Hello
family and friends :) This has been a week to remember....
First of all, it was
Bible Camp week!! So I had my acting debut haha I thought it was going to be
awful, but I loved it!! I loved getting to talk to the kids everyday and to
share our testimonies, even though it was through a cheesy skit, about how much
God loves each and every one of them. The kids were so cute and really loved
having us there, which was awesome! The downside was that it was in this super
old building and it took us until the third day to realize the awful smell was
mold so most of us have had awful allergies this week.
Speaking of allergies,
I love horses...not. I usually have a really runny nose on the bandwagon
because I'm allergic to horses. Some of the teams (Bill and Bob for example)
make my allergies worse than others. But I keep taking my allergy meds and
kleenex and suffer through it becuase Heavenly Father has blessed me with the
ability to play my trumpet no matter what physical ailment I have.
We got to work in the
Cultural Hall and Seventies Hall this week! I love working in the sites- there
are some amazing senior sisters that we get to talk to and learn from, but we
also get to talk to tourists and share our testimonies with them. Especially
about missionary work in the Seventies Hall- I love that place!!! It has a
really special spirit for me and I love that I get to testify of Christ where I
opened my mission call.
I spent half of Thursday in
the ER and we went to Annie's custard that night. We really needed to have that
bonding time as a band because on Friday after HymnFest, we had a
meeting in which we found out that one of the band elders had to go home for
medical reasons. We, especially the elders, have done everything we could to
keep him here, but the doctor and President Gibbons decided that he needed to
go home and get the proper medical attention. It's been hard. Really hard. I
wasn't that close to him (he plays trombone), but after serving together in the
band and having been through everything as a whole band, it's kind of like we
lost a brother in our family. And there are other elders who had to return home
from full-time missions for medical reasons as well, so this is hard on them
too. At the same time, most of us have some kind of physical ailment- whether
it be asthma, allergies, a cold, bronchitis, a sore back, or anything else.
Others have mental ailments- depression, stress, etc. Others are struggling
emotionally or spiritually with various other things. Satan is trying to attack
the Nauvoo Brass Band and tear us all down at the same time. He is getting each
of us in our own way and is attacking us at our weakest points. Please pray for
each member of the Nauvoo Brass Band. We are trying our hardest and praying as
much as we can, but any extra help we can receive from your prayers is much
needed.
I know without a doubt
that Heavenly Father answers our prayers. He loves us so much and wants to
bless us, but we must ask. Whether it be a prayer on your way to the hospital
asking for comfort, strength and guidance, a prayer that the yellow jacket at
Sunset won't sting you, a prayer for the safety and help of someone else, or
any little prayer you offer. Heavenly Father hears and answers every single
one. Sometimes, He will test our faith and ability to endure and wait patiently
for answers, but they will come.
I also know that Satan
is real. I know it sounds weird, but he is! And he is trying to stop the work
of the Lord from progressing. He will do everything that he can to stop us from
spreading the joy of the Gospel. But we must go on!!! I know that Heavenly
Father is stronger than any temptation or trial we have. Through the Atonement
we can be strengthened and blessed beyond our wildest imaginations. Prayer
works, the Atonement is real, and Heavenly Father loves us.
Sorry for the
scatterbrained and short email, I'm not exaggerating when I say it we need your
prayers. As a band, we will get through this stronger than we were to start.
But it's going to take time and work and an added measure of the Spirit. I love
you all so much!
Sister Holbrook
Please don't think we
aren't having fun though- we are still having a great time!! There have been a
couple nights this week where companionship study ended because we were all
laughing so hard that we couldn't breathe! Plus they started doing the cheerleader
version of the audition at Sunset and it's the most hilarious thing I have
seen! Bible Camp was hilarious and so much fun to be pirates haha and there are
lots of funny things everyday- little moments to appraciate life and just
laugh. Yesterday, our laugh just happened to laughing at how dead awful our
band as a whole looked.
Bible Camp
Annie's
Bible Camp (again)
Our last pre-Sunset concert with Elder Law
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