Hey Familia,
Not a lot happened this week. Thank you for all the birthday wishes! I'm just sending a few pictures.
Love,
Elder Mauter

 

Hey!

So last week went by really fast but wasn't really a good week here again, but it is whatever. So last week me and my comp have been working really hard teaching a bunch of people in a neighborhood that we found thats really far from our house.  Its been going really well, everyone there are relatives somehow - its kinda weird but its also cool cause they all greet us a lot and want us to teach them. 

Last week one of the zone leaders traveled to our area and stayed in our house for like 4 days to do a checkup on everyones work and the area. That was pretty cool cause he got to see how our area really is. We have been teaching a really big family but some of them have drinking problems so we'll have to work with that. The older couple that we are teaching talk about the same thing and recite the same scripture's over and over so it makes it a lil difficult when we are teaching her and her husband. They want to make a visit to church but its a long trip for them. But when we passed by there  house in the morning on Sunday they were sitting outside awake not doing anything but still didn't come.

We also found another family that we made a contact with, who have 2 girls around my age in the street. They are our main focus right now because their dad works on Sunday's and their mom does nothing but needs to stay in the house for some reason. We got the girls to commit to come to church this week but the night before, Saturday there was this big party in downtown Currais Novos and everyone went so when we passed by their house bright and early in the morning they were sick......so I think I'm just getting some of my own medicine from God, for all the times I tried to play that sick card for mission prep or something. So hopefully my sentence is wrapping up here in a lil bit. But no, we are working hard and even with alot of difficulties in this area I'm glad I have a comp I can joke around with when things don't go right.

Last week I had two of the same type of experiences, one with my comp and another with balich when we were walking in the street.  The first one some guy came up to us with a huge liquor bottle and asked us what we could do to help him give it up. We explained that the church can really help get his mind focused on quiting and that he needed to give up the bottle right now if he wanted to commit but he didn't so he wasnt committed. Then another time I was walking with balaich and some kid that is 27 years old started calling for us, yelling "elders" so we turned around and talked with him for a little. This guy was tripping bad and he wanted us to pray for him so I asked him what he needed help with and he pulled out a crack pipe from his pocket and said he "really" wants to give it up but its hard so I told him the first thing he could do is give me the pipe and I'd throw it. Then he could pray for help and that I would pray for him too but he didnt want to do that so I don't know what he really wants.

Sunday me and my comps investigators didn't show up to church even after we walked all the way there to wake them all up and to make sure they were coming and one guy was ready to go with his brother all dressed and stuff and told us that he'd grab a motor taxi at like 8:40 because he's on crutches.  We were pretty pumped but he didnt show up. We had this one kid show up that said he wants to be baptized next week so we will get him prepared. Me and my comp left the last class of church cause we weren't in a good mood cause the members here aren't that faithful but only a few. We received a reference from a girl in the branch so we went there to teach her. Shes really cool this girl that we met. We taught her and her mom. The girl has already been 3 times to the church but she said no missionaries have ever passed by her house before. She said she liked the church and thought conference was cool but didn't understand it because it was in English.  So that can tell you about this ward, I can't blame her. When i was in mossoró they had general conference in Portuguese. I don't know what the problem is here.. 

But everything is going good I'm happy and I'm ready to start this week over again. I love you guys and pray for you guys always. Good luck with training mom, I bet it'll be hard during training but it will be alot better in the end haha better than doing the same thing for another 26yrs! Gav good luck with high-school hahah I already finished(; but high school is alot better just don't slack off because its alot easier there and try to play lots of sports and get the girls. Chase good luck with your EMT get that money so you can get married, but don't get married before I get home.. and I don't know what Josh is doing but I bet he's going to CGCC so good luck with that -get those grades!!

Elder Mauter

ps. Did you get my package, can you put extra insoles in the box for my Johnson and Murphy shoes cause i can use them alot more its just that the insoles are jacked and its getting uncomfortable. More ties and maybe some dye for my gray pants cause they are almost all red from the sun. Don't  worry about putting a bunch of treats that will take up space put stuff like card games or stuff that I can use on my mission. Thanks mom and dad sorry I ask alot haha

What's up family!!

I sent a few pictures that sister Hernandez sent me. All the little kids want me to pick them up so that's why i have two haha- these pictures are from the 4th and also a little kids birthday party that all the missionaries got invited to.

But ya last week was really good. We received a list of names from a member in our ward of some inactive members that were baptized but never confirmed. He wanted us to visit all of them.  So we went to visit all of them on the list, which was like 7 people who live really far away but are still in our area.  We didn't find anyone of them on the list, but we ran into a guy that lives at the address and he said that they all moved away to a city far away. So me and my companion were pretty bummed about that. We were walking to one last person's address that we had and a family was outside so we stopped by to ask them if they knew the road that we were looking for and they told us where it was. As we were walking away one of them asked if I was American and if your a missionary thats your favorite thing to hear because that means investigator!  So we turned around and talked to them. We were able to talk to them about our church and stuff and marked another day to meet with their entire group of 8. Then we went a little more down the road and another dude yelled for me asking if I spoke English. So we stopped by them and gave them the same invite.  It turns out that the whole road with a bunch of houses on it are all family. So me and my comp really were blessed this day because now we know we will teach a lot and will eat a lot.  

We stopped by there later this week and taught a group of 8 people and then another house of 4 and they all seem really interested in hearing what we have to say. None of them went to church on Sunday, but alot wanted too. The church building is really far from where they live so we will have to work harder to get them to come to church.

Love you guys,

Elder Mauter

Opa familia,

Sounds like everyone is doing really good out there in AZ. It sounds like you guys had a good time in Cali for the 4th of July, except for Jen on the water kayaking. I didn't get transferred. I stayed with my same comp and everyone in my house stayed too.

Today when we were walking in the outdoor food market which has really cheap stuff to buy like fruit and stuff we like to get, we stopped to buy banana’s from this one guy and he began talking to us and said, "I like you guys I'll give you 12 bananas for 2 reals haha! He was asking us where we were from and stuff so we bought them and then a few minutes later we passed by there again just walking back and he yelled at us again and told us to come back and he gave us free pineapple!

4th of July Apple Pie

My 4th of July was pretty legit. We have a member here that I already talked about that served a mission in Colorado. He knows how important this day is to us. He made the 4th really special for us and it was perfect because it was his day to give almoço lunch. He bought a bunch of stuff for hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, hotdogs and apple pie for this day. All the elders went over to his house in the morning to help him make all the food because the sister's did last time.  It was pretty cool, my comp has two American flag ties so he gave one to me. That day we all used red, white and blue pens to write our reports, lessons and stuff haha. I'm  surprised we didn't get shot that day. I'll send you guys pictures once I get my memory card to work. I'm going to get my package this week too, so I'm pumped!
This week will be good!

Working out flipping tires

A funny story that happened this week when I was walking in the road with my companion to go to an investigator's house.  We were walking and all of a sudden some dude started yelling in English "help me, help, come here!" So I went over and talked to this dude and he then started talking in Portuguese cause he didn't know in English more than help me.  He asked me if I could help him and I said ya and he was holding a newspaper with another lil paper and he handed it to me and I didn't know what it was so I took it and then I realized that it was one of those gambling cards that you choose 4 numbers or something and he told me to do it for him haha. I told him that I can't  do this for him and I tried handing it back and he wouldn't let me haha. I asked him why he wanted me to fill  it out for him and he said it's because I'm lucky and I have the Lord with me. Then a sister in our church showed up and told him that missionary's can't do that but that she would do it for him and she put down 4 numbers.  When we were leaving I thought, I might as well invite him to church. Well he freaked  and said he would not come cause I didn't fill out his gambling card for him then he ripped the paper up, haha crazy people in Brazil.

It was fast Sunday yesterday, and I have never seen blessings come so fast for the things I was fasting for. Within an hour I got references for people to teach and in our gospel principle's class it was fuller than ever. I have never really seen blessings for fasting. Thats why its always been so hard for me to fast especially at home. But I know, especially after Sunday I know the power of fasting and that the Lord only requires a lil sacrifice for him to bless us. If you look for this there are so many examples of sacrifices in the Bible and BoM of prophets where a sacrifice was required to receive blessings.  Like when Lehi  and his family left Jerusalem and when Abraham was commanded to kill his son who was his first born with his wife Sarah that they waited so long to get. These are just some, but sacrifice is what shows our faith and everyday we are being tested.

I met this really cool family last week with a member when I went on divisions with him and Baliach. This family is super cool and also talented in music. They all can sing and play instruments and they played for us. One of the songs they played is really popular in Brazil. And also a song that the daughter sang before she died of cancer who was 11 I think. I want you guys to pray for this family. The mom is in Natal all this week because she also has cancer and hopefully will return soon. So pray that everything will turn out all right with the treatment for her.
eu amp vocês
tchau
Elder Mauter