Everything is going well here. Working hard but not seeing the success we should. The zone leaders called and told me, "Your numbers as a district are amazing. Really by your numbers you should be baptizing every week, but for some reason your not. What is stopping you from being able to baptize?" I told them what I thought. We find, we teach with members, we invite to be baptized, we are doing everything I know how but the people don't make the changes necessary. But being a successful missionary doesn't have anything to do with baptisms, but we are still working hard. Yeah we are working like crazy but it's hard. It's just one of the things you deal with on the mission.

A homecoming and a farewell, that's weird. I'm glad Nick went Spanish speaking. One more I can talk with. It will be fun. Seth, I'm sure will be a great missionary. He really is a great kid, he has gone through a lot in his life. I'll be there standing at that pulpit in just a few months anyway. I absolutely love giving talks in church. It will be great fun.

Thanks for writing. I love hearing from you and I love your letters. Thanks for always writing, and I'll study the scriptures like crazy don't even worry about that. Thanks for everything. I love ya and miss ya tons. look forward to talking to you again next week.

Love, Elder Brown

January 23rd

This week was really good. We ended up working a lot with less actives, but all in all it was a great week. We do however have big problems finding new investigators. Our area is so big that we end up walking a lot, and I don't like walking. At college I didn't walk around campus I hated walking so much I ran around campus but yeah, it was fun. I don't think I will be here for much longer. I'm pretty sure this will be my last change here which means that I'll be off to my last area (probably) it's weird to think that its almost been 2 years all ready but all good things must come to an end. i just hope the end takes longer.

I feel like all the weeks are the same. I guess you could say it's a little bit like groundhogs day but I just have to better myself like he did in the movie, and when I get things good I'll wake up and life will move on. I love hearing from you. Thanks for being so devoted in writing every week. I love ya tons and I miss all of you. The work is still moving along here as it always does. The big problem is new investigators but we will find them because no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing. I love ya tons and I look forward to your email next week.

Love, Elder Brown

January 16th

Everything is great here. I'm still in Encarnacion, and we are working like crazy with a new excitement and desire to work. We have a family planned to get baptized this week. I hope the baptism goes through. still trying to get the district excited. I hope it all works out.

About Nancy, she is my Paraguayan mama. She's awesome. We are working with her sister (Gero´s mom) Jose her son and Dani her husband, and as Nancy told you her mom. We eat with her every Saturday and Sunday. They are such a great family. They help us so much. Yeah she's a great member.

Really not much has changed, we are working really hard, and seeing some pieces falling into place. I love the temple. I miss it so much, but I get to go in March. It's gonna be awesome. I love the temple so much. We are gonna go there tons after the mission.

Sorry for the short email this week, my brain doesn't want to focus. I think I'm just tired, but yeah, I'll be fine. Next week I'll have a longer email for you. But I love ya tons, and I miss you and I look forward to going to the temple and being with you again. I miss our causeries (yay super chuchi word) but we will be causering again in no time (yay for invented alterations on chuchi words.) But I'll talk to you soon.

Love,
Elder Brown

January 9th

This week was awesome. We got 16 lessons with a member present, which is unheard of in our mission, but now the president has changed the goal from 11 to 20 lessons with member, but we are okay with it cause we can get it. But yeah we were busy this week and got 36 lessons in total so Yeah!

We really have been so blessed. I realize that more and more as I'm here. God has given us so much, and I believe it is because of obedience to the gospel. I believe that as it says in 3 Nephi, seek first the kingdom of God and all of these things will be added unto you. I believe that if we seek more diligently the kingdom of God he will help us even more in our lives. I don't mean only temporally but in all things. It says all of these things. That doesn't apply just to the physical. That's why daily prayer and daily scripture study are so important, to guide us in our search. The scriptures are like a treasure map that take us to the Kingdom of God.

I'm so glad to be here in the mission. I have learned so many things and I am so excited to share all of that with everyone after the mission. I have said quite a few times, after the mission I don't want to be bishop or even president of anything. I just want to be a Sunday School teacher for teenagers or up. That's all. I just want to share all that god has taught me.

I am excited and worried to see what changes bring as well. I think my comp might be training which means that I will be going who knows where. But yeah we will see how things go. I love ya tons, and I miss you too, but time is short and I'll be home before ya know it. Thanks again for writing every week. You do great in that and I am super thankful for all your efforts on my behalf. I love ya and miss you tons.

Love, Elder Brown

January 2nd

It was super great to talk to you guys too. Right now I'm in Asuncion, surprise. I wasn't expecting it either, I got a call Monday and the zone leaders said hey so guess what, you're coming to Asuncion for a leader meeting, so I'm in the bus terminal right now waiting till 5 for the bus to ship off to Encarnacion again at 11 o´clock at night, but it's all good.

We had a super great meeting, and I was able to talk with President Callan. We really learned a lot in that meeting. I absolutely love meetings with President Callan, he is so smart and funny. I come out of every meeting just charged and ready to work extra hard. Now I've got a new energy and I'm gonna take it back to the area and tear it up. We will see baptisms yet this month. President talked about a lot of stuff. I came out with more than a few pages of notes, but the thing I remember most was a bit of talk he made on stewardship. He talked about it as missionaries and as district leaders, but it really applies to everyone everywhere, because it doesn't matter where we are, we have all been entrusted with something. He read 3rd Nephi 27 (where they talk about the name of the church) how can it be my church (area, family, or whatever) unless it carries my name (forgive errors, I read it in Spanish so I have to translate) and he talked about the importance of taking upon us the name of Christ. I absolutely loved it because it is the Lords work, place, family, so we have to take care of it in the Lords way.

I love ya tons, and I miss ya and I look forward to your emails always.

Love,

Elder Brown