Man, November is flying by. This week was solid and had many
special moments. This week, I’ll try and
give you a close up at life as a missionary. What is it like to be a missionary
in Brazil in Santa Cruz do sul? Wake up at 6:00, go running with my Argentina/German
running bud, Elder Alretch. We cruz for an hour, and man it is amazing. 3 great things about running in the mish. 1.
It gets the adrenaline flowing. 2. It keeps me more alert/awake during our
morning studies. 3. You get to know and memorize your area. I feel like I know
every road/alley of my area. Get back to the house at 7, drink a banana
smoothie, take a shower, plan, and then study. This week, I loved a scripture
in Jacob 6:12. The scripture is just a simple command and rhetorical question.
It helped me think throughout the week in all aspects of missionary life, “Am I
being smart/am I being wise?” Reflecting on a simple question has made me a
better decision maker. After studying by myself, with my comp, and a little bit
of Portuguese, we say a prayer and hit the road. Normally before lunch, we
teach a lesson or do some street contacting. I’ve learned the importance of
using this time with wisdom. From 10:30 – 12:00, there is a huge amount of time
to find the Lord’s elects. For example, this Saturday we marked a visit with an
inactive member, but when we got there, they remarked with us, and we were
faced with a decision. Head to lunch or try and find somebody to teach. We
decided to find. Within a couple of minutes, we found Irmã Maria, an old woman
about 80 years old. She accepted our
message, went to church on Sunday, and is preparing to get baptized next week.
After morning appointments, we head to lunch. Lunch is almost always with
members. Here in Santa Cruz, the lunches are almost always amazing. For
example, here in Brazil, it is always family style. There is always a bowl of
rice, black beans, salad, and a meat (chicken or beef). Spaghetti is
guaranteed, and there is always soda/or juice. Man, grape juice, mango juice,
passion fruit juice are my fave natural juices. After 2 or 3 or 4 plates of
food, we leave a message, sing a song, or play a video for the members.
(Dessert is normally just on Sundays). At 1:30, we leave and head out for the
street. From 1 to 4 o’clock are the slower hours of the day. Everyone is
sleeping, at work, or are not very interested to hear a message. So we focus
this time on teaching inactives. Teaching inactives is an awesome way to
receive referrals and find families that are incomplete. Also, it is amazing to
see the spirit touch those who have fallen away from the church. After 4, we
enter prime time. From 4-9, we can teach anywhere from 5 – 7 lessons. Brazil is
amazing because the people are so receptive. Of course, there are people who
don’t want to hear, but the majority are very receptive, open, kind, and
loving. We always have people to teach
which is a huge blessing. The biggest difficulty is finding people willing and
ready to accept invitations and act on them. We are teaching an old man named
Carvalho who is amazing. In two weeks since we have met him, he has read ½ of
the Book of Mormon, stopped smoking his daily 20 cigarettes and drinking 6 cups
of coffee, and has so much desire to be baptized. But he is not willing to
change his work hours so that he can go to church. We want him to believe that
the Lord will provide a way to get him to church, but first he needs to take a
leap of faith. One other difficulty we have here in Rio Grande do sul is
appointments that fall through. I don’t know what it is about this culture, but
here, it is totally chill to remark an appointment in the last minute, forget
about the appointment, or hide form the missionaries when they arrive at your
door in the hour that you marked a visit. Because of this, we have always got
to be prepared. That’s why we always have back up plans. This week, we have
been teaching an old lady named Irene who went to church last week. We noticed
a young couple that lived next to her and put them on a back up plan if our
appointment with Irene fell through. Well, of course our appointment with Irene
fell through so we headed to the young couple, clapped and they opened the
door. We taught the restoration, and when I said the words Joseph Smith, the
woman’s eyes lit up. At the end of the lesson, she told us how she had been
baptized in the church at the age of 11 but shortly after moved, and her mom
traded religions. She told us how she had been waiting many years to find the
church again. Awesome experience. After proselyting at 9, we get at home,
update teaching records, eat, talk about the day, and sleep… Dead tired. Then
we repeat. Let me tell you, it is an amazing process. Everyday is amazing.
Honestly a privilege to be a missionary. I love this work and leave these
things with you in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Dave
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