Monday, December 30, 2013

Querida Familia,

Man, it was really great to talk with you all. You´re all looking great! And Jesse´s voice is sounding manly. Everyone talked about how beautiful you are, Mom. They always say, she looks so young! 

 It was great! I´m sorry for my lack of tact and awkwardness. I was struggling a little bit. I´ll brush up on the English before Mother´s day. And tell Zoe I miss her too!

Christmas was awesome. We went caroling at the Bus Station (Terminal Grajau) with our zone and one other zone. And then we went walking down the streets giving pass a long cards and singing. It was a good time. The only down side was the heat and I was wearing a suit and a santa hat. It was rough. 

We had 3 baptisms and confirmations this weekend. It was a very special experience and a great way to close out 2013.Their names are Katherine, Nick and Elisa. Eliza´s baptism was really a miracle. There was an incident on the day of the baptism and I thought that there was no way she would be baptized. Her family is basically anti mormon, but all was well in the end. I´m so happy for the decision they made.

What?? Matt´s engaged? He didn´t say anything to me yet. I just knew that they were dating. But I´m happy for him and it sounds like he is doing well.

Have fun in St. George! and Happy New Year! 2014 is gonna be a good one.

Thank you for all you do for me and all of your support!

 

Transfer this week, never know what´s going to happen... Parelheiros is going to have 6 missionaries now. 

 

Love, Elder Barker

Monday, December 16, 2013

Dear Family,

So good to see all the pictures and hear from you! Except about Zoe´s accident, that´s so sad. I can´t believe Christmas is coming. Time flies. 

One year has come and gone. That is insane. It just so happened that I got to go to the temple on my mission birthday and it was awesome. Elder Steadman is the only other American in my group and he was at the temple too. So we celebrated with the Shurrascaria, The rodizio grill close to the temple. We even bought the expensive drinks and dessert. Mango with milk (rocks), and the dessert was ice cream and fried banana. Worth it.

And I did burn some shirts. Not because I hit one year, but becuase the mold is attacking from every direction in my wardrobe. A problem I never dealt with in dry Wyoming. But I´m learning how to counter attack it now. 

I spoke in church yesterday about being perfect like Christ is perfect. I love the scripture in Moroni 10:32-33. Perfection is a process. It doesn´t happen all at once. I like the example of learning to play the piano. Nobody can play a song on the piano perfectly without a lot of practice. We practice, make a lot of mistakes, but we get better. We progress and one day we will be perfect. 

Remember that we are living in a magic time! The hastening is happening. Now is the moment for missionaries and members to work together!
We´re seeing miracles here in Parelheiros because the ward is excited about missionary work!

Love you all and I´ll be seeing you soon! 

Elder Barker

Ps- Everybody will receive packages at the christmas meeting next week. But I´m excited! Thank you so much.

Monday, December 9, 2013

Dearly beloved family,

Happy birthday for Jesse this week! He´s getting old... is he getting any bigger? Hope you all celebrate well.

How are things back in the cold? It´s super nice here. About 80 degrees today. Had one day that it got up to 100 last week, and it was one the hardest days on the mission. All of my short sleeve shorts were washing or very dirty, so I was in a long sleeved shirt in the hottest day of my mission so far. Every single appointment fell through, so we were in the street the whole day (we entered into one house the whole day). And to top it all off we had a zone fast. It was a struggle. But the Lord really blessed us for our efforts and this last week was full of miracles. We had 4 baptisms in the ward, between the two companionships, and many more people with potentiel for this next week. 

The ward is getting more excited about missionary work and everyone is giving referrals and sharing the gospel. 

I haven´t heard anything about Christmas yet, but I´m sure I´ll be able to Skype. It will probably be in the afternoon.

Another blessing this week is that I get to go to the temple again. I don´t know why, usually it[s every three months, but I´ve been able to go a bunch lately. 

Elder Steadman got transfered to my zone now, I´m excited about that. I think we´ll get to work together a little bit. 

Love you all and hope you are all healthy and happy. And if you aren´t happy, just share the gospel with someone and you´ll cheer right up! 

Something that we learned with Elder Mazzagardi is that angels are always with us. And they record our testimonies. In DC it also says that our sins will be forgiven when we bear our testimony. I think it´s DC 63:2 or 62:3. So, I bear my witness that this church is the kingdom of God on the earth. I know that this church was really established by Jesus Christ and the Joseph Smith was called as a prophet. Let´s share it with everyone!

Love, Elder Barker

Give Jesse a big hug for me and tell him that I´m very proud of him and so happy to have him as a brother

Monday, December 2, 2013

Dear Family,

So Thanksgiving was this last week... I was confused and thought that it had already passed. I got Dean´s package, by the way. It was great! 

This Thanksgiving we had a mission tour with Elder Jairo Mazzagardi, from the 2nd quorum of the 70 and the Area Presidencia of Brasil (you can find him in the Liahona). The meeting was from 8 in the morning until about 3 o´clock. It was an amazing experience.

 At about 7:55 I was getting off the train in Santo Amaro (a little bit tardy). I was with E. Pereira, my zone leader, and he said, I will not be late for this meeting. So, we started running for the church, which is  about a mile from the train station. I wish someone would have got my mile time, because I PR´d. When we got there it was just a bit after 8, I was sweating and dying. So we went to the bathroom to wash up really fast. When I got out the Assistents were talking on the phone with Pres. Pinho and said Elder Barker, come with us. I thought I was going to get in trouble for running to the meeting. It was like getting called to the Principal´s office. They said, just wait here, You´re going to be interviewed by Elder Mazzardi. Luckily, I caught my breath a little bit before the interview and it was a really great experience. He asked if I was worthy of a temple recommend first, and then about my family, my companion, area, mission president, and a lot of other questions. He asked if I was having success on my mission and about goals after the mission. It was really cool, I just wish I would have taken advantage of the opportunity and asked more questions, but I was caught off-guard. I think what impressed me most about the interview was how humble he was. When he sat down, he almost slouched and just talked to me like we were long time friends. He said that he´s been to Evanston, Star Valley and Jackson. He said he went there with Elder Anderson, of the 12, and that he went fishing and snowmobiling. His life is amazing. I wrote a bunch in my journal, but one of the coolest things he said was that when he has meetings with the 1st pres. and 12 in the temple, they bare their testimonies much more ´openly´. He bore his testimony that Christ lives, and it was one of the most spiritual experiences of my life. I learned so much. I was one of about 10 or 12 missionaries to be interviewed. I don´t know why Pres. Pinho picked me, but I´m glad I had the opportunity, and also that I got to the meeting on time.

 I also had the opportunity of meeting Elder João Grau, an Area 70 that was here for stake conference. Also an amazing man. This week was a spiritual feast. At stake conference, I also saw some of the recent converts that I taught from Cipó, super cool.

 I don´t know if you remember Nelson from my last area, but I also heard that he was baptized recently and that he´s going to be baptizing his son this next week. It´s really amazing to be a part of this work. To at least be a part of the conversion of these people is a special experience. 

Love you all! and remember to extend a hand for at least one person before Christmas! Missionary work is the best kind of work.

Love, Elder Barker

 

P.S. Duck Dynasty arrived in Brasil. The Brasilians get a kick out of it.

 

 

Monday, November 25, 2013 HUMP DAY?!!!!

Dear Family,

Happy Thanksgiving! We were eating on Thursday in the house of a member and I looked at the other American Elder and said, It looks like thanksgiving dinner. And he said, yeah but thanksgiving is still a few weeks off. And then I thought about it for a minute and realized that it was really thanksgiving. So strange how the time passes. 

I found out this last week what day I´ll be going home. The old mission secretary knows all the dates and he was trying to make me homesick (didn´t work), but, more than likely, I´ll be boarding the plane 1 year from today. He said I´ll catch the plane the 25 and arrive home the 26th. Holy smokes. How did that happen?  A mission is an extremely short amount of time. 

I think it´s Isaac´s birthday tomorrow, so send him an email if you get a chance. Sounds like he´s doing well in the américa central. 

Good to hear about Grandma and Grandpa, I´m excited for them. Sounds like basketball is going to be great this year.

Love you all so much. I feel so close to my Savior lately. I really feel like I´m getting to know Him. Obedience really is the key to happiness.

Have a great Week!

Elder Barker

Monday, November 18, 2013

This week was awesome. The temple was a great experience. The new video arrived in Brasil and it really was amazing. I love going to the temple and I got to see a bunch of old companions and friends. I got called as district leader this last week. It´s been a good experience so far. The zone leaders are in my district and I´m learning a lot with them. Our district is made up of the two companionships in Parelheiros and the two in Casa Grande. 

It looks like we´ll be moving into the new house 10 of December. So for now it´ll be a little bit tight, but it´s all good. Elder Dudley and E. Neris are our new house mates. Elder Dudley is from Michigan and Neris is from Fortaleza, Ciara (Brasil). They´re great missionaries and both have about 4 or 5 months on the mission. We´re going to divide the area this week. 

Snow storms, closed roads and basketball games... winter arrived. It seems so far off for me, it really is strange. It´s been really hot here, with a lot of rain. Real Rain. It´s the kind of rain that soaks you even if you have an umbrella (I didn´t have one). I was unprepared because it was a really clear hot day, but I won´t make that mistake again. 

And my guess for Grandma and Grandpa is Cleveland, OH. They´ll be working there and also a little bit in the Kirtland visitors´ center.

As far as the package goes... I´m happy with whatever ;) but I would like a step counter and maybe deoderant if it were possible. PB is always a prized possession.

Love you so much. Thank you for everything!

Will

Hey mia,

Don´t worry, I know your life gets pretty busy. I´m doing great! I ate Mcdonalds and Subway, but just one time. And I made french fries and hamburgers last P-day, so that was good. My companion is Elder Parraguez. He´s from Chile. But I live with two other missionaries too. They´re really cool. I have a weight in my new house, so I get swell now. And I go running. It´s so cool here! I love you so much! Make sure everybody in the house is reading their scriptures!

Love, Will

         Dear William,

            Hey, sorry I haven't Wrote in a while.  Life's great! How are you doing?  Do you get to eat American food much? Basketball just ended:( . But volleyball is just starting, at least my traveling team is :) . I miss you so much :( . But I know you are doing the right thing.  (First grade is going great.) fourth grade is good to. But my back pack is way to heavy. Who are your companions? Please write back soon!


                                                                                              Love,
                                                                                              Mia

Monday, November 11, 2013

Hey Family,

Another week come and gone. Good to hear that everyone´s doing well! Haha putting up flags... good times. When I think about it, the things that prepared me most for the mission were things like putting up flags, service projects, collecting fast offerings, shoveling snow, working on the ranch, home teaching and things like that. Seminary and Mission Prep. were important too, but the mission really is just work. What makes a good missionary is his desire to work and willingness to serve the Lord. I´m really finding great joy in His service. I have so many things to get better at, but I know that the Lord accepts our service when we work with our heart, might, mind and strength.

I can´t believe it´s November. I´ll be going to the temple on Thursday, so I´m excited about that. And we´re going to receive the new missionaries tomorrow. I think we´re going to move to another house, too. Lot´s of exciting things going on right now! The Lord is hastening His work, and we get to be a part of it. It´s awesome. This is certainly a historic time.

 

Monday, November 4, 2013

Hello!

I´m doing great in my new area. We are working really well with the ward and we´re already seeing great progress.

Transfer is next week and we´re going to receive two more missionaries here in our area. It should, be good. We´re going to get Bunk Beds and divide the area and everything, so it will be exciting. 

So the pictures, from top to bottom are 

1. The payphone outside of my new house. Basically in the middle of nothing, but it comes in handy for us.

2. My old district. (Elder Ribeiro, my trainer is in the front right. Elder Cerda is at my side)

3. My Ward Mission Leader in my last area. He´s awesome. Osmano. He lived in the U.S. 11 years. His wife his Filipina.

4. Hiking up to our new house. It´s way, way up there. In the picture is Elder Pereira and E. Colunga, they´re in my zone. They just helped us haul everything to our house.

I´m excited about Olivia! That´s really cool. They´ll have to send some pictures for me.

Love you all, and keep up the good missionary work! Our family will be blessed because of it. I´m proud of you guys.

Keep me updated on the mission call of Gma and Gpa.

Love, William

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monday, October 28, 2013

Hello from Parelheiros!

So this week was exciting. Feels like it was a longer than a week, because so much happened. 

I got thrown into another emergency transfer. I got called on Wednesday and I came here on Thursday. I´m opening an area called Parelheiros with Elder Parraguez. He´s also from Chile, Santiago. He has about 4 months on the mission. Neither of us are familiar with the area, and it´s the biggest area in the mission. It´s more interior, and it´s actually neighboring Cipó, my first area. And the districts have changed since I left, so I´ll be going on exchanges there in Cipó! It´ll be cool to see everyone again.

I don´t really know why President closed the area, but for this to happen is very rare. It´s been a little bit challenging, but it´s good for us. President said that he trusts us, so it´s a good feeling.

Parelheiros is really cool. It´s a HUGE area. We have to take the bus to get to a lot of the neighborhoods. And there´s a lot more trees and hills here, so I like it. President also said that we´re going to have another companionship here in a couple weeks, so that´ll be nice to split up the area. So they say there´s an indiginous tribe in our area... but it´s not as cool as you think. They have houses and everything. I imagine it´s a lot like the indians from 

Rawlins.

Life is good. It was good to hear from you. I loved the pictures. I tried to send pictures, but it didn´t work and I got frustrated and quit. But I´ll try again next week. And I did get the package with the shirt. It´s awesome! 

Happy Birthday to Bridger and Happy Halloween! (They don´t really celebrate here, just little things... lame)

Remember Elder Ballard´s talk, and extend a hand from now until Christmas for at least one person ;)

Love you all, 

Elder Barker

Monday, October 21, 2013

So, we´re four hours ahead now instead of three. And... We spoke in church yesterday. It went a lot better this time. Everyone understood what we were saying and everyone is getting more excited about missionary work!

President Pinho got super excited after General Conference and we have a new program that we´re going to apply. It´s based on the talk that M. Russel Ballard gave. Estender a mão para apenas um entre hoje e Natal. Que presente maravilhosa para o Salvador. It means to extend a hand to at least one person from now until Christmas. What a marvelous gift for the Savior. Elder Ballard said that If everyone in our wards and stakes invites at least one person to talk with the missionaries, we will help millions of people join the church.

We´re going to pass by the houses of all of the members now and ask a lot more referrals. I´m inviting all of you to extend a hand as well. In our family alone it would be 6 more people in the ward, if you don´t count Zoe. It will be awesome!

I feel great satisfaction in the service of the Lord. There really is no feeling like it. Even though sometimes we don´t see the results we want, I sleep well at night.

Is Bridger getting excited for his Birthday? Happy birthday B-ridge! (much warmer than the happy birthday he gave me a few years ago) Happy birthday, jerk. I think it was over a Frosty at Wendy´s that he got upset.

Love you all!

Elder Barker

Monday, October 14, 2013

Hello Family,

Thanks Mom for the updates and information. You´re the best. This week was good. I´ve still been thinking a lot about conference. It´s been a lot warmer lately and we had some cool rain storms. Yesterday we were just walking down the street and it was a hot, muggy day and in less than 3 seconds it was pouring rain. It came out of nowhere It was kind of crazy. We didn´t have umbrellas so we just waited it out a few minutes until it stopped and then it was just hot and muggy again.

Remember that family I said that we found at the end of that really long day? Well they went to church that week, went to conference (and watched the rest on line), and went to church yesterday too. They´re a really cool family. The ward loves them too. There baptism could be this Saturday, but the dad, Nelson, has doubts about the Book of Mormon, so we´ll see. I´ll keep you updated. But their names are Nelson, Adriana, Jessica and Guilherme.

Not much more to report on... Saturday was Day of the Children. All the kids get a bunch of candy and toys and stuff. It was also the day of one of the catholic saints. Nossa Senhora Aparecida. I don´t know what it is in English.

 

Anyways, I love this work and I´m grateful to be a part of it. I´ve really been blessed with amazing experiences. I´ve witnessed a lot of crazy things and a lot of miracles. I´ve learned a lot in these few short months. Talk to you soon!

Elder Barker

Monday, October 7, 2013

Bom Dia Familia,

Mais uma semana! 

We weren´t transfered, so we´re happy about that, everyone in hour house will continue the same for now.

 I was shocked to hear about Beverly. I didn´t even know she was sick. I had sent her a letter, but I don´t know if it got there in time. 

Man, conference was awesome. We went to the stake center for the sessions. The sessions were live transmission, so we watch at 1 and 5. And we (missionaries) watch the priesthood session the next day at 6 am, because it goes to late into the night on Saturday. Members can watch on the internet, but a lot of them went to the stake center too. They had a room in English this time, so that was cool. President Pinho prefers that we watch it in our own language (me too). All of the talks were awesome. I don´t know if it´s because I´m on the mission, but I think I learned more at this one than any other conference. I felt the Spirit testify of all of the speakers. And I felt an especially strong confirmation when President Monson spoke. I love our Prophet. I learned so much. I took notes and I´ve set goals to apply the teachings in my life, one of those being to memorize the  Articles of Faith. Something so simple, why don´t I have them memorized? We should know the basic beleifs of our own church.

Did you like (or even notice) Ulisses Soares? He´s from São Paulo. He spoke in the first session about meekness and controlling our temper. It was really good. And the President of my Area gave the closing prayer of conference, Claudio R. M. Costa. Pretty cool.

Anyway, I was truly inspired. I am excited about my mission and excited about life! We are members of the church of the true living God. We need to share this knowledge with EVERYONE. I liked the talks about missionary work and member missionaries. Work with the missionaries and invite friends to hear the marvelous news of the gospel. All too often we selfishly keep the gospel to ourselves, because of fear, lack of time, or lack of faith. Invite EVERYONE, and at least give them the opportunity. 

I have a testimony that the one true path to happiness is holding firmly to the iron rod (word of God) and keeping His commandments for the rest of our lives.

Having put our hand to the plough, we can never look back. Luke 9:62.

I love you all and pray for you always.

Elder Barker

Monday, September 30,2013

Hey family,

Thanks again for all the birthday wishes, cards and such. And Happy Birthday to Verna and Roy and Zoe today!

I don´t want Zoe to grow up anymore before I get home! She´s not even a baby anymore, and she probably prounces ´chocolate milk´correctly by now. Sad. I love her so much. Tell her that I miss her and ´I need her`.. haha

Things here are great! It´s been raining a lot, but the weather is warming up. Next week is the transfer, so I don´t know what will happen yet. Elder Cerda and I are working really well together. He´s a really cool guy. He´s studying to be a doctor. He´s already done 5 years of medical school. He spent 7 years outside of the church, or inactive. He started going to church again and left on a mission the same time as his younger brother. (His brother is serving in Brasil too). He has a very strong testimony. 

President Pinho said that we have 1 hour and a half now to email, so that´s pretty cool. Starting next week. 

I´m very excited to hear the words of a living prophet next week. General Conference is a special time to receive revelation for our own lives. I testify that Christ really lives. I´ve felt His love for me in His service. It´s amazing that suffered such a great price for all of us sinners, and just as incredible that Heavenly Father gave his only begotten son for us. I love the gospel of Jesus Christ and I love all of you. Have a great week! And please tell Kenzee to drive safe going back and forth from college!

Love, Will

Happy Birthday to me.....September 23, 2013

Nossa!

I´m very blessed for all of the great people in my life. Thank you so much for the Birthday wishes! It´s going to be great day! B-day on P-day is a blessing. I´m gonna buy some groceries and clean the house a little bit and take a little nap. What more could I ask for? I opened the package, it was great. The Brasileiro, Chileno, e Peruano gostam de Oreos, Skittles and Beef Jerky haha My housemates are happy too! I haven´t gotten the other yet.

Thank you very, very much. I feel so old. Since when does 20 years pass by so fast? Fazer o qué, né?

Sounds like it was a good week, too bad for the Cougs. How´s Wyoming this year?

I love you all and so grateful for the positive influences I have in my life. I´m so grateful for everything the Lord has given me. I´m happy to give a little bit of my time in His service. President Pinho says that these 2 years are 2 seconds in the eyes of God. I´m seeing how true that is. Love you all, let´s take advantage of everyday that we live!

Elder Barker

 

Monday, September 16, 2013

Hey Family!

Thanks for the emails! Mom, don´t worry, the first email with Bridger and Mia worked. But it was nice to get the other too :)

Mavis flew home?! I don´t believe it! Que maravilhosa hahah I´m happy for Zozo.

Sounds exciting, football and hunting season. That hunt that Ben went to sounds pretty cool. Kayden was saying that there were some big time hunters there recently and they were pulling huge elk. That has to be hard for Kayden to see!

I had some great experiences this week. We worked really hard. We decided to raise our vision. We talked with EVERYONE in the streets. Saturday night I was exhausted and it was like 800 at night. It was a rough day and we were heading back to the house, and it was just like those stories you hear. We wanted to try one more house. It was a referral from the other missionaries. It was a family of four and the accepted the baptismal invitation. It really was a special experience. It reminded me that the Lord is in charge of the work and we are just instruments in his hands. I love you all and I´ll talk to you soon!

 

Monday, September 9, 2013

Hey Family!

Good to hear from you! Não esquenta sobre a email semana passada. Tudo tranquilo. Don´t worry about the email last week, I know that you guys are busy. I´m doing really well. There´s not really a whole lot to report on. I still don´t have an iPad... I think it´ll be a while until we get them. But that´s super cool. I have a referral for Meg already. 

Good to hear about football and hunting season! I think it´s my favorite part of the year. Go Red Devils. And that was a sweet win Cougs.

I´m excited to hear about Grandma and Grandpa´s mission call. The more missionaries in the family, the better. Right?

I´m glad your birthday was good Mom. Sorry I couldn´t be there...;)

My testimony gets stronger everyday here. I really am gaining a testimony of our Savior. I know that Jesus is the Christ. He really lived a perfect life and He still lives today. His sacrifice was perfect and it is infinite. The atonement is sufficient for all of our weaknesses and faults and sins. All of our problems can be solved through him.

Love you all and hope you have a great week!

Elder Barker

 

Monday, September 2, 2013

Hey family,

Hope all is going well back home. How was the first week of school? Jesse liking High School? How was your birthday mom? I heard that the U.S. is going to attack Syria or something? What´s that all about? I´m just happy that I´m a missionary and don´t even have to worry about all that stuff.
    

This week was really awesome. We had a Mission Conference, Multi-zone conference and a meeting with all of the Bishops and Ward mission leaders too. It was a full week of meetings and activities. President Pinho said that our mission is one of the smallest in size now, but we have more than 6 million people in our mission still. That´s a lot of lost sheep. I´m learning so much lately and I think I´m really improving as a missionary and as a person. The water ran out on our street on Saturday, so that´s been humbling. It still hasn´t come back, so we might have to go to the other Elders´ house and take a shower. I don´t know, we´ll see.

I had a cool experience yesterday. We were teaching a family and talking a lot about receiving an answer from the Holy Ghost. We´ve been teaching them for a couple weeks now. We were really trying to help them realize that they had already received an answer that the church was true because they are keeping commitments and liking church and everything. Anyway, we bore testimony and there was a little pause. And then Leticia, she´s 14, said, I think I just got my answer... It was super cool. The two girls want to be baptized now, but the parents are still a little bit resistent. I´ll keep you updated on them.

Love you all and hope that you have a great week! The time always flies by fast, but remember that it´s always flying by with opportunities. Stay close to the scriptures and Preach My Gospel. PMG is not just for missionaries! The chapters can be applied in any part of life. Use the sections for anything and everything.

Até Mais!!! Elder Barker

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Hey family,

All is going well here in São Paulo. I have a new companion. His name is Elder Cerda. He´s 25 and he´s from Chile. He has about 5 months on the mission. He´s really cool and I think we´re going to work well together. He says he´s from Viña del Mar which is pretty close to Santiago I guess. Three of my companions are going home either today or tomorrow. (Laughlin, Nazareth and Nogeuira). It´s pretty crazy how the time passes.

Before I forget Mom, Happy Birthday this week! I love you and hope that everyone treats you super great. Are you and Dad going to go anywhere or do anything special? Anyway, I´m so grateful for everything you have done for me and continue to do for me. You´re amazing. I know how blessed I am to have you as my Mother. I got the package you sent for my birthday. I think I´ll save it until my birthday. Does it have anything that I would need to open earlier than that? Thank you so much! I´m almost as excited as the other Elders to open it.

I went to the temple earlier this month, but it was still the same. I had heard that there was a new video, but I won´t know for another couple months if it´s here in Brasil.

Sounds like everyone´s doing well with school starting up. All three of them look very grown up! What is happening?...

Karina had her baby this last week. Have I told you about her? Her and Jefferson are brother and sister in law to Gabriel and Carol. They´re not married yet, but I think they´re ready now. They both want to be baptized too. We´re super excited for them.

Well that´s about it for me, our activity yesterday was awesome. We had a barbeque as a mission, that´s why I didn´t email. We played volleyball, ping pong, and had a few card games. President Pinho is really good at volleyball, and he got a little bit competitive. It was really funny. He told us it was a day to relax and not think about missionary work. Everyone really enjoyed it.

I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer. The more I learn about Him the more I want to live and share His gospel. I´m so happy that we have the gospel in our family and I know that it will bless us for eternities. I love you all and I´ll talk to you soon!

Elder Barker

Monday, August 19, 2013

Hey family,

Another great week has come and gone. I didn´t email earlier because Elder Nogueira had a meeting for all of the missionaries that are leaving next week. It was a training about life after the mission so they don´t go home AS awkward. The mission really is a different life. So I´ll be getting a new companion next week. It will be my ninth if you count trios and the MTC. 

     I got your pictures mom, but the video didn´t work. And thank you for the Priesthood line of Authority. It´s awesome. How´s Kenzee liking college? Football season already, que bom. 

 

I don´t remember Uncle Bud really well. I think I remember visiting him once. I´m glad you got to go see some of his family. The plan of salvation is real.

 

I ate Subway last week. It was awesome. We did a ´blitz´ in the area of the sisters (Interlagos) and they have Subway and McDonalds. Blitz just means we worked in their area one day. The people there are super wealthy, it´s alot different from where I´m at.

 

I´ve been thinking a lot about Family History work lately. I have a feeling that there is still some work to be done for our ancestors. There are people waiting for us to do their work. Help the ward get excited about it, and take advantage of having temples so close to our house. The temple is a blessing that we take for granted some times. I read in the Topical Guide, I think it was, that Temples are the most sacred places on Earth, and the Lord visits His temples. If we have a recommend why wouldn´t we want to be there?

 

I love you all! Talk to ya soon,

Elder Barker

 

Monday, August 5, 2013

Good Day Everyone!

Tudo está tranquilo aqui. Nossa área realmente está fazendo muito bem. We have a really good ward here and we´re working with the members a lot better now. The pictures are Gabriel and Carol with me and my companion. The other is a family home evening and I made pancakes again. And the last one is with my zone leader, Elder Fernandes in our house. I´ll try to get better pictures of what my area is like here soon. 

Kenzee had a good birthday? That´s awesome, and fair week too! Good times. Now it´s already time to wish Courtney a Happy Birthday! S/O to her ;) Love her so much. 

We had a good Sacrament meeting yesterday. Something that´s cool here is there´s never a pause in the testimony meeting. There´s always a line to bear your testimony. And usually if a woman bears her testimony, the husband does too. It´s always a really good meeting.

Oh, I´ll try to answer your questions better. You asked about my release date, and it´s looking like it´ll be Jan. 3, 2015 or around there. But that´s a long ways off mother ;)

Oh, I have to tell you Mom that when people ask to see pictures of my family they always say how young and beautiful you look. A family yesterday couldn´t believe you were my mom, they insisted that you looked more like my sister. You´re the best.

I liked a scripture that I read in DC 50 today. It´s verses 41 and 42 I think. It is just a great reminder that the Lord is looking over us and He loves us. We have no need to fear anything.

Love you all! 

Elder Barker

Monday, July 29, 2013

Hey hey,

How´s everyone doing? Man this last week was super good. Carol was baptized Saturday and confirmed on Sunday. Gabriel, her brother baptized her. He´s 16 and she´s 18. Gabriel blessed the Sacrament too, it was super cool. They´re awesome. They´re both going to be great missionaries here in a couple years. Their other brother is ready to be baptized too. He´s 20 and he´s living with his girlfriend right now, but we have a Family Night there tonight and we´re going to help them mark a date for marriage. His girlfriend wants to be baptized too! 

    Man the Buckner Reunion sounds like it was a blast. I want that video that Uncle Jimmy made ;). Summer sounds like it´s a bunch of fun, and that´s exciting all the new stuff with the house and the trailer. Does Grandpa have a lot of hay this year? And how does the barn look?

I spoke in church yesterday. I spoke about love and charity and how it is at the heart of missionary work. I was feeling pretty good about it, but then afterwards I realized that no one really understood what I was saying... It was a shame. But I think the main message got across ;) Oh! It´s Kenzee´s birthday this week! Happy birthday gizmo. Holy smokes, 18? Hope she has a good one, even though she already got a car.

   I love you all. I´m so grateful for all of your support and love. The Lord really has a plan for us, isn´t that amazing? He knows us personally and he knows exactly what we need to experience in order to reach our potential. I had a really special experience this week with an inactive woman. We just taught the Restoration and bore testimony of the first vision. Her attitude changed a lot by the end of the lesson. She started to cry and told us that she knew she needed to come back to church. There are so many members that are just waiting for someone to call them back church. Join in the Rescue like Presidente Monson says! 

Love you all, Elder Barker

P.S. Don´t hack my email MoM! 

Hahahaha jk You can look all you want. But really, don´t worry about me, I´m doing great.

Pictures next week I promise.... I´ll try.

 

Hey Everyone!

Are my emails really that weak? I just got some rebuking reading your emails. ;) I´ll try to do better. I´ll send pictures next week... I need to take some pictures. So... Lorena didn´t get baptized yet. She is doing everything right, already a member basically, but she says she just doesn´t have a desire to be baptized. Strange isn´t it? We think it might have something to do with her family, but we´re not sure. We have some good ward missionaries that I think will help her out.

 Have I already told you about Gabriel? Well he was baptized about a month ago and he´s awesome. He does visits with us almost every day. He´s 16 and he can´t wait for his mission. Anyway, his sister Carol is going to baptized this week. She was very hesitant and then one day she just came out and told us that she got an answer to her prayers! She had a really cool experience and asked a very specific question, and she got a clear answer. We´re excited for her. Just need to help their parents get married now.

   So my area is really cool. It´s a lot closer to everything than Cipó, so that´s nice. We have a some little favellas here, but they´re all really safe. Our house is really cool. We have an awesome view of the Repreza de Guarapiranga. My companion is Elder Nogueira. He´s from Minas Gerais. It´s a big state up North a little bit. His family has a farm there and he really likes horses. He says it´s more like the Wyoming of Brasil. He speaks English really well.

Did you have other questions? I forget. Yeah Mom, you can send me those recipes, that would be awesome;). Kenzee got a car? Que Bolsta. Jesse is liking golf huh? I remember I went quite a bit with Isaac and Matt when I was his age.

Life is good, it feels like yesterday that I was emailing you, but another week já passou. Love you all. I know that Jesus Christ lives and loves us. We are so lucky to have the gospel in our lives. The gospel and the sacrifice of Christ are the solution to all of the world´s problems.

I´ll talk to you soon! Elder Barker



Favellas (slums or shantytown)

Repreza de Guarapiranga

Monday, July 15, 2013

Hey Everyone!

Happy anniversary Mom and Dad! You are the best parents in the world. Did you go anywhere cool this weekend?

And Happy Birthday Dad! Love you and hope it´s a good one! And for Amber too!

Things are good here. Elder Nazareth was transfered so I´ll have a new companion tomorrow here in my same area. It´ll be my 8th already. I´m really excited to work here in this ward. There are some great people here and we have a lot of potential to grow. We´re working with a lot of less active families and families where not everyone is a member. I´m learning a lot about the love of the Lord. He never gives up on us, no matter how far we think we´ve strayed. I´ve had some great experiences here already. We´re going to continue to build Zion here in São Paulo ;) Love you all, and I´ll talk to you soon!

Elder Barker

Monday, July 8,2013

Hey!

Good to hear from you as always! Sounds like 4th of July was a blast. I heard some fireworks but I think it was still about Brasil soccer. But I was on an exchange with an American named Elder Baisden. We celebrated with a pizza. And you can´t email Isaac. He´s in the wild. He can email at the end of the 6 weeks is what he told me. OH! I got the Barker Reunion package! It came pretty fast, 2 weeks? Man, it was Awesome! A whole lot of sunshine for sure. I loved everything, especially the letters, it was great to hear from everyone. Can´t believe Kenzee and JJ ate at Elements, they don´t deserve it. 

 

Desculpa, mandei errado. Foi mal. 

Anyway, we had a mission conference this last week. It was sweet. We have 105 missionaries now instead of 205. Both of my companions from the MTC are in other missions now, it´s crazy. I´m glad I stayed in Interlagos with President Pinho. Our mission has a great reputation, and Pres. Pinho has a lot to do with it. He is a great motivator and he talks to us all personally. You wouldn´t think that he has 100 other missionaries and things to worry about. The ward I´m in now is really good. We have a baptism this week, her name is Lorena.  She was Adventista, but when she moved to São Paulo she moved in with her Aunt that is a member. She´s 17 and she´s already in the middle of Alma in the Book of Mormon. We´re also going to get to couples married this week, well that´s the plan. The process here is a little bit more difficult. They have to marry in what´s called the Cartorio. It delays a lot and in some places it´s really expensive. But it should work out good this week, it´s going to be a great blessing for their families. I love you all. I´m so grateful for this work and for our Savior.

Love, Elder Barker

 

P.S. Evanston didn´t Burn Down on the 4th?

Monday, July 1, 2013

Hey Family!

You know it makes the mission a lot easier knowing I have my family praying for and supporting me! Love you all so much. Sorry I made you worry with the last e mail hahaha it really wasn´t a big deal. Tudo Beleza! All is beautiful :) I´m feeling great and working very well with Elder Nazareth. We live with two other missionaries and they´re awesome, Elder Assis e Mariano. I bought a hammock this week too, so our house is sweet. I love my hammock. Did you hear about Isaac? Holy smokes he´s going to some Island without water and power for the next transfer. He´s excited, but pray a little extra for him. Alumni tournament sounds like it was fun! Why didn´t my boys win it? A shame. Hey do you think you could send me my priesthood line of authority. I´m curious and I don´t have it here. Brasil was pretty crazy last night because of the soccer game against Espanha. It was the final, and  I got just a little taste of what the world cup will be like. EVERYBODY watches the games and shoots fireworks and it will be even crazier next year. We also had some protests here recently against the government with prices for transportation and stuff, we haven´t been affected by it much, but it´s pretty interesting. Oh, I´d love to get monte´s and megan ´s  emails por favor. How´s everything with my bank account? My card is still good to use? Thank you so much for all you do! It´s been raining for about a week now, everything is always wet, but the work is going great. We baptized and confirmed Marcelo this weekend, he turned 8 this week and his brother and uncle were already baptized. Don´t worry, we´re teaching the parents too ;) the only reason they haven´t been baptized yet is casamento... marriage. But it will be very soon! Love you all, this work is amazing!

Elder Barker

 

Monday, June 24, 2013

Hey Everyone!

Sorry I didn´t write very long last week, I´ll do better. I´ll be honest, this week was a little bit crazy and a little bit tough. First, we had a surprise transfer and I left Cipó. It was a big transfer to get everything settled before the mission splits. I´ll still be in the Interlagos mission, but I´m in Parque das Nações now. It´s more of the city. It´s a lot different from Cipó, but it´s a really cool area. Has a new church building here and a really good ward. We work in alleys a lot more than streets. It´s cool, but it´s like a maze and I don´t know where I am, and it´s not flat. It´s hard to describe, but the alleys go up and down, it´s really interesting. I also got pretty sick this last week. Had a fever and stuff, but I´m feeling better now. For packages... I don´t know I love everything, still peanut butter and beef jerkey can´t find here. And I have requests for skittles, pop rocks and oreos ;) but anything is great. Why arent my siblings writing me? But anyway, my new companion is Elder Nazareth, he´s a very good missionary and we get along well. And the address I sent last week is where everything should be sent.

I have a grand testimony of this work and of our savior. I know that only through Jesus Christ can we be saved. We have to accept him as our Redeemer and live our lives for him. I love you all! Have a great Week!

Elder Barker

Monday, June 17, 2013

Hey Everyone!

Sounds like the reunion was good, and everyone´s doing well. We have some great new families that we found this last week. There are many of God´s elect here in Cipó. So what´s the fireside about on Sunday? They just told us that it will be live transmission from Salt Lake, should be good. There´s no joy that comes, like the joy of the gospel. Open your mouth and share it, but more importantly live it everyday and let other people see how happy you are. Hope Father´s Day was great! Thank you to the great examples in my life. Dad, Grandpa and all my uncles. Love you all.

Here´s our new mission address. So everything should be sent here I guess now. 

 

Rua Comendador Elias Zarzur 365

Santo Amaro

04736-000 São Paulo - SP

Brasil

 

Love, Elder Barker

Monday, June 10, 2013

Hey,

Sounds like a good start to summer. It´s funny that it´s winter here, but we´re probably having pretty similar temperatures. Camps and all that stuff going good? I like Zoe´s new haircut! She´s still as cute as ever. I couldn´t stop laughing when I saw that, Zo Dirt for sure.

All is well here in Zion, but we still can´t rest ;) A lot of work to do. My new companion is Elder Laughlin. He´s from Oregon. He´s a great guy and we´re doing well together. He went to BYU Idaho and says that he knows Marie and Alex Thomas. He´s super funny, this is his second to last transfer so I´m learning a lot from him.

We are working with some great people as always!

Reactivation has been really good lately, some great people coming back to church! I love you all!

Life is super good.

Love, Elder Barker

 

Monday, May 27, 2013

Bom dia!

Good to here from you as always! I picked up the package from the mission office this last week. It was awesome! I loved it. And everything was perfect for Elder Ribeiro. He was definitely excited. He says that you´re going to the Celestial Kingdom for sure, Mom. I already knew that. You´re an angel. Getting a package makes me feel a little bit like I´m in the Hunger Games when the little parachutes come floating down from the outside world. It´s a good feeling ;) I loved the letter from Mia. I´ll send her one this week.

Oh, I forgot to tell you, the day after Mother´s day I saw a monkey. Kenzee had asked the day before. It was just a little guy, almost like a Lemur. I got some pictures of it. It just came jumping out of a tree and was sitting on a wall in the street. It was pretty cool :)

Our investigators our doing well. This is the last week of the transfer, which is crazy. I think we´ll have one baptism before the transfer. His name is Guilherme and he´s 18. He has family in the church and says that he received an answer that it´s true. He´s a really good guy.

I can´t believe that school is ending already. Kenzee is too young to graduate! And Jesse already has 8th grade Promotional? What in the world? 

Anyway, I love you all. The Lord is hastening is work, share the gospel with Everyone. I know that Jesus Christ is our Redeemer.

Elder Barker

Monday, May 20, 2013

Gee wiz, I love you all so much!

Another week already! Sounds like State Track was fun. Congrats to Kenz, She´s awesome! Was the weather good? Did you get my card/letter yet? The weather is pretty good right now, It got a little bit chilly and we had to wear our suits coats one day. Everyone was complaining how cold it was, and I was just thinking if this is cold than I think I´m going to be just fine this 'winter'. I was reading a talk by Elder Uchtdorf from the conference in October 'Of Regrets and Resolutions' I think... Anyway, one thing he said really stuck out to me. He was talking about enjoying our time and making the most of life. He says, I try to imagine the Savior bustling and hurrying around trying to get a long list of things done, and I can´t see it.  How true is that. I think we all just need to slow down sometimes. Life is super good. Appreciate the little things of life. Remember it´s a journey, not a race ;)

I made German pancakes and Buttermilk (magic) syrup last night, it was awesome. Elder Ribeiro didn´t know what hit him. Thanks for the recipe! P.S. that syrup can´t be very healthy

Hey! Watch out for crazy people with guns in Evanston! What´s that all about? 

Anyway, I love you all. Thanks for your support and love! Feast upon the Words of Christ, the Book of Mormon is true!

Love, Elder Barker

May 13, 2013 The day after Mother's Day

We got to SKYPE with Elder Barker yesterday.  It was so great! It was all that I hoped for and more.  He has been out 5 months, and this is the first time we've really got to chat for more than 5 minutes.  It made me miss him a little more, but at the same time I feel like it was some fuel to get through until Christmas!

Mother, 

You are honestly incredible. I hope that Mother´s Day was wonderful. I didn´t express my feelings well enough yesterday that you are the best Mom in the world. I love you so much and sometimes don´t feel like I deserve you. You are truly amazing. Thank you for everything. Thank you for the love and the support, the letters and packages and especially the prayers. You don´t have to worry about us missionaries getting discouraged. We are truly blessed when we do the Lord´s work, and I have seen great blessings already in my life. I´ve already learned and grown a lot. 

     Sorry, if the phone call wasn´t all you´d hoped it would be. I was kind of lame and couldn´t think of a whole lot to tell you guys. For me it was awesome just to see your faces. I love you all so much. Seriously, I´m so blessed to have the siblings and parents I have. It gives me strength to know I have you rooting for me back home. Tell Zoe that I need her, too! ;)

     I´m really excited for this week. We´re teaching some great people and the ward is really excited about missionary work right now. We´re going to have a lot of lessons with members this week, it´s going to be great. One man that we´re helping right now is named Nilson. He has cancer right now and he´s not in super good shape. He´s had all the missionary lessons before, his wife is a convert and one of his daughters, too. One day his wife called and said that he wants to be baptized. It was a testament to me that all missionary work is important. The missionaries that worked with him in the past helped prepare him to be baptized in the future. It doesn´t always happen all at once. (It also helps that he can´t smoke or drink coffee now). But he´ll probably be baptized this week, or next.

     Work to improve the missionary work in Evanston. I don´t know the missionaries there, but try to help them out. Pray and give them referrals of the people you feel are prepared for the gospel. 

      Eu sei que Jesus Cristo vive. A igreja de Jesus Cristo dos Santos dos Ultimos Dias é o reino do Senhor na Terra. Eu amo meu Salvador. Eu sei que a Expiação de Jesus Cristo é real. Nos podemos viver com nossa família para eternidade. Sou muito grato por isso. Eu amo vocês!

Elder Barker

May 6, 2013

Hello Everyone!

Another week has come and gone. Crazy how that goes. This picture is of our baptism on Saturday. Vitor is 13, but he looks like he´s 16. He´s seriously amazing. He´s so solid and can´t wait to serve a mission one day. His step dad, Milton, is next to me. He´s inactive, but a super good guy. His mom is on the left. She was very skeptical at first, but the more we talk with her, the more she wants to know. It won´t be long until she´s dressed in white and Milton is active again ;). They´re feeding us lunch sometime this week. In front is Marcelo. He´s a member in the ward, great guy. It was definitely a special experience. Victoria (also 13) was baptized as well, along with her 8 year old brother. Their dad baptized them and that was really cool too. Victoria just never had a desire to be baptized before, and decided last week that she wanted to be baptized with her brother. We taught her all the lessons in like four days. 

Debora and Bruno still didn´t come to church, chato. But we´re still working with them and I think they´ll come around. I´m excited for Mother´s Day, and I think 100 o´clock your time will work perfectly. I´ll Skype from Guilherme´s house, so it´ll all be good ;)

Love you all! Thanks for the support and love.

Elder Barker

 

 

 

April 29, 2013

Bom dia!

Cipó is still Sião. I see miracles everyday, I just have to look for them. One of our investigators, here name is Debora, was really progressing, but we just couldn´t get her to church because she had to work every Sunday. It was just sad because her and her boyfriend are both really interested, but could never come on Sundays. Well we passed by last night and she got fired! She´s not super excited about it, but I know that it was a blessing. Bruno is her boyfriend and they have a three year old daughter. They said they´ll be coming to church this Sunday, we´re super excited for them.

One more cool story. We were walking up one of our huge hills in Cipó on our way to visit a recent convert (Gideyuma), and I had an impression that we should stop and knock one door (except for it´s really clap at one gate). Well it turns out that a family of four lives there and we´re teaching them now. Tais is the one that came to the door and she´s the most interested. She´s 19 and asks some really hard questions, but it´s really good. Anyway, after the first lesson when we were walking away, Elder Ribeiro said that he had had the same feeling to stop at that house with his companion before, but never did. It was a confirmation to me that as long as we´re in tune with the Spirit the Lord will guide the work.

Oh, for Mother´s Day you need to let me know if you want to Skype or just talk on the phone. Next week, tell me what Number or Skype to use and what time you want me to call and all that good stuff :) I think I´m three hours ahead, right? We get one hour to talk, so anytime after noon is good for me.

We´re still working with Victor. He stopped drinking coffee and is still really solid. He has a strong testimony. For some reason his parents are still a little resistent, but the Bishop talked with his step dad (Inactive) and I think he´s going to allow Victor to be baptized this weekend. We´re excited for him.

The food is still super good. I don´t know if you´ve ever heard of Feijoada, but the Brazilian women make good use of almost every part of the Pig. It´s really good, you just have to be careful to not eat the bad stuff. I love the fruit here too! The bananas taste like banana Creamies and the help my legs not cramp up, so I eat a lot of them.

Anyway, I love you all! I have a strong testimony that the Lord knows us personally and he is looking out for us.

Love, Elder Barker

(President Pinho as been dropping some PMA quotes on us from Napoleon Hill. He´s Awesome)

 

Monday April 22, 2013

 

Hello!

So...

I totally forgot to tell you about the Temple. It was beautiful, and the inside is even cooler. It was an awesome trip. We went to Wal-mart too, so that was kind of cool/ strange.

We are doing very well. We have two baptisms planned this weekend, Tiago and Victor, but we´ll see what happens. Victor´s parents want him to wait a while, so I don´t know.

We helped carry a Drunk guy off the street yesterday. He was sprawled out Spread Eagle in the middle of the road. It was pretty crazy.

We have some great people preparing for baptism right now! The work is going very well. Transfers tomorrow, but we~re both staying in Cipó. Love you all! I have a testimony that the Lord is looking out for us at all times! Ate Logo! (mother´s day three weeks!)

Elder Barker