8 Months, a Zone Conference, and more Baptisms

Oi, boa tarde!

dang 8 months today!!! caraca the time is flyin by! Today for our Pday we had our zone activity. Played futebol and made cachorro quente (hot dogs). Had a blast!!

This past week flew by but was awesome!! On Saturday we had our baptism for Maria!!! whoooooop!! And Elder Sowards and Reis also had a baptism for an 11 year old named Kennedy!! (named after President Kennedy). The kid is a stud!! 

Maria is the mom of Sabrina and Carol!! The baptism was really special and spiritual and it was also her birthday!!! I got to confirm her a member of the church during sacrament meeting on Sunday which was way awesome!! She is so awesome! It is so awesome getting to take part in these events and help people find the path! 

On Wednesday, we had our zone conference at President and Sister Gaertner´s house!! My first time being there since I arrived here in Brasil. We had a really awesome spiritual part, and learned a lot. Had a questions and answers part with President, which was also way sweet. Then we ate hot dogs!!! It was a great time. It is the last time they will be having a zone conference in their house since they will be leaving in June. Their 3 years are up. I’m so grateful for them and all that they have done for me and their service. We will be having a lot of mission conferences coming up with the entire mission, which will be cool!!

We have a baptism marked for this Saturday for Aline! We have taught her several times already, and she loves it and loves going to church. Really hoping that will all work out. 

We have still been visiting with Dino. The dude is a champ. His son who is like 6 years old was really sick. Dino allowed us to give him a blessing. He really wanted us to do it! He feels that God sent us to his house for a reason, not by accident. I really respected that, cause in Dino´s church, he was giving the calling of giving people blessings. But he really wanted us to do it and believes us to be men of God, So I got to bless his son, and the next day he didn’t feel sick anymore! 

Yesterday, we went over to a less active family´s house who are starting to come back to church. It is a single mom and her several kids. They are this sweet, beautiful family. We gave a message with the family and then talked with her 9 year old son about getting baptised. He really wants to! It was so fun teaching all them. There was a guy who is a member of the church and a couple of his kids who were also there! So there were about 10 kids all under the age of 14 and the two adults that we shared our message with. There was such a special spirit there, and teaching more simply. The 7 year old girl was hilarious, answering all the questions and saying how she wants to be a missionary too someday. hah it was really cute and funny. The mom had made dinner and invited us to stay and eat. She was so loving, gracious, and humble. There was only a little food, and just a couple pieces of chicken so I just put a little bit of pasta on my plate and rice. She was so funny. I was already sitting down, and she came and told me Elder Bean you better come back over here and eat my chicken! haha it was funny but so sweet and kind. I really love the people here so much. She was wiling to give me everything she had, even said I was looking too skinny haha. She was the perfect example of Christ like love and generosity. Making us feel so welcomed and loved in their tiny, humble home. I just remember feeling that Heavenly Father was going to pour out so many blessings on behalf of her and her family.

I love being a missionary!! So many great experiences and things happen everyday. I have really learned to try to put myself behind sometimes and focus on others, and see others for who they really are. Other children of Heavenly Father. When people give us a hard time or just call at us from a distance making fun of us, sometimes I get ticked but I’ve been learning to just think, Heavenly Father loves that child of God just as much as He loves me. Nothing more, nothing less. I love the work, and helping others find the happiness that I have found through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

I love yall so much. Tenha uma ótima semanã!!!! tchau tchau

com amor,

Elder Bean

Good times at Lunch

Gama

Every street has a bar, church, bar, church...thousands of small churches.

Gama

Kennedy's baptism

Irmå Chirley, she looks after us missionaries like a mom would.

Maria's baptism!!

Elder Reis and Kennedy

Maria's birthday

Squeezed into the back of a car to go home after the baptism

Gama

Sweaty from futebol....8 months a missionary!!

8 months!!! Me and Labrada both!!

Answer to Prayer

Hey!!

This week flew by. The weeks are starting to feel like days!! Can't believe I will have 8 months already next week!! crazy!!

This week was awesome!! We are hopefully going to have a baptism this Saturday for Maria. 

A couple days ago I got a phone call from Elder Machado, he is still in Santo Antonio. Miss that guy.  He told me that he had someone that wanted to talk to me. it was Danilo!! The first baptism I had here in Brasil!! He is doing awesome!! He is still strong in the church, goes home teaching, and goes to institute once a week!! I was so happy to hear from him!! He is a stud. He is 22, and thinking about maybe serving a mission in a year!!  It is so awesome to see how far he has come from when I met him my second week in Brasil until now!!

It was also good talking to Machado!! Had a lot of good times with him. He said a lot of people still ask about me in Santo, and even when they do contacts with random people in the street, some ask where the big blonde guy went! ha

This week we marked a date for baptism with 15 year old named Aline. Her cousins are members of the church and have been bringing her for a couple weeks. She loves it, and has made a bunch of friends. We set the date for March 29.

We started teaching a guy named Dino. Dude is a champ. We found him while we were knockin on the door of another investigator, who ended up not being home. I looked over saw a door open leading to another house. I felt like we should go and talk with them, and it was this really nice old lady who came to the door to greet us. She let us in and we started talkin with her and her grandkids. About 10 minutes later, this guy walks in and just seems so happy to see us! It was Dino. He is in his 30s. I figured he was gonna be a little ticked since we were already in his house, but he was gracious and made us feel welcomed.

Later in the week, we decided to stop by Dino´s house again, even though we had marked to meet with him on a later day. He was there and with another guy we hadn’t ever met!  Dino was beyond ecstatic to see us!! it was awesome. We found out that the other guy with Dino, was some homeless guy that Dino found in the street and invited him to come over to his house! Dino is a champ!!!! Dino had been praying that God would send someone to help him and his new friend who had a bunch of problems. Few minutes later, we show up :)   He was shocked, and knew it was an answer to his prayer. We taught about the Book of Mormon and about our purpose here on Earth. The homeless guy just broke down. I felt so bad for him. After the lesson, Dino was getting us something to drink and the other guy was really broken down. He was tellin us about his tough breaks in life and how he feels like God and Christ have abandoned him. I felt Heavenly Father´s love for him so much and literally saw him as the Child of God that he is. I was praying so hard that the Spirit would help me know what to say. I just got up and went and sat by Him, put my arm around him, and just started saying whatever came to my mind. It was an incredible experience. The words just flowed out faster than I could think. I felt the Spirit so strong and I knew he did too!  It's stuff like this that you can't plan, but is why I love being a missionary.

We taught a bunch of lessons this week. Some of our investigators are really progressing and some are kind of just not wanting it anymore. It really is tough sometimes, leaving a lesson after just bearing your heart to them, bearing testimony and feeling the Spirit witness to you that what you are sayin is true, but people still choose not to accept it. 

I love being here!! It truly is an incredible experience, being a missionary and preaching the word for two years. I know for a fact it would be impossible without the Lord´s help, to be able to speak to these people in Português and touch their hearts. It's a testimony in itself, that I can speak almost anything I want with only 7 months. I am so grateful for Heavenly Father,  and for all that He has blessed me with. 

I love y’all so much!!!! Vocês tenham uma boa semanã!!!

com amor,

Elder Bean

Futebol

Açai, love this stuff!!

Someone's sweet ride

Elder Reis hanging out in the trees like a monkey.

Enjoying These Two Years

Boa Tarde!!!! :)

E aíííí!!!!!! I hope all is going well with yall!!

This week was awesome!! it rained a ton this week, pretty much everyday. But it was a nice break from the heat.

I ate cow stomach this week!!! it was actually pretty good :) the guy made me eat it before tellin me what it was haha. He cut it up in chunks and had it in soup. It was really good!! Today for Pday we played soccer/futebol!! it was awesome. We played with some guys in our zone. Its really fun and getting to talk crap with the Argentinan and Brasilina missionaries :) 

We have 6 people that have dates to be baptized here in March and we are going to invite 4 more people this week!!! We have been workin so hard. We are going to have a Family Home Evening tonight with the Stake President and his family with Lorena, Ercilia, and Gabriel. 

On Saturday, we had an awesome experience. We were leaving the apartment at 10 to start our day and teach a lesson before lunch. Our neighbor across the hall was moving so I asked if we could help carry stuff down. His mom and 18 year old brother were in town to help him, but just them 3. So we helped and then we went with them to his new apartment which is in Central, close to the stadium and helped unload. It was a great experience that helped plant seeds. They talked us into taking us to dinner later that night, and they took us to a wayy nice restaurant. haha We are gonna start teaching the guy, Mauricio. He is 22 years old and a way cool dude! Hopefully it all works out.

Early this week, it was pouring rain so we ran to stay under some cover next to a building until the rain stopped. Next, there is this Little Brasilian guy who is soaking wet and comes up to us. He was really genuine and cool and asked us if we could preach the word to him and his buddies. He then told us that he was about to rob 3 people to help his buddies. In my mind I was like laughing and wondering if this guy was serious. haha. But he took us to his buddies and we read them some scriptures. They loved it. Afterwards I tried to give him a Book of Mormon, but he respectfully said no. I asked why, it’s free. He said he didn’t want to accept in and carry it since he was about to go rob 3 people.  The guy was so grateful and told us how much he loves us missionaries and respects us. I felt bad, most of his buddies we talked to are homeless. The guy feels like he is doing the right thing and was wanting to hear a message about Jesus first.  

I have really grown to love the people here and love Brasil. You bond really fast with the people here and you truly want what is best for them and to be happy. Our investigator invited us to eat pizza with her and her friends at some restaurant for her birthday. We are now teaching one of her friends, and he is really interested. he speaks good English too. 

There are a lot of little things that happen everyday, just in the streets or during lessons or while helping someone that makes a mission so worthwhile and makes me feel so grateful to be here. I love it! I love the other missionaries in my zone and district and love workin with them. It’s a blast teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and having fun doing it! enjoying these two years!!!

I love yall so much!!!! hope yall have a great week!! Obrigado por tudo!!! Eu sou grato por vocês!!

com amor,

Elder Bean

Being a dork after studying

Being a dork with Elder Reis

Gremio jersey

The three Texans

Pretty, dead bird

The Zone!!!!

Testimony

This week Elder Bean didn't get much time for emailing due to Carnival.  The missionaries were out on a limited basis because it gets pretty crazy in Brazil during Carnival.  We got a letter a couple weeks ago that he wrote January 13th, here is his testimony as he wrote it in Portuguese and the translation follows.

Eu sou muito grato por meu oportunidade estar aqui no Brasil por dois anos. Eu sei que esta obra, este trabalho missionario é verdadeiro. Meu testemunho sobre esta igreja e todas coisas sao muito forte agora mesmo. Oracao é real. É verdade. Quando tenho dificuldades, Deus me adjudou muito. Eu sei que, com tudo meu coracao. Deus vive e tamben Jesus Cristo. A Igreja de Jesus Cristo das Santos dos Ultimos Dias é o Reino do Deus na Terra. Eu nao quero saber onde Eu seria sem este Evangelho é voces minha familia. Sou muito grato por voces. Familias sao Eternas. Eu sei que isto é verdadeiro. Deus vai responder a nossa oracao se nos temos desejo.

Porque estou aqui? No Brasil? Porque Deus me abencoado com voces e O Evangelho na minha vida! Eu sou muito com sorte. Eu tenho o Evangelho verdadeiro! Esta dificil as vezes, ser um membro da igreja, mas é felicidade verdadeiro. It is all worth it!

Eu amo voces! Eu amo as pessoas no Brasil! Eles sao filhos de Deus tambem. Entao, quero eles para ter o que nos temos. Nos temos uma familia Eterna. Uma familia feliz. Dom de Linguas é real. Eu prometo. Eu testifo que posso falar em portugues e escrivir esta carta so porque de Deus. Quando tento um Espirito Santo, Eu posso falar todas es coisas! Entendo tudo tambem. Eu lembro antes a missao…Eu obedeci os mandemeutos e muito ativo na Igreja. Eu tive um forte testemunho tambem. Mas agora…Nossa!! Meu testemunho é MUITO FORTE!! Nossa!! Serio!! Eu vou ser forte na Igreja para sempre e vou fazer o que Deus me precisa fazer. Eu quero casar no Templo (muito tempo depois missao ☺ haha) e ensinar meu filhos o Evangelho e seja um exemplo para eles.

Todas as coisas Eu tenho, é porque de Deus. Entao este 2 anos é meu “Gracas a Deus”. Mas nos precisamos ser representantes de Jesus Cristo SEMPRE! Com ou Sem plaquetas missionario. Depois 2 anos, Eu quero minha plaqueta, na meu curacao!

Voces sao minha rocha!! Muito obrigado por seu amor, cartas, emails, caixa, e apoio. Eu sou muito grato por isto! Eu Amo Voces!!

Eu estou bem feliz, porque Eu escrevi esta carta sem um dictionario!! Eeee Rapaz

I am very thankful for my opportunity to be here in Brazil for two years . I know that this work , this missionary work is true . My testimony of this church and all things are very strong right now. Prayer is real . It's true . When I struggle , God helps me. I know that with all my heart . I also know God lives and Jesus Christ . The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the kingdom of God on earth . I do not want to know where I'd be without you guys this Gospel is my family . I am very grateful to you guys . Families are Forever . I know this is true . God will answer our prayer if we have the desire .

Why am I here ? In Brazil ? For God blessed me with you and The Gospel in my life ! I'm very lucky. I have the true Gospel ! This is hard sometimes , being a church member , but it is true happiness. It is all worth it!

I love you guys ! I love people in Brazil ! They are God's children too. So , they want to have what we have . We have an eternal family . A happy family . Gift of tongues is real . I promise . I testify and speak in Portuguese and also I can write this letter because of God . When I try with the Holy Spirit , I can talk all things ! Understand everything too. I remember before the mission ... I obeyed the commandments and was very active in the Church . I also had a strong testimony . But now ... Wow ! My testimony is VERY STRONG ! Wow ! Serio ! I will be strong in the Church forever and I will do what God needs me to do. I want to marry in the Temple ( long after mission ☺ haha ) and teach my children the gospel and be an example for them .

Everything I have is because of God . Then this 2 years is my " Thank God ." But we need to be representatives of Jesus Christ, ALWAYS ! With or Without missionary name plates . After two years , I want my plate , in my heart !

You are my rock ! Thank you for your love, letters, emails , boxes and support . I'm very thankful for that ! I love you !

I'm very happy because I have written this letter without a dictionario ! eeee Boy

Elder Bean