October 13, 2014

Querida família!

Parabéns for the baptism!  That family looks so happy.  I love that you went to lake Winnepesaukee.. I was actually thinking about that movie this week.  A lot of people need to untie their emotional knots.  Did you strap dad to the boat? haha

The Lord has been answering our prayers.  If we have righteous desires, He will always grant them to us, in His time and His way.  We brought a family to church, a completely crazy but totally elect family.  So C and R are a married (actually married!) couple who look like mother and son and go to different churches to visit almost every day.  Just let me tell you about the first lesson with them.. I finish telling the first vision and I ask them if they believe that Joseph Smith saw God and Jesus Christ and C responds:  I believe, I saw Jesus once too... then she goes on to explain for 30 minutes (I counted) about her experience when she was completely awake and had this crazy vision being lifted up in the clouds in an elevator and seeing Jesus but his face was invisible and all this other stuff.  Here in Brazil, these kinds of things are pretty normal.  So the story of the first vision lost a little effect.. but hey.. she told us she knows we´re messengers from God and she wants to be baptized.

The miracle was in church.  It was testimony meeting and we had joked about how she was probably going to get up and tell everyone her 30-minute overcome-by-the-holy-ghost story.  Well, she got up, but it was to say that in 41 years of being Evangelical she had never felt so good inside any church.  She said she prayed for God to show her that this was the true church and felt immediately that it was and now knows for certain that this is Christ´s church.  Pray for this family!  She, R and three of their kids can be baptized this Sunday.  She is positive she wants to get baptize, now it´s just helping everyone else be just as secure.  

But it doesn´t stop there; the other miracle this week was I and K, two sisters who are also going to be baptized on Sunday!  I had already gone to church for a long time and almost was baptized, but she felt pressured and didn´t want to anymore.  A member gave the referral to us, and instead of her we found her younger sister, who we taught and afterwards she had a dream about being baptized.  When we finally taught both of them together, I told us she still wanted to be baptized, and she remembers EVERYTHING the elders taught her.  These girls are so cute and are already friends with the youth in the ward.  They are so solid, they already picked out what kind of cake they want at the baptism :)

We just need to have patience, and the Lord will bless us and answer our prayers.  I know this isn´t just an answer to mine and my companion´s prayers, but to everyone´s prayers in this ward and everyone who prays for the missionaries.  Thanks :)  The church is true.  

About A and L, they´re making things a little more complicated than they are, but still want to get married and get baptized. Keep praying for them to make the right decisions and just stay in their own houses at night... sheesh...  But they are still our friends and the spirit is always there so strong when we teach them.  Everything is so much simpler when you just keep the commandments.

I love you all so much!  Have the best week ever!  The church is true!

Com amor e carinho,

Sister Moore

Monday, October 6, 2014

Querida Família,

General Conference was so great.  I´m definitely going to be in the MoTab at some point in my life.  I made another list of things to do better in the next 6 months after conference, but left it at our house... basically we all just need to use the Atonement a little more in our life to help us do the things the Lord expects of us.  It was cool hearing one speaker without a weird voiceover, and I loved his talk and the question if we´re living so that the promises in our patriarchal blessing will be fulfilled.  We don´t have excuses to not know what the Lord expects of us and we need to be prepared to do it.  

The women´s conference, in April and this last one, have just made me cry the whole time and I have no idea why.  The mission just makes you so emotional and things like that just bring an overwhelming spirit.  The temple is one of the things I miss the most.  I´ll never forget the feeling of love I had the last time I went in Campinas, it was literally like a hug from the Lord sending me out on my mission.  His promises are sure.  I´m so grateful for our covenants. When the scriptures tell us to lift up our heads and rejoice, they are usually talking about our covenants.  After this conference I want to make the sacrament more of a concious act of keeping covenants and repenting. 

Our AP´s really want us to focus on our personal study and memorizing scriptures, that went really well with this conference.  We need to become familiar with the scriptures to recognize the shepherd´s voice.  I´ve memorized on my mission all of 2 Nephi 31 and I´m working on all of the scripture mastery verses.  It really is worth it and the Lord helps.  

 The Lord´s been blessing us a lot and helping us find complete families to teach.  Right now our progressing investigators are A, 20, and L,16, a couple who live separate but already have a daughter. A lives with his parents, who are very interested and want to get baptized (like, really badly) but aren´t married.  They need to clear up a few things financially but they´ll get married soon... But man.  THIS FAMILY IS ELECT.  The Lord wants these people in his church. We found A in August and he gave us the wrong address so we dropped him, but ran into him again, then a third time when he talked to the other sisters in another area and they passed his name as a referral.  So we went and taught him and his family the restoration and they understood and accepted everything SO well.  These are people who were waiting specifically for me and Sister Cavalcanti to teach them.  Several other churches have told A he needs to get married but he told us we´re the only people who have actually listened and tried to help them instead of condemning them.  Teaching them has been such a testimony to me of how the gospel blesses families.  They came to conference and said they will continue to pray to see if they will be baptized next week.  They just need to really understand the law of chastity and L needs to really have her own solid testimony to not just get baptized for her boyfriend, but pray for these people!!  

Pray for us to baptize a family this month!  I know God hears our prayers and if our desires are righteous, He´ll grant them to us!

You guys have some amazing stories, especially Andrea.  You are amazing missionaries and I hope you´re cherishing every minute.  Life´s good here in Santa Rita.  We´re gonna go to a members house today and I´m gonna teach them how to make cookies :) I know how to make them by memory, and if I can make them in Brazil with our match-lit ovens, I can cook anything in the US haha..  

I know God is aware of us and knows us by name.  Christ paid for our sins and our sorrows.  I know Joseph Smith saw the father and the son and that Thomas S. Monson is God´s prophet today.  Family is always first in the gospel.

I love you all so much and hope you have an incredible week!  Believe in miracles!

Com amor e carinho,

Sister Moore

September 29, 2014

Querida família,

This morning we shared our personal studies with everyone in the house and it was really spiritual.  Sister Sales has been having a hard week, being sick and also stressed.  We all talked about what the Lord expects of us on our missions and the progress we´ve made and we all hugged in the end.  They´re all amazing missionaries.  

I think a virus is spreading through all of Santa Rita, it didn´t hit me hard enough to stay home but it hit Sister C and we stayed home for a couple days.  At least we really had some time to talk and laugh and share a little bit more about our lives.  Sister C has never really had parents and her life has made her seem a little cold to some people.  At the beginning of her mission she thought a companion was just someone to walk by your side.  She´s come so far in every aspect as a missionary since we lived together in Prossind. I´ve been a little stressed because sometimes I blame the results of our work on my companion and feel like it´s just my job to correct her because I ´´should be´´ the senior companion by now.  I think we´ve both learned that your companion is everything and you have to be a team in absolutely everything.  I´ve learned a lot about finding the best in people.  Helping them see the good in themselves and sincerely appreciating people for who they are makes all the difference.  If you only see the bad, it´s probably a reflection of how you see yourself.  Always hug your companion and tell her you love her before going to bed!

J is still dragging his feet a little but says he will get baptized and will continue to go to church.  He has a testimony but there´s something else going on we feel..  Keep praying for him and for Joyce.  Joyce´s been going to church FOREVER but her mom won´t sign the papers and now we feel it also be the influence of her aunt, an active member, who´s keeping her from signing it...

General Conference is coming once again!!  The General RS meeting won´t be shown here until Sunday between the two sessions, but thanks for the spoilers ;)  I´ve been preparing for this conference by reading the last conference, especially the prophet´s last talk.  President Monson is indeed a prophet of God and I love that he always chooses to uplift us and talk about loving each other more.  Nothing else we do matters if we don´t stop to notice the people around us who need our service.  Sometimes it´s not in the way we necessarily want or think we need to serve, but the Lord is always showing us opportunities to show love to people every day.  

I love you all so much!  Have an awesome week and an awesome General Conference!  Follow the prophet!!  The church is true! 

Com amor e carinho,

Sister Moore

Monday, September 22, 2014

Sister Cavalcani and Sister Moore, Santa Rita, Brazil

 Querida família!

I´m so glad Dad got to baptize someone.  That´s so awesome :)  I brag about you guys all the time you know.  Thanks for the emails everyone.  I think Elder Holland said once that we need to be the missionaries that our moms think we are.. haha.  I think you can just google Santa Rita, Paraiba, Brasil and it should come up.  Centro is the coolest part with the fountain and the parks with mosaiacs and the old catholic church.  We already have another roomate, Sister Alves left and now we have Sister Pinna from Argentina.  Sister Sales is the pequeninha from Fortaleza.  My release date is Jan 21, this month they´ll call me to ask what airport I´ll go home to.  AHH

So Anderson got baptized, it´s just his mom we need to catch.  Running away from missionaries runs in that family, but afterwards they become superstar members.  Everything went smoothly and he was really happy to be baptized (even though he doesn´t really look that happy..)  In the picture with him are his cousins, Alice and Claudio and the bishop´s son who wanted to be in the picture.

 

 

A huge miracle yesterday was J coming to church.  Some stuff happened with his daughter and ex wife that really threw him off-track and he didn´t want to be baptized with bitterness in his heart against anyone, and to add to it, he started smoking again because of the stress.  But he really is hanging in there with his testimony.  He´s told us several times he knows it´s all true.  We passed by his house Sunday morning and he wasn´t there so we had basically given up that he still really has interest.  But when we got to church, there was J, already there.  He came to watch the baptism to see how it is.  Pray for him!  He just needs a little more faith to stop smoking!

I´ve been learning a lot about the importance of gratitude, again.  I´ve been feeling lately like I´ll never be one of those missionaries that all the members remember, or who baptized a ton or who was a great leader.  But I know without a single doubt that God is aware of me, and always has been.  If we trust Him we will be able to do all things for our own good and the good of others.  I think ever since the Brown family in New York, I´ve had a deep-set preocupation for the eternal souls of everyone, including my own.  But the Lord tells us to not let our hearts be troubled, neither let it be afraid, and that in this life we´ll have affliction, but we can still be of good cheer.  He has overcome the world.  Above all the little miracles that have kept me going each day, I´m so grateful for the atonement of Jesus Christ.  I´m grateful that the path isn´t always easy, mentally, physically or spiritually.  Sometimes when we suffer a little, that can help us to help other people, not because we know how they feel, but because we know someone else who knows everything about their sorrows.  

Remember to be grateful and trust in the Lord!  Remember to love and forgive yourself.  Remember to remember!  

I love you all so much and am so grateful for all you´ve done for me in my life. Have an awesome week!

Beijos,

Sister Moore

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Sister Cavalcanti and Sister Moore in Santa Rita, Brazil

Querida família,

I get to stay in Santa Rita with Sister Cavalcanti and the majority of my companions are going home tomorrow; Sister Seal, Sciammarella and Sister Johnson.  Three awesome missionaries.

The biggest tender mercy this week was for sure getting to work with Sister Sciammarella again for one day in her area in her last week.  She is so full of the Spirit and loves beings a missionary.  We really became like actual sisters, and I forgot how great it was to just laugh and quote movies in English and talk about some normal people things.  Being best friends with your companion is EVERYTHING.  I really needed to remember how that was and realize that I need to learn to relax and have balance in all things.  It was just a great day, talking about everything and teaching together again!

A is going to bet baptized on Sunday!  We´re still working with his mom who hasn´t gone to church yet, and it seems a little like she might be running from us now... just gotta grab my running shoes and baptize these families.  But A is reading the Book of Mormon and circling things he doesn´t understand.  We explained the restoration in terms of soccer; God is the coach, the prophet is the captain, the players are the apostles and the ball is the priesthood.  It´s working out great and the analogy is even working for explaining the commandments. 

I lost my voice this week which was awful and EVERYONE is telling me all the different things I need to do and medicine I need to take and how I can´t work in the sun and I need to go home and not to go in the rain.  It´s a Brasilian thing... But I can talk again, it´s just a little like a boy going through puberty.  Crying repentance is hard on the voice I guess ;)

Keep praying for J... we´re not quite sure what happened yet with him but he didn´t go to church and might not be telling the truth.  His sister is a pastor and lives on the same street but that didn´t seem to be making a difference. 

But it´s all good.  The church is true.  When people choose to stop progressing, you don´t lose anything, only they do.  I know Jesus Christ is at the center of missionary work.  He goes before us and shows us the way.  Just remember Him.  I know the atonement is real whether we accept it fully or not.  I love my Savior.

I love you all so much!  Have a great week!

Com todo meu coração,
Sister Moore

September 8, 2014

Querida família,

I´m so glad to hear about the progress of your investigators.  I´ve been praying for them.  That´s so awesome that you are all using your talents to do the Lord´s work.  Mom, the Lord always blesses you with those little things like the piñata.  You´re such an example of faith and gratitude :)

The Lord has really been preparing these people and answering our prayers, even if the fruits aren´t quite showing yet.  I don´t think I´ve ever heard so many people say they´ve received an answer to prayer that these things are true in my whole mission than in the past two weeks!  Just one example was AC, who didn´t seem that interested but we talked to her because her 11-year-old son is going to church (even though he´s literally running away from us because he´s afraid of baptism).  She´s the sister of a recent convert who´s kids are super active in the church and seminary and help us a lot.  We left the pamphlet of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for her to read.  It turned out she did read and prayed and that it helped her in a really hard moment after she fought with her boyfriend.  She wants to get baptized!  It was awesome and I know so many more people in that family will follow her, including her son A. 

José came to church with us yesterday, and told us after sacrament meeting that he prayed and got an answer that baptism is the right thing to do :)  He lives with his thirteen year old son and his mom and his niece, and we´re gonna work with all of them.  Pray for his baptism this Sunday!!  This all probably means I´ll get transferred next week :P

We have another new rule in our mission that we have to introduce all of the fifth lesson before baptism.  The vision is to really focus on all aspects of the work of salvation and help people go to the temple and do work for their ancestors and missionary work.  It seems like a lot of information, but the people here really do seem to connect more to the idea of baptisms for their relatives who´ve passed on than the idea of apostasy and authority and prophets etc..  It´s really amazing.  

P who was baptized last week shared something incredible with us.  We reviewed the plan of salvation with her and talked about baptisms for the dead.  This woman doesn´t know how to read and doesn´t seem to understand a lot about the restoration, but when we explained this to her she told us about a dream she had 5 months ago.  In the dream, her son who died 8 years ago at the age of 16 was telling her get on a bus with him.  The bus took them to the most beautiful church she´d ever seen that had a garden in front.  Everyone there was dressed in white and her son said to her, ´´Mom, this is where I live.´´

The church is true.  Families are forever.  The work is hastening on both sides of the veil and the Lord is preparing many people to hear who only need to be invited.  Open your mouth and invite them.  Remember what it is you are actually offering them.  

I love you all so much and I hope you continue to recognize all the miracles in missionary work and feel God´s love for all His children.  Have an awesome week!

Com muito amor,

Sister Moore

September 1, 2014, Hurrah for Israel!

Querida família!

This week was a LOT better.  The whole thing with P was just confusion, she left her cell phone at her sister´s house and was waiting for us at her house to come get her.  Oh well.. she ended up getting baptized on Saturday and worked out great having a little more time to make it special and introduce her to the ward better.  Quite a few people came to the baptism and they liked our cake so I´m hoping there´ll be more references.  More baptisms, more baptism cakes!  That´s why everyone likes sisters more ;)

P is just so elect.  She has 7 kids, two of them are inactive members who live here and others live in Rio and are active in the church!  It was cool to hear how she called her kids in Rio and they´re all so excited for her!  With her, all we had to do was show up and invite her to be baptized and she never had any doubts.  It was an awesome baptism :)

We have A LOT of people to work with that it´s hard to know who to focus on.  So many people feel the spirit and have the desire to change but just won´t keep commitments.  But the Lord always puts the right people in our path.  Sometimes if we try too hard to just be the reapers, we end up running after goals and we miss real opportunities to help people.  The miracles happen if you just trust the Lord, and all in His own time.  

We´ve been really meticulous this week with working 50% with less actives, which seems kind of hard when you have so much to do and so many less actives are just like investigators who don´t want ANYTHING.  But this week it really did bring some miracles.  I felt personally that the Lord had heard my prayers.  I had been praying to be able to complete the families of the less-actives we planned to visit and for the Lord to open the hearts of the people scheduled to meet with us.  

D has a son on a mission but wasn´t interested at all in baptism because she never had a dream in response to her prayer and she´s catholic and her neighbors all talk bad about the church etc etc etc... All she does really is cry and talk about her son.  The first time we visited her she didn´t let us finish ONE sentence which makes me lose my patience really fast.  Later we talked to her husband J outside of their house and he said he´d go to church so we marked another appointment, however badly I didn´t want to.  But D told us about an email from her son and a miracle that happened that helped her feel the spirit and she knows the church is true and that what he´s doing is right.  She wants to wait for her son to return to get baptized (he´s only been gone two months.. ugh) but the important thing is she wants to get baptized!!  They didn´t come to church in the end, but it´s progress.

We´re working with a lot of people who have less active members in the family and the Lord really has opened their hearts and they are feeling and recognizing the spirit.  Even if they don´t progress super fast, I have a testimony of following the guidance of your leaders and the worth of souls in the sight of God.  

It sounds like you guys are doing great work in Boston.  Living the dream!   I tried again to send pictures but all it did was waste 20 minutes of my internet time... sigh.  Someday.  I´ll probably just send you my memory card sometime.  We do have two couple missionaries but we never see them haha.. 

Keep planting seeds, believe in miracles and care for your own testimony!  I love you all so much.  ´´Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved´´ Thomas S Monson

Com muito amor e carinho,

Sister Moore