Elder Barbosa, Ricky, Tinika, Elder Brunson

Tinika and her son Rick

Tanika and Elder Brunson

Monday, October 23, 2015

Miracles!!!!!!

Man we had a mean week this week!  I'm going to try and write a good letter but I'm kind of distracted... you know why??........We are going golfing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I'm so pumped haha.  It feels like ages since I’ve golfed and I'm ready to swing a club again.  We are golfing with the Zone Leaders (Elder Harmon and Elder Fellingham) and we are golfing with the Nuhaka Elders (Elder Landis and Elder Hawkins).  We all golf except for Elder Barbosa haha.  Elder Barbosa is really excited to go golfing for the first time though!  It should be way fun!  The course isn't very nice but I really don't mind haha.  Mom, I promise I won't throw any clubs either haha.  I will be working on the Christ like attribute of patience while I'm golfing haha.

Man we had so many miracles this week I can't even count them.  I will start with one of my favorite miracles haha.  It is probably one of my favorite miracles because it is the definition of Elder Brunson.  So a couple of weeks ago I left my camera out in the rain and it got drenched.  The good news was the camera still worked.  The bad news was it wasn't working very well haha.  I did not tell my mom about the incident because she just spent a lot of time and money to try and get me a cord for my camera so I could connect it to the computer and be able to send pictures home.  I was very frustrated because I didn’t want the time my mom spent to buy and mail me the right cord to be wasted.  Well, to make matters worse, my camera literally stopped working.  It kept saying low battery and then it would just shut off.  I knew there wasn't a low battery because I had just put brand new batteries into the camera.  I was stressing out about it all week because I really didn't want to tell my mom I broke my camera.  Also I'm too cheap so there was no way I was going to buy another camera haha.  Well the day before the baptism I had a bright idea.  I decided to say a prayer and try to see if I could get my camera to work.  I said a prayer and I immediately had the brilliant idea to put new batteries in the camera.  I really didn't understand why I would do that because I had already put new batteries in the camera but I did it anyway.  Guess what?!!!!!!!  The camera started working haha!  It was a simple prayer and I have a testimony that Heavenly Father answers even our simple prayers.

Next miracle!  Tinika and Ricky were baptized!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  It was such an amazing experience getting to meet them and see their progression.  Tinika getting baptized really was an amazing miracle.  Last week Tinika had not been able to keep the word of wisdom.  She was trying really hard but she just couldn't give those things up.  I was stressing out because she was having her interview on Wednesday and on Saturday she still wasn't keeping the word of wisdom.  I wasn't sure what we should do.  We had already fasted for her but she was still struggling.  Well Sunday came around and Elder Barbosa and I fasted for her again, and guess what?!!! She was able to keep the word of wisdom all of Sunday.  Monday night we had family home evening at Tinika and Ricky's house, and guess what?!!! She was able to keep the word of wisdom all of Monday as well!!!  We decided that we were going to have a group fast for Tinika, so our ward mission leader, Tinika, Ricky, and Tinika's sister Carol all fasted for Tinika to be able to keep the word of wisdom to prepare her to be baptized.  Guess what?!  She has been able to keep the word of wisdom without any problems.  The amazing thing is that she has had a heavy addiction to cigarettes her whole life and was able to just quit.  We asked her how she was able to do it and she said through prayer and fasting.  Every time she felt tempted she said that she would pray for the strength to overcome the temptations.  My testimony has grown significantly and I know that through prayer and fasting we can overcome anything. Tinika is an amazing example to me and she has come so far since we started teaching her.  It has been such an amazing experience to get to teach her from start to finish.  I have seen both her and Ricky progress so much!  The Baptism day was amazing!  They were both so happy and there was such a sweet spirit at the baptism.  I feel like I could come home now haha.  Nahh just kidding.  There are heaps more people waiting for the same blessings that Tinika and Ricky just got.  I know there is no way that Tinika could have just given up her addictions without there being a loving Heavenly Father who answers prayers.  The quickness of her giving everything up had special power behind it, and there is no way our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were not behind her, lifting her up.  I love being a missionary and getting to see the happiness that comes into people's lives from keeping the commandments of God.

Mosiah 2:41 is still my favorite scripture:

“I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God.  For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness.  O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it.” 

I love you all heaps!

Love,

Elder Brunson