Friday, March 27, 2009

March 24, 2009

Minha familia querida!
OH I love you all! Thank you for all the loving and kind words of encouragement! They help so much. Thank you grandma!
Mom, for you, please don´t worry about me too much. I am doing just fine, and i just learned how to use my card here, honestly I haven´t had to use it because the mission money has been sufficient, but this week I had to for the first time. We get reimbursed for things like medicine, water and things like this, but I really would like to buy a new pair of shoes, sandals. My shoes are great, but for everyday i think it is better to have some good sandals and i can buy them here, honestly i think things are just fine, and the dollar here is worth 2 raise so it is great! If you want to send money, put it in my fund, like Jim did, and now i know how i can use it, but don´t worry i don´t think that i will need it. I had to have some work done at the dentist, this is why i needed a little extra money this time.
But I would like recipes. With all this Portuguese in my mind recipes for the most part have escaped, i am only remembering about half. I think I would like recipes for cookies, and banana bread, and i don´t know what else is important in life! :) Life is good!
I am loving, living! happy. Interesting though something that happened just yesterday for the first time on my mission. I taught a lesson and was clearly rejected, but for some reason this made me really sad. I get rejected all the time, but this time it was a different feeling. I had been happy, but seriously I started crying as we walked away. It was such a strange feeling. my heart yearned and agency prevailed. My companion was sympathetic. Interesting and I remembered my setting apart and how President Doty counseled to not become too discouraged when people rejected.
I am enjoying the work. It is difficult to feel like I am doing the very best I can, but I know that it makes a difference. Many times people will say the difference our message has made in their lives, and i have honestly made friends with some of our investigators as my prayers, and an increase of vocabulary have been working in my life! Yay! I am feeling a little more comfortable with Portuguese. I love this ward and area, We have transfers next week and i hope i will not be transferred. I would love to witness the baptisms of the people, my friends, that we are teaching now.
This is a scattered e-mail, sorry!
You are all in my thought and prayers! Not a day passes when I don´t think about you all!
I am so grateful for the trails I have especially when we visit others and hear what life is like outside the gospel. It is amazing that these things happen in the church to people, but with Christ things have so much more hope. So much more bearable to bear our cross with Christ. So many don´t know this. I love being a missionary to bring this hope to all the world!
I love you all!
Sis Judd

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

March 17, 2009

Olá familia!
OH how I love you all, I am sorry last week the internet went down and this is why I was not able to e-mail, but I am happy that now I can.
Well, I just ended a week that was for some weird reason difficult for me. But it was good and we always learn from hard experiences, it was a difficult week for our entire district, but I know that this week will be better. In our district from example 9 baptisms that were planned fell through. But we have encountered some of the elect for sure and I am really happy about some that we have!
Caeser, he is a young man 27-28? but we taught him for the first time the other day, we were batendo portas, (clapping doors) and he was very receptive, the spirit was very strong when we taught and he said he would come to church with us this week.
Lenir, She is a wonderful woman we met she can´t hear very well, and really didn´t understand me very much at all, so the first couple of times we taught there sister j. lima taught basically the whole lessons. I bore my testimony knowing that she wouldn´t understand, but hoping she´d feel the power of testimony. But, the first time we met her she accepted baptism too, and told us that her son died 8 years ago due to a drug overdose. Very Very sad and now she deals with depression. She couldnt come to church because she was depressed a lot, and her medicine was gone, but we called three members to give her a blessing and it was wonderful, we taught the plan of salvation and felt the real power it has!
This work is heavy a lot of heavy people who have real problems really real problems, and this helps me to thank my heavenly Father for the way I grew up and the things I had that so Many others don´t have and also have questions like why was I so Blessed? I know that we all, all that have this wonderful gospel were given these blessed opportunities because we can be the tools to share with others and help others to hav the happiness we have! What an incredible experience!
Milton,Andrea, and Mirela- Yay a family! This is the first time I that I have had the opportunity to teach a whole family! It is awesome! This was a reference from Bispo. This is a wonderful family! They live way far from where we work, but it is so worth it to visit them. We have only taught twice , but with members always and the members were so awesome and helped us a lot at church with them! Adilson is awesome member who sat with them and explained everything. He has been home from his mission for only 7 months, and the whole milton family loved him!
We have a baptism scheduled for this weekend, but are not sure if it will happen, we found out some information we have to work with. Oh Please keep the commandments!!!!!
Sandra- Way awesome! I love her a lot! She definitely recognized us as representatives of Christ and it is so great to visit and teach her.
I love you all, my time is gone, but here was a little about the people we are helping and teaching right now, hoping to have baptisms, Thank you for your prayers, I need them!
Love love!
Sister Kami Kaye Judd

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

March 3, 2009

Familia,
I am a little sad because I had no e-mails from my family to read today, but last week was wonderful and so thanks for all the sweet e-mails, and today I will get to rewrite what I wanted to say last week!
First of all i hope everyone is well and life is going great!
I am so happy to hear of successes. I wanted to say to Marci that I fasted for you and for your baby, without knowing that anything was wrong, but I just felt like a fast would be a good idea for you! I am so glad the lord knows us, whether we are in Brasil, or any other place in the world!
WE had a baptism this week.We thought we would be having two, but one fell through. Monique I hope will be baptized soon, but Hernani was baptized this week and confirmed! It was wonderful! Alexander has been helping us visit him which is great because we need to see Alexandre more too. He bore his testimony at the baptism, and walked with us with Hernani for the baptism. Wonderful! The only thing that was sad was that Monique was not baptized with him. Her sister wants to be baptized as well, so we hope in the next couple of weeks to have their baptisms together.
Very interesting to have a Brasillian companion. Sometimes interesting to try and explain what you are thinking and feeling in another language and culture, but I can tell that she has helped me a lot. Just the other week I realized that I was saying my prayers for the most part in Portuguese. My thoughts were coming in Portugues! Way cool! Always pray with others in Portugues but in my own personal prayers most all the words and thoughts and feelings I wanted to express are coming!
I am learning the lessons a lot better too, and learning other words and examples to help investigators understand.
We have a couple we are teaching right now who are so awesome and we hope will accept a baptismal date. Janesio e Alesandra. They are very cool. His father and mother were baptized but are inactive now. HE attended church a lot with them, and he and his wife came to church. They are awesome! And they are married really married which eliminates an obstacle. Here people have to wait a long time, or pay a lot of money to get legally married. interesting!
I sure love you all and want to know how things are going for all of you! I hope you are doing well mom! I can´t wait until we have a meeting with President Tobias because he will bring the letters you all have been writing. Yay, I will make sure to send you my address next week! And I will send pictures of the baptism of Hernani! He is awesome!
I love the lord. In Him my soul delights!
Sister Judd

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

February 17, 2009

Alexandre was baptised on Saturday Feb 14 2009! Happy Valentines Day to me!!!!!!!!! I was so thrilled! HE received the Holy Ghost the next day in sacrament meeting and will be making visits with us now. This is so good because it will help him stay away from the evils of the world and remain worthy! I recorded his testimony and will send an invitation and pictures of the baptism very soon! Very happy! This is the Lords work!

The very day that he received the Holy Ghost I had to give a talk. The missionaries in the ward are in charge of the talks the third week. nerve wracking. You thought that giving a talk was hard try giving one in a language that is not your own. BOy! Anyway sister Chaves helped me and it was okay I think about obedience.

I am absolutely loving the area here. I can say that freely now because we just had transfers and I was not transferred, but my dear companion was sister wells is gone. Really now tchau Ingles. BYe English. It was so nice, but this will be so good for me I know, and I hear that my new companion sister JotaSilva is powerful! Good because we have a powerful work to perform, I am just learning about the power of this work!
I received the advice from Sean that I should remember that the lord sent Kami Kaye Judd to Brasil Goiania, and I want you to know that I think about that all the time. I had no idea how much it would mean to me, but I am starting to really know how much power Sister Kami Kaye Judd has. I never knew I could do this. I saw it in dreams but never knew that I could actually become this type of missionary that talks to 20 people in the street asking and teaching and inviting for church and getting addresses to visit in homes all day everyday! What a marvelous work. I can´t explain it, but I feel like yes this is the Sister Kami Kaye Judd that i am. And I am realizing how sacred this time is. Really. this is not my time. This time is for my God. This changes my desires so much and I truly can say that my heart is here with the people here and I long for their acceptance, not of me really, but of our Savior Jesus Christ!
I know this is where I am to be. I know that I have a great work to perform and with the mercy and help of my savior this is what I intend to do. So yes, I remember who I am and am realizing who I really am, and remembering who I really am and learning to use the things that have helped prepare me for this great work.
I have another person that we think will be baptized for sure this month as Well his name is Hernani! Very cool! It is interesting how God puts people in our path and he truly has helped us find some very elect people.I love you all
sister Judd

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

February 10, 2009

Familia Grande-
Eu amo vocês muito!
This was a week of miracles (although every week is) I love being a missionary for the Lord!
We found out Wednesday that our president was going to be coming to a city pretty close to ours for a zone conference ( which was really good and makes me want to kick myself in the pants, but be a better and more faithful!!! missionary) but this was great news for us because Alexandre needed an interview and all that and we wondered if this would be able to happen, and it did! My family it did, I think that some of you prayed and that is good! Alexandre passed the interview and remains faithful right now! He will be baptised this Saturday at 4;00! MY very first baptism of my mission, but I have some very high goals for the baptism I want to have and I am working on the faith and getting the Lord involved, he helped me with the number and I know he will help me to know how I can do it. Honestly it was one of the happiest times for me when He passed the interview! We´planned a very special lesson for him this week and are either visiting or calling every day to ensure that with the helps we gave he will stay away from the things that are against the W of W and we made him sign a contract which he did with trembling hands. Now we just need to trust in the Lord to provide for this great miracle.
I thank the Lord everyday for the miracles we witness, sometimes typing them doesn´t feel right, I feel like they are sacred, but I have a few pages in my journal that explain some and I will copy those and send them today for you all at home.
Marc tons of people ask me about the blog missionaries who say my mom said something about a blog you have or stuff like this. Um pouco scary, but I trust you. :)
This week I had my first experience making a data marcarda in the street. Setting a date for baptism after teaching in the street. We needed a lot more datas and so I asked in the rua, or street. and the very first time I tried the man set a date. He was smoking a cig, so we have work, but I think it worked because I had to follow the spirit 100% and the spirit was strong. I knew before he knew that he would say yes when I asked him to prepare. So awesome!
I also had my first experience with cockroaches here I took a shower, wrapped my towel around me and screamed! Hahhahaa yeah grande roach on my back. EWWW.. but I think I am the most courageous of the sisters in my house because I was the only who was not afraid to kill the stinking roach. NO in fact I get great satisfaction from killing a bug that made me scream. Anyway!
We met an elect yesterday. I mean all people are the elect, but sometimes you jusdt meet a ´person and can tell that he/she is ready really ready! His name is Sabastain. he accepted a date in the street as well! This is great because the goal for my comp and I that we are praying and fasting for this month is 4-5 baptisms! I know we can do it too! Please pray your prayers are heard and answered! I love you all soooooooo much!
Sister Judd
I will send pics soon too I hope!

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

February 3, 2009

Familia-
It was so good to hear from you all again! It just makes my day! I have thought about you all this week! I feel so lucky to have such an awesome family with additions all the time!
This week has been great! We have more people to teach and more people with baptismal dates this month my comp e I have a goal of baptizing 5 people. This will be challenging, but after much prayer and fasting this is the number both of of had in mind. We are willing to make the sacrifices necessary and have decided to fast every Sunday this month for this milagre. Really! We didn't have any baptisms this month, and I want to baptize, I know Heavenly father will bless us!
We had another girl come to church with us this week which was amazing! Her name is Monique! It was fast and testimony meeting and you know that sometimes that is interesting, but it was perfect, and the members were all so inviting, after the meeting as we walked home with her she said that she really liked it, and that she wanted to return and she wanted to participate, she has a baptismal date for the 15 of this month. She also has a sister and her father are listening to the lessons, we want to baptize them all, she was the only one awake though and she was the only one who came, but we hope next week the entire family will come with us! They are beautiful girls, 17 and 15 and Monique has such strong faith. The family read the Book of Mormon together after our lesson and she says that she felt that the book was true when they were reading. She also received an answer about Joseph Smith! We need to have them all attend church at least two times and then they can be baptized, we pray that all will turn out well! Alexandre is still awesome and we continue teaching him! Can´t wait for our visit from Presidente Tobias.
So I heard news last week from an Elder in my district that now sisters will have the chance to serve for two years, I still have not heard from my president about this, but I think that I have the funds to do so, and I think that I want to do this. Let me know please about this, I think it is a miracle that I just happen to have the funds available for this, and what a great blessing and opportunity this will be. A great work is continuing to take place!
We still live with the other sisters in the area, and we have so much fun.
I taught the law of Chastity for the first time in Portuguese, I was all worried, but I know Heavenly father blessed me! Oh he is so good to me! I love this work! I know this is the work of God! I feel so lucky that I have known these things my entire life, and I have never had to suffer the pain and guilt that comes from these types of sin!
Thank you for your prayers! I know that they help me! Please continue!
I miss you all like crazy, I guess this is why I want to serve 6 months more huh!:) I do love you all and thank my lucky stars!
Dad congrats on your new calling! You will do so well! I think it fits you perfect! Oh what a blessing you will be in the lives of those boys! You are the bestest ever!
I love you mom!
e familia!
Sister JUdd

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

January 27, 2009

Oi minha grande familia,
Oh I am so grateful for all your letters I finally got this week! It was so fabulous and I was so thankful! We can only receive letters and read them on pday. Today! It was so refreshing. I hadn´t had mail at all for a month about.
I am just about three weeks in the field, and it is great, I am getin gused to the missionary life still, but it is nice. Please continue to pray for me to help me learn Portuguese! I can always use your prayers!
Oh I was so excited to hear about the new addition to our family in Baby Sean Scott! What a treasure! We are so lucky, and it sounds like you did great Marci! What a great opportunity I had to be there for Eliza, but you must know that I have been praying for you so much. For Liz too! Oh babies truly are a gift from god in our lives are they not!?//
Oh and thank you for the pictures! He is huge! Oh I am so happy for you all! Take good care of him and remind him that Kami Kaye is his favorite aunty okay! I will feed him all the candy in the world when I get home okay! You let him know that!:) I am not sure if you remember that conversation marc! Oh your letters were wonderful! 14 letters I had what a blessing a thunderstorm after the draught!
Oh and speaking of thunderstorms it is so rainy here right now. It is summer and it rains a whole lot in the summer here. And it is hot when it is not raining.
I think I told my companion, and dad I thought I told you about Dave miz. I was so sad that I didn´t get to see him, but it was awesome non the less that my district got to see him. I will try to send pictures sometime, it is difficult, I am not sure how to do it on the computer and it takes a long time, which I don´t have, but I will try to print some one of these days for you all”
Our circumstances this week are really interesting because we had to move for several different reasons one of which is that our kitchen rains a lot. I will miss the house, but for this and other reasons we are living with 2 other missionaries sister Chaves and sister Carvalho! It is so much fun to live with other sisters and I love them so much. They are in our same ward, but they live about 45 min. walk from our area, so we usually take the bus I hope we find a house soon because it will get expensive, we walk sometimes but lose time for working when we do.
We have many new investigators and are praying for them a lot! We need people to come to church with us so that they can be prepared to be baptized, we taught two girls Monique and Mariza yesterday and the spirit was very strong, both accepted a baptismal date and we are praying that they will keep it. Both want to come to church this week so we will pass by early Sunday morning. It doesn´t really help that church starts at 8:30, but I guess this heklps us know who the elect are right.
W e also are trying to do better with having the members help us. If you have any ideas tell me!
Oh marci I just looked again at your beautiful baby! Ohhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!
Brent And Rachael thank you for your letter! I cant believe Tyler is walking amazing! You give him tons of kisses for me okay!
Liz, it was great to hear that the baby is alright and what a miracle you all had.
It is so great to see the miracles every day here on the mission. I started with my companion to write a miracle list every night and we do and it is so great! Truly this is the \Lords work. Sometimes the miracles are small, like the rain waiting to pour, or being able to achieve our goals, but everyday there is something that happens that is a miracle. Look for them and thank god for them.
Keep sending letters to my mission home address not my other one that I wrote on the letter because we will be moving soon.
Oh I can´t even express how much I love all of you! SOOOO Much!
If you would like to pray for the investigators here please! Alexandre is so awesome! We hoped that we would be able to baptize him this week because our mission president came here and spent the day with us, but for some circumstances in the life of Alexandre, he needs to wait until next month to be interviewed. But he remains firme! Steadfast and immovable! He said I will wait!!! What great faith he has. I want to record his testimony! We taught him about temples this week so awesome!
The food is great so far nothing too different and I like it all. Thanks I love y ou all!
Sister Judd