And just as a reminder!

Elder Michael Bryan Youd
Missão Brasil São Paulo Norte
Avenida Nova Cantareira, 1146 fundos
Tucuruvi
São Paulo - SP - 02330-001

"So send a letter there. To me."

This is the Google Earth picture of the house that Michael is living in!

Week 29: We will win, or we will go down with a fight. Let's do this.

Hey everybody!

Its been a pretty good week here in Júlio de Mesquita, and weve been trying to work hard to get things rolling. And by the end of this last week, we realized that this week could be one of the more intense weeks of our missions. Why? We have 4 investigators that could be baptized this week, but none of them are firm firm or completely solid for baptism, so we just have to work a lot, pray a lot, and see what happens. So heres whats going down:

Ana and Gustavo: Ana loved church, but she still doesnt feel ready for baptism. We explained to her that there will be an other elder that will interview her before baptism and be able to discern if theyre ready or not. She liked the idea, but then shes had fear since then, so shes been running from us the rest of the week. Gustavo wants to be baptized, but he doesnt feel ready yet (because hes not ready yet.) He has problems with the Word of Wisdom, and so we have to work with him this week to help him rid his addictions to coffee and cigarettes in particular. But they both have potential to be baptized this Saturday, if they want to.

Joelson: Finally, after 5 weeks of working with him, Joelson accepted a date for this Saturday! We told him about the purpose of this life (to prepare to return with God), and he liked that, so he accepted for the 8th. However, hes still a bit worried about getting baptized, although we havent figured out why yet. So weve still got to work with him.

Helison: He went to church this Sunday, and really seemed to like it. Hes actually a very smart kid, something that we werent expecting by his appearance, and he has a large knowledge about religion. So he accepted a date for the 8th, and wants to know if this is true. We have a ton of confidence about him, but we just need to work with him before saturday, specifically because he smokes.

Other notes:

For those of you that have commented with me that I should do more fun stuff, we played some one-on-one soccer last P-day. And all of us were hurting like crazy for the next 3 days. My body may be getting skinny, but Im not yet ready to be a soccer player. My body HURT.

Thanks to all of you that know me well, and sent me Oscar results. It made me laugh, I think I had three or 4 people tell me. You all know me too well and all of my weird loves.

Alright, thank you all for your continued support! I do ask that this week you keep me and my investigators in your prayers, specifically Helison, Joelson, Ana, and Gustavo. Theyre good people that are ready to be baptized. They just need to show their faith, so that they can enter the path that leads to eternal life. Love you all!

Elder Youd

Week 28: Do you keep ALL of the 10 commandments?

Listen to my voicemail for more information. The Sabbath Day is Sunday, because the Lord said so.

Oi everybody!

This week has been a good week, although a bit more difficult than Ive had in weeks past here. But we're still having success here (and still a lot more successful than Vila Medeiros), and we have some people close to baptism!! Here they are:

Ana, Gustavo: Ana prayed to God, and believes  that this is true! She wants to change her life (specifically, she feels bad that she stays the weekend with an older gentleman that shes not married to), and she even came to church this Sunday and loved it! Weve got a lot to do before this Saturday (her baptism), but we are getting there! And Gustavo is wanting it as well, but he had to work on Sunday so he couldnt come to church, so well have to remark his date.

Lizandra (new!)- We had talked to her one time, and had a good lesson where she gave the closing prayer, something she said she had never done before. She doesnt have a problem with the Book of Mormon or anything specific in our religion, but she doesnt want to enter any church because she feels unclean. We explained the Atonement for her, and she seems a lot more interested now. Pray for her!

Helison (new)- We had marked a date with Helison a long time ago, but his life was super busy at the time, and so it didnt work. But we quickly talked to him, and he wants to know if its true! We remarked him for the 8th, and hes super excited!

Other notes:

I got another package from my Mom this week, this time in a Pringles can! Ive been waiting for this one for 4 months, so if you sent me a package, itll come. Eventually.

Also, a member of the ward loves me! Her son recently came home from a mission (early, because of a knee injury), and he had a pair of shoes, and since his feet are giant, and my feet are giant, I got a free pair of shoes! Thank you, Irmã Sandra!!

And for your information, I officially passed my 6 month mark a couple weeks ago. Im officially past the 25% mark :P

Thanks everybody for your love! Alright, on to individual emails! 

Lima's Baptism. Yes, Lima does look like the crazy guy from the "Will The Real Martian Please Stand Up" episode of the Twilight Zone.

Week 27: A baptism to cure my aching Valentines Day Loneliness

Oi everybody!

Thats right, we had a baptism this week! That older gentleman, Lima, had miracles happen in his life, and he was baptized this week! It was a truly wonderful experience, part of which I recorded in my voicemail thingy. So Ill stop wasting time and get right to it!

Top investigators:

Lima- Somehow, despite the fact that, until last Sunday, he had been continuing his habit to drink every day and smoke a pack of cigarettes every day (habits that he's had since he was 15), Lima was able to stop all of this in just one week, along with start to live the other commandments. And so, he passed the interview, and he was baptized this Saturday! Elder Sepulveda did the baptism, and I did the confirmation on Sunday. He was incredibly excited, and is learning everything he can about the Church. It has been quite incredible this week.

Joelson- He prayed this week, and he only got the answer that he will know that these things are true. He has confidence that hell get baptized one day, but we're trying to help him stop procrastinating. But, he did come to church with Aline this week, so weve still got progress with him yet.

David- We unfortunately had to cut David this week. Not due to a lack of interest, but because of a lack of time. Hes working longer shifts at nights now, and hes basically using all of his free time to sleep. But we might return sometime this week or next week, just to see how hes doing.

Ana, Gustavo (New!)- Ana had gone to church 30 years ago, when she was 18. She liked it a lot, but didnt know why she wasnt baptized. So we taught her and her son, Gustavo, and they both accepted dates for the 1st of March!! Theyre both very receptive, and they have a lot of potential.

Other notes:

It was Valentines Day this week. Luckily, Brazil doesnt celebrate it on the 14th of February (I think they have a day in June?), but my aching loneliness was cured by a baptism. I was actually on a division in another area on Valentines Day, and at the end of the night, a very drunk less active member found us, and we helped him get home safely. And then he kissed both of us Elders on the cheeks (a normal thing in Brazil, but missionaries dont do it.) So technically, I got my Valentines Day kiss. But aside from this, baptisms and singing "All By Myself" got me through.

Alright, thank you all for everything! On to normal emails! Love ya!

Elder Youd

In the Jungle, The Mighty Jungle