Week #63

Dear Fam-alam,

Sorry my letter last week was so poopy.  I got caught up watching the Bible Videos on the church site and ended up eating up my hour of computer time.  Sorry.

Hey-ski, I've got a challenge for y'all.  If you haven't already, put lds.org as your internet homepage.  That way, every time that you go to use the internet, you'll start things off thinking about your beliefs and something cool will catch your eye.  I just watched some cool videos on the church site about religious freedom.  Watching the church videos is a great way to increase your understanding of the doctrine of Christ and how it applies today.  So the challenge:

1.  Put lds.org as your homepage.

2.  Look for something new to watch or read every day.

So this week has been pretty good.  We are finding a lot of new investigators to teach.  We are trying this new way to get referrals from members.  In the past, every time that we asked for a referral, the response was always the same: "Oh, Elder, I've already talked with everyone that might want to accept a message, and nobody wants it."  So instead of asking, "Do you know anyone that would like to hear a message?" we ask "What's your neighbor's name?"  They give it to us, and then we go there, preferably with the member.  So far it's worked really well.

My Portuguese is getting a lot better because my companion helps me a ton.  Elder Cavalcante is way cool, and he's helping me learn a lot more about the culture here.  For example:  I don't know why they taught us how to say please (por favor) in Portuguese, because nobody says it.  They just tell you what to do.  I still say it because I want to be polite, but I don't get as offended when it seems like my companion is commanding me in everything.  

We are still teaching Jamil, who is getting ready for baptism.  That man is a straight up goofball.  Thankfully he is learning to control his language in front of us, but every once in a while he lets slip a swear word or two.  He is really anxious to be baptized, and we're doing our best to get him ready, but he loves to talk and it's going to be difficult to teach him everything before this Saturday.  Last night we took away his pack os cigarrettes, crumpled them up and wet'm down in the sink.  He's getting there, little by little.  

We found a few more people pretty strong in the faith, so we will be having some more baptisms this month.  We are also working on reactivating a few people, because with two more Melchizedek priesthood holders, the branch is going to become a ward.  Super cool stuff, and I got to witness it all.  

Like you know, I've been in this same area ever since I've arrived in Brazil, and during this time there has been a lot of growth in the branch.  There was one night when a quick arrogant thought passed through my mind that it was me that made such a big difference.  But I quickly banished that thought when I realized that all the experiences that God has given me and the investigators that he prepared had nothing to do with me.  He did all the work.  I didn't make this area, this area made me.

I love you all so much, you are great!

Sincerely,

Jack

Week #62

Dear Family,

Sorry to be so sucky, but I don't have a ton of time to talk today.  We had some legit baptisms this week, and I sent you some pictures of the five baptisms that we've done here in our area.  I hope you have a blessed week, and I promise next week my letter will be way better.

Sincerely,

Jack-O

Week #61

Dear Family,

So I'm going to continue my account of what happened last week, just so you don't miss the rest of the story.  When we left off, Elder Hanley was really down and embarassed on the bus, and I started to notice that something was wrong.

"I gripped his shoulder a bit and when he turned I saw that he was crying.  He explained to me that he has been frustrated in general about the language and everything, and it has been very discouraging.  Because of the experiences that I had been having those past few days, I was able to have some real empathy and talk with him.  I could tell that it made a big difference for him.  For anyone that passes through a trial like that, the most important thing that you can do is trust in the Lord.  Let Him be your crutches.  Lay off your yoke and take His yoke upon you because He wants to push with you."

Sadly, Elder Hanley wasn't able to stay in the mission.  I found out yesterday that he had to return home because of psychological problems.  Hopefully he is able to return at some point.

"The day continued to imrove as we prepared for the three baptisms that evening.  All six of us missionaries met up at the church in our area, and Ana Paula, Jessiane, and Kemily were all interviewed at the same time.  I was a little bit anxious, because just as I explained to my companion, I have issues with relinquishing control.  It's kind of a mixed up psychological issue that I have.  I think perhaps it's a fear of failure.  I'm basically like this: I almsost want to be pulled out of situations before the final test comes, because somehow that exempts me from any potential failure.  But if I am still a part of the process when the final judgment comes, I hesitate to relinquish control for fear that I have not fulfilled my part.  It's somewhat complex, and it's definitely something that I need to master.

"So that's how I was feeling.  Gratefully the three of them passed their interviews and were cleared for baptism.

"The baptismal service was such a great experience.  We had a mountain of  people there, including a ton of investigators who had never seen a baptism.  Jander baptized his wife, Ana Paula, Elder Cavalcante baptized Kemily, and I baptized Jessiane.  It was sucn an amazing experience.  The three of them have entered in the gate, and are not only procuring their own personal salvation, but are acting as shepherds, leading their friends and family towards the true Church.  These were my first baptisms here in Brazil, and I am so grateful that Heavenly Father blessed me with the opportunity to work with them.  They were truly elect women chosen by God."

Really good experiences, and even more great ones happened these past few days, but there's not enough time.  We'll just have to talk after the mission.

Love,

Jack

Week #60

Hey, Family!

So today I'm just going to type out a journal entry that I did the other day that sums up how this week has been.  I was feeling a little bit of discouragement during the week, but it ended up super good.

17-18 may 2014

"What a fantastic couple of days.  And it all ended with me being extremley tired and spiritual.

"Yesterday was Sandro and Jessiane's wedding, which was super fantastic.  I was realy happy to see them taking such big steps in preparation for her baptism.  And Jessiane was absolutely beautiful, it was so great to see the two of them together.  Their wedding was up in Leporace's area, so we ended up spending the night there.

"This morning we came back to our area and pretty early in the morning had to teach a lesson to Jessaine and Kemily to get them ready for their baptismal interview.  After lunch with President Marlon we made our way downtown.  We did some pretty interesting splits today.  I went with Elder Hanley and Elder Valente to eat lunch with a group of students learning English.  We talked with them about out families, ate waffles with maple syrup (importe, Wal-Mart brand) and just had some fun.  At the end we were able to get the names of everybody and their addresses, so we'll see if it leads somewhere.

The other dary I wrote about the spouts of discouragement that I had been experiencing, and today I learned a little bit more why God lets us pass through these problems.  When we left the English-speaking lunch, we had to return to Portuguese becase a young lady who expressed some interest started to speak with us.  Elder Hanley is having some struggles with Portuguese stil, and today it kind of reached a head.

"When we got on the bus, he gave two bucks to the bus man, but the bus fare is 2.80.  The bus man and Elder Valente were trying to help him understand, but he wasn't able to comprehend right away.  I ran up the aisle and gave him another coin to even things out.  When Elder Hanley turned around, he accidentally spilled his change al over.  It was a pretty humilhating experience, and when he sat down I could tell that he was pretty embarassed.  He was sitting in front of me, so I couldn't see him directly, but after a bit I could tell that something was wrong."

Alright, well I don't have time to finish the entry, I'll tell you more the next time.  Forgive typos, I didn't proofread.

Until next week!

Jacko

Week #59

Dear Family,

It was great to talk with y'all yesterday on the computer.  It looks like a few things are changing but is just about the same as it was before.  

I did the math, according to my calculations, 86 kilos is about 190 lbs, so I have lost weight since I got here.  But everyone, including my companion, says that within five years or so I'll be fat and bald.  I guess that's just part of the culture here, everyone wants to tell you that you'll be ugly at some point.

We are preparing for some baptisms and a wedding this week, which should be super fun.  I'll update y'all the next week.  I'm foreseeing some great advances this week.  We had a general authority visit with us this week and it made a big difference.  I learned a lot of new things to appy in the work and it's already bringing some results.  The mission is turning more and more fun every day.  Like an adventure.

Love y'all,

Jack

Week #58

Hey, Family,

It's been another great week of missionary work.  We are having a lot of success in our area.  It is absolutely crazy for me to think that I have been in this same area for six months, it seems to have passed by so fast.

These last few days have been fulfilling and difficult.  I caught the flu on Friday and started to get sick.  On Saturday we had to return home after lunch to rest, and I ended up sleeping for a solid three hours before we went back to work.  On Sunday we worked until late, but by the time we arrived at home I was dead.  I went to sleep as quick as possible and didn't wake up until late today.  I'm feeling a lot better, but it was pretty difficult to keep going last night.  Thankfully our last lesson was with Jánder and Ana Paula and they did their very best to take care of me.  They are the best family ever.

This last Friday night we had an activity in church that was super fun and made a big difference for our investigators.  President Márlon and Flávia organized the activity, which was basically a big pie-in-the-face fest.  People answered basic questions and then got pied.  Super funny.  It was Jamil and Jecylayne's first visit in the church, and I don't think they were expecting something so silly.  Jecylayne used to attend the Christian Congregation of Brazil, which is a very strict church.  In that church, women can't wear pants, use makeup, pluck eyebrows. or cut their hair.  I said to my companion the other day, "I'm confused.  Why would any man ever want to go to that church?  I want to go to a church where the woman are pretty."  Maybe that's whay Jecylayne left that church, because she is a very stylish lady.  But yeah, I think it was a somewhat of a shock for them to go to the church and watch some pie-smashing, loud-laughing madness.

We had a ton of investigators in church on Sunday, it was a super special experience.  Jánder came to church wearing a brand new suit and was ordained a priest.  Ana Paula is getting really close to give up smoking, and within a week or two she should be baptized.  Jamil and Jecylayne went to church as well and had a great experience.  Up until this point, Jamil has been pretty averse to the very idea of going to church, but it seems like they really enjoyed it.  Jamil loves to talk, and he got some great recognition from the members.  The members are great here.

My Portuguese is getting a lot better because of my companion.  He helps me a lot, and I'm adding to list of useless words.  So far I've added bedpan, weeze, comic book, wart, parallel parking, bunkbed, and vagrant.  I'll be fluent in no time.

Love you all so much, and thanks for your letters.  I will be calling y'all next Sunday, and since my call can only be 40 minutes long, maybe it would be better if y'all gathered together in one house.  I was thinking 20 minutes for Mom, Dad, and the brothers, and then ten minutes each for the two couples.  If it's possible, let's Skype again.  I will get on about 6 o'clock my time, roughly, if that's alright with y'all.  But I will check my email right before to see if there are any problems with that.

Y'all are the berst.

Jack

Week #57

Dearest Family,

Things have been going really well here.  We've been seeing a lot of changes happening in the lives of people that we are teaching.  Ana Paula set some goals with the branch president to quit smoking, Jánder is preparing to receive the priesthood, Jessiane has already made personal goals for when she is going to get married to Sandro and is really excited for her baptism.  

Probably some of my favorite visits this week were with another family that we are teaching, Jamil and Jacylayne.  When we started visiting there the a few weeks ago things were super tense in their marriage, always fighting, lacking a lot of peace.  But since we've been visiting, it seems like Jamil has been drinking a lot less and they are really searching to know if the gospel is true, trying to receive and answer.  I'm really excited for them, and it's great to see them bring to bear some of the questions and worries that they have.

Unfortunately for my companion, Jamil brought to "bare" a little bit more than any wanted to witness.  The other day we knocked on the door, and when nobody answered my companion took a peek through a crack in the garage door.  Apparently Jamil was standing in the door inside of the garage stark naked.  My companion quickly recoiled and must have been somewhat scarred because he didn't tell me about it later that night.  I guess that's what you get for being a peeping Tomé.

Love y'all, and I'm glad to hear that things are going well. Especially that story how Dad went and chewed that guy out at Twin Pines.  Awesome.

Love,

Jack