Elder Brigham Blake

Email: Brigham.Blake@myldsmail.net

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Visit to San Fran

I was in San Fran yesterday so I got permission to write today.
San Fran was AMAZING!! I cried like a baby saying goodbye to my converts, Astrid, Milagros, Miranda and Alexandria. Wow! They are all doing sooo well. I don't have much time because I'm here instead of eating lunch and we just got back from a killer service (we mixed cement for 4 hours) and I woke up yesterday at 4:30 am. So I am legit exhausted!!!
 
I have A new comp. hahah Isaac I'm finishing my mission with an Argentinian!! He is new in the mission so he still speaks like a capo....I have a hard time understanding his accent at times but he is super cool. He is from Buenos Aires but worked in Salta. He's a funny guy, kind of weird but he has a ton of animio and I'm going to finish strong with this young buck!
 
Well let me write you all a hand written letter when I have time. But seriously this work is sooo amazing, and I'm seeing all the fruits of my labor. Visiting with Milagros and hno Miranda a mission profecia was completed. They both, with tears in their eyes gave me the credit for bring the gospel into their lives and blessing them as a future sealed family. I'll have to explain this all in better detail when I'm home, 3 weeks, crazy huh?
 
All is normal para que sepan! I feel normal, just in the grind!!
Con mucho amor.
Elder Blake
 
Edinson!!

Hermana Shira!!

Familia Mendez!!!!

La Bella Vista de Moca.

Food they made for me

Greatest family the DR has ever seen (I'm an adopted member)
 

Monday, July 11, 2016

Pday in MOCA

Well I'm in Santiago and have to catch the five o clock bus to Dajabon in 45 minutes. Also this is the worst space bar I've ever used. In other words this will go down in history for the worst pday letter I ever write. Haha But I'm coiming home so soon that it won't really matter. 4 more pdays el diache!!

Today I left Dajabon at 5:30 am to go to Moca!! It was been such an AWESOME day. I got to hangout with my converts, Shira, Carlos, Freddy and Edinson. They are all doing SOOOO well. Edinson is going on a mini mission next week, Carlos when to EFY in Bonao last week and LOVED IT. Freddy is now the teachers quorum president and loves passing the sacrament, but best of all Shira is going to the temple the week after I'm going home. She is such a sweet soul and her testimony brought me to tears. When I knocked on her door she ran up yelled BLACKAY!! and hugged me before I could even react. We were talking about how much had changed in this past year and then she bore her testimony of the blessings God has given her. She really let her light shine forth. I left Moca in January thinking that there was a whole lot more that I could have done, but passing through today made me realize how worth it it was to work as hard as I did. Shira's testimony alone has made these past two years of prayers, sweat and tears worth it. After, I shared with her Mosiah 2:24 and started crying as I bore my testimony. I didn't think it would be soo hard to leave. But I still have 1 month left!!

As for Dajabon everything is going well. Only our investi Julian came to church. Josafina and Joselo couldn't, I cant remember why. But Julian is a huge stud. He lives out in the middle of nowhere!! He lives in a small wooden shack with dirt floor but he is one of the happiest people I've ever met. He was a reference and has been to church three weeks in a row. Last week we invited him to be baptized for the 30th but he said he would need more time. He had been visiting another church for about two years but realized it wasn't for him. We are pushing hard with prayer and the BoM. He has difficulties reading but he is really in tune with the spirit. 

We have transfers on Wednesday and I think my comp is out, so hopefully all will go well. I am going to freaking die in 4 weeks and now it's really starting to hit!!
Well I love you all and I know this church is true. 
Keep praying and studying!!
Con Amor,
 Elder Blake

Gratitude

Happy fourth everyone. I forgot that it was our country's special day. What a blessing it is to have freedom of speech and religion.

Not much to report on this week. It's been hot, as usual and that's made it hard to sleep. I feel like I'm living inside a furnace, but my body is not completely used to it. We went to take out money in a bank on Friday morning and there was air conditioning!! Haha After about two minutes I got really cold and had goosbumps. It's gonna be a rough adjustment in 5 weeks!!

Well we are working hard! Lilo and Josafina didn't show up to church on Sunday. We are going to their house after writing, so vamos a ver lo que paso. I was able to talk to Lilo's mother (super faithful member) on Friday during an intercambio with Elder Stratton. He has had a lot of problems with other women and playing the lottery, but I think we are going to fast with them. He is also making us dinner tonight a locrio de arrence. I'm pretty pumped. People have been giving us soo much food latley. Rice, chicken and fried platanos. 

We had two investis at church. Joselo and Julian. Joselo now has a date for the 30th of this mes. He is a charlatan, he comes to church and prays disque but he refuses to read. Please pray for the guy? Julian has come to church twice now but he lives so far away and has such a tough work schedule that we have actually never been to his house, but as soon as we get there we are totally gonna teach this guy to repent!! He seems super cool. Well, todo is good here in the Dajabon Zion.

Cool moment, I went on a intercambio with Elder Stratton this past week. He is a fairly new missionary and training; I love the guy. He has a difficult time talking to people. He doesn't really know how to just walk up to someone and start talking to them. All the lessons fell through so I taught him how to contact. We contacted into this awesome family. They are pretty young, quizas mid thirties and have 4 kids. We talked about the restoration. The dad said that when he decided to join a church it'll definitely be the Mormons because we are always in the streets. We taught about the Book of Mormon and invited them to read it. Stratton and Gonzales are going back tonight. With Stratton I realized how much I've learned here, and how little time I have left. It's sad but I'm just gonna keep working hadddd until the last minute!!!

Love y'all!!
Elder Blake

Semana que se yo?!?!

Weayyyyy wow this week went by SOOO fast!!
I don't like having pday on Mondays because it makes the week go by a lot quicker, and with the poco time that I felt, these last 6 weeks are going to be over before I know it. Not cool!! I wish I could be a missionary forever!!

Well not a whole lot to report on. Stevenson's baptism was a hit. He scared us a little bit. He asked us Saturday morning if he could get baptized right then and there because he is out of money and getting kicked out of his house, he was going to go straight back to Haiti. He only pays about 40 bucks a month to live in a one room shack. As a Haitian its really hard for him to find work here. Dominicanos are pretty racist towards Haitians. However, we helped him out a little bit and he got a job as a Creole teacher in August. We gave him a little money so that he can stay in his apartment until August. It looks like he will be having to come back and fourth from Haiti these next few weeks. I don't know if I mentioned this but he studied for two years to become a Catholic priest. He came to understand the restored gospel and gave up that part of his life. Every prayer he offers he gives thanks to God for giving him the chance to come to the knowledge of the restored gospel. I love the guy soo much!! After his baptism we took him out to get pizza and he told us that he felt so clean. It was a very special moment.

The work is moving forward. We had an awesome partial family show up to church. Josafina (non member) comes EVERY week, she really wants to get baptized, but her husband, Lilo (long time less active) isn't really about it. But, they came as a whole family hoy! Kids and everything. They have a super funny 3 year old named Miguel. I call him Adam because he HATES cloths. Miguel left the primary room, went to a secluded corner and took off ALL his cloths in the church. He made quite the scene. No one said anything though. 

Well to wrap up, I was reading in 2 nefi 33 and trying to discover things that I might have not yet understood. The light of the gospel keeps illuminating my mind and I love it! I love the light of the gospel. 2nd nefi 33 10 reads,  10 And now, my beloved brethren, and also Jewand all ye ends of the earth, hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these wordsfor they are the words of Christ, and he hath given them unto me; and they teach all methat they should do good.
 11 And if they are not the words of Christ, judge ye—for Christ will show unto you, with power and great glory, that they are his words, at the last day; and you and shall stand face to face before his bar; and ye shall know that I have been commanded of him to write these things, notwithstanding my weakness.
Well, as Nephi says if we believe in Christ we will believe in his words, o sea the Book of Mormon. I thought a lot about what this really means. Obviously he couldn't have been speaking of a passive belief in Christ. A passive belief requires no effort or self exertion. The test of our faith is more precious than gold, because its worth and glory is eternal. If we truly believe in Christ we will know that He is the son of a living tangible god. My testimony is based on this simple church doctrine. I know that Christ is the savior of the world, our father sent him to the earth to suffer and die for all of us. The Book of Mormon, in my opinion is an unmatched testimony of the divinity of our savior. I love this work, and invite you all to participate.

Elder Blake