Natal

Well, 2 things yesterday, first a batizmo, which was really awesome, it’s someone we have been working with for a while so it was pretty awesome experience, Espirito Santo was very strong.

And then I got to Skype with my family! That was awesome!! It was really good to see them, even for a short period of time.

Sorry that this is super short haha, but I hope everyone had a Fantastic Christmas! Love hearing from you guys, let me know how it’s going!!

Com Amor,

Elder Hilchie

Skype with Tyler

PS, from Teri

Funny how Courtney and Tyler both wrote “short” emails, I think Tyler won that one!!  

Tyler is doing well, he says that people tell him that his Portuguese is good.  They think that he is from Brazil because of his complexion.  When they find out that he is from the U.S. they tell him they can’t understand him!  He loves the food and is keeping busy.  A couple from the church live in the same building as he and his companion and they take good care of him.  It was so good to skype with him and see his smiling face.

One funny story.  Apparently Brazilians are confused with the concept of resurrection vs. revival.  They came across a woman that was claiming that she had been resurrected. She was in the street and told them that she had been resurrected and they quietly said, “No actually you have not, you are still going to die”.  And she tells them that God chooses people to receive the Holy Spirit.  And she gets intense and shouts “I feel the Holy Spirit, do you feel the Holy Spirit?” They just looked at her and say, “No, no we don’t” and walked away!

FELIZ 2017!!!

OI FAMÍLIA!!!  Sorry I don't have very much time today so this email will be shorter. But I hope that everyone had the best Natal ever because I sure did!!! I was great to see you all and crazy to think that in 3 weeks I will be seeing you guys in real life, cara a cara(face to face). Courtney and her new comp from Utah! But this week was super crazy with a lot of running around. A lot of people here in São Paulo like to viajar(travel) for Natal e Ano Novo(New Year) so it was a bit harder to find and teach people that were actually home but surprisingly we taught a good number of people and able to help them feel the true meaning of Christmas. I love Natal guys and helping others really focus their lives in Him. The One who saved us. Who gave all He had so that He would be able to help us. It's the best thing ever being a missionary!  With the Broadbents But this week we had a pretty awesome experience! We were going to visit one of our pesquisadoras(investigators), got up to her house and noticed that everything was escuro(dark). We knocked on the neighbor's door to make sure that our investigator wasn't home. Well the vizinha(neighbor) came out and said that she had left. But instead of saying thank you and leaving, we started to talk to her. We had already talked to her before but she said she didn't have time for us to visit her and wasn't very interested but I don't know what changed because she invited us to come in so we did! We got to know her a little bit more and she just started to tell us everything. She said that there was something in her life that she wanted to get rid of because she feels as though it's atrapalhando(disturbing) her relacionamento(relationship) com Pai Celestial(Heavenly Father)---o cigarro(cigarettes). She has tried to stop vários times mas nunca conseguiu(never could). She has been searching for help but never found it. That's when we told here that we were there to help her. We made some metas(goals) with her and left her with a bunch of ideas that she could try to be able to stop. At the end, she said that she knew why our pesquisadora wasn't home: so that we would be able to visit her. She was really grateful for our visit and we are super excited and greatful that we are able to help her really create that relacionamento with Pai Celestial. I know that Pai Celetial loves each and every one of us dearly. He will do anything to help us. And when we reach out our hands and help, maybe we are answering the prayer of someone.  I hope you all are doing superly duperly awesome and ready for 2017! (It’s going to be the best year ever!)  Love, Sister Hilchie :)

All of Sao Paulo South Missionaries

FELZ NATAL!!

OI FAMÍLIA!!!!!!!!!!! 

Well guys this week was pretty awesome!! We met some really amazing people and had some great spiritual experiences. We met this one couple--Maria e Cicero--that used to rent out a part of their casa to the elderes. She was a referência and when we first talked to her, she got super excited that we had come to visit. Ela só vive with her marido and are both retired. They are an awesome couple are really loved it enquanto the elderes lived downstairs. They said that at times, the elders would come up and share a message with them but didn't know much about the church and want to! So we taught the restauração(restoration), which went great! The Spirit was really strong and Maria started to cry as we were teaching. We know that the Lord is our loving Heavenly Father and that He never changes. In the Bible we learn about how He called profetas (like Noah, Abraão, Moises..) that were given the power of God to act in His name. We also learn that after all these profetas, Cristo came to the earth. While He was aqui, He fez muitas coisas(did many things)....cured, taught, was an exemplo em todas as coisas(example in all things) and He also established His church with Cristo as the profeta, 12 apóstolos and each of them with the poder(power) of Deus. And with these three things, the church of Critso was here on the earth. We also know that Cristo, He died for us and logo depois9soon after), os apóstolos and with that, the power of Deus was gone também(also). Então não tinha mais(so we did not have) the church of Cristo on the earth. Well after a bit, the people started to feel falta(lack) of the church of Cristo and His ensinamentos(teachings). So to compensate, they started to remember little bits and pieces of what Cristo taught and started to form they own igrejas(churches). That's why hoje em dia(today), there are so many igrejas because everyone was trying to find the whole truth but only found parts. Then in 1820, there was a young man chamado(named) Joseph Smith that had a pergunta(question): "which church out of all of them is right? which should I follow?" It was then that he said a prayer and God the Father and His son Jesus Cristo aparaceram(appeared) to him and told him to now join any. It was through Joseph that the church of Cristo was restored on the earth again. Então por causa disto(because of this), Joseph was called como o novo profeta(as the new prophet), he called 12 apóstolos, and they were give the power of Deus. Realmente eu sei that Joseph Smith was an instrumento in the hands of the Lord. That through him, the church of Cristo was restored here on the earth again. I know without any doubt that the Church of Jesus Cristo of Latter-day Saints is the one and only true church on the earth today with a profeta and apóstolos(prophets and apostles)to lead and guide us. I know that Cristo is at the head of this church because it is His church. 

Also the mãe(mother) of Reneane finally chegou(arrived) this week!!! And with her birth documents!!! Now we can get to it. We have waited so long for this very important piece of paper to get here and it has finally made it! We are all super duper excited and doing everything possível to get her married asap! 

I love you all so so so much! I hope you all have the best week ever and always remember why we are celebrating Natal. Always remember of His birth and life. How He gave tudo for us so that we would be able to be happy happy happy aqui! FELIZ NATAL GENTE!!! Thanks for everything!

Love, 

Sister Hilchie :)