English class, Knitting, and Sunburns

Not too much to report this week I think but maybe as I get talking I will remember more. Did I tell you that I am teaching English here?? I think I forgot. We got here a few Tuesdays ago and were told there was an activity at the church that night. So we went of course to meet the members. When we got there....turns out its not an activity at all. Its an English class. And the teacher is...surprise...ME!  It was so sudden and I of course had nothing planned so I did my best. It was really fun! But also really really hard to teach your own language. There are about 25 people in the class and not one is a member of the church. My comp gave me a book on how to learn English so I'm using that as a guide and doing the best I can. I think its going alright. I hope. Its just basics but I hope that I am explaining alright. Its really fun though. I really like teaching. (Maybe my future job?? Who knows?)

Also I learned how to knit. Two different points. One on top and one....inside out. I have no clue the names for these points in English (sorry) but I'm almost done making a scarf! Its really fun. But I think crocheting is easier. 

Castle of Castello (which means Castle of Castle)  :)

This week we had a really amazing lesson with T and her husband. We taught the first lesson and I had the opportunity to share the first vision and talk about Joseph. The spirit was so strong. It was really special. They loved it and the husband kept thanking us over and over. It was really neat. And for the first time I gave this part of the lesson and didn't even feel nervous. I usually get really anxious I'll mess up or I can't explain it well because...its just so important and so special! But this time I was totally calm. I can really feel myself getting better at teaching. Not just reciting what I know but actually saying how I FEEL. Which is really a blessing because President held a special interview with my comp telling her that he needs her to prepare me completely to train. 26 new missionaries are coming in and there will prob be about 7 or 8 sisters. And there were 6 that came last time and still have one more transfer of training so there is a major short hand of sisters. Ive already packed my suitcase pretty much.  But we will see. Anyways its really satisfying seeing that I am improving. Now I just need to improve on having more patience with myself. 

Barbeque!

This week we have a muiti-zone conference with Elder Snow of the 70. I'm pretty excited. Sister Perroti and President are pretty much freaking out though that some missionaries will be late or come....unorganized. They have sent out emails and announcements by the dozen. But like my comp said...its more for the Elders than the Sisters...(sorrryyy Elders). 

This week has been outrageously hot so naturally the result is...I am sunburned "de mais". So that makes wearing a shoulder bag fun. But the good news is I finally have the "missionary shirt"! I am practically the color of all the other Brazilians now...with pasty American shoulders. ;P  Also we set our clocks forward one hour for summer. Weirdest thing ever....I keep forgetting its October. Also the most exhausting and sad moment of my mission so far.

Anyways I'm sorry this weeks letter was so boring. Ill try to have a more exciting week this week. ;) Hope everyone is doing well, is happy, healthy, and strong, and has an awesome week this week! <3 I love you all very much! 

Sister Heyer

"Blessed is the man (or woman) that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him." -James 1:12

Oi from Chapadão!

Emily and her new companion

Well I have been transferred as you all know. My new area is called Chapadão which is a nickname for drunk people....so I'm not sure if I should be worried.  My companion is Sister B (she's from Brazil....she is not American although she looks like it). We live with two other Sisters again...Sister N who I lived with in Valinhos, and Sister H (from Arizona). Our area is in Campinas close to the mission office and Campinas Center. So we aren't too far from people. What's cool about this area is that we are 4 Sisters in one ward and that its been Elders here since the mission opened. But I guess President decided this ward was in need of a change and lots of help so he shut the area, bought a new house for 4 Sisters (us), and moved us in. Yesterday in church we were like celebrities. Everybody bore their testimonies about missionary work and how they are all going to help us and feed us. We already had two Irmás bring us chocolate and tell us that they will always bring us food and give us rides if we need it. Its a blessing because...we do need it! The church building is almost 2 hours walking from our house. Its a pain. And almost all the members live close to the church so everyday we walk to lunch (2 hours) and then after lunch the other sisters stay in their area and work and we return to our area (which is the neighborhood where we live). So just to eat lunch we walk 4 hours. Its tough. But there is no other way to do it. So this will be an exhausting 5 weeks....maybe more if I'm not transferred again. The compensation is that our ward is amazing and we haven't found one person that wont let us come visit them and talk with them or share an invitation to come to church. Everyone here is so humble and happy. Everyone that passes us in the street says hello and wants to talk with us. We have people stop US and ask US if we can visit them and pray with them. The people here are hungry for better lives and spiritual upliftment. Its amazing.

This week we had two people start crying in the street after we invited them to church. They want our help so much. We were passing a house and there was a woman sweeping her front porch. She looked to be about 35 or so and we decided to stop and simply invite her to church...our normal spiel about where the church is and when our meetings are. When we finished she didn't say anything for a minute...then she asked if we wanted to come in. We of course said yes and the minute we sat down she started to talk about her family and how her and her husband are having problems and she is lonely and sad. Then she started crying. She said she had been praying all day for God to send her help and to send her some idea of how she can change her life so that she is happy. She said she was praying and praying and then she looked up and saw us walking down the street toward her. She said from the minute she saw us she knew there was something different about us and that we were sent to her from God. She watched us coming toward her house praying we would stop or she would have the courage to stop us. And then we stopped. And then we were sitting there with her and she knows that we have the answer to what she needs. We started to cry with her. She was in so much pain and we could see how much she needed the hope of the gospel. We talked with her for almost an hour about her family, about how God loves her and a little about His plan for her. She said that she wants us to come back and teach their whole family together because she wants her husband to be a part of this. We will go back and visit her again this week of course with her whole family. She is a special person. Pray for her.

Helping Hands project at a retirement home with their ward.

Also this week we had a woman stop us and ask us if we could come in her home and say a prayer for her sick granddaughter. It was a tender experience. She had tears in her eyes. She asked us if we would come back. We of course said yes and as we were leaving she grabbed our hands and said: "please don't forget me....don't forget about me." I almost started crying in this moment. The pleading in her voice....the desperate need for love and comfort. I could imagine that this is a little taste of what it was like for the Savior. I began to think a lot about how we are representatives of Him not just in name but in spirit. People who are ready to hear the message look to us as the light they need. They ask for healing. They ask for help and comfort. They ask for strength. I feel a little bit like a super hero sometimes but its so much more than that. Its indescribable. I am just like them...a normal 20 year old girl. I have nothing more than they do and I am nothing special. The only difference is I have the gospel. And that makes ALL the difference. I am so grateful for the opportunity to lift the heads that hang down and hold the hands that are reaching out for something...anything...they will bring them closer to the light of Christ. 

As a closing I'd love to share a scripture that I found this week in study that I absolutely love. Its in John chapter 15 verses 12-20 and 26-27. 

12. This is my commandment, That ye love one another as I have loved you. 

13. Greater love hath no man that this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

14. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 

15. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth; but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. 

16. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 

17. These things I command you, that ye love one another. 

18. If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.

19. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

20. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater that his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. 

21. But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me. 

26. But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me. 

27. And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning. 

I love these verses. For me it helps me know that hard times will come. Sometimes the world will hate the things we believe or do. But it doesn't matter. Because our goal is not to be of the world. We will not be with the world forever. But with our Heavenly Father....he is with us Always. Including after this frail life of imperfections, tragedies, challenges, and difficulties. If they rejected the Savior, the Son of God, they will reject us also. But it is for those that do not reject the message of God that we work, for them that we trek around day and night to invite them unto Christ. 

I love you all so much and I am increasingly more grateful for your love and support everyday. Have an amazing week!

Sister Heyer

Tchau Valinhos!

[Emily refers to General Conference a lot in this letter.  Every 6 months our church holds a conference shown throughout the world translated into 92 languages.  All of the talks given uplift and instruct.  If you are interested in hearing or reading the talks Emily refers to, click on the speaker's name below.  If you would like to see all of the talks they can be found here.]

Well...you guessed it. I'VE BEEN TRANSFERRED. Its incredibly sad and also a little exciting but mostly I'm just anxious to know where I am going. I wont know til tomorrow morning like everybody else this time. All I know is I am not training yet. Which is such a relief because I don't want to yet. haha. But I don't know anything else sooo that should be interesting. Packing my two suitcases was such a pain. I hate packing. I don't know what I was thinking when I sent in my papers to be a missionary if I hate packing because I will be doing a lot of packing for the next year and 2 months. ;) Yep that's right...year and two months....I passed 4 MONTHS this week. Time is flying. Anyways I am very sad to leave all the people here. I love the people here. But I am excited for a new chapter and a new companion. :)

This week....nothing really happened. hahaha. A lot of knocking on doors and teaching lessons and making contacts but no huge developments or major miracles. Just the little miracles like....everyone in my house got the flu (the cold kind) and I started to feel a little sick so I drank vitamin C and prayer super hard and the next day I was fine. Then of course two days later I ate something (still not sure what did it) and was up all night emptying my stomach. That was miserable. Still tired. But I didn't die and it passed so I think I'm okay. ;) 

Conference was beautiful. I loved it. I was able to use the bishops laptop and some head phones so I could understand everything. Maybe it's not the best way to embrace the culture but I was really looking for some inspiration so I was really grateful he offered.  I did however listen to various parts in Portuguese and I learned something really sad....they only say the talks....there were many people that started with jokes or cute stories...and they didn't say any of it. But it was interesting because I was able to tell when the apostles were speaking "live revelation" and not just reading what they had already prepared. It was pretty neat. 

I loved everything about conference. I took soooo many notes. It will be hard to share some favorites. I noticed that almost every speaker talked about preparing for more difficulties and persecution and preparing to return to Heavenly Father. I got the impression that things are about to get a lot worse and that the second coming is really soon...but also that we need not be scared if we are keeping the commandments, sharing the gospel, and doing what is right. I liked what Elder Hales said about how the greatest blessings of conference come after its over and that the messages are a protection. I loved what Elder Dube said about not looking back and thinking that you have done enough and that the past is to be learned from but not lived in (look ahead). I thought his accent was really cool too. ;) I loved Elder Uchtdorfs talk about how there is always a place in the church for you even if you have drifted and that if you are really looking for something...HERE you will find it. I liked what Elder Nielson said about praying by name for the missionaries in your ward and their investigators because if you dont know a name or a face God wont help you know their heart. I also really loved What Elder Dyches said about how when God gives us a commandment He also gives of the love and ability to keep it. Elder Hollands talk as usual was my favorite and very inspired. The day before conference we had been talking about how there are tons of people that we are teaching and in our ward that have depression. The next day he gave a very specific talk on depression. It was beautiful. I loved that he said "if the bitter cup does not pass...drink it and stay strong". And "if we don't take time to be well we will talk time to be ill". I loved this because it gave me an excuse to go home after conference and take a nap. (JUST KIDDING) I loved it because there are lots of people that don't take time to take care of themselves and then they aren't happy. Its important we take care of ourselves too. Its like the scripture that talks about how our bodies are a temple. Would we leave the temple dirty and always running wasting energy and sad looking and wasting away....no. So its important we don't do that with our bodies and our spirit too. (Sorry I'm going to keep going) I loved what Elder Eyring said for parents with difficult children "I gave him to you to love and care for him no matter what because I knew you would". I also loved what Elder Maynes said, "you must become the rock that the river cannot wash away". I loved what Elder Andersen said about how "the lens of mortality doesn't always give us all the answers". And that its our "destiny to prepare the world for the coming of the Savior". I thought the talk by Elder McConkie was especially pertinent to missionaries about studying the lessons and being good teachers. I liked that he said we cant fail because he will speak to us. That was encouraging. :) I loved that he said that "you know you are speaking from the Holy Ghost when you learn something from what you have said". I loved the talk by Elder Ochoa talking about looking up. And that there is safety in a strong testimony. And that if you meet something that causes you to question your testimony look up and ask the one source that has all the answers. And Elder Nelsons point " Sin even if legalized by man is still sin in the eyes of God". And his powerful statement that " the doctrine of God is not ours to change it is ours to learn and teach". Last but certainly not least I loved President Monsons talk when he said "shall I falter or shall I finish?" And also "the stronger the wind the stronger the trees" and "we are lifted up in our tears....He will not fail us".

With that I will say one more thing about conference that I think is interesting....I heard lots of things about staying strong and sharing the gospel....my companion and Sister A who are preparing to leave for home in the next two months heard a lot about eternal marriage, raising kids, and the temple. Coincidence??? I think not! ;) I think it is funny how we hear what we need for us in the right moments of our lives. 

Well that is all from me. Photos to come. And a big email talking about my new area will come too next week. :) Pray that my new area is awesome and safe and I wont get lost. ;) <3 I love you all so much and miss you all tons and tons! <3 

Sister Heyer

4 Months

[Today's email.]

Helloooooooooo!

This week flewwww by again! Only two weeks left of the transfer. Almost have 4 months. I dont believe it. 

Anyways. This week was awesome!

Monday we returned to L and L. L (the husband) said he would be baptized. And L (the wife) said that if her mom didn't come into town she would be too with him but if she comes she will be next week. L said that he wouldnt wait for her. He wanted to be baptized this week. It was kinda funny because she said "can't you wait for me for one more week" and he said..."no if you want to be baptized together you can be baptized this week with or without your mom here. I want to be baptized now." hahaha. Poor L. Anyways her mom ended up coming so Sat. was his interview. He passed of course and Sunday I almost died when he actually walked into the meeting! The first time coming to church. 8 weeks. Miracles happen. He loved church. And at 6:00 that night he showed up at the church on time.....and even brought L, her mom, and his two daughters to watch him be baptized. The baptism was the most spiritual and happy baptism I have seen yet. The spirit was so strong. While waiting for him to change instead of singing a hundred hymns, members of the ward got up and bore their testimonies about their baptism! I didnt realize how many converts there are in our ward. It was amazing. His family was really touched. I think they will all eventually be baptized. Even the skeptical mother in law was really impressed and really felt the spirit. When he came up out of the water I have never seen a smile so big. He was literally beaming and looked elated. It was amazing. After the baptism we all had cake. As they were leaving L (the wife) turned to us and said...."next week will be me." It was amazing. I am so excited.  8 weeks of patience and doubt from leaders and even from us....and he was baptized. It was a spritual experience to always remember. 

 Wednesday we literally woke a sleeping man up to invite him to be baptized and he said yes! Poor thing was sleeping and we came to his house to talk with his wife who is already a member. When we explained we were here to invite him to be batized she pushed us into their room where he was sleeping and woke him up right in front of us! He sat up in his bed and grogily said yes to being baptized Saturday.....not sure if he was really awake so we will have to see if that really happens but it was awesome none the less! It reminded me of that scripture in the bible...I think its in John but to be honest its Pday and my brain is mush right now. Anyways the scripture literally says....ARISE AND BE BAPTIZED! hahaha.

Friday we set up a table in the center with the other sisters and passed out cards and talked to what felt like a billion people about the gospel and invited everyone to church. We had a box of 50 Book of Mormons and by the end of 2 hours they were all gone. It was amazing! We decided to do this once every week. It was a great way to talk to people and make contacts. I am so excited to continue. It was a little scary at first and not everyone stopped to listen but at least 100 people stopped and if even one person goes to church because of our efforts I will be estatic. :) 

Today I went to the Police office and they took my prints and I got all my documents in order! I am officially legal!!! :D 

This week: Pray for C. Pray that she will feel ready for baptism Saturday and that her mom, sister, and daughter will like the message we are sharing with them tomorrow. <3 

Anyways thats about it for me this week. Sorry its not a lot. I love you all and I miss you all LOADS. Hope all is well. You are always in my thoughts and prayers. <3 

Sister Heyer

Time Flies...

[This letter came on September 16.]

Oi!

This week was loads better. It fleww by so like Dad said, that means things are going well! ;) This week we worked super hard in the HOT HOT HOT sun and because of it I have 25 mosquito bites the size of half dollars and a shirt, skirt, shoes, and watch tanline that is sure to impress all when I return...but also I have stories of miracles. :)

Monday we went to the coral in Campinas to play games and eat lunch with our zone and all the other Elders in Campinas city. It was really fun. The best part was when we were all on the onibus to go back to the rodaviaria to catch a bus to Valinhos Elder A. (One of zone leaders) dared me to stand up on the bus and make contacts (or basically to shout to everyone on the bus who we are and invite them to talk with the missionaries and go to church). He is learning English so he spoke in English and I translated to Portuguese. It was AWESOME. I was super nervous but I knew how to translate everything and it was a really neat experience. I was really grateful he pushed me out of my comfort zone because making street contacts is the hardest and scariest thing for me. It was fun. 

A little bit about some of our investigators this week. 

M and G- An old catholic couple who actually is listening to our message. M is quiet. She has a lottt of questions and believes everything we tell her. She is really special. But it will truly be a miracle if they get baptized because they are incredibly devoted to being Catholic. Right now she is talking as if she will apply all of our teachings to Catholicism and continue at her church because she is a missionary there and has a job there and everything. But who knows! We believe in miracles! So we will invite them to be baptized Thursday when we return. 

G and AP- A FAMILY! They have a daughter who is 8 and a son who is 5. They are a beautiful family. G was the only one home with the kids when we knocked on their door one day so we taught him about how his family can be together forever. We have yet to meet AP but he was very positive and said they don't have a church. They are a very sweet family and we will return Thursday and hopefully teach them both and if the timing feels right...invite them to be baptized too. 

MA- He is inactive and is married to sweet I. We visited him this week when he was sober. He was a lot more closed and distanced. This will be a bigger challenge than we thought especially since I don't know a thing about alcoholism. Pray we can know how to help. 

L and L- I'm sure that I have already told you a little bit about them. They are married and have 3 older teens. I have been teaching them since my first day in Brazil. They were my very first lesson. For eight weeks we have been teaching them and inviting them to church and every week they say they will go and then they don't show up on Sunday. But they've come to almost every church activity. Its been very frustrating because they are reading the Book of Mormon and they are praying together and like our message. And we love them soooo much. I refuse to give up on them. So this week during the district meeting we passed them as "possibles". (Every meeting our District gets together and talks about who they are teaching that will almost surely be baptized and is progressing. And "prometido...or promised" which means they have a baptism date. Then someone offers a prayer for every single person for each area. It's really neat.) Anyway we passed them as possibles for the 5th time. We felt really strongly we should. After the meeting my district leader told me that him and the zone leaders are tired of us passing them as possibles because they are "mali" which means they....are lazy and aren't really interested right now. They wanted us to pick new people. But we stayed firm. If we didn't pass them as possibles then we were basically closing our minds and hearts to the possibility that now they are ready. We won't give up on them and we trust our feelings. We went with our gut and kept them as possibles. 

This week we went to their house almost every night to teach and to see how they are doing. We decided to do something different and we watched Finding Faith in Christ. L cried. Afterwards L promised, a very firm promise, that this week they will go to church. She also told us her husband has been thinking about getting baptized and is actually really serious. If he gets baptized she will too. For the first time we left the lesson smiling and happy. Thennnnn Sunday came...and they didn't show up. AGAIN. It was so frustrating because we had so much faith they would come. So yesterday night we went to their house to find out what happened. Their motorcycle had broken down. -_- L was in the shower so we only talked with L(the husband) a little bit and he told us we could come teach tomorrow (today lol). So we left. As we were walking back to our house I felt very strongly that there was something we needed to do. I can't even describe it but my heart was aching and aching and I was close to tears and I didn't know why. I just kept having the same thought...go back. go back. go back. I stopped my companion and asked if we could say a prayer because something wasn't right. I prayed to know what to do and afterwards me and my companion both felt really strongly that we should go back. We had no idea why or what to say but we almost ran back to their house. When we got there he was super confused why we were back. We were too. It was a little awkward because we didn't know what to say. Finally I just burst out "we felt really strongly we need to come back and talk with you but we don't know why!". He asked if we were scared to walk back alone and offered to walk us back home with L (his wife). We said no that that wasn't it. And then my companion almost bust out the baptism invite. hahahaha. She invited him to be baptized this Sunday. And then she started crying. hahaha. He was a little shocked....but he told us he has been seriously thinking. We could tell he was a little shocked and unsure so we told him to pray with his wife that night and when we go back today....hopefully they will have an answer and it will be YES. I then said a prayer with him in the street in front of his house and choked up too. The spirit was so strong! He didn't really looked moved....just scared I think hahaha....but I KNOW he felt the spirit. This is the 4th time we have invited them to be baptized. But this time is different. This time I know with all my heart we have done our part. They have their agency so there is always the possibility that they answer will be no....but we left last night lightened and happy because we know we have done our part. If anything it was a really amazing spiritual experience that we will never forget. Pray for them. Pray they will accept. They are ready. They are prepared. They only are lacking a little faith. But we have faith. Pray for them. <3 

This Friday we are setting up a both in the park with the other two sisters here and passing out pamphlets and Book of Mormons. Yes we have permission. ;) Its legal. I am really excited. It will be something different! 

I am finding it hard to ignore everyone that doesn't believe in us and is constantly judging us. But my companion helps me a lot by reminding me that the only opinion we need to worry about is the Lords and He knows we are working. :) 

This transfer is almost over already. I cant believe it. TODAY I HAVE 2 MONTHS IN BRAZIL! I also cant believe it. haha. Time is flying by. I don't want to be transfered. But I think I will be. :( 

Anyways I hope that all is well with everyone. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa URen for the emails! I love reading them! Sorry I don't have a lot of time to write you individually but a letter is coming. :) I love you all so much and I am so grateful for you in my life. <3 Have a wonderful week!!!

Love, 

Sister Heyer

Happy Birthday to Me!

[This email came on September 9.]

Hello! Not much to write this week but I'll do my best.

Tuesday was my birthday! I feel really old. I cant believe I am not a teen anymore. Time flies. We had a district meeting and at the end my zone leaders surprised me with a cake and ice cream and they sang Happy Birthday to me in English Portuguese and Spanish (because that's where all of the missionaries in our zone are from). It was really sweet. :) The rest of the day....I worked. And worked and worked. It was an interesting birthday. Didn't really feel like a birthday but that's okay. :) It was a pretty good day so that counts for something. When we were walking home I used the money on my card and bought ice cream and pizza for all of us to eat for dinner. We cooked and ate by candlelight because the power went out in our house. When it miraculously returned we played Uno and went to bed. 

The rest of the week was a lot of knocking on doors and trying to find new people. We found lots of new people to teach this week so hopefully next week will have more stories. :) 

One cool story though is that we taught one lady the Plan of Salvation. She loved it and was moved to tears when we taught her about how we could be with our families. The next day we found out that her brother was in a huge motorcycle accident that morning and had passed away. The timing of the Lord is amazing. I am always so surprised when little miracles like this happen. It is amazing to be a part of this work. I know that although it is truly difficult to burden this grief....it will be a little more comforting for her knowing about The plan of salvation. 

 Love and miss you all more than you can imagine! 

Sister Heyer

Pictures!!!

[I apologize for not posting the past few letters.  I will post them all tonight...and then do better.  Here are some picture Emily sent us September 23.]