, we have mice! Lucky us. We went out and got traps to get rid of Montrose and we set them up all around the kitchen, but our little mouse friend will not be fooled. He managed to eat off of the traps many times without setting them off. He is one talented mouse, I will give him that. We spent a lot of time trying to catch Montrose. Finally one night we heard a slap sound and then the sound of a mouse squeaking. We all ran over to the kitchen and sure enough, our trap had gone off! Upon grabbing the trap we heard another one go off, and found a mouse on it as well. Turns out Montrose has friends, and we managed to kill them both.  However,  neither of these mice were him. We haven't caught Montrose yet, but we are determined to get that little black mouse!

This week we were able to have an amazing lesson with one of our investigators named Jill. We taught her the plan of salvation, and she loved it! She said, "This just makes sense, this is how God would have it". It was so cool to be able to see the spirit teach and confirm these things in her mind and to be able to tell her in her heart that our words are true! It is amazing how strong and powerful the spirit is and how it truly blesses all of our lives, and helps us come nearer to our Father in Heaven. Jill and her fiancé, Cory, also invited us over for dinner with them. We were able to have a great time eating with them, and to be able to get to know and to help them even more. Jill is really progressing and she is getting excited about reading the Book of Mormon and everything that we are teaching her.

This week we were all able to go to a famous diner called Tony Packo's. They have amazing chili and hotdogs, and some other really good stuff. They also have signed hotdog buns all over the walls by famous people that have been there. They even had Mitt Romney's signature up there! We had a good time there and enjoyed that little break and to be able to enjoy some of the cool and good things that come from the city of Toledo. I think Dad would love eating at that place. The whole time I just thought of him and how much he would love it there.

This week Elder Steele and I were also able to help our investigator, Belinda, with moving some boxes and selling her old house. She is doing well and is progressing as well. We had a great time providing service and being able to help all of those around us. I will continue to keep all of you posted on how our investigators are doing as more continues to happen.

My missionary tip of the week is to find ways to laugh. Many things happen to missionaries, and normal people as well, that can be frustrating, upsetting and just annoying. Instead of being annoyed and bothered by them, laugh at them instead. You will find joy in it and you will come to be much happier. We could have chosen to be mad about our mice problem, instead we laughed, named the mouse, and turned it into a game. So learn to laugh, to smile, and to enjoy every moment that comes your way. I encourage you all to watch the Mormon message called "Come what may, and love it." It is a great message and teaches of the same things that I am now, that we should love and enjoy every moment of our life, and learn to find happiness and laughter in it.

I love you all and wish you all the very best! Till next week,

Elder Brown

The Elders and their mouse friend.  (Still no sign of Monstrose).  

Future (September 16, 2013)

Hello everyone again,

This week has been a very busy and crazy one at the least. I have truly enjoyed being able to work so much and to be able to go to all of our meetings and to grow and learn from the spirit. We are always very busy and there never seems to be enough time to do it all. Who would have thought that two years wouldn't even be enough? It is all very crazy that is for sure!

The highlight of our week was mission conference and being able to hear from Elder Bowen of the Seventy. I loved being able to listen to him and I loved all of his words and encouragement. He told us to raise our standards and the bar, and to remember the Lord's promise to us all that Kirkland will be built up again! He then talked about who we are, children of God, and the importance of remembering our potential and how important we are to the Lord. We went on and learned about and reviewed our covenants and how they allow us to be able to attain salvation. He told us to always maintain faithful and to never become "normal" but to always stay focused on the Lord and his work. He then told us that when we go home that he wants us to get married as fast as possible.... I don't know how I feel about that one. He said that we can only receive true exaltation when we are married, so why wouldn't we want to get married soon? I guess he has a point (considering he is an apostle of the Lord). Good thing I don't have to worry about that for awhile!

This week Elder Steele and I were able to find another investigator. Her name is Jill and she is very amazing and super solid. She is the girlfriend to a less active member, and has been looking for a church to join for quite some time. We ended up going and meeting with her and she has already read ten chapters out of the Book of Mormon and is loving it so much! We were able to have a very amazing and spiritual lesson with her and bear testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel. She ended up crying and saying that this is what she has been looking for in her life, and what she truly feels that she needs. We have another appointment with her tomorrow, and I am looking forward to that and being able to help her draw nearer to our Lord and Savior.

This week we were able to provide lots of service as well. We were able to go and work on the farm again, which I always love, as well as go and paint a less active members house. That was also great! You know me and loving to paint things! The best service project though was this weekend. We were able to go and chop down some members trees. That was so much fun and we all had a great time. I was able to climb up and trim braches and also tie up ropes to make sure the trees fell the correct way. That was all great and very enjoyable. You truly are the happiest when you are serving and helping others!

I was able to go on exchanges this week as well with Elder Schmidt. He ended up coming to my area so I was put in charge of everything. At first I was a little worried, but I ended up doing really well and having a great time being able to work with him and lead my area. We ended up going and helping a less active who has some health problems. At the end of that she asked if we could walk her dog for her, since she isn't able to. So there Elder Schmidt and I were, walking a dog around the ghetto of Toledo. I'm very sure that that must have been a very interesting sight to see!

This week we also had some great success with our less active members! We have been working with a less active named Sister Mudgett. She hasn't been active for years, but loves the missionaries and has set up a tab for us at the local bakery (Dom will remember her I bet). Missionaries have been going by for years and no progress has been made, but this week something changed. We went in to teach our lesson and she stopped us right when we were about to start. She said that she decided to read the Book of Mormon and that she has some questions for us. We were able to answer those and then encourage her to continue to read. She is still reading and is loving it! I am so happy to be able to see her progress and to finally gain the desire to come nearer to God.

Elder Steele and I ended up having a rather awkward and interesting moment this past week as well that was at first scary, but ended up being okay. We got a call later in the night from a member in the Toledo first ward. She had told us that she had set up an appointment with a solid investigator and that she would love for us to be able to come with her and to teach the plan of salvation. Elder Steele and I quickly changed our plans and went out to meet her for this lesson. We met up and she told us a little bit about them and that they are her cousins. This got us very excited because it sounded like these people had great potential. Well upon getting to the house the husband freaks out! Apparently the member hadn't told them that she was going to bring missionaries and they were very mad about that. She also didn't tell us that these people were preachers for their church! So here we were getting yelled at by two mad preachers! Luckily we were led by the spirit and were able to calm the situation, and we ended up leaving with joy and laughter, but no potential. Just goes to show that when you invite missionaries, you should probably tell the people, and the missionaries, what truly is going on.

This week Elder Steele and I were also able to go to the baptism of Zack, Elders William and Langlois investigator. That was very cool and spiritual. It is always so great to be able to go to the baptisms and to be able to see of their joy as they enter into the Lord's true church. I was so happy for all of them, and Jill ended up coming and loved being able to be there as well. We had a great time and were all touched and guided by the spirit.

My missionary tip of the week is to remember who you are! You are God's child. He loves you and He know you. He wants you to be happy and to follow Him. Never forget your importance, never forget who you are, and never forget your amazing and glorious potential!

I love you all so very much and hope that all is going well!

Elder Brown

Have Hope and Look Up (September 9, 2013)

Hello again!

This week has again been very good, as most are out here. Serving a mission is the hardest thing that I have ever done in my life, and yet I am the happiest I have ever been. It is amazing how the Lord  helps us all and cares about all of us. He loves us all and cares for His missionaries. I enjoy every fleeting moment of my service and I love being able to put on my name tag each morning.  It shows that I truly am a representative of Christ.

I have pondered the significance of our names changing a lot lately. Why do I have to be called Elder Brown by everyone? Why not Jory? After all, that is the name that my parents gave me. To answer my question I turned to the scriptures. I decided to read out of the Bible about Jacob and his family. In the Bible we read about Jacob and how he was faithful and always strived to serve the Lord. Upon Jacob being called to a higher calling, the Lord changed his name to Israel, blessed him, and then expected a higher standard from him. As missionaries, we have been given new names because we too have been given a higher calling and the Lord expects more from us. That was a cool realization! I am so happy to be able to put on my new name and serve the Lord. As members of the church we all change our names. When we are baptized, we covenant to take upon ourselves the name of Christ. We stand as witnesses of Him at all times and in all places. May we remember the covenant that we have made, and strive every day to become more like our Savior and Redeemer.

This past week we were able to continue to work with Balinda. She is doing well and is really starting to progress. We had a little slow down for a while due to some little hiccups in her health, but she is much better now! She is reading the Book of Mormon and she loves it! I was so excited when I heard that she was reading! It is amazing to be able to watch people progress, change, and grow.  I am so happy for her, and I will be sure to keep you all posted on how she is doing. Sadly we were not able to see Dani this week because she is in Michigan right now. Hopefully we will be able to see her soon!

Elder Steele and I were able to provide tons of service this past week! We helped a potential investigator, Liz, with her farm. That was really fun and I had a great time!  It reminded me of all my little memories on the farms back home.  Grandma Cleo's, the Wollenzein's, Uncle Von's, and Grandpa Baadsgaard's farms are all great memories for me.  I loved every single minute over there! Liz also raises pigs, so fed and worked with them. Working with the pigs reminded me of when Dad wanted me to raise and show pigs, and it also reminded me of going to the county fair with him. Those were all great memories to revisit and I was happy to be able to enjoy doing that.

We were also able to go clean one of the member’s yards. It was really fun to do that as well. We got to mow the lawn, chop down trees and pull out bushes. Service is great and I love being able to help and reach out to those around me. We were also able to help another member in the ward move out and to their new home. With all eight of us missionaries working it ended up going by really quickly, and it was productive for us all. If we remember to serve others around us, and we will truly find joy and peace will enter our lives!

That is really all for this week. Not too much went on, but it was still very good. This upcoming week, however, should be very busy and fun to report on. We are having Elder Bowen, the apostle who has a Mormon Message called “Reclaimed,” come to our mission for a tour and to teach us all and to interview some of us. We are all very excited for that and to be able to learn from him. We will all be very busy driving to all of our meetings (two hour drives for each of them, yuck)!

My missionary tip of the week is to have hope! Strive every day to be hopeful and to look unto the Savior and His redeeming love. In the September Ensign there is a great article on page 63 that I think all of you should read. It truly is amazing and teaches all of us how to have hope and to apply it in our lives. We all need hope, and as we have it, life will become more enjoyable and easier to bare. If we apply what President Monson has taught and continue to look up and to have faith and everlasting hope in our Savior Jesus Christ, we will be happy.

I love you all so very much and thank you all for your support and care towards me!

Elder Brown

Laughter (September 3, 2013)

Hello everyone!

This week has been so much better than last week, and has truly been enjoyable! I have loved every moment and I am so happy to be able to be out here in Ohio serving the Lord. Ohio is now finally starting to cool down and the humidity isn't nearly as bad now. Fall is on its way! I can hardly believe how fast time is flying. I am almost done with training and in a short couple of weeks I will find out what happens to me next.

This past week Elder Steele and I had to go to a funeral of a less active member. The church is in charge of the funerals, and the missionaries often get called on to help with them due to our ability to teach and the fact that many non-members will be there. So Elder Steele and I went and were able to provide prayers and words of comfort for the family. That was rather interesting, though, because a preacher from another church was also asked to speak, so the family got hit up by lots of different religions. Elder Steele is also afraid of dead bodies, so we had to sit outside for as long as possible. I personally thought it was rather funny how afraid of them he is.

After the funeral, the rest of our week became a little more lively (pun may or may not be intended)! We were able to teach lots of lessons with less active members and to be able to help all of them. I love being able to reach out to people and to extend to them our help and our love. It is amazing to be able to see their faith grow and to be a support for them. There is one less active in particular that we have been trying to help. His name is Brother Schabel. He has been less active for over five years and has had many Word of Wisdom issues. We have been able to help him, and I was able to give him a blessing for comfort, support and strength. We then were able to follow up with him yesterday and he has quit all of his drugs, is reading the scriptures, and he got work off for church. It is so exciting to be able to see people's hearts change as they are touched and molded by the gospel.

Many members in the ward have been moving, so we have also been able to spend lots of time helping them move. We have grown so close to the members of this ward, so it is hard to see some of them go. This week we were able to have dinner with the Hayden family. They live off the shore of Lake Erie, so we were able to eat out by the lake and collect some seashells off the beach. The lake is so amazing and it is cool to know that we are at the border of the country!

My tip of the week is to learn to laugh and to smile. There are so many things to laugh at and to be able to enjoy. Look for them and you truly will be able to be happier. I have seen that in my life as I have just strived to smile and to count all the many blessings the Lord has given me. So smile and laugh and rejoice in the goodness of God.

Love,

Elder Brown

 Lake Erie

Remember the importance of laughter.  :)

Colds, Blessings, and Being Bold (August 26, 2013)

Hello everyone!

This week is what I like to call "The Roller-coaster of Ohio". My companion and I have been through many ups and downs this week, but we truly have grown and have enjoyed every second of being out here and being able to help and serve others.

The missionaries on our side of the mission, the very far west edge, have been struggling with very bad colds. The bug has been spreading around, and almost every missionary has had it. Elder Schmidt, an Elder in our apartment, caught it and we were all worried that we would get it as well. Sadly Elder Steele and I weren't too far behind him.  We caught it soon after.  We called Sister Vellinga and she told us to stay inside for three days! We couldn't believe it! Apparently it is really contagious and can spread easily, so she wanted us to stay inside until it was gone. Let me just tell you that being sick on a mission is the absolute worst thing that can ever happen to you! We had to cancel all of our appointments and just had to lie around and sleep. There is no TV to watch, no mother to spoil you, and no dogs to sleep on your lap. The members, however, were very concerned and stopped by every night to drop off dinner for us, so that was very nice and loving of them.

Once we were finally better, Elder Steele and I were able to go and have a lesson with one of our progressing investigators, Dani. Our lesson with her was amazing and the Spirit was very strong and touching. We were able to share a powerful testimony to her about the restoration of the gospel.  Tears filled the eyes of everyone in the room. Brother Scheibmeir, a member who came with us, also bore his amazing testimony and we were all very touched by it. At the end of the lesson we were able to invite her to be baptized! She accepted and we are now preparing her for her baptism on September 21, two days before my amazing mother’s birthday! We are both so excited for her. I love being able to teach her and I am so grateful to the Lord for allowing me to teach and to help one of his beloved daughters.

Sadly after our amazing day and lesson we returned to the Roller-coaster of Ohio. The next morning I was woken up early to the sound of our phone ringing. In worry and anxiousness, I dived out of my bunk bed and happened to hit the ground rather hard (no worries I am fine now). When I answered the phone it was Elder Cross (one of the other elders serving in the Perrysburg ward). He told me that Elder Williams, another one of the elders, had had a seizure and that the ambulance was coming to pick him up. This scared me so much. We all ended up spending the day worrying about him and trying to help take care of things at his apartment while he and his companion, Elder Langlois, were in the hospital. After they were in the hospital for a day and a night, Elder Williams was finally released and is now doing well. This was very scary and crazy, but the Lord was with us all and was truly watching over and protecting us through this difficult and scary challenge.

Once the end of the week came rolling by, we were able to return to the upward portion of the roller coaster again. We had an amazing stake conference and were truly edified by that. There are over fifty missionaries serving in the Toledo stake, so we were all able to see each other and to gather at conference. The messages were amazing and President Vellinga's talk was incredibly inspiring. He mentioned that there are now over 75,000 missionaries for the church and over 250 missionaries in our mission. We are so blessed to be able to serve during this amazing time and to be able to proclaim the gospel to all the world. To make our weekend even better, a member donated a washer a dryer to us, so we now have a set of them in our apartment!

My missionary tip of the week comes from a hymn. During this crazy week I started to feel overwhelmed and worried by everything that was going on, so I decided to read from the hymnbook for comfort. I ended up reading one of my favorite hymns: "Count Your Many Blessings." One line particularly hit me, and it reads: "Count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done." The Lord truly has given us so much! He loves us all and He is always near us and by our side. In the August Ensign there is a message by Elder Bednar entitled "Give Thanks." I challenge all of you to read it, and to apply its teachings to your life. As you do this, I promise that you will be surprised by all that our loving Heavenly Father has done for you. I know He loves us all, and for this I am truly grateful.

I love you all so very much! Continue to be strong, to have faith, and to recognize the hand of the Lord in your life. Till next week,

Elder Brown

"...they were brought down, yea, even upon their sick-beds" (1 Nephi 18:17).

(It's an old family joke).




Examples (August 20, 2013)

Hello family and friends!

Sorry that you had to wait an extra day to hear from me. This week is transfers, and as such we all have P-day on Tuesday instead. I was not transferred, thank goodness! Next week all will be back to normal and you will again hear from me on Monday until the next transfers roll around, which is about every six weeks.

This week truly has been amazing and I have learned and grown so much. We have been teaching our investigator, Balinda, now for a while and all has been going really well. She is progressing and is really loving the gospel and all that we are teaching her. We challenged her to baptism and she accepted! We are planning on having that service on September 14. It is so great to be able to help her and to see the gospel bless someones life. I am so excited for her and I look forward to being able to help her come closer to our Savior Jesus Christ.

Elders Peterson and Schmidt (the missionaries I room with) had a baptism this week for their investigator Ali. It was so cool to be able to go to her baptism and to see her enter into the Lord's church. Balinda ended up coming to the baptism and she loved it so much! It got her even more excited for when she can be baptized. I was asked to speak on enduring to the end at her baptism and that was a little scary at first, but all ended up going very well. I was so happy to be able to have that experience and to share my testimony with all the people that were there. This ward is amazing and they all were there to support and fellowship her. I love the Perrysburg ward and I admire their great love and willingness to serve those around them.

This week Elder Steele and I had exchanges with the zone leaders. I was able to go with Elder Berryessa to his area while Elder Huckstep stayed in our area with Elder Steele. I had a great time with Elder Berryessa and he truly taught me so much. He told me that he knows Dominic from when he served here, so that is cool! He wanted me to tell Dom hi for him. (So Jace please pass that on). While on exchanges I was able to truly be strengthened by the testimony of others. I loved being around different missionaries and to be able to learn from what they do. They truly are very amazing and such great and fantastic people. We were also able to give a church tour and that was very enjoyable and cool. The spirit was very strong and I became overwhelmed by it when I entered the chapel. We truly are blessed to be members of Christ's church.

This week we were able to provide tons of service at less active and investigators houses and I was so happy to be there for all of them. You truly are so much happier when you strive to serve and are helping and reaching out to others. I love serving and being able to meet and help so many amazing people.

I had a couple missionaries come up to me who have been having a hard time and have been seeking help. They were told to come to me and to get some support. I am so happy to be able to help them and offer them scriptures, words, and teachings of great comfort and strength. I never thought that I would be able to teach and help other missionaries! This week we also were able to get two new investigators: Roy and Dannielle. They are both amazing and I look forward to helping them as well.

Today's missionary thought is one of looking towards others. We are all surrounded by so many examples. Come to learn from others and to truly recognize that everyone you meet is there to leave a lesson to learn. Strive to learn that lesson and you truly will grow to be a better person. Stive to be the person that leaves a good lesson and leaves a great example. Always be loving, and strive to always be there for others.

I love you all!

Elder Brown

 Elders Brown, Steele, Peterson, and Schmidt.  

Transfers with Elder Berryessa

Sunsets (August 12, 2013)

Hello everyone!

This week has been a rather rough one, with many challenges and trials.  It has been hard to remain positive through all of our rejections and struggles, but I must maintain faith, and continue to walk in and follow the spirit and path of the Lord. We are not alone in this work. The Lord is always near and is always ready to reach out and to help all of us.  It is so amazing the amount of love He has for all of us.

Ohio has a big problem with bed bugs and everywhere you go you have to be careful where you sit. Sadly, Elder Steele just wasn't careful enough. We all woke up Wednesday morning to the sound of Elder Steele freaking out, running out of the bathroom, and tearing apart his bed. He had bed bug bites all down his side and in his bed. Lame! We had to call Sister Vellinga, who told us we had to stay inside all day so we could clean, so clean we did. We had to wash EVERYTHING in industrial washers and driers to kill the bugs. We also had to move all of the furniture, clean the walls, and spray exterminator stuff all over our apartment. Luckily, after all of our work the bugs are gone and fortunately the rest of us were never bitten. Thank goodness!

This week we had Zone Conference, which was very fun and uplifting. We were taught by President Vellinga all day and ate some really amazing that the Relief Society made. I love being taught and receiving encouragement to continue to press forward.   I learned that we need to walk in diligence, happiness, hope, and in faith.

Throughout the week Elder Steele and I have been teaching less active members about prayer, and about the love Heavenly Fathers has for them. I was also able to teach about prayer in our Gospel Principles class in church yesterday, which I really enjoyed.  I was wondering why we were teaching about prayer so much, and why we were prompted to always do that when it hit me:  My prayers need to be filled with gratitude.  Ever since that realization I have strived to do that because the blessings the Lord gives us are countless. I started to count my blessings and wrote them all down.  Before going to bed I managed to count 125 blessings!  Our Lord truly is amazing!

This week actually did have many great things about it as well that I want to share.  One of the members in our ward is the manager at a country club called Maumey Bay. Because he loves the missionaries, he has extended all club member privileges to us.  Last week we went golfing on their amazing golf course off of the bay of Lake Erie. That was so much fun, and I actually did rather well. I really enjoyed playing and had a fantastic time. We might go back again today, so who knows what we will do in that amazing resort!

Our ward had a ward party this week and we had so much fun at that. Our investigator, Balinda, came and she had a fantastic time. She is doing really well and is loving the gospel so much. The missionaries were then able to play a game of ultimate frisbee against the young men. We had a fantastic time and were really able to bond with the ward much more. We have such a great ward here, and I love all of them so much. I am really going to miss them all when we have to leave. We also got a new investigator this week named Joseph. He is an amazing guy, and was so excited when we told him about the Book of Mormon! We will see how our lessons with him go.

My missionary message this week is one of great significance to me. While driving home one night this week we saw a glorious sunset. It was shining brightly in the sky, creating many colors and streaks. While looking at this I began to cry and to be filled with peace. I remembered something that one of my seminary teachers said, "Sunsets are God's way of saying goodnight to His children".  When I saw that sunset I heard a voice come to mind saying, "My son, I love you, I am proud of you, I miss you, and I want you to be happy. Goodnight my son. Remember me, and remember my glorious Son".  Remember the Lord's love for you. He cares for us all and I know this is true!

I love you all so very much!

Elder Brown

P.S. Thank you all for the fun letters and postcards! I loved them all, and I look forward to being able to continue to hear from you all.

 Cleaning out the bugs!

God's way of saying goodnight.