This week flew by! The weeks are passing by faster and faster! We taught a lot of great people this week and I´m really loving Guarabira. It started to rain this week and kept on raining. Since Guarabira is all hills, except for the downtown, all the water goes to the same place--the center of the city. The downtown turned into a river and I just could not believe that people are used to this type of flooding. Honestly, we were walking and I couldn´t see the sidewalk or street...it was just all completely covered in water. A member told me that last year it got to be about 3-4 feet deep in the downtown. CRAZY! Anyway it was fun running around in the rain trying to teach people. I got completely soaked and felt cold for the 2nd time in Brazil. Rain or shine though when it hits the weekend the people down here party it up. We were invited to a recent convert's house for her mother´s birthday. When we got there everyone was drunk except Nice (recent convert) and it was an all out mess. Honestly people are just super retarded when they drink. We didn´t stay there very long thank goodness, but it was long enough for a guy to try and kiss my hand. I don´t know why, but brazilians get more romantic when they are drink. very strange. Anyway later that night a man drove by us on a motorcycle and fell over all of a sudden. As soon as he stood up it was easy to tell he was extremely drunk. He couldn´t even stand up straight and here he was trying to drive a motorcyle. Unfortunately this happens so much. The drunk driving laws don´t seem to exist down here, because on the weekend everyone seems to be wasted. I definitely know the Lord protects us, because with the amount of drunks on the road we should have been run over a long time ago.
Well this week they put in the garden at the new chapel. It is getting to be so pretty. It should be completed in a few weeks, but we won´t be able to meet there until we have 4 consecutive sundays of 120+ attendence. This week was 110, better than last week but getting closer to our goal. I hope to see the chapel dedicated before I go home!
Well since I´m getting closer to finishing my mission I´ve started to look at all the goals I had when I started the mission. One of those goals was to have a very close relationship with the Savior. I definitely feel closer to him than ever, but I decided there is much room for improvement. I decided until the end of my mission that I would study all the references in the topical guide about Christ. I started this week studying the titles: Advocate, Antemortal Existence, Antemortal Appearances, and Postmortal Appearances. Even after studying these 4 titles I have felt like I´ve made leaps and bounds towards getting to know the Savior better. I´ve been writing all my thoughts in a separate notebook and am excited to see how close I´ll get to the Savior in these next 10 weeks before I come home. The level of the spirit I feel now that I´m studying the Savior and His life has tripled and I feel like I am well on my way to having a stronger relationship with him. I felt extremely touched while reading the references about how Christ is our advocate with the Father. It is amazing that someone who never sinned or hurt anyone, took upon himself the sins and iniquities of every human being and on judgement day He is at our side pleading our cause. How many people would do that?One scripture under this topic touched me profoundly and I felt that one day he will plead my cause in the same way. In D&C 45 it says::
``Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him---saying, Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified. Wherefore, Father, spare those my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life.``
When reading those words I felt and still feel the intense love and mercy that Christ has for us. He died because of our sins....because of the stupid things we do everyday...and yet he still loves us so much that he will stand by our side, pleading our cause. Now that is pure charity.
While studying about the postmortal appearances of Christ I remembered a joke someone told me on the mission. Why did Christ appear first to Mary, a woman? Because if he had appeared to a man the world still wouldn´t know he resurrected. Yeah, by word of plane, phone, etc still isn´t as fast as word by woman. Well I hope you all are doing great. I´m doing well, so no need to worry about me! I hope you all have a wonderful week and enjoy the cold weather. Thanks for the prayers!
Love you all!
Sister Wood
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
Sweating in Guarabira
howdy to all you guys up there in the cold cold north! It is BLAZING Hot down here.....honestly burning hot hot hot! Yesterday Sister Venia and I were climbing a hill at noon and we thought we were going to die. Honestly, the only reason I didn´t give up and fall on the ground is because the ground is way hotter. Honestly I don´t know how people live here at times in this heat. I take a shower and before I even get dressed I´m sweating profusely. I´m very excited to go back home and have air conditioning. This week the military police gave us another ride into town and feeling cold air for 10 minutes was just a tender mercy of the Lord. A lady today told me she has so much respect for us....because we walk in the sun all day....for free....helping people to have better lives. It really doesn´t seem like that much of a sacrifice though....only in the noon-day sun. Things went well this past week. We are working a lot more with members and less-active members right now than investigators. The chapel is getting close to being finished, but President Hall refuses to dedicate it until we have 120+ attendence for 1 month. Last week we worked our rearends off trying to get everyone to church and there ended up only being 95. This week we worked even harder and only 92 people came! So frustrating, but at the same time about 20 less actives came this week that hadn´t been in a while....just a lot of active members were out of town. Either way, we will reach our goal of 120! I want to see this chapel dedicated before I leave in 11 weeks.
Well things are just going normal here. I finished the Book of Mormon in French last week. It was awesome. I love French. Seriously want to learn that language. Next time we go to France I´ll be the one trying to communicate in French, not Mom! I´m now concentrating my study on the Book of Mormon in German. It is definitely harder (at least for me) than French. However it is coming along. I´ve already read 50 pages of 1 Nephi and it is amazing how quickly you can catch on to a language. Still it will only be after a lot of studying that I will ever understand German. I´ve also been studing a lot of Spanish grammar and talk to myself in Spanish all the time. This week while teaching I accidently said a few things in Spanish....I guess thats the risk I have to take! I just hope I continue to study languages for the rest of my life. There is something so fun about picking up something to read, understanding nothing, studying it daily, and little by little unlocking the keys of the language. I still can´t believe I´m coming home in 11 weeks. I´ve been getting really nervous about coming home. This entire week I´ve been exhausted because I haven´t been able to sleep very well. I lay down at 10:30pm....and then begin to think about the uncertain future...and I start to get nervous and scared. It will be really really weird for me to come back. I hope I take it well....and I hope I stop being nervous so I can sleep! Well. I hope you all are doing great and in good health. Continue doing the things that are right! This is the true church! No DOUBTs! The plan of happiness is perfect and God loves us so much. In sunday school we talked about evidences that God loves us... Truly having my family is the biggest proof (besides the atonement of Christ) that God loves me! Stay warm and stay safe!
LOVE YOU, SISTER WOOD
Well things are just going normal here. I finished the Book of Mormon in French last week. It was awesome. I love French. Seriously want to learn that language. Next time we go to France I´ll be the one trying to communicate in French, not Mom! I´m now concentrating my study on the Book of Mormon in German. It is definitely harder (at least for me) than French. However it is coming along. I´ve already read 50 pages of 1 Nephi and it is amazing how quickly you can catch on to a language. Still it will only be after a lot of studying that I will ever understand German. I´ve also been studing a lot of Spanish grammar and talk to myself in Spanish all the time. This week while teaching I accidently said a few things in Spanish....I guess thats the risk I have to take! I just hope I continue to study languages for the rest of my life. There is something so fun about picking up something to read, understanding nothing, studying it daily, and little by little unlocking the keys of the language. I still can´t believe I´m coming home in 11 weeks. I´ve been getting really nervous about coming home. This entire week I´ve been exhausted because I haven´t been able to sleep very well. I lay down at 10:30pm....and then begin to think about the uncertain future...and I start to get nervous and scared. It will be really really weird for me to come back. I hope I take it well....and I hope I stop being nervous so I can sleep! Well. I hope you all are doing great and in good health. Continue doing the things that are right! This is the true church! No DOUBTs! The plan of happiness is perfect and God loves us so much. In sunday school we talked about evidences that God loves us... Truly having my family is the biggest proof (besides the atonement of Christ) that God loves me! Stay warm and stay safe!
LOVE YOU, SISTER WOOD
Friday, January 14, 2011
It IS true!
We had transfers and I stayed in Guarabira with the same companion--Sister Vênia! We both were super excited when we got the transfer news. The members here in the branch did a going away party in the chance that one of us 4 missionaries would be transferred. They made a HUGE cake for us and one by one went up to the front of the room and told us how much they respected and loved us. They thanked us so much for our work in the branch and even though I knew I was staying I still cried thinking that someday I will have to leave these people. At the end of the party we got the phone call. Elder Siqueira at first said that Sister Vênia and Elder Jay had been transferred, but then he said he was just kidding. Ahhh you just can´t play with our hearts like that! Everyone was super excited that all of us stayed and still gave us little `going away` presents...even though no one was transferred. I´m so happy I´m staying in this area. I really hope I end my mission here. Guarabira is a tiny city that has everything you need and our area includes a lot of other cute out-of-the-way towns as well. I´ve loved visiting these cute towns and the wonderful people that live there. I found out that my "daughter", Sister G, got transferred to Pombal. It is super close to Sousa and I just love the people there. When I was in Sousa the missionaries were just starting to work in Pombal and now they have a thriving branch there. I got the chance to visit Pombal at the beginning of the mission and am just so glad that my daughter will be working out there in the hot hot desert with such wonderful people! She will do a lot of good out there! So this past week or so has been good. We´ve been working a ton!! With the new chapel being built and nearing the end of construction President has asked us to work on increasing the attendence at church. We´ve been working a lot with less actives and new members and it has been great.
This last Sunday the Elders baptized a wonderful young woman who I just love to death. Her name is Raisa and we had the opportunity to teach her a few times with the Elders. The first time she came to church she stayed with me the entire time and we just really hit it off! She is such a mature and smart girl and really was looking for the truth. When the elders were teaching her, the pastor of her old church came and pretty much tried to lay a smack down on the church and call her to repentance. This made her a little uneasy about her baptism, but the elders talked with her a long time and she decided to be baptized. On the night of her baptism I got to share the message and shared 2 Nephi 31:20 with her. I told her it was mom´s favorite scripture and talked about how mom was an example of a woman who lives this scripture and because she lives it, it has blessed her life. I talked with her about the importance of enduring to the end. I told her that things would be hard and that there would always be opposition, but this is how we follow Christ--putting one foot in front of the other and following in his footsteps. After the message she was baptized. When she raised out of the water she had a stunned look on her face. As she walked passed us going to the bathroom to change, I gave her a thumbs up but she totally didnt see it. She didn´t look at anyone and looked just super stunned. After she returned and the meeting was over she called me outside to talk. She told me that when she came out of the water a completely new feeling swept over her...a feeling she had never felt before. She said she was just shocked that she could feel that way. She continued to talk about a peace and happiness that she had never felt in her life or even knew existed. As she sat there she just kept saying--``Sister wood, IT IS TRUE, IT IS TRUE!. I believed that everything I was taught was true, but now I know it!`` It is moments like these that I just never want to stop being a missionary. There is such a joy that comes when someone repents, or when the veil is removed from someone´s eyes and they gain a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel.
This past week one of the highlights of my week was teaching two young men who are atheists. Ok, you might think that it is weird that I enjoyed teaching atheists, but I did. Allan and Vinicio are two young men very disillusioned by religion and think that science and religion are opposites. The first lesson with them lasted 2 hours, but it was great. We talked about our purpose in this life, our potential, and our divine nature as children of God. I tell you I never thought I could feel the spirit so strong talking with someone who doesnt even believe in God. The Spirit was very present during the 2 lessons we had with them. Their biggest doubts have to do with wanting physical proof that God exists. I talked with them about the things that testify to me that God exists-- nature, my family, the hope and joy that we feel with each new day that begins, etc. I looked at them directly in their eyes and started to testify of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and of the love that They have for them. I told them that even though they didnt believe in God, He knows them and they chose to follow His Son in the premortal life. As I bore testimony to them I started to feel the love the Savior has for them....now this isn't abnormal because we often feel this with our investigators---but this time it was so powerful, so pure that I was just shocked. Here I was sitting in front of two young men who were proclaimed atheists and yet I was feeling God´s love for them. At the same time I felt, very clearly, that they were two very special sons of God. Honestly God loves everyone, even those that deny his existence. When I told them about the love I was feeling I could see it in their eyes that they had felt this love before.. from their Father in Heaven. I´m so grateful that God shows his love to everyone---the Christians, the Muslims, the atheist, etc. I don´t know if Allan and Vinicio will ever be baptized, but I have faith they will sometime in their lives. God´s plan is a plan of mercy and even though a person denies his very existence....``his hand is stretched out still``
Well this email is getting long so I´ll wrap it up with a few other things that happened this week. Sister Venia and I were invited to lunch at the Army Base/ Police Station by a member who works there. When we arrived in the dining hall I felt like all the eyes in the room were glued to us. Women are few and far between at this place and definitely two missionaries in the middle of a bunch of policemen and army officers would cause a stir. It was quite a lot of fun and the guys kept fighting to get a spot next to us at the table. The whole experience was a lot of fun and at the end 2 police officers gave us a ride home in the police truck. This is actually the 2nd time the police have given us a ride and I have to say it is nice because it is the only time we get to feel the air conditioner. Anyway the police have a lot of respect for us here in Guarabira. They always wave to us and stop to let us cross the road! It helps having friends in high places!
Well last thing! I promise! We watched the Other Side of Heaven this week with a few recent converts and I just never remember crying that much during that movie. I mean in the end when he is saying goodbye to the people on the island....I was just a complete mess. I just kept thinking that in a couple months, I´ll be saying goodbye as well. I still don´t know how I´ll be able to do it. I loved these people before I got here, before I even knew them....can you imagine the love I have for them now, after serving them for almost 16 months!? But, I love and I miss my family. Thank you all for the emails, letters, encouragement, and prayers. I feel them and am very grateful for them. This week I got the card you guys all signed for my birthday. I think it was one of the best presents I´ve every received. I keep picking it up and reading it and wanting to give you all big hugs and fatten you up with good-tasting Brazilian food. Pretty soon I´ll be able to. In the meantime, stay warm, stay healthy, stay strong in the church. Like Raisa said--IT IS TRUE, IT IS TRUE! It sure is. I love you all. Have a great week.
Love, Sister wood
This last Sunday the Elders baptized a wonderful young woman who I just love to death. Her name is Raisa and we had the opportunity to teach her a few times with the Elders. The first time she came to church she stayed with me the entire time and we just really hit it off! She is such a mature and smart girl and really was looking for the truth. When the elders were teaching her, the pastor of her old church came and pretty much tried to lay a smack down on the church and call her to repentance. This made her a little uneasy about her baptism, but the elders talked with her a long time and she decided to be baptized. On the night of her baptism I got to share the message and shared 2 Nephi 31:20 with her. I told her it was mom´s favorite scripture and talked about how mom was an example of a woman who lives this scripture and because she lives it, it has blessed her life. I talked with her about the importance of enduring to the end. I told her that things would be hard and that there would always be opposition, but this is how we follow Christ--putting one foot in front of the other and following in his footsteps. After the message she was baptized. When she raised out of the water she had a stunned look on her face. As she walked passed us going to the bathroom to change, I gave her a thumbs up but she totally didnt see it. She didn´t look at anyone and looked just super stunned. After she returned and the meeting was over she called me outside to talk. She told me that when she came out of the water a completely new feeling swept over her...a feeling she had never felt before. She said she was just shocked that she could feel that way. She continued to talk about a peace and happiness that she had never felt in her life or even knew existed. As she sat there she just kept saying--``Sister wood, IT IS TRUE, IT IS TRUE!. I believed that everything I was taught was true, but now I know it!`` It is moments like these that I just never want to stop being a missionary. There is such a joy that comes when someone repents, or when the veil is removed from someone´s eyes and they gain a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel.
This past week one of the highlights of my week was teaching two young men who are atheists. Ok, you might think that it is weird that I enjoyed teaching atheists, but I did. Allan and Vinicio are two young men very disillusioned by religion and think that science and religion are opposites. The first lesson with them lasted 2 hours, but it was great. We talked about our purpose in this life, our potential, and our divine nature as children of God. I tell you I never thought I could feel the spirit so strong talking with someone who doesnt even believe in God. The Spirit was very present during the 2 lessons we had with them. Their biggest doubts have to do with wanting physical proof that God exists. I talked with them about the things that testify to me that God exists-- nature, my family, the hope and joy that we feel with each new day that begins, etc. I looked at them directly in their eyes and started to testify of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and of the love that They have for them. I told them that even though they didnt believe in God, He knows them and they chose to follow His Son in the premortal life. As I bore testimony to them I started to feel the love the Savior has for them....now this isn't abnormal because we often feel this with our investigators---but this time it was so powerful, so pure that I was just shocked. Here I was sitting in front of two young men who were proclaimed atheists and yet I was feeling God´s love for them. At the same time I felt, very clearly, that they were two very special sons of God. Honestly God loves everyone, even those that deny his existence. When I told them about the love I was feeling I could see it in their eyes that they had felt this love before.. from their Father in Heaven. I´m so grateful that God shows his love to everyone---the Christians, the Muslims, the atheist, etc. I don´t know if Allan and Vinicio will ever be baptized, but I have faith they will sometime in their lives. God´s plan is a plan of mercy and even though a person denies his very existence....``his hand is stretched out still``
Well this email is getting long so I´ll wrap it up with a few other things that happened this week. Sister Venia and I were invited to lunch at the Army Base/ Police Station by a member who works there. When we arrived in the dining hall I felt like all the eyes in the room were glued to us. Women are few and far between at this place and definitely two missionaries in the middle of a bunch of policemen and army officers would cause a stir. It was quite a lot of fun and the guys kept fighting to get a spot next to us at the table. The whole experience was a lot of fun and at the end 2 police officers gave us a ride home in the police truck. This is actually the 2nd time the police have given us a ride and I have to say it is nice because it is the only time we get to feel the air conditioner. Anyway the police have a lot of respect for us here in Guarabira. They always wave to us and stop to let us cross the road! It helps having friends in high places!
Well last thing! I promise! We watched the Other Side of Heaven this week with a few recent converts and I just never remember crying that much during that movie. I mean in the end when he is saying goodbye to the people on the island....I was just a complete mess. I just kept thinking that in a couple months, I´ll be saying goodbye as well. I still don´t know how I´ll be able to do it. I loved these people before I got here, before I even knew them....can you imagine the love I have for them now, after serving them for almost 16 months!? But, I love and I miss my family. Thank you all for the emails, letters, encouragement, and prayers. I feel them and am very grateful for them. This week I got the card you guys all signed for my birthday. I think it was one of the best presents I´ve every received. I keep picking it up and reading it and wanting to give you all big hugs and fatten you up with good-tasting Brazilian food. Pretty soon I´ll be able to. In the meantime, stay warm, stay healthy, stay strong in the church. Like Raisa said--IT IS TRUE, IT IS TRUE! It sure is. I love you all. Have a great week.
Love, Sister wood
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Feliz Ano Novo
Well well. Happy New Year to you all! I hope you all had a great time partying up the new year! I went to bed at 10:30, but was awaken by all the fireworks that went off at midnight! Boy were they LOUD! After waking up I was unable to get back to sleep for a long time and decided to use my time wisely and do my nails---a vain, but useful talent I have acquire here in Brazil. New Years Day was probably one of the worst days of the year---missionary speaking. NO ONE WAS HOME and everyone who was home was drunk. I got really tired of only finding drunk people to teach and we ended up teaching a lot of less active members for the rest of the day. The member that offered to give us lunch on New Years, forgot and we ended up in a canoe without a paddle. Is that the saying? who knows...anyway.. No one was open for lunch....well actually one bar was open. We bought an agua de coco there to fight back the thirst. They only thing I had in my cupboard at home was a small package of drink mix mom sent me a little while ago and a package of jello. It turned out to be a decent lunch...better than I thought. This week was pretty good. We taught a lot of people and definitely made some new friends. I´m really loving the people here in Guarabira. They are all super nice and friendly. I´ve really fallen in love with one family here. They are relatives of the Cristiane--the bishop´s wife in Tibiri. Cristiane is definitely one of my favorite people here in Brazil and it is only logical that her family should be just as cool as her! Her sister lives here in Guarabira and we are teaching, her son, Geo´s girlfriend, Ariane. We always teach at Geo´s house and he has the funniest, craziest dog ever. It is a mini pincher named Nubi and he just goes crazy during the lessons! He climbed up all over me last night and I had to keep him at bay with a toothbrush...which is his chew toy. It was really funny holding him off with the toothbruch with one hand and trying to mark a part in the Book of Mormon with the other. But i have to tell you, I miss my dog Buck! This past week we went to Mamanguape again, but this time for interviews with President H! I was great to see President and Sister H again and I definitely enjoyed the interview. At the end of the interview, I asked President H to give me a blessing. At the end of the mission I´ve just started to get really tired, emotionally, physically, etc and of course President H gave me a beautiful blessing that I will be able to finish off the mission well. He also talked about all my ancestors that are seeing my mission and are proud of my sacrifice. He also told me to always remember the faith of my parents and to remember who I represent....not only the Savior, but my beautiful family as well. Anyway it was a great blessing and we both were crying by the end. I´m convinced that the priesthood is just about one of the coolest things that exists! Well. I hope you all are doing well. Continue to do the things that are right. We were placed on this earth at this time to prepare the world for the coming of the Savior. Thank you all for your faithfulness and righteousness. I know the Lord is blessing you and loves you all dearly, as do I. Have a wonderful week!!
Dec 27, 2010
This week´s email is just going to be short because there really isnt much else to say! I´m doing great! It is super hot--as always. I´m ready to start the new year. I have a feeling that this year will be awesome! Well I really don´t have much to say! Have a great week! I love you all!!!
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