Even if it's a fake god We'd still worship

 (Elder Mackrory)

Fala aí gente! de boa?

Esta semana foi boa. Estávamos fazendo mais trabalho nas ruas, então vimos mais fuscas. Esta semana vimos 18, levando o total a ser 874.

Hey guys! How are y'all? This week was different than any other week on the mission. It was probably the week in which we had the least success in the field. But at the same time, I was still able to feel motivated to keep going and to have joy. As such, there aren't many stories, but I'll recount the ones I do know.

On pday we went to cabo Frio in the rain and ate at the mall, except I was out of money so I packed a lunch. Apparently raw carrots are not acceptable food here. Everyone thought I was crazy.

On Tuesday we had district council, the first one of the transfer! As a district, we set good goals to promote unity between ourselves and within the mission. Made me super excited to get to work. On the long bus ride home, I wrote up and finalized all the programs for our district councils. Last transfer, planning DC's was something of stress for me, so I just went ahead and did it all in one go. In our district, both of the sister companionships are training, which, according to how mission family trees work, I now have two daughters. This means I've got a total of 6 kids on the Mish. And we've still got 11ish months to go.

On Thursday, we were informed that our lunch for Saturday was moved to a different family. Then, on Friday, it was moved again to a different family. Then we got a message on Friday night, and the conversation went like this:

"Good evening, Elderes!"

"Good evening, sister! Lunch changed?"

"Yep lol"

Writing it out, it seems less funny, but Elder Flores and I were dying of laughter.

Also, this week, I finished the Old Testament except for Isaiah (best for last). I also finished the new Testament except for Revelation (best for last). So, study has been really intense. After a chapter or two of Isaiah, I'll think, wow, that's a lot of information. Let's go to some lighter reading. Nope, revelations isn't easy either. So then we have the trust old Book of Mormon. Do you wanna guess where I'm at? Smack dab in the middle of 2 Nephi. So I can't catch a break. Don't get me wrong, I'm absolutely loving it, but it is so much.

On Sunday, we had a problem. We woke up late. Not terribly, just about 30 minutes. But why? I was so confused. Neither of the alarms on our phones went off. Turns out that during the night, something happened, and my charger burned my phone and caused it to close the alarm app completely. So now my phone charges at the slowest rate possible. It takes about 10 hours to get a full charge. Luckily, I got in contact with my boy Elder Kjar at the office, and he'll have me hooked up with a new phone this Friday at Zone's conference. Until then, I'll have to be careful with my battery because I might not wake up with 100%. I think I might have a curse, lol. This will be the third phone I have on the mission, not because I'm reckless. Both times this happened, it was beyond my control or something completely unrelated.

Well, that's it for this week, now here's the good stuff: Tender Mercy: after a really long and tough day with almost no success, we got açaí. The way the guy prepared our cups was confusing, and we ended up getting each others orders mixed up. We didn't realize until we had eaten a little bit, and by that time, it was too late to switch. So we laughed and teased each other all the way home, saying stuff like "wow your Açaí is really good😀" "Yes, I know😒". Just a good pick-me-up.

Spiritual thought: This week, a friend of mine sent me a post from an anonymous member of the church. I really like their thoughts and completely agree. I will attach the image below. But the point of the post is to say that the things that bring the greatest blessings in this life are following the principles of the Gospel. Firstly I'd like to leave it clear that I have certainty of the doctrines that I believe. God exists and is our loving Heavenly Father. He sent His Son to prepare our path to return to Their presence. All of the prophets have testified of this and I believe in their words. But this certainty doesn't stop people from asking "what if it's all for nothing? What if none of it is true?" Well, if so, then the "fake" principles by which I live lead me to be a better person. The "fake" commandments give me real safety, assurance, and happiness. The "fake" Savior taught me how to live a life of fulfillment and love. I learned to forgive and move on, comforted by a "fake" knowledge that everything will work out in the end. What if it's all fake? Then so what. I'll live a much fuller life pretending it's real than accepting its fake. If it's real, then only God can imagine what is in store for those who live by such "fake" principles. Either way, I come out on top.

I hope a good week for y'all, until next time!