Dear dear family and friends,

I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend. Funny thing, I didn't realize until halfway through today that most schools are out for President's Day. And that the post office is closed.

This week I want to share my testimony of sacrifice and diligence. I have seen over and over and over on my mission that when we work hard, when we take advantage of a few extra minutes at the end of the night (kind of like the experience Elder Brighton shared this weekend), and when we sacrifice our comfort for the Lord's work, we are inevitably blessed. Those are the moments when I most feel that I am an instrument in Heavenly Father's hand. 

This week, we met two different families who seemed very receptive, both of them on the two evenings when we were knocking doors in the very last moments of the evening. Also, we had two lessons that we taught while Hermana Zimmerman was not feeling that great. That was a sacrifice for her. And in both of those lessons, the men we were teaching accepted the invitation to be baptized at the end of next month. 

I want to tell a little more about the second of those lessons. 

It's 6:30 Sunday night after dinner and we go to see a man who is a referral from the English elders. Right outside his apartment is a huge bounce-house and a big hispanic birthday party going on. We have to literally squeeze past the bounce house to get to the flight of stairs up to his apartment. We knock on the door, I talk to him a little bit (I found out after that my companions could hear nothing of what he said because of the noise from the bounce-house) and he invites us in. We talk to him a little about his family, work, and life. He is Javier Yah, from Yucatan, Mexico. He is so sincere, asks questions as we teach him, and has the desire to be baptized by someone who has true priesthood authority. He agrees without hesitation to prepare himself to be baptized on 30 March. As we finish, he offers a sincere prayer, promising God that he will read all of the Book of Mormon and asking for help to prepare himself for baptism. 

I felt the Spirit confirm to me how much the gospel is going to bless the life of this man and his family. I am so happy for him. We're going back Wednesday to teach him again.

I hope you all have a wonderful week! Let us all continue in diligence, sacrificing what is necessary and all that we can to give our best to the Lord in our respective efforts to serve. Big or small as our responsibilities or opportunities may seem, they all count in the eyes of our Heavenly Father.

I love you all!!

Love,

Hermana Brighton

Dear Wonderful Family and Friends,

Did you have a great week? I sure hope so!

This week was a very full one for us. On Wednesday, we had a zone conference and on Thursday we went to the temple in Oakland. Sister Zimmerman has still been sick, but we were able to still teach several people, and we started teaching two men this week who both seem to have a very sincere desire to know the truth and to act accordingly. One of them is the friend of one of the sisters in the branch, and he has come to church with her and her four little kids the past couple of weeks. We taught him for the first time on Saturday night.

We have seen a great miracle in the past week. Last weekend (February 1st and 2nd), members of the church and other people throughout California united in fasting and prayer for rain. We had been having a really bad drought. Starting last Sunday, it has been raining a TON. On Thursday night, we had a dinner in downtown San Rafael. We didn't know exactly where the apartments were, and there isn't a lot of parking in the area, so we ended up parking really far away from the sister's home. In the pouring rain, we walked probably half a mile and arrived pretty soaked! It's been such a happy thing to see our prayers so immediately answered.

This upcoming week, Sister Zimmerman has a couple of doctor appointments. Please pray for her and for the doctors. If they cannot find a solution, she is going to have to go home.

Thank you for all of your prayers and your support. I know that Heavenly Father hears and answers us. I know He knows us and loves us. 

Have a wonderful week!!!

Love,

Hermana Brighton

Dear Friends and Family,

I hope that you all are doing wonderfully. Has it been a good week? I sure hope so.

For me it has been a good week. Hermana Zimmerman has still been sick, poor thing, but we have been able to still do a significant amount of work. On Tuesday, I went on exchanges with two of the sisters in the English Sister trio in the next town over. They are both incredible missionaries. They also are both finishing their missions...this is their last transfer. So it was really good to be with them and see how they are determined to keep working hard and how well they are applying all that they have learned throughout their missions. 

I have to say, I have been blessed with really good health. I am really really grateful because I think I am the healthiest, least tired sister missionary that I know. That isn't meant to be a prideful statement at all, just wanted to recognize the huge blessing that I have received to have so much energy and so few health problems so far on my mission. Thank you to all of you who pray continually for me.

I was reviewing the list of members in our branch last night and counted more than forty families that live in our area. I think that is more than 4 times the number of members in any of my previous areas. Wow! We have so much support and so much potential in this area. I just hope to work effectively so that we can bring about the miracles that Heavenly Father is surely wanting to bring to so many people here.

I love you all! Please choose to have a wonderful week!!!!

Love,

Hermana Brighton