2-9-2015

Everything is good. This last week was a bit tough since my companion is finishing his mission. We spent a lot of time with members, so I was able to get to know them better.

The food is great (mostly)! There is a lot of beans, rice, and meat. There are a couple things that are a bit difficult to eat. Like this one dish which is mostly potatoes and mayo. Kind of like potato salad but instead of being awesome like yours mom it is really hard for me to eat because of all the mayo. There is another dish which is like a stew. It has beans and all kinds of pig meat. Most of the time it is awesome but one time they gave us this for Amoco and it was crazy! It had bone of the pig and skin chucks with pig hair on them. Man that was hard to put in my mouth. But I got through it. 

I am learning a lot here about people, the gospel, and the language. One of the biggest things I have learned is to trust in and have faith in Heavenly Father. It has been hard not being able to speak well but as I have that trust and faith in Heavenly Father that I can help people here, I am blessed with His help. 

Have a good week!

2-2-2015

Hello everyone! This week was pretty great! We had another Baptism. We also organized a talent show for the ward. I am starting to really make a connection with the people here. My Portuguese and confidence are starting to allow me to make jokes and share my thoughts and feelings about things. I am still learning how to tell stories but I am sure when I figure that out things will get even better. 

First off the baptism was great. Do you guys remember my first lesson alone without my companion? I think I called our investigator Edith. Well she was baptized this Sunday. Funny enough it was also her birthday. Last week we almost gave up on her because she was always busy. But when we finally met with her again we found that she was ready to be baptized. I am looking forward to teaching her more in the future. She is such a great person. She has a lot of faith in Jesus Cristo. Her baptism was a little complicated for a lot of reasons. She lives in our mission area but goes to a different ward because she has a lot of friends there. We originally planned to have her baptized in the other ward building but the bishop there wouldn´t allow it. So we had it at our building. I was really worried that no one was going to show up because no one in our ward knows her. But as soon as we finished preparing for the baptism a ton of people walked in the door. It was awesome. The wife of the bishop had made a big cake for Edith´s Birthday. I was amazed at how much love the ward had for someone they didn´t know. 

In the photos you will see Edith, ward members, me, and some other missionaries in from our apartment. The last photo was from this morning. 

The talent show was awesome. During the show I was waiting for Dad to come running in wearing an Indiana Jones costume or a tuxedo. 

Sorry I have to stop short the shop is closing.

I love you guys have a great week! 

-Elder Stevens

Baptism day!

1-26-2015

Oy minha familia e meu amigos!

This week was muito bom! A few things happened that were pretty exciting! The first one was I had my first baptism this week! It was a pretty great experience; of course a few things went wrong. When I entered the baptismal font and closed the door behind me the handle broke off in my hand. Secondly I forgot my sandals and had to borrow some from an Irma in the ward. As soon as they hit the water they came off my feet and I almost fell in completely. But I was fine. The actual baptism part went great! It was really spiritual and I am excited to help more people come unto Christ. Afterward, I had someone open the door from the other side so I could get out of the font.

On Saturday we had splits with the zone leaders. I went with an Elder to interview some people for baptism in a different area. We were able to stay and see the baptism which was really cool. The chapel in this area doesn´t have a baptismal font, so we used an inflatable swimming pool. It was a bit different but still really awesome. It just reminded me that the spirit can manifest itself in the most humble of circumstances.

On Sunday I gave a talk in the ward. It was kind of like watching an airplane take a nose dive and right before it hits the ground and explodes the pilot pulls up and saves the plane from crashing. My talk was rough at first but after awhile I just stopped, relaxed and listened to the spirit, it all went smoothly.

Anyway I love you guys very much thanks for your letters and emails! Until next week.

-Elder Stevens

1-19-2015 (continued)

First district in my first area out of the MTC

My new companion on the left and new roommate up front

The roommates

My companion in front of our apartment

Our beds

The roads we tract on

My very organized desk

There are chickens everywhere 

P-day fun

My companion and I

1-19-2015

Picture Time:

My MTC companion 

District temple day

View from my room at the MTC

My classroom at the MTC

Treats!

My MTC district on P-day

MTC Brazil

Christmas Day 

Games and treats on Christmas

My district in the MTC

1-12-2015

Hi guys thanks for your emails, love and support! This week was another rough week but things are getting better. My language skills are improving and I am starting to get into the swing of things here. 

I wanted to talk about my first lesson I had only without my companion. We went on splits this week. I went to teach a referral with a member who knows a lot of English. For privacy I will call my referral Edith (and no not the one from teen wolf). Edith comes from a wide religious background. She was mainly Catholic for many years. She lives with her son Jeff.  We went to teach her the first lesson. I was a little worried because it was my first time without my companion. I started out by getting to know them more and chatting about how I am American. Then we got into it. As I taught we would stop to help Edith understand a concept or to help her understand my poor Portuguese. She had a strong desire to learn about the church. It was great! The spirit was really strong. When we got to the first vision she already knew a little about it. I memorized the first vision and started reciting it for her. Everything was going to plan, until Jeff´s chair decided to give up halfway through, Jeff´s chair collapsed. We found him a new one and continued on. In the end she committed to be baptized and to receive more lessons. 

This was an awesome experience because it really strengthened my testimony about gospel. Even though a lot of things went wrong during the lesson we were able to feel the spirit very strong. The spirit has the power to be with us anywhere and to touch the hearts of anyone. That´s why it is so important to have in lessons. I hope that I can do my best to help them feel the spirit. After the lesson Edith described her faith in Christ and the love she felt from him. When she opened the Book of Mormon and saw the picture of Christ she lit up. Jeff told me that he had an opportunity to read the first few chapters of the BOM. He told me it was a strange experience. He said he felt like he was paralyzed. 

I am so grateful to be here and share the message of hope through Christ. I am so grateful for it in my life. I love you guys have a great week! Sorry if the last email was a bit strange. I just want to say I am safe and I haven´t seen an animal sacrifice for a while now. 

-Elder Stevens