Week 4 - Oi!

Como vão? :) Wow, time just gets more and more warped here!  Mission life moves so much faster and slower, at the same time, as normal life.  I  love it so much.  I am learning so much, especially spiritually, and I see so many tender mercies every day.

Thanks for all the advice about helping the sisters.  They set some goals to help with communication and they're working on being exactly obedient.  Sister Nasau and I shared our testimonies with them about the Atonement and relying on teh Lord and how, when we seek to have the Spirit with us, we are working toward perfection (having the Spirit as our constant companion), and that the fruit of the Spirit is charity (compare the attributes in Gal 5:22-23 and Moroni 7:45... it's really cool!). It went really well!  The Spirit realy was there, adn they are figuring out how to solve their problems by themselves and how to be more united and to focus mroe on the work.  It has ben such a blessing to witness adn to help.

We are all growing so much here.  Elder Pauli has been praying to know why he is here so he can make sure he has the right motivation and focus, and he received his answer Sunday night.  Janice kapp Perry spoke, and we sang a medley of six of her songs, and the Spirit spoke to him trhough the music.  That was so cool for me to hear, too, because Elder Pauli LOVES singing.  It is just one of many examples that show how Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ know each one of us perfectly and They communicate with us in the way we need ti.  They love us so muych, more than we can ever comprehend.  And I love seeing the Lord change these missionaries, and change me, as we learn to rely on Him and to trust that our best effort is all He asks us to give.  He is so proud of us wehn we just try... when we strive, struggle, adn desire to do what is right. And He loves us, no matter what.  Another tender mercy: hossting was awesome, and we get to host again tomorrow!  I got to see Emily (or Sister Demke now), and Brenden (Elder Garrett now), anotehr friend I really was hoping to see.  And, guess what?!  Sister Demke's residence is on the same floor as me, just around the corner!  Plus, we have the same meal time.  It has been so great to see her all the time and to see how ell she is doing.  The Lord even takes care of us in the little things.

I am really learning for myself how important it is to make sure we are teaching according to the needs of our investigators instead of teaching lessons.  Wehad a really powerful lesson wtih Plínio when we spent some more time to get to know his situation adn his heart a bit more.  Then, we promised him that if he read the Book of Mormon and prayed for help from Heavenly Father, and if he went to church on Sunday, he would find answers and receive help.  WE promised him peace and comfort and help in beoming the best father he can be to his girls if he would go to church.  The spirit was so strong, and we were able to testify so powerfully of the truthfulness of what we promised him.  It was so amazing.

My talk went well on Sunday!  I took pics of it and tried to send them... did they work? I had been praying and studying about recognizing the Spirit during most of my personal study time, but I just didn't know what teh Lord wanted me to say. So finally, on Friday night when I prayed I asked the Lord for guidance and help and just really poured out the feelings of my heart to Him.  That night, as I climbed into bed, thoughts started to come to me.  It was a completely different direction than I thought I would take, and it helped me focus on simple but powerful truths, which is all I could say in 3-5 minutes. It was a huge tender mercy.

That afternoon, Edler Hadlock's grandfather (also known as NEIL L. ANDERSON) and his wife met with us as a zone.  He got to know each one of us a little, and he told us about our missions.  Sister Anderson is so sweet.  She gave us all little goody bags and told us about how the Lord is in the details of our lives and how we are going exactly where He wants us to go.  She also told us somethingto this effect: "if you are having trials, if you have a difficult companion or something, so what?   This is the Lord's work and we are His servants.  This work is so glorious and it isn't about us."  Elder Anderson told us that he sees life through teh eye of faith.  Everythign happens for a reason... everything.  IT was so cool.  By the end, I really learned that he is a humble follower of Christ, just like all of us are/can become.  I grew to see both the imperfect, humble man, and I could also see the mantlehe carried as an apostle of teh Lord.  It was amazing to be able to see both.

Then yesterday, we met with Pres and Sister Mathews (that's not a typo... there is only one t in their last name)!  It was so fun, and I love them already. They already feel like my surrogate parents.  They are so humble, sweet, loving and fun.  Now I just want to go straight to Cape Verde though! Haha :)  I can't wait!  Also, FSL (SYL in English) works wonders.  But I am going to do it even more now, because I REALLY want to learn as much as I possibly can in these last two weeks.

Also, it has ben pretty different with teh Mission Presidents' seminar.  We get into the cafeteria a back way, adn everything but one food line and the salad/wrap bar is blocked off.  We eat off disposable EVERYTHING so they can block off the line to turn in trays/dishes.  They don't make wraps anymore, and we get a mix of things like hamburgers and the leftovers of the mission presidents (steak, shrimp,...).  I have a love/hate realtionship with  it. But one day they had grapes here!  So it's all good... haha :). Anyway, I'm doing great, Elder Pauli is still going to Cape Verde (the elders were just trying to see how gullible we were, apparently, but I called him on it), we are ushering this afternoon for the oddly-timed devotional with the two-hour devotional review, and I CAN'T WAIT to get to Cabo Verde.  Really though!  I am so excited to share something with those people that has made me into who I am adn brought so much light and blessings into my life.  I am so excited.  Love you all!

ALSO: read Alma 37:6.  It is so true.  IT is really about grace, and it is really through the small things that amazing things happen.  That's the scripture I'm memorizing in Portuguese this week.

Also, things I learned about Cabo Verde from Pres and Sis. Mathews:

1. Mail takes 2-3 wks to get to Praia then another 2 wks or so if the misionary is not in Praia

2. They don't have addresses.  Neighbors show you where people live by taking you to their house, and in teh area books you draw how to get to someone's house.

3. There are 140 missionaries there right now: about 100 from the US, 20 from Cape Verde, 10 from Brazil, adn then 1 each from all over the world.

4. They have stoves, washing machines, ovens, microwaves, some peopel have cell phones, they ahve internet cafes...

5. One of the islands are uninhabited, adn sister get to go to every area except maybe some more sketchy parts of Praia.

6. They have huge spiders adn they grow a lot of fruit there ( and avacados that are as big as normal bananas), but they don't have anything that bites or is poisonous, except for centipedes.

7. They don't need to import all their water, but water is a very precious resource there. Also, 90% of their food is imported.

Love you all!