Homework!

My message today: Read the talk by Elder Holland from the Oct. 2012 General Conference called, ``The First Great Commandment``- its STELLAR. (Conner, I am directing this to you especially, ok? Please read it and let me know what you think.)

I'm doing well- happy, healthy, working hard. No news. My companion is an ANGEL. I love her so much- she really understands sacrifice and service. She does EVERYTHING for me and never complains or asks for anything in return. She is a huge blessing and example. :)

Mmmmm, this week is the 4th of July. HAPPY 4TH! Send pics Paleeez! Wishing I could be there to watch the fireworks, but hey! We´ve already got plenty of them here with the world cup and crazy holidays. The world cup is da hora!!!! I hope you are all watching the Brazilian games (and US games too). Minha nossa. Sorry, folks, but I am 98% BRAZILIAN now. Hahahaha

Anyways, tomorrow is going to be legit- leadership training again. :) Last Thursday, I gave a district meeting training, because now I am the district leader of all the sisters in my zone, too. Ha. I talked about new beginnings. Read the talk, ``The Best is Yet to Come`` By Elder Holland. CHANGED MY LIFE. Seriousy. I know, I am a failure of a blog writer- I give you nothing but homework, but do it- these are the 2 talks that I ask you all to read this week- perfect Sunday activity. Or any day activity, as we should be studying the gospel everyday... you are all doing that right? Studying every day? Good.... 

Love you all. Have a great week! Smile!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Happy JULY!

Love, 

Sister M. Seal

No. No transfer calls for me.

No. No transfer calls for me, anyway. The 3 sisters I was living with were all transferred, but I am staying in Mamanguape. Whoot! But...I have a new companion. Good and bad. I really loved Sister Chap. I liked her a LOT! She became one of my best friends a lot faster than I thought possible. But... it’s also good because she wasn't testing me- she may have been too perfect. Now I am with Sister Caiani. And guess what! SHE’S BRAZILIAN! Yes! I get to work on my Portuguese again.

Highlight of my week: I SAW JAQUELINE IN JOÃO PESSOA! We had to go to the doctors because my companion was sick and Jaqueline met us for lunch. Best day ever! She seems to be doing well. We ate in a huge supermarket that looks like a real Wal-Mart. I didn't know they had supermarkets here that chic! But... man was it expensive- most expensive meal of my mission. A plate that should have been $8 was $26. (You weigh the plate on the scale... but don’t freak out- it wasn't that much food, gosh I’d have died) I put the receipt in my journal. It made me a little bit upset, but we've just got to laugh, right?

It’s raining like CRAZY here and the world cup is going well- not too many crazies.. hallelujah. This Saturday there is another game- should be interesting, I am pretty sure if we lose its over- but I don’t know- I don’t play soccer. haha

That’s really about it. Sorry I’m so boring haha but.... já era. 

I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!!! Talk to ya, Monday! ;)

PS. My camera had like 20 viruses, it shut my friends computer down- so he had to clean it all up and now it’s back, but the computers in this city don’t have virus protection, so I won’t be emailing pics as often anymore- just at members’ houses. Sorry. But, just to let you know. :) Tchau!

Viva Brasil!!!!!!         

World Cup Crazy

AHHHHHHH! I fixed my camera! Yes! Take that, Katie! I can work with technology toooooo... It may just take me a little bit longer..... :P

Sorry, that ridiculous outburst has been a long time coming. 

Happy Fathers Day! (Special shout out to Daddy, Papa, and Craig!) Also, Oma, Happy birthday this week! Whoot whoot!

Good week as always. Everything goes crazy around here the day Brazil plays in the world cup- but it keeps things fun, right? For those of you who don't know, Brazilians are craaazzzzyyyy. And, I love them :)

News: This week marks 1 year here in Brazil. I remember my first day well, and man has a lot changed. I've changed. You´ve changed too. It all seems like a dream to me. And boy does it go quickly. I remembering eating corn- thats what we eat this time of year (São João). A year ago, I wasn't a big fan, but these days its painful to think I will soon leave it all behind: The traditions I love... the people I love... 

Speaking of days passing quickly- this is the last week of this transfer. So, I will be emailing again next Wednesday in 10 days time. Of course I will not be transferred, I just got here, but it is interesting to begin my last 2 transfers when people begin to say “Your mission is over- you´re dying now”. Its horrible really, people don't stop with the jokes and the teasing haha. I guess I´ll get used to it. 

I read the Character of Christ this week, it was good to read again to remind me of the vision I had when I left the MTC. I highly recommend it to all of you who have never read it and even if you have, its always good to read again. Another good read is Clayton M. Christensen´s book, “The power of everyday Missionaries”. Get a copy of this book and it will change the member missionary that you are! Seriously, this book has changed the way I see my role as a member of the church. We have great responsibility. We also have great responsibility to KNOW, in the first place, what that great “responsibility” is.

A few quotes I read this morning, the first by David O. McKay, “Mans greatest happiness comes from losing himself for the good of others.”

I think the first step in learning to lose ourselves in the service of others is to prioritize our lives. Thomas S. Monson said, “We become so caught up in the busyness of our lives. Were we to step back, however, and take a good look at what we are doing, we may find that we have immersed ourselves in the `thick of thin things`. In other words, too often we spend most of our time taking care of things which do not really matter much at all in the grand scheme of things, neglecting the most important causes.”

Yes, its true, the “most important causes” require effort- its takes work, usually work that isn't easy, and often found tiresome. But as Henry B. Eyring said, beautifully, “When I find myself drawn away from my duties or by other interests and when my body begs for rest, I give myself this rallying cry: `Remember Him`.”

Faith and Miracles

Morning!

Good week here—always is, right?

We had a leadership meaning Tuesday and our zone meeting Wednesday- they both went really well. Our new focus here is less actives! Love the idea, this mission really needs it too. Glad for yet another proof that our mission president is inspired. 

This week Jose and Fia were baptized. It was really awesome. :) God is really helping us in His work here. 

I am doing well- its starting to rain a lot here, again. Love the rain. Love the work, couldn't be happier. You´d also be pleased to know that I am mastering a few cake recipes down here- cakes every week for every baptizing... and I wonder why I am a little chubbier. HA! 

Zooeira. Anyways, everything is going well here- my companion is awesome. This branch is great, too. Yesterday, in sacrament meeting, Elder Carbonie came to talk to us- he is one of Pres. Nogueira´s counselors. Every time I see him he says, "Sister Seal, I know your father." Funny, right dad?

So happy to hear that you seem to be doing well- all of you are doing such great and exciting things- keep it up. I cant wait to catch up with you all in a few months time. And no- I don't want to talk about how little time that may be. Minha nossa, how it flies!

This morning I was studying faith and miracles. 2 Nephi 27:33, "For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith." 

I think miracles are a lot like salvation in the sense that yes, "`his grace is sufficient" but it also requires work on our part. We work to qualify for eternal life and we work to qualify for miracles. We cant merely wait around for a miracle to fall into our laps. Quite frankly, miracles rarely come when we are sitting anyway...

Having faith to see miracles doesn't mean we just believe someday maybe one could or would or might or should happen. The reason faith is a pre-requisite is because faith means we ACT. Ether 12:30 says, ``For the brother of Jared said unto the mountain Zerin, Remove and it was removed. And if he had not had faith it would not have moved wherefore thou workest after men have faith.`` 

We hear about this "faith to move mountains" all the time. I've also heard it said that if you looked behind that "moving mountain", you would see a bunch of people pushing it. 

Real faith is in our works not our words. 

This was a good lesson for me to learn this morning- and definitely one I have seen in action time and time again here in Brazil.

I LOVE being a missionary. And, I love all of you. Have a great week and may God be with you till we meet again.

Love, Sister M. Seal

These pictures are from a different camera- I think mine has a virus because they wont upload. I am going to start using a different memory card. SORRY. Dad or Katie need to fix it!!!! Love you all! Smile!

Trekking to Guarabira

CONGRATULATIONS MICHAEL..... Send me a pic of your diploma because I still don’t believe it ;)

To all of you still in school- finish strong. And, happy summer!

This was a great week- they always are, but this one was especially good thanks to the mission conference and Maya´s baptism. Pics... are coming soon.

This week looks great too- tomorrow I have a leadership meeting in Joao Pessoa. (YES- get to see my buddies again and prep up to do the zone training Wednesday- its gonna be great!)

Moving on- let’s talk miracles. Friday night the sisters in Guarabira were needing help so my companion and I decided to travel to their area to help them out. tudo bem. We got the phone call at 5 and decided to leave immediately. But... we obviously didn't think it through very well because little did we know- traveling after 6 pm is stupid, really stupid. Instead of $10 per person, the price shot up to $50 for the both of us ONE way (Taxi prices..pshh.) and honestly, it probably wasn't the safest thing we have ever done, either. Well, you all know me, I am stubborn and REFUSED to pay $50. Ridiculous. Instead, we trekked over to a street corner where drivers pass for a better price. (Uh, yes, basically Brazilian hitch-hiking) but.... no one was passing by. I didn't realize how difficult it is to travel here at night. So, we said a prayer that somehow we could get to Guarabira safely to help the sisters. Just then, a woman showed up, also waiting for a taxi- she asked where we were headed to. Our luck was that she was going to a neighboring city. (good- now we have a travel buddy) then she said, ``You're sisters!`` Music. To. My. Ears. And then said, ``I am Mormon, too!``

What??????????

She offered, ``You can come with me, my nephew is coming to get me right now.`` After talking for some time, we find out that she has been inactive for a very long time... it was so sweet to hear her sing along with us the words to Nearer My God to Me and other hymns she remembers after so long. But the story gets even better- a friend of hers showed up and started asking us about the church and she so enthusiastically answered all the questions and said, ``come to church with me Sunday, I will take you!`` He accepted her invitation and i was so impressed with this woman and the member missionary she was without even realizing it. Even more impressive was finding out that the reason she was at that street corner was because she had missed her bus from Joao Pessoa. I believe gods hand was in that. Honestly, I see God’s hand in all of it. I cant even count how many prayers were probably answered that night. 

Long story short- we made it to Guarabira and yes, I promise to never do that again.

This morning, too, was one of learning. It was an interesting day at the bank. There were huge lines and one girl decided to cut everybody- joining in with a buddy right in front of me. There was an uproar- everyone began to yell at her- complaining that they´d been waiting in line for an hour and that she had no right to be so selfish.... etc. It was astonishing how quickly they became angry. My companion and I looked at each other, sadly, as they attacked her, calling her an idiot, uneducated blonde. It was appalling. I stood in silence, remembering the video I watched on Tuesday in the mission conference about the Savior. It showed a story of Pharisees and tax collectors. In the movie, the people were screaming at the tax collector, calling him a thief and every other manner of cruel language. Jesus looked at the Pharisee and spoke of prayer. He said, wo unto the hypocrites who pray to God saying, ``Thank you Lord for letting me be better than the sinners in the streets- more holy, more like thee``... on the other hand, Jesus said that Our Father in Heaven is more willing to hear the prayer of the sinner, of the ``tax collector`` who calls to heaven, ``Have mercy on me, Lord, for I know that I am a sinner``. I am not saying who is right and who is wrong in the situation I saw at the bank today. But as the crowd attacked her with hatred and harsh words telling her she was ``wrong`` or that her actions were not ``just or fair`` I thought of Christ. I thought to myself, truly Christ cares little about what is ``just `` or ``fair`` or ``equal``. Christ is much more concerned with mercy...

This is not to condone cutting in line or other uncommon and unnecessary behavior. No. But it is to say, may we be more merciful. May we be more patient with others and their weaknesses for surely god is well aware of them in each of us and knows the path we need to take to overcome them. May we remember God’s mercy towards us even and especially in the moments we least deserve it and may we leave our hypocritical tendencies alone, aside, and far, far away.

This is the message I wish to leave with you today and this week. May we remember the savior in all we do and learn to act as He would is my prayer.  Have a great week. Be safe. ``Be good``- Kim. 

Sister M. Seal