Elder Conner Brown

Hershey, PA - Week 18

Hello there!

I'm getting transferred! I'm gonna miss this area a lot, and all the wonderful people I've been able to meet. My companion, Elder Charles is staying, though, and I trust him to keep the good work moving! (This will be his 5th transfer here, so he knows the place pretty well 😄)

 

I don't know if I mentioned in prior emails, but I've been serving as the DL (district leader) for last transfer. Gonna miss serving with the wonderful missionaries in our district who have been so hard working and so patient with me as I've learned how to be a DL.

 

 

 

Soon I'll be moving to "University Bus" where I will be serving the same calling, and my new companion will be Elder Taniguchi. He is also learning Japanese, so we'll be using that a lot around the apartment. 

 

As far as the work goes, this past week has been great! 

 

We received a media referral from a guy named T.. Started our first lesson with him and we felt prompted to start with the Plan of Salvation. Everything we taught just blew his mind, like how Christ knows every single one of us, the reason the fall was important. Even gave him a Book of Mormon to read and he accepted it. Super awesome guy looking to draw closer to God.

 

Also had a nice lesson with R., someone we haven't been able to meet in forever. Since it's been so long, we decided to go over the Articles of Faith, and it was cool to see going down the list he agreed with pretty much all of them. We have a reoccurring appointment happening now, so fingers crossed we can meet more often with him.🤞

 

Really sad to be leaving people like B, DJ, and the P's, but I know they'll be in good hands and I'll try and keep in touch as much as I can. 

 

During personal Study one day this past week, I was pondering Hebrews 11:1, what it might mean by "substance" 

 

1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

 

Then I read the footnotes where both the GR and JST change the word "substance" to "assurance", which I felt to mean assurance or confirmation by the spirit. Reading on from that point in the context of that word, it was cool to see each verse fit in how we understand the spirit speaks.

 

The spirit testifies when we hear truth that the world really was framed by Jesus Christ under the Father's direction. The Spirit assures us when our sacrifices and actions are acceptable before the Lord, as it did to Abel as well as Enoch. Anyone who comes before God must believe that he is and that he gives the assurances of his spirit to those who diligently seek him, or the action is vain.

 

Faith is a gift from God to all those who diligently seek it and believe they shall receive. It is given by the manifestations of his spirit as we try the experiment of the word and we tell by the spirit that "this is a good seed." (Alma 32:28-29) "Now behold, would not this increase your faith?"

 

Keep growing your faith and have a great week!

 

愛しています！

Sincerely,

Elder Brown the elder 

 

 

 

Hershey, PA - Week 17

Hello there! 

 

The work was kinda slow this past week in terms of finding people, but we had some great appointments to make up for it, especially member appointments. 

 

We had lots of lessons centered around Love, Share, Invite, for instance. We usually talk first about a principle of the gospel like Love or Enduring to the End or so forth and discuss with members how that principle has blessed our lives and brought us joy. We then ask who they think they could share those blessings with. There are a few things we try to emphasize when extending these invitations.

1. Everything we do comes from love and sincere concern for our friends.

2. It can be small and simple things, especially because we are trying to be normal and natural (the missionaries already take care of the random and unnatural inviting 😂)

3. As missionaries, we're here to help in whatever way members need/want. I love Elder Rasband's comparison of missionaries and members to the two rivers that make up the Amazon River. We're strong apart, but so much more powerful together.

 

Another cool experience this past week was meeting with a visiting member from Africa. He shared his experience investigating the Church for several years before being able to join. He has such a powerful testimony of modern prophets. He shared how when covid first hit, our church was the first in his country to close down. Members were laughed at for the "extreme" measures that were taken. However, it wasn't very long before all the other churches in the country closed as well. 

 

Speaking of prophetic measures in preparation for Covid, I'm trying to commit more to Come Follow Me this year. Moses 7 was a cool chapter to study last week, especially Enoch's vision where the Lord showed him all things.

 

It's interesting to me how every time a prophet is shown all things by the Lord, they focus on different aspects of the vision. Nephi focuses on things pertaining to the promised land, or the American continent. John seems to focus a lot on the latter days. I have no clue what Isaiah is focusing on, but Enoch seems to focus on the state of the people under Satan's influence, which is in stark contrast to the city of Zion Enoch founded with the strength of the Lord. 

 

His people "were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness" (Moses 7:18). Enoch rejoiced in his beloved brethren who were so righteous they were taken up to God. Nevertheless, when he saw all other nations, he "looked upon their wickedness, and their misery, and wept" (Moses 7:41). It's a good reminder that building Zion takes both building ourselves, and striving to build up others, strengthening our light, while always letting it shine for others.

 

Hope you all have a great rest of the week!

Sincerely,

Elder Brown the elder

 

Hershey, PA - Week 16

Subject: Zone Conference

 

Hello there!

 

As the name suggests, zone conference was a major highlight for the week. The main topic President Wright discussed was enduring to the end, its importance and blessings, and how Faith, Hope and Charity are related to it. (More on that at the end)

 

After Zone conference, I was requested to stay after so I could learn how to work the projector and television equipment. Apparently there's going to be a mission tour in late February and I will be working the systems for a couple of the meetings. Should be fun!

 

As far as lessons go, awesome things are happening in Hershey. DJ recently accepted the invitation to be baptized! It will be a little while before everything is learned and prepared, but his faith and dedication is both powerful and inspiring. He has taken every commitment diligently and he reminds me of what it means to hunger and thirst after righteousness. We asked one of the Priest quorum advisors if DJ seemed to enjoy priest quorum last Sunday. He was surprised and told us he thought DJ was already a member the way he participated. The Lord really does prepare people to receive his word!

 

Speaking of the Lord's preparations, we tried to stop by a couple who we had been trying to get in contact with for a long time. They weren't home sadly, but we felt prompted to come back 30 min later (8:45ish last contact before returning home). We came back and just as we arrived, the couple's car pulled into the driveway! By the Lord's timing we were able to get back in contact with them and set something up.

 

Going back to zone conference, we talked about Enduring to the End, using Faith, Hope and Charity. Whenever I think of those three things, I think of what Professor Merrill, my Book of Mormon professor at BYU taught me. 

 

Faith represents our relationship with God. As we strengthen our faith, we have greater access to his power, which helps us through all the trials and trouble in our daily lives, as we "walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7)

 

Hope represents our relationship with self. It is reflected by our optimism and outlook on our life and circumstances. "hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men," (Ether 12:4). 

 

Charity represents our relationship with others. It is the "love of God and of all men" (2 Nephi 31:20). All who are filled with this love have the privilege of being a light to those around them and becoming like Christ. 

 

As we strengthen our connection to each of these attributes daily, we become more like Christ and have a greater capacity to endure to the end.

 

Have a great week!

Sincerely,

Elder Brown the elder

 

Meeting for exchanges at the gas station

Zone Conference

Hershey, PA - Week 15

Hello there!

We had some really cool lessons and experiences this past week leading up to zone conference soon so I'll share a couple highlights.

So last week, we called somebody who responded to a church ad in our area named M.. The person who picked up the phone, though, explained that he was a translator for us and that M. was deaf! Even so, we did manage to set up a time we could reach out and set something up. When we came over for a meeting on Sunday, she answered the door, but there was no translator to help out. Thankfully, we had recently found out that Elder Edwards in our zone was assigned to learn and serve in ASL. While I awkwardly typed messages in my phone to communicate with her, my companion got him on video call and he was able to translate for us.

 

Turns out this lady was baptized in the church a long time ago and fell away about 20 years ago. She was interested, though, in drawing closer to Jesus Christ and meeting with us, so we are super excited to be meeting with her! It's so cool how the Lord puts people in just the right places where they are needed, like Elder Edwards. There also happens to be a family in our ward that practices some ASL and the father is willing to team up!

 

B. and D. are both progressing fantastically! We had lessons with both of them last week and have more scheduled this upcoming week. They have great questions and sincere desire to do what is right in God's eyes. It's inspiring to see how they truly "hunger and thirst after righteousness" (3 Nephi 12:6) and it has been so cool to be a part of their journey.

 

They were both at church yesterday and enjoyed the Come Follow Me discussions about Adam and Eve.

 

In our Sunday school, we focused primarily on the Fall and how the Atonement completed by Jesus Christ reverses its effects. Both events were foreknown and expected by our Heavenly Father and both were necessary for our eternal progression. 

 

Nevertheless, we know that the choice was given to Adam and Eve whether they would transgress, fall from the immediate presence of God, and suffer death in the flesh. Quoting Talmage's "Jesus the Christ",

"He was given commandment and law, and was free to obey or disobey-with the just and inevitable condition that he should enjoy or suffer the natural results of his choice." (Chapter 3, The Need of a Redeemer)

 

Likewise, it was Jesus Christ's voluntary choice to submit his whole will to the Father in a supreme expression of love for him and for us.

"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive."  1 Corinthians 15:22

 

Now it is our choice whether we will accept Christ and his teachings, letting our will be swallowed up in his, and return to the presence of God to never leave again.

"Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself." 2 Nephi 2:27

 

May we choose the better part, like Lehi, and enjoy all that the Father has in store for those who keep his commandments. 

 

Hope you have a great rest of your week!

 

Sincerely,

Elder Brown the Elder

 

Photo & text sent to my mom on Saturday:  "Your sons have been an amazing influence on our brother's baptism. We couldn't be more happy"

 

Hershey, PA - Week 14

Happy New Year!

 

Hope you all are healthy and well! We got hit with a bit of sickness recently. Conflicting opinions are telling us it's Omnicron or the flu, but at the end of the day, we're just sick, so we'll stay indoors until we're better.

 

The work's been moving forward, nonetheless! We did a lot of social media work and had a couple great finds on there. And lots of our appointments we were able to do virtually. I can only imagine getting sick before covid time and having pretty much nothing to do but call people while you're indoors. I feel very blessed that we're still able to keep busy no matter what!

 

Had some ups and downs in the work this past week. One of our investigators called us up this past week to say he doesn't want to meet anymore. He has a problem with organized religions not including all different types of ideas. Naturally, we respect the opinions, but at the end of the day, there's only one opinion that really matters, and that's our Heavenly Father's. The reason we go to church is to align our will with his, not justify or argue our own.

 

On the other side, we met this awesome high schooler who isn't a member, but came to church all by himself. Apparently he's read the Book of Mormon and had an awesome spiritual experience testifying that it is true. You can really tell he's hungering and thirsting after finding the truth and really knowing God. 

 

A brand new year and new beginning makes me think about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, how it's a gospel of beginnings. As we repent and come closer to Christ and renew our covenants, we continuously strive to be turned into new creatures in Christ.

 

Mosiah 27:25-27

25 And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters;

26 And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.

27 I say unto you, unless this be the case, they must be cast off; and this I know, because I was like to be cast off

May we become converted anew every week, every day, and every moment as we start a new year in 2022!

 

Happy New Year! 愛しています！

 

Sincerely,

Elder Brown the Elder

 

Hershey, PA - Week 13

Subject: Transfers and Omnicron

Happy New Year!

 

Hope you all are healthy and well! We got hit with a bit of sickness recently. Conflicting opinions are telling us it's Omnicron or the flu, but at the end of the day, we're just sick, so we'll stay indoors until we're better.

 

The work's been moving forward, nonetheless! We did a lot of social media work and had a couple great finds on there. And lots of our appointments we were able to do virtually. I can only imagine getting sick before covid time and having pretty much nothing to do but call people while you're indoors. I feel very blessed that we're still able to keep busy no matter what!

 

Had some ups and downs in the work this past week. One of our investigators called us up this past week to say he doesn't want to meet anymore. He has a problem with organized religions not including all different types of ideas. Naturally, we respect the opinions, but at the end of the day, there's only one opinion that really matters, and that's our Heavenly Father's. The reason we go to church is to align our will with his, not justify or argue our own.

 

On the other side, we met this awesome high schooler who isn't a member, but came to church all by himself. Apparently he's read the Book of Mormon and had an awesome spiritual experience testifying that it is true. You can really tell he's hungering and thirsting after finding the truth and really knowing God. 

 

A brand new year and new beginning makes me think about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, how it's a gospel of beginnings. As we repent and come closer to Christ and renew our covenants, we continuously strive to be turned into new creatures in Christ.

 

Mosiah 27:25-27

 

25 And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters;

26 And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.

27 I say unto you, unless this be the case, they must be cast off; and this I know, because I was like to be cast off

 

May we become converted anew every week, every day, and every moment as we start a new year in 2022!

 

Happy New Year! 愛しています！

 

Sincerely,

Elder Brown the elder

 

 

Snow - December 27 -- Haven't had much snow this year

 

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