Mission division

Hey Fam!

So this week was a bit crazy, but overall it went well. I don´t know if you heard, but there are a lot of protests that are happening in Brazil right now. Friday we stayed home cause there was one in our area. It honestly wasn´t that big, but it was good to not be there. Besides that Israel is doing great, and got confirmed yesterday. Also we have a bunch of good investigators preparing for this week to be baptized. José is the most probable, he is the dad of a member that moved here from Ceará.

We had ward counsel meeting this past week, and are making some plans for July to have some missionary activities and get people excited to work with us. Man it would be soo much work to be a bishop. Overall things are going well here, and we are having a good amount of success. The mission will divide next week, so that should be exciting. We are also receiving some sisters, but Americans are having a hard time with Visas right now, so very few are arriving. I also heard about the Tablet and facebook announcements! Really interesting! I´m 99% sure I won´t be around to see them here, but maybe Elder Richmond! I honestly thing that will be a big tool if used correctly! 

Last week we played some basketball, and yeah my comp was able to play a bit, his knees are way better now! It was us and 2 other Brazilian missionaries in our district. 

So Kurt is going on a mission!! Wow, In my mind he was so much younger, haha tell him congrats for me! That is so awesome to hear about all the missionary work that is happening! 

Sorry I haven´t written a lot recently, haha honestly a lot is the same, lots of contacts and teaching! Well I love you guys! thanks for the letters and the advice! Hope you all have a wonderful summer week! 

Love, Elder Ottosen

Short and sweet!

Hey Family! 

So this week was awesome! We continued to find a good amount of investigators, and those that we have are progressing well. Israel was baptized as well! His family came to the baptized and liked it a lot, we are going to work with them. Besides that we have a bunch of other investigators this we are looking at baptizing these next few weeks. This week we also worked with a less active family. They moved here from Angola 16 years ago, and half their kids are super strong in the church, so we are making goals with them to get sealed in the temple! How grateful I am to have a family sealed in the temple! I am always amazed at how loving and good God is.

Well I don´t have a lot of time today. We are going to go play some basketball and then get pizza. But send a hug to everyone over there! I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week!

Working hard and meeting people ready for change

Hey Fam!

So this week has probably been the best week since getting here to Caxias. We worked hard, but things ended up well. We got 7 people to church, and one 17 year old with a baptismal date for next week. Israel, who is a reference of the bishop’s son. At first he was really cold receiving us, but after he read the book of Mormon this past week he became excited, and wants to be baptized. His parents are from another church, so we are planning a baptism really special to get them to feel the spirit as well. We also had some success with the news we found last week and found a bunch more this week as well. We are teaching the father of a member who is really interested. He even got off work and told his friend he couldn´t leave on Sunday so he could go to church. The only problem is that his ride didn’t show up for church. But José was all right, and next week we will personally pass by to take him. Also we talked to Thiago again, the less active brother who came to church last week. His mom came to church this week and was super happy, hugging everyone, and you could just tell she was happy to be back. Thiago told us what made him decided to return, he saw us knocking on his mom´s door, and remembered that he served a mission for 2 years, dedicated his life to the cause, and then just forgot about it. He said that is when he decided to return. It is funny because we were just randomly (or so we thought) knocking doors, and didn´t know that it was his mom´s house. We also got another less active sister to church, a mom of a member that was baptized 13 years ago, but hadn´t gone in many years. All she needed was some visits and encouragements. Also the ward is doing some youth competition over the next 6 months, and they are bringing lots of non-members, it is awesome cause then we can teach their entire families.  Anyways I was really happy about this past week, and I am sure this next one will be even better. 

Tell Cole congrats on the new job, if he is still working there when I get back, 

I´ll be callin him up a lot!! haha. How has been the mountain biking with Kade? And where did Paige go to camp? That is awesome to hear the fun things that are happening. Every RM we talk to says something along the lines of "If you think the mission is lot´s of work, just wait till you get home!" But it never ceases to amaze me, that through all the hard work and rejection, how happy I am here. How much God blesses those who love and follow him. He is so perfectly just. We were studying Alma 41 and 42 this week, which explains just that. What we really desire, not just want, but desire, we will receive! I love you guys and hope you have a wonderful week! This gospel is true, and the truth is what will literally set us free. Free from addictions, free from our own egos and passions, free from sin. I like to think that the Founding Fathers started this wonderful free nation, but God started the founding fathers. haha. Anyways have a wonderful week!

Love, Elder Ottosen

Making progress

Hey Fam!

So we made lots of progress this week in terms of new investigators and quality lessons. A bunch of new people and we are working hard with them to get some progress. Also we got some good references from members too, they are starting to get more excited. We meet with a less active family this week and got the husband back to church. He is a RM, and him and his wife were sealed in the temple, but went inactive. The wife is being a bit more resistant, but when she starts to feel the same spirit she felt she will return. The family is going well, a little slow but they are progressing. They were showing us all the pictures from the missionaries like 15 years ago, but at the same time she either didn´t know, or forgot everything about the church. They are really starting to get interested though. 

So we went to the doctor this week, he told us to stop PT and start swimming and go to the gym to strengthen the knee. But we can´t do that so the mission doctor just told us to keeping icing it and doing exercises at home, and they will check with us again in 2 weeks.

Glad you guys could do something fun for dad´s birthday though!  Well anyways I love you guys and love my mission. I was talking with my comp the other day, how much more prepared and changed I feel. How much my testimony continues to grow each day, and the new talents I have developed. Man I wouldn´t trade it for anything!

I hope you guys have an awesome week!!!! Love you all so much!

Love, elder Ottosen