Taylor and Janette got baptized!

This week was easily the fastest and busiest week I've had. Interesting how they went together.

Finalizing the programs for both Taylor and Janette was crazy but it all worked out perfectly. We really wanted as many youth participating in Taylor's baptism so he can get a wider influence from the ward. 

On top of this we've been visiting as many members as we can so we can increase our member relationships as well as get more new referrals instead of knocking on the same doors over and over again. It actually was quite effective. We only tried to visit one prospective house but we still got two new investigators, one we're going to try to put on date this week. The ward told us that if we baptize him we'd be famous in the ward. He's the guy who everybody thought he was a member and gave a calling as assistant scoutmaster when they found out he wasn't. 

The morning of the baptisms I woke up with pink eye which made the day really funny. Everybody thought I was super emotional just blubbering away in the back playing the hymns, being the witness, taking pictures. Could anyone actually be that distraughtly happy in tears for back to back baptisms? Thankfully my acting skills kicked in and the other eye shed a few tears so I could balance it out a little. 

The saddest moment was finding out the guy who gave an amazing talk on baptism was only 14. I guess we'll have to have lessons at their house so we can get him to participate. 

I've been so fortunate to have taught Taylor from his first lesson. Seeing the whole process has been awesome. When we came out of the water he was just beaming. I understand why inviting people who are investigating the church to a baptism is a wonderful idea. The spirit dropped into the room so fast when Taylor bore his testimony. 

With both Taylor and Janette, they haven't had it super easy. Their families support them joining the church but don't want to be a part  so that only Janette's mom came and left as soon as it was over. It must be hard to feel like you are alone. I'm so grateful for our ward and branch who are welcoming them into the family. 

Sunday Elder Nistler and I shared a "this week was exhausting" look. It was hard but so much fun. I love it out here. 

                                  Elder Bryan, Taylor, David, (Rockin fellowshipped) Elder Nistler

Elder Nistler, Janette and Myself

Transfers/New Companion

I have a new companion. His name is Elder Nistler but sometimes (which
means all the time) I want to call him Elder JT Eborn because that's
who he reminds me of. He's a paramedic/firefighter from Oregon. He's a
jack of all trades, master of all and is an excellent teacher.
Having New Years right after the transfer was wonderful for us because
we got a full day of planning in. Made transitioning so much easier.
Having Elder Nistler who's been a district leader for six months now
and knows his stuff also helped.


With the Christmas season behind us and a solid weekly planning, we
hit the ground running-almost literally from lesson to lesson. It was
awesome. First time setting up a skype lesson...and taking it right
back down when the investigator never picked up. I could see how
effective missionary work can be when we do all we can do and leave
the rest to God. I'm so grateful for this knowledge. It's quite
incredible.


Now just because we planned everything out and for the most part it
happened, the next day was quite flat. We did the same amount of
planning and preparation so what happened? Well this part is the part
I'm not a big fan of, people's agency. Like who's idea was that? Of
course when people do what will help put them on the path of
righteousness it makes me very happy. Like setting up Taylor's and
Janette's baptisms for this weekend is one of the happiest moments of
my day. A few nights ago, Taylor called us and asked for a blessing
since he's had pneumonia the whole week. It was the first time I'd seen
his house since his parents don't want us there. After the blessing we
talked about the Holy Ghost and why that incredible feeling (spoiler:
holy ghost) can be his constant companion. One thing that I've worked
on is having a daily contact with our investigators. At the beginning
I thought that was super weird and why would you want to contact them
every day of the week. But I've come to realize that if we establish
that we will send a scripture every day to read or another form of
message, they'll think about us and the commitments we've left with
them.


I feel wiser, I know now how much I don't know. I really appreciate
the words of wisdom I've gotten from my parents (shoutout, you know
who you are) and grandparents as well.


I love you guys. Have a wonderful week.


And if I don't see ya: Good afternoon, good evening and good night