Ola!!
I had another awesome, but tough week here in Brasil. I'm constantly being pushed to my limits, but in a good way. I´m starting to see why the other Elders in my district say this area is tough. It is almost impossible to find new people to teach. Everyone here is one of two things. 1. People are super Catholic and pray to statues of Saints, which results in a rejection. 2. If they aren´t Catholic and they don´t immediately reject us when we contact them, they are not home when we come back, which just results in a lot of walking. That´s ok though because I know that if I continue to put work in, Heavenly Father will provide. Here are the most interesting parts of this week:
5. I made some awesome mashed potatoes! We made lunch as a district, and I made the best, most American, butteriest mashed potatoes!
4. Brasil has green oranges and orange limes?!!
3. I got to do my first service project this week! We helped Fernando with the construction of his house. It was pretty fun to do something like that. My neck got super sunburned because usually I have the collar of a white shirt to protect my neck, but we were wearing normal clothes. While we were working on the house, Fernando said that he is starting to believe that Joseph Smith was truly a prophet of God! We were so happy.
2. Adriano and Flaviani are getting so close. They both read the Book of Mormon. Adriano studies it like crazy. He actually did the scripture study in the back of the pamphlets and came up with perfect answers to the questions using the Book of Mormon scriptures listed. One of the times we taught them this week, we were talking about baptism, and I felt the Spirit super strongly. I testified to them of the importance of Baptism by proper authority and of the blessings that come afterwards - that we can have eternal families. It was a really incredible experience. It´s just hard because we can´t get them to come to church. I really feel if they came, they would continue to recognize that the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ is on the earth.
1. We had our first person that we are teaching come to church this week! Five weeks of hard work every day and it finally happened! We told Fernando that we would come pick him up with Presidente Pedro´s car. We got there, and he was still asleep, but we woke him up, he took a two minute shower, and we went to church. It was great! He loved it! We were super happy.
Scripture of the week: Alma 48:
7 Now it came to pass that while Amalickiah had thus been obtaining power by fraud and deceit, Moroni, on the other hand, had been preparing the minds of the people to be faithful unto the Lord their God.
8 Yea, he had been strengthening the armies of the Nephites, and erecting small forts, or places of resort; throwing up banks of earth round about to enclose his armies, and also building walls of stone to encircle them about, round about their cities and the borders of their lands; yea, all round about the land.
9 And in their weakest fortifications he did place the greater number of men; and thus he did fortify and strengthen the land which was possessed by the Nephites.
10 And thus he was preparing to support their liberty, their lands, their wives, and their children, and their peace, and that they might live unto the Lord their God, and that they might maintain that which was called by their enemies the cause of Christians.
11 And Moroni was a strong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect understanding; yea, a man that did not delight in bloodshed; a man whose soul did joy in the liberty and the freedom of his country, and his brethren from bondage and slavery;
12 Yea, a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God, for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed upon his people; a man who did labor exceedingly for the welfare and safety of his people.
13 Yea, and he was a man who was firm in the faith of Christ, and he had sworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood.
17 Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.
I was also thinking about how I can be more Christlike. One thing I thought that I need to do to be better is to see people the way Christ does. Instead of letting people´s flaws, errors, and mistakes distract us from seeing what they are truly like, we should recognize, rejoice for, and learn from the good things about others.
I love representing the Savior in Brasil, I love my companion, I love the Gospel and Atonement of Christ, I love my family, and I love my Redeemer. I am ready and excited to work harder, learn more, and love better this week!
Love,
Elder Warren, Matthew Dudley
Pictures:
#1-3 View from the cross over Cruzeiro
#4 Lime orange
#5 Sunset from Fernando’s house
