Olá!

Well, this is the last email I will be sending here from Brasil. It is a crazy feeling how it passed by so fast. This last week I spent traveling to a couple of different areas. It was great. The best part of the week though is when I went to Fenlly's baptism on Saturday. He is a man that I was teaching in Campo Limpo. He decided to be baptized and I went to baptize him there. We are allowed to visit areas the last weekend of the mission and so it worked out perfectly for me to see them. Sunday was also great because I visited people from Kennedy and from Campo Limpo. I, of course, wanted more time to visit, but it was amazing to have the little bit of time that I did have. I loved to see how much people have grown.

 I have so many stories, but I would like to end this last letter saying that I know that this Church is true. I know that the Lord lives and looks out for all of us. He is always willing to guide us and help us through all of our moments of this life. I have seen His hand many times throughout the mission. I love Brazil. I love the people here. It is hard to say goodbye, but I am grateful for all of the experiences I had and all of the memories I will take with me. In the coming weeks I am excited to see my friends and family and start a new chapter of my life, but I will never forget these two years that I had to serve the Lord and the people of Brazil. They are times that will never be forgotten. I thank all of you for your love, prayers and support. I will see you all soon!

Amo vocês!

Elder Johnson

Olá!

This week yet again flew by. I do not have a lot of time today and I don't have a lot to say honestly. Haha. The first part of the week we had our multi zone conferences. It was a lot of fun. We talked about working with the members. A little ironic as a last training as soon I will be on the other side of the training, but it was a great event with everyone. 

The rest of the week I spent on exchanges. I went to another area close by for 4 days. It was a lot of fun. It felt good just to be a normal missionary(kind of). We just went out there and talked to everyone and taught a lot of lessons. I saw that we met so many people that were ready to hear the gospel message. I absolutely loved the experience.

This weekend we also had a baptism! On Sunday before church Erlan was baptized. He is a 22 year old man who has been going to Church the past couple of weeks. He is a great guy and has changed a lot. Each time we taught about a commandment he started living and never went back. I loved to see that change in him and it was a great meeting even though the water heater wasn't working and it was a super cold day. haha

I had an amazing week and I can't wait for this week. We will have one last meeting and then I will be traveling to a couple different areas. It will be a great experience and I can't wait. Thank you all for your love and support!

Amo vocês!

Elder Johnson

Olá!

I had a great week. We had a lot of meetings as some missionaries went home and the new missionaries got here. I will explain a little bit about the week. There is nothing too exciting as it was just meetings and then splits.

Tuesday we had our meeting with the new missionaries. This meeting is great. We received a lot of Americans. It is funny to see them all getting on the mission. It is a crazy experience getting here. I like to see how they all learn and grow.

Wednesday was our leadership council. It was a great meeting. We gave a couple of trainings on how to better work with members and made some goals so that we can have a mission of miracles. The mission is getting better and better. The leaders here are great so it was just a fun and exciting meeting.

Friday was our last meeting with the District Leaders. It went super well. We give them some training on their responsibilities. They are great also. I love all the missionaries here.

The next couple of days I spent traveling. I am with two companions now so I am kind of just traveling around to other areas to help out. I went to Osasco which is a city close by. I stayed in one area one day and then another area the next. It was a lot of fun. We taught so many people there as the people are a lot more open than in the center of São Paulo. These last couple of weeks that will be my life. Traveling from area to area every couple of days. It is a great experience to meet new people and new areas. I am so happy to be a missionary. It truly has changed my life. I can't wait for these last couple of weeks. The last sprint is always the best part. Thank you all for your love and support!

Amo vocês!

Elder Johnson

Olá!

We had a great week! I don't have a lot of time, but I will talk about some of the best parts.

This week we had a course of self-reliance where we talked about work and education after the mission. They gave us some good guides to look at. The best part was after when we went to the temple with President and Sister Thomas. It was a great experience to be there with them. They are such great people and I am grateful for everything they have taught me.

The other great part this week is that we had a baptism! His name is Pietro. He is 10 years old. His mother and grandmother are members are members, but were not going to church. One day they stopped there to use the restroom and as they were leaving Pietro said that he felt the spirit so strongly on the church grounds and that he never wanted to leave. We have been teaching him for a couple of months and he was baptized on Sunday.

I now have one more companion. We will be together in a trio for my last couple of weeks. I am very excited and am super happy to be working in this great work. I have seen so many miracles and know that God is in control and is guiding so many people to the truth. Thank you all for your love and support!

Amo vocês!

Elder Johnson

Olá!

This week was a lot more normal. We only had one division so the first half of the week we were working together in our area. We had a great district meeting on Wednesday with President that helped us work hard. This area has a lot of buildings which makes it harder to talk to a lot of people on the street, but we saw that as we tried to talk to more people, we were able to find people in our path that were ready to hear the gospel message.

One of these people is Larissa. She has an aunt who is returning to church and when we went to the Aunt's house we met her and taught her the Restoration. It was a fantastic lesson and she has started to read the Book of Mormon. Another person is Angelica. She is living with a family of members while she is studying here in São Paulo. She is a great person who definitely has soooo many questions. It is fun to answer those questions because I have also learned so much as I have tried to respond to her doubts. I find that amazing. We can learn so much as we search and ask God for inspiration.

Our division was a lot of fun. I was with a guy from Minas Gerais. It is a different style. He is a funny guy. We were able to learn a lot together and eat a pizza at the end of the night. I think you all have seen how much pizza we eat. It is soooo good! I will miss the pizza here when I go home.

Sunday was a great day as we had a few people at church and President was there. His testimony in sacrament meeting was great. He is an amazing person and has always inspired me. He talked about grace. I am so grateful for grace. That Christ has the power to qualify us and save us if we repent and follow Him. I have learned so much more about why this power is so important to everyone who lives on this earth. I am grateful for Jesus Christ and for the opportunity to represent Him here in Brasil. Thank you all for your love and support!

Amo vocês!

Elder Johnson

Funny Story - A man got really mad at us this week saying that we kill native Americans because we are missionaries. That was a new one. haha

Olá!

This week was fantastic. Again we had a couple of exchanges so I traveled a little bit. The first couple of days I was in my area with Elder Smith. It was full of miracles! We are finding more people which is exciting for us so that we can teach a lot more. I have seen that if we do our best, God will do the rest. It is not easy, but it is worth it.

The first exchange that I did was in Baronesa, Osasco which is about an hour from here. It is a very different area. A lot more open. It is easy to enter into people's houses. We also did a couple of baptismal interviews. It was great. I met a fantastic family that the other missionaries have prepared. It was amazing to talk to them and see a united family that is so excited to follow the gospel.

The second exchange I did was in the center of São Paulo. It was a lot of fun to work in the city. It is a lot like New York. We took the subway around and there are a lot of buildings. I wish I could have taken a couple of pictures. It has a really big city feel to it. That is good because I like the city, but it is also hard to stop people and talk to them because they are always running. It was a really good exchange though and I am glad that I got to know another missionary and another part of the area.

The last couple of days we worked in the area and are having a great time together. The members here are fantastic. I love the work and am excited to see people preparing to be baptized and show that they want to follow Jesus Christ. It truly is a blessing to be apart of this Church and this work. Thank you all for your love and support!

Amo vocês!

Elder Johnson

Olá!

This week went well. Happy late 4th of July. We celebrated here by eating McDonald's. It was pretty good. This week we had a couple of divisions. The first one was with Paraísopolis again. This time I stayed in my area. It was good. I am in a new area so on these days I have to work hard to have a lot of plans, but it was a good day. I learned a lot and we were able to find a lot of people. This area doesn't have as many people on the road so when there is one it is fun because you basically run after them.

The second division was with Novo Osasco. It is an area I have been in so it was fun to be back there. We had a good day and I saw a few people that I met there which was great. I saw Luan which is a young man that I taught and baptized there and he is doing well. It is nice to see the progress of people after baptism.

We only had one meeting this week. It might be the last meeting that I run as I don't know if I will be assistant next transfer. I really enjoyed the training that we did. I have seen how much I have learned since the first training and now. We were with the new missionaries and it is fun to see them entering. I know that they will do a great job here in the mission. They are always so excited and willing to learn.

In our area we are doing well. We have a couple of people who will be baptized this month. Pietro is a young boy who is super excited. His mom and grandma are returning to church and he said that the only thing that he wants is to be baptized and always go to church. We are also teaching a member's girlfriend. She also said that she has a huge desire to be baptized. I have seen that the Lord is truly preparing people. We have found both of these people and they have the desire even without inviting them. They were amazed when they found out that they could be baptized this month. I am so excited to teach and prepare them.

This area is not as crazy as past areas so I don't have very many stories. The best one from this week is that a guy was saying that Neymar(A Brazillian soccer player) was called by God to win the world cup for Brasil. Sadly, they lost, but maybe his prophecy will come true in 4 years. I was sad that Brasil lost. It was super crazy here every game day. I was happy to see a little bit of the Brazillian spirit. I love the people here and am grateful for all of the experiences I have had here. Thank you all for your love and support.

Amo vocês!

Elder Johnson