Felix Natal from Brasil!

Good morning, today is the first day in two weeks that the mission office has Internet, which is why I haven’t been able to write to anyone for, a bit. A lighting bolt hit the office and destroyed the Internet. But there is much to tell in these past 2 weeks, so let's begin. 

Jaragua

Tuesday December 15- We went to the hospital because Elder Rebouças had an extremely painful and unusually fast growing tumor in his armpit. We waited a while and when he was taken back, he took off his shirt and the doctor simply picked up a knife and cut a big gaping whole in the tumor, it bled a ton red and yellow and the doctor didn't even give him an anesthetic...ouch, that's Brasil for you. The rest of the day we worked in our favela and worked on the mission Christmas video.

Wednesday-Today we went on a division with the zone leaders in zona Jaragua. It's a really cool zone, there's a ton of favela and jungle, its really cool! I stayed with Elder Ellis and Elder Fly in the area. Jaragua and Elder Da Silva went with Elder Mac and Elder Gonzaga in the area Taipas. 

Division with Elder Fly from Williamsburg, VA and Elder Ellis from Provo

Jaragua

It was a great day, I did a few interviews and we found a ton of new investigators in a favela called Xurupita! Together we all learned a ton! Great day!

Thursday-We left Jaragua early Thursday morning to work in our area the rest of the day.

Friday-We helped Elder Sagae, the new financial secretary with the Christmas video and then we worked in our area like normal. 

Saturday- Saturday was the same thing as Friday, but Saturday night there was the ward Christmas party. We helped some recent converts get there, but we didn't get to stay long. 

Elder Hunt with Engrid, Italo, Erica, and Gustavo on their baptism day

Sunday-We followed our usual Sunday morning Cantareira schedule, we woke up early, got all of our investigators, Recent Converts, less actives, everyone to church. Then we had the baptisms of Erica, Gustavo, Italo, and Engrid, who really wanted to get baptized, but was very afraid of the water, but with some coaxing she calmed down and was baptized. :) 

A cool family in my old area Engenho Novo who gave us a ride to the Christmas event

Awesome Natal (Christmas) event in Zona Alphaville

That night there was a stake/zone wide Christmas activity open to the public in zone Alphaville; it was incredible! :) It was very well put together and well planned. I was able to see tons of people who I have known as zone leader in that zone, including my trainee (son) Elder Bispo. haha 

Monday-Great p day, we had a meeting with President, picked up the numbers, and bought some cool stuff. I helped Elder Rebouças pick out clothes because he's going home today. :( 

So I was basically his style guru for 7 hours haha, but I liked it! It brought back a tons of good memories from home, shopping with my sisters, mom, aunt, and nana! hahaha :) #Nordstroms

President Farnes gave me this Panetone

Tuesday-We spent the WHOLE day and we didn't even sleep (literally) preparing everything for the Mission Christmas party the next day!

A member put my initials on this towel and gave it to me as a gift for Christmas!  So thoughtful!

Wednesday-The Mission Christmas party! Spiritual program, lunch, talent show, gift exchange, great day! :) 

Christmas Eve food

Thursday-We worked in our area like normal! (Christmas Eve) and we had bread, tuna, and apple cider for our Christmas Eve dinner. We did not have any invitations for a meal on Christmas Eve or Christmas day. 

My Christmas gifts from family and friends

 Friday-Once again our lunch/dinner on Christmas was on the same level as what we had on Christmas Eve...- at our house :( But we worked and talked with our families, which was a blast! All of the restaurants were closed so we ate at home with our humble food that we had.

This jacket looks better in person ;)

???

Saturday-We had another normal day BUT we went and made a key using the lock of our door to get into a room in our house to be able to lock it to make sure no one would be able to get in. A few weeks ago, someone broke in and stole a bunch of my nice ties which made me really sad, but now we have a key to lock the room! :) 

Elder Hunt with Ryan on his baptism day

Sunday-We had the baptism of Ryan! Super great! :) 

Monday-Hectic p day, people leaving, getting ready for transfers.

Tuesday-We had the welcoming of the new missionaries and the transfer meeting! What an amazing new group of missionaries! After we also had another meeting for the LZs and it was really good! 

Elder Hunt with his new companion, Elder Flores from Peru.

He is hoping to learn Spanish from him!

Today Elder Rebouças goes home and I officially start with my new comp Elder Flores from Peru. This is my 3rd transfer as AP and in our area Cantareira! Let's GO! Rumo ao 360!!!

Feliz Natal!  Merry Christmas!

Elder Hunt

Joking around at a member's house

This is Brasil, son!

These Pictures Make Me So Happy!

Swagg Selfie at our Leadership Council

Monday-Today was a LONG day dealing with missionaries going to the airport, transfers, and crazy stuff.

President Farnes with his Assistants at the Temple

These pictures make me so happy!

Tuesday-The whole day we were preparing for the leadership council that would happen the next day at the temple! :)

Wednesday-AWESOME DAY! We had leadership council in the morning where we talked about our new goal of 360 in the month, we gave our training on the powerful missionaries of old such as Ammon and why we arent living up to our full potentials, baptizing millions like they did, it was awesome! :) 

We had to eat lunch in like 5 minutes and then together as a council, we did a temple session together, IT WAS AMAZING :)

Elder Alvis and Elder Hunt

After the temple we went to have dinner with the Farnes family! We walked in to their apartment and it was literally just like being back home for Christmas, decorations, Josh Groban Christmas music in the background, and the smell of great food :) It was a wonderful night :) President and Sister Farnes gave us a Christmas gift (which I will open on Christmas) and President let us pick one of his ties (he is seriously amazing,) we talked about our favorite Christmas traditions back at home, and he even sang a bit to have some fun! :) Excellent excellent night :)

I brought some flowers for Sister Farnes and some chocolate to their kids when I went to dinner at their house.

I love the Farnes family so much!  More than words can express!

I am so blessed to have him as my Mission President

Thursday-We did a division with Elder Alvis and his comp Elder Linford who are in Itu, but they stayed with us in our area because Alvis stayed to go to a temple sealing of someone he baptized. But the division was great!

On a division with Elders Alvis and Linford

It was awesome to be back with my main man Alvis on the division, it brought back some awesome memories from when we were comps back in Itu! Man I love that guy! :) 

Friday-We organized a HUGE activity in the chapel for ALL of our recent converts, less actives, and investigators! It was a lot of craziness with having so many people there, but it also was a huge success! :) 

Leticid, Raiani, Pablo and Henrique with Elder Hunt on their baptism day

 Saturday-We are working a ton with our recent converts and we are baptizing all of their family members and friends! It’s the best! :) 

Panetone and icecream!

Sunday-We brought a mixture of recent converts, less actives, and investigators to church and in total it was 29 people to church! We baptized Leticia, who is a super elect 16 year old girl who has a broken arm, Henrique, Pablo, and Raiani, all friends of recent converts! Our ward is growing a ton! Just in this ward Catareira I've baptized more than 40 people. Elder Da Silva and I also gave a short talk about Christmas, which was nice. 

This week I studied a ton about Ammon, the sons of Mosiah, and other powerful missionaries of the Book Of Mormon. As we read, we learn that Ammon, was exact in all that he did. He served, he was very humble, and when he needed to be, he brought down the hammer (or in his case a sword.) His purity and power along with everything else he did made King Lamoni know that what he preached was the truth, this power came from God and was able to be exercised when doing ALL that was required (faith, actions, everything.)

Our little recent converts Vitor, Vinicious, and Allan were hungry so we fed them.

This story very much applies in our lives. The scriptures tell many stories of miracles and amazing power.  We always wonder what the big secret was and how it was done, but when we read and study, we learn that honestly these miraculous things all happened because the people were simply doing ALL that was required of them. They showed the Lord that they deserved his blessing, they hoped and wished with perfect faith, but they acted, they did their part, they did all that they possibly could and the Lord did the rest, and that is when the miracles happened. When we understand the basic principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ and when we truly apply them in our lives, we live the successful, happy, lives the Lord has promised us we would have if we have done our part. Em Nome de Jesus Cristo, ámen. 

The Seven Word Sermon

Elder Hunt overlooking Favela Guapira

Favella Guapira

To start off the week we did a division with the zone leaders of Zona Jaçana, which Elder Burt is zone leader, (so I stayed with him.) During the whole district meeting Burt didn't sit, and in the street he was walking a little strange. 

Guapira

At lunch Burt broke the news "Hunt, we've got a problem, my right testicle is swelling at a fast rate and we need to go to the hospital like now!" So we went! haha. 

Elders Blaylock, Hunt and Burt at the hospital

Burt with the nurses

It was actually the same hospital that I went to when I got dangue...brought back some good memories...haha...To realize Burt's worst nightmare, 4 women nurses attended him, lol. But also there was Elder Burt's comp, Elder Blaylock, from Maryland, I quite liked him, he is literally the Mormon version of Dylan Duke, like seriously. And there went our division, tests, ultrasounds, and lots of waiting. Poor Elder Burt :( Good thing he's an awesome zone leader and nothing gets him down! :) He'll have a big come back this week, I know it! :)

A Sick Protein Drink I found

A little acai is always good in Brasil ;)

On Thursday we had the mulit zone conference for the zones in the capital! President and Sister Farnes gave amazing trainings on our missionary vision and the Atonement of Christ. 

Elder Roberts, Elder Pereira, and Elder Hunt

We gave trainings and hosted a Q&A’s session with the zone leaders and all the missionaries. AND we also introduced our new baptismal goal of 360 baptisms in the month! It was a tiring day, but it was so spiritually recharging and edifying that the fatigue didn't even matter :)

Lucas, one of our recent converts

Elder Hunt with 

Nicole, Engrid, Carlos, Kaio, Eric, Pricilla and Gustavo on their baptism day

The remaining days we worked super hard in our area and in the end we had 7 baptisms! :) Carlos, Kaio, Eric, Pricilla and Gustavo were all baptized and they are all friends of Gabriel who was baptized last week! And Nicole, (Fabiana's daughter, Lucas' sister, who were baptized last week) was baptized this week! And also little Engrid was also baptized! It is so wonderful to see The Lord's hand in his work, blessing us so abundantly with these baptisms, incredible.

P-day pizza in the mission office collecting numbers

Some spiritual thoughts that were very impactful this week were a few things I came across about Grandpa Faust. Something very interesting was the difference between when he served in Brasil in 1939  “we didn’t accomplish much except for the changes in ourselves. I feel it was one of the most productive and valuable times in my life."

An Awesome Christmas Gift

Protein chips are the future!

In 1975 almost thirty-five years after his mission, Elder Faust (Grandpa) returned to Brazil as an Assistant to the Twelve to preside over the work in South America. From the standpoint of convert baptisms, this second mission was, of course, much more productive. “I’m grateful that the Lord gave me another opportunity to serve there,” he says. “It’s a great source of amazement and personal satisfaction to see how the Lord has smiled upon those peoples and countries where it was so difficult in the beginning.”

I see this very much as the hard work that was done by Grandpa and others in Brasil's early days platned the seeds and now it is The Lord's time for us to reap and redeem the promise in D&C 4:4.-"For behold the field is white already to harvest; and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul;" This is the time to thrust in the sickle and harvest! The Lord's work is accelerated and will not stop any time soon!

On Sunday, with recent converts, investigators, less actives, we brought 25 people to church!  Here are some of them, but I couldn't get them all.

Getting everyone to church

Grandpa’s Seven Word Sermon kept me thinking and pondering for some time this week,  "I’m just going to leave you with a seven-word sermon. But you’ll have to remember what I’ve said. The seven-word sermon is “Remember who you are and act accordingly.”’

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Elder Hunt

Who knew there were grapes growing right next to a favella?!