WEEK #50

Opa!

Hey everyone,  I don't have a ton of time to write today, we have a lot to do today and we are going to start moving into our new house so things are kind of crazy today! 

But I hope you all had a great last week of February! I cant believe it is already MARCH!!! Time is flying by. But I can sum up the week in one word... RAIN!!! It rained so much this week so the work was a little slower than usual, it is super hard to work when we have heavy rain because of all the dirt roads and stuff! Plus the streets just turn into muddy rivers haha so its no fun. But it was pretty cold this week for a couple days, it would probably be really warm for everybody back in Utah but it was super cold for us! I actually had to use my sheet to sleep and I turned off my fan because I was cold! I think it was like 65 or 70 degrees F but it was cold for me. Its gonna be rough coming home next year to snow!

But we met some great people, we had a new investigator at church! Her name is Martina, she came to church with her son. Her son was already baptized in Paraguay and she likes going to church with him in Paraguay, but we met them in the street when we were walking one day and invited them to our ward her in Brazil since they live in Brazil. And they showed up! Its so great when that happens! haha. We are meeting with her tomorrow to get to know her better and we will see where she is at and whether or not she wants to be baptized.

This week we decided to work in another part of our area, its super far from our house and I had never been there before. But we decided to go there and it turned out to be an awesome experience! We met some great people and taught some lessons there. Also, we found a huge pond and waterfall so we are gonna return there again and fish at the pond next pday! 

Emily came to church on Sunday as well so that was an awesome experience for all of us! She is such a special girl and we were all really happy when she decided to come back to church. I'm so excited for the things that are happening here! The members are so awesome and I have fallen in love with Ponta Pora! Also I have fallen in love with Terere, the herbal drink that EVERYBODY drinks here! Its a huge part of the culture in this part of Brazil as well as Paraguay. Nothing better than drinking ice cold Terere after walking for hours!

Anyways I think that about sums up the week, I hope you all have a warm and safe week! Love you much!

2 Corinthians 12:9

Love,

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #49

Family and Friends,

This week was a good one! My new companion arrived on Tuesday and we are already like best friends! His personality is pretty much just like mine so we are laughing our butts off all the time. His name is Elder Rocha and hes from Rio Grande do Sul. He is 18 years old and is super ready to work! I can tell we are going to do some good work this transfer. 

We had 3 investigators at church, so that was good. Also, about 6 weeks ago when i was here with Elder Vecchio, we met a less active girl named Emily who had 16 years. She was baptized in Paraguay with her boyfriend, but her boyfriend was killed last year and after that she didn't attend church anymore. She lives here in Brazil but her boyfriend was from Paraguay so she went to church there. Anyways, she didn't seem that interested in coming back to church when we taught her the last time, but on Wednesday night she called us and said that she has been praying for help in her life and she knows that she needs to come back to church! She bore her testimony to us over the phone and she said that she knows everything is true she just has had a hard time the past few months. But we have visited her a few times this past week and she really has a desire to follow Christ again, and she is going to invite her friend to come over so we can teach her next time! At first when I met her i was a little sad that she didn't want to come back to church, but now she has opened up to us and we have been able to help her. I know that everything happens for a reason, we just have to trust in the Lords timing!

Also this week we went to a Thai restaurant, it was super good! It was nice to have some Rice and Curry instead of the normal rice! haha. 

So the mission has kind of changed its focus a little bit. Brazil has a really high baptizing rate but a really low retention rate! So now, we are instructed to focus on helping people achieve real growth. So we are still trying to get baptisms and everything, but we are also focusing a LOT more on Less Active members, recent converts, strengthening members in our wards, and also helping those who are preparing to serve missions. So we have been working the past few weeks with the less active families here, and so far we have seen a lot of success! We have had several families come to church with us and it has been great to become friends with the people here and see their willingness to come to Christ. I have met so many people here who have truly changed my life and I will always be grateful for what I have learned here!

So our new toaster and microwave have been the best thing in my life I swear! I have been trying to eat as much as i can, I don't want to lose anymore weight! Food here is really expensive, so its hard to eat Breakfast all the time. But we always have Lunch with members and if we are lucky we have dinner sometimes! I weighed myself the other day and I weighed 94 kilograms, which is about 207 pounds. Its crazy because when I left Montana I was at almost 225! So i have lost like 17 pounds or whatever. Crazy! 

Today we are going to the center to play soccer with our zone. Our zone has like 3 new Americans who just got there visas and its their first transfer in Brazil, so now there are 5 Americans in our zone. The new Americans are super stressed in learning the language, its just funny because I was in exactly the same boat like 3 months ago! Even now I am still learning a lot and  I have a long way to go with the language, but it has gotten a lot easier for me now and I can pretty much understand everybody now. But the language comes in due time. Here in Ponta Porã we are super close to Paraguay and so there are tons of people who speak Spanish, and also a lot of people who speak Guarani! Guarani is a native indian language from Paraguay and it is suuuuuuper hard to speak, but I'm learning a little bit  so i can talk to a few people :) It is really cool here to see the combined culture of Brazil and Paraguay!

Anyways, things are going great here! I love you all so much and I hope you have a wonderful week!

Love,

Elder Kyle Payne

Ether 12:4

WEEK #48

Beleza gente!

Oh man I don't even know where to begin!!! This past week was super crazy, so many things happened haha. Hopefully I will be able to remember everything!

So first off, we got transfer calls last night. I will be staying here in 3rd ward in Ponta Porã, and I will be training a new missionary! Also I was called to be a District Leader here. I'm a little nervous because I cant speak Portuguese as well as I want to yet but I will get there eventually! But Ive heard a little bit about my new companion, his name is Elder Rocha and he is from Rio Grande do Sul (the most southern state in Brazil). That's all i know about him! haha he will arrive here in Wednesday so we will see! I'm excited for this next transfer, we have a lot of good things going on here as far as the work goes. I'm pretty sad though I will miss Elder Vecchio, he is going to Campo Grande. But we are getting another American in our ward named Elder Dodson, he arrived last transfer. In the city of Ponta Porã, there are 3 wards and 12 missionaries. There are 4 missionaries in each ward.

Sonaira still wants to be baptized, and she said that her mom will let her be baptized on her birthday which is the 3rd of March. So we are going to be working with her mom and Sonaira to prepare for that date. I'm excited! Hopefully everything will work out.

So it has gotten harder for me to speak in English and form sentences, when I speak in English I feel dumb because I feel like the things I am trying to say don't make sense haha. Also it is hard to explain things and tell stories in English! But I had tons of crazy experiences this week, I will try to explain them hopefully everything makes sense haha. 

So we have an investigator named Cecilio, we have been teaching him. On Wednesday we taught him and his wife a lesson, and they both said that they are sick and feeling unhappy, so we offered to give them a blessing. I gave one and Elder Vecchio gave one. The blessing was great and the spirit was there, when all of the sudden a crazy drunk guy came and started yelling random things about Jesus and sinners and stuff. Turns out he is a friend of Cecilo and is a heavy alcoholic, his name is Antonio. But he said we could come over to his house and teach him and his family. He lives with his sister. We asked when we could come over and he said right now! Come with me! So after the lesson with Cecilio we went to Antonio's house and taught him and his sister and her family. Antonio was really drunk but he said he truly wants to change his life because he wants to be happy again. But after that, we taught him another time and his family. Its just funny how we met him and started teaching him! He didn't come to church because he had to go to Paraguay, but he said he will come next week. 

On Wednesday night we had a Churrasco for Elder Vecchio, he reached his year mark on his mission. That was really fun and we had lots of meat and stuff. 

Thursday, I had probably the coolest experience of my entire mission! So we are teaching this woman named Suni, she is from Paraguay and doesn't speak Portuguese hardly at all. Her husband is a Brazilian and he is a member but Suni is not. Suni was really sick and asked for a blessing, and I had the opportunity to give her one. I was a little worried that she wouldn't be able to understand the blessing because she cant understand Portuguese very well. But I had a little prayer in my heart that she would be able to understand. But once I started giving her the blessing, I was speaking in Spanish! SPANISH! I don't really remember what I said, I probably didn't say everything right but she said she understood every word. I know without a doubt that the Spirit helped me give her a blessing so that she could understand and be comforted. The Gift of Tongues is real! It was a really cool experience and I will never forget it.

On Friday morning we got a microwave and a toaster! It felt like Christmas Morning! haha I'm so excited, now we can cook more things! Our house doesn't have any pans or anything, just one pot. So the other week I bought a frying pan that I will take with me throughout my mission here so that i can eat breakfast! haha. Later that day, I had a crazy experience, I got hit by a car! Its not as bad as it sounds, but it was legit! Me and Elder Vecchio were walking uphill on this road. Here in Brazil there are lots of speed bumps randomly in the roads to keep people from going too fast. But lots of people go around the speed bumps and just keep driving fast. Anyways, I was in front and Elder Vecchio was walking behind me. I was right by the speed bump, and some idiot in a car went around the speed bump and he hit my left arm and hip! It was funny though, I didn't fall down or anything, all I did was spin around in a 180 and I was looking at Elder Vecchio! Both of us just froze out of shock of what just happened haha but then we both started laughing! It was crazy though and we are both super lucky. All I have is a little bruise on my wrist!

Later Friday night we had a Rodizio at a restaurant with a member. It was a Pizza Rodizio and I ended up eating 15 slices of pizza... i about threw up haha. The pizza here is thinner than it is in the States but still i ate a ton that night! 

Last night we had another Churrasco at a members house while we were waiting for transfer calls. But we taught a lot of lessons this week and have lots of good things going on here in Ponta Porã! I think that pretty much sums up the week, it was definitely crazy but lots of fun at the same time! 

Anyways, I love you all so much, I hope you have a wonderful week! Fica firme!

Tchau,

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #47

Opa!

I hope you all had a wonderful week! This week was pretty good for me and Elder Vecchio, we worked hard. It was tough as well, we had to drop some of our investigators because they weren't progressing or keeping any commitments. We dropped the family that came to church the other week, because they wouldn't keep commitments and all they wanted was money. They were needing a little bit of money to get their little girls started in school, so they asked our Bishop for $50. But after that they didn't come to church, and every time we went to their house to teach them they just kept asking when they would get the money from the bishop. We explained that he needs to see them at church and he needs to see them showing their faith. But the next time we went there, the grandmother said that she needed $3500 for a down payment on a new house and she said that the Bishop promised her the money (which he didn't.) It was just a really complicated and frustrating situation for us, but its all good because we found some more investigators. We taught a lot of lessons this week and we had 5 investigators at church! It was awesome.a 

Sonaira is still wanting to be baptized, and earlier this week her mother said that she could be baptized if she wanted! So we got super excited and were planning her baptism for Saturday, but then her mom changed her mind and said she cant be baptized anymore. Go figure! We are still trying though.

We´ve also been teaching another girl named Erica, the only problem is her parents don't want her to be baptized until shes 18 either. But right now we are teaching another family, the wife and kids were at church and they really liked it so we are going to visit them this week as well.

There has been a lot happening here in the ward but we are just focusing on working and not worrying about the gossip. We have responsibility for our areas, so we are just going to work! Also transfers are next week, we will see what happens! I kind of have a feeling that I will stay here for another transfer but we will see. We are also moving into a new house next week which is like twice as big and is a lot better suited for 4 missionaries, so it will be good. 

But things are going really good here! The  people are awesome. The work is coming along, hopefully we will see some baptisms shortly. I love seeing the difference the gospel makes in peoples lives. I am so grateful to be part of this work! 

I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love and miss you all very much.

Love,

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #46

Hey everyone, 

Is it really February already? Dang! I hope you all had a good week! So I hear Seattle won?! That's exciting I feel so out of the loop with sports and music and... life haha. Oh well haha.

Well this was probably the most frustrating week of my entire mission! Me and Elder Vecchio are about to go crazy. I cant really go into all the details, but there is a huge problem here in Ponta Pora with gossip and rumors and drama in the wards. I feel like I'm back in High School again! It is frustrating, because we are adults trying to do the lords work and help people. But transfers are on the 15th so we will see what happens. We have a mission conference this Thursday so that will be good. I am going to talk to the mission president to see if we can try to better the situation here. It has been really frustrating for me, because right now I don't have a leadership position and I cant communicate in Portuguese as effectively as Id like to, so I feel like I cant really make a difference right now I just have to go with the flow. 

But last night we had family home evening with some members, and they had the Superbowl on TV before we started. There were 6 missionaries there and a bunch of members. The game hadn't started yet and everybody was talking and yelling, but before the National Anthem started we asked for people to be silent during it and be respectful. But then some missionaries were like dude you're in Brazil not America! But some of the members were nice and asked people to be quiet too. Then the lady started to sing the National Anthem, and some members and missionaries started yelling and making fun of the national anthem. It was really frustrating for me, I explained that there were many many people who gave their lives for our country and for our freedom, and that the National Anthem symbolizes our love and honor for our country and for those who died. But still, they continued to crack jokes and sing during it. I couldn't believe it. I feel like I'm in high school again with a bunch of kids! haha. 

But anyways we only had one investigator at church yesterday, it was Sonaira. Her mom still wont let her get baptized. But Sonaira got up and bore her testimony in Sacrament Meeting, it was so beautiful and I am praying that she will be able to be baptized here soon! We are going to fast this week again and hopefully things will work out. But we also have to remember the Lord knows everything and things will work out how they're supposed to! 

We went on exchanges with some of the young men in the ward two days during the week, so we taught a lot of new people and we got 16 new investigators this week. We will be really busy again this next week making return visits to see if people read and prayed about the Book of Mormon. Fingers crossed! There are so many good and humble people here that would be baptized, we just have to work hard and find them.

It was super hot this week and we didn't have very much rain, so that was nice! i hate the rain during a mission because we don't have a car, so when we get stuck in the rain it is awful! haha. 

I have had Red Red Wine by UB40 stuck in my head for like 4 days! Hopefully i can get a hymn or something stuck in my head instead! We will see! 

But anyways I love you all so much! I know the Lord has a plan for us all and that everything will work out according to what He wants. The Lord is always with us and is always willing to help us! I'm so grateful for this gospel and for my family and friends. I hope you have a good week! 

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #45

Hey everyone!

I don't have a ton of time today so this letter will be a little short! Sorry!

But this week has been pretty good. We didn't have any baptisms, our family didn't come to church because they had to work and take care of kids. But they are still super interested and I know they will get baptized. 

Oh also BIG NEWS! We got our first male investigator! His name is Junior, he is 14 and hes waycool. He loves to play soccer so we will be playing soccer with him this evening. All of the people we have been teaching have practically been women and girls so it is really great to get a male investigator. We had some changes in the mission a while back, any investigator under 16 has to attend church 3 times before getting baptized. This is really hard for some people but its all good, it is just a little harder to baptize now. But hopefully he will come next Sunday to church! We got a lot of new investigators and taught a lot of lessons this week but we just need our investigators to keep commitments and come to church!

Oh also I had a pretty embarrassing moment this week... So in Portuguese there are two words that are really similar: Peito (chest) and Peido (fart). So we were in a lesson and I was explaining that when the Holy Ghost testifies to you what is true, most people describe the feeling as a warm feeling or a burning feeling in the chest. HOWEVER, I confused the word Peito with Peido, and so what I said was most people feel a burning feeling in their fart! Haha I didn't understand why they were laughing at first but then they told me and then i explained it right! It was super funny

Anyways, things are going really good, we will be working hard this week to try to set some baptismal dates! its about time we have some baptisms here! 

I love you all and I hope you have a great week. Falou!

Love,

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #44

Beleza!

Esta semana passado fui muito loco! Well its been really hot here, and it has rained every day. And when it rains here, it POURS! The streets turn into rivers. its pretty crazy. But it has been a really really good week for us! 

We have been teaching a lot of people and we had some of our investigators come to church in Sunday! It was awesome. So we have been teaching a family that lives in our area, Auvira and her granddaughter Jessica. they all live together and Jessica has 3 little girls all under the age of 3. Anyways, we had arranged for a ride to pick them up on Sunday with us. The plan was he was to pick us up first, then swing by our investigators house to pick them up before church. But he never showed and he wouldn't answer his phone, so it was kinda crazy, because we didn't have our investigators phone number. so we were really worried that things would turn out really bad. After like half an hour of waiting for the guy to pick us up (church had already started by this time) we called a taxi, which took another 20 minutes to come get us. But we were able to pick up our investigators and all  7 of us were able to cram into the taxi. We got to the church an hour late, but our investigators said they loved it!  Luckily Sacrament meeting is the last hour of church, so They were able to go to gospel principles class and sacrament meeting. Also, we went to visit them later Sunday evening to talk to them about baptism, and Jessica told us something crazy. She said that about a month ago she had a dream that two men who weren´t from Brazil came to her house to talk to her about God and Jesus. Then she said that she thinks it was a sign that this is the true church, because she said the exact same thing she dreamed about came true in real life. It is so crazy to hear that! I am very excited for this family, Auvira´s husband passed away about 2 months ago, and she is really interested in learning about eternal families and temple work. They are on date to be baptized this Saturday so hopefully things will work out! We also had another investigator at church named Erica, she has almost 12 years and she is really cool.

Unfortunately, Sonaira wasn't able to attend church. Her mom wont let her be baptized or come to church anymore until she is 18 and has responsibility. it is suuuuper frustrating because she knows the church is true and she wants to be baptized. But we will keep working and praying that things will work out with her!

We have worked really hard this transfer and we are finally starting to see the fruits of our labors here in Ponta Porã. we have taught a lot of lessons and talked to lots of people so I'm really excited for this area! We have a great ward and the people here are awesome to help us out with missionary work. They feed us really well too! ;)

This week was kinda strange as far as missionary work goes, we met some weird people and had some weird experiences. But we had some miracles as well. Normally the rain hinders the work really bad, but we have been trying to use the rain to our advantage. So we start walking when it looks like its about to rain, and once it starts raining we hurry and run to a persons house and ask to stand under their cabana and wait for the rain to stop. And while we are waiting we talk with the people and we have taught a few lessons that way. Its been pretty fun!

Oh also, me and elder Vecchio play a game when we are out making contacts with people. We choose 3 words that the other person has to say in the next contact. So for example, Elder Vecchio would choose the words Watch, Shoes, and Tree, and I would have to fit those words in the next conversation I have with somebody. Its tough to fit random words in a conversation sometimes haha but people here are really chill and they still let us talk to them about religion haha.

We played American Football as a zone today, it was awesome! We had the whole zone there plus like 6 nonmembers, it was pretty crazy. Not everybody here knows the rules to American football, so it was pretty funny to watch what some people did! but we taught everybody and it was really fun.

Oh also, we will be moving into a new house at the beginning of next month! The house we live in right now is pretty small and we have 4 missionaries living there. it only has one bedroom and bathroom so it has been pretty hectic. But our new house is pretty sweet, it has 3 bedrooms and two bathrooms and a Churrascoria so I'm really excited! 

My Portuguese is coming along better, I am understand a lot more now and I can speak better, but it is still hard sometimes. I just have to keep studying every day. But the whole language-learning process is really weird! I pretty much think in Portuguese throughout the day and some of my dreams are in Portuguese. Its really weird when I talk to other Americans in English, I feel really weird when I talk in English, like I am pronouncing things wrong. also sentences are structured differently in Latin languages, so when I speak English I feel like it just comes out really weird! haha but its all good.

Tonight we have family home evening at a members house and hopefully our investigators will be able to make it. We will see.

Anyways, I love you all and I am so grateful for you! Have a great week, stay warm up there! ;)

Love you much,

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #43

Eai!

I hope you all had a great week! This week was really hot and wet, it has rained every day but it has also been super hot. It usually rains really hard in the afternoon for about an hour, then it is calm and HOT. Oh, did I mention this week was hot? Well it was! haha. Its good though, I much prefer the heat over the cold!

Anyways, I have pretty much fallen in love with Brazil. Elder Vecchio and I worked our butts off this week. We taught a bunch of lessons and made contacts with tons of people, so this next week will be really busy as well. We met an amazing family that we taught twice this week. They didn't come to church, but they have prayed and felt that our message is true and that they need to be baptized! The only problem is that our area is kind of far from the center where the church is, and they have 3 little daughters, so they would need to take the bus to the church which is like7 kilometers away. so right now we just need to find a way for them to get to church, I am sure one of the members can help us with that by giving them a ride.

Sonaira didn't get baptized this week, her mom wouldn't let her, but we are making progress! she knows its true. It is heartbreaking and frustrating when you see the difference the Gospel makes in someone's life, but they cant take that next step of being baptized. But hopefully we will have a baptism soon. Its been kind of frustrating this month, we have worked really hard and taught a lot of people, but it is just hard for them to attend church because it is pretty far and church starts at 8:15 in the morning. We will keep working though :)

My Portuguese is getting better each day but as always its still pretty hard. But I've been practicing every day and my companion has really helped me. He gives me lots of opportunities to talk and to start conversations with people so I am learning a lot faster. I'm grateful to him, for pushing me to put myself outside of my comfort zone so that I can learn.

Haha its kinda funny, missionaries kind of go through phases of homesickness I guess you could say. Me and Elder Vecchio are in the same "phase" right now haha. He has one more month than me on the mission so we are about in the same spot, but we really missed our family and friends this week! I have been on my knees a lot and I am so grateful for the comfort that comes through prayer. Heavenly Father is always mindful of us and he knows us perfectly. HE is always willing to help us, but WE are the ones who need to pray and talk to him. 

I am very grateful for the members here in Ponta Porã as well! They have been very good to us, inviting us to Churrascos and giving us rides when they see us out walking in the heat or the rain. Some of them are suuuuper funny too haha. Brazil and Argentina have a big rivalry in Soccer, so lots of people crack jokes about Argentina and the States, its funny though. The people here are amazing. The thing I love about Brazil is that pretty much everyone is willing to talk to you and be your friend! We meet somebody one time and immediately I feel like they are my friend. Everyone is willing to just relax and talk and drink Tereré with us so its awesome :)

Anyways, I hope you all have a wonderful week! Thank you for all the love and support. I love you guys! Try to stay warm up there! ;)

Falou,

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #41- KYLE'S BIRTHDAY!

Hello everyone!

I hope you all had a great Christmas!!! Mine was awesome, I got to Skype my family. That was definitely the highlight of my week. But it was definitely the craziest Christmas of my life! So after dinner, we were walking to a members house, and we saw a dog get hit by a motorcycle. It was really gross. Then when we were walking home a couple hours later, my companion got hit by a car!!!! It was so crazy! The guy was drunk and he wasn't even watching where he was going. We were walking the side of the road, and all of the sudden I heard a car that sounded like it was really close, and I looked back and BOOM! Elder Vecchio got hit from behind. He is okay and isn't hurt too bad, he just has a bruised hip and a few scratches. It all happened really fast. Elder Vecchio is a champ though, he was in the hospital last week, and got hit by a car on Christmas, haha it's crazy. 

Anyways, it has been a great week. Our investigator didn't end up getting baptized but we are working on it. We worked hard this week and made tons of contacts, so we have like 15 new investigators to teach this week. We set a date with one of our investigators Sonaira, she is 14. She will get baptized for sure! She really really wants to join the church and she has a lot of friends in the church, but we just have to get her mom to let her. We will be praying and fasting for it to all work out. But Sonaira is such a great girl we are very excited for her! Her date is January 12 so we will work with her this week! :) 

Brazil is really crazy, I love it. It has been really hot this week and it has rained a lot. I don't care for the rain too much but its all good! I ate Capivara (capybara) the other day. If you don't know what Capivara is, it is pretty much a really big rodent that tastes like pork. I thought it was pork when they fed it to us, but I found out afterwards what I was actually eating. haha. What you don't know doesn't hurt you, right?!

Anyways, things are going really well here, Brazil is awesome, the people here are awesome, the food is awesome, I love it haha. The language is coming along  but it is still really frustrating at times. I'll get it down eventually!

Well all, I hope you have a wonderful new year!!! I love and miss you!

Falou,

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #38

Beleza!

I hope everyone had a great week! It has been a good week down here in Brazil. It has been super super hot and humid. It is rainy season right now, so usually it rains during the afternoon for a little bit then it stops! It helps it cool down a bit when it rains but then it makes it way more humid so that sucks. But God shows us mercy by giving us a few clouds during the day! haha

We have an investigator on date for next week her name is Dalila, we are stoked for her. We will be praying for everything to work out.

Things are crazy down here though it is a totally different world! We take the bus when we have to go to the Center and the bus is crazy! I got my butt grabbed by a girl on Friday, the girls here are crazy. We call them Snakes because they're deadly! They are really into Americans. 

We had a Churrasco (pronounced shoohasco) the other day. It is basically a brazilian barbecue. They definitely give Tucanos a run for the money! Brazilians know how to cook some meat!!! We eat rice and beans for every meal but i haven't gotten sick of it yet, i love it actually. Rice and beans and Meat! And pimenta, Brazilian hot sauce. It is just oil and chilis but its really good and hot.

My companion is way cool he helps me a lot with the language. I'm way grateful for him otherwise i would be totally lost! haha. The language is coming along better but it is still way hard. People speak so fast down here! oh my gosh haha. But I had to give a talk in Sacrament Meeting yesterday so hopefully people understood me! Elder Kennington and Groff said it made sense so that's good!

There are bugs everywhere, I saw a huuuuge spider outside a members house on Saturday! I didn't get my camera in time before they killed it but it was seriously as big as my hand! And it was grey and hairy. haha i wish i had gotten a picture.

But I've lost a little bit of weight already, i am eating healthier down here. junk food is expensive so nobody really eats it much, but i eat a lot of fruit too. I love the people and the culture here!!!! It is eye opening and humbling. I absolutely love it. 

Well all, i love you all very much and I am praying for you!!! i hope you have a great week! Fica Forte!!!

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #37 BRAZIL

Beleza!!!

I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving! :)

I don´t even know where to begin! haha. Things are so crazy in Brazil! I love it already. We had a super long flight here I was way tired when I got here. But I´m just so happy to finally be in Brazil I don't even care haha

Well, the first thing I can say about Cuiabá is that it is suuuuuper hot!!! Like unbelievably hot. When we got off the plane it was like 105 degrees F. It was quite an adjustment coming from 2 degrees when we left Montana! And it is super humid here too. it seriously feels like a sauna. hopefully I´ll get used to it though :)

The food here is really really good, so far I have had rice and beans for every meal but we usually have some sort of meat as well. On Saturday I ate Coracão de Vaca (Cow heart) it was actually really good I liked it. but other than that the food is normal, just rice and beans all the time

The language is really hard!!! People speak so fast and its hard to understand but its all good. I am serving in Industríario which is part of Cuibá. My companion is Elder Kennington, he is way cool we get along great.  He helps me with my Portuguese a lot. he has a mission blog too, so I read it and I already knew who he was before he was my companion! Kinda funny.  We live with two other missionaries, Elder Moraes and Elder Groff, they are both from Brazil near Curitiba. They are so funny we are teaching them English. Elder Groff always says funny things like Hey be quiet you horse! or Elder Payne I am going to ticklish you on beneath your arms! haha 

We have a few progressing investigators right now so that is good, we have taught a few lessons but i don't know what anyone is saying most of the time, i just bear my testimony. i bore my testimony yesterday in sacrament meeting so hopefully the people could understand what I was saying haha. I had a few people come up and thank me for my testimony so I guess it made sense haha

We had a really cool experience this week. So on Friday we had to take the bus to Cuiabá to take care of some paperwork and stuff at the office, but on our way back our bus got a flat tire. it was hot and crowded and we had to wait for another bus. the bad thing is is that we didn't have money left on our card things to pay for another bus trip, so we needed to go get another card. we started walking and a guy stopped us on the street and asked about us, and we taught him the entire first lesson and gave him two pamphlets. he was way cool and he said he would go to church on Sunday.Then awhile after that we got on another bus and a stranger paid for me to get on which was awesome. the people are so nice here. But the Lord put us in the right place at the right time. He knew we needed to teach that guy on the street, even if it meant us having a flat tire and no money! He even took care of us to get back on another bus to get home. 

I love this work so much.

Anyways, I love you all so much and I´m grateful for you! have a great week

Love,

Elder Payne

WEEK #35

MY VISA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I FINALLY GOT MY VISA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!!

Oh man I got a call from the mission office saying I got my Visa and I will fly out next Monday on the 25th! I'm so freaking excited I can't wait!!!! It's going to be really tough though to leave Montana. This place has become a second home for me and I absolutely love the people here. Everything works out though I know I'm supposed to go to Brazil! It's pretty sweet though, Elder Rasmussen from my MTC district got his visa too so we will both be flying out together! It is going to be a reeealllly long flight I will be traveling for over 24 hours by plane and bus and stuff but it will be worth it. I will just take some zzzQuil on the plane so I can sleep! haha.

Well as for this past week in Helena, we have had some incredible experiences! As Zone leaders we've been on a lot of exchanges and stuff with other missionaries in the zone, so Elder Schramm from Helena 3rd ward came to Helena 5 with me for a few days. But anyways, it was crazy we met a man that already wants to be baptized! We were knocking on doors and we went to his house and introduced ourselves. His name is Tom, he's in his 60's. He said he knows who we are and invited us in, which doesn't happen very often. Turns out, his wife is a member and he is not, but he said he wanted to be baptized before Christmas! We didn't even ask him to be baptized he just told us! We were so excited. I called Elder Payne and told him right afterwards and we were both so excited. Anyways, we are teaching him tomorrow and we will set a baptismal date with him. He said he has been wanting to be baptized for a while now but he just wasn't sure, but now he is! Go figure, all of this happens the week before I leave to Brazil! haha

We have another investigator who is getting baptized on the 30th, but I'll be gone by then too :( Oh, but remember Doc who I taught in Lincoln? He's getting baptized this Saturday! It will be so great to finally see him be baptized. Also everyone from Lincoln will be coming down to Helena so it will be good to see everyone again. I'm so glad he's getting baptized, after all the hard work we put into teaching him and helping him! It's definitely rewarding to see the fruits of your labors every once in a while.

So I have a new companion, his name is Elder Burrows he's from Ogden Utah. He is so awesome! He was my zone leader in Bozeman. I am still with Elder Payne, we are in a threesome companionship for the week because I'm going to be leaving mid-transfer. So he is going to take my spot once I'm gone. But he's awesome we are going to tear it up this next week! I'm excited. I want to work really hard this week I don't want to have any regrets when I leave!

Montana has been an incredible experience and I am forever grateful for the people I've met here and for everything I've learned. I know I'm supposed to go to Brazil now, and I couldn't be more excited!!!!! I never thought things would work out this way that I would be in Montana this long, but I will always have a big soft spot in my heart for this place!!! I am definitely coming back after my mission.

The zone right now is on fire. We now have 25 investigators on date for baptism! That is incredible!!!! we are so excited things have picked up so much in the past few weeks and the missionaries here are doing so awesome.

Anyways, I love you all so much! thanks for all the love and support. The next time I email, I'll be in the promised land of Brazil!!!!! :) Have a great week!

Love you much,

Elder Kyle Payne

WEEK #34

Hello everyone!

Man this week has been crazy. It has probably been the busiest week on my mission so far! As Zone leaders we have had so much going on and I'm super tired. It kinda stinks though because since we have so much to do for the zone we don't get to work in our own area as much. But there are still some great things going on and we're excited. We have 2 investigators on date and I can't wait for them! It will be awesome. But in the past two weeks as a zone, we have gone from 5 investigators on date to 22!!! It's amazing!!! We have really worked with the elders and sisters here to commit their investigators to baptism and things are going great. The Stake and wards are helping so much too. But 22 investigators on date is a record high for the Helena Stake! I am totally bragging about it haha but I don't care I'm just so excited for the missionary work here!!!!

Me and Elder Payne had to speak at Stake Conference this weekend. That went really well! We talked about missionary work of course ;) and at the Adult Session we did a training model to demonstrate how we teach and how the members can be more effective and open to their friends about the gospel. It was awesome.

But we spent a lot of time preparing for that, as well as for the other things we had to do this week. Today we had to give discussions at both of the district meetings, tomorrow we have a New Missionary Training Conference, and next week me and Elder Payne are training the zone at Zone Training and then we have Leadership Council, so we are really busy preparing for all of that plus we are working with all of our investigators here so between everything we've been pretty busy. I'm sleeping really well at night though haha ;)

Me and Elder Payne get a lot of crap for our last names though! Everybody thinks they're suuuuper clever for coming up with nicknames haha. Like whenever we walk in somewhere people are like oh watch out here comes the Payne, or double the Payne, Payne squared, Paynes in the butt, it never ends. But it's all good. But the Temple President calls us Elder Payne the Great and Elder Payne the Wonderful. I guess that's better than being big and little payne.

Anyways, we're really working with our investigators read the book of Mormon and gain their own testimony. It's very important that they do it for themselves and not for us or for another person. We're also helping one of our investigators stop smoking and chewing tobacco! Man it's super hard for them to give it up but the Lord really is providing a way for them! We've seen many miracles so far.

Well, now I have actually heard something about my Visa! At this point we are just waiting for it to be mailed to the Mission Home, then at the next Brazilian transfer I will leave (if everything goes according to plan). I am going to have a hard time leaving Montana though. I love it here so much.

Anyways, I hope you have a wonderful week! I love you all so much.

Love,

Elder Payne

WEEK #33

Hello everyone!

Man this week has been crazy. I'm just getting settled into Helena and getting to know the ward better. Right now we have two investigators on date for our area so that's great! But last week the zone had I think 6 investigators on date for baptisms and now this week we have 14 investigators on date for the month of November! I'm so excited. We have some great missionaries in our zone who are doing great work. 

I'm really excited to be back in Helena again! Lincoln is in this zone, so I was hoping Elder Manufekai would be in Lincoln still but he got transferred :( H is District Leader though which is awesome! I will always be grateful to him for being my trainer and for everything I learned from him. He's a brother to me!

I am really short on time today we have a lot to do. But we've taught some solid lessons and our investigators are coming right along. We are doing the stop smoking program with one of our investigators to help them stop smoking. The program works without fail if the people follow each step! I've seen it work before so I know it can happen again.

Still haven't heard anything about my visa but I don't even know what to think about it anymore. I've spent almost a third of my mission here in Montana but I'm still really anxious to get to Brazil. Hopefully it comes soon. But I understand it's all where the Lord wants me to go.

My companion and I get along great, it is pretty confusing that his name is Elder Payne too. And we never hear the end of it from members and stuff! They always tease us about our names like double the pain, or which one of you is the bigger pain, two pains in the butt, everything haha. But it makes for a good conversation with new people. Our mission president just calls me Big Payne and him Little Payne. I'm not sure how I feel about being called big payne but I guess it works! haha

Anyways, I'm so glad to be a missionary for the Lord right now! I absolutely love the people I serve with and serve around. I meet so many amazing people and learn so much. I'm grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and I know it's true. I can't imagine my life without it. I love you all and I'm so grateful for each of you! Have a great week!

Love you much,

Elder Payne

WEEK #32

Hello everyone!

Wow this has been a crazy week! We have been teaching a lot of solid lessons and our investigators are progressing great. We had two come to church so that was really good. We are working with setting new baptismal dates with them, and setting dates for our other investigators. Today it is like a blizzard outside! It's so cold and there is snow everywhere. I hate it!

So we got iPads last week! They are sooooo helpful! They have are planners and area books on there, and all the gospel library and teaching pamphlets. It will help missionary work so much. They're so useful. The lord really is hastening his work by letting us have the opportunity to use technology like this! It really is amazing.

Well, I got a call from the Mission President on Saturday and he informed me that he is changing my calling. I'm getting transferred to Helena and I'm going to be Zone Leader there! I'm really excited to go back to Helena though, I know a lot of the members there and it will be great to see them again. I'll also be in the same stake as the Lincoln branch, so hopefully I'll get to see the people from Lincoln again. I'm a little nervous to be Zone Leader, there are a lot more responsibilities but I think it will be a great learning experience! Oh and get this... my new companion's name is Elder Payne! He's from Cali I think. So that will be really confusing when we answer the phone and stuff, everyone is going to think we are related haha. We'll see how it goes.

I'm so sad to leave Whitehall! I feel like just when you  get in a groove in an area and the work starts picking up, you get transferred! It's a little frustrating but oh well it's part of the mission experience. I will definitely miss the people here in Whitehall. Well, me and Elder Sumner haven't boxed this week at all so I don't have any more bruises. But I think my finger might be broken, I jammed it playing Volleyball like 4 weeks ago but my finger is still bruised and swollen so the medical director wants me to go get it checked out today. Hopefully it's just jammed.

The weather was nice all week until today! It was in the 60's earlier and bright and sunny. now it's cold and windy and snowy! Hopefully Helena is a little warmer haha. But i doubt it. I have also been trying a lot of different hot sauces, I even made a rating chart and have like 10 different sauces rated and organized haha. Yesterday we ate at a members house, and I tried Dave's Insanity sauce. It's basically pure habanero paste. My face caught on fire! My eyes and nose were running and it burned my lips for like 2 hours. I think I put too much on. That's about the craziest experience of the week.

There have been many good experiences as far as teaching goes. My own testimony has grown and I'm so grateful for the gospel and for all the blessings we receive from Heavenly Father! I know without a doubt this church is true and I'm so grateful to be a missionary. I am seriously so sad to leave Whitehall. I hate leaving areas. I have grown to love the people in each area and they have taught me so much and have seriously changed my life. I am so grateful for everyone I've met and for the experiences I've had thus far!

I hope you all have a wonderful and safe week! You are all in my thoughts and prayers. Love you!

Love,

Elder Payne

WEEK #31

Hey everyone!

I hope you all had a great week! This week has been good for me and Elder Sumner. We had a goal to teach 20 lessons this week but we only taught 16. Oh well, we'll do better next week! Mike and Jan (the couple getting baptized) are going to have to push their date back for baptism. So it won't be this Saturday, I think it will be November 9. Hopefully I don't get transferred again. They are awesome. The reason we are pushing it back is because Mike got in a 4 wheeler accident in South Dakota and he can't see out of one of his eyes because it got hit by something, so he is there until he gets better. But once he comes home we will teach them the rest of the lessons and they can be baptized. Satan works super hard to keep people from getting baptized! It's crazy.

We've been teaching a suuuuuper nice lady named Dee, she is so awesome! She hasn't committed to baptism yet but she said she will think about it. She didn't say no though! I can tell she has felt the spirit. She has read the introduction in the Book of Mormon and the testimony of Joseph Smith and the Three Witnesses, and she said she believes it all. So now we are trying to get her to read 1 Nephi and pray about it. Seriously she is the sweetest lady I've ever met! She is in her 70's but has the energy of a teenager. Oh which reminds me, we've been meeting with her 16 year old granddaughter as well. Her name is Savannah, and she lives in Butte but she drives down to her grandmas house whenever we have an appointment. She said she really likes us and thinks missionaries are cool, so that's good! We play card games with Dee and Savannah then the conversation always moves to the gospel and missionary work. It's great. Savannah reminds me a lot of my sister Jennie! We haven't taught her a lesson yet, but we are planning on it this Thursday.

Other than that, we have been seeing a lot of less active families! We've almost reactivated a couple in the ward, so if they come one more week to church they will be considered active again. Reactivations are great, they're often harder to get than baptisms because people have specific reasons for not going back to church. But we've been working closely with them. Oh, and they have a daughter that is 10 years old and they want her to be baptized, so we are going to teach her this week as well :) I'm amazed at how Heavenly Father moves his gospel forward. I feel inadequate sometimes and I don't understand how we can teach people who know a lot more than us. But the spirit testifies to them and truly converts them. There is a funny saying, "If this gospel wasn't true, two 19 year old boys would have ruined it a long time ago!" haha that is so true.

So we've been doing tons of service! I've mucked horse stalls, tagged cows, and herded cattle this week, and all of them I've showed up in basketball shorts and a tshirt! haha I don't have any warmer clothes so good thing my family is sending me some. The members have been super nice though and have let me borrow jeans and cowboy boots and jackets and stuff. They're great.

Elder Sumner and I found boxing gloves at a thrift store, so we've been doing that every night haha just for fun! We just say we will go half speed but then it always gets competitive and we just start hitting harder haha. Then it somehow turns into kickboxing, so my left thigh has a hugh bruise on it now from Elder Sumner kicking the same spot every time! It's good fun though and nobody has gotten hurt... yet!

Oh also I have some exciting news, the Montana Billings Mission is getting iPad Minis!!! The first presidency of the twelve have selected this mission to be a pilot program for teaching with electronic devices. So the ipads will have our planners on them and also the lessons and scriptures, basically anything that the church publishes we will have access to. Which is suuuper helpful. I think it will help the work progress immensely. Not every missionary is getting one though, we had to get interviewed and only the ones who are obedient get one. But luckily i passed the interview haha so I'm going up to Bozeman tomorrow to get trained on it and get the ipad. Pretty sweet!

Anyways, this gospel is true! I love it! I hope you all are reading the scriptures and praying every day! We need to speak to our Heavenly Father every day! Prayer is such a huge blessing and we need to take advantage of it. I know God has a plan for each and every one of us. I know I'll get to Brazil when I need to be there! There is a reason I'm still in Montana, maybe it's because there are people in Whitehall that I need to be here for. Whatever the reason, I'm willing to serve wherever the lord wants me. I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love you and look forward to hearing from you.

Proverbs 3: 5-6

 

Love,

Elder Payne

 

 

 

WEEK #29

Hello friends and family!

This has been a great week. I hope you all enjoyed general conference
this weekend! I LOVED it and I took a lot from it. It was kind of
weird to not be home sitting on the couch and eating junk food during
conference! haha. But it was still good. Elder Sumner and I drove to
Dillon on Saturday for Dell's Baptism and watched conference and went
to Priesthood session, then spent the night and watched conference on
Sunday with them. It was good to be with the Williams family again.

The work here in Whitehall is going good, we have two investigators on
date for baptism (Mike and Jan.) Elder Sumner and I set the date with
them while I was here on exchanges. So it's good that I can teach them
more now! :)

So apparently there is a huge deal going on with the government and
government employees? That is such great news to hear... I'm sure it
will do wonders for getting my Visa! haha. hopefully it is over soon
and I will be able to get to Brazil without any MORE delay haha.

We have been working with a lady named Dee, we play games with her and
eat meals with her every week, and we just taught the first lesson
with her last week. It was awesome! She loved the lesson and she
started to tear up towards the end. She is strong catholic, so we are
keeping that in mind as we teach, but she says she believes in
everything that Mormons believe pretty much. So I'm really excited to
keep teaching her and see her progress. She's awesome!

I'm not sure what else to report on this week. We had zone conference
on Wednesday, so it was great to see everyone there. All of my past
companions were there, so it was a good reunion! haha. I talked with
Elder Greenwall who I was just with in Belgrade, and 3 more of the
people I was teaching there have committed to baptism now! I'm so sad
I had to leave Belgrade! it was such an awesome area. The area was
dead when Greenwall and I got there, but we worked hard and towards
the end things picked up and now the area is on fire! I'm jealous.

I'm definitely coming to visit Montana after my mission. I can't wait
to see all the great friends I've made here again.

The past few weeks I have been cooking a lot, with Elder Tayrien and
now with Elder Sumner. So that's been fun! I need to get a good
cookbook with simple recipes and stuff. Because with $135 per month we
can't afford to buy much, just simple foods. Plus we hardly have time
to make big meals. So it's been pretty fun and challenging to see what
we can come up with to eat. There have been a ton of flies in
everyone's houses because the weather is getting cold. Which reminds
me, it snowed last Friday!! like crazy! the whole week has been cold,
wet, and muddy. But today is in like the 50's and it's bright and
sunny, so that's awesome :)

Well everyone, this gospel is true! I'm so grateful to be a
missionary. I hope that the things I'm learning will help me be a
better person, husband, and father someday. No matter how hard
missionary work gets sometimes, I always find comfort in the
scriptures and in prayer, and I know I'm in the right place. I can't
remember who said it at conference, but the message really hit me. It
said, "It doesn't matter where you serve, but how." That is very true.
Whether I'm in Montana or Brazil, I can still serve with everything
I've got. The lord looks out for his missionaries and I will serve
wherever I'm called to serve.

I love you all and I hope you have a great week!!! Ate lago!

Elder Payne

WEEK #26

Hey guys!

Holy smokes this past week has been crazy! Well, actually the past two
weeks. We have been sooooo freaking busy with everything, we've been
working our butts off and I am so tired haha. I should be on the
5-hour energy commercials as the person that gets the "2:30" feeling,
except I have that feeling all day! anyways..

We had a baptism on Saturday, his name is Kelly. He is so awesome!
He's such a solid guy and his testimony is getting stronger every day.
I'm so excited for him and for the example he is setting for his kids!
He will be a great addition to the ward here in Belgrade.

So we found out about transfers today, and I'm leaving Belgrade!!! I'm
so sad! I feel like I just got here. I absolutely love the members
here, the wards are so great. The work was really starting to pick up
and I feel like we were just getting started! We have a lot of good
things going right now and a big teaching pool, so I'm just glad I can
leave Belgrade with no regrets. I worked my hardest in this area and
the Lord was blessing us for our efforts. I know it.

So I'm getting transferred to a place called Dillon, it is a little
college town. I don't know much about it or even where it is haha. But
President Mecham called me to be District Leader there, so that is
awesome! I'm excited but also a little nervous, I've never been
district leader or anything before so this will be a good learning
experience for me I think. My new companion will be Elder Tayrien or
something like that, he is pretty new he's been out for 3 months I
believe. I'm excited to meet him. Oh my gosh I'm just so sad to leave
Belgrade! And I'm also sad I'm not in Brazil! haha. Stupid visas

This friday I hit my 6 month mark. I can't believe it! Time has gone
so fast. I'm already 1/4 through my mission, and it feels like I just
came out! Crazy. Oh and I also can't believe my little sister Jennie
went to homecoming!!! It seems like just yesterday I was doing the
same thing! Jennie, you looked so beautiful! And your date isn't as
ugly as I pictured he would be so that's good I guess haha. Hope you
had a good time.

Well everyone, things are going so good. Missionary work is so hard
and fun and exciting. As tired as I am, I can't imagine myself doing
anything else right now. I love it!!! I also love you all very much
and hope you have a great week. Ate mais, ti amo!!!

Love,
Elder Payne

Week #25

Hey everyone!

This week has been pretty crazy! We have had a lot of success the past couple weeks, things are really starting to pick up in Belgrade. The members here are AWESOME and they are a huge help to us. Good thing we're all on the same team :)

Kelly is still getting baptized this Saturday, we are so excited for him. He's setting a great example for his kids. We have a few other solid investigators as well, we will be teaching another guy within two weeks when he gets back from North Dakota. His wife is a member and they just got married, but he wants to get baptized so that they can be sealed in the Temple next year. Way cool. We will see how that turns out in a few weeks.

Transfers are next week, I can't believe it. Time is going by way too fast. It has been pretty rainy here, we've had some really cool lightning storms though.

We went on an awesome hike this morning. Montana is seriously so beautiful! I can't wait to come back and visit here after my mission.

I LOVE the people here. They're great. 

As usual, still no word on the Visa. There are still 3 of us from the MTC District still in Montana. One of them, Elder Jackson, is in my District right now so we see each other pretty often. So that's good.

Watchman said Brazil is just awesome and he said I will love it when i get down there. So we'll see! :) 

I can't really think of anything crazy that happened this week, it has been pretty routine I guess you could say. We have worked really hard.

We spoke in 2nd ward yesterday and it went really well, the members seem to trust us so that's good. We had 6 Less-active families come to church and 2 investigators. It's always great to see them walk in the door to the chapel :)

Anyways, things are going good here in Big Sky country. I hope you all have a great week! I love you very much. Keep the faith!

Elder Payne

Week #24

Hey everybody! 

This has been a pretty good week for Elder Greenwall and I, we see the Lord's hand every day. We have had some solid lessons with our investigators and things are going really well. We have been teaching an investigator named Kelly, he is doing awesome! He already accepted our invitation to be baptized so he is on track for next Saturday the 14th.

We had 3 other investigators come to church on Sunday, so that was awesome! We have been working hard with the ward to help the work move forward and help people feel welcome and missed. We are also working with a lot of Less-active families as well. Hopefully more will start coming to church again.

We met a lady named Kay, her daughter is a member but not very active, but we have been teaching them both lately and they are both doing great. They are reading the Book of Mormon. The only problem is that Kay is going out of town this whole week so we can't see her until next week. Oh well hopefully she will still progress when she gets back.

I can't believe it is already week 5 of the transfer! Time is going by too fast. I feel like there isn't enough time in the day to get everything done! My MTC companion (Elder Watchman) got his Visa and he left for Brazil yesterday, as well as Elder Bonaro from my MTC district and Sister Kimball. So half of us are still in the states! I can't believe it. Hopefully Visas start coming soon. The MTC district always has a pretty tight bond with each other because we spent a lot of time in the MTC together and became friends, and we came out at the same time so we all still keep in contact which is really cool. I email the missionaries in Brazil and learn more about what's going on down there, I can't wait to get there! it seems so cool.

But here in Montana, I'm seriously meeting the most amazing people. We do our best to help people in any way I can, but I feel like I'm the one being helped and uplifted. These people have touched my heart and I love so many people here. The members are awesome. So are the investigators. This week has been a little rough with some scary things happening at home and since I'm out of the loop I haven't really known what's going on, but I've received answers to my prayers as well as comfort. Heavenly Father really does watch out for us and takes care of us.

This week has also been pretty funny, apparently I have been sleep talking a lot lately, my companion tells me in the morning all the weird things I say, I guess I have been talking about graduating a lot? I don't remember a thing. Anyways, there are also a lot of crazy people that yell at us from their cars as they drive by, yelling things like "I love Jesus" or whatever. But one person yelled "Science and Satan!" at us from their car while we were riding bikes, and I just flipped around and started following them on my bike. I wanted to go talk to them because I was tired of getting yelled at by random people haha but anyways they finally pulled into a store and I walked up to the guy and said I'm sorry I think you tried to talk to me earlier but i didn't hear exactly what you said (I was kind of being a smart-alec) but the guy was really short and had long hair and was just like "uuuhh....ummmm.. yeah.... i was just kidding man... umm....." haha so I just told him we were LDS missionaries and asked if he believed in Science and Satan like he said, but he said no he was Catholic and I offered him a pamphlet but he said he didn't want it. We meet so many weird people.

Anyways, things are going good, the work is really starting to pick up here in Belgrade. It's awesome. I hope you all have a wonderful week and I'll talk to you later!

Love you much,

Elder Kyle Payne