Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Holiday Time Again

 October 8, 2012

I missed the last session of conference because we had to fill up the baptismal font though. It was all set to fill up during the first session and them we would baptize between sessions but when we went to check on it we saw that the water had run out! We tried using the fire hose, buckets, and a lot of prayer for rain but nothing was working. The stake president had a pump so we throw the pump in the well we have on the chapel grounds and used a hose to fill up the tank. We had to guard the well after that to make sure no little children fell in and drowned. so that's why we missed the last session. I´m about to listen to Elder Bednar´s talk. It´s cool because, from the part I´ve already heard, he talked about exactly what I´ve been thinking about these past few days and weeks.

So, Joana was baptized, Oséias´mom. She was really happy. Now, the dad might get baptized too. He´s really liking the church and even said he wants to prepare for baptism.

The Church is true and prophets walk the earth again. The Priesthood is also real and with it come many duties, responsibilities, and powers that no other group or sect enjoy.


October 15, 2012


Family!
This week was good. We had a solid week of work. Well, I´m taking care of two wards, again. I feel like it´s been this way for almost my entire mission. Anyway, We´ve got some good work going in both of them. Sumaré, which is the larger ward, will have a baptism this week of a young woman who has been going to church with her friend. Jatobá, which needs 60 more people for a chapel, will have 2 this week. We are working very hard.

In Jatobá we´re working pretty much with one recent convert. We´re teaching her mom, her friend, and her neighbors, Tonight we´re gonna grab a bus and go out there again. We also made a contact and brought 4 people to church. Turns out they were the family of this recent convert´s friend from school. We went to pick up this family and because they weren´t ready we got to sacrament meeting as the ward was finishing the sacrament hymn. They saw us walk in with investigators and got SO excited! I think it´s been a while since the missionaries have done ANY work in that area. It was fast and testimony meeting and there were some pretty solid testimonies and the Spirit was strong. Afterwards a lot of members came up and said ´´Elder, Elder, there´s this family that I want you to meet. Pass by this week...´´ it was cool. We´ve got work to do in Jatobá now!!!!


Check out this video. It´s powerful. Christ is amazing. Sometimes we need to be strong and bold in the face of evil. We play a huge role in the bringing forth of the Gospel in the last days. We know it and no one else does. We are the ONLY ones who can preach the Gospel. We are the only carriers of the Gospel. If we do not open our mouths to share whet we know and what we are, NOTHING will change and NO ONE will come to know the Gospel of Christ. We MUST share who we are with other and let our light shine before men so that they may come to know the only true and living God and Jesus Christ who He sent. We are the holders of this truth and the cause of Christ. Others want it. Others need it. They are praying and begging God for knowledge and light to guide them to peace and hope in this turbulent world. There is nothing better than being the answers to these prayers. Sometimes they won´t know that you are the answer that they´ve been waiting for, at first. But after many trials come the blessings. There are many people searching for peace that the missionaries do not know and only YOU know. There are people that need YOU. Share the Gospel. Open you mouth. The Spirit will give you power beyond your own to change the course of your brother´s and sister´s eternal lives. Pray and ask God for missionary opportunities. Fast for them. Plead for them. There are so many people to be taught and the time we have is not infinite.

I love this work and Jesus Christ. i can´t wait to be with you all again.

October 22, 2012
Family!

This week I lost my voice and then got sick. I learned that a missionary without a voice is like a doctor without hands or a soccer player without legs. I wanted so much to teach people but couldn´t because of my voice. All I could do was bear my testimony and try to convey to them the importance and the magnitude of our message. I was actually on a division with the assistants this day. I was with Elder Dias in his area (he wishes Micky a happy birthday.) I don´t like being without a voice. I´m almost totally better now but I passed a few days pretty sick. After passing the numbers and planning yesterday I went to sleep at 9:30. I ´m gonna sleep some more today too. 

October 29, 2012
Dear Family,

Anyway, this week Paula was baptized. She´s 17 and lives next door to some members. We´ve been rooting for her so hard for a few weeks now. She wasn´t able to stop drinking coffee for a few weeks and had some problems going to church. Her grandma is also very sick and she´s just looking for something to help her in her life. She chose Jesus. You can never go wrong choosing Jesus. She finally stopped drinking coffee and Elder Omena was able to baptize her. She seemed so happy at the baptism. It´s just so sweet to see the face of the people after they´re baptized. You just know that the church is true and that Christ´s Atonement really does have the power to save us from our sins.

My companion gave a talk this week in sacrament meeting too. It was pretty good. He talked about sacrifice. In the closing prayer, the sister asked for forgiveness for the entire ward.

Anyway, I just want to bear my testimony to you guys about missionary work. It brings life into any person, group or ward that has the faith and courage to open their mouth and share their testimony. It is not hard once we start talking because God gives us the words that should be shared with each person, if we just listen. However, missionary work is also very challenging because not everyone will except the message of Etenal Life the first time, or ever. Sometimes you will feel depressed and hated and trodden on and mocked. You´ll want to give up. You´ll want to go home. You´ll want to play football and frisbee and videogames and date and a million other things. But if you just forget it all and put it to the side and serve God with ALL of your heart, might, mind, and strength, you will have success. Christ will take your soul and make you into what He would have you be. You´ll realize that your desires are changing and the Holy Ghost is working a great work upon your heart. If you serve well enough and search humbly enough, maybe you´ll even experience true joy, as did Ammon upon seeing Alma and his brethren after his mission. That is what it´s all about. not numbers. Not positions of leadership. True, pure, absolute, clean, unspeakable joy. That´s what I want and what I work for. I have great faith that I will attain it. 

I love you all. Please share the gospel. Please just have faith in the promises of God and be righteous. I know He lives. I know He loves us and gives us commandments to lead us to happiness and eternal life. I´ll see you all soon.

November 5, 2012
Family,

This week was a good one for me. We had 5 baptisms this week. We baptized the cousins of a member and their friends. It was super fun. I was just in the font and they came walking in in a line. I felt like John the Baptist! But even more important than the fun factor was the fact that they have now received the gift of the Holy Ghost and will one day enter the kingdom of God! They´re super happy and excited. They´re neighbor,  is set to get baptized this week. He´s a good guy and I´m super excited about the baptism.

Anyway, that´s about it for me. I love you guys a lot. I´m working on becoming a better person. There´s only one way to get into heaven and if we want to get there we got to take it. The way gets rougher and the incline higher but our souls expand and our love grows and we become Children of God. Let´s do it! As Spencer W Kimball said,´´ Give us mountains to climb!´´ So go climb some mountains, invite your friends to learn about the Gospel and pray and fast for missionary opportunities. The speed of the work is increasing. The Lord is quickening his work. He is at the doors and comes quickly. Be ready and bring others with you. 

Elder Hodson
 
November 12, 2012

What up family!
 
Anyway, the streets that I walk are now paved, at least in part, and not just a bunch of rocks. I´ve been transfered to JIAZEIRO DO NORTE! It´s way interior! I´m in the southern part of the state of Ceará. We´re 10 hours away from Fortaleza and mission headquarters. I was on the bus all night. We left at 11 P.M.
 
It´s gonna be a blast out here! Please pray for me and my work.  I love this work and seeing the Kingdom of God grow here upon the earth. Remember that miracles are possible, we just have to have unshakeable faith.
 
Trust in God. Serve Him. Become converted to Him. He will reveal His mysteries unto you.

November 19, 2012
 
Hello Family!
 
 The food is the same but the people here are a little better off. Less violence. Hotter. Drier. Has a big statue idol of an old Catholic priest that people worship. It´s a little different here.
 
Anway, this week was a challenge but I liked it. We searched out and found a lot of good people. We´ve got a good teaching pool now. Thanks you for your prayers. I know the Lord has heard them. This Saturday night as I went around to confirm that everyone would be going to church on Sunday, EVERYONE fell through. They had work, and school and other things that they placed in front of church. I was devastated. I didn´t know who would be at church yesterday. I just prayed and told God that I had done everything I could but I didn´t know who would be at church. I asked Him to help me and do a miracle. He did. I´ve learned that if you just put the work into His hand you cannot fail. I failed this last week but God didn´t. He sent me 3 people. One was a man invited to come to church a long time ago. He wasn´t able to come until yesterday. He stayed the entire time (even an extra hour to watch the baptisms) and seemed to really enjoy it. Another was a lawyer who was´passing in front of the church and felt like he should walk in. We´re going to pass by there and see what the Lord would have us do.
 
 I know the Lord has heard our prayers. I´m just really excited to be here at a time like this. God is so good. Never get depressed. Only believe. He really is mighty to save His children and will lead those who seek and listen, to the truth.

November 26, 2012
What up fam?
 
This week was good!
 
Juazeiro is super Catholic. The work here is hard. God has given me a mountain to climb. i have a testimony that it is possible to baptize in any part of the world, even the most catholic city in Brazil (as Juazeiro is known.)
 
I worked really hard this week. i´m trying to work more with the members. I´m also exhausted. I´ve never felt so good and so much peace in relation to my like. i know 100% that I am doing the will of the Lord. When His Spirit tells me to do something i do it. This last week I saw a group of people near another church. i felt like i should go talk to them. They turned out to be missionaries from another church. we gave them a Book of Mormon. They said they would read and pray about it. I was surprised at how open they were. We´ll see if anything comes of that.
 
I know Christ lives and loves us. Follow His example.
 
December 3, 2012

Well hello family,

This week was filled with some good work. The Lord is answering our prayers. When Jesus teaches us in the scriptures that when we ask, we receive, He wasn´t kidding. I have a great testimony that if we get on our knees and humbly plead with the Lord to bless us and work with us, doing miracles in our areas, our lives, and our souls and then get on our feet and serve Him,listening to the whisperings of the Spirit and working with our whole soul, He will hear and answer our prayers wit blessings, knowledge and miracles. .

I can see that God wants this work done. More than anyone else I think He is the most interested in this work. He wants His children to know His plan and understand the truth of who they are and what they can become.
 
However, I can now testify with even greater certainty. I really do KNOW by the power of the Holy Ghost that Jesus Christ is our Savior. He is the Son of God. He loves us. He will do all in His power, as He has done all in His power, to save us. He lives today. We can feel His love in our lives. We really will draw closer to Him through the Book of Mormon than any other book. I love Him and declare myself as one of His disciples. Through the way we tread is rough and full of dangers, enemies,and obstacles,He is our captain. He leads the way. He will not allow us fall. We cannot fail when He is with is. He is the Life and Light of the world. He will lead us to our Celestial Home again, if we follow Him. He will empower us through His grace to make us as He is. That is the hope and the faith that we as saints have. I testify that all these things are true. In His name, Jesus Christ amen.

Elder Hodson


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