Happy Valentine's Day

So this week went by slow, but yet really fast, it’s hard to explain. So I received my package last week, and I know you said to wait until valentine's day, but can I open my package today? So we had transfers last week, and everything went smoothly, nobody missed their bus, and I was able to do all the paperwork for the newbies, everything worked out! Which was good since Tuesday was a holiday because Carnival. So this transfer I have made it a goal to make sure all missionaries have a CPF which is like a social security number in Brazil. The other thing is I am getting all missionaries to sign this paper and get a seal thing on it saying that it is their signature, this will enable us here in the office to be able to go out and get stuff and do stuff for them. So things are going good in the office, I just want to really get as much stuff organized as possible so we can get out and meet members and investigators. So we all stayed the same here in the office, the only difference is that Elder Cardenas is going to train Elder Sierras to be the new financial secretary. The office is really clicking now, we work super hard and smart, but we always have lots of fun. We always goof around and joke around, for example Elder Sáenz always like to make fun of the Spain Spanish accents, or should I say my Spanish accent. Out is district is awesome, the APs are now in our district, so it's the office Elders and some of the sisters that are here on the island. We are looking for a new apartment so the APs will be living with us, and our apartment will be the mission apartment, where all of the Elders come and stay while here in Florianopolis. I am very excited for this transfer!

It has been Carnival this week, it is crazy, it is bizarre, weird, etc. We didn’t go out much, because the whole center of Florianopolis was like crazy with people and not in a good way. So Sunday our Haitian friend that we found last week that is a member, brought 3 friends with him to church. Member missionary work is easy if we just invite our friends. Our friend Fernando, is going through some really tough times. He is from Uruguay, he is away from his family, and just having a lot of issues, please pray for him. So this week we met with Paulo and Sueli a few times. Early in the week we met with them and they also are going through a lot of trials and issues. It was pretty intense, but we read with them and talked about the gospel. Later in the week we returned to see how they were doing, and the things were a lot better, there are still things they are overcoming, but you can see when we put God in our lives things get better. They are so awesome I love that family so much!! We also visited Priscilla, it was a really good visit, she is starting to understand the Book of Mormon and why we have it in conjunction with the bible.

One thing I learned this week, that I heard President say is “Once you have lost your liberty, you can only gain it back through blood, the atonement of Jesus Christ” Only through Christ can we gain back our Liberty. This teaching just really stood out for me this week, and I actually used it with some of our investigators.

We taught a lot of less actives, and what I learned from the missionary conference from a few weeks ago, was that a lot of times we need to teach less actives like investigators. So that is what we did, we taught them about the Plan of Salvation, I just love teaching this. The spirit is always strong when we talk about having a Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ, and why we came to earth. I just love it!

One thing I really learned and have taken to heart from this last conference was a message from Elder Redlund, about how we have to truly love those we serve. We have to look at them through the eyes of their parents, the eyes of Heavenly Father, and just love them for who they are, understand them, and just love and serve them with unconditional love.

Congratulations Justin, way to go man, way to beast it up. That is so awesome you took 3rd in the State. Keep working your butt off, I can’t wait to get home and work with you and see you next year beasting it up. I love you so much Bro.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST FAMILY EVER!

Thanks for the pics this week!

Love you guys! Read the scriptures! pray!

Tchau!
Elder JT Moore

My Valentine's Package - My Mom loves me so much!!!

I love you too, and miss you all

Happy Valentine's Day XOXOXO

Doing work and getting organized in the Office

Well another week has flown by here in the office. I have been trying to get more organized with the documents of foreigners, with their ID cards and CPF numbers and renewing visas! I am working my butt off and time just flies by, but everything in the office is getting organized. I even built a really good relationship with the people at the police station where we do Visa paperwork. The package you sent arrived on Tuesday, so I will wait until Valentine’s Day to open it. You guys did awesome on the package, it was super heavy but didn’t get taxed at all. Other packages that come here that don’t weigh even close get super taxed, so props to you for sending it correctly.

Dad, I just wanted to say thank you so much, that video you sent I will Prepare the Way about 1 Nephi 17:32, about the faith Nephi had in building a ship and how it applies to our lives and how we should follow the promptings in missionary work was awesome! Actually last Sunday for lunch during our lunch message I shared it with the family, and it was great! I had always liked that scripture, but I had never viewed the rest of the chapter in that way. The family that fed us are so nice, you can tell that they have a lot of love for the missionaries.

We have a new Elder here in the office Elder Salomão is Elder Keller’s new companion. He is going to help a lot with the work in the ward and bridging relationships. He is a a great missionary, he is 26 years old from Cape Verde. We have the best-est district in the whole mission! All of the office staff and the sisters from Rio Tavares. The last week we also had Elder Delaney here in the office helping out, he was companions with Elder Zamorano who finished up his mission and had to go home a few weeks early because of his visa expiring. Elder Delaney has helped out a ton with all of the preparations for transfers this coming week. Elder Sierras has taught me how to get packages out from the post office without having to pay the huge fines. So now I am in charge of that process and getting them to the missionaries. I have also been learning and helping Elder Cardenas with the reimbursement of things missionaries send into the office.

We have been teaching some awesome families, we taught Paulo and Sueli and Ana Vitoria (their little daughter that is super cute and sweet). They are awesome! We taught them all about the Book of Mormon, it was a really cool lesson and we had a member there with us. We went and picked them up on Sunday to go to church, and they really liked it. We have also been teaching Fernando, Prisila, Hector, Arsene and his friends. Arsene and his friends are Haitians, he is a member, he has been here in Floripa for about 5 months but didn’t know where the church was. They live on the mainland, but they are part of our ward, so they have to travel some distance and cross the bridge to get to the church here on the island. He speaks Spanish, but I have a hard time now trying to speak Spanish, it is going to be hard for me when I get back to switch over. We are doing good but we always need to be searching for the elect to teach.

Yes it was great to see that Lucas and Eli got married and were able to be baptized. Elder Choate called me on their baptism day and let me know, and then I got to see a picture of their baptism. That is so awesome, I am excited for them.

So this week I was studying Alma 50, and the importance of preparing, covenants, unity, and the importance of parents teaching their children!

I also learned 3 new words but I have already forgotten what 2 of them were... sorry I gotta write them down throughout the week. One of the words was lantejoula, it means Sequin, Ana Vitoria taught me that one hahaha.

Remember to do the small things, read the scriptures, pray, and serve one another,
Love you all very much,

Tchau,
Elder JT Moore

Saying bye to Elder Zamorano

Me, E. Zamorano, and E. Cardenas

Office Elders and the ones going home

Our district meeting

Have to love it here, it is always raining

Plan of Salvation and Eternity

Hola Familia,
So let's jump in and start talking about the week, on Saturday we met this guy on the street named Fernando, he is from Uruguay. Anyways, he has been going through some really tough times, but had gone to church before and really liked how he felt there, so he asked us if he could go to church with us, we said of course, and on Sunday he showed up and really liked it. On Sunday we had lunch with Daniel and Leilane, they are an awesome family, that really live the gospel. One thing I have learned out in the mission is there are awesome families that I have learned from, each area has a few of them, and I have taken different aspects of them and wrote them down as to what I want my family to be like. They are one of those families that I have learned a lot from. On Monday we taught Fernando about how the gospel can bless our lives if we are doing what we are supposed to. We then taught a young family, Paulo and Sueli and their 5 year old daughter Ana Vitoria. They are a really great family, they are originally from Sao Paolo. We talked about the Plan of Salvation, since the husband lost his mother and brother some time ago. Tuesday, I went and did visas and everything went really well, no issues at all. We also visited Fernando, we promised him if he would start reading the scriptures, go to church, and pray, that things would get better for him. The next day he texted us and told us that he got a job, that he would call us to set up our next appointment. He thanked us for helping him, even though it wasn’t us, we were just the messengers, he was the one that started doing what the Lord wants us to do. Daniel went with us to do visits on Wednesday, and one of the people we were going to visit live at the top of this really steep hill that we have to climb lots of steps. I felt bad for Daniel, but he is awesome and went with us to the top, when we got there they weren’t home. So we were a little bummed and started heading down, as we get a little ways down the family showed up, so we went back up. Daniel was like see Elders, it was just a trial of our faith, God just wanted to see if we truly were willing to sacrifice to see this family. It was a great lesson, and now the family has friends in the ward. On Thursday we met Hector and taught him about the Plan of Salvation, the spirit was really strong during the lesson. We also met with Fernando, who again started to thank us, but again we explained it wasn’t us, we are just the Lord’s messengers. What gets me sad, and I have seen it a lot out here on the mission and also studying the scriptures, that people will do what the Lord wants them to do and their lives are blessed, but then they will quickly forget and return to their old habits and things start going bad again. He is planning to come to church again on Sunday, so hopefully he remains strong and continues to do what he needs to do.

On Saturday we went out to eat at this really cool restaurant, Fornaria Catarinense or something like that, with President and the Elders that are going home, E. Fernandez, Zamorano, Jopia, and Gomes. It was a super cool pizza place that was really nice (and probably expensive). It was a good night spending it with these Elders. I am so grateful for this time I have to serve as a missionary, and the people I get to meet and spend time with and learn from.

Well It has been really hot and super humid this last week. Yesterday it felt like I was swimming when I was walking the streets, I was soaked with sweat in no time. You are either sweating or wet from the rain, either way it seems that when we are out on the streets we are wet.

I love you guys a lot, don't worry to much about me it’s going to fly by and I will have eternity with you guys, so I gotta finish off strong and help other families have these eternal blessing too!

You all are the best!

Love you,
Elder Moore

Last super with E. Fernandez, Zamorano, Jopia, and Gomes

Last super with E. Fernandez, Zamorano, Jopia, and Gomes

Office selfie, little goofy looking #needtoworkonmyselfiegame

Visiting a family, companionship selfie #selfiegamestilloff

Reverse district picture, Elders in front Sisters in the back

He knows each and everyone of us

Well another week has come and gone, and it was a great fun week. The assistants stayed with us almost this whole week to get ready for the Christmas conferences, so it was fun talking and hanging with them. I am enjoying the office very much and I am getting pretty good at all of the stuff that I need to do. In fact just this upcoming week I am in the process of renewing 3 visas and 2 are going to be done with the new procedures, but I am honestly very calm now and now I don’t worry too much. We prepared for the Christmas conferences most of the week on top of our normal tasks we have to do. With Christmas being on Friday, we have had to move up on transfer preparations which are on the Monday following Christmas. We need to have everything done beforehand. This is going to be a big transfer with 17 coming in and 9 going home.

First off, Sunday was great we had 7 investigators at church it was really good. We are only currently teaching a few of them so we have a lot of work of ahead of us. A lot of them were friends of members or family members of active members. Our ward mission leader, Pedro, is on fire, he talked about the ward mission plan, he is awesome and is a huge help with the work. He goes with us on a lot of our lessons and is just a big help. While we were out early in the week we met Leia. Later in the week we had a meeting with her, she is super cool and we had a really good lesson, we talked about eternal families and she really really liked it. We talked about the Book of Mormons we set up another appointment with her, and we are going to go back to see if she read the Book of Mormon.

We had a good FHE with a few different families in the ward. We talked about “A profile of a prophet” by Hugh B Brown. I really like this talk. Here is a really good story that happened prior to that FHE.

God really knows each and everyone of us and knows our sorrow and our pains, and knows how to lift us up. At this time in the mission, the mission is awesome, the office is awesome, but the missionary work lately has been tough. This whole week has been tough as far a missionary work has gone. A lot of our appointments have fallen through and it has just gotten me down in the dumps. Anyways as we went to the FHE, and as we were walking down the street I was feeling really down, and as we approached the house for the FHE a song came on the radio really loud in the house next door. This was the same song that helped me out so much back in eighth grade when I was going through my weird depressed stage, when mom would have to come pick me up from school because all I wanted to do was sleep, and we would go to Wendy’s, it was a song that helped me out a lot during that time. Anyways when I heard this song it was a moment for me that really clicked, God knows us so well, he knows me so well! and what I needed at that moment. Out of all of the songs that have ever been made in the whole wide world that song would be played in a country that is thousands of miles away, a song that is really old, in a house right next to me, I was like I know God knows me and loves me, and this is how simple it was for him to lift me up and cheer me up, it made my week!!! I am so thankful for a loving Heavenly Father!

So the mission Christmas conference was similar to last year and was a blast. We went to the office and got all the stuff for the conference. President gave a great spiritual message, then he went over our ward’s missionary plan, that he is going to use for all of the wards in the mission, titled “UM” POR FAMÍLIA EM 6 MESES, (A Family in 6 months). Then we did the white elephant gifts. Super fun, I love playing that game. I ended up getting a mug with the Floripa logo on it. We had a ton of fun seeing everybody, some companions I haven’t seen in a long time. Our zone made matching skirts and ties, we have great unity. We played the normal Xbox games, board games, checkers, and ping pong. So I realized I will definitely need the gym when I get back! After playing tennis on the Xbox Kinect and finally beating my mission President, my shoulder is super sore just from playing. I am SOOOOO out of shape. But I did beat the President (2 out of 3), which no ever does, so my mission is accomplished. The unwritten rule is whoever beats him gets to pick the next area he gets to serve in, however the Mission President said I would choose the office! hahaha.

Mom I just want to say that I am very grateful that you always write me a TON of questions, I know it means you worry, care, and love me so much!!!!!!! But truthfully I am very healthy, so don’t worry anymore.

We are going to President's house on Christmas eve (what they celebrate here more than the actual day) and then Christmas day with a family in the ward and having a BBQ!

I can’t wait to talk with you all on Christmas day, one of my last two calls before I see you in person. We will do Google Hangouts at noon our time in the office.

Love you all very much! Remember to always do the little things! Share the Gospel!

Besos, Tchau, Tchau,
Elder JT Moore

At the Christmas Conference

Elder Cardenas playing checkers against President

Checkers at Christmas Conference

Me and Elder Sulivan

Me and Elder Blanchard

Christmas Conference

Me and Elder Fernandez

The mug I won during the white elephant

The Guaratuba Crew

Elder Cardenas cool gift

Christmas Conference

Our matching skirts and ties

Ward Mission Plans

The Office "Elv"ders

Enjoy the Ride, because it's the Ride that is Fun!

Another fast week that has passed in the mission. I am getting more comfortable more and more each week with things I have to do here in the office. The only things that gets me a little nervous is that an American is coming directly from Provo, so I will have to register her here in Floripa. Usually the 1st one is done in Sao Paulo but since she just got her visa at the end of her time in Provo she will just come straight here. E. Betts will already be gone so that will be some fun. We are getting ready for transfers. There is still a lot of things I need to do better, organization, planning, and patience. There are a TON of computer things I need to learn, man Dad, I wish I had learned a lot more things about computers from you before I had left. Little did I know, how much I would be needing these skills. Also I have learned that I just have to strive to do Heavenly Father's will no matter what, because he knows what's best for me. Also to love people more, love them no matter what, even with all their defects because we all have them, and you just have to see them for who they can become and not who they are at the moment. Dad always says the mission is like a roller coaster, and here in the office it has been a bumpy ride with a lot of ups and downs, right now I am on a little down slope, but honestly it is very small and I know I am going to have a big climb coming up, so I am so excited!

Today we are going to be making a video entitled "District 3 - The Office". In "Preach My Gospel" there are videos, entitled District 1 and 2, that are used to teach us different aspects of missionary work. So we here in the office decided we would make one showing what missionaries in the office do. I truly didn't realize everything that the missionaries did in the office until I was called here. To be honest, I thought they didn't do much, how wrong I was about that! There is so much work that is done to make things easier for all of the elders and sisters. I don't think everyone realizes how much is done behind the scenes, so that is why we are making the video. It will be funny also, since we all have a lot of fun and joke around here in the office.

So we have been working with this one family here, and a while back we set a challenge with them on reading the Book of Mormon and who can finish first. This past week they came to church it was so awesome to see them there, it had been quite a while since they had gone and when we checked on their reading one of them was on 1 Nephi 17 and the other on 1 Nephi 15. We were so excited for them. It is so true when we are reading the Book of Mormon daily and working to get better at it we will automatically get better, and we will start doing the things we need to do. It is so simple. I loved that talk by President Uchtdorf that you talked about in the email dad. We just need to keep the gospel simple and it is very simple. I think we complicate it and that is when we get messed up. Our Presidents email this week was also awesome, he talked about simplifying the missionary worked and it helped me a lot.

So the funny story for the week was that we smashed a cake into Elder Betts face for his birthday on Wednesday that was pretty fun and funny!" The new word/phrase that I learned this week was liberação de bagagem. I learned it with the missionaries going home, I guess it translates to liberation of baggage I guess is how you say it. It is how much weight they are able to bring home on the plane.

So the big decision this week was whether or not to resole one of my pair of shoes, or buy a new pair. With the exchange rate right now, I went with buying a new pair of shoes. They are very nice and comfortable, I will still probably resole one of my other pair of shoes, and I will be good to go for the rest of the mission.

So just a few things I ask for this week, 1. Send a big handshake to the Godinhos they are a awesome family. 2. Include in your prayers that this ward will be prepared to make the change and catch fire with missionary work. 3. Please read as a FAMILY “Preach My Gospel” especially chapter 9, the importance of members!! and share it with other members in the ward. 4. For Family Home Evening this week please study this talk, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2005/10/becoming-a-missionary?lang=eng

Have a great week! Do the little things, love one another, do missionary work it’s the best medicine!
Happy anniversary Mom and Dad!
Love you all very much,
Elder JT Moore

E. Betts and I working hard

Our District, just having fun!

Just working!

My new shoes

Now to wear out these new kicks