OOOOOHHHH MYYYYY GOODNESSSS!!!!!
WHAT a week. haha I don´t even know where to start! I hope you e-mailed you the picture, but I sat next to brother and sister Portwood on the plane!! They were going to pick up Ben from his mission in France!!! Brother Portwood kept telling people that we grew up together. Well, I guess 3 years of high school could be counted as growing up together! It was fun to see them. It is so wierd that my high school buddies are now coming home when I am just leaving! My Mission President wasn´t able to meet us at the airport, in fact I haven´t met him yet because he has been in Salt Lake and is now a Seventy as you prob. remember in General Conference!!!! Crazy awesome!!! The A.P´s and office elders took good care of us.
My companion has trained three others before me! She is from Brazil and can´t speak very much English at all. Mixed blessing. I love that I have to speak Portuguese ALL the time, but it is really hard never knowing exactly what is going on. She does her best to explain. She is SO fun and cute. Her name is Irmã dos Santos! She is about 5´0, and works HARD. I LOVE IT!!!! Yesterday at conference the elders got on her case for not taking me to a bakery yet. We have been working so hard, we have not had any time! Which is how I want it to be! She is very bold and doesn´t give up on anyone. When she starts talking to someone she sees it through to the end. She is an amazing example. She is teaching me Portuguese and I am teaching her English. I was told to make sure to help her- the church really wants all the non-English speakers to learn English so they can get better jobs back home and it will help them be stronger leaders in the church. Today-during P-day hours we are only speaking English. Not working out too well, but we are trying :) (This Portuguese keyboard is a bit different- sorry for any weird symbols)
It is amazing how fast I am learning Portuguese- esp. since my comp. can´t understand me if I don´t. We use my dictionary a lot. The gift of tongues is REAL. Although, I still feel like I am doing absolutely nothing to help anyone. I start talking to someone, then my comp takes over when they start talking and I sit there and smile and pray really hard. I understand my companions Brazillian accent pretty well, but I have no idea what the Portugal Portuguese people are saying-which is everyone else here! But Tudo bem! This is HARD. But so incredible. I am focusing on each day at a time. I am having a positive attitude and focusing on smiling. At least people will have a friendly thought about the church with a smile.
My first day proselyting was incredible!! We met with an investigator one evening and afterward stood outside looking at a map. A young woman named Ana Paula came out and asked if she could talk with us. CLARO!!! She is ELECT!!! She is 21, originally from Cape Verde, has a son named Samuel. She agreed with everything we told her. I had her read the promise in Moroni 10 and the Holy Ghost filled the room. She said she feels good and she knows the Book is true! AAAHHHHH!!!! She wants to get baptized but she isn´t married to her sons father- they are living together but not married. I think (because I can´t 100% understand anything) that she is going to try to move out because her boyfriend doesn´t want to get married. My heart cries or her because she doesn´t have any money. She is so incredible and so faithful. She came to conference on Saturday, but had work on Sunday afternoon so couldn´t go to the other sessions. For conference on Saturday we called her beforehand to meet her at the bus station that is right next to a huge mall. When we got there we could not find her. The mall is seriously ginormous and the bus station was across the street and so we were walking back and forth trying to find her. I was praying SOOO hard. I don´t think I have ever listened to the spirit so hard. I was listening with my whole heart- trying to know where to go and what to do. We HAD to get her to conference!!! I had an incredible experience. After trying, I just knew what to do. I was told to be patient and wait in one spot for a little while and then to go to the bus station. I saw her immediately. I saw her back, so i couldn´t see her face or know or sure it was her, but I did know it was her because oof the Holy Ghost! We ran and got her and walked to conference. She LOVED it. She said she felt really good while listening. Do you remember the picture shown of the huge family by one of the speakers? That totally caught her attention and touched her deeply. I know she loves her family and she wants to be surrounded by people she loves and that love her. Three of her fingers on her left hand are half gone and some of her toes. From what I understood, again def. could not be accurate but- she ate something when she was little in Cape Verde and they fell off! woah.
I have really been trying to rely on the Lord- to do His will. I try to listen to know who we can talk to. On the bus one time my comp. was sitting next to a woman and was talking to her about the gospel. I was across the aisle sitting next to a pretty sketchy man. I knew I needed to be doing something useful- I am a missionary I need to tell everyone I can about the gospel! So I tried to listen the the Spirit to know who I should talk to. I started witht he man I was sitting next to. From what I understood he pretty much said to leave him alone. :) Okay on to the next person... There was an Indian women sitting in front of my comp. and turned her head when my comp. said the Book of Mormon was free. Well, showed some interest so I moved to the seat across from her and started talking to her. She was so sweet about my Portuguese and listened to what I had to say. She really wanted the free Book of Mormon and i was able to get her contact information! I really believe she will let us teach her. She is Hindu she said but she believes in Christ. We will see what happens.
PORTUGAL IS BEAUTIFUL!!! It is definitely a 2nd world country (is that the right terminology?) It reminds me of Turkey- how all the apartment buildings are different colors. All the apartments are plaster and painted either white, yellow, coral, blue, green pastel. And all the roofs are orange tile. I feel like I am in Greece, I have never been to Greece but this is how I imagine some of it to be like. Everyone has beautiful gates. All of the sidewalks are cobblestone. Lisbon is built on seven hills- lots of walking up and down very steep hills. My area is called Odivelas (Oh-dee-vel-ash). Our apartment s really cool- it is furnished in old Victorian style furniture. The elevator door is non-existent so the doors to the hallways pass by in front of you when you ride it. Sometimes we have cold showers. They have peanut butter!!! I am good to go :) I have eaten at a couple of members homes- the food is SOO good- carne, rice, potatoes, fresh veggies, delicious bread, and ice cream. The people are so nice and very receptive to the gospel- for the most part.
It has been so hard. I pray ALL the time. I mostly pray for help and comfort. I know this is where I need to be. I love the Lord. And I want with all my heart to bring people unto Him. That is why I am here.
It is best to use the address of the mission for letters. Please write :) I need some encouragement and love :) But I have really felt the love of the Savior this week. When I can´t really talk to my comp. or anyone else around me, I can always talk to the Savior and He has comforted me so much- more than I can explain. The Church is true. I know it with my whole heart. I love that I can bear my testimony to people all the time. I love you all SOO much!!! HURRAH FOR ISRAEL!!!
Pray for:
Ana Paula- her boyfriend´s heart will be softened and listen to us and/or get married, her testimony continue to grow
Alice- not be afraid to take the step to be baptized
Antonio- feel comfortable with people at church
Teresa- she will know the Book of Mórmon is true
Shanda- she will let us come teach her
Georgina- heart softened to let her daughter Alexandra be baptized and Georgina will feel the spirit as we talk to her
Irmã Tingey
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