Staying here till the End!!

HEY FAMILY!! Well what a good last week of the transfer we had! We baptized Natália, who we´ve been teaching for a bit. She´s the one that has a pet rabbit at home! hahaha She´s a lawyer....super intelligent! It was awesome...on tuesday we visited her and asked about baptism and she said she wasnt ready, so we fasted from tuesday to wednesday before her interview thursday! When she left the interview, she said she felt totally ready! AWESOME! The baptism turned out really well. Elder Gauthier  and Elder Nessen were transfered to Piripiri and Horto to be companions of elder rodgers and elder steed from my group! hahaah! So the Zone leaders gave us wrong informations about transfers saying that elder shepard´s comp would get here monday at midnight.....it was supposed to be tuesday at midnight. so we waited at the bus station til 3 in the morning....flip! so my companion is Elder Alves from Fortaleza, Ceará....right next door! He´s chill....super quiet! He´s also only 18 years old and has been out for 6 months. Elder Shepard´s companion is from Cabo Verde....an island off the coast of Africa! He´s a crack up! So 2 americans, 1 brasilian, and 1 african! funny combination! I´m excited for this last transfer! Lots of work....its gonna fly! Tomorrow there is a leadership conference of the WHOLE mission! Should be cool....i´ll see everyone! Well, i love you guys!

CHEIRO NO VAVÁCO!

Elder Larsen

A GREAT WEEK!

hey yall!! this was a GREAT week! We had a cool open house activity on Saturday where the stake came to help. We put up paintings and tables up all over the square in front of the church. I made literally like 200 contacts that morning! It really drew a lot of attention from everyone. We also had a cool family home evening activity this week at the church. We did a "tour" of the temple! We went around explaining all of the parts of the temple by room. There were more people that came to the family home evening than sacrament meeting! Well when sunday arrived, we had 51 people at church!! normal for here is 30ish. We had a ton of less actives and investigators come out! I felt so good. The stake president was visiting as well and was quite impressed. I feel that everyone felt the spirit...it was so good to see all of the benches full and everyone singing together!! We are gonna start teaching english in the chapel friday nights now. The youth are really excited for it. We taught a less active, Laércio, who led us to find a really awesome family! He let his aunt borrow his book of mormon. I got her number and called her and marked an appointment. Last night we went and taught them. What an awesome family!! She had already read til 2 nephi 27....before the first visit!! She works for the healthcare of caxias and her husband is a police officer. They both paid a lot of attention. They have 3 kids as well.....and a car! in fact, they gave us a ride home after!! Things are going quite well here, other than health! I´ve had this rough cough for about a week now! I couldnt even sleep the first couple nights! Well, LOVE YOU GUYS!

Elder Larsen

So excited for lunch!! 

 the warriors of caxias

This is the only true and living gospel...

hey family! This week was very good. We started giving our friday night leadership trainings in the chapel last week. Me and Elder Shepard prepared an awesome training about "how to teach a sunday school class". We based it off the talk of elder mckonkie of the general sunday school presidency. I felt like it made a difference on sunday. The classes were a lot more vigorous and upbeat. A lot were just reading from the manual. Friday morning we did a DEEP CLEAN of the chapel. There was some green moss growing on the concrete. I sprayed some bleach, got on my knees and scrubbed the crap outta that concrete! I´ve learned to love cleaning the church...something i learned from dad, the all-star church weeder and snow-plower! hahaha! Saturday was Diná´s baptism....went very well! I had the pleasure of baptizing her....the water was SO cold! flip! i feel bad for her who was completely immersed! we are working a lot now close to where her and her sisters live. There´s a lot of good people to teach that live close to them. Sunday was the world cup final....lets just say that Brasil felt COMPLETELY satisfied that Argentina lost on their home soil! So funny, everyone here thinks that we´re german...so we play it off and say that we are. But if they throw a soccer ball at us...they´ll quickly know that we´re american. We´re gonna make one sick pizza for lunch today, us 4! I´m excited! I´m grateful for the things that i am still learning here in the mission. Its a test until the last minute. One thing i´ve been totally convinced of in this time is that i can never doubt that the church is true. Too many things indicate that this is the only true and living gospel on the face of the earth. I´ve developed so many talents and qualities through this divine calling that also leaves me no doubt. the church is true!

I love you all!

Elder Larsen

 Baptism!! 

 bring it caxias!!

  my buddy elder puggina!

 Our Study Room... Mine is on the orange wall... 

 Bombs Away! 

Ups & Downs...

hey meu povo! sad day here in brasil!! Yesterday we watched the game with some recent converts and investigators. I felt the sadness of everyone in the stadium through the tv! It was so weird that i felt like a brasilian citizen watching that game! It was like my own country losing! Well, at least brasilians are very positive people. They wont be sad for long. I think all of the women are glad to have their husbands back now! hahaha they were all glued on the tv! I´m rooting for the netherlands now. Brasil will play again saturday for 3rd place. This week was a wonderful week of work! We will have a baptism on saturday of Diná who´s 19. She chose me to baptize her! I´m happy to jump in the water! We have been teaching a REALLY good family Antonio, rosilene, and nathalia, but the women were the only ones going to the activities at the church. Antonio always dropped them off but left! Sunday they ALL came to church! SO AWESOME! This week i went on a division with Elder Puggina (ZL), that lived with me in parnaíba. It was awesome teaching with him! We lit up Caxias! People came up to us making contacts with us....at least 10! WE taught antonio´s family as well and invited them to be baptized and they accepted! Miracle! I learned a lot with him. I respect elder puggina a lot....he´s a great example and always looks to serve others. They are a family that could change everything in the branch here! They have a car too! nobody here has one! We are going to start giving training here every friday about everything...ex: how to give a talk, how to teach a class, how to sing hymns, how to play piano, etc. Its gonna strengthen the branch a lot more! They´re eager to learn. Well, thats about all of our news!

LOve you guys!

Elder Larsen

World Cup 24/7

OI PESSOAL!! Everythings going swell here. What a craze this last saturday! Brasil played Chile and won on penalty kicks!! EVERYBODY WAS ALMOST DYING OF NERVOUSNESS! When the won, the lid went off of the city!! The world cup, no matter what game it is, is on 24/7 EVERYWHERE! You wouldnt believe how nuts these people are. I´ve actually grown to like soccer quite a bit. So, my language study this week was fun, i dedicated it to learn the brasil national anthem! I can sing the whole first verse now! Its crazy that i´m getting on the last stretch now....but i feel like i´m more focused now than ever! My companion gave me a good idea about work yesterday. Since i will be learning the hertz system, maybe i could apply that to something in brasil. Hertz is the biggest rental car business in Brasil as well. 

Our work was really good this week. We have quite a few people we are preparing for baptism, but we are focusing a lot of our time on new members as well, strengthening them. There are 2 recent convert girls rosa and berenice who are 23 and 21. We are teaching their sister Diná, who´s 19. The 3 of them want to be sisters! hahhah i asked Diná, and how to you expect to be a sister when you´re not even a member yet! She was like yeah, lets get a move on on that! hahaha she will be baptized on the 12th! We had a cool lesson with them yesterday talking about how a mission is and about temples, etc. After, we taught an awesome family....the dad is a taxi for the mayor, and the daughter is a lawyer! They´re loving the stuff we´re teaching! They even came to our activity saturday! The month of june is crazy in brasil...they have tons of holidays called "Festa Junina" So the branch put on a little cookoff with a little program about pioneers. they asked me to speak about it, so i did! it was good! We later did some games, especially pioneer ones, like stick pulling! It was kind of dead at first though, but us four brought the fun quickly! me and elder gauthier taught everyone how to dance to, "cotton eyed joe"! hahaha they thought it was hilarious!

Poor U.S. is already out of the cup....just have to wait 4 more years..I´m hoping brasil pulls it off....and i hope that they meet argentina in the final! Biggest rivalry!

Well, i hope all is well there!

LOVE YINS,

Elder Larsen

Still lots of Work to do!!

HEY! well, what an interesting week! First sunday that i´m here in caxias, they give me the manual to teach the priests quorum! hahaha we teach all 3 hours here practically! I will have to speak at least one time a month here as well. WE had an attendance of 33 this week! One thing cool about being in a little town again is that everyone looks at you like a superhero and everyone stops to talk to you. Honestly speaking, 20% of the population knows the church here. Bad part, there´s nothing to do here! hahahah on pday i just sleep and eat because i live with 3 nerds! They all play like yugioh cards whenever they free time. And they always speak english when they´re together. Then they come crying to me later saying that nobody understands their portuguese. My companion gave me a few hard times this week. He´s quite stubborn and doesnt like to be told anything. He gets mad that i speak well and he doesnt. So i speak portuguese 24/7 trying to help him and he gets mad and tells me to speak english so he can learn. Good news though is that we have a lot of good people to teach who really have a strong desire to be members. The branch president and i have already made a good relationship. He´s a good, humble guy that has good ambitions. I hope i can make a difference here, but i got a lot of weight on my shoulders right now. I read the conference talk from elder bednar this week that gave me a lot of comfort. He says that our load gives us more spiritual friction and thats not a bad thing! Many people think that true happiness is the state of doing absolutely nothing. I´m happy that president siedschlag has confidence in me and wants to test me. The branch here has a lot of maturing to do. WE arent just teaching investigators, but members as well! The members have so much to learn as well. we are thinking of starting a class on saturdays to teach on how to give talks, how to sing hymns, etc. we had zone conference on friday, it was really good! I slept at the staff house. Elder Steed and Elder Beraldi are living there, i talked with them forever! Then when we got back from the meeting, i saw elder machado there who i trained! he and his companion are in teresina with problems in the tendons! I talked with him for a while! he´s in parnaíba 3 where i started! I have a few trunky thoughts here and there, but i´m hanging on still! Got lots of work to do!

Love yall,

Elder Larsen

 

 The Chapel

 Selfie

 River in Caxias

 World Cup Fever!! 

Transferred to Caxias!

Heyy family! Well, i´m starting on my last 12 weeks of the mish! I got the crazy suprise of transfers on monday that i was heading to Caxias! I was quite sad to leave São Luís, i liked it a lot there! Just when things were getting comfortable, the Lord sent me to another place! ;) I´ll miss elder de jesus a lot, i hit it off with him...he´s a goofball! I´ll miss the sisters a lot as well, especially now that it´s just elders in my district! 90% of the mission changed this transfer! It was really crazy! Caxias is a tough challenge that president gave me! I feel like i left Vinhais a lot better than it was before though....the members were more excited, we found a new house closer to the chapel and area of work, we got  a ward mission leader, and we baptized! I traveled with a lot of elders and sisters that were heading to teresina. Nobody was really happy with the transfer, but just go with it! I´m gonna be finishing off the mission skinny.....with only 30 members here, lunch isnt an everyday thing....My companion is Elder Gauthier from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He´s a good missionary, he got here 2 transfers ago, after serving 2 transfers in california waiting his visa. The other 2 elders are shepard from chicago, and elder nessen from north carolina. The 3 are big nerds....so we´ll see how this goes! It´s been chill so far. The house here is very nice! we watched the brasil game yesterday at the branch president´s house. Really nice guy, he loved me! Couldnt believe that i was american! I´m excited for the adventure that i have here to finish off the mission. It´ll be different, but vamos lá! 

Love you guys.

Elder Larsen