Week 2: Letter & Pics

Hey hey hey!!!!

Como estao?!?!?!

Wow, already 2 weeks!!! so crazy!!! 

I was thinking about writing you guys all day!!!

Ok, lets see, so after I emailed you guys last P-day, we got back to our classroom and started studying and getting our lesson ready for Mateus, our "investigator" at the MTC. We planned to teach him about the plan of salvation. We went to teach him and the lesson went pretty well, but at the end he seemed iffy. We decided to bear our testimonies to him, I did it without any notes, just straight from the heart in the best portuguese I could. It was awesome, he seemed super happy and the spirit was much stronger. At the end, not part of the lesson plan, I told him to read d and c section 76, all of it! Elder White told me about it the first day we came here, and I read it soon after that; I thought it was perfect for Mateus. He asked me on the spot what d and c was so I had to tell him what it was in portuguese; I said stuff I dont think I would have said without the help of the spirit, crazy!! We decided after that we would just make our next lesson a question and answer sort of thing for Mateus; we learned that a missionary discussion was called a missionary discussion for a reason! We were so afraid of him asking us questions and us not being able to respond, but we had faith. Later that night, some 3 week missionaries came into our classroom and tried to teach us the missionary purpose in portuguese. We sort of got it there, but now I can say it without looking at any paper! It actually means so much more to me in portuguese than it does in english, some things translate a little different form portuguese to english, but I like it. We actually went back to the room and I foud my favorite song in my little portuguese  hymn book, "come come ye saints." A lot of the songs in portuguese  translate different in english and the portuguese one sounds so cool! actually it was perfect because the next morning, when we were in our classroom, the teacher, sister Schill, asked me what hymn I wanted to sing; I think you know which hymn I picked, Miracles Upon MIRACLES!!!! Also, it was Carter's Birthday!!!! So crazy!!! I made sure to write him a little letter and let him know how much I love him!!! It was the best idea I could come up with. I was so happy to read the email seeing that he read it and gave me an air hug afterwards. Just want you to know Carter, I gave you an air hug back!!! I was really really anxious the whole time I was waiting for it to get there and see if you got it. That day, I also got the package you guys sent me, thank you sooooo much!!!!! that was so nice of you guys!!! More highchew, reeses, bars(they were delicious), Utah mint truffles(of course), and a big bag of skinny pop popcorn. I'm guessing the bars and skinny pop were mom's idea, haha!!!! The skinny pop was actually delicious!!!! My companions and I were feasting on it right before we got ready for bed, haha!!! Getting that package was like christmas morning!!!! Oh, and I guess Drew got the same Jeep as me... well done my friend, well done. I actually laughed and it made me feel better having a car without air conditioning or a clean inside or a reliable radiator, or the wrong type of tire on the back or terrible mileage or terrible ignition or terrible brakes or a few times where the transmission didnt work. anyway, good choice bud. 

I also got a letter from Grandma Zinn, she sent me a couple cards, they looked so decorated and colorful! I remember I took out the card and smelt it to see if it smelt like grandma's house! haha, kind of weird but, ya. I also got a letter from Beau partially in portuguese! I actually understood it which was pretty cool! He basically told me that one of the pictures I took of me on the clothing iron trying to look like I was running up the wall was all wrong, haha! It was really super neat!!! I love all of the support I'm getting!!! Later that day, we went to a devotional and sang in the choir; it was super neat!! We also got to hear form Elder Clayton of the 70. It was basically about being bold with the gospel. My companions and I talked about it later that night in our residency. I really feel like we are bonding closer and closer each day! Oh, and also, earlier that day, I did an interview with Sister Schill, my teacher; she just wanted to get to know us. She asked me if I wanted her to talk to me in portuguese or english. I paused for a moment and said, "well if you speak to me in portuguese, I'll learn how to speak portuguese better; but, if you speak to me in english, I'll understand you better." She laughed and said, "Ok, portuglish." I bore her my testimony on why I came out here. As I started telling her, I felt the spirit so strong. I may have gotten a little teary eyed. She is a great teacher, she is always good at bringing the spirit. 

The next morning, we woke up extra early to do a service project. It was really good for learning how you should focus your efforts on service, but not so great for actual service. I was put with another elder, Elder Pehrson (our district leader), and we swept and already cleaned staircase. Ya, it was great. We later taught Mateus with no lesson plan, just a few studied up doctrines and vocabulary. It was probably the best lesson as of that moment. He threw us some questions about d and c 76 and some about the Book of Mormon that he was reading. We were able to answer all of them. I can confidently say, that I did not say anything. The spirit was so strong! I could tell Mateus got a little excited when we said, "hoje e um dia de perguntas." It was great though!! Afterwards, I set a goal to memorize a bunch of vocabulary, later on I was able to walk around a table nearby where my companions where studying and just practicing saying the vocab out loud. We also had a good workout that day. I remember I was running and there was this other elder that passed me on the track. He ran off all proud and all that, so, I decided I would run around and try to pass him by and just see what would happen. We would go back and forth, it was pretty funny actually. At one point, I was on my last few laps, he was just ahead of me, I decided I was going all out on the last few laps. I ran so hard, I was out of breath, I was just behind him, I got closer and closer to him. I was hearing the Chariots of Fire song in the background. I was getting closer and closer to the finish. Then, right on the last turnaround, I passed him. I sprinted to the finish line feeling so good about myself. Then, he kept running. I walked a few laps, and he just kept running. Ya, suddenly, I wasnt so cool anymore. Later that night, I talked to an elder named Elder Ellingson; he's in my district. Apparently, he is the oldest too and he has two younger sisters and on younger brother in the same order of age as our family! crazy!!! Elder Ellingson is the type of friend where he complements you anytime he can, and if, you complement him, he complements you right back! it's awesome!!!

Next day was great! Little did I know it would be a loaded day! I went to the special diet room for my gluten free stuff. Little did I know that it would be a blessing in disguise! There is no line where in the normal areas you have to wait for ever for a line, the food is actually better and fresher than the other food, and there are so many gluten free treats!!! I think I might actually get fat at the MTC!!!! We also taught Mateus for, little did we know, the last time today. We were going to invite him to be baptized. My companions did their parts and then it got to mine. I explained about baptism the best I could. I even referenced d and c 76 at one point. It then came to the moment. I knew he wasnt a real investigator, but I got really nervous for some reason. My voice even quivered. I looked him in the eye and said "Mateus, tu seguiras o exemplo de Jesus Cristo, sendo batizado por algem que possua a autoridade do sacerdocio de Deus?" He paused for a moment, looked back up at us, and said, "Sim." I got so overjoyed; I kept saying "Outimo, outimo!" Then came a strong spirit. I could barely get the words out of my mouth, but I bore my testimony to him about baptism. We ended and asked when we he could be baptized and when we could come back, and he told us he was going out of town to california. I got to talk to him a little about california which was cool, but he told us we could come back the following week. Little did we know, he was actually going to Cali and he was actually going to be another one of our teachers the following week. We are actually going to have a lesson form him tonight! I remember Elder White afterward telling me that when I bore my testimony, the spirit was so strong. You have no idea how good that made me feel, but I am merely an instrument. That day, I learned just a taste of the joy you can feel by bringing one soul back to their Heavenly Father. It was also the last tour day at the MTC, and our district got picked to be the hosts. I tried to say hi to as many people as I could! I got to see Doug from our ward and Brother Birchall, Benjiman's Uncle! It was so neat!!! It made that tour so much fun!!! I also got to talk to a guy that went to Lisbon Portugal for his mission too; he told me all about it and how much he loved it! So blessed I got to be a part of that tour on the last day on the last shift from 6-9 pm. Afterwards, our district took a bunch of pictures. 

The next day, we got to see a video from Mateus of him bearing his testimony, it was so neat! I actually understood him when he was speaking too! Elder Mortensen also got really sick! he was so drowsy the whole day! It was pretty funny! We also went up to study later that night for our next investigator, Alda. We were studying and one of the sisters in our zone, Sister Millar, a sister from Australia, gave us some great advice on what we could say in our lesson. We were also going to teach in priesthood about the creation which she helped us out a ton on. I made sure afterwards to tell her I thought she was going to be a great missionary and how nice of her it was to help us. The scripture she gave us were actually a huge help! I'm going to skip to Sunday.

We went in to sacrament meeting, had everything prepared and made sure the people we assigned were there. It was a great meeting. Later in preisthood, we also had a great lesson. I was really praying about helping the other missionaries feel the spirit. It actually went very well! I also taught some stuff I had never planned which was really neat! The MTC is a special place! We later walked to the temple with a lot of our zone. It was really neat and pretty. I love the temple. We also sang in choir and got to see a devotional given by brother Critteden. It was great, I've been trying to pay close attention to recognizing the spirit, especially after dad told me to do that. We also watched a talk given by Elder Holland titled "Open Your Mouths." He was so powerful in his message! One thing I took away that I made a goal to have happen was that I want to be able to say with full confidence that I did everything I could possibly do on my mission, no regrets and that I put my best efforts into doing HIS work.

And now here we are today. I went to the temple this morning and am really loving the temple the more I go! It's a shame there is no temple right now in Portugal. 

I'm loving it here and am truly learning to change my nature for good! I'm learning to be selfless and more Christlike. Obviously, I have a lot of work to do, but I am definitely feeling confident in my choice to serve the Lord.

I love you guys, and I miss you tons!

Love,

Elder Barton

Elder Mortensen and I saying goodbye to Elder Judd as he heads off to Brazil. He was one of the elders that taught us the purpose in portuguese. He has actually been out for 6 weeks.

Most of our district and some from another district after the tour

Starting from left: Elder Mortensen, Elder Robinson, Elder Handsome, and Elder Ellingson

Some of our district after the tour doing some super model shoots

​The view from where champions sleep. Best lookin family ever.