Well the first full week of training was good. I am now realizing how much I wasn't taught very well, so I am learning too. Next week will be even better and the next month will be better because I now know what I am doing, mais ou menos. :) Elder Michelsen is learning a lot and already speaks better than I did. He told many stories already in Portuguese to me. It's great. But it has also made me realize how far I have come.  I have realized that I can actually understand everyone, for the most part, and I can say basically what I want. Elder Michelsen is doing awesome, and next week is going to be great!!!

This last Saturday, or Valentine's Day, the youth of the branch put on a date type of thing for all the old people. We got invited and to invite investigators. Unfortunately no investigators came. but it was fun. The pizza in Portugal is so strange, but good, and nearly everyone eats it with a knife and fork. We didn't.

Being Senior Companion I have realized that it is a lot of responsibilities - to keep track of all of the recent converts, less-actives, all of the investigators, and invite members to come to a bunch of lessons. And as many of you know, I don't like calling people that much, but I think I am getting used to it.

Well I haven't personally written on this for a while. But I will write a little agora.

I am in the same place, Viana do Costelo, the coldest area and the farthest north area in the mission, and probably the largest area as well. I am now training Elder Michelsen from California and I am only in my 5th transfer. I don't know why I was picked. But I do know that the Lord provides a way for everything. I know I was assigned to this position for a reason. I just don't know why. :) Our area here has a lot of recent converts and less-actives. Our teaching pool is really small. If any of you have any ideas on how to find new investigators, please let me know. :)

The Gift of Tongues is real. It's only been 6 months and I can speak a new language fairly fluently. We have a goal with Elder Michelsen that he will be fluent by the end of this transfer. It's going to be awesome. 

I don't really like doing these mass emails because I never really know what to say and I don't have enough time to say everything. 

I hope you all know that I love each and every one of you.  You are a special child of Heavenly Father, and if he can love you, why can't I. :)  You all have played a special part in my short life and you all are helping me on my mission. 

Eu agradeço por tudo. vocês são incríveis. Eu amo cada um de vos, com todo o meu coração. desejo que eu pudesse expressar meus sentimentos a vos. Mas, é difícil. guardeis todos os mandamentos e vocês vão prosperar em tudo fizerdes.

Com muito amor,

Translated, the above says,  "I thank you for everything. you are amazing. I love each of you, with all my heart. wish I could express my feelings to you. But it's hard.  May you keep all the commandments and you will prosper in everything you do.

"Much love,"

Elder Lee 

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.