Elder Ballard in Brazil: More miracles are falling, we moved houses today? And how is it August?!

Only yesterday it felt like I was turning 19 and being all excited for my mission... And here we are again already in August, I can't believe I'll be turning TWENTY this month! AHH!!

This is Elder Gaertner from Paraná

We moved houses today which was kinda crazy, I don't like packing suitcases as often as I have been out here on the mission haha. It's kinda a huge house too for what we need as just 2 missionaries. Our last house had 2 rooms, a kitchen and a bathroom, and this new one has a BIG kitchen, HUGE bathroom, and like 4 rooms. Who knows what we'll do with all the space haha.

Well, as I was thinking about it being my birthday this month, I have a birthday request. For my birthday out here I would love letters with people's testimonies. Testimonies, favorite scriptures, favorite talks or thoughts from conference, etc. Whatever you want to send :) And obviously this is to anyone who wants to do it. Brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, whoever else reads these emails haha. It doesn't have to be anything long, but you wouldn't believe the kind of power us missionaries recieve just from hearing the testimonies of the people we love. So ya, if anyone wants to, I would be very grateful.

This week was a really good one. We had 17 people to take to church, and sadly only 4 were able to go, but the members in the ward blessed us with other people who are definitely miracle baptisms that seriously "fell from heaven" haha :) Seriously, one member came up and said, "Elder, this friend of ours has already been taught all the lessons, so you guys just need to mark a interview and he wants to be baptized on saturday." So looks like we'll have a baptism this saturday haha, so amazing. I'm beginning to realize a lot of how important obedience is, cuz when you're following all the rules and commandments, God is able to bless you with SO many things. It's been amazing to me as well with how much growth I've personally had as well, seriously I feel like I'm changing so much. It's crazy to think that next month I'll hit my hump day, and my goal now is to just keep changing as much as possible so that by the year and a half mark or so, I can be the type of effective mission that God is trying to help me become. This week we have a lot of people that have the potential to be baptised, so I'm really excited to go to work. I also recieved word that last sunday, 2 of the kids in that really poor family back in Sete Lagoas got baptised!! I can't wait for the marriage of the parents to go through, and then the whole family will be members!! I love this work so much... I'm at the point now with the language and the schedule where this is the only thing I know, so now it's just trying to improve my teaching and spirituality so I can make the most of my time while I still have it.

Thank you all for your prayers and support! I love this work and I love the Lord. Hurrah for Israel!!!