November 20th, 2012

Thank you so much for all of your love and support.

This week was really rough. We had a lot, and i mean a lot of visits fall through and we did a ton, and i mean a ton of walking this week. I am learning to work things out in my head better and also to ponder the scriptures. . The mission teaches so much and gives you a chance to build and nourish relationships with all kinds of personalities. 

 

We found a really special family this week that went to church and we marked a baptism for saturday. So at the end of the day, we had a tough week, but the fruits at the end were very sweet.

I love you guys a ton and hope that you have a great thanksgiving. The Lord loves you guys so much. I know he loves me. He is happy when we do what is right and He feels sad when we do what is wrong. He gave us the spirit so that we could know what is right always.

I love you guys!

-Élder Grondel jr.

November 12, 2012

Gente do céu!

This week was very interesting. Our house emptied and filled with all new elders... and actually the entire zone haha. only 4 elderes stayed and 6 elders arrived. The other companionship here got white washed so they passed a pretty rough week, but they are good elders and have energy to do the work. My comp is a super star. Super humble and he inspires me to open my mind more to possibilities. His faith is outstanding and he is basically Elder Martin all over again. So i feel like as i respect and serve him, i am also making up for how i treated elder martin. This week we lost a day because of the zone counsel, but we still had outstanding numbers and we found some really special less active families that are part members. We had a really neat experience on sunday with a brother from floripa. He lives there but came to videira to give a training. Also, he spoke in sacrament meeting about how grateful he is that he had enough courage to read and pray about the book of mormon and after, enough courage to be baptized, go on a mission, and be sealed with his wife in the temple. it was exactly what our investigator needed to hear.

After the meeting i thanked him personally and he pulled us aside to talk for about 15 minutes. Dad, mom... the Lord inspires people to pass along his words. I have been praying for weeks and yesterday this brother answered my questions, doubts, and gave me new ideas for the work. Coupled with the desire of my companion... I really feel unstoppable. The Brother said: "Your nametag has two names and that means you are never alone. You never stand alone or testify alone. there are many callings in the church that bring us close to Christ but not one will bring us closer than the calling of an Elder. When an apostle receives his calling we don't call him aposlte (blank) we call him Élder..." He bore his testimony to us and I knew that he knew i had been waiting for these answers. It was amazing.

I love you guys and i miss hearing from everyone.

It was 33 degrees celcius yesterday and it's only going to get better as the year rolls on. QUE bênção e maravilha! I am with an american comp but as always, we don't speak english and we don't plan to. We are very excited for this transfer and everything is looking up :)

 

Amo muito vocês!

-Élder Grondel jr.

November 5,2012

Hey so i don't know if i already told you that i love you guys...

But i do. I love all of you. This week was really tough, because we had an emergency transfer... my comp and another elder in our house got transferred. So me and Élder Alcântara worked together this week and we had to cover the whole city. So it was pretty intense. But we had a good week and got some serious work done. Unfortunately, as with all of the transfers and all my comps, i didn't realize how much i liked them until they were leaving. Elder Banner is now one of the assistants and the other, Elder Hillstead, is now a zone leader. I think these were two successes in the zone. also, another elder is now training, and the best part, Elder Mollenhauer went home, but baptized a family on his last saturday and then confirmed them all on sunday. That is a victory for all of us.

Also, we had a cool esperience. One companionship was not making a lot of contacts so i felt inspired to call and challenge them- 10 contacts today... but something strange happened. they accepted the challenge and i promised them if they made 10 they would find someone prepared to hear our message. And you know what? They found one and he is preparing for baptism... Dad, i have that same thought - "why didn't i think of that?!" but in the end we are all winners. We are a team and we will be blessed as a team. WE NOT ME! It was very special to know that the Lord inspires us and guides us. The church is true. It is so truy :)

Love you all,

-Élder Grondel jr.

October 29, 2012

Oi meus queridos e preferidos,

This week we decided we were going to take our work to a new level. 100 street contacts. yes, this isn't the door to door on a road, this is stop someone, talk, and contact. I felt a lot of pressure to reach our goal during the week. we had fasted that the lord would soften the hearts of the people here, so we knew that we had to do our part as well. I am pleased to say that we made 109 street contacts! On sunday though, it was like this- we had 81 contacts and i was in sacrament meeting. one of the speakers asked us all to think about something that we want, right now... i thought "to find and teach someone to help him/her be baptized." then i thought... why? why do i want to make 100 contacts? why do i want a bunch of lessons? baptisms?... for president? to tell people about how many people i baptized on my mission? or because i love my savior and my heavenly father so much that i will strive to their work? ... i had to look in the mirror and give myself a gut check with that question- Why? De verdade Élder?

we were watching the best two years and the elder slacker that became good was talking about numbers and how they aren't as important as something else. he said- "it's all about the work" Maybe it's not baptisms, maybe it's reactivation or helping the ward. We have to be about doing good all the time. I am learning daily. I have a notebook i carry with me of revelation i receive during the day. it is so neat to look back and see how the Lord has taught me and responded to my questions. i love the book of mormon. i really do! haha. :D

Good week, our zone got a bunch of baptisms this month so we are very happy. The assistants that came taught us that we need to be worried about the success of our zone and not so much our area. "if you take care of the zone, the Lord will take care of your area." I have always been bad with rejoicing in others successes. i remember when rand went cold the year i went to state and how that affected our friendship, but i have done the same thing. maybe not verbally, but in my mind i have had a battle going on. My pride is a monster that threatens to destroy everything that i do. My pride makes me scared, angry, unmotivated, greedy, thoughtless, and worst of all- selfish. this work cannot be about me. When i find joy in the success of others, the Lord will find joy in my successes for Him.

THE CHURCH IS TRUE, THE BOOK IS BLUE... AND JESUS IS A MORMON!

Abração,

-Élder Grondel jr.

October 21,2012

Family,

So this week was really tough. We had some rough days when everything fell through and i realized that it has been a long time since i've had lessons fall through like this. The families have almost always been at home and i almost had a hard time believing that they weren't home. It just goes to show that the Lord needs you to be prepared. We had some late nights because of lessons and we were unable to plan twice- if we aren't prepared, the Lord will not prepare his children, and it is even less likely that He will trust us with them. I incredibly, did not get frustrated haha. I think your prayers are being answered because this week we had a young couple that is progressing really well and a less active member at church on sunday! We are going to work more with less actives and really work on top of people. I just feel sad with these less actives that are sad, have problems, and don't want to pray-read-or go to church. Just go to church! homem do céu! puxa como a vida é um saco as vezes.

But we are teaching some neat people. We cut just about everyone this week and decided- 2 weeks without progress and we have to cut. Also, we have made plans to work more with members. After lunch we always leave a message and last week we decided to plan it on p-day and use one message for the whole week. We planned really well so that the week would have a nice, polished message to thank the members. We had a really neat experience on saturday with the branch president of ipoméia (where the church started... his family is one of the first mormon families in brazil). They had been passing some rough times and our message was exactly what they needed to hear.

The Lord works in mysterious ways, but He is always working.

I love you guys a ton and i am super proud of all of your achievements.

Caleb, I love you and i know that at times XC is not fun. At times football looks like it matters more, but you are competing and i am super proud of you for sticking with cross country. You are awesome cakers. I want to know when you race and you times! haha. I prayed for you the day of your first meet. I hope you felt an extra boost from you brother in brazil.

I love you all and bella too! haha. You guys really are the best. I couldn't think of anyone else i would want forever.

Amo muito vocês,

-Élder Grondel jr.

October 15, 2012

 

Teaching the gospel to every creature...

Hey thanks for the training tip! I hope that you guys liked the photos and some of the stories... i cannot believe that we have been apart for a whole year. One year on the mission and now one year and 3 days... it is so crazy to think that all this time is and has passed by. I still feel like i don't know what i am doing at times haha. I find myself at times questionning why the Lord called me to be zone leader. He has a purpose for me and we had a really neat experience on my hump day. We had marked to do a division, bought the tickets, and then... there was an emergency transfer and a new Élder came into the area. To us it didn't make sense to do a division. only the district leader knew the area and the other elder didn't even know how to get home... poor thing. his second day, and 3rd week in the field (he is doing a "mini mission"-3 month mission and after he will go to the mtc and his mission). it wasn't too far from our city so we could have returned to our area. So to us- one companionship would make visits and the other would... make contacts? It made more sense to wait a week, but we felt very strongly that we needed to stay. so we stayed, we worked with them, and in the end the Lord revealed WHY we had to stay. The mini mission elder had asked for the emergency transfer because he had been with an elder who was not working. that day we had attacked the area book and taught them how to work better with members, investigators, and each other. We had a mini training session with them and then left for work. I went with the DL and elder banner with Élder antunes. After the day was over he told elder banner: "I thought missionaries were perfect, i know they aren't, but what i saw in my other area was not missionary work. Thank you so much for everything you guys have done today. Thank you for taking this work seriously." In tears he thanked Élder Banner for the work that was done. I didn't find out until after our division when we were on the bus coming back home. The Lord knows better than we do.

I need help with being patient, because recently i am not. I am picking and choosing when i want to really truly love people ya know? i am more frustrated with myself than others. I feel less than sufficient and i just want to help. But i feel like despite our work, and we are working HARD, we don't have the fruits to show it. This week we are going to have to cut 3 families that we have been teaching. in 3 weeks they haven't been progressing and we when they go to church it is so 1 or 2 of 5 or 6... it is frustrating. i don't know how else to bear testimony and explain how this will bless their lives.

I love you guys a lot and am so glad that the Lord put me into the Grondel family. We are blessed and the athletic side with jake, cake, and levi just goes to show it. Way to go you guys, jake i will be praying for you. Maybe this will be a time for reflection. when my acl tore i learned a lot about god and who my real friends were. What does the lord want you to learn from this? this has to be the focus- what can i gain? not what did i lose?

YOu are perfect i love you... don't change! for anything!

Love,

-Élder Grondel jr.

October 8, 2012

feel like we are having a lot of birthdays recently! i am having mine on friday. can you believe it has been a whole year? I have a really hard time believing that i have been here a whole year. I was thinking about all that i have learned and felt. How i went from knowing 0 words in portuguese to speaking with anyone and everyone about the gospel. I think about the tears of strife and happiness. The brazilian hospital, lots and lots of rice and beans hahaha, spiritual experiences like hugging the book of mormon for the first time (i already bought a portuguese quad :), meeting Élder Godoy of the seventy, and really starting to hear the voice in the scriptures instead of read the words in them.

I look at the weaknesses i have now and how i would never have known they existed without my mission. I don't pray like i used to. I sit and talk with my Heavenly Father, i practice teaching lessons with him, and he gives me feedback and new ideas to try. I have two very special notebooks, one to carry and one on my bed in which i write revelation. I have my study journals, but when the Lord speaks to me i write His words in my little notebooks. He loves me.

I had a really neat experience with general conference. I was struggling with my accent recently. Because people were not understanding a word here and there and they were commenting more and more about it... I thought of moses and how he stuttered and couldn't even teach his people. in exodus 4 the Lord teaches him a very valuable lesson in the form of a question: "Who made the mouth of a man? Was it not I?" We have to trust in him that his spirit will overpower our accent and empower our words and testimony. At general conference for the first time i noticed the accent of President Dieter F. Uchtdorf. did you guys know that he is from germany and english is a second language to him? haha. He says some words incorrectly and has an accent, but He was called by God and when he speaks, he speaks with POWER! Elder Gonzalez of the seventy from uruguay speaks with a very heavy accent as he teaches a strong message. the message is filled with power and as i cried to myself during that session (we set up a tv to watch in english) I knew the Lord had called me to speak in a different language like he had called those inspired men.

'And if men come unto me, i will show unto them their weakness. And i give weakness to men so they might be humble... "e minha graça basta para todos"

I got zacks package and it came at the right time. I had just run out of peanut butter haha. Thanks a million zack and the abbot family. Thank you for your pictures and testimonies. Thank you "Sister" abbot for your thoughtful card.

I would love a pen drive! that would really simplify my life. Also, more peanut butter and reeses peanut butter cups... just that for now :D

I love you guys so much!

Listen to president uchtdorfs talk again and then listen to elder holland's. Do we love our families?... do we really love them? Mom and Dad I love you guys Brady, lexi, jake, cake, livi, leevers, gerr gerr, bella, landon and addi (thought i forgot you huh?) i love you guys to. I hope that you know it, like the savior knew that peter loved him.

i love you guys!

-Élder Grondel jr.

ps: this week was great. we had counsel with president in floripa... eight hours from here by bus. we missed the bus.... got a taxi and chased down the bus hahahaha. We forgot our suit coats... but there are extras in the office haha. We taught some crazy people, made some funny contacts - "oh you go to that apostasy on the hill? next to that big field? oh okay yeah i know where that is. next to the river of dirty water uh huh and it's on the hill so it looks like it's floating..." haha. or -

"have you been to the church of jesus christ?" -elder grondel

"no i go to the matriz (catholic)" - potential investigator maria

"You go to the matriz? How come you don't go to the church of jesus Christ?!" -elder grondel

"... ? ..." - ex potential investigator maria

hahaha

:D

We left a training that was awesome with the elders at our zone meeting. I made an I'M IN sign and used a axe i broke a month ago doing service for a less active member. I used D&C 24:12 and explained that WE ARE TRULY IN the Lords work when we work so hard that we break the axe. It wasn't until i concentrated every fiber of my being on cutting the wood that i broke the axe. i painted it red- find, yellow- teach, blue- baptize, and white- confirmation