We Must Choose to Have Faith and Hope!

Oi Family!!!                                                                                     June 27, 2016

First off, I just want to tell you all how grateful I am to be here in the mission. How grateful I am to be in this area, where I am learning so much about faith.

Without faith, we don´t have hope. And without hope in life, we can´t move forward or progress.

Without faith in my Heavenly Father to help me serve in this area, I would get discouraged because sometimes it's very difficult to see the results or the effects of our work here in Ferreira.

We need to choose to have faith and hope TODAY because the sooner we do so, the sooner we see the Lord´s hand in all aspects of our lives!! 

I forgot to tell you all last week of an investigator that came to church, named Silvia. She is an architect, and a college architect teacher, and is super smart. I unfortunately haven´t taught her yet because the last time my companion and I taught her, we went on splits, and I helped another sister out in Macedonia. But she is super sweet and wise, and she loves reading. Last Sunday we gave her a Book of Mormon, and she said she was going to read it, and this week we are going to visit her with a member of the ward who is a lot like her.

 

She unfortunately didn´t go to church yesterday, but she came to a Ward Activity Saturday afternoon with her husband called "Festa de Junina," (June Party) which is a traditional party in Brasil that happens before school gets out in June.

 

I´m not really sure how to explain it in English, but the activity was really cool. We ate a lot of different types of cake, and rice pudding/another type of pudding with corn in it. What I really liked about the activity was watching Silvia, and her husband, Eduardo, smile and dance the night away. This week, we are going to try to mark Silvia for baptism.
 

Elvira, a super cute lady in our Ward 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying churrasco, a seasoned grilled meat at the Festa Junina

 

I want to tell you all a quick story...

 

Yesterday, we ate lunch with an Irmã  of the Church who looks a LOT like Sister Israelsen (from Young Womens), and her husband and two kids. Her name is Rosangela, and her husband´s name is Sydney. Rosangela had prepared lunch for us late after the activity on Saturday night, and early Sunday morning so that everything could be just about ready to eat after church Sunday afternoon. Rosangela was just frying pre-prepared chicken and heating up sauce for our noodles before lunch when her husband caught her by surprise, and told her that Antonio, an inactive member who he was talking to that day by text message, told him that he and his family would just buy lunch in a restaurant that day because they didn´t have food in their home to make on Sunday. Sydney immediately invited him to eat lunch in their home with us that day, and told his wife to prepare more food for Antonio and his two kids. Rosangela, without one word of complaint, immediately began to prepare more noodles and chicken for Antonio´s kids, and we helped her out in the kitchen. She and her husband fully welcomed Antonio and his kids into their home, and helped him feel really important. He had recently separated from his wife, and fell away from the Church because of this.

 

At the end of the visit, we shared a message about Christ´s atonement, and shared the video, Because of Him, with him and his family. Rosangela and Sydney bore their testimonies of how, because of him, we can choose to begin to change now. We don´t have to wait for tomorrow to arrive. We can turn our lives around at any time or in any circumstance of our lives, and He will help us progress throughout every step of the way. Rosangela was baptized 4 years ago, but she has a stronger testimony of the gospel than many people who have grown up in the Gospel. She bore her testimony with the Spirit that Christ gave us an infinite amount of opportunities to change. I got emotional at the end of the message as I too bore my testimony of how we don´t need to suffer in this life because we have a Savior. We can choose his teachings, His counsel, His example, and we can find happiness. We don´t have to wait for tomorrow to change. 

 

This morning I read a general conference talk about how we need to choose now to help our brothers and sisters come unto Christ. We can´t delay because circumstances can get worse. We have to help out and serve our brothers and sisters without thinking about ourselves.

 

Yesterday, I learned of a valuable lesson from Rosangela and Sydney. They immediately went to the rescue when a friend was struggling in his testimony of the gospel. Without complaint, without thinking about their own needs or if they had enough food to put on the table, they served their dear brother in need. And, by the way, at the end, there was a ton of food left over, and so Rosangela sent us home with pasta. Rosangela and Sydney allowed the love of Christ, charity, enter into their hearts, and helped someone rekindle their testimony of the gospel.

 

I´m so grateful for the examples of the members here in this area. They have some fear to invite others to church or to activities, but they absolutely do not have fear to serve.

 

I love you all so much!! Have a wonderful week!! You are each in my prayers!! Remember that Christ loves you all!! 

P.S. Theo, there is a member in my ward who is a professional surfer, who is exactly LIKE YOU. I´m not even joking. He makes the same jokes as you, looks like you, and laughs like you. And he´s an adventure-man like you. He also has the same kindness about him like you. :)