It's been a rough month for Elder Lee . . . here are some things he has said:

December 10: The baptism didn't happen. She has an addiction with smoking.  We were ready to baptize her but she got really sick and couldn't go to church. The other family keeps changing our times to meet with them. I haven't ever seen them go to church, but I am sure they are going to go this next week. I don't know how. But we will see. 

The most important thing in the world is to read the Book of Mormon and pray every day. Without those things each day, the world will shoot arrows and spears at you and you won't have that prayer to block them. 

December 16:  This past week has been the worst week for the mission in a long time. We only had three baptisms last weekend. Our baptism fell again. The investigators keep getting annoyed with us and I don't understand why. We talked to them about it, and got it all figured out, but they still have that little feeling. I think we will end up trying to mark her the 27 or 28 of December. That family was sick last week. The father said he would go, but he didn't. We had a lesson with him Friday about prayer and it was amazing. We hope to keep talking with him and keep his desire to be baptized.

December 22:  It's been the worst week I have had in the mission number wise ... we didn't have very many lessons, but contacted a lot of people, just never could get a hold of them again. It's hard ...

Go to this website. I am in one of the pictures (bottom picture) with all of the missionaries. middle row towards the left.

https://www.lds.org/church/news/elder-cook-reports-europe-area-focused-on-work-of-salvation?cid=HPWE121014557&lang=eng

On Christmas Day we were able to Google Talk with Elder Lee.  He looks good and had a hard time with some English words.  He has a cough but says that is normal this time of year.  He doesn't seem to be homesick and is learning to like fish.  He will stay in Viana do Castelo at least until the next transfer which will be February 2, 2015.

Viana do Castelo is one of the farthest cities north.  The mission averages between 10 and 15 baptisms a week.

Please pray for Elder Lee and his investigators.

If you haven't noticed already, the church came out with a new message called "He Is The Gift." If you haven't seen it go to christmas.mormon.org and watch that video. This Christmas the church is going world wide with this "initiative." 

Every one of your jobs is to watch the film, and like it on every social media site you have to show the entire world. Also, invite at least one friend specifically to watch this, come to a family night, or go to church with you. The Church believes in Every member a missionary. So do your part. Help the missionaries out. They need every bit of help they can. I am here in Portugal and the only investigators that are progressing have a relationship of some sort with a member. Members are the reason people get baptized NOT the missionaries. 

Please, #ShareTheGift with everyone you possibly can. Share the joy you get from Christmas and being a part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They are your brothers and sisters. This will impact their lives, please help them.

Thank you, Love you all.

Eu sai que Igreja de Jesus Cristo Dos Santos Dos Ùltimos Dias é a igreja do Senhor e por meio do Evangelho do Jesus Cristo, nós podemos voltar e viver com Deus para sempre em Sua presença. Por Favor Ajudemos todos as possoas. Em Nome de Jesus Cristo, Amém.

Com Muito Amor,

Elder Lee

Written November 17, 2014

Well the first week in this area was pretty good. Elder Fish has had a family here being taught the lessons and can't keep their goal to be baptized on a certain day, but they all have been to church at least once - some more than others. Anyway, the first night I got to meet them we gave them a date to be baptized.  It's a family of 4, two girls and the parents. The parents aren't married yet but the girls are marked for this coming Sunday after church. They are excited. The parents are expected to be married before the 27 of this month so they can be baptized on the 29 and all of them can be confirmed and receive the Holy Ghost the same day. That's our goal. I am praying it works out. It will be the first baptisms for Elder Fish, and we will complete a family which President is really strong about. Also we got a reference - that really never happens.  It's the son of one of the recent converts. He has heard bad things about this church and he just wants to know the truth. We have taught him the first and second lessons and he is reading the Book of Mormon and trying to figure out which is the best way to study it. He actually asked us that question. 

Written November 24, 2014

No baptisms. Those marcados were two daughters in a family. And they decided to be baptized as a whole family, but the father, we think, is getting annoyed with us. We really need the members help now, because the father needs to stop smoking and also get married, and he says we are pushing him. It's difficult. So we don't have any progressing investigators right now, but we definitely will next week. 

We ran out of milk Saturday and we didn't have time to buy more. So Sunday morning for breakfast we ate oatmeal with water.  It wasn't too bad but this morning we went earlier than usual to buy food for the week, and I still hadn't eaten breakfast.  When we got home, I was excited to eat, but they don't refrigerate the milk here (milk lasts about a year without being in the fridge). I poured my cereal and ate it with yogurt instead.

I am leaving here today to go to Lisbon to do residency, so now I won't be living here on a visa anymore. Wish me luck.

Love you all!

Thank you much!

Elder Lee

I have been transferred and assigned to Aviana do Castelo, the farthest area north.  I have heard it's the biggest area in the mission, so we will see how it goes. My companion is Elder Fish from Nevada. We were in the same house in Setúbal, so we already know each other. This is his 6th transfer and hasn't baptized anyone, so we are changing that this transfer. Also, this transfer is only 4 weeks.

In Benfica we had progress. Before I left we met a married older couple that came to church and to the night of movies at the church last night. It was great. Also a woman named Catia that just finished school. She loves to read the Book of Mormon with us, but hasn't been to church and she is leaving this coming weekend to Holland. But she has plans to attend church there already. Also, Vilma. she has a boyfriend and one little boy. She is ready and knows she needs to be baptized, but she lives so far from the church, and it's an hour ride by bus to her house. So it's pretty difficult, but we will see what happens. 

Being selfless is crazy difficult. It's a pride problem, if I haven't said that before. It's difficult because there are two sides to it. When you put everyone literally above yourself, its not good, but if you put yourself above everyone else, that's not good either. There is a scripture that says let others praise you, not yourself. It's fine if people start talking highly about you, or you about someone else, but if you talk about yourself so highly, then it becomes a problem. There is a point between being humble but also being confident. People say that Nephi was a little boastful because he says a couple times that "I am of large stature, full of strength, and preferred of the Lord." Its not boasting or being prideful, it is being truthful. It's very difficult and I don't know how to obtain it, except always pay attention to what I say and try not to win an argument, of who had the most beautiful goal, who writes faster, who wakes up earlier, or who studies more.

Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses. Preach My Gospel says, "quit comparing yourself to others." Its like track or cross country - it's all about you and your times. You are trying to improve YOUR time, not anyone else's. So in life, first look at where you started, then look at where you are now. Have you progressed? or have you stayed the same? It doesn't matter who else is better or worse than you. What matters is you.

Yesterday was stake conference. We have had just 1 normal Sunday here in Benfica and its already the 4th week of the transfer. Yesterday we had the best day yet.  We contacted a reference from the other missionaries.  She wasn't really interested but said the closing prayer. We will see if we can still continue with her. Just after that we encountered a man walking into his house and asked if we could share a little message. We started with the importance of prayer right after the opening prayer and lead to Joseph Smith.  They accepted the Book of Mormon and will read 2 Nephi 31.  They only have time to talk on Sunday's, so that's a bit of a downer. But we will live. Anyway, Sunday we ended up with 5 new investigators and 5 lessons. It was a good day.

The work in our area is good. We have 2 progressing investigators so far, but we encountered a family last Friday night.  They are considered investigators because we had a quick lesson but haven't been back yet, and we definitely will.

If you love rain, come to Portugal. There is rain every day. And if you think the weather changes fast in Utah, haha, it's not that fast, compared to Lisboa.

One thing I learned, Always Wash Your Hands. It had never occurred to me how dirty everything really is, especially public transportation. Yuck!  People are disgusting. 

Well, I don't know what more to say.  

Have a great week. 

In Portuguese we say, Boa semana