7-26

Dear Everyone,

Had an awesome week, but it was pretty repetitive. So, basically the First Presidency is changing the missionary focus of Preach My Gospel from finding and working with members to becoming more effective teachers. So, this last week, half the leaders in the mission all met in Gulfport, MS and we received training for 4 days on the new missionary focus. It was 4 crazy days of pouring things into our mind and role playing the things we were supposed to be learning, but the end finally came and I know that I'm a much better missionary now than I was at the start. Because it was in Gulfport, a lot of the missionaries coming to the meeting from other parts of the mission ended up staying with missionaries in the Gulfport Zone for the 4 days. They set it up so that we would usually be in training from 9 to 3 or 4 o'clock in the afternoon and afterwards return to our areas to implement the things we had learned. So, we had two other missionaries staying with us for the 4 days and one of them was another Spanish Speaking that is up in Hattiesburg right now. It ended up working out perfectly because for those 4 days, the Spanish missionary (Elder Westover) and I would go out and work with our Spanish investigators in the evening while Elder Killian went out with the other missionary to work with our English investigators. We ended up getting a lot of work done this week and we also have a lot of new investigators to work with as well. Also, just to let you know Mom, on Monday we started teaching a man from Brazil who speaks Portuguese and English and so maybe I'll be able to pick up a little Portuguese while I'm out here too. :) We had a pretty crazy morning today because we went to help a member take care of "some stuff." We had actually helped this same member a few days ago move a couple of his neighbors out down the road and so he called us up last night to ask if we could help him for a little bit in taking some of the things his neighbors had left behind from their house to his house. (He assured us that he had their permission) The "stuff" turned out to be a barn-like shed that he wanted to rebuild in his own yard. So, we went about dismantling this shed for three hours this morning and taking the parts over to load them in his truck and afterwards we unloaded it all in his yard. To make matters worse, the electric saw he had planned on using to dismantle the shed ended up not working. Therefore, we had to stick to dismantling it with a sledge hammer. And when I say that "we" had to use the sledge hammer to take off the walls and the roof, I really mean that "I" had to do it since the member is almost 70 years old with heart problems and Elder Killian wasn't feeling good this morning. So, right now my body is feeling pretty sore since I had to come at the roof from weird angles in order to keep from putting any holes in it. But, I finally got it done and we carried all the walls and framing off to his truck in perfect condition so I can now proudly say that I've added the title of "shed demolisher" to my list of mastered trades.
Maria and the Lords are all still doing really well and we're really focusing on them reading the Book of Mormon and Praying so they can gain that conviction that this isn't just a really nice church, but the true church in which they need to be a part of.
I love you all and hope you're all doing well. Good luck with the move Ben and Macey!

Love,
Elder Bradley Bishop

7-19

Dear Everyone,

I feel so happy today. I found out that several weeks ago Tina Rojas up in Texarkana was baptized! She had finally set her own date like we challenged her to and Elder Davis was able to perform the baptism. I also found out that a young black family of 6 named the Bells that Elder Davis and I had begun teaching up in Texarkana (I don't know if I ever wrote home about them) just recently got baptized. I'm not going to lie, when I started reading that in the letter I got from President I started to cry a little bit. The Lord takes care of us so much. Elder Killian and I spent a lot of tracting this week so we could find some English investigators for us to teach. Elder Smith and I had kind of been focusing on finding new Spanish and so most of our investigators right now are Spanish speaking. However, we found a fair amount of people this week that gave us a return appointment so hopefully we'll get some English lessons going for Elder Killian and myself to teach. We've started teaching several Spanish people how to start speaking English and we're hoping that that will lead into teaching the Gospel lessons as well. One Spanish couple that we've taught 6 or 7 times different English skills have accepted our invitation to hear the Gospel so hopefully we'll be teaching them that sometime this week. Well, even though it's P-day, Maria invited us over today for lunch and to have a lesson so I have to cut the letter short. Hope you're all doing well and I look forward to hearing from you next week.

Love,

Elder Bradley Bishop

P.S. Just thought I'd let you know that there's a Brad Bishop here in our ward boundaries that's less-active and that we plan on going to see sometime this week. I'll let you know how that goes. :)

7-5

Dear Everyone,

Another great week in the work! It always kinda throws me when I write on Wednesday and then again the following Monday. I feel like I'm writing again too soon or something since I don't have a full weeks worth to report.

We had 4 investigators in church yesterday. Maria and the Lords came, as did a 19-year-old girl named Maritza. Maritza's mom and dad are both Spanish, but none of their kids speak Spanish. Missionaries have been going over there for about 6 months now, but so far we haven't been able to really get them to see the impact the gospel could have on their lives. Some of them have been to church in the past, but this was the first time for any of them in over a month. I was pretty tired after church yesterday. One of the Spanish families that were in the ward moved a couple weeks ago to Washington and so we lost the member who did the translating for us in sacrament meeting. Their father also moved with them and he was the one that taught the Spanish Gospel Principles class during Sunday School. There isn't a replacement for the translating and the ward hasn't called anybody new yet to teach the Gospel Principles class so on Sunday I did both. Speaking Spanish for the better part of two hours definitely dried my mouth out. What a great way to start out fast Sunday! :) My throat was pretty scratchy for the rest of the day until we broke our fast, but I was alright though.

To answer your question, Mom, yes we usually get fed by members a lot down here. The average is probably about 5 times a week. This last week we didn't have any though because no one was able to sign up at all because of stake conference last Sunday. It was alright though.

We did have Maria over for a dinner with the couple who speak English, Spanish, and Portuguese. The dinner went well and afterwards we watched the Restoration movie with Maria since she doesn't have a DVD player. She liked it, but we didn't really get the response we were looking for when we challenged her again to be baptized. She said she liked us coming over and teaching her and loved coming to church, but that she'd already been baptized twice and didn't feel like she was ready to be baptized a third time yet. So, we realized we needed to go over having the proper authority to baptize with her again for our next lesson and as it turns out, that's what the lesson was on in Sunday School yesterday so it worked out pretty well. We're going to go visit her on Thursday so hopefully she'll have given it some more thought and the Lord can soften her heart. Sister Lord has been having some pain in her legs lately so if you could keep her in your prayers, I'd appreciate it and I know she would too. It's made it difficult for her to come to some of the activities we've had the past week though she was at least able to make it to church yesterday.

Some quick questions I've had for a long time and I need to ask now before I forget: What mission did you serve in Mom? Were we in San Miguel de Allende when we were in Guanajuato? Those are actually the only two I remember right now. Love you all though and look forward to hearing from you.

Elder Bradley Bishop

P.S. Actually, one last question. That braided thing you sent me from Peru...you said it was supposed to be a keychain, but is it a keychain or a bracelet?

6/15

Dear Everyone,

Hope you're all doing well. I can't wait to hear about the vacation that Mom, Dad, and Bryce took. It sounds like Brooklyn is a pro swimmer now. At this rate, she'll be jumping of the diving board by the time I get home. To get her stoke bigger, Kaytie, one thing you can tell her is that when she's stroking she can pretend like she's scooping a big bowl of ice cream out of the water with her hands and she wants to try getting as much of it as she can by reaching out as far as she can. Another good thing to try doing is maybe support her stomach with your hand while she's swimming for a few laps while encouraging her to reach out as far as she can. She's probably taking shorter strokes in an effort to keep herself from sinking because she doesn't realize doing long strokes is more efficient if she gets it down right. It takes a while for them to learn it, but just keep working at it with her and she'll get it eventually. It's fun answering all your swimming questions Kaytie. It makes me feel like I actually retained some the things I learned from the classes. That's awesome to hear that Ryan is getting his Realtor's licence. Maybe he can help me get a good deal on a house when I get back home. :)

Well, after another week here in Slidell I've decided I despise the humidity of Southern Louisiana, but I love the area as a missionary. We have an awesome ward mission leader who's really gun-ho about the work. The Sister missionaries here in Slidell just had a baptism on Saturday for a lady named Ann that they'd been working with for a while. One of the responsibilities of being a District Leader is to conduct all the Baptismal Interviews within the District and so I had the opportunity to do that and it was awesome. Ann had such a great testimony and it was great to be able to see the excitement she had for getting baptized.

When I first came to the area here, Elder Smith said that they didn't have too many prospectives for baptism, but we've worked really hard since then and have had a lot of miracles occur. One miracle is a 9-year-old girl named Mandy that we're now teaching. One day as we were walking down the street, a man called to us and asked if we were Mormons. We said we were and started talking to him a bit after which he told us that he knew a Mormon by the name of Mr. Ross. He then gave us Mr. Ross' address and we decided to go see him since the man told us his friend was less active. So, the next day we went and knocked the door of the address we were given and a little girl (Mandy) answered. She called "Ross" back to a man sitting on a couch back in the house and he immediately invited us in. Ross' story turned out to be crazy in and of itself, but basically it boiled down to him having been excommunicated. He spent the next 3 1/2 hours telling us his story and turned out to be a really nice guy. While we were talking to him though, Mandy brought him a sheet of paper which he read and then set off to the side. Later in our discussion with him, he pulled it out again and told us it was from Mandy's mom asking Ross to see if we'd set up an appointment to come back and start teaching 9-year-old Mandy the discussions. Turns out Mandy and her mom are from Baton Rouge and are staying with Ross for the time being because of some family problems. Mandy's mom (who's a member) said because of all the problems that had been going on, she never had the chance to get Mandy baptized. So, we've been seeing Mandy almost every day since then and she and her mom came to church on Sunday with Mandy's 11-year-old brother. She's a really sweet girl and is excited about being baptized just like any other little kid. We really think it was a miracle that we found her. Her mom, who is also having health problems, asked us to give her a blessing one of the times we went over there and the next time we came back she said she was doing much better. What great miracles the Lord works in people's lives!

We also have an amazing 88-year-old Guatamalan lady that we're working with named Maria who has come to church 3 weeks in a row now despite opposition from her daughter. She's a very sweet lady that's probably about 4 1/2 feet tall. She's also friends with another elderly spanish couple from Panama we've been teaching. The husband is an American born in Panama and the wife is a native. Their last name is Lord, but when we first met them, "Lord" was the most religious thing the husband had going for him. However, we've been going over and visiting them along with one of their friends who is a sister in the ward here and we think his heart is definitely softening. They've been to church once, but because he had a surgery planned for today, they decided not to come yesterday. However, both the Lords and Maria all came to Ann's baptism on Saturday and they all really liked it. I was talking to Brother Lord after the baptism and he was making jokes about how the water better be warm when "he" gets baptized! How cool!

Well, that's all I can write for now because we have some other things we've got to go try and get done today, but I look forward to hearing from all of you again next week and I can't wait to let you know about everything else that is going on here. I love you all and the church is true! Que les vaya bien!

Tu hijo y hermano en Cristo,
Elder Bradley Bishop

4/26

Dear Everyone,

Thanks for your emails. I'm sorry to hear about Ollie. I have a lot of fond memories with him, but it happens. Mom said you've been going to the gym, Dad, and that you've been getting some exercises to help the pain in your neck. How often do you go and which gym is it?

Thanks for sending a package Mom. I haven't received it yet, but mail usually doesn't get to our apartment until about 12:30 or so. You said that I should take the bike stuff you sent me back to K-mart if I can't use it, but I'm pretty sure we don't have one here. If I end up not being able to use it, I'm sending some things home pretty soon so I'll try to fit them in there if I can.

I don't know yet when I'll be calling home on Mother's Day, but I'll try to let you know in my next email so you can set it up for me to talk to as many as possible.

Well, this week was a pretty slow week in the work, but we still were blessed with some great lessons and miracles. We gave a lady we've been teaching who had a bad case of strep throat a blessing and she was better when we came back the next day. Also, we had a pretty crazy night on Friday when we had the Tornado warning that went on and hit Mississippi. It had been sprinkling on and off all day and we were on our bikes headed towards the home of some Spanish investigators near the edge of our area boundary to meet some members when all of a sudden it started pouring rain. We were soaked in that for a couple miles until we got to there at the home and it stopped raining. Then, we went and knocked the door witht the spanish member and they had had something come up so they couldn't meet with us that night after all. On our way back to go visit someone else, Elder Davis' back tire deflated in about 15 seconds and so we had to start walking. We were on foot for about half a minute when the spanish member who had been on his way back home gave us a call to say that there was a tornado warning for a storm 16 miles south of us. So, he came by and picked us up with our bikes and then dropped us off at another member's home until the tornado warning was over. It was pretty cool. Elder Davis hasn't had a tornado warning here yet, so the whole time was pretty excited, but it ended up missing us so he was pretty disappointed. He said he'd been praying for a tornado and now he had to start praying all over again. :)

Yesterday, we had a Stake meeting and Elder Gibbons from the Seventy came and spoke to the Stake. I think over half the people there at the meeting thought he was going to announce a call to Missouri. All these things happening around the world have really started stirring people up all over the place and it's made some people more interested in hearing what we have to say. It was a great meeting, but Elder Gibbons pretty much just said we need to keep going strong and be a light to those nonmember friends around us.

Speaking of things happening around the world, we were teaching an investigator who is from Honduras the other day and one of his cousins came in the room and told us something was happening in Arizona on the news. I was wondering if an earthquake or something had happened in Arizona too, but we found out that really there were some protests going on about the law the governor of Arizona had signed about deporting illegals from Mexico. Our investigator wasn't too happy about it or the fact that I was from Arizona, but he said he knew I wasn't racist like the Governor in Arizona so he'd keep talking to us. I guess that's a good thing. :)

Well, today is the official start of the new transfer and we're hoping to make it a good one. Keep praying for us and I know the Lord will bless us with success in bringing his children again unto him. Love you all!

Tu hijo y hermano en Cristo,

Elder Bradley Bishop

4/12/10

Dear Everyone,

Sounds like there's some major changes happening with everyone in the family back home. Everything will work out though in the end and I'll continue to pray for you. Tell Grandma Bishop congratulations on turning 93 for me. When I told the other missionaries that my grandma was 93 today, Elder Davis said that my parents must be in there 60's for my grandma to be that old. You two haven't been jumping a few birthdays while I've been away have you? :) Thanks for the package Mom. The bread was great, but the box you sent it in was a little interesting. You mentioned Aunt Shirley missing my emails in your letter. If you could send me her address, then I can include her in my emails instead of you having to forward it on to her every time and risk forgetting about it.

Well, the work here is still progressing. We met a lot of great new people this last week and some had already previously listened to the missionaries in other places in the U.S. and they wanted us to come back and start teaching them again so we're pretty excited for that. Also, I don't know if I told you in my letter home last week, but the Arkansas Elders that we share an apartment with had a double baptism on Friday, a woman and her ten-year-old son. It was a great baptism and we were all very excited for her. She teaches at one of the high schools here in Texarkana and had to endure a lot of persecution from her fellow teachers when she made the decision to be baptized. It was the first baptism that this area has seen in over 9 months as well so the ward was pretty excited.

Just so you know, transfers are happening next week and there's a good chance that I'll be getting moved to a new area. President asked both Elder Knight (who was brought up here to Texarkana the same time as me) and I in our interviews if our companions were ready to take over the areas. He said nothing is sure yet because he still needs to pray about it, but again, there's a pretty good chance of it happening. Obviously, I'll go wherever the Lord needs me, but it's going to be pretty hard to leave this area if I do end up being transferred. I've come to love the people, both the members and investigators, in this area so much and it'll be hard to say goodbye. There's also so many people here that we've been teaching for a long time as well as some that we've met only recently, that are progressing towards baptism. We found a couple this week who just got married a couple days before we knocked there door who were very interested in The Book of Mormon and the Gospel. One of the long term Spanish investigators who we hadn't visited for a while because he was so hard to contact suddenly decided that he wanted to be baptized and told a member he wanted to set up a time for us to come over and start teaching him again. It seems like there are so many things happening here right when I'm about to leave, but I guess that will happen in every area that I'm leaving. Anyway, if I do end up getting transferred, I probably won't be able to write you next week so don't get worried if you don't receive a letter until two weeks from now. (That's for you Mom) I'll try to get a regular letter off to you, but I don't know if I'll be given time for that either so I guess I'll talk to you in two weeks if that is the case.

I love you all and hope everything is going great.

Tu hijo y hermano en Cristo,

Elder Bradley Bishop

4/5/10

Dear Everyone,

Hope you all had a great conference weekend! Weren't the sessions this year great? As I've told some of you already, we were able to get two of our investigators to come watch a session and they both really enjoyed it. (One was an English investigator and the other was Spanish). We had a lot of others promise to come...but unfortunately something seemed to come up for all of them. It really was too bad. There are few ways that you can feel the Spirit more strongly than listening to the Apostles and Prophet of God testifying so strongly of Jesus Christ and his reality. I was sad when it was over. I enjoy listening to the speakers so much.

After the last session, we went over to a relatively new convert and his wife's home to have Easter dinner. It was really great. Also, one of the sisters in the ward made us all Easter baskets and it made me think of all the fun Easter times at home. (Except for last year when you told us we were too old for it Mom. :)

So, this week has been a week of ups and downs. Elder Davis and I had a lot of great lessons with people and got a lot of new investigators. Also, a spanish couple that I started teaching right before Elder Wilson left accepted the invitation to be baptized. They live on the Arkansas side and it's been really hard for Elder Davis and I to get ahold of them, especially since they've been in the process of moving down the road, but one of the young member couples that live here (the wife is Spanish and the husband served Spanish speaking to SLC) have become really good friends with them and that's helped a lot. We've had a couple lessons and dinners in there home that were really spiritual. This spanish couple that said they'd be baptized said they still want to learn a little more before they set a date, but that they do want to be baptized. They also still need to be married, but Elder Davis and I have already married one investigator couple so far and we have no problem getting it done again. :)

The big let down this week is that Barbara Nixon who we've been visiting almost every day the last two weeks called us yesterday and told us she's going on vacation for a month. She had told us that her grandaughter was moving to Mississippi from out West this conference weekend and that she had promised to go spend time with her, but she was going to try to work things out so she could come to Conference. She called us on Friday to tell us that she wouldn't be able to change afterall and that she wouldn't get back until Sunday night. Then, she called Sunday night and told us that she's going to stay with her sister and grandaughter in Mississippi for the next 4 weeks. She said she might be coming back on the 17th for a day so hopefully we'll get to go see her then. It's a bit of a let down that she'll be gone for so long, (and since I might be getting transferred out of here in two weeks that I won't be able to see her again) but I know that she'll get baptized. On Wednesday and Thursday when we were visiting her she said that she hadn't had a cigarette since Monday morning. I know she knows it's true already. She's just been jumping around from church to church for so long that she's afraid of doing it again. I have no doubt that she'll take the step when she comes back though as long as the missionaries keep in contact with her.

Thank you for your prayers and your letters. I hope you're all doing great and enjoyed conference as much as I did. The Prophet and Apostles are inspired and blessed with such power and authority from God. They remind me of Nephi right before Christ came who it was said of that so great was his testimony and faith that those he preached to could not disbelieve his words. I love you and pray for you all. Look for opportunities to share the Gospel in every thing you do and you will be happier than any other time in your life.

Tu hijo y hermano en Cristo,

Elder Bradley Bishop