Week 17

Bom dia!! 

this week was really cool! we had a broadcast for all of the missionaries in the world that we watched and it was amazing!! all of the missionaries watched it together online on wednesday. this hasnt happened in over 10 years! it was so amazing to hear the words of the Lords servants. it felt like the broadcast was just for me, it answered all of my prayers about my investigators! the main idea of it was to help us understand how we can really help our converts to  become truly converted in the gospel so they will stay strong their whole life! i am so inspired and ready to improve as a missionary and help my investigators more! i am so thankful that we have a prophet today on the earth and that he really talks with God to know what we need. 

my favorite part about the broadcast was about the Spirit. we really need the Spirit to help us teach people! we are given so many promises that if we follow the Spirit, He will show us where to go, what to do, and what to say. He will help us communicate to our investigators (especially with the language) and He will help our investigators understand. We dont need to know exactly what our investigator´s needs are, if we follow the Spirit, we will give our investigators exactly what they need. what a cool blessing! 

in one week sister lee is going to leave me! im so sad! she is such an amazing companion and we work together so well. in a week ill find out if im going to stay here in coité, or if im gonna serve somewhere else. im really hoping that i get to stay here. I LOVE coité! the people here are so amazing. and i cant imagine a better ward! they help us so much and introduce us to so many of their friends! the thought of leaving makes me so sad. but i am putting my trust in the Lord. i know that He has a plan for me and every experience is for my good. I am excited to learn more and have new experiences! 

Com amor, 

Sister Jones

1- it has been raining a lot and coité looks so beautiful!

2&3- sister lee´s mom sent her a halloween wig and the elders had a lot of fun with it during our district meeting hahaha

Week 16

Olá!!!

This week was crazy busy!!! we are teaching SO many people. we did a division with two people in our ward two different days so we could teach everyone. sister Lee went with irmã nivalda and i went with tais. i rememeber reading the manual 6 months ago and reading about how we are allowed to do divisions with people in our ward if we dont have enough time to teach everyone and thinking "in what world do missionaries have so many investigators that there isnt time to teach them all?!" in brazil. in happens in brazil. we have just been running all over all week. and i dont think its going to slow down anytime soon haha. but it is so good to be sharing the gospel with so many people! it is so exhausting but i wouldnt have it any other way! 

on monday we had family home evening with our investigator robert at a members home. robert is only ten years old but he is super smart and  we watched the restauration and he told us that he admires Joseph smith´s "faith and courage." and before we left he came up to me and asked me to mark another part for him to read in the book of Mormon! he loves to read it. and yesterday bishop told us that robert came up to him during church and asked if he can serve a mission one day!!!! i cant even believe it i wanted to cry! i am so excited for his baptism!!! (and his mom gave him permission to be baptized!!!!!!)

on tuesday we taught this lady named ana. we met her last week because she was sitting on her porch with her neighbors and she asked us which church we are from. we talked to all of them for a little and they all gave us permission to come back and teach them one day. monday night we planned to teach whichever one of these neighbors that is home. as we walked up to their houses, ana was sitting on the steps in front of her house and invited us in. we taught her about the gospel of Jesus Christ. when i was explaining about the Holy Ghost, she shared a really cool experience with us: a little before we arrived, she was sitting in her house doing something, and something told her that we were on our way to her house (the Holy Ghost!!) and so she sat on the stairs just waiting for us! she has so much faith! and during our lesson she recognized that it was the Holy Ghost that told her we were coming! how amazing is that?!

on friday we did our second division and tais and i taught people in a neighborhood called "terra nova." we went to the house of carol and bea (who were baptized last month) to see how they are doing and to try and teach their older sister, cintia. when we got there carol and bea werent there, but cintia let us in and we taught her the restoration, and explained about the book of mormon. we invited her to read a part of it and pray, asking if it is true. she accepted and then she said that during our lesson she felt a strange feeling in her heart. she explained a little bit more that it was a warm feeling she had never felt before, and she didnt know what it was. i explained to her that it is the Holy Ghost touching her heart because these things are true and of God. she said that she wants to have that same feeling more and i explained to her how she can. the spirit was so strong! and it was amazing how much God helped me because i had never really explained in this way before, but the words just seemed to flow out of my mouth. the gift of tongues is real and i can feel God´s help evey single day with this language. i cant even believe how much i am already able to communicate with these people!

yesterday i gave a talk in church!! i was shocked when bishop invited me to speak because im still so new!! but i prayed and studied so much this week because i wanted people to be able to understand. during my talk i could tell that the Holy Ghost was not only helping me communicate, but helping all of the people in the chapel to understand. i am so thankful that God answered my prayers. i spoke on missionary work. as i prepared my talk it reminded me why i am here and i was so thankful! i am here to help my brothers and sisters return to live with our Heavenly Father. this gospel has blessed my life and my family more than i can even describe. i want to share this gospel so others can experience these sweet blessings. nothing brings me more joy than helping people become closer to our Father in Heaven. I am SO thankful for this opportunity to serve these amazing people in brazil. i love all of these people so much! it is so cool to feel the real love of Christ for others. 

com amor, 

Sister Jones

Pictures!!

1- the grafiti here is either "Jesus te ama" or a really high frog/turtle haha

2- just tranquilo little coat 

3- sister lee and i found a pretty tree

4- sister lee had an idea for a picture and she said "put your arms up" if you look closely you can see a man who put his arms up with me and said "opa!" i was cracking up hahaha

5- sister seixas and sister deschamps made us lunch today :)

Week 15

This week it rained and rained and rained. it was so weird!! but it felt like home. Coité hardly ever gets rain and it was hilarious because this city clearly was not built for rain. the streets were seriously rivers after 10 minutes of rain! theres a picture of a girl sprinting in the rain below. the people here are so afraid of it! no one is in the streets and it is difficult to find people to teach but its also been an adventure. sister lee and i got stuck in the rain one day and ended up practically swimming home hahah. 

This week we have worked really hard to prepare the people who are going to be baptized this month, Jefferson, Arthur and Robert. Robert is 10 years old and is just incredible! He is neighbors with a 16 year old, Bruno in our ward, and Bruno has brought him to church a few times. Robert asked Bruno if he could be baptized! and by the time we had our first lesson, he had already talked to his grandma about being baptized in our church (he lives with his grandma)! he said that she is okay with it, but we are praying that she will actully allow it. he has such a sweet spirit and it so smart! he knows all of the stories about Jesus really well already. 

we have been visiting arthur almost every day. he is doing well with the word of wisdom and is strengthening his testimony of Joseph Smith right now. he came with us to church yesterday for the first time and he loved it!! it was amazing the second we walked in everyone came up to him and welcomed him and introduced themselves. our ward is so amazing and supportive of our work! it was really great to talk to him after church, he told us all about all the other people he met and how much he loved it. i could tell he felt the spirit. it is so great to see all of my investigators in church i feel like a proud mom hahah. 

arthur is super funny. he loves to speak english, and half of the time when he talks to us he translates for himself in english to try and help me understand better, which is really thoughtful, but it usuall just makes me more confused because i cant always tell which language he is speaking hahah. he always tells us "you are two flowers in God´s garden" haha i have no idea where he learned that.

we taught jefferson about the law of chastity this week and he was surprisingly open with us about it and told us that he thought it would be really hard, but we bore our testimonies and promised blessings and he committed to live it. i think it was the first time that he really realized how serious baptism is. it is a really big decision, and God expects a lot from us, but inturn He gives us so many blessings! i know that jefferson is going to be a really strong member of the church and im so excited for his baptism!

my faith is growing so much. this week i was praying a lot that our recent converts (especially bea and carol), our investigators and also our less actives would come to church on sunday. last sunday was a little bit dissapointing. but i prayed so hard and sunday was a miracle! all of our recently baptized members were there and two less actives we have been working with and five of our investigators were all there! i am so thankful  for God´s help in this work. i know that if we ask Him for blessings He will always help us. just like any father wants to help his children, our Heavenly Father is especially eager to bless us. i abolutely love it here! and i love this work! there is nothing better than spreading joy. 

have a happy week!

Com amor, 

Sister Jones

1. sister lee almost stepped ontop of this tarantula

2. and he almost ate me after we took this picture

3. sister lee and i on new years

4. my bff manuela!! i love her!

5. coité's reaction to rain haha

Week 14

Feliz ano novo! 

since today is our p day we went to eat hamburgers for lunch because sister lee has been craving one all week. we got to the resteraunt and there were two options for hamburgers "x-burger" and "americano hamburger" we asked for the americano hamburger thinking it would be the most normal, and it was just a ham sandwhich!!! hahaahah im still cracking up about it. 

on new years eve we went to a less active members home. we have been working with this famiy for a few weeks, and the youngest daughter, ana clara wants to be baptized! she is nine and super sweet. i really love this family. they want to come back to church but they need help, especially because the dad has a really bad drinking problem. when we got there, he was already pretty drunk and he kept calling us "mister jones/lee" instead of "sister" (which was pretty hilarious) but he kept drinking still, so we had to leave. it was really sad because we could just tell how much he is hurting his family.. i am so thankful for the blessings my family has received from living the gospel! i am determined to help this family receive the same blessings. 

it seems like almost everyone here is family! the sisters that we baptized a few weeks ago have family that was less active in the church. since their baptisms, their uncle and cousin have been coming back to church and it is so amazing to see them all sitting together in the chapel, so happy! 

last night we taught arthur, and i still cant believe how amazing he is! he is seriously a dream investigator. we were explaining to him the word of wisdom (about how we shouldnt drink alcohol, or coffee, or smoke, etc.) it was so funny when i said this he goes "oops!..." and points to a bottle of beer sitting on the counter and then he just kinda stared at us with big eyes. then he said "i drink sometimes but i will stop because right now Jesus is telling me that i need to through you both." his faith is so amazing!! he is progressing so much! and we can already see how much the gospel is blessing his life. he is going to be baptized on the 23rd of this month! 

this week sister lee and i worked so hard i am so exhausted! but it is the best feeling ever! we are teaching so many people! and seven investigators committed to baptism this week it was a miracle! i am really noticing that the harder we work, and the more obedient we are, the more the Lord blesses us. i am SO thankful for His help. He really is preparing the people here to accept His gospel! there is nowhere else i would rather be than here in coité doing the Lord´s work. 

com amor, 

sister Jones

Week 13- And pictures!

Christmas was the most amazing day every!!! 

i am especially grateful for two gifts this year:

1- i got to skype my family! i am so thankful for the time i had to talk to them! it really reminded me of why i am here, because i know that my family can be together forever! i want to help other families do the same! this time that i have away from my family for a year and a half is something so small that i can give to help other families enjoy these same blessings. being here is really helping me understand the importance, and blessing of family. 

one of the first things we teach all of our investigators is that God is our Heavenly Father, He loves us very much, and because He loves us, He gave us our families to make us happy. Also, He has created a plan for us so that we can be with our families forever. I know that this is true! and i know that God truly gave us our families to make us happy. I am so incredibly grateful for my family and God´s plan. and i am so thankful to gain a better understanding of the importance of family while i am here. 

2- vanilza was baptized on christmas day! i am so thankful for her willingness to follow the Lords will. she is such an amazing example! vanilza´s whole family was there to support her (none of them are members of the church). I know the Holy Ghost touched their hearts, especially vanilza´s mom. she cried and said how great it was to see her daughter following the Lord´s will. 

I am so thankful for this Gospel and the joy that it brings in my life. it is so amazing to share this joy with others and see the difference it makes in their lives. seeing vanilza feel this joy on Christmas was the most amazing thing. This Christmas was the most meaningful Christmas i have ever had. i am SO happy that i am here in coité serving these people. 

com muito amor, 

Sister Jones

1-vanilza´s baptism on christmas day! (i promise she was a lot happier than she looks in the picture hahah)

2-sister lee´s 1 year anniversary 

3- carol and beatriz´s baptism! 

4-sister madarani and i at the christmas transfer meeting

5-sister lee and i at the christmas transfer meeting

Week 12

Feliz Natal família e amigos!!! 

It is so strange to spend Christmas away from home, but i have never felt closer to my Savior. also i am really understanding the true meaning of Christmas. i am so thankful for the opportunity to have a humble Christmas this yea, just like the humble birth of our savior. the people here are really great examples of of the true Christmas spirit. earlier this week our ward went christmas caroling. we visited the hospital, and different, members of the ward who are having difficulties, and we even visited some of our investigators! ana paula (our investigator), cried as we sang. the last home we sang at was the home of irmão toni. he has three people living in his house who are physically disabled. his daughter, his mom, and another man (who i honestly dont understand how they are related) but his name is job. job cant move the left half of his body. but he is so firm in the gospel! we asked him to choose a hymn for us to sing and he chose "count your many blessings" i just cried! he is barely able to open his eyes, and talk but he is so thankful for our Savior and the blessings he has. He is such an amazing example of gratitude. 

last tuesday the whole mission went to the mission home in salvador for a special Conferencia de Natal! it was so cool to see everyone and all be together to celebrate the season of christmas! the spirit was so powerful when we all sang songs together about the birth of Christ. 

After the conference we spent the night halfway between salvador and coité and then we ended up waiting at the bus station for eight hours to go home hahah when we finally got back to coité i shouted "COITÉ TE AMO!" the other sisters were cracking up but i was serious just thrilled to be home hahah.

on saturday carol and beatriz were baptized! it was so special and the spirit was so strong. also it rained!! it was a miracle! it hasnt rained the whole time ive been here until saturday. They asked me to give a talk about the Holy Ghost. I was so nervous because i can barely speak portuguese and i didnt think anyone would be able to understand. But i felt the spirit helping me to communicate, and helping all the people there to understand. It was so amazing to see the joy in their faces after all their sins were washed away. I am so thankful for the Atonement and the joy it brings in our lives. helping my brothers and sisters find this joy is the most rewarding thing i have ever done! now their sister, Cintia, wants to learn more  about the gospel. i think she noticed the light in her sisters and wants to feel this joy aswell. We are really excited to teach her! 

Today, our investigator Vanilza is going to be baptized! i am so proud of her decision to follow Christ! she said that she wanted to give this gift to her Savior on Christmas. i hope we can all give this same gift, of choosing to follow our Savior and draw nearer to Him this christmas. It has been so amazign to watch vanilza progress. When we first started teaching her, she always looked nervous anxious. but now, ever since she decided to be baptized, she is ALWAYS smiling!!! it is so amazing to see the change that the light of Christ brings! I know that this gospel is true and is for everyone. God wants us to be happy, and following our Savior is the way to find that happiness. I am so excited for her baptism this afternoon. This will surely be a Christmas that i will never forget. 

remember the spirit of Christmas all year long!

Com amor, 

Sister Jones