Espero que todos vocês estejam bem!

Yesterday was pretty awesome. So I guess the missionaries aren't cool enough to have a special conference with Elder Bednar. (He is here in Porto Alegre), but yesterday our stake had a special conference with Elder Gary Stevenson, the Presiding Bishop of the church. He talked about how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is different from every other church.....authority. Because of priesthood authority the church isn't just true, it is living!!!!!! He also talked about his love for missionaries, so I of course felt super special. I was able to talk to him and his wife for a second after the meeting. I was one of the few there that was able to communicate with him. (He doesn't speak Portuguese, so he had a translator.) He said that they have property in Morgan because they like to hunt. Small world. 

This will be the last week of this transfer. It is a transfer of 7 weeks to make up for the transfer of 5 weeks that we had right before Christmas. I only have 3 transfers left!!!!!!! 

This week was good. We found a few people these days that have a ton of potential. The work has been really hard these days because everyone is at the beach or vacationing for the famous Brazilian Carnival! But......the work must go on!

I am sure Lisa's farewell was amazing, because she was amazing! I am super proud of her and this desire to serve!

I love you all and I love this gospel. I LOVE being a missionary!

Sister Autumn Barnes

Ola!

Today is one of those days when I am brain dead! I can't even think about what happened this week! I am super tired! But, I am grateful to be tired because it means that I am putting all my energies into what I am doing. 

I took a shower with a lizard today! My companion (the Brazilian of the bunch, mind you) thought that was super gross. I thought it was super cool! I will miss Brasil! 

This week we experienced more rejection than normal. I know it is because I am training!! Thank you Heavenly Father for giving me this challenge when I already feel this huge responsibility on my shoulders!!! 

One thing I have been amazed with here on the mission is how the Spirit works. Sometimes, most of the time, we do things without knowing why. Sometimes we do what the spirit tells us to do, and things don't go right. But the Lord leads us on a wild goose chase of sorts........that thing that didn't go right, but put us in a position for something else to happen. I feel like that has happened with me these past weeks. Sister Araujo hurt her ankle so I went on divisions with a lady in my ward. While I was walking with her on the street, I had the strong impression to talk to a lady walking past. The spirit pretty much pushed me to do it. I didn't even have time to mentally prepare myself, so I pretty much attacked the lady and made just about the ugliest contact a missionary can make. (All with the member right there with me. How embarrassing. But the important thing is that I listened to the spirit and opened my mouth). Turns out the this lady and the member I was with knew each other a bit. Because of the member, I was able to make an appointment with this lady. Long story short, we weren't able to make it to the appointment when we had scheduled, so we went to her house yesterday. She was at home, but was hiding. I saw her, but she didn't come to the fence to us. So, I decided that because we were there and our appointment fell through, I would knock the door of the house next door. We knocked and out came this man and his girlfriend. Yeah.........super interested. Super cool! Thank you Heavenly Father! 

I love you all and hope you have a great week! The church is more than true!

Sister Autumn Barnes

 

It rained SOOOO hard the other day!

Leticia! She is an angel!

Sister Araujo and Sister Barnes

Da Mish

Hahahahahahahahaha got snow?

I bet you are all super jealous of me right now! 

But you shouldn't be! Because as cold as it is there.......is as hot as it is here! 

Can I get a Halleleluia? (Don't judge me.....I know I didn't spell that right at all!) Sister Araujo is walking on her ankle now! Oh yeah! I was dying! It was good to hit the pavement again! However, I realized that being cooped up in my apartment for a couple days gave me a special energy boost! 

Because I hadn't been able to share the gospel for a couple of days, the second I stepped outside, I couldn't help but talk to everyone that I saw! At the beginning of my mission, I was super afraid to make contacts with people on the streets or in the park or whatever. I have really grown to love it though. My companion thinks I am super crazy because I stop people on the sidewalk, talk to punk teenage boys, anyone and everyone. Sister Araujo is new on the mission, so she is super afraid of rejection. Yeah, of course it is sad when someone rejects your message because you know how much it could bless them, but even when I am rejected I AM SO HAPPY because I know I put the message out there. I am SPREADING the gospel. I am doing my part by informing everyone and letting them exercise their agency. My missionary advice of this week: Don't be afraid to open your mouth and share the gospel! You NEVER know who will be receptive! 

Yesterday, we made a contact with a man in a park. I was really wanting to give a Book of Mormon to someone, but didn't want to give it someone who would just throw it in the trash afterwards. We started talking to a man named Luciano who was sitting on a bench watching his kids play soccer. We talked with him a bit and asked us if we were "Mormons." We explained that Mormon is a nickname we have. He asked where this nickname came from. Booyah. Perfect lead in to talk about the Book of Mormon. I whipped out my Book and Mormon and said, "Because of this book right here." I explained a bit about it, testified about it, and gave him the Book of Mormon. He took it and was looking at it with so much admiration and hunger to know more. He said, "Thank you so much for coming to talk to me today. I was really needing this." Because I am the most unlucky human being on this planet, he doesn't live in my area, but we passed his address on to  some Elders that will teach him. I am disappointed that it won't be me that will teach him, but I am grateful to have been an instrument in the Lord's hands to find this special son of God. 

Word is going around that Elder Bednar and Elder Oaks will be here in Porto Alegre this month. Pray that they will call a meeting with the missionaries here!!!!!! 

I love you all so much! There is no greater call in which to be engaged than that of the Lord's!!! 

Sister Autumn Barnes

Feliz Ano Novo!

I can't believe that it is 2013! I can't believe that I left for the mission in 2011! Whoa. 

I am so grateful for our Savior, Jesus Christ. I was thinking about this last year that I spent as a missionary, and I realized that I could have been so much better. Thanks to the Atonement of Jesus Christ, I can put this in the past and resolve to have a better year this year. I can repent and be forgiven. One of the things I have learned here on the mission is the beauty of repentance. I have seen unhappy, sinful people turn their entire lives around. I have seen them apply the Lord's sacrifice in their life and turn a new page. 

This week at church we had a special fast. We fasted as a ward that our ward would be able to grow and that we would do everything necessary to make that happen. Yesterday at church as we were all fasting, two couples showed up at church saying that they had just moved in. I am convinced that prayer coupled with fasting is so powerful! I knew that before.....but this strengthened my testimony of the fact. 

I am getting so good at teaching classes at the last minute!!!! If someone doesn't show up to teach or to give a talk during sacrament meetings......"Ask the Sisters.They will do it."

Sister Araujo is still in the boot. We have been working a and walking a little bit, but we aren't able to do a full day's work yet. 

I got my Christmas package, Mom and Dad! Oh yeah! Loved it! Sister Araujo LOVED the stocking. 

I love you all!

 

Sister Autumn Barnes