December 11, 2016 Our First Baptism!

Dear Famìlia,

 This week has been great, My companion is from Springville Utah and he plays football and basketball. He is the only member of his family that has ever served a mission besides his dad. He has 10 months here and he is a great missionary he knows how to help people and how to teach really really well.

Yeah we don’t even really have a ward, I think we are constructing a chapel right now but we meet in this small building haha. This last week we went to the stake center in Macieo and Elder Holland spoke from São Paulo, haha he tried to speak Portuguese at the beginning it was pretty funny.

As for food, we eat two eggs and some chicken for breakfast, for lunch members always feed us noodles, beans, rice, beef, chicken, or fish. The juice here is unbelievable and a lot of the fruits here don’t even exist in the states. For dinner we eat two eggs and drink water haha.

Endelly's baptism

This week we had a baptism, her name is Endelly and she is 23. Her story is unbelievable. We found her trying to contact her cousin actually and we shared the word of wisdom and let her borrow a Book of Mormon. We invited her to read the introduction and then we would check with her the next day. The next day she told us she read the intro and then started reading a little bit of First Nephi and started weeping and she didn’t know why, in that moment she gave up drinking, coffee, and everything in one day. She has a daughter and was living with this guy since she was 16 so 7 years together. This was the only thing holding her back from baptism but finally she decided to leave him because he wasn’t agreeing with the church and she wanted to be baptized, so we finally baptized her this Sunday, I’ve never met anybody so dedicated, that was kind of the highlight of my week.

Overall good week we were busy Tuesday making our Christmas video lol. I think we might have some baptisms this week but it’s hard because people always work here on Sundays. 

Miss you guys, tell everyone I said hi.

It’s really hot here every day haha. But being next to the beach gives us a little bit of a breeze. Sounds like the stake changed a lot (our family’s home stake split this past week). Haha i miss my ward and good singing! the people here are soooo BAD lol and I just miss everything about church at home, but I’m adjusting the church here is really good just different haha. Cant wait for Chrismas!

Até mais

Elder Toma

December 5, 2016 We have members and investigators on almost every street!

Dear Family, 

this week was great, we worked super hard and got 8 new baptismal dates and 17 new investigators. This week i also just learned alot about the atonement of Jesus Christ and the importance of it. It is the center of the restoration, the center of the plan of salvation, and in the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

We have lessons with a lot of people and are always teaching new people but on every street we have member and investiagtors almost haha. We have a good amount of members but no where near Gainesville lol. We meet in a small building not even a chapel and we dont have any leaders or even a bishop. Me and my comp do the Sacrament prayers every week and we have a couple other Priesthood holders. 

The beaches here are amazing, like ten times better then the pictures on the internet, the sand is like super white and the beach is super blue. 

 I dont have anybody's email so if Conner or Hunter or McKinzie want to talk they have to email me first lol. 

Portuguese is coming well, they people in Macieo are impossible to understand some times haah even for other Brazilians. 

Over all good week, miss you guys. Tell everyone i said hi. 

Love,

Elder Toma

November 28, 2016

Dear Family,

  

This week went by fast and was good. My comps name is Elder Hillstead and we have such a cool area. It is called

Barra de São Miguel

Barra de São Miguel, it is right on the beach and we have a big lake too. It is always super hot and humid. It gets dark at like 5 at night and is light at 5 in the morning.

Barra de São Miguel

This week we had some pretty cool experiences with investigators. We taught this lesson to this woman for the first time and she told us about this dream where she saw a huge sky full of stars and flying down from the sky was two white horses and they passed her really fast and then ran back up into the stars. She said when they pasted her she felt so much peace. Then she said during our lesson she felt that same piece and was wondering why we wore white shirts and she believes in the church but she wants to know more and learn more.

 

Thanksgiving for us was pretty good. We ate ramen noodles with hot dogs in it and then ate this huge chocolate cake.

We have 22 new investigators this week and like 9 baptisms lined up this week. We will probably baptize in a church in Macieo but usually we Baptize in this river, we have the only area here that baptizes in rivers ha-ha so that’s pretty cool.

I’ve been reading Jesus the Christ and it is such an amazing book and I don’t even like reading ha-ha. I like how it explains everything about Jesus.

Overall a good week, we worked hard and taught many many people. Tell everyone I said hi.

Love you guys.

Elder Toma

November 21, 2016 First week in the mission field

Querido Família,

This week has been very different. First day I got off the plane and the land was so different and instantly 10 time hotter. I got my new companion which was the only American out of 9 other missionaries, he is super cool and has very good Portuguese and only speaks Portuguese with me so I never speak English haha. 

Brazilian MTC

Our first day went good we invited 4 fams to baptism and all 4 excepted. The language is a little harder because here in Macieo they speak a million times faster and have super thick accents then Sao Paulo. Many horses a million dogs and a few monkeys I will see on the street sometimes. ITs very poor here like houses are either homemade or the size of our living room. ITs so crazy here to because like girls will be 13 and pregnant and that’s like not even rare. Also, the hardest part of this mission is chastity because nobody marries, word of wisdom because of cafe, and the worst of all is Sabbath because here they work so hard to provide so they all work every day including Sunday. 

My area is sick, I’m next to a super pretty lake and I’m also like a 2-minute walk from the beach, so the ocean breeze feels good in my area and its super the tropical, all the fruit here is to die for. Ha-ha two nights ago was crazy because a million bees found ways through holes and cracks into our room. Literally like hundreds of bees were in there. so, my comp and I spent the whole night killing all of them with our shoes, a broom, and this fly swatter. And then we taped up all the cracks and holes but I think I will be fine. Sometimes I will find a huge lizard in my room too ha-ha. 

Sunday I had to give a talk, I think it went well especially for being right off the spot. Over all a good week, we worked super hard and got 18 new investigators and 11 accepted baptismal invites. And yes, I got the package and I’ll wait until Christmas Have a great Thanksgiving,

Eu Amo Vocês!

Elder Toma

Shower and laundry drying line

Luxurious accommodations!

Arrival in the mission field! Welcome to Maceio'

Made it safe.  I'm in Macieo and its so crazy. Sao Paulo was first world and it's very different here. I'll have more detials on Monday my new Pday.

Love

Elder Toma

Maceió, 18 November 2016

Dear Parents and Family Members of Elder Toma,

            Greetings from the Brazil Maceió Mission.  Your son has arrived recently and we are sending to you a picture of his first day in the mission.  We thank you for allowing your son to serve with us for these next two years.  The first few weeks in the mission are at times difficult, but he is very excited to confront these challenges. We are thankful for your participation in his preparation. Without doubt, he will do a great and marvelous work among the beloved people of Alagoas and Sergipe.

            Please, if possible, always write to your son. All letters and packages sent to your missionary should be sent to the mission office. The missionaries should write to their parents once a week. This is a mission rule. Each missionary will be allowed to call home two times per year; Christmas and Mother´s Day. Our mission office address is the following:

ELDER “ MISSIONARY´S FULL  NAME”

MISSÃO BRASIL MACEIÓ

AV. Dom Antonio Brandão, 333 Sala 402

Ed. Work Center – Farol

Maceió, AL

57051-190

Telefone: (82) 3336-5558

2010313@ldschurch.org

            Thank you very much for supporting your son in this sacred work. Many of Heavenly Father´s children will become members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints through your son´s sacrifice and diligent work. We know that he as well as you will be blessed for his service. We will do our best to help your son reach his dreams and establish God´s kingdom in this part of the Lord´s vineyard.

Fraternally,  

President  Henrique Gomes Júnior                                     Sister Maria Aparecida Gomes

November 2, 2016 Only two weeks left in the MTC!!

Dear Family,

This week has been pretty good. We are now the oldest group here and im dying to get out! Im glad everyone is doing good! My week so far has just been the same old. Im teaching two investigators a day and then i do splits and teach two other investigators. I also have trc where i teach a member or instructor and those are pretty tough because its random so you never get time to prepare. 

I love this mission because its like everyday i realize the gospel is more and more important. This is your life, its more then just going to church its giving it your all, so many people here are so worried about their  home life and call their old life "real life" but i think this is the closest to real life anyone would ever be. The mission is living close to God and to me that is what living is about. 

I miss you guys but this is already the best decision of my life without even being out in the field. I know it will get harder but that will only make me stronger.

I love you guys, Tell everyone i said hi.

Love,

Elder Toma

Look who Elder Toma ran into at the Sao Paulo Temple!

Elder McGary and Elder Toma (cousins)