Dolphin show p-day pictures

Me in a turtle shell

A dolphin show

Me & Miguel

My district

The lady that owned our house in Costa

Transferred to Santarem...now a Zone Leader!!

Hey everyone!  So just a quick update I was transfered from Costa da Caparica to a city called Santarém.  I am now serving with Elder Gomes, he is Brazilian but has lived here in Portugal for about 5 years now.  This also will be my first transfer as a Zone Leader.  I am not sure why or how I was chosen but I will do my best to give of what I have to this new position!  BUt I am super excited to see what new challanges and growth lay in front of me with these next few months and weeks.

This last week I reallly learned a lot about using faith to make things happen.  OUr president challenged us to make a personal promisse with the Lord of one thing that we would sacrifice (habitis thoughts behaviors etz) or an indicator that we would achieve that could be measured daily.  So I made mine and while I was doing it I felt the Spirit confirm that that promise was the will of the Lord for me and that even thow it would stretch me a little I would be able to do it.  It wasn't easy, there came many trials of my faith.  Many barriers and reasons that I could have used to justify not fulfilling with my promise.  Sometimes it seemed like there wasn't enough time others I just felt too tired.  Despite all of the trials that I had I remember that faith isn't faith until it is tried.  I am not sure how I did it every day looking back, but I fulfilled with my promise I made with the Lord and because of this my faith has grown a lot.  That when we make a goal a promise with the Lord in righteousness, excercise true faith, overcoming obstacles and barriers without giving up never justifying your lack of fulfilment, God will work miracles to help you achieve those goals.  That is really what I have felt and learned this week.  Faith isn't faith until it is tried, mocked, degraded, tested, and attacked.  We recieve the witness after the trial, we recieve the blessing after tur faith has been shown, not before.  And after I will tell you the feelings are undescribable.  We had many powerful lessons this week and many people we were working with recieved powerful testinonies of the things we taught.  It is sad that I was transfered out right when things started taking off but it is how it is and Elder Bennett will do a good job harvesting all the fruits of our sacrifices.

Just to end here I will leave a quote that was given to me my Grandma Haymond and it might be my favorite of all time:

Don’t’ give up and don’t give in. Be committed to the idea of discipleship. We’re all for long-suffering but we say, “I don’t want it for very long and for very much suffering!” What heaven is going to force us to do is to put our two-minute talks where our theology is. We’re going to have to say, like Robert Frost said, “The only way out is through.” We’re going to follow Him wherever it leads us and the road to salvation is always through Gethsemane. We’re not all going to be atoners – it’s sacrilegious to say we’ll be like Jesus, but we are a little. Even if it’s only out in the hedgerow of Gethsemane or out on the perimeter, we’re all going to have to spend some time getting through that garden. Or else I don’t know what discipleship means. I don’t think it means I just signed up for the good times. I don’t think it means that I just signed on when it’s really terrific and I’m really happy and everything is wonderful. I think it means to know what He was when He was a Man of Sorrows. These days come and these nights come and you can’t fold the tent and leave then – not for true disciples.
We get our chance to sacrifice and we’re going to have to embrace it. 

...So don’t resist when God gives you a chance to acquire a Christ-like virtue

P-day fun!

There was so much fun stuff to do!!

Waterfalls, caves castles! It was sweet!!

An inverted tower

Behind that little castle is a series of caves that leads

Throughout these different places on the mountain side

Had to rock the awesome Bob Ross shirt!

Architecture pictures

June 1 email

Hey friends and family!  Again I am really sorry but my time is very limited here again on email.  We have been doing a ton of stuff for p day lately!  today we went to the zoo and saw and aesome dolphin show!!  And next week it is possible that I will be transfered so I might not get much time there either.... sorrrryyy:(

BUt just to let you guys all know we have been having a decent time here in Costa, we still haven't baptized anyone which is hard on me sometimes because I really want to 1.  Give Elder bennett that awesome experience and 2. To strenghten the ward here and 3. Fulfill better my purpose as a missionary.  But we will keep trying and hope that miracles happen here soon!  We need a lot of faith and hard work, but if we trust truly in God things will happen as they should.  I know that to be true.

We made some proigress with flavios dad, he said that flavio will be baptized but doens't know when.  he said it would be soon but the biggest concern is the wife that is living in Angola right now and also he wants to be at the baptism so flavio will proabably be baptized in mid june it is looking like,  I don't know if i will be here but at least we had prgoress!!!:)

I love you all and hope you all have a if un wek I will wiriet more next week!

Pictures

This is Gabriela. Her mom is a member her father is not. She just turned 8 so it was time for her baptism and the parents asked me if I would baptize her!! :) I have gotten to be really good friends with the dad, whose name is Pedro for sure. This is a family I won't forget!

Last weeks pday

Photo bomb thanks to sister Rovig

Cool rooms in the castle

A cool view do Sintra with the castle walls

Palacio de Pena! :)

Mother's Day email

Hey there again everyone! I hope all of the moms out there had a
great day yesterday and you all felt really special! Mom's are super
amazing, we wouldn't have the wonderful example and famous story of
the stripling warriors had it not been for the example of their
mothers and the things they taught them. I can honestly say that a
very large part of the things I believe and the person that I am is
all because of my mom:) She is truly amazing, the example that she is
to me has had more influence on my life than I think she knows. I am
so grateful that I was blessed by my heavenly father with a mom that
is a true example of Christ in word and in deed, ALWAYS. She is one
of the biggest examples of true chirstlike love that I know of and it
is something that I hope to be one day:) Also I just want to say I
know my mom is her amazing self because of her Mom:) Grandma!!!!
Grandma I love you soooooo much and thank you for passing on your
Christlike attitude to my mom, I will be forever grateful for both of
you moms you guys are amazing and have done a very good job at raising
good families. THANK YOU!!!

So yeah this week I feel went a lot better than the last. The funny
thing is that our results weren't insanely better but just the overall
way I felt at the end was a lot more peaceful and satisfying. I know
exactly why too. This week Elder Bennett and I talked and decided
that we need to change a few little habits and behaviors. Or in other
words we decided that if we really wanted something to change WE
needed to change. As we corrected this truly small and seemingly
insignifcant things we started to notice a new power come into our
work which was obviously and increased power of the Holy Ghost that
was missing before. We had to make a few sacricfices but really as we
did this I felt the power of the atonement enabling me and cleansing
me. giving me more strength to work a little harder, giving me the
Spirit to teach more personally and powerfully to speak to peoples
hearts instead of just their ears. I truly felt the power of the
atonement working within me. I felt the power of the scripture in
matthew that says "come unto me all ye that are burdened and heavy
laden and I will give you rest" I had to sacrifice a few things that I
liked to truly come unto Christ but I will say to all of you that
those little sacrifices are nothing compared to what I am feeling in
return. His love is real. His power is real. I felt it every day
this week as was repenting and sacrificing to come closer to Him. I
felt his smile of approval especially when things got hard. I testify
to all of you that He is there. He is there to help you get back up
when you fall and to strengthen you when you are weak. That is what
the atonement is and I am learning that on a very personal level
lately.
Friends and family I hope you all have felt this power in your lives
and I invite you to seek and feel it again. Find the little things in
your character that may seem insignificant and too small to actually
matter and find ways to correct them so that you can be more worthy of
his presence in your lives. I promise as one of His set apart
servants that as you do this He we make you into the person He wants
you to be, and you will enjoy the happiness and blessings that He
wants you to enjoy but can't because of stubborness, justification,
pride or a whole host of other things. You will have his approval,
there is nothing that makes our Father in Heaven happier than when we
repent, that is what brings his smile upon us.
Just a litte spiritual thought for you on the things I am feeling and learning

This week we were able to see Flavio come to church and hoping to be
able to talk to his father again so he can get baptized next sunday.
Also a couple Luis and Neosa came to church. they are really cool. It
has been great to see how the application of the gospel really works
in the life of antoher. When I first met luis he was a drunk and a
hardcore drug dealer. Over a a period of a few months and on a off
teaching he has realized his wrongs and is really paying a lot more
attention to us and applying the stonement through reptenance, he
completely quit drinking and smoking and now is a lot happier and his
house has been blessed with many things. He also left behind the
drugs and switched to selling soccer tickets (much better) :) Now we
just need to help them get married and then we will baptize them!
They are really cool and another testimny builder agian to me that the
only things that brings true happiness is living the gospel of
Christ:)
I don't have too much else I will try and write down some stories
throughout the week to send next time but just know that I love you
all miss you and I hope you all have a wonderful week full of peace
and happiness!
COm muito amor,
Elder Eldredge

Tests and trials come not to weaken, but to strengthen

Hey everybody! It has been one more week in the vineyard of the Lord

and we are ready to tackle down one more transfer! This week went by

really fast and I tried to think of an experience that I had this week

that I could share. I honestly didn't have any giant happening or

crazy story unfortunately this week other than a drunk old man that

was beating the tar out of a road sign, pretty funny acutally Elder

bennett got some on video, but other than that I couldn't think of

anything special. Just some feelings that I have had througout this

week.

Lately we have been trying to find new potential here in the area and

haven't been really finding too much. And it was a little hard, and I

kind of found myself in that stage of like half-sulking half trying to

be posistive something like that and when we got to the end of the

week none of our 5 firmly committed investigators showed up for

church. So I was left with a lot of contemplation and paryer. As I

have prayed and read the scriptures and during church I really was

touched by the Spirit. I felt the power of the Spirit that inspires a

person to cease to do evil and do good continually. I realized that i

had some things that I needed to correct in my behavior some little

things that I had been slipping up on during the week that may have

been impeding me from accessing the full potencial of the power of my

calling. It is hard for me to write into words what I felt in church

other than some power of motivation to be better that seemed to come

out of nowhere and gave me the drive to correct my slips and stumbles

this next week. I know that this is the role of the Spirit to correct

our wrongs and to inspire us to do good. Something I have noticed on

my mission is that when someONE tells me that I need to be better or

get on my back for not doing something, I have a harder time accepting

it especially if I can't feel that that person is doing it because

they want to help me. But when I can feel that correction accompanied

by the power of the Spirit that is when I have those drives to make

changes because change is not easy.

We need to be constantly puting ourselves in holy places and do things

that invite the Spirit into our lives so that it can inspire us to

change and become better. I have already felt the happiness and joy

that is coming from listening to those silent promptings and I know

that it will be the same for all of you as you too pray to know what

he would have you do. He will give you the strength and desire you

need to make changes, and he can do that because of the atonement. I

love Elder Bednars talks about the enabling power of the atonement and

grace. I noticed this little manifestation of this power yesterday

within me and I hope that you all can too.

I am not sure why I wasn't quite able to put all my feelings into

words this week but keep praying for us we need it!:)

OH also some good news we talked with Flavio again yesterday and he

again agreed to a baptismal date of the 17, now the next step is

talking to his father to let him and also invite him to know that

these things are true as well! I love you all so much and keep going

about doing good! Serve your neighbors right your wrongs and keep

smiling always things get better, tests and trials come not to weaken

but to strengthen build and help you develip chirstlike attributes,

that is what I am learning.

I lvove you all and wish you all a great week!

Love Elder Eldredge