Quando estais a serviço de vosso próximo

Eai meus amados beleza

Back at it again with another email.

Time flies. Ok let's go

A few weeks ago we had a helping hands service project (mãos que ajudam in portuguese) where we took out a bunch of old wardrobes and furniture from this blind person facility. We took a bunch of broken pieces of wood down from the 4th floor to the front and it was super cool cause the whole stake was there and it went by super fast. Then afterwards we got to have breakfast with some of the people that live there and it was cool to get to know them a little. It was also pretty sad because most of them don't have family and they've spent most of their lives living in that facility. But one blind woman sang a hymn to thank us and it was super pretty. Really cool to see how God loves all of his children and blesses us with different gifts.

A couple weeks ago we had a special district conference where we invited the stake president and the senior couple in our mission (Elder and Sister Ketchenson) to participate. They dropped some serious knowledge about loving the mission and the people and the members and seeking to be guided by the Holy Ghost, it was dope. Afterwards we ate lunch with the Ketchenson's and it was super awesome because I felt like I was talking to my grandparents haha. It's really funny how after being in a different country for so long I feel like any adult who speaks English is my relative.

It was 7 de Setembro (September 7th) a few days ago which is Brazil's independence day! Some members invited us to watch the city parade with them and it was super cool. Way different than American parades cause it was basically just police cars but I did take a selfie with a tank so that's pretty cool I guess 😎. 

The last couple weeks have been a little bit tougher than usual. We've gone a good amount of time without seeing much success and some other responsibilities I have in motivating other missionaries is starting to wear me down but this last week I really feel like I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel! We found a couple people that seem pretty interested. 

One of them is this guy named Wallison. Some missionaries stopped him in the street and asked him if he was interested in learning English. He said no but he is interested in learning about Jesus! The elders passed the referral over and we visited him and his family and his parents had already been to church before! 

One of the most bittersweet parts of being a missionary is that I have become a lot more aware of how the Lord has blessed my life and the lives of others around me than I was before serving a mission. And we missionaries have the responsibility of helping these people to identify how God speaks to and blesses them but unfortunately a lot of people don't have the same vision or feel the same ways we do. I had a couple lessons this last week where I really felt like I was guided by the spirit and was speaking with words that were not my own. But they still said no to us. I'm learning patience and I'm learning to trust in the Lord regardless of the outcome because I know that all losses or sacrifices will be made whole through Christ!