Woohoo!! Batismo!!

Helloooo all the way from Itacolumí!!

This week was an adventure for sure! By far the highlight was yesterday at church. We had a baptism of David, a 14 year old boy and he really is a miracle. I'm so happy for him because he's had a bit of a rough home life and the gospel is going to make all the difference in the world. And years in the future, he's gonna look back and see how his life changed because of the gospel. I'm just so happy to have been a part of it and I'm so grateful for this opportunity.

Also, at church, all the talks were about or mentioned in some way the word of wisdom and the investigator that we brought to church, Regina has a problem with smoking. She commented in Relief Society that after today, she will stop smoking. She made up her mind and that was that. She had listened to people testify of how they broke habits they'd had for 30+ years and their testimonies were powerful. Truly, the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ is real and we can overcome habits, addictions, and truly become new people with His help. It is nothing short of miraculous. I was so grateful for the way the Lord worked that day and how the Spirit touched her heart. His hand is in all things.

So, we had a pday with our zone last week and made churrasco (barbeque) (pic below). AND I had it again yesterday in a member's house. Oh! And I had coracão de galinha (chicken heart)! It was good! I wasn't a huge meat eater before the mission, but I totally am now because we have it so much and it is dang good.

My companion and I fixed our shower so now we have hot water again! There were a couple of cold showers but it was just like camping so I was chillin'. Our shower head has this space in it with water and a u-shaped metal coil and that's how it's heated (pictures below) and we had to replace the metal coil because it had come undone at one end and so the current was broken. It was an adventure and I was way proud of us for figuring it all out.

I went shopping and was trying to decide which milk to buy (the cartons were two different colors) and saw the fine print that said 3% gordura (fat) vs 0% and Sister Workman and I immediately thought of the movie Napoleon Dynamite ("I see you´re drinking 2%, is that cuz you think you´re fat? cuz you could be drinking whole if you wanted") and we laughed.

It was a good week, full of adventures and miracles and lots of walking. I love you all!!!

Sister Dobbs

You can work hard and have fun while doing it

Hey friends and family!!!

This week was incredible and poderoso! I got a new companion this week. Her name is Sister Santiago and she's from São Paolo. She's been a member for almost two years, and she's been on the mission for 4 months. She's super energetic, super hardworking, and she's a powerhouse. I can barely keep up with her! She's got this crazy laugh and I love her to pieces. This week was WILD and just full of miracles. It was also one of the most fun weeks on my mission so far!

So, to start off, we're teaching a couple named Tibíriça and Leiliane (his name is way uncommon, even here, so if you're wondering how to say it, just know that everyone has trouble with his name). Their story is pretty incredible. We met him one day at a bus stop and talked with him for a bit, left a pass along card, and got his information to visit another day. Pretty normal stuff. We tried visiting his house but the address was wrong, and no one on that street knew anyone with that name so we just left it and didn't think much of it. One month later, we get a referral from São Paolo, Tibíriça, and we knew it was a sign. We went to try and visit him again, with a new address, and we found him! He was so excited to talk to us. Apparently, he had called the number of the church site to request a Book of Mormon, having heard a little bit about the church before. The sisters at the São Paolo Temple Visitors Center talked to him a bit and sent us his address and it was just so cool. We were truly led to him and I can see the Lord's hand in it all. We began teaching them and they're just so special. They had been through a lot in the last two years and were forced to leave their home in Florianopolis, and I know that the timing in all this was not coincidental. It was really neat to be able to testify to them that amid all that they're going through, the Lord has a plan for them and He is with them through it all. They came to church this Sunday with their two little kids and are going to get baptized not this Sunday but the next and I'm so so happy for them! We've been teaching them for two and a half weeks now and they are like our family. I'm so grateful that the Lord lead us to them and that we could introduce them to the gospel. This gospel really changes lives and makes all the difference.

We had this super cool ward activity on Saturday and it was so so fun! We went to this place called Planatlantica and had churrasco and played some futbol and it was so chill and so fun. My comp and I played with all the men in the ward lol, but it was so much fun. I wasn't super good, but I did make a killer assist in one of our 2 goals. We brought Tibiriça and Carlos, another pesquisador (investigator), to the activity and it was such a great opportunity for them to conhecer (get to know) the igreja (church) in a more casual way and they made lots of friends. The members are awesome and so friendly and inclusive. I love our ward so so much! Another miracle of the activity was that a member brought their neighbor, a 14-year-old named David, and we got to talk to him. He said, straight up, "I've been wanting to get baptized but my old church said I was too young" and we were so shocked/happy and said, "hey that's literally what we do as missionaries, help people prepare for baptism!" He went to church yesterday and is gonna get baptized this Sunday! It's so, so cool to see that truly people are prepared to hear the gospel and "only kept from the truth because they don't know where to find it." The work is incredible here in Brasil and it's just awesome to see it progress. I know that this is the Church of Jesus Christ and that we are in the last days, preparing the world for the Second Coming of the Savior. There are so many people who are ready to change their lives and follow Him and we need to find them and baptize them. It's a powerful thing to witness and I´m amazed every day at the miracles I see.

I love you all so so much! Thank you for your prayers and for your support! I'm really happy here and I know my Savior is with me, bearing me up, in every moment of every day.

Ericka, a dog, that followed us for almost two hours one day, and that found us the next day. I think she wants to help this work too

Me very excited to eat this sacole (popsicle). It was way hot one day and we saw a sign saying they sold sacoles so you know we bought em and had a good time

my awesome new companion

me and some sheep

Ward activity friends: AnnaJulia and Vitoria

Hey y'all!!

Got my first transfer out of the way which is a big yeehaw! My trainer got transferred to a new area which is a little sad because I like her a lot but I'm excited for her. She's going to Novo Hamburgo, which isn't too far from Gravatai where I am. I got a new companion today. Her name is Sister Santiago and she's from São Paolo, Brazil. I'm excited to get to know her. I've heard nothing but great things about her.

One thing that's kinda fun about Brazil/this area is that everyone is super religious. There are churches on almost every street corner; Catholic, Evangelica (Evangelist? Not sure in English), and Jehovah's Witness too. Missionaries from these churches will also go door to door and share the gospel and invite people to church (like we do) so that's kinda fun. We've got some competition, lol. Religion is so ingrained in everything they do here. Fun fact: Brazil even has a state that's called Espírito Santo. Brazil has twenty something states and I'm trying to learn all of them and their capitals. My state is Rio Grande do Sul, land of the gauchos.  Porto Alegre is the capital.

This week I had a reunião in Porto Alegre and I got to see my CTM buddies!!! It was way fun and powerful. I learned a lot and at the end we watched a Holland clip about the conversation Jesus has with Peter where He says "lovest thou me more than these? Feed My Sheep" (John 21). The video is muito poderoso. Y'all should watch it. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/media-library/video/2013-10-1680-lovest-thou-me-more-than-these?lang=eng We have to really decide if we love the Savior more than "these," more than anything else. And we've gotta be willing to follow Him "with full purpose of heart" and never go back,

I love my Savior. That's why I'm out here. That's why  I left everything: home, family, country, friends. I need everyone to know what He did for them so they can feel the immense gratitude I feel for Him. He is our Salvador and He loves us more than we can imagine. He lives today and because of Him, we, too, will live again and have the chance of living with Him for all eternity. I can't imagine a happiness greater than that.

I love you all!
Sister Dobbs

8/5/19

Hi friends and family!!

I´m doing great! Another week down in the mission. They weren't kidding. The time does fly by.

Today was such a fun p-day! We went to subir o morro (climb a mountain/rock) and it was gorgeous. We went with our stake president, his son, and our district. Some parts were like ladders or climbing up rocks, so it was quite the adventure. It was absolutely gorgeous and the pictures do not give it justice.

I'm so so grateful that we have people who are interested and who are progressing in the gospel. It's really cool when you meet people who have been prepared to hear this message and are willing to change their lives to come unto Christ. This work is real, I love my mission and I love you all!!!

Sister Dobbs

July 29, 2019

Hi everyone!!!!!!

Another good week, but it was super cold!! I had to bundle up and wear basically all the clothes I brought. It also rained a TON! One day I got absolutely soaked in 10 minutes while waiting at the bus stop so that was fun. It was a full-on storm, with thunder and lightning and at night it would be so loud. Definitely not what I'm used to living in SoCal but it was so fun to experience. I really love the rain.

For anyone who's wondering about the food, I eat really really good here. Like almost too good. Most of the sisters gain weight here so I'm just accepting that. We have rice and beans every meal, it's the staple, and it's always with some really good meat: chicken, rooster, pig, cow. (I don't know if there's a difference between rooster and chicken as far as taste because I don't notice any, but I just know they always specify galinho or frango). 

One super cool thing that happened was that we talked to a woman in the street but she was in a hurry because it was raining really really hard. I didn't think much of it until the next day we were walking and she called out to us from her little shop on the side of the highway. We talked to her and got to know her and she mentioned that her father had passed away recently, so we taught about the plan of salvation and that death is not the end and we really will see our loved ones again and she started crying. It is so powerful to testify of these truths that we sometimes take for granted to people who have never heard them before. People need to know that they are children of God, that He knows them individually, that they have a Savior Jesus Christ, that God has a plan for their lives, and that we WILL live after we die. I know that these are true and that's what keeps me going. What motivates me to keep working every day is knowing that so many people have yet to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm here to share it with them and invite them to come unto Christ. This is the most important thing I could be doing. And I'm glad I'm here doing it.

Love you all so much. Til next week!
Sister Dobbs

Churrasco e cachorros

Hi everyone!!!

This week was super fun! I finally tried that churrasco (barbecue) that Rio Grande do Sul is famous for and it was incredible. 10/10 would recommend. I had splits this week and got to go to another area with a different companion, Sister Carneiro and it was fun. It was actually a city which was strange and it kind of reminded me of Orlando. We also have lots of dogs (cachorros) in the streets and sometimes they'll follow us. I think they, too, are eager to teach the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.

Spiritual thought: D&C 123:12-17:
12 For there are many yet on the earth among all sects, parties, and denominations, who are blinded by the subtle craftiness of men, whereby they lie in wait to deceive, and who are only kept from the truth because they know not where to find it—
13 Therefore, that we should waste and wear out our lives in bringing to light all the hidden things of darkness, wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven—
14 These should then be attended to with great earnestness.
15 Let no man count them as small things; for there is much which lieth in futurity, pertaining to the saints, which depends upon these things.
16 You know, brethren, that a very large ship is benefited very much by a very small helm in the time of a storm, by being kept workways with the wind and the waves.
17 Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.

Know that we, as missionaries, are part of the greatest work on this earth and that no efforts are too small. If we do all we can, it is enough. I love love love verse 17 and it has been my mantra here on the mish.

I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and He is eager to be a part of our lives if we will just reach out to Him.

Love, Sister Dobbs

Week 2 in the Field!

Hi, everybody!!!

Yes, I'm still alive here in the middle of nowhere! It's still quite cold. Last week we had a couple warm days and they were so, so nice and then we had rain all weekend! It was so, so fun. It rained all of Saturday and all that night and it's been overcast the past two days. I love this weather, it's not super cold and it's not hot and I just think things are so pretty after it rains. We were blessed that when it was raining hardest on Saturday, we were inside for lunch with a family, and that afternoon we were able to escape the rain by going inside someone's house, our friends who are recent converts. Blessings! I wore my rain boots and that made me happy. And I bought these super warm tights so those are my fave.

I'm improving in the language daily. Each day I understand a little more and learn new words. I'm getting better and better at expressing myself and am speaking faster too. I still embarrass myself a ton and there are so many moments where I just feel like I seem so dumb but it's okay, I'm learning. When I really don't understand, I just nod and agree. But, my companion says she can tell when I zone out and don't understand, so I need to work on a facial expression that shows I'm attentively listening, but am also sympathetic to whatever they're telling me, but not one that makes me look overly focused or constipated.

I'm grateful for the opportunity to share this gospel and this good news with everyone. These truths that I share, I believe with my whole heart, and when someone hears them for the first time, it is powerful. We taught the girl who got baptized last week about forever families and what we do inside temples (if you have any questions by the way, ask me or my mom or go to https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/ ). She was so excited about the idea of one day finding someone worthy, getting married and sealed inside the temple for time and all eternity, and creating that forever family of her own. She's just twelve and she was just beaming at this idea. I love testifying of these truths, of how much our Heavenly Father loves us, of all Jesus Christ did and continues to do for us, and of how this gospel can bless our lives and give us hope for a better world to come (Ether 12:4). I know that Christ knows each of our struggles personally and intimately and He is there for us in every moment, if we open our heart and turn to Him. So, turn to Him! Invite Him into your life. He will make all the difference.

I love you all and I hope you're all doing well!
Sister Dobbs