Proclamando em Piracicaba: Counsel with the Lord

FHE with Ademir's family and Members

Oi-
Hope everyone is doing great! We had a good week. Although we didn't have a ton of time in our own area we tried to make sure we used it wisely. We were able to have a Family Home Evening with a couple families in the ward and take Ademir and his family. It worked out pretty well and they really enjoyed it. But later in the week they found out that they had to move out of their old house. So they moved out last week. It was quick and so we have not been able to meet with them since then. We are hoping to catch up with them this week. He was also offered a job in a different area so they were thinking they would leave the area. They were really progressing well and had decided to be baptized. I love that family. We are hoping they stay but if they leave we hope they continue to go to church and meet with the missionaries. This past week we also taught Guilharme again and he went to church. We are working towards baptism with him also. But he does have some family that are trying to talk him out of it. They do no want him to change because they do not want to feel they need to change I think. But all we can do is teach and invite so the spirit can testify and then they have to make the choice. We also helped Adriano(our baptism from a couple weeks ago) move into his new house. He and Samara get married on April 22 and so he moved into a new house so it would be all ready after they get married. I love that guy. Transfers are April 11 so I hope that I am able to stay one more transfer so I can be his witness at his wedding. I am stoked for that but if the Lord sends me elsewhere I know that is where I am supposed to be.

At Adriano's new home.

Hugo, an awesome guy from our ward who is preparing for his mission. Goes on a lot of splits with us.

This past week I also visited every single area in the district. Our district is the biggest in the mission( in area and # of companionships) so that took a lot of time(to walk to some of the areas would take 2- 2.5 hours just to get to one area). So we spent a lot of time on the bus. haha I challenged the district to find someone whom they felt could benefit from a visit from us. I went and talked with each companionship to see how they are doing in their area and then did the "gato gordo" (the new technique that we have for making contacts) together to see how it was going and to practice. Then we visited the people they had felt we should. It is good because we all have different talents and perspectives so by doing that we learn from each other and improve. But we had a couple great days. Thursday I visited Horto B and things went well. On Friday I went to a couple areas Interlagos B, Anhanguera and Horto A. In Anhanguera I was supposed to do a baptism interview. Right before I got there the guy called the Elders and cancelled. He said he was having doubts and was not sure he wanted to be baptized anymore. I was already almost there and I had a strong feeling to just go visit him anyway and see what his doubts were about. So we went, prayed with him and spoke with him about a few things he had questions about, then ended up interviewing him and he got baptized. It was a pretty great experience. Made me super happy to see him make that decision. Not that its another baptism for them or the zone or for the mission but It made me super happy to see him make the decision to follow the straight and narrow path, regardless of the fear of change or difficulties with families or friends. He chose to follow our Savior rather than give into the adversary. That makes me happy. In Interlagos B area I was able to talk to an investigator named Vera about the importance of marriage. It went well and so she has decided to start the process toward being able to get married. So that was good step forward! Also had an interview in Horto A with a lady named Iris. That also was a great interview and we both left feeling the spirit strongly I think. It was awesome. Lots of miracles happened last week in the district which was sweet! Most of the missionaries in my district are sisters and I have a great respect for them. They work hard. There are only 4 Elders in our district - my companionship and another one. We work very hard too but the sisters set the bar high!! haha I am thankful for them all. The week was awesome. I learned alot and I hope I was able to help them learn a lot too. This next week we will have interviews with president so I am super excited for that!

With Elder Little and Hugo in Anhanguera for baptism interview

Walking to an appt and saw these random pineapple plants

With Sister Hanson and Adão in their area for an interview

I want to share a couple scriptures this week with you that I have been thinking a lot about lately. The first one is Alma 37:37:
"Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day."
And the second is Moroni 7:48
"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen."
I think that sometimes we take prayer a little too lightly. It is a great blessing to be able to speak and receive answers and comfort from our Heavenly Father. Christ was our example in this too. He prayed always in all things - when grateful, when he needed strength, for comfort. We should follow that example. Everyone should take advantage of prayer in every moment in our lives. God has created a plan for us and He knows what we are passing through. Jesus Christ does too, He suffered not only for all of our sins but also for our difficulties. We can pray to Him for any type of help and I know He will provide us with an answer to our challenges. It may not be on our time schedule but it will come in the right moment. We have to listen for our answers too, listen for that still small voice.. In 1 Kings 19:11-12, it says
"And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice."

It is so important to be humble enough to know that we cannot do this without Him. We need to know that we depend on Him, and we need to recognize the special opportunity we hold every time we have the chance to say a prayer. We have a direct line to our Heavenly Father but if we don't do it with humility or sincerity, it wont make it past the ceiling. I love you all and I testify to each and everyone of you that Christ lives. He is our Savior and Redeemer. Joseph Smith was called of God to restore His Church and we again have the authority of Christ here on the earth. We have a living prophet, his name is Thomas S. Monson and we will have the opportunity to listen to him share the will of the Lord on the first week of April. I invite you all to listen in! If you are not familiar with it, you can learn more about it by looking up General Conference April 2017 @ lds.org

Some pictures this week from our district meeting thanks to Sister Cardoso who took my camera.