Thanksgiving

OK Then,
Here are the things I'm grateful for:

1. the gift of tongues
2. the restored Gospel
3. being a missionary
4. toilets that you can flush the toilet paper instead of throwing it in a waste basket
5. worm medication (enough said)
6.letters... yupp so write more!!!!
7.P-DAY.. after a good week of work
8.rice and beans
9.Brazilian fruit
10. BRAZIL

That was 10 ten things from me as a missionary, now here are the normal ones from me:

1. my family and my friends
2. pictures to remember the good, and the bad times
3. discipline and respect taught to me by Dad
4. love (loving and being loved)
5. double stuffed oreos
6. swimming pools and the smell of sunscreen
7. trampolines (just because they are fun)
8. finding a dollar (or in my case some Real in a pair of pants that were washed)
9. a back yard
10. my awesome grandparents and the smell of their house

so there are some things that I'm grateful for.
This week was a crazy week full of doctor appointments and tears. It was probably one of the hardest weeks emotionally on my mission.
Last week after I passed out mail, we went and played Futsal. It's like soccer but on a basketball court. Well I did make some pretty cool goals and the Americans never lost against the Brazilians. But during all this Elder Hall twisted his knee and jacked himself up pretty bad. So I sent all of the other Elders home and me and Elder Hall went to the hospital that, to our luck, was right next to the chapel that we were playing at. They took some x-rays and everything seemed to be OK. But the pain didn't go away. So the next day he got a CT scan and we found out that he got pretty jacked up. So after some long phone calls with people in São Paulo an Salt Lake, we found out that he has to go home to get surgery. It's just so random. And he is one of the best Elders in my zone. I live with him and he is just an amazing guy and just loves the mission, and now he has to go home. Chances are that he isn't coming back either. So ya, we all took it pretty hard. He is sitting to my side right now and it's just crazy to think that I'll never see this kid in our mission again. It's just sad, because on the mission you have Elders that don't even deserve to be here and then you have an Elder that just loves missionary work and he has to go home now. It's just rough on all of us.
But it has made me realize that this time is so precious an that every second counts, and it can all end in a second. I only have 6 months left, so I really ought to step it up and make these last 6 months the best 6 months of my life.
This week we baptised Maria. It was amazing. 75 years of sin washed away. haha Elder Novello and I, we both baptized her. We both helped her into the water and all that jazz. But it was a really spiritual experience and she loved it. :) This week it has been killer hot during the day and I love it, because it's basically like Arizona sun and everyone thinks I'm crazy. It's cool because at night the monsoons roll in. Brazil's monsoons are crazy! Basically they are like a hurricane. They are so cool.

I love being a missionary and love helping people. Have a fun Thanksgiving for me cuz I'll be out working.
Love you guys,
Elder Manis

Come What May and Love It

Mãe e a Familia,
Things are going great down here in Brazil. This week has been a fun week. It's good to just have fun and to do missionary work. We have 3 baptisms coming up. They are Maria, Wesley and Mateus. They are all really great people, but I wanna talk about Maria. I think that she is afraid to be baptised because she doesn't like the water. And me as a lifeguard almost has no patience for that. haha Just messin. She is a senora of 75 years old. Her heart is amazing and she just loves the missionaries. It has been great using the Spirit to help teach her because she doesn't see that well. So she can't really read the scriptures. It's been great to just work with her. I love old people, they are just so loving. :)
Anyway, this week rained a bunch and that kind of slowed things down for us. It wasn't anything you couldn't fight.
We taught a man this week that had both of his arms eaten off by a huge pit bull 3 years ago. So that was amazing! I really learned a lot from him and his point of view. I mean, the guy had both of his arms eaten off in a dog attack, but he said; "I can sit hear and cry everyday and think, ooooh poorrr mmmeee or I can get up every day and see what more i can do. Before I lost my arms I had a million talents. Now, without my arms I have 500 thousand talents. Who am I to cry with 500 thousand talents. I thank God everyday that I am still living."
It made me think of that conference talk by Elder Faust "Come what may and love it". Just suck it up and keep on truckin. Thinking about that, I studied a bit about the subject and came to a conclusion. Just like Ether says - we gain a testimony through tests of faith. It's true, we really gain a testimony that the Church is true through a test. Or that our testimony of our belief is being tested. On my mission I have came across this a lot. Every time that I come across a person that wants to fight my testimony is strengthened.
I once said to a man that was attacking our church saying this, that and the other thing. I just said; "Amigo, I'll believe in your words if you prove to me that this isn't the true church." No matter how hard someone tries they can't explain that our church isn't true. Simply because it is true. haha It's really great to be part of the true church of God here on the earth. To reap the blessings of our Savior. This Church is amazing. I love it. (said in a Nacho voice) It is the best! (again, Nacho voice)
I'm happy for the people who realise this as well. It's awesome because every time we enter in a house, we leave a "prova de fé" [test of faith] for the people to realize that the Church is true. So remember, that if you're having a test of your faith, it's because God wants you to learn something. If everything is going great and you don't have tests, then something is wrong. haha We all have tests and they are for our good. :)
I love you guys and I love this work,
Elder Manis

PS...Hello Mom, I'm needing cash money. Can ya spot a few?
How is my Christmas package? Have you sent it yet?

XXooXoXoXoooxxOXX

Visit with Elder Oaks

Hey Fam,

We have had a few changes here in the mission. Elder Brito got transferred and now I'm with Elder Novello. He is a really cool guy and has a lot of love for the people. It's my job to train him into a leader, so I'm really looking forward to that. He is from the Paraná so he is a really cool guy. :) We get along great and it's no challenge teaching with him.
This past week I got to meet Elder Dalin H. Oaks and man that was an amazing event. Ya, I got to meet him and ya, I sat and talked with him. He is a really funny and smart man. (He uses an I-Pad for scriptures and stuff) I asked him why he uses the i-Pad and he just said; "I don't know, my kids gave it to me. I just know how to look up scriptures." :) He is a really loving guy and it was great to get to know him on more of a personal level. Not to mention that it was the first time I had ever seen an apostle let alone meet one, so it was really cool. It was amazing to see him up at the pulpit, just seeing him work with the Holy Ghost receiving revelation. It was amazing, and I can testify that he is a man of God and that he was called by God to be an apostle in these last days.
This week was also a really good week with the investigators. We found a good family on Saturday and they went to church yesterday. Her name is Holoisa. Come to find out that she had been taught some years ago and received a Book of Mormon. But the day she received it the Elders where transferred and she lost contact with the Church. But she kept reading the Book of Mormon. Of course, like all of us, sometime later she had questions and so to help her understand better she took the book to a pastor who yelled at her and told her to burn and destroy the book. So she did. But it was amazing to see the tears in her eyes when we gave her another book. Then she said; "Now I know what's true." I just made it really clear that she needs to ask God about her doubts and not a pastor of another church. She is amazing, and I'm really excited to see what's going to happen this week with her. :)
I love my mission and I know that this church is true and that God has called Prophets and apostles here on the earth to guide us :)
When are you gonna send me my Christmas package ??
My electric razor's cable broke so I need to know if you can buy another for me. The model is
es8228 wet dry Panasonic

Love you,
:)

Please do not throw garbage

Everett

Hey Family,
Well things are going great down in Brazil. This week was a really really good week of rigerus work. We taught 53 lessons in total and had 9 people in the church. I wanted a little bit more but I was happy with 9. This week we found a man who lived in Boston for 15 years or so. He is from Everett. He is one amazing guy and his family is amazing. They are basically Americans but they talk with a little accent. All of the stuff in the house is American. haha It's the best. He is a huge Red Socks fan and a Patriots fan as well, so we get along great. It was amazing to teach him. He is Catholic, but is looking for somthing different. Something to fill his tank... and that's were we come in, with the gosple. I was actually really nervous to teach him, basically because I felt like an Elder serving in the US, but it went really well. There was a sweet spirit that was there and it was just an amazing feeling. He went to church but had to leave early, but he loved it. So I'm hoping he will become a promissing investigator in the soon future.
Wednesday an apostle is coming to our mission, Elder Oaks. I'm really excited to see what he has for us and to see what I can learn from his words. I have never seen or met an apostle before, so I'm excited to see how it's gonna be.
Elder Brito was released from being a Zone Leader, and as far as I know, I wasn't transfred. So I know I'm just getting a new companion. I am hoping it's a new Zone Leader so I can train him.
The zone is suffering. We have a lot of Elder's that don't know what they are capeable of. And it makes me sad at times because I know that they are so much better that what they are giving. I have been working like a mother to help them out.
Other than that, things are going great. PARA BENS Wyatt man, thats sick man, keep up the good work. [Wyatt made a touchdown in a football game]
I'm down here trying to teach the Brasilians how to throw a football and it's so funny. haha

Love you guys,
Elder Manis

PS- have you every heared of EVERETT? Nana

Satan

Sup Foos?
How is you guys doing??
Random but funny, a member here went on Tiffany's blog during lunch yesterday and showed me some pictures of my cousins that I don't even know. hahah You guys need to send more photos.

Well, this week was a little Debbie Downer. Lets just say that I have really seen the side that Satan plays in missionary work. The only thing that I missed was a comet falling from the sky and killing me. It's crazy, it's not just with me, it's with the zone and the mission. The mission and the zone are suffering a little. Let's just say that Satan is working really hard to get these Elders and Sisters to quit. All of our promised baptisms fell through. We were going to baptize an Elvis and his family. But there was a huge family fight and the family split up. 5 of the baptisms in the zone fell because of the same reason. Satan is just working so hard in the lives of our investigators that it's so sad to see. So what did I do? I got to studying and I came to a conclusion using 3 happenings:
1. When Christ started his mortal ministry
2. The Garden of Gethsemene
3. The Sacred Grove

After Christ was baptized he went in the desert for 40 days and fasted. There he learned more about his purpose on the earth and that he would be our Savior. But what else was there, when he was there? Satan. Satan tempted him like crazy saying "IF" your are the real savior make some bread to kill your hunger, and all that jazz. He tried to get Jesus to doubt himself.
In the Garden, when Christ was praying, Satan was there tempting him again. And angels decended to help him out.
The Sacred Grove, when Joseph Smith was praying, Satan grabbed his tounge and Joseph felt as if he was going to die.
In all this I realized a little more about how Satan works. He wants you to doubt yourself..IF...you know that big IF.. he tempts you physically and mentally and he has the power to come over you and try to kill your thoughts of hope and love.

but what is the solution to all of this....
1.prayer
2.fasting
3. faith
Jesus prayed and fasted like crazy in the desert to overcome temptation. In the garden He prayedas well. Joseph's prayer in the forest helped him to overcome.
I learned that I need to pray more to overcome these difficulties. Not just more, but better, and have the trust in Him that as I do my part He will do His.
I love my mission and the many things I have learned here. I just want you to know that if you guys are having problems or doubts you can call on Heavenly Father and He will help you.

Love you guys,
Elder Manis

PS: Mom I realized that I have about 6 months left and I have yet to buy a Brazilian soccer jersey. There is a bishop that lives here that has a shop that he sells them. Do you think you could put like 60 or 70 bucks on my account so I can buy one? Please :) :)

PPS Elder Oaks will visit our mission. :)

Healthy Food

Hey Moms and Family,

Well, I'm glad you liked the pictures. I figured it has been a while since I sent some home so I sent you a CD of a bunch. That video of me dancing is during Carnivale. The hardest week on my mission yet. We were walking and this guy was blasting techno music in the street and I was just like, "Hey, I feel like dancing." haha Ya, just a random thing to put a smile on my face. So what's up? What did you guys think? Am I getting skinny or what?? I sure think so. Rice and beans dont really stick on me. haha So I think it's coming off. But I'm glad you liked the pictures. haha The picture of Scott Goldthwaite, I found in an Ensign, so I thought that it was funny. I'm working on getting another CD to you with more pictures and videos.
This week was a fight. Me and Elder Brito didn't get along too well. But we talked it out so we are good now. This week I got a refrence from the mission president of Receffe. He's the owner of a huge franchise of English Schools called Wisord. The owner here in Campos isn't a member so me and Brito went to his house...... MMMMIIINNNHHHAAA NNNOOOSSSSAA, the guy has the biggest house that I have ever seen. It was humnungus. haha He even had a front and back yard just like in the U.S.. It was an amazing lesson and he loved it. The spirit was so strong. For a rich man he is way humble and loving. After the lesson he gave us a snack of the most healthy food I have ever seen. I joked around with Brito, saying that "I'm gonna get sick from this healthy food." Bread from Rome and juice from Argentina. haha It was crazy. Also the owner of Wisord is a member of the church and has offered me a job after the mission. He wants me to come back to Brazil and teach English. I would make a butt load of money just for teaching English, and he said I could work at any schoool in Brazil. I did some thinking yesterday, and I havn't come up with an answer, just saying, that it would be cool to come back to Brazil and stuff. What do you guys think? You can come too. haha
But ya, things are going great. The zone is sleeping a bit so I have been getting burned like crazy. But it's all good. I'm getting on these Elders.
Love ya guys,
Elder Manis

PS - Christmas List:

nothing to eat (it will get eaten in 5 secconds)
a bunch of cool random stuff
action figures
paintings
a mega cool CTR ring
$ so I can buy a new suit here, it would only be like 75 bucks
another pump
a big flag of Arizona and the US (for the Brazies)
a shirt of the US soccer team
pictures and zillion of them
just stuff like that
I'll get more to you next week