Hey guys. This week was great. My favorite part was proselyting Last Saturday! My instructor told my companion and i to just talk to everybody we saw. And that is what we did. We were definitely guided by the spirit!! We were so blessed! Two people even came up to us asking for Books of Mormon. They said they heard about the Mormons, I asked them if they had Mormon friends and they said no and that they just wanted to know more. So i gave them a book and my testimony. I Love the people of Brasil. Americans are so stubborn haha! 

I leave to the field next Tuesday!!! So Crazy! I could have a real lesson next Tuesday night with a real family. Talking about their eternal salvation!! its so crazy! 

Mom, i hope i get your letter with the renovation layout, I dont know if it will make it to the MTC in time but there is a chance it could. We are having our final lessons with our instructors and my love for them is so strong because i have learned so much from them and their testimonies of our Savior Jesus Christ truly brought light into my life. The MTC is such a holy place. Second to the temple and our own homes. Leaving here carries a little weight because i will have to bring the spirit of the Lord with me into the homes of those i teach from now on. I am excited to attend a regular church sacrament meeting in a week and a half instead of just my little MTC zone, (which has been great but i´m ready to go). 

I am sending some pictures today! I saw my first wild parrots today and they are the first green birds that i have seen in my life. In one pic, i am just rolling in 4 reias (i just wanted to send a pic of the money), all the other pics are with my favorite instructor and fellow missionaries that i love. I am gonna try to get a pic with the chocolate filled churro today! I have been pulling the whole West side thing when my district talks about all of our different missions. We have some going to sao paulo north and some going to west so we joke about which is better! But the Brazilians dont understand the whole West side thing, making a "W" with your hand, because the word for west in Portuguese starts with an "O"! 

I just need to give a shout out to all my friends in the great peach state... Go Dawgs, Go Warriors, and Go COUGARS!!! I love you all! Especially you, mom and dad... start checking the mail in like 7 days ;) Everybody do something for somebody this week that Christ would do for them if he were there!! There is joy in the service of others! 

Com Amor,

Elder Sanchez

Happy 4th! Eu Amo Os Estados Unidos!

I´m so glad to have been born in the united states! The americans sang the national anthem the night of the 4th in front of all the Brazilians and it was powerful. It was the first time that i felt the spirit and patriotism at the same time! Even the Australian, Elder Mafi, in my district sang with us!

 Mom, i figured i should let you know what i bought at the temple store. I bought a Portuguese quad, with tabs, synthetic leather. They are nice. I´m glad to hear you guys are getting settled in. Not much is happening here. I´ll try to send some pics that i took last week. I haven't taken any this week bc we do the same thing everyday. The temple was awesome today as always.

 Elder Taylor, i cant believe you ate a frog... that is freakin nasty!

Dad, the MTC is like the cleanest place in the world, no joke, it is just that it is connected to the city plumbing system and that is how it gets dirty. I love the MTC but i am feeling ready to leave the classroom setting every day and finally do some real work. The food is as good as the Christensens, the MTC chefs are amazing! My new Brazilian exchange companion that i got to teach with twice this week went home today, I love that elder and i look up to him for his humility and submission to the Lord. You can see it in his eyes and he hopes to return in one month. He is an amazing teacher and i am grateful that i got to know him.

David, i cant watch your burning shirt vids because i´m on mtc computers... only one more p day here left!!!

 Mom, i love your testimony of the gospel. I still reflect on it almost every day and i know that you will bless tremendously the lives of your new seminary class (especially without having a super disruptive super senior in your class this year trying to teach lessons and stuff :)

It started getting warmer this week. No more blanket, i´m just sleeping with a sheet. I love the weather now. I watched a recording of a devotional from last year on tuesday and guess who i saw in the Provo MTC choir??? Macey Lane Smith!!! It was so cool. She was singing Be Still My Soul (nice to hear an english hymn) at a devotional with President Nelson! Felt the spirit so strong.

Two days ago i accidentally broke one of the sound buffer things on the wall in the auditorium. I thought that they opened up and so i went and pulled on it and accidentelly tore off a piece of the wall with it haha. It was so funny. they had it fixed within 2 hours. They have an amazing maitenance staff here.

Send me pics! sorry i cant send many from here, We can only take pics on pday and have to send them by going to a store. My companion is great, we had some challenges this week but we are closer now because of it. My new Brazilian roomates are awesome. One is from a family of 8 and is the only member, the other one is from a family of nine. The one from a family of 8 is from Fortaleza and he hopes that his mom will join the church while he is on his mission. Read the scripture Mosiah 2:41 and see how you can be a better example to those around you and also read about  the spiritual gifts in Moroni chapter 10! those are my faves from the week.

Good luck in Peru Porter, enjoy the CTM there. I love my district, I was placed in my district for a reason. I have learned important lessons about myself from each of my district members. I CANT WAIT FOR THE FIELD! The new mission presdent in my mission is just getting settled in and i can feel that the people are just ready to hear the gospel! I´m studying now in my personal study time how to recognize the spirit better.

I cant believe Travis is home! Have him send me an email and give me some inspirational words as i go into the field. I love Portuguese even though i sound like a 2nd grader when i speak, i´m understanding a lot more now too. Portuguese hymns can be beautiful too.

Dad how is work? Please send blueprints of the renovations. Dogs any bigger? David, what can i do to testify with more power? I feel the spirit but i think the isnt message getting the to investigator with a ton of power. Portuguese frase of the week, "Muito Lindo" mostly because i think about Grandma Blue saying "que lindo" to Dad everytime i hear it haha! Love you guys, Stay fly and listen to Michael Jackson´s Man in the Mirror for me alright! I´m gonna go buy some meat and a chocolate filled churro from a street vendor!

Elder Sanchez
PS (the pics you might recieve today are of me and my old roomates, and my previous brazilian exchange companion who reported to the field, and my favorite teacher in the world Irmá Correa w/ my district!!)

Fiz Proseletismo!!!!

Hey guys!
           Yes i got both letters. They take about 12 days to get to me. I was so happy to receive them. Dont tell Will but i dropped my little Jesus statue while moving something and he lost a hand. But he is still good, i mean the real Jesus still has a perfect body so its alright. We went teaching last saturday. Sooooo intimidating, but awesome. People think my broken portuguese is so funny and are more willing to talk to me just to here me screw up grammer than actually hear about the Book of Mormon. We were on Paulista Avenue (which is in my mission!!) And it is like the times square of Sao Paulo. There were a ton of embassys and large buildings. The city is very dirty but also very nice. Its a strange mix. I get to go again this upcoming wednesday and then again two saturdays from now. So stoked. No pics this week... disculpa. Got new Brazilian roomates, they are very quiet. I got to hear from the Area authority yesterday. Elder Aida Kaitis and he was awesome. I didnt understand all of it because i tried listenning without english translation but what i got out of it was awesome. My teachers are awesome. they know so much and have really strengthened my testimony. A bunch more of my favorite Brazilian missionary friends left this week. Elder Lima is my favorite. He really took me in and taught me how to teach in the language better every meal. I had a really difficult struggle with pride since i arrived. I wrote all about it in my journal, but to keep the story short. Pride is of the devil and it is such an easy avenue into contention. In fact all contention is caused  by pride. This week i worked so hard to humble myself. I have been blessed and the lord has softened my heart a little. I now get along with everybody in my district and love them so much and my favorite part is that i can feel the influence of the spirit more. I had an amazing mock lesson this week. I felt the spirit so strong while i testified and taught about Judgement Day in the Plan of Salvation and how Jesus Christ will be right beside us. I love the temple. It was awesome today.
           I realize how much i engraved Justin Timberlake songs into my head back home. In the shower, when i´m doing laundry or playing volleyball those tunes just break out in my head. When i get home i am gonna bump to all his stuff again in the marquis. I love hymns though. Portuguese hymns are great and powerful but i definitely have a special place in my heart for English hymns. My whole district loves to sings and we all harmonize so well. I LOVE it!! We do such a great job with the primary song "I feel my Savior´s love".
          So many people are going home sick from this MTC recently that this week the mission president set a rule to no longer shake hands or anything. Its really bad. Some sisters got rabies from a bat in their room at night, and a bunch of people are getting Chicmugnunga (i know i butchered that spelling). I´ll be alright though. Not too worried (dont worry about me getting sick dad). The american districts are the cleanist. I think i have bed bugs because i itch all the time and lotion is not getting rid of the bites. Only a couple weeks left, i´ll survive haha. I have gained 6 lbs... I´m trying to gain more. There is so much food here and i´m trying to get as much out of it as possible.
         I love the Book of Mormon. I have made a rule for myself to get over my mornings because, if you didnt know, sometimes i´m not the most enthusiastic morning person, I make myself smile right when i wake up and then i think about the fact that i am here because of the sacrifices made to preserve the Book of Mormon. (oh and last week i made a mistake, my mission president didnt translate the BOM, he translated the entire King James Version of the Bible from English to Portuguese. still pretty amazing). I gave my first portuguese talk this past sunday. It was about Prayer and the commandment we have to pray frequently and the promised blessings that come from that. It went well, i think i used correct grammer. I love how planned out missionary life is, i love planning my lessons with such detail, it just works with my personality.
          David, that scorpion stuff sounds Crazy! Here is a little portuguese phrase that means the same thing as "thats freakin awesome". It is "pegando fogo" which literally means "catching fire"! I use it all the time! That sounds intense hunting for them. Mom keep on bumping, thanks for the letters, dont worry about the charges on my card. Its all for the Lord! I ruined a shirt with ink... sorry mom. Dad love ya. Thanks for the letters again and the pics of the house and the dogs. They are so freaking cute. I´m just about out of time. The MTC is the same thing over and over. I love it but cant wait for the field. Only three more weeks!!! Oh and ya´ll enjoy the 4th of July, none of that stuff here! I will wear a patriotic tie or something. I talked to an elder that i met from my mission at the temple today and he said he obtained complete fluency in 4 months.
          I pray for all of you every night. I am so grateful for prayer... it has become my best friend. I want all of you to take the time to go and read the entire bible dictionary definition of prayer. The last two paragraphs changed my entire perspective on how i approach my daily communication with the Lord. He hears and answers our prayers. I know that Jesus Christ lives and i know that through him hearts can be changed and souls can be brightened instantly!

Eu amo voces,
Elder Sanchez

Don't Open the Drains!

        Hey guys. 
This week was awesome. So i always wondered why the drains on the bathroom floor were sealed shut until i accidently kicked one off... There are tons of Giant Cockroaches living in the drain system!! Its so gross. This week was fun. My district is bonding a ton except that i learned that i can tend to get frustrated with people that don't work hard or let homesickness get in the way of their work ethic. We are all going through the same thing and know we need to speak our language. It is doctrine that men will learn the gospel in their own tongue. Some missionaries just don't think it is important. I am at a point that i feel guilty speaking english if it is not a Sunday or a p-day. On sundays they randomly pick four missionaries at the beginning of the meeting who have to give a four minute talk in portuguese. I am lucky not to have been called on yet. I love the language. I can read the scriptures and Preach My Gospel in portuguese and basically understand what is going on. Especially in Preach My Gospel, those words are pretty basic. I can understand probably 70% of what people are saying, its amazing. I pray for the gift of tongues in every prayer. I am getting into shape. I live on the seventh floor and use the stairs several times a day. We race up and down them. My trio got split, it is just me and Elder Orr now. Elder Rollins from provo got his visa and is not in our district and he is Elder Ottenschots comp now. They are still my roomates though which is awesome. 106 Brazilian missionaries went out to the field this week and i was good friends with many of them. A large group went to go serve in Mozambique. They started learning english. The people do wear coats when its not that cold out. Our american district classroom always has the AC on or windows open. A ton of people got sick with a cold virus, i got a little sick but am basically done with it now. i am glad to hear that the scorpion problem is almost taken care of and David that song is my favorite as well. I am so happy to hear about all the missionaries back home. Sometimes i look out my window on the seventh floor into the HUGE city and can feel a strong desire to go and serve and love the people here. All of the views from this building are beautiful. I am trying so hard to become a better person, i´m not setting too high of expectations but the more i study about the doctrine of Christ the more i realized how much it is needed in my life. I love this Gospel, I love the savior, I love my companion, and I love you guys. some pictures might make it to you all today.

Eu amo voces,

Elder Sanchez

Ola familia!!

Hey guys,

It was great to hear from you. i dont have a lot of time in the CTM (MTC) to write, only 40 minutes and even that is cut short because i gotta hit the town to get some shopping done. The city is HUGE!!! and so many favelas haha! i need some hangers and some other stuff. this experience has been amazing. i absolutely love of the food and the people and am so grateful for the oportunity i have to be here., there are two awesome brazilian companions that i share a room with and one of them only has two pairs of pants and one suit jacket. We arent supposed to give anybody any of our stuff in the MTC but he freezes his butt off because it is so cold to him here. I gave him one of my sweaters and he wears it every day. My district is amazing. We are so good at volleyball and feeling the spirit. I love my companions. They are my brothers and we swear we knew eachother before this life. I got to go to the temple today... beautiful temple and it was also many of my Brazilian roomates first time going through since they dont have a temple where they life. It was awesome. Portuguese is definitely the celestial language. I love it. Yesterday i began to understand about 70% of what people say, the speaking back not so much but i love it. It takes very hard work, i have a goal to be able to talk well enough so that the spirit can attend and manifest the truthfullness of my words before i leave the MTC. We have a devotional every Sunday and Tuesday. I will get to go to the temple every P-day while im here. I have pictures but i will have to send them probably after the MTC because the computers dont have ports for SD cards. There is a store somewhere in the MTC mission area that will send my pics for me but i have no idea where it is yet. I bought a Portuguese mini preach my gospel and mini hymn book. Knowing hymns and primary songs has greatly strengthened me while i have been here. The more i learn the language, the more i begin to forget english words and especially grammer structure. It is so funny, me and my companions sometimes cant even communicate in Engish because we forget the words. My companion caught a gecko and he is keeping it as a pet in his dressor haha. I have had two opportuntities to be part of blessings. A district of Sisters left on teusday and the sunday before they left they asked me and my trio de companhieros to give them blessings. The spirit was tangible in the room. I was aslo able to stand in when the sisters in my district (who are the best examples in the world of obedience) asked for blessings. All 7 elders in my district stood in while one gave the blessing. There again the spirit was tangible. I know the power of the priesthood of Jesus Christ is real. I know that God knows us individually. He knows us one by one, (look up Bednars address to missionaries at provo mtc last saturday night if you can) I testify that the Gift of Tongues is real. I know that the Savior is real. I have needed him and continue to need him and his atoning sacrifice. Recently i began studying (along with Portuguese), Christlike attributes and the impact that they can have on ones life. I look forward to studying this and applying it. The most joy comes from the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. I do so many role plays in Portuguese. We kind of butcher the lesson because we dont know the language that well but the true learning experience for me is in the preparation. One of my instructors is Irmá (Sister) Correa and she is amazing. Learning the hymns in Portuguese is pretty cool. Thank you all for your prayers and support. Thanks for the pictures and stories. Sadly i am out of time. Hopefully i´ll figure out how to send some pictures. I am having the best time of my life, there is no better work than that of the Lord.

Eu muito ama vocés,

Elder Nathan Sanchez