Week 64

Strengthening Others Strengthens You Too!

 Oct. 10, 2016—Week 64

First of all my, companion Sister A. Smith is a crack up! Let me give you some examples; we were walking into a lesson and she was looking at me and banged her head into a wooden pole!  Her nose and forehead were pretty bruised up the next day!  Then that night, we were getting ready for bed, and I was cleaning something in the kitchen and she´s getting dressed in the other room and I hear a BANG!!!  Then a super slow...  “Oh, my goodness...”  I ran into the room and her glass perfume bottle fell and shattered all over the floor!  It was sad but her reaction was so hilarious, we were both laughing so hard!  

Then the next day after lunch we bought ice cream and we were walking to our lesson.  We both were laughing super hard because of something the man in the ice cream shop said.  We were literally crying walking in the street with our melting ice cream cones because we couldn’t eat them we were laughing so hard!  

Then the other night we were walking in the street and this huge dog was by us but it was walking by it’s owner.  I commented on what a big dog was walking by us.   Sister hadn’t noticed it yet and when she looked over it scared her to death and she started screaming!   I told her to calm down, that the dogs owner was with it so she didn’t need to be scared!  Then she told me when something scares or surprises her she screams.   I’ve found out by experience this is true.  

Later we were on the bus and if you don’t hold on tight in the buses you go flying...haha  Sister A. Smith wasn’t holding on tight enough and went flying and banged into this lady.  I was trying super hard not to laugh but I couldn’t hold it in. Let´s just say my companion is awesome, I laugh all day with her!  Transfers are this week and I hope that we get to stay together!! (:

This week was a week was bitter and sweet, but more on the sweet side!(: Okay, you know how I said that Luciana was ready to get baptized after going to General Conference?  This member said, “you need to be careful because Satan is going to try to get in your way so you don’t get baptized this week.”  I knew it was true, but I don’t like to tell investigators that.  Well it happened!  She started doubting everything we said, and when we taught about the Word of Wisdom she said she would stop drinking coffee and that it wouldn’t be a problem for her.

The next time we saw her she said she drank some and didn’t understand why just drinking a little coffee wasn’t okay.  We explained it is a commandment that Joseph Smith received revelation from God and we read the scripture 2 Nephi 9:24 that says if you don’t get baptized and repent of your sins you will be condemned.  We asked her how she felt about this scripture and we taught her about the plan of salvation and how important it is to keep the commandments and get baptized if we want to return and live with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ in the celestial kingdom...I don’t think I have ever taught a lesson with the spirit was so strong!  I had the experience that Elder Holland taught about.  When he said, you missionaries are the investigators when you are teaching someone and the spirit is the teacher/missionary...this literally happened to me.  I felt like all that I was saying and teaching Luciana was true and I knew it was when I was teaching it to her.  The spirit was confirming to me when I was teaching her that it was true!  It was so COOL!!!  When we teach with the spirit we learn more...sometimes more than the people who are being taught by us!  After we taught her, we said, what kingdom do you want?  She said, the Celestial Kingdom.  Then we said, are you going to stop drinking coffee to get there?   She said, “yes!”  It was a really special lesson. (:  We realized that she also needs to have a stronger testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon to stop drinking, so we will help her more with that! 

But get this...this sister of a member said at General Conference last Sunday,  “I’m getting baptized this Saturday.”  So someone told us that she said this and we were like what?  We need to get teaching her then, we taught her all the lessons this week and she was baptized!!  MIRACLES!!!  She was so excited and when we would leave chapters for her to read in the Book of Mormon she would write a paragraph about what she learned it was the cutest thing!! 

- Sister Smith

 Last p-day we had a BBQ at a members house yum yum!!  

 Our neighbor banged on our door at 6 am and we open it and they gave us milk and this picture...haha

Going on splits with this awesome Sister!!! 

At General Conference;

We are praying Luciana 

will be baptized next week

 At General Conference with Gislaine who was baptized a couple weeks ago.

 This cutie was baptized on Saturday!

Walking to church with Gislaine

  Look at this trash can, its a shopping cart!

This is a trianchula (a big spider) I told Aleece that I have never seen a big spider here in Brazil. But this week I saw 5 of these crawling around and they say they will burn your skin if you touch them....Yuck!