This week

I like the photos!  It sounds like things are going great back home…keep it up mom, you’re awesome.

This week was really busy.  Seven new missionaries got here in the mission, (we got 4 new Elders that are giants.  All 6'3" or taller.) and 11 finished their mission and went home, including my companion Elder Bellini.  My new companion is Elder Bruxel!  He's a way good Elder from Rio Grande do Sul, and we're already seeing miracles together!  He took my place in "Lagoa" when I was transferred from there, so we have had some similar experiences.  This is his last transfer in the mission and I'm sure it's going to be powerful.

Last night was awesome.  This whole week we had only had about 2 hours of proselyting Monday through Thursday, so I was dying to get out into the field.  Yesterday we got to the office early to finish up everything that we needed to do before lunch, and then we headed out to teach everyone that we could.  It was a fun day because we found a lot of people at home to teach, but there weren’t very many interesting in becoming members of The Church of Jesus Christ.  But in our last lesson we found the person that we had been searching for and the person that God had prepared for us!  We taught a less active family and invited them back to church. They accepted, and their non-member daughter accepted to be baptized!  I love it!  It's the greatest thing in the world when the Lord blesses us to "come off conqueror".  This gospel is so good.

Next week we will start the zone conferences.  I'm excited to see all the missionaries again and to get to know the whole mission area.  It’s going to be a good time.

Love you all,

Elder Marsh

Belo Horizonte AP Apartment (not too bad!)

Elder Bruxel coming, Elder Bellini going and Elder Marsh staying.

Brazilian wildlife--Coati

Happy New Year!

Baptism of Graca

This week was way fun for us.  It started last Saturday with the baptism of Graça.  It was so awesome teaching her.  A recent convert, Fabiola, gave us the referral to start teaching Graça about the gospel.  The problem was that every time we went there, she was drunk and couldn't understand our messages.  We decided that we would have to stop teaching for a little bit, but then she showed up to stake conference.  We talked to her afterwards and she told us she had loved the meeting. Long story short, Graça never drank again and is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints!  What’s cool is that everything changed about her.  She kicked her friends who were bad influences out of her house, she threw out all the coffee and drinks, goes to church every Sunday and to all the activities, and it just feels different to be near her.  People tell her everyday that she looks happier and she loves that. 

We were able to visit a couple of cities that I had never been to on the mission doing splits with other missionaries on New Years Eve. We went to Pará de Minas and Itaúna.  It was fun being with the other missionaries and we got to teach a lot of new investigators.  We missed our bus though to get back to Belo Horizonte and had to wait until the next one leaving at 9 pm...yikes.  We ended up getting home pretty late, and I was exhausted so I definitely did not stay up until midnight.  New years day President and Sister Fortunato took us out to a Brasilian steak house.... it was the best food I've ever eaten!  I love Brazil so much.

This morning we woke up early to go to a national park near the city.  It was really cool and we had some way pretty views of the whole city and the mountains that surround it.

I love you all,

Elder Marsh

View from Praca do Papa

Staff at Praca do Papa

Brazilian Wilderness

Mountains in Minas Gerais

Merry Christmas Skype call

It was so good to see and speak to Jordan today!  He spoke with a little bit of an accent but we loved hearing from him in person!  What an awesome experience it is to be a missionary and to have a missionary in the family!  We appreciate his service and dedication to the Lord and to the people in Brazil.

Merry Christmas to my family!

Merry Christmas!

December 20, 2014

Today we don’t have much time to write email because our p-day was moved to Christmas day.  I'm so stoked to talk to you!  

We had our Christmas conference this week and it was awesome. Sister Fortunato does a really great job with all the mission events!  We spent a while putting the conference together but in the end I think all the missionaries really enjoyed the musical and the food!  The theme was "Our Legacy".  Sister Fortunato put together a program all about the birth of Christ and the pioneers, which really went well.  

We have been having a lot of success lately with our investigators and we are excited about their progress!  Ailton stopped smoking and I've never seen anyone so excited and determined to be baptized like he is!

I love you family. I'm excited to see on Christmas!

Elder Marsh

President and Sister Fortunato