Lets start a church or something

So lets start with the sad. Our baptism for this week (Ashley) decided the day of the interview that she didnt want to be baptized anymore. She still came to be interviewed but spent the hour explaining to our District Leader that she just doesnt want to be baptized. (She had been super excited now for 2 months to be baptized.) Sooo em fin we cancelled the baptism. We think someone talked her out of being baptized, buuuut she wont own up to who so all we can do is hope and pray that when the time is right she´ll remember her testimony of Jesus Christ and where she can find him. It´s amazing to me how much the Lord loves us. That as we continue to sin and make bad choices the Lord continues to lead us in the right direction with continual chances. He sent His Son to die for us because he so loved the world. So its hard to leave Ashley like this but I know she is in the hands of the Lord, who knows best.

Speaking of the Lord knowing best. One of the biggest blessings of my whole mission happened this week. In the way of a small simple miracle. We planned to break in our new branch mission leader taking him to a lesson with a recent convert. We get there and the house is pitch black without any windows open. We call him and it turns out he forgot? Normal. But awkward with members there. So we decide to just go to our next lesson and we invite our branch mission leader and his wife along. Hoping and praying that our next appointment would be there and would have interest enough not to be weirded out by 4 peoples clapping at their door. So we show up and the wife goes- I was reading the Book of Mormon and what a marvelous book! She goes on the say she believes in everything. That wasnt the miracle part (this is brazil after all) buuuut what was so amazing was our branch mission leader baring his testimony about how he came to know the truth. I have confidence that it was the first time in 10 years he bore his testimony. And it blew me away. He spoke of the day 10 years ago he saw 2 teenage boys in white shirts and ties selling something in the street (or so he thought) they passed the house and then returned and knocked their door. They gave them a book (FOR FREE) Haaaaaa. And he read it and HE KNEW. I know that we can all read it and know. That´s why this was such a miracle. It reminded me of the little things.

In other news we´ve decided to move people to our city. If we cant baptize enough to make a ward here we will just move people who have already been baptized? So now everytime we pass houses for sale i take a picture and write down the address. Then every Sunday we give the list to our Branch President (who doesnt live here....) Everyone here has a phrase- (if God wants) "se Deus quiser" and my companion and I always say- "Ele quer" (He wants) Hahaha. But seriously. We can help out a little riiiight?

Also fun fact. Here in the lon house where we write our families the guy who runs it LOVES 80s music from the US. So every Monday I hear Betty Davis Eyes and under my breath sometimes I sing/hum the words. My companion is QUITE impressed with my 80s pop music knowledge. She is also SUPER excited to see the snow shovel and cheese grater dance moves that go along with it (Dad).

Wooof sorry this email is like 10 million pages long. BUT I saved the best for last. WE ARE GOING TO START A NEW BRANCH OF THE CHURCH IN A VILLAGE IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!!!! Let me explain. We have a less active member that sent a Book of Mormon to her sister. And her sister has a HUGE family. So they asked for another. Then they started reading the Book of Mormon to the whole village? (Ohhh Brasil) So then they started calling our member (Neide) every week to move there and start the church for them? So thank goodness she has her wits about her and called us up. She is like- sooo we need someone with the priesthood to go baptize this whole village. Because I told them about the church and how you have teenage boys with white shirts and ties that go around preaching. So this whole group went to the middle of their village and waited in a park for weeks on end to see these missionaries. Then they started going to the nearby villages to find a church. As it turns out the nearest church is 5 hours away (we called the zone leaders to look it up for us) ANNNND now our President will need to call that mission President and maybe we´ll baptize a whole town. Miracles na? But fo´reals. Only in Brasil.

Amo vocês.

Saudades de vocês.

Sister Haley Mills