Week 17: December 11, 2017

Boa tarde Familia!!!!

Espero que tudo estejam bem com vocês!!!

This week was amazing!!! Seriously!!!! This week, we got to have an awesome christmas party with our ward. Everyone is super into bringing tons of food!!! We were asked to bring some stuff too and the people here really wanted me to make pancakes. They say its a really cool american thing that they love! We were at the store getting some stuff to make it, but the store didnt have syrup. Syrup!!! Are you kidding me!!!! Europe. So, I got stuff to make crepes instead. I made a ton of crepes for the party and we got some delicious toppings to go along with it. The party was fantastic! I felt tons of energy that day, which was a blessing, and went around talking to and helping out tons of people!!! The Portuguese is coming along really well!!! It is super neat to see God´s hand in my life and the lives of others. Irmã Daise made me 2 gluten free cakes this time!!!! So nice of her!!!! They were super good!!! And other people like them too, so you know its good when gluten free partakers like stuff without gluten! hahaha! I got to lead the music and take part in a few activities. The primary did a little singing re-enactment of Christ´s birth. When you are serving a mission, the spirit is super prevalent. I felt the spirit super strong during that part of the party. We also had tons of less active members and some investigators come!!!!! Super awesome!!!! There was the family of Conceição there and also an investigator who had been with the missionaries for 2 years. She had disappeared for a little while, but we met with her a couple times the weeks before and got her to come to the party! I got to talk with her a bunch and find out a little bit more about her story with the missionaries and understand more about her and her stance on baptism. Elder Barrios was super proud of me for figuring that out and we are both super excited to teach her again! We got to meet some new people in Conceição´s family too and we met with them later in the week and taught them which was super neat. We got to take home tons of food from the party. and the people must have really liked the crepes because they were all gone!!!!

At church this week, we had some of our investigators attend, including the one that had been taught for 2 years! We had also some less actives there which was super neat! Elder Barrios and I also got to teach gospel principles class. That day, the stake councilor was there just visiting. He was there for sacrament and for most of our gospel principles class. At the end of the class, he waved me down and had me pull my companion with us into a private room. He looked at both of us for a moment or two. I thought we had done something wrong and that he was going to rip our heads off. Then he told us that we were doing fantastic work and how impressed he was with us! He said how he was just observing how things were going in each ward and how we were just doing such a great job! He asked us how much time we had been out. He was super surprised when I said 5 weeks in Portugal! It was Awesome! He told us he would talk to our president to try and get us to stay in Linda-A-Velha together for another transfer! When Elder Barrios and I got out of the room and the stake councilor left, we started dancing and celebrating and highfiving and all sorts of stuff!!! It was awesome! We sort of stunned a sister when she saw us doing that, but then she laughed. I know for a fact though that I do not deserve that complement. It is all Elder Barrios, I am just following along. He is such a great missionary and such a great trainer! He knows how to be the best missionary! We both really want to stay here for another transfer together and keeping teaching some investigators that we already have. But, we shall see. You never know what the Lord has in mind, and He always knows better.

Also, yesterday, we were out on the street and we knocked on the door of one of our investigators. She was not there, but her neighbor, just a few doors down, was and called out to us telling us that the person we are trying to visit is in the door nearby. We figured we would just come back because we were actually there earlier than we said we were going to be there, but she was super persistent. We ended up asking her about her beliefs in the church. We got to talking for a little bit and found out she had talked with the missionaries before and had seen our church. We got to introduce her the Book of Mormon and bear testimony and end with a prayer. It was super neat!!! Elder Barrios and I were firing back and forth and both answering a bunch of her questions! I remember at the beginning, she asked if I understood Portuguese because of how I look and probably how I talk, but my companion said I understood perfect Portuguese! It was super cool! There are times where I can speak and understand super well with people, but other times where it is a challenge. The Lord can give and He can take. I think I truly have the gift of tongues when I need it and when other people need it. It is super neat! Neat neat neat!!!!

Love you all sooooooooooooooooo much!!! I hope you all are doing super well!!!! The fires sounds crazy!!!!! Seriously!!!! Ive been praying a lot for you guys!!!! Not having school sounds like fun though!!! hahaha!!!! Im glad things are working out too with work and the house! Don't feel bad about sending pics of the decorated house!!!! I promise I wont get too sad!!! hahaha! Also, mom, I think you are totally right. Things tend to get really hard when things are about to be perfectly right. There is always bad around good. There must needs be an opposition in all things.

Love you all soooooo much!!!!

Elder Barton