Dearest family and friends,

Happy Halloween week! I hope you all are doing something fun! On Halloween we are having a zone meeting in the morning, so that is our celebration. Also, on Wednesday night there is a trunk-or-treating activity that we have invited several families to, so hopefully they will come and have a great time!! It is a combined activity with the English and Spanish congregations and has been planned by the youth. It seems very well put-together. 

Also, I bought a little pumpkin last week at the grocery store and then a lady that we were visiting gave us a big squash to take home, so almost without trying we have some fall decorations in our kitchen! They will be tasty to eat in a few weeks too!

This last week has been really good. Antonio, the man I wrote about last week, came to church again yesterday and is preparing to be baptized at the end of November. Also, we met a couple of times during the week with Elizabeth and Juan Carlos, the family we started teaching last Sunday night. He has told us now that he is pretty happy with his Apostolic Catholic faith, but he is glad to keep learning more from us and has no problem with Elizabeth continuing to learn and deciding for herself if she wants to be baptized. She is so excited about everything we have taught, and she has been reading the Book of Mormon and really likes it.

There have been some setbacks too in the lives of people we're teaching. Some real opposition and also some real sadness caused as consequences of not-so-good decisions. It's especially sad when you find out that someone you never would have expected has made serious mistakes. I know we are in all of their lives for a reason, and living the gospel will bring healing and peace to each of the people we're teaching regardless of their current challenges and circumstances.

Last but not least...transfers again this week. I am staying here in Davis and receiving a new companion, Hermana L. She is from Arizona, and was trained by Hermana H (the first sister that I trained) in Rohnert Park. She arrived partway through my last transfer there in Rohnert Park, so I have actually lived with her before. It's going to be great!!

I love you all!

Hermana Brighton

Dear Family and Friends,

This was an awesome week. I shared a couple of miracles with my mission president in my letter to him this week. I want to share them with you too. It's in Spanish though...I'm sure you'll be able to figure out a translator for those of you who don't already understand Spanish. (:

Un milagro:

El miercoles, Antonio R. nos llamo. Le habiamos dado una tarjeta algunos dias antes, pero no habiamos hablado mucho porque el estaba con amigos que no quisieron escucharnos. Pues, resulta que su mama y su hermana son miembros de la iglesia en Mexico (y viven en el mismo area donde mi hermano esta sirviendo ahora!). Ellas han estado alentandole a encontrar la iglesia aqui. El sabado, ensenamos a el por primera vez. El domingo, el vino a la reunion sacramental y a las otras reuniones de la iglesia.

Otro milagro:

Ayer oramos cuando teniamos que decidir si ibamos a asistir a la charla fogonera de los jovenes o si debiamos trabajar en nuestra area y pasar por las personas que habiamos pensado visitar. Pues, decidimos regresar a Davis y trabajar y estabamos tan felices de que lo hicieramos. Porque la mama de una familia que habiamos planeado visitar estaba afuera cuando llegamos. Parecia casi como si estuviera esperandonos. Ella nos invito a pasar y empezamos a ensenarla. No habiamos dicho mucho cuando ella nos pregunto, "Cuando pasan por aqui otra vez? Pueden regresar manana?" Ella queria que regresaramos para ensenar a su esposo tambien en su dia de descanso. (Nos dijo que el ha estado leyendo el folleto de la Restauracion en su trabajo durante el almuerzo.) Fijamos la cita y seguimos ensenando a ella. Hablamos de las familias, de  los profetas y la autoridad de Dios, y de la importancia del bautismo. Ella explico a nosotras la importancia de ser bautizado por la debida autoridad para que sean quitados los pecados. Era increible. Quiere ser bautizada. Fue una de mis favoritas lecciones en toda mi mision. 

I am still so surprised by the fact that we have found a man whose family lives in the area where Elder Brighton is serving.

Have a great week!

Love,

Hermana Brighton

Dear family and dear friends,

I hope this letter (that isn't a letter) finds you well (whenever you happen to be reading it). 

The important things are simple. That is what I learned most of all in the zone conference that we had this last week with the mission president and his wife, his assistants, and about 70 other missionaries.

Some simple things that are important:

Telling people that you care about them.

Smiling.

Praying for others by name.

Praying about everything.

Listening.

Those are some things that have helped me this week to feel more of the love that Heavenly Father has for me and for others.

God is our Father. 

He loves us. He hears us. 

He answers us. He blesses us. 

There is sweet joy in simple things.

I love you all. 

Sincerely,

Hermana Brighton

Dear wonderful family and friends,

I hope each one of you is having a fantastic day!

On my mission I am learning that even if we have heard something over and over, even if we have changed the way we do it a dozen times, there is always something more we can learn and a better way things can be done.

After receiving some training in a meeting earlier last week, this last Friday we planned for this coming week in a way that was different than I have ever done.
We didn't just plan for what we are going to teach people this week. We didn't just plan for the appointments that we have. We planned every hour of the whole week, and we planned the details of how we will be in contact with each person we are teaching each day as well. We even planned backup plans. I am sure that many of the plans we made will need to be adjusted...in fact, that process has already started as we have set appointments with new people we've contacted in the last few days. But because we have made all of those plans, we have a concrete idea of how we can achieve our goals for this week. And because we were thinking more in advance than we often do, we were able to plan more effective ways to find people to teach and to use the precious time that we have.

Like I think I mentioned last week, things just keep getting better. This week we are having a zone conference, so something is sure to get shaken up and changed for the better once again.

The process of becoming an effective missionary is teaching me about the process of purification, sanctification, and perfection. It involves constant learning, deep humility, diligent effort, lots of repetition, some failure, and immense faith.  It is the process Heavenly Father uses to help us achieve what he has promised us...all that He has can be ours as we become all that He is.

Only through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ is this process made possible. I know that power is real.

I love you all so much. And He loves you infinitely more.

Take care.

With love,

Hermana Brighton