April 28, 2014

FAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLYYYYYYY!!  

How are my favorite people doing?  I hope you are all enjoying the nice spring weather and the beautiful world Heavenly Father has given to us.  It really is beautiful, isn't it?

Sorry for not writing last week!  It was a little CRAZY.. For an hour I was trying to get my computer to work, but to no avail.  Here's an update from the last two weeks!

Holy moly... this has been a r-o-u-g-h transfer, but I sure have learned a lot, especially the importance of hard work. Heavenly Father hasn't forgotten us!  Things really are starting to pick up, and after a very dry transfer, we might have 3 baptisms this next week.  Pray all goes well!

Hahaha SO.... last week we had the lovely opportunity of going to the Temple of the Lord in Curitiba!  IT WAS SO PERFECT.  I really needed that sweet communion with my Heavenly Father.  They didn't have headphones for us, so we all did the session in Portuguese.  It was actually wonderful!  I was able to understand everything and participate fully, and it was a marvelous testimony builder to me that the Gospel truly is the same in every country and tongue.  Despite the beautiful day, THIS Elder forgot his camera..... so... sorry for the lack of pictures!  

The day after the temple, we were teaching a less-active/part-member family, and diarrhea hit... Yikes!  I ran to their little bathroom and then 5 minutes later I had to run back, but this time it was vomit.  AND THEIR TOILET WOULDN'T FLUSH!  I felt SO bad for this poor little family since we had to leave right then, and I left their bathroom destroyed....  After a not-so-pleasant trip to the hospital, we found out that apparently I got food poisoning...?  Super random, and Sister Monteirowas NOT HAPPY with me.... Haha but I'm all better now, and now I know not to make egg salad sandwiches here in Brazil :)

Next week is transfer time already!  This has been a pretty sluggish one, but things really are looking up.  Its the hard times that really make you grateful for the good ones!  I know that Heavenly Father is intimately aware of our struggles and is waiting to help us.  I've learned that sometimes, all we need to do is ask. 

I love this Gospel!  I know it's true.  I love you all so much!  Thanks for the love, the prayers, and the letters.  

Love forever, 

Jason

April 14, 2014

Bom dia familia!!  Eu amo vocês MUITO.  Sinto falto de vocês MUITO tambêm!

This week... was a bit of trial!  We continue to work work work and continue to try to find new people to teach and take to church, but for some reason, prospects seem to be drying up - not just for us, but our entire area.  Not sure why.... but... I have SUCH a testimony that Heavenly Father will bless all those that "endure"haha, so we're staying hopeful!

This Wednesday, we get to go to the lovely Curitiba temple!  It will be such a marvelous blessing!  Holy cow... it's been 10 months since I've been able to go to the temple, so.... this is a much-needed trip.  I always love to go to the temple and feel the sweet, comforting peace within.  Always, you feel of Heavenly Father's profound love for us, and the profound simplicity and perfection of His Plan.

I love this Gospel!  Even when life is "hard", we can take comfort knowing that it is "...but a short moment".  I know that Heavenly Father is ALWAYS aware of us, and is ALWAYS there to help us in our struggles when we turn to Him for help and guidance.  I am SO thankful that this week, we get to commemorate the resurrection of our beloved Savior, Jesus Christ.  Truly, He lived, died, and rose again on the third day that we might have everlasting life.  What a choice blessing!

Sorry this email is so short this week!  And sorry for the lack of pictures... More to come next week for sureI LOVE YOU!  

Have a wonderful, uplifting, and fun week.  I'm thinking about you!

Love, 

Jason

Conference and craziness -- April 7, 2014

My wonderful family!  What a week!  I hope you all enjoyed the marvelous messages from General Conference. I sure did.  Without fail, there always seem to be talks especially for me, whispering the guidance or direction I didn't know I needed.  I love it!

This week was my first week with a Brazilian companion... .HAHAHA it was a toughie, but it was good!  Elder Osório is helping me with the language, and is very patient.  We knocked SO. MANY. DOORS.  It was probably the roughest week here in Brazil so far, as almost NO one let us in...  which is strange for this part of Brazil.  Our whole zone found the same problem this week, too, so... I guess that means we're gearing up for a miracle here pretty soon!  Thankfully, after a few hard days, we had the absolute delight of General Conference - IN ENGLISH!!  Woooooooo  We all traveled to the Stake Center, and all the Americans went to a little classroom with TV and watched GC in exile.  

I was so touched by the speakers this session.  All testified of our Savior, taught that we should love, and shared moving stories.  It hit me this conference, what a blessing it is to have modern-day revelation.  The world is changing SO rapidly, but what a relief and comfort to know that God never changes. We can always rely on Him and His laws and His guidance through the scriptures and a living prophet.  ALL, literally all he asks of us is to keep His commandments, and we are GUARANTEED an eternity of happiness and rest.  It's just these "4 minutes" that count, so I hope we will all do our very best to rely on Atonement and shine for this short moment here on Earth.

Some of my favorite quotes from this past conference include:

"Truth is truth. It is not divisible." - Russell M. Nelson

"Evil, error, and darkness will never be right, even if it is popular." - Russell M. Nelson

"It was the load..." - David A. Bednar

"The Gospel isn't weight.  It's wings.  It carries us." - Jean A. Stevens

I LOVE THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST!  It is liberating, exhilarating, and wonderful.  

I love you, and pray that we will all take what we learned this week in conference and apply it to our lives and character.

Love forever, 

Jason

TRANSFERS -- April 1, 2014

Hello hello family!  My my my it has been a crazy and long week, but a good one at that.

I cannot believe it is already APRIL... This transfer went by super fast! Because it was transfer week, and my companion, Elder Astudillo, is getting transferred, most of the week was spent visiting our recent-converts and prepping for the new changes.  I'm super sad that Elder Astudillo is leaving... my new companion is actually a Brazilian that lives in our apartment.  He speaks NO English... which is good (I hope), so I will HAVE to learn fast!

Our mission baptized 186 people this month!  We are SO happy.  Because we met out baptismal goal of 165, we all will be going to the temple!  Woooooo!  It has been 9 months since I've last been, so it will be marvelous going once again with my mission.

HAHA so... everything in Brazil they say "wants to kill you".  A few days ago, one of the missionaries in my apartment got touched by a crazy looking caterpillar, and had to go to the hospital with my companion, so I had to stay with another American missionary who speaks less Portuguese than I do, and try to teach our people we had planned for that day!  It was SUPER stressful at first, and felt like I was back at the MTC ;) but all went well.  Even though I didn't have a "senior" to catch my fall, our investigator understood, and we mostly understood her, too.  Haha it sure made me grateful to have an experienced missionary as my companion.

Are you excited for General Conference??  NOTHING is as wonderful as General Conference to a missionary.  Holy cow... we are SO excited to take our investigators and recent converts to hear the Prophet and Apostles.  I am SO thankful that we have a living prophet to help us and guide us.  Just think about it.  We have someone who speaks directly with God and receives revelation for us and for the world.  What a blessing.

I hope you all have a wonderful week, and receive answers to your questions this conference.  Can't wait to tell you all about my first week with a Brazilian companion.

The Gospel is TRUE!

Love forever,
Jason