Hello everybody!
This week we had a long week. Unfortunately we had to take the hour long bus ride to Angra almost every single day for divisions with our District leader, visiting the doctor for my companions tonsilitis, Zone Conference, and going to our District Conference, meaning we missed a lot of work time in our area.
Basically everyone we had on the potential list is MIA(Missing In Action). We have gone by their houses every day, several times a day, and they seem to never be home. They all live really far away from each other so basically we would use most of our day just walking to their houses to find they were not home. Fortunately we fixed our bikes this week! We had bikes sitting outside our apartment for the longest time and finally decided to do something about them. A less active kid helped us fix them and they are good to go now. We rode them up the mountain and by the time we got all the way up we were both huffin´ and puffin´ with sweat dripping down our foreheads haha. We have a lot of uphill roads but the downhill makes it all worth it. It will take some time getting used to as our bodies are only used to walking all day every day! We both have saddle sore super bad right now. The bikes will definately help though and the best part is we are the only missionaries with bikes in all of Portugal!
This week we also had our Azores zone conference with our mission president and his wife. They always give encouraging uplifting things that are exactly what I need to here. I really love them! Pres. Tavares and his wife both spoke and she talked about how we will have hard days on our missions and feel like we are unsucessful but then she asked President. "when you interview a missionary at the end of their missions, do you ask them how many baptisms they had?" he said "No, because you dont know how many baptisms you truly had or will have influenced. A baptism that happens is part of everybodies that contacted, taught, or even said hi to the person in the past." She said our purpose as missionaries is to invite others to come unto Christ.. if we invite, we are being truly sucessful.
This really helped me because this mission and especially this area is really tough. But I know that my purpose as a Disciple of Jesus Christ is to invite others to partake of the happiness that Jesus Christ and his gospel has to offer. Whether they accept or reject, as long as I tried my best, I can still be sucessful. Then President spoke and he shared a quote, in portuguese of course, but he said, "Despite all of the challenges and difficulties we face, we will be sucessful. One day all of the people who accepted the Gospel that you influenced in any way will be there in the Celestial Kingdom with you and they will be rejoicing at the sacrifice you made for them here on your missions".
I just want to close with a brief spiritual thought..
As a Missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, I talk to people all day every day about Christ and his gospel. I have seen people that have a lot of faith, and others who have very little or no faith at all. Most people say they have faith but have no idea what faith is and what they even have faith in. They refuse to act on this faith because they truly don´t understand the atonement of Jesus Christ. I just want to let you all know that I have faith in my Savior Jesus Christ and his Atonement. And because I have faith in him, I am willing to obey everything he has commanded me to do in order to receive exaltation, as he has promised, because faith without works is dead (James 2:17). This gospel is simple. Christ suffered for all of our pains, sicknesses, sufferings, and sorrows so that we don´t have to. How amazing is that? And in return, all he asks us to do is to follow him. This is why I am here on my mission.. because I have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and his atonement. I know that he lives and loves me. With this faith comes hope for the future. And I want to share this hope with all of God´s children. All we have to do is obey and do as he did.
This church is true. It is the only true church on the face of the earth. Christ lives. He is our savior and reedeemer. His atonement and grace is sufficient for each and every one of us if we turn to him. I know this and this is why I am a missionary for his church.
I love you all!
Have a great week!!
Love,
Elder Haroldsen
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Élder Brandon Michael Haroldsen
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