Here are some recent photos from Caninde, Fortaleza.

20 January 2014

We had our first two baptisms in Canindé this week!  I* and I** are wonderful women and the first two members of the Church here.  What a miracle!

I* is the investigator of Elder A and Elder T.  I interview their investigators for baptism and Elder A interviews ours.  So, this past Friday, I had the opportunity to do my first baptismal interview.  I was scared to death because of the language, and prayed and prayed that it would go smoothly.  What a blessing!  We were able to understand each other and she recounted to me a beautiful conversion story, with the biggest, brightest smile I have ever seen.  Then, she honored me by asking if I would perform the baptism.  This was such a humbling experience for which I am so grateful (although I must have repeated the prayer and her name about a thousand times the night before to make sure Iwouldn’t mess up the Portuguese.)

I** is the investigator that Elder G and I have been teaching.  Wow, what an example of courage, strength and power…her conversion is a testimony to me that it is the Spirit that teaches, not us.  When Saturday arrived, it actually rained (does not happen often).  As the baptism approached, the clouds cleared and a beautiful, quenching vista of the water-deprived Canindé came into view…it was so amazing.  We had contacted the richest person in Canindé (and the only swimming pool owner), who agreed to let us use his pool as a font.  Moments before the baptism, I** and her mom were in deep conversation with Elder A and Brother W, and I** was crying.  Evidently, I**’s mother had just received a phone call from their pastor who said that if I** was baptized, he would excommunicate their entire family.  I** did not want to hurt her family and her mom, who is not friendly to our church, did not want to hurt her daughter.  Finally, her mom gave her blessing, and I** was baptized.  I** is a beacon of courage who I will always remember.

The spoken language remains very, very difficult for me.  I am understanding gospel-related words and phrases, but I’m lost when it comes to normal, everyday speaking.  Please keep me in your prayers.

13 January 2014

This past week has been fantastic and Elder G and I have had some great experiences.  We’re taking the language one step at a time…it is SO hard to understand the people here because they don’t speak Portuguese…they speakCearean (Portuguese slang.)  Half the words they use are not even in the dictionary.  And, most people are pretty set in their ways and have no desire to learn new truths or change.  How grateful I am to know that we have the ability to progress because of Christ, if we simply follow Him.  My hope and prayer is that the people here can open their hearts to the truth.

There is hope!  Our investigator is getting baptized!  She came to Family Home Evening last Monday and asked how soon she could be baptized.  We were shocked because we were not even sure she had understood our lessons (because our Portuguese is so bad!)  She explained that her answer had come over the past few days in many different ways and, when she comes to church, it “just  feels right.”  She will be going against her family’s wishes and her Pastor, but she is a strong, young woman and is experiencing a great conversion.  I have learned a good lesson…the gift of tongues is not the ability to speak, but the ability to be understood as the Spirit teaches.

Please keep sending your letters…I cherish each one and look so forward to Wednesdays when I can travel to Fortaleza to get them.  (We’ve figured that it takes at least 3 weeks for a letter to reach Fortaleza from the States.)