Josh's Mission April 20 2015

Hello Family!!

Yep, Burlington is such a great place!! I really love it here already. It feels like I'm home here, it's a really special place. yeah, it's pretty close to right across the river. it's about 30 min N of Nauvoo. Ft Madison is directly across the river, which is in our zone (and yep I'm still a ZL, it's such a great blessing to be serving all the missionaries here :) they are all so great!!! we actually had a Zone meeting down in Nauvoo this week, which was so special!!!! I'll send a pic of it)

that's really great that you and his dad facebooked, e Wardle is such a great guy!!! we have loads of fun together and we're working as hard as we can. it's kinda crazy right now. in our ward we had sisters here last transfer, but because of the lack of sister missionaries, they had to be taken out, but hopefully we'll have some next transfer.... but for right now we're just working both areas and we're just getting going. it's difficult to prioritize everything but the Lord is really helping so much!! We're so blessed to be serving here!!! it's a promsied land :) 

yeah, I heard about the Pason temple, that's so great!!! that'll be exciting to see it and to hear about the dedication :) there was a sister here who I came out with (so she just went home) that is from Pason. Sister Garret is her name, but she said she's so excited to go and see it!

that sounds like it was a really good sunday!! I was reviewing this paper yesterday that I have that compares the differences between sin and weakness. it was really good. :) I've also really thought a lot about ether 12:27 and especially how it talks about when we come unto Christ, he will tell us what our weaknesses are. I think that's really important, the He will help us overcome or handle or give us strength to handle our weakness. but when we let our weaknesses overcome us, they can result in sin. Like it talks about in Mosiah 3:19, we are to put off the natural man and become perfected in Christ. I also really love in Hel 5: 12 where it talks about the need to remember who are to rely on and to not rely on our own abilities but recognize that the Lord is who helps us do anything. Humility is a powerful attribute. On that note, we had a mission leadership meeting this week where we talked a lot about the need to be diligent, talk to everyone around us about the gospel of Jesus Christ that we have been blessed with, and we talked about how if we can control our tongue (language) that we will be able to take control of the Natural man. it was a really powerful meeting. :)

and it's so true about asking questions. That's something that President Jensen talks a lot about, how Joseph Smith was the great question asker. we need to ask questions, we just need to be careful when looking for answers and not dwell too much and doubts we might have.

That really sounds like great lessons learned! thank you so much mom for being a great example to me!! I definitely know that it's so important to look through the Lord perspective, He sees the whole picture. He knows what is going on with each of us and He know what He wants us to be.

so to just tell about a few of the people that the Lord has blessed us to work with:

Kayla Robertson: she is an 8 year old who got adopted by a member family, we've been teaching here since before I got here. She is such a great learner!! We had a really great lesson/game about the commandments yesterday. She's actually going to be baptized this sunday actually :) so that's a huge blessing :)

Collin Smith: also a young child of a member (who is less active). He's 9, the elders found his family while ago when they were out finding, his mom wasn't on the records. He is a really good kid. very active and hard to focus, but he loves learning and he loves coming to church. He'll be baptized onMay 16th, It's really great to work with him and help his family, hopefully we can help his mom to come to church.

we are also teaching the Marsten family: they are super awesome!!! We found right before I got here, but we just started teaching the whole family last week. They are a part member family, the father is returning to activity and the mom and children are very interested in learning. they will be baptized in June, or hopefully sooner.

and also we just found another family, the Jordans: they are super great!! they're a member referral and just really want a church to help them, and they want to have a better family life. they haven't been to church yet, but hopefully next week.

thank you all so much for everything!! l love you so much!!! I hope and pray that all is well. thank you again for everything :)

ij iokwe eok!!

Je teaime beaucoup

Elder Broadbent

Josh's Mission April 13 2015

Hello family!! 

so before I for get, first things first: I got transferred to Burlington IA, which is right by Nauvoo!!!! it's so crazy how a few weeks ago we were talking about me going to Nauvoo so much and now I"m literally 30 mIns away from there. :) it's so great!!! I've been down to Nauvoo already, cause we had a meeting there. so that's really great! My new companion is Elder Wardle, he's from Manteca California. He's so great!!! I actually served around him in Iowa city, so that's super awesome!!!

so also before I forget, there is a member here that might know a Broadbent who served down in Brazil I think around 2001 or so, I forget, but his name is Todd Garrison, so if anyone knows him let me know, that'd be so cool!

So I don't have much time, so I'll just tell you that it is so awesome being so close to Nauvoo!! We were talking a few days ago about just how much of a blessing it is to be right in the center of where so much church history happened. it's so amazing!! I loved being in Iowa City because that was where so many pioneers came through to go out west. and now I'm by Nauvoo where the Church really got started. it's such a miracle :) I just love it already!! We have a really good ward with lots of work to do. There used to be another set of missionaries here (sisters) but they had to take them out because there isn't enough to keep it open, so we have basically 4 times as much work to do now. our Zone is doing so well though!! we have lots of good missionaries here. :) it's really awesome too because we get to work with a lot of the missionaries that are serving in Nauvoo and Carthage as well, I haven't gotten to know any too well yet, but it's pretty awesome :)

it sounds like things are going well :) it is good that there is no bad news :) Life just goes on, moving onward and forward. I had a really cool insight today as I was studying. I've been thinking a lot about the Doctrine of Christ lately and just about how the 5 principles really apply to everything that we do in this life and the next. and I came across a phrase that I've just really thought a lot about, It's in PMG in the endure to the end section in ch3 lesson 5 it says: "As we continue to exercise faith in Christ, repent [daily], and renew our covenants, we enjoy continued guidance from the Holy Ghost." 

I just really love that because it summarizes so well how the Doctrine of Christ can apply to everyone, regardless of who they are. it shows us what we need to do, why we need to do, how we need to do it, and unlocks so many mysterious of God. It's so great!!! :) 

Yeah, I do know Erica, I remember here very well :) we were in a lot of the same classes. that's really great to hear that she is doing well after her mission :) tell her hi for me please :)

Well, I hope and pray that all is well!! I love you all so much and I really appreciate your love and prayers. I can't tell you enough, I truly do feel them. I love you!!

ij iokwe eok!!

Je teaime beaucoup

Elder Broadbent

ps here's a couple of pics:

the first is of a great family (the Jensens) in my last area and the next is the Crawfords. I thought I'd show you a pic of a few of the great families there! I might have talked about them before, but I'm don't remember.

and the next two are of me and elder Wardle in the Library..... I realized that I hadn't taken any pics of us yet. he's such a funny guy!

Funny comment about this picture - when it was first loading for me to see - all I could see were the bellies!!  I laughed and showed a co-worker and said - what is he (Elder B)doing comparing his stomach to someone who is pregnant!?  Glad it turned out to be a whole picture - much nicer looking!!

Josh's Mission April 6 2015

-----I love that this sweet little brother was so excited to see his big sister during conference!  And even so excited that he took pictures and sent them back home to make sure we saw them!!  Cute son!
And a note about the rock pile - Josh didn't mention this but this is actually a good reproduction of what the Iqualuite Indians do in upper Canada where Kris served.  I am impressed and surprised that Josh would get the image so accurately.




Hello family and happy post Easter Monday!!

it has really been a wonderful week! We've seen so much happen this week, it's been great weather, we had a wonderful conference and I don't know how it went by so fast!! So, first, this might be a shorter email, we don't have a lot of time but I'll try to tell everything that I can remember happening and especially the great things that we learned and felt at conference.

So this coming thrusday is transfers and I will be leaving North Liberty, getting transferred to probably my last area (not sure where or with who yet, but I'll let ya know next week). Elder Parry will be staying and finishing his mission here. We're both really sad that we aren't staying together, it's been such a great transfer with him!! I've learned tons and developed a great friendship with him, but life goes onward and upward.

This week we were really blessed to teach a few really awesome people that I want to tell ya about. On Monday we taught Steve, who is a nonmember friend of a really great RM here, David. We had a lesson with him on Friday as well and it was really cool to see him already start to accept the gospel into his life. He also watched a few sessions of conference, which is super great!!! He is a really great guy, he told us that he is already starting to feel like Joseph Smith is a prophet. I'm excited to see what Heavenly Father has in store for him.

Then we found this awesome family from India! it was really amazing, we'd been out finding pretty much all day and nothing was really going on. we talked to a couple of Indian kids and then went and knocked on this door that was open. a man answered and told us to come right in. He was very welcoming. he told us that his name was Manuel and his wife, Sri, were from India. He then showed him the #BecauseHeLives Video, which was super powerful. they then allowed us to teach them the restoration and we invited them to conference (they we're able to come unfortunately). we went back a few days later and they asked us if we had programs for younger kids and summer programs. it was really a sweet miracle to find them!

Then Conference week end!! WOW!! it was so amazing!!! I really wish that I could remember everything that I felt and learned, I also hope that I'll be able to read my notes... but I'm really glad that we can review the talks online anytime.

I felt like this conference had a lot of weight behind it, for me personally anyways. it was very powerful to hear each and every speaker testify lovingly and boldly that Christ is our Savior. A few things that I took away from it personally is that I need to be a little better than I am right now. I need to make the changes right now that will make the biggest differences for eternity. it was really amazing how great an emphasis was put upon strengthening the family. and Just how much every talk focused on the need to really and actually come closer to Christ. I know that is the most important thing that we can do is to repent and come closer to Christ and especially to help others to do the same.


so to respond to your email :)

too old to hunt for easter eggs?? no way! that's so much fun!! :)

yeah, there are a few really great shots of Mary and chad (chad is a good friend of Josh's and is from our home ward) too. :) it was really awesome to see them!! We were at a members house watching it and I got really excited every time I could see Mary :)

that's super awesome that Jeremy and Laurne had another baby!! congrats!! I hope all is well :)


Well, family just know that I do Love you!! I am so grateful again and always for your love and I really can't put into words how much I appreciate your support and prayers. I hope and pray all is well :)
 
ij iokwe eok!!
Je teaime beaucoup
Elder Broadbent

ps just a couple of pictures. We did service and there was a pile of rocks that I couldn't resist making something out of.
also a pic of mary singing conference.