October 27th, 2014

E aí pessoal, passou mais uma semana ótima! This week was great! Wow I cant believe its already PDay again, the wek just flys by doesnt it!

Anyways this week was super busy and my legs are deaddd! Partially because my shoes are ruined.... Im pretty sure this is like my 5th pair... its just Brasilian shoes were not made for missionaries! This Tuesday we ended up going to Caçapava do Sul, a city that is about 2 hours away from Cachoeira. We went to do divisions witht the district leader that works in Caçapava. It was pretty cool, but every time I do divisions I feel like I am away from home, and then when I go to my area again I feel like I am back home.

This week we talked to Tiago about his baptism that would have been on Friday, but he wasnt feeling ready, and his mom wasnt superrrr happy about it, so we talked to them and marked it or this coming Saturday! It should be pretty cool!

This week as you can tell in the title of this email was the batism of Maicon and Andresa! It was such a great experience! They are super firm and have a huge testimony. Seeing them baptised was just such a spiritual experience. Elder H Silva batpized Maican and I bapized Andresa, and it was so great. There were a bunch of members at the baptism! And Maicon and Andresa are just funny outgoing people and already ahve a bunch of frienships in the branch!

But yeah, So this week was great, and I am happy. I am amazed that the time is passing so fast. Its crazy to think about school and whatnot. And I am excited to see everybody again. I still dont know for sure my release date, but it is that week of the 27th I just dont know if it is Monday Tuesday or Wedensday. But its one of those days!

But yeah, I love you all! Have a wonderful week!!!!

Picture of the baptism and the other one is a family night that we did with a family in the branch!

October 20th, 2014

Hey everyone, so this week passed so fast, I guess that time fls when you are having fun right? It was great. Its good to hear from everybody I miss you all so much, but soon I will be able to talk to you! Christmas is coming up pretty quick, its pretty crazy! This whole year has gone by fast! But yeah!

So last Monday we did a family night with Maicon and Andresa, and a couple of members and it waqs really cool because they are integrating really well with the members here! I am so excited for their baptism whcih will be this Friday! They are so ready and so cool, and super funny too. Man, its great to be able to baptize family that will be able to go to the temple someday. I love being a misisonary.

But also we are teaching Tiago, a guy that has 16 years. He is the brother of a member already, but he was never baptized. We have been teaching him for a while, but he hasnt been super firm, because he is hard to find at home. But, recently we have been able to teach him a bunch, and he will also be baptized on Friday! He is funny, and is alot like me, he likes to paint and draw, and is goofy. Haha, but I am also so happy for his baptizm that will happen this Friday!

Luis and Lizara are awesome, and firm, and every day that passes they are becoming stronger! I love them, they are great, and soon are going to go to the temple! I am very excited for them!

I am happy. It seems like the harder I work, the faster the time goes, which make me sad because I want the time to pass slower. I love the mission, I dont want it to end yet, because we are just having a great time here. I love Brasil, and I love being able to serve the Lord.

I love all of you and I hoppe you have a great week! Thanks for all the prayers and thoughts for me! I lvoe you all. Sorry that I dont have pictures, I left my camera at home accidently... But next week i WILL have some!

October 13th, 2014

Hey everybody! From the looks of things, it looks like everybody has had a great week! Family, Europe looks like such a cool place! I am happy that you all were able to go and have fun and whatnot. I hope you guys are having fun! I am having fun here too just so ya know.... Haha seriously its great here in Cachoeira! I am loving the work here.

My companion is such a hard worker and he is funny and he is a great guy. I am very happy to work with him. He is very cool. It seems like the time is just flying by with him, its crazy to think that the transfer is already half over. Man the time si flying y here.

This week we went to Porto Alegre for our leadership counsel and we were able to go to the temple again! Such a great experience! I absoluetly love the temple! It always has the best spirit and I just love it. It like inside there, nothing of the outside world matters, its very cool:)

And anyways we got back to Cachoeira on Wedensday and worked and worked and worked! We are working with Andresa and Maicon, that AWESOME family that we are teaching and they are doing great. They are going to be baptized not this Saturday, but the Saturday after! I cant wait, I am like counting down the days haha! Theya re such a great family, and I am so excited to see them be baptized because it will be such a huge blessing for their family! Then they will be able to go to the temple too and it will be great!

Yesterday at church Lizara bore her testimony and it made me so happy. She looked at me from the pulpit and said, "I am so grateful for the Elderes finding our family" and it was just the best feeling in the world. I love being a misisonary.

But yeah, life is good here in Cachoeira, lots of work. There is so much happening htat its impossible to inculde everything here, but basically, life is good! I love you all!! Have a great week!

October 6th, 2014

So this week was a great week and we worked a ton! I loved the general conference talks! I especially loved Carlos A. Godoy, because instead of having to listen to a translator we lisened to him! It was really awesome! And the talk was great. I loved when he talked about if we were worthy to recieve the blessing promissed in our Patriarchal Blessings. My testimony about the prophets is always strengthened when I listen to general conference! It was great.

This week was a ton of work and we have a bunch of people that are progressing to be baptized. There is one family that I love so much that are doing so well, and actually a miracle happened. I made a journal of my prayers, and what I do is that I write in this journal what I asked for in my prayers, and then we God answers my prayers, i write how he answered by the part where I asked. And so last week I prayed that this family, Maicon and Andresa recieved an answer to their prayers about the church when they visited the church! And so yeah, they went to church last Sunday and they didnt say much, but when we visited them his week they told us what had happened. Andresa wqas feeling really sick and had a realllly sore throat, and wasnt even able to eat. She was also nervous about going to church, because she ha had some bad experiences with other churches, and so she prayed that God would show her if the church was true, because she didnt want to go in vain. And she told us that after church she didnt have anymore problems with her throat, and that she knew it was an answer from God. It was sooooo special!

And then Maicon said he knew the book of Mormon is true because he can feel the unity in their family increase as they read the book of Mormon. They feel like God is talking to thm when they read. Theyyyy are awesommeeeee!!! I love them so much!

Luis and LIzara are doing great, the church is developing new ways to help stregthen recent converts, and they are progressing really well. I am excited to see what becomes of them, I think Luis will be a great leader someday!

But yeah, so I am loving it here in Brasil, life is good. I am working hard, I am keeping the rules, everything is great. Right know I am in Porto Alegre, and we are going to have our counsel tomorrow and we are going o the templetoo! I am really excited! It will be great! I love you all, it looks like you ahd a ton of fun in Switzerland. I am jealous haha! But yeah, I love you all, have a geat week!

September 29th, 2014

Hello everyone so this week was very very veryyyyyyy great!!!! SO my new companion is awesome, Elder H. Silva, and is such a hard worker!! He is from São Paulo and is becoming a zone leader now and so I am teaching him how everything works. Its great! But I am just a very happy camper for a few reasons!

First of all, I love being a missionary.

Secondly, we had 8 investigators that went to church yesterday, and that are progressing reallllly quickly! It was the best sight to see everybody at church, it just made me so happy to see so many people that we growing their testimony!

And thirdly we had the baptism of Luis and LIzara this week! It was just so great!!!! At this baptism there were alot more members and so it was great, and they were just so happy. They chose me to baptise them both, and it was just so happy. A lizara was so happy that after the baptism just stood there smiling in the font for a minute or so, and probably would have stayed longer but Luis was waiting to be baptised too! And Luis was just so happy afterwards and man... its just such a great feeling!!

We have like three families that we are teaching, and all of them are progressing and showing interest, and reading the book of Mormon, and that just makes e so happy because I know that they will be so happy becasue of this path. 

The only sad thing was that Karina said she was going to have to take some time to think about things... and so we probably wont be teaching her anymore. I was pretty sad, she was great, but she has her agency, and so its alright.

But yeah so about you guys! Connor, it looks like you are having a ton of fun in high school!Carson keep being a stud, and send Estefani´s letter soon so I can give it to her! I love all you guys and hope you ahve a wonderful week!!

September 22nd, 2014

everybody so this last week was really gratifying and great and wonderful. For a few reasons, but I will tell you in a second. First of all there is the big news that Elder Hiatt was transfered and will go to Pelotas sadly. He was a great comp, Im going to miss him. My new companion will be Elder H. Silva, and I dont know him very well, but I know that he is from São Paulo! So tomorrow I am going to Porto Alegre and I will meet him!

So this week was really great. On Friday Lucas was baptized!!! It was so great, he has 13 years, and is just such a great kid. I love him. He walks to church every Sunday with a member that lives close to him, and he has been going to church solid for the last 3 months! The service was on Friday night, and sadly just 3 members came and Lucas´mom and aunt, but even so, it was just a great experience. He picked me to baptize him, and he was jsut so happy! I was so happy that day too! When we were walking to the church to start filling up the baptismal font, he was outside his house playing soccor, and he told us that it was going to be the best day of his life, and it was jsut great. I had an old watch that I bought at a flea market, and I got his name engraved on the back, and gave it to him as a present and he loveeeeed it. He is such a humble great kid and man I love him.

Sadly Karina told us yesterday that she cant keep meeting with us, because her mom doenst like us... so I was pretty sad. Her mom says that she supports Karinas baptism to us, but behind our back she fights with Karina about it, even though Karina is already 19, she doesnt want to cause a fight in the family, which is true. She said that when she moves out she will find the misisonaries and go to church again. But I am going this Wednesday to talk to her mom one last time just to see if a miracle happens.

And Luis and LIzara are great. They have alot of family problems, but are really excited for their baptism this week! It wil be this Saturday and I am so excited! They are great people, and I know taht this gospel will bless their family and give them strength!

As for me, I, am happy. I am one happy camper here in Cachoeira. There are alot of good thigns happeneing here. I love being a missionary.

Also we went to the Zoo and saw some cool birds this week! Haha and there are some pics from Gaúcho day! Love you all!