Totem Lake Portuguese #1 Transfer 6 Week 3

Olá!! 

 

 

This week was awesome!! We had such a good week. The weather is continuing to improve, which is super nice. I have missed the sun for the last couple months of grey skies and rain. 

 

 

We did tons of service projects this last week, including building a stone wall. It was actually pretty cool and turned out really good. It is always fun to get to do some service and help people out. 

 

 

We also went on an exchange with the Lakeview Elders this week. Elder Streadbeck came with Elder Ludgate and me. It was fun because he was originally in Brasil for 2 or so transfers. He got to go with us to some portuguese appointments, so that was cool.

 

 

We had several really cool promptings this week. We were on a mini teaching exchange with the Totem Lake 2 Elders, so it was just Elder Ludgate and I in our area. All of our appointments of the night had been cancelled, so we figured there must have been some reason and someone for us to find that night. We said a prayer and asked the Lord to guide us. After the prayer, Elder Ludgate felt inspired to go to a particular street. On the fourth house, a man named Jon opened up. He was actually super cool!! We ended up teaching him the Restoration and talking with him for an hour. We left a Book of Mormon with him and it was super cool!!

 

 

Another cool miracle happened as well. Elder Ludgate was going through area book, and he felt inspired to visit an investigator from a really long time ago named Mari. She had been taught a couple times and then the missionaries dropped her right before covid. We tried to visit her, but we found out she didn't live there anymore because she has cancer. We called her, and we ended up getting a video call set up with her. On Wednesday, we had the call, and it was super sweet. She was just on her sick bed, and we taught her about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The Spirit was amazing. The cool thing is that she has almost beaten cancer. She was super nice, and I am excited to get to work with her more.

 

 

We had a really good lesson with Jairton and Karoline on Thursday. We talked to them about how important it is to come to church. They promised us that they would come, and they did!! They came to church and they loved it!!! 

 

 

The highlight of the week was definitely on Sunday for fast and testimony meeting. Rita, who got baptized last transfer, got up and bore her testimony. She told her entire conversion story, and it was incredible. The Spirit was so strong. Everyone was crying. I cannot describe how incredible that was for me. The change that has come over here and her daughters is incredible. That moment made everything worth it.

 

 

THe other highlight of the week was MLC. President Sister Beardall officially confirmed that the Bothell stake is officially joining our mission and our coordinating council. That is exciting because it means that we should finally be able to officially have the Portuguese group because the attendees of the group will not be split between the two coordinating councils. It is also exciting because we will be able to visit a lot more of the Brazilian members, and we will be able to finally teach all of the Braziians that live up there. We have gotten in contact with so many Brazilians that live in Bothell and never ever been able to really teach them. That will now change. It is super exciting!!

 

 

Besides that news, MLC was an absolutely spirit filled meeting. I learned so much from being there. One of my big takeaways was how important it is to always be striving to receive personal revelation. As we do our best to take time and look for the Lord, He will show us great and marvellous things. All we need are "eyes to see" and "ears to hear." Jesus Christ taught repeatedly, "let him who has ears hear."  I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father that knows us and will guide and direct us.

 

 

Doctrine and Covenants 4:7

7 Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Amen.

 

 

I love representing the Savior in Brasil and Washington, 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

 

 

Photo 1 - Elder Streadbeck and Elder Ludgate goofing around on an exchange

Photo 2 - The trio going to dinner at Rita, Liv, and Luiza’s house

Photos 3-4 - the beauty of Washington by day and by night

Totem Lake Portuguese #1 Transfer 6 Week 2

Olá!!! 

 

 

It has been an awesome two weeks. We had such a good start to the transfer. Elder Beardall and I are still companions, which is a blessing, and we are now in a trio with Elder Ludgate. Elder Ludgate is also from Virginia!! It is super fun to be with someone else who is from Virginia. We are having a good time together.

 

 

 We had some really fun things happen recently. We had awesome lessons with some referrals. Rita, Liv, and Liza (our recent converts) referred this lady named Patty and her daughter Isadora to us. We started teaching them english. Patty is hilarious!! She can talk like crazy and is so funny! She gave us some really awesome food at the end of the lesson. We shared the Book of Mormon with them at the end of the second lesson, and it went so well!! They thought it was so cool!! We are going to teach them again tomorrow, and I am so excited!! 

 

 

Rosi also referred one of her friends to us. Her name is Marcia. She and Rosi were neighbors back in Brasil, and now they are neighbors here. Marcia is super cool. We have had 3 lessons with her. Last week we also shared the Book of Mormon with Marcia. She thought that it was super cool. We had a lesson with her again this last Saturday, and she read the Book of Mormon and loved it!! She asked us to prepare reading assignments for her to read each night this week!! The other really exciting thing is that her 15 year old daughter has been coming to church frequently with Rosi!

 

 

We had two really cool experiences following promptings this last week. Elder Ludgate really felt like we needed to start praying more. So, this week we started really praying about the places we would tract in. On Saturday, we prayed asking for orientation as to where we should go. When we finished the prayer, I was prompted to remember a specific contact. It was a door I had knocked 6 weeks ago on an exchange. I hadn't even written down the info for him and had pretty much completely forgotten about him. So, we went and knocked on his door. Larry answered the door, and we started talking to him. It turns out that he has been reading the Book of  Mormon!! We are going to go back and teach him the Restoration on Wednesday!!

 

 

On Sunday, we had a similar situation. We prayed to see where we should go. Elder Beardall felt like we should go to a particular apartament complex. We went there and started knocking. The fifth door opened up, and it was a Brasileiro!! They were super cool. We were already excited because of that, and then we knocked on the next door. The person that opened the door was Gabb!! She is someone that Elder Beardall and I taught 6 months ago. She was supposed to get baptized on October 10, but kind of disappeared. It was so cool to run into her!! She let us right in, and she had two friends there. We ended up talking to them about the restoration, and they were super interested!! Gabb remembered everything, so she would be like, "Oh, tell them about the Book of Mormon, or the prophet, or Jesus coming to the Americas, etc…." It was so cool.they both really wanted Book of Mormons, so we gave them two in Portuguese. They are super excited to read them. They also got super excited to hear about the church in Portuguese. They are going to come to church this Sunday.

 

 

Last Saturday, we got a text from Billy, one of our investigators. He is super cool. He texted us and told us that they were going to be having a barbecue at a park in Kirkland. He invited us to come eat. So, we went, and it was super awesome! It had been so long since I had eaten a real Brazilian churrasco (barbecue). They brought so much meat!! They had two huge flanks, probably 15 pounds of pork, and 4 massive trays of steaks. The coolest part was that we got to meet his wife and daughters for the first time, because we usually just do English classes online with him. That was already super awesome, but there were two other Brazilian families there that we got to meet! I love tracting and knocking doors, but I have to admit that barbecuing with Brazilians would definitely be my preferred method to find new people to teach. It was awesome!!

 

 

We also had a fun English class with Rosi. She wanted to do something different, so she took us to MOD pizza!! It was super fun. It was the first time that I had eaten in a restaurant since before Covid. We just did the english class while we were eating pizza, and it was super fun.

 

 

Scripture of the week: Deuteronomy 32:8

8 When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.

I like this verse of scripture because when Elder Klebingat came, he taught us that the Lot sent other spirits to earth according to the number of the House of Israel

 

 

I loved representing the Savior in Brasil, I love doing the same thing in Washington, 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 

 

 

Photo 1 - MOD Pizza with Rosi

Photo 2-3 - Churrasco with Billy and friends

Photo 4 - going to service

Photo 5 - The ever present Mount Rainier

Photo 6 - Goofing around with Elder Ludgate making a video for the Zone Facebook page

Photo 7 - President Sowby of the Sammamish Valley Stake and I

Totem Lake Portuguese #1 Transfer 5 Week 6

This week has been super amazing!! Yet again, we have had some awesome miracles happen. 

 

 

Elder Beardall and I have had a hard time finding new Brazilians to teach. We have had a lot of nights where we just don't have any appointments, so we just end up tracting in the dark all night long. Good thing I like tracting!! This last week, however, we were finally able to find some new Brazilians that we are going to start English classes with this week. We are super excited.

 

 

We had awesome miracles with Viviane and with Billy this last week. We sent the entire hour and twenty minute Restoration film to Viviane, and she watched the entire thing twice, and was planning on watching it again with her husband!! She loved it and is starting to understand the importance of what we are teaching her!! She is progressing really well.

 

 

We had an awesome lesson with Billy on Saturday as well. We finally had the hermanas up in Bothell get him a Book of Mormon. He read the introduction and understood it perfectly!! We had the most incredible discussion about it all!! We taught most of the Restoration to him again. He loved how we are different from most Christian churches in the fact that we preach discovering the truth through prayer and study. We don't just tell people to believe in us, we tell them to believe in prayer. Billy is progressing really well, and he finally understands just how important it is to read the Book of Mormon.

 

 

We are starting a new transfer this week. I will be staying in this area for the 6th consecutive transfer!! I am so happy to still be here. I sure love this area. I would be perfectly happy ending my mission here, but I will do whatever the Lord needs of me. I will be staying with Elder Beardall, and Elder Ludgate will be with us as well. He is from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. He has been out for a little more than a year and started his mission in Ribeirao Preto, Brasil. We are super excited for this transfer.

 

 

Elder Justesen went back to Brasil a week and a half ago. He was really anxious, and it was hard to say goodbye to him. We have all gotten so close in the last few months. 

 

 

I also received news this week that I have been permanently reassigned to the Washington Seattle Mission by the Quorum of the 12 Apostles. I figured that would happen, but it is nice to know for sure. I was expecting to have lots of different emotions, but Ijust feel totally at peace with this. I know I am in the place the Lord needs me to be and that I have met and will continue to meet the people God sent me here to teach and help embrace His gospel. I do really love São Paulo Leste. I also really love Seattle, Washington Seattle. One really interesting thing about this timing is that this week was the same week that most of the missionaries from my MTC district found out that they would be going back to Brasil. You would think that might be kind of hard to see them go back and stay here. Honestly, when I heard that, it testified that the Lord knows that I need to stay here for the Portuguese work and that there is more for me to do here.  But regardless of where I serve, what I love more than anything else is this great work. I am so grateful to be part of this. The Lord definitely has a perfect plan for each of us. 

 

 

I have been thinking about time recently. I think it is because of the amount of time I have spent in this one area. Time is such a precious resource and gift from God. Our diligence and good use of each moment of our lives is a direct sign of our faith in God and our conversion to His Son. I think it is no coincidence that when we fill our lives with productivity we are blessed with happiness. We are to consecrate our time to the Lord. The time we have been given is not really ours, it is the Lord's. Every moment is precious and should not be wasted. I feel like one of Satan's greatest temptations is to just waste time. I love how we are taught by Amulek that "Now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you…..This life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors." (Alma 34:31-32) God told us in Abraham: "And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them" (Abraham 3:25) I truly have learned on my mission that time passes so quickly. In Doctrine and Covenants 58:27, it reads: "Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness." I testify that if we give ourselves over to the Lord and use the time He has entrusted to us in the best way possible, we will have more happiness.

I love representing the Savior in Brasil and Washington, 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 

 

 

Photos 1-2 - The view from the chapel in Skyview, Renton. We stopped there to do studies as we waited for zone conference. We had to take Elder Justesen to get a Covid test at the airport that morning, so it didn’t make sense to go all the way back before zone conference

Photo 3 - Saying goodbye to Elder Justesen

Photo 4 - Pretty view of the sunset

Photo 5 - the zone!! Left to right: back row - Elder Dudley, Elder Hardy, Elder Reeve, Elder Merrill, Elder Koenig, Elder Buhler, Hermana Gonzalez. Next row - Elder Lai, Elder Streadbeck, Elder Ludgate, Elder Beardall, Elder Griffin, Sister Callahan, Sister Lott, Hermana Zacarias, Hermana Merrill

Photo 6 - the zone

Photo 7 - Matching ties with Elder Griffin

Photo 8 - Exchange with Elder Buhler

Photo 9-12 - Beautiful day of tracting with Elder Beardall

Photo 13 - In the park

Photo 14 - At work with Elder Beardall