Temple Blessings

 (Ava sent a private note this week, but nothing for the blog but some pictures!  At least she was happy about the package☺  And you can photoshop yourself into her temple shot with Sister Souza!)

We had a much-needed trip to the temple this week. I just sat on the coach and stared at the chandelier for half an hour. Finally, the missionaries from my group started to leave and for some reason I felt this pressure I didn't know was there... be released and was able to just talk to Heavenly Father in peace.

THANK YOU SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO MUCH FOR THE PACKAGE! The conga bars were not even stale-- it was a miracle! I shared them with some missionaries as we traveled to the temple and they loved them. One American elder asked what your names were so I explained the whole Buck and Zanne thing. He then pulled an Uncle Dave gravely, red neck voice and said really low, "BUCK N ZANNE," and it made me so happy I almost fell over. Thank you for the love and letters! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH, packages make me so so so happy <3

We took this picture to print out and paste a picture of Ana Maria to inspire her to keep preparing to go to the temple so she can go with us!!!  Missionary projects!

Love,
Ava

Ava Sings "My Heavenly Father Loves Me"

This week was just wonderful. I am thoroughly EXHAUSTED, but it is so worth it because we saw many little miracles this week! People are just falling into our laps. :)

Highlights:

1. We are teaching Bel and her family and I LOVE THEM SO MUCH. They didn't come to church though, so we asked, "Why didn't you come?" She responded "I went to bed at 6 am." "Why?" "Someone crashed a car into the store next door in the middle of the night and robbed it." "Oh...that's a pretty good excuse actually."

A few seconds later the news comes on and, lo and behold, we see footage of the car smashing into the store. She then goes on to say "So I was reading the Book of Mormon, and I heard these strange, loud noises and thought about the Vision that boy had, and thought, 'COULD IT BE? AN ANSWER?' And then I realized the store next door was being robbed and put the book down." Sister Souza and I laughed and LAUGHED! Only in Sao Paulo!

2. We were teaching Bel again and a few of her friends were participating, too. She told them, "These girls are really special. Every time they've wanted to leave a message, the TV magically looses signal and the kids are quiet and pay attention. We always feel happier when they are here, there's just something different about them. Even my husband listened one time and READ A VERSE FROM THE BIBLE! Not even his cousin can get him to do that!" I just about melted when she said that! They really are changing and it makes me so happy :)

3. I'm pretty sure a tsunami hit Sao Jose this week because the streets turned into rivers. Another potential investigator says she's going to buy a raft because she still needs to go to work, haha! The only issue is that when buses pass us as we walk, we get hit by a massive wave. One time we got cornered as 5 buses passed us in a row and we futilely attempted to shield ourselves with an umbrella, but didn't work too well. :)

4. I had a nightmare and started talking in my sleep. It scared poor Sister Souza to death! I was super angry about something and kept saying "coisa fea, coisa fea!" I got out of bed and tried to open the window. It scared Sister so much that she yelled, "SISTER WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" to wake me up, and she couldn't fall asleep for the rest of the night. I felt so bad-- but its still pretty funny.

I am so happy and can't wait for another week of hard work and joy! I'm going to take a nap first though... ;)

Love,
Sister Ludlam

Welcome, Sister Souza!

Sister Souza arrived on Tuesday afternoon, and she has been my angel and the angel for Jardim Satelite.

We have no teaching pool, so we just did contacts all day!!! This week was the happiest of my mission, without doubt. I feel like I'm radiating! I don't have more time, but hopefully the pictures will make up for it. :)  Love to all ~  Sister A. Ludlam

My little friend hung out with me for a few days--Before

My little friend--After

Brand new crocs!  Didn't know I could wear them out!

Oh, Brasilia!  ♥

FAXINHA (I believe this means cleaning ladies☺)

Beautiful Sister Souza

With Ana Maria after Conference

Our food is part American, part Brazilian....Yeah! Companion Unity!

My Beautiful Area -- Jardim Satelite

Castle on a Hill

The End ... of a green smoothie

Love is ALWAYS the Answer

Hello World!

The Lord did the same thing this week, where I taught a gospel principle and was tested on whether I lived it or not!       So Cool!

General Conference Sunday Afternoon Session with my Sisters

    We were eating lunch with my beloved Irma Lina, who is struggling to love the people in her nursing home. I shared a message from Moroni 8:45-48 about Charity, (pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ) and explained to her that our minds are like a stage. Either "charity" is on stage or "judging" is, and its impossible to have both at the same time. So we invited her to pay special attention to who she was letting on the stage, and to serve the people she is struggling to love.

   THEN 3 hours later, two sisters from another area, Sister Lima and Sister Tordecilla, took me under their wing while Sister C. Silva was at the temple. We entered the house of a member who is less active and began to share a message of enduring trials with long suffering. My mouth almost dropped to the floor as the sister began to say the most awful things. She was justifying beating her daughter, and I almost opened my mouth to tell her what I was thinking! Thank goodness Sister Tordecilla was listening to the Spirit, because instead of telling her that she cannot rationalize physically hurting people just because she is going through a difficult trial, Sister T. asked an inspired question. She said, “Have you asked the Lord what it is He wants you to learn from this trial?” In that moment I remembered the message I gave to Irma Lina, and realized that I had kicked love off the stage! 

 
   I learned a very valuable lesson that day from my lovely Sister. I am not sure if anyone actually said this in General Conference (you can watch here) because I couldn't understand everything.  But I think someone said, "Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved."  It does NOT MATTER how people are choosing to use their agency, love is ALWAYS the answer!

   I got to spend 3 days in Area Parque Industrial with the Sister Lima and Sister Tordecilla, and I was in HEAVEN. I have never been more tired and more satisfied on my mission! These two Sisters poured love out to me and we laughed and learned so much together. What a glorious week <3

 
   As I said, I didn't understand everything said in General Conference, but I did get a few nuggets of wisdom and I felt the Spirit very powerfully. It was so cool to see Will Romberger and Sarah Hirachi in the MTC choir!!! Elder Christofferson actually gave his talk in Portuguese which was really cool, too.

Sister Lima and Sister Tordecilla Ice Cream Break

  SO! Today is my last day with Sister C. Silva, but I will STAY in Jardim Satelite and my companion will be Sister Souza (Brasileira), who just finished her first 3 months training! I am a little nervous to be senior companion because I have less than 4 months here myself, but we will figure things out and grow together! :) CAN'T WAIT TO MEET HER! I am so grateful for one more transfer here in my beloved Jardim Satelite. I feel like the Lord is giving me a do-over here, and I am so grateful for that! TIME TO GET TO WORK!! WOOOOOHOOO!!

Love, Irma Ava ♥

The Lord works in mysterious ways

Hello Friends and Family! 

Funny: We moved apartments this week! 15 stripling Irmaos (I believe this is "brothers") showed up outside our apartment at  9 am Saturday morning to help us, but the portaria man said "NOPE, Saturday moves are not permitted!" I began to fret, but one of my favorite Irmaos took the situation into his own hands, took the man aside for 3 minutes, worked his magic, and somehow the the man went into his little hut and let us do the move. HAHAHA, Oh how I love the members here! We serve all day every day, but it was so cool to be on the receiving end and watch them cheerfully assembly line our little possessions to the other apartment. :)

Learning Experience: At church I shared a little testimony about how the Lord will not tell us everything we want to know for our own growth. I used to think, "How cool is it that we have the Spirit? All I have to do is ask what I should do for every decision and my life will be perfect because I will ALWAYS choose the right!" But sometimes He remains silent so that we have to make choices...and sometimes we are going to choose the wrong one, even though we are trying to do the right thing. We have our agency to choose.  That is why we have the Atonement, that is why we are here on earth. :) We are here preparing to be perfect and to be gods, and someday WE will be the ones needing to give the answers to others!

Then...that night my understanding was put to the test. We were in a house of a less active member, and I was trying to determine which message I should share. I felt like I should share a really strong scripture. I thought, "Really, Pai? Is this what He is needing? Won't it offend him?" But I went with it....and it was a disaster. I felt awful, and later that night I was racking my brain, trying to realize what I did wrong. As the dust settled, I could clearly see when the Spirit had been with me and when I was acting on my own prideful intuitions.

The memory of what I had shared in church that very morning (exercising our agency) came to mind and I realized, "WELL, OF COURSE! I was left to make my own choices, and I chose wrong! But...I learned PRICELESS lessons that I would have never learned had the Spirit been whispering in my ear about everything I should do." Yes, I still hurt as I reflect on the memory, but I am a better missionary today. The Lord works in mysterious ways, and oh, how grateful I am that I am here to make mistakes and get messy, and become clean again through the Atonement. What a beautiful process :)

LOVE YOU ALL!  Sister Ava Ludlam

Ava on another mission with Luci

Miracles Within Me

Nilsa and Edson, always a Party!

I have been sitting here praying about what I should write this week to spiritually lift those who will read this. I want to be able to say we saw so many miracles this week, but I was really discouraged as I realized nothing noteworthy happened. Thousands of steps taken, hundreds of doors knocked (or clapped), but nothing to show for it. But then I thought "but this week was amazing, how do I explain that?"

This week I have learned more about how to be like Christ than any other week on my mission, and that is reason enough to rejoice! That is a MIRACLE! I believe that one of the primary reasons the Lord wanted me to serve a mission was to see the gospel of Jesus Christ work miracles within ME. This week I was faced with hundreds of little decisions each day, where I chose to follow Christ. He is patient, He is meek, He is humble, He is long-suffering. He smiles and He LOVES unconditionally.

I did not have the strength to do these things on my own, but I leaned on Him. I joyfully partook of the sacrament this week, and I have never felt so clean and happy. So yes, no one accepted us this week, but as we took those thousands of steps, I felt like He was right there with us, cheering us on.

Last week a BYU friend sent me an email with 14 fotos and a nice long letter about Stover Hall and late nights and parties, and I thought I would be hurting afterwards. On the contrary! I realized I am HAPPIER here, and that I don't want that right now. FINALLY! I choose Brasil, and I chose to serve. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else!

President and I were talking a few months ago about how hard it is for me to not miss BYU, and he promised me if I keep doing what I am doing, one morning I will wake up and think EU AMO BRASIL... and the longing for Provo will be gone. I feel like that morning will be very, very soon. Sometimes when I am walking in the streets, I am FILLED with pure joy! The song from Prince of Egypt comes to my mind, "THIS IS MY HOME!!" My Portuguese is improving and I am actually using past, present, and future subjunctive!! THANK YOU SISTER C. SILVA!
I love her. I really do.

I LOVE YOU ALL AND I LOVE SAO PAULO BRASIL!       Sister Ludlam

I am just the servant

Appears to be Manny from Ice Age ?

Funny: (foto) Sister S letting out her inner woolly mammoth!

The Work: Unfortunately, I have no inspirational stories to share this week. We worked so hard, but everyone we were teaching dropped themselves. : (   At first I was really discouraged and was lost as to what to do next. (Ava confided that this has been her most difficult week yet, but she is doing fine now.)

Spiritual Thought: ...But then I remembered this is not my work, its the Lord, and He already knows exactly what He wants to happen this area. :) What peace that brings me!  I am just the servant, so I just need to ask Him what His will is. :) He will make a lot more out of Jardim Satelite than we can alone, and He can make a lot more of each one of us if we give our wills to Him. :)  My ward is supporting me so much and I feel their love.  There are angels around me.

Tapioca Tortilla

Culture: TAPIOCA!!! It is completely different than tapioca in the States, and I am OBSESSED. It is made from mandioka (kind of like potato, but looks like a tree trunk) or cassava. It is cheap and delicious. It has no taste, so you can put it with chocolate or ham and cheese or whatever you want. Basically a super chewy tortilla and super yummy! Haven't eaten bread in over a month. Unfortunately, the United States doesn't have it, so I am going to eat as much as I can while I am here. :)

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEK!

Love,
A

Ava drew this masterpiece of our house during language study this week.  Pretty good!