Monday, February 11, 2013 Without a Fridge, a Bathroom and a Microwave

Without a Fridge, a Bathroom, and a Microwave, could it be possible to live in the 21st Century thus?

Well I dont care if you believe that it is impossible. I am here to tell you that it is actually possible! This week our bathroom started leaking water into the store that we live ontop of and so the maintenance guy arranged for us to shower in another apartment and so atleast we could take showers and use the bathroom but it sucks having to leave your house to do your daily necessities. Not having a fridge is terrible as well so cold milk is not even an option and having fruits or vegatables is more difficult. We basically just eat eggs and bread and oreo type cookies and split a liter of milk between the two of us per day. It is great! hopefully it is for us to recieve a fridge and a microwave soon and our bathroom is almost done. Also all the electricity is 220V here but almost all of your household appliances are made to use 110V so it is fun to jerry rig almost eerything we do. I cleaned the kitchen today and it went from being an odd brown color to being a nice beige which was the original. :)

This week we did a lot of working but didnt get anyone of our self forces to go and visit because they dont live close enough so we just worked with a few of the neighbors of members who accepted to be baptised here in two weeks and the great part is that it is a family! Also we had a family night and it turned out really great and we gave a message about not procrastinating to repent by following God´s commandments and striving to follow and not be stuck in the trap of  Satan´s famous phrases of "I´ll do it tomorrow" or "All is well."

I hope that all of you are well and have a great Valentines Day week and treat your loved ones with respect and tell them that you love them!

Love you guys and keep up the good work!

Elder Hendrixson 

Monday, February 4, 2013 The Change Up

Well it just so happened that I will not be training this transfer but I will be the companion of an Elder Gustavo Silveira who will be going home at the end of this transfer! He is a really great guy and we are getting along very well. It might because he has a military attitude because he served in the Brazilian army and will return to doing what he did. He works with armored transport which is cool and we get along great and like he says all the time, "Only happeness and joy!" We work a lot but what I am liking is that we are working smarter and not harder!

My new area is a city in the municipality of São Paulo called Piedade. The town has about 40,000 habitants and it is a little back country town where most people live on small farms and such which is great and then they have a city section as well. We only work in the city because the other houses are really spread out and it is not very conducive to the best missionary work that we could be doing nor the most effective so only if it is a strong impression to we head out to the houses by there and such.

We had an activity this week that was called the end of the world that my companion made up and it worked out super great! We set up a bunch of fun things to do and printed out a fake money so that they had to pay money to dance or just play video games or other games or to get food or they could come and see the missionaries and do a task or answer a question to recieve a little money in return. Then we ended it and the lights went off and which kingdom of glory you were sent to depended on how many monies you had. It was very effective to see how people arrived in their individual kingdoms to see that not all there family was there or it wasnt where they wanted to go and who they wanted to be with so we explained about each individual kingdom and how to get there and what it would be like which was very interesting because they people saw that it is not possible to be of the world and do the things of god at the same time. That we need to do what we have been commanded and instructed so that we can have exactly what our heavenly father has promised each one of us individually and as families!

I love you all and hope that you are well and that you will continue to choose the things of god that we all may have a happy reunion and conjointing when the creator comes for the second time!

Love,

Elder Kyle Hendrixson

Monday, January 28, 2013 Pigs in the City?

{To see Elder Hendrixson's pictures that he discusses below, go the picture page...you can't miss them!}

Well this is us having a birthday party in our very straight kitchen and well lets just say we enjoyed our brownies!!! :) 

Oh and so my companion were out walking along and having a great sunday walking along and lo and behold in the worlds 4th largest city we found a pig ruttin around in the cities flowerbed!!! :P What a pig sty! Anyways I just had to take a picture with him so I did and I petted her for a little fun! The idea came accross my mind about the missionaries having free lunch for a month cause I had my leading stick with me to walk her all the way home for nice 2 hour walk from where we were! 

We met Edna this week and she was a contact I made while on a split. She tried to tell me that she was Catholic and I didnt buy in so I told her we could come by and present a Book of Mormon to her and she could have one as a present. She really liked the idea so we marked and faulted because of some difficulties and well we happened to be passing by and I really had a strong urg to visit her so we did and she listened very attently and had a true and pure desire to know and read and pray and I am stoked!! :)

Monday, January 21, 2013 Fruit Sack?

Alright so just for all of you I thought I might include the amount of fruit that we recieve for a week! I basically only eat fruit for breakfast now as a drink and on a plate because this was the haul for one week of fruit and it is a lot. I mean I went to pick up the decievingly heavy bag and found out that it was loaded with about 25 kilos or 55lbs of fruit! I mean that is about like eating 2 to 3 pounds of fruit a day and all the stuff here is farely fibrous if you catch my flow. In the picture is 2 melons a pineappe two types of mangos. Green oranges that are actually ripe on the inside. Goiaba, apples, cherries, grapes, and foot-long bananas and plumbs!! Yay!! Stone fruit! One of the things I miss the most!

Yeah so the work is going alright but if we just continue with faith the Lord will bless our efforts. This is the hard thing about being a laborer in the vineyard of the lord, but he has promised that for all of His servants that if  they will work with all the heat might mind and strenght that the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not and that when the bridegroom comes we will have sufficient oil within our lamps to keep us safely within reach of entering in with our Lord to recieve what he has ultimately promised us and that is Eternal Life! :)

The Gospel of Christ is for each one of us and that is directly linked with the Church that he organized and gave to us as men to take care of. It was taken away and we were without the sustinance of which we needed but that has been fully restored and brought to the light that we need not perish or dwindle in unbelief but believe and act that we may assure our mansion in the heavens.

May your prayers be answered and our families be blessed. 

Love you all and pray for your well-being, 

Elder Hendrixson

Monday, January 14, 2013 Sup!

Alright so there are a few things that I am really greatful for and that is that one there is modern medicine named Prilosec that works miracles for people that have heart burn! :) 

The Second thing would be that when you try to go suit shopping here in Brazil you had better be about the size of a toothpick because they don't make pants in my size and I barely could find a suit coat that fits. Luckily they do exist you just have to find a store that has them. By the way I grew again. I think I got a little taller and of course as usual a little wider in the shoulders for all of you who like to think I only grow in the table muscle.

Other than that I think my companion and I got soaked about 3 times this week by the wonderful São Paulo summer weather where it rains almost everyday but infrequently that young men don't want to carry an umbrella all week and man I think taking rain baths are great because it is about the closest thing you get to jumping in to the pool. Man I miss swimming!!!

 Anyways we actually taught some really nice people this week, about 13 of them but they don't live in our area so unfortunately they won't be investigators for us but at least they are getting to know the gospel and how wonderful it can make their lives become because not only is it guidelines but it is a way of live that really will be to us the best things that we can imagine and our hopes and dreams will come true in better and improved ways than we can imagine as we are obedient to our Heavenly Father who loves each  one of us.

I know that this is the way and these are the blessings of god that we bring to people in their lives and I know that we can all recieve the gifts of God if we are obedient even if we dont know why it is important to be obedient!

I love yo u all and pray for you always and wish you the best! 

Elder Hendrixson

Monday, January 7, 2013 The Week!

Happy new year. This week not much happened at all but I thought I would write you all let you know that I am good to go in THAT THE MISSION IS GOING AND THAT IT IS AWESOME TO LIVE WITH TWO OTHER AMERICANS IT IS CRAZY HOW DIFFERENT THE CULTURES ARE AND I DIDN'T EVEN REALIZE CAUSE I HAVE ONLY LIVED WITH BRAZILIANS FOR A YEAR BUT MY HEART SINGS TO SPEAK ENGLISH AND BE ABLE TO TALK ENGLISH AGAIN. I LOVE PORTUGUESE BUT IT IS JUST NOT THE SAME THING! mISS YOU ALL AND WISH YOU THE BEST AND HOPE THAT YOU ARE WELL AND I HOPE THAT WITHIN THIS NEXT WEEK I WILL HAVE SOMETHING GREAT TO TELL ALL OF YOU AND NOT JUST THIS JUMBLE OF THINGS. I REALLY HAD THE LORD HELP ME THIS WEEK BY ANSWERING MY PRAYERS AND HELPING ME TO UNDERSTAND THE GOSPEL BETTER AND TO HELP ME BE MORE AT PEACE AND BE ABLE TO LOVE THOSE AROUND ME AND WHO WE TALKT TO AND REALIZE HOW MUCH BETTER IT IS TO HAVE PEOPLE TELL YOUTHAT THEY TRUST YOU AND LOVE YOU NOT THAT THEY LOVE HAVING YOU AROUND BECAUSE YOU ARE GREAT. THE WORK MUST GO ON AND KEEP UP THE WORK THAT YOU ALL DO AND CONTINUE HELPING ALL THOSE AROUND YOU WHO MIGHT BE IN NEED OR A LITTLE MORE UNFORTUNATE. 

THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS IS THE KINGDOM OF GOD HERE ON THE EARTH. THE ONLY PERSON WHO CAN CONFIRM THAT IS GOD AND JESUS CHRIST THEMSELVES. I KNOW THAT GOD RESPONDS BECAUSE HE CONFIRMED TO ME THAT THIS IS THE WAY. THE WAY TO ALL THE BLESSINGS AND HOW TO FOLLOW IN THE PATHWAY THAT CHRIST CREATED FOR EACH ONE OF US AND THOUGH IT MAY NOT BE EASY, IT IS NECESSARY. JOSEPH SMITH WAS A TRUE PROPHET AND THAT THOMAS S. MONSON IS THE PROPHET OF OUR DAYS, HERE TO GUIDE US, AND DIRECT THAT WE MAY HAVE THE PEACE AND HARMONY WITHIN AN EVERMORE TUMULTUOUS WORLD THAT IS AGAINST WHAT OUR HEAVENLY FATHER HAS INSTRUCTED! 

SEEK THE TRUHTH AND YOU WILL FIND IT SO JUST EMBRACE IT WHEN YOU FIND IT AND ASK OF GOD!

LOVE,

ELDER HENDRIXSON

Monday, December 31, 2012 New Years!

Happy New Year to you all! I hope that you all are all doing well and that the Christmas holiday treeated you all well and it sure was great to get see all of you-my family- on skype. I mean it was just great to also get to talk to you in real time because it gets kinda tiring to be behind for two weeks everytime I get stuff. Thanks for all of you who wrote and let me knew that you were thinking of me even though you all have a lot on your plates already with the festivities and playing santa and chef! I had a very special Christmas. It was nothing special but all the spirit that was here and just how everyone treats you and all that stuff and it just had a special feeling about and not to mention that we ate a heck of a lot of good food. I mean our fridge was stuffed full. Luckily now it is starting to dwindle and the only think I have bought for two weeks was milk. Apparently brazilians dont really drink milk but my entire family knows that if I could I would drink milk for every meal of the day! :)

Other than that it has just been rainging a lot and we have been caught out in the rain alot without our umbrellas but thats okay because it is good for the soul and the stink. ;)

Keep strong in the faith and know that your heavenly father loves you all! :) 

Until next week! 

Elder Hendrixson :)

Monday, December 24, 2012 Christmas?

Alright so I am still having a very hard time believing that it is Christmas or that Holidays exist because on the mission they DON'T! But anyways I can still tease all of you becasue it is like 80-90 degrees here and we sweat our butts off everyday and we like it. I just recently got moved to a brand new area called Vila Yara, Osasco, which is technically like a city within a city and it is pretty cool but we live 30 minutes away from our area in another area in a house that has 1 bedroom, 1study room, a kitchen and a bathroom-which is very narrow and very long and had mildew all over the walls. I mean this place is so skinny that I sit on the porcelain throne and have to put my feet under the toilet and put your knees out really WIDE!! the space between the wall and the sink is less that a foot and you have to passs that to get to the shower which is funny as well because you have a big old utility sink in the middle of your shower area! Oh and we live with two other Elders as well. If I remember I will have to take some pictures!!! Just for you MOM, I bought a whole liter of Pine Sol and scrubbed the crap out of that place because it smelled like musty urine that had been ther long enought to ferment and then grow legs so that the smell could walk all through the house!

This is my new companion Elder Juan Vazquez who is from Paraguay! He is a really nice guy but it will be an interesting transfer. He is a great teacher and he really does have a great testimony that a lot of people like to hear.

The only other down side of this is that our Chapel is like 50 minutes from our house and I mean it is a long ways away!! Oh and I have the great big pleasure of finding a new place for us to live again!!! The ward is really great and is basically a good mix and they are really excited to ahve us here!

Lastly but not at the least unimportant. I want to wish you all A Merry Christmas with lots of fun and cheer and that you all can remember that the people next to you during the Holidays are the ones we need to serve the most so that we can be at peace within a world that is every minute more troubled and filled with sorrow and fear. Stay firm to the Teachings of Christ because they will never lead us astray because they invite Holy Spirit to Testify and Teach of those things that our human capacity could never come to coprehend the greatness of all that is around us and our potencials as children of God whom Christ was a Child of God as well so we have the same imense capacity and pre-ordination! 

Love you all,

Elder Hendrixson

Monday, December 17, 2012 Spreading a little Christmas Cheer

Ho ho ho ho hot!!! Yes I have never had a hot Christmas in my life!!!! I mean then you put all of the Christmas music and things that I like and relate to then try to put it into a language and a culture where about 0.00% of the people know what snow is. Yep so needless to say you can throw all the parties and put out the decorations but I still dont believe it! I mean it is like April Fool's day for a month so my new phrase is bah humbug and nobody knows what it mens so too bad for them! Christmas on the mission only means that you get to change up the message you give and the fact that people either feel bad for you or they try and throw a fruit cake at you! Yup they actually eat that brick of a thing! They do have one that is made of chocolate that is actually really good but of course they dont throw that one at you! I mean not even the dog will eat the fruit cake.

Other than that I have been playing Tom Sawyer all week long in our house! We live with two other Elders who lets just say are less than my rivals and more than annoying!!! So I started my usual I am tired of doing their stuff so I conned them into doing their stuff and my stuff by saying that I will cook and well they do the dishes and clean the kitchen, sweep the floor, and buy the food! What could be better? Nothing! I get to focus on the work and get to life why my headache goes away and when they keep me up at night I can just keep thinking over and over again, "THE JOKE IS ON YOU!" :) Yup I haven't changed much in this aspect.

We had an activity finally in the church that was very successful and got us some great references but I don't know if I will be staying here it is a very high likelyhood that I will be moving areas or my companion could be. One or the other so stay posted for the next fun part! :)

Love you all and make sure you treat all those you love with a CHRIST-mas like cheer! :)

Monday, December 10, 2012 How much can a missionary walk . . .

How much can a missionary walk if he can't walk?

Só pra vocês saberem que tivermos um batismo esta fim de semana e que os detalhes do batismo quem foi são tudo lá nas perguntas em baixo! :)

 This subject phrase is based on the classic phrase of how much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a wood chuck couldnt chuck wood?

As to let you know I am pretty sure that missionaries dont walk. We glide! I mean it is crazy how much we walk and keep a smiling and having a good time and talk to some of the most rancorous people you could ever imagine but that is okay because they just dont know what they are missing out on! 

Just to let you all know, I am super happy they got new keyboards here at the Lanhouse because now I can type without feeling like I am trying to play wack a mole! 

Also we probably walked 20km everyday and our appointments were falling through like if you tried to but refried beans on the barbeque! Its not FUNNY!!! 

The even funnier part is that my Brazilian companion complains more about the heat than I do. Mostly because St. George or Fresno are way hotter than This place is by about 10 degrees Celcious! Yup that is enough to fry an egg! We had some great adventures this week.

Our lunch appointment that is clear out there fell through and man was I hungry! So we went to the lady who arranges our lunches hoping that she would have some bread and butter just to put a little fuel in the tank! Which she did and we were able to grab her husband and bring him to a lesson that we had which turned out to be great. Then we had to walk clear to the other side of the area which is like 5 miles so we just headed out! The funny part is that we got there, went to an apointment, and still beat him to the chapel in under an hour! I mean like I said we dont walk. I mean the joggers barely pass us and we are hardley breaking a sweat! Missionaries obey the word of wisdom which is: eat like a dog because you really have no idea when your next meal is going to be! ;)

Love you guys and wish you the best and I pray for you all every night that the Lord can be your Guide!

Elder Hendrixson!

Here are some answers to some questions that it is quite possible that a few of you might have so just for gentileza(politeness) here are the answers

How are things in your mission?

The things in our mission are on the brightside. Our Presidente has promised us some major success if we will be obedient, diligient, exact, honor, and honest. Not to mention that if we will invoke blessings in the name of the Lord and walk forth with faith we will see the barriers falling and the walls of Jericho crumbling!

Any mission meetings?

Actually we just had our special Christmas zone conference which was cool and man were there some terrible musical numbers. I mean just think about a mariachi mexican band but put it in portuguese with suits and ties and santa hats. One vocalist, a recorder, a violin, and an acoustic guitar. Ya not exactly what I would think about as a success and our President stood up after they finished singing Joy to the World and commented that after that who wouldnt want to be a muslhim! I lost it! That was the best joke I have heard in a long time!

Who is your current companion?

My current companion is Elder Mota and he is totally awesome. He is from Fortaleza and he is from Ceará.

Did your baptism happen?

Yes the baptism happended and it was great! The family was all there and the entire ward as well with a special presentation by the ward!

Who was it?

His name is Derek, he has 9 years of age and is the son of parents that are less actives that we are in the process of reactivating. Derek really comes to church with his grandparents and he loves it! He comes on his own because of his old testimony. He is a guiding light for all the people in his family and his grandpa is who baptised him and it was a very great and special experience! :)

How did you contact this person?

We contacted him because his grandfather and father asked that we teach him so that he could be baptised. Generally he would have been a baptism for the ward but unfortunately they didnt trust in themselves enough so they called in the professionals. Therefore he was a convert baptism.

How long have you been teaching him/her?  

I taught him for a week but I have been planning this baptism since I got here! The parents kept having marital problems. Fault of planning and the family not coordinating and it ended up being one of those scenarios that we ended up fortifying everyone else and the one who was strong had to suffer and wait!

How is the new ward?

The new ward is good they want a lot of things to happen and they make some very upscale scemes. They also want to have a lot of things happen! This is all nice and we will take all the enthusiasm as is possible.

What's the name of the ward? 

The ward I am in is called Vila Angelica which is in the Trujilo Stake

Monday, December 3, 2012 Put on the racing slicks ...

Put on the racing slicks because here we go!

Well it just so happens that the month of a missionary in December is absolutely CRAZY!!! This way you dont even have a chance to miss your family because you want to be swamped with baptisms and have a white Christmas. Just for you all to know that it is like a 100 degrees down here for Christmas so the only thing white is a monkey suit and a guy in some white pants a white shirt and a white tie! HAHAHA so here we go! Its not like I can visit my family so I am going to become a part of about thirty other families and want to puke my guts out because they are already inviting us for dinner and other stuff like that. i think they are just trying to expand our stomachs!!!! 

This week was a little slow and nothing really big happened other than I found some new fruits that are very yummy!!! :) 

We have a baptism this week as we now have final fixed the marital fighting cycle and they are going to seek the spirit of God at home and not the Spirit of Contention. 

This week will be a good week and many a miracle will happen. Love you all and remember that we should always seek to produce spiritual fruits especially in this Christmas season!

Monday, November 26, 2012 - A Great Joke

Lets start this week out with a Joke!

So the husband comes home after a long day at work and sees the clock has fallen off of the wall so he just walks on by and goes to get something to eat. His wife walks in just as he had sat down to have a glass of milk and a cookie when his wife says, "you will never guess what happened today! I got home and your mom was coming to help me with the groceries and that studpid clock of yours that doesnt even  work correctly fell off the wall and almost hit her on the head! Can you believe that?" Only to have the husband respond, "That stupid clock is always late!" :D

For any of you that need this joke to be re-explained just ask someone else! You should always share, becuase it is the 1st and greatest commandment of the Kingdom of God and a good joke should never go unshared!

This week was a good week! Lots of sun and little rain and it feels like a Desert Summer! The only difficult part was that this week I had the Sisters of the Ward try to stuff me and not the Turkey! It worked! I mean we had lunch with a Sister who is totally awesome but just is sick of the incomodating people in the world but I will tell you what,  She Knows How to Fill a BOWL with ice cream and fruit! I mean it was like the size of my head and here it is mandated that you eat two of them  so I did and man she knew how to fill a bowl full of ice cream a second time even fuller than the 1st! For the first time in my life I was almost sure that I would drowned! you cant swim your way out if you drowned from the inside out!

Then on Sunday we have this married couple who are older and the Husband wants to adopt me because he likes me a lot and so we are trying to get him to be baptized but it is difficult! We had a barbecue with them on Sunday and well can I just say that 5 kilos of meat and 4 old people and 2 missionaries gives you a stomach ache! Their moto at the dinner table is that nothing is left over! Needless to say  it became a little difficult but we accomplished the challenge and I didnt even gain a single pound this week. Luckily this next week should be alittle more sparse. 

I think that this week I talked to more than 200 families and it is always amazing to see how people dont know how to answer a question. They only want to talk about what they want to talk about. The other thing I love is when people say, " that is not in my Bible,"  "I know Jesus Christ and only he can save me,"  "why do you want to complicate the simple things that Christ gave us to do," and my personal favorite, "I have already accepted Christ in my life, I have the Holy Ghost with me constantly and Christ will save me no matter the cost." This last phrase is usually uttered jsut before they light up a cigarrete or take a swig of the beer in their hand! Yet they dont want to listen, they dont want to hear and all you want  to do is help. Yet you cant! How many times has our heavenly father tried to help us and we chose not to accept?

This week I had a cool experience. We had left to make a visit with a Sister of the Ward and well as usually our marked appointment wasnt at home! But it just so happened that I had said, hi, to two teenagers on the street and they came running around the corner just after we had finished discovering that the lady we had planned to visit wasnt at home. Only to find out that one of the kids was a member of the church who had just recently moved here to our area and he and his brother wanted to keep going to church because they love the church! The oldest one is not baptized and I think he will be baptized quickly and the parents arent members so lets see if we can get them too!

Oh and another interesting event happened. For some reason drunk people love the missionaries and love to introduce us to their families. One night we were headed home and it was already 9 at night and this drunk guy come bounces accross the street slurring, I am a mormon too! All I though was OH BOY! Here we go again. Well he came up and hugged me and started to lead me into his house to have dinner! He was so drunk that his breathe was pure alcohol! Finally after not being able to pass him without having to shove him to the ground I accepted and talked him into just a glass of water and to meet his family! It turns out that his son is a member and wants to return to the church and his friend wants to know about the church so there you have it everybody! The Lord can work miracles for His children in any circumstance!

The weeks to come should be full of great stories so feel free to forward them or share them with whomever you may.

Love you all and  dont be a turkey! Seek for Christ and His Holy Spirit, especially as we prepare for this wonderful time of year and celebrate all that Christ has given!

Elder Hendrixson!

Monday, November 19, 2012 - Raising the Bar and Stuffin the Bird

Well this week has been a great week because I recieved a wonderful piece of news that our President now wants us to have 30 conversations about the Gospel everyday! That is a freaking lot especially when the person just tells you to bugger off cause he is sitting there on his porch with nothing to do and he tells you that he is just about to leave. Then you go to the next house and you can see their freaking steel wool hair sitting there on the couch and they just ignore you like you are a barking dog and then the next and the next and the next. Pretty much but we had a lot of great conversations that resulted in those people who actually want to hear abut the gospel and then after all the bad experiences your heart soares and you are jsut super happy to talk to the person.

Last night I had a realization that only people who are truly happy would walk for 30 minutes straight and give a salutation to all of those people with a smile in your path after walking all day in the sun, rain and talking to a bunch of badly mannered people. The Lord I think finally prepared a way for a house for us to move intoand stop sleeping on the flooor and sharing a fridge that is 3´for1 1/2´ for 4 Elders. THe thing is stuffed! Then this week was tough because the grass is always greener on the other side! THe other two Elders stayed in the house all week because one of them has the Chicken Pox! Yup so they were bumming around in the house relaxing in my hammock and I was working. Not to mention they couldnt leave to buy groceries so my cold milk and water started dissapearing and let me tell you when you come home after sweating your butt off all day you want something cold and when you go to grab it and it is not there you get a little peaved! I mean I only ask that you ask or tell me that you used it so I dont have this expectation and then its not there! That is the worst! Other than that the week was great! I mean I would rather be working than trapped in the house! A few days would be nice but only to have a holiday but really working is oh so much better!

Well to all of youthat are in the STates! Have fun stuffing the bird and your faces! My thanksgiving with be bean and rice and this little filet of beef that is cooked until it is shoe leather because that is how the Brazilian like it! Yet the beans and rice are always yummy and eating is not for pleasure, right?

Miss you and have a great Thanksgiving and I will too!

Elder Hendrixson

Monday, November 12, 2012 - Who's Up For Round 3?

Yup that is right my family and Friends I am up for round 3 of training a noob! His name is Elder Hermilio Dos Santos Mota who is from Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil! Yup he is 22 years old and he is engaged to a girl he met when he had 16 years of age and it has only been her since then! We get along really well already because he has a life and likes to make jokes and to just be a fun person all around and to play soccer. He almost went professional but he blew out his knee! He was baptized with 9 years of age and he is the second person in his family to serve a mission. WE worked our tails off this week and it was in the rain. No it was not the kinda joke that we get in St. George we are talking who turned on the freaking shower! You end the day and no matter how water proof your shoes are it just doesn't cut it when gravity comes into play and it starts from the knee then to the ankle and all the way until it reaches the end of your toes! What Fun!!!! Anyways he made a lot of progress this week and we will make even more this week and we will be a contact making machine! I can see that good things are to come with these coming six weeks! The Lord has big plans I can just feel it! So keep up the prayers please! I could use all the help I can get!

As for some funny things that happened this week! We had a junk food night before transfers and well lets just say one Sister in the ward gave us this cake and I had to spit it out after I ate it because she had soaked it in what tasted like skittles liquid with a choclate covering. I hate to say it but it is still in the fridge to this day and well skittles and chocolate just don't go together! Then the very next day we got back to the bus terminal - I forgot to inform you all that I have turned into a bugs bunny and eat one big carrot everday about 9:15 in the morning and all the Elders just laugh at me - so when a bum came along the sidewalk seeing all the Elders and Sisters dressed and fancy of course he thinks of asking for food and well I had happened to pull out my carrots because of course I brought one for my new companion! He didn't want it and so I gave the bum a CARROT! He walked away shaking his head and seeming a little bit dissatisfied but eating the carrot all the same and yes all the Elders laughed at me but I asked which one of them had helped someone today? :P

Also it just so happened that socks in the mission last for 11 months but they become more like an iron grid without any fluff and its just more like a protective layer. how did I find this out? Well I had only been using 8 pairs and they started loosing color so I grabbled my other 10 pairs from the Mission Home and started wearing those! WHAT A DIFFERENCE!!! They were so soft and comfortable, weird, but hey in the mission it is all about the small pleasures!

Other than that this week was full of miracles but specifically one that stood out. WE were knocking doors in the rain and well this guy came out and started talking to us like he was a member. Well it turns out he had been a member since he was 15 years old and fell away at 18 because of problems with the doctrine of the church and just didnt find his response. This guy wasn't even on the radar and we found him because of a long day of knocking and not finding!!! The Lord works miracles but first comes the trial of faith! (Ether 12:6).

Love you all and wish you the best week! Keep your heads up and keep smiling!

Love, Loyalness, and Faith is a good recipe for being like Christ but none of it is worth anything without the Priesthood being restored for us in these Latter Days!

Elder HendriXson!!

Monday, November 5, 2012 - Transfers!

Hey Everyone!

This week is transfers and well let's just say that I am not happy at all . . . my companion and I have gotten to be super close and he has learned a ton this transfer. He made a huge effort in not being so timid, I mean being timid around me is a little hard! Plus he got to be really good at the basics because I learned from all my family that if you keep beating eventually you get to where you need to be and changing tactics is great too.

My companion figured out finally that I am just a box of surprises! He is always leaving lessons and we talk and he is always telling me, "You know, I just never know from which direction you are going to come." Then he goes on to say that he is gonna miss having me for a companion and well of course I never have let him know that I am truly gonna miss the guy, cause I wouldn't be Elder Hendrixson. ;) Shhhhhhh, but I really am going to miss the guy a lot. We had a heck of a lot of fun together and we worked hard but he still has a lot of lessons to learn from his next trainers. Now we will just have to see who exactly my next companion will be.  The interesting part is that I have never had a steady companion. I seem to always be recieving new ones! I mean this will be my 6th companion in 11 months! 

This week was a really tough week for us becuase we just seemed to absolutely suffer until Sunday. I mean I talked to a lot of people but no one for the life of them wanted to listen! I mean they were just down right rude and my patience was wearing super thin and I just wanted to be straight up with people and well unfortunately you catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar! Man the truth hurts! So I consented to being cordial and practice my longsuffering! The really cool thing was that I remembered to do a fast for Fast Sunday and can I just say I finally have a testimony about fasting! I never really had one before but after I fasted so that I could remember and be ready to fulfill my purpose as a missionary and partook of the Sacrament everything just seem to stop being so prominant and bug. It all turned into little challenges and problems and smaller mountains to climb until we reach the tree of life!

Remember family and friends that the Gospel of Christ is the only way back to our Heavenly home and that we start our journey after partaking of a renewal of birth and passing into the Kingdom of God here on the Earth and that we may then start to produce our eternal harvests and make progress on our pathway eternally. Remember the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Kingdom of God here on the earth and that through the true church we encounter the only true Ordinances of the Gospel of Christ!

Love you all!

Elder Kyle John Hendrixson 

Monday, October 29, 2012 - I Must Be a Reptile!

Okay so the topic for today may be a little weird but I will explain myself! :)

First lets talk about the good things that happened this week. We had 2 of the people we are teaching come to church.   One we will be marking a baptismal date with her this week and explaining that yes you can be baptised again because you only took a bath the first time because she wasnt baptized under the authority that would be necessary if we are to follow Christ who was baptized by a worhty and true priesthood holder. Here we come with scriptures and salvation.  Also it was beautiful weather this week and it could not be better! It will only get better. I must be a very sweet person because the mosquitos just seem to love me while  I sleep! We found some new investigators this week and they seem to have a very deep interest in the gospel and partaking of the fruits that the gospel will help them produce. And a blessing as always would be that we "were worthy to suffer persecution in the Name of the Lord." (Acts 5:31) :) 

This week we had a special conference with our mission because of an inspiration that our Mission President recieved and decided that it could not wait until December. Man was everyone nervous , exept me. :) I even tried  to make a bet with my companion that this conference was not to just be a rebuking fest of the Pres. I was rather on the contrary. I was expecting a straightening of a few of the things that were wrong in the mission and then to recieve instructions of how to be better missionaries and really get to hear some good stuff and how the President had an inspiration of things to do. It actually had to do with the special assignment he gave us to read The Book of Acts in 4 days and how that we should have learned a few things from the assigmnent he gave us and that we would recieve the same revelation he recieved if we asked the Lord! How cool is that? Needless to say it was a super great conference and it is always nice to see a lot of those friendly faces and people  you don't get to see very much!

Okay now lets get to why I am a reptile! That statement was based on I love the heat and the sun! I mean it is frying outside but it is not even close to reaching St. George or Fresno heat so it is all good! Not to mention that when I am in the sun I feel like someone is pumping energy into me! The only time that it becomes dangerous is when I have sweated so much that the sunscreen has melted off of my face and I have to reapply! Yup I love the sun but my skin is a natural enemy! Although it gets to be really tough if we get to talking to someone in their house because they usually turn the lights off so that it is cooler and well like a good reptile I just want to sleep so I start to yawn and can't stop and my companion starts to go to sleep on me at times because the heat just sucks the energy right out of him and me, but I still love the sun! It is way better than a rainy day or a cloudy day! For me I just say bring on the heat because it just makes another excuse to stop and ask for a cup of water so that we can talk to the person. Including one time this week a person felt pity for us and invited us to come in and sit down, so logically I got to talking and having a g ood time and found out that they had had an unfortunate death in the family and he was really bothered about what another religion had said so I opened up the Bible and the Book of Mormon and we said a prayer and got to it! He didn't accept to let us come back because he wanted his religion and I was a little sad because you could tell he loved to hear our message from the word of god, but yet he still chooses to be blind to  the truth!  Maybe one day he will recognize what we said to be true and the seed that we planted will grow so that he can  recieve the plentitude of blessings that The Lord will drop on his doorstep in return for entering into the kingdom of god.  Follow the first 4  principles and ordinances of the  Gospel of Christ! Check out Hebrews 6:1-2  this was my scripture for the week.

Oh and I almost forgot! Our Sunday School teacher didn't show up on Sunday so I winged the lesson and man did I do a good job! It was on Temple Work and Family History! Those are two things that I am not very confortable teaching but luckily the Holy Spirit was with me and gave me a sweet game plan!

The people in the class asked very few questions and all of them commented on how clear I was about it that they understood! Man I sure do love teaching about the gospel of Christ. Any part of it always has something new to learn and when you are the one teaching I feel like you learn so much more . I can just say that luckily the Lord is helping because otherwise we all know that I would complicate things until I made the earth spin the other way!   ;)

With laughs and a boisterous smile. I love you all and miss you like a fish misses water!

Elder Kyle John Hendrixson!

{Surprise! Kyle is truly a Hendrixson - the son of a reptile and the grandson of a reptile!!  Who would have guessed!! }

Monday, October 22, 2012 - Was I Dreaming or Awake?

This week I was super tired and we worked until I just couldn't take it any more. Relaxing today was a very much welcome thing within my week and this week should be the same way. WE actually reached our goal of 14 other lessons this week which was great and very welcomed! Very few people wanted to hear but the few that did seem to have some promise. It just so happened that we had two investigators in church this week.

One is a lady who has the only video rental store here in my area and she is super sweet. Yet she has been passing through a difficulty in her marriage and just needed a little bit of  the gospel. I made her a promise that if she would come to chruch she would recieve an answer to the problem she is having and it happened!! Can you believe it? I thought I was dreaming! Yet I sure am glad that I wasn't and now she said she felt like she was at home and that this was the place to be and promised to visit again but is a little hesitant because of the religion she goes to but the good part is that no matter what the Lord will prepare the hearts of his children and who do better than he could? No ONE!

The second is an employee of our Bishop.  He is 17 years of age and he loves the church and he will come again, so two dates of baptism here we come! I am super excited for what the Lord has planned to happen this week for us and we will be glad to see His hand in the things that we will be doing this week. HE really sent his armies of angels to help us this week and I expect nothing more and nothing less this week and all the weeks to come!

Love you all!!!!

Elder Kyle John Hendrixson

Monday, October 15, 2012 - The Lord's will shall be done!

This week was a tough week and we had few people at home and even fewer who wanted to listen to us but that didn’t get us down. We worked right up to the hour that our days ended, we got up, we studied hard and we ate good food. This week was a holiday for the kids in Brazil and some other Catholic holiday honoring a Saint but I already forgot which one. We visited some people who really do have quite a bit of hope with some of our visits and this week I just know will be a good week.

What I would like to share is that The Lord Blesses His servants and even gives us inspiration when we don’t know even where to start or any scripture to help but:

Ether 12:4 4 Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with ^asurety ^bhope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which ^chope cometh of ^dfaith, maketh an ^eanchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in ^fgood works, being led to ^gglorify God.

This scripture was givin to me with flashing lights during a visit to a family who is having a difficult time and started to let their commitment to the Lord become last priority. I truly have gained a testimony of the veracity that when we put God as First Priority and leave the rest to work itself out that it truly will. I also know that God will never give us a bigger trial or test of Faith than we can overcome but it for dang sure can come very close to where we just can’t take it anymore.

My week was a little bit like that. I just couldnt take it any more, but we continued to talk to people. WE continued to go and implore the people to assume the responsibilities that we ask of them that they can recieve the greater blessings. We worked in the rain, the heat, and the wind! WE even forgave those people who were mean to us and told us that we don't mean anything and that we are wasting our time, that we don't know anything and won't make a difference. WE were called good looking and treated like candied objects for the eye but yet we still tried to help these people have more than just a vision of the carnal and insatiable desires of the flesh that they might have an anchor in the everlasting gospel of Christ that will never become insipid no matter how much we partake of it.

Stay firm to the Lord and he will bless you and he has promised that miracles will happen in your lives because he will make them happen. May you all pray always asking for faith and guidance and blessings for those things of our dreams and nessecities. That we might seek to be in harmony with the Word of God by partaking of the feast of words we have through all the Prophets that have existed here on the earth!

Love,

Elder Kyle John Hendrixson!!! :)

Monday, October 8, 2012 - Can airplane tires make you fly?

Alright so lets get down to it! Conference was great!!! Not to mention for a missionary it is like a three day weekend so yahoo!!! :P

I dont have a whole lot to say but what I have to say is important.

1- I have a terrible key board again so i am beating the living "plastic" out of this thing!

2- I had my shoes re-soled this week and the guy put airplane tire rubber on the bottom and from what I have heard is that the rubber will last longer than the leather will and I am pretty sure that guy is right but it sure is weird not walking on a half moon! :D

3- We are having a lot of success in finding. No relly great stories yet but their should be some to come! We did find one less active family and we told them about conference and well they invited the whole neightborhod to watch it at their house so I am hoping for some really great references and some reactivation!!!!!

4- Life is great and my back has stopped hurting since I started sleeping in my hammock!!! Life is great and I am now 20 years old! HA can you believe it? I can't!

5- I love you all very much and wish you the best and hope that you will have a great week and that the Lord will bless you all!

Love,

Elder Hendrixson

PS If you ever think something that is asked of you in the church is without purpose go and read the story of Naman in 2Kings!!!

Monday, September 24, 2012 - Corrective Lenses??

Well this week was a very interesting and yet at the same time very aggravating! THe good thing was that the weather was great other than the two days it rained!

 

As I read Acts 19:2-7 and Acts 26:2-23; 25-29 you find a lot of great things! Paul actually refuses to take the crazy plea that one of the Roman goveranantes gives him to take so that he doesnt have to appear before Ceasar! Paul basically chooses to be imprisoned and talks exactly about what needs to be done and how the people are not following what they know they should do.

  

My favorite part of this whole week were verses 25-29 in Acts chapter 26 where Paul asks a retorical question and tells Aggripas the fact of the matter and the best part is that Aggripas doesnt deny it. He just states that Paul almost convinced him to be a Christian! That is HUGE!!!

  

I actually used this scripture with some of our investigators after bearing a testimony and it just seemed like it didnt sink in so I gave them a little bit more weight to the topic.

  

I am pretty sure people think we are blind, because as we come walking down the street we watch them go from the sidewalk to the inside of their houses. Frustrating? I think so! Not only that but we talk to people and they truly need or want what we have but when we come to GIVE it to them they just dont want it anymore!

  

Luckily we have one family that is super sweet and has a lot of promise if only they will fulfill their compromises!

  

Love You All!!

Elder Hendrixson!