May 19, 2014

Ollo! This week Elder LaPray left to become the companion of Elder Sol, my other companion in Brasil! I just thought that was kind of funny. My new companion is Elder Dias; he is from Manaus (the big city in Amazonas Brasil) and joined the church when he was 14 years old, he likes to eat fish and likes the Avengers and can draw stuff really good.

We also organized an open house at the chapel, but no one came. That was sad, but we practiced showing the chapel to the seminary kids and set up to try again next week; hopefully, with more success. ;)

Irmão Glenio has now read the whole Book of Mórmon, his baptism should be on Saturday when all goes well with his stopping smoking and drinking alcohol. 

Also Thainan's confirmation and recieving of the gift of the Holy Ghost went well on Sunday. 

One thing that people who are looking into the church get a little angry about here is that the missionaries are always being transferred out of areas with new missionaries coming. But I think it is a good thing because it means when they come to church it will be because they actually believe and not just because they are friends with the missionaries.

In the mornings and in the night it sometimes gets cool now which is nice, the climate here can get to just barely in the negatives using degrees Celsius, and is humid and rains a lot, but snow, if it happens is extremely rare (essentially it doesn’t snow and people go on trips to other places in order to see snow).

One food people like here is linguiça, it is essentially a giant brawtwurst that they cut up and then eat, it is yummy. I haven’t had liver or panelada, but I have eaten heart on a couple of occasions.

I gave a talk in Sacrament meeting about how with revelation and testimonies they both normally are processes and not instant things and how with the temple, even when we have troubles in life, the temple helps us feel the peace that Jesus Christ brings into our lives.

Com muitos sorrisos! :) :) :)

Sincerely, Elder Vernon

Mother's Day Call and a new companion

This little blurb is from Cory's Mom.  It was so wonderful on Mother's Day getting to actually even see Cory while we talked.  Skype is really a blessing.  Mother's Day is ALWAYS extra special when you have a missionary who you only get to talk to twice a year.  Mother's Day  and Christmas are the days we get to connect.

May 11, 2014 Ollo! :) Feliz Dia Das Mães! :)

It was cool talking with everybody on Mother’s Day. It was funny watching all the missionaries freak out talking to their families. :)

Thainan had his baptism this Friday! It was really good. Yes, before the baptism when we were filling up the font there was a lot of smoke and it was really stinky, but there was a guy at the church that knew what to do so he bought more gas to heat up the water and everything worked out alright. He is 16 years old, he had to move before he could be baptized because he lived at his girlfriend’s house. His parents have drug problems. He wants to serve a mission! Talking with him afterward he said how he felt renewed. Also, the cookies I made were promptly eaten by everyone at the baptism; they don’t have cookies like we do in the states but they really like them when the Americans make cookies for them!

Mother’s Day was also the district conference so we went to São Gabriel for church on a bus. Irmão Aúreo brought a bag of meat for snacks that he shared with everyone when we waited after church to return to Rosário because the branch president had a meeting after the normal meeting block. President Parrela talked about how awesome Moms are and how we always remember Mother’s day.

There was also a Zone Conference in Santa Maria that was really good. While there a recent convert gave a talk on how love and charity need to be the very first thing in missionary work and how it is Christ like love that helps people realize how much the gospel can bless them in their lives. The other talk was a family history specialist guy that served his mission in Brasil 50 years ago that shared a story how our mission calls are divine assignments and about a senior couple that after rejecting a mission call to Mongolia the first time (they didn’t want to serve in the cold) they accepted the call a year later, and while they were there they found their prodigal son in a prison who had been praying that his parents would find him.

There was other stuff too, but like always I can never write everything!

Com muitos Sorrisos! :) :) :)  :)

May 5, 2014

Ollo! This week Irmão Aúreo fed us churrasco! It was funny because after eating 4 platefuls of meat, rice, beans, and potatoes slathered with mayo he still wanted us to eat more! He said how he likes people that eat a lot and that there was plenty more food to eat! He then went on to say how he will let the people that wander the streets come into his house to eat his food and how one time a guy ate not 3 plates full of food, but 3 platters full of food! :)

There were three of the people we are teaching that came to church this week so we are hoping to have 2 more baptisms this week (assuming all goes well.

I have started reading through Isaiah in the bible now, a goal I have is to to read all of the Standard Works (Bible, Book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price, Doctrine and Covenants) in both English and Portuguese. One thing with Isaiah that is nice though is how the Book of Mormon and Doctrine and covenants have stuff that make it easier to understand, because when I just flat out read Isaiah I don’t get much out of it (normally).

We also gave away some copies of the Book of Mormon to people who had refused to even stay in the same room as the missionaries in the past, so that was really cool too!

Com muitos sorrisos! :) :) :) Sincerely, Elder Vernon