79th Week Out, Week 11 Pacatuba, "Loaded the Onibus for Church"

Dear family and friends,

This week it was stake conference and the stake center is father than our church building and our church building here is already super long for the members that live in "Horto". So our ward payed for a bus to pick up all the members in Horto and bring them to stake center and bring them home after, We loaded that onibus! we are focusing on this city and literally all week long, all day long we are now only working in this city! I thank you for all your love and support!

Impressions of Pacatuba Brasil

-No ones Blond! for real, its been SO long since I've seen someone blond! many people die their hair blond but naturally blond is not a thing here! No one thinks I'm american at first because I'm not blond, so I fit right in! LITERALLY everyone thinks my companion WHO IS BRASILIAN is american and I who am an American am Brasilian!

Picture 1- Indians here in Pacatuba!

Picture 2- motorcycle of an investigator

Picture 3- The indians water reserve that no one else can use!

78th Week Out, Week 10 Pacatuba, "Working in the City of Horto"

Dear family and friends, 

 So Brasil won a gold metal in soccer EVERYONE in this country was watching that game! imagine trying to find someone to teach during that hour... HA! soccer (Football) is in the blood of this country!This week President Leite called my companion and I out to lunch to get to know us better! he took us to a super rich churrascaria restaurant, he must have spent A LOT of money! he bought dessert and everything (its one of those restaurants where they don't put the prices!) we had 2 baptisms this week, Antonio who is 18 years old and Douglas who is 16 years old they are both friends and they are now the farthest members from the church building here! every Sunday they have to take a bus to get to church because its over an hour by foot! Me and my companion are working to open a group where they live! (In the city "HORTO"). In the city "HORTO" there is days that theres no water in the city! Its very dry out here and the water resevores are very low so they only give water to the city "HORTO"  marked days in the month, like for example this week the water was cut from the city for 5 days! so people have wells and everyone like takes bucket showers etc. I thank you all for all your love and support!

Impressions of Pacatuba Brasil

- the world is your trash can, everyone throws teash in the street without thinking twice!

-theres always something burning, literaly every single day theres a fire, but the houses here are made of brick and tyle so no one ever has to wory.

Picture 1- Baptism of Antonio and Douglas

Picture 2- My Zone here in Maracanau

77th Week Out, Week 9 Pacatuba, "Everyone is Watching the Olympics."

Dear family and friends,

                Ever since the Olympics have started its SOOOO hard because EVERY single house you get in the Olympics is on... I LOVE WATCHING THE OLYMPICS! And you know as missionaries we cant watch television, so we always have to ask for people to turn off their TV. This week we had a miracle baptism! So it was Tuesday and we did not have anyone with a date to be baptized Sunday. 1 month ago we were teaching a woman named Veronica, she is 18 years old. She loved our message and even came to church with us but she was living together with her boyfriend, not legally married and her boyfriend (who is addicted to drugs, etc. and told her that she was holding him back in life...) doesn't want to get married to her...So she couldn't be baptized, we started to focus more on the sister and brother of her boyfriend but they didn't have much interest... So  Tuesday we were walking in the road and she calls out to us HEY ELDERS! I CAN BE BAPTIZED NOW! She separated from her boyfriend and wanted to be baptized! So we quickly explained to her that the adversary would do everything this week so that she doesn't get baptized Sunday and that her boyfriend during this week would try to win her back. And Sunday after sacrament meeting he called her But she told him that she would follow Christ's Example and be baptized! She was baptized this Sunday! Every miracle like this always strengthens my testimony and makes me realize that miracles never stopped, we should look for them! I love you all and thank you for all your love and support!

Impressions of Pacatuba Brasil

-Whole families go to church on a bike! Literally, like I don't know if you have ever seen 4 people on a bike but I see it every day! Father, Mother, and their 2 kids will all go to church on a bike inSunday dress!

-I don't know if its been a big deal in the US, but theres a new cell phone app that people are using here to catch pokemon? And here in Brasil I believe the number of assaults have risen because before this pokemon game its dangerous to walk with your cell phone in hand in the road but now with this pokemon game everyones walking in the road with their cell phones looking for pokemon and everyone is getting their phone robbed! Lol We had a seventy of the area come to our ward this Sunday and he said ”So i have been informed that there is Pokemon in the church building”

Pic1- My Usain Bolt status in favor of the Oympics (I hear that Michael Phelps is like a Usain Bolt under water!

Pic2- ARMADILO!

Pic3- Photo of Veronicas Baptism

76th Week Out, Week 8 Pacatuba, "no baptism this week."

Dear family and friends,

So this week I don't have much to report,we unfortunately didn't have a baptism... we had 2 baptisms lined up but they both gave up and dropped us by the end of the week. I feel so so sad for those that don't accept our message I know its true and I know that they need it! But even after all that we do sometimes people will reject our message. We always work so hard that people will come to know that this is truly the church of our savior Jesus Christ but Satan at the same time is working SO hard to confuse you.  I love you all and thank you for all your love and support!  

-Impressions of Pacatuba Brasil

-everybody plays soccer with coconuts or whatever round object that rolls!

75th Week Out, Week 7 Pacatuba, "Finding A Baptismal Font"

Dear family and friends,

     This week all the sisters from my group have gone home! We had a baptism Sunday for a man named Edwagney. We got to his house Sunday morning to wake him up and found out he was up till 2 in the morning working... so I thought he wasn't going to go to church but before I said anything He was like "I'm going to take a quick shower ( mind you here its freezing cold showers) wake up my family and we will meet you there!" .He is 25 years old and he is the husband of Isabel and father of Pedro Igor we baptized here a few weeks ago! We completed this family and now here in 1 year they will be going to get sealed in the temple!!!!!! The day of Edwagneys baptism was a trail because we get to the church and we start to fill up the baptisimal font, it was all good started to fill up and 5 minutes later we come back and the water has already run out! SO we ask our stake president if we could do the baptism at his house but his pool was all dirty SO we planned to baptize him at the stake center that afternoon! and it all worked out! I was so happy for this family as Edwagney was one of the very first people we came into contact with when me and Elder Ehms showed up in this area. He sells DIN-DIN which is a type of popsicle very good here in Brasil (it has many other names). And the day we bought DIN-DIN from him we asked if one day we could stop by and share a message with him and his family! I always try to talk with EVERYONE in every single circumstance and I know the lord blesses my efforts I Love you all and thank you for all your love and support!

Impressions of Pacatuba Brasil

-kids with 8 years old ALREADY have tatoos!