Elder Conner Brown

Hershey, PA - Week 12

Merry Christmas!

 

This was my second Christmas here in the mission field, and was way different from my last one. Back in Japan, it was pretty much a normal proselyting day because not many people celebrate Christmas there. Lot's of door knocking and asking people if they want to know the meaning of Christmas.

 

Here, Christmas is a little tough since people are spending time with their families. So, if you aren't invited, you aren't wanted, lol. We did wish a LOT of people merry Christmas over text. 

 

Our mission president also had all the missionaries gather for a zoom Christmas devotional! It was a wonderful experience all watching "The Christ Child" and talking about the different names and titles of Jesus Christ. More on that below.

 

A definite highlight for the week was a Restoration lesson we had with an investigator named R. He's met with missionaries before Covid but kind of lost contact with them. As we were talking about Joseph Smith, R. told us "I don't know why people give him such a hard time since he did so many great things" and I was saying "Right?!" Anyway, he feels good about the Book of Mormon, so we invited him to keep reading a little bit daily. 

 

I think one of my favorite names for Christ comes from Matthew 1:23 - "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us."

 

I love this name, Emmanuel, because he really is "God with us", not just when he walked the Seas of Galilee, but at every moment of our lives. His hand is stretched out all the day long, and though we can't see him, we know and cannot deny that he is there. May we continue to invite his presence every day through our faith and efforts to become like him.

 

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Sincerely,

Elder Conner Brown

 

Oh, also Elder Charles and I are staying in Hershey for another transfer. Yay!!!

 

We had dinner on Christmas Day at the home of Elder Charles' sister.  Because we didn't have any other invitations for Christmas dinner in our area, we got special permission from the Mission President to have dinner at her home.  She lives just 15 miles away -- outside of our District and Zone.

 

Facebook Post 12/23/21

Merry Christmas!

 

Once again we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. His miraculous coming into the world testifies of his divine mission to provide redemption from sin and death.

 

Alma 7:10 - And behold, he shall be born of Mary, at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers, she being a virgin, a precious and chosen vessel, who shall be overshadowed and conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God.

 

I invite you to take some time to watch this awesome video, "The Christ Child", a 17 minute depiction of the nativity story. It was made to be as realistic as possible, even all spoken in Hebrew. As you watch, I invite you to ponder just how important this little child is. I know that as you do so, the spirit of Christmas will fill your hearts and homes.

 

You can also read more about what Christ did for us and why in Alma 7:11-13.

Hershey, PA - Week 11

subject:  Transfer 4.66?? and Christmas!

 

Hello there!

 

We got a lot of changes this week, since a lot of missionaries went home a couple weeks early for Christmas. 

 

One of the Elders who went home in our district was our district leader, Elder Carter, so that was the first change. That responsibility fell to me. Thankfully, President Wright gave me a couple weeks of warning that I would be District Leader soon, but it's still a big change. Should be a great experience, though, and the Lord will help when I stumble.

 

The next change was Elder Carter's companion, Elder Worthington, who is now our third companion here in Hershey. We were not expecting that change, and neither was our pantry. Lol, we got all the food we needed today, but we were a little confused the last couple meals what we were gonna do.

 

As far as the work goes, we had some awesome experiences as well. I went to Harrisburg Wednesday for exchanges with the zone leaders and we had dinner with a super nice member family. As we talked about their family and the area, I learned they were related to a returning member we had been trying to get in contact with for months now! We exchanged information and made plans to reach out them soon. 

 

We also had the ward Christmas program yesterday, which was a great experience for our investigator, B.! The night before, I learned one of the singers in a group performing in sacrament meeting was sick, so I got the music and learned it as best I could in a night and a morning so I could fill in. The song was a super cool arrangement of "O Come Emmanuel".

 

A scripture we've shared a lot with people this season has been Alma 7:10-12:

 

 10 And behold, he shall be born of Mary, at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers, she being a virgin, a precious and chosen vessel, who shall be overshadowed and conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God.

 

11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.

 

12 And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.

 

I think this is a perfect Christmas scripture because it describes not just how Christ was born, but why he was born. The nativity is a fantastic and inspiring story that fulfills and gives credit to all the prophets who have ever lived, but the true power of the story lies in that baby's destiny to provide us life, mercy, and strength.

 

So, I invite you all to watch The Christ Child with the mission of Jesus Christ in mind. I love the emotion you can see in the wise men's eyes because they know how important this child is. I also invite you to share the video with somebody you know and love. I know it will brighten their Christmas season, as well as yours.

 

 

 

Hope you all have a Merry Christmas!

 

Sincerely

Elder Brown the elder

 

A nice family took us out to dinner

My district

An older couple we are teaching offered us an old Santa suit, so we took it!  And used it in some photos for social media posts.

 

 

Hershey, PA - Week 10

Hello there!

 

Short email this week because of a busy p-day, but we had a wonderful week here in Hershey! 

 

One of our highlights this week was that 4 investigators came to the ward Christmas party! It was a good evening of food and getting to know ward members and watching the cute nativity skit the Youth had set up. 

 

Another highlight was zone conference this past Tuesday, where we talked about the Holy Ghost, the gifts of the spirit, and working better with members through Love, Share, Invite.

 

Third highlight was lots of appointments set up with brand new people we randomly met! The Christmas spirit softens people's hearts and invites them to focus on Christ during the holiday season.

 

The reason we're so busy today was District p-day. A lot of missionaries are going home this week just before the transfer ends so they get to go home before Christmas, so it'll be sad to see missionaries like our District Leader go.

 

Hope you all have a wonderful week and have a Merry Christmas!

 

Sincerely,

Elder Brown the Elder

 

Weekly debate games with the District -- we were debating whether a tomato was a vegetable or a fruit and we won.  Vegetable.

Hershey, PA - Week 9

Hello there!

 

December is here, so Christmas music is officially legal! 

 

Besides that, this week showed a lot of blessings and miracles. We are still working with B. and getting into the commandments now. He expressed desire to be baptized next spring, so we are super excited to keep working with him!

 

We also recently got back in contact with H.! When we met last week we talked about how much darkness there is in the world right now and how we can Light the World with our simple, daily acts of kindness. It was funny because as we started talking about it, the power went out 😂. Great time for an object lesson as we used our individual phone lights to light up the room.

 

Another wonderful couple we met with shared with us their experiences with members of the church and missionaries in the past. They talked about the light that we seem to had and we explained that is because of the Holy Ghost and the hope we have in Christ. We also felt prompted to ask if that was something they wanted and they said yes, that they would work toward baptism!

 

A recurring scripture this past week was Mosiah 24:15-16

15 And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord.

16 And it came to pass that so great was their faith and their patience that the voice of the Lord came unto them again, saying: Be of good comfort, for on the morrow I will deliver you out of bondage.

We shared this with a returning member really busy with his final exams coming up. The Lord doesn't just deliver us from our trials, he helps us push through them. As we rely on and trust him, he can make our burdens and our worries so light that we can barely feel them. 

 

Hope you have a great week!

愛しています！

Elder Brown the elder

 

Mission council at a member's home