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 

This Week!

I'm going to keep this relatively short.

Oh Farmington, Oh Farmington, I bid thee farewell, I'm going to the mountains of Dulce to dwell.

So this week, we had 21 lessons. and we found 5 new investigators. It's been pretty stinkin busy. I had a feeling I was going to be transferred, so I resolved to work harder than I ever had! It worked!!! I'm pleased with how things have been going in this area. Elder Davis will be taking over the area, with Elder Geilman. He will do well.

So yesterday was a little rough saying goodbye to so many people that i've grown so close to over the last 4 months. It was hard, but next transfer and Dulce will bring new experiences and a lot of new faces. It's going to be sweet!

I had a cool experience this morning. I decided to ask the Lord, "What lack I yet." The Spirit plainly and simply told me, "Work harder." So sort of baffled by the response I asked, "Work harder at what." The spirit said, "In your relationship with your companions, and spreading the work of the Lord." It was a pretty neat experience. I am going to try and focus on doing just that with this next transfer.

I've had a lot of good experiences this transfer, and am really quite sad to leave 4th ward. I'm really excited to move on to where the Lord needs me though. It's going to be sick!

Anyway, This church is true. The Book of Mormon is true. Jesus Christ is our savior and redeemer. This is his church and his work. We must do it his way, for there is no other way to do so. Keep the Faith, Love the Lord and Live the Truth

I bear my witness to the world in the name of Him whom I am called to represent, Jesus Christ the Son of God, Amen.

Deck the Elder!

Yo Yo Yo.

This week has been a good'n. (One of our investigators says good'n all the time. He's an old cowboy, and he is awesome!)

Tuesday, we went and taught Vicky Neal. We showed her the new Christmas Video, A Savior is Born. She really enjoyed it! We also had dinner with the Dollars. They are Less active, but super awesome none the less. We had a good visit with them with showing the Christmas video.  We also had a good lesson with John Valdez. It was super spiritual reading with him in the book of Alma regarding the Conversion of Lamoni. He really enjoyed the scriptural account and message that sends. 

Wednesday, we went on exchanges with the 8th ward elders. I was in 8th with eler Loucks from Morgan, UT. We walked the entire day. We met a guy (Super inactive, but really friendly and invited them (the 8th ward elders) back anytime) who is originally from Green River. I told him i was from Gillette, he said, "I'm sorry!" haha it was pretty funny.'

Thursday, we had District Meeting. We later went and saw Teresa Nelson. We taught her the last half of the restoration. She had a lot of good questions and I hope we answered them all in the like manner that Christ would. It was neat! We also saw John Valdez again. It was a great lesson as always. Full of testimony and the spirit. 

Friday, we did our Weekly Planning Sesh. It was awesome. We received a lot of sweet revelation regarding the Farmington 4th Ward. That led us to want to do some super hard work the next day, and this week. We went with Jared Haynie to go see Kenney Vogt, one of our recent converts. He was a little inebriated, but that's okay. He  is a very emotional drunk. He felt the spirit as did we. He knows the things he needs to do in order to change. He's almost there,  but when he gets there, he is going to be so successful. 

Saturday, we had a great day. We went on exchanges... again... but this time with the Zone leaders. It was awesome. I made Elder Hozman so tired with how hard we worked that day. We had a few really good lessons, but the thing I learned the most that day is... People open up to our message if we involve christmas with it. It was so neat to see people enjoy the new video. 

Sunday was a great day. We had a great fast and testimony meeting. The Casons, two of the greatest people to walk this earth, were sealed for time and all eternity in the Albuquerque Temple on Saturday. A little back story. Tom Cason was Baptized about 7 years ago, but before that was a heavy drinker. He was baptist and didn't have anything to do with the church. Lena and Tom were married in 2004. After years of praying, the Lord finally heard Lena's call. Tom received his endowment on Saturday and later was sealed to his wife. He told me of the experience, "I feel like I'm floating. The spirit was so strong in that room. I didn't want to leave. I am just so excited." I kinda said, "I told ya so." I told him that it would be the most amazingly rewarding experiences of his life. He didn't doubt for a second. I am so happy for that family. They are just phenomenal. Anyway, we also saw Ivan Mills. We went with Brother Gary Morris. Ivan is finally a progressing investigator. His wife is really active and works in the Temple in Albuquerque. I'm sure she's been praying pretty hard in that holy place for her dear husband. We have been praying pretty hard as well. He is "Hard Shell Baptist" as he puts it. He read our commitment we left with him last time, and we didn't think he was going to even do that. We asked him to read John 10. Months ago, he would have said that he didn't need to. We left him with a commitment to read 3 Nephi 11. He accepted!!!!!!!! Things are looking good on that plane. 

This week has been rewarding! We have started to see the fruits of our labors. It's been rough, but we are getting somewhere. It's been kind of like, trying to garden in Gillette, WY. Difficult to get anything to grow. But with enough faith, "all things are possible to him that believeth," as the Savior counsels. This work is the work of God. I've seen that time and time again this week. The Lord's work is truly amazing.

I hope you all are well! Keep up the good work!

P.S. 

"Life is movement. We go up or down, and develop the best or the worst of us in the journey.  Some journeys are full of struggle...some are full of success.  But the thing that makes for success is the struggle and difficulty for without difficulties to overcome, there would be no such thing as succeeding.  


Difficulties develop strength, resolution, resources.  Problems are too often regarded as enemies, but they are not such.  Storms and dangers alone make skilled sailors.


The fiercest of foes develops your strength and your skill.  So do not be frightened by problems and difficulties or discouraged because of them.  They are your opportunities for winning.  Your chances for success."


Charles H. Darkhurst

Good Week!

Received November 30, 2015

This last week started out pretty slow.

Tuesday we taught Abe Trujillo. We had a good discussion with him about the pre earth life and why we are here. He said he's not too interested in reading the Book of Mormon, but we are going to help him to get to that point. We also went on exchanges with the 8th ward Elders. I went with Elder Dupin. It was pretty fun. We saw John Valdez and read some scriptures with him. He is slowly but surely progressing towards the priesthood. We are pumped for him.

Wednesday, we had a lesson with Elmer. He is a new investigator. He is almost 90 years old. He is pretty cool. Quick as a whip though! He is concerned about his wife. She passed around 3 years ago, so we are planning on going through the Plan of Salvation with him. Hopefully that will put his concerns at ease. 

Thursday of course was T-Giving! It was hard being away from family, but it was good to be with the Haynies. They are practically family to Elder Davis and I. We love them and they love us. We also ate at the Allens, who live right down the street from the Haynies. They are an awesome family as well. Sister Allen let us throw some clay and make our own pottery. It was cool. 

Friday, we did our weekly planning. We saw Sister Hale and had an awesome lesson with her. We focused on being steadfast in Christ. It was a good lesson. We went to the Jail and taught Shelby Davis. He is really close to his release date. As soon as he get's released he will go back to live with his family in Kirtland, NM Just down the road from Farmington. 

Saturday, we did some tracting. We found some potential in the area we knocked. But other than that, it was just a lot of walking. 

Sunday, we had a lot of success. We taught a lesson to Ivan Mills. We committed him to Read John 10. He said he would, so that is a start for him! We also contacted a Less Active Lady with MS named Myra. She wants to come back to church so bad! We are going to help her through the ward, as much as we can. Her husband is not a member, so hopefully some good comes out of that! We also saw Kenney Vogt. He is wanting to come back to church. He knows the things he needs to do in order for him to be more spiritually helped by the lord. 

Things are really starting to pick up here in the 4th Ward. We are going to work our shoes off this week. The lord prepares people, including missionaries in strange ways, I have been feeling lately, that I may become a Spanish Elder next transfer. I don't know why, but I will go and do the things that the Lord commands. I have no clue if it'll happen, but I think it would be cool to learn a different language.... Something a little more useful than Navajo. haha no offence to Dine Bizaad. It's a  super neat language, but it is dying. it's sad, but true.

Anyway, hope y'all are doing good things! 

Hagoonee',

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

Received November 23, 2015

Yo! Sounds like you've done a lot of driving lately! Glad you've had fun! :) I will for sure pray for my family!

Pray that I don't devolop symptoms of hauntavirus. We were up in an old attic for 2 hours this morning sealling a shotty HV/AC job. It was so dusty and dirty. So, pray for that please! 

I'm happy y'all are going to have a good time. We are going to the Haynies for Thanksgiving, so that'll be as close to home as I get! Sounds good. I'll be looking for them. We have to go to the post office today to get a key for our mailbox. 

I will write robbie back right now. If he's there, I'll just email it to yours! 

It's okay, we have had a few slow weeks. In fact, we were tracting yesterday, and we handed out 3 copies of the Book of Mormon, the three people we handed them out to... don't live in our ward. It was pretty discouraging, but hey, we tried our best, that's all the Lord can ask of us! Haha those pictures! :) haha. Yup,  John Lowe is the editor of that page. He came to our ward, and asked if he could take a picture with us, so we said yes. I havent even seen that page, so yeah. I probably look like... a turkey! :) 

So, yeah. We're trying to work hard, and this week has been a bummer. But we will try harder this week!

Email me back please! 

Love elder b

This week has felt like walking a Mastiff!

We have been insanely busy this week.

We have had some great progress. Focusing on the members in the ward and getting to know them has been great! 

We had a lesson with Megan Perez, a new investigator... to us. She was taught the Restoration before, but we could never contact her until Tuesday night.  She rocks! She has a testimony of the Book of Mormon and she loves how the church focuses so much on Family. She is the Real MVP! 

So we have been teaching the regulars, like John Valdez, Jack Shindler, the Hales, and all those fine and dandy people. We have been running like mad from place to place. We have done quite a bit of service as well, from helping Brother Grant Pennington set up his music synchronized christmas light show, to walking dogs, hence the subject of this email.

Yup, I literally walked a Mastiff. His name is Clifford. If we could have dogs, I would adopt this big teddy bear! I might get a Mastiff when I get home. He about ripped my arm off a few times.

We walked dogs again a few days later, and that time I walked a Black Lab named Moses. I thought it was only fitting to have him be walked by me. haha I couldn't get a good picture  with him, but I wish I had a good one.

This week has been so spiritual. The lesson we had with Megan was much needed. With that, we are seeing more and more success with less active members and recent converts. Its been a tiring week. 

This week should be even more exhausting than last. We are going to do a lot more tracting and finding. This week should feel like... hmmmm... walking a Great Dane. There we go. A mini horse, that's right. haha Bring it on life! 

I've come to find in recent days, more than I have in the past, that this is the Lord's work. You've gotta do it his way. He doesn't like "Idle Worshipers" Because then, as a result, you are being an "Idol Worshiper". We as missionaries (Yes, Members are supposed to be missionaries as well) cannot be lazy. We have to be proactive in our approaches to share the gospel and serve the Lord. Be Creative! Find ways to share with your friends, acquaintances, but most importantly, the common stranger that you meet in your everyday walk. Us Full-Time Missionaries can't do it with out you Part-Time missionaries! We love hearing that your friends want to hear the gospel! We would love to teach them! We would love for you to teach them with us! "Wake up and do something more, than dream of your mansion above! 'Helping the Missionaries' is a pleasure, a joy beyond Measure. A blessing of Duty and LOVE!!" Yes, focus on your personal progression, but one of the best ways to help your progression is to do the Lords work! 

Anyway, hope y'all are doin' fine! Keep studying and living the gospel. Living a Christ centered life is the best way to do it! 

Love the Lord, Keep the Faith, Live the Truth

Cooler days are coming!

Received November 26, 2015

I've been missing jazz and playing drums the last couple of weeks.  We have a kid in our ward, Caleb Ward, who is preparing to go on his mission. He play the drums, but it is put away right now, because his mom, who is awesome, want's him to focus on preparing. I think she just doesn't want the noise, but that's just my opinion.

Philmont will be sweet!!! Speaking of the Klamms, how is Tyler doing?? How are the Ringers as well?

My health is great! I've been taking Vitamin C every morning. I did get the box! Thank you!! :) The notes were so nice. I got Gpa's Card!! Thank him for me too!! I did get 2 new shirts! Thank you!!

I have a strong testimony of the atonement. In missionary work, we are held to a much higher standard. Almost everyday, you do something that isn't as obedient as it probably should be. As a normal member, you would think, "Oh big whoop, you woke up late. Oh darn, you listened to music other than church music." To the normal member of the church, its not a big deal. But to missionaries, The guilt sets in... You know you've let yourself down, and the lord for that matter. The atonement works miracles in the lives of missionaries. Everything is centered on the atonement in everything we teach. This church is true. The Book of Mormon is the word of God! Contained in it's pages are some of the most amazing spiritual moments of my life. Do all you can now to prepare for a mission! It will change you for the better. You come to know yourself better, but most importantly, you come to know your savoir more fully. I know that this is the work of God! In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Well, mother, I love you. I am so happy with the way you and dad raised me. This has been a tough transfer, but you have raised me to never quit, and do be resilient. Breinholts never quit! Every time, I want to lay down on the floor and give up, I think of that. We don't quit. Our heritage determines such motivation. "Our lives are not measured by how many times we fall, but by how many times we stand up, dust ourselves off, and move forward"  - Dieter F. Uchtdorf.

I love you so much. I probably wont get to write an email for you to post onto the blog this week, so I'm sorry for that. 

Thank you for keeping me out here,

Elder Benjamin Moses "Relsilient" "Determined" "Motivated" Breinholt

How are you?

Sent November 9, 2015

Elder Davis is a goofball. :) He's like the little brother I've never had! He is awesome! He's a hard worker, and knows what his purpose is. We are starting to be more and more busy here, and we are going to have to start going on splits in the evenings. It'll be good!

We have started executing a plan that we have been formulating over the last little bit. We are starting with the active members of the ward. We befriend them, let them know we are here for them, and help them invite their non member friends to let us be their friends and teach them. Then we go to the less actives. We are trying to become best friends with Bishop Mortensen. He's pretty busy, but he knows we are here and we are ready to work. He is pretty cool! Anyway, with that we have started going down the ward list doing what we have planned to do. Last night, we went by to get to know the Pennington's. They are a younger couple, about Elisabeth and Bobby's age and they said they haven't had the missionaries over in a year, due to the fact that they said that everytime missionaries would knock on their door, they didn't realize that they were members. They are a cool family. They do a Christmas light show every year. They sync it to music. We offered to help him set it up, and he said he would take us up on that offer. It's going to be pretty sweet! 

We did some tracting and found two potential investigators. One of them believe it or not is from Gillette! We were walking by, and I pointed to a house with two trucks in front of it both with county 17 Wyoming plates. We knocked on the door and talked with the man for quite a while. I told him I was from Gillette and he smiled and then proceeded to tell us about how he worked as a pipe runner for a lot of the oil companies in Gillette. He moved here about a year ago but had lived in Gillette for about 18 years. His name is Ron Calingias. He was fun to talk to and invited us back.  

We have been having a lot of success with recent converts and less actives here in the 4th ward. It's been neat to see so many peoples hearts start to change over the course of me being in the 4th ward. 

I've had a lot more opportunities to bear my testimony, and as a result, start babbling like a baby, to so many people. I'm learning so much from Elder Davis (who came out the transfer after me) and we are getting along just fine! :) He is from Kaysville, and marched for Davis High. He plays the trombone and he was in Jazz Band as well. We bond over silly geeky band stuff.  It’s a lot of fun. 

We are working our hardest and trying our best, that's all the Lord asks of us! 

We are the Hope of Israel! We are the Messengers. This is the work! 

Love you!!! 

--

Elder Breinholt

Missionary 

New Mexico Farmington Mission

YO!

Sent Monday October 19, 2015

So this week went well. We had some success with less actives coming to church! The Hales family is slowly coming back into activity. It's been super neat to see the progression of that family. They were at church. This is the 3 sunday in a row that they've come. We're pumped. 

Tuesday, we saw Kenney Voght. He is trying to stop drinking and get back on top of things. He's a recent convert really trying to get his life back on track. We are going to try to stop by this week to see how he's doing.

We also saw John Valdez. Again, everytime we go over, he improves a little each time. We read some scriptures with him with Brother Van Coleman. He and John are really good friends. It's pretty neat!

We met Abe Trujillo this week, and he is a NEW INVESTIGATOR!!!!!!!! He is quite the character. He is a cool dude. We taught him about the prophecy in Ezekiel about the stick of Ephraim and the stick of Judah. It went well. He understood why we have the Book of Mormon so that was good. 

We taught Jack Schindler the Recent Convert. He is doing better and hopefully soon, he will be able to stay for all 3 hours of church.

We taught Devin Dollar. He is less active due to his work schedule. He is a San Juan County Sheriff and works most Sundays, but when he doesn't work, he comes to church. We taught Alma 7:11-13. The explanation of the atonement more in depth. He wishes he could come to church, but he's gotta provide for his family. 

Well, that's pretty much it for this week! We had some dang good success this week.

Hope y'all are doing well!! 

Love you all,

--

Elder Breinholt

Missionary 

New Mexico Farmington Mission

Good Week!

Hello all. I'll try to keep this short...ish.

Tuesday, we had zone conference! it was super neat. It was a very long day. We also saw John Valdez. He is doing better and better every time we see him. 

Wednesday, we saw the Peace family. They are less active, but slowly they are coming back. They fed us dinner and we talked with them for a while. We also saw Teresa Nelson. She is a spiritual giant. She wants to come back to church and get to the temple. Its so great to see that burning desire in someone. We saw Freddy Eskeet for the first time in a long long while. He was so happy to see us and we read with him from the Book of Mormon.

Thursday, we had Zone Training. It went well. They challenged us to do more tracting. I hate tracting, but it's a necessary evil. We saw John Valdez again and yet again he is doing better and better! 

Friday was weekly planning day, so that's what we did. 

Saturday, we cleaned our apartment. It was bad. Definitely needed to be done. 

Sunday, was church of course. It was uplifting ad it pumped me up to take on the world! I was so excited to work hard starting this week. We are going to hit it hard and get to work!

Love you all! 

--

Elder Breinholt

Missionary 

New Mexico Farmington Mission

Ya'at'eeh

Ya'at'eeh,

So we didn't have the opportunity to email yesterday, because we went to the temple yesterday. It was super neat. We had an awesome experience going to do that. The Monticello Temple is very very tiny. Smaller than the Billings Temple. It was cool though.

Tuesday, was transfer day! I picked up Elder Ellis and I knew that he and I were going to get along just fine. We taught Jack Shindler the Plan of Salvation. He is doing well, but he needs to make church a regular habit. We also taught John Valdez. He is getting closer and closer to receiving the Aaroninc Preisthood.

Wednesday was super super slow. We don't have really any investigators in 4th Ward at the moment, because all of the investigators that we were working with last transfer were in 7th ward. We are trying to do some finding in order to teach new investigators.

Thursday was a pretty good day. District meeting was good. Very uplifting. We tried to contact some less active members, but some of them were not home. Later that evening, however, we got a call from the Spanish Elders and they told us to stop by one of the less actives that was on our list of  people to contact. We showed up, and she told us that she was happy to see us, and asked us to share a message with her. She told us to come back the next day so we could have another lesson, and give her a blessing. After that, we went to John Valdez again. Every time we go over there, he get's closer and closer.

Friday, we did our weekly planning. We also went to the less active lady's house to give a lesson and a blessing. A little back ground on her. She got offended a while back, and she didn't want to come back because of the certain member that offended her. Well that certain member brought her some things she needed and the less active woman decided to come back to church because of the goodness of that lady's character. It was a cool experience to hear about, and she wanted to come to church on Sunday. We also went to the Jail and had a good discussion with one of the guys that we are meeting with on a bi-weekly basis.

Saturday, we tracted a lot. It was difficult, because almost every door was slammed in our faces. There was one older woman that politely declined and wished us luck in finding people.

Sunday, The less active woman and her family came to church!!!!!!!! When I saw them, i was pumped! We also had a few other less active people that came. It was AWESOME!!!!!! 

Anywho, that was my week. Hope all of you are well. Keep the Faith. Live the Truth. Love the Lord.

Ayoo' Anishnii'. Hagoonee',

Elder Breinholt

Missionary 

New Mexico Farmington Mission 

Sup Y'all??

Ya'at'eeh,

So, this week has been well with me. Tuesday was bitter-sweet. We had some dang good lessons with some less actives an some recent converts. We taught Jack Schindler the Restoration again, because he has to be taught all of the lessons after baptism. We had the Cason's with us. They are some of best Ward Missionaries around! They did a pretty good job teaching the majority of the lesson. One of the Part Member Families that we have been teaching, just dropped us out of the blue. It was really sad, and we thought they were doing just grand with the lessons. I was pretty sad after that. But we had some lessons in the evening that cheered me up.

Wednesday, we had a lesson with a less active family and they said they were going to be comming to church yesterday. Only the husband came, because the wife wasn't feeling well. It was good to see him there though! We also got to walk dogs at the shelter, so that was fun! I walked a dog named Galadriel. She was a neat dog, and If we could have pet's on the mission, I would adopt her.

Thursday, we had district meeting. It was pretty fun, because we played a Jeopardy game that Elder Richards came up with. I scored on the church history questions (Thanks Mom for teaching the Doctrine and Covenants last year). That was pretty neat! We had a pretty slow day, because all of our appointments fell trough. We disd see John Valdez, and had a really good discussion with him.

Friday, We went to the Jail and had a good discussion with an inmate in there. He is doing well and trying to "get out by November so that" we "can Baptize" him. He is a neat dude. We also saw Sylvia Ortiz, she is doing well, and is back on date for baptism again. She is scheduled for Oct. 10. She is so ready and wants to be baptized so badly. 

Saturday, We did some service with some members in 1st Ward, the Palfreyman's. It was a lot of fun painting some lady's house. Elder Bratt also got the call, that he was going to be a district leader in Luepp, AZ. He is pretty excited to leave Farmington, mainly because he as been here for almost 6 months, and that's how long he's been out. He'll do well. I will be in 4th Ward here in Farmington, with Elder "Brown" Ellis. Everyone calls him Brown Ellis, because he is one of two Elder Ellis's, but he is the only Brown one. He is Half Mexican, Half Northern Ute. It's his last transfer, but I guess he is going to finnish strong! I'm excited, because he sounds like a pretty neat dude. They are Splitting our area, 4th and 7th, Halleluja! We are Excited. 7th ward is being Pink Washed by 3 sisters. It should be a "transision". They'll do well though.

Anyway, Hope all is well with Y'all. Thank you for your Prayers. Keep the Faith, Live the Truth. Love the Lord.

Ayoo' Anishnii'. Hagoonee',

Elder Breinholt

Missionary 

New Mexico Farmington Mission 

Hard Work Pays Off!

Ya'at'eeh,

Man... this has been a crazy week.

Tuesday, we taught a less active family and had a pretty good conversation with them. The wife is blind, and the husband has heart problems. They have been sick for a while, and so they haven't been able to come to church for a long time. They are taking the right steps to get back to church. We also saw a part member family named the Trujillo's. The mom is a member, but the kids and the grandchild is not. Victor, Valentino and Valentina (Twins), and an older daughter that i can't remember her name, are Sheila's (the mom). Zac is the older daughter's son. These kids are stinking smart!! They have a strong understanding of the small and simple truths of the gospel. It's super neat to talk to them.

Wednesday, I was on exchanges with one of the Zone Leaders, Elder Hozman (pronounced Ohzmahn (the H is silent)). He is Colombian, and he is really quite short. He is a goofy kid. He likes to joke around a lot, but he knows when to be serious. We tried to stop by some people in our area book, but unfortunately, they were not home. We did teach Jack Schindler, one of our Recent Converts. We had a good lesson with him. We tried to tract a little bit later that day. We were in this neighborhood, and I saw a Wyoming License plate with county 19 on it. I said, "Cool, someone from Evanston!" We knocked on the door, and this lady answered. She said her niece just got back from the New York Manhattan mission. We asked if she was a member, she said, no. But we think her husband is a less active member.  She offered to feed us anytime. So that was pretty neat!

Thursday, we ran into (knocked on her door) a less active lady that was baptized back in 2011. She lost contact will everyone from the church, so she was super happy to see us. She said she had been waiting for us to stop by. Earlier in the day I was going through the area book, and saw her daughter was listed as an investigator. I got the prompting to stop by and so we did. She said she wants us to re-teach her the lessons, so we said we would. It was super neat to meet her, because she is Lakota Sioux. She was born in Valentine Nebraska, and knows of course where Gillette is. Small world! 

Friday, we did weekly planning, and then we went and saw a Less Active Member. She is only probably 25 or 26, but she has SEVERE ADHD..... Talking to her, I got Exhausted. She hadn't taken her medication that day, and so it was like she was talking in circles. It was crazy!! I was so tired after that lesson. 

Saturday, we helped a man in our apartment complex move. That took up the majority of our day. He is a JW, but he was super friendly to us and he was very appreciative of the help we offered him. 

Sunday, We had Stake Conference, and so we only had 2 hours of church! It was a very very good conference. The theme was on Keeping the Sabbath Day Holy. Since we only had 2 hours of church, We didn't know what to do for the rest of the day. We did quite a bit of tracting. We tracted around member's houses, and asked if there was anyone they thought we should see. We have also been trying to ask for referrals from everyone. When we ask from those who are not interested themselves, they open up a great deal. It's been such a blessing since we've started doing that this week.

Anywho. I hope you all are well. May the lord bless you in all of your endeavors. Keep the faith. Live the truth. Love the Lord.

Ayoo' Anishnii'. Hagoonee', 

--

Elder Breinholt

Missionary 

New Mexico Farmington Mission