Rochester Struggles

Sep 19, 2011

Hey Family,

It's been an interesting week. Coming into Rochester has been a challenge. As you know Elder Potter and I were white washed into 4th ward while still juggling 2nd ward. It has been difficult to manage both wards and really focus on the needs of the area. It's hard to remember names! One ward was hard enough let alone 2. We have a lot on our plate right now and it's a little scary! We had the worst week as far as numbers! Basically both 2nd and 4th had nothing on for some time.

We were able to visit some of our teams in the zone mon-wed. The Lacrosse Elders, and Sparta Elders. We have a phenomenal zone--strong missionaries and lots of faith --more than Oakdale. The Rochester Zone has always struggled so president is trying to stack it with good missionaries. I love working with other missionaries. It's the best way to show your love when you work side by side with them. Usually when we work we spend the night, and it's a great time to get to know them and also have fun! Clean fun of course! It's just like a sleep over with your buddies. You’re always at the mercy of their apartment though. Sleeping is always a challenge but my body has adapted well to a hard wood floor =).

The reason we went to Sparta was they needed a couple of baptismal interviews done. I had the opportunity to interview brother Tim. This man use to be anti-Mormon, but the spirit of the Lord overcame him and he read the Book of Mormon and he could not deny it. Conducting an interview is definitely a spiritual time. They always have a glow about them before their interview and you can almost see a physical change in their character. I love being a missionary.

Now as far as the work in Rochester 2nd and 4th ward, it has been interesting to say the least. We are eating a lot of food though! We have 2 big wards that have to fight over the dinner calendar. But we're not teaching a whole lot, and it doesn't help when we're only in our area for 4 days of the week. Our area is suffering big time! Elder Potter and I know we have to make some dramatic changes to try and get this north part of Rochester up and running again. We think we've established a reason why missionary work has always been difficult for 4th ward. It might be because there are so many young families and so many students going to school at Mayo. Their lives are just starting with their families and they have a lot to worry about. But Elder Potter and I are coming up with simple ways to help them share the gospel.

We have two investigators that are progressing. Amy and Nick. Nick was just made the scout troop leader! He loves coming to mutual and loves church. Elder Potter tracked into Amy and Nick 3 weeks before i came. Tracking still works!

Well family i love you all! I'm excited for this upcoming week! We have a lot of appointments coming up so it will be great!

I gave Tanner a # so follow up with him on that. Jon Shirley is a recent convert and is in Idaho for school--BYU I. Have him over for dinner!

Love,

Elder Browning