LITTLE. FROG.

Hey.

 

This week has been a good week. We have started helping with an English school teaching a bunch of people English. There is another American that lives in the same house as me, so we have been helping the school 2 days a week. And we teach them about our church in English and teach them to say prayers in English.  We are finding a lot of people that want to learn more and a lot of people are wanting a Book of Mormon.

 

I'm grateful for all the opportunities that Heavenly Father gives us to find and teach people that are prepared for us. I sure am grateful to be here in Brasil and to be a member of our church.

And on Sunday everything worked out and I was able to talk to my family over Skype!! It sure was nice to talk and see my family again. I am really grateful for my family and all they do for me.

Well, that's about it for this week. I hope all the mothers had a good Mother's Day. Thanks for all.

Talk to you guys next week.

Love,
Elder Nickerson

Ha! This was a little frog we found in the street. It has been raining a lot and the streets are filled with these little frogs jumping all over. 

 

 

 

From his family.

 

It was so great to talk to Elder Nickerson on Mother's Day!  He sounds so good.  He is happy, smiling, joking and really taking in every moment and experience of his mission. He still has his sarcastic sense of humor; which we love.  We can see his testimony and growth over these few short months. 

 

He can rattle off Portuguese so fast. He bore his testimony to us in Portuguese and it is amazing the difference from last time. We can hear his companions and him talking in the background and it is such a neat experience for us to see his learning and growth. He says that he is able to understand most everything and has seen the language come full circle for him.  He does not know all words but is learning more and more every day.  It is really a surreal experience for us, as his family,  to see what can be accomplished when the Lord is on your side.  By small and simple things, great things are brought to pass. . . .

 

 

 

 

 

It sounds like the people love Elder Nickerson and can see his testimony through his humbleness and his aptitude to relate well with people.  He loves the people and loves being able to share and spread the gospel.  

 

He said he has gained about 14 pounds, which is amazing to him because he thinks he should be sweating that much away.   They are going into the winter season there and the lows are about 70 degrees, which he says feels very cold.  He was actually trying to get over a cold from the cold weather change!! :) 

 

He feels extremely fortunate to have companions and elders he gets along with so well.  He has loved his areas.  The area he is in now has a little more violence and they have streets that they call the "streets of the killings".  They stay away from those places when it is dark. He hopes to see more of the coastline before his leaves this area.

 

He has learned how to listen to the Spirit and follow the promptings.  As a family, we have gained so much from his strength and testimony and grown closer together.  We are blessed to have such a courageous brother and son.  We love him and could not be more proud of him and his willingness to serve the Lord. 

 

Nick has finally adjusted to the food.  He eats a steady diet of rice and beans. It took awhile for his body to adjust to the food change. He is not a fan of milk over there, but he loves the fruit.  He said his favorite fruit was guava, but all the fruit over there tastes a lot better than home. 

 

 

 

He says he loves Brazil and he loves the people, but he is not quite ready to live in that much heat his whole life.  He misses the cold weather of Idaho and realizes how lucky we are to live where we do and have what we have.  He says we are a blessed people us Idahoans.  :)

 

We learned that for most people you are not able to own a gun in Brazil.  It takes a lot of paperwork to be able to have a gun.  There is also no hunting allowed in Brazil, and for that fact alone, Brazil would never be the place for him! :) For those of you that know Nickolas well, know that to be a true and accurate statement.  Nick misses home and misses hunting but is beyond words to have the experience of his mission.  He believes with all his heart that he is put exactly where he needs to be.  He is loving his mission. 

 

We are proud of Nick and his desire to serve the Lord.  Elder Nickerson is on a mission for all the right reasons.  Because of his desire to serve the Lord, we can see his blessings, as well as, blessings for our family.  It is always a bitter sweet day when we get to Skype with him.  The best thing for us is to see him happy and healthy and gaining so much experience and so many neat stories.  We are able to talk with people that Nick serves and we have grown close to some of the people in Brazil.  It is so great what opportunities there are with technology. We are so grateful for those people and families that take Elder Nickerson in as their own, and report back to his family how he is doing.  We live for those moments and for Mondays!  :) 

 

We are grateful that Elder Nickerson is working on his 8 month out there, but more grateful that Nickolas is not worried about the time. He is focused on listening to the guidance of the Spirit and making the most of his time in Brazil.  He realizes that this is a once in a lifetime experience.  He says sometimes it flies by and other days it drags on, but for him and also his family, overall, we can't believe it has been 8 months.

 

He wanted you all to know that he loves you, he is so grateful for each and everyone of you; for your thoughts, your prayers, your letters, and following along with his blog.  He feels your love and support from home and is grateful for such a strong support system.   He knows this church is true, he loves the Lord with all his heart, and his hope is to help others feel of that love and know the blessings that come from this gospel. 

 

From the bottom of our hearts, we thank all of you. Thank you for everything you do for our son and brother, for everything you do for our family.  We love you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blessings From Sharing the Gospel

 

 

The greatest gift of all of the gifts given by God is eternal life. I love the words of Elder George Albert Smith: “We spend most of our time, many of us, seeking the things of this life that we will be compelled to leave when we go from here, yet there are the immortal souls all around us whom, if we would, we could teach and inspire to investigate the truth, and implant in their hearts a knowledge that God lives. What treasure in all the world could be so precious to us, for we would have their gratitude here and their everlasting and eternal appreciation in the world to come.” (In Conference Report, Oct. 1916, p. 50.)

 

 

A. WEEK. OF. SERVICE.

Hey!!!

How is Everybody?

This week was really fast!!! And the weather was a lot cooler. That always makes it so much nicer.

We did a lot of service and helped a lot of people this week.  It felt good! This city is a lot more calm than Barrieras and there isn't loud music and parties every night here. It is a small area.

But . . .  there was a guy that got shot and assaulted here in the streets. Last night we were looking out of our apartment and saw a guy walking down the street with a machete, and a few seconds later another guy running saying, 'watch out, he has a machete', and 20 minutes later the cops showed up! It was pretty crazy!!

 Right before I got to this area, the river flooded and water entered into a lot of peoples' homes.  So we have been busy helping people clean and dry things out.  We have also delivered a lot of food and clothes to the needy.

The people here are really poor but are willing to give up everything to help another. They are the most humble people I have ever met. 

Just thought I should tell you guys about Skype next Sunday. Mother's day!!!!!!  :):):):):):):) We are going to Skype around 2 o clock our time! We have found an English school here in Santo Amaro that is going to let us use the Wi-Fi there. I hope that all you guys will be able to be there. We will go Saturday and get it all set up for Sunday. But as of right now, it will be Sunday at 2 o clock my time here in Brasil! I will try and let you guys know if anything changes. I can't believe this time has already came so fast.

All of us in our apartment are getting along great!  I am doing good and I am extremely blessed and grateful to be here in Brasil. How blessed am I to have been born in Jesus Christ's church.

I reflected a lot this week on service and the importance of it in our lives.

 “As we look beyond our differences in age, culture, and circumstance to nurture and serve one another, we will be filled with the pure love of Christ and the inspiration which leads us to know when and whom to serve. We best serve our Father in Heaven by righteously influencing others and serving them.” Richard G. Scott

Hope all is well with you guys, talk to you guys next week, and to all the moms out there, Happy Mother's Day!

Love Elder Nickerson

 

 

COKE. CAN. WITH. NICK.

Well, I got moved to another area called Feira De Santana.  The city that I am in is called Santo Amaro.  This city was an old slave town and has a lot of African American decent.  The people here are really poor. 

But . . .  there is actually a chapel here with a piano, haha, so that is really nice!!  And the ward here is quite a bit bigger, but there are less active investigators than my last area. It makes me really excited because that means there is work to be done.

Our house is bigger than our last house but we don't have any hot water to take a shower.  And it is ice cold!!!!!  Right now, an ice cold shower is one of the hardest parts.  There are four of us in the house; two Brazilians and two Americans, counting me. The one in the blue shirt is my companion and the one in the red tie is the other American in our house.   We do have a stove, a fridge, and a washer; which isn't quite as nice as my last one, but we have one. And I sleep warm and okay on my bed.  I am extremely grateful to have those commodities. 

We are about 15 minutes from the coastline but I haven't been able to take pictures yet.  It is a little more cool here then Barrieras, but not much. 

I am excited to start working here in Santo Amaro and I am blessed to continue to have wonderful companions that I get along with.

I can't believe it is time to almost call home.  I sure look forward to the times I can talk to my family.

And don't worry about me.  I am safe with everything.  I sure do love you guys.  Right now the people in this lan house are listening to oldies.   The song right now is saying, "Come Together, right now, over me!"  Oldies remind me of you, mom and dad!  :)  And the internet is a lot more expensive here than Barrieras. 

Here is a parting quote from Gordon B. Hinckley, "Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he's been robbed.  The fact is that most putts don't drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to just be people, most successful marriages required a high degree of mutual toleration, most jobs are more often dull than otherwise . . . . The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride." 

That is all for this week.  I sure hope everyone at home is doing well.  Know I pray for all of you.

Talk to you next week and much love.
Elder Nickerson

HEADING. TO. FEIRA. DE. SANTANA.

MY. LAST. DAY. BARRIERAS.

Hey Everybody.

Well, I found out Saturday night I am leaving Barrieras and going to another city here in Bahia.

This week I had some cool experiences. My companion and I were not having any luck finding our investigators in their houses, so we decided to look for new investigators. My companion said, "Elder Nickerson, it's all up to you." It was a weird day and nobody was in the streets for us to contact. So we stopped and said a prayer. And I prayed that Heavenly Father would put somebody in our path for us to teach. After that we walked for about 30 minutes not finding anybody.

Finally, there was a street I had a feeling that we needed to walk down. As we were walking, there was this man sitting on the street with a bag of paint, and he looked at us and I could see in his eyes that he needed help. So we went and talked to him. And as we got to know him, we found out that he is hooked on drugs and beer, and that earlier that same day he had tried to kill himself.

As we talked with him he said his life had no purpose and he didn't know why he is here on the earth. When we were leaving his house, he was happy and said, "I will stop with the drugs," and will start his company again that he was building.

As we taught him through out the week, each time we went there, he was happier and happier.  He has only drank one time since we started meeting with him. I'm grateful for prayer and know that God listens and answers our prayers.

It was a bitter sweet feeling today as I was packing up to leave this area.  I will never forget this area and all the wonderful people here.  They will forever have a place in my heart. 

Today I am going to tell a few more families goodbye, finishing packing and will head for the bus station tonight.  I will spend 14 hours on the bus and arrive in Salvador tomorrow morning.  We will have a small reunion in Salvador, find out our new areas and companions. I am not sure what next week will bring, or when I will get to email.  I know that change is necessary for growth and the Lord will put me where I need to be, but along with change always comes a small amount of nervousness.  I am excited but I am also a little nervous and sad to leave here. 

 

I am so grateful for all the people and friends I have here. 

 

I am trying to remember that, "to every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven."  Ecclesiastes 3:1

I finally received a journal from around Christmas that everyone had wrote messages in.  I was so grateful to read everyone's kind words.  Thank you to all those you took the time to write me, it means more than you realize. Well, I hope you all have a good week.  Talk to you guys next week. Thanks for all.

Elder Nickerson

IT. HAS. BEEN. A. MARVELOUS. EXPERIENCE.

Well, once again, this week has been a good one.

 

The weather was a lot cooler and it rained more than usual. That sure helps a lot with the heat. We were blessed this week! We were able to find three families to start teaching. Everybody in the families accepted the baptismal invite and have been reading the Book of Mormon.  It was cool to see everyone all really excited about the gospel. However, when it came Sunday we only had 3 investigators show up to church. That is okay though, that means we just have to keep doing the Lord's work.

 

 

This week one of the families we were teaching told us her prayers have been answered. She said her and her husband know without a doubt that the Book Of Mormon is true. They need to get married before they can get baptized. And for the last 3 weeks we have had an English class in our church teaching people that want to learn a little English. The church here is just a house that has been made into a church and it doesn't have a piano.

 

I have really enjoyed my time here in Barreiras. This transfer ends in 1 week and I have been here for 4 transfers now, so I think my odds of leaving are high. I don't know how much time I will have next week to write. Just know I love you guys. Talk to you guys later!!

 

Eu amo voces. Eu sou muito grato pelo oppurtidade eu tinha servir aqui. Foi um experiencia maraviliosa. (I love you.  I am very grateful for my opportunity to serve here.  It has been a marvelous experience.)

Thomas S. Monson said, "We are the Lord's hands here upon the earth, with the mandate to serve and to lift His children."
 

Love Èlder Nickerson

DEFINITELY. CHALLENGING.

Hey Everybody!!

Well, this week has been hotter then usual again! We didn't recieve much rain to cool things down. We are teaching a lot of investorgators right now, but they are progressing really slow.

This week I made a contact with a lady.  After I was done talking to her she told me that her family lived in Boston, Massachusetts for 10 years and returned here 5 years ago. Her parents don't speak english very well, and the daughter tries very hard. It was cool to talk to them!! Inside their house they had things from the U.S. Haha!  Made me feel at home.  It was just a good experience. The picture of my companion and I with the family, is the family that lived in Boston.

Funny story of the week, haha! This week my companion and I were walking down the street and he said "Que Isso" haha, and  that means, what is this.  I looked over and he had more than 100 wasps flying behind him trying to sting him!!!!! Haha, we had to run to get away from them. It was the funniest thing. 

It was nice to listen to general conference. Conference was in Portuguese, but I got to listen to 1 hour in English, so that was nice. The Portuguese was so fast during some talks I had a hard time keeping up and understanding. 

I have been so grateful to be in this area and to be blessed with companions that I get along with.  I know the Lord put me where I am for a reason.  I have loved this area and the people here very much.  But I am also excited for all the people I get to meet and the new areas I get to go.  Missions are definitely challenging, but I wouldn't want to be any where than right where I am at. 

Things are going well for me. I am grateful to be here and to be a part of our church. It sure is a big blessing in our lives.

My favorite quote from conference was, "God cares a lot more about who we are and about who we are becoming than about who we once were."  Elder Dale G. Renlund

If you have some time, check these videos out. 

He Lives

Here is one we are teaching in Portuguese!  You will probably understand the pictures. 

Portuguese video

Love you with all my heart.

Èlder Nickerson