Well, it was a very busy week, like normal. In preparation for the end of the month, we had to go on exchanges two times... Oh so busy...
I spent the day in the favelas with my filinha, Sister Santos. But now she is all grown up and training one of her own. This mission business is so interesting because at times it is hard to recognize our own spiritual growth. But, after a time apart, I was so impressed to see how much S. Santos has grown since our time in Cotia. It is truly impressive to think about how much the mission offers us: opportunities to learn and grow and then share that experience with others. Heavenly Father is ready and willing to give us so many unforgettable moments and mold us into someone oh so much better. But how much we change, and if we even change at all is completely up to us. That agency thing.
Another day I stayed in Ferreira with another Sister. I was a bit nervous because i have only been here for two weeks so I wasn´t sure if I would remember the streets, adresses, people, etc. But turned out totally fine! Actually, we worked super hard the whole day. We basically didn´t stop wonce the whole day. And as we were walking home, the girl mentioned that it was her birthday!! I felt so bad! I practically killed the poor thing on her birthday!! We went to subway and grabbed bite, made a cake, watched mormon messages and I managed to get a little gift together for her. Probably is a birthday that she will not soon forget.
Carla and Diego are well. Diego is still traveling lots but we managed to find them at home yesterday. We talked with them about the importance of families and watched together forever. ( a cheesy, ancient church movie about families.) After, we asked what they thought, and their son, Henrique, began to tell us that the whole idea of a god is totally clichê. Turns out, Hnrique is no only athius, but also rather rebellious lately. After a lot of thought and prayer, we decided on a solution... You see, Carla and Diego are great parents but they are super worried that Henrique is going down a very dangerous path, that he will start using drugs if he hasn´t already. So they are thinking of sending him away to boarding school and we kn ow that this will be super hard on the whole family. Henrique is a good kid, just a little lost at the moment. So, we thought of SEMINARY!! Why? Because it seems like the perfect option. 3 hours of the gospel every week, good kids to help him out, and here they usually have seminary in the house of a member at 7 PM so it is totally doable. We will present our idea tonight but pray that it all works out and that he is willing to at least try.
We also met another wonderful woman named Rosana. She has a sister who was baptized not long ago and due to pretty severe health problems, Rasana has moved to our area recently to live with this member sister. Until recently, she has worked her whole life as a pysicologist and though she grew up catholic, she has lived basically her whole adult life without a defined religion. She thought it would be better to be unbiased for carreer purposes. But, now she is needing something more, something that we have to give!! We visited this week and became friends, instantly. We laughed and cried and talked about the chance whe will have to get her body perfected and ressurected someday. We left a part in the book of mormon and invited her to church. She came, and read, and loved it!! We talked a little bit about baptism, and though she showed interest, she started to cry as she expressed her fear that she would not be able to enter the water. Because now she has lots of difficulty to walk. We reassured her that it would all work out. Now she is just waiting to get an answer to her prayer! She is amazing.
Well gotta go. Ignore the typos. This computer is HORRIBLE.
Com amor,
Sister Lauren
p.s. wow Europe would be wonderful!!! I feel like I would be so spoiled. But it would be great to spend some precious time with those girls. Are you thinking in August before school starts? I am not sure exactly what day but I´m sure mom does.
Also, our trip sounds great!! I am excited! Especially for 4th of July! I talked with a member who served in Boston and I missed it so much! I am excited to visit with you!
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