WOW!

Dear Family,

Hey everyone! I'm glad to hear about all of your weeks and for all of your love and support. This has been one of the most amazing weeks of my mission! This area is really blessed!

This week we had Zone Conference that was one of the best in my mission! The whole time it was deep doctrine about the "Plan of Salvation." It gave me such a different perspective on how minuscule our time on earth is compared to eternity. It made me really excited to use every minute that we have in this life.

Also, one of my best friends in the mission will be going home next week and he shared a really powerful testimony that helped me to know how precious our time in the mission is! It's a feeling that I can't describe to think that one day my mission will end. If the work wasn't true it wouldn't be nearly as beautiful. I can't imagine doing all this work thinking that it would all end one day. It's a blessing to know that this work is eternal!

This week we completed a family of a less active member by baptizing his two children; Rayciani and Junior Cesar. Baptisms are really cool here because it's like almost everyone from Sacrament Meeting. It was very spiritual!

This Week in Sacrament Meeting we had 14 investigators of which 8 are progressing! We really worked hard this week and it didn't look like there were going to be very many and in the last minute everyone showed up. It was a huge blessing!

One of the biggest changes that I've seen on my mission has been a man named Alessandro. He's 26 years old and has been living in the world for a lot of time. He smoked, drank and had other problems too. He went to church three times but he is very calm and keeps to himself a little and we never really though that he was progressing. Until we asked him if he prayed about the Book of Mormon. He said he did! He said he knew it was true. Then we asked him if he accepted our help to prepare to be baptized and his response really shocked me. He said, "I thought that is what you guys were doing since the first visit!" I almost jumped off my seat. The next day we taught him about the commandments and he followed all of our counsels; Through his cigarettes in the garbage, said he would stop drinking and said he would take out his earrings. Sunday, he had taken them out and was smiling like a whole new person! He told us that he bought a suit that he was going to wear the next Sunday and he's going to be baptized next Sunday! Pray for him, he has been so used to the ways of the world, Satan has a lot of temptations for him.

The Gospel has great power to change peoples lives! We need to share this great gift! Have you guys been sharing the gospel?

Well Mom asked for the payer list again and so here it goes: Rayciani and Junior, Bruna and Everton, Sandra and Nelson, Guacira and Caludio, Cristiano and Andreia, Alessandro, William, Alex, Bruno, Jefferson, Lena and Rodrigo.

Love you guys, until next week!

I will try to come back later and write to you all individually. So, write me personal messages those that haven't written yet today!

Love, Elder Z