Oi minha querida família! Como vocês estão? Realmente está quente no outro lado do mundo? Isso é uma surpresa para mim, aqui é bem frio agora. Okay back to English because its way faster to type. Its easier to speak português but when it comes to typing and writing, English is still the way to go. Anyhoo, how's everyone doing?... I'm pretty tired actually, but its one of those "I ate a ton of food so now I'm having a hard time keeping my eyelids open" types of tired. Today, as an activity of the district, we met up in the house of a member and made cookies and brownies and tacos. It was fun to share a little bit of America with the members and it was super good to eat a little piece of home ourselves. Brazilians really can't handle pepper. The irmão couldn't even eat the tacos because he said that it had too much pepper for him to handle. We didn't even put hot sauce on it! Sheesh... I still haven't found a genuinely hot pepper here. The closest was the tabasco sauce that I found but that doesn't count because its American. They seriously can't handle pepper. Its kinda funny actually.
Anyhoo... this week is going marvelously. Do you remember that last week I talked about how we were working with a YW named L and that after months of trying her dad finally said he'd let her be baptized? Well, we had the baptism Monday night...The dad of her best friend baptized her and there were LOTS of members who came to watch and support. It was great to see that the Lord seriously does answer prayers. The week before the dad gave permission, the whole ward council decided to fast together so that we could have more success and after that fast, we've had baptisms falling from the heavens. Seriously, its been kinda nuts. We have a lot of people that we're working with that we are trying to get ready to get baptized in the next couple weeks. I like it when we baptize. Just saying, its a great feeling. The man that I talked about last week, A, that just appeared at the church, is also getting ready to be baptized this next week and we're working on getting him ready and prepared. Yup, the work sure is going well here and I'm drastically less stressed out than I was the last transfer.
...Well that's about all that was interesting that bappened this week. Glad to hear everyone's doing well and that life is going on. Like I always say, I'm doing great. I love the work and I love where I'm serving and I love being a missionary! This really is the Lord's work and when we trust in Him we really are blessed! I love you all and hope you all have a wonderful week!!!!!
Well, mom cheated with the last time I sent a title in Portuguese so I don't know if I will do that anymore...
Hey family! How is everyone doing? Life here is AMAZING. This week has been a week of blessings falling from the heavens. Seriously, my head is kinda spinning at how ridonkulously we have been blessed. But first, how are you all doing? I gotta be honest, I totally forgot that it is summer up where you all are. I think I'm going native, forgetting that on the other side of the world the seasons are different. Wow. Can I also just mention how WEIRD it is to think that one year ago I was sitting in a desk at the MTC trying to learn this language and now one year later I'm sitting in BRASIL typing a letter to you guys, Phil has a KID, Bob is GRADUATED, and Mom and Dad are living in TEXAS?!?!?! I think it kinda just hit me how much time has flown by. It seriously hasn't felt like a year. I'm totally going to be a basket case when I get home in another year... Get ready now, because I'll probably go nuts. And not in a good way.
Well, like I said, this week has been ridiculously full of blessings. Like seriously, blessings falling from the sky. Let's start off, for the last transfer we've been struggling to find new inestigators. We've been doing EVERYTHING that we know how to do but the lessons weren't sticking. But, this week, its like our area just exploded. We've been working with a young woman named L since I got here, her best friend is a member and for the last 3 months she's been attending Seminary, going to church, going to mutual, going with mutual to the temple and waiting outside (and remember that its winter here and its getting pretty chilly, especially for Brasileiros) for them to finish up.... So, for the last 3 months she's been wanting to be baptized but her dad wouldn't let her. But this week, after months of prayer and FHEs and fasting and doing EVERYTHING that we could, he finally said that he would give her permission to be baptized. BLESSINGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FALLING FROM THE HEAVENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She'll be baptized this monday. We're pretty dang excited. I think you can probably tell.
So also, while we were at the sacrament meeting this week, another young lady just showed up at our ward. She said that her name's M and that she's been attending church for the last year in another ward and that her parents are moving to our ward and that she wants to be baptized this next week when they arrive here. We were like, "yeah, I think we can help you with that." Seriously, how often do you have people just show up at church and just announce that they want to be baptized?!?! Well it happened not only once but TWO times this week. While we were at the same sacrament meeting, another man named A just showed up at the sacrament meeting. I had never seen him before in my life but he explained that a few months ago he was receiving the missionaries but then he stopped going but he's regretted ever since. For the last 5 months or so he's been missing the church and wanting to go back. He'd drive in front of the church and try to summon up the courage to go back in but would chicken out. Well, he finally went in and I talked to him. He loved the sacrament meeting and said that he found his foundation and what he'd been lacking. We taught him last night and marked a baptismal date with him in a couple weeks from now. Seriously, did I mention that this week was blessings seriously falling from the heavens?
Hmm... well what else? Well, blessings aren't the only things falling from the sky. Yesterday it absolutely DUMPED on us all day. We were heading to the chapel to meet up with a brother from the ward and do a division and like seriously it was like a monsoon. A very cold monsoon. We got absolutley soaked. When we got to the chapel my shoes and socks were completely soaked and there were puddles in my shoes... Little puddles like you could splash in it pshh pshh pshh... It was then that I realized that after one year on the mission neither my shoes or my backpack are still waterproof. I'm just glad that my scriptures didn't get soaked. Unfortunatley, the letter that I was writing to mom did get soaked and ruined. Sorry!!! I'll write another one!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Speaking of letters, thanks to all who wrote to me!! I got letters form BoB, Drl (!), Ellery (!), and Hendrick (!!!!!!!). Please tell them all I really appreciated hearing from them. And tell Ellery that I cannot write a letter to her because I don't have her address in Miluake and that in her next letter to put her address in the letter.
I think you guys can see that I'm considerably less stressed out than I was these last few weeks. That because this week was transfers! I'm staying in my area which makes me very happy... I'm happy, I'm sleeping better, and I'm working better. Its a better life wiothout stress- I recommend that you guys avoid it.
Well, that was pretty much my week. It was a great week! I love this work!! The gospel really is true, Jesus really is the Christ, and this truly is His Church. I know that the book of Mormon is true and I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that I am here doing the Lord's work and helping my brothers and sisters return to His presence!
Love you all! Have a lovely week!!!
PS No pics this week, I left my camera in the chapel because it was raining so much and I haven't had time to pass by there and pick it up yet.
Well, like I said, this week has been ridiculously full of blessings. Like seriously, blessings falling from the sky. Let's start off, for the last transfer we've been struggling to find new inestigators. We've been doing EVERYTHING that we know how to do but the lessons weren't sticking. But, this week, its like our area just exploded. We've been working with a young woman named L since I got here, her best friend is a member and for the last 3 months she's been attending Seminary, going to church, going to mutual, going with mutual to the temple and waiting outside (and remember that its winter here and its getting pretty chilly, especially for Brasileiros) for them to finish up.... So, for the last 3 months she's been wanting to be baptized but her dad wouldn't let her. But this week, after months of prayer and FHEs and fasting and doing EVERYTHING that we could, he finally said that he would give her permission to be baptized. BLESSINGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FALLING FROM THE HEAVENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She'll be baptized this monday. We're pretty dang excited. I think you can probably tell.
So also, while we were at the sacrament meeting this week, another young lady just showed up at our ward. She said that her name's M and that she's been attending church for the last year in another ward and that her parents are moving to our ward and that she wants to be baptized this next week when they arrive here. We were like, "yeah, I think we can help you with that." Seriously, how often do you have people just show up at church and just announce that they want to be baptized?!?! Well it happened not only once but TWO times this week. While we were at the same sacrament meeting, another man named A just showed up at the sacrament meeting. I had never seen him before in my life but he explained that a few months ago he was receiving the missionaries but then he stopped going but he's regretted ever since. For the last 5 months or so he's been missing the church and wanting to go back. He'd drive in front of the church and try to summon up the courage to go back in but would chicken out. Well, he finally went in and I talked to him. He loved the sacrament meeting and said that he found his foundation and what he'd been lacking. We taught him last night and marked a baptismal date with him in a couple weeks from now. Seriously, did I mention that this week was blessings seriously falling from the heavens?
Hmm... well what else? Well, blessings aren't the only things falling from the sky. Yesterday it absolutely DUMPED on us all day. We were heading to the chapel to meet up with a brother from the ward and do a division and like seriously it was like a monsoon. A very cold monsoon. We got absolutley soaked. When we got to the chapel my shoes and socks were completely soaked and there were puddles in my shoes... Little puddles like you could splash in it pshh pshh pshh... It was then that I realized that after one year on the mission neither my shoes or my backpack are still waterproof. I'm just glad that my scriptures didn't get soaked. Unfortunatley, the letter that I was writing to mom did get soaked and ruined. Sorry!!! I'll write another one!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Speaking of letters, thanks to all who wrote to me!! I got letters form BoB, Drl (!), Ellery (!), and Hendrick (!!!!!!!). Please tell them all I really appreciated hearing from them. And tell Ellery that I cannot write a letter to her because I don't have her address in Miluake and that in her next letter to put her address in the letter.
I think you guys can see that I'm considerably less stressed out than I was these last few weeks. That because this week was transfers! I'm staying in my area which makes me very happy... I'm happy, I'm sleeping better, and I'm working better. Its a better life wiothout stress- I recommend that you guys avoid it.
Well, that was pretty much my week. It was a great week! I love this work!! The gospel really is true, Jesus really is the Christ, and this truly is His Church. I know that the book of Mormon is true and I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that I am here doing the Lord's work and helping my brothers and sisters return to His presence!
Love you all! Have a lovely week!!!
PS No pics this week, I left my camera in the chapel because it was raining so much and I haven't had time to pass by there and pick it up yet.
Hoje é P-Day, vamos fubecar!!! Batizar as moças para se-casar!!!! Brincando!!
10 points to anyone who translates that correctly. 20 to the person who does it without help of RMs who served here or google translator. Anyhoo... How's everyone doing? How's life on the other side of the world?... Well life here is going on, I had a once-in-a-mission experience: Hump Day. It was really life any other day, we worked and taught and that night we bought a cake with a big "1" candle and blew it out. Happy hump day to me... Its kinda weird to think that I'm starting on the downhill slide of my mission, for like my whole mission I was working hard to reach the one year mark and now I've hit it. Now the only thing I can focus on is my 2 year mark, but that's super trunky and I can't afford to get trunky. I'm too busy to get trunky. Seriously, I'm super busy ever since I became LD. You know how we should get in bed at 10:30? Yeah, doesn't happen anymore. There's always something that happens and I'm either on the phone until 10:30 or something and I don't get to bed until later. Its kinda annoying, I like my sleep. I need my sleep. We had this wonderful, loving relationship but recently we've just started drifting apart and going our seperate ways. I'd love to get back together, though. Probably in mais um ano.
Well this week was a pretty good week. Like I said, I hit my hump day, and I got the package from mom with the little camel and the sign "You've made it over the hump, now endure until the end" Cute. President thought it was funny. We had a conferência/treinamento of all the verdinhos (greenies) at the mission office. It was pretty cool, its very interesting to see how they got here six weeks ago and how quickly they're becoming missionaries. During the last like 6 months we were losing TONS of missinaries. Normally, the mission should have 175-200 missionareis.However, we were losing groups of like 20 missinoaries and only getting 4 or 5. President was shutting down areas like crazy somente because we didn't have missionaries to put there. It was pretty sad. However, since in like the last 40 days at least 40 new missionaries have gotten here and our numbers went back up. We were down to like 130 but now we're back to 170. The mission is doing super good now and president is opening areas up like crazy.
...Here's three pics for you all.
#1 & #2 are of my "birthday cake" to celebrate one year here on the mish.
#3 Is what I'd REALLY like to recieve in a package (I took the foto in the MTC)
OK, super sorry I had to cut this short but I love you all! The gospel is true!!
![]()
![]()
![]()
Well this week was a pretty good week. Like I said, I hit my hump day, and I got the package from mom with the little camel and the sign "You've made it over the hump, now endure until the end" Cute. President thought it was funny. We had a conferência/treinamento of all the verdinhos (greenies) at the mission office. It was pretty cool, its very interesting to see how they got here six weeks ago and how quickly they're becoming missionaries. During the last like 6 months we were losing TONS of missinaries. Normally, the mission should have 175-200 missionareis.However, we were losing groups of like 20 missinoaries and only getting 4 or 5. President was shutting down areas like crazy somente because we didn't have missionaries to put there. It was pretty sad. However, since in like the last 40 days at least 40 new missionaries have gotten here and our numbers went back up. We were down to like 130 but now we're back to 170. The mission is doing super good now and president is opening areas up like crazy.
...Here's three pics for you all.
#1 & #2 are of my "birthday cake" to celebrate one year here on the mish.
#3 Is what I'd REALLY like to recieve in a package (I took the foto in the MTC)
OK, super sorry I had to cut this short but I love you all! The gospel is true!!
Oi!
"...Hmm... It seems like I always start my emails in the same way, is that annoying? Maybe I should try to mix thing up a little at the start of my letters. Meh, less time thinking and more time writing. Anyhoo... how is everyone doing?...
Life here is going well, I'm having a hard time accepting that I am now officially on the downward slide of my mission. But let's not talk about things like that, I don't want to get trunky, I need to baptize and you can't baptize when you're thinking trunky thoughts...
The work here is slowly moving along. Like I said the last couple weeks, we're fighting to find new investigators. Last transfer, we baptized just about everyone that we had in our teaching pool and ever since we've been trying to find new people. I'm sure that we'll find them, we just need to keep up the faith and the Lord will bless us. I'm also slowly getting adjusted to being District Leader. When I was told that I'd be training and a District Leader at the same time, I figured that being LD would be really easy and that training would be waaay more difficult. As it turns out, its the other way around. My "son" is an absolute stud and its super easy to train him but being district leader is waaay stressful. I was getting pretty stressed out about it all but I'm slowly getting adjusted to it all. I also found something that makes it all worth it- doing the baptismal interviews of the people. Its seriously a sweet experience and the spirit is always there super strong when I'm talking with the people. Its a super great experience to be able to sit down with the people and be able to help them and see if they're truly ready to be baptized. I really love doing interviews!!!...
Well I gotta send a letter to President so I'm going to have to wrap this up but I want you all to know that I love you. I know that this IS the gospel of Jesus Christ and that Joseph Smith WAS a prophet of God and that the Book of Mormon IS true. I know that this is the work of the Lord and it makes me a little sad to think that its already halfway over but that just means I've got to work 5 times as hard now!!!!
Love you all!!!
-Elder Marx
PS 5 photos for you guys
1) Batismo de A!!!
2) So I found a real, live venus fly trap. Its waaaay cool
3)My contraband is growing, I succeeded in getting #2 in my Harry Potter collection. Don't worry, its locked up in my suitcase and I won't be reading them
4) Oh, and I also found Calvin and Hobbes in Portuguese. I couldn't resist...
5) We played futebol today, so here's an "action shot" of yours truly in action
Carta Semanal- 18 de Maio 2011
"...Well hey there everybody. How are ya'll doing. I'm still trying to get adjusted to the idea that I will be coming back from the mission and the people will actually speak like that... Seems like life is going well for everyone up on the other side of the world.
This week is being a roller coaster. We're having some serious ups and downs. On the up side, we had a baptism!!!! Her name's A. She's the mom of a girl that was baptized about a year ago and she finally decided that she wanted to be baptized too. (Primarily because of the example that her daughter set always going to church and seminary, she realized just how much the gospel blesses the lives of the people who live it and she decided that she wanted it too.) You never know when you are setting an example and when you make a difference. It was really cool to see.
So, this last week I got the surprise of all surprises, I got a letter from Ryan!!!!!! He sent me an SD card full of pictures and videos from back home. It was great to hear from him and see how he's doing. More than a little trunky too... Oh well, I'm on the downward slide, right?
Speaking of downward slide. Last week was my would-be hump day. Crazy. I can't believe that I'm halfway done with the mission. Its nuts how crazy time flies. Seriously.
Well, I've got to finish this up and send a letter to president. So I've got to run. I love you all!!!!! The church is true!!!!!..."
Oi
"...Well hey family, how's everyone doing? I'm doing great, I'm a little tired because we just got back from the clear other side of Curitiba because we went to the temple today but other than that life is splendiferous. How are you all doing? First off, I LOVED talking to you all on Sunday (sorry Phil and Janel, guess we'll talk on Christmas). It made me a little trunky, talking in English and talking about home and stuff. Especially talking about Mountain Dew (Which I still want, by the way). After we talked about it I had a dream the next night about buying Mountain Dew, it was the trunkiest and best dream I've had on my mission. I miss dew :(
Anyhoo... For those of you who don't know, this last week we had a baptism!!!!!! We baptized K, the daughter of a woman that we baptized a few weeks ago. It was super sweet and now we're going to start working with the grandma of the family and try to baptize her. It'll be a little difficult...but we have lots of faith and we're going to help her realize what the Spirit really is and how to recognize and follow it. We're also working with a woman named A who will be baptized this Saturday. She's the mom of a young woman who was baptized about a year ago...she's getting ready to be baptized this week. I love baptizing!!!!!!!
Hmm... what else... well, I don't know if I've told you all but its one of my goals to come home with an absolute TON of books in Portuguese so that I can keep reading and stay fluent with my Portuguese. So, while we were in the temple, I bought another book that I can take home and read: the first book of Doutrinas de Salvação (Doctrines of Salvation) by Joseph Fielding Smith. No, I haven't read it and I don't plan on reading it until I get home or unless Prez authorizes me to read it but it makes me excited to have a growing collection of books that I will be able to read when I get back. Have I mentioned that I miss having time to just sit down and read a book? I haven't even gotten around to finishing Jesus, O Cristo (Jesus, the Christ) in Portuguese only because I don't have enough time. Eventually I'll get around to reading all the books that I want to but it'll probably have to wait until after the mish.
Hmm... what else... I'm slowly getting adjusted to being a trainer and LD. Its chopped all of my personal time down to absolutely zero but oh well, the Lord has called me and eu devo obedecer. Hmm.. well I don't really have anything to say because I said most of it on Sunday. Life's going well, the work is moving forward and we're doing all we can to keep it up and keep baptizing people. This really is the gospel of Jesus Christ and I know that this really is the Lord's church. Joseph Smith really was a prophet and the Book of Mormon IS the word of the Lord. I love you all and hope you all have a wonderful week and that my nephew in nothing but a happy bouncing bundle of joy. .."
Anyhoo... For those of you who don't know, this last week we had a baptism!!!!!! We baptized K, the daughter of a woman that we baptized a few weeks ago. It was super sweet and now we're going to start working with the grandma of the family and try to baptize her. It'll be a little difficult...but we have lots of faith and we're going to help her realize what the Spirit really is and how to recognize and follow it. We're also working with a woman named A who will be baptized this Saturday. She's the mom of a young woman who was baptized about a year ago...she's getting ready to be baptized this week. I love baptizing!!!!!!!
Hmm... what else... well, I don't know if I've told you all but its one of my goals to come home with an absolute TON of books in Portuguese so that I can keep reading and stay fluent with my Portuguese. So, while we were in the temple, I bought another book that I can take home and read: the first book of Doutrinas de Salvação (Doctrines of Salvation) by Joseph Fielding Smith. No, I haven't read it and I don't plan on reading it until I get home or unless Prez authorizes me to read it but it makes me excited to have a growing collection of books that I will be able to read when I get back. Have I mentioned that I miss having time to just sit down and read a book? I haven't even gotten around to finishing Jesus, O Cristo (Jesus, the Christ) in Portuguese only because I don't have enough time. Eventually I'll get around to reading all the books that I want to but it'll probably have to wait until after the mish.
Hmm... what else... I'm slowly getting adjusted to being a trainer and LD. Its chopped all of my personal time down to absolutely zero but oh well, the Lord has called me and eu devo obedecer. Hmm.. well I don't really have anything to say because I said most of it on Sunday. Life's going well, the work is moving forward and we're doing all we can to keep it up and keep baptizing people. This really is the gospel of Jesus Christ and I know that this really is the Lord's church. Joseph Smith really was a prophet and the Book of Mormon IS the word of the Lord. I love you all and hope you all have a wonderful week and that my nephew in nothing but a happy bouncing bundle of joy. .."
Hmm... I can't think of a title
Well hey there fam. How's everyone doing? I'm pretty flipping tired to be honest. We played futebol (soccer to you gringos) for a couple hours and I'm beat. But I'm finally starting to understand how to play this sport and can actually control the ball and score goals. (I scored 4 today, I'm rather proud of that...) Life here is going super great. First off, sorry for not having any time to write last week, we were running like crazy and you're lucky you even got an email, a lot of the trainers didn't get home in time to send anything off at all.
So, I'm finally adjusting to the fact that I now have to really be a grown up and responsible for others, which is kind of strange. I thought that things were busy before President made me LD, now things are super crazy busy. Oh well, I"ll deal. Elder Costa is doing super. Our first couple days were a little rocky because he wasn't accustomed to walking all day and all our appointments fell so we had to knock doors all day (which doesn't happen much) but he took it like a champ and now things are going great. We are getting someone ready to be baptized this week, which is always super great. Her name's K, she's the daughter of one of our recent converts, A. She's already gone to church a couple of weeks now and she's been going to Seminary every night for almost 2 weeks so we're pretty excited to baptize her. We're also working with the mom of another recent convert and getting her ready for baptism.
We had a stake conference this week and it was one of those where they transmit it from Salt Lake to all the stake centers. So, basically all of the Church in southern Brasil stopped to watch the conference. It was pretty strange to go to Stake Conference and just have a transmission but at the same time it was super cool to see the Prophet and have him send revelation directly for Southern Brasil. We had a 70 from Uruguay that speaks Portuguese speak (não me lembro o nome dele) and after that we had the sister from the Primary Presidency speak and then Elder Holland and Preaident Monson. It was super cool and then in the end we asked A (the mom of the recent convert that we're teaching) how she felt and she said she had never felt anything like that when President Monson was speaking. Cool. Have I mentioned that man's a stud?
Hmm... what else happened this week... Well, I saw Elder Thorpe. He's going great and training too. He gave me a good razzing about being a Texan now until I pointed out that I would get home 6 weeks before him and that I would take fotos of me with his family and in his house and on his bed and send it to him while he is still on the the mission. That evened the odds a little...But I also included a foto of the two of us and our sons. If you want you can throw it up on the bulliten board of the ward in Mansfield. Or at least show it to his parents.
But yeah, that's about my whole week. Teaching, training, being a mom of my district, scoring goals in soccer, and working super hard. Yup, a good week. Hope you all have a wonderful week too and I'm SUPER excited to talk to you guys on sunday. (Well, at least mom and Dad). Give my little nephew a kiss for me and everyone have a wonderful week!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)