World Cup - 23 June 2014

Hello everyone!!!!!

 

The world cup has been killing us here in Franco da Rocha as we have been so blessed to find more investigators then we have time to work with being that our time has been so cut down by all the games. With luck, if Brazil looses this should be the last day stuck in the house!!!!!

 

yesterday Me and Elder Throckmorton had a special planning section to help figure out when we could go find all of our families. What a great problem to have on a mission right!!! we have truly been so blessed here. I know that the Lord has truly been watching and blessing our efforts and truly they have been multiplied.

 

Rodrigo has been having a hard week. He had his baptismal interview. He passed everything but in the end he said that he did not feel ready to be baptized. He knows its true, He loves the church. He doesn't have any doubts, he's just a little scarred. We have been praying for him and thinking allot about what we can do to help him.

 

Yesterday we got to talk to Grasiele again. Her baptism date is marked and ready for this Saturday!!!!! I am praying that Brazil looses because if they win and move on their next game will fall on Saturday and we will be stuck in the house again and have to move the baptism. haha She is hilarious. She is trying to learn stick shift.....haha you know how that is. And just like me, hasn't got it down yet. haha but its getting better. Every trip back to our house is a little..... exciting. Yesterday when she came to church. She got to the parking lot and then was having a lot of trouble parking. in the end she had to have one of our investigators that showed up park her car for her. haha. I found it funny cuz I can totally relate!

 

We have continued to work with the family of Edimar. They are a family that has been working with the missionaries for a very long time now. We are trying to get Edimar to be baptized so that he can be an example to his wife who is trying to stop smoking. She has been having  a really hard time. we want Edimar to be baptized so that he can get the priesthood so that he can bless her and help her have the strength to quit. He is working through some things with the bishop and we are praying that the lord will prepare a way for him.

 

Rita came to church yesterday!!!!! It was here first week in a normal meeting. the first time she came we had stake conference. She told us yesterday after church that she felt that she was gaining the strength that she needed. She made some great comments in the gospel principles class yesterday!!! She learns so fast its incredible. She is ready to be baptized as well and we will mark a date with here at our next visit.

 

I got a picture this week with President and Sister Martins: They are leaving the mission here in about 3 weeks and President Farns will be coming in. We had a great conference with president Martins this week. It is always a great learning opportunity. I got some pictures with him and Sister Martins. haha. They are going to be missed here in the mission.

 

Again, Thank you all for your prayers, letters, boxes, emails!!! For every thing that you all have done for me while I am here!!! I love you all so much and know that I have been blessed with the best family in the world!!!

Mom dad  I GOT THE BOX WITH THE PLAN OF SALVATION PUZZLE!!!! I was so happy when I say my name on that box!!! Thank you so much!!! the puzzle is awesome!!!!! And eating cold cereal for the first time in 9 months is awesome!!!!!!

 

 

                   I love you all so much!!!!! HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!!!

 

                                                          Elder B. Jacobson

 

 

with President & Sister Martin

 

 

Neusa wearing an American flag shirt

Testimony - 16 June 2014

Don't have a lot of time today but I did want to share my testimony for you guys:

 

            Here everyday on the mission has given me an opportunity to learn something new each day. And as I keep going on I have seen that every thing has really lead up to one thing. HUMILITY. One thing that I have noticed in myself here is I have a huge problem with just really being Humble and teachable. But I know that it is the key to learning and becoming better. I think that for me so many times in life you want to always feel like you know what your doing and that you don't need to improve, that you don't need to be corrected. But one thing that I have really been trying to learn is that I will never reach  a point here on the mission when I can not improve. I don't know why but for me it has proven difficult for me to really just take correction and just try to learn at every opportunity.

           So this is something that I really would like to work on for the next couple of months. Ill write you guys and tell you how it all goes.

 

           I know I got distracted from the testimony so here goes:

 

  When we teach people about the gospel, the first thing we will talk about is about how God is our Heavenly Father. So many times I have thought about the simplicity and power of this phrase. And some times I wonder if we truly understand what this means. One thing that I have come to learn is that when we truly understand that we are children of our God we find the strength, confidence and purpose to keep going and to push on through all the challenges in our lives. This phrase has been a power to me to truly know who i am, Why i am on earth, AND were I am going and who I am trying to become. Sometimes to get so caught up in the moment right now but forget to think about all that we could have and be in the future. Everything about the gospel is about the future. It has nothing to do with what we are today but what we are working to become in the future. I know that this is true. I know that we have so much more potential then this world wants you to think. We live in a world of so much insecurity with so many different opinions of what we should and shouldn't do. So many times to try and do all we can to fit into this world... but I know that this is not the world that we should be trying to be fitting into. This world is not our goal. Our goal is so much higher. I KNOW that i am here to learn and grow through trials and difficulties so that i can return home and live with my God and learn to become like him. So that I will have the understanding that he has that only comes through trials and tests.

The way has been prepared for us. Through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ We can learn and correct our mistakes to BECOME like our Father. The way has been prepared for us. So every time life is feeling difficult. REMEMBER why we are here and WHO sent us and then be firm in your testimony of what you know to be true. I know that this is the plan of our loving Heavenly Father and that one day we will all be united together if we live our lives according to the plan of our FATHER.

                                       In the name of Jesus Christ amen.

  

 

I love you all so much!!!! have a great week!!! This week should be very exciting for us as we are preparing 3 people to be baptized!!! Will have tones of pictures to send next week!!!!

 

                                                           love,

                                   Elder Bryan Jacobson

Our Investigators - 9 June 2014

This has been such a great week!!!! We are really seeing the fruits of our labor here in Franco da Rocha.

This Sunday we has 12 people visiting church and we marked 4 dates for baptism.

 

MEET SOME OF OUR INVESTIGATORS:

 

RODERIO; went to church again this week for the second time and said that he liked it a lot and was feeling a lot better about his baptism date. When we marked a date with him he said that he did not feel ready to be baptized. In our next lesson we brought a Member that Roderio already knew from work to help us teach. After the lesson he said that he was ready and excited to be baptized!!!!!

 

RITA: is a good friend of Roderio. and Roderio told us that we needed to talk to her because she was struggling with depression. We had a lesson with her on Friday. After she said that she knew that this was true and that the gospel was going to be the thing that would give her the strength to keep going. She also said that she wanted to be an example for her children to follow and so she will be baptized the same day as Roderio

 

BARBARA: is a women we found on the street because a drunk guy stopped us and was trying to talk to us. The guy is Barbara started on the street about our church. we marked another day to visit the family. we talked for almost 2 hours!!! it was awesome. the entire family (9 people) were asking questions about the Book of Mormon. Barbara came to church this week. and we are preparing her to be baptized in 2 weeks!!!!!

 

HELAINA: is a person that we have been working with for about 2 months now. She is addicted to cigarettes and so we have been working hard to help her quit but it has been a long difficult proses for her. But she is doing a lot better. We are praying that in the next couple of weeks she can overcome and have the strength to stop for good. now she is down to 6 a day. before she smoked 20 each day so she is really  making progress. When she stops the entire family is going to be baptized. (Helaine, Edimar, and Biatrese)

 

GRASIELE: is someone that we found in our area book. we have made two visits to her house and she has already made many visits to church. She has a date to be baptized in two weeks as well!!!! This week we taught the restoration to her and about how the church has the authority to baptized. We invited her to be baptized. and She said " just waiting for you to ask me" She is marked for the same day as Rita and Roderio.

 

...And that's the summary of our amazing investigators her in Franco Da Rocha!!!!!! Truly the lord has placed all of these people in our path. They have been such a blessing to me and I know that i have been so blessed to be able to work with them.

This week the world cup is starting so we have 3 days that we have to stay in our house... I don't know what we are going to do but 3 days locked in a tiny house with 4 people doesn't sound like too much fun. ill be sure to send picture of what ever we end up doing to entertain ourselves.

 

Once again can I just say as I say every week what a Miracle all of this is. Every day is such a blessing!!!! The mission is worth every painful time. the joy  ALWAYS out ways all the hard times!

I love you all so much!!!!

 

Oh, one more thing. This week for stake conference we got to here from Elder Scott and Elder M. Russell Nelson!!!

did you know that Elder Scott speaks Portuguese? cool right. It was awesome cuz we got to tell our investigators that these were two of the 12 apostles!!!! cool right!!! you don't get that opportunity every day with your investigators!!!

 

Well my time is up!!:(

 

I love you all so much!! have a great week AND I'LL TALK TO YOU next week!!!!

 

 

Blessings of Prayer - 2 June 2014

Dear family!!!!

 

WHAT A WONDERFUL WEEK I HAVE TO TELL YOU ABOUT!!!!!

 

I love the scripture that says the lord will turn out weaknesses into strengths and that we have weakness so that we will have the opportunity to turn to the lord and be humble so that the lord can bless us.

This week as I started tacking on Franco da Rocha by myself with a new companion I was terrifies because I knew that I did not know the roads and exactly how to find all of the people. And when ever I get lost I start to panic a little.

Well, on out first day of work. We were working in a part of the area that I had never been in. LAST TRANSFER when I was in a trio, we had two entire cities to ourselves and so I did not get to know this side of the area very well at all, BUT we had a map and I was trying my best to find a former investigator my companion found in the area book. We looked and looked and couldn't find the house. I was praying in my heart to Heavenly father to please prepare a way for us. After 45 minutes of searching and asking people on the streets we could not find this person to save our lives.

A little frustrated and embarrassed at my horrible memory and map skills I do what I always do when I start getting stressed, say a little prayer in my heart and pick a door and knock.   And what a door it was.......

 

His name was Roderio. When he came out of his house he said 'I thought you were security when I saw you dressed in whit shirts. I work for security here in Brazil and so I wanted to know what you guys were doing.'

He was so excited to talk to us and then we told him why we were here and asked if we could share a  message with him. He said yes and we shared the message of the Restoration and he started crying when we talked about the family and told us that his mom had dies and he missed her so much. The spirit was so strong!!!!! After the message he was so excited he said " I have a friend that needs to hear this!!! "

 

Her mane is Rita and when we talked to her she said that she had never felt right about all the other churches that she had been to and was looking for a new church. She committed to be baptized when she knew it was true. We invited both of them to come to church. Only Roderio came but he liked it a lot and said that he felt the spirit.

 

Also we found a family that I talked to once at the gate that said to pass by another time last transfer but we never made it back. BUT know that we don't have the entire area to worry about we finally made a visit. The family just happened to be all in the house. We reviewed the restoration and the father said. I like this. can I go to your church?

At the end of the lesson we committed the entire family to go to church and the dad said he wanted to be BAPTISED.

 

Yesterday with two companionships we had 19 investigators in the church 12 of ours and 7 from the others!!!!!!!! the chapel was packed with investigators.

 

And just to end the day great... I had my first BAPTISM. I BAPTISED   MATEUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

I was neurves as heck but it was awesome.

Such a great feeling of success!!! nothing is better. It is nice to have members baptise the investigator because they stay in the ward with the new member and help strengthen them. But it was so sweet to ge to be the one to baptise my investigator for the first time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

My Lord has blessed me so much. I cant not describe with words how I realy feel. All i know is that every FEAR every DOUGHT and every DIFFICULT TIME   IS WORTH IT. IT IS SO WORTH IT!!!!!!!

 

I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!! HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!!

Lessons From Cancelations - 26 May 2014

So this week did not go as I thought I would. You know how I said I was so excited to see two apostles. Well it got canceled because of some riots and stuff here in sao paulo. The city police were going in to a lot of the cities for security reasons and so all of the busses and trains were closed. All of the missionaries in the mission were directed to stay in our houses the entire day. Nothing happened in Franco da Rocha but we were all really sad about missing the conference.

However, we made the best of it. The night before we were confined to our house we bought everything you need for a nice barbeque in Brazil CHUHASCO!!!! MEAT, SAUSAGE, CHICKEN, A NICE SALAD, GARLIC BREAD. We used our oven as a grill and had a feast all to our selves.

This is the last day of the transfer and I know that I am going to be staying in Franco da Rocha But with who has not been made known yet.

This transfer I have to admit did not go the way I thought it would but I know that I learned so much about my self and really about the missionary that I want to BECOME.  When  got to Franco da Rocha with two senior companions and one of them being  a district leader I thought that this was going to be 'The District transfer " Where every missionary is working perfectly in harmony.....

But after the first few weeks of the transfer something changed. My companions would not get out of bed in the morning. I would wake up study, AT 9 they would sleep on and on and on.... until I was done with my personal study. companion ship study would come around and I would find myself sitting alone as my companions slept on. And so I studied with my companions by myself as they slept on..... until 10. when I would open my language book and practice the language. At about 10:30 they would get up and start getting ready for the day and go to lunch like all was normal......

YES these last three week did not go as I was expecting but there was something that I needed to learn for myself that I think has been one of my biggest trials and definitely something that is apart of who I am.

I like to feel like I fit in with the group. I like to feel like I get along with my companions. And sometimes I would LOOSE sight of what is truly important and would be  willing to do anything just so I wouldn't  have to feel alone.

At the beginning of the transfer I wanted so badly to feel like I had a place in the trio. BUT then I learned what was really important. I think back on the life of the savior and how much of his life time He had to spend ALONE. As I looked back into Jesus the Christ, I made the chose that I would rather be alone With Christ then included With out Him. As I had the opportunity to study ALONE I learned more about my savior and about my purpose as a missionary and my purpose here on earth.

Nothing is ever going to be easy. There are going to be times in our lives when we need to walk alone. I have been praying to God everyday that I can be made stronger so that I can BECOME a better example and not be afraid to walk alone on the path that Christ walked before me.

One thing that I have really come to realize is that every trial in our lives has such a big purpose in our journey back to our Heavenly Father. Sometimes I forget that My purpose is not just to make it back to my Heavenly Father but to BECOME more like him each and every day. 

No matter the trial or the difficulty never forget why we are truly here on this earth.

I love you all so much!!!!!! ;):) I am looking forward to this next chapter of my mission and I pray that the lord will keep helping me to become who he needs me to become.

Photo one and two; This is Jenine and Sergio our last baptism. They are awesome. They have already visited the outside of the temple and had a great experience their. And they made a stop at the book store by the temple and bought all of books and movies made by the church. They read the Book of Mormon every night together and are just learning so much.

The third one is Neilsa. She is going to be our next baptism in a few weeks. She loves the church and is inviting all of her friends to come and hear the lessons. We are working with two of her friends as well.;)

                                                           I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!

                                                           eLDER Jacobson

Team S - 19 May 2014

Hello everyone,

 

This is going to be a very special week for my mission because we are gong to be having a conference on Wednesdays worth 2 apostles!!!! NELSON and ANDERSON!!!!!  How cool is that!!! I am so excited!! and i am going to understand every word!!!!!!!!!!!!

This Sunday e had a very special night as we saw the fruits of working a lot with the ward come forth.

I was working with a member of the bishopric to visit some of the families on his home teaching rout named Junio. He is about 20 and is a less active member that is having trouble getting to church because of work. So i had the opportunity to share a message with him about the Book of Mormon. The spirit was strong and we set a goal with him to get to church once a mouth. But that is just the first part. Junio is living with his best friend named Daniel. So we talked to Daniel about the Book of Mormon. He said that he would like to learn more. We are hoping and praying that this will help Junio be stronger in the church. We made one more visit that night to a person that has been investigating the church for a long time know and shared a message to invite the spirit, Then Elder Marroy invited him to be baptized............. And he said YES  He is going to be baptized on the first of June!!! (holly cow I just realized its may!!!!)

                We have been working with a Sister named Neilsa for some time know and had an awesome lesson with her and a member family. We talked about the importance of baptism and read in second Nephi about baptism and why it was so important. AT the end of the lesson she bore her testimony telling us that she knew that the church was true and that by reading the Book of Mormon and going to church and praying to know the truth she received the strength she needed to be baptized.

We are seeing so many miracles here in Franco da Rocha. And I just pray that we can keep being strong in our diligence so that the lord can bless our work and multiply the effect.

 

I don't have any pictures for you guys because my cord for my camera broke. (it wont charge, connect to the computer, nothing.) so I'm going to have to start looking around for a new one.

 

I love you all so much and hope you have a great week!!!!

I finally got my Sao Paulo shirt today!!!! its awesome. I also collected a Brazil flag!!! nice and big to put on my wall next to my bed. I have pictures and will try to get them out next week!!!

Week of Reflection - 13 May 2014

This week has been a week of a lot of reflection for me. I have been thinking a lot about the work that I have done, the things that I have learned so fare, and the things and goals that I want for myself. I took my journal and Wrote some of the things that I know I can do better and some goals to help my companions and I work more together.

      And It has been such a rewarding experience for me. I know that I will never be a prefect missionary but I know for a fact that if we take out weaknesses to the lord, he CAN turn them into strengths. I think sometimes in life we are afraid to do things because we don't know what could happen. I feel this has the case for me. Being here with two senior companions for some reason made me feel insecure about the way I teach, my language skills and the way I interact with the ward. I felt intimidated and took a back seat in our trio. And then I started feeling that what I had to say did not really matter.  And everyone knows that when you are down, that is the time when Satan is going to work his hardest on you try and drag you down.

     I felt like hell was breaking loose on me. So many negative thought were coming into my head that, I could not do this work, and that I would never be the missionary that I want to become. When ever this kind of thing happens on the mission and in life we have one choice and one choice only that will determine in the end if you failed or passed in the eyes of God; weather you turned to God or weather you don't. 

     Every day we are going to meet a new trial in our life. We are going to be tested ,for that is why we are here. And it is my testimony that we have only truly failed when we stop putting our faith in Heavenly father and praying to just do his will.

This week as I had the opportunity to face some hard trials I have been filled with a heart of gratitude for the hard times because it is just another chance I have to turn to my lord and savior and have a nice long conversation with Him.

    The night before I went to the temple I just pored my heart out to Heavenly Father to please let me know how I am doing and what I can do better and how I can better overcome the struggles.

    the answers always come in the temple. As I sat in the celestial room I thought about why I was here on earth and why I was on a mission. And once again My testimony of this gospel was strengthen. I know who I am and I know why I am here.

I know that I am a son of God and he has a perfect plan for me. I know that this gospel is the only thing that matters in this life. I know that the hard times are to help us grow and be closer to our father in heaven. I know that I WAS CALLED TO BRASIL BY MY FATHER IN HEAVEN.

I think that sometimes I let my fears get in the way of letting god work through me to become the best I can become. But I know that I must let go of all my fears and just let god do his work through me. Let go of all the droughts and just go with faith.

 

TRUST IN THE LORD WITH ALL THY HEART AND LEAN NOT UNTO THEY OWN UNDERSTANDING IN ALL THEY WAYS AGNOLIGE HIM......  AND HE SHALL DIRECT THY PATH.

 

I know this is true. IM OUT OF TIME 

I love you all so much have a great week!!!!!

 

                                                                   Elder Jacobson