Brandon - happy thanksgiving

Hey guys! Thanks for the emails. This week went by really fast. I cannot believe it’s already Tuesday again.

Last Sunday we got to hear from Elder Pearson from the 70. It was really good. He talked about how we are more than just missionaries, we are disciples of God. It got me to work harder this week! We started a new goal for this week, say everything in spanish! if you need to say something in english, you have to sing it! haha it gets quite embarrassing to sing it. We also got a new district in our branch that is all native spanish speakers. They are super funny, and I think they would be even funnier if I could actually understand what they are saying. We think that Heavenly Father put them in our branch to keep us humble and working hard.

 Earlier this week we did this activity where we brought pictures of our family and sweethearts. It was pretty funny. the sisters won’t stop talking about Nate.... Some of the Elders want to know if Amanda will write them. haha

 Yeah I’m still in choir and loving it!! Today we are singing “Come Thou Fount” in the fireside. There is a rumor going around saying that the speaker will be someone good, since its the week of Thanksgiving!

 haha and another side note, do you think I look like David Archeletta? I’ve had a lot of people tell me that. I think they are going crazy here in the mtc.

 I have not been able to be a host for new people yet. We just learned the other day that you have to sign up for it. I’ve seen a lot of people from Davis. I see Jace and Neal like almost every other day. I can’t believe Grandma and Grandpa S. are not coming!! I was excited to see them. oh well they are missing out.

 I got a letter from Grandma and Grandpa E. and sounds like they are doing really good. It was good to hear from them.

 Thanks for everything and I will keep you guys in my prayers! Happy Thanksgiving! and make sure to eat my share of the food! I think we are getting sack lunches so the cafeteria people don’t have to work!(I'm kidding)

Love you all,

brandon - another awesome week

Hey! guys! thanks for the emails! This week has been great!

This has been an awesome week. I love it here. We got to hear from another apostle! David Bednar. He is probably one of my favorites. We also got to hear from Sheri Dew. She was really good.

            Elder Caggiano left and it was so sad but I’m happy for him. The Lord has huge plans for him, and he has already made a big impact on my life.

This week we got to go to the referral center. It was super cool. We get to call back families and people that have either been referred, called the LDS number from a dvd, or recently ordered a pamphlet, Book of Mormon or dvd. At first it was really frustrating. I got the answering machine or "not interested" every time. I made 80 straight calls (yes I counted) and no success. It was kinda hard too because everyone else was getting to talk to people and stuff.  I decided to say a prayer, we only had about 20 minutes left. On call 83, I got someone! It was an amazing experience. I talked to her for the whole 20 minutes. She was a mother, and thinks she will probably die from cancer within the next year. It was amazing to hear her testimony. The spirit told me exactly what to say. I got to bear my testimony, and tell her the impact the gospel has had on my life. She agreed to receive a Joy to the World dvd, and maybe have the missionaries come over to teach her family. That one call made the 80 previous answering machines worth it.

            Thanks for your prayers and everything you do. I’m doing great out here. My spanish is awesome. Also tell thanks to the Branhams, they left me a note the other day. I also got a letter from Lexie, Tyler and Evan from Chicago. tell them thanks! their addresses were not on the letter.

Brandon - week 3

Hello family!

This week has been so awesome and one of the most spiritual ones. We had another apostle speak to us! Elder Russell M Nelson. And on Sunday we had Sheri Dew speak to us. I was very impressed and learned a lot. Sheri Dew is one of my favorite people in the world now.

I got your package today! thanks a ton!  I love the sweater.. its perfect timing to because it is snowing this very instant.

I got a new companion this week. His name is Elder Caggiano and he is amazing. He is going to Nicaragua and has been here for 14 weeks. 4 weeks ago, he was suppose to leave in 4 days, but he busted his ankle in gym. So for the last 4 weeks he has been on crutches and helping... his last companion just left for Argentina and he is now my companion. He is an inspiration to all of us. He is a super hard worker and only wants to serve till he leaves.... everyday while we go to gym, he sits on the stairs and sings hymns. Its also a good opportunity to serve him too.. since he cannot really do anything.

Sunday was an awesome experience though, we had a meeting with the branch president - just me and my companion. Elder Caggiano, talked about how hard of a time he is having here and confused on whats going on.... I got to bare my testimony to him in that meeting and it was a neat experience. Later in the day, he asked me to give him a blessing. I was so nervous. Giving a blessing was such an amazing experience though. The Lord put words in my mouth. At first I felt kinda discouraged, I did not feel like I gave that all of an amazing blessing, I did not promise any blessings or immediate healings. One thing that stood out to me was "although it seems like many things are going wrong, everything is going exactly how the Lord wants it." Later that night, I felt impressed to share with my companion a scripture. It was about never giving up. I shared it with him and he said he had just been reading that scripture. He then went to tell me that the blessing helped a lot, its exactly what he needed. I was really touched by the spirit. He said last night he had been staying up at night and he had the thought in his head that "there is something you need at home"....

I went with him to his Doctor appt. Sure enough we got an MRI for him and the doctor says he needs 4 more weeks.. which means he will have to go home and come back. He promised that no matter what, he will do everything to make sure he completes the rest of his mission, but first he needs to figure out what he needs at home...

I love it here, things are going great, I got to leave the mtc this week for the foot doctor appt. It was kinda weird cause there was a tv on and magazines on the tables... I kinda just found a corner and read my scriptures. It seemed like everyone just stared at me hahah

good luck with everything at home.

love ya,

Brandon - week 2

Hola familia!

The MTC is so freaking awesome. I love it here. lots has happen this week.. and Im still getting used to timing myself with my limited 30 minutes on the computer, so I will probably only get to one big letter.

This tuesday, we got to here from Richard G. Scott! It was so awesome. He talked about the holy ghost. I learned a tons, he also gave us an apostolic blessing with safety and the gift of tongues. It strengthened my testimony on apostles being called of God, but also how every other position is called of god... like my companions, branch president and so on.

We watched "Joseph Smith, the Prophet of the Restoration" on Sunday.. it was like watching Remember the Titans before a football game.. got us so pumped!

The gift of tongues is definitely doing wonders with me. I've learned so much spanish... My vocab has probably multiplied so many times I cannot keep track. We are speaking mostly in spanish now, I still mess up every now and then though. The other day, we were teaching an "investigator" and I got excited and really into it, but I suddenly realized the investigator was laughing.. I then realized I had just said "Jesus is our son" instead of brother... whoops!

There was a hermana in our district that has gotten pretty sick and was not getting better after a week, so she asked us for a blessing. It was a super cool experience, and guess what? She was back to 100% the next day!

I think thats way funny that Amanda dressed up as me for Halloween! I hope you guys had tons of fun. I miss you guys so much, thank you for praying for me. I can definitely see all the blessings!!!

My companions talked me into joining choir. Its actually way fun! I love it... I think my voice is getting better too. I've never had the spirit testify to me through music as much as this. We are actually singing today.. so wish me luck!!

 oh and here is your joke for the week.... is your name virtue? cause you garnish my thoughts unceasingly!