June 9th 2014

Hey everyone!  Sorry I really don´t have a lot to say this week!  Our time on the computer is now like 50 minutes so that goes by super fast!  I miss you all tons but I am still happy as ever here!  I hope that everything is going really well at home!

A thought I had this week:

sometimes we are waiting and praying and expecting HUGE miracles!  Yes, miracles do exist and sometimes huge miracles occur, but sometimes the miracle is in the little occurances of every day that add up and then after some time become something great.  Last night I just had the scripture ´´by small and simple means, great things come to pass´´ in my head and I thought about how every day I am seeing miracles even if we don´t have visions or raise anyone from the dead, God is allowing us to learn and grow and giving us just what we need to be able to keep going and that is amazing in and of itself! So my invitation for you all this week is notice the little miracles in your life, the tender mercies of our loving Heavenly Father and give thanks for these things!

I love you TONS!

Britt (Sister Westover)

06/02/14

Josenilson :) he is Dad of Joilton and grandpa of Wesley.  His daughter was baptized in another city with Sister Morais!  I love this guy.  This is the last peanut butter jar you gave me haha but I decorated it with pictures of Jesus and every time that Josenilson feels the desire to smoke or drink he will put his money to buy cigarros ou bebidas in the jar and then we will use this money to marry him and his wife!  Oh how the life of a missionary is creative.

Oi familia!

Oi familia! 

Today for pday we had a little party with our district and played volleyball outside at the church and had breakfast!  It was so fun but I think I will definitely be sore tomorrow...  Who knew that jeans and sports could make a person so happy!?  At least now I know that I have one thing to look forward to in 9 months!  I made chocolate pancakes for the district and all of the brazilians were loving them haha, they may have good fruit but America pretty much has got them beat with everything else. ;)

Funny story... last night we were getting ready for bed and getting our clothes ready to leave in the morning to play volleyball after our studies.  Everyone was trying on jeans because it´s been ages since anyone used them (other than my companion who is new haha) and we wanted to be sure they fit. My companion went to grab a bag of clothes that she had a she started screaming and jumping up and down screaming ´´rat!´´  Oh my gosh I like totally freaked out... it is impossible for a rat to get into our house so I didn´t believe here but still...  Anyway everyone went to stand on chairs or on the staircase and she grabbed the umbrella to carefully (and with enough distance) move the sack of clothes anddddd it totally was a rat!!!  You can imagine how our little condo was jumping with four missionaries freaking out!  There also happened to be a turantula living in front of the house so we called the neighbor to take care of that little guy, he was showering so while we waited for him we stopped the man delivering pizza at the neighbors to find the rat and take him out.  All of the neighbors were peaking out of the windows to figure out what was going on.  The good news is the guy who was delivering pizza reminded me a ton of Robbie (who I need to email back!) and he was totally interested and gave us his address so we will pass this week!  woo hoo!

This week was fun!  My companion is getting the hang of things and we found a bunch of really cool people this week to start teaching!  We are really working to find families so if you could pray for this that would be awesome!  This last week I met the coolest girl!!  She is has 13 years and reminds me a lot of me (but that´s not why she is cool haha).  Her name is Nicole and she is like way mature and was so excited to talk to us about our message. She had the best questions that were like perfect for the lesson and while we were talking I could totally see her serving a mission!  So pray for her too please :)

This is my week!  I love you all tons!!!  

Sister Westover

"What my mom taught me"

It was SO GOOD to see the fam!!! Sheesh, que saudades!  If I could skype every couple of weeks I think I would stay on my mission forever!  It was so great to talk to you guys (Sky I missed you tons!!) and to see everyone and at the same time it reminded me why I am here, what I am doing, and that I wouldn´t rather be anywhere else in the world right now!  It was a good little  boost that I was needing :)

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM!!  I was thinking a lot about you this week and everything that you taught me over the years to allow me to be the person, and missionary that I am now!  Here are some of the things that help me each and every day:

1. Be happy.  Life is better when you are smiling, when you are laughing, when  you are genuinely happy!  Yes, we all face trials and difficulties in life, but life is to be enjoyed!  I have so many moments when I could choose to be sad and tired and give up a little, but I remember that I am the daughter of Kimberli Westover, and I am extremely blessed, I have absolutely no reason in the world not to be happy, and this lets me keep going strong!

2. Count your blessings.  In everything we do there will be opposition so life is clearly better when you choose to find the good.  Many times we create the challenges in our lives because of weakness, or mistakes, but even then, we can learn and move forward and turn it into a good thing! 

3. Don´t worry about what you can´t change, and what you can change... change!  I have to admit that I am no less stressed out here on the mission... but on the upside, I am working hard to change what I can!  Our purpose here is to learn and grow and so sometimes we have to learn to let go and other times we have to learn to push through.  Learn to recognize the difference.

4. Serve.  I think that I may be one of the few missionaries who has been blessed with the greatest companions ever!  I don´t think that it is because my companions have all been exceptionally more miraculous than the other missionaries (although they have all been amazing) but rather because we learn to love when we serve!  We are all a part of God´s family, we are his children and so when we do good to his other children (our brothers and sisters) we naturally feel God´s love for them!  This also help us forget ourselves and be changed! Service is magic!

5. Sing... and dance when no one is looking (in the case you are on a mission).  Music sets the tone for everything!  There are only two things that we remember in this life naturally: music and smell.  This must be why I wake up some mornings hearing moms voice singing me to get up.  I have learned that to invite the spirit, to lift hearts, to express or insite happiness music is key much of the time!  If you are feeling a little down try singing at the top of your lungs... I don´t think it´s possible to stay that way for long!

6.  Put God first.  I have learned a ton of things from my mom over the years.  A TON... like I would have a list in the thousands if I had the time but of everything that I have learned the most important is that no matter what we go through in life, who is in our life, what is happening, the key is to always put God first.  He gave us life, He gave us these moments of happiness, of opportunity, of growth, of love and he is always rooting us on.  He is a loving, perfect father in heaven who gives us all that we are needing if we only seek him.  If we put God first in all we do we will be smarter, we will be prettier, we will be more blessed (in ALL things, spiritually and temporally), we will be happier, we will reach our true limitless potential.

I love you Mom! Thanks for all that you do!

Sister Westover

                                                :) woo hoo! and new hair! Thanks mom!

        Aurenir... LOVE HER!  She made me the dress that I used today for the conference with Elder Andersen!

                                             Larissa... at stake conference with Elder Andersen!

                                Sister Palacios and I today at the conference!  My hispanic daughter!

                                            I look so white next to Sister Ferreira... but love her!!

                     

Sister Hart!  My love <3 We decided we will live together after the mission woo hoo!

Woo Hoo!

Woo hoo! Finally here!!!  We get to skype!!!  I will call you during the week to figure out what day and time works best, I am soo excited!!  And can you believe already at 9 months here in two weeks!!  So weird. 

News:

Unfortunately my dear companion Sister Ferreira left me :(.  Fortunately I am still here in Pajuçara!  and not really sure if it is unfortunately or fortunately but I am training! a sister from Ecuador!  What? haha It makes me laugh a little thinking we have an american and ecuadoriana walking the streets in Brazil, but it´s fun.  A learning experience for everyone, that´s for sure.

Other news:

I have lice.... The good news in this is that I get to go to the salon to remove the lice and they will do my hair :) Pretty much everyone here has lice in Pajuçara (at least all of the little kids) and all of the sisters who already served here had it at one point too) also... mom if you could put money in my acount so that I can pay that would be great :) ha if you can... THANK YOU!!!

This week was a little rough because Sister Mometto finished her mission and went home (I already miss her like crazy!) and Sister Ferreira left me in Pajuçara, and I started training someone who speaks spanish, and I hadn´t been sleeping well the last week, and my head started spinning because I was going crazy.  Fortunately, I have the best companions in the whole world and Sister Morais visited me yesterday to help with our Sunday and we got to sleep in our hammocks last night and talk in the other room.  It was a blessing that she came to help because Sunday is always the most hectic day ever! My poor companion I think had no idea what was going on and I sent her with a member the take some investigators to church while I waited with Sister Morais for our investigators who would be baptized to get back home after their trip!  We waited 3 hours and finally (in literally the last possible minutes) Henrique got home and we all went to the stake center for the baptisms!  They are our first young men that we have baptized here and I am so excited!  Seriously Pajuçara is growing so much and I love working so hard and watching our little group grow!  On the other topic I have seriously been blessed with the best companions ever so I have no doubt Sister Palacios (my new companion) won´t be an exception.  But I am already planning my future visits to Brazil to visit Sister Mometto (Sao Paulo) Sister Ferreira (campinas) and Sister Morais (Maceio).  

My email this week is kind of a mess of thoughts, as normal, and is reflecting my state of mind.  But I sent a bunch of pictures so hopefully that makes up for it!  

I am so excited to skype you guys!  I am so grateful for this work, for the opportunity I have to be a missionary, for my companions, for my family, for my Savior.  I pray that everyone and everything is well at home!  

Sister Westover

Wesley and Henrique.. they are so awesome!  I love them!

                                                             When we got to eat mac! 

                 
                                     My district when I was with SIster Ferreira! I love these people!

 
                                             Socorro's baptism! (I think almost 2 months ago)

                                                      Pajucara baptismo da Aurenir :)

                                                  Baptisms of Mauri and José Mesenga            

                                   SIster Lima (absolutely LOVE her!) One of the sisters that lives with me.

                                             Our last day together with Sister Ferreira

Short Update

One of my favorite converts (Mauri) he makes tea to give us every time we visit!  and he works with fruits so he leaves like pounds and pounds of fruits at the front of our condo!  He is sooo great and has the biggest heart ever.

We have transfers today and I don´t know if we will stay together but my lovely companion Sister Ferreira!  She is so great!  This was my birthday on our way to district meeting

April 21, 2014: What is a Missionary?

Hey everyone!  I never know how to address these emails anymore because it´s been a lot of weeks and I think I´ve used just about every greeting I can. So hey there!

I realized that probably every week I say I´m tired because we´ve been running around like crazy- but there are a lot of people who have absolutely no idea what this ´´running around like crazy´´ really means!  So I wanted to explain this week.  My purpose as a missionary is to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them recieve the restored gospel throught faith in Jesus Christ and his atonement, repentance, baptism, recieving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end. So what exactly am I doing to invite the dear people of Ceará, Brasil to come unto Christ by taking these essential steps in their lives? What exactly is a missionary? 

First, I am a seeker.  Every week I am seeking to find at least 20 new people who are willing to hear a message of Christ and let it change them for the better!  I am seeking the humble: those who recognize our need for God, the teachable: those who desire to grow clower to Him, the needy: those who recognize they cannot pass their trials and difficulties without our Savior, the elect: those who love God with all their heart and recognize his constant voice in their lives. 

Next I am a teacher.  I try to teach in every opportunity given during my day about what our Savior did for us when he was here on the earth!  Second, that he died for us and paid for our sins.  That he not only felt the immense wait of guilt and remorse for our sins but also all of our difficulties and burdens that we experience in life in order to help us overcome all of these things to find happiness in this life and eventually to return to live with our Heavenly Father and families for eternity. Finally and most importantly that Christ was ressurected, that he lives and that his gospel was restored to us through the prophet Joseph Smith after years of darkness and confusion.  Through His gospel and church here on the earth we can obtain all of the blessings that he has planned for us to have.

I am an inviter.  I allow other to feel the truthfulness of this message by inviting them to apply it in their lives and see the blessings for themselves!  I invite people to pray to their Heavenly Father and seek out an answer about whether or not this message is real!  I invite them to read the account of the people here in the America´s that was written during the same time as the Bible and includes the record of Christ´s visit after his ressurection to the people here (called the Book of Mormon).  I invite them to come to church and to witness the power of God here on earth, the priesthood, through the ordinance of blessing the sacrament.  I invite them to apply the suffering of Christ in their lives, to overcome all that sets them back and start a new life following our Savior through the waters of baptism and recieving the gift of the Holy Ghost.  I invite them to continue growing closer to God and helping those around them recognize his hand in our lives as well.

I am a representative of Jesus Christ.  I give everything I have to love the people, to help them, to serve them, to invite them, to allow them to feel the love of God in their lives.  I walk all day long in the sun, in the heat, in the rain, on unpaved roads, through spiders and cockroaches and lizards and backyards- that I don´t want to know what else lives there- and bring the restored gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to bless them.  And even when I get to their homes, sweating, and hungry, and exhausted, and a little depressed, and sometimes sad, and they tell me ´´no, [they] don´t want to pray, or read, or go to church, or be baptized, or do anything to feel better´´ I just keeping walking, and seeking, and teaching and inviting.

This is my life as a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and I love it more than anything in the whole world.  I have never felt so blessed, so grateful, so happy, so loved, so protected, so valued in my entire life!  

Matthew 11:28 ´´come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavyladen and I will give you rest´´

Sister Westover

Missionary work is serious business... ;)