July 9, 2012

Hello-

I am not being transfered...finally. I am getting a new companion, however and will be his first companion in the field. I am excited to get to know another Elder and hope to have the influence that the Lord wants me to have on him as he starts his service. I will find out tomorrow who he is.

Meeting the new President was incredible. I really love him and his wife already. As soon as they entered the chapel, while we were singing the song ``Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel´´, I received a very sweet confirmation from the Holy Ghost that they are really who the Lord wants to lead this mission. I had prayed for the ability to recognize the Lord´s hand in the change, and it was made manifest right off the bat. I was able to chat with Sister Wright for a little while as we waited to be interviewed by President Wright. They are full of love and expressed great desires to help us in any way. They have 12 living children, 13 in total. 11 children served missions. He served here in Southern Brasil 40 years ago and is able to speak pretty well already. She studied once a week for a few months and certainly the Lord has already blessed her with being able to understand and speak. She will pick up the language quickly I feel. They both like music, he graduated from Utah in music theory and she taught children for years about music. That being said, he was a plumber for his working life. But maybe they will incorporate a little more music into the mission. I am excited to see how the mission changes.

This last week had many faith building experiences, finding many people after praying for guidance from the Lord. He undoubtedly hears our prayers and guides us in our paths.

As I gave a few interviews this last week to some investigators of the other areas, I was touched by the fact that all said the hardest commandment to keep would be the law of chastity. I kept thinking to myself of the powerful attack Satan has put on the family and importance of purity in general. I look at all the commandments as opportunities for blessings, as protection, and find myself ever more grateful for the fact that we have a modern prophet to reveal the complete will of God for us in these days. I really enjoy teaching the plan of salvation to people, and I am touched by the reaction of them. In John 14:26 we read that the Holy Ghost will bring all things to rememberance. That seems to be exactly what happens when they listen to the details of where we came from, why we are here, and where we are going afterwards. Just about every person says the plan makes perfect sense and that it is nothing new for them to hear. In reality, it is not new, as we all committed to the plan long before our birth here. It is a neat explanation and testimony for me to release one more way in which the Holy Ghost functions.

With love and charity,

Elder Graziano

pictures- the district that I am in. Rock house that was built in 1879 by the Luchesse family here in Caxias. Head of Christ, a statue on a hill overlooking the city.