May 19, 2014

Queridinhos,

Thank you so much for the emails this week!  They really helped me a lot.  It´s been a hard lesson in trusting the Lord this week, but I know everything will be fine, in fact, miracles are already happening.  Satan has been working really hard to try and make me feel like a failure because my recent converts are all struggling, but I know everything is in the Lord hands.  I have such a testimony of fasting that I never had before the mission.  A fast is just showing the Lord your faith, and it really does work miracles.  This week we fasted for José and that whole family to all be at church and for him to be baptized, and also for Antonio, a recent convert, and his wife Joselia, and finally we fasted to get some really solid new investigators.

Finding new investigators was hard this week, but the Lord led us to a whole bunch of less-active members who have potential to come back to full-activity with a little help.  One we found on a list, one was a reference from the RS Pres, one was a reference from an old investigator, and one we just found on the road who lives next door to another family we´re going to teach this week.  Our goal is to start really baptizing the new leaders and strong families, and the promise of our mission that Elder Costa of the Seventy made is that for every reactivation we´ll have a baptism.  

So in different ways the Lord answered all of our prayers, but not in the way we expected, and in a way that is teaching patience.  Patience is a part of meekness, the Christlike attribute I want to focus on this transfer.  The Savior was the perfect example of meekness (Matthew 11:28-30) especially as He was mocked and crucified.  He patiently completed His mission, with a continual love for the very people scorning Him, asking the Lord to forgive them.  I read this week ´´Continue in Patience´´ by Pres. Uchtdorf this week, which says that patience isn´t just waiting but ´´without patience we cannot please God; we cannot become perfect.  Indeed, patience is a purifying process that refines understanding, deepens happiness, focuses action, and offers hope for peace´´

I know I´m here for a reason.  In ward counsel last night it was very clear that as the missionary with the most time in this area, there are a lot of situations only I know about and know how to help.  Sister Johnson and I are a great team.  It´s definitely not the same, but she knows how to have fun and how to work really hard.  She´s from Washington, goes to BYU and waited for her visa in the Rochester mission.  She just never gets stressed and is super diligent.  I´ll see Sister Sciamm on Wednesday at a leadership meeting and I´ll probably cry.  All of my companions have been really special and I´ve gotten to know them so well, so I know the same will happen with Sister Johnson.

OH YEAH.  Gotta tell you about Jo, who´s getting baptized on Sunday!!!  Haha she is so elect.  She lives on that same road as the family I did skype with on Mother´s day.  Where do I even begin... she lives alone but knows literally EVERYONE and their dog.  She´s been through a lot in her life but immediately recognized us as messengers from God and just wants to be baptized.  She stopped drinking coffee without us even asking.  I think she could be the next Jaqueline.  Pray for her this week!!  José and Joselia are still possibles for this week.  

It´s gonna be a great transfer, I´m gonna make it.  The church is true.  I love you guys so much!!  Have a great trip this week!

Beijo,

Sister Moore

May 14, 2014

Oi família!!  Quanto tempo!!
 
I was transfered to.. drumroll...... COLINAS DO SUL STILL!  I´m still
here, but with a new companion, the new Sister Líder Treinadora here,
Sister Johnson (another Sister Johnson).  So I´ll still go to the
Leadership meetings every month and I´ll get to see Sister
Sciammarella.  That´s what I mean when I say I´m basically a zone
leader haha.. I participate in the planning our zone meetings.  A ton
of people in my group and older have still never trained or even been
senior, and it´s just the timing.  I came with a giant group and since
then, like 6 sisters have come.  So it´s just a mindset I need to get over. 

The Lord knows what He´s doing and I know I´m gonna love
Sister Johnson.  She´s also from Sister Seal and Sciammarella´s group
who leaves in September.  I really just met her but I´ve heard good
things about her.  I feel like we all have callings and
responsibilities given to us that aren´t included in a title.  For
example, I´m now responsible for showing her this area and helping her
with her calling since I already have done divisions and know the
Sisters here.  It was a sad goodbye and this area is a beast, so
yeah, it was hard.  But I know it´s going to be okay.  I love your
emails and it was so good to talk to you all on Sunday.
 
It´s funny how well the Lord knows us.  I can feel that He´s right
here at my side, that He knows I can do anything I´m called to do.
Just do it and do it with a smile!  Mom, I wanted the chance to thank
you a little more on Mother´s day for being my mom.  The mission is
just teaching me all the things you always taught me, but you didn´t
need a mission to figure it out.  You are the kind of super hero the
world needs a lot of right now, just good moms who raise their kids
the right way, by example.  I love you so much and everything you´ve
taught me I use every day on the mission.  I will for sure write you a
letter but I have to give it to an Elder to mail so who knows when
it´ll get sent.  But it was such a comfort to see you guys. It didn´t
make me trunky, just grateful to remember that I´m just a kid with
parents who just hope I´m alright.  I´m trying to just do the best I
can as a missionary and I know you guys are happy with me and so is
the Lord.
 
I´m not really sure what else to write about in this letter, the news
of transfers kind of whitewash your memory of the last week.  But we
are still working with José, Luzia´s son.  That whole family needs the
gospel so bad, and they need to be in it together.  Please pray for
José to be baptized Sunday and for Antonio, the dad.
 Just the whole Família Ferreira da Silva.  But if you pray for that
name, you´ll be blessing 70% of Brasil ;) Pray for this ward, and also
for the other Antonio who we baptized. His health is very very bad, so
just pray for Antonio and Joselia.
 
But everything´s all good.  I know the Savior lives and loves me.  I´m
grateful for the chance to serve Him, because that is the only way to
understand who He is.  Wonderful things await those who have faith.  I
feel we didn´t work as well as we should´ve the last couple of days,
but it´s a new start with a new companion and miracles are going to
happen here!  We´ve got some good people we´re teaching and the Lord
is on our side.  I love you all so much and hope you have an awesome
week!  Até o proximo!
 
Beijinhos,
 
Sister Moore
 

Mother's Day, May 11, 2014

We got to Skype with Hannah today!  It was so awesome.  She looked great and was so happy--happy to see us and talk to us and vice versa and happy to be on a mission!  She loves her mission and has been blessed with a lot of success and with incredibly wonderful companions.  Her Portuguese was excellent and she looks like she has adapted well to her surroundings.  She's in a very difficult place where they have to walk long distances with steep hills that wear them out.  There are a lot of bugs and the heat and humidity is intense, but even so, she is happy--inside and out!! 

We sure love this girl and are so proud of her!

May 5, 2014

Querida família!!

Maria was baptized and it was for sure one of the coolest by far.  So as I told you, we found her Saturday night of last week and she brought herself to church.  She had already been taught by Elder Kurahashi, our District Leader who now is in the chapel but a different ward.  He really had taught her well, she told us straight at the beginning the reasons she wasn´t baptized, but she knows Joseph Smith was a prophet.  She even bore testimony of that to her daughter and we never taught her anything about the restoration.  But coffee was the biggest thing for her and she just had no desire to give it up.  We had a long lesson with her Wednesday that I felt was almost angry, just because we were basically telling her that COFFEE was stopping her from entering the kingdom of God.  And this is a smart lady too, she teaches math, science, history and Portuguese to adults.  We just left frustrated because she had basically told us no.  But we came back the next day and  she said she had had a revelation that night, and a voice just told her she needs to do what those girls want.  She drank her morning coffee, but then when she almost drank it again in the afternoon, she thought of us and didn´t do it.  Which was huge. So we just did a practice of the interview to show her she was ready and after the last question she just said ´´you won´´.  God won :)  

So her baptism was really special because it was at stake conference with Sister De Paula and Elder Georgianna´s baptisms too, my favorite people from Zona Rangel who are now also in my zone again.  It was just so cool!  I think the most touching thing was that Elder Kurahashi got to baptize Maria.  He just started to cry when we told him about her.  He never baptized anyone in Colinas do Sul and we all know that was so hard for him.  It was such a special thing for them both I think.  Maria just needed girls because her husband got jealous and kicked the Elders out of their house the first time.  Maybe her husband will get baptized too someday..

Besides that it´s just been a good, tiring week.  Almost for sure me and Sister Sciamm are getting separated, and we both kind of want to leave Colinas but we´re ready for anything the Lord wants us to do.  I´ve reached the halfway mark of my mission and in the chance that I train or am senior, I´ve thought of a few things I would want my companion, or anyone going on a mission to know.  The most important things to me that I´ve learned are this:

1.  You have to learn to understand and accept the love that God has for His children.  First of all, that He loves you, always has and always will no matter what.  He is endlessly patient with you weaknesses and you should be too, and realize He exists to build you up, not tear you down.  The fact I´ve learned is you have to love yourself, not selfishly, but to know God´s love for you as his child, to be able to in turn love all of God´s children.  Let others know they can feel that love.

2.  Do all within your power to be best friends with your companion.  You will make a lot decisions between good, better and best, but always put your relationship with your companion first, because you will go through a lot of crazy stuff together.  You will laugh, cry, get really sick, and have moments when you need each others testimony.  

3.  BELIEVE IN BAPTIZING.  Don´t be a goleira.  Do all you can, beg the Lord to understand why baptizing in two weeks works and why it´s the best way.  Then do it and love every second. 

4.  Be an example wherever you are.  In your house, with the members, with other missionaries, everywhere.  You will never quite know who is watching you, but I´m certain we change many lives who we will never even know.  It´s one of the most frustrating and amazing things of being a missionary.

5.  It´s not worth it to be stressed and worried.  It´s always just a waste of time.  It´s always just a sign you don´t trust the Lord enough.  Follow the spirit.  You can´t do everything, you can´t save everyone.  But just calm the heck down.

I love being a missionary.  I had kind of a hard week really thinking about staying until January after you talked about NYC, but I prayed and feel for certain with a lot of peace in my heart and I want to finish completely. 

I love yáll.  Pray for us to baptize Roberto this week and keep praying for our ward. I´m so excited to talk to you guys on Sunday!!  I will get on Skype at 6:00, real Skype and probably use Sister Sciamm´s account.  It´ll work out.  I´ll find you guys.  Her name is Emily Sciammarella.  

´´Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him´´  1 Corinthians 2:9

com amor,

Sister Moore