The gospel is true!

Boa Tarde! This week, well actually just today, my head is not very organized to write so sorry if this email is all over the place! 

So, the mango and coconut rice..., haha mom! I finally made it. yum. Thanks!

Jessica is an investigator of the elders that got baptized this week, she is a sweetie and  has made a ton of changes in her life and is so much happier now!

Mom I absolutely agree how we can´t just know it is true (the gospel), we have to act on it! I believe there was a talk where they said ... The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of action! ... Well even if that is misquoted, it is still true!


Well actually we had a really good week, I think the best we have had in a little while. The Lord has led us to some rocking new investigators who are showing a lot of potential. There is this couple Indira and Nilton who I am just so excited about teaching. I wrote about Indira 2 weeks ago and since then we have started teaching her boyfriend. She told us he was very anti-church. Not just the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but any church he did not want anything to hear or do with it. And what I will tell you next shows that the Lord truly is preparing the hearts of his children. 1. Nilton actually accepted to talk to us. 2. He was really receptive to the lesson on the Restoration and said he would start reading the Book of Mormon. 3. This is the good part- we returned to teach him about the plan of salvation and he had actually studied it in the Book of Mormon! And we found out that he read in Indira´s triple combination and understood a ton about Adam and Eve! Well we used the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants to teach him all about God´s plan. We asked him what he thought about it and (this was a first getting this response) he said "este plano é louco! eu nao sabia!" haha which means "this plan is crazy! I didn't know!" Haha I was a little taken off guard. We asked him how he felt and he struggled to explain but we told him that was the Holy Ghost testifying! It was a seriously sweet lesson. And the cherry on top that shows that the Holy Ghost truly was testifying, was that this man that before did not want anything to do with church accepted a baptismal date in September. I am sorry but I can not lie, we did not do that. We do not have the ability to persuade people to change. We teach them doctrine, we bear testimony of what we know as truth and the Spirit touches their heart and teaches them that what we are sharing really is true. And then you remember how I love maraschino cherries? Well the SECOND cherry on top was that Nilton and Indira both attended our activity on Saturday and church on Sunday! And they loved it. So mostly I am just grateful to be here and see the power of the Holy Ghost. :) I know this is the true church of Jesus Christ.

I love you all. Have a great week and thank you for all your support!

-Sister Turner

I am almost positive that this flower is a type of hibiscus!   :)   Beautiful

Mission President Visit!

This week is Pioneer Day. Blessed, honored pioneers! Haha that hymn always comes to my mind when I think of pioneer day. Well hope you guys remember our pioneers and enjoy some barbecue and fireworks!

Like the subject said this week President and Sister Mathews were here in Boa Vista. We had interviews, they transmitted some changes to us, they attended our district meeting, went out and taught with us (I love teaching with Sister Mathews, even though she speaks little Portuguese she brings such a great spirit to the lesson!) and they did a fireside on Sunday night that was great for our members. It really was a treat having them with us almost the whole week. Oh yeah and I don´t think I told you, but they are from Kingwood, Texas which is near Houston? and actually President Mathews is a sealer in the Houston Temple which is sweet! They are such a humble, down to earth couple that are really just focused on this work. President Mathews understands what the work is like here on an island that is mostly tourists. Most of our members and investigators are singles who are here to work. In my interview he asked me if I would strongly testify of eternal families so that they know that in the future they can work for that and to help them create the goal to marry in the temple. And that is something they desperately need. The stable family unit following the Lord´s divine pattern is almost non-existent here. And I have realized how truly grateful and blessed I am with my family and that we are sealed together. President Mathews shared some things from their training's at the MTC. The Lord is hastening the work, and if we don´t keep up with His pace we will get left behind. That means we can´t just keeping doing things the way we are accustomed to, or comfortable with. We need to be willing to progress to keep pace with the Lord. And that means changes here on Boa Vista, to work not just harder but smarter. I really am loving Boa Vista the longer I am here, and that is true with the mission too. Yes it is hard, but it is also such a blessed time. I know this is the church of Jesus Christ, the holy priesthood has returned to the earth and we just have to receive all the ordinances of the temple, be faithful to them and stay on path that will lead us to return to the presence of God and become like Him. Knowing this brings me so much happiness and peace. I love you all and will write again next week!

-Sister Turner

p.s. sorry no pictures this week!

P-day fun

Boa Tarde,
That is soooo neat that you guys were able to go to the homecoming of President and Sister Oliveira! Now you know first hand how inspired they are and how blessed I was to have them as my leaders here in the mission. I really love them and look up to them so much and I am just so happy you guys got to meet them!

So this week was interesting- had it´s ups and downs like they all do. We were given this reference from the elders of a woman named Indira who was taught some months ago. Well turns out she is awesome! She bore such a sincere testimony last week in church that I thoguht that she was a member- and afterwards the elders told us about her I was so surprised! So we have met with her just a couple times but so far it has been really good. She has a TON of desire to be baptized but is waiting on her boyfriend of several years to be willing to get married. Yesterday we reviewed the Plan of Salvation and I felt the Holy Ghost testifying so purely and powerfully to me and to her that this really is God´s plan for His children. He wants everyone of us to come back to His presence. He prepared a way so that those who CHOOSE to live their lives according to the gospel of Jesus Christ and his commandments will be capable of receiving that oh so joyous reunion. Oh I just love thinking of the Great Plan of Happiness, it still amazes me that we truly understand our purpose in life. I think about where I am in the plan and the things I still need to do and become and I know that Heavenly Father will provide a way. I am so grateful for God´s love for us. I hope Everyone has a great week and keep counting the blessings we have in living the restored gospel! I love you all.

Today the pictures I sent were just from our    p-day at the dunes. It was so much fun!

We had a little bbq & funeral because Elder Darling is dying in like a week.

  Haha this anticlimatic video collage is of me NOT doing a flip. Our branch president was teaching me but I was too afraid, oh well lame. The dunes there are seriously huge.
  This is a picture of our little bbq at the bottom.

       Also pretty sure I ate half a cup of sand with our lunch, yum!

-Sister Turner

TRANSFER 10!!!!

Happy 4th of July!! Sounds like you all had a fun weekend with the family camping, and spending time together! The pictures look like it was a great time. :) We had a very american lunch of cheeseburger, fries, jello, grapes and homemade doughnuts yum! Hahaha and so many sisters think I am really patriotic/american (because I am) and I dressed to show it too!

This is real life- I am staying here with sister goss in Boa Vista for my 10th transfer. But then after this I have 2 transfers in the cabo verde... weeeiirrd. I am was so relieved to stay here and keep working in this area. I really do love it here. This week was interesting because pretty much the whole island was partying. They had their summer celebration and also cabo verde´s independence day in the same week. Haha and the cabo veridanos LOVE their music! A lot. Like several nights this week had music going allllll night long. Haha it was great. Two things- ear plugs and a fan.
Sister Goss brought her copy of Jesus the Christ to Boa Vista and I snatched it up real quick! I am going to read it before I come home and am loving studying it again. Back in Praia in a members house I ran across the book ´house of the Lord´ also by James E. Talmage. I fell in love after reading about one paragraph of him talking about the architecture of the salt lake temple. Think, two of my favorite things- the temple and architecture! It was sweet! I really want to read that one too ... maybe during Christmas? :)

So the weekend had some of the highlights of the week for sure. For a little while now we have been reviewing fasting and testimonies with the members and recent converts. On Saturday after our normal weekly activity we started a fast all together. The purpose of our fast was to have our testimonies strengthened and to help the missionary work in our branch- to know of the people who need the gospel. The fast went so well! On Sunday we had one of the most spiritual testimonies I have attended in a long time. The majority of the members bore simple yet very sincere testimonies. And it was especially awesome to hear Tchinha and Ima bear their testimonies too, they are both so great! Haha Ima bore his testimony in creole which is always a challenge to understand! After church at like 6 we had a break the fast all together and it was just the perfect ending to the branch fast. Everybody brought something to share, there was plenty of tasty food, everybody was happy and helped cleaned up! I am so grateful for how united this little branch is, we just have to keep working to keep it that way. :)

I made homemade cinnamon rolls in the
 bunt pan, Yuuumm!

I love this work. I love it´s trials, it´s triumphs, all of it. I am immensely grateful to be here right now. I love you guys so much and thank you, thank you, thank you for all your support and love! Have a great week!

com amor,
Sister Turner

My hair has grown so much since
 January! & it's so healthy :)