Happy Thanksgiving

Nov 25, 2013

Cara Familia

Well its been a pretty regular week on the mission. Our resources have been running low here in Belo Vale and we knocked a bunch of doors this week, and we learned a good lesson. This does not work in this area. So we abandoned the doors and just went to talk to people. It was a pretty good week of just talking to people on the street and trying to get contacts to teach. But its been going pretty good. In these last few days we have had some people stop us and ask us about the church, (or the states). Usually its just teenage boys, but hey we´ll teach´m and their families. We also have found two people who were ALMOST baptized in the  past, so we will visit them this week to change that almost to a recently. Lets see how it works out.

But I just wanted to take some time to say what I am thankful for. I am thankful for the Gift of Tounges. Tongues   It truly is a miracle that i can speak how I can speak with such little time in the country. Também é uma milagre que consigo escrever e ler nesta linguá e pensar e traduzir rapidamente de Inglês para português e vice versa. It's also a miracle that I can read and write this language and thinking and quickly translate from English to Portuguese and vice versa.  I am also thankful for Pregar Meu Evangelho. Preach My Gospel   It is truly an inspired manual. I am thankful for O Livro de Mórmon The Book of Mormon being a proof of the restauration. as well as being a life guide. I am thankful for prayer and fasting, even when it is hot outside. I am thankful for the wonderful people here in brazil and also for my wonderful family and friends who support and pray for me. I am most thankful for the opportunity that I have to represent The Lord Jesus Christ and His only true Church. I am so thankful for my testemony so that i can say that I KNOW that this is the truth and it is the ONLY way to get back home. Se eu não soubesse com uma certeza antes eu nem estaria aqui no Brasil. Eu sei que Joseph Smith foi um profeta de Deus. Eu sei que A Igreja é guida por profetas e apóstolos que tem as devidas chaves da salvação. Esta é a verdade. Graças dou a Deus por esta oportunidade que tenho de declarar estas boas novas ao mundo. Had I not known with certainty before I would not be here in Brazil. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I know that The Church is guided by prophets and apostles who has the keys of salvation due. This is the truth. I thank God for this opportunity I have to declare these glad tidings to the world.  I hope you all enjoy the google translate feature now, but my testemony is in portugeuse. Thanks for the prayers and keep them coming. 

Love you all and Happy Thanksgiving. Eat some pie for me.

Elder Applegate

The Power of the Spirit

Nov 18, 2013

Family

So this we a very good week. We had some very good lessons with people. here are some quick stories

Yolanda and juliana - We were visiting some names from the menos ativo list and we found these two ladys. the mom and aunt of a member. The mom is very frank and sincere in her speach. so we were also very frank and sincere. These too ladies understood the lesson so well that they were really excited to accept the invitation to be baptized, but then some things came up and none of them could go to church, so we will have to go there and remark a date, but when we were teaching clearly and very VERY frankly about the great apostasy the spirit strongly testified to these ladies until one said to us that know she understands how God feels about all of these churches.

Eliana e Familia - The Sisters had passed this contact to us. We went and visited her, she was part of the Church - Work in Restauration. She seemed nice and accepting, then her mother came into the room. She had a look on her face like we were the devil. She was trying to show us the "true doctrine" but she lost herself when we started agreeing with her, completely. We taught about the ministry and the Church of Christ and she agreed completely, we taught about authority and she agreed completely, we taught about the great apostasy and she agreed completely. Then we got the part about Joseph Smith. When we said the first vision and testified of it the spirit was so strong that this women(the mom) stood up with a confused look and tears in her eyes and left the house, we continued with her daughter and he family until she also accepted to read the book of mormon and be baptized (still without a date yet) When we went back there she had read the book of mormon (yay) and then surprised us and said that the mom was also reading it and studying the footnotes. She hadn´t prayed about it yet, but we had a good lesson talking about the restauration of authority of the priesthood. ( a first in my mission explaining this in the 2nd visit)

This is what i have learned this week. That the spirit touches people, sometimes with such force that the unbelieving will not be able to stand it. The spirit can change thoughts, open hearts and teach the truth. We someone learns restored douctrine they willl go through a change as the spirit testifies. These were the two highlights of the week. We will see how it turns out this week with these 2 families.

Also we had an opportunity to serve some members. We visited this couple and she was really sick and her dishes had piled up (like alot) so we offered to wash them, and for  the first time in my mission, she accepted our help. We washed piles of dishes in 40 minutes. this couple was so thankful and was really touched, it was a great day that day.

I am doing great. Hope this week is awesome for you all
Love 

Craigers

Cream of Açai the white is powdered milk and the brown is sweet peanuts. with strawberries and sweetened condensed milk on top. Açaí it is a super fruit. what i am eating is all natural (except for the candy toppings.) It is one of the best things in the world!

One Year

Nov 11, 2013

Well family

I have been out for one year now. Olha só que bênção! Look what a blessing!  It has been a wonderful year full of great experiences, ups and downs, lefts and rights, and who-knows-whats, but that is the mission. I am looking forward to one more wonderful year full of miracles. 

As for this week, Sunday was an adventure, it looked like every thing was trying to discourage me. No investigators came to church, no visitors in church, then after church we had fried fish for lunch, full fish with heads and tails and everything, then in the afternoon there was a soccer game, so nobody would let us in to teach them, we spent 4 hours just doing street contacts with the strangest people. We met a group of ladies from another church, one was a new member, one was a missionary, and one was a deacon. and another lady who said that her pastor told them not to receive messages from other churches, but she said that Jesus wouldn't reject us. so then I told her, "you are right, so who should we follow, Jesus or our pastor?" she said "Jesus" then I said, "so can we share our message with you" She was without words and still decided to reject us. But she understood that she was wrong. SO that was my awful sunday, but I am so stinking happy and animado, excited that nothing will take my smile away and my excitement. There isn't any way to be discouraged when you represent Jesus Christ and his ONLY church. 

But in other news we taught a lady who has 14 children from 13 years to 34 years old. She said that she was dying to talk to us, and was really happy that we returned to her house. I sure was happy too. we are going to visit her to night, so lets see what happens :) 

Also we taught this baptist kid, he let us in with the intent to bible bash with us and tell us why we were wrong. But as we explained our first message we saw his heart change. When he learned the truth, the spirit touched him and everything changed. I love our message and I love that the  Bible shows it too. This was a great experience, but then when we left the lesson all the lights in a good part of the city went out, so we had to walk home in darkness, which was a little sketchy, but we got there safely without any problems. 

I am seeing a giant change happen in myself. it is like a light turned on when i passed a year. I am learning so much about the simple truths that we know and love. Also i am seeing the importance of these truths.

I love this gospel and the power that our message has. I invite all of you to read in Preach my Gospel chapter 3 lesson 1 and learn for your selfs the simple truths. 

Love you all
Elder Applegate

Note from Elder Ogden's father:

 I have to say what a small world it is!  When  you sent the picture and said that your companion’s last name is Applegate, I was amaze at how much he looks like my fourth grade teacher.  You will have that other email from me but I was more and more convinced that they are related.  We called Uncle Perry he confirmed for me that your companion’s dad is Don Applegate who was my 4^th grade teacher.  If I remember correctly, my year of elementary school was Don’s first year as a teacher.  He was my favorite teacher and I still remember as a 9 year old boy telling people that my teacher was so nice, I didn’t want Christmas break to come because I just wanted to stay in his class.  He was also very patient with me.   I still remember him fondly and am so thrilled that you are mission companions with his son!  Please ask your companion to forward this paragraph to his dad and see if we can get their phone number.  I would like to call him and reconnect.

A Week of Adventures

Nov 4, 2013

Dear family,

Well this had been an eventful week. We had an emergency transfer this week, so here is what happened. We get a phone call tuesday night saying that we needed to be in BH the next day, so we went and my companion packed his bags and we took the bus to BH, we got there at 11:30 at night, so we took a taxi from the bus station to the secretaries house (its on the 8th floor in an apartment building in the center of BH). Then I got my new companion. and we went back to Sete Lagoas. I now know why we need to have and emergency fund of cash for travel purposes. :)

So about my new comp. Elder Ogden, 18 years old, He is from Oklahoma, his uncle is Perry Ewell (I think you know him pretty well dad). He is a greenie. I am his step dad (2nd trainer) He has 2 months in the field. He doesn't speak that well yet and he doesn´t understand me too well when I speak, but I don´t speak english to him because it is hard to speak english. he is a great guy. Really young and I feel really old right now. (plus I will have one year on this mission this week!)

Elder Applegate & Elder Ogden

So this week has been very chaotic, but we always have time to do some work and have so funny moments. We were going to contact this one lady that we had talked with on the street and her sons were hauling bricks in a wheelbarrow and they were struggling, so I went to go be strong and help them out, but it had rained that day so the ground was muddy and slick. I went to push the bricks up a little hill and slipped and fell in the mud. My pants and arms got really dirty, and everyone had a good laugh. IT was a great way to break the ice and we got to teach this lady and her 6 kids. She is a blessing, she is a very good investigator. It was a really funny moment.

Rain...looking our from our apt

Also on sunday we had lunch in the mountains on a ranch. There is a member who lives out there, so we got to take a car to the mountains and eat lunch there. It was a wonderful break from the city and the ride reminded me of the ride to Blackhawk. It was really a blessing!

Well I know that we will have a good week.

Love ya all!
Elder APplegate