Hello Everyone!

 

This week was a good first week of the transfer. Sister Gidney knows how to work well, so I am excited about the things that will happen while we are companions. She is sweet, from West Valley and likes to eat dinner... This is the first time in the mission that I´ve actually been eating dinner, so it´s quite a change for me! Anyway, we are really excited about being Sister Training Leaders and we´ve already started planning out when and where we´ll go each week. I think it will be fun to see other areas, missionaries, investigators and parts of Portugal. This week we´ll do a division with the sisters that live with us.

 

We are working hard to help João Carlos and his companion Susana get married (we didn´t know they weren´t married until last Sunday) but the devil and the Ukrainians are working hard against us. João has had to go to many meetings to see what must be done in the airforce concerning the havoc that is happening in Ukraine... To tell you the truth I am not sure exactly what is going on since we don´t read the news, but so far the Lord has been helping us and He´ll help us this time too. 

 

Something cool about Sister Gidney is that she is tough on Paulo when it comes to smoking. She made him throw away all of his cigarettes and give all his money back to his mom so that he wouldn´t be tempted. WOW. Paulo hasn´t completely quit, but is continuing to improve every time we talk to him. Her first lesson with him both Paulo and I were crying she was so intense! The Lord truly knew what he was doing sending Sister Gidney here.

 

This week was also really great because we got to reconnect with an investigator named Mamadu. Last transfer we met him in the street and he showed interest but got scared and frustrated because he couldn´t understand what we were saying. He is from Guinea and only speaks Fula (a native African language), which isn´t even a written language. But he grew up as a Muslim and can read Arabic as if it was his first language. So this week we gave him a Book of Mormon in Arabic, and he has been really liking it! Finally he is started to understand and the Spirit has a better chance to touch his heart. What was even more fun was that his friend has been reading too and wants to talk to us! We are so excited for him.

 

You know something funny? During my first six months of my mission I wasn´t really happy, even though we had a ton of baptisms. I was doing what I was supposed to do because that is what I agreed to upon leaving on a mission. Now (and I think having darling Sister Thornley as a companion helped me realize this) I do what I am supposed to because I want to and I love the people here-- who have become dear friends. I am so glad that I am figuring this out now, while I still have a lot of time left on the mission so that things will continue to improve. One scripture that I read this morning sums it all up:

 

Wherefore, be not weary [or trunky] in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great. Behold the Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind; and the willing and obedient shall eat the good of the land of Zion in these last days.-- D&C 64:33-34

 

I love you all and hope that the week is good!

 

Sister Derrick

Dear Everyone,

 

This week was great. Just to clarify some questions and doubts, I´d like to take a moment to describe what exactly is a Sister Training Leader.

 

In the Mission there are various leadership positions for the Elders: Assistants to the President, Zone Leaders and District Leaders. The President counsels with and advises the Assistants about how the missionaries can improve through various trainings. Then the Assistants go on divisions with the Zone Leaders to make sure that everything is being applied and learned properly in their companionship and work in the area. The Zone Leaders in turn go on divisions with the District Leaders and the District Leaders go on divisions with the other missionaries in their District.

 

Sister Training Leaders are basically Zone Leaders in this aspect of the work. There is no way for the President to know exactly for sure what is happening in a Sister´s area without sending someone there to help and see for themselves. Here in Portugal there are 2 Sister Training Leaders for every 2 zones (or every 5-6 companionships of Sisters). My companion and I are going to have the Zone of the Azore Islands and Lisboa (Lisbon).

 

That being said, I had the priviledge to go to the Mission Office for Mission Council this week! It was honestly like I entered the MTC again. What was going in my mind was, `What on Earth is President Fluckiger thinking?´ But as time has gone on I´ve realized that there is a reason for everything and it will all work out. But Mision Council is really a great treat. The training for this month is to help missionaries have smoother contacts and get to know a person well before diving into the doctrine. It has been so fun applying what we learned!

 

Here are a few examples:

 

Dulce: A Cape Verdian that we contacted knocking doors. She didn´t show much interest but we visited a second time, talked about her life quite a bit and realized that she speaks Creole. So we had a Creole lesson! Nh gosta de bo' means `I like you!´ Then we left a Book of Mormon and testified of its truthfulness. She was excited and said she´d read and give it a shot.

 

José Luís: A sweet old man that we contacted on the street. We talked to him about the rain, his health, Portuguese, his wife that passed away, the woman he´s dating, and his former profession before we dot serious and talked about prayer and showed him an example in how to pray sincerely. He said that because we were so nice and funny he was willing to hear what we had to say.

 

Antónia: We knocked her door and offered to say a prayer. Then we talked a lot about her family. After a minute she completely opened up and said that she was so grateful we passed by because that day was the anniversary of the passing of her husband. Nobody she knew was answering their phones to talk to her and she felt awfully lonely until we knocked on her door.

 

Anyway, something that I´ve realy been enjoying about this area is that we´ve had many more opportunities to serve. We give English classes every week and we are giving private classes to a sweet man named Manuel. This week we are going to help an sick elderly man clean up his house! I really like it because in my previous area we didn´t have very many opportunities, but now we do!

 

João Carlos´ family is marked for this upcoming Saturday to be baptized, but yesterday we had a little conflict. Yesterday João received an emergency phone call that he needs to serve in Russia. Man, that is SCARY in all aspects. He received the phonecall in church in between classes and the whole family started to cry and get upset about it. He doesn´t know for how long he´ll be there. We are all praying for them and we included them in our fast yesterday.

 

So great! I am really excited for the up coming transfer. I´m not sure what it will all entail, but I have never been happier to start out. I think the Lord prepares me during my current transfer for the upcoming one. I love you all and hope that your guys´week is great.

 

Sister Derrick