Clorox High

Hola familia!!!

Bueno, right now and for the last hour or so my nose has been completely burning and I can't smell anything other than clorox because I cloroxed my bathroom up (just like every other P-day) but it seems that today somehow the power and smell of the chemical remained and I got a mini rash and was bawling in the shower from eye irritation and it ruined my nose right now! hahahahaha Some things never change, right Dad?  Yes, I'm still the blonde Kenna girl you all knew :)  Hopefully I'm not high and I can smell later on hahaha.  Man bad idea.

Ok SO---another semana gone by in the mish!  It seems like everyone is reminding me lately of how quickly the time goes by and Hna Orantes always is like wow you are going home this year how does that make you feel??!!  I just laugh and reply that we are still at the beginning of the year and for some reason my mind still thinks we are like January, beginning of the year, and I realize it's May and then start freaking a bit.  But no big deal---I still have 7 months left and hope they don't fly by! :)  

So last Monday, I knew we were going to be going to my old area, Francisco, to send mail (it's the closest one) and eat and grocery shop.  I literally prayed every prayer for 2 days that if it was Heavenly Father's will to grant me a tender mercy that He would allow me to see someone I knew and loved in my old area.  It was so fun being there and I kept looking for people but saw no-one.  I didn't really expect anymore to see anyone as we were grocery shopping but as we were in an aisle looking for things, I looked up and at the end of the aisle I saw HNA JOHANSEN, posed, giving me one of her surprised hilarious faces she always does.  I like ran and hugged her and she gave me a desperately happy look as she ran to hug me.  Oh man I was going to cry I was so happy!!!!!  She is struggling a bit as am I.  It's not unbearable for either one of us but it's hard nonetheless and how we miss each other!!  It was SO great to let all of our feelings out, catch each other up, and hear about the ward, etc.  She told me people were like crying that I wasn't there. haha How I love them!!  We literally were the perfect duo and that was our season of joy--what a blessing.  I am SO grateful to my HF every single day to have had that wonderful time with her and in Francisco.  I left feeling SO loved by my Heavenly Father that He answered my prayer and I felt so humbled, grateful and recharged!  I told Hna Jo I might have prayed for that, and she just said THANK YOU!!!  :)

Tuesday I felt pretty sick most of the day but the Lord helped me through it. We had an awesome experience in Zone Meeting.  The last practice, the ZLs asked us to do the practice right after they had given us a training on what it means to be a successful missionary of Preach my Gospel.  I was a bit nervous because we only had one week together as companions and are still working on unity, etc. The situation was one of the elder companionships had an investigator who had a baptismal date but wasn't super excited about it.  There are details I will tell ya'll when I get home, but it was so awesome and we felt the Spirit so strongly.  We asked questions, he gave us key answers, and we shared a scripture (Alma 7:15) that really really touched him and the elder was just looking down and touched, and smiling shaking his head.  We applied the scripture to his situation in a different manner than usual and bore bold, strong, loving testimony to him to not be scared and come unto Christ.  We ended and the zone went like crazy about it.  It was crazy--I've never seen something like that happen before in a zone! They like freaked out and I just started laughing and smiling and was super red. They said they loved how clear, direct, yet still so loving we were. They said we really were persuasive teachers (one of the qualities they had trained us on), we supported and saved each other and had unity, etc.  They couldn't give any criticism and it was a situation I think we both needed.  We left feeling way awesome and the Lord and His Spirit helped us, and it gave us the animos we needed.  Something that is so neat is that I love how I don't worry a lot or think a lot about what I'm going to say anymore.  The Spirit just helps us and if we open our mouths and trust, it comes out!  Just like the Lord has promised us in D&C. It's always incredble how amazing the Lord is and how He works miracles in our lives.  Sometimes I can't believe He has helped changed me so much and continues to mold me, help me grow, accept my faults, and continuously bless me.  He helps me be a better person and missionary and will continue to do so for all of us our whole lives if we let Him!  Everything I am and try to become I owe to my loving Heavenly Father, my Savior Jesus Christ, my amazing angel parents, my incredible brothers, and my examples from teachers, family members, and best friends.  How am I so blessed?!  How can I NOT work hard to try and be better and bring this message to my fellow brothers and sisters who don't know how to find the truth?!  How I love the Gospel.

Wednesday we met with Paul (the relative of the recent convert we met with a couple times last week where the Spirit was so strong) and he had read until 1 Nephi 6!  He really understood the Plan of Salvation we taught him, and felt the truthfulness of it.  He started smiling or laughing sometimes and told us it was because he could feel the purity of our words and felt something good.  He is awesome.  Wednesday we also got hit on by a 100 yr old man with elephantitus. Sick.  poor guy.  We had a great lesson with a MA lady and her recent convert son and were very bold but loving to her.  It was great and felt led by the Spirit.

Thursday I was a bit frustrated but our comp inventory was good and we built each other.  We left and did service at a MA lady's house helping her rearrange and move her room.  We moved some things and this mouse started running around under our feet and I freaked out.  So did Hna Orantes.  Then we were moving her closet and from up above, another mouse jumped down from up there down to us on the ground and the two were running around and we freaked and screamed and were cracking up too.  Mom, you would have DIED it was such a small space!  Unforgettable experience that's for sure!!! :)

Friday = PAUL!  So after our last lesson with him I realized that although every single lesson we have with him is so awesome and we can feel the Spirit, we don't really know what motivates him, who he is, etc.  I was a bit worried that unless that happened we might not get through to him 100 percent and he wouldn't progress 100 percent.  So Friday we went in wanting to do a bit of the como comenzar a ensenar with him and ask inspired questions but in a very normal and natural way.  I was praying literally ALL morning that the Lord would help me and help us know what to say with him.  I brought my family pictures to share with him and hoped that by sharing part of me, he would feel more comfortable sharing about himself, his family, his desires, motivations, etc.  He did!  It was great and very normal and natural as we all shared with each other parts of ourselves.  We then focused on the spiritual sides and asked him why he read, listened, and prayed.  He said to learn, and I said yeah but why?  For what? What is your end goal?  He said, ´ser salvo´.  He said that answer to a few questions and we were able to see that his salvation does worry and matter to him, he knows what is good and right and wants to do that, and the 5 steps of Christ's doctrine have really impacted him and he knows that is the way to the celestial kingdom.  I asked him if he believed the BOM was true and he laughed and said, you are asking me this for the 3rd time??  I said yes!  He smiled and said that yes he believed it was true.  I then asked if he believed the church was true.  He thought and then said he did even though he hasn't gone.  Hna Orantes asked him why, and he said because I'm reading this! (as he held up the BOM) I just started smiling and shaking my head and said wow he gets it!  You get it, Paul!  One is not true without the other (the BOM, the church, Joseph Smith) and that he gets what the end goal of all of this is!  He just gets it!  He committed to come to church next Sunday.  Wow I just always feel so edified by the Spirit while teaching him and love teaching someone who gets it!  What a blessing.

Friday we had a train wreck of a lesson, and I quickly cut it off and ended it so it wouldn't go worse and we had a good learning, growing experience as I had us sit down in a park and analyze the lesson and where it went wrong and how we can improve, etc.  It was one situation where I felt it was key to talk about so we could learn and grow and that's the point of the mission and life, right?!

I can tell that this week has been harder for my comp as she is still trying to get used to the mission, being sore, tired, and frustrated or disappointed when people don't progress or don't keep their commitments.  She has a hard time seeing the little moments that make it all worth it and wants everything to be good and people to understand, (as we all--stupid agency sometimes that makes people reject this or not see its importance when in reality this is the key to true and lasting happiness and joy!) so I'm trying to think of a way to help her see it's those little things that make the difference in our happiness!  I know she is so innocent and cute and like a little girl and just loving and wanting to do good, and I'm trying to remember how I felt at the beginning, understand, help and love.  I need to be better--a lot better but I'm trying day by day!  She is wiling, humble, and loving and the rest will come.  This is a growing and learning experience for us both.

Also on Sunday we had a regional stake conference (Ecuador level) where by satelite, Elder Nash, Sister Cook, Elder Christofferson, and Elder Scott spoke to Ecuador.  Holy moly it was SO wonderful!!  Wow it was EXACTLY what Ecuador needed to hear!!!  It confirmed everything we had been teaching, talking about, thinking, etc.  They focused on actually LIVING the Gospel and not just talking about it, about doing the basics constantly and diligently without excuses, about the home, making marriages last, the youth and their standards especially modesty and not dating early, etc and then about respecting women, etc.  Wow it was awesome and it was the machete they needed but very loving and applicable! Elder Christofferson is such a beast at Spanish!  He speaks it VERY very well.  Also fun fact, Elder Scott was his mission president and they are now serving together in the 12 and got to speak in Spanish yesterday together!  How cool!  I love the apostles and general authorities and the words the Lord inspires them to give His children---specifically catered to their needs and what they need to hear.  It was wonderful!!

So the Lord has blessed us with a few great new people but other than that we are struggling because we don't have investigators that progress or understand, apart from Paul, and so we really are praying for success and a miracle so people can be baptized in May!  I know the Lord will provide according to His will and we just need to work harder each and every day and really trust and want it! The mission is a miracle and the best decision I've ever made.  It's not hard nor ever would be just like this life, but how many things we miss out on if it were easy!  Live and embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  It is the key to salvation, to true happiness and lasting joy and to eternal families.  Isn't that all that matters? Our Heavenly Father loves us!  We are literally His children and His work is to bring to pass our immortality and eternal life.  Our work is to keep His commandments so we can help Him in His work and reach that!  It's that simple and we can do it!  Let Him love and help you.  I love you so much and pray for you daily!!!  Thanks for your thoughts and prayers and emails!  They mean a lot to this missionary.

Love,

Hermana Bryan

When the Bed Bugs Bite

Well familia,

As you can see from the title of this email, I have had a fun week.  Haha Yes I found bed bugs.  I woke up Saturday with bites on my stomach, etc. and in the night, we turned on the lights and I found bugs crawling around on my sheets and bed cover.  We freaked out a bit, sprayed everything, and changed my mattress to another one.  But yep--gotta love the mission.

So Guayacanes is pretty close to Francisco--like 20-30 minutes in a bus or taxi a little less.  Pretty close!  BUT that distance makes all the difference in the climate and I literally am in the SAUNA of Ecuador.  Hotter than heck and worse haha.  Didn't think it could get much hotter but it did!!!  And does!  Woohoo.

Ok so...

Tuesday we went to District Meeting and watched a few practices.  They asked the ZL Elder Pintos what he thought of the practice and he said it was good but they needed to have unity but ya.  I could tell he didn't really love it but didn't say more.  They then asked me.  I said that I agreed with Elder Pintos and that it was good.  BUT if it's just good, it's fine to teach them whatever subject and have them feel the Spirit but they still will stay wishy washy with their decisions.  Our job is to teach them in such a way, and bear such pure testimony, that (as Alma did in Alma 5) there is NO mistake in their hearts what they have to do.  And then they understand!  And when they really understand and feel that, they will take action.  I said a couple other things of what I felt strongly would make the difference and what we need to do, be bold but loving, etc.  I finished and Elder Pintos raised his hands in the air and shouted, ´Hallelujah!!!¨ and said, ´Wow, I haven't heard something like that in a long time.¨ haha It made me feel really good but more than that, it made me realize that the Lord has a purpose for everything and we all are here to help each other and there is reason I'm needed here and need to learn things here.

Also the ZLs asked us to fast that day to reach our goal and I was honestly really scared.  Why you might ask?  Well, 3 days previous, that Saturday before, Hna Johansen and I had fasted.  That was the hardest fast I've ever done and we literally were swaying sometimes as we walked and had to hold onto things to not fall down a couple times.  The Ecuador sun, with walking everywehre, and no water, here in the mish is way hard and we get sick usually, but it's just cuz Satan knows how important and awesome fasts are for missionaries!  Anyway with that having just happened, I was pretty scared to do it again 3 days later.  BUT we did it and the Lord helped us through.  Crazy how we take normal fasting for granted.  It's worth it!

Tuesday we had a lesson with a sister in the ward and a bishopric member happened to be there.  Her marriage and home is falling apart and she's focused on herself and it's so hard to see that and know she's not happy no matter how much she tells people she feels peaceful about it, etc.  During our lesson, the bishopric member boldly took over and finished and through his words, I received a tender mercy from the Lord letting me know He loves me, is aware of me and this change, and that it is according to His plan for me and the mission.  I need to be here.

Thursday we had a good comp inventory and Hna Orantes told me that she knew that changes came at a perfect timing, that I had taught her more than any other companion in such a short amount of time, and that I'm exactly what she needed.  I'm trying really hard to be patient, understanding, loving, fun, and still bold and teach.  I feel like I am training her because she is fresh out of training and still doesn't understand a lot of things, but others she is way on top of.  She is always smiling, happy, and loving, obedient, and ready to work so the rest will come.  

Friday we had an awesome awesome lesson about the Restoration with the brother and dad of some recent converts and the Spirit was SO strong!!  The dad tried ruining the Spirit with his jokes about drinking and women a lot but the Lord helped us recover the Spirit every time and when we ended and I bore fervent testimony, I felt the Spirit so strongly testifying of my words, giving them power that I alone can't do, and taking them to the hearts of the people listening.  It was amazing and something I'm always grateful to my Heavenly Father for when that happens.  

Saturday was a hard day for me emotionally, accepting this change and the differences, etc.  Studies are so different and the people, and people in Ecuador are not accepting of new missionaries right away. haha  I always have to win them over.  But that's not new--just hard again to remember and feel all that. Saturday we had a baptism of the nephew of the Bishop that got baptized after only 12 days of hearing the lessons.  Hna Orantes was SO happy--it was her first convert that she had begun and finished teaching!  

We visited families and investigators this week and we are trying to weed out who really is going to progress.  The sisters beforehand have had a hard time being bold or saying things clearly, they beat around the bush and are shy, so unfortunately we have a lot of unknown people in their progress.  But we are going to clean the program out, be loving and bold, and find more people.

I find myself feeling a lot and being reminded of me starting the mission and Hna Angulo but now the roles are reversed.  Some of the things she says or does or thinks reminds me of how I felt starting out, and how I feel and think now, reminds me of how I saw Hna Angulo.  She gets down sometimes and I've reminded myself of Hna Angulo as I give her counsel and try to be understanding and say what she needs.  She told me thanks and that with all her personal problems, I have known what to say and it's made the difference for her to be able to express herself in English--I do remember feeling that way!  

I know that I am here for a reason and will grow and learn a lot and I pray for patience, love, strength, and happiness as I try to still accept this change and accept this responsibility and help the people here and find the elect while helping my comp too.

I love missionary work and love you all so much.  The church is true!  The Book of Mormon is true!  Heavenly Father has a plan for you and for me.  He loves us so much.  I know my Savior lives and loves us!  I know He helps us through any trial and I know that if we turn to Him and put our focus on the things that really matter, we will enjoy life's small moments and tender mercies and enjoy a fuller happiness and fulfillment in life and in our families.  Do it!  It's easy.

LOVE YOU!!

Hermana Bryan

Too Good to be True

Me and Hermana Orantes

Well Familia y Friends,

I'm writing this email from my new area, Guayacanes with my new comp, Hermana Orantes.  She is from Houston, Texas.  Her mom is Mexican and her dad is from El Salvador.  I guess Pres really likes putting me with the gringas haha.  

I've had a really really hard time with this transfer seeing as last night past bedtime the assistants called us and we were up all night packing and got no sleep because we were worried and it was just beyond hard saying goodbye to Hna Jo.  We really were like the perfect duo and nothing will compare which is hard to get used to again.  I really am grateful, however, that the Lord answered my prayers in putting me with someone who seems obedient and hard working and loving.  So that's good.  Also supposedly this area is very awesome and fruitful and the members are amazingly supportive so that will be an amazing thing too.  We will see!  Man I hate transfers sometimes! It feels like having my farewell over and over again leaving best friends and family.  Pero ya pues.  We knew it was too good to be true to last this long.  It lasted 10 wonderful weeks and really was our season of joy.

I will tell you all about my last week with my amazing comp in our incredible area!! How I miss it all.

Tuesday we had a Zone Meeting and it was pretty good.  It's been awesome to have Elder Van Wagoner as a ZL again and I will miss him!  Also there is an amazing elder in that zone from Brazil and every time we had a meeting or conference, he was just so sharp and chill at the same time and he just gets it. So Tuesday we were stopped, to buy a snack and this guy comes up to us and calls us Hermanitas and shows us these bookmark paintings he does that are incredible and he wanted to give us one.  It was a little tender mercy from the Lord and turns out he is an old investigator so the hermanas are going to visit him.  It was so wonderful because on Tuesday literally everyone (members and investigators alike) were asking and commenting on HOW glad they were we didn't have changes and how worried they were about it.  It was just so neat to see how much we all have grown and love each other and how they have appreciated me and Hna Jo.  

We got home on Tues night only to find the 2 new hermanas in our house! Stupid Elder Sampson (the new secretary) who forgot to tell us haha.  So we housed Hna Welch and Hna Bu for the night!  One from Vegas and the other from Honduras.  Hna Welch seemed pretty overwhelmed and worried about different things but I tried my best to talk to her and relate to her and share how I felt too and how amazing it gets, etc.  I am so glad I am past that initial point! (though right now I feel pretty similar haha).

Wednesday we were teaching a lesson and the lady went into the kitchen to get something for us and I was sitting back down and Hermana Johansen sneakily had put her arm in a spot to have it perfectly around my shoulder.  And when I sat down into her arm she started busting up as did I and said, ¨Smooth Criminal.¨ hahahaha I miss her SOOOOOO much!!!!

Also during personal study I was reading Alma 5 and I LOVE Alma and his example on how to bear pure testimony.  Pure testimony is bearing testimony in such a way that there is no mistake in their hearts what they have to do.  And that's exactly how it is!  There is no grey area!  It's black or white, good or bad in the things with God and living the Gospel.

Thursday we had a Zone Conference and it was so amazing because Elder Bushnell was there (he is the ZL for another zone now) and he said hi to us and shook our hands and before going away said, ¨Hey! Congratulations on your 3 baptisms!  I saw and noticed that in the Zone leader meeting with the President and wanted to congratulate you guys!¨ Wow it was so amazing--he is not even our leader anymore but that's who he is!  He really cares and watches out for the one and for people.  He took the time to notice and then to tell us about it.

Also during the conference, Elder McGinn one of the assistants now working in Tarqui, told me Eliana got baptized!  She got baptized and now the whole family is listening!  Wow!!!  So great.  The conference was pretty good.  I will explain one day when we are home sitting down--the good and bad things about this mission and conferences and President.  It's different than any US mission.  Anyway, I really liked Hna Amaya's part.  She started off with a question: ¨Do you ever wonder who you are?¨and I immediately looked at Hna Jo and she looked at me and I started crying.  We had both been singing the song ¨Child of Light¨ lately and that song is amazing and has special meaning for me and our fam anyway. But for Hna Amaya to start out with that was a tender mercy from the Lord.

Friday (9 month anniversary!) we had honestly the most amazing lesson experience I have EVER had on the mission.  I can't believe I haven't talked more about Paul--he is so awesome and we always felt so great when we taught him and felt the Spirit so strongly!  Since the beginning, I felt super strongly that the way for him to obtain a testimony would be through the Book of Mormon, and then the Plan of Salvation, and then the Restoration.
Completely backwards.  But I really felt like that.  From the beginning, he accepted the BOM as good and truth because he believed Christ came to the Americas, and had done research about that and also because he felt the scriptures were good.  He then understood the Plan of Salvation and said he wanted to do the right thing and know what the right was, and we shared with him the 5 steps of Christ's Doctrine and Gospel.  It was all just great and he always shared his thoughts and feelings and was always very humble and followed through with commitments.

But Friday surpassed it all!!!  We got there and he told us he had read from the beginning of the BOM to 1 Nephi 8 and he remembered and learned from and applied literally EVERYTHING!  His favorite part was Nephi´s constant strength and determination and unwavering faithfulness.  He said he knew the BOM was true.  We then went explaining in more depth, Christ's Doctrine, and when we got to baptism we talked about the authority and the importance of it and started in on explaining the Restoration.  We explained basically all
 the points according to his needs and it was amazing because he totally had seen the pattern of apostasy or dispensations, and God always calling prophets.  He loved how the Great Apostasy explained the confusion and why there are so many churches each with different, yet similar doctrine.  He then told us that's why the whole time he just believed in God and doing the right thing and that before he met us, he didn't think a religion existed that could fill him spiritually all the way.  He listened to everyone but never felt anything.  He 
said he loves how we talk about everything and how he does feel with us so much peace and calm when he reads and talks.  It was wonderful!

We then went into the Restoration.  We helped him see a need for the restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ and the authority.  We then related Paul's personal experience to that of Joseph Smith.  Then we told the First Vision and when Hna Jo was reciting it, he began to 
smile and couldn't help himself.  He was smiling, wide eyed, and was filled with tears at the end.  I asked him how he felt, and he couldn't even express himself, but said it was something incredible that filled his whole body and soul, he got chills, he was SO happy and felt so 
much love and felt like it was an out of body experience.  He then just bore testimony to us that he believed it and felt it, and then said, ¨I KNOW it's true.¨ He said he knew, just like us, because it's something you feel so strongly you just know.  I was bursting smiling and grinning and teary the whole time and wanted to burst out laughing with joy and amazement and jump for joy.  It was incredible, and something I know can't be described.  As a 
missionary you feel so much joy sharing the Gospel and seeing the fruits of people´s conversion, but you usually don't experience their conversion with them, as that is personal!  You don't usually get to see the conversion take place right in front of our eyes and have them share it all with us.  It was something I will NEVER forget and will treasure forever.  For hours we were just beaming, happy, joyous, literally just swallowed up in the joy of Christ.  I can't even describe it adequately.  He said he absolutely would prepare to be baptized and we testified this was what will fill him, that it's true, that we can feel it and we know it, and that feeling can become a permanent part of his life.  It honestly was the perfect lesson experience and I am SO grateful to the Lord for it.

Hna Jo and I just kept hugging each other or high-fiving while walking to our next lesson--we were flying haha.  The elect are HERE!!!  And so prepared, and waiting and looking.  It reminded me of what Elder Holland said to missionaries, ¨Sometimes tears will be shed.  Always great love will be felt.  This is when the 
veil is thin.  Point out the Spirit present and invite them to be baptized, making this experience a permanent part of their lives...welcome to the work of angels.¨ That's what happened and oh what joy!

Saturday we had a stake restoration activity that Rosalia came to and that was awesome--Karen Cruz was in charge, so of course it was awesome!!  :)  On the way home though, I felt really weird and sad and trunky and I know why now! Transfers. 

Anyway, Saturday was the hottest day of my life.  But it’s awesome how the Lord provides.  We got to meet this family from the US and a young kid who was on army leave who looks like Usher and talks like a black kid but is Latin and is stationed in Frankfurt, Germany!  Random, huh?

Sunday was an awesome day at church and I just love the members of Francisco de Orellana!  Man I miss them.  The class was awesome about work and our attitudes.  It was awesome, and she said we need to know and recognize how important and precious our work is--how much it means.  We also should remember the reasons we do our work.  I thought that applied to the mish as well.  Good quote also I found, Ün gran indicador de nuestra conversion personal es el deseo que tengamos de compartir el Evangelio con los demas.¨ Howard W. Hunter.  So true!

Also, I haven’t mentioned Miguel because he’s been back, and waiting and just awesome as usual!  He has a testimony and is converted and sharing the Gospel with everyone he works with.  Wow.  He actually left this morning to return to Colombia.  He had planned this and is going to (from a recommendation from our bishop) be able to just go straight to the President in Colombia without passing through the elders.  His family is excited to be able to assist in his baptism. He was so sad to say goodbye to us and was crying but I know we will see

him again and what an amazing experience being with him has been.  Interesting how the very day he left, I have transfers, right? :) hmmm.  I know I was supposed to meet him and help him through, and vice versa.

Sunday night was a downer as I already mentioned but as I called some people to say goodbye, it was so touching to hear Christian, Josue, Fabian, Alejandra and Camila, and Julio express their feelings, and love, and cry, etc.  Wow how blessed I have been.  The bonds you create in the mission are so strong and I’m so excited to continue these friendships and see these people, or family, mejor dicho, again.

I’m pretty tired and needing some extra prayers and loving but I have full faith and confidence in the Lord.  I know I need to grow more, obviously, and learn and help others.  There is a time and place for everything and the Lord makes it so our lives pan out exactly as He would have them.  I’m working on being happy, having faith, trust, and fulfilling the Bryan fam motto here in a new area.  I love this Gospel and I LOVE all of you and miss you so much.

LOVE YOU!!

Hermana Bryan

Sup G Money

Our District

Hola Familia!!!  Well I write to you still with Hermana Johansen and still in Francisco de Orellana so I feel greatly blessed to say the least!  We hope it stays this way for the whole transfer :)

So last week Elder Rubio called me and asked me to give the class in the District Meeting on Tuesday and so Hna Jo and I started planning.  I reviewed all the conference talks and scriptures I had been studying and we came up with an awesome plan.  I was up way too late fine-tuning details but it turned out great, we feel.  We spoke about companionship unity.  We started off with the newlywed game but changed it for companionship to how well do you know your comp and asked them funny questions.  We then asked why they thought we did that and Elder VW said to show us the importance of unity and knowing and loving your comp.  Bingo.  We referred to Elder Koelliker's story he told in Conference about the comps and what would have happened if they would not have gotten along or would have been arguing right before knocking on that door--the man never would have been touched by their love and opened his door to them!  We testified that our unity and love don't only affect ourselves but our investigators and the members and we can touch their hearts through it!  We shared our experience from last week and the couple.  We then referred to Elder Evan's talk about how to teach the Gospel in a normal and natural way.  We shared that in Mosiah 3:4 there is a normal and natural process of missionary work and sharing the Gospel.
First, King Benjamin prayed.
Secondly, he was righteous..meaning he was obedient, lived in unity, etc.
Thirdly, he received revelation (in this case, the angel came to him.)
Fourth, we rejoice!!  Which means having a profound testimony and joy of the blessings of the Gospel that one feels so much joy and rejoicing from it.
Fifth, we declare that joy and message to others.
Sixth, we see the joy and conversion (fruits) of others.
There is so much to learn from King Benjamin!!  We also shared that something that Elder Cook and Elder Scott mentioned that helps us live the Gospel is a good sense of humor!  I love that they said that and we emphasized the fact of enjoying the mission and seriously working hard but having fun while doing so, laughing, smiling, etc.  Then we bore testimony of unity, love, and being the missionaries we need to be so the Spirit can testify of our words and change the hearts of our investigators.

We then, being nerds, had an awards ceremony because we got way excited and it was the last District Meeting of the transfer!  Hahaha Hna Jo and I had created fake medals with awards.  Elder Vanwagoner received the Anchor award and it had a bunch of his awesome qualities on the back to explain why.  Elder Coello, the Frankness award haha.  Elder Gonzalez, the AMP (Actitud Mental Positiva) award, and Elder Rubio The Golden award--like the all around.  Elder Rubio got so excited about it at the beginning and pulled out his camara and everything haha.  They all said a few words after receiving their awards and Elder VW was awesome.  He thanked us for our help as well and for seeing the good things in him and not the bad and for helping him focus on loving and looked right at me and smiled and said AND I'm going to smile more.  hahahaha That was something Hna Angulo and I teased him about in Manta and he has improved so much cuz he's always smiling so we included as part of his good qualities: his big smile.  Elder Rubio told us truthfully that it hasn't been easy to be District Leader and Financiero at the same time (and to have comp and area problems all at once poor guy) but he was so grateful for us and everything.  It was just great and I love doing stuff like that that makes us more unified, get to know and love and appreciate each other.  Thats what it's all about. Being edified and uplifted to bring others unto Christ!

We had another GREAT lesson with Andres Rojas--wow!!  I love him and we just feel the Spirit SO strongly every time we are with him.  He had read Alma 32 twice and other random chapters in the BOM and was still apologizing he didn't read every day haha.  Also he was SO grateful to us.  He bought us juice, told us he mentions us by name in each prayer he says and when he found out there are angels all around us: mortal and immortal, he told us we were like that.  He is just so humble and grateful and he understands the importance of the Gospel because he can feel it and is experimenting it little by little.  People who do understand the importance of this message, feel the change and peace, and in turn, are SO grateful!!  That's the difference.  I felt so privileged to even be a missionary and to be able to be a part of this process and that the Lord allows me to know and teach incredible people like Andres.

Wednesday we had FHE with Camila and Alejandra and their mom.  Wow!  Indescribable joy is what it feels like to watch them and hear them giving the lesson about faith and the things they'd learned from personal study in the BOM (it's INCREDIBLE what they capture and they're just girls, but understand everything on their own, apply it, and explain it!)  Also it was cool to watch them answer their mom's questions!  And to hear of their experiences when they bore testimony to the Jehovah's Witnesses that were trying to convince them that what they believed was a lie.  They stood their ground and have unshakeable testimonies.  They are just SO awesome and I am so impressed and amazed at them every single time we are with them.  And again, I just feel so blessed!!

All week I was kind of acting like a freak and being stressed, worried, down, etc. having transfers and other things really affect me personally and emotionally.  I didn't like it and Hna Jo has been so patient!  We just want to be together and are worried about future comps because many of them are 'special' here, etc.  But The Lord provides and I know we have to fully trust in Him and have faith.  He will direct our paths!!!  I'm just retarded sometimes and feel things way too deeply than I should haha.  I KNOW and have a strong testimony that the Lord's will is always done especially here in the mission.  It's amazing His tender mercies.

Awesome memories from this week:  Hna Jo doing a Capn Jack Sparrow walk a lot of the day that had me laughing so hard I had to stop walking a few times, bursting into song in the streets of Ecuador with her and singing all songs from certain Disney movies, finishing each other's crazy quotes from the States we remember, trying to remember English songs and culture that we can't even remember--that's awesome!, and just laughing while walking down the street.

This week was Semana Santa and on Friday--Viernes Santo we had SO much success and lessons and it was awesome.  Saturday we had 0 lessons and that was a pretty hard day for me.  To top it all off in the night, I totally biffed it and got my knees pretty good and was just sad and mad and affected and angry that Satan is such a piece.  We had a good comp talk in a park to end the night because we had to both openly talk to each other and share our feelings, counsel, etc and we learned from one another and cried, etc.  I'm glad for our open relationship in good and bad times.

Sunday--EESTERS!  Pretty dang disappointing that people really don't celebrate Easter.  They celebrate the week like a vacation but don't do anything special other than make Fanesca--this fish bean soup that we ate on Sunday for lunch.  Oh ya.  Also all the typical holiday or other food seems to include weird mixes of platano, or beans, and always fish.  We had Fanesca, Casuela, and humitas this week.  Humitas are just like tamales so that was fine!  Casuela is this huge thick paste mix casserole thing of platano and fish.  So filling and kind of gross haha.  No, family, I haven't gotten to the point where I actually like fish.  BUT I have learned so much better on how to eat it and just get over it!  :)
During ward council Sunday morning, the bishop wasn't there cuz he got pwned at the beach and could barely walk when he did get there!  So one of his counselors was assigned to do it and we were SO frustrated.  Let's just say that many of the meetings and asuntos dealt with here don't even matter and they focus on ridiculous details instead of working together to fix things.  Elder Hammer was brilliant when he penned the slogan: Ecuador, Finding Problems Not Solutions.  haha.  One time we just bent our heads down, looked at each other and under our breaths started singing together I'm Proud to be an American.  hahahaha It was so awesome.
Sunday was awesome and during Sunday School we got to share our feelings of how we feel about consecrating our lives in the mission and to the Lord.  I feel so special about being on a mission and can't even describe it adequately--how grateful I am and how blessed I feel.

Fabian accompanied us this week and told me that Marianela tells me hi and that she and Gabriel and Allisson went to the temple last Wednesday with the ward in Manta and that Allisson was looking for me the whole time.  She said they are still working towards their goal of being sealed before I leave.  WHAT JOY!!!

Cool scripture things we learned in comp study:
1 Cor 3:6-10 reminded me that Paul was a seed planter too and that it's ok to have that role sometimes!!  Loved it.  
Also loved the relation to my experiences me and Hna Jo did, to Mosiah 23:10. That's truly how I feel!
I love how in Mosiah 11 and 12 that Abinadi warns the people with exact detail what will happen if they keep sinning yet they still didn't listen!  How often does that happen today?!  We just had General Conference with counsel, comfort, and warnings from the Lord.  Will we listen?
I also love love the story of Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah in Mosiah 27.  It's incredible to me that the most rebellios people (says they were the vilest of all sinners) became the most dedicated, amazing, and talked about missionaries of the BOM!  In just one chapter, how different their eternal consequences became and how merciful the Lord is!  We just have to sincerely repent and we become eternally blessed.

I love this Gospel with all my heart and love living it.  I love the joy I feel that comes from the blessings I have received of this Gospel and sharing it with others.  I love my Savior Jesus Christ and know that He lives.  It was neat being able to share with people why we don't focus on Friday (of His death) but on the Sunday (His Resurrection) because He LIVES!!!  He is a living Christ and blesses us always.  How blessed we are.  Come unto Christ.  He will give you rest and fill you with incomprehensible joy.

I love you!!!  Have an incredible week!!

Love,
Hermana Bryan

Miracles after the Trials of our Faith

With the Familia Cruz

HOLA FAMILIA!!!!!  Sorry if this email is ridiculously love-bursty and joy-filled but I am on one today and feel so much love and gratitude and joy for this work and for being a missionary.  So ya.  That was the disclaimer.

So this week was interesting...
Tuesday we had a great personal study and then district meeting.  I felt the spirit so strongly!!  Elder Rubio shared a lot about what it means to really have the vision to baptize--which includes something much bigger and greater than baptism: the Atonement.  He talked about the fact that when people reject the Gospel it's because they don't understand.  It´s all based on the Atonement and if we all can understand that, then we will understand the importance of baptism and the doctrine of Christ.
Whenever people testify about the Atonement, the Spirit is so strong and it reminded me a lot of Logan and Dad who always testify and refer back to the Savior and the Atonement.  I love Elder Rubio--he really has impressed me with his prayerful and spirit filled lessons, always trying to teach what we need and help and be humble and willing to improve and we have seen such improvements!
Also before district meeting started, we were talking to Elder Van Wagoner and learning more about his life.  Wow!  I never would have guessed it from the kind of missionary he is now--so solid and firm and awesome!  He will be 26 in June.  He studied 2 yrs, worked in many different job fields, wanted to get away from Wyoming so on a whim moved to Provo and played for 1 year.  While doing so, he lived with all RMs and their influences inspired him to want to go on a mission.  wow!  I can't imagine what his life would be if he hadn't made this decision--he will be eternally changed and the outcomes of his life as well.  The mission is a miracle!  And so is the Gospel!

Comp study was INCREDIBLE on Tuesday and mind blowing and one of those times when things we talked about and shared touched my spirit so much and so deeply that I can't even really describe exactly how or what I was feeling and why but it was marvelous!  During personal study I enjoyed reading that Elder Cook said that eternal life is to KNOW the Father and His perfect Son, Jesus Christ.  I thought it was interesting it didn't say to live with them as a family or to know of or about them but to really know them.  That is eternal life--the greatest gift of God and the scriptures as well as Preach My Gospel affirm this.
Also in 2 Nephi 28:24-25 it reminded me that this is a huge problem now a days and one of Satan's most clever tactics.  We should never be at ease!  There is no standstill!  There is always more to be done and more progress to be made and we need to be moving towards God.

We had a comp convo about the difference in the beginning of the mission to now.  It's interesting that when the mission and the Gospel become so much a part of you, while preaching, we are actually sharing of ourselves instead of a message or info.  A mission can be a cool experience or it can be 100 percent a part of you--being in the mission is so much more incredible than being on a mission!  We called that: The Mish Phenomenon!  It made me so excited to apply all these things in my life after the mission.  The mission, my experiences, and most importantly the Gospel and my love for it are SO deeply engrained into who I am and in my heart now.  I love it!

Also while sharing, Hna Jo found a quote by Pres Holland last conference talking about the adversary--saying that he is: eternally opposed to the love of God, the Atonement of Christ, and the work of peace and salvation and he will fight against these wherever and whenever he can.  WOW!!!  Such strong, interesting language: ETERNALLY OPPOSED.  NO WONDER!!!  He is eternally opposed to God´s love and the Atonement, which equal a change of life.  Also the work of peace and salvation reminded me of temple and missionary work.  These are the things Satan feels most strongly against so no wonder we've felt that opposition!  That is his plan, his tactic, and his weak spot.  That is WHY we focus on love, on the Atonement, on missionary work, and on temple work: because if people understand and feel that, then Satan has no power over them.

On Tuesday we had an awesome, awesome lesson with Andres Rojas and my heart was busting the entire time sharing and testifying of God's personalized love and plan for us, the restoration and truthfulness of the gospel, the BOM, prophets, baptism, etc.  He is so humble and accepting and can feel the amazing peace present while we pray or are there.  He looked a lot happier with more light in his eyes just in 1 week.  It's amazing how the BOM and the gospel change lives and bring the light of Christ to people!

Wednesday half-way through the day I got a huge rash and was super chilled, sweaty breaking feverish all day and by 5 pm I was fighting within myself to stay out or go home.  I HATE THAT!!  I want with all my heart to be out and cry like every time I have to go home haha What a baby but it's just the desires we have.  We ended up going home and I ended up sleeping and trying to rest and get over my fever, etc.  It felt like dengue when I had that last time.
I then woke up on Thurs morning SO pwned and it felt EXACTLY how sick I was for that month I was in the house.  I was so scared because I don't know what that was or what caused it and how long it was going to last this time because it lasted forever last time.  Elder Rubio was SO understanding about staying home and getting better and Hna Johansen was so great about it all.  She wrote me a note with scriptures and lifting me up.  I slept like all day and felt so so sick and just exactly like last time.  I prayed a lot for understanding and for a miracle to get better.  I prayed and really exercised my faith (like you mom!) that I knew He could make me better and if not by Friday I knew that by Conference I could be better and begged for that and for that miracle.
Friday I woke up and was still sick.  Luckily it wasn't as bad, but it was still like feverish kind of and so so tired, etc.  Elder Hammer was hilarious on the phone and when I answered because he wanted to get my symptoms he went into this pretend recording for Bienvenida a la Clinica Kennedy.  Si su nombre es Hermana Bryan, por favor toque el #1, etc.  He was hilarious the whole time and asking my symptoms if they were just the 'Normal Hermana Bryan symptoms' or something different hahaha.  He set me up for a med appt.  I then prayed and knew the Lord's will would be done.  I then was blessed with more energy towards the night and got to study and can I tell you HOW MUCH I grew to love Jacob from the BOM??!!  The Book of Jacob.  He is my new fav person in the BOM!  haha I just smiled the whole time reading that book and seeing his personality and his awesome teachings.  He is so awesome and I love his teachings and his sarcastic personality sometimes.  I didn't sleep for 2 nights really BUT

woke up on Saturday and was blessed with the energy to go to my Docs Appt!!  Miracles from the Lord according to our faith and desires--wow. We went to a different clinic who we are now contracted with and MAN what a difference!!!  It was so so awesome and I felt like I was in the states--I was very impressed.  Took some general stats and blood exams and then we went to CONFERENCE!!!
I can't go into every detail of everything I loved about conference but HOW blessed I felt!!  I just felt so great and blessed and at home here watching conference with our zone, my comp bff, in Ecuador here in the mish, and IN ENGLISH!!  What a blessing to watch all sessions in English.  It was SO wonderful the whole experience!  There were cute senior missionaries who got close to us during these 2 days and who knew almost no Spanish, yet were so excited to be there and working in the temple!  Also I loved seeing old members from Tarqui like the CRUZ family!!  What a blessing they are in my life.  I loved how Julio came and stayed for Priesthood, and his light, and Miguel came to every session except for one when he was working.
Saturday evening I felt pretty crappy again from not sleeping in 2 nights and being sick and was fighting within myself again but wanted to try.  I felt like we should go by an old investigator couple I went to once with Hna Hernandez and Aragon.  When we visited them, they were cold, not open, set in their ways and only wanted the Bible, etc.  It was a tense weird environment the last time but I didn't feel they were given a fair chance to be dropped.  We went by and WOW--what a difference.  It was night and day and I testify to the experience Elder Koelliker talked about!  When he related that story between two comps and their act of love, I was thinking: what would have happened if they didn't have unity or love or had been fighting or didn't get along?!  Our unity really does touch peoples' hearts and lives.  We are living testimonies of that.  Also of what Elder Evans shared in sharing the Gospel in a natural and normal way.  That is SO important!  First, you have to let people know you care, you care about them, be really interested, be unified with your comp cuz they can feel it, and create a relationship so sharing the Gospel becomes normal and natural as part of your caring relationship!  Carlos and Diana totally opened up to us, we gained their confidence and they were laughing with us, sharing about their difficulties, wanted to invite us to the beach with them (Haha I wish), and were touched by the little thing we shared with them in love and through the Spirit.  WHAT a blessing it is to be in a unified, loving companionship.  And how important and KEY that is in missionary work.
Elder Eyring answered one of my big questions this conference and it was so incredible how every single question and theme I was wondering and praying about was touched on and answered.  How blessed we are to be members of this gospel and I KNOW it is true!  With ALL my being and heart!
It was also amazing how so fully and totally confirmed, were the spiritual truths that Hna Jo and I have studied and learned and shared together and personally.  It was SUCH a neat experience I can't describe but literally almost every cool spiritual truth we came upon or scripture we really loved or studied was touched on in a way most others didn't notice but we had been studying and the Lord taught us through His spirit.  It's so amazing the power of real study and inspiration of the Holy Ghost.  I've never had that kind of experience and we were so excited and thought this is probably what it's like because these are spiritual truths, just things we learn line by line and precept by precept if we really have the desire to do so and are praying thoroughly for the Holy Ghost and studying so much.  Also it's a blessing we share everything together because we LOVE learning and growing and etching these truths and testimonies on our hearts.
I LOVE GENERAL CONFERENCE!!! :)
I'm so sad it's over but loved everything and there wasn't a single talk I didn't love or have a ton to write about.  Also, Elder Holland was a beast in the way he ended his talk!  I couldn't believe it--wow!  I loved them all and loved the themes of overcoming adversity, raising children, creating a home where the Gospel principles are taught, being converted disciples, etc.  I loved them.

I feel SO blessed to be a missionary, to be here in this area, to have the most wonderful companion, to have YOU all, to be a member of the true church, and to know my Savior and Heavenly Father, and to be able to be better and progress daily.  It's a daily process!  We daily take up our crosses and daily make decisions to move towards God or away from Him.  I love this quote about the mission: obediencia es el precio, el amor es el motivo.  El Espiritu es clave.  Fe es el poder.  Cristo es el resulto.
So true!

I LOVE YOU!  But I'm so glad I'm here because I don't want to come home sometimes--times like today and this weekend :)
I pray for you always.  Have a great week!!
Love,
Hermana Bryan

My awesome, best, most loving Amazing Comp Ever!