Monday, June 2, 2014

Dear Family,

 First of all, I do not have a Portuguese accent, Mom.

Second, I got ahold of Wells Fargo and cancelled the card. They said that someone had put a password on it already, and luckily I said my mom´s name and they let me in! I still need to order a new card. I think they´ll send it to you, because they said it would be easier that way. But everything worked out.

It was good to talk to you too mom, it surprised me a little when Pres. Pinho handed me his cell phone and told me to call you. He wasn´t at all worried about the money.

There have been more riots and things, and everyone is getting excited about the World Cup. They are painting all the streets and putting up flags on everything. They love their soccer. We´ll probably just be staying at home every day that Brasil plays, and the day after as well. It´s a lose-lose situation. If Brasil wins they have crazy parties, if Brasil loses they break and burn everything. So it´s not a good situation for missionaries either way.

I´m happy for Hailey. Tell her I love her. And sounds like all is well with summer break.

We had a crazy week. We got to the church to fill up the baptismal font on Saturday and it was full of paint, because they´re reforming the church. So after cleaning it out, we went to fill it up. Buuuut, the church ran out of water. Bishop had faith, so we said a prayer together with two more members asking for water. We tried again and had nothing. So we almost had a baptism in a member´s swimming pool. Then, about a half an hour before the baptism we ended up using a fire hose to fill the font. The water was a little chilly and dirty, but everything worked out. It was awesome. Marcia, Bia, Marcelo and Vanessa were baptized. Marcia is a mom of twin boys (2 yrs) and Bia, Marcelo and Vanessa are a family. Amazing people. Sadly the father´s of these two families are still struggling with the word of wisdom, but they´re not far behind.

We have a conference with the whole mission on Thursday. It´ll be Pres. Pinho´s last meeting and a lot of my good friends´ last meeting as well. Sounds like Pres. Dalton´s getting excited, too. He´ll get here in 4 weeks.

I love you all. Thank you for your testimonies and support.

Love, Elder Barker

Monday, May 26, 2014

Dear Family,

 This was a pretty eventful week. Due to strikes and protests in São Paulo we did not get to hear from Elder Anderson. Pres. Pinho said that Elder Nelson and Elder Anderson received revelation that we should not leave the house on that particular day... Almost a year and a half on the mission and the one day we can´t leave the house is the day that one of the 12 would speak with us. And they went back to the U.S. the next day. What luck. But I believe the Lord has His reasons. We took advantage of the day and cleaned the house, updated the Area Book, slept a little, wrote in our journal, ordered pizza and watched the Testaments.

That´s too bad about my debit card. Apparently you can´t trust people selling home-made corn bread in the street. I´m just kidding, the only time I use my card is at the super market every once in a while. Elder Schleiger´s got robbed too. I´ll try calling again today, but when I called from the pay phone it went directly to SAMU, which is like 911 in the US. They said, ´SAMU, What´s your emergency?`. I thought that it was the card lady, so I started telling her all my problems with the debit card. She heard me out, but sadly said that she couldn´t help me. It wasn´t until afterward that I realized what was going on.

Tomorrow we have mission leadership council. I think it´s the last one with Pres. Pinho and they said he´s going to prepare a big breakfast and lunch. It´s going to go almost all day. 

The work is going good. I often feel like the Lord gives us miracles and blessings that we don´t deserve. He´s the best employer in the world. You give him a little bit and he pays you back infinitely more. And on this Memorial Day I´m especially grateful for an eternal family. I know that families can be together forever.

Love you all!

Elder Barker 

Monday, May 19, 2014

Dear Family,

Well another week come and gone. Elder Anderson will be here on Wednesday to talk to us and São Paulo, Sul. I´m excited. I heard that Cleveland, OH will have Elder Holland this week. The Elders are pretty excited about that. Pres. Dalton sent emails to a lot of the missionaries. He said that he played basketball at Powell. He lived there for two years. He sounds like a great guy. 

We´re having a lot of success with the new program. The ward had 162 people on Sunday. With six missionaries in the ward, everyone is getting pretty excited. I was happy to hear that you fed the Sisters last week. Did you introduce them to some people?

 I like this quote from Parley P. Pratt after being called on yet another mission. It comes from a talk called `Becoming a Consecrated Missionary`

  Parley P. Pratt-

I have desired after travelling for 25 or 26 years , mostly abroad, to stay at home and minister among the people of God, and take care of my family, but God´s will be done and not mine. If it is the will of God that I should spend my days in proclaining this Gospel and bearing testimony of these things, I shall think myself highly priveligede and honored. And when the Spirit of God is upon me, I think it matters but very little what I suffer, what I sacrificded whethre I secure the honor or dishonor of me, or where I die. If it so be that I cdan keep the faith, fight the good fight and finish m course with joy. I have all eternity before me, in which to enjoy myself.` 

 This is the best work in the world. I love you all.

Elder BArker

 

Monday, May 12, 2014

Dear Family,

It was sure good to talk to you all yesterday! Sorry for the problems with the Skype. But it all worked out. President Messias was impressed with the size of our family. I love you all and I´m grateful for all the support you give me. You are all examples to me, and help me be better missionary and a better person. I hope that I can be all that I should be as a representative of the Savior. And I´m sorry for ever being less than I should have been in the past.

 Sounds like everyone had a good trip to St. George. How´s Meg and all the other missionaries? 

We had BBQ with Bishop yesterday for his B-day and mother´s day. It was incredible. Imagine Braza or Tucanos times ten. It was so good. And they had a passion fruit (maracujá) cake at the end. Heaven.

 I´m very impressed with the simplicity of the gospel. The family is central to God´s plan. The simple things make the difference, scripture study, prayer, and family home evening. I´m thankful for the family that I have. I love you all so much. Have an awesome week!!! Let´s win.

 Elder Barker

 

 

I just recieved an awful email saying I´ll be going home in 6 months. November, 25 to be exact. I´ve thought about it,alot, and I feel that I shouldn´t extend, even if I can. I´ll catch that spring semester of school. Have to move on, right? So I need some information to send to the secretaries.

1. Are you planning on coming to get me?

2. President Cluny´s email.

and... I think that´s it for now.

Can you send it to me?

 

Monday, May 5, 2014

Querida e amada familia,

 How is everyone doing? I´m doing fantastic. My new area is really great. The new retention project is going great. We´re having success reactivating people and we´re also finding people to baptize. It really was a great revelation from our leaders. It´s exactly what we need here. 

 Oh big news.. I got a package! The white shirts arrived with the PMG cap. And just in time, too. My shirts are getting worn out. Thank you so much!

And yes, I´ll be able to Skype 1 hour again! I´ll be using the stake president´s computor. I´ll get on at 7 pm which is 4 pm for you, I believe. If that´s a problem, send another email and we may be able to call on Saturday night again. It´ll be good to see you all again! I´ll be using the Skype of Elder Schleiger, michael.schleiger from Derby, Kansas (which is currently the area of Elder Wade Eyre) haha small world.

Thanks for the Family History story! I´m excited to read it.

I don´t think I´m getting taller, mom. It´s just because Elder Schleiger isn´t too tall. I think he´s pushin´ about 5´6´. But that´s a sensitive subject.

We have had a lot of funny things happen to us lately. Yesterday during lunch there were a bunch of grown men jamming out to `Girls just want to have Fun` in a bar. They don´t understand the words, so they just dance anyway. 

 The work is great and I love you all! Have you seen the video `Because of Him` on the church website? It´s really cool. 

 Love you and I´ll see you soon!

 Elder Barker

 

 

Dear Mia,

Thanks for writing me. I love hearing from you. Guess what... Last week when I was in the street there was this drunk guy that kissed me right on the face and he offered me 50 bucks. He kissed Elder Schleiger too. It stunk really bad, but he´s a child of God as well, right? ( I didn´t accept the money)

Also, we were running home the other night and Elder Schleiger biffed in the middle of road and there were a bunch of people on a roof top laughing at us. Pretty funny. He also got peed on by a cat in the middle of a lesson, on the next day. He was stinking all day and all of the cat´s in São Paulo were coming up to smell him.

The mission is the best!

Love you so much! Stay sweet and keep taking care of the family!

 Elder Barker

 

 

Monday, April 28, 2014

 

 

 

 

Dear Family,

 

I had a very full week. Missionary work is awesome because you don´t even have time to think about anything else. So we´re always happy! We´ve been in meetings and trainings all week.

So, the mission received in email from the Area Presidency inviting us to do a ´Pilot Project` of retention. 50% of all our Proselyting time is now retention. We´ll be working with a very specific group of Recent Converts and Recent Converts that have already gone less-active. It´s a very detailed program. We´re going to be working with the ward very closely. They say that if it goes well they´ll apply it in all of Brasil. But we´re just going to be doing it until the third week of June. We´ve been busy relaying all the information for the bishops, ward leaders and members.

It was also announced that Elder Andersen, from the 12, will be visiting our mission on May 21. It will be a meeting together with São Paulo, South. Everyone is really excited about that. Pres. Pinho said that Elder Nelson will be here too, but he´s not going to visit our mission. 

I also got transfered. Elder Schleiger and I will be going to a new area in our same zone. It´ll be good. We´re sad to leave our awesome house, but excited about the new transfer.

We had a training from the Area Presidency last night about `Minha Familia` (My Family booklet). It was a broadcast in all of Brasil about Family History. We will be using it a lot more in our work now as well. Everyone is getting very excited about it. You had mentioned that you´re doing it back home as well, so keep it up! And if you have any cool stories or pictures of our ancestors, I´d love to see them!

 

Love, Elder Barker

 

Monday, April 21, 2014

My dear family,

 

I love you all so much. I´m so grateful in this Easter season for the sacrifice and resurrection of our Lord. I´m grateful to know that because of it, our family can be together forever. I´m sad to see so many people everyday that don´t have the hope that we do. They either don´t know it´s possible or don´t believe that it can really happen. We are extremely blessed. 

 

So I´m with Elder Schleiger now. He´s from Kansas, and speaks my language. Literally, he is my first companion in about a year that speaks English haha. It´s been a lot of fun serving with him. We´re excited and having success with the ward leaders here.

 

Easter here is called Páscoa. It´s a big deal here. Everyone eats huge chocolate eggs. And Friday and Monday (today) are also holidays. So nobody is working or going to school today. And there is always a lot of food ;)

 

Well I love you all and pray for you. What a blessing to live in this time and be a part of the Lord´s church on the Earth!

 

I´ll be talking to you soon! A funny thing that happened, we have a sister in our zone that left 3 Nèfi: 3:7 with an investigator to read after the first visit instead of 1 Néfi. Read it, it´s pretty funny. (gadianton robbers)

 

Love you all,

Elder Barker