MAIS FOTOS DA SEMANA PASSADA

HEYYY

This week was great! We suffered the last 2 weeks to find people but this week we were able to find 10 new investigators and marked a few baptisms! We are progressing and very excited! :) 

I was studying about the life of Jesus Christ this week and I found a quote that I really liked and wanted to share it with you.  "Partaking of a bitter cup without becoming bitter is likewise part of the emulation of Jesus." -Elder Neal A. Maxwell.  Happiness is a choice.  If we trust in The Lord and in God´s eternal plan, we don´t have to get down.  We can choose to be happy in our trials and "live after the manner of happiness" as we read in The Book of Mormon.  I invite all to join with me in coming unto Christ by smiling through our difficulties and letting it move us into becoming more like our eternal Savior that loves us so much.  

I don´t have time AGAIN but I love you all so much and am extremely grateful for your prayers and support! I encourage all youth to serve a full-time mission because it is THE BEST thing I´ve ever done and I could not have learned how much I´m learning or change how much I wanted to change doing any other thing.

Love you all,

Sister Garrick :)

Photos of Marco Zero

Fotos of Recife and Mercado de São José

PB and blueberry jelly sandwiches (don´t ask how) 

and mission counsel september 2k16

Our service project for Mormon Helping Hands was to 

clean the Restaurant Bella Nordestina!

They gave us food and sister conference!

banana chocolate chip bars and p-day of exercises with Sister Bigelow!

Elect

This past Saturday we were able to find the most elect couple! Aline and Wagner! They were a referral from a member and we love them!! They are a great example of people that are looking for the truth! Aline even took 3 of her kids with her to church the day after we met her on Sunday!  We are so grateful for The Lord putting people in our path in the minds and hearts of our members to visit and teach repentance.

This week we had a breakfast for new members Sunday morning and I made my mom's banana chocolate chip bars and they turned our great! What a miracle ;) haha.  Edlma and Alberto (RC) even brought a friend to the activity and it was very special! 

This week we had mission counsel, sister conference, 2 exchanges, and P-Day of exercises! It has been a long and busy week! But a great one!  Today, Sister Bigelow and President did exercises with us for 6 minutes and LITERALLY KILLED US. 6 MINUTES! They are hardcore and we are all weak de verdade.  They taught us how to be healthier and gave us sandwiches and I never want to eat chocolate again in my life.  We were able to work with the sisters from Pina and from Setúbal this week and I was able to learn so much from these wonderful missionaries! Shout out to Sister Taylor because I know her parents read these on my blog- she is a wonderful missionary and I loved my time with her in Boa Viagem! :)

At Sister Conference, Sister Juárez and I were able to lead a discussion sobre the talk "Um Apelo de Minha Irmãs" by Russel M. Nelson.  I forgot how to say it in English and this talk is so great! Google it! It´s from General Conference like last year!   (from mom: A Plea to My Sisters. )  We watched a video about The Atonement and Missionary Work by President Eyring and Elder Holland and watching in ON the mission is A LOT different that watching it before. I need my Savior.  I need Him every hour and I need His divine and infinite help in becoming better and more like Him.  Thank you all for ALL of your support!

Love,

Sister Garrick 

(from mom: Found this picture in Sister Garrick's email this week- 

A photo from leadership council)

Also from mom:  Sister Lopez's mom shared these pictures on Facebook today.  

Sept 7th was Brazil's Independence Day and the missionaries went out to serve.  

Apparently these sister missionaries cleaned a restaurant called Bella Nordestina.  

They cleaned it and also prepared lunch (chicken hearts)   

Hi From Sister Erica

Hello!

This week I was called by yet another name or pronunciation of Garrick! I was called Sister Erica by our 76 year old investigator, Maria José! hahaha WHAT!  Okay but this week was great! It was a real faith tester, but I know that we receive a witness after the trial of our faith. (Ether 12:6)  

We were able to have zone conference and ward counsel and leadership meeting this week so it was super hurried and we even had to travel to Camaragibe which was like flashback into the past because it´s super interior but man how I miss the interior! But my heart is in Boa Viagem now and I don´t want to leave! 

This week we were able to learn with President Bigelow about the premises of what we believe.  We have to understand why we keep commandments like pay tithing, obey the word of wisdom, etc.  and as missionaries and members of the church we have to align how we think with how the Lord thinks.  We as latter-day saints think differently and I will attach the talk we read for you guys because you can learn so much!! Learning is great amiright?!?! 

https://www.lds.org/prophets-and-apostles/unto-all-the-world/as-he-thinketh-in-his-heart-?lang=eng

But my favorite part of this talk was this: 

When I say that Latter-day Saints “think differently,” I do not suggest that we have a different way of reasoning in the sense of how we think.  I am referring to the fact that on many important subjects our assumptions-our starting points or major premises-are different from many of our friends and associates.  They are also different from many assumptions currently used in the media and in other common discourse.  For example, because Latter-day Saints know our Heavenly Father’s plan for His children, we know that this mortal life is not a one-act play sandwiched between an unknowable past and an uncertain future.  This life is like the second act in a three-act play.  Its purpose is defined by what is revealed about our spiritual existence in Act 1 and our eternal destiny in Act 3.  Because of our knowledge of this Plan and other truths that God has revealed, we start with different assumptions than those who do not share our knowledge.  As a result, we reach different conclusions on many important subjects that others judge only in terms of their opinions about mortal life.

In some ways our experience is the same as the Apostle Peter’s, recorded in the 16^th chapter of Matthew.  Jesus taught His apostles that He would soon go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes and finally be killed.  Quote:

“Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord:  this shall not be unto thee.

“But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan:  thou art an offence unto me:  for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men” (Matthew 16:22–23).

Peter did not savor “the things that be of God, but those that be of men” when he argued that Jesus would not be killed in Jerusalem.  By reasoning from the wisdom of men he reached the wrong conclusion.  If, on that occasion, Peter had reasoned from “the things that be of God”-from the Plan that required the Savior to die-he would not have been chastened.  Then, he would have had what the scriptures describe as the “mind of The Lord” or the “mind of Christ” (Romans 11:34; 1 Corinthians 2:16; D&C 102:23; also see 2 Nephi 9:39), which includes the ability to understand and think clearly about the application of eternal gospel truths and teachings to the various circumstances we face in mortality.

Sorry this email is really long but I am grateful for you all and grateful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ.  I am grateful that we think differently because it means we can help others come to this knowledge of the gospel too!

Boa semana,

Sister Erica ;)

Photo: Zone Conference (Zonas Litoral & Recife Sul)

Families Can Be Together Forever

Olá família e amigos!

This week was great! We were able to see the rest of Alberto´s family be baptized and start on the path to becoming an eternal family! :)  Edlma, Navarro, and Heriberto were finally baptized! Elder and Sister Forbush and Elder and Sister Gayle were able to be there.  They gave us the referral of this family and Elder Gayle was even able to baptize Edlma!  Elder Forbush shared a message and we 4 sisters sang a mashup of I Love to See the Temple and Families Can Be Together Forever which was way cool for this family because the main reason they decided they wanted to be baptized was to enter into the temple and have an eternal family one day. :) I love them! 

This week during an exchange, Sister Miller and I were able to eat chicken heart which was mais ou menos...  September 7 is the day of independence here in Brasil and we will be doing service projects.  Since our area is in Recife we will be marching in a parade representing the church I think haha I´m excited! 

I´ve got to send this off quickly, but I thank you all for your prayers and advice and love!

Abraços,

Sister Garrick

Photo 1: The beautiful family and Alberto was able to baptize his sons!

Photo 2: The Forbushs

Photo 3: The Gayles

Stay on The Safe Side of Things

Hey ya´ll!

This week went by super fast! The highlight of our week was that we were able to mark Edilma, Navarro, and Heriberto for baptism!! We are so excited and are praying like crazy that everything will go well!! This week we sang (mais uma vez) at a baptism for the Pina ward.  We sang Joseph´s Smith First Prayer (In Portuguese) to the tune of Come Thou Font with Sister Taylor playing the violin.  It was super cool how well it went together.  This week I learned a lot about The Word of Wisdom and encourage you all to read this talk: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1996/04/the-word-of-wisdom-the-principle-and-the-promises?lang=eng&_r=1 by Elder Boyd K. Packer and abide by its principles.  He lists A TON of blessings that are promised by The Lord if we keep this commandment and stay on the safe side of things! It´s incredible!

Woah so one day this week we were like walking on the street and literally no one NO ONE was in their house or on the street and we were like well now what?  And then all of a sudden we heard a huge roar like WHOOO YEAH and cheering and then fireworks and people running around and driving crazy honking their horn and we found out that Brasil won the gold for soccer that night.  I felt like I was in the stadium in Rio de verdade.  WOW IT WAS SO COOL and it was impossible to not see them get gold medals placed around their necks because there were TV screens and projectors on every corner of the street.  Being in Brasil during the Olympics is way cool. 

Lots of new missionaries arrived here this week and I was able to reflect upon how it was for me when I first arrived into the field and I´m so grateful for this opportunity I have to be be molded by my Heavenly Father into what He wants me to be and to be able to help other sisters be free from stress, learn how to be an instrument in God´s hands, hear the soft voice of the Spirit, and even learn Portuguese!

I love you all and am thankful for your support, thoughts, prayers, emails, and letters! Have a great week! :)

Love,

Sister Garrick 

P.S. I don´t have any photos so these are old ones I forgot to send :)

Sister M. Costa and I at mission counsel

P-day com Distrito

On the Ônibus

Praia de Piedade 

The Sisters Started the Fire!

(To the tune of Ryan Started the Fire from The Office)

HELLO AMIGOS

Sorry I didn´t have time to write last week!

Why the title? Because 3 weeks ago, thanks to everything I learned at Girls Camp, my comp and I were able to start a fire for a family of members that couldn´t cook food because their stove broke! We made a fire and she cooked her humble cuscuz e galinha! She was shocked at how we started it! Blessings from the Lord com certeza!!

This week Paula was baptized and we are so happy for her!!! We sang with the sisters from Pina, I am a Child of God in Portuguese, Spanish, and English with Sister Taylor playing the violin and me singing the descant.  The bishops of our two wards even asked us to sing it again in Sacrament Meeting! I know that when we sing and play music we are bearing testimony that we know that God loves us and that Christ is our Redeemer! I know this gospel is true and I know without a doubt that you are children of a King who loves you so very much.  Never forget you divine nature and always stand as a witness of your Heavenly Father at all times and in all places! 

Love,

Sister Garrick

Blue ocean filled with sharks be careful

Pizza Hut and guessing the transfers

Problems of singing in 3 languages

I love Boa Viagem

From the chic apartment of our recent convert, Angela

At Paula's baptism

Singing I am A Child of God 

Angela at her apartment!

Divisão com Sister Faria e Sister Iglesias

Cuscuz and guacamole is super good together

Matching shoes for 10 reais (Eu e Sister Lopez)

I don´t know why I´m in love with this horrible picture but it describes 

our relationship as roommates here in Brasil

The one night it was slightly cold (só que não)

Why is Boa Viagem gorgeous??

Sister Juárez is in paradise hahaha

Mexico and pants and O Livro de Mórmon

Boa Viagem :)

Ingrid´s entrevista para ser batizada

Calças

Yo estoy en el Mexico 

Atividade na capela

Bolos para o batismo da Ingrid

She´s so special :)

Ingrid made us bracelets :)

Ingrid´s baptism

I´m in NYC

Paula :)

Everyone calls me Sister Gary because the "ck" is uncommon here sooo....

9 months in the mission!

Ingrid's Baptism

Hello!! 

This week was great and I can't send pictures because of these darn computer viruses UGH! 

1. Ingrid was baptized! You could feel when she got into the water that she was a girl who was ready to be baptized! WOW! At the end all the YW went up to the front and sang When I am Baptized and then everyone started singing with them and it was so spiritual! Wow favorite baptism so far ;) and yesterday made 12 years since I've been baptized! haha

2. This week we had a minute to win it type activity at church to integrate our investigators with our members and it was a success except we showed up in pants and everyone was like "are you sisters?" "Oh look, the elders are here" or the plain straight "I don´t like it." But a few nice members said they liked the pants but yes I know I look like Jack Skellington using them.

3. We had exchanges with the Sisters in Setúbal! I go to to work in their area and it was way cool!  

WOW I need to send pics but it´s not going to happen :( Sorry I´ll write more next week and try to send pics.  I have a lot more to show than to say but I hope you all know how much I love you and miss you all and how much I truly LOVE this gospel.  

Beijos,

Sister Garrick :)

(Note from Sister Garrick's mom: I found these pictures from a district meeting in her emails that the mission sent her.  I'm always anxious to see her face and since she didn't send pictures this week, I'm adding this... ) 

Also adding the picture that was posted on Facebook recently.  This is 

Juliana on the left who lives in Recife.  She had Sister Garrick and her companion over for lunch and shared a picture of them.  Juliana happens to be friends with my friend Corinne here in Houston. LOVE getting bonus pictures of my girl! (and knowing she is being well cared for!) 

Side note: When I showed this picture to Sister Garrick she said, 

"I haven't seen myself filtered in a long time!"