BAPTISM!!

Sveiki! I hope everyone's week has been great! This week has been super exciting!! 

Last Pday we went to Sigulda which is another city in Latvija and we got to hike around and see some castles which was really cool. It was so fun. Then that night we went to Jekabs (blind old guy) which was so fun. We read from the Book of Mormon and then sang some Latvian songs together and I still have them stuck in my head hahaha.

Wednesday we had zone conference which was so great. Ever since I have gotten here to Latvija I have been studying joy in the Book of Mormon and a huge part of zone conference was about joy and it was really good and it was like all my studying came together and it was definitely inspired of God for me to study it. Zone conference is always great and both times I have found so many ways I can become a better missionary every day and I love being here more every day because of it. 

Thursday night I helped Masa Veila move apartments and we have been living out of both apartments since haha. It's made the week crazy but so fun trying to figure out Masa Veila's new area out before this week. 

SATURDAY WAS DACE'S BAPTISM! It was sooooooooo good and the spirit was so strong during it. Dace is amazing and her faith is literally a miracle. She is already so strong and continues to grow each day. Seeing how happy and excited she was for her baptism and recieving the Holy Ghost made it one of the happiest days because Masa Veila and I honestly didn't do much. She did everything and was so prepared. I could not stop smiling all of Saturday and Sunday. It has been such a great opportunity to teach her and watch the gospel change her life. Watching her get baptized was one of the strongest times I have felt the spirit. Following Christ is the way we need to go because it will bless us and change us. I love being a missionary and for the many amazing opporunities God has already given me. I LOVE THIS GOSPEL!

We also got transfer calls this week. I will officially be out of my training yay! and I will be staying in Riga Center North and Masa Luisa (Lewis) will be my companion. She came out with Masa Veila and has spent her whole mission so far in Liepaja. Last night I got a call from Sister Goodell (Russian sister I was in the MTC with) and she will join us in a trio from anywhere from a week to a whole transfer. Her companion now is heading to Lithuania and her new companion is in Belarus but can't leave until a new sister gets there so I am super pumped to be companions with both of them. It will interesting to see how we fit three sisters in my apartment with only two beds haha.

I love you all and thank you for all the prayers and support! I could not do this without you! Have the best week!!

Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.  2 Nephi 31:20

Love,

Masa Brunere

Pics

1: Baptism!

2: Dace and Diana

3: Sigulda

The Joy of Missionary Work

Sveiki!!

HAPPY FATHERS DAY (yesterday) TO ALL THE DADS! I hope it was a great day! I was able to watch the Mormon Message this week called "Earthly Father, Heavenly Father" and it made me so grateful for my dad and the amazing person he is and the love he shows me. It also made me super grateful for my Heavenly Father and the love He has for me and the love He shows me each and every day. Heavenly Father loves each and everyone us individually and wants to help us and guide us. Please turn to Him and feel us His eternal love for you. I know I'm so grateful for His love and being able to feel it for myself and the opportunity I get to feel some of His love for the people here in Latvija. 

Nothing too exciting happened this week haha. Last Pday we went to the KGB Musuem and it was really sad to see everything that have happened to these people, but it also helped me understand them better and love them even more. 

Tuesday we had an amazing lesson with Laine that was totally directed by the spirit. I'm so grateful the spirit is the real teacher here haha because it brings so much power. It was such a faith strengthing lesson. All our investigators are doing great though.

Dace will be getting baptized this Saturday!!!!!! Yayayay!! She is a testimony to me that there are prepared people here. She was found less than a month again and just loves the gospel and church. I'm so excited for her to be baptized and receive the Holy Ghost. She is so excited, it's so cute to see. God really does work in miracles because Dace's faith is a miracle. She believes and acts to strengthen her testimony even more of what we have taught her. The gospel truly will help each person. The gospel is for everyone and can help everyone in their own situations. The change I have seen in Dace is truly incredible. The gospel of Jesus Christ will bring happiness and hope into everyone's life. And how cool is it that I have the opportunity to share it everyday with the amazing people of Latvija??

Saturday we got to go the soup kitchen again yay! I love the soup kitchen and how much fun there is and the people we get to serve. One of the volunteers there has a hedgehog and sometimes she brings it and it's so fun to see haha. But she's the sweetest and this week I learned about the traditional Latvian dress from her. There was a festival on Saturday and there were so many women wearing them. It was so cool to see. 

Yesterday I got to speak in church, (sacrastic) wahoo. It wasn't too fun but I did it yay! It didn't have to be very long either so that was good. I just wrote and then had one of the elders correct it so I didn't look like a fool up there haha. And we got to go to Masa Helena's house yesterday too and it was so fun haha. She is the cutest ever and my love for hymns is growing so much from her love to sing them. She's so funny too and always have us laughing.

I love Latvija and the people here. Being a missionary is the greatest thing ever and I love being here. The language is hard, but the people are so great about it and help me a lot with it. I'm sooo grateful for everything I have experienced so far. I LOVE LATVIJA. I have felt that love so strongly this week and just wanted to share it with you all :) This gospel is so true and meant for every single person. I know Jesus Christ suffered for each one of us. Not only for our sins but also to know how we will and do always feel. He understands us completely. 

Have a great week! I love you all! 

"Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me." 1 Nephi 21:16

Love,

Masa Brunere

Pics:

1: Selfie Sunday

2: Look at our cute prophet!!! (taken from a Russian Pamphlet)

3: idk

4: Latvija my favorite place on the planet

Fall Already?

Sveiki! I hope everyone's week was great!

Lots happened this week which made for a great week. Last Monday was definitely my favorite Pday so far. We went and played mini golf and this dinky looking course but it was soooo fun and actually really hard haha. After we rented these cart things and it was like real life Mario Kart it was so fun haha. After we rented normal bikes but we didn't make too far when an elders bike broke twice and Sister Vail almost died when hers broke too so we went back and got ice cream instead haha. 

Tuesday we met with Dace and Laine and both lessons went really good. I love them both so much. Dace is progressing so great. We went to the Bloomfields house and had dinner with them and Dace which was really fun. 

Wednesday we went to a members house and then fed us hot beet soup and it was soooooo good. I was kinda scared to try it but it was the best haha. Sister Vail and I also got separated this week haha. I got off the bus and she wasn't able to so she got off at the next stop and walked back to me. It sounds un-exciting but it was soo funny haha. 

Thursday we had a lesson with Elina. She is the cutest and just accepts everything so well and I love getting to know her better each time.

Friday we had a mini bible bashing lesson? haha it was weird, but we were in the park this week and someone came up and talked to us. Turns out he was a missionary for another church and asked to meet with us. So we got two of the elders and had a meeting with him and his friends and just talked about what we believed. They both took Book of Mormons too!

Saturday I was on exchange with Sister Goodell and we had a party. We went to Imanta and had 10 people we needed to go and visit. The first miracle is we found all 10 apartments. Second miracle, we got into every apartment building but one! All the apartment buildings have codes on them and so if you don't have it you basically wait for someone to come out, call someone, or try and break in. It was cool though because we got in after we did all we could do. There was one lady standing on her balcony at one of the doors so I asked her if she would give us the code because we needed to give our friend a gift, she just looked at me like I was crazy and went back inside, but then someone came out and we got in! God was watching out for us that day. Only one person actually answered their door but she was so sweet and we got her number so the whole day was worth it just to meet her. 

This week we also met with someone in their bathroom. She was an online referral and she invited us in when we gave her a Book of Mormon and we talked in her bathroom haha. It was an interesting week, but such a fun week with lots of laughs. Latvija is the greatest place and I am so grateful to be here!

This week got a little colder too! We had to break out our sweaters! but it should be back up to really hot weather again this week!

I finished the Book of Mormon this week and took Moroni's promise and as I read part of Moroni again my answer came very clearly and I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and we will all come closer to Him through reading it. I find so much joy and happiness in it. I love the Book of Mormon and I'm so grateful I get to read it everyday and share it with others. 

I love you all! Have a great week!

Love,

Masa Brunere

Pics

1: mini golf course!

2: our real life mario kart

3:  we would be a cute biking mission right?

4: the elders wore hats for sister vail's bday this week!

What a Blessing!

Sveiki! This past week I hit 4 months, which is so weird!! I hope everyone's week was great and that as summer is starting everyone has fun! 

Last Monday we went to a concentration camp museum. It was really good because it helped me understand the people here better. We also had a lesson with Laine last Monday and it was such a good lesson and totally led by the spirit. I love being able to meet with Laine and seeing her faith grow. On Tuesday we had another meeting with Elina! She is the coolest and cutest. She is doing so great and loves the Book of the Mormon. It has been such a blessing to me to have met her and meet with her, she is so prepared for the gospel.

A couple weeks ago we got a text from Zane saying her work was changing everything up and that she would not be able to meet for awhile and we'd have to move her baptismal date. But we met with her on Tuesday for just a few minutes and we figured it all out and we moved her baptism to June 16, but she is so excited and GUESS WHAT!? She came to church this Sunday!!! She told us she wouldn't be able to make but she showed up and said she had time and would be staying the whole time! It was such a blessing and we were sooo happy to see her!! 

We found a new investigator just a little over a week ago, her name is Dace and she is the sweetest. She has the cutest little girl Diana, who is so cute. But she has come to church twice and we have taught the first three lessons already. She loves everything and told us she wants to be baptized and she'll be getting baptized June 23! She is so fun and just always so happy when she's at the church and learning about the gospel.

Beate, Kaspars wife (he just got baptized) is progressing so well as well! She wants to be baptized too and she will be on June 30! Her faith has grown so much. She reads the Book of Mormon everyday and studies for Sunday School and makes comments! It is so cool and fun to meet with her. 

Saturday we got to go to the soup kitchen again, such a fun time. It's one of my favorite things to do here and I am so grateful we got to go! After the soup kitchen we had an amazing opportunity to have a missionary meeting with President Brough (2nd counslor in the general young mens presidency) and Elder Golden (Area seventy). Honestly, I think the meeting was just for me haha jk but it was all sooo good and answered so many of my questions. One thing President Brough talked about was being happy in the hard times. His saying during hard times is "what a blessing!" He taught us the importance of joy in hard times and how great of a blessing it is to struggle, especially now on my mission. I'm so grateful for their guidance and counsel.

This Sunday was kind of interesting haha. As I said earlier Zane surprised us and showed up, and another investigator we have did as well. However, she came a little drunk and did not like how reverent we were haha. She even bore her testimony, it was a very interesting experience for everyone but the spirit was still present and everyone was uplifted at the end of church. 

This week I also learned a very important lesson. Some of the people I turned to the most I was not able to turn to anymore which is hard. At first, I felt alone. Then we had our lesson with Laine. As we talked and testified of the Atonement of Jesus Christ I was overwhelmed with love that the Atonement of Jesus Christ is real and that He does love me and know me and does hear my prayers. I wanted to share this experience because I know we are never alone and that Christ did do everything for us to understand us completely and know exactly how to help us. I am so grateful for His life and sacrifice for each of us. I promise that He knows you personally too and will help you through all you need. I am so grateful to be here and to be teaching about Jesus Christ and all He has done for us.

Have a great week and a great start to summer! 

Love, 

Masa Brunere  

Pics:

1: Our cute Ivita finished institute 

2: Hot air balloon!

3: another pic of ivita

4: We found this last night. We don't know where it went