WEEK 27 - JARAGUA DO SUL - Episode #19 - Carnival: tudo mundo festejando

Welp right now in the good ´ol Brasil it´s what they call Carnival which basically means that everyone goes to the beach (great and spacious building meaning worldly) and has a good time being iniquitous. Ha-ha but Jaraguá isn´t super festive so nothing is going on here, but everyone went to the beach, so it´s been a ghost town the last few days.

This week wasn´t the best yet but they all can´t be incredible. We had a bunch of appointments fall through but at the same time there is always some good parts.

One of our investigators, Felipe is a 19 year old whose lives with his girlfriend (who is a member) and she is prego. He works his tail off to be able to pay for their apartment and food. I have seriously grown to love this man so much. When we first started teaching him, he was drinking and smoking a lot. We taught him so much about Christ and His atonement. We want so badly for him to have a better life and to be able to have a family in the gospel. Last week we met him and he told us how he had stopped drinking and smoking and how they are trying to get legally married so he can get baptized. We were seriously so hyped. Straight into a group hug ha-ha. This week when we visited him he didn´t really seem himself. He told us he had gone back to smoking and he just isn´t really sure about everything. The other elders living with us saw they saw him drunk last night. Writing this brings tears to my eyes. I have been praying so much to develop charity, the pure love of Christ and this is the most I have felt it thus far. I want so so badly for him to obtain the joy that comes with the gospel. I really just want to choose for him but I know he has his freedom to choose. Through this experience I have been able to realize how much my love has grown for these people. I have also gotten to feel a sliver of what Heavenly Father feels when we disobey his commandments. I know that He literally cries when we cry and rejoices in our success. 

A way cool experience: One day we were walking to an appointment and this guy was wearing a chargers jersey so we stopped to talk with him. He is from Haiti and talks a little Portuguese and a little English but he mainly speaks French and creole. We were trying to talk to him but not much was really getting through. So Elder Castagneto starts to speak French with him. Ha ha ha ha I was just standing there like what the heck is going on. This manz really just pulled some French out of nowhere to contact this guy. #savage. Eventually he said that he wanted to go to church with us so we told him we would pick him up at 8:30 at a bus stop nearby. Sunday morning we go by and he wasn´t there. We were pretty bummed. But then about 30 minutes into church he walks in with his sister and her son! They walked so far to get to church! He said he was waiting for us but we never saw him. We were so happy.

This week was pretty rainy which was super nice. One day we walked about an hour and a half in the rain without an umbrella and it was a great time. But the down side is that with walking in rain comes chafing... my boys know all about that life from boogie ooging til we can´t boogie no more.

Also living with 2 Brazilians from the northeast is one heck of an experience. They are so funny. The way they mess around reminds me of the squad.

I love you all!!!

Sempre fica firme, forte, e feliz!

Elder Scheer

WEEK #25 - JARAGUA DO SUL - Episode #18 - BOILINGGGGGGGG!!!!

Yoooooo!!!! This week was super great. I think it was the hottest week of my life. If you have ever jumped into a pot when it´s boiling I think that´s what it feels like haha. I have never had such a huge desire to be completely immersed in water hahaha.

Anyway this first week with 4 missionaries in Jaragua was way cool. The other two missionaries are really cool guys and make things a little more fun in our apartment. Brasilians from the northeast are always super funny. They are already having success and have a lady on date to be baptized for March 4th. So awesome!

We pretty much spent this week finishing teaching Lenon and Marcos before their baptisms saturday. It was such an amazing experience to teach them and see them change. Their desire to follow Christ grew so quickly.

So Saturday was their baptisms and everything went very well. It was high key spiritual and I about shed a tear watching my brothers enter the waters of baptism. On Sunday I had the opportunity to confirm Lenon. I was way nervous to confirm someone in Portuguese but it went really well and it was an incredible experience.

This week should be pretty hype trying to get the rest of our investigators progressing!

I love you all! Have an incredible week!!

Sempre fica firme, forte e feliz!

Elder Scheer

WEEK #24 - JARAGUA DO SUL - Episode #17 - Rely on the Lord in All Things

I hope everyone had a great week!! I know I did besides getting Zika last P-day. Nah, it was a classic air borne virus and I´m all good now. But thsi past Saturday was 5 years since I was baptized! Crazy how time flies! I still remember that moment like it was yesterday. Easily the best decision of my life. Also big shout out to my boy Elder Hoogland who had his birthday Saturday as well!

So best for first as they say... 

Two Sundays ago Elder C and I were sitting at a bus stop after doing some visits. This lady named Leoci walked over, sat down, and just started talking to us. Eventually we got to the subject of how we are missionaries and stuff and she said how her family would love to have us over. So we took down her address and number and told her we would pass by the following Sunday. The following Sunday we try to call but the number doesn´t exist so we just go to her house but she wasn´t home. We were pretty bummed but we just went about our day with the other things we had planned. We were heading back to that same bus stop that night when Elder C said that we should pray that we can find Leoci again. So we prayed and continued walking. When we got to the bus stop we just sat down and nothing happened. After a few minutes of just sitting in silence looking around we saw a lady in the distance just standing on the sidewalk. We just kind of thought that she was another random lady but we decided to go talk to her. It was Leoci!!!!! It turned out that we had written down her phone number wrong! So we told her that we would call to mark for the next Sunday. Yesterday we were able to call her and pass by her house. When we got there she started walking to the houses next to her calling out everyone. We ended up in her mom´s house with 12 people (all family) that were excited to meet us and hear our message. Elder C and I just looked at each other like 'holy cow this is incredible!' haha. We pretty much just got to know them and explained to all of them what we do as missionaries and they are super interested and wanting to receive the lessons! We are seriously so hyped.

This story really helped my testimony grow about how we need to rely on the Lord in all things. Especially as missionaries....we are doing His work and we can´t expect to be able to do it on our own. I am learning to truly recognize the Lord´s hand in every aspect of life.

This week on Friday we also had interviews with President. President is so incredible. I love every chance that I get to talk to him.

Lastly, we have two more investigators that should be baptized this month! We moved Marcos to the 18th since he was hit by a car and is still recovering a little and a 19 year old stud named Lenon will be baptized on the 25th.

I love this work so much!! Of course there are times when I wish I was up at Park City shredding it up right now, but there is really no place I would rather be. Time is flying by so fast it almost make me sad to think of how quickly my time as a missionary will be up.

Thank you all so much for the support and prayers. I love you all and hope you have an incredible week!!

Sempre fica firme, forte e feliz!

Elder Scheer