Roofs Are Just a Suggestion

 Messanger: I am not allowed to have messanger here so if you have been trying to send a message, you will just have to email me. 

Opaaaa! Todo bem!

This has actually been the most insane week of my life. I literally have only had 3-4 regular days of missionary work and the rest have been either a division because of circumstances or something else insane happens. 

- On Tuesday we had a great member meal and had an Orbees gun fight after but Elder Guerrero and I ended up stepping in a massive pile of dog poop and it got on both of our pants and our shoes so I had to go home and change real quick. That was mad unfortunate. 

- Wednesday we had an amazing Zone Conference but we had to wake up at 3:00am and then drive 4 hours which was brutal but I got to lead the Zone in the missionary purpose which was fun! I learned so much about how I can teach better and how I should approach teaching to invite the spirit more. We finished the conference at about 5:00pm and then got back to our house at 9:30 so it was literally a full day of conference and travelling.

- Thursday is when it got actually insane. I woke up and had a normal morning with working out, eating, showering, and then Elder Rowlan and I started our planning and studies. In the middle of our daily planning, we hear a creak outside, we look out our window and the outside roof thing, and then we watch as it absolutely CRASHES to the ground!!! Elder Rowland and I just stared at each other in shock for like 20 second. We walked out and just stared at the disaster sitting there in front of us. We called the secretaries and they told us to pack up our stuff because we were moving out of our house! We had about 20 minutes to pack up our entire house and then move to the ZL's house which is pretty small and now we have 6 elders so Elder Rowland and I are on matresses on the ground in the other Elders rooms. Absolutely insane but now I get some dope stories for my kids one day.

 Friday I did a split with Elder Slaton and it was crazy. We talked with Yvonne and she said she read the pamphlets and knew that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that all other churches don't have the fullness of the truth and this is the one true church on the Earth! It was so amazing. That same day we met a guy that was Atheist, Anti-American, was a Socialist and believed Jesus Christ was the first socialist, and had a newspaper from the day 9/11 happened but from the Brazil newspaper. Also saw a toilet in the middle of the road, and a random guy sped behind us on a horse in the middle of the road

Saturday I watched a group drug deal happen right in front of me where a guy opened his backpack and 20ish people ran up holding reais (cash) and grabbed a mysterious white powder and ran away. 

Sunday was great. We had Yvonne at church and a ward conference. It was so amazing. We had a great lunch as well (I could eat rice and beans every day of my life) and played games at a members house that night. 

Today is P-day and I have to move all my stuff to a new place now!!! I love packing up all my stuff in 20 minutes every other day!

Absolutely wild week but I saw the Lords hand so much as well. 

Spiritual Thought:

I've been thinking about the power of the priesthood this week as we did a blessing on the house of a man we are trying to baptize named Cristiano. His wife is already baptized and they have 6 kids in a tiny house with 4 kids. Elded Rowland and I sat down on the couch and it sunk all the way to the ground, it was hiladious. We were having a lesson with the family and it felt hectic. The kids were running around and screaming, the dad was getting mad at the kids, there dogs kept running in and out and it was hard to focus. We did the blessing and immediately it felt more peaceful. We finished the lesson and the dad accepted a baptism date. He is trying to quit smoking and drinking right now as well and his wife bore testimony that after receiving the gift of the holy ghost it was so easy to quit. The priesthood is so powerful when you are worthily holding it. The power of God can work miracles and the work of the Lord could not move forward without it. Im so grateful for Joseph Smith and his faithfulness and bravery in restoring the church.

Sorry my email is so long but it was too crazy of a week to not make it long, probably one of the most crazy weeks of my life. I wouldn't have it any other way here. I literally think I've had 3 normal days in my 12 days here. 

Love you all and don't be afraid to reach out!

BRASILLL 🔥🔥🔥

 Area: Porto Novo

Companion: Elder Rowland

Unfortunately I am not allowed to have anyone on my Google Photos album and I cannot join anyone else's photo album either so I'm just going to attach a few photos to my emails.

I aí carasss!!! 

First week in Brazil and wowww this place is amazing. I have never met so many people that are willing to hear messages about Jesus Christ. They are so open and friendly. We had one day where we taught 13 lessons, had 7 people say they would work toward a baptism date and we put 1 man named Marcos on date! 

My trainer Elder Rowland is actually amazing. Im learning so much and the language is coming along. I can understand some of the natives here and most all of the missionaries. I've had so many opportunities to teach and see the Gift of Tongues as well. 

 Highlights 

- as soon as we walked out of the airport, a lady stopped me and we talked about missionary work for a while and then she gave me her number so I could get her in contact with the elders near her! 

- our van broke down on the way to Santos so we sat at a police station for and hour and a half until we got picked up by another van

- saw a capybara

- saw the Santos FC training facility across from where the temple is being built

-We're in the northern most part of the mission and it is beautiful

- Had dinner at a members house and it was amazing. We ate dinner at a table made out of a barrel and a literal door

- it's been raining the 2 days

- Tried Acai

- I got to recite the First Vision in a lesson

Spiritual Thought:

I have been thinking about the sacrament this week a lot and why it is so important that we take it every week. The sacrament reminds us of Jesus Christ and the sacrifice that he made on our behalf. He didn't have to do it but he chose to do it. When he suffered in the garden of Gethsemane, he thought of all of us to give him strength to push through his anguish. When we are struggling, we need to look to him for find strength. We were teaching a lesson yesterday about the restoration to a less active member and at the end of the lesson she said that she felt like there was something missing in her life the past few months because she had not been to church and she said she would go this Sunday. The sacrament is so important to remember our covenants and remember our Savior. 

Love yall so much and hope you're all doing so great! Send me emails and keep me updated! 

I'M OFF!!!! Brazil Here I Come...

 

ha ha ha :)

Gavin saw Drake Allen at the airport!  He saw him across the way and yelled "Go Aggies!"  

Drake came over to talk to him, what a cool guy!

Last Week Pictures from the MTC....

 

5 Minute Mile

Hey guys! This is my last full week at the MTC! I will be flying out next Tuesday to Brazil! Time has actually been flying here. I have learned so much in the past few weeks in terms of the Portuguese and the gospel.

Highlights:

- Taught our first 25 minute Portuguese lesson and it went super well!

- Elder Teny and I were about to be late for a class that was all the way across the campus and it started at 6:00 but we needed to be two minutes early. We decided to sprint while I had a ham sandwich in hand so we left at 5:53 and we got to class at 5:58 hence the title of the email. We were actually sweating so hard and gasping for air when we got to class. We are academic weapons

- Got to play some more basketball and SPIKEBALL 

- Got to draw some more (unlocking a hidden talent I forgot about)

- Got a package with some new hacky sacks

Spiritual Thought: 

We did a Go and Do experience where we study whatever we want for an hour and a half and I was reading in 1 Nephi 3 and 4 where Nephi and his brothers are getting the plates. Laman and his brothers are terrified of Laban because they know how much power he has and that he can command 50 men to slay them in an instant. In the end Nephi knows that because he keeps the commandments of God and has full faith in Him, he has no need to fear. FEAR NO MAN has been my motto lately and that is exactly how Nephi felt when he had full confidence in the Lord. People always wonder why we send out 18- and 19-year-olds on missions because it seems like they have nothing to give to people that have so much more life experience. People might have more knowledge about historical evidence, statistical evidence, or other religious knowledge but when you have a testimony and you live it and have felt the influence of the spirit personally, nobody can take that away from you. I also read a talk by Boyd K. Packer that talks about "The Touch of The Master's Hand" and it says:

'Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer  

Thought it scarcely worth his while  

To waste much time on the old violin,  

But held it up with a smile.  

"What am I bidden, good folks," he cried,  

"Who'll start the bidding for me?"  

"A dollar, a dollar" — then, "Two!" "Only two?  

Two dollars, and who'll make it three?  

Three dollars, once; three dollars, twice;  

Going for three—" But no,  

From the room, far back, a gray-haired man  

Came forward and picked up the bow;  

Then, wiping the dust from the old violin,  

And tightening the loose strings,  

He played a melody pure and sweet  

As a caroling angel sings.

The music ceased, and the auctioneer,  

With a voice that was quiet and low,  

Said: "What am I bid for the old violin?"  

And he held it up with the bow.  

"A thousand dollars, and who'll make it two?  

Two thousand! And who'll make it three?  

Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice,  

And going, and gone," said he.  

The people cheered, but some of them cried,  

"We do not quite understand  

What changed its worth." Swift came the reply:  

"The touch of the master's hand."

And many a man with life out of tune,  

And battered and scarred with sin,  

Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd,  

Much like the old violin.  

A "mess of pottage," a glass of wine;  

A game — and he travels on.  

He's "going" once, and "going" twice,  

He's "going" and almost "gone."  

But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd  

Never can quite understand  

The worth of a soul and the change that's wrought  

By the touch of the Master's hand.

Sometimes we may feel inadequate and like we don't have anything to offer to others in terms of talent or teaching ability or we might be weighed down by mistakes or pains that we have caused people in the past. With the touch of our Master, the Lord Jesus Christ, we can become a priceless tool that the Lord uses to bless the lives of so many others. 

Love you guys so much! See you soon Santos!

The Alley family moved to Utah from Georgia this last year....Gavin got to help their son when he came to the MTC!