Week 57 - Camaragibe

Dear friends,

We have had a great week. We have kept super busy and have been finding a lot of new people to teach which is always great. Sister Vasquez and I work together really good. Next week is transfers which I don’t even know how, but we are hoping to stay together again! We have been talking with everyone on the buses and on the streets and then using everything that President taught us in the zone conference and its super exciting to see the difference that it makes. One lady literally seemed like she was waiting for us. The first time we met her she didn’t have very much time to talk but said that we could come back the next day. When we went back she told us that she was anxious and excited to see us again. We taught her about the Book of Mormon and she became super interested and excited to read.

Also our 13 year-old investigator was baptized on Saturday. It was really cool because his whole family went and supported him. He was super happy and he can’t wait to pass the sacrament. When I think about the difference that the Gospel will make in his life if he continues to live it, it makes me happy. I think he'll make a huge difference in his family and with his friends too.

The start of this week we had a lot of extra time to study because of the holiday. I loved all of the talks that we read. I read one about become a consecrated missionary.  It made me so much more motivated to do everything exactly the Lord’s way even down to the little things. I also read a cool one about the doctrine of families and how, even though the world’s view on families has changed, it hasn’t changed in God’s eyes.

Our other new converts are still doing great. One has been teaching with us and she is a natural missionary. But anyways everything is doing great here. Thank you so much for everything. Love you guys!

Love,

Sister Bedke

Week 56 - Camaragibe

Hello!!

This last week has been different than normal because of the holidays here. Have you guys seen anything on the news about Carnival in Brasil? We have to come home at 5, but President Bigelow gave us a talk to study for every day. I have been learning so much! Mom and Dad I think you guys would really like the talk I read yesterday. It’s called Learn by Faith by Elder Bednar. It’s really good!!

This week we had a zone conference with President. I loved it! He taught us how to be better teachers. He used 1 Nephi 11. I learned so much. That chapter is like a guide of how to teach.  He explained how in this chapter the Spirit taught Nephi by asking questions and not just passing all of his knowledge to Nephi. And when Nephi had desire and believed the Spirit showed him all the things that he wanted to know. But there is a big difference in explaining and showing. And we need to show the people we teach and let them discover and learn for themselves so that they can be truly converted. We have been applying everything that we learned and I feel like we are teaching so much better. Sometimes it’s hard to not just talk and explain but seriously no one wants to sit there and just listen to us talk for 30 minutes. President Bigelow is the best! Seriously he is super inspired and I loved loved loved the meeting!

I did my first division with another sister this week. It was so much fun. I loved it and I learned so much!! I went to Carpina. It’s like an hour away from Camaragibe. And I stayed with Sister Venegas from Chile. We had such a great day. We found a family!!! We taught them about the restoration and I know they felt the Spirit. My favorite part of the day was at night when we got to talk about our goals for the mission and life. She told me about things that she wants to change and be better and I got to share some experiences with her. Seriously it was an experience that I’ll never forget. I felt so strongly the love that Heavenly Father has for her and all the potential that she has. I loved it. It made me think that Bishops are lucky because they get to feel that a lot. Next week we'll do a division with Sister Andrade and her companion. I’m excited!!

The 13 year old we've been teaching is going to be baptized this Saturday. He is such a good kid. He is a great example to his family. He comes every Sunday and to all the activities by himself. And he lives really far away too! He is reading the Book of Mormon and loving it. He’s super excited about Saturday! His mom has been coming to church too. She wants to be baptized too, but isn’t quite ready yet. But she will be! She has made so much progress.

Do you guys remember me talking about a lady in Gravata that Sister Dana and Sister Rodgrigues taught, and she was baptized last March? We went there for dinner once a week and tried talking with her husband but he was never really interested. And then Sister Andrade and I tried again to teach him and he started to listen but still wasn’t super interested. Then when we both were transferred he told us that he thinks it was a sign that he needs to step up and help his wife with her spiritual growth and that he was gonna start going to church with her. Anyways I just found out that he was baptized this week. I am so so so happy!!! It made me want to cry. I’m gonna write her today. They are such a good family. And she is coming to the United States next year I think so maybe you guys will get to know them!

I got a package from you guys and a box from Meika. Thank you so much!! I love everything. If you guys see Meika tell her thank you from me! That was so nice of her. I’ve already used the headband. I love it! You guys are the best! Thank you so much for everything. I hope you all have a great week!

Love,

Sister Bedke

Thanks for the mail!

French toast!!!

 Making breakfast for the district

 

Zone Conference

 Roommates!

Week 55 - Camaragibe

Dear family and friends,

Thank you so much for the emails and pictures. I can’t believe how much snow you guys have. It looks so pretty. Are you back to going to school normal without delays or anything? Rae looked so so so pretty for the dance. I loved the dress and the accessories. Did she actually dance or stand there and talk? :) I have been learning how to salsa!! Everyone here knows how to dance and loves dancing. So living with a lot of Latin Americans I’ve learned a few things. I’m really bad, but it’s a lot of fun trying haha.

This has been a good week. Everyone is doing well. Three investigators came to church yesterday. One is a mom of a family that we have been teaching. They have been meeting with the missionaries for a long time and know everything, just don’t want to get married. We had a few good lessons with them this week and then went back on Saturday to invite them to church again and she didn’t think she would go because she had a few things she needed to do. We shared with her the importance of going to church and putting Christ as a first priority but we didn’t think she really understood after we left. But she came!! We were super happy.

This week Sister Vasquez had to go to the doctor and we got to go back to Boa Viagem!!! It was the best. I love that area so so so much. My dream is to go back there my last transfer. You guys need to go there some day!

This week is the start of a holiday here called Carnival. Its gets really crazy apparently and isn’t very safe for us to be on the streets, so we have to go home every day at 5 o clock from the 13th until the 19th. I don’t like staying inside so much, but we will have a lot of time to study.

One important thing that I’ve been learning is the importance of reading the scriptures, saying prayers, church attendance, the simple things that truly make a huge difference. We’ve met a few different families that were at one point super strong in the gospel, but for some reason stopped doing those simple things maybe for not even very much time, but fell away. And at first I think how could that happen? No one is exempt from Satan’s temptings. But God is so much more powerful. I really like what it says in Helaman 5:12. When we have a foundation constructed on Christ that makes all the difference. Doing those simple things can keep us safe from sin.

I hope you all have a great week. I love you all!

Love,

Sister Bedke

Week 54 - Camaragibe

Dear Family,

This has been a very busy but great week. We had to run from Mariana’s house to João’s house every day, but they both were baptized this week and it was the best! Mariana told us that she is like 100% sure that she is going to serve a mission too! I am so happy for her. She will be the best missionary ever. Seriously it is the cutest thing ever when we are at her house we don’t even have to teach her. We start the lesson and she ends up telling us everything that she knows and scriptures that she likes and how wonderful the commandments are and all the blessings we receive when we keep them. And then at the end she was like oops sorry I think I just gave the class! haha She is seriously the best! I’m so so so happy for her. She thinks she’ll come to the US next year, so you guys might get to meet her!

And Joao also is the cutest thing ever. His baptism was super good. A lot of his family went and a lot of members were there too. He is now the oldest member in our ward! And he is going to be a home teacher too. He is so cute!!!

We have to start meeting a lot of people and work with the members now. These last two weeks we have been focusing so much on the two baptisms that we don’t really have very many other people to teach now. Our area is huge and it will be good getting to know the other parts better now.

The temple was great. We took lots of pictures but I just sent my favorites. I hope you all have a great week. Love you guys!

Love,

Sister Bedke