Lavras

Me on the bus with the windows open

Have you been to any wedding or wedding receptions while there?  If so, what are they like?  Yes actually I married a few people here. they are like american receptions. some salgados and cake. nothing super different. 

What was the best discussion you had this week with an investigator?  With a investigator we found in Lavras. She was raped when she was 5 by her older brother and she remembers every little detail. She said she cant get it out of her head and she cant sleep at night and she doesnt know why she still remembers even now, 30 years after. I told her about how baptism gives us a new life and a new beginning. It was special.

One of the things they taught at a regional training this week is that we need to give the young men opportunities to find they can do hard things. What is something you did as a YM that helped you understand you can do hard things? haha probably scouting because every other hard thing I think I kinda found my way out. I dunno. Nothing really compares to a mission because you dedicate 24 hours of the day to one thing. its really nice knowing there is no way to back out and so you should just man up and take it head on. Scouting would be like that kinda. in a way less serious way

This is the church in Lavras

Soooo yeeah this week was pretty packed. We did splits in Lavras and ill have to send you a picture of the church. You wont believe thats the church. haha But it was good. other than the 3 hour bus ride -___- then 3 hours again to get back -___- but yeah then we worked out butts off to try and get our goals and we were SO CLOSE!!!! WE were just missing 2 more people at church... it was super sad.

Saturday we got up at 6:30 and then got dressed for a service project that started at 7:30. It was super fun. Pedreiro stuff. We made cement by hand on the street (which is kinda hard but ive had a lot of practice so I can turn it pretty well if I do say so myself) and then replaced the floor in someones house that was kinda falling apart. Then we had to run home at 12:30 and shower super fast to go to lunch at 1 and then just grindin on the road all day long. it was tought but good. we found a lot of good people who need our help and who need the Gospel. 

Some guy tried to bible bash with us this week, nothing new, but kinda the way we handled it. So he was shouting and stood up and was screaming and stuff and I just decided to open the book of Mormon and read a part to him. 2 Nefi 33 10 11 14 and 15 and it was weird, when I was reading those verses (which you can find on the internet just google it) they were compleatly silent. They didnt say a word. I said ''you can fight all you want you can tell me about how you cant add anything to the bible or about angels can´t announce a new gospel but you can't say anything untill you read this book. so here is your chance, probably last chance too, repent, and read this book. Test for yourself if this book is true and untill you do that you will never know what God has in store for you and your family." they just kinda exchanged glances and said they would read it and then teach US about it. I said "I hope so. Ill mark my favorite chapter 2Nefi 21" ;) haha so yeah it was a whole different ball park reading the book of mormon to someone who doesnt believe in it. The spirit burns.

But yeah im in Juiz de Fora.... again. but this time with Elder Howard!! We renewed our visas here so we´re going home at 5 so we get to varginha at 12h midnight... like always. oh my gosh I cant wait to not have to take a bus everywhere. or go to some place just to pass the time and not work. haha I love you guys!! ill send you some pics!! 

Love, 

Elder Hamm

Maritacas!!!!

Do most the churches have baptismal fonts and is the water warm? So they all have fonts, some of the groups and branches have like a pvc pipe pool and stuff but they all have some way to baptise. As for warm water.... hmmm... well all the chaples that ive passed in have a water heater that like pulls in water, heats it up, and then pushes it out. and in all 5 areas only one in one area it was working.... haha and that was the presidents ward so I think he had something to do with that. other than that its cold water. unless you heat it up in a pan and put it in the water. we did that a few time for some oldies who were gettin baptised. 

Tell me about what you do on a P-day in your current city.  What is the best Pday activity you have ever done?  Pday here is pretty calm. We just hangout, buy things in center if we need to. Go get açai (I eat like a ton of açai here cause its cheap and so good). Play cards with some dudes  in the ward, play basketball. its pretty calm but the best P-day would be in Barra Mansa were we played water sports and vollyball and queimado with the ward all day and had a picknick then at night had a family night with the whole ward there. That was missionary-planned but like member-ran so it was sick.

What thing you took with you has lasted the longest and what wore out way too soon (shoes, books, whatever)? Shoes wear out wayyy too soon. My boots already have 2 holes in the bottoms... -_____- Ill show you at mothers day. but yeah and then what lasted the longest would be.... that MP3 Jackie gave me.. haha its still kickin. also all of my shirts are still white and my pants are sun stained but still in one piece!



So this week it was truly a miracle week. Our investigator who we had been working with for 7 weeks finally stopped smoking. it was a  really touching experience and really cool how  she truly hit rock bottom and cried for the first time in years. She didnt cry when her daughter died or when her husband died but I shared Ether 12:27 with her and the tears started rolling. I knew she was stronger than her addiction and she knew it too.  so after 2 months of going to church, she was finally baptized. it was a  glorious day. And I wore a sick jumpsuit I found at the church to baptize her. haha the ward loved it.

So when I was baptizing her we got in the water already laughing because the water was ice cold. Then I kept forgeting her name and she was so nervous  I just couldnt help  laughing cause  shes like my aunt shes just the best hahahah. So I say the prayer and when I go to baptize her she throws her hands out and arches her chest so im like  trying to push her under and 5 or 6 strands of hair didnt go under..... I was like laughing so hard I was like,  oh euza mais uma vez. haha  but dont arch your back this time just bend the knees and lean back. haha so it worked the second time and till today she said I tried to drown her. haha


So today im in juiz de fora. Yep. 8 hour bus ride and tomorrow we have a meeting with pres. and today im gonna visit some of my recent converts and members who i loved. that the benifit of comming back here.


OH MY GOODNESS WE HAD 2 LUNCHES where the irmãs in the ward have maritacas!!!! Haha we ate lunch and then played with the maritacas for a few minutes haha it was so sick.   I'll send pictures. It made me so freakin happy. And one of them was so friendly he liked being scratched beneath his wings and he would like coddle in your neck haha. And the other one was a little more wild. He would like bite my neck and chin and then start laughing. hahaha it didnt hurt because he was playing but it did always startle me.  



Buttt I love you guys!! miss you all tons!! Im workin so freakin hard here it's exhausting but its good. I wouldn't have it any other way.  love you guys!!

Elder Hamm

Recent convert who also has a horn

Pink church

Dad, this is what you want. 100 acai with mouse de morango
 and leite em pó

Olympic Coins so far!  

The one where she almooooooost went to conference

What do April showers bring in Brazil if not May flowers? haha uhhh we didnt really have april showers...

Do they watch conference live there, even Priesthood Session since it is late at night? Yeah the sessions start at 1 and 5 and the priesthood session starts a 9 so we cant go....

 What was your favorite talk?  President Uchtdorf. That dude is the man.

And President Monson gave a good talk. I liked that. Keep on workin hard and endure to the end like Thomas S Monson. That dude is a trooper. But yeah im workin hard. The other day president was here right and he was thanking us for our work and knows we´re trying to lead the zone to get better numbers and being an example is the best thing we can do. Everyone here isnt even getting half the numbers we´re getting and its just lack of interest. Its sad cause this is only 2 years. Im workin hard and ill work hard cause im not about to lose all of my blessings in the last 11 weeks. haha Next week ill be in Juiz de fora. haha thats a 7 hour bus ride. but what can you do? 

So this week we had some more miracles!! So we were doing contacts between the sessions of confrence and everyone we were talking to was just ignoring us... like we started flagging down people just to see if they could see us cause at one point I thought I was invisible.... So Elder B was getting wayyy more rejected than I was haha poor guy.  So I was like "oh B dont get down man. Satan is trying to get to you. He knows you'll talk to some super elite person soon and he doesn't want you to make that contact." and B's like, yeah and the next girl walks up and we stop her and she TALKS TO US! But she said she lives with like 3 pastors so we probably couldnt go over there. so we leave a card and take like 30 more steps and then think, well conference will start soon so we should probably start heading back. So we turn around and that chick is walking toward us, which means she turned around too. haha.   So when we get close i say, What are you lost? haha and shes like, no I was gonna get acai but its closed... So I was like, uhh we just walked past it, its open. She was like, oh it looked closed. So we both start walking in that direction and Im like, so have you lived here a long time? And I swear she didnt even answer the question and she was like, What's your religion about? And we give her the watered down version of the restoration based off of revelation like Christ's church was and tell her we got all of this from revelation and we can prove it in the Bible. She was like, this is just super weird. haha she was pretty straight forward but we kept talking and she started understanding and we invite her to conference and shes like, "this is all too weird" and im like, why? She said when she left home she prayed that God would talk to her. And then we stopped her. After we walked away, the spirit told her that she should talk to us again. Thats why she turned around. I said "this is way to weird... you should hear what I said to Elder B right before he talked to you!" and we almost ALMOST got her to go to conference. But instead we made her pull up conference on her phone and watch it while she ate acai. 
We're gonna go back there this week and see if we can teach her. 

We also left lunch late on sunday. we left at 12;50 and were like a good 35 minutes from the church. We were devastated. it was so sad. So as we start walking and our former investigator passes in a car and is like, Hey do you guys want a ride? I was like oh my goodness I cannot believe this. its crazy. God works so hard to take care of us and to take care of his children. He definitely is helping us out wayyy more than I ever thought. I am so grateful for his help. 

Conference was super cool. it was super good this time and for the first time I reeally was excited to hear them talk like every single one. I remember how freakin hard it was for me to sit and watch conference at home and it was just torture haha but now I really like it. It was really good. Elder Uchtdorf gave a super good talk. I loved it and so did my investigators!

Haha!  And I definitely thought of family councils when they talked about it.  I explained that family councils are the worst.  haha!!  3 hours of quoting movies and reminiscing and 20  minutes of planning.  haha Come to think of it, sounds like our weekly planning here on the mish.  

I love you guys!! Miss you all!!!

Elder Hamm

Easter

My alien

How do the celebrate Easter there?  Hmm well they have these overpriced chocolate eggs the sixe of Andre the Giants fist that they sell and you pretty much just buy one and eat it for easter but the chocolate is like the same crappy chocolate they make the chocolate bunnies in the US out of. and the good chocolate costs like 30 reais.  

Does the Easter bunny visit? No they dont really talk about the easter bunny

Do they color or hide eggs?  I dont think so... not that I heard or saw

Did they have Good Friday celebrations?  Yeah, its called "no one work or answer the door" day. haha they also dont eat meat

What about Palm Sunday? not really

What did you eat at the last meal you ate with a member family? Rice and beans of course, and some lassanga which was super delicious. haha it was awesome. 


SOO yeah this week was just a bunch of expierencies. all of them I will not tell and after here I will write them in my journal and maybe one day you can all read them all.


So we had a HUGE miracle this week with investigators at church. So we quit teaching this family on Wednesday because they have never gone to church and weren't really progressing because they weren't reading the Book of Mormon and stuff so it was sad but we just said that in this search for truth, they weren´t doing their part. So that was sad. And come Sunday we were trying to hit the standards of excellence which is 10 lessons with member, 20 other lessons, 5 dates, 4 investigators at church and 140 contats. We had it all within reach but investigators at church. We had 6 who said they would go but only one for sure. So we prayed for a miracle. We got down on our knees and prayed that we could have 4 people at church so we could get this pattern of excellence and show our zone how to work hard. So come church we only had one, (because our other one was baptised on Saturday so it didnt count even though she wasnt a member until we confirmed her that day) so we were kinda sad but happy anyways. And at the end of sacrament meeting we look behind us to see, who? THE MOM OF THAT FAMILY WITH 2 OF HER DAUGHTERS AT CHURCH!!  I was geekin out with joy I was like whhhaatttttttt?!?!?! Then Barlow's like, uh Hamm, Hamm look who's saying the closing prayer!! And I look up and see our other investigator going up to say the closing prayer for sacrament meeting I was like WHATT THE WHATTT!?!?  Hahaha she's been going to church for like almost 2 months now so the president I think thought she was less active so asked her to pray. hahaha I was dying of laughing while she was praying.  hahaha It was just the best.

Also M was baptized!! The mom of the girl who was baptized last week!! So every time she says something really awesome or bears her testimony we start doing the victory dance from "Evan Almighty".   hahaha so when we confirmed her she sat down and started DOIN THE DANCE!! you cant get much better than that. This week was one for the history books. Also the day my Savior Resurrected. haha love you guys!! miss you lots!!

Elder Hamm

It's the members

Shat makes a difference for an investigator at church?  It really is the members, the type of greeting they get there. Last week one of the counselors gave a talk on things that I have no freakin idea where he got them.  I was like WHAT?! but our investigators were like, it was so sweet the spirit was so strong there.

What do you think makes one ward better than another? The members and the activities. If they are doing activities and helping out the missionaries they make THE WORLDS difference. Seriously after knocking doors for like 4 hours and no one really wants anything, you gotta go to a super sick members house to get excited and amped up again, and if you're lucky a reference, to go keep working and bringing others to the knowledge. 

Do the trees change and drop leaves in the fall? haha I dont even think fall exists here.... its always hot and the trees I think always have leaves. Ive never seen a barren tree here except when it was being burned or dead. 

I think I have high blood pressure cause everytime someone says something stupid or doesnt understand something I get a headache... Seriously... but this week we had a baptism!! WOOOOOO!! but at the same time was the RS dinner thing so a member in the other ward called us and told us that we should probably cancel the baptism because the dinner would be in the sacrament room and so.... yeah. Thats when the headache hit. ARE YOU FREAKIN KIDDING ME!?!? I said really calmly "So you want me to cancel a life changing, life saving ordinance, so that you can have your dinner party in a WHOLE other part of the church?" and she had the audacity to say "yeah thats exactly it im so glad you understand." The headache worsened as I told her the ordinance would proceed as planned and if she had any question to first consult our Heavenly Father and then seek out the branch president. 

We knocked a door of some lady this week and she was actually the 4th consecutive person to tell me that she can't hear my message about Christ and can't visit the Church of Jesus Christ because her pastor doesn't let her. She continued to say "What's gonna happen when I go to your church and like it more and wanna go there from now on? My pastor loses a lamb soo. She doesn't like it" (pastor's a girl).  I said "Yeah if I opened up a Church and didnt have 100 percent of the truth I would be afraid of people going to other churches too! Maybe there they´ll actually find the truth!" and thats when I grabbed my bible. Muahhahah first Hebrews 6. I said "Does this place you go to do baptisms for the dead?" shes said, "Yes." To which I was full heartly startled and 100 percent doubting. I said ya sure? haha and after a few minutes of thinking she said no. So I said so how can this be the true church of God if they dont do this ordinance? She said yeah Im not really interested so I just bore my testimony of the vital necessity of this saving ordinance and she looked at me and said, "but if we were to do this thing how would it be done?" Thats when we entered and had a marvelous lesson about the love of God and justice and mercy and how important this ordinance is. It was great. 

I love you guys!! miss you all so much!! just a few more than a few more weeks and ill be home! haha love you guys!! im praying for you guys always and something cool is our investigators pray for our familes too so its not just me here in brasil praying for you guys. But its our investigators and the members too. I love you guys more than anytihng!

-- 

Elder Hamm

Toucans

These are the Elders in my group who served on the Council with the President

This is my zone.  It looks like a freakin ward.  Haha! 

Do they adjust clocks for daylight savings time? About how many lessons you teach each week?  We try to teach 20 other lessons and 10 with a member but we normally teach like 27 lessons and 8 with members.

This is how we do in Brazil

How often do you to exchanges with members? We try to teach 10 lessons with members as I said but we normally don't do splits with members. We normally mark different lessons during the day and call members to meet us at the door or near the investigators house and then we´ll teach them together and they´ll leave after. Its super efficient actually.

So we went to Campo Belo this weekend and it was a long journey. And to come home we had to get up at 4:45am in the morning, leave the house by 5. Get a bus at 6:15 (the bus station was 1 hour walking from their house) get off the bus at 7:50 get another bus at 9 to get home by 12 to get a city bus to lunch and we got to lunch at around 12:45. After lunch we went to work. this is my excited face at the bus station at 5:50 in the morning

So this week I also saw 3 Toucans!!!! I WAS LIKE WHAT THE HECK?!?! and we were in the middle of a lesson about the law of chastity and there was a freakin toucan on a tree across the road (cause we were sitting on the curb teaching) it was the most distracting thing in the world! hahaha I took a picture but it was kinda far away  but the light was like gleaming off of its enormous orange and black beak.

We also went to visit all of the ET stuff on Pday last week. So I got a picture with a flying saucer and an alien. I guess I can cross that off my bucket list! 

Look at this birds wings!!! We walked past this house and I saw this bird and I was like, "no, we are definitly knocking this door." And before I even said my name the woman (who is just like an angel) invited us in and I was like, "wait I have to take a picture of this bird" hahah and shes like "yeahh ive had her for 20 years and she started off yellow and just started changing colors."  haha its super sick

ill try and send more photos next week!! love you guys!!!

Elder Hamm

The mission is so sweet

What are the mission rules (not like worldwide white handbook version but local rules)?  So some mission rules here where they probably dont have them in the united states. We cant play soccer. Why? because americans think they can play with brasillians and always end up breaking something. Some missons cant drink coke, our mission can. We cant drink Terere, (the dankest tea in the world - its so freakin good.) or chamarrão because its a relaxing drink and and some sister passed out on the street after drinking a lot.  I have a whole little book of extra rules presidente made if you want me to send you a picture. haha

What is your new apartment like?  Ask nate he knows where it is. its good. its pretty big. we have our own room where we have our desks and our beds and stuff so its cool. We are hardly ever home now and when we are home we are dead tired so we go to bed as soon as possible which is like 11 some nights becaue we have to get the zones numbers.

What were the foods you had at the last meal you had at a member’s house? ill answer next week i dont have time this week. sorrryyy forgot about this question haha

So yeah this week was good.. kinda. haha it was tough because we have a LOT of good investigators and stuff its just sad when you lose others. but we need to just count our blessings because we have a lot of people here who are ready to be baptised and hear the good word. 

If someone wants to say that our church is fake and Joseph Smith was a liar, thats fine. I dont agree but thats their right to say so. Now if someone stops me and says that our church is fake because we dont use the Holy Bible, thats where the Samson in me comes out and I get out the bible and ask which path exactly are they on and if they have ever been educated about the real and only Church of Jesus Christ here on the earth. 

This week we helped a lot of people come to church and marked a lot of dates (progress). Its weird, being so close to the end of the mission just kinda makes you appreciate it more. Like sometimes me and Barlow are just walking on the street or laying in bed dead tired and we´re just like, dude, The mission is so awesome. The only thing more awesome is the Gospel. Yeaahhhh dude. the Gospel of Jesus Christ. hahahah its so awesome. I know this church is true. I know Joseph smith was a prophet and I know that the Bible talks about one church, The church of Jesus Christ. The church which Joseph Smith restored and we have the full teaching of him through the Book of Mormon and modern revelation through a living prophet. Its awesome.

I love you guys!! miss you all so much!!

-- 

Elder Hamm

To Dad:  you literally have no idea how hard me and Elder Barlow are working. its crazy too cause with this much time on the mission you just know how to explain evertyhing and you learned how to reeally trust the spirit so as long as i do my part the spirit brings to my mind the stuff Ive studied and the stuff ive previously said and boom its like the perfect code for baptism. haha 

hahah Mahonri Moriancumer. I love that story I actually gave a talk on that subject recently and it went really well. I came from the POV of the fact that God didnt tell him what to do and how humbly he came to God with the idea. Imagine what he was thinking. "Im gonna ask God to touch these rocks" it was realy cool. I also found out that me and MM are VERY similar!! He found the beach and forgot about God for 4 years until God called him to repentance, I was only on the beach for 1 ;) though my chastening was similar to his.