"Without Me, Ye Can Do Nothing"

Dearest Family, I'm getting transferred! 

President Snow has a funny way of never doing what I expect at transfers... probably because he is guided by the Spirit... and that guy knows a lot more than I do! So, my out-of-valley stint/probation/vacation is over and tomorrow they're hauling me back to Vegas!! I'll be serving in the Temple View YSA ward....

  ROUND 2 YSA!!

 I feel like the luckiest sister in the world that I get to serve in another YSA area! It covers three stakes-- central, sunrise, and east-- and from the sounds of it, probably overlooks the temple?? Who knows. ;) I'm sure hoping I run into my old Robindale friends (or the Smedleys!) if ever they have regional firesides or anything. 

Hooray hooray hooray!! This isn't missionary work, this is missionary fun!

Well my last week in Kingman was great. Helen's wedding went off without a hitch and so did her and Gavin's baptism interviews! After the interview our district leader goes, "Helen, thank you for your all your spiritual wisdom, I'm pretty sure you know more about the gospel than I do." She's an elect lady! We're so excited about this miracle of the century! I should be able to come back for the baptism next week, fingers crossed. 

Doug dropped us and we're SO sad :( He's decided to go to Praise Chapel instead. I told him that now that he knows the Church is true, nothing will ever feel quite the same again. He will know that something is missing everywhere else he goes. And that something is the fullness of Christ's gospel, with Him at the head, and His priesthood authority that makes it all work. I just hope and pray that he changes his mind. It's sad when people choose to only live the comfortable doctrine. He has so much potential!  

I have to jot down the last of the quotable Hame quotes before I never have another Hame quote to send :( I will miss her so much!! 

In the stake center bathroom: "There are no evils in the world worse than nuclear weapons and cold toilet seats" 

Reporting what she learned in personal study: "And that's what I got out of the Conference ensign... there's a lot of beautiful Mormons." 

Shortly after: "But really, why are Utah girls so pretty? ...Maybe they're just having really extensive baby blessings" 

Sister Fotheringhame, ladies and gentleman. :) 

Mom, I'm going to spend the rest of the email answering your questions: Jesus the Christ is SO GOOD. I haven't read it straight through... but I've read most of it. What I've been doing is reading a chapter in the New Testament and then finding the chapter in JTC that corresponds. It makes the 4 gospels mean so much more. I'd recommend reading it that way!

I can hardly believe all the changes on the house. And in the winter, too! Are you all shivering and cold in there?? It looks like part of the roof is missing! 

It sounds like your new calling (I almost wrote your new transfer.... what..) is going great. You can never study charity too much. One of my STLs, Sister Mayfield, challenged me to spend five minutes studying a Christlike attribute every day for the rest of my mission. And she promised that if I do, I'll be unstoppable. So that's exciting :) 

Does it feel like I've been out almost 9 months, longer, or shorter? Mmm... in some ways it feels shorter. In some ways it feels like I've been a missionary forever. The mission is a little bit of a time warp. But I think about everything I've experienced the past 9 months and then I think to myself, "Can I do all 9 months of this again?" With Heavenly Father's help, you betcha I can!! :)

I had a study on humility this week that changed my mission. I'm realizing that for me, humility needs to be a prerequisite to everything I do. My mission is constantly knocking me down, over and over, compelling me to recognize my constant and total dependence on Christ. I read the story in Luke about the woman who washes Jesus' feet with her tears, and Jesus says "Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much." Are Sister Browning's sins forgiven because she loved much? The humility of that woman is the kind of humility that I need to have in order to accomplish anything worthwhile out here. Because all I'm doing is loving God's children, and I can only do that through the grace of Christ. 

A favorite quote by Elder Holland: "The Savior said, 'Without me, ye can do nothing.' I testify that that is God's truth. Christ is everything to us and we are to abide in Him permanently, unyieldingly, steadfastly, forever; for the fruit of the Gospel to blossom and bless our lives, we must be firmly attached to Him." 

I know this is true! Have a great week!

Love, 

Sister Browning

My best bud Gavin, all set for his baptism next week! I'll miss hearing him pray for "everyone to have the fully ghost and the fully heart" at the end of every lesson.