e aí‏ Mon, 31 Aug 2015 11:3

Family,

What is up you people! This week for me was pretty good and we worked hard but unfortunatly nothing is giving as of yet. We unfortunatly didnt bring anyone new to church and no real big family or anybody to work with. But worry not! We are just gonna get back to the grind this week and stick to it. Gotta keep the faith. This week we also had a Saturday Night game night and had some recent converts there and we played a few games. It was alright. First one that we as missionaries organized to for sure it was a little weak. This next Saturday will be better and we expect to get this idea started that ever week we will do something like this and an effort to convince people to bring their friends and more people to church. But other than all this I bought a watch today! That I am pretty sure was robbed.. but its all good cause it was only 18 reais haha! I got a discount because the first 2 I chose were both broken already so they took 2 reais off for me! haha

I love you guys and sorry for the lame short email. Not too many details today,

But keep readying and studying the scriptures! I am really begining to enjoy my studies and I can usually find some sweet new stuff every day! (Ether 6:5-8 the same wind that created the storm also blew the jaridiets to the promised land #WINDfortheWINGS #WhatDoesntKillYouMakesYouStronger )

LOVE YOU GUYS SOOO MUCH!

Até mais então!

ELDER CHRISTENSEN



from the activity saturday

Date: Mon, 24 Aug 2015

Hey there everyone.

So this week was a pretty good week you could say. Had a fun time working the the young men in the ward and getting them some experience before the start to think about their missions. We took two of them this week and split up on the street. One group knocking doors or one side and the other on the other. It was pretty typical work for me and Paiva full of rejections and excusses and whatnot. But the young men really enjoyed it. Igor said "It was really nerve racking at first but then no matter what you get this really good feeling about what your doing. No matter the outcome!" haha Gotta hand it to them, I would have never thought the same way about leaving with the missionaries before my mission! haha But they a really intune to the spirit of it, which made it awesome. Guess Elder Paiva and I need to shake off the "Used to it" feeling and get excited again. haha But really all is well. We also had another FHE and the sister invited all her neighbors and it should be fun to see what will happen to the references. The message we left was really powerful and it was an awesome way to spread the gospel in a less obvious way. But all in all nobody went to church this sunday. We didnt have any investigators there i should say but hey this week we just got to work a little bit harder. As far as André, our family that started off really strong, they are pretty starting to fall a lot so lets see. 

IN OTHER NEWS! David and Allison are Sealed!!!! Im so happy! Oh my heck I am so happy for them! I love that family so much and I know just how hard they have had to work for this in their lives. David is such a stud! I hope you saw the pictures! He was rocking that Celestial Smile already! I love this gospel! Church is so true! I know that they will continue to grow leaps and bonds especially as they go often and really learn about the covenents in the temple! How do I express how stoked I am in an Email!!??

Family-  just fyi they will for sure let me know when the time is right. Nobody in the office speaks english. And if everything makes sense.. Like It should and has for everyone else that has ended their missions here before I should be gettting home at the end of that transfer cycle. This means that I should be getting home the week before Christmas. Most likely the 18 of december... But above all I should be getting my flight plan here in 4 or 5 weeks it looks like. So I know... But you just gotta hold on tight for me mom. 

Maggs is growing like a week. Brooklyn too! Oh my stars.. Every 4 5 6 month year old I see I just think about you guys.

Alright well I really need to bounce.

I will talk to you guys in another week then. ha Chão gente! (haha dad with the portuguese...loved it)

ELDER CHRISTENSEN

Fishy Days Mon, 17 Aug 2015 12:05

Hey Family,

Its gettin hot again! (A main street work a lot)

So this week was a pretty good one. Started off pretty normal and then we had a Family HomeEvening that was a killer and our Investigator couple liked it a lot. They still need to get married and that probably wont happen for a while (#feetDraggers4DAYZ) but they are super excited for the next activity that we throw in the house of a member. Then later in the week we slowly watched all of the people that we originally had hope for start to lie and fall and crumble in our hands.. haha André is awesome but there is something there that he isn't telling us. He was home this weekend and didn't once talk to us or call or let us know. SO yeah idk how to feel about it. Last time we talked we marked his baptism for next sunday but I'm hoping all this weirdness is just because of being buisy and not something else. Elder Paiva and I feel like we just have to start all over. Other than this couple I just told you about that went to the FHE. We dont really have much people going to church. SO yeah that will be the focus this week. They are out there for sure I just gotta find them. 

So yeah tomorrow we are having a Zone Conference and it should be cool. I should see Elder Talbot (MTC comp) again and maybe get a letter from my loved ones in Washington (Elder Family) so Thats what I am looking forward to the most. I dont think the package will get there in time haha but Im still super stoked for it.

Family- Mom&Dad- First mom. THATS SO SICK! I am overwhelmingly proud that you are going out with the Sisters and putting everyone on date for Baptism! Dont you just love the spirit of missionary work! Congrats! That baptism should be so awesome. Way to go. Pops. Not gonna lie 3.5 hours on the bike sounds awful. But manly for sure. Proud of ya and I hope the training goes well. I forgot to mention that Fathers day was here 2 Sundays ago. LOVE YOU DAD. I cant wait till I reach your level of awesome and need to sleep with 5 pillows and an electric blanket at night! jk jk But seriously I love ya Dad. Lambsons- CONWAY! First day of school! Thats sooo crazy! Can i say that I got a little teared up?! Your all grown up kiddo! Love you guys and I hope you guys get used to one less kid in the house. Britton, your a stud. Remember when that 6 yr old Black kid beat you on that 5k we ran! haha jk I know you get mad. Keep it up bro. W&S&B- Hey I forgot to give you props on your marithon goal! BRO I would be right there running with you but I have this overwhelming fear that if I were to run for than a mile right now my heart would give out. haha Im So FRAGILE! Keep working hard and I hope all works out for the best. Kodras!- You guys are great. Love the stories and that Magster is getting close to potty trained. Keep the faith while the other is on his way! Keep on that school grind Anton. love

 Elder Wilson haha 

Alright you guys are great. I read Romans 13:12 today and got all pumped up to do some good today. Armour of Light! Let others see it.

Chão meus amados! Até próximo Segunda-Feria visse!

ELDER CHRISTENSEN

Sunsets here.. never get tired of that. 

transfers came and went‏ Date: Mon, 10 Aug 2015 10:26

Hey!

So transfers came last night and I stayed with Elder Paiva in Bodocongó! This means that will have more time to work with André and eventually watch his baptism. He really is a great guy but man this whole work thing is getting crazy. He was called back for another 2 weeks of work so this means that he wasn't at church again and wont be back until the 16th or something. The way he talks about baptism and the church I dont really have much doubts but idk someting is fishy about seeing his car parked outside his house Sunday night.. I trust the guy but Elder Paiva is saying that he is picking up some weird vibe there. But lets see there. This week was good i guess but I had a pretty gnarley cold and fever thing Wed.-Friday so it kinda sucked to have to work like that. Its not worth going to the Hospital just to get an excuse to stay home and do nothing. Better to serve the lord, trying not to make others sick in the process! haha We found a family of 3 this week (Mother, Daughter, Son) and there are living in some of the most humble circumstances I have seen yet. First lesson was by candel light cause they dont have money to pay Electricty. But super happy and nice people. Again they have some things to work past and they wern't at church as well because of some father excusse thing but lets see what happens with them! Other than all this there will be a new elder living the house with us. The other companionship got split up and one of them is training this week. Could be another brazilian but I am rooting for an American. Its possible that it could be as well cause President usaully puts the americans in houses with other americans that can help with the lang and Elder Paiva speaks good english as well. But lets see. I just need a break from the intense 3 brazilian onslought of last transfer. Whole nother level of conversation skills that I dont have and a few memebers couldnt get there minds around why I couldnt speak portuguese as well as them.. haha but all is well

FUNNY story from this week that is a little irreverant but its worth it. So if you dont already know, the idea of "CHURCH" or realigion is a little skewed in Brazil. The Assembly of Gods and Universal Yell and Scream miracle churchs here are all the rage and so unfortunatly a lot of people (recent converts) bring a lot of this culture with them into the LDS church. SO we were in church the other day and one sister in particular (little crazy) asks me and elder paiva for a blessing. So we grab another member to come with us just because and so go into a seperat room to give the blessing. She starts off by saying that she has been feeling sick ever since she saw a possesed cat in the road the other day, some pain in her chest. (First alarm) Then I give the first with the oil and everything. Then she tells elder Paiva so not let her fall...? right? weird (second alarm) Then the member gets up there and we are helping with the blessing and in the middle of the prayer she starts to shake and then jumps up out of the chair and starts to dance around in the room. All of us stopped and looked at eachother and thought.. what the heck? haha Then we replaced our hands and finnished the blessing. We asked her if she was feeling alright and then the member had to leave the room to stop from laughing... IT WAS THE STANGEST BLESSING OF MY LIFE.. haha so yeah I thought you guys would like that story. Its unfortunate but some people feel like every blessing from god needs to be a meraculus healing of demond expulsion.. haha 

Last thought. Read 1 Peter 2:21-25 ITs so awesome. we all all called to follow the savior. Indepentant of trails or hardships, follow him because he knows the way through it all. He went there for all of us. Keep that in mind this week!

I LOVE ALL OF YOU PEOPLE

Chãozinho

ELDER CHRISTENSEN

Dreams‏ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 2015 11:59

Hey there everyone!

So this week was a pretty great week I guess! Its been kinda hard to get things going here and I dont understand entirely why.. haha But will all trails come belssings and we just have to look for them. This past week we couldnt get anything going for us. We have a few people that like to pretend they are progressing but then back out on sunday and nothing else past that. SO yeah its been kinda frustrating.. BUT today we had a sweet experience that I want to share with you guys and It will explain a little bit why this email is later than usual. So this morning we are prepping to go out and pay the bill and buy food and stuff when André calls us on the phone and asks us to come over. (He has been traveling in and out of João Pessoa recently because his wife, Marcelene has been feeling sick and has a werid tumor thing in her back the pretty much leaves them bed ridden) So we go over because he literally has no money to get back to JP and work. So go over to talk to him and he tells us about a dream that he had last night; Starts off with a rain storm and he is trying to call out to his neighbor and tell him that he needs a prayer in his house but the neighbor isnt home so he decides to look up the street and he sees US (Me and Elder Paiva) at the top of his road and so he calls us over to give a prayer in his home. End of what he told us about the dream. So he calls us and we go over and blaw blaw blaw we talk about the Money he needs and we give him the 100 reais he needs and then talk to him about preisthood bleassings for Marcelene and all that. So enter her room and give the blessing and when its all over I look over to Andre and he is crying. He told us that in his dream we gave a prayer exactly like we gave the blessing. With our hands on her head and everything. He said it was exactly like he had dreamed! HOW COOL RIGHT! haha Church is true. He thanks us and we left to go buy or stuff and now I am here writing you guys. I love the experencies that this mission is giving me. I know that god looks out for us in many ways and talks to us in many forms. Keep your faith strong! Andre should go back to work this week but maybe if things work out we can baptize him this next Sunday. Keep that family in your prayers please! 

Moms questions; I study preach my gospel all the time. Only in Port right now. Read it. Its inspired for sure folks. Yeah P-day we go shopping for all the snacks we need to get by when we return to the house at night. Today I payed the house bill and Andre which means I need to live off of 20 reais until the next money drop haha! Should be fine. Laundry is done with a washing mechine... doesnt get too clean but it works for mission life. People here usually work with construction and stuff like that. Lots of new houses going up around the outer edge of town so yeah this work is most comon. The church members in specific are pretty sucessful buisness owners or engineers (RMs). Mission is pretty closed off as far as president talking to us. Every month we have meetings with our Zone and every other transfer should be interviews with president and a Muli-Zone conference.. but I dont think another one will happen until Sep.. lets see though.. and Sisters are basically serving another mission. We arnt allowed to have them in our district or zone meetings soo.... yeah I dont even know one of them.

LOVE YOU GUYS I REALL HAVE TO GO NOW! clock is ticking!

Até mais rapazes!

Chão 

ELDER CHRISTENSEN