Emails And A Reading Challenge.

August 4th:
Well once again another transfer has come and gone. For the next transfer I am going to be staying in my same area with my companion. I'm pretty excited to stay. This last transfer we were basically just getting everything set up and now we just need to baptize! This week here should be awesome. This week is Elder Hutber's (my friend from England) last week. In the last 12 transfers of my mission I have spend 10 and a half transfers with him on the same island, most of the time in the district and 2 different times in the same house. Our plan for this week is to have a wedding for Branco and Rosa (translation white and pink) on thursday, birthday/ going home/ early thanksgiving dinner for Elder Hutber on Friday, And then Baptisms on Saturday! It's gonna be a way good week. 


August 9th:
family I also forgot to tell you about the updates with Relva. I talked to one of my recent converts today and I learned that things there are still really good. All of my converts are still really strong and they are all working really hard to grow the branch there. Also in my last few weeks there I taught the branch president what branch missionaries are and told him to call some and I'd train them all. Well he called them all and we trained them and then today I heard that they are all still really strong and they are helping out with the recent converts and they are bringing investigators to church.  It's crazy how much of a snow ball effect this work has. I also met up with the couple we married before I went to Relva. He is now a high priest in the stake and is doing work. The missionaries there said he's the strongest member in the whole ward! It's crazy how this work never stops and ours fruits  seem to just keep going and going


August 19th:
Dear Everybody,
This week went by pretty good. We have started doing divisions everyday with a bunch of young men that are preparing to serve missions so we have been teaching like 40 lessons a week. We should be baptizing a bunch this transfer. Also I have an invitation for the whole family. I meant to tell y'all last week but I forgot. So when everyone gets to 138 days left in the mission they start on d&c 138 and read one section a day until they go home. I started this last friday and want to invite all of you to read one section a day with me and then you can count how many days I have left! TRUNKY!... Dont worry I'm still working my hardest! Today read 135 and tomorrow 134 etc etc..

To All Who Are "Perdidos".

Well yesterday was my last ever Easter in Cape Verde... Not actually a bad thing. Holidays here, I sadly have discovered, are backwards. In America even the people that don't believe in Christ go to church on Easter. Here even the members use the family party or even just a regular party excuse as a reason to skip out on church. 
 
As for new news... Last night President made the Transfer Calls early. my mini missionary is heading back home and I am going to get a fresh new america greenie!
I am pretty excited for this experience but its going to kinda stink for the new few weeks basically doing everything myself. Also this week we are fighting with all of us strength for our baptisms this week. We have 4 people planned and it is going to be a lot of work to get them all there. Tomorrow we are going to do a fast for them... I know you all have a desire to help this work go on not only in word but in deed. If y'all want you can fast with us too!! Their names are Taty, yanike, Yuri and Antonia! 
Things this week have gotten a little bit trunky. The mission is always kind of a drag when you're stuck with a mini missionary.
 
Well I love you and thank you a lot for sending me pants! I will try and send you some photos today! 
 
Love Elder Eduardo

March 24, 2013

Dear President,

 Once again we are starting to see the fruits of our labors. When I first showed up to this area there weren't very many investigators and things were just passing along without a real excitement here. I remeber in the first week of this transfer you basically told me to just focus on families. We made plans to find, teach and baptize families and yesterday I truly saw a miracle! Yesterday we had a family of 7 show up to church and for the first time ever in Cape Verde I saw a family fill an entire row during sacrament meeting.

 So far in this new area we have been finding a lot of families and as of right now we have 3 of them that are progressing towards baptism! It is truly amazing to be a part of this work and to see first hand that the field really is white and ready for the harvest!

 

We need lots of help them please pray for these families!!!

This last monday... wow we had a crazy experience. Two weeks ago our neighbor called us over and said she wanted us to come to her house. We maked with her for last monday and went over there. When we showed up she told us she wasn't ready yet and had her son take us on a tour of her house. After waiting like an hour we finally went back up stairs to see that she had prepared a huge dinner for us! She said she had already eaten so we served ourselves and eat a good amount... then she came to the table telling us that she could see in our eyes that we haven't eaten well in a while and that our moms are for sure very worried about us. She grabbed our plates and filled them up FULL! I battled with all of my might to eat it all and got just about everything. I was ready to explode.. then she brought us out a fruit salad desert and filled up a bowl full.. I left her house the most full I have been probably since the last time I ate at chuck a rama. I am scared to go back there..

 

Well I hope all is well with you guys! I will try to keep writing more each week. 

 Love,

 Elder Edwards

A Name Tag Lost At Sea.

This was supposed to post prior to the next one, sorry. This one was the week prior. Here's the update for our Elder.

Hello my familia. 

  Things here are..  The same. Today is the first day of the transfer and I'm staying in Relva one more with Elder Nhafé. I am excited to keep on working here in Relva. 

As far as my nametag.... Ya that was a fun day.. Its was about 3 months ago that I lost my original. We usually always do our baptisms in Cova Figueira because they have a fonte or we will go to Mosteiros becuase they have a nice calm spot to do it in the ocean with low waves and sand... To go to either of those places we have to pay with our own mission money to get a car to take everyone there. Life here is expensive.. If we baptize a lot we end up out of money. Being wise and creative as me and my companion were we decided to save money and do it our own way. We met with everyone in the afternoon and just walk straight down from our house to the ocean. The waves are large and lots of them are white on top... Sand is nowhere to be found.. Just baseball to soccer ball sized rocks..  It was decided that my companion would be the one to perform the baptism.. he's the junior comp and it's his first time doing it in the ocean.. I am in my baptismal cloths because I have to be the witness. I'm standing off to the side of my companion where it is more shallow. This spot and day was for experienced baptists only. He tries a couple times to say the prayer and dunk him in but he is having trouble timing it with the waves. He tries it about 3 times but everytime he finishes the prayer a big wave comes and they can't stay up on the slippery rocks. Finally try number four.. I give a faca to my comp and tell him that he has to say the prayer a little faster... He doesnt listen.. A huge wave comes!!! it throws my companion to the side and lifts up our baptism onto me! He is a weak swimmer... He grabs me screaming and tries to use me to stay a float! next thing I know I'm out in the ocean and I can't touch the bottom.. I see three big waves out the distance.. I was in hawaii I know what has to be done, I'm forced to take full action and dive head first through he waves. It's awesome of coarse. I love the ocean. Finally things settle back down and I make it back to shore. We do the baptism real quick and get out of the water! As I'm leaving I look down and realize that my nametag is MIA..  In the end it turned out to make for a good story... My new nametag should be here soon..

   I hope you like my story! Make sure you save this email I never actually wrote that in my journal... Love you all! 

  Elder Edwards

January 14, 2013

The New Relief Society Teacher.

Okay I thought about my week more during the week so I would have something to write about. This week after feeling like we were lacking good solid investigators we ended up having 10 show up to church on sunday and are now getting ready to fill up all the baptismal tanks on the islands! The church of elder (Igreja de élder) as they call it here truly is growing really fast! The mission average for baptisms last year was 25 a month...The mission average now is usually 125 to 140 a month! I think a lot of the difference is our new mission president. He was a CEO for some big company in America and as a child his family was all military... What that means for me is that he is running this mission as a fortune 500 company would be run with an extra drop of super shined shoes, extra ironed shirts and pressed pants as would be done in the Brasilian Army. As for my week... I have been unofficially called as the new relief society teacher... It's was a little bit of a challege as first because I showed up to church and then after 20 minutes of nothing happening in RS they handed me a copy of the teachings of Lorenzo Snow book I had never seen before in my life and told me I was called to serve! In the end though It turned out to be a good class. Yesterday at church I basically did the same thing, the only difference was I found out saturday afternoon. 

    Love ya,

 Elder Edwards.
January 28,2013

Naming Babies.

This new calling has been crazy! I have gone to the airport at 3 to 5 in the morning 3 times this week and have been running all around town in the chruchs car. It has been way legit! Also I named one of our investigators newborn baby haha I gave it the name bear at first and she kind of liked it and then I decided that bearinho was more fitting and she loved it (inho at the end of almost any Portuguese word means little) and this week she got baptized and her child's name legally on her baptism sheet was bearinho ha. Life here in Cape Verde is awesome. I always am praying for you guys. Fique suave. With love, Matthew

AP

This week was crazy! This last week was the last week of the Transfer and to finish it up we went and baptized in the ocean. It was one of the coolest experiences I have ever had! Now that all is said and done we finished the transfer with 10 baptisms and have 4 set up for next week... Sadly though I have been transferred. Last night I got a call from the Mission president and I am going to serve as AP (presidents assistant) I was pretty bummed to leave this area but this next transfer should be sweet. I found out that I get to drive the Church's Hiace ( Type of car) That is brand new and cost 70K! I get the feeling like the president is really pushing me. He told me this transfer I have to work my can off and get ready to become a trainer.  Hope all is well. With much love, Elder Edwards.

6 Months Tomorrow!

We have been having tons of problems with the power lately its really annoying. This week was way sweet. This week I baptized an investigator personally for the first time ever! It was way cool but he way a pretty big kid so it was kind of hard. Also this week at church we had a member of the seventy come to give a talk during sacrament meeting which was really interesting. The best part about it too was that we had 15 investigators show up to church! My comp and I were actually asked to give a training now this week at district meeting on getting investigators to church haha. This Sunday is the end of the transfer, Wednesday is my 6 month mark and we have 4 baptisms planned for Saturday... This week is going to be good and exhausting! I hope all is well in Salt Lake. WIth love, Elder Edwards

A Monday Surprise.

I hadn't expected to get an email from Matt so soon but apparently he will have access to email more than just on his P-day. Yipee! Here is the latest from Elder Edwards (with a few personal things removed for protection of the author/reader):

"Tell nora I love the imaginary friend drawing that i got from you guys! I sent you guys a letter in the mail on Saturday so i image you'll be recieving that soon. My email time is super short which is way lame so I never end up being able to say everything i want to tell you guys. And if ever you wonder what im doing im either A. reading the scriptures B. butchering the portugeuse language C. Sleeping or D. hitting on sister missionaries haha Everyone is soo jealous of me becasue of you guys! I'm getting way more letters, packages and emails then them ha. I only have thirty seconds left so I'll continue to write you guys and i hope to hear back from you soon. Tchau!"

Gotta love our Matt, always making time for the ladies. Love you!

I Have Never Been So Excited For An Email!

We got this email from Matt today so I am assuming that his P-day is Fridays. Apparently he will have access to email at least while in the MTC. I am giddy with excitement. Can you believe this is now in the MTC serving the Lord!?! What an inspiration. Love you Beaver!

"Ola meu Amigos! So far I've been in the MTC a total of 48 hours and things are going pretty good. My campanion is from Ethiopia and is the first Ethiopian ever to come to the Provo, MTC! He speaks 4 languages and is excited to make portuguese his 5th! I've been learning a lot so far and I'm actually meeting with an investigator today that only speaks Portuguese! I miss you all at and can't wait to hear back! Love Elder Edwards (p.s. I couldnt remember heathers email so please forward this message to her. Obrigando!)"