Here I Come!!!! :)

Oh mama, to think I'll be hugging you at the end of the week makes me very very happy. You saw my flight schedual, that means you all need to take a nap so everyone can be there at the airport to greet me, how horrible is that schedual-I want to cry thinking about it, I'll make it through though. This is so unreal. Can't wait to see you and everyone.Will everyone be at the airport? I know it's late but it's summer, and how does that effect me getting realased?

How Did I Get Here?

Wow is all I can say, I don’t know how I got to this point, but its here, and well it’s come with a lot of mixed emotions. Truly it’s not fun to say goodbye to people and think I’ll never see you again, but I have my life to come back to and I’m going to do my best to make it better than it was. So the Lord loves me because last week was definitely one of my best weeks in the mission, we were busy, and yesterday Joseane was baptized by her husband, so special, I didn’t think I was going to witness her baptism but through small and simple things great things were brought to pass. She bore her testimony and told about when she burnt her hand and she got a priesthood blessing and it healed immediately was the start of her conversion, when she started having dreams and changing and becoming more receptive to the Gospel and accepting Joseph Smith as a prophet and everything, she has a lot of faith, that will be good now all that family needs is one more of their sons. So that was amazing and tiring, you don’t have to worry about me I’m still focused training not to remind myself that I’m going home.

The New Mission President

Well we had a rough afternoon but we found a Canadian and she was pretty interested she asked if she could see our church and had a lot of good questions. Then that night we were in at a lesson and I get a call from the new President and he’s like we’re in Coimbra can we come and sis on your lesson-talk about instant stress, but it went well and we got a ride home but then they were like can we check your appt. so I. Call and I were like give us one minute (give us a break it was the end of the week and she made cinnamon rolls for the baptism) and it was basically like you see in the movies us running around shoving things and covering stuff it was classic. We met the Waltons on Thursday they had a mini zone conference with us. We had to go to Porto way early in the morning to renew I. Call’s visa and turned out it didn’t happen and then we drove to Coimbra with them-the Walton. It’s weird I like then a lot they’re different of course a little more open and personable but it’s weird I still can’t see him as my President, I know it’s will only be two weeks with him but seriously my President to me is President Henry-yeah don’t know why I decided to write that. Wow how I will miss my Portugal, I love it, the mission truly has meant everything to me, I know you can’t all believe it but I will miss being a missionary, I love this Gospel and I know that it is true!
Amo-vosIrmã EvansYay I won’t be a foreigner anymore!

Best Of All!!!!

Oh mama you know what's best of all--Fast Sunday, I get to have Fast Sunday dinner once again, oh I mean seeing you is best of all and the rest of the family, and then fast sunday dinner, we had cereal to break our fast yesterday, you can see how I'm hurting. Oh well I've been having crazy come home dreams. Irmã call is so stinking hilarious, I'll miss her, she got the FC this week, that's favorite child from her dad, she says it's their competition. Oh mama you are the best thanks for always standing beside me and supporting me, you know I'm a goon but I've always felt your love, thanks mama. I love you. Josie

Irma Call and Irma Evans

Long Hard Ride

Well we all know how many more times left to write that I have so I'm not going to even mention it. All I'm going to say is that I watched Other Side of Heaven last night, we had a ´noite de cinema' and lets say that film just really hit home-it made me realize a lot of things too-do I love this people with all my heart, am I serving the Lord with all my heart, might, and mind. All I know is it's been a long and hard ride for me. I was thinking though about faith in ourselves and how much power through faith in Christ we really have and especially those who hold the priesthood, if I only knew how much power I had, sadly I haven't taken much advantage of that my mission, all to often we let fear get in the way and over ride us.

Not That Easy!

This past week was not the easiest, we had a lot of cancelations, and not just from investigators. The ones that hurt the most is we were't able to talk to Joseane at all this week and we have a lot to prepare her for, she's been working like crazy, it's satan-piece of-and also Hugo stood us up. We again did a lot of service this week which is a good thing. Also each city has their own day here and the 4th of July is Coimbra's day, so they celebrate the 4th too, just not like us, obviously-but they have this big festival for St. Isabel every two years-apostasy- this year was not one, but we did see the Fardo festivals everyone dressed up like oldden days, that was neat to see. We also had a BBQ on Saturday at the church that was really fun, I love the members here, oh I love my Coimbra. Truly I love my Savior, I love His Gospel and I've learned so much from the mission. Truly it's not how the world sees it young men losing two years of their life, really we find ourselves on the mission and understand truly what it's about-life that is.

Success

We were finally able to teach a lady that we contacted and taught the first lesson to again. Every time we tried they wouldn't open the door, but we got in this week. They are from Timor, and it was nerveracking because they were giggling and speaking in the native language to Timor-but after a while it got better, they're really Catholic, she was trying to understand what church we were from and we're like the Church of Jesus Christ, and she's like Protastant, no, JW's, NO-with a finger wave too-and so on. She's like Jesus was Catholic and we're like no-He was a Jew but nice try-but yeah there's just so much false doctrine. I love this church I know that it is true.

Good Lesson

We also had a really good lesson with Elisabete, we talked about prayers and scriptures, and we still had time before our bus came so I pulled out our D&C lessons film and there was Special Witnesses so I was like lets watch this, we wanted to show her our prophet because she's having problems believeing in a prophet-and what do you know he talked about the Book of Mormon helped our lesson right out. Thank you all for all your support through out my mission. Have a good one, talk to you all later. Amo-vosIrmã Evans

What A Difference a Year Makes!

So, I had this dream and clearly I am very preoccupied about this-am I getting a 4th of July package? I had a dream that you didn't send me one and I was really upset--heh heh Oh yeah I'm still the same for surely I've changed and am a better person, but still I have a long ways to go-I'm still just a goof. Oh mama it's so crazy to think that I can see all of you soon, but on the same time I'm morning, it's not fun, I'm happy though, and I'm trying my hardest to keep focuse, I've got a baptism to plan so of course I'll stay focused.

Another Week in Paradise

Wahoo just another week in paradise. I am really going to miss Portugal, the weather has been nice this past week, so it's on my good side. What's this trunkiness I'm not trunky, I've been trunky my whole mission and now it's the opposite-fogo. No it's weird is what it is, we had Zone Conference and it was basically a huge good-bye to Pres. and Sister Henry, that will be weird when they actually go. So it was a week for the records on Monday, visiting Hugo didn't work out and so we came back and visited Joseane and fam. We were talking to Ruan who is baptized and he doesn't like to say prayers and wants to not be baptized-oh what frustration-when Joseane was like I have no more doubts I want to be baptized and soon! YEAH! Do you realize how long I've been working with her and other missionaries have-seriously a grand miracle. She said she was talking to some one from an Evangelical church and they were trashing on our church saying we were a cult that worshipped the devil, we worship Jospeh Smith, our bible yadda yadda yadda the usual deseptions-well she said something turned in her head and she remembered all that the church has done and all she's been taught and and the people and she was like no-I know them, they're good people and was like they don't worship Joseph, he's a prophet and they use the Book of Mormon and bible--basically bore her testimony-it's so awesome, because she was so set on getting baptized in January-Oh the Lord loves us.

Busy, Busy Day

Ha so I. Call and I saw this man singing to this woman and she was not happy, so we didn't know if they knew each other or what-then he came up to us and started singing. Well I saw his shirt said Algarve, it's turist season here, there's a lot of drunk men that wonder the city and so I asked are you from the Algarve, he stopped singing, stared at us, and continued singing again and walked off singing, you've gotta love the crazies. So I. Call and I ran the church, mainly her-not really but on Saturday we had a wedding to go to and a baptism, I. Call made Cinnamon rolls, she played the piano, prayed we sang a special musical number at the wedding, then at the baptism we gave talks and she lead the music and she was a photographer at the wedding. It was funny it was funny that we were asked to give talks because it was a little boy from the other ward that we only play soccer with him that's how we know him-oh well.

Am I Really Coming Home?

I'm suprised none of you mentioned Micheal Jackson dying-we were told and then showed by an investigator-crazy. Well I'm trying to work my hardest it's such a struggle up in the mind, I think I'm starting to deny the fact I'm going home oh well. I know this church is true with all of my heart. I love you all, thanks for your examples, love and support-truly. Have a great week, and wow only two more of these from the field. Love you all,Irmã Evans