:)

I´ll apologize right now because this email may not be very long because I don´t remember a whole lot of what happened this week but I will do my best,:) 

First off, I´ll start with Eduardo......... This week was a little tough with him. We spent a lot of time going over the restoration because he had a lot of questions and was super confused. So we had a lot of lessons with the members with him which helped him out a lot. But he still had the other pastor visiting him a lot because the other church is literally right in front of his house..... tough to compete with. But Eduardo has a very strong testimony of the BOM. So we are focusing a lot on that. But I´m almost 100% positive that he was baptized in the other church last night. We haven’t had a chance to visit him yet but we are going to continue to visit him because he really wants to know which church really is true. So wish us luck and keep him in your prayers!

This week we didn’t see Raimundo at all. He was working a lot and wasn’t home. But he called us a couple of times during the week so that was good. We visited him yesterday and he is still reading the BOM and everything and still wants to be baptized. He just needs a little bit more time. So we set another goal with him to be baptized on the 29th! So cross your fingers that everything will go right!!! 

This week we tried really hard to find some new investigators but we didn’t have much luck. But, we found a ton of less active members!! We really did see some miracles this week finding these people. My highlight of the week would probably finding Irmã Edina, :) So one day we were just walking down the street trying to find some people to teach and we had made a list of less active members and ex-investigators to try and visit. So as we were searching for a house this man walked by and we decided to make a contact with him and talk to him. So we got talking to him and he started saying, "Ya, I know about your church. The men would pass by my house all the time and my wife used to make lunch for them!" I turned to my comp and kind of gave her the look of well this isn’t normal. So we asked if we could meet his wife. So he took us to his house. On the way he explained to us that his wife has lived here for about a year. He still lives in the other city for work. But she moved here about a year ago because she had a stroke and came here for treatment. So we walked in and introduced ourselves to her and she just started crying. She was so happy to see two missionaries in her house! So she explained her situation to us and that she hasn’t been to church since she moved here because it’s too far for her to walk. So we were instantly like well we can have a sister pass by here on Sunday to give you a ride to church. She agreed to that and was so happy that she started to cry again! But then we got talking a bit and my comp was talking to her husband when she turned to me and was like, "How did you find my husband?" So I just explained to her that we were searching for some people close to her house and met him in the street. Then she turned to me and said, "Well, you found who you were looking for." And I lost it. We were all in tears at that point. We truly found who we were supposed to find. The spirit was so strong in her house. It truly was a miracle for us. Up to this point it has been a little difficult for us here in Guará. It’s a richer area so it’s harder finding people who are open to our message. So we haven’t been having a ton of success and vie been really questioning if I have been doing my part and if I am making a difference here. And in that moment with Edina, I knew that it would be ok. I knew that we were doing our part and the lord will put people into our paths. Just my tender mercy of the week, :)

This week I also got to see some of the members that I met while I was in Cristalina so that was really cool! We also went to the old area of Sister Alves and she got to watch one of her old investigators get baptized so that was also really cool! Well that’s about it for this week! Love you all! Hope you all have an awesome week! Remember to always read your scriptures and say your prayers!

Com Amor, 

Sister Steadman

A Crazy Week

Well this week sure flew by so fast! So many things happened! But, best of all it was so good to talk to my family :) But here’s a load down of my week here in Cristalina :)

Last Monday we did an activity for our district here. We planned on walking to a club that has a beach so we could visit it and take some pics. Well in the end, it turned out to be about 12 kilometers away so we ended up walking for six hours that day! We were all dead and by the end we could even walk straight, ha. But we spend the night in a pizza place and ate a good dinner, ha. 

Wednesday morning I set up an interview for Maciele and Elder Todt (leader of my district) because we really felt like she just needed to talk to him to feel better. So we sat there while they had the interview and she came out and was like well, if I’m going to get baptized I’ve got to be baptized soon! So she was like let me grab my planner. So she grabbed her planner and looked at us and said, "Can I be baptized today at 4:30?" haha, we said of course! So we hurried and ran home and got everything ready! It was so cool! 

This week my comp wasn’t feeling too good so we took it a little slower so she could recover. Friday night we were in our house making some cookies for a surprise birthday party for one of the Elders when she got super sick. The Elders started freaking out and told me that I had to run her to the hospital because they thought she had dengue. So I ran her to the hospital and we ended up staying there for 7 hours...... until 1 in the morning. But in the end she just has a little cold. So we’ve been laying low so she could get better and she is doing a lot better now :)

Saturday I got to talk to my family!!!! And Nivaldo was baptized that night! Ha, he was so scared to go under the water but it all worked out! He only has one leg so he was super nervous about that but two elders helped him. But when he came up from the water he freaked out because he was so scared, ha! But he was so happy after :)

Well today is the transfer and I’ll be staying here with Sister Costancio and we only have one Elder that was transferred. The new Elder is Elder Barker, I worked with him when I was in Asa Norte so I already know him a little bit! But we are all super excited! And this next transfer is going to be great :)

Well I hope you all have a wonderful week! Keep reading the scriptures and saying your prayers! Love you all! 

Love,

Sister Steadman

Nivaldo's Baptism

"Crystals" in Cristalina.

This week was super good for me and my companion!!! This past weekend we were able to have a baptism! The brother of one of our members was baptized and he got to baptize his brother! Well.....it was an interesting baptism, haha. 

This week, finally in my mission, we found a family!!! We are soooo extremely excited! And this family is so perfect! It’s a Mom, Maria Eunice, and her four kids, Camila, Veronica, Victor and Rafael. They are the cutest! As soon as we met them they were super interested! They have been reading the Book of Mormon and read all the pamphlets that we give them! Maria Eunice was telling us that her two little boys are always reminding her that they need to read and they were so excited to go to church! They are progressing so well! Last night we stopped by their house to see how they liked church and we ended up marking a date with them! So they will be baptized on May 9th! We are super excited!!!! If you couldn’t tell, ha.

Also we have another investigator preparing for baptism on May 9th, Nivaldo. He is an older gentleman who lives alone. It was funny in the beginning with him because he had the hardest time understanding us! He was so focused on our accents that he didn’t pay attention to our message. But it’s better now. In the beginning he would always ask us, "does your church only have people like you guys?", haha but we reassured him and told him it’s full of Brazilians, ha. But he has been in church the past two Sundays and loves it! He’s really understanding everything and is progressing so well! We are super excited for him!

This week we also found some other people who I think have a lot of potential! So we will see how this week goes with them, :)

I’m sure loving it here in Cristalina! This city is full of Crystals!!  This city has soo much potential! I can’t wait for the day to hear that this town will have a ward! It’s so cool to see how far they have come. From only 6 members and having meeting in one of the members’ house, to now having almost 60 people in church every Sunday! It’s the coolest thing! I love this church!!!

Well I hope you all have a fabulous week! Keep reading the scriptures! I love you all!

Com Amor

Sister Steadman