Fishin' on P-Day
My birthday present. Biggest team in Minas Gerais and about to win the National Cup! By the way, you guys cheer for Cruzeiros too!
Birthday cake! Thank you for everything you sent! I Love You All!
Showing posts with label Ponte Nova. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ponte Nova. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Pictures in the Mail!!
We received a few pictures in the mail this past week along with the best letter ever!! Thought I'd post these for all to see...
Fishin' on P-Day
My birthday present. Biggest team in Minas Gerais and about to win the National Cup! By the way, you guys cheer for Cruzeiros too!
Birthday cake! Thank you for everything you sent! I Love You All!
Fishin' on P-DayMy birthday present. Biggest team in Minas Gerais and about to win the National Cup! By the way, you guys cheer for Cruzeiros too!Birthday cake! Thank you for everything you sent! I Love You All!
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
ultima semana no ponte nova?...pode ser (or in Google Translator: last week at the new bridge? can be ...)
wow! another week dead and gone and never to be relived again. it's always funny to sit here and write about the week and just look back at it and wonder how you made it through or how it went so fast. this week was a great week.
last thursday, after doing some last minute shopping before heading back home, i left the keys with elder mcguire and he locked the door and we were off. upon returning, the door would not open at all. the key would not fit at all. after trying everything, and i mean everything from cards to toothpicks to knifes, the door was shut and we were on the porch with all the groceries still. after calling around and realizing that all the locksmiths were closed, we set off to go sleep in the chapel but we finally found one locksmith open 24 hours. 2 and a half minutes later and 50 bucks poorer we were in the house. needless to say i won't be leaving the keys with mcguire anymore! =) that made the first time and the last time he's locking the door! jk!
the weekend was a great one and had quite a bit of success. the work still seems to me to be going slow but i know that i am trying as hard as i can! i figure after you do all you can and you still see nothing...there's more to be done.
this weekend, there was a big giant bike rally in ponte nova, and mom, you can officially let me go to sturgis now. i've seen it all. it was pretty sweet to walk past the park and hear some great 70s 80s and 90s rock and roll...and yes the united states has the corner on all that music. it was great.
on sunday, i had the opportunity to confirm my first member of the church. maria was confirmed a member and received the best birthday present ever on her birthday of the holy ghost! it was great. and yes....in portuguese. one quick side note...it still hasn't hit me yet that i speak another language almost fluently. kinda weird sometimes! also, on sunday we were given the opportunity to talk because the branch forgot to call the last speaker so mcguire and i split the time. up until sunday, my talks in the mission have not been so hot....most of you all know that i love to speak in public but throw in a new language and it shakes me. that was until sunday. i overcame that road block and gave my personal best talk i think in my life! i talked about the excuses we all give the church to not do missionary work and then i read some scriptures to help us all remember the duty we all have to preach the gospel. it went very well. at least i hope that's why the branch was crying...i hope it wasn't my portuguese! =)
the rest of this week has been just full of work, work and work. mcguire had his bday on monday so we are now two 20 year old boys trying to take on satan. his dad also got called to be stake president by russel m nelson. no biggie right!? he's a great comp.
vicente and eva are still just my favorite people here, if i'm allowed to have favorites. i love them. we went to their house on monday and sat down with them but after we left vicente felt so bad for not feeding us that he and his two girls brought us food to our house. they are so awesome! i didn't think that i would find a family on my mission that would be my temporary mom and dad until i met them! i love them!
this week could be the last week elder excell see's in ponte nova. don't ask me where that transfer went! it flew by! this transfer ends my first 25% of the mission in the field. where did that go? who knows! i can't believe it. life is flying but we are the pilots! if i have to say good bye to this area and this companionship it will be sad. i told myself i wouldn't cry on my mission saying good bye to people but i feel so much a part of this city. i know it better than my own hometown. i know the people down the street better than any others. i have come to the conclusion it's because i see it all with my gospel eyes. i see the man sweeping the sidewalk as my brother. i see the streets as all of our temporary lives here on earth before we can meet in heaven afterwards. it has really helped me to think about the heavenly eyes we all need to use when we look at others and the world around us. this city, if this is my last week here, will never leave my heart. it's concreted itself deeper within me than i ever thought possible.
the lesson learned this week...our lives are the same... and when we try to love those around us...when we see them as family....when we see the eternal plan and the part we share in it together, it becomes a part of us. those around us, when seen with these kind of eyes can not be forgotten.
i love ponte nova and everyone that i have had the great opportunity to meet. from the corrieos ladies to the drunk man on noah's ark. i consider myself as them... pontenovense - (like a rigby-ite, or pocatellan). as i end this epistle, i hope you will all remember the person next to you is your family and remember that there is a plan to be together with that family forever. my name is elder excell and i hereby close mine epistle!
elder excell!
i love you all! have a great week!
last thursday, after doing some last minute shopping before heading back home, i left the keys with elder mcguire and he locked the door and we were off. upon returning, the door would not open at all. the key would not fit at all. after trying everything, and i mean everything from cards to toothpicks to knifes, the door was shut and we were on the porch with all the groceries still. after calling around and realizing that all the locksmiths were closed, we set off to go sleep in the chapel but we finally found one locksmith open 24 hours. 2 and a half minutes later and 50 bucks poorer we were in the house. needless to say i won't be leaving the keys with mcguire anymore! =) that made the first time and the last time he's locking the door! jk!
the weekend was a great one and had quite a bit of success. the work still seems to me to be going slow but i know that i am trying as hard as i can! i figure after you do all you can and you still see nothing...there's more to be done.
this weekend, there was a big giant bike rally in ponte nova, and mom, you can officially let me go to sturgis now. i've seen it all. it was pretty sweet to walk past the park and hear some great 70s 80s and 90s rock and roll...and yes the united states has the corner on all that music. it was great.
on sunday, i had the opportunity to confirm my first member of the church. maria was confirmed a member and received the best birthday present ever on her birthday of the holy ghost! it was great. and yes....in portuguese. one quick side note...it still hasn't hit me yet that i speak another language almost fluently. kinda weird sometimes! also, on sunday we were given the opportunity to talk because the branch forgot to call the last speaker so mcguire and i split the time. up until sunday, my talks in the mission have not been so hot....most of you all know that i love to speak in public but throw in a new language and it shakes me. that was until sunday. i overcame that road block and gave my personal best talk i think in my life! i talked about the excuses we all give the church to not do missionary work and then i read some scriptures to help us all remember the duty we all have to preach the gospel. it went very well. at least i hope that's why the branch was crying...i hope it wasn't my portuguese! =)
the rest of this week has been just full of work, work and work. mcguire had his bday on monday so we are now two 20 year old boys trying to take on satan. his dad also got called to be stake president by russel m nelson. no biggie right!? he's a great comp.
vicente and eva are still just my favorite people here, if i'm allowed to have favorites. i love them. we went to their house on monday and sat down with them but after we left vicente felt so bad for not feeding us that he and his two girls brought us food to our house. they are so awesome! i didn't think that i would find a family on my mission that would be my temporary mom and dad until i met them! i love them!
this week could be the last week elder excell see's in ponte nova. don't ask me where that transfer went! it flew by! this transfer ends my first 25% of the mission in the field. where did that go? who knows! i can't believe it. life is flying but we are the pilots! if i have to say good bye to this area and this companionship it will be sad. i told myself i wouldn't cry on my mission saying good bye to people but i feel so much a part of this city. i know it better than my own hometown. i know the people down the street better than any others. i have come to the conclusion it's because i see it all with my gospel eyes. i see the man sweeping the sidewalk as my brother. i see the streets as all of our temporary lives here on earth before we can meet in heaven afterwards. it has really helped me to think about the heavenly eyes we all need to use when we look at others and the world around us. this city, if this is my last week here, will never leave my heart. it's concreted itself deeper within me than i ever thought possible.
the lesson learned this week...our lives are the same... and when we try to love those around us...when we see them as family....when we see the eternal plan and the part we share in it together, it becomes a part of us. those around us, when seen with these kind of eyes can not be forgotten.
i love ponte nova and everyone that i have had the great opportunity to meet. from the corrieos ladies to the drunk man on noah's ark. i consider myself as them... pontenovense - (like a rigby-ite, or pocatellan). as i end this epistle, i hope you will all remember the person next to you is your family and remember that there is a plan to be together with that family forever. my name is elder excell and i hereby close mine epistle!
elder excell!
i love you all! have a great week!
Q&A - August 18, 2010
1. Do you think you'll still be in Ponte Nova on September 5th for the wedding?
....that remains to be seen but i really really hope so! it would be sad if not but the lord knows what he does and as always i'll go where he wants me to go!
2. When are transfers?
transfers are next week...
3. What are the plans for today's pday?
sleep! i need to still catch up on it from a couple weeks of big things happening! i'll write some good letters too!
4. What is your favorite scripture and why?
phew...i don't even know where to start. i have seriously a list started in my journal...a whole page of them. the one that comes to mind right now is matthew 10:39...great mission reminder scripture!
5. Any questions for us?
1. can i get a real street address for bethani casper?
2. can you send me any blog comments people put up? it would be cool to see...
3. when you get a chance however it may come...can you send paul cardall the christmas box...it's mission approved music and i would love to have it. if you can send it through email that would be awesome...however it works out would be greatly appreciated!
4. where is the house of the extreme makeover gonna be at? where in poky?
5. whitney james is getting married!!?!?!?! wow!
6. any other relationship changes latey...weston? he better wait for me to get home!
7. how was brax's first week out in the real world?
8. how much is a dozen white eggs in the states?
....that remains to be seen but i really really hope so! it would be sad if not but the lord knows what he does and as always i'll go where he wants me to go!
2. When are transfers?
transfers are next week...
3. What are the plans for today's pday?
sleep! i need to still catch up on it from a couple weeks of big things happening! i'll write some good letters too!
4. What is your favorite scripture and why?
phew...i don't even know where to start. i have seriously a list started in my journal...a whole page of them. the one that comes to mind right now is matthew 10:39...great mission reminder scripture!
5. Any questions for us?
1. can i get a real street address for bethani casper?
2. can you send me any blog comments people put up? it would be cool to see...
3. when you get a chance however it may come...can you send paul cardall the christmas box...it's mission approved music and i would love to have it. if you can send it through email that would be awesome...however it works out would be greatly appreciated!
4. where is the house of the extreme makeover gonna be at? where in poky?
5. whitney james is getting married!!?!?!?! wow!
6. any other relationship changes latey...weston? he better wait for me to get home!
7. how was brax's first week out in the real world?
8. how much is a dozen white eggs in the states?
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Pictures
noodles for lunch!
the companionship of all companionships, elder excell and elder mcguire
maria, baptized aug 8, 2010
bday cake...mom, this is the brazilian version
Ponte Nova - version 3.4
can anyone believe the time is flying as fast as it is? as weird as it may be to some of you, and including myself, i will be hitting 7 months since i have been away from all you beautiful folks! that's insane in my point of view! this week has been a great week tho. coming back from zone conference last week with a lot of energy to just put our shoulder to the wheel and push a long. we definitely pushed tho that's for sure!
last p day was really nice because we just kinda took a break and wrote some letters and just loved the company of each other. i love elder mcguire. we have some of the greatest talks. alright, i guess it's just like one big giant talk, but i love the kid! we are very very good friends and there was definitely more than a companionship in mind when heavenly father put us together!
this week we made our own recipe for tortillas, because contrary to popular belief, these people here do not have the same diet as mexicans. so we made our own, and all of the sudden, we feel like we have the world at our fingertips! you can make anything with a good ol' tortilla. we've been busy at work. oh, and p.s., if anyone has a good recipe for mango salsa, which i'm sure someone does, please send it. we are in the land of mangoes.
that does bring up an interesting point. there are a lot of things that i thought they would have here that they just don't have. for example, tortillas, tortilla chips, pepsi products besides pepsi cola, peanut butter, potato chips, lemons, chili peppers, ranch or salad dressing in general, barbecue, and they don't even have pepper at most places. it's a different culture for sure.
oh, i need to add in here, due to the popularity of the question, how to pronounce the portuguese j and the best way to describe it is it's pretty close to english but more soft. the letter j here is pronounced jota but the j sounds like shzhshzhota. kinda.
this week we were successful in marking neide and miltons wedding date for the 5th of september! what a giant step. we got enough money to be able to finish up the costs and mark it! i'm so stoked for them. they are just so stoked to get baptized in the only true church. neide often says when people ask her if she is changing religion, she responds, no i found religion! that's what's up neide! you tell 'em!
this weekend, we had a baptism for maria assumpção da silva! she is a 76 year old rock star! she's awesome! let me just give you a sneak peek at the world of maria. on thursday when we taught her and invited for baptism, we both felt like it was gonna have to wait another week and then when mcguire opened his mouth he started to say "do you think.." in a real soft uncorageous way, but then he stopped and said "maria, you know it's true. will you be baptized?" and immediately, she knew and was baptized that sunday! on saturday she had her interview and she is kinda old and forgetful, so she was ready for us to come get her, but then her neighbor told her she didn't have church today so she got changed again and started to work in the yard, so when we came to get her she wasn't ready but then she changed and off we went. while walking there, she said her neighbor was a malignant spirit of the devil tempting her! hilarious! then later that day, we went to go check up on her and she had locked herself in the house and lost the keys so we said a prayer and she found them. but she did however tell us she was always like saint peter and held on to her keys. haha, get it, cause christ gave peter the keys! hilarious! but she cussed out the devil pretty good for hiding her keys! she's a hoot! i love her! it will be great to have the opportunity to chill with her in the celestial kingdom lounge!
anyway, sunday was great because of the baptism and then we had a manhunt going out in the city with a good group of members trying to find all the less actives. it was pretty successful!
anyway, it's been a great week with some good food and some great memories. it's kind of brought me back to think about the purpose of our life and how we measure this earthly life. i've come to the conclusion that life is not measured by minutes and hours, but by moments, and moments are made by those who choose to make them. make your minutes moments because moments are what we remember. i don't know if it's the being far away from home, but the only thing i am now remembering is the memories and particularly with my family. the minutes passed then and didn't mean much, but my family memories and friend moments mean everything to me right now. i have a pretty good feeling too that if we keep the moments good ones right now, the life after will be a lot more pleasant. make a moment with your family tonight. it's worth it!
i love my family with all my heart and i love this work with all my heart. it will be a great week again only because i plan on making it one. another thought to ponder...life is what we make it out to be. so yes, very literally, we control our hope and destiny.
i love you all! can't wait to hear from you all again! have a great week!
elder excell
last p day was really nice because we just kinda took a break and wrote some letters and just loved the company of each other. i love elder mcguire. we have some of the greatest talks. alright, i guess it's just like one big giant talk, but i love the kid! we are very very good friends and there was definitely more than a companionship in mind when heavenly father put us together!
this week we made our own recipe for tortillas, because contrary to popular belief, these people here do not have the same diet as mexicans. so we made our own, and all of the sudden, we feel like we have the world at our fingertips! you can make anything with a good ol' tortilla. we've been busy at work. oh, and p.s., if anyone has a good recipe for mango salsa, which i'm sure someone does, please send it. we are in the land of mangoes.
that does bring up an interesting point. there are a lot of things that i thought they would have here that they just don't have. for example, tortillas, tortilla chips, pepsi products besides pepsi cola, peanut butter, potato chips, lemons, chili peppers, ranch or salad dressing in general, barbecue, and they don't even have pepper at most places. it's a different culture for sure.
oh, i need to add in here, due to the popularity of the question, how to pronounce the portuguese j and the best way to describe it is it's pretty close to english but more soft. the letter j here is pronounced jota but the j sounds like shzhshzhota. kinda.
this week we were successful in marking neide and miltons wedding date for the 5th of september! what a giant step. we got enough money to be able to finish up the costs and mark it! i'm so stoked for them. they are just so stoked to get baptized in the only true church. neide often says when people ask her if she is changing religion, she responds, no i found religion! that's what's up neide! you tell 'em!
this weekend, we had a baptism for maria assumpção da silva! she is a 76 year old rock star! she's awesome! let me just give you a sneak peek at the world of maria. on thursday when we taught her and invited for baptism, we both felt like it was gonna have to wait another week and then when mcguire opened his mouth he started to say "do you think.." in a real soft uncorageous way, but then he stopped and said "maria, you know it's true. will you be baptized?" and immediately, she knew and was baptized that sunday! on saturday she had her interview and she is kinda old and forgetful, so she was ready for us to come get her, but then her neighbor told her she didn't have church today so she got changed again and started to work in the yard, so when we came to get her she wasn't ready but then she changed and off we went. while walking there, she said her neighbor was a malignant spirit of the devil tempting her! hilarious! then later that day, we went to go check up on her and she had locked herself in the house and lost the keys so we said a prayer and she found them. but she did however tell us she was always like saint peter and held on to her keys. haha, get it, cause christ gave peter the keys! hilarious! but she cussed out the devil pretty good for hiding her keys! she's a hoot! i love her! it will be great to have the opportunity to chill with her in the celestial kingdom lounge!
anyway, sunday was great because of the baptism and then we had a manhunt going out in the city with a good group of members trying to find all the less actives. it was pretty successful!
anyway, it's been a great week with some good food and some great memories. it's kind of brought me back to think about the purpose of our life and how we measure this earthly life. i've come to the conclusion that life is not measured by minutes and hours, but by moments, and moments are made by those who choose to make them. make your minutes moments because moments are what we remember. i don't know if it's the being far away from home, but the only thing i am now remembering is the memories and particularly with my family. the minutes passed then and didn't mean much, but my family memories and friend moments mean everything to me right now. i have a pretty good feeling too that if we keep the moments good ones right now, the life after will be a lot more pleasant. make a moment with your family tonight. it's worth it!
i love my family with all my heart and i love this work with all my heart. it will be a great week again only because i plan on making it one. another thought to ponder...life is what we make it out to be. so yes, very literally, we control our hope and destiny.
i love you all! can't wait to hear from you all again! have a great week!
elder excell
Q&A - August 11, 2010
1. You talked about fishing in a shirt and tie last week in your email. Does that mean that you wear your dress clothes even on pday if you go out in public? Are you wearing your dress clothes this very moment?
ya, we aren't allowed to wear normal clothes in this mission outside of our homes. so ya my normal clothes don't get much use! right now i'm in mission attire.
2. Will the changes that you mentioned about zone conferences and other meetings affect how often you are able to get your mail now? If so, do you know yet how often you will be able to get your mail?
i mean, as far as we know, yes. the only problem is, here in ponte nova, the only time we see missionaries, besides ourselves in the mirror, is at zone conference. normally, people will have their district bring them mail if someone goes into bh but we don't have that luxury so we will be getting mail less often i think...who knows yet tho?
3. Do the changes affect how often transfers will happen?
transfers are still every six weeks.
4. How often does President Parrella visit your area?
so far he has been here once since i've been here. we are literally in the middle of nowhere so we are 4 hours from the closest missionary. it takes a good chunk of a day to visit ponte nova.
5. What have you been studying lately during your personal study time?
lately, i have been reading jesus the christ and pregar meu evangelho...preach my gospel. never enough time tho to actually study everything i want to.
6. Do you have questions for us this week?
1. what is imdb saying about the green zone with matt damon?
2. what type of banana do we eat in the united states?
3. how are the journals coming?
4. what's everyone in the family's favorite scripture and why?
ya, we aren't allowed to wear normal clothes in this mission outside of our homes. so ya my normal clothes don't get much use! right now i'm in mission attire.
2. Will the changes that you mentioned about zone conferences and other meetings affect how often you are able to get your mail now? If so, do you know yet how often you will be able to get your mail?
i mean, as far as we know, yes. the only problem is, here in ponte nova, the only time we see missionaries, besides ourselves in the mirror, is at zone conference. normally, people will have their district bring them mail if someone goes into bh but we don't have that luxury so we will be getting mail less often i think...who knows yet tho?
3. Do the changes affect how often transfers will happen?
transfers are still every six weeks.
4. How often does President Parrella visit your area?
so far he has been here once since i've been here. we are literally in the middle of nowhere so we are 4 hours from the closest missionary. it takes a good chunk of a day to visit ponte nova.
5. What have you been studying lately during your personal study time?
lately, i have been reading jesus the christ and pregar meu evangelho...preach my gospel. never enough time tho to actually study everything i want to.
6. Do you have questions for us this week?
1. what is imdb saying about the green zone with matt damon?
2. what type of banana do we eat in the united states?
3. how are the journals coming?
4. what's everyone in the family's favorite scripture and why?
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
I'm 20? - Ponte Nova
well, another week done and gone! once again i have no idea where that went and how it just managed to fly by. although, i did get a sweet quote from grandma that i loved that said "life flies by but you are the pilot!" i loved it. a good thought.
so this week, once again, has been full of plenty of adventures and plenty of those moments where you just can't help but be thankful for the life you were given here on earth and the knowledge of the gospel!
last pday we went fishing! it was awesome! we never got anything but hey, what's the true point of fishing? to get something or to just enjoy the scenery and the company. we headed out after a great day of emails and all and got on a bus that gets just up above town a bit and we threw our lines in and went at it. it was so nice to sit on the rocks with a guaraná in hand and just swap some good stories with elder mcguire! i love the kid! he's my favorite companion so far and we are just having a great time together! i think a ton of people must have just been laughing their butts off looking at the two white kids in white shirts and ties trying to fish brazilian style! it was a lot of fun!
on friday we got chased by dogs! that was a great story! it all started after about 4hours of getting doors slammed to the face and so we decided it was time to take about a 15 minute breather. close to the road we were knocking on doors, we found a kind of brush area with a ravine and on the top of the hill was a radio tower, so while we were out walking in the brush, just enjoying a good hiking trail, we heard a giant bloodhound at the top of the hill guarding the tower. didn't think much of it because of the 10 foot deep ravine between us so we thought we were safe but then we heard him start to come, and of course, this just has to happen right when it is starting to get dark and visibility is minimal. elder mcguire and i just look at each other and scream simultaneously "run!!" so off we went, running through the brush and the tall grass and sage brush with our feet just happening to hit every rut in the ground. simultaneously, we both ate dirt, and man i would have loved to have this on tape because we just rolled right out of it and kept trucking. it would've been pretty spectacular to see. so after we thought we were free from the dog, we stopped and caught our breath for about 3 seconds and then we heard him coming again and we booked it out of there. we looked like quite the pair running into the street again just covered in dust and limping on home. it was a great time!
my birthday was sunday. weird! we had a great time and i got some sweet presents thanks to some birthday souvenir money. i bought some official cruzeiros workout pants. i know that sounds ridiculous but i love them! we also made two cakes. one brazilian and one american and yes the american one was better! cream cheese frosting and all! delicious! oh and family...that card was my absolute favorite! loved it!
zone conference was this week which is always awesome! they are switching some things up though. we only have zone conference every 3 months now and also some other kinds of leadership meetings and all. it's a different system for the whole church, not just us, so we'll see how it goes. you just kind of trust in the fact that we have a prophet that talks to god and knows how we should be doing our thing! it's new, and to be honest not my favorite, but probably cause it's new. we'll see. change is good right!?
i had another interview with president parrella! i love that guy! i walk out of every interview with a new desire to just do it. just go at it. it's awesome! i'm so glad i'm here.
as far as the spiritual experiences this week - i've learned a little more about the importance of today. we have a word in portuguese called "moley" (phonetically) and it means soft literally, or just kind of lazy. i learned the words if and when are just moley words! words for slackers. many times we find ourselves saying "if this happens then i'll be good". what a slacker thing to say i decided! we need to eliminate the if's in our lives today. not tomorrow, to see if it will happen but do something about it today. when you read in the scriptures you see that we need to choose this day who we are. we need to repent today and not put it off. the devils biggest technique is putting it off and not doing things now. satan sure does take people down with drugs and everything, but i think his biggest tool is the word later or tomorrow. don't leave for tomorrow what you could do today. i'm learning very fast that time is limited for all of us. we only get one shot at this life and it will end. don't put off things necessary for later. today is the day. carpe diem, as they used to say. vive hoje, as they say here. we all can be better today and we should strive to do so. the way to be better has already been laid out and it wasn't by someone who waited to do so when it was convenient for him. follow the map today. the treasure truly awaits!
i love being a missionary and i hope everyone knows that! i love it here and there is no better place in the world! my time can't be better spent than this work! thank you all so much for your letters and help! i love you all! thanks for cheering in my stadium and know that i am in the front row of all of yours!
elder excell
so this week, once again, has been full of plenty of adventures and plenty of those moments where you just can't help but be thankful for the life you were given here on earth and the knowledge of the gospel!
last pday we went fishing! it was awesome! we never got anything but hey, what's the true point of fishing? to get something or to just enjoy the scenery and the company. we headed out after a great day of emails and all and got on a bus that gets just up above town a bit and we threw our lines in and went at it. it was so nice to sit on the rocks with a guaraná in hand and just swap some good stories with elder mcguire! i love the kid! he's my favorite companion so far and we are just having a great time together! i think a ton of people must have just been laughing their butts off looking at the two white kids in white shirts and ties trying to fish brazilian style! it was a lot of fun!
on friday we got chased by dogs! that was a great story! it all started after about 4hours of getting doors slammed to the face and so we decided it was time to take about a 15 minute breather. close to the road we were knocking on doors, we found a kind of brush area with a ravine and on the top of the hill was a radio tower, so while we were out walking in the brush, just enjoying a good hiking trail, we heard a giant bloodhound at the top of the hill guarding the tower. didn't think much of it because of the 10 foot deep ravine between us so we thought we were safe but then we heard him start to come, and of course, this just has to happen right when it is starting to get dark and visibility is minimal. elder mcguire and i just look at each other and scream simultaneously "run!!" so off we went, running through the brush and the tall grass and sage brush with our feet just happening to hit every rut in the ground. simultaneously, we both ate dirt, and man i would have loved to have this on tape because we just rolled right out of it and kept trucking. it would've been pretty spectacular to see. so after we thought we were free from the dog, we stopped and caught our breath for about 3 seconds and then we heard him coming again and we booked it out of there. we looked like quite the pair running into the street again just covered in dust and limping on home. it was a great time!
my birthday was sunday. weird! we had a great time and i got some sweet presents thanks to some birthday souvenir money. i bought some official cruzeiros workout pants. i know that sounds ridiculous but i love them! we also made two cakes. one brazilian and one american and yes the american one was better! cream cheese frosting and all! delicious! oh and family...that card was my absolute favorite! loved it!
zone conference was this week which is always awesome! they are switching some things up though. we only have zone conference every 3 months now and also some other kinds of leadership meetings and all. it's a different system for the whole church, not just us, so we'll see how it goes. you just kind of trust in the fact that we have a prophet that talks to god and knows how we should be doing our thing! it's new, and to be honest not my favorite, but probably cause it's new. we'll see. change is good right!?
i had another interview with president parrella! i love that guy! i walk out of every interview with a new desire to just do it. just go at it. it's awesome! i'm so glad i'm here.
as far as the spiritual experiences this week - i've learned a little more about the importance of today. we have a word in portuguese called "moley" (phonetically) and it means soft literally, or just kind of lazy. i learned the words if and when are just moley words! words for slackers. many times we find ourselves saying "if this happens then i'll be good". what a slacker thing to say i decided! we need to eliminate the if's in our lives today. not tomorrow, to see if it will happen but do something about it today. when you read in the scriptures you see that we need to choose this day who we are. we need to repent today and not put it off. the devils biggest technique is putting it off and not doing things now. satan sure does take people down with drugs and everything, but i think his biggest tool is the word later or tomorrow. don't leave for tomorrow what you could do today. i'm learning very fast that time is limited for all of us. we only get one shot at this life and it will end. don't put off things necessary for later. today is the day. carpe diem, as they used to say. vive hoje, as they say here. we all can be better today and we should strive to do so. the way to be better has already been laid out and it wasn't by someone who waited to do so when it was convenient for him. follow the map today. the treasure truly awaits!
i love being a missionary and i hope everyone knows that! i love it here and there is no better place in the world! my time can't be better spent than this work! thank you all so much for your letters and help! i love you all! thanks for cheering in my stadium and know that i am in the front row of all of yours!
elder excell
Q&A - August 4, 2010
1. How was your birthday?? Do you feel "one year older and wiser too" ?? How did you celebrate?
well, it was a fast sunday and so celebration was a bit of a minimum on the actual day but on saturday we made a good cake and then this morning we made the cake i got at zone conference from you guys!!! i loved it. it's already been attacked!
2. Did you enjoy your day of fishing last Pday? Did you catch many fish?
well, we got nothing but it was a great day of just straight relaxing!
3. Was zone conference yesterday?
yes!
4. Just wondering if you got the package we sent you and if you were able to get your mail?
yes and i'll talk about it in the letter
5. Are you keeping your apartment cleaner since the major cleaning job you did on it a couple weeks ago?
it's still spic and span!
6. What was the highlight of your week?
interview with president! it was an awesome 15 minutes. there were so many great things that happened tho! i loved the whole week!
well, it was a fast sunday and so celebration was a bit of a minimum on the actual day but on saturday we made a good cake and then this morning we made the cake i got at zone conference from you guys!!! i loved it. it's already been attacked!
2. Did you enjoy your day of fishing last Pday? Did you catch many fish?
well, we got nothing but it was a great day of just straight relaxing!
3. Was zone conference yesterday?
yes!
4. Just wondering if you got the package we sent you and if you were able to get your mail?
yes and i'll talk about it in the letter
5. Are you keeping your apartment cleaner since the major cleaning job you did on it a couple weeks ago?
it's still spic and span!
6. What was the highlight of your week?
interview with president! it was an awesome 15 minutes. there were so many great things that happened tho! i loved the whole week!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Pictures!
preaching in ponte nova
the tarantula i killed
the cleaning army of helaman
last night with clites and the cool pants we got!
Peach Cobbler and Hammocks - Ponte Nova
wow! what a week again! the measure of time has been severely altered in my brain. was that really a week again!? anyway the time is always filled with unforgettable experiences and stories to be told, so let me tell.
it starts with the best/worst pday known to all missionary existence. its crazy how long missionaries live in houses without cleaning once. incredible. so we literally spent 5 hours cleaning last pday. we put on some bandannas, some motab, and our mean faces and went to work. we literally hauled a whole truck load of trash out of the house. it was disgusting. i regret to inform you that i did live in it for 3 months without doing anything and i don't know how, but i have repented and we did our work and we now have a home to live in that is sanitary. so yes, it wasn't much of a day of rest but it was necessary and because we worked our tails off last week we are going to go fishing all day today! a good lesson learned and a home gained.
saturday was pioneer day which really doesn't exist here or in any other place in the world besides idaho, utah, and cokeville but we celebrated. while we were walking out to visit some investigators that day, we saw a guy selling hammocks for the equivalent of ten bucks so we jumped on it and we also found some peaches (not easy to find) and we made peach cobbler while listening to some sweet pioneer music. pioneer day was definitely a win this year. the peach cobbler was awesome. we decided to even be real pioneers and hang up the hammock and sleep in them all night. needless to say we made it about 3 hours, and one extremely sore rear end later, after a collapsed hammock, we now sleep on our beds again. and yes, the rear end that hit the ground would be mine. at least the ground was clean, right?! =)
as you can see by the picture, the spiders are out and about. that was the first one that i have seen in brazil mom so you don't have to worry. i'm not fighting them off every day! the second one that i found was in someone elses garage and was really hard to get but we tried to lure it close to us with some bacon flavored chips but we didn't get it. i feel bad because this strangers garage was filled with about a bag full of these bacon flavored things and the spider didn't move. kind of a bummer but it was fun while it lasted.
today will officially be the best p day ever! we are going fishing! i hope i will be able to send you guys a sweet awesome picture of me wearing normal missionary clothes holding up some kind of treasure from the deep rio piranga! (river of the ipiranga) i'll do my best!
this week, as far as the work goes, has been etremely difficult. we have been knocking in the richest part of town and not having much success. even to the point that some days we knock on doors all day long and when we get home at night and add up the numbers we only had 2 lessons. it's rough. it reminds me much of the nephites under the command of helaman when they are just beaten down with not much back up for miles but they just keep fighting. if there is one thing i have learned lately, it's self powered perseverance. as stupid as the quote may be, dori, from finding nemo, knew what she was talking about. just keep swimming, just keep swimming, what do we do? we swim, swim, swim. the missionary version is a bit different but the same message. just keep working, just keep working, what do we do? we work, work, work. but, if there is one thing learned from all of it... it's that heavenly father rewards us for the work we do. i have no doubt of that. we can have days where all you want to do is just go home and cry "i give up" but you don't... why? because the days that we would not teach a lesson all day when we worked our butts off... that night, at about 7 o clock, things just get rolling. we ended up with 5 lessons yesterday and yesterday was rough. 3 of the 5 came after 7:30 at night. the lesson to be learned: just keep trying. just keep working. the reward will come and it will be after your patience is tried. remember joseph smith in liberty jail... my son, peace be unto thy soul. thine adversities and afflictions shall be but a small moment but if thou wilt endure it well, god shall exalt thee on high. the reward always awaits us. we just have to show we really want it!
i love you all and i'm sorry the message is a little cut today but the fish are being caught and we're not there. seriously, thank you so much for everything that every single one of you do for me. i hit 20 years this weekend. and i can't think of a single place better to spend it than here! i love the work and the work will be done! have a great week and i can't wait to here from you all soon! love you all!
it starts with the best/worst pday known to all missionary existence. its crazy how long missionaries live in houses without cleaning once. incredible. so we literally spent 5 hours cleaning last pday. we put on some bandannas, some motab, and our mean faces and went to work. we literally hauled a whole truck load of trash out of the house. it was disgusting. i regret to inform you that i did live in it for 3 months without doing anything and i don't know how, but i have repented and we did our work and we now have a home to live in that is sanitary. so yes, it wasn't much of a day of rest but it was necessary and because we worked our tails off last week we are going to go fishing all day today! a good lesson learned and a home gained.
saturday was pioneer day which really doesn't exist here or in any other place in the world besides idaho, utah, and cokeville but we celebrated. while we were walking out to visit some investigators that day, we saw a guy selling hammocks for the equivalent of ten bucks so we jumped on it and we also found some peaches (not easy to find) and we made peach cobbler while listening to some sweet pioneer music. pioneer day was definitely a win this year. the peach cobbler was awesome. we decided to even be real pioneers and hang up the hammock and sleep in them all night. needless to say we made it about 3 hours, and one extremely sore rear end later, after a collapsed hammock, we now sleep on our beds again. and yes, the rear end that hit the ground would be mine. at least the ground was clean, right?! =)
as you can see by the picture, the spiders are out and about. that was the first one that i have seen in brazil mom so you don't have to worry. i'm not fighting them off every day! the second one that i found was in someone elses garage and was really hard to get but we tried to lure it close to us with some bacon flavored chips but we didn't get it. i feel bad because this strangers garage was filled with about a bag full of these bacon flavored things and the spider didn't move. kind of a bummer but it was fun while it lasted.
today will officially be the best p day ever! we are going fishing! i hope i will be able to send you guys a sweet awesome picture of me wearing normal missionary clothes holding up some kind of treasure from the deep rio piranga! (river of the ipiranga) i'll do my best!
this week, as far as the work goes, has been etremely difficult. we have been knocking in the richest part of town and not having much success. even to the point that some days we knock on doors all day long and when we get home at night and add up the numbers we only had 2 lessons. it's rough. it reminds me much of the nephites under the command of helaman when they are just beaten down with not much back up for miles but they just keep fighting. if there is one thing i have learned lately, it's self powered perseverance. as stupid as the quote may be, dori, from finding nemo, knew what she was talking about. just keep swimming, just keep swimming, what do we do? we swim, swim, swim. the missionary version is a bit different but the same message. just keep working, just keep working, what do we do? we work, work, work. but, if there is one thing learned from all of it... it's that heavenly father rewards us for the work we do. i have no doubt of that. we can have days where all you want to do is just go home and cry "i give up" but you don't... why? because the days that we would not teach a lesson all day when we worked our butts off... that night, at about 7 o clock, things just get rolling. we ended up with 5 lessons yesterday and yesterday was rough. 3 of the 5 came after 7:30 at night. the lesson to be learned: just keep trying. just keep working. the reward will come and it will be after your patience is tried. remember joseph smith in liberty jail... my son, peace be unto thy soul. thine adversities and afflictions shall be but a small moment but if thou wilt endure it well, god shall exalt thee on high. the reward always awaits us. we just have to show we really want it!
i love you all and i'm sorry the message is a little cut today but the fish are being caught and we're not there. seriously, thank you so much for everything that every single one of you do for me. i hit 20 years this weekend. and i can't think of a single place better to spend it than here! i love the work and the work will be done! have a great week and i can't wait to here from you all soon! love you all!
Q&A - July 28, 2010
1. Do you have any Sister Missionaries serving in your mission?
yes, we have probably 15 sisters in the mission
2. What is Elder McGuire's first name?
daniel
3. Did you have Zone Conference yesterday or will it be next Tuesday?
we still don't know for sure but i think this tuesday that's coming...
4. Are you still going fishing today for P-day?
you bet! we are already packed and ready to go with some boiled eggs and a 12 pack of guarana!
5. What was the highlight of your week?
small highlight... broke my soccer juggling record and now have a record of 32 to beat!
6. How are all the mission "supplies" holding up that we got for you?
everything is going awesome mom! thank you so much for everything you sent!
7. Can you even believe that you are turning 20 YEARS OLD on your BIRTHDAY in just a few short days??!!??
i literally stopped in the street and looked at mcguire with such a confused look on my face and just said "my teenage years are over?" i can't believe it. i'm a big boy now?
8. Do you have any plans for celebrating your Birthday on Sunday??
well, it's sunday and fast sunday so not really... monday will be the celebration and mcguire is baking me a cake and even with frosting!
9. Do you have any idea how much your family loves you??
i think i do and then i read your letters and i think i only comprehend a fraction! i love you guys so so so much!
10. And last but not least, any more of your crazy, wacky =) questions for us this week??
this week i'm gonna be honest, my questions are very limited.
1. what's the dow and nasdac sitting at?
2. are we still in iraq?
3. will you send an apple pie and banana bread recipe and also one for salsa?
yes, we have probably 15 sisters in the mission
2. What is Elder McGuire's first name?
daniel
3. Did you have Zone Conference yesterday or will it be next Tuesday?
we still don't know for sure but i think this tuesday that's coming...
4. Are you still going fishing today for P-day?
you bet! we are already packed and ready to go with some boiled eggs and a 12 pack of guarana!
5. What was the highlight of your week?
small highlight... broke my soccer juggling record and now have a record of 32 to beat!
6. How are all the mission "supplies" holding up that we got for you?
everything is going awesome mom! thank you so much for everything you sent!
7. Can you even believe that you are turning 20 YEARS OLD on your BIRTHDAY in just a few short days??!!??
i literally stopped in the street and looked at mcguire with such a confused look on my face and just said "my teenage years are over?" i can't believe it. i'm a big boy now?
8. Do you have any plans for celebrating your Birthday on Sunday??
well, it's sunday and fast sunday so not really... monday will be the celebration and mcguire is baking me a cake and even with frosting!
9. Do you have any idea how much your family loves you??
i think i do and then i read your letters and i think i only comprehend a fraction! i love you guys so so so much!
10. And last but not least, any more of your crazy, wacky =) questions for us this week??
this week i'm gonna be honest, my questions are very limited.
1. what's the dow and nasdac sitting at?
2. are we still in iraq?
3. will you send an apple pie and banana bread recipe and also one for salsa?
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
The Harder the Climb, the Better the View! - Ponte Nova
well, i'm not gonna lie, this week was the best week i have had in such a super, super long time and it's all because of change! i've decided that i love change! it's amazing the amount of habits you can gain in 3 months without change, and when the change comes, you realize the growth that can be made! but i am getting ahead of myself. i'll get into the change later.
this week has been great! elder mcguire and i are just hitting the work super hard with a new determination to just give the lord all we have! on sunday we both got the opportunity to speak in sacrament meeting which was a great. you all know me - i love to speak in public so i jumped on the opportunity. elder mcguire gave a great talk about the obligation we all have in the church to share the happiness that we have. it gave the branch a good kick in the butt to start throwing some references our way! my talk was about the things that we have been given and all things that have been given for us and the necessity to give back to everyone that has given us something including heavenly father, christ, and the church. it went well. always room for improvement tho.
we had a lady have an epileptic attack in the middle of church. that was pretty scary. no one really knows her that well so it was pretty interesting to watch the reactions. as with all epileptic attacks, you have a little burst out and then kinda go out for about 15-20 minutes and you're back to normal. so in the middle of church this woman screams the equivalent of jesus saved me and then passed out and i just looked at mcguire and we were on the scene ready to go. we carried her out of sacrament and into the relief society room and had the branch president following us. we got the relief society president to come watch over her so we could speak and be in the meeting with our investigators and all was well. it was just awesome to see how the ward will adapt so fastly and so easily to help the needs of another.
we are still working with neide and milton to get them married. we got the paper work under way with them and now we just have to wait 1 month and 15 days to have the wedding. the uncool part of this is that i may not be able to witness this wedding if i am transferred this upcoming transfer. so yes, i have been on my knees a bit to see if heavenly father will leave me here...i guess i will just work as hard as i can and just realize i am the tool in the masters hand.
lately, i think people think we are getting skinny or something because we are just getting fed right and left! wow! i'm not even having problems with not eating because of the taste of the food but because i am so stuffed from the last house and i can't eat much more. but mom...don't worry...i'm still eating everything that's put in front of me. i just hope i don't get too blessed with an expandable stomach! =( just kidding i still weigh less then when i came! =)
we got to to watch the mormon tabernacle choir pioneer show on sunday! talk about awesome and homesick to watch video of salt lake city and hear patriotic songs and hear songs from the music man! wow! 76 trombones...i never thought that would give me homesickness! haha!
marcelo had another expo this week that was incredible and went over extremely well. it was some of his photos from the acting theater here in town. his pictures are amazing! not to mention that the theater he was working with preformed! i about had to turn away cause i liked watching theater again so much! i realized the impact that the theater has had on me and how much i love it! it was awesome to watch!
elder mcguire and i are getting a lot of the american factor lately and yes it's good and bad. elder mcguire has blue eyes too so we hear about every 30 minutes..."whoa!! mom, mom, come here there are two americans at our door with blue eyes! they have blue eyes! congratulations on your eyes!" so mom and dad...you did good work and i'm passing on the congrats to you guys! we also get bombarded by people inside of stores because we get the "rich american" stereotype. don't get me wrong, the king treatment is cool until they find out we have no money and then our new friends desert us pretty fast! pretty funny to watch.
as far as my thoughts for the week, of course i have some. firstly, as i already mentioned...change! i have realized getting a new comp after 3 months that i let some of my habits slip. and the change has brought a new determination to stretch and grow and be better. i've learned stretching is awesome. take the simple example of stretching before a good solid game of football. you stretch out nice and well and when you play you are accustomed to the stretching and you are more agile. then when the bus of a man is coming toward you, it's not too fast that you cant handle it and you have a lot less chance of injuring yourself. now, if you don't stretch out and accustom yourself to the movement, the bohemath of a man comes straight for you and when you try to move you aren't able to do so fast enough to avoid the blow of the hit. life is no different...stretch out...accustom yourself to the movement of all of life and do so thoroughly and in the right way with your trainer called the gospel. when you do so, the heman of satan may come at you and you are so strong that however he comes at you, you are ready to get out of his path. i promise he is coming and if you stretch your spiritual muscles and don't settle for the good you are doing that is inhibiting you from the better you could be doing, you can dodge any bullet he sends at you!
i testify the gospel is changing lives. i have the blessing and incredible opportunity to see it every day and i know the gospel has the ability to flip lives from their upside down state to the right state that secretly everyone wants! heavenly father knows what he's doing. thomas s monson is helping him coach the game here on earth. the game will be won by those who are ready and that are on the lords side. when the time comes be able to to say while you are running your 97 yard touchdown kick return and the opponent is headed for you "get thee behind me satan" (matt 16:23)! with the gospel and the willingness to change and be better, even tho you are as good as you are, you can break any tackle!
i love you all so much and i am so happy where i am at. always remember that the success in our lives is judged by two people...you and heavenly father...everything else is an opinion!
love you all!
elder excell!
this week has been great! elder mcguire and i are just hitting the work super hard with a new determination to just give the lord all we have! on sunday we both got the opportunity to speak in sacrament meeting which was a great. you all know me - i love to speak in public so i jumped on the opportunity. elder mcguire gave a great talk about the obligation we all have in the church to share the happiness that we have. it gave the branch a good kick in the butt to start throwing some references our way! my talk was about the things that we have been given and all things that have been given for us and the necessity to give back to everyone that has given us something including heavenly father, christ, and the church. it went well. always room for improvement tho.
we had a lady have an epileptic attack in the middle of church. that was pretty scary. no one really knows her that well so it was pretty interesting to watch the reactions. as with all epileptic attacks, you have a little burst out and then kinda go out for about 15-20 minutes and you're back to normal. so in the middle of church this woman screams the equivalent of jesus saved me and then passed out and i just looked at mcguire and we were on the scene ready to go. we carried her out of sacrament and into the relief society room and had the branch president following us. we got the relief society president to come watch over her so we could speak and be in the meeting with our investigators and all was well. it was just awesome to see how the ward will adapt so fastly and so easily to help the needs of another.
we are still working with neide and milton to get them married. we got the paper work under way with them and now we just have to wait 1 month and 15 days to have the wedding. the uncool part of this is that i may not be able to witness this wedding if i am transferred this upcoming transfer. so yes, i have been on my knees a bit to see if heavenly father will leave me here...i guess i will just work as hard as i can and just realize i am the tool in the masters hand.
lately, i think people think we are getting skinny or something because we are just getting fed right and left! wow! i'm not even having problems with not eating because of the taste of the food but because i am so stuffed from the last house and i can't eat much more. but mom...don't worry...i'm still eating everything that's put in front of me. i just hope i don't get too blessed with an expandable stomach! =( just kidding i still weigh less then when i came! =)
we got to to watch the mormon tabernacle choir pioneer show on sunday! talk about awesome and homesick to watch video of salt lake city and hear patriotic songs and hear songs from the music man! wow! 76 trombones...i never thought that would give me homesickness! haha!
marcelo had another expo this week that was incredible and went over extremely well. it was some of his photos from the acting theater here in town. his pictures are amazing! not to mention that the theater he was working with preformed! i about had to turn away cause i liked watching theater again so much! i realized the impact that the theater has had on me and how much i love it! it was awesome to watch!
elder mcguire and i are getting a lot of the american factor lately and yes it's good and bad. elder mcguire has blue eyes too so we hear about every 30 minutes..."whoa!! mom, mom, come here there are two americans at our door with blue eyes! they have blue eyes! congratulations on your eyes!" so mom and dad...you did good work and i'm passing on the congrats to you guys! we also get bombarded by people inside of stores because we get the "rich american" stereotype. don't get me wrong, the king treatment is cool until they find out we have no money and then our new friends desert us pretty fast! pretty funny to watch.
as far as my thoughts for the week, of course i have some. firstly, as i already mentioned...change! i have realized getting a new comp after 3 months that i let some of my habits slip. and the change has brought a new determination to stretch and grow and be better. i've learned stretching is awesome. take the simple example of stretching before a good solid game of football. you stretch out nice and well and when you play you are accustomed to the stretching and you are more agile. then when the bus of a man is coming toward you, it's not too fast that you cant handle it and you have a lot less chance of injuring yourself. now, if you don't stretch out and accustom yourself to the movement, the bohemath of a man comes straight for you and when you try to move you aren't able to do so fast enough to avoid the blow of the hit. life is no different...stretch out...accustom yourself to the movement of all of life and do so thoroughly and in the right way with your trainer called the gospel. when you do so, the heman of satan may come at you and you are so strong that however he comes at you, you are ready to get out of his path. i promise he is coming and if you stretch your spiritual muscles and don't settle for the good you are doing that is inhibiting you from the better you could be doing, you can dodge any bullet he sends at you!
i testify the gospel is changing lives. i have the blessing and incredible opportunity to see it every day and i know the gospel has the ability to flip lives from their upside down state to the right state that secretly everyone wants! heavenly father knows what he's doing. thomas s monson is helping him coach the game here on earth. the game will be won by those who are ready and that are on the lords side. when the time comes be able to to say while you are running your 97 yard touchdown kick return and the opponent is headed for you "get thee behind me satan" (matt 16:23)! with the gospel and the willingness to change and be better, even tho you are as good as you are, you can break any tackle!
i love you all so much and i am so happy where i am at. always remember that the success in our lives is judged by two people...you and heavenly father...everything else is an opinion!
love you all!
elder excell!
Q&A - July 21, 2010
1. How are you getting along with Elder McGuire?
elder mcguire and i are getting along extremely well and i am still just super stoked to have a change and i can see the missionary life-long friendship in progress!
2. How long has Elder McGuire been out?
he has two more transfers than me so he hit his 9 month mark today actually!
3. Tell us one really cool thing about him.
he is an outdoor man. he loves the outdoors more than anyone i've met and every time we walk by the river in the middle of the city he just has to stop and look for fish. we will be going fishing next pday!
4. Did you get a package or any mail when you went to BH last week for transfers?
i didn't have a chance to make it up to the office. we all meet at the bus station and so i was in bh for about 5 minutes in total!
5. When is your next zone conference?
we are still not quite sure on the date yet but i know it will be either next tuesday or the tuesday after. my guess is the latter!
6. Are you still cooking very much for yourself? What good things have you made lately?
mcguire loves to cook! i only know because i haven't gone breakfastless yet between simple shakes to crepes this morning! i don't eat much just because lunch is so gigantic. by the time we get home the last thing i want to do is put effort into cooking because i'm usually so exhausted!
7. Are you happy to still be in Ponte Nova and do you feel that you'll still be able to find people to teach or are you feeling like you've covered the whole area?
a little of both. the area has been surface worked tho. elder mcguire has given me a new amount of fire and drive to get the work done! but i absolutely love the area. mark my words...i will cry leaving ponte nova!
8. Any questions this week for us?
alright, if these just seem ridiculous then i'm sorry but you'll see what my mind wanders about in the streets walking from place to place...
1. which band is joe satriani famous for playing for?
2. what's the current united states health care plan? i hear something got passed?
3. can you send me a photo of my baptism....thanks!!
4. i don't remember what a cherry coke logo looks like...can you send me a picture of the logo?
5. karate kid 3???? with jayden smith???? how was it?????
elder mcguire and i are getting along extremely well and i am still just super stoked to have a change and i can see the missionary life-long friendship in progress!
2. How long has Elder McGuire been out?
he has two more transfers than me so he hit his 9 month mark today actually!
3. Tell us one really cool thing about him.
he is an outdoor man. he loves the outdoors more than anyone i've met and every time we walk by the river in the middle of the city he just has to stop and look for fish. we will be going fishing next pday!
4. Did you get a package or any mail when you went to BH last week for transfers?
i didn't have a chance to make it up to the office. we all meet at the bus station and so i was in bh for about 5 minutes in total!
5. When is your next zone conference?
we are still not quite sure on the date yet but i know it will be either next tuesday or the tuesday after. my guess is the latter!
6. Are you still cooking very much for yourself? What good things have you made lately?
mcguire loves to cook! i only know because i haven't gone breakfastless yet between simple shakes to crepes this morning! i don't eat much just because lunch is so gigantic. by the time we get home the last thing i want to do is put effort into cooking because i'm usually so exhausted!
7. Are you happy to still be in Ponte Nova and do you feel that you'll still be able to find people to teach or are you feeling like you've covered the whole area?
a little of both. the area has been surface worked tho. elder mcguire has given me a new amount of fire and drive to get the work done! but i absolutely love the area. mark my words...i will cry leaving ponte nova!
8. Any questions this week for us?
alright, if these just seem ridiculous then i'm sorry but you'll see what my mind wanders about in the streets walking from place to place...
1. which band is joe satriani famous for playing for?
2. what's the current united states health care plan? i hear something got passed?
3. can you send me a photo of my baptism....thanks!!
4. i don't remember what a cherry coke logo looks like...can you send me a picture of the logo?
5. karate kid 3???? with jayden smith???? how was it?????
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Ponte Nova - Round 3
well, here i sit in ponte nova again but things have been switched up a little bit with a transfer of elder clites and a new companion. elder mcguire is my new companion and i am stoked for the transfer. we'll do real good and have some real good times! he's from bountiful utah and loves the outdoors and sports. we'll get along well!
this week has been a great week, and to be honest it was just pretty average with not to much out of the ordinary. wednesday night we had a wedding of someone in the branch and we took some investigators. it was awesome! 2 days later they were sealed for all eternity! our investigators that are getting ready to get married are stoked now because they went! this week has been pretty crazy just running around trying to finish a transfer.
i don't have much time today because of the travel time but i will leave my thoughts, of course, as always! first off, i have mathematically proven the existence of god. but first, speaking of math...we figured out this week that in a meter cubed of sand you have more grains of sand then people on the earth. pretty sweet. (we had some long walks this week) anyway back to my discovery. so as some of you are aware, in brazil, they use the metric system so we are on liters. most drinks we but are 500 milliliters. so i was thinking in my head of a 16 oz. soda would be 666.66666(to infinity) milliliters. so it led me to the thought that humans are just completely flawed and if you add 8 oz. of soda (333.3333 infinity milliliters) to 16 oz. (666.66666 infinity milliliters) you would have 24 oz. or a liter but really that's just 999.99999 infinity milliliters. so i was driven to the thought that never will things ever be the same. nothing can ever be done exactly the same twice. for example you have a dart board with an infinite amount of points and you choose the one to hit so your ratio is 1/infinity....now the part where humans give up...mathematically 1/infinity is 0. we cant even fathom the thought. but somehow this world will become celestial and literally perfect! pretty crazy! so i may have not have proven god mathematically, but i know that somehow this earth was celestial and will return that way and that means perfection to an infinite amount and we can't fathom that but someone can.
another quick thought as my time runs short today...your life is a show. god is your director and you have been told exactly how the choreographing goes to be successful but you still are the one performing. you do your best and you follow the plan that your divine director has given and you will get an applause at the end and whats more than that is you will get a "well done thou good and faithful servant". everyone who reads this...go perform your show the best way you can following the plans you were given. if you mess up there is a way to get back on beat. there is a way to finish strong. win the show for you and the director will give you notes at the end of the show and you will receive a well done! i know heavenly father knows us. he gave us a plan. he gave us his son. jesus is the christ prophesied through the whole scriptural library. joseph smith made the show a reality for you by restoring the plan god gave all his children. the church is true and there to instruct us. thomas s. monson and all other leaders are there to help us finish our show smiling and as peter said keeping the faith! i love this gospel and i love all of you!
elder excell!
this week has been a great week, and to be honest it was just pretty average with not to much out of the ordinary. wednesday night we had a wedding of someone in the branch and we took some investigators. it was awesome! 2 days later they were sealed for all eternity! our investigators that are getting ready to get married are stoked now because they went! this week has been pretty crazy just running around trying to finish a transfer.
i don't have much time today because of the travel time but i will leave my thoughts, of course, as always! first off, i have mathematically proven the existence of god. but first, speaking of math...we figured out this week that in a meter cubed of sand you have more grains of sand then people on the earth. pretty sweet. (we had some long walks this week) anyway back to my discovery. so as some of you are aware, in brazil, they use the metric system so we are on liters. most drinks we but are 500 milliliters. so i was thinking in my head of a 16 oz. soda would be 666.66666(to infinity) milliliters. so it led me to the thought that humans are just completely flawed and if you add 8 oz. of soda (333.3333 infinity milliliters) to 16 oz. (666.66666 infinity milliliters) you would have 24 oz. or a liter but really that's just 999.99999 infinity milliliters. so i was driven to the thought that never will things ever be the same. nothing can ever be done exactly the same twice. for example you have a dart board with an infinite amount of points and you choose the one to hit so your ratio is 1/infinity....now the part where humans give up...mathematically 1/infinity is 0. we cant even fathom the thought. but somehow this world will become celestial and literally perfect! pretty crazy! so i may have not have proven god mathematically, but i know that somehow this earth was celestial and will return that way and that means perfection to an infinite amount and we can't fathom that but someone can.
another quick thought as my time runs short today...your life is a show. god is your director and you have been told exactly how the choreographing goes to be successful but you still are the one performing. you do your best and you follow the plan that your divine director has given and you will get an applause at the end and whats more than that is you will get a "well done thou good and faithful servant". everyone who reads this...go perform your show the best way you can following the plans you were given. if you mess up there is a way to get back on beat. there is a way to finish strong. win the show for you and the director will give you notes at the end of the show and you will receive a well done! i know heavenly father knows us. he gave us a plan. he gave us his son. jesus is the christ prophesied through the whole scriptural library. joseph smith made the show a reality for you by restoring the plan god gave all his children. the church is true and there to instruct us. thomas s. monson and all other leaders are there to help us finish our show smiling and as peter said keeping the faith! i love this gospel and i love all of you!
elder excell!
Q&A - July 14, 2010
1. Cassidy is wondering what season it is there right now and what the temperatures are like.
right now it would be the equivalent of spring there almost which just means its about 50 at night and a good solid 80-90 during the day! pretty hot!
2. Ty and Ryan are wondering how much you pay for a gallon of milk in Brazil.
well, interesting as it may sound, you don't buy milk by the gallon here. milk here is different. it doesn't have to be refrigerated but it only keeps for 2 days after opening. also you buy it by the liter for about 1.40 reals which is approximately 70 cents!
3. I am just anxious to hear about where you are and who you are with and that you are still happy and healthy!
alright so questions this week...
1. temperature there?
2. cost of a gallon of milk?
3. what do you want to do here when you come to get me?
4. how much is a plane ride round trip to here?
5. who will be byu quarterback this year?
6. one more quote i've got for you all....your last step got you to where you are, your future steps will take you somewhere, but the only step that matters is the one you take right now. it shows your whole journey!
right now it would be the equivalent of spring there almost which just means its about 50 at night and a good solid 80-90 during the day! pretty hot!
2. Ty and Ryan are wondering how much you pay for a gallon of milk in Brazil.
well, interesting as it may sound, you don't buy milk by the gallon here. milk here is different. it doesn't have to be refrigerated but it only keeps for 2 days after opening. also you buy it by the liter for about 1.40 reals which is approximately 70 cents!
3. I am just anxious to hear about where you are and who you are with and that you are still happy and healthy!
alright so questions this week...
1. temperature there?
2. cost of a gallon of milk?
3. what do you want to do here when you come to get me?
4. how much is a plane ride round trip to here?
5. who will be byu quarterback this year?
6. one more quote i've got for you all....your last step got you to where you are, your future steps will take you somewhere, but the only step that matters is the one you take right now. it shows your whole journey!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Pictures!
the rat hunters, part II (NOTE: unfortunately, the video didn't come through)
the party bus that is making more money than the catholic church... that's impressive
The softening filter of experience - Ponte Nova
well, this week was yet just another great week in the world of a missionary. pretty awesome life to be honest. i never know how to start these emails so i'm sorry that that is the best start i've got. i'll try to come up with a funny joke next time or something!
so, this week we ate something else pretty weird. it's become normal is the bad news. i really hope i like good food still when i get home. anyway, this stuff is called canjica. also known as corn soup with roasted peanuts and cinnamon rice soup stuff put together. it's good except for the texture of half hard half soft corn and peanuts that kind of have the texture of vomit coming back up. hence, we call it vomit soup. it's not bad once you get used to it.
we had another rat hunt this week! that was awesome! (see attached picture and possible video if it goes thru.) this rat was a bit smaller but definitely bigger than we needed in our house so we had to dispose. the only bad news is that this one bled a bit which was kinda gross. don't worry tho...we have yet to get to the savage level of things and start eating our kills. =)
i met the second oldest man in my life this week. it's just crazy how it was within a week of meeting the guy from noah's ark! anyway this guy is 130 years old and has 46 kids. but don't worry he only has 3 grandkids. the weird part is this guy was not inebriated. just a little crazy. always good for a good laugh tho. i'm still searching for where the magnet is on my body that attracts crazy people and drunks.
i also learned a valuable lesson of naming your children. we are working to marry an awesome couple named neide and milton who are in their mid 60's and are just like our grandma and grandpa. this week neide told us about where her name comes from. so i guess when she was born her mom had the name neide picked out already and everything was ready to go. well, in brasil, you have to register your kids after birth in the cartorio or in other words the city hall basically. so neide's, then brand new dad, took neide to the nearest city, since they lived in the country, to get registered. unfortunately, on the way he got a little sidetracked and became drunk that night and lost the paper with the childs name on it. he proceeded to the city hall with the child the next morning after having a great hangover and when asked the name of the child he couldn't remember so he responded with the name that came to mind of antonia. knowing the mother of the child was illiterate, he brought home the certificate and all was well with the new family of the child named "neide" supposedly. imagine the surprise when 5 years later the literate cousins came to town and found the childs name was antonia. but it was too late - the name had already stuck. moral of the story: don't name your child under the influence. your wife will not be happy.
so this week was fast sunday and we had a great meeting including an amazing testimony by james, the 8 year old kid who was baptized 3 months ago. he got up and in the best way an 8 year old can, he said "im so grateful to be here because my life used to be trash, but since the missionaries taught me i am clean and i am happy all the time!" wow! how simpler could it have been put! now the great lesson learned... james lives an hour and a half walking distance from the church. his parents are non members. his usual ride to church is in the district presidency who was out of town that week so james, being the great example he is, called himself a taxi and got to church sunday on his own. i almost cried seeing james get out of the taxi and pay for it himself and proceed to walk into the chapel scriptures in hand and wearing a giant smile! what an example! what a sacrifice for james to make. the sacrifice of an 8 year old was extremely touching! reminded me of abraham and issac. what a great story of sacrifice. made me ask the question to myself that i think all of us should ask frequently... am i willing to make a sacrifice to do what is right?
i've learned recently that reading the book of mormon or other books of the church is not just a "fill the bucket" technique of learning. it's not just to fill our mind with the knowledge but rather it lights the fire to just want to learn and learn and learn! i find myself with a never ending list of things i want to know and want to study. the book of mormon is incredible! and there is a whole world of knowledge out there to be gathered and once you get it, there will be more!
i also have become very familiar with the idea that our heavenly father loves us and knows us extremely well. i do have bad news with this information and knowledge i've gathered. bad news first: i regret to inform the human race that this life will be difficult. now the "great news": the gospel of jesus christ is here to stay! there is always help waiting for you if you find yourself in a rut. there is always a way to escape your pains! there is a way out physically and mentally for you to know this. first mentally. 1 cor 10:13 he will never give us more than we can handle. 1 nephi 3:7 there is a way prepared and d&c 84:88 he will send his angels round about you to help! what a great mental pacifier! now for the physical help sent to you. often times we hear the phrase "get a grip" in our world today and i would like to pass on the advice. get a grip on the iron rod. get a grip on your scriptures. they are proof that god loves you! it's interesting to me that in lehi's vision everyone is overcome by the dark mist of satan but those with a good grip on the rod will not be lost! our life has a purpose. the lessons you learn now are learned for your future opportunity. i know that christ is our life line and that he is always waiting - arms opened for us. i know that he is the only begotten of our father in heaven who loves us. he came from his celestial mansion to the telestial world to save us! what a sacrifice for him and what a great sacrifice that he gave for us! i know that jospeh smith was a prophet of god and that heavenly father and jesus christ appeared to him responding to a simple simple question of where the truth was. i know heavenly father still responds to our prayers today. i know the book of mormon is proof of gods love. i know that i am a small part in the work and glory of god. i know the truth is being spread in this dispensation that joseph smith restored and that it is not a lie. he did not die a liar. i know thomas s monson loves us and is the prophet today who speaks as the mouthpiece of god. i know this church is true and is being directed by the will of the lord and that the fight is started and the truth is spreading and changing lives everywhere. i know the fight will be won by the courageous! be on that side, i urge all of you!
i love this work and i will continue to live this gospel because i know it is the true path of eternal happiness! i love you all and i am so happy to have the family i have and the support team i do! i hope and pray that we all can have the courage to always do what is right and never give up! until next wonderful wednesday!
Elder Excell
ps. write me! =)
so, this week we ate something else pretty weird. it's become normal is the bad news. i really hope i like good food still when i get home. anyway, this stuff is called canjica. also known as corn soup with roasted peanuts and cinnamon rice soup stuff put together. it's good except for the texture of half hard half soft corn and peanuts that kind of have the texture of vomit coming back up. hence, we call it vomit soup. it's not bad once you get used to it.
we had another rat hunt this week! that was awesome! (see attached picture and possible video if it goes thru.) this rat was a bit smaller but definitely bigger than we needed in our house so we had to dispose. the only bad news is that this one bled a bit which was kinda gross. don't worry tho...we have yet to get to the savage level of things and start eating our kills. =)
i met the second oldest man in my life this week. it's just crazy how it was within a week of meeting the guy from noah's ark! anyway this guy is 130 years old and has 46 kids. but don't worry he only has 3 grandkids. the weird part is this guy was not inebriated. just a little crazy. always good for a good laugh tho. i'm still searching for where the magnet is on my body that attracts crazy people and drunks.
i also learned a valuable lesson of naming your children. we are working to marry an awesome couple named neide and milton who are in their mid 60's and are just like our grandma and grandpa. this week neide told us about where her name comes from. so i guess when she was born her mom had the name neide picked out already and everything was ready to go. well, in brasil, you have to register your kids after birth in the cartorio or in other words the city hall basically. so neide's, then brand new dad, took neide to the nearest city, since they lived in the country, to get registered. unfortunately, on the way he got a little sidetracked and became drunk that night and lost the paper with the childs name on it. he proceeded to the city hall with the child the next morning after having a great hangover and when asked the name of the child he couldn't remember so he responded with the name that came to mind of antonia. knowing the mother of the child was illiterate, he brought home the certificate and all was well with the new family of the child named "neide" supposedly. imagine the surprise when 5 years later the literate cousins came to town and found the childs name was antonia. but it was too late - the name had already stuck. moral of the story: don't name your child under the influence. your wife will not be happy.
so this week was fast sunday and we had a great meeting including an amazing testimony by james, the 8 year old kid who was baptized 3 months ago. he got up and in the best way an 8 year old can, he said "im so grateful to be here because my life used to be trash, but since the missionaries taught me i am clean and i am happy all the time!" wow! how simpler could it have been put! now the great lesson learned... james lives an hour and a half walking distance from the church. his parents are non members. his usual ride to church is in the district presidency who was out of town that week so james, being the great example he is, called himself a taxi and got to church sunday on his own. i almost cried seeing james get out of the taxi and pay for it himself and proceed to walk into the chapel scriptures in hand and wearing a giant smile! what an example! what a sacrifice for james to make. the sacrifice of an 8 year old was extremely touching! reminded me of abraham and issac. what a great story of sacrifice. made me ask the question to myself that i think all of us should ask frequently... am i willing to make a sacrifice to do what is right?
i've learned recently that reading the book of mormon or other books of the church is not just a "fill the bucket" technique of learning. it's not just to fill our mind with the knowledge but rather it lights the fire to just want to learn and learn and learn! i find myself with a never ending list of things i want to know and want to study. the book of mormon is incredible! and there is a whole world of knowledge out there to be gathered and once you get it, there will be more!
i also have become very familiar with the idea that our heavenly father loves us and knows us extremely well. i do have bad news with this information and knowledge i've gathered. bad news first: i regret to inform the human race that this life will be difficult. now the "great news": the gospel of jesus christ is here to stay! there is always help waiting for you if you find yourself in a rut. there is always a way to escape your pains! there is a way out physically and mentally for you to know this. first mentally. 1 cor 10:13 he will never give us more than we can handle. 1 nephi 3:7 there is a way prepared and d&c 84:88 he will send his angels round about you to help! what a great mental pacifier! now for the physical help sent to you. often times we hear the phrase "get a grip" in our world today and i would like to pass on the advice. get a grip on the iron rod. get a grip on your scriptures. they are proof that god loves you! it's interesting to me that in lehi's vision everyone is overcome by the dark mist of satan but those with a good grip on the rod will not be lost! our life has a purpose. the lessons you learn now are learned for your future opportunity. i know that christ is our life line and that he is always waiting - arms opened for us. i know that he is the only begotten of our father in heaven who loves us. he came from his celestial mansion to the telestial world to save us! what a sacrifice for him and what a great sacrifice that he gave for us! i know that jospeh smith was a prophet of god and that heavenly father and jesus christ appeared to him responding to a simple simple question of where the truth was. i know heavenly father still responds to our prayers today. i know the book of mormon is proof of gods love. i know that i am a small part in the work and glory of god. i know the truth is being spread in this dispensation that joseph smith restored and that it is not a lie. he did not die a liar. i know thomas s monson loves us and is the prophet today who speaks as the mouthpiece of god. i know this church is true and is being directed by the will of the lord and that the fight is started and the truth is spreading and changing lives everywhere. i know the fight will be won by the courageous! be on that side, i urge all of you!
i love this work and i will continue to live this gospel because i know it is the true path of eternal happiness! i love you all and i am so happy to have the family i have and the support team i do! i hope and pray that we all can have the courage to always do what is right and never give up! until next wonderful wednesday!
Elder Excell
ps. write me! =)
Q&A - July 7, 2010
1. Sad news - Brazil is no longer a part of the World Cup - I'm sure you know this by reactions in the street but I'm wondering how people reacted. Angry people? Riots? Or, just another day in Brazil??
well it was pretty much just a normal day in the world with a couple of sad faces. you could tell it was sad because of the tears some people shed and also upsetting by the new portuguese swear words i learned! =)
2. I've been thinking about the pictures that you send and that I post on your blog - I love that you are sending pics and I love sharing them with family and friends via your blog but I got to thinking about some of the people in the pictures with you. Are they going to have a problem with me posting their pictures for the world to see? Maybe you should just check to make sure...
i'll check but i'm sure its fine!
3. Who was the other man in the picture of Marcelo's baptism? Another person being baptized or the person who baptized him?
that is Toninho Negão which literally translates to little tony big black guy. funny name huh? we call him branco de neve or snow white. =) marcello chose him to baptize him!
4. Did you hear anything at Zone Conference about problems with Visa's being issued to new missionaries coming to Brazil? (Just as a sidenote, FYI - Brady was reassigned to serve in New York City, still speaking Portuguese, until his Visa comes through. His 9 weeks in the MTC are over and he headed to New York on Monday -Sounds like he was pretty excited to be getting out there doing the real thing.)
i haven't heard anything yet but that's crazy brady is already out. i bet that 9 weeks went faster for me than him! i remember how it is!
5. Are you staying healthy and happy?
healthy: affirmative. happy: affirmative, couldn't be happier
6. Do you have questions for us?
*1. Addresses again...Lexi Bramwell, Daniel Hansen!?
*2. Whats the price of gasoline there?
*3. This will sound ridiculous but I've been super curious....does 50 cent have a new album? He swore he wouldn't again cause kanye beat his last albm but i thought i heard a new song?
*4. You already answered this one but i was going to request a picture of the back yard so thanks for reading my mind! =)
*5. is everyone at home happy and healthy?!
well it was pretty much just a normal day in the world with a couple of sad faces. you could tell it was sad because of the tears some people shed and also upsetting by the new portuguese swear words i learned! =)
2. I've been thinking about the pictures that you send and that I post on your blog - I love that you are sending pics and I love sharing them with family and friends via your blog but I got to thinking about some of the people in the pictures with you. Are they going to have a problem with me posting their pictures for the world to see? Maybe you should just check to make sure...
i'll check but i'm sure its fine!
3. Who was the other man in the picture of Marcelo's baptism? Another person being baptized or the person who baptized him?
that is Toninho Negão which literally translates to little tony big black guy. funny name huh? we call him branco de neve or snow white. =) marcello chose him to baptize him!
4. Did you hear anything at Zone Conference about problems with Visa's being issued to new missionaries coming to Brazil? (Just as a sidenote, FYI - Brady was reassigned to serve in New York City, still speaking Portuguese, until his Visa comes through. His 9 weeks in the MTC are over and he headed to New York on Monday -Sounds like he was pretty excited to be getting out there doing the real thing.)
i haven't heard anything yet but that's crazy brady is already out. i bet that 9 weeks went faster for me than him! i remember how it is!
5. Are you staying healthy and happy?
healthy: affirmative. happy: affirmative, couldn't be happier
6. Do you have questions for us?
*1. Addresses again...Lexi Bramwell, Daniel Hansen!?
*2. Whats the price of gasoline there?
*3. This will sound ridiculous but I've been super curious....does 50 cent have a new album? He swore he wouldn't again cause kanye beat his last albm but i thought i heard a new song?
*4. You already answered this one but i was going to request a picture of the back yard so thanks for reading my mind! =)
*5. is everyone at home happy and healthy?!
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Pictures!
throwing out 5 lbs. of coffee to keep the word of wisdom!
Marcelo's Baptism!
missionary hot tub!
Just wave your flag...heyeyeyeyeo.... Ponte Nova
well, another super fast week and this time another fast month! i don't know if june even existed. my journal says that it did, but i am entirely unsure! it's already july which is only super significant for me because it means i am coming up on not being a greeny anymore by the missionary made rule book. kinda crazy that that technical stage of the mission is already in expiration...technically.
well it would appear that the world cup is continuing. the reason i know is because the shops still shut down every once in a while during the day and the street goes empty and the missionary opportunities become few and far between. i guess there also is the news that the united states team has returned back to the land of the free and the home of the brave. i only get that told to me about 18 times a day. i guess i still look pretty american. =) but the cup appears to continue for brasil! who knows how far the road will go but hopefully to the first 6-peat in world cup history. we'll see! the other proof of the continued tournament is the existence of a lot more drunk people in the street. i am pleased and stoked to tell all of you that i have officially met the oldest man of my life at about 5000 or so years old. that's what he said anyway...he apparently was on board and helped build Noah's ark! i continued to ask him if he knew any giants on board the ship because the bible dictionary says that giants existed before and after the flood so i wondered if he would know. he didn't know quite what the answer was unfortunately. (see bible dictionary "giants")
i sometimes forget while i'm here that the things i see here are now normal to me and not to you yet so i thought i would share one more thing you can be grateful for during the 4th of july. usually every meal we have with members has rice beans and some kind of meat with a "salad". let me describe to you a salad in brazil. take some lettuce and deep fry it...yes deep fry lettuce and then put it in a large bowl with some salt and oil. yum! brazil is still working on the salad dressing stage of salad.
in missionary news, marcelo carvalo was baptized this week and i am so proud of him! his baptismal service was very spiritual and very awesome! i even got the opportunity to play the piano during a special musical number! it was an awesome privilege to know and be a part of this part of marcelo's life! congrats man!
we also almost had another baptism this week with a 9 year old daughter of a less active but her mother wouldn't give up her own selfish desires to let her daughter have someone to accompany her to church each week. Luane is the girls name and she was literally crying because her mom would not go to church. i asked her a question to which came a very sensitive reply...i asked laune why do you want to get baptized? and she responded perfectly and simply...because i want to be on the side of god in heaven. wow what a moment. i was extremely grateful to witness that determination. unfortunately without her mothers help and willingness to get back to church, we aren't accomplishing anything by baptizing her but adding to the less active list. =(
anyway, i've also had some other cool lessons that i have learned and would like to share as always. it's a good thing i am a missionary because i love sharing the gospel principles i learn! the first of these lessons is that every single one of us on this planet will encounter adversity at some time in our lives and in some way, shape or form. i regret to inform you that if you are reading this email, you are also among that list. the good news is that there is help through the gospel. we read in hel 5:12 that christ is a rock and unwavering support. but i think it is interesting to add a time frame to the story. take the example of the wise man and the foolish man. it's interesting that both the righteous one and the foolish man encounter the storm. just because you are righteous doesn't exclude you from the test of life. the floods will come and the only strong surface to all of this is the gospel of christ. the lesson i learned to all of this tho was from 2 nephi 2:25 which i'm sure you will all recognize. "adam fell that men might be and men are that they might have joy!" we are here weathering our own personal storms that heavenly father will send but we are to do so in the end result of having joy! prepare your house on a strong surface. the floods will come but regardless the damage, remember the outcome is for your eternal joy.
another lesson that i have perceived around me being on a mission is the outlook of the world and the view it has. what a frankly sad view it is. it seems like the whole world is trying to get as much as they can for doing as little as possible. our world is obsessed with the idea of getting a lot for nothing. take gambling for example. put your practically worthless penny in the slot hoping to win big. it's a very sad view we have taken on and i've thought of it a little differently lately. instead of trying to get a lot for nothing we need to do a lot for nothing. service is the opposite of this view it would seem. i encourage all of you today to pick the person that is closest to you in distance right now and do something for them they can't do for themselves and expect nothing in return. watch the smiles illuminate! i promise you the blessings will come and heavenly father will reward you for the service. after all "when you are in the service of your fellow beings you are in the service of your god!"
i've also realized something from my past that i would like to change and so i'll speak my two cents and see if it can help anyone for their future too. i spent a very large amount of my teenage days chasing the world. i chased the fashions. i chased the trends. i've also noticed that a very popular trend to follow and chase is to try to be different from everyone else. let me add my advice here and give you full permission to chase the world in the way of being different. stand out. the world will not thank you for following it but there is one person that will. heavenly father and jesus christ will thank you on an infinite level if you follow them. they say that fear is the opposite of faith so have faith. stand out. you can change the crowd. your choice can have the impact on millions of other people and most likely will, so take yourself seriously and stand for what you would want to be known for. decisions truly determine destiny! the game of life is fairly accurate from what i've come to realize. you get your cards dealt to you but every once in a while you get to choose from a select few. my friends, please choose the cards that will help you win the eternal game. it is the only one that matters.
i bear my testimony that you will never regret following the gospel if you do it 100%. never in your life will you regret it. don't follow the world. the commandments aren't just the 10 suggestions that moses got and thought would help a little. they are the ten commandments of god and 10 opportunities to receive blessings from your father in heaven who loves you.
i know this gospel is true and as elphaba says in the intermission scene of "wicked"..."nothing will ever bring me down." build your foundation where you should and stand in the place that will help you win the eternal game! i love you all and i know that i am not alone in that statement! Heavenly Father loves you too! thank you for all your support. continue to pray for me because i know you are and know that i am doing the same for you.
Elder Zack Excell
well it would appear that the world cup is continuing. the reason i know is because the shops still shut down every once in a while during the day and the street goes empty and the missionary opportunities become few and far between. i guess there also is the news that the united states team has returned back to the land of the free and the home of the brave. i only get that told to me about 18 times a day. i guess i still look pretty american. =) but the cup appears to continue for brasil! who knows how far the road will go but hopefully to the first 6-peat in world cup history. we'll see! the other proof of the continued tournament is the existence of a lot more drunk people in the street. i am pleased and stoked to tell all of you that i have officially met the oldest man of my life at about 5000 or so years old. that's what he said anyway...he apparently was on board and helped build Noah's ark! i continued to ask him if he knew any giants on board the ship because the bible dictionary says that giants existed before and after the flood so i wondered if he would know. he didn't know quite what the answer was unfortunately. (see bible dictionary "giants")
i sometimes forget while i'm here that the things i see here are now normal to me and not to you yet so i thought i would share one more thing you can be grateful for during the 4th of july. usually every meal we have with members has rice beans and some kind of meat with a "salad". let me describe to you a salad in brazil. take some lettuce and deep fry it...yes deep fry lettuce and then put it in a large bowl with some salt and oil. yum! brazil is still working on the salad dressing stage of salad.
in missionary news, marcelo carvalo was baptized this week and i am so proud of him! his baptismal service was very spiritual and very awesome! i even got the opportunity to play the piano during a special musical number! it was an awesome privilege to know and be a part of this part of marcelo's life! congrats man!
we also almost had another baptism this week with a 9 year old daughter of a less active but her mother wouldn't give up her own selfish desires to let her daughter have someone to accompany her to church each week. Luane is the girls name and she was literally crying because her mom would not go to church. i asked her a question to which came a very sensitive reply...i asked laune why do you want to get baptized? and she responded perfectly and simply...because i want to be on the side of god in heaven. wow what a moment. i was extremely grateful to witness that determination. unfortunately without her mothers help and willingness to get back to church, we aren't accomplishing anything by baptizing her but adding to the less active list. =(
anyway, i've also had some other cool lessons that i have learned and would like to share as always. it's a good thing i am a missionary because i love sharing the gospel principles i learn! the first of these lessons is that every single one of us on this planet will encounter adversity at some time in our lives and in some way, shape or form. i regret to inform you that if you are reading this email, you are also among that list. the good news is that there is help through the gospel. we read in hel 5:12 that christ is a rock and unwavering support. but i think it is interesting to add a time frame to the story. take the example of the wise man and the foolish man. it's interesting that both the righteous one and the foolish man encounter the storm. just because you are righteous doesn't exclude you from the test of life. the floods will come and the only strong surface to all of this is the gospel of christ. the lesson i learned to all of this tho was from 2 nephi 2:25 which i'm sure you will all recognize. "adam fell that men might be and men are that they might have joy!" we are here weathering our own personal storms that heavenly father will send but we are to do so in the end result of having joy! prepare your house on a strong surface. the floods will come but regardless the damage, remember the outcome is for your eternal joy.
another lesson that i have perceived around me being on a mission is the outlook of the world and the view it has. what a frankly sad view it is. it seems like the whole world is trying to get as much as they can for doing as little as possible. our world is obsessed with the idea of getting a lot for nothing. take gambling for example. put your practically worthless penny in the slot hoping to win big. it's a very sad view we have taken on and i've thought of it a little differently lately. instead of trying to get a lot for nothing we need to do a lot for nothing. service is the opposite of this view it would seem. i encourage all of you today to pick the person that is closest to you in distance right now and do something for them they can't do for themselves and expect nothing in return. watch the smiles illuminate! i promise you the blessings will come and heavenly father will reward you for the service. after all "when you are in the service of your fellow beings you are in the service of your god!"
i've also realized something from my past that i would like to change and so i'll speak my two cents and see if it can help anyone for their future too. i spent a very large amount of my teenage days chasing the world. i chased the fashions. i chased the trends. i've also noticed that a very popular trend to follow and chase is to try to be different from everyone else. let me add my advice here and give you full permission to chase the world in the way of being different. stand out. the world will not thank you for following it but there is one person that will. heavenly father and jesus christ will thank you on an infinite level if you follow them. they say that fear is the opposite of faith so have faith. stand out. you can change the crowd. your choice can have the impact on millions of other people and most likely will, so take yourself seriously and stand for what you would want to be known for. decisions truly determine destiny! the game of life is fairly accurate from what i've come to realize. you get your cards dealt to you but every once in a while you get to choose from a select few. my friends, please choose the cards that will help you win the eternal game. it is the only one that matters.
i bear my testimony that you will never regret following the gospel if you do it 100%. never in your life will you regret it. don't follow the world. the commandments aren't just the 10 suggestions that moses got and thought would help a little. they are the ten commandments of god and 10 opportunities to receive blessings from your father in heaven who loves you.
i know this gospel is true and as elphaba says in the intermission scene of "wicked"..."nothing will ever bring me down." build your foundation where you should and stand in the place that will help you win the eternal game! i love you all and i know that i am not alone in that statement! Heavenly Father loves you too! thank you for all your support. continue to pray for me because i know you are and know that i am doing the same for you.
Elder Zack Excell
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.jpg)
