Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Happy Moving

Hey, so I don't know how much time I have today because our internet went out this morning so we had to wait till now to get back on.  Happy Memorial Day! I hope someone played some Frisbee because we didn’t here because of the rain (and it's not a holiday),  Anyway this week has been exciting to say  the least with many tranfers of things an people.  Tuesday we got a call that we were needed in Jardim for a ten day transfer because two other sisters were sick. So we were going to be a trio with another sister there, but then the next day, as we were walking to district meeting, Sister Kubiak got a call that she was headed to Madacanao and I would be staying here in Jardim to be trained by Sister Riberito.  So we went back to our apartment, got our things and I left Sister Kubiak and started in my new area.  They are all very nice here.  It's more of a small town where everyone seems to know everyone and the streets are a little more confusing because there isn’t any main highway or main roads just a lot of winding, sandy roads, which we learned today makes the streets like rivers when it rains haha.  Sister Riberito is really nice. She laughs at me a lot because I don’t speak well at all, but she always asks to make sure I'm understanding which is nice and I think I really am understanding more even if I don’t speak well. No one understands what I say, but anyway. She loves to help everyone, so we wash and cook at almoco (lunch) and whatever other ways we can which is great because if I can't tell everyone how much they mean to me at least I can show it!  We also had two baptisms this week so to say the least the work is really moving here.  It was an older man and  12 yer old.  Oh and the elders in our district are so cool they are bringing pizza this week to district meeting because of the baptism!! And Elder Forriaita, a big black elder who has 4 weeks left on his mission came up to me and was like, "Are you scared of me because I'm so big and have such a low voice?" I laughed and said of course not haha, but he  said "Yea, the first few months are sooo hard." And he said, "I didn’t understand people and I'm Brazilian, but if you give it time the middle is great. And the end is even better because you see how the gospel really touches people and God loves every single one of us and will not let us fail!!" He said he knew the gospel was true at the start of his mission, but now he knows with out a  shadow of a doubt that it is true and that it is the most marvelous thing that we get to know and teach about.  

Anyway, so my comp has been out 5 months and is a little stressed from having to be a trainer and having to try to translate everyrthing, but we get along. I just try to make her laugh even when I don’t understand and I always have a smile on my face.  She's from Rio and thinks it's so cool that you served there, Dad.  She also is the first to serve in her family.  She's 20 as well.  So basically I'm going to have  real weird accent between first learning in Sao Paulo then coming here and then being taught by someone with a Rio accent haha.  

We had spaghetti this week with meat balls!!!! And last Pday we got to play volleyball with the youth. Also, I saw a shooting star last week while me and my comp were talking about them. How cool is that!!!!!  Oh and it actually was kind of cold last night. I used my bed sheet which is crazy!!! I love it!!  

I love this gospel and I'm glad I get to teach about it to others even if they don’t always understand me.  I know it will all workout as we speak through the spirit of the gospel.  I read Alma 56 this week about the army of Helaman not doubting that they could do hard things because that’s what their mothers taught. So I hope you all read that chapter and don’t doubt.

Love you all!! Sorry for the crazy sporadic letter! Have a terrific week!!!

Sister Neuberger
Alma 56

Monday, May 15, 2017

Happy Mother's Day!

HAPPY MOTHER´S DAY!!!!  And again happy bday, Mom!! And gparents and Miranda.

Not much to say this week as we did a lot of walking and not a lot of teaching because we were looking for less actives and a lot of them weren’t home or didn’t want to talk. However, we did have some great moments this week as we got Carol, a long time investigator, to finally come to church because when we taught her on Friday she was like, "I can see how much going to church means to you and though it's different than I'm used to I'll go and try it out. And she liked it. She said it was different but she liked how happy and welcoming everyone was. 

I got to see people from my district this week as their comps needed to renew their visas' so we got to do splits with them and woah do I have so much to learn.  Sister Clark's comp was quoting scripture and just knowing exactly what scripture to turn to when teaching people and really talking to them to know what they needed to hear. It was a humbling moment for me to say the least.  I hope that with time I can do the same. 

Last pday we got “burgers” to celebrate my comp's last transfer in the mission and my first.  They aren’t exactly burgers, but it’s the closest I'll probably get for another year or so.  We also got spaghetti yesterday at a members house and they gave us ice cream and the spaghetti had cheese and veggies in it!!! Amazing!!!!  Oh and I tried din-din this week which is like ice cream kind of, but the fruit flavors are more like a really juicy smushed fruit that’s frozen like a Popsicle in a plastic bag. The chocolate and caramel favors or more like ice cream. They all just come in little plastic baggies and you just rip of a corner and eat it. They're quite delicious. 

Our English class wasn't really teaching because another member kind of taught or taught a couple words and then had me and Elder Taylor read from the Book of Mormon and then he had me say the closing prayer in English and then said how they too could learn English. So it was a little different and not how Elder Taylor and I thought it would go, but it's all good. 

We also sadly realized that Anderson and Victoria, our two baptisms from last week, are actually livimg in the other ward. So we gave them over to the other sister missionaries ,but they're great so I have no fear in that. 

So in Skyping my family this week I really have been thinking about the Plan of Salvation or as I really love to call it the Plan of Happiness because it's true that it really does bring us happiness and just thinking about it it brings me happiness!!!  Being on a mission you really think about how the plan is so important because I know right now all I want is to be with my family. However, I won't be for a year or so, but I know that I will be with them soon and so I have to do now so when we see each other again it will be with great joy!  I never want to not be able to be with my family.  I know that if I do all that I can in this life and do all that the Lord asks of me that I can be with my family forever after this life which is one of the greatest gifts that Heavenly Father could ever give us.  I hope and pray that we all can do all that we can to live in such a way that we can all be reunited with our families again one day.  I also read in Alma chapter 46 this week about the title of liberty and I thought back to past youth conferences where we were asked what are we fighting for?  So think about that this week. What are you fighting for when the world seems to be against you what are you fighting for that gives you strength to press on?

I love you all soo much!!! I hope you all have a super duper stupendous week!!!

Sister Neuberger

The First and Great Commandment- Elder Holland GC Nov. 2012




Trust In Him

5/8/2017
Hello everyone I hope you all had fantastically fabulous weeks!!

Two different scriptures I read this week and really liked (they kind of connect) were D&C 50:40-44 which connects to Helaman 1:5. These verses talk of how we are all still learning but if we build ourselves on a sure foundation we cannot fall because Heavenly Father is there to help us in all things. And these connect to Peter 5:6-7 which talks about how he will help us as we humble ourselves and trust in him because he loves us so much each individually and wants to see us succeed!

This week we had 3 baptisms!!!  An older man named Geraldo and two teenagers who are siblings Anderson and Vitoria which I think I already talked about them. Because they got baptized this week their dad and older sister Nataua also came to church!! Such a great Sunday! We hope that as we keep teaching them that Nataua and their dad will want to be baptized and we can have a whole family and they can be that much closer to going to the temple as a family! Beause that's what its all about!

We also got the members to help us this week with a couple of the youth joining us on lessons and an adult in a few other lessons and since Geraldo is in a wheelchair we are relying on the members to help him get to church every Sunday and so far so good.

The members are so nice here.  They all have heard of how I got sick off of feijoada (which in fact I got sick off of the salad but nonetheless) so they make sure not to make it when we come, but a family did this week and they knew I had gotten sick so they made me a totally different meal and I felt so bad that they went through all that trouble but they were so happy to do it to make sure I didn't get sick.  It was delicious and it was beef!  We also had enchilada type things on cinquo de maio!!! HOW COOL IS THAT!!  Wasn't expecting it at all and it was a nice change from rice and beans. It might have not been spicy but it was so delicious!!  Oh and at another almoco we had fruit soup a personal favorite of mine! Basically its a bunch of different soup in a very liquidy doce de leite sauce.  And now just thinking about it I want to eat it! 

I saw a Star Wars shirt on the fourth be with you day and too sadly that doesn't rally translate into portugues but i tried my best. 

Our building for church is huge. I think it might be a stake center.  The roads are all different some are paved some are stones it just depends.  I also made it through my first transfer!! Sister Kubiak and I are both staying in Messajana in the Barroso area.  My first transfer and her last one.  We also saw cows running up and down the street this week as we waited for the bus for our district meeting.  They were hilarious and really on the move.  Oh and we saw this guy stand up on his motorcycle while he was going down the street! Craziness!!!!

That's it for the week!! Have a superb week!! Love you all!!

Sister Neuberger
Alma 26:37




Saturday, May 6, 2017

Honey Bees

5/1/2017
Happy birthday this past week to Dad, Andrew, Jared, Josh and Maddie and Deedee (though I think theirs were a month ago, but I don't remember).

Anyway we had many meetings this week with district meeting as always and then a district conference and then a zone conference which had some of the Fortaleza mission there which meant i got to see Sister Weixler which is always awesome because she's awesome!  I loved Sister Marriott's talk about how we need to teach how families can be together forever and that the Book of Mormon is truly another Testament of Christ.  After zone conference I almost missed getting on the bus, but I jumped on as it was moving, so its all good haha.

We also got to witness an eight year old in our ward get baptized this week and we brought one of our investigators who is hesitant to get baptized, so hopefully she could feel the spirit and the joy that this child had from being baptized.  They also had cake after that was like gooey buttercake mixed with real cake to say the least it was AMAZING!!!

I read a talk by Elder Ballard this week from Oct. 2012 how we if we all did small acts of kindness everyday think about how much better the world would be and how happy we and others would be. He compared it to bees and how they are only able to make a small amount of honey in their lifetime, but with them all working together they make a large sum of honey.  We can do the same with showing kindness and compassion towards others. 

As it was pouring down rain yesterday we were still able to get three of our investigators to church!!!! Well two and Anderson's little sister decided to come too, so it made it 3. Anderson and Victoria loved Young Womens and Young Mens and Sunday School.  And Gerardo liked the lesson on faith in Sunday school, so hopefully we can progress with them this week in teaching. 
Lots of walking, lots of talking. It's hard work, but if we try our best and serve with full purpose of heart the reward can be satisfying. 

Sister Neuberger
Ether 12:4  Alma 32:9-10

Don't Eat the Pistachio Ice Cream

4/24/2017
So this week started of with me getting super sick from eating salad.  Lesson learned Dad.  I also probably had some heat stroke mixed in with that because after emailing last week we traveled to the main city of Fortaleza. That would have been super fun if I had know we were going so I was prepared for it.  Also if i hadn't been throwing up through the streets.  Let's just say I really left my mark in Fortaleza.  So after a fun 2 hours or so in the city I tried in my best Portuguese to tell my comp that I really needed to go home because not only was I throwing up I was also blacking out here and there.  So we went home and the rest of the day I just slept and she helped me out a lot calling the president's wife to know what medicine to have  the other sisters get me and told the members upstairs what was happening and then they gave us their food.  By the next day I was up and moving again.

Anyway super exciting news this week. Eduardo got baptized!!! He is such a happy old man and I think this just made him even happier!!!  We also talked to Marcus and Maria this week who are really interested in what we believe about life after death and how the plan of salvation works.  We talked to them for a while and they were excited to hear all about it. 

Other cool story of the week was as we were walking down the street, which we did a lot of walking this week because not many people really wanted to listen this week, and as I'm about to cross the street this guy calls us over. So I sprint back to make sure I don't get hit by the bus and we talked to this guy who had seen us walk by a few times and wanted to know what we were doing.  We told him we were missionaries and then he told us his friend was Mormon and h'es actually going to go visit his friend in two weeks and we were like well awesome! We told him a little about what we believe and then we told him to come to our activity next week where Elder Taylor and I are teaching English.  Yes, we get to teach English this week which they just told us about, but we don't have any time to prepare,so hopefully it goes well.  I'll just tell them, "Johnny, you've got to eat your lausagna."  haha Travis. 

Read Alma 32 this week it talks about faith and how even with the smallest amount of faith if we pray and seek to grow it it can grow and become magnificent.  Pray in faith and your faith will grow!

We also saw monkeys this week!!

Love you all so much thanks for the emails!!

Sister  Neuberger