I'm getting good at listening.

Hi Dad,
Thanks so much for all you said :) It sounds like the ward is doing well. I’m actually serving in the west side of Provo. I’m glad that I got to serve here it’s a cool spot! It’s fun to say that I served in Provo.
Most of my lessons are in Spanish. We have like 3 a week that are in English. I’m getting pretty good at listening, but my speaking is still rough. I need my comp to translate a bunch when I’m trying to talk, but it’s good. I enjoy being forced to relearn the basics in the new language. I also have to share simple truths which really allow the spirit to testify strongly. We recently had comp exchanges and I learned a lot. We got along well, and dealt a lot with planning to be effective. I enjoyed it!
Transfers are next week. It went so fast. Everything goes fast in life huh. ha ha. Interesting fact is that "p day" is actually only 7 hours long :) but it gives us time to do the essentials for the week. In fact this email will also go fast too cuz I’m out of time. It doesn’t mean that i love you any less.
I was thinking yesterday in the priesthood session, and Saturday about your example to me. You always taught a lot by your actions rather than a lot of words. I wish I learned earlier to watch more.
I love you Dad!

We heard the recorders will meet with people to answer questions.

Hi Mom!
I got the pillow case! I got it in the MTC. It was great to read everyone’s notes. THANKS BREANNA!
I’m writing in my journal don’t worry :) I get a lot of strength by showing God that I value my spiritual experiences and I wanna remember them. I think that in order to receive revelation I need to have "a sincere heart with real intent". I can prove that I have that by writing down what I receive and making plans to act on the guidance I receive.
My comp and I got to go to the temple. We can go once a month I think. We heard that the recorders (guys who operate temples under the presidency) will meet with people to answer any questions we have, so we went right after our session. It was AWESOME. They are soo smart! D&C 76 is very deep especially the last bunch of verses. Joseph smith couldn’t have made all that up. It makes too much sense to be from a man. It proves yet again that God is real, He has called prophets again, and His church is on the earth again. Thanks so much for writing.
love you!
Elder Brendlinger

GOD WILL BE ABLE TO COME INTO OUR LIVES AND HE WILL HELP US TO DO HIS MIRACLES

Elder Cufre and I get along like all the time. We both like to work so we are able to break new ground and stretch to do things we couldn't do earlier in life because we were distracted by doing other simpler tasks. It’s like we are trying to qualify for a higher law ya know? I really like it!
Today we had a great experience in comp study. We were talking and he said that he really wants to make the most of this transfer and turn it into a powerful experience we can remember forever. I said "yeah let’s do it! But how?"…Then it got a little quiet ha ha. We talked about communicating well, loving one another, obeying rules etc. (good answers but not new material - ya know) Then he read a scripture (Moroni 7:26,33) and I thought... and we talked and thought some more, and prayed for our investigators. When I opened my eyes it felt like I opened a whole new set of spiritual eyes. I am still working on summarizing it, but basically I really am learning that faith allows us to do all things.
Before my mission I wondered about what knowledge I needed for my mission, and what I needed to do in order to be effective. I was thinking obedience, work ethic and memorizing Scripture mastery etc. But I realized - IF WE DEVELOPE, EXCERSISE AND SEARCH FOR EXPERIENCES TO INCREASE AND SHARE OUR FAITH, GOD WILL BE ABLE TO COME INTO OUR LIVES AND HE WILL HELP US TO DO HIS MIRACLES. Faith qualifies us for His help, because it is a principle of belief and action it encompasses so much of the gospel. If we have faith we will be humble, obedient, charitable, loving and bold. We honor our call and have every other necessary quality, and do every necessary action to be a "clean vessel" that the Lord can bless. Faith leads to power, and power is the ability to do work. God wants to use us for His work. If we are faithful then He can give us the power, and if we are faithful we will use it.
I’m so grateful for experiences like these that teach me so much. I’m so grateful for the chance I have to share them with you.
Don’t forget to read and pray, because if you do you can have the spirit, and through the spirit anything can be revealed - ANYTHING.
Stay happy =)
I love you

I couldn’t have thought up a better comp.

Thanks so much for all your prayers and support! I heard it works best to send packages by u.p.s. cuz they do forwarding better. I’ve been instructed to have people send letters, packages and everything to the mission home, because it gets complicated with transfers and stuff.
I’ve really been blessed! My mission is amazing! I cannot believe how much charity and love is in this place! There are so many that are ready to listen and so many that are helping the work along!!!
In just the first week here are a few things that happened:
breakfast at presidents house---free subway sandwich for being a missionary---free sandwiches for my comp and I at another restaurant worth like $13 for being a missionary---two men walked up and testified and said we are doing the Lord's work while were eating--- 22 people have honked their horns (including a school bus) while we were walking on the sidewalk --- about 15 people have waved--- we were late for dinner, I prayed for a ride and a stranger pulled over and gave us a ride!! That is one of about 15 rides from members and investigators we’ve gotten!! A stranger offered another ride but we didn’t need it--- we live in a home with a mother and son which are amazingly kind and supportive, he cooked us dinner last night when our appointment canceled (even though we have another dinner appointment with them tonight) and he has given us like 4 rides--every member and investigator invites us in with a smile, and most offer us a drink or food(its Latin culture, they are so nice) I’ve never drank such large glasses of juice in my life! HaHa--- and I got to anoint 2 people with consecrated oil in Spanish.
I can’t even count the many blessings and tender mercies here. I’m serving in the "Provo west" area. My comp is Elder Cufre from Argentina. I couldn’t have thought up a better comp. We work hard, get along, and are getting better all the time. He is teaching me so much! We taught 34 lessons this week it was great!
I have to go, but I love you all. I hope the spirit can be with you, and help you like it has been helping me. I hope everything is great!
Love Elder Brendlinger

I got my "travel plans" to the mission field.

THANKS so much for the brownies! You didn’t hold back with the amount did you Ha Ha. Nothing says, "I love you" like 4 pounds of brownies Ha! They are delicious and I have plenty to share, thanks so much! It was really nice of you.
I got my "travel plans" to the mission field. I go to the front desk on Wednesday March 3rd at 630 am. It’s funny cuz everyone else in my district has two pages of instructions, and I have two lines of type and some info boxes Ha Ha. I like it. There are 15 people traveling with me. I don’t know anyone that is in my travel group. I have a lot of mixed feelings with leaving, but I am excited to do God's work! It was kind of sad to see everyone gone, but I’m happy for them more.
I have seen Matt Johnson about 4 times and talked at a Sunday temple walk. It was nice! I plan to keep in touch with some of my district. They are really cool and nice.
It is exciting and it makes me nervous that I’m so close to actually spreading the gospel in Spanish. I am looking forward to it!
Well my time is up. Love you all!

Basically, if you are humble and diligent the spirit will come to teach and comfort you so you don’t feel inferior.

Matt Johnson from California just came to the MTC yesterday! I had no idea he was coming but we ran into each other in a computer lab just hours after he got here! I realized that it’s been almost 3 years since I’ve seen him. I gave him my mailbox # so he can write a note to me if he has time. He said that his brother Scott got home like a week and a half ago. That’s exciting!
I wrote in my journal that I felt really special that God would allow me to see one of my best friends again. It is proof that God loves friendships and closeness among His children. There is no coincidence that after 3 years of being separated we came to the MTC within the same 8 week period and are in the same building.
Stephanie, it’s great to hear that you are getting a lot out of you mission class! I know the feeling of inferiority that you were feeling. It’s great to want to learn all that we can. There is so much though, and sometimes we feel like we are the only one that doesn’t know. One thing that really helped me was having the spirit with me. It comforts us in our humility and teaches us too.
When I have the spirit I am reminded that the Lord loves me and is pleased with my desire to learn. God reveals all that we need to know when the time is right. Until that time we study all we can which helps us prepare for the revelation, and revelation often comes while we study. Basically, if you are humble and diligent the spirit will come to teach and comfort you so you don’t feel inferior.
In PMG (Preach my Gospel) it says that the success of a missionary is measured primarily by their dedication to the work. I’m positive that this can be applied to any other member as well, cuz again - If WE do our BEST then GOD will do the REST.
I love you and wish you the best! TTY soon!----------

Going on a mission is DEFFINATELY the best choice I could have made! I love it.

THANKS A TON for the valentine’s package! I really enjoyed it! It turns out that sending huge amounts of candy is a great idea cuz otherwise everyone in the district would have to sit and watch you eat it, so I’ve been able to share. Even though there is a ton of food 3 times a day we still get the munchies all the time. Ha Ha. It’s probably why Elders gain weight so often. Ha. I’m trying to stay healthy just like you guys are.
I’ve found that obedience makes all aspects of life better including health. They give us 50 minutes of gym and they encourage us to spend 20 on cardio and 10 on strength and 10 on stretching. Every day that I follow that council closely, I feel better all day. It’s amazing how obedience to rules helps with the spirit in our lives; and the spirit can strengthen us physically, mentally, spiritually and improve our relationships too!
I’m also getting practice with close relationships cuz I’m with my comp all the time. He is great and I’m learning a lot about relationships in general and getting along with all kinds of people.
Our district came up with a goal to be able to sincerely pray in Spanish by the end of the MTC. I thought I may struggle with that goal, but thanks to the help God gave me I said a good prayer this morning and only had to use 2 words in English! Yay! I’m excited. The Lord's hand really has been in my life more than even. I don’t feel like I’m serving Him because he is doing more for me than I could ever do for Him on my mission. Going on a mission is DEFFINATELY the best choice I could have made! I love it.
I recently was impressed at how God has given us each commandment with our eternal progression in mind. He doesn’t tell us to be obedient to glorify Him but rather, so that we can grow, be happy and return to live with Him. EVERY SINGLE command comes with a powerful promise of blessings, which are often so great we can’t understand. I have seen the damage that can be caused by disobeying and I’ve felt the happiness that can come from obeying. Sometimes it’s so clear that good leads to good and bad leads to bad, but other times the adversary clouds our view. It’s important to always keep our guard up and to not let ourselves think that our will is better than His. If we do OUR BEST, God will do THE REST.
I love you guys and pray for you!

God gives laws that will help us move from one state of glory up to the next

Hi Steph!
Yeah, it seems that God makes promises like in the word of wisdom, tithing, and His command to multiply and replenish the earth. Then "scientists" start to create doubt with their tiny perspective on the universe. They see a few facts in a insignificantly small part of eternity and start to think that society, the ecosystem, and the entire galaxy is falling apart. The Lord sees all, and He knows what will happen throughout eternity. When He gives a commandment and a promise we can trust that it is what is best and if we obey we can have greater blessings and light in our lives.
I recently read Joseph Smiths "King Follett Sermon". Joseph explained that God gives laws that will help us move from one state of glory up to the next and the next until we are perfect. It was kind of an interesting testimony on how God works. You might check it out. There are headings that will allow you to just read parts you want to read about. I know you are very busy.
Sorry I keep giving you stuff to read HA HA. The Holland talk video is the thing that I really think should be watched to prepare for a mission if you were to choose just one. Oh, and another cool point, in Alma ch 26 it’s basically Alma and Amuleks homecoming talk. They even expressed that they got depresses and the Lord comforted them. So don’t worry about how you feel or if you feel insecure. Even those amazing missionaries were human and needed comfort! Just focus on what you are supposed to do, and you will be strengthened. You can do it. Just like Nephi and the brass plates. I love you.
I firmly believe the things I said. I say them to each of you in Christ's name amen.
Elder Brendlinger
i love you.

There are objectives but no grades.

Hey Mom, Dad, Bre and Steph,
Thanks for the e mail it’s nice to hear from you! I think I will have a CD player at some point. Spanish is going well. I’m not a super star but I am learning some phrases OK. It’s not frustrating. I know how hard it is outside the MTC. It’s easy compared to that. We kinda have tests. They are weekly TRC practices. There are objectives but no grades. This week we are practicing talking about family and food, then teaching the first lesson in Spanish for the first time. It should be exciting! We all just do our best. It is nice to have something specific to work towards. Our teachers help us as much as they can during the week. We kinda choose what we want to go over. We do Spanish some times and doctrine other times. It is always about 10 hour of class though. I don’t mind though. I have so much to learn. It’s a good pace. The food has been good. It’s kinda buffet style so people never leave hungry, and most people gain 5 to 10 pounds HA. There are between 1 and 3 entree choices so there is almost always something that sounds good. They have a bunch of drink choices. Well I love you guys! Say hi to the young men and stuff!
Love Elder Brendlinger

I have become a literal part of the 5th article of faith!

Hi guys!
It’s great to hear from you like always! Thanks so much for your words of support dad! It means a lot.
So I recently looked at my ministral certificate with my district. It is a little card we carry in with us at all times. It has very meaningful words. it says
"Garret Steven Brendlinger, who is in full faith and fellowship with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, is a duly ordained minister of the gospel and as such has authority to preach the principles of the gospel and to administer the ordinances there of- we invite all people to hear his message."
That was really impressive to me. Not only am I a "minister" but I have become a literal part of the 5th article of faith! I never realized that either of those things would happen to me, but it’s really awesome.
I will do my best to live up to this responsibility. This certificate is recognized legally too. Even the non-Latter Day Saint world acknowledges that when you have this you are not "soliciting" or teaching random thoughts you have, but we have authority to preach and administer. I’m grateful for that opportunity.
I love you guys and I pray for you! I wish you the best. Talk to you later.
Love Elder Brendlinger

I love going to the Temple!

I love going to the Temple! I always have one set of questions answered and I get a whole new set of questions for next time. Ha, but I love it. I can really feel that I’m being taught by the spirit in there. Speaking of that, the spirit is very smart. In fact it knows everything. Joseph Smith said in his King Follett Sermon that he knew more than any man because he had the spirit with him. I know that being taught by the spirit is very important for mission service. It even teaches when we practice lessons with members that role play. I was talking with one instructor and the spirit helped me explain the first vision in a way that I never even thought about before. The spirit taught me as the words came out of my own mouth. That was a remarkable experience. By the way the thought was -- "God answers prayers according to our personal needs. Since Joseph was going to be the prophet of the restoration he needed to see God and His son so that he could endure persecution and testify with power. We can also pray for answers, but we probably won’t see God. But we do feel exactly what WE PERSONALLY need to feel. God will tell us everything we need to know in the way we need to hear it."
I love you all, and I wish you the best!
Elder Brendlinger

I’m learning that I alone can’t fulfill my purpose as a missionary.

I love you guys,
I am learning a lot about faith and diligence right now.
I’m learning that I alone can’t fulfill my purpose as a missionary, but when I do my best to work hard so I can be worthy of the promptings that the spirit provides, and live worthy to receive the strength to do those things THEN I can fulfill my purpose which is to invite others to come unto Christ. Under the direction of The Eternal Father the Lord Jesus Christ is the leader of this work and he is not a passive leader. He is in every part if good mission work that is done by both member missionaries and full time missionaries. The Spirit is a guide for missionaries and as the tool to reach the hearts of Gods children. Without the spirit any success in the mission field is merely coincidence.
I love you and I pray for you.
I was told to encourage my parents to serve senior missions by a president of the 70, so I know it will be an amazing experience if you guys can do it.
Love Elder Brendlinger

Those that convert without full knowledge of the Gospel are very blessed because they have great faith.

Hi every one,
I love you all! Recently as a devotional we just sang the audiences favorite hynms. it brought a great spirit. We sang families can be together forever, and I got emotional and felt really grateful that I’m able to be sealed with you all for eternity. It meant even more cuz I did sealings last week in the temple and got to hear, over and over, the covenants that hold us together. What a great gift families are to us all!
Another favorite song is a poor wayfaring man of grief (number 29). It reminds me of how involved the savior is in my life. He sees everything I do and knows all the good and bad. Every good thing that I do, I indirectly do it to him.
I’m happy to hear that you guys are setting goals for the New Year with the ward. I read a scripture that reminded me of your missionary efforts. I think it’s in Alma 32:15-16. It was talking about how those that convert without full knowledge are very blessed cuz they have great faith. I hope you find some people that will hear your message.
Oh interesting fact, I may leave for the field a week before the rest of my district cuz I’m so local. They are 3/1 and I’m 2/24(may have changed I don’t know) but yeah it’s not a huge detail. I love you! Bye

Every bit of knowledge will be used on a mission.

Hi!
If you ever wanna get a hold of me you can send a letter to dearelder.com and use my mail box number 122 and UT-Pro 0224 mission. I’ll be at the MTC till Wed. Feb. 24th. It usually gets to me the same day.
I can’t listen to music here but I can in the mission field. If you send me some talks would be cool to have on CD as well. "ldsvoices.com" and other sites have free talks that can be downloaded and burnt to CD. Don’t feel like obligated to make some for me though. ill still love you guys. As for cassettes I think so...but idk. My old comp had a tape recorder that he used at an audio journal and sent the tapes to a friend. To me that seemed ok to do during personal time, but we have a no music rule at the MTC now.
TRUST ME every missionary can benefit from more time for study and pondering and spiritual experiences. So Steph, enjoy all the prep time the Lord set out for you. Every bit of knowledge will be used. I’m really focusing on teaching people not teaching lessons. Well my time is almost up. I love you guys! Hope to hear from you soon!
Elder Brendlinger

Practicing missionary lessons for FHE was a great tool.

Hi,
It’s been great here. I’m really enjoying the frequent temple trips. I can never get too much of that. I also love the spirit here. I’m realizing how sensitive the spirit really is. It’s been my focus to strive to invite it all day. It’s very easy to offend it. I love how often it’s around though. I like the great examples of all the other elders. The group that mentored my group just left for the field and a new group just came in on Wed. They are cool. There are a lot of little things to know here, like how to do laundry and stuff.
I’m not in the laundry room typing cuz me and my new comp Elder Bice went to another building so we could print. He is neat. He grew up in a small town and has a lot of funny stories like how he took a girl on a date one time to slaughter a cow! They had a great time.
There have been a lot of good class discussions. We all get along. It’s kind of a must if we want the spirit to be there, and we know that it must be there cuz if we don’t learn with the spirit we can’t teach with the spirit and that is what really converts. Thanks for having me practice the missionary lessons on you guys. It was a great technique. It’s actually how we do it here too. We have the trc and we teach to members that are role playing as investigators in Spanish and English. You can recommend teaching for FHE to the guys in the ward.
All my district members are Elders, no sisters, and we are all learning Spanish. 6 of them are going to Guatemala and Dallas. Cory Hayden from Redmond was here. I saw him a bunch. He left though. Thanks a ton for making the blog!
love you guys talk to you soon! Elder Brendlinger

We saw Elder L. Tom Perry!

Hi!
It’s great to hear from you. I hope everything at home is still going great! its awesome to hear about Stephanie’s horse class. i know it’ll help a bunch as you prep for a mission. One thing Bishop Gardemann told me is that you will use everything you ever learned in life while on your mission. it seems very true so far. I placed my first book of Mormon already! It was over the phone in the referral center (RC) here. We call people who ordered stuff and confirm that they got it. We ask if they would like something else and if the missionaries in their area can drop it off and share a message. We do 3 basic things there "teach testify and invite". I really like it. It’s actual missionary work while on a mission! ha ha.
Elder l. Tom Perry came and spoke at a devotional here on Tuesday, it was very good. He was here to set apart 8 new MTC presidents! That seems like a lot. He talked about 5 things we much teach and testify of as missionaries. The five points that Elder Perry taught were 1mission of the savior 2 apostasy and restoration(the AUTHORITY is back(see Luke 6) ) 3 Book of Mormon 4 restoration of the priesthood 5 organization of church(same as Christ's dispensation)
Ill pray for you guys! Love you! Talk to you soon.

I want to make my time here count.

Hi guys! It’s awesome here! I go to the Provo Temple once a week. It’s right across the street from the MTC. We walk there. It’s cool I really like it. It’s my favorite day of the week. I did initiatories as a proxy for the first time. It was great! and my comp needed 2 blessings so I helped with those. That was nice. We go to the temple as a district so there are 7 of us but there are always other missionaries there too. This week is going well here. They say that time here is very distorted. "The days go like weeks and the weeks go like days" it seems to be pretty true. There are very busy days but they blend together in your memory cuz we kind of do the same few activities every day. It seems like I’ve been here maybe a few days when I look back. I hope I can change that and really make the time here count. I feel like I’m changing and I want to keep it up. I love it though. I like the time to learn about so many important things. I’m typing in the laundry room now. There are probably 100 machines and tons of elders frantically writing. We aren’t allowed much time to write but I’m glad I can talk with you. I love you guys and I hope that you recognize the Lords hand in your lives and feel of His love and tender mercies. Take care!
LOVE
Elder Garret S. Brendlinger

Welcome to the MTC

Garret loves the MTC. He's been doing lots of studying and practicing working hard ALL day. He has had two great companions so far. It does not really feel like a mission though because he's still going to mission prep and not teaching. He is grateful for the practice and for the opportunity to become a sharper tool for the Lord. He gets to go to the Provo Temple once a week and it is his favorite day of the week. He really wants to grow and make his time at the MTC count.

We gave him a hug

The whole family was able to see Garret off at the MTC after a full day of seeing the sites in Salt Lake City and going to the Salt Lake Temple as a family.

Garret Texting

Garret was texting and writing down contact information for his friends right up until we pulled up to the curb at the Mission Training Center.

Garret's Last Meal

Garret's last meal before entering the Mission Training Center was at the Creamery on the Brigham Young University Provo Campus. It was delicious.