It's A Boy!!!! 1/30/12

Well oh well! How are you this week? I'm doing pretty dang good. My son is a pure bred Mormon boy. Born in the covenant. Elder Dance is his name. He is from Washington Seattle area, and he is a beast. He practically came trained already. He is super funny, and he is always super excited. He is a great missionary. I'm so blessed to be paired with him. 
We are serving in the area Itacibá in the zone Cariasica. It is a flippen huge area. It is intense, and it is definitely not flat like my last area. It is straight up hills everywhere. We're just right outside of Vitoria, so we're in the city pretty good. But it will be an awesome area for sure. We were pretty good and lost the first couple of days, but now we're golden. We're getting our way around just fine. 
So I thought up till Tuesday that for sure I would be training a Brazilian, but then we got to the meeting and president is all, "Well Elder Tanner and Furrows, you guys are speaking good enough that you can handle an American." So I got me an American. 
I'm not gonna lie, my testimony has grown a lot this last week in how much the Lord helps his servants. I didn't feel like my Portuguese was even close to where it needed to be to be able to work, but this last week the Lord has helped me so much, and I know that it was with the Lord's help that I was somewhat prepared for this. I still think that I'm not ready cause it is hard, but I have been praying and praying and praying, and I know the Lord is blessing me so much. I'm so grateful for this growing experience in my life. Elder Hall always told me that the Lord is gonna call you when you're not ready. He said, "You're never gonna get a calling and think to yourself that 'oh ya, I'm ready for this calling,' but the Lord provides a way." So for sure I have been humbled so much this last week, but I'm so grateful for the blessings that the Lord has blessed me with. I don't think that I have ever prayed so much in my life than this last week, and I have not had time to do anything besides work my but off, and that is what I want, so I'm loving it. 
So we showed up to our apartment on Tuesday and it was trashed. Brazilians do not take care of things. It is so annoying. That house has not been cleaned for years I don't think, and they didn't leave the area book updated, so we're pretty much staring cold, but it's all good. You can't do anything about it but clean the house. Keep the area book updated from here on out and work your tail off. 
So I'm in a ward now instead of a branch, and it is nuts the difference. People actually work here and fulfill their callings and have ward council meetings. It super nice. 
Well thanks for everything. Thank you for the prayers especially. They are helping. I know it. Thank you so much. Hope you have a great week and I know I will. 
Love, Elder Furrows 
PS Sorry, I tried to send pics, but the computer wouldn't load them fast enough. Annoying right?

Transfer Week 1/23/12

Holy cow! I'm being transferred. It is so weird to be leaving my first and only area. So me and Elder Hall are in Vitoria right now, that is why this email is late, cause he has a meeting with president today.

So not only am I being transferred, but I'm going to be training for the next 2 transfers. Can you believe that? I'm already getting a son. I feel so unprepared for this. I'm  freaking out super bad, but I'm so excited. It is gonna be such a great experience for me. I know it. But I will tell you more about my son when I find out tomorrow who he will be.

So this last week was super good. We worked our butts off, and even though all of the baptisms fell, it was still a super good week, and Stefani and Ian are going to be baptized this week. There mom just was leaving town, so we moved it to this Wednesday, but Elder Hall is going back there with his family and baptizing them for us. It is gonna be super cool.

So it sounds like you had a good birthday. I'm super glad for you. And it sounds like Travis is having a good time in Africa ha ha. Ya that is pretty crazy that I went to Felipe's house right as you were talking with him. It was fun. 

Well sorry this is short, but we have got to get to Elder Hall's interview with the pres. Love you so much and keep me in your prayers cause I'm thinking I'm gonna need them. :)

Love, Elder Furrows

Happy Birthday Mom 1/16/12

Well happy birthday mother dear. Hope that your day goes amazing. Thank you so much for everything that you have done for me, and the way that you raised me and the rest of us kids. We are all so grateful for the wonderful example and the help you always give us. Thank you for everything.

Well it sounds like Rusten was meant for the water. That is awesome that he did so well. Tell him good job for me, and to keep up the good work, and maybe one day he will be able to swim as fast as me ha ha.

So this past week was a way good week. We baptized Illary and it was so flippen sweet. She is such an awesome girl. Her little brother and sister will get baptized this week also, and Sandra hopefully. Pray a lot for them please. So that is the news on the baptisms.

So this last week we had our zone conference here in Linhares and it was super good. We also had our interviews with president and that was good, cause this is the first one that we have had where we could actually communicate ha ha. So Tuesday night we had interviews and we got our mail and I got 18 letters and packages. Can you believe that? It was fun to lug all them puppies home. 

The next day we had the conference and it was super good, but we had some problems. We had a training on the area book and how to use it, and we knew that we were supposed to bring it with us. But I thought that Elder Hall had put it in his bag, and he thought that I had done the same, so we get there and about 15 min. before the conference starts we realize this and so we take off running to our house. Normally it takes us 30 min to walk to our house from the church, but we made it to our house in ten min. We grab the book and take off, and we make it back to the chapel by 9:15. Only 15 min late, and we were sweating up a storm and we had to put our suits on and just deal with it. Sitting there for 4 hours, it was so nasty. I don't think I have ever sweat so bad in my life, but it was a good time. You got to love missionary work! 

Well everything is going super well. This is my last week with Elder Hall and the transfers will be this next Tuesday. I'm pretty excited. Hey Rob, I hope you noticed how I made paragraphs in the email just for you. I read your little letter ha ha. Hope it was easier for ya. Have a great week. Love you. Happy birthday again.

Love, Elder Furrows

Investigators 1/9/12

So this week has been a pretty dang good week as always. Even though we have been having to drop a lot of our investigators, the Lord is going to bless us with people that are going to be more receptive to our message. 

I can't believe that there is no snow there still. That blows my mind, and it kinda makes me feel good. It means that I'm not missing out on any good skiing ha ha. 

Don't worry about the whole wrong address deal. They are still getting here I would imagine. But you know, I don't get mail until we either go to Vitoria or someone comes here from Vitoria. So this week we will get mail and packages I would imagine, cause we have a conference of the zone.

Ha ha that is true. We are definitely blessed with a lot of lessons and very nice people that are always willing to let us in the door, so that is always nice, but they do like to party. Well they kind of stopped the parties a little, but this last weekend they were out again partying it up.

No, Elder Swanson had a missionary that he was writing. She is in Russia, but things didn't work out with her for some reason, so he picked up this one now ha ha. Rose keeps me up to date on the life of Elder Swanson. 

Ya we started an English class last week to get some good references coming in, so that was good.

So this last week we had to drop some investigators. We were working really good with the family down there in Shell, and everything was going super good. Honestly, this last week we taught with the spirit so strong and I know they felt it too, and they still in the end wanted to keep living their lives the way they are. We taught on of the sisters on 
Saturday cause everyone else was out in the streets drinking, and we had the spirit so strong. We were trying our hardest to show her that if she ever wants to get out of this lifestyle, the only way is through the gospel, and she still didn't except it, and it broke my heart. I left there crying, knowing that these people could have the lives that they want, but that Satan has great power and they took the easy road out. It 
was pretty hard on me. But they invited us to come and eat lunch at their house still on Sunday, so we went and they were all wasted and giving each other tattoos. It was so horrible. But it is all good cause we're going to baptize this week. :) 

We're working with this less active family and they are all super legit. The three younger kids aren't baptized, so the plan is to baptize one this week and the other 2 next week. It is gonna be a good week. I'm loving the work and I'm loving the people. 

I was telling Elder Hall that I'm gonna have family home evening once I have a family, and we're gonna do an activity and fake like we're in Brasil and do all these things that Brasilians do. It will be super 
fun ha ha. Well thank you for everything. I love you guys so much. Have an awesome week.

Love, Elder Furrows

Feliz Ano Novo (Happy New Year) 1/2/12

Hey hey, feliz ano novo. :) Sounds like you guys are have a blast back there. All the partying going on and all that fun stuff. I still haven't gotten the packages yet cause we're not close to the mission home, but on the 10th we have interviews with president and I'm hoping that he will bring them, but if not, I will get them on the day of transfers, so no worries. I will have them by the end of the month. 

Tell Jaden Spudcellar congrats on the call. That is so flippen cool!!!!! When does he leave for the battle? Also tell Britt congrats on the engagement. Tell them to make it the 18th of May. That is the best day of that month, or the 28th, that is also the best day of that month too (Mack you know why:)). 

So Utah sounded like it was a good time, and Aub and Sheen and Aust and Ty all are on vacations. That is super cool. That is one thing that I miss hearing about, is football American. But it's all good. I will watch the super bowl in 2 years ha ha. 

Rusten is staying pretty busy with all his little hobbies and everything that is going on with him. When does he start back up school again? And how is the swimming thing going? ha ha Tell Mackenzie's grandma thank you for the compliment and always being so willing to help. They are such sweet people. Ask her if she got my letter that I sent them? 

Well I'm glad that you are having a good time back home, and that everyone is having fun and being safe. That is our goal here on the earth, to have joy, so make sure you're always joyful. :)

Well this last week was a pretty dang good week. The only thing that was rough is these dang holidays. These Brasilians don't mess around when it comes to holidays. They party and they don't stop. It seems like about half the people in Linhares started to party on Christmas and still have not stopped ha ha. About half the city left on vacation and the other half were drunk, which makes it a little hard to teach with the spirit. So this Sunday was kinda rough. We only had one investigator come to church, and the problem with her is that she just doesn't want to be baptized. She has came for the past month straight and likes it a ton. She believes everything we tell her, but just says she doesn't want to be baptized. 

Marilsa sent us a text on Sunday morning saying that she doesn't want to be baptized any more. Can you believe that, a text. She just texted her answer to her salvation (and I thought that getting broke up with over text was rough), it kills me. I have shared some of the most spiritual times on my mission with this lady. I have barred some of the most strongest testimony to her, and yet she fears man more than God. I hate free agency sometimes. But we're gonna go back to her house one last time and give it one last shout. Wish us luck. 

We had this other lady who told us that she doesn't want to be baptized too, but she will be. She just needs a little more work. So we had a lot of people tell us that they aren't going through with it this week, but also we found a lot of good people, and marked some dates and everything is going really good now. 

So on Friday of this week we went to SUBWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes Subway. They just barley opened one here in Linhares, and last week me and Elder Hall were walking to the church and we passed it and I like stopped and asked Elder Hall if he just saw what I saw, and he was like yupp. And we turned around and we were like screaming for joy looking through the window watching these people eat. It was probably pretty creepy ha ha. But on Friday we went back, cause a member gave us money for lunch and we ate there, and it was like a little slice of american heaven ha ha. And it was about as much as a little slice of heaven too. It was 20 reals for the sandwich, cookie, and a drink, but it was so worth it. So that made our week super good. 

We have got that big family that we're teaching, and this last week we taught them all one on one and it was really good. The only thing is we went to these girls house to talk with their mom and share the message with the mom, and she asked us to come back and teach her boyfriend on Saturday, and we're like, "Heck ya we'll come back." So Saturday we go back and we get there and this guy is just drunk and just this little punk. He was just talking bad about everything that was happening. Talking about beating his kids and wife and they were all super scared of him, and then he starts like talking bad about us and it took all I had in me not to just beat the crap out of this guy and drag him out of his house and get those kids and wife out of the house. But it is a good thing I have a comp cause every time this guy would go off on one of his spits my comp would just say in English, "It's not worth it. Let it go. Calm down." And that is one reason we have comps ha ha. But that was a pretty sad situation. 

I'm very thankful for the things I have now more than ever. This church blesses peoples lives in so many different ways, and I know that if we can help these girls to come to the church and be baptized, that it will turn their lives around for sure. You can honestly see how the church blesses peoples lives here. Even the people who have hardly nothing that are members of the church, have a better life than that of a lot of the other people who are better off than them. The church is so amazing. I don't know why people don't just open their eyes, step away form the apostasy and the worldly things and come begging us to be baptized. 

But this week was good. I love the work and I love the people here, even when they don't do what I want ha ha. Thanks for everything. Have a great week and I will to.

Love, Elder Furrows

Working Hard 12/26/11

Merry Christmas. It was so good to talk to you yesterday. Don't worry, I will tell them thanks. No, Felipe is the only member in his family and he is adopted and he lives by himself. He is honestly the coolest kid ever. He leaves with us like everyday. I love the kid to death, and he was saying how much he likes you guys. He could just tell from looking at you guys that you guys are awesome. He will be going on his mission sometime in this upcoming year. I think I will buy him something for his mission cause he doesn't have too much money, and he helps us so much. I love the kid. 

Well this past week was dang fun. We worked our butts off and we had a ton of success. The Lord is blessing us so much right now and I think it is cause we are working the hardest I have ever worked in my life. We seriously do not have one second of down time. It is so much fun. I love it. 

So this week we passed 11 baptismal dates!!!! And we have more than that, but those are just the firmer ones. We have been working really hard to mark a lot of dates so we can have a lot of success. So we're working with this one giant family that lives down in the pó do Shell. ha ha That is the dust of Shell, Shell is the neighborhood. So they are super funny. It is always dang fun when we go over there. One night this week we were down there and were walking by a bar and this drunk lady is like, "Give me a card." They always ask for cards for some reason, so we gave her a pamphlet of the restoration and she started crying and telling us all of her life problems and I couldn't help but laugh, and then after she came up and gave me and Elder Hall both these awkward hug things where she just buried her face in our chest and we tried to stop it, but it was not happening. 

We're teaching a transvestite or however you spell that and his gay companion, and they both have dates for this upcoming month. It is gonna take a lot of changing, but we're gonna try our best. I learned something with them though this week. So we clapped there door and then he/she shows up and we ask if we can teach him a message and Elder Hall leaves me to start the lesson, so I just was gonna do a really fast little lesson about Christmas and leave it at that, so I did it and then after, Elder Hall started into the restoration and I learned that every single person that we come across has to have the opportunity to hear our message, and it is not for us to judge, so I learned a really good lesson this week.

Well everything here is going really well. I love the work and I love the people, and most of all, I love my savior, and I'm so thankful for his sacrifice for me. Happy holidays. :)

Love, Elder Furrows

This is a picture from the Christmas Party

Feliz Natal 12/19/11

Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Everything this past week was super good. We had an amazing week and found a lot of good people. So this last week we had the transfer meetings on Monday and then Tuesday we came back to Linhares to work. The next day we went back to Vitoria again for a training thing for Elder Hall, and I went and worked with another group of missionaries there. It was dang fun. 

So Thursday we hit it dang hard. We're finding news and marking dates left and right. This last Sunday we had 8 people in church, and this week we will mark dates with all of them. We found this family of ten people! Ya ten, ha ha and some of them are pretty legit and they have lots of friends, so we will get lots of references. 

We finally tracked down Marilsa and she wasn't running from us, so that is good. She marked her own date for the 7th of Jan. so that will be good. We have been working a lot with the members and less actives this past week, and it is fun to get to know everyone. There is only american missionaries here in Linhares right now. Me and Elder Hall and the others are Elder Fisher and Woodmansee. Elder Woodmansee is a newbie, but he is pretty dang good. 

I'm loving it here and time is flying by. I already have almost a quarter of my mission done. That is nuts! But it is good. It is super hot here right now. Summer is really starting to kick in and I'm sweating up a storm, and at the rate that me and Elder Hall walk, I'm losing some weight ha ha. And it helps now cause me and Elder Swanson used to eat so much together. We would eat pancakes like twice a day ha ha. I love Elder Swanson. He is such a beast! He was an amazing trainer that is for sure, and an amazing cook.(I hope you're reading this Elder Swanson:)) But ya, we're doing some good work here in Linhares. 

Rose gave a talk on Sunday and it was super amazing. She is so awesome. That family is going to be a major part of the church here in Linhares for sure. In her talk she said, "You guys don't ever need to worry about me becoming less active, cause I never want to loose the feeling that I have now in this church." Can you believe that? And then she was already burning the members telling them that they don't know what they have and that they need to share this great message with everyone. Elder Hall also gave a talk and it was super good. They asked him to give it like right as we were walking in. 

But it has been a good week. I hope you have a great Christmas and I know I will. Can't wait to talk to you guys on Christmas Day. Have a happy holiday. Thanks for everything. :)

Love, Elder Furrows

I Will Kill Again haha. 12/13/11

So I got my new comp and you will never guess who it is? .............................. 

Elder Hall!!!!!!!!!!!!! The flippen best missionary on the mission! He is super legit, and this is his last transfer too, so we're gonna kick butt and finish out super strong. He is honestly the most spiritual giant I have ever met and I have already learned so much from him and it has only been 1 day ha ha. But ya, it is going to be a good last transfer for sure. We're staying in my same area and we're gonna kick some major butt here. 

So my last week with Elder Swanson was super good. He finished out dang strong and we had a way good last week together. He taught me so much and he was such an amazing missionary. It was sad to see him go, but I met his mom and dad and they are super nice. It was way cool, and they brought me so much peanut butter YES!!! ha ha. 

So this last Sunday I had one of the coolest experiences on my mission so far. I found out what true joy was, and it wasn't that i was happy for myself for something that I had done, it was being able to see the family, that the lord helped us find and used us as the tools in his hands, get up and bare their testimonies that they know that this church is true without a doubt. I have never been so happy as I was sitting there in that chapel looking up into the eyes of the family that I have come to love and respect so much, bare their testimonies. In that moment I realized what I was here for and what true joy is in this life. "Men are that they might have joy" and I can honestly say that I have experienced true joy in my life now. And then as we placed our hands on Alex's head to give him the priesthood, it was just one of the most cool things in my life. So Sunday was a good day. I was super happy that day.

So yesterday we had our Christmas party and it was so dang fun. It was the whole mission that got to come, so I got to see Elders Tanner and Pelligrini, and they are doing so good. It was so fun to hang out with them all day. They are awesome. We had a ton of fun. Each zone got together and took a story out of the scriptures and we did a little skit on it and it was so flipping funny. We all had a ball. 

And then it came to judgement hour the hour of transfers. I was so nervous and I didn't know what to expect and then they called my name and told me I was going to be companions with Elder Hall! The stud of the mission. I'm so excited for this transfer. It is going to be legit. We will baptize nations! President told Elder Hall to get me all ready to be a trainer by this next transfer because he said he might need me to train, so that is a little nerve racking, but I am guessing that I won't train by the next one, but it is going to be sweet. This transfer will be a transfer of miracles! I can already tell that we're going to get along super good. We set some sweet goals for this transfer and they are going to be some we have to really work for, but they are able to be 

reached. We're going to be working hard that is for sure and I'm super excited for that. 

Well I hope you have a great week. Thank you for everything that you do for me. Oh ya, I got a little package from the ward with a Christmas tree of paper and we hung it up on the wall. It is pretty awesome. Tell the ward thanks. I didn't get any of the other ones you said you sent too. I'm guessing they are still on their merry little way. Thanks for everything. I love you so much. Have a great week and I know I will. I will talk to you next week and then the next time we'll be talking on Skype! :)

Love, Elder Furrows

Oh ya, sorry for not putting pictures on 2 weeks in a row. I forgot my cord for my camera today, so this next week you will be getting a lot ha 
ha.

Happy P-Day 12/5/11

Hey hey fam!

So this past week was dang good. I'm not gonna lie, being a senior is pretty rough, but it was not too bad. I had to make all the phone calls and schedule all the appts. this week and it was good. There was one day where everything just fell and we had nothing, and I was just stressed and super down on myself and my comp, being the amazing man he is, I think he could tell that I was pretty mad at myself for not doing a good job and not knowing what the heck to do, and he helped me out and we had a dang good day. 

On Monday of last week, my first lesson as senior, I marked a date with Marilsa for the 17 of Dec and so we're working towards that. We were with her one time this week and she was getting kinda moely, and the spirit took over and Heavenly Father definitely used me as a tool and talked through me to help her out, and it was super cool. I don't really remember what I said, but whatever it was, it worked. So it was a cool experience. 

So were in Colatina right now and we got to get to the church to start the party, so this one is gonna be short this week. But we have this party here and we get to watch a movie and eat lunch. It is gonna be fun. 

Yesterday was the stake conference here in Colatina and it was way good. They just built a new chapel there and it was the first meeting held in it. It was super cool. Rose´s whole family came and were talking with Alex about the priesthood and he is getting pretty excited. It is so cool. Everyone comes up to us and tells us good job on the baptisms with Rose and Alex cause they can tell that they are such a good family. Rose is gonna leave with us this week and help us teach one day, so that should be cool. They are a super cool family. 

Haha. Ya she told me that you guys have been talking. She understands pretty much everything that you say, so keep writing in Spanish. It is super cool that you're talking with her. 

So everything is good here. Elder Swanson only has one more week and he is still keeping strong. And everything is going super good. Corintians won the brasilerão(or however you spell that), and Vasco got second. I was kinda bummed about that, but it's all good ha ha. 

So this week will be awesome. Oh ya, so this next Monday we're having our mission Christmas party. It is gonna be legit. So don't worry if you don't get an email next Monday. It will probably be on Tuesday that we email. Love you and have a good week. 

Elder Furrows

Alex and Brenda get Baptized 11/28/11

olá tudo mundo

How are you doing this week? Still recovering from Thanksgiving meal? Ha ha. Sounds like you guys had quite the party there. That is cool. And the pie, that is the only things that I am missing really, but what do you do ha ha. Yes I changed my writing so it is easier to read that way right?

Our Thanksgiving here was alright, the lady had to work that day, so she just took us to a  restaurant to eat, but it was still dang good so that is all that matters right? Ha ha. But it was good. It didn't really feel like Thanksgiving ya know, so it wasn't bad at all.

We had an amazing week this week though. So Alex and Brenda were baptized and they were so happy. It was sweet. Alex bore his testimony after the baptism and he is so legit. He will be a dang good member of this ward.

Well I had my whole email written just barley and I did something to try to put some pictures on and it deleted it, so here I go again for the second time. This sucks ha ha. But this past week was good. There were some crazy rainstorms that got us soaking wet, and I had to stay in those wet clothes for 2 days because I went on a division to Colatina and stayed the night there and everything. It was pretty cool there. It is super hot there, one of the hottest areas in the mission, so even when it is not raining, you're soaking wet from sweat, so it is safe to say that I was stinky by the end of it ha ha. I went there with only Brasilians, so there was me and 3 of them and it wasn't that bad at all. I could actually talk and get by and everything, so that was a good stress reliever because here in 2 weeks I will most likely get a Brasilian comp, so I'm pretty pumped for that. This week I am the senior for the week, so I have to take control in all things that we do. I have the cell phone and everything. Pretty intense na? But I'm excited. Our zone baptized the most this month, so we get to have a super p day this next p day and we're going to Colatina with the whole zone to play soccer and we get to watch a Disney movie and have a bbq with president. It is gonna be super fun. I'm excited. We also have this week stake conference and that is all the way in Colatina too, so we're gonna be over there this weekend. It will be super good I'm sure. They just built 

a new chapel there, so I'm excited to see that. Well hope all is going well. I know that everything here will go good, just have to have faith. Love you and have a good week.

Love, Elder Furrows