Week 54: Happy São João!

   President came into the office Friday morning and asked us if we have lunch marked for today.  We told him we dont have lunch. He asked if lunch fell through and we told him that we just really didnt have lunch marked with anyone. Then he happily said, ´´then you´re eatin´ lunch with me today! We´re going to the Pelourinho to a restaurant that I like and also we will see all the cool Saõ João decorations. So at lunch time he drove us to the Pelourinho and we ate at a nice restaurant. After we ate, we descended and he told us that he accidently took us to a different restaurant than he wanted and he spend triple the amount of money that he wanted to. Then he just laughed and said all is well. We took píctures around the Pelourinho and were able to be ´´tourists´´  for a few minutes.

Here is a little info. about São João and why they do this holiday here in Brazil.  
São João is a holiday here that practically lasts the last 2 weeks of June even though the actual date of the holiday is the 23rd (night) and the 24th (all day).

   ´´The Birth of John the Baptist (or St. John's Day or Precursor's Birth) is a Christian feast celebrating the birth of John the Baptist, a prophet who foresaw the advent of the Messiah in the person of Jesus Christ and baptized him. This feast is widely celebrated in the Christian world on June 24 and is one of the June festivities. ´´
   ´´ According to Catholic tradition, the bonfires burned in the mountains of Judea to announce the birth of John on June 24. ... Before the evangelization of Europe in the Middle Ages, the fires were used in pagan rituals, which celebrated the arrival of the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.´´

    So these last 2 weeks here there has been lots of partying in the roads with random fires going in whatever place they feel like starting a fire. I´ve seen little burning piles of wood and trash and even large bonfires. President Bangerter told us that this holiday is centered in families. Families spend time together and make various food made of corn. They also eat lots of cooked peanuts and shoots of lots of fireworks/ bombs. Here they are pretty much just bombs. they aren´t the cool colorful fireworks like we see on the 4th of July. 
Here is a little info. about São João and why they do this holiday here in Brazil.  
São João is a holiday here that practically lasts the last 2 weeks of June even though the actual date of the holiday is the 23rd (night) and the 24th (all day).

We have been teaching a 22 year old man named Diego. He lives with his wife, who is a less-active member. They have a one-year old son named Diogo.  I still don´t have a picture with them, but soon i will. Diego has been to church twice with his wife. He is progressing a lot. The first time we taught him we taught the Restoration and the Book of Mormon and invited him to read 3rd Nephi Chapter 11 that talks about baptism. The next appointment we asked him if he read the chapter and he told us he read chapter 11, 12, 13, 14 and the first chapter of 1st Nephi. We were blown away. Then we asked him what he learned and he gave very good detailed answers! We are super happy and excited for him! He just needs to get married legally so he can get baptized. 
   Diego is a huge fan of the Bahia soccer team here and said that when a game isn't on Sunday he will take us there. Our last appointment with us his wife made meat pastels for us. We ate them after the lesson, then he called delivery pizza and gave us pizza and pop to take home! What a nice guy! 

   I wanted to share an experience that happened this week concerning the importance of families and our individual ´´life stories´´.  This week I had the feeling that i should ask my Grandpa Tim about his conversion story. The idea just came into my head so i sent him a quick email asking him about it. Then he sent his story typed up to me. I printed out the story and stuck it in my Book of Mormon. During that day, I read it while walking up and down stairs and hills in the favella. I found it very interesting and enjoyable to read. Later that night, when we taught Diego, I felt impressed to share a little about Grandpa Tim´s conversion story. I started then remembered that I had the story in my Book of Mormon. So I pulled it out and we started to read it together ( I translated).  We only read a little bit of it and Diego was actually very interested so I told him that i will translate it to Português so he can read it better. After we left I realized that Grandpa Tim´s story could help him a lot, because Diego and younger Grandpa Tim are in similar situations. Diego is living with his wife who is a member and they have one kid. He is investigating the church and is learning a lot. The only difference is that Diego treats the missionaries real well (with pizza, and other food). Grandpa Tim seemed to be a bit tougher. hahaha. 

   I am grateful for my family´s example to me. It is them that motivates me to serve a mission. I am grateful that my Grandpa decided to join the true church of Jesus Christ. Even though he delayed, he was baptized and now has served faithfully in the church and has been very blessed. It is the same for each one of us that is baptized. God will bless us for keeping his commandments and following his son´s example. I am grateful to have the privilege to be a member of Christ´s church. It is an honor to be a priesthood holder and to act in His name. I hope that I can do all I can to persevere and be worthy of His name. I love the Savior and know that he will return one day to reign over this world. I know that he sent us in families to prepare to meet him and live with him again. I am thankful for God´s plan for each one of us. 

Have a great week


-Elder Hilton

Week 53: I'M BACK IN SALVADOR!!

  

 This transfer was a surprise to me. I thought that my Zone leader was joking with me when he said i would be the Secretary of the mission. It wasn't all quite real to me. But here I am now in the mission office being trained by my buddy Elder High to be the Executive Secretary of the mission. This is how it works here: the Executive Secretary and the Financial Secretary are companions. So right now Elder High is the Executive Sec. and Elder Costa e Silva is the Financial Sec. Elder High has been the executive sec. for 6 months and now he will be training me all this transfer then the next transfer he will be going out and it will be just me and Elder Costa e Silva.

LEFT TO RIGHT, Elder Costa e Silva, Elder High and Me

 
   This is what we do as Secretaries. We get to the office by 8:30 am and have our personal and companion studies in the office. Then we work until lunch time. After lunch we resume our work, whether it be at the office, airport, bus station, etc. We run around all parts of the city in taxis.

We dropped off some sisters at the airport this week. We said goodbye to Sister Snow who finished her mission and went back home to Wisconsin. It was kind of strange sending her home after being in the same district as her for 5 transfers. 

As an Executive Secretary I am responsible for entering in all the information from all the baptismal papers of all converts into the church system. I also schedule, and book all airplane and bus traveling that goes on.  I´m also responsible for renewing all VISAs  for missionaries ( a lot of annoying paperwork). We do conference calls for missionaries when they need them. We work closely with President Bangerter and he relies on us a lot. Occasionally, he asks us to do others side jobs. There are lots of things we do as secretaries and if i look at it all at once, it is overwhelming.

 The office

We just need to be well organized and understand that all things are possible because we are on the Lord´s errand. I pray that I will be able to fulfill my responsibilities and do what the Lord wants me to do and be what the He wants to do be. I love what the July 2013 article in the Ensign says about this subject.... and it applies to everyone who is serving in any position in the church, whether it be in a mission or in your own ward.

  ´´Each new calling is an opportunity to serve and grow and should be approached humbly and prayerfully. Calls to serve in the Church are given by priesthood leaders after they have sought inspiration from the Lord. “You are called of God,” explained President Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency. “The Lord knows you. He knows whom He would have serve in every position in His Church. He chose you.”

´´The Lord will help us in our callings, especially when we feel overwhelmed by the responsibilities. When we pray to Heavenly Father for guidance, He will direct us through inspiration and will bless us to serve well. The Lord helps those who serve Him and will add His power to their efforts (see D&C 84:88). As President Thomas S. Monson promised, “When we are on the Lord’s errand, we are entitled to the Lord’s help. Remember that whom the Lord calls, the Lord qualifies.”

   I love the promise of our dear Prophet Thomas S. Monson. I trust that God and Christ keep their promises and will help us accomplish what we are call to do.

   I am understanding how a call to serve gives us the opportunity to help others and to develop and share our talents and spiritual gifts. We are ´´repaid´´ for our service by blessings from the Lord. D&C 84:88 talks about how when we are helping do the Lord’s work, we can pray for and receive His help. That is a promise! I know that serving others brings blessing and joy. That is what i hope to accomplish during my time as Secretary.

Have a great week and happy summer break to everyone!

-Elder Hilton

Beautiful view of Salvador

Elder and Sister Briggs bought us pizza! and breakfast the next day

My companion the financial secretary, Eder Costa e Silva

My new place of "work" haha

I couldn't help but to share with you what we are eating for lunch. I have been in the office working all day and now we are finally eating lunch.

Week 52: Crazy News...TRANSFERS!

 During these 4 months in Califórnia, Itabuna, I feel like i have learned a lot. Since I arrived in this área, my companions and I have taught and accompanied several people in learning about the restored gospel and 10 of those people were baptized. It´s been a privilege to help every one of these wonderful people and to be a part of their baptisms . I am grateful to have witnessed the influence God´s love in their lives, as well as in my own. I have experienced lots of happiness, stress, success, failure, and most importantly JOY! Being in the mission and having being companions with Elder Thevenin this transfer, I am realizing more and more how precious knowledge is. Knowledge of the ´´mysteries´´of God being revealed through scripture study and prayer is more exciting and cool than anything i have experienced in the mission so far.

    On the 7th of June I hit my one year mark, I didn't do anything special or crazy, because we arrived home that night so exhausted that after i took a shower i slept right away. I woke up the next day and realized that i didn't do anything to celebrate my ´´1 year mark in the mission´´.
   The 10th of June was a special day for Lorena, Kaunne, and Carol.  I was disappointed when hardly anyone showed up for the baptisms after having invited so many people (members, investigators, etc.) Nonetheless, the baptisms went very well and were awesome.

    Elder Thevenin and I had a wonderful transfer together. We worked together well as companions. I have lots of respect for him. We were happy with the baptisms that were realized and sad for those that weren't realized. i have faith that those baptisms that fell through can still be realized another week in the future.
   Today (12th of June)  i received a phone call that informed us of transfers. The whole week i was thinking it would be cool to return to Salvador, but i was convinced the likelihood of that happening was pretty low.  I figured that the Lord knows the desires of our hearts, when my zone leader told me I´M RETURNING TO SALVADOR TO BE THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARY OF THE MISSION!!!!   I guess i got what i wanted and a little bit more. I was really shocked . I am going to be the companion of the current executive secretary to learn the responsibilities and maybe i will stay for a long time there as secretary. I will miss Elder Thevenin and it's a bummer to have to leave, but i'm excited to return to Salvador and begin learning my new responsibilities. I have a lot to learn and i am grateful for this opportunity.

- Elder Hilton

Lorena´s surprise birthday party and traveling to Kauane´s mom´s house to have her sign the papers.

 the church

I put up the poster that i put together!.... 

I worked hard on this poster!!!

last district meeting for sister snow. We have been in the same district for 5 transfers and now she is going home!

São João activity at the church

A special surprise for piggy-lovers....sorry Roz. i couldn't help myself.

hanging out with the awesome youth on sunday. there was a cool FaceBook Live event that was broadcasted live in all Brazil! 

Sunday night people left for the temple trip. The nearest temple is in Recife. 1,126 kilometers away, almost a 24 hour bus ride! I got to say goodbye to lots of people too.