Oi,

 

If I'm a cat, I have 5 lives left (apparently cats in Brasil only have 7 lives).  It's really starting to get hot here. Wednesday started as probably the hottest day yet, but after a quick visit to the church for water and a meeting with Bispo, we walked out into a storm. We had 15 minutes to get to an appointment up the valley, so we made our way through the rain. We arrived to an empty house and the rain getting really heavy. We decided to wait a minute for the storm to pass and watch the lightning come down through the valley. I looked over to my right when all the sudden a lightning bolt struck the ground about 6 meters away, bursting our ears and illuminating our view. It literally scared the Português out of me. I couldn't tell if it was the heat from the lightning bolt or the pee in my pants that instantly warmed my body, we didn´t stay around long enough to find out.

 

I've been asked what my apartment it like.  Its not for American eyes to see.  Even though it has become my loved sweet home, it is like something you would see in a horror film. We have 2 lights that work in the house, and a washing machine that often likes to make clothes dirtier than they were before. Last week I found a bag of vomit under the stove.

 

This week was one of those strange and rough weeks. Appointment after appointment fell through, and we struggled to find people to teach. Friday was a holiday (Brasil has many random holidays) and everyone but the wild dogs went to the beach for the weekend. Our area was like Disneyland after 9/11. But strangely enough, it was still a very rewarding week. We have a miracle with an inactive family that is coming back to the church. If you are looking for someone to pray for, Leonardo and Renata can use it. Renata has brought their 4 children to church for the last 3 sundays , and she and Leonardo have a great desire to do what is right for themselves and their family. Leonardo works every day of the week and taking Sundays off would be the difference between barely feeding the large family and not being able to feed them at all. This Sunday he came to church for 2nd hour! It is inspiring to see his willingness to make sacrifices for the Lord.

 

We have an exciting week ahead of us. Our zone has a goal for 10 baptisms this month and so far we have 4. Elder Medeiros and I have 3 people that can be baptized this week: Kauã, Vinicios, and Bruna. We are fasting, praying, and working hard for a miraculous week.

 

That's it for now. Hope you all have a good week. God be with you! 

Élder Hamilton

Missionário de A Igreja De Jesus Cristo Dos Santos Dos Últimos Dias

Ala Barreto - Missão Brasil Rio De Janeiro