November 18th Email

Hello again!  Thanks for the picture, I always love to see the family!  I'll be starting to write another letter home today, but I'm not sure when I'll finish it.  I did get the piano music, thank you so much!  I'll be playing it later today, and I'll think of you :) .  The rule about sending packages to the mission home is just so that I don't change residence and then the package doesn't get to me.  This way, the package will always get to me.  Tell papa thanks for sharing his spiritual experiences with geneology work, I enjoyed that a lot.

We didn't have any baptisms this week, we had  to bump it to next week, but now it's planned for sure (this will be for Miroslav, but we are hoping for a few more shortly following his baptism).

This week we had a couple of amazing experiences from referrals.  One started off when we went to see our investigators in Rotherham (Frantisek and Rast'o), and when we got there, Fero (the short form of the name Frantisek) told us to come with him to see someone.  It was actually someone he had met that day who was having a hard time.  He told them he knew some people who could help change his life (us) and brought us over.  As we talked with these people, Fero bore his testimony about how for seven months he had no money for his family.  He said that despite this, he had contined to pray and read his scriptures and have faith.  He then said that now things were all right, and that he now has money to support his family. Then he bore testimony that it was 100% thanks to his decision to follow the Lord, and the Spirit was so strong in the room.  Then Rast'o, our investigator of only a few weeks, bore testimony of finding strength in following the Lord.  It was like Elder Sindylek and I didn't even need to be there!  We scheduled this family for baptism at the end of the lesson, and we're excited to work more with them.

Another family we met this week was referred to us by a recent convert, and the father actually came to church last week before we even met with them.  We went to see them this week, and my first impressions were very very good from the moment I walked in the door; it didn't smell like smoke, and come to find out they don't smoke or drink at all!  This is totally unique for a Slovak gypsie family--they all smoke and drink.  But not this one!  We taught them the message of the restoration, and they accepted the baptismal challenge as well.  As we continued to meet with them throughout the week, they've continued to progress as fast as we can teach them.  The husband (named Peter) is reading the Book of Mormon every morning and evening.  He didn't know how to read before this, but we challenged him to try anyway and to pray for help, and he definitely has received it.  He came to church again this week (the rest of the family wasn't able to make it, but they will this coming Sunday), and had a great experience again.

So that's the miracle message for the week, I hope it's uplifted your day.  Miracles are all around, and the world is being filled with the light of this gospel in all nations among all tongues of people.

Love you all very much, I'll get that letter to you as soon as I can.  Thank you for sending your love and support, it means so very much to me.  You're the best!

Loads of love,

Elder Zachary Brown

And this from the senior couple (Elder and Sister Allen) serving in Sheffield with Zach and his companion:

ROTHERHAM - AMAZING PEOPLE

That elders from Sheffield 4th branch asked us to go with them to Rotherham to teach Fero, Anna and a cousin. We went there to teach them about the law of chastity. To our surprise Fero met us at the door and told us we were going a few blocks away to visit a man he had just met. We didn't quite understand at first what we were doing. We thought that perhaps this man needed an interpreter but that was not the case. Fero met this man and his family and they were having hard times. Because the Gospel had changed his life so much he knew that the gospel could help and change this man. When a person is living the way they should their life is always brighter no matter what. Bad things happen to good people but it is the atonement that helps us to deal with life's problems better.


This man and his wife have been married for 30 years and have 10 children. Some of them live here and others live in Slovakia. He came with his wife to England to have a better life. We taught him about the Book of Mormon and a little bit about the restoration of the gospel. He agreed to read the Book of Mormon and come to church on Sunday. Elder Brown challenged him to be baptized. When he knows the truth and the spirit speaks to him then would he be baptized? YES! I tell you these people are amazing people.