The Crazy Beautiful Life of Sister Steadman

What a wonderful, short, quick, tiring week it has been! Holy crap I can’t believe it is Monday again! Once again, this week flew by right before my eyes, but in the end it was a good one :)

So we spent Monday and Tuesday in Brasilia for our P-Day with our zone and we had a training on Tuesday. So we returned Tuesday night. So this week was a short one and got started working on Wednesday. But, first off, we have Fabrissa! She is still reading the Book of Mormon and has been smoking less! Which is a miracle! But I really enjoy teaching her. She is so much fun! And she understands everything so well and understands what she needs to do! So basically she is perfect! So we have been working really hard with her on keeping the commandments and so far so good! She has been improving rather quickly and she has already noticed the blessings in her life. This is one of my most favorite things. When someone starts to change their life for the better and they realize the blessings of doing so. It’s a feeling that I cant describe. But it’s a rewarding feeling :) But she is good and is planning on being baptized on the 19th :)

Next we have Welson, who was the man we found in the street the week before. So it’s a little hard to find him home because of his crazy schedule, but we found him, taught him the first lesson and holy crap it was so good! The spirit was so strong and it went exactly how we wanted it to! He even got a little emotional. But the coolest part for me was to see him realize that he had found what he was looking for. These are the moments I love the most; these little tender mercies from the Lord. It is such an honor to help people realize what they were needing in their lives - The Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. I love helping people realize that the truth is here on the earth. Ahhhh it’s the best!! But, we invited him to be baptized on the 19th as well and he accepted :)

Next we have Anderson, the cousin of Raianne. With him, I just can’t believe how easy it is to teach him. He understands everything and asks such good questions! This week he asked us why churches always fight with one another and talk bad about one another. He is just super perfect and was very well prepared by the Lord :)

This week we also focused on the commandments with Raianne and her mom Edvânia. First we started with the Word of Wisdom and it was a little bit of a struggle for them because of the coffee. But they tried really hard and now aren’t drinking it anymore!! And the rest of the commandments have been easy for them to keep! Edvania and her husband aren’t legally married so we talked to her about the importance of being married and she was all for it! So next visit, the sisters will be getting that all marked for her :)

Sunday we had a district conference with the other wards and branches of our district so we had to travel really early Sunday morning to arrive on time. So we were supposed to leave here 6 am. But we left 6:30. Yes Mormon time exists here in Brasil as well. But it was really good for our members and our investigators. Edvânia and her two daughters, Fabiana and Natália went and they really liked it! Then we returned last night. And of course the elders were hungry and because it was Sunday they couldn´t buy pizza, so of course it was up to me to make food. So we had a pasta night in the church last night, ha.

Well here’s this week: tonight we are having a family night in the church with the members and some investigators for me to say goodbye to everyone. Then tomorrow I leave here at 2 in the afternoon. Wednesday there is a training on how to be self-sufficient then Thursday is our lunch with president and interviews and Friday night I leave. So crazy! But I came here to do what I need to do and it was a wonderful experience. But, all good things must come to an end so more doors can open.

I found a quote the other day that explains the life of a missionary so perfectly!

A mission is a strange experience
It is a trial and a test.
A mission throws at you the worst
Yet, teaches you the best.
I've never been so happy,
I've never been so depressed.
I've never felt so forsaken,
I've never felt so blessed.
I've never been so confused,
Things have never been so clear.
I've never felt my Heavenly Father so distant,
He's never been so near.
I've never been so discouraged,
I've never been so full of hope.
I feel I could go on for forever,
I think I've come to the end of my rope.
I've never had it quite so easy,
I've never had it quite so tough.
Things have never been so smooth,
Things have never been so rough.
I've never traveled through more valleys,
I've never ascended more peaks.
I've never met so many nice people.
I've never met so many freaks!
I've never had so many ups,
I've never had so many downs.
I've never worn so many smiles,
I've never had so many frowns.
I've never been so lonely,
I've never had so many friends.
BOY, I hope this is over soon,
GOSH, I hope this never ends.

I am so grateful for the wonderful opportunity I had to serve the people of Brasil. I love Brasil. But I am so eternally grateful for My Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. I have come to know them and love them here on the mission. I am so grateful for the gospel in my life. I’m grateful for all the miracles I have seen these past 17 months. I’m so grateful for all the things the Lord has taught me. I am so grateful for all the people I was allowed to meet and help come to know our Savior more.

Well folks, that’s about it. Thank you all for your love and support! I will be arriving at the Salt Lake airport Saturday morning at 10:30a for any of you who want to be there, you are welcome :) But, just know, the church is true! And continue to read your scriptures and say your prayers :) Have a Fabulous week!

Com Amor,
Sister Steadman

The most expensive teddy bear I've ever held.

Me, Sister Fidellis, Sister Mercer & Wade (President's Son)

:)

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