Well it was a pretty crazy week...

Now that we have this goal of 1000 contacts per missionary per month, Elder Sanchez and I set about trying to do it. Unfortunately, we only did about 340 (both of us combined), but for a couple of guys who were doing about 100 per week before it was a lot! We really had to push ourselves to talk to EVERYONE we saw in the street. Fortunately it wasn't snowing like it is there in Michigan, because if it was nem eu estaria na rua! kk

But we did have quite a miracle at church. Even though a lot of the people that we had confirmed to go to church didn't go, a family of 3 that was invited by members went! And they were super cool and super interested, or at least it seemed like it. So we have to count our blessings!

But I love you guys. Hope yall are surviving the cold!

Much love,

Elder Nick Olsen

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It is a different feeling to know that I am in the city where I will complete my mission. Everything looks different. I feel like there is so much to do, but I have only a little over a month to do it all...!

I spent the week pondering upon why Heavenly Father left me in Nanuque for my last 6 weeks. Not that I don't want to be here , but I kept thinking - What does He want me to do here? As I pondered and prayed to know, a part of a scripture came to my mind - "After much tribulation come the blessings". And I realized that being in Nanuque is His way of blessing me after much service and tribulation. We have many investigators that are progressing, and some of our old investigators that had moved away came back to Nanuque, and the members are super helpful... I really can't complain! I am just thankful that God is allowing me to really make the most of the last bit of time that I have here.

Nobody was baptized this week, but we have a family of 3 that will be baptized on Friday! I know that God lives, and that He answers our prayers. He waits for us to go to Him. He lets us struggle and suffer sometimes, but all that He does is for our eternal benefit. He takes care of His flock.

um abraço

Elder Eric Olsen

ps sorry mom, I literally didn't take a single photo this week!

Last transfer!

This week was hot. I think I will be saying that until the end of December... haha! This week was hot, just as all the others are! The good news is that we cooled it down with water - BAPTISMAL WATER! No but seriously, after our investigator Marcos was baptized, he dipped back down under the water to cool off from the heat! Thank goodness for água.

Other than Marcos' baptism, the week was pretty slow going. We had to travel to Vitória for a meeting, and since we live 9 hours from Vitória, it pretty much killed our week.

In other news, I stayed in Nanuque, so I will spend my last 6 weeks in the same state as Nicholas! Garcia will remain my companion, and we will total 9 months as companions - in Elder Garcia's words, in the time we will have been companions, somebody could have started and finished a pregnancy! I have been blessed to remain his companion; he is a wonderful example and friend to me.

This week I also learned that if you don't read the scriptures, you're in big trouble. I passed a few days without reading because of travel, and I ended up super irritated and not knowing why. When I read the scriptures, I calmed down noticeably. The scriptures have an unexplainable power; they truly are the words of Christ.

uma boa semana

Elder Olsen 

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Well, here goes nothing. My last transfer!

I will be staying here in Uberlândia (!!! 9 months) for the last transfer with my comp Elder Sanchez. But I think it a fitting end, after all this time in this great city that has really become a part of me! So I'm excited.

This week we had a leadership meeting, now our goal for every month is 1000 street contact per missionary, talk to 1000 people! It's a lot, but hearing Pres. Kuceki's confidence in the miracles that will come gave me hope and faith that they really will. It was cool, he said "who knows? if you do contacts here maybe y'all will find someone from another city, in your own area." and as elder Sanchez and I did contacts in the middle of Goiânia, we found a member whose aunt lives in the very neighborhood that we live! It was a pretty impressive experience.

I hope that I can stay strong for these last few weeks! Because to be completely honest I am tired pra caramba hahaha, but I know that the Lord will strengthen me. A great testimony that I have gained on the mission is that as we draw close to Him he draws closer to us.

Love you all! Thanks for everything!

Elder Nick Olsen

Mangos!

Well, the most important thing this week was MANGOS!!! mango season has officially started haha and mango trees are about as common as air here, so there are a ton of people just getting mangos in the street. I ate like 10 this week haha. 

But it was a good week! Our ward had a talent show, and fortunately there were enough people so that I didn't have to do anything. I was pretty nervous, because when things go wrong they always just call the missionaries! haha but everything went perfectly.

The bad news is that we had a baptism marked for Saturday, but on Saturday the girl that was gonna get baptized decided that she didn't really want to and kind of ran away... she went to another city. Haha, could have just told us! But it was kind of sad, someone so ready, who had passed the interview and everything, reject such a beautiful ordinance as baptism. But, c'est la vie.

Another interesting part of my week was study, because I'm taking a little bit of time to read the old testament every day. I'm already in Judges, and let me just say that a lot of stuff happens in the OT that I didn't know about... haha. A LOT.

Love you guys!

Elder Nick Olsen

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I will continue thinking of things to send in an email for the blog, but for now I am really blanking...! But I just wanted to let you know a little about my week:

This week I learned how to make pavê, which is a type of dessert! One day I will make it for y'all. The only problem is that it is a frozen dessert, so I don't know if you would want to eat it in the snow... we'll see!

We had an investigator that, as he walked into church on Sunday, REALLY did not want to be baptized. After the last meeting, he approached my companion and I and said "Wow, I really loved the Church of Jesus Christ! I want to be baptized next Sunday!" So that was a miracle! He could really feel the Spirit - especially during sacrament meeting, he said.

uhh... brazilian food is bland... what else... this week I will travel to Vitória for 2 days, and will get mail from the past 6 weeks! so that is also pretty exciting.

It was not a super special week. But it was wonderful to see the effects of the Spirit in a few of our Heavenly Father's children! I know that the Spirit is real, and, as Ether 4 teaches, if we first believe, spiritual truth will be made manifest unto us.

much love

7 weeks

Elder Eric Olsen

baptisms and testimonies

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! My companion and I celebrated by getting hot dogs - not the traditional celebration, but it was a good time all the same.

We were blessed to be able to help 2 of Heavenly Father's children into the waters of baptism this week - Maria and Larissa. Maria was baptized on Friday, and when we went to see her the next day, she told us that the pains she had felt in her leg for the past 10 years had miraculously disappeared. She told us that she knew she was being directly blessed for her obedience to God's commandments.

It is pretty difficult to get excited about Christmas - I KNOW the season is coming, but it is so hot here...! Nonetheless, I am listening to Christmas music every day!

Also, in the past 3 weeks, 2 youth have returned from their missions in our branch! They are super excited to teach their friends, and we are excited too.

Another young man left for a mission just a few weeks ago - we visit his family each week. It is funny to see his mother - she is so worried and concerned with the well being of her child! I find myself wondering, Does my mother worry about me this much? Don't worry, mom! Everything is fine here. The Lord is preparing people for us to teach, and is working miracle in our area and in the zone. The church seems, at least to me, stronger than it was when we got here.

Above all else, I know that Jesus lives. He is so important. We really need to center our lives in Him for us to truly be happy and have the promise of eternal life. My ponderize scripture this week was John 8:31-32:Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. We will not know the truth (and consequently be made free) until we continue in His word! Or in other words, until we do that which His words instruct us to do. This is the only way to receive real truth and eternal happiness.

boa semana!

Elder Eric Olsen

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SO I have to be quick because I'm here outside of Pday, yesterday was day of the dead and EVERYTHInG was shut haha. Except for a very mais ou menos churrascaria that we went to haha. But it was super mais ou menos.

2 awesome things happened at church that I wanted to share:

1. this is for you mom. I have been playing piano for the past couple of months at church and this little cute old lady called Edinar came up to me and said "thank you so much for playing the piano every week! It's so good to hear the hymns played correctly and beautifully!" Not to be prideful of course, because then I told her that I owe everything i know to my mom! And she said to thank you. So thanks mom!

2. Yesterday, during testimony meeting, our recent convert Marivan (who had invited her daughter to church as well) turned to me and said "I wanna go up but I'm nervous!" and I said lets go up together then! So we went up together, and after I had "buried" my testimony, as I said when I was young haha, she gave a beautiful testimony.

What a joy to have played a part in something so inspiring! I loved to see her happiness that she has come to know from the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. She even said "Every day I learn something else about this church that makes me love it even more." What a blessing.

I love you guys! And I love this gospel! have a great week.

Elder Nick Olsen