{letter from Brian}

Hey everyone,
We've had a busy week this week. We had Zone Conference, a baptismal commitments and found out last week that we will, as the missionaries of the Hermiston stake, are going to be singing in Stake Conference this Sunday. So this week we are having a couple practices for the song on Sunday. I'll let you know how the singing goes.
Zone Conference was absolutely wonderful even though I felt like I kept getting spiritual slaps the entire time I was in the meeting. I repented and changed my ways and now I am back on track. Don't worry it was nothing really bad except getting up and exercising, planning with a purpose and involving my companion, and things like that. We had some really good trainings from President Belnap on how we can be better missionaries by making sure our roots are firmly planted in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Sis. Belnap also gave a great training on the talk about keeping the temple in our sights from General Conference.
And no, it is not the camera, I have gained weight on my mission. I don't have any excuses of why I gained weight except that I have finally begun to actually retain weight and it has given me an incentive to work out in the mornings. I am not sure at this point how much weight I have gained but I can tell you that you will get a little more 'Brian' when I come home! Ha Ha. I have actually started working out because I had promised President Belnap that I would work out in the mornings and boy I am amazed how much the Lord helps me to be able to exercise in the morning. Whether you would believe me or not I was able to do 100 dips (working out the triceps), 70 (push-ups) and getting bigger, and 300 crunches and 300 side crunches. I tell you that on certain days I am sore but it is just fine because I feel so much better and awake after I work out in the mornings. I also am able to stay awake during personal study with out even feeling a bit tired.
I have been able to feel much better about all my situations that I am put in after I have listened to and heeded your advice of being an example more than talking to my companions. I have tried very hard to be the example that my companion needs and I have found that he is seeing what I am doing and seeing a visual of what I am talking about rather than a bunch of words that seem to go into his ears but then to the back of his brain. I was able to hear that he actually feels bad about the way he has treated me around the members lately. He was telling me last night while we were in the car that he was sorry for the way he treated me because so much of the time he compares me to a woman or a wife with the way I do things and what I do. I never got angry with him, yelled at him or anything. I just simply took what he said and forgave him if I felt that it was a little over the edge. He has recognized that and has seen that even though it really hasn't affected the way I am it just brings him to a more awareness of how he needs to treat people that cares so much about him. Thank you so much for the advice that you gave me Mom.
Kendra has agreed to be baptized on May 9 of 2009 and we are so stoked about that. Cydnee and Lynzee were not there last Thursday because they were having ATTITUDE on thursday and their mom told them she didn't want to have that at the lesson so she left them home. They are coming for sure this next Thursday because they missed being able to learn about the gospel. It was sweet that they wanted to go for the lesson and not for us, or as my companion likes to point out me. We plan to put Cydnee and Lynzee on date for the ninth of May this thursday and catch them up on what they missed the week before. We are working very hard on getting them to understand the information that they need to know and their lives are beginning to change and the leaders of the Primary and Young Women are really helping us out in fellowshipping these girls.
We continue to work with the Less-actives of the Boardman Ward and do the best we can to brighten their day with the light of the gospel. I absolutely love this work and can't wait to be able to share what i have learned with all of you by the attitude that I have. I love you all and I hope that you remember John 14:27. God Bless you all and I will write to you later.
LOVE YOUR MISSIONARY,
ELDER BRIAN BOWLER