Jan 28 late addition: Well lets see how this goes

old mail dated:  January 28, 2013
thought that I had put this on but I just realized that I did not! 

Well Bad news I forgot my planner and so I do not have the notes on what I did this past week forgive me if my letter does not sufice. I am sendeing a bunch of pictures so you better all love me for that in the least.

Lets explain some pictures shall we...Well lets start with the Lake that you see in the picture with me and my comp that is part of our area we decided to visit a little touristy town that is part of our area but is a bus ride away and there are no active members there just 1 or 2 inactives. so we went to go check it out to see of we should begin to work there. this is us stopping to eat the pack lunches we made. its beautiful and the cool thing is they actually had pine trees here so we were in heaven with all the smells of the moutains. It was not too good for the work lots of abandoned houses and women in baithing suites I dont think we will go back anytime soon.

 

 

 

today as you will see we went with a buch of other elderes and sisters to to lake park this and took some pictures threw a frisbee and so forth I also bought knew shoes and gave my old pair who had been with me through many a soccer game and many adventures a propper burial as you will see from the photos.

 

 

 

The picture the Elder in the shower is a new idea from other elder that washing your cloths with you in the shower is more effecient. Washing clothes by hand does take a long time but builds character right? I have been doing it now for a while so I am really use to it.

 

 Bracelets from home....The grey is for Fletcher who has type I diabetes....the green/blue is for our dear friend and Brady's Priest Quorum advisor who passed away from Cancer September 2011.  It says "Hope for Hegewald!"

 Brady's watch tan:)  Always has to wear sunscreen!

Elder Minter..Coca Cola is everywhere:)

 

anyway this wierd picture of the house with snow white and the 7 dwarves os on the small town Lagos del Norte aswell.

 

This week was a good one it went by crazy fast I love my companion such a good guy we get along really well. (Woth travelong out to that small town and everywhere else we went ot just shot by.)  I have no idea what that was mean to say....We have an investigator I do not know If I told you about her name is Juanita and she is the wonderful mother of a recent convert from monetivdeo who came back to visit her mom and brought her to church. Well we have been teaching her now and it is going very well. She did not go to church last week but she is good.  She needs to change some habbits but we´ll get there. WE actually cooked Tacos in her house Saturday night and it was super fun and super yummy they really liked them which was good. We are working with her to be baptised next month should be good.

Oh something I forgot to mention is I got Moms package and also from Grandma and Grandad thank you so much I need all those things and yes I need to write more letters i´m on it.

All I can say is I love you I love you all. Tate I may have promised your hand in marriage but dont worry he is a goodlooking stud who walks to church by himself every week the only member of his famoly lives with his older siblings and does everything for himself. 15 years old His name is sebastian such a worthy awesome guy. It os crazy to me the opposition this kid faces and how great of a kid he really is. REmeber him when thigs are tough. remeber that every one of out family atleast have another memeber of it to help on the path.

I love you all so so much I pray for you all I will write letters

I am keeping a great journal

I love you all

Elder Steawrt-Chester

ps. Elder Brigham Jenkins you stud see you in a year

Well.

Buenos Dias... I just realized that it is probably early morning where you are all at. crazy not gonna lie I love you all like crazy I pray for you all often and trust me I pray a ton on the mission. I love you all for each and every piece of me that is made up with pieces stories lessons advice love from each of you I am extremely blessed.

This week was just an all around killer week here In Rivera for us here. We worked super hard I gave the lord even more and it showed because people went to church!!! Juanita I´m glad you asked mom is doing well she just has her fears of comitting to baptism. She wants to know that it is right first but she is not putting forth enough effort to get her answer from God. She actaully went to Montevideo to visit her daughter who is the member of our Church who is studying there. She went a baptism there and we are hoping that all went wonderful. We are teaching two young girls who are the friends of a member and we are really hoping that they keeping coming and we can help them learn a better way to live. I love the opportunity I have to teach things like the Law of Chastity and the word of wisdom becuase I have seen so many sad things that have happened in this world through these things that I love teaching young people so they can be stronger happier and have faith. I love the gospel.

Well my first District meeting was well.... I did not like it that much the room was freezing and I just did not like the way it came out in the end. But I learned a lot from it. I mainly just needs to come from the spirit I always write a ton of notes and then when it comes down to it. I dont even look at them. So Tommorrow is going to be way better. I am going to talk mainly about how to invite the sprit into the lesson. It is going to be more of a group descussion It should be great I pray.

We have Zone conference this week which will be great. I´`m excited one of my best friends here in the mish is a zl in the other zone. That will be good to see him.

My district are awesome we had 4 baptisms this last week so Friday I ran around and gave interviews to all 4. They were were all teenage girls for some reaon but wow every single one had a string testimony I told one in the interview that my sister was 17(it still scares the heck out of me) and that she was planning on a mission. I asked her if she would like to go on a mission. She said she would love that. It was an amazing experience to see so much light and exitement for their baptisms the next day. The church is true fowlks.

I find myself with less and less time every week now that I have more responsabilities. I need to write so many people but I get home and there is just no time forgive me all you wonderful people. Listen I am heading home ealier now to write some letters so maybe I´ll get some done. Elder McCraney is the best He called me today... Such a good missionaryI miss the guy a ton he told me he gave his last testimony and balled I will ball aswell I can already tell you that.

We did a "Choque de Fuerza" this last sunday which is we went to one elders area and just got to work we all went contacting trying to help them in their area. It went really well I think I am going to do it every sunday to keep everyone working super hard.

It was a super happy week for me I went on divisions with Elder Brown our ZL and I felt like it was there that the lord wanted me to get my answer of what I needed to do more and that was be like I was when I started the mission talk with everyone smile at everyone and just open my mouth. It was a really good day there and we had more that followed. I went on divisions with elder Goeckeritz and we had a really good day aswell the next day. Just working hard it felt wonderful.

I just love the lord and I am so grateful for all that I have been given. It is freaking me out how fast the mission is going. in may I will be calling home again..... what hapened to january and Febuary.. I just have to work harder than ever. It goes too fast. I love it here

I love you all be safe. Listen to that still small voice even when it is inconvienent it will never lead you on a wrong path.

Elder Stewart-Chester

ps. Fletch read your scriptures man. wait till your 16 to date and dont waist time on the stupid things when there are so many great things in this world. Take Teddy and Bo Sledding! What I wouldn´t give to be able to do that. Be a disciple of Jesus Christ

Well Well Well

Every week I feel like it gets harder and harder to write home.  I have become so used to mission life that I forget what its like to not have 9 mice in your house, have to wash all your clothes by hand, and shower with and always use flip flops so I am never without shoes. You kinda just forgetting what it is like to be home you eat sleep and dream about the mission. 

This week... well... we worked extremely hard one of my personal opinions about the mission is people have stopped contacting knocking doors because Elder Oaks said we should work with inactives.   My last comp was big on this but now that I am here with someone who has never been in this area we hit the pathment hard between every lesson we had and well we actually found some pretty good people. I love to work hard I love to say ok 1 more house and then right after ok just one more. 

My comp is Elder Nilsson and yes he is from  Alberta Canada. He actually came with me to the mission at the same time but went to provo so I did not get to know him all that well. He is super Quiet yes Daniel Elliott more quiet than even you. But its good we do a lot more talking about those we are teaching and the mission and less talking about things at home. 

We found a person the other day knocking at 8:45 again:) that is when you find all the miracles right before the very end. The people are pretty evangelist here there tons of christian churches that people just set up in their garage and then they invite the neighborhood and they do lots of singing. My only complaint is I wish they sang better hahah. But it is good lots of work to do.  Our area is a little harder than some and we are trying to stregthen the branch but it is tough delicate work. There are lots that need to read Elder Bednars Talk about not being offended that is for sure. 

Being a District leader I am not going to lie is strange I was always watching my comps as they did it all and now I realize it is very different than than I thought it was. The Elders in my district are awesome I have been really blessed all of them are working hard. I will have to do my first 4 baptismal interviews this Friday which will be something new for me. and Tomorrow I will be teaching District meeting should be great I am going to use a lot of things some from the Talk from Elder Hastings that blew my mind it said everything I have ever wanted to say and more. and than also stories from Bro. Griner. and PMG. I´m exited. Wow that reminds me I have to do divissions tomorrow I need to pray and find out who.    

Something I´m personally working on right now is Charity and just blooking for the good in people and not talking about the bad. I have had some hard changes and it has made me hard in some areas but I find myself loving more serving more and just not telling  others the bad only the good. It is like the Tonge of angels talk by Elder Holland where he talks about how the tong controls everything. I Love the mission I love you all too. I think often of the people who have impacted my life in such small ways primary teachers. sunday school teachers so so many people. I think of Elder Rigby because to me he will always be elder Rigby GOd sometimes takes the best to be with him sometimes I feel. So its a good thing hge wont be coming for me anytime time soon. hahah. I love the Plan of Salvation my Companion and I were talking the other day about the world as a whole. We came to the conclussion that if people understood the importace of the plan of salvation the importance of all that the father has given us in his plan they would obey any commandment. And if us as missionaries could fathom the importance of what we are doing we would be far more powerful missionaries. We are here to save the world. I was teaching it the other day. we taught a teenager and we were saying it is as simple as this we are here because we want you to go to the celestial kingdom we want you to have the best be the best you can be.... 

I love the truth and the truth is the Church is true if anyone would read the Book of mormon and then go kneel in prayer they would know too.

I love you all be strong and lift others there are many who need it. 

Elder Stewart-Chester

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Well well well changes...are you excited!!!!

Changes are here and well I´m staying here wwwwoooot 

I have a new companion he is from Canada his name: ELder Nielson

and I am District Leader crazy huh

Ya came as pretty a surprise to me for sure but I am exited for sure I love Rivera and I am exited to be able to help other elders in our mission. 

But that is enough of that I do not have much time but lets see this week was a tough one a tough one for sure honestly I think 2 thirds of all our lessons fell through this week for some reason or other. Right now it is the time of a giant Brazilian Holiday called Carnival which is just women in underwear or nothing dancing so everyone is on vacation pretty much and everyone of our investigators stayed up far too late saturday and destroyed our attendence in the branch. 

However we still had one heck of a charla with Juanita our best investigator for the moment. One of the most amazing charlas I think I have ever had in the mission. Our investigator Juanita has been talking to other family members about the church about all she has been learning and well she invited 5 family mebers to a lesson and we had a member and everything and we taught about the resteration and I have never had a group that big listen so intently to the message. The spirit was powerful and I think there could be an amazing new family in the branch. The intresting thing is they were all women just goes to show women are so much better than the rest of us guys. They look for the spiritual things so much more than we. 

Ok Now get this about Sebastian.. So he loves to go out and go to lessons with us and so we take him quite a bit we were trying to get him to bring a young girl to church becuase he is a studly guy but anyway. So after a couple of lessons fell through he asked us hey will you come over and help me with my Duty to God..... so we did this kid was baptised less that a year ago he lives with only his older brother who is 20 something and so we get there and he had already been doing a lot of it on his own. We asked his who he had been doing it with becuase you need more than 1 person becuase there is a part about sharing what you learn. He told us oh Mauro the only other active young man in the ward with a active family I couldn´t believe the goodness of that young guy. He has no one and is just so good by himself. I never got my Duty to god what a looser. Seba goes with a couple of other mebers and makes food and sells it so that he can go to the temple aswell. What an amazing kid no!!?? 

I gotta go I have things to do it is the last day for my comp here so I gotta go I also played with a baby pitbull ther other day

I love you all I hope you enjoy the photos I will talk to you next week 

Elder Stewart Chester

Views of Uruguay..

 

Zone conference....

But anyway some of the pictures yes I bought a sweet pancho me and my comp:)

 '

So hot I come home sweaty and drenched most days!!!

um THe picture of the kid on the couch is Sebastian the one I want Tate to marry. I´ll talk about him later.

Our Bug Strip...yuck

  and oh that is us an average day on the Bus all crammed together. We take busses everywhere.

then you´ve got pictures of Burger king wooper it may not mean anything to you guys but to us here its gold.

 Brady said there are soo many stray animals dogs and cats...it is really sad, but the only positive is that they get to play with lots of puppies and kittens...This is his companion Elder Nielsen from Alaska

those are some families in the ward that are awesome.

 

 

 

No pictures this week, maybe next week!

Well I really just want to tell you all that I love you all. I find it hard to tell you all why I am so happy all the time. I just am I love being a missionary if they ask me to go help open the China mission when I get home sorry I would have to go:) they wont do it but maybe.... 

First off next week is changes and it is going to be a really short change only 4 weeks becuase they are setting us up on the same schedual as the MTC and so we are losing 2 weeks... I have been waiting to tell you because well I dont really like it because well they are taking 2 weeks from my mission and well I want to extend my mission so we´ll see what happens there is a long time still until that time. 

any way where do you start about my week.... well we had interviews with presidente this last week tuesday and they were awesome I cannot really explain how my presidente is but all you have to do is picture one of the nicest men you know who is just filled with charity and then thats him. We spent the entire interview laughing.. you would think he would ask questions about my progress etc but just in the short 10-12 min he just talks and he asks about life and things about the mission often I feel as though he already knows he can tell in our eyes the spirit about us our love for the lord and that is how the interview is dictated. 

It is Hott!!! I mean Ben and MAtt definately have it worse but still the himidity kills It is my number 1 enemy here in the mission. everywhere you go soaked:) rained a bit though the other day so luckily its not too bad right now. 

We had a water activty the other day we used the water balloons you gave me Mom and we threw them across the feild with towells catching them back and forth. they loved it! huge success for sure. We were going to have a slip and slide but someone threw away the tarp we had bought and stuck together and so we could not make it happen the kids would´ve flipped they would´ve been so happy.

My companion killed a mouse the other day that was destroying our house. do you know one of those electric fly swatters that are like rackets? well he smacked it with the rackets and well yep killed it we had been trying to get him for a while. 

We had an amazing family home eve lesson the other day and I actually met an angel on earth her name is Victoria and she is 7 and does not have very good use of her legs she had a problem as a baby and well it  left her like that. She was the neighbor of an inactive family we are working with and we shared an awesome visual lesson with them and then watched the Scripture videos for little kids. they loved it. My comp and I  as we talked to this little girl that wants to walk so bad she has a walker thing and she walks around with the weels and support. She spoke way older than 7 and I was remainded often of president monsons talk when he went to this sick little girls house to give the blessing and they fell to the floor due to the spirit. This little girls faith was tangable made me look at life very differently I wanted to adopt her and take her home. She is an angel on earth.

WE are having some trouble with some of our investigators that just do not want to come to church so we are going to start leaving some strong commitments and then look for those the lord will put in our path. We are still teaching Juanita and she is awesome she is inviting like everyone in her family to come to church with her and to listen to the missionaries aswell. can you believe that Juanita likes like 1 street away from our house. Looks like we were ment to teach her right now.

Anyway I love you all be safe go on missions love the lord give the lord a little more each day and find those that are suffering and lift them up . Nothing is better than that in this world. 

Elder Stewart-Chester

ps. Fletch someone here in the cyber is playing mine craft game with all the cubes ya thought of you little bro

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life in riviera

 

 

Dear every one of you HOw have you been these days?

I hear that there is a bad sickness going arround down (I think he meant up:) there? anybody sick? Ok first off to answer your question mom,  no I still have not bought new shoes. I went today to look. I  took out money and everything but I just could not find anything I liked.  I am very picky when it comes to futbol shoes. But I´m looking.

My week hmmm... it was a good one. I am getting better at understanding portugues. I dont speak it very much because everyone understands spanis, but it is really fun to speak. We say it sounds like spanish with your mouth full of food hahhaa. But mostly it is fun to speak the way they accent everything. We actually found a lady who only speaks portugues yesterday tracting in a remote part of our area.  yaaaa I know my shoes are detroyed.   Its just when you have something for so long you get attached.

Sorry all the different windows I have pulled up just phych me out trying to write this email is intresting.

I think I might pull a Ben and Matt today and write something spiritual, but first I´ll tell you a little of my week.

Something that happened this week that was super well awesome was we met a professor who was communist, a very open young guy. He let us in and we had one of the craziest lessons of my mission. It was one of those lessons where at the end you wonder to yourself maybe that was why I was sent to this mission. I felt God putting words in my mouth. bringing up things I had learned from my life and it was such an insane lesson. The crazy thing was yes he was comunist but he is Christian as well. He explained about how he believed that Christ taught communism etc. We talked about the law of consecration and prophets and it went back and forth. His wife was also there listening to us both go back and forth. We talked about Dogmas and how we both were dogmatic and so much I cannot put in an email. But in the end he said ok what advice would you give me and I just stumbled through my words until god just put the words in my mouth I talked about the will of God and how that is the most important thing there is and I invited him to read the Book of MOrmon... after that he was like wow that was so clever you left me no room to say anything. He literally was one of the best informed men I have met here. It was insane He may come to our church of of these days the problem is he goes to achurch that is very different I cant really explain it well in email but they believe in letting spirits mof light almost like angels into your body. So we´ll see where it goes from there. other things that happened were it rained the day of our activity after we had filled tons of water balloons and made a slip and slide so we had to change the activity.  Then we also saved a kitten in the street on divisions. I went with an Elder that recently began his mission. a really good guy but it just reinforced the fact in my mind that I am an older elder in the mission... crazy.

I also met two elders from the brazil mission today. Twas nuts.

Anyway, I have been thinking and praying about all of you my family much especially my family that has been on the move for the bazillionth time. First I´m ok with it I get in-state tuition. But I have been praying for you all. This morning I studied up about how to feel the spirit and understand where he needs you to go. As a people I think we worry so much about this searching and searching wanting sure answers but what I have found in my mission more often than not its just thoughts that jump into your mind. I have found that God works through small and simple things. There are things I cannot wait to do now that I am here and think about all of you. First will be to teach Fletch how to become the biggest stud before he even enters into the MTC. I have learned so much I cannot wait to bless the lives of others Fletcher, Teddy, Tanner and Flynn will all be the best missionaries in their missons. I have been thinking of way to send you comfort in hard times but all I feel is the need to send my love your way. Remember its another adventure another day and more lives to impact and make a difference. We spend so much time worrying about the stupidest things in our short lives but the truth is being far away I have come to realize that I Love my family so much and should´ve spent more time with each of them. I have found the importance of each and every one of the actions we do every day and how we can make a huge difference in the life of someone else just filling them with our love.

I spoke on Sunday and almost cried in front of our branch but the tears did not fall. I talked about Presidents Monson's talk in the Priesthood session about seeing in others how they can become. I teared up talking about about the love for the mission and for the amazing experience of seeing someone change.

The CHURCH IS TRUE. I know it I live it I LOVE IT. I love my MOM I almost cry in every lesson where I talk about how she put me where I am today. I love you all. I feel your prayers I hope you feel mine. Keep your head up and love the Journey like mom says!

Those are all the fotos of me and my comp in all the greenery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

countryside in riviera

 

 

 

   Brazillian Money....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elder Stewart-Chester