MTC Update

This past week has been wild and tough but great. The Sao Paulo Temple is really beautiful and the session was in English which was a definite plus.

The whole time here at the MTC my companion, Elder Skinner, has been quiet and reserved. I thought it was just his personality because we got along so I didn't think anything was up but we were talking a couple days ago and he has really been struggling with his testimony, feeling the spirit, and having faith. We have been talking with the mission president, teachers, and MTC leaders and he will go home either today or tomorrow. It has been really tough to seem him struggle. He has been trying hard to receive a testimony and do the right thing but he has no faith and I think he expects to be given a testimony instead of building his own. It has been tough for me to feel the spirit recently especially in lessons and I believe this is why. When he testifies, there is no spirit to carry the message and it becomes tough for the both of us.

This past Saturday we went proselyting for an hour and a half on a busy street in downtown Sao Paulo. It was a really neat but difficult experience. There is so much more Portuguese I need to learn haha. We got rejected and ignored a lot but were able to hand out a few pass-along cards about the Book of Mormon and got 1 good referral. One man talked with me for a while about how God is just positive energy all around us and I explained how we believe that God has a body just like us. It was a great experience and a great motivation to study the language harder.

I am still feeling sick, but a little bit better than I have been. I've been coughing and my nose is usually stuffed up... its no fun but its a small trouble for me.

The language is good but slow. What I know I can use well but it's hard to add the words I've been memorizing to my "in the moment" vocabulary. Practice is key and I can never get enough of it. I set a goal to memorize 50 words and 10 phrases every day Monday-Saturday this week and be exactly obedient and follow every commandment and rule. I want to be worthy and ready to do God's will.

My testimony has been growing a lot recently, I've studied about the life of Christ and attributes of Him and the lives of his apostles and disciples both in the Bible and Book of Mormon. They are incredible books. I have so much to learn and so many ways I need to grow. There is nothing I would rather be doing than this. Eu acredita que esta igreja e a verdade e que Deus ama todos pessoas da terra.

Tchau!

- Elder Anderson