Week 38: May 7, 2018 - Finding Miracles

Dear family,

How yall doin??? you all sound like you are doing so well from your emails. Loved reading your emails today!! They were so inspired and gave me so much comfort. I always love how you all make me feel and how you all respond to my prayers. So neat!!!

We had some super awesome miracles this week!!! We were out and about working in a part of our area that we had not worked in. We found this one guy outside of his house cleaning up and offered to help him. He told us how he had been struggling lately and had been asking God for help. We told him how we were sent to help him and then we began to teach him. He loved our message and looked like he was getting a little teary. He accepted our invite to be baptized and even said that he wanted to be baptized. 
As we've taught, I've been feeling the spirit work so much stronger through me. Maybe I'm just paying more attention to it or something, but it is one of the greatest feelings ever! We left his house and kept on with our search for more people to teach. 
We were walking and these two guys dressed in bright colored sports clothes started eyeing us. I immediately thought, members. Then one of them came up to us and said, "wassup elders." Elder Gusmão and I were both a little taken back; been a while since I've heard something like that. one of the guys then said, "we're members." We laughed and then they told us they were from Colorado and Arizona. It was super cool!!! It was so much fun to talk to them too!! They were super nice and super funny!! 
We were then walking and this one lady was walking by us looking at us and smiling. I went up to her and began to start talking to her. She said how she was baptized in the church, and that she had been talking to the bishop. She was smoking in front of us. She told us how she had had problems with that and a few other things. She then apologized and tossed the cigarette on the ground. When she tossed it, she lost site of it as she was trying to find it and stomp it out. I saw it roll out on the floor and said, "ah, tá aqui, eu posso," and then I stomped it out for her. It was the coolest feeling to do that for her, hahaha. We then shared a quick message with her (I used that scripture in Mosiah that dad gave me) and will be visiting her throughout the week. We were walking and then this other older lady said, "Elderes!" and I said, "are you a member?!?!?!" because we had seen like a million members that day and she said yes. She was from another ward and asked us if we knew a person in our ward. We said yes and she asked for that person's number. We gave it to her and she told us how she had been praying to get in contact with that person and how she didn't know how it would work out, but then, she found us. It was super neat! 
Another day, we were thinking of people to visit, and I gave Elder Gusmão the Area book to look at and decide on some people to try. He picked out a few people. We called this one lady, and she said that we could pass by, but only that night. We prepared a lesson on faith. We went in and started talking to her. That day was the only day we could have talked to her. She loves in Porto up north and was only visiting that day. She got there yesterday and was leaving the next day. Crazy!!! She said how she he had doubts on being baptized and how she thought she needed to feel something before super strong to know that she should be baptized. We shared Ether 12:6 which talks about how we will only get a confirmation of our faith after the trial of our faith. It answered a few questions she had. It's kind of like the experience Ellie had with soccer when the coach asked her to play Sunday and she said no and after she felt that feeling of confirmation that it was the right decision. It was a powerful lesson for that person. Elder Gusmão said that that was the most powerful lesson he has had his entire mission. That was super neat to hear. 

Anyways, thats all the time I've got to write about the week. Super excited for mothers day!!!! Love you all tons!!! Thanks so much for the love and support!!! I feel it so strongly from you!!! You all are such a huge blessing to me and such a strength to me. I hope you all have a wonderful week!!! Until Sunday!!!!

Love,

Elder Barton