It is. I know it. God knows it.

I'm so excited to go to the temple and perform the Endowment for John H. Call. I'm getting a little emotional the more I look at the card, because, I was the one that was proxy for his baptism, confirmation and initiatory. It will be emotional to go through for his endowment. I'm glad that you had that great experience to attend a branch such as Ranchester. Most of the Branches on the Reservation are like that. Small in numbers, but large in spirit. 

I'm sad that I won't be with you for this round of Disney, but I'm sure you will have a fun time without me.

This week was pretty good. We had Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge of the 70 come and address the mission. He was so nice, and so spiritual.

Tarra didn't get baptized on Saturday, so it will probably be either this weekend or next.

Marcus is still working towards the temple.

Linda C. returned to church this Sunday. She hasn't been to church in a long time. It was great to see her there.

I've started studying Jesus the Christ again, and I had an amazing revelation given to me when paralleling Talmage's take on the names of Christ with what the Lord told Moses in the burning bush. Moses asked, "Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?" The Lord said, "I AM THAT I AM". Talmage says, "The central fact connoted by this name, I Am, or Jehovah, the two having essentially the same meaning". I thought that verse meant that was saying, "It doesn't matter who I am, just know that I am here, and I am thy God." But now I realize that Christ was revealing himself unto Moses. He is the one that would come into the world to complete and fulfill the very law that Moses would receive at his hand and his mouth. Interesting how Christ is so intricate in all aspects of our lives. He knows us. He wants us to come unto him. He needs us to fulfill his work.Without Christ, we are nothing, and without us, his work would not roll forth out to the mount.

I'm almost finished with the Book of Mormon. It's been great to study in depth the counsels of Mormon and Moroni. They truly saw our day. They admonish us to Come unto Christ. I love the Book of Mormon and this Gospel. No man can honestly and sincerely read and pray about it and then say it isn't true. It is. I know it. God knows it. I stand with Nephi when he said, "If ye believe not in these words, believe in Christ. And if ye believe in Christ, you shall believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ. And you and I shall stand face to face at his bar, and you will know that I have been commanded of him to write these things."

I am so excited for this week. Elder Cook and Elder Echohawk are coming to the mission on the 30th of this month. The entire mission will gather in Farmington to hear an Apostle of the Lord. It should be amazing.

That's all for this week. We will get transfer news next weekend, the 23rd, and Elder Brurud and I are both hoping things stay the same.

Love you,

Elder Breinholt

Ya'at'eeh Shima (Hello Mother)

Aoo', I am used to it again. It's good to be back. (responding to if he is used to Elder Breinholt again)

I agree, I think it was one of the best Conferences I've watched. All the talks were good. I really enjoyed  D. Todd Christofferson's talk Yesterday morning. It really made me miss Dad. :) There was a lot of  Marriage and Family talks. I liked Elder Rasband's talk, shooting down the people that opposed, right after they did so. Elder Oaks addressed that group of people quite eloquently!  It makes me sad when people oppose our prophets seers and revelators. President Nelson looked sad when they showed his face after one of the opposing votes. If people want to oppose, why are they still members? Why do they still profess to be disciples of Christ. If they oppose, they are not true disciples.

I loved President Monson's talk. I loved when he said choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong. So true. It's easier to live the gospel if we want to. It might be difficult at first, but it will be worth it in the end.

I thought about that as Elder Hales was speaking too! (Ben drew a picture of Elder Hales one yeaer at conference time)  We actually had to leave right before Elder Hollands talk, because it's starting to be Fire season. A fire started behind one of the former bishop's property. He asked us to come over just in case the brush behind his house caught fire. Luckily it didn't. So I downloaded the MP3 of his talk, and we will listen to it as we go to Kirtland to go golfing. It should be fun.

President Uchtdorf's talk was hilarious in Priesthood Session. Don't ask me to take a selfie of Dad and you. :)

This week was decent for us. We didn't get to see as many people as we would have liked because of Zone Conference on Thursday and General Conference this past weekend. We have just been busy focusing on the people that are getting close to either baptism, or the temple. It should be good this week. We are going to work extra hard to make up for the time we missed during Zone Conf and General Conf.

Zone Conference went really well, I got to see some awesome people that I haven't seen in a while. The Assistants gave a training on Selflessness. It's something that I thought I was doing fairly well at, but I do have things I need to work on.

I love you too.

I will continue to do all of those things.

Hagonnee',

Elder Breinholt

Aoo' Ya'at'eeh Easterdi!

Easter is an amazing time to reflect on the Savior's life and sacrifice for us. I love Easter for that reason! I am so grateful for the gospel in my life. I love everything about it.

My week was good! I've seen quite a few miracles happen in our area this past week. We taught a total of 31 lessons this week. We busted our butts, and it's paid off. We had very spiritual lessons with everyone we saw. Sonny B. was Baptized on Saturday, and confirmed on Sunday. It was awesome to see that! I think the most rewarding thing that happened this week was two lessons we had with a new investigator family, the G. Family. Frieda, Lawrence and Sheldon. They are all Active Methodists, but they love having us over. The missionaries used to stop by every week. Brother C., one of the former Bishops, is really good friends with them. He is going to come to the lesson we have on Thursday with them. We just need them to come to church with us one time, and I think they might just want to come back... Funny how the spirit works like that. We had a lesson with Marcus on Saturday, We talked a lot about fulfilling our callings. He told us he was a ward missionary, so we asked if he would be willing to go to lessons with us. He said he would. Man, that guy is awesome. There was a Early Morning Easter program that the Kirtland Stake primary put on. It was a pretty cool thing to experience. Marcus picked us up early Sunday morning to go to it. He really enjoyed it. We had another visit with him last evening. We talked about his testimony, his reason for wanting to attend the Temple, and Patriarchal Blessings. His desires are righteous. He wants to come to church and receive the blessings of the gospel. He is starting to realize the eternal significance of everything we do and teach. It's been really neat to see. Tarra is set to be baptized two weeks from Saturday, she is really excited. During weekly planning, the spirit told us that Marcus needs to be Tarra's fellow-shipper. He asked us why Tarra sat alone in sacrament. Maybe the lord has something in mind for them, maybe not. I think he would really help her to solidify her testimony. He has been on the upward climb after a downward slide for a few months. Someone who is really working hard for the gospel should be a really good example for Tarra. We are really excited for how things are panning out in this area.

Something unfortunate that happened, we had to drop a less active guy that we were working with. The lesson we had with him yesterday was terrible. We were teaching the Plan of  Salvation, and literally everything we taught, he just argued with us about it, using unstable verses from the Bible. And it hadn't been just that lesson, it was every lesson we had with him before that too, but this one was worse than any of the other ones. It was really sad, and I think the Lord was a little upset too.

Everything else this week went really well though.

Keep up the hard work! Love you,

Elder Breinholt

I'm loving Shiprock!

Ya'at'eeh Shima,

I love how the Lord used that symbol as well. I've thought a lot about that. If you think about how the temple is where we go to feel closer to the Lord, its so true. In a sense, the Temple is a Terrestial place for two reasons. 1. If the savior were to appear to the prophet, apostles, or anyone, he would most likely show himself in the Temple and 2.The adversary cannot and will not enter therein. So thus we are free from the influence of the adversary when we are worthy and valiant in attending the temple and honoring the covenants we make there. That's why it is necessary that we are worthy to go and participate in the ordinances there. If we are not, the influence of the adversary will take hold more than we thought possible. That's probably why those people who have entered into the Temple, made covenants and then fallen away are so hostile to the Church and specifically the ordinances we perform in the Temple. It is truly a higher plane than the world in which we live in today. I just thought you would find that parallel interesting.

(In response to the dedication of the Provo City Center Temple)

I heard that that was happening! Man, I would love to have been there to experience it. I hope one day I will be able to be present at a Temple Dedication. That is so cool! Elder Oaks is just amazing. I'm so excited to hear what he has to say at G-Conf. I'm just all around excited for General Conference. We get spiritual revelation to help the people we work with, and we don't have to wear our suit coats to proselyte anymore (...well, 'til October Conference)! It's so awesome!! 

This week has been equally good if not better than last! So many amazing things are happening in this ward. We have a baptism on Saturday for a kid named Sonny B. He's either 12 or 13, but his Mom is a returning member. She is awesome. We are so excited for him to get baptized. We have a baptism 2 weeks from Saturday for a girl named Tara Foster. She is solid! She knows she wants to be baptized. She lived up in Ogden when she was 9 to when she was like 11. She never got baptized even though her foster parents were members. She decided she wanted it to be her decision. So 16 years later, she wants to be baptized. She has been coming to church, but only staying for sacrament the past few weeks. We invited her to stay tor Sunday School and Relief Society yesterday and she did. She left before we could ask her how she felt and how it went. We have a lesson with her on Wednesday, so we are hoping that she recognizes the importance of Church.

We found a new investigator named Virgil K We were getting out of our truck to go tract, and he was the one that walked up to us and started asking us questions! He was is the land lord for the group of trailers that we were going to knock. He said he has been having family and friends push him to become a member. He said he has thought about becoming a member, but wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do. We asked him if he had read the Book of Mormon, he said he hadn't but he had heard a lot about it. We asked if he wanted a copy and he said he did. We wrote our Names, Emails, and the date we gave him the book at his request. He told us to give him a call and set up a time to stop by. We are excited to work with him.

Last evening, we had a visit with the Second Counselor of the Bishopric. We asked what we needed to do better to increase the conversion of the ward. He said that all of the members in the ward need to have Christlike love for everyone else. If we could not stand the thought of any being lost to the adversary as in the case of the sons of Mosiah, this ward would be better off. It was a pretty cool thought, and I agree wholeheartedly. That's what this ward needs.

We have a semi less active guy named Marcus that we are working with. He's Sonny's uncle. He was baptized a year ago, and he want's to get to the Temple. He has sincere drive and desire to do what's right. He's in the process of building a handicap ramp for a guy in a wheelchair. He didn't finish on Saturday, so he needed to carry it into Sunday. He knew he needed to be to church, but the guy was stranded in his house. He came to sacrament meeting and left right after to go and finish the ramp. He is just a good guy. We are excited for him

Elder Brurud and I told ourselves that we were going to work our butts off and that we were going to more than 20 lessons in this last week. Guess what... We got 22 lessons. That's pretty hard to do on the reservation, especially in our area because it's so spread out, but we did it! Man... he and I are EXHAUSTED. We were so happy to exceed a pretty high goal that we set for ourselves. We were talking the other night about how the exhaustion we are feeling is not a bad exhaustion, but it's the kind of rewarding exhaustion. Last week was a dead sprint. We are pumped revved and ready to go for this week. Last week did have it's moments when we were pretty discouraged, but we just remembered what Heleman said to Nephi and Lehi. Helaman 5:12. We thought, if we focus more on how we need to come more unto Christ, than we shouldn't feel discouraged. That's exactly what happened. The moment we realized that, is the moment where we got our butts in gear, kicked it in to overdrive, and made our goal. The Lord has blessed us so much this last week. He has great things in store for the people here in Shiprock.   

I aim to work even harder this week. I used to be apprehensive about knocking on strangers doors, but the more I do it, the more I love it. Same thing with talking to Adlaniis, or Glaniis, (Drunks). I am now to the point of feeling the way Christ feels for people. I understand how he feels when people break the commandments.

Hope everything else is going well!

We have a lesson in a few minutes, so I have to go. I love you. 

Hagoonee'

Elder B.

Great First Week Back!

I must say, the Lord definitely knew what he was doing when he put me here in Shiprock East with Elder Brurud. He knew I would absolutely love it here, and that Elder Brurud and I would become great friends within the short amount of time we've been together so far. Elder Brurud and I have been working hard this week. Our area is more spread out, so it's hard to see a lot of people in a day. We do our best. We get a long very well. I'm so happy to be serving here with him. He truly is a hard worker and wants the best for those people that we do teach every day. Shiprock is probably already my favorite area so far. The people are absolutely amazing, and a little on the crazy side sometimes, but they are awesome. I love it here. I'm working the hardest I've ever been, being the most obedient I've ever been, and let me tell you something, It has been the most rewarding week of my mission thus far.

A little about Elder Brurud. He is from Havre, Montana. He LOVES cars, So do I, so we talk about cars quite often. He loves Top Gear (The British one of course) He a goofball sometimes, but man he gets serious when he needs to. He is really knowledgeable about the Book of Mormon, probably because he has read it 4 times in the 4 a half months he's been out on his mission. Man he knows how to teach. He can understand what people need to hear when they need to hear it. He says that he and I are already in one week working harder than he and his trainer did in 3 transfers. We have knocked a lot of doors so far. We have played with a lot of Rez Dogs while we tract. (If we give them treats, they automatically turn from vicious and hostile to lovable shadows) Yes they follow us around). It's been pretty neat!

The other day, we were tracting, and we walked down this road that was lined with dogs... We got closer to this one dog and his pose. Luckily I had my slingshot. As we got closer, they started to get more mean. I had my slingshot out with a rock in the sling. I asked Elder Brurud if I should shoot the Main Dog. He said, "If it comes at you yeah." No sooner after he finished that statement, then did the dog start lurching forward. So I pulled back, released, and landed a clean shot between the eyes. It was a proud moment. Elder Brurud was pretty amazed at my accuracy. It was a fun day.

We live with Elder Stevens and Elder Rillamas (Who I know very well from serving around him in Farmington). Elder Stevens has been out as long as I have. Elder Rillamas has been out for almost a year, He came out with Elder Bratt, Who, by the way, is back in Farminton 4th Ward lol. We have fun when we are together. Elder Stevens is the most down to earth district leader I have probably had my entire mission. He is awesome. Dang, He works hard. He and Rillamas work their butts off. This week alone they got almost 25 lessons I think it was. It was absolutely insane! Elder Brurud and I work our butts off and only end up getting around 15. They have more people in their area, so they have that advantage. I know its not about the numbers, but in all honesty, it makes you feel good to have a good number, it means you worked hard that week. 

The people here in SR are, again, a bit on the crazy side, but they are all funny. Literally everyone we run into has a sense of humor. There are some people who don't like us cause we're billigaanas (White Man). I'm used to the slight racism now, but initially, It gave me a little shock. I love the Diné (the Navajo people). 

I'm loving it here. I'm excited to be with Elder Brurud. I have a stronger testimony of the Book of Mormon as of this week. I love this gospel, I love these people. I am happy to be serving the Lord. 

 My mailing address is P.O Box 3013 Shiprock, NM 87420

I'm glad Stake Conf went well! I hope you enjoy your vacations! Sorry if this letter was too long. I had a lot to cover and talk about this week. I best be off. We are headed to farmington to shop and stuff like that. 

Adaa 'a'holye. (take care of yourself)

Hagonee'

Elder Breinholt

A long six weeks!

This has been an eventful last few months.  First, there were not many emails from Ben after our Christmas Skype call and our subsequent trip to the Philippines.  Everything changed the end of January when we received a call from his mission president that Ben had a cyst on his back that it had turned into an abscess and he needed to come home to have it surgically removed. He had it drained on New Years Eve but it returned.  On January 26 he flew home and the next day at 10:00 a.m. he had surgery to have it completely removed.  He stayed home for six weeks.  He was reverse trunkie for six weeks.  He couldn't wait to return to New Mexico.  He spent some of the time teaching Early Morning Seminary and really enjoyed that.  This past Monday, March 7 he returned to his mission.  We received a small email on Monday that said he was in his new area Shiprock, New Mexico with his new companion Elder Brurud.  Stay tuned for the letters to resume from Elder Breinholt starting again next week.

Merry Christmas!

Da nzho' ((Pronounced Don-Joe) Jicarilla Apache for Hello)

This week has been crazy! Transfers were supposed to happen on Tuesday, but as a result of a ton of snow in Salt Lake and Denver, the new missionaries coming into the mission had to wait two more days to catch a flight. They finally came on Thursday. So The transfer was pushed back, for anyone not training, 'til Wednesday.

Wednesday Elder Goodell picked me up and we went to Dulce. It's about a 2 hour drive from Farmington to Dulce. As soon as we pulled into Dulce, I immediately fell in love. It's incredibly beautiful. Mountains be e'ry where! Let me just say, it does not feel like I'm serving on the rez. The houses are pretty good sized. They have a super market here that is super nice. it feels like an Albertson's. It's just a neat little place! We had the Brach Christmas party that evening as well. It was a lot of fun getting to know people in the branch.

Thursday, we had to drive down to Bloomfield for District Meeting. It was a good time! The drive back was... interesting. We started driving back, and about 30 minutes in, the gas light came on... We had to drive 30 minutes back to Bloomfield and get gas. So the 1 and 1/2 hour trip took 2 hours. it was unsettling. Elder Goodell and I handled it well. When we got back we had a dinner/ lesson with a part member couple, Christian Woody and Minnie Browning. We had a really good lesson with them and we committed Christian to be baptized. He said it's something he wants to do. We are pumped!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Friday was really slow. We have been doctoring a horses leg wound for Sister Tafoya. It's been fun to do that. He is a really good horse. He's only 1 year old, but he has been broken pretty well. He doesn't get scared very easily.

Saturday, we went and taught Koby. He's a 15 year old kid that is pretty interested in the gospel. We hope to put him on a baptism date sometime here pretty soon. He and his sister are the only ones who are investigating the church in their family. He is pretty awesome.

Sunday, we had a good sacrament meeting. Elder Goodell spoke. He pretty much rocked it. Last night we had a really awesome lesson with a less active named OJ. We discussed Alma 23. We talked about putting down our weapons of rebellion, and went into it deeper in 24 and talked about burying them. It was a good discussion. When we were at home last night preparing to call our numbers in for this week, a drunk guy came to our door and started yelling/ swearing/ drunkenly mumbling at us because he was mad that a. we wouldn't open the door b. we wouldn't give him a ride and c. we wouldn't let him sleep at our place. He left after about 5 minutes of us telling him no. It was definitely interesting.

This week has been a learning experience. I'm in a new area, with a way new culture, and new people. It's been awesome! I've learned so much about myself. This whole mission thing is pretty much the best thing I could've possibly done.

This work is the work of the Lord. We are nothing without him.

I'm excited for this transfer. We have a lot of people to work with, and it will keep us busy if we let it.

Ihedin (Thank you/ Goodbye) and a Merry Christmas,

--

Elder Breinholt

Missionary 

New Mexico Farmington Mission