July 20, 2015 knockin and talkin

          Week 57

We had our multi-zone conference this week which was really fun. We learned a ton. Next week, Elder Costa will come to speak to us. That will be fun.

This week did not have very many results. We had over 90 doors knocked on, and 3 people let us in (that is not including people who weren´t home). It was pretty tiring and the people that accepted us didn´t really want anything...

I know I´m a missionary, but I just have to say, I hate dumb people....

First person: A lady whose door I knocked on let us in. We taught the restoration and she said that she had already read the Book of Mormon and she also said that she didn´t want to switch religions. We asked if she believed the book to be true, and she said yes. We explained a little more and I asked, "Do you believe that Joseph Smith was called a prophet of God?" Her response, "Clearly! But I´m happy where I am and I don´t want to switch religions..." Wow... It is the true church of God! What more could you ask?...

Second Person: We visited someone that we talked with on the road. We taught the Restauration and pulled out the BoM and testified. We told them that they would receive an answer. Well, the lady asked the most ridiculous question, "If I know that the book is true, do I have to go to your church?" What kind of question is that? You don´t want to go to the true church? She said, "I´ve always been Catholic, and I don´t want to change." Even the old man that was bed-ridden lifted up his arm and said, "I´ve been catholic for 76 years and I will die Catholic." Ugh. that made me mad. 

I hate ignorant people....

Anyways, Jul was baptized!!! We had a barbaque at his house. Everything was good there minus the pig´s stomach. That was the strangest texture ever. He tried offering me more, but I had to deny. It was really fun. Jul was so big (6'4" 250lbs), that he had to kneel down so that he could be baptized. It was funny. Now we just need to teach his wife. I think that she wants to, but she is afraid of her 5 year old son running around in the church and misbehaving. Other than that, I think that she will come.

Love,

Elder Koby Sullivan

Koby went to the zoo with a man who is good friends with him and the other missionaries, and he sent me these pictures of Koby at the zoo. (Koby was feeling bad that he didn't have any pics from the zoo since he didn't have his camera.)

Koby in front of his apartment.

Koby before he got his hair cut.

Koby after his haircut. haha. not much difference.

.

July 13, 2015 interviewing an assassin for baptism

          56 weeks

This week had a major change on the mission. We had the rule to do at least 14 contacts as a companionship each day. They have now changed it to 50 contacts each day. 50 takes quite a bit of effort. 

Jul married on Tuesday!!! He said something that was way funny. He has already passed the baptismal interview once, but the second time, they discovered that he wasn´t married and he got really angry. Now, at the signing of the paper, he held up another paper to us and said, "Do you see this? This is a stable agreement between us, so basically we were married, but the church doesn´t accept this paper. With this paper, we are in fornication! Try stopping me from being baptized now!"

On Sunday, we did his interview. Well, we had planned on joking around with the interviewer, "Elder Figueira". Jul pretended that he had killed a man, but that it didn´t matter because he was going to get baptized anyway. Figueira got really scared. He didn´t know what to do because he couldn´t let an assasin get baptized nor did he want to get killed. We messed with him a bit. It was really fun. After, we told him the truth and he got really upset. It was hillarious.

This week was the first week that someone didn´t accept the free Book of Mormon. It was really frustrating. It happened twice.

I had a first experience Sunday. We had plans to go to a new part of our area that required the bus to get there. Well, we ran into Julio and we started talking. While we were talking, we missed the bus.... So, we decided to stay close to our house. While we were knocking on doors, there was one man who let us in. We taught him about the restoration and he had a lot of difficult questions that we managed to answer. We pulled out the Book of Mormon and started to explain it. He looked at it and while my companion was explaining it, and asked if he could hold it. We gave it to him and he looked at it and marveled. We invited him and his wife to read and he said, "I want to read it." (that is a rare response). After the message, the man (Adil) said that last night as he was going to bed, he said a prayer and asked God to show him which path to follow. They believe that we are the answer! Oh, how happy we were after!

Só Sucesso

Elder Koby Sullivan

July 6, 2015 marijuana n missionaries

Update on Juli... there was another problem at the cartorio (the place to get married). They did not accept his wife´s picture because it was too old. They updated the picture and the cartorio said that it will take at least ten days to process it....Now he can´t be baptized until the 18...

We have a new investigator who smokes a ton of marajuana. It seems like he will put in some effort to change this problem. He is going to bring his sister too so that we can help :)

This week we have knocked on so many doors and have been rejected so many times. Now, we are trying up our motivation and creating fancy way on knocking on doors.....no, ringing the interphone...that is about all we do day after day. Results are few. We found some people who were baptized 40 years ago as a kid and now they want to know about the church, and some old investigators of some other missionaries who did not leave a form that said that they existed.

Remember when I went to the four square church? Well, we have his address and have planned to meet with him this friday. We going to prepare all week.

4th of July didn´t really exist for me...

Elder Koby Sullivan

June 29, 2015 "Kid, I have no idea what you just said"

          54 weeks

I had a cool experience the other day knocking on doors (or interfones). I was so upset that nobody would come to the door that I did a contact in English. His response, "Kid, I have no idea what you just said". Anyway, he let us in! We´ll see how he does as an investigator. He is way cool right now :)

However, I did try the English again and nobody let us in...

We had interviews with Prez. It was really fun. We threw a barbaque that is basically cook the meat over the fire. No fancy sauces or anything. just rice. Prez. told my companion and I that we need to change this ward because it is the richest ward on the mission and knocking on doors will not work. He said to go and change the culture of the ward. We´ll see what we can do. 

We were passing by the zoo the other day and decided to go look. Unfortunately, I didn´t have my camera..... It was full of tropical birds which was way cool. They had a few monkeys and a tiger. It was a decent size, but I liked it.

Elder Koby Sullivan