Yin and Yang

Free Agency. There's no question in my mind about why there was a war in heaven about this single principle. For my whole life, I'd always been grateful to have the freedom to choose my own path, but recently it's been the most frustrating thing of all. The mission is really a battlefield, a conflict between good and evil, and our job is to run out into the crossfire and save as many as we can. The problem is that as much as we desire to help some people, we can't make decisions for them. We can talk to them, testify to them, and do all we can to show them a better road, but they have to make the choice. They have to act, or they will never receive.

I say this because lately we've been losing many great people in this war. As much as we've implored people to read the Book of Mormon, to ask God the truthfulness of it's message, and to visit Church to truly feel the spirit of the Lord, few have even showed efforts to change. Sometimes, I just feel the urge to drag people to church just to feel how true it all is, but as much as people frustrate me, they must make their own decisions. In the end, if people think TV is more important than prayer, sleep than church, or visitors than scriptures, they won't receive a response from God. It's as simple as that.

But for everyone that chooses not to progress, or not to know, there is always one that does, and it is through them that the power of the Lord is truly manifest. As much as this week has been dark and disappointing, I've seen some of the greatest miracles of my life. In particular, one family I've probably mentioned many times before. Starting with the simple inspiration to knock at a door, (one a great distance away from our usual area) we found a mother, daughter and son. We taught them about the Restoration and invited them to church. Despite the father being against it they went to church. Then they went again, and again. Then, miraculously, due to the constant prayers of the mother, the father began to change, began to accompany them to church, and became the spiritual strength of the family. Soon afterward, this family lost everything. They lost their car, most of their appliances, and arrived at the point where they couldn't even stay here in Ivoti. But something happened. We visited them just this week, and invited them to pray, to decide whether to go home, where they had work, but the church was not, or to stay here and take a leap of faith. 

Brethren and sisters, we are truly saved by grace after all that we can do. Having nothing left, and no idea how they would survive, they decided to stay. The very next day, the father was promoted as a boss and the mother received work near the house. A cheap car was located as well, and now, the family is all set to stay and survive. Just as they had no reason to believe the Lord was with them, they trusted in him still, and the light shined through the dark.

There's probably a lot of messages I could pull from here, but the one I want to talk about is that there will always be light within the dark. For as much as people around you are choosing not to follow, there are those that will. As much as your world is crumbling around you, there is always help to be found. As much as your world may be filled with darkness, the Savior is only seconds away. Trust in the Lord, and he will guide you, comfort you, and light up your world. He will be your pillar by day and your fire by night. All they that come unto him shall not suffer, but have eternal life.

Never lose hope.

... Sorry if I sounded more cryptic than usual, my mind does that from time to time. Anyway, thanks to everyone who's done so much for me. 

It's always helpful.

High fives for everyone. 

Elder Angus

A Red Sun Rises

"Blood has been shed last night." ~Legolas (Correction...it's "blood has been SPILLED THIS night" ... this has been a public service announcement from Breanna)

NOTE: This letter belongs before the one below it, it got skipped over due to Danielle's presence in the house. I literally got nothing done while she was here (aside from a very silly letter to Jess) since this was the last I was going to see of her for almost 2 years so...there's my excuse. Here's the letter...enjoy.

No, nobody died. At least, nobody I know. However, over the past few days I've been stuffed with at least twice my weight in Brazilian barbecue.  The more remarkable thing, though, is I'm still nothing but skin and bones. :l  I'll have to work on that.

Hello anonymous reader, please don't hit that Esc button just yet, this letters only just started. There's plenty more space to be wasted with my weekly toils.

I guess I'll start off by saying that gold has rained from the heavens. This week, I received a wonderfully heavy package filled with little red sweets.

Is it... can it be?...It couldn't be, yet it must!... Or should it?...Maybe...I should just open it...Skittles!

The last few days I've felt like Santa Clause, bestowing bountiful sweets upon those that I meet, that with me they can rejoice in its goodness. There's really no stranger way to put it. But really, the branch is moving a little faster down here. With these bountiful drops of fruity sweetness, combined with chocolate chip cookies (another thing they don't have o_o) I've been pushing the work along just fine. Okay, not really, but I like to think I'm doing more than "being the gringo." Oh well.

Well, I guess I should actually say something constructive now. Here in Ivoti, the work is continuing as strong as ever. People are progressing, more people are being found, and each and every day, we are getting closer to baptisms for everyone. The only problem is that no one her is married, and the bureacracy here makes this very difficult to solve. However, this doesn't slow down the change in the hearts of the people we've touched. One family we've been teaching from the very beginning. At first, we only encountered the wife and daughter and began teaching them. Over the first couple of weeks, it continued as such and the father absolutely refused to talk with us. Then, after about five weeks with them receiving our discussions and going to church, we found the father in-house and ready to receive the discussions. The funny thing is that this was the first time my new companion visited them, so he had no idea this was so remarkable. Just the other day, the father was with us, cutting the grass behind the chapel, and happier than ever.

You may wonder what made him change his mind. It wasn't us, it wasn't his family convincing him to do so, but instead it was the example they set, and the good changes he saw in them over the first few weeks that developed a desire in him to do the same. At this point in time, they're probably one of the strongest families I've seen investigating the church, and when they eventually get married and baptised, I have no doubt they will make a powerful addition to the church.

Everyone, if there is one thing that is undoubtably true, it is that when we live and learn the true principles and doctrines of Jesus Christ, we change for the better. As King Benjamin put it in the Book of Mormon, we have a "mighty change in our hearts, and no more desire to do evil." Truly, the blessings of the restored gospel of Christ are unimaginable, and the power can be seen by all in the example of those who live it. Make it a responsibility, to sew all you can, to live what you know, and the blessings and happiness of heaven will be poured out unto you.

Thanks everyone for your love and Skittles, the latter being nearly as good as the first. >:D Sorry if my english is getting worse. If it helps, my sister will probably edit this beforehand. Maybe.

Até mais!

Elder Angus

Clash of Ebony

If one thing hasn't changed about me, I'm still a complete dork. But I like it that way. This past week, I sweated out my wallet, and by sweating out my wallet, I mean that I sweat so much the leather is starting to mold through. So, the obvious choice was to retire the wallet and make a new one. So, viewing the various options, I decided to make one with the materials I had at my disposal. >:D I don't think talking about it does it justice, so you'll have to see the photo.

Something I've determined, though, is that you should always keep a record of what happens in your life. Whether it's a photo, a journal entry, or a random sketch of the things that happen in your strange little life, it's important to keep a record so that you don't forget. Your mind is an open chasm, filled with energy, ideas and memories. However, if these entities are never tied to something solid, they'll be lost forever, hidden among the stuff. Call me crazy, but I've been using all three of my suggestions for everything from daily events to personal revelation to video game ideas. Really, my records are all a complete mess, but nothing is wrong with that as long as it all can be remembered.

Anyway, I'm done discoursing, so I guess you can tune back in now.

This week was pretty interesting. For one, it was filled with a lot of those expected-but-unprepared moments. This tuesday, we had to go to the Poliicia Federal in Porto Alegre so my companion could renew his passport (lucky duck is going to France with his family). So, in order to avoid the several hours of train and bus to get there, we paid one of the members to drive us there. What I didn't know, though, was that he would also bring his children along. So, sitting in the back, with two-year-olds in carseats on both sides, I sat there drifting into madness for the hour drives there and back, with the constant "wake up missionary" and poking fingers with each passing minute. X( Okay, it was terrible then but it's absolutely hilarious now. I'm laughing just thinking about it. Still, next time I get the front seat.

Second, we have a new closet that's been sitting unassembled in a box for a few good months, and being unable to contact those who do so, we decided just to do it ourselves. o_o Wasn't the smartest idea. Just to make a short story even shorter, lots of time, still haven't finished, weakest closet I've ever seen. Really, I'm just ashamed thinking about this one, lets move on. 

Third... well, lets just say recipes are not meant to be mixed.

Now, for the final event I'll discuss. We had a baptisim this week! However, we had almost lost her. We'd been working with this investigator for weeks, helping her understand the doctrines and realize that she's been prepared for baptisim for some time now. She'd left for nearly a month on vacation and returned this week, so we jumped on the opportunity and invited her. Success! But that's not the real story. The day of the baptism, we called her early that morning to remind her about the details, when she told us she'd been sent a messenger who told her not to get baptized. o_o Of course, our feelings sank into our guts, but we set a time to visit her that day. She described to us how she'd been shopping and struck up a conversation with a random stranger about how she was getting baptized. The man then warned her and said more or less that if she got baptized right now, she'd be damned. >_< So, we had a lot to talk about when we arrived there later that day.

In the end, she got baptized that night, but I want to talk about why. The answer, the feelings of God and the power of testimony. One of the most powerful and undeniable things we can bear is a testimony of faith grown through diligence and spiritual witness. When a testimony is given, nobody can deny it, but more important is that when we testify of truth, the Holy Ghost confirms that truth within the hearts of those to whom we testify. The true difference between the missionaries and the stranger on the street was simply this. We need to recognize that when we feel bad, strange, or confused, these feelings will never be sourced from God but from the devil who seeks to lead all men astray. We must learn that all truth, all righteousness, all things from God are witnessed with power and joy in the hearts of those who would recieve it.

I guess this stems into a double challenge for all of you. First, always be aware of the feelings in your heart, the guidance you recieve, and the witnesses you feel. Second, never be afraid to bear testimony of the things you believe and you know, for sometimes they are the source in which souls are changed or comforted.

Thanks everyone for all your love and support. As well, thanks for enduring all the weird letters. ;) Continue to be awesome and all that you are, and I'll do the same.

Elder Angus

Photos!

-Baptisim! \'o'/

-My old wallet

-My new wallet (x2) ;P

Stripes of Glory

I'm really starting to question the need of an opening comment. Really, everyone already knows who this is addressed to, so why is there even that "To whom it may concern" comment. But thats just a rant and a strike to be started some other day... if it's even worth it. :P

Anyway, I bet you'd like me to type something constructive here. First of all, the heat here is really killing me, and when I forget the sunscreen (sorry Mom) it gets even worse. -.-' If it means anything, though, I probably sweat it all off anyway. I guess a more interesting topic, however, would be the wonderful exploits we had this morning. :) The zone I'm working in realized it's goal for this month, so the Pres. gave us a Zone P-Day. Basically, this involved all the missionaries in the zone gathering together at a park this morning, and participating in the various activities. Just for my Mom, I took plenty of pictures too, and will be sending a few of the good ones along with this letter. So, due to the filled day and all the activities, I have yet to recieve sufficient time to catch up on the month of empty journal entries. X( I feelm like they may never be filled. Just stand there and mock me.

During the first few days this week, the town was absolutely empty. I mean it! Litterally every store was closed and nobody was walking in the streets. We Even made long lists of investigators or contacts we'd try to teach, but even there we came up nearly dry. However, like every disney film I've seen, there's always a good ending to this story. About the last two or three days here, theres been a sudden flood of people returning, and we've been finding nearly everybody at home. The best part, though, is that part of that influx was all the members we'd lost, finally having a church meeting with more than just us and God to help the investigators.

The party's reign of terror has ended! Now is the age of Progress!

*said in an epic Roman Voice

One of the better highlights of all this week was one of the families we've begun to teach. My companion and I swear, they're the best investigators we've ever seen. They are friends of one of the members we have here in the Branch, and they are truly golden. When we first visited them, we never gained time to teach anything, so we left a pamphlet with them in case they'd like to study ahead of time (a thing people rarely do). When we returned, to our pleaseant surprise, they had all read it through, and had even written responses to the "additional study" part in the back. D: (Jaw dropper) Not only that, they were actively asking questions about church doctrines and beliefs. In fact, they asked so much that we had to wait until the third visit before we could teach any structured lesson. XD

But this is really the kind of interest and desire we should all have when it comes down to it. I'm not saying you should get up, grab a missionary and ask him everything he knows about the church (although this has crossed my mind). What I'm saying is that we should all take a little more excitement, or at least put a little more importance in the doctrines of God. Too many times I've seen people that "have a religion" that they never visit, or are too stubborn to invest a little time to hear a servant of the Lord. The truth is that we should all be looking for something better, something more complete until we find something that can answer All of our questions. I know I've found that here in the church that I represent, but how can that profit you unless you search it for yourself. Those who believe they've found something, shouldn't just steady in, but actively search and study what they found, ponder it in their hearts, apply it in their lives, and discover through God if these things are really true.

Friends, family, and all other internet folk. Please don't put aside the importance of your soul and your Heavenly Father. I know him well, and I know he will not chastize those who do not obey, but why deny him the ability to bless you in this life and the next. 

Thank you everyone for all your love and support. I received a special Christmas package this week with letters from all the Activity Day girls, and delighted in all their nice little sentiments and cute comments. It seems like a simple thing, but really it's really the simple things that make us stronger!

Until Next Time!

Élder Angus

Photos:

- My attempted panoramic of the waterfall we saw today (could use some touch-up) ;)

- A regular photo of the same, in case the first was terrible

- My lovely silhouette

- Oh, that sweet punchable face! >:D