I'm Getting Transferred....to the Same Ward!

Hey Everyone!
I have plenty of pictures this week, so the email this week might not be so long-winded, but we have plenty of pictures (which are each worth a thousand words).

In other news...I am getting transferred and leaving downtown Roanoke and Elder Jolley.  :(  I will miss biking the streets of Roanoke!  So, this whole week I was telling people I was getting transferred and leaving Roanoke, giving my heart....and THEN, it ends up, I am not getting transferred far.  I am actually not even leaving the Roanoke 1st ward.  I will be getting transferred to Botetourt (Bot-i-Tot) County.  My new Companion will be an Elder Shirley.

Mon. April 18:  For P-day, we went on a sweet hike to McAfee's Knob. 

See that Peak out there?

 

McAfee's Knob

We got our photo right, EVENTUALLY......  :)

Yes!

 

{The hike down}

We had a lesson with Sister Myra Cotton and Sister Roxanne Woods.

Myra & Roxanne

We followed up with them,on how the Word of Wisdom is going, and how they liked church the day before.  There were some talks on the temple at church, so we were able to explain some things about that, and talked about how they can look forward to taking their family names to the temple.

We helped Brother Lloyd move in some furniture...

Brother Lloyd

then we had a visit with him.

Tues. April 19:  We went and visited Brother Jack Turner.  He's a big Baseball fan, so it's always fun to talk to him. 

We had a lesson with Jim Flemming.  Brother Jack Turner came with us.  Jim was baptized by his grandfather, who was a Methodist minister, so it's really hard for him to just give that up and come to the LDS church instead of the Methodist church, or think about being baptized by proper authority.

We went to dinner with the Bishop at Logan's Roadhouse. 

We were able to teach Courtney and Johnathan about Baptism and Confirmation. 

Courtney & Jonathan

We hope to help them understand forgiveness and the Atonement, because Courtney doesn't believe she is/or ever will be worthy to be baptized.

Wed. April 20:  We were going to see Sister Hale with Brother Bullion but she wasn't feeling up for a visit so we went and saw Susan.

Susan

And talked with her about taking steps of Faith and facing trials.

We were able to meet up with Brian at Virginia Western Community College, 

Brian

and have a lesson with him - we showed him President Monson's talk, "Choices." 

Sister Williams (the Bishop's wife) is the music director for the ward, and we (all 6 missionaries) are singing this week in church, so she had us over for dinner and to rehearse the song.

{L to R: Elder Boer, Elder Clawson, Sister Kirkby, Sister Ward, Elder Brenchley, Elder Jolley}

 

Thur. April 21:  We had our weekly planning and we spent some time making some fliers for the upcoming Fireside. 

Brother Winkler took us to give some service to his former neighbors, then he fed us at his house afterwards. 

We had a lesson with Myra and Roxanne.  Sister Vest and Brother Dion came with us to it.

We had a member visit with the Miller's

The Miller's

Fri. April 22:  We had District meeting in the morning.

It was raining BUCKETS today!  We got caught in the rain; we had to stand under a random garage for about 45 minutes.

We were able to go setup some return appointments with some potentials and investigators. 

We had dinner at the Blevins'.

The Blevins'

Sat. April 23:  We had a couple of appointments cancel today.  :(

We were able to teach Tiffany, a new investigator. 

The Vance family, who lives on the same block as Susan, came with us to see her.  They were so friendly and wonderful for her. 

We had a lesson with Patricia.

Patricia

  Brother Caen came with us. 

Brother Caen

 

On Saturday night, I got the call that I was getting transferred next week.

Sun. April 24:  Church was good; the missionaries sang, "I Need Thee Every Hour." 

Myra had surgery on Friday, so she and Roxanne couldn't come.  At the time, I thought I was leaving Roanoke 1st Ward, so I was saying a lot of good-byes. 

The Fredrick's delivered a care package to me that Sister Fredrick had received from my mom when she was visiting in Utah this past week and went to my Farmington home to meet my family.

{Adam, a 9 yr. old kid in the ward - he saw me taking pictures with everyone, so he wanted one.}

We had three lessons cancel the rest of the day.  :(

We had dinner at the Blevins'.  (Then, afterwards, Sister Blevins called my mom and talked with her on the phone!  It's her "tradition" whenever an Elder is getting transferred out.)

Mon. April 25:  We had a visit with Brother Lloyd.

And then a visit with Garrett.

Garrett

  

We taught Courtney and Johnathan about the Atonement and forgiveness; they were really sad to see me go, BUT, what I didn't know until later Monday night, is that if they come to church, they can see me in the Roanoke 1st ward now.

We also went and saw Myra and Roxanne and taught them the Law of Chastity.  Myra was crying that I was leaving.

We saw Brother Avery, as well! 

Brother Avery

Well, that about sums up the week!  Look for all the pictures!  There is plenty of them! 

Andre Watkins

 

The Laymon's

The Gasore Family

 

Sister Arthur

Sister Hale

{a place we've had to go to get our bikes fixed a time...or ten!}

I found an interesting scripture this week, that'd I love to bear testimony of. 

1 Corinthians 10:13

13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

I know we are tempted with many things every single day; things that distract us, things Satan tries to trip you up with.  However, I know God will give us the strength to resist all temptations, and to choose right.  We will not be perfect, but we can always rely on God.  His team is the winning team! 

I Love You all! 

Love, Elder Brenchley

Just Another White Shirt Casualty

Hey Family and Friends,

It's another week in the books for the Lord; we had a good week.  I love my new companion, Elder Jolley. 

 

He is a sweet companion and is a powerhouse!  He's from Idaho Falls, Idaho.  He's been out 6 months.  He's 18 yrs. old; right out of High School.  He's a wrestler and likes to white-water kayak. He's the 2nd oldest of 4 kids and his older sister is a missionary in Texas right now.

To sum up this week: Transfers, Parade, Bike Wreck! 

We had transfers: goodbye Elder Maxfield,  Hello, Elder Jolley.  We were in the St. Patrick's parade for downtown Roanoke (it was fun).  And I totally ate it on my bike yesterday! 

March 7, Monday:  It was a long day of looking for people (who might not exist?) but all in the Lord's work. 

We went to one of Roanoke's famous places to eat; Texas Tavern. 

It's been around since 1930. Everyone has told us to go there and order a "Bowl With" & "Cheesy With."

{"Bowl with" = chili with onions, and "Cheesy with" = a cheeseburger/egg with onions}

 

We also had a lesson with Brother Ostrander.

 

March 8, Tuesday:  It was District Meeting today.

Our District

 

Brother Bullion came with us to see Roxanne and Myra.  They loved church and were excited to go back.  I had one of the cooler experiences of my mission in this lesson - something I haven't done since helping my little siblings to pray.  We invited Roxanne to say the closing prayer; she was nervous and didn't want to do it in front of other people.  I went over to her chair and knelt down on one knee and said, "How 'bout I help you?"  So I would say something, "Dear Heavenly Father," then she would repeat it.  She did an excellent job!  They both are wonderful and are some of my favorite people. 

We had a lesson with Brother Tourville.

We got to have dinner at Thelma's Chicken & Waffles (another food place Elder Maxfield wanted to try before he headed out.)

We had a nice visit with the Fischer's.

{The Cowling's}

 

March 9, Wednesday:  P-Day.

We had dinner at the Blevins' (they really liked Elder Maxfield).  Brother Jack Turner was there, too - both really liked Elder Maxfield and were sad to see him go. 

We had a really good lesson with Johnathan and Courtney.  They wouldn't commit to come to church, but they said they would come to the ward party.

We saw the Bell family. 

Then Brother McBride came with us to see the Gasore family, but none of the fluent French speakers were there! 

 

March 10, Thursday:  I said Goodbye to Elder Maxfield.

Elder Maxfield & I

I spent the day with Elder Palmer (he's in Vinton).  He's a stud.  I'd love to serve with him some day.

We found and taught a man named, Marion - he was just chilling on his porch.  He's a really cool guy.  He got teary eyed as he read Moroni 10:3-5.  It was really awesome! 

I got Elder Jolley in the afternoon.

THEN the two appointments we had cancelled. :(

 

March 11, Friday:  We had weekly planning, and I was able to fill Elder Jolley in on the area.  He is really excited to be here. 

We went and saw Brother Tourville and he invited his neighbor to join in on the lesson.  The neighbor's name is Garrett - he's a young guy, age 32, and he has been running away from religion his whole life.  He was very intrigued by our message, and even decided he should be baptized if this was the correct church!  Woohoo! 

We had a lesson scheduled with Brother Lloyd, and he invited over his friend, Jim, who we have taught before.  Back to back, it was great to see members inviting non-members over when the missionaries were coming! 

Our ward party was tonight - it was the Pinewood Derby, as well.  Courtney and Johnathan came, and Courtney brought her son, Lucas.  They had a great time; so many people went up to them and chatted with them. 

 

March 12, Saturday:  We were in the St. Patrick's parade here in Roanoke. 

We helped volunteer in the morning, then jumped in the parade after we were done. 

My companion, Elder Jolley & I

We had a great Family History float.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had another great lesson with Myra and Roxanne - they are reading the assignments we give them.  They both said they could prepare for April 9 as a Baptismal date.  They really want to know that it is true before they are baptized.  We promised them they could! 

We also had a good lesson with Sister Hale.  Then we had dinner with Sister Cook; Brother Arrington came with us to both.

 

March 13, Sunday:  Myra came to church.  Roxanne got confused with the Daylight Savings, whoops.

Brother Winkler was out with us for the day; we were able to talk to several people who we were suppose to teach, but they asked to reschedule, like Brother Nate Henegar, and Shawn & Nate.

We did meet and started teaching this lady from England named, Susan.  She's a former investigator and I told her I have a pretty darn good British accent.  She requested I spend the rest of the lesson speaking in a British accent, and even said the closing prayer in a British accent, too!  Haha.

I wrecked on my bike just 3 blocks away from our house.

 

We had a nice visit with the Miller's, and we gave Brother Miller a blessing.

As of late, I have been drawn to how the Gospel blesses families so much.  My biggest testimony of this has to be that of my own raising in a family who enjoyed the blessings of the Gospel.  I have loved sharing "The Family: A Proclamation to the World." 

THE FAMILY is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities.

I truly love how much the Gospel is meant to bless families. God is an eternal God, so then everything he created (including families) is meant to be eternal as well. I am excited to continue to find and teach families. 

 

I love this Gospel, and know it will bless you and your family! 

 

Love, Elder Brenchley 

The Perfect Sunday to have Investigators Come to Church

Hey Y'all!

It's transfer week again and Elder Maxfield is heading to Flatwoods, WV.  I am sad to see him go; he has been a great example to me of what a good, Christlike man we should all strive to be!

I am getting Elder Jolley as my new companion - he is coming from Fairmont, WV.  He just got done serving with Elder Braxton Johnson, my former comp in B.V. 

This week was full of so many great things.  We started off the week really rocky - barely teaching anybody, barely finding anyone, but we hit our stride about Thursday and finished strong!  I think we taught about 16 lessons and found 7 new investigators!  It's awesome!  We had two investigators come to church, as well; Myra and her sister, Roxanne! 

Well, I just realized I forgot my journal pages at home, so this might be a vague weekly update! 

Here's the week! 

Mon. Feb. 29:  Leap Day/P-Day.

Brother Winkler came to the church with all his camera equipment, and was taking pictures of us.  He had the flashing strobe lights and everything. 

We went and visited Sister Franklin, a less-active member who wants to return to activity.  She lives in such a bad part of town that they haven't ever assigned her Visiting Teachers.  It's been great to see the ward still reach out and try to find her a better place to live. 

We were able to meet with Patricia - she is the Jamaican lady.  She enjoyed The Restoration lesson, but had concerns about being baptized again.  You'd think after me hearing this one a million times, I'd have a "silver bullet" answer to this that just fixes their concern on the spot.  Not quite.  She will have to read from the Book of Mormon to understand Priesthood authority.

Tues. Mar. 1:  We taught Brother Gary Tourville - he finally gave us a hard commitment to come to church this Sunday!
Tonight we had dinner at the Cowling's.

Wed. Mar. 2:  We met with Brother Lloyd and talked about the Word of Wisdom.
Bishop Williams took all the missionaries out to dinner to Logan's Roadhouse.  It was a good opportunity to get to know Bishop Williams, and also get his insights on certain people we are working with in the ward, or ask him for assignments to go see people.
We had Missionary Coordination meeting.

Thur. Mar. 3:  We did our weekly planning.
We had Brother Richardson come with us to see Jasim, but he wasn't home, but we were able to go see "M" and she expressed she really wanted to come to church on Sunday!
We then had dinner with the Blevins' and Brother Jack Turner.

Jack Turner

Blevins'

The lesson was on the temple and the importance it has in our lives.  All three of them have not been to the temple yet, and we really want to help them go.  Jack is thinking he'll go when he goes up to Baltimore for opening day for the Baltimore Orioles - then can go to D.C., as well.
We had planned to go to a Baptism of an 8 yr. old tonight, but then we decided not to because we didn't have an investigator or a less-active coming.  We were blessed for our diligence!  We were able to meet a cool guy named, Brad and get a return appointment.
Then we tried an old potential investigator named, Lori.  After a life-changing event, she has been really humbled and wants to do anything she can to come closer to God.  We were able to teach her right there on the doorstep; she was eager to receive a Book of Mormon.
Then we were able to teach the Adam family (at least half of them), Endesiar and Mohomoud.  We gave them an Arabic Book of Mormon and read the introduction with them.  They stated, "We are Muslim. But this...We are curious."

Fri. Mar. 4:  We had a wonderful zone meeting.

{Elder Caldwell, Elder Esplin (the other Esplin's younger brother), and Me}

 

We got a call from President letting Elder Maxfield know that he would be leaving, and called him as a District Leader.  I'm pumped for Elder Maxfield!  President also told me a little bit about my new companion without giving anything away.  He also released me as District Leader.
We were able to have Brother Huffman come with us to see Patricia.  Her son, Kidane, was there and he was really involved in the lesson.
We had a lesson in the Laymon's home for Johnathan and Courtney.  The Laymon's did a great job at fellowshipping, but Courtney and Johnathan aren't progressing.  Hopefully something will click for them. 

Sat. Mar. 5:  We exchanged with the Salem 2 Elders; Elder Kelly came with me to Roanoke and Elder Maxfield went with Elder Rose to Salem.
We had the Cowling's come with us to see Myra.  We made a plan to have the Cowling's give her a ride to church the next day.  Myra's sister, Roxanne, was there and we invited her to sit in on the lesson.  The lesson was great; we read from 2 Nephi 31.  They both said they would come to church tomorrow.
We had a lesson with Brother Gary Tourville - he's set to come to church tomorrow.  Bummer though, he got rid of all his birds (6).  I got attached to those birds!
We had a quick lesson with the Wohlford couple.
Brian had to cancel our appointment with him. 

Sun. Mar. 6:  Church was great!  Gary came!
Myra and Roxanne came, as well! (2 investigators at church)  They both came!  It had to be the best church experience I have ever seen two non-members have.  They arrived early and sat with the members who drove them.  By coming early, they were able to be introduced to a lot of members.  It was a spiritual Fast and Testimony meeting.  Their cousin, who's a member, showed up and gave them the biggest hug, and escorted them to all their classes.  They participated in Gospel Principles class.  At the end of church, we set up a return appointment and they gladly told us, We will be back to church next week!  Later we heard how much they enjoyed Relief Society and Myra stood up in Relief Society and expressed to the sisters, This is the most love I have ever felt in any church.  The power of church is remarkable!
We were also able to see Shawn and Nicole.  Shawn is a less-active member and his girlfriend, Nicole (investigator), is very interested in starting the journey of becoming an eternal family!  They have the cutest 1 yr. old daughter.
Also, we were able to get in with Brother Henegar, and he committed to come to Salem ward since he says he can't wake up for 9:00 a.m. church, but thinks he would do better at 11:30 a.m. church.
With the Gasore family, we had them read scriptures from the French Book of Mormon and the Kirundi Bible.  I ordered some Swahili Book of Mormons for them, too.

The Scripture I want to share this week is D&C 31:11

11 Go your way whithersoever I will, and it shall be given you by the Comforter what you shall do and whither you shall go.

We were so blessed to follow the Spirit; to help us find new investigators as well as families to teach, and what to teach them.  As we live worthy of The Spirit (also called the Comforter) to guide us in our lives, we will be given WHAT we should do and WHERE we shall go!  I so testify of this.  It was amazing to see this past week!  I love Missionary Work, but I wouldn't love it if I didn't do it by the Spirit!  I invite y'all to look to have the Spirit with you more, to pray for it more, to search in the scriptures how you can obtain more guidance from the Spirit.  The Spirit is truly wonderful! 

Love You All! 

Love, Elder Brenchley 

Short Sleeves in December!

Hey Everyone! 

Again, Merry Christmas!  

And as you may or may not have heard...I'm getting transferred to Roanoke.  My area will be "Roanoke Walk." (Yep, without a car again). 

I'll be in the heart of downtown Roanoke (the biggest city of our mission).  My new companion will be Elder Maxfield; I've talked to him once before, and it was just small talk, but he seems really cool.  So, I was released as a zone leader, which I'm a bit sad; I think more sad because I have to leave BV a week before Christmas, but I will be all right.  I have been called as a District Leader down there. 

So, I've had the wonderful opportunity to be able to go say goodbye to tons of people I've worked with!  So, expect a lot of pictures with this email! 

The Siegels'

Bike helmet head with the Furler's

 

The Gordon's

The Flores'

 

Brother Adams (Davis County native, fellow Viking, Go Utes!)

 

Randy Redcross

It was so warm this week - most of the week we were out in short sleeve shirts.  It hit 70 degrees on Sunday.

Mon. Dec.7:  P-Day. 

It's week 6 of the transfer - where did it go?!  

We had dinner with Brother Thompson.  Then Brother Thompson came with us to see the Barrientos', and we shared with them #asaviorisborn. 

Joe & Ashley cancelled on us, so we were really sad about that.

But, we were able to find a new investigator named, Shandellia.

Tues. Dec. 8:  We were busy all day, trying to see people.  We even had Brother Hilburn come with us to our appointment with Jose. (We are blessed with many RM's here in BV.)  However, Jose wasn't there. :(   

We had dinner at the Lowry's.

We contacted a referral from the Mann's; her name was Cathy.  She is such a nice lady. We've downloaded the #asaviorisborn video on our phone, so we've been showing everyone that!  Cathy was appreciative, and commented on how good her Mormon neighbors are, but she's not ready to get up and leave her Catholic faith. 

Wed. Dec. 9:

We went on exchanges with the Clifton Forge Elders; Elder Higgins came with me to Buena Vista.

We felt inspired to stop our bikes, and talk to this great guy named Keith.  It turns out, he's in a Christian Heavy Metal Band.  I didn't know they had those.  But, we related to him; his love for his son with the love Heavenly Father has for us, and the biggest expression of that love was #asaviorisborn.  He loved it, and he wanted us to stop by.

We spent a good chunk of time today preparing for Specialized Training and Stake Correlation meeting.

We had dinner with the Edwards'. (I think I mentioned he's Lavell Edwards' grandson).

We went and saw the Ramirez', and it was one of the better lessons we've had with them  We showed them #asaviorisborn and discussed why a Savior is born - which led to the Sacrament.  Brother Flores, who was with us, invited them to the Gospel Principles class he teaches and said he would do it in Spanish.  Sister Ramirez liked the idea and said she'd come to Church when she didn't have work.  Brother Ramirez really opened up, and expressed how he didn't want to be pushed into coming to church.  He wants to get it in his heart first before he does anything.  We told him we wanted to help him get there.  Little steps.

Thur. Dec. 10:

We had Specialized Training in the morning, which we headed up setting up!  It was a special Christmas one.  So, President Salisbury & Sister Salisbury each gave us their Christmas cards and presents (golden thought journals).  We watched Meet the Mormons as part of it, and the BV Relief Society fed us lunch.  As always, we sing West Virginia "Called To Serve" for those who feed us. (see video)  

After Specialized Training, we had Stake Correlation with President Jones and President Salisbury.

{Post Mission Coordination meeting selfie with Brother Turman and the Flores'}

We were able to have a lesson with Sister McCowen, and Brother Turman took us.  Sister Hilburn was already there when we got there.  We were able to teach her the Restoration, and show her the four minute video clip of The First Vision.  It was the first time she saw it, and she was really touched by it.

We had dinner at the Hilburn's. 

The Hilburn's

I had the worst headache come on, so I had Elder Johnson and Brother Hilburn give me a blessing.  I was ordered by Elder Johnson and Sister Salisbury to get some rest. 

Fri. Dec. 11:

  We had weekly planning.

We had a discussion with Mark Tomlin; he can't really progress, and doesn't want to.  He doesn't believe that we are children of God.  He does believe in prayer, including sometimes it takes years of praying to receive your answer, so I felt inspired to ask/commit him to pray for an answer to if he was a son of God.  And he said he would.  We tried to leave on good terms, but he kept spitting out anti to us.  Here's a new one: The Book of Mormon is plagiarized!  Never heard that one before.

We had a great dinner with the Hand's.  At one point, in the prayer over the food, I said, "And please bless the hands who prepared this food."  I started cracking up after.

George

Also, had a good lesson with George on prophets, and how that is one of the reasons why this is Jesus Christ's true church.  He seemed really interested.  

Sat. Dec. 12: 

Well, we were running around out of our minds today.  Correction: biking around out of our minds today.  We've received a couple of referrals from members, asking who we can share #asaviorisborn with.  No one has been that interested yet, but some have let us at least share the video with them.

The Roberts' with Bri & Jimmy

We saw the Roberts and Bri & Jimmy. (ages 10 & 11)

We had dinner at the Bowen's - that's where we looked up the email, and saw that I was going!

Our lesson with George fell through.

JB & McKayle had to reschedule to the morning.

We also had a great lesson with Sister McGowen and explained more to her.  

Going to an appointment with Brother Monson

Brother Monson came with us. 

Sun. Dec. 13: 

We had a long lesson with JB & McKayla.  The Jacobsen's came with us, and they invited them over for dinner with us on Wednesday.  JB's not sure he can change religions or beliefs. McKayla seems fine doing whatever.

Church was really good.  Since I was leaving, I became the number one option to fill the opening prayer that day. 

Church was wonderful - it seemed like it flew by.  It was the Ward Christmas program.  They made an announcement in Relief Society that I was leaving, so I had like seven Sisters in a row tell me, "Thank You," and they were sad to see me go.  I felt like a celebrity there for a little bit.

{Ian Olerich, he's the man!}

We had dinner at the Fuentes' house.  

The Fuentes'

Me and Elder Johnson split a foot long Chilean steak sandwich - so good! 

Mon. Dec. 14:

  We had district meeting in the morning.

Then had a good visit with Severin (see picture).

Severin

He's stopped investigating for now, but it's good for us to keep contact with our former investigators - plus I had to get a picture of him!

We had dinner at Carrol's, then

visited with the Stoneman's.
 

Langford's

Howard's

I said goodbye to the Howard's and Langford's.

Tues. Dec. 15:

We were busy seeing everyone, including the Stanton's, the Lowry's, the Hand's, the Walker's, the Camden's and the Mahaffey's.

The Lowry's

 

The Walker's

The Hand's

 

The Camden's

 

The Mahaffey's

Well, you may have noticed that I mentioned #asaviorisborn a lot!  It is so powerful! 

I know that a Savior is and was born.  He loves each of us!  As I have continued to discover why a Savior was born, my appreciation has grown for the Christmas season.  I have had literally just contact with the true meaning of Christmas.  It has been wonderful!  Merry Christmas! 

Love, Elder Brenchley! 

I have to go pack....