"The worth of every soul is great"

Well hello there everyone! 

It seems as though you are all enjoying your summer! That is awesome! I am so happy for you all! Well just in case you are wondering, everything here is going great! There are people everywhere and smells everywhere... bad and good!  Haha.  Brooklyn is so busy, crazy and unpredictable... that it is almost becoming predictable haha :) 

This last week was good! I have been out for 5 months now. It is pretty crazy because it doesn't really seem real! I don't really know how to explain it. I feel like I just got here, but at the same time, not really! Haha. Elder Martinez and I are having a really good time working and learning together. He loves the Gospel and has a great testimony.  I love him so much! We have a blast together and we always make each other laugh! Now all we need is some people to teach! :) I gave a talk in church yesterday and that was interesting ... seeing as I barely speak Spanish! Crazy, but it went okay though I think! I talked about every member being a missionary! I based my talk upon the talks from Russel M. Nelson and Neil L. Anderson from the last General Conference!  In the talk I said, "Hey, look at what we have!! The gospel is something so so special and we need to share it with everyone!" :) So I hope that the members feel how we feel as missionaries!  Seriously without people sharing the gospel on their own efforts the results of bringing other to Christ can be slower.  But when the members are there and helping the missionaries with one of their friends...BOOM! It is so awesome and it works!  I mean, look at Chris Ahrens!  He is serving right now and doing the same thing! :) We need every member to be a missionary! 

So right now we are in the mode of trying to visit with members in our ward area to find people who are interested in more about the gospel! All I want to do is bless the lives of others and help them realize that there is so much more to life than it may seem!  I am loving being a missionary and yes, at times it can be tough when so much of our time is spent trying to figure out how to find those individuals who are seeking the truth. We are trying to show our faith and to work hard. It is tough, but I know that it is worth it!  The worth of every soul is great in the sight of God and I know that. I know that is so true and that is why I am here! 

Here is the scripture for the week. It is found in the Book of Mormon, in Alma 37:6-7.  It reads, "(6) Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.  (7) And the Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and eternal purposes; and by very small means the Lord doth confound the wise and bringeth about the salvation of many souls." This scripture is so true because by doing small and simple things, our testimonies can grow and we can find the truth in our lives.  By these small and simple things we can learn how to apply the most important things into our lives and bring others to the knowledge and happiness we have. We can't all be perfect and amazing at everything all at once… because that would defeat the purpose of this life! We are here to learn and grow.   The only way to do this is to do so simply, with sureness in our steps and faith that as we do the right things we will be blessed.  

I really hope that you all are doing so well! I love you all so very much!

Love, 

Elder Brandon Waidmann