Merry Christmas: Part 2!

So I got my white Christmas but not by it snowing because it is downright pouring rain right now.  Jason Maker was baptized on Saturday and confirmed on Saturday so his whole family could be there.  IT was so awesome and it truly helped me see the true meaning of Christmas could not have asked for a better Christmas.  Christmas is about families and The Maker family looked so happy and they deserve all the blessings they have received.  Cool story after the baptism I was talking with Jason and he was so happy and knew Heavenly father is proud of him.  This family is awesome and they are excited to be sealed in the temple together for eternity. I am so humbled and cannot believe that I a so lucky to be here and to serve the lord and be that instrument in his hand. I am grateful that he came and that he was more than willing to suffer for me I am so grateful for the book of Mormon it is true and it helps us love the bible so much more.  I know that we have a living prophet who guides us to become more reconciled to his will.  I am grateful for trials and hard things while they are not fun but deep down we can receive hope and faith that he lives and help us every day.  I love you and thank you for your love and support I Have so much to be grateful and will eternally grateful for y'all.  Have a Merry Christmas! And an even better new year!!!!!

Love Sister Erica Browning

Merry Christmas Part 1

Hey y'all I hope this email finds everyone well and happy! Things for me are great and the work is really moving along. Jason Maker is going to be baptized this Saturday:) and the whole ward is so excited and have done a great job of fellowshipping him and making him feel at home but as always there is opposition in all things 2ndephi 2:11 and Jason got really sick last Saturday and could not come to church and he is still sick so pray he gets feeling better.  It is going to be a crazy week we have so much to do it seems like before he is baptized but I know it is in the lord’s hands and it is his will so I do not worry much. Aaron who came last Sunday got antied and scared and does not want anything to do with us anymore :( but I know that I did all I could and it is not yet his time but the seed has been planted and he will one day be ready.  On Friday we had district interviews and it was just my district with President and Sister Holm and it was sweet to be in a small group like that it made me feel more special. A pretty cool experience from yesterday was we did not have anyone at church but we committed a less active to come but he didn't his name was Walter and so during the first speaker my awesome companion had a thought come to her that we needed to go out in the hall way and look for Walter.  so she told me and I said lets go after the speaker and so after the first speaker was done speaking we went out and walked around and nothing then she saw our elders in our district and she thought lets go and ask them if they have seen Walter and right as she walked over Walter walked up to the building. HE CAME!!! I was so so happy and was so glad that my companion followed the spirit.  On Saturday we were had planned to go and see a less active and so I typed in his address in the gps and when we got there we realized it was not anywhere near the less active we had planned to see but it was another less active and so we decided to go and try to see them and we met Caren who is the daughter of the Less active and she told us the story of how when the Greenville ward spilt a couple months ago the ward lost contact with her and so no one has been over to see her since then and she was really upset and mad at the church and so was Caren but we were just nice back and polite and by the end she was way nice and cool and wanted us to come back to see her and her mom. It was a pretty good mistake that turned miracle we plan to help her and her mom fix the issues and get them back to church where they belong.  This week is going to be crazy but I know I will love it I hope your Christmas week is great and full of happiness and joy and sharing. Till next time

Love Sister Browning

Busy Week!

Ok so much has happened this past week it is amazing I do not know where to start so many miracles have happened and I am so humbled to be able to be a part of all these wonderful things that are happening.  Monday we got a phone call from the lady Cheryl we helped move out of her apartment and she was talking about how grateful she was that we came and that she was praying for someone to come and help her but no church she went to would help her and then the next day we came and she knew we were true representatives of Jesus Christ and we made sure the missionaries were waiting for her when she got to Georgia so she could get the help she needed there and she said on Monday that she was going to go to church because she felt like this is the church Heavenly Father wants her in and so yesterday afternoon we got another phone call from Cheryl and she was talking about the experience she had at church and how she has never felt like that before and she is going to continue to go because she knows it is right.

Thursday we were totally led by the spirit so I forgot to put gas in the car the day before and so we felt like we needed to go and fill the car up with gas and when we got there we saw one of our investigators there getting gas too. and we went and talked to him and he just had a rough day and so we were able to give him comfort and it is cool because he decided that he needed to go back to where he came from Connecticut and so we would not have ever seen him again but we were in the right place at the right time to be with him and testify of the book of Mormon and encourage him to read it and give him hope.  Then a few minutes later we meet this man who investigated the church years ago and loved it but he moved and lost contact and he had in his car all the stuff missionaries gave him and we were able to talk to him and get his info and help him so he can learn more and find the missionaries where he lives which is in Texas.

Friday: It was our ward Christmas party and we had been inviting people to come left and right and we had two investigators come one was Keith who is just the sweets guy when I invited him he asked me if it was a date and I told him no but there was going to be food there but he came and loved it and we were able to give him a tour with an awesome member of the ward who really fellowshipped him.  The other investigator was Avian and her two daughters Slysse who is 6 and Ava who is 2 and Avian is so awesome she knew she needed a new life so she packed up her things in Vermont and moved to   Greer all alone she is so awesome and met so many awesome people who she really connected and the primary kids really fellowshipped her daughters and by the end of the programs they were all sad it was over and are excited to come back and learn more but the thing with Avian is that she works on Sundays so that is an obstacle we are working on but she is wants to come back which is a good sign.

Sunday the best day of the week we had 4 investigators come to church two of which we have been working with for a while but the other two came on their own. One who is Aaron he has really been struggling lately and knows he needs a change so one member invited him to come and see our church and introduced him to us which we were very happy to by the end of church Aaron flat out said I need to change and want to and this is the best place to be I know that so what do I need to do.  I was so stunned and grateful and scheduled an appointment to come and teach him.  The other investigator is Jason Waldrop who came with his member dad and he too has had a hard life lately and asked if we could help him.  Then on Sunday evening we had an appointment with an investigator who has been investigating since he was seriously 5 years old but he just has been anti and not interested until he was humbles a couple months ago and last night he said that he know he need to be baptized and wants to be baptized on Dec 22.

The church is true this work is so awesome go out and serve people you never know the impact you will make on one person Thank you for your prayers and love they are felt and needed thank you thank you thank you have a great week I love y’all and know ya’ll are in my prayers as well

Love Sister Erica Browning

Happy Thanksgiving!!

So I got the call I am leaving Florence surprise surprise. I have mixed emotions because I love this place and it has a special meaning to me it is where I first started my mission and now I have to leave it but then I am so happy because now I get to go and experience somewhere else new and meet all sorts of new people and have all sorts of experiences.  This past week has been awesome that it is not a coincidence I know it was Heavenly Father telling me my work was done and he shown me that.  On Tuesday we had an appointment with Emily who was having a rough time a couple weeks ago but we told her that if she read the book of Mormon that everything would be ok and after we left she read the Book of Mormon and she felt the spirit and everything that went wrong in her life went right and she knew it was because of the book of Mormon and the church and she wants to be baptized on Dec 15 I was very humbled.  We have been working with a part member family the McGee and we have been focusing more on the mom who is a member and we were talking about all the things she has been doing and I was amazed to hear the she wants her daughters to be baptized and she asked how to help them get there we told her that we would help her.  She has progressed so rapidly and I know great things are going to happen to her and her family by making the choices she has.  On Sunday to top it off we had two investigators come to church one I did not expect because he has health issues and I never thought he would come that day but he did his name is Calvin and he loved it and is now having us teach his nieces and nephew the gospel because he wants them to have it in their lives. I definitely learned and grown a lot especially the last six months I learned of how much this is Heavenly Fathers work and how little I do contribute as a missionary in peoples conversion the lord is preparing constantly people who are ready to know this gospel and we must continue to strive to recognize them and be prepared to give them something that will make them happier than anything else.  Sorry this is a little short but I am so humbled to have been in Florence and will miss it with all my heart but things go on and I know that Florence is in good hands and future missionaries will have lots of work to do because of how awesome and prepared Florence is.  Can't wait to tell y'all where I am till next time.

Love Sister Browning

P.S. Happy Thanksgiving!!