Re: Happy New Year! 12-30-13

From: "Jacob Shepard" <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net>
To: "Mom and Dad"
Subject: Re: Happy New Year!

On Mon, Dec 30, 2013 at 8:10 PM, Jacob Shepard <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net> wrote:

Dear Mom,

                 Thank you for the email. It was great to see you guys. This week was really great. We didn´t work as much as we could have, but we are doing great. I played some cards with my companion and talked.

   We went to bring a less active member to chruch and we were surpised at the way that the others helped him out.

 Thank you for the support and the love. I know that this letter is very short, but I´ll write more about this week and send Pictures too.

Love,

        Jacob

PS M ´Ms would be great.

 

12-27-13

Here is an email from elder Shepard:

Dear Mom and Dad,

                             Merry Christmas! The language is going great. I still have a few words to learn but I don´t have any problems comunicating. I still listen better then I talk. I read the Scriptures in English and Portugues, butusually in English. I still need to get betteron my use of Portugues in my studies. I have only dreamed once in Portugese. 

   I´ll call before Christmas to tell how it´s going to happen but there are a few members with web cams here. Some members are pretty well off. 

   I´ll fast for Dad. Iknowhow everybody likes to quote Job but I know that we allpass through our specific problems: some with jobs, others with sickness, others with people who don´t want to hear about the gospel. And just as job said we pass through the refiners fire to come out like gold. Jesus taught thatwe have sicknesses or problems so that theof God could be done. I know that Dad will be alright, and I know that we all have a blessed rest waiting for us. I pray for all of you for health and happiness, and I that God will keep his promises.

   We had a good sacrement meeting too. A lot ofpeople are coming to church. We have this investigator called Katarina that´s going to be baptized next Saturday. We did have 14 people planned to be baptized but we took a beating and lost about 13 of them. We are still teaching about half of them but a lot of people suddenly lost interest because of some reason. Even though a lot of things didn´t work out, some miracles happened to give us hope for the future. 

   Man I only have one picture of me. Maybe I should get more since they´re getting popular. Bad joke, but I´ll send some christmas pictures soon. Some dust got into the camera so I´m cleaning it. Also, everything has been going great with my companion. He speaks english pretty well too. We are doing are best to work, butwewere more concentrated on teaching those people we hadthen finding new people. We learned our leason and are getting better. 

Merry Christmas and I love you.

 

Jacob Shepard

Skype Call of Jacob Shepard 12-24-13

I will call by Skype for Mom and Dad at 5 at Parnaiba Piaui Brazil time. About 7 or 8 for Mom and Dad. Be there or be square... and I will cry if you don´t.

Love Jacob

12-9-13

On Mon, Dec 9, 2013 at 9:27 AM, Jacob Shepard <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net> wrote:

Dear Emily,

                  Thank you for your emails. They are always appreciated.

   I´m thankful for:

Jesus, for His sacrifice and life

my family

the scriptures and words of modern day prophets

the houses I´ve been able so live

food of any type

water

wind when we walk in the noon day sun

beautiful music

the simple moments that I can enjoy

beds(it´s a big one for missionaries on the list)

our chances to progress

God´s children here on Earth

children

I need to get in the habit of writing in my jornal again so I can write one down daily, as President Eyering said.

Love,

         Jacob 

Mailing address 12-2-13

Missão Brasil Teresina

A/C Elder Jacob Allen Shepard

CPX 2321

CER 64001-975

Teresina PI

 

And that´s the mission home address. I love you too.

Elder Shepard

11-25-13

Dear Mom,

                transfers are crazy and I´m going to respond really fast, but please bear with me. I´ve met the president 4 times in the mission field, not including the first week I entered Brazil. We have district meeting weekly and zonemeeting monthly. The missionaries just stay in their areas.We eat with the members 6 days a week. Now I´m just with my companion. It´s cool that the mission pres passed by. One interesting thing is that if we do what joseph did, go to church, read the scriptures and pray, we can receive a testimony and personal revelations.

   The shift key here is not working well. That´s great that Christopher is doing well. I know that family will be blessed immensly.

I was also thinking about that song. I´ll be home for chritmas in my dreams this time, but next one I´ll make it just in time.

 

I love you so much and thank you for your examples.

Love Elder Shepard.

Re: Some love from the worst sister ever 11-25-13

From: "Jacob Shepard" <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net>
Date: Nov 25, 2013 7:30 AM
Subject: Re: Some love from the worst sister ever
To: "Martha Shepard"

Dearest Martha,

                       You are not the worst. I´m the worst. I should write more to everybody, and you have a Christmas card on the way. Also, I love you a lot to. I´m doing well, I´m happy, and safe. If you decide to serve a mission, your also a boss. Don´t worry about the age. We´re all children at heart. Eu tenho um futuro uncerto tambem. Estou ainda aprendendo Portugûes. Etendo quase tudo, mas um dia voi aprender mas sobre aquela lingua.

   At time I´m exhausted too. I am speaking Portugues almost perfectly though not fluently, but because of my slight american accent, some people put menatl blocks and don´t understand me. We walk at least hours everyday. If i let myself stop and think about college, work and dating, I probably could have an anerism. (bad spelling) But I know when the time comes, the Lord will help me out with everything.

The hardest thing: People don´t understand my humor and like to talk over or interrupt when I´m teaching

The best thing: When things finally turn out right and all the suffering is worth it and when I see God´s miracles in the mission

I really like Portuguese. i think it´s a lot more interesting then spanish. Martha, are you messing around on the internet? Because I´m recognizing all the memes. It´s hot here in Brazi during the Christmas season. They don´t have  thanksgiving here. We eat rice and beans everyday. A lot of people here sleep in hammocks since it´s hot. I love the book of mormon. And I love you too. *Tarzan yell*

Beijos de seu Irmão

11-20-13

Dear Mom,

                 I usually write at 10 or 11 in the morning. I don't get a lot of emails; but that is oaky. It´s funny how I just received your email an hour ago.

   That´s cool that Trey made it on the team. It seems like the effort he´s made for basketball has worked out for him. It´s funny how there are so many of the youth on missions now. I know I´m just twenty but I feel old. I think it´s because all the things that are going on. I really appreciate what bishops and Ward council members do. Here at the Branch, they sttill are working out the kinks, but these members are dedicated. The way that these members, with their Jobs and families, are still able to frun their organizations, is incredible.

   How is Brother Chappell? I Always liked going out to their house with Brother Waite. They´re one of the best families I know. How are Christopher, James and Elizabeth? Also, does Trey want to study before he goes or just work? I know that encourgement and love will help him decide to act.

   Here on the mission, a lot of Elders have problems with thier back and legs because they don´t stretch or exercise during the week. We try to strech every day since we relly just walk for hours everyday.

   It´s pretty rare in Parnaiba to have rain, but it does get really windy. I don´t think Brazil has too many tornadoes.

   The other day we were knocking doors and we found this 62 year old man named Bernardo. We talked with him on his doorstep and he really wanted to talk to us. He had been going to a church for a long time, but after a 31 year marriage, he divorced and his church didn´t want him any more. He´s been alone and said that he was all alone and didn´t feel God in his house anymore. We taught him about God´s love for him and about the Restoration of the Gospel. We came back and he already had been Reading and he was happy for the chance to change his life. I think that he´ll like the church.

   The District here started a choir here, but since it´s in another Ward we can´t participate. I love honey also. I´m sorry you forgot to put "you." Thank you for the eamil I love you too.

Love Jacob.

Dear Dad 11-11-13

Dear Dad,

                I love you too. The other day I saved a old Church manual about the Teachings of the Living Prophets. It talks about the importance of having a living ser, prophet and revelator in our days. It was written in 1983 and has many teachings of Boyd K.Packer, Elder Peterson, President Lee and Benson and Bruce R Mconkie(bad Spelling). Theyspoke of how the revelations of the current prophet Always change from the last. The principles are what stay the same, such as the gospel of Jesus Christ. There is a story where a Catholic Priest attended Sacrament Meting and was disgusted at how we had changed the Lord´s Sacrment, how we didn´t use wine,  when clearly Jesus used wine. Even in the Book of Mormon they used wine. But the thing is that what we do in these later days is what the Lord has commanded us, as his people did anciently. The Jews sacrficed lambs becuase they were told too. Jesus died on the cross because it was the will of his Father. We keep the commandments and act as we do because Jesus himself has commanded us too through a living prophet. Just as Adam didn´t receive the commandment to build a boat, Joseph Smith did not receive all the commandments we need in these latter days, making what President Monson and what he says very importante to our welfare. When God tells us to do something we must do it without out doubt or letting our opions of past revelations get in the way. Just as Abraham was commanded to sacrifice his sonin the similitude of Jesus, he was then commanded not to kill him. If we do not keep the current commandments and revelations, with the interpretations of the living prophet, we are at risk of losing the blessings of the Gospel. I know that we have a Prophet of God with us today and that he speaks with and for God. I testify that he will not lead us astray. Thank you Dad for all the help and support. ]

            I love you,

                            Jacob

Baptism of Cleidmar and Thalyton

 

After Lunch and cleaning the chapel for a baptism

 

 

The Gaspar Family.

 

 

 

11-4-13

From 11/4/13

Dear Mom and Dad,

                                I´ve begun to right a lot of letters, and I´m going to send them to you. Could you send the rest that aren´t for the Family to their adresses? They should get there in the middle of december. Thank you very much. I´ve been doing pretty good out here in Parnaiba. It´s  been very windly lately though thedown side is that we were with out electricity for a day and a half. We have a baptism set up for a Young man names Talito. He´s been with the church for a while but finally decided to be baptized.

This week the President wanted very long letters to some questions he had so I´ll write more next time. 

Love Jacob 

10-28-13

Dear Mom and Dad,

They do have Halloween here, but it´s no where as big as it is in the states. Here in the Northeast, they don´t really have the Money or time to do anything big, so they just sell more of the regular candy they have. The Branch here has a electric organ, and many of the members are musically talented, so every once in a while, we´ll here some nice music numbers. The Branch has about 90 people that regurally go to church, and about 30 of them are a part of Primary. There are some sisters here that know how to work magic here.

   Here on the mission we learn a lot about self mastery and doing our best to help others. Brazil is one the fastest baptizing missions, but it unfortunatly has a large problem with the Law of Chastity. In the church, I have seen such a large difference in families, men women and children. They have self respect wear modest clothing and take care of their children. I know that the Restored Gospel is a gift from God to the whole world, but it is the greatest thing I´ve seen here is the Kingdom of God working miarles in these peoples lives. It really has transformed some people and like my companion likes to say,"the gospel makes bad people good and good people better." I´m happy that I´ve been called to serve here in Brazil.

   I´ve performed about 2 baptism and given the Holy Ghost to 5 people. we almost give blessings daily here. I worked a lot more on Sundays in Camocim, but I´ve already given a talk and a lesson here in Parnaiba. The members and leadership are very organized so the missionaries can worry more about the investigators. I feel like the choir is going to miss you, because you relly helped us sing better, even though we were few,

   Brush and Shave every day, with showers in the morning and night. We do work out in the moring, but no for too long since time is short. It is very hot, but Parniaba is really windy, so it´s called the paradice of the mission. Terezina is the place I do not want to serve because It is the hottest place in the northeast, It´s about 80 degrees at night with humidity and 100 or more during the day. There are little markets near by but they don´t have much. But it all Works out in the end.

   That´´s really cool that everybody´s doing well. Could you send some pictues of everyone once in a while? Would i be better if I tried google hangout, intead of Skype?

  I love you both and I pray for you all daily.

                 Elder Shepard

10-21-13

Dear Mom and Dad,

                             Thank you for the message. It´s still great to hear from you, and whatever you send is wonderful. It´s great to hear the the mission work is doing well at home. It´s pretty cool how most of the youth are now going out on their missions. It is a hard choice to make and you do sacrifice a lot. It is said about the frains. It is true that when you hit the age of 18 or above that everyone likes to ask the same questions over and over. Sort of like college. The problem is that it is a great blessing to serve, but people in the church aren´t as understanding as we think sometimes. I run into a lot of gossip and arguments that start over the smallest of things, and if a young mnan doesn´t serve a mission they think less of him.

   It wouldn´t be bad for me to pass by the dentist, even though that´s not going to happen for a little more then a year. A lot of people here take care of their teeth, but many are missing some, or could pass by the dentist. The problem is that things are expensive here in Brazil. It shows through it´s difference in the higher up Rich class, the the poverty that is mostly in the northeast, where I´m serving. Many people live in very bad condtions and don´t have the help they need. There are many who don´t have the will to fight their way out of the poverty. We have a nice house with water, a fridge, beds and a bathroom. We get fed by the members,too. I´ve gained an appreciation of everything I had before the mission, and what little we have now. Thanks for working hard  to raise me. 

   Speaking of food, I do miss American food. The food is good here, but thats only when a member goes out of their way to make something nice. We live farther away from the grocery stores downtown, so we rarely buy to much for us to eat at home. Usually it´s just a little snack in the morning and another at night. I do miss american cheeses, restaurants and all the different types of food, but I´ll be able to truck along for about another year. 

   I´m sorry that I´ve forgotten everyones´ birthdays. I´ve been to focused on everything that´s been happening with me that I´ve forgotten alittle bit about home. Happy Birthday Mom. I hope that it was a good one and that everything will get better by the next one. Happy Birthday,  Dad. Thank you for all the advice and all that you and Mom have done for me, and are still doing for me. 

Love, Jacob

Dear Mom and Dad 10-14-13

From: "Jacob Shepard" <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net>
Sent: Monday, October 14, 2013 9:58:06 AM 
Subject: Re: Late Weekly Report of Elder Shepard

Dear Mom and Dad,

                             DidI ever get a plack with my favorite scripture on the wall? I think I forget to ask before I left. So a lot of changes has been going on in this mission. There are about 34 missionaries waiting for their visas to come to Terezina. So some places need to be opened when they come and some other areas might be closed down for lack of missionaries. Some missionaries having been argueing with others. The other elders in our zone live in a big house with 6 elders in total. two are fighting so it´s a bit tense and childish over there. Here on the mission, everyone is focused on serving, but some lose sight with numbers and small problems. It is on the mission where Satan will throw everything at you. But me and my companion are doing great. He really knows the scriptures and knows how to teach. Our only problem is finding new people to teach working hard and will find people to baptize.

   So , I don´t get Columbus Day off either. I know how you feel Dad. :) I got a little champaine cup with these figurines of a couple getting married. I might send it to you guys when I can.The member here are really great. They really trying to help us here and improve the branch. Some of the leadership is changing too. We visit a lot of recent converts and less actives here. Luckily, most of the members are doing their home and visiting teaching. 

   How are the missionaries in the ward doing? Have there been any new people in church latley? As a missionary,  I´ve seen a lot of new people in chruch that haven´t had people talk to them or sit next to them. If you guys everyhave the chance, speak with these people, no just shake their hand when it´s the end of the day and skidadle. Also, but could you buy the Infinite Atonement  by Tad R. Callister for me? If it doesn´t work out, thank you for everything. I got the music that you sent me, and it´s really good.

   This last week I´ve been teaching a family that have been going through a lot of problems. The wife felt like the children only respected the dad and she cleans the house day and night, but it´s dirty the moment shes done. So we are now doing family home evening with them. When you have them time, do family home evening. It will bless your lives and bring Trey and Ashley closer together.

I love you all,

                   Jacob 

Dear Mom and Dad 10-7-13

On Mon, Oct 7, 2013 at 12:21 PM, Jacob Shepard <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net> wrote:

Dear Mom and Dad,

                                 For the missionaries, General conference is a battery charge for us with the Spirit. It was great to here from all the diverse Seventies and Apostles and the Prophet. We got to listen in english, but I saw some parts in Portugese. It´s not to hard to understand, but for me it´s better to hear it in my own language and have the spirit testify to me.

 

I know that Trey and Ashley can do a lot for themselves and can push through the problems that they have. I´ll write to him soon.

   We do have a fridge and we don´t do much on P-day since we live far from anything in the city, my companion likes to sleep and study alone on P-day and we are far from other missionaries too. We are also banned from soccer and no one has any basketballs. I´m good, but if you could send some American food of any kind, that would be nice. We eat rice and beans every day, and it´s really good sometimes but it´s a bit bland at times.

  Here in Brazil I think it´s dry and hot in Fall and Winter and hot and wetter in Summer and spring. they have a lot of Holidays that are based on the Catholic churh and Saints and they don´t have Thanksgiving here. They basically have everything else in one form or another. During carnival they have Youth trips to get away from the crazyness.

    We have found new people to teach here and many of the investigators we have are opening up now. I´ve run out of time but I love you all.

 Love

        Jacob

 

To Mom and Dad 9-30-13

From: "Jacob Shepard" <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net>
To: "Mom and Dad"

Sent: Monday, September 30, 2013 9:33:54 AM 
Subject: Re: Late Weekly Report of Elder Shepard

Dear Mom and Dad,

                                sometimes I think it depends on where you are with the computers. I´m serving in the 4th Branch in Parnaiba. It´s about 15 minutes by bus from downtown. A lot of the stores are more expensive because of the distance from other stores. It has these smaller stores that are opened out of these houses and there aren´t any professionally owned stores. There were better computers in Camocim, but that´s because we found a better lanhouse. This one is just annoying that´s all.

   Everyday we pray when getting up, before going to sleep, before leaving the house and many other times through out the day. I always thank God for having you all for my Family and ask him to bless you for the sacrifices that you guys are doing. Thank you for everything that you´ve done for me and the e-mails that you are writing.

   Trey is going to turn 19 pretty soon, isn´t he? I know that if he makes it a goal to at least make a few applications for jobs a day, he´ll find work soon. I know that here in Brazil, the people are still learning to do all the right things, like going to activites or Family home evening, but the way that they have fully integrated there lives with the church is amazing. I know that if everyone at home right now trys to do Family home evening, reading the scriptures together and pray together at night, that you all will have the strengh and comfort of the spirit to get through these problems. I love you all and I know things will get better. In 2nd Nephi, Lehi talksof how we need to have an opposition in all things. With this in mind I read Acts 14:22 Paul takes of how we need to pass through trials to enter into the kingdom of God. On top of this, Joseph Smith´s Pray and Answer from God in DC 121 and the following sections have helped me understand how we can work through our problems with the understanding that Jesus knows all of our sufferings because he felt them also. I bear my testimony that our Heavenly Father is very concerned with our lives and happiness and that through him we will get better and do better.

   I just got my hands on the Infinite Atonement by Tad R. Callister, and it´s one of the best books I´ve ever read. I think this time I have on the mission is the only time I will be able to study and learn about the gospel like this. I think some missionaries get home and are unsure what to do because they didn´t keep the habits of the mission and didn´t plan ahead.

   I do get to see confernce live and I´ll be taking notes. I know before the mission I didn´t pay as much attention or thought that it was all that great, but now Conference flys by and I hang on every word. Also, one thing we can do to understand the importance of the Book of Mormon and the Restoration is to read the Book of Mormon cover to cover. The testimonies of Nephi to King Benjamin to Moroni have blessed me here a lot.

   My toe is better and I´ve found some cream for it. It still bugs me, but it`ll get better soon. Parnaiba is bigger then Camocim and it has more wind. We had a record number of people in church a little while ago of 93, but the average number is 70 to 80. How many people go to church at Arlington Heights? Here, a lot of the youth grow up poor, without a mother or father or both, are influenced by violence and drugs in the streets and are living in a pleasure based society. When I see them in church or any one changing their lives, it really is a miracle. I appreciate growing up in the Church, the food, the schools, everything. I love you both, Mom and Dad. Thanks for helping me.

    Love,

            Elder Shepard

9-26-13

Dear Dad,

I know that when we do good things, it is easier to do better. When we do bad things, its easier to get worse. We are never motionless or stopped in our progression. If we are stopped, we are regressing backwards down the path we came. If we are walking i´t´seasier to get that running start.Tank you dad for the email. I hope that you are in good health and that you ask someone to give you a blessing. Have you read any good scriptures lately.? I´ve been Reading in Roman 15. 1 through about 9 talk about how we need to help those that struggle and not thanks ourselves for what we´ve already done. I love you and pray for you everyday.

Love Elder Shepard(which is Pastor in Portugese)

Re: Late Weekly Report of Elder Shepard 9-23-13

From: "Jacob Shepard" <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net>
To: "Mom and Dad"

Sent: Monday, September 23, 2013 10:10:32 AM 
Subject: Re: Late Weekly Report of Elder Shepard

Dear  Mom and Dad,

                                 This is the worst computer I´ve ever used. I´ve not been able to get on email for a while before, and unfortunetly, all the other comperters are in use. I´m really liking it here in Parnaiba. Everything is going pretty well, but it´s hard to find new people here. I´ve met a few other missionaries that have gone through hard times and one of the missionaries in my old district went home. He was more or less forced to serve because of his Family. I know that this work is true and that I am here because I choose to. I also know that we are blessed to have the book of mórmon in our lifes. When you have time, read the book of mórmon together and pray every day before you sleep . I know that doing these simple things, you will feel the blessings of the Restored Gospel in your lifes. We have a lot of people here that have to get married or divorced and that´s why we don´t have a lot of baptisms set up yet. Thank you for the súpport and your love. I hate Brazilian computers, or at least the ones they have in the internet café.

    I love you all,

                         Jacob

Jacob letter 9/16/2013

date:		Mon, Sep 16, 2013 at 10:05 AM
subject:		Re: Jacob letter 9/16/2013

 

Dear Mom and Dad,

                                forgive me for the last email. Things got a bit crazy and I ran out of time at the lanhouse. A lot of them don´t function so well. Right now I´m in a city called Parnaiba. I´m in another Branch that has about 90 people that go regularly. I am now with another misionary, called Elder Oliveara. He´s from São Paulo and has about 11 months on the mission. He only speaks Portugese, so I´ve been getting a bit better at speaking. Now that I have 6 months in Brazil, I´m speaking pretty well. There are still a lot of words that I don´t know nad I don´t speak as smothly as i´d like but it going pretty well here.

   I´m feeling pretty well . I´ve got a little problem with my Toenail on my big left toe but I think it´ll be alright. I just need to see a clinic tha can fix it. I´ve been eating ric and beans for every lunch  at the members house. If I want something diferente I have to buy it or make it home. It took  while for my digestive system to adjust, but now I´m used to it. I don´t think I´ll every compain about food ever agin, not that I was ever a picky eater. Last week we had Lazanga. It diferente here in Brazil. It´s made with ham, cheese, the pasta sheets a bit of meat and nothing else.

   I got the câmera charger by the way. It works perfectly.
Here in Parnaiba, the leadership Works and the activities happen. This place is relly great and is how a branch would hope to be. However, there aren´t many investigtores here. The missionaries in the past have knocked all of these doors here around the church and other members, so we working hard at finding News here. Of the few investigators we have, there is a family that are doing great. Their names are Francisco and Maria Jose. They have two kids and would be baptized already if not for the divorce problems that Francisco has with his ex wife. Maria has been Reading the Book of Mormon and they are going to church every sunday. Francisco works outside of the city and is trying really hard to get days off.

   Here on the mission, everyone that doesn´t have a priesthood holder in their house wnts the missionaries to give them blessings. But for me, baptizing and giving the gift of the Holy Ghost is the greatest way I can us my priesthood here. It´s really great to have all the work we´ve done here come to frutation and to also see the changes in the peoples lives here.

  I will have to look at the chart that Emily gave me so I can remember everyones birthdays. It´s pretty cool that Martha got to see James Taylor.   I´m loving it here in Brazil and I´m geting better at speaking everyday. I know that the gospel is helping the people here. It´s allready almost a yer so I think that the next year is going to fly by fast. I love you all and I hope everyone doing well.

Love,

        Jacob 

9/9/13

Sent: Monday, September 9, 2013 8:56:15 AM
Subject: Re: Late Weekly Report of Elder Shepard

Dear Dad, 

              People here in Barzil tend to jump to conclusions fast and like to have unchangible opinions. Some People here think I look like  Joseph Smith from the side, Asian or that I´m from São Paulo. But the church members are usually smarter and have a more open mind and heart. I try to tell people it´s the church that Jesus started. By the way, the charger arrived and charging the camera now. Thank you very much. You´re the best. I also heard that the U.S. has gone to war with Siria. On top of North Korea, things must be getting pretty interesting. I love you all. I´ll have pictures for you by next week of my companion, me, my area and the members.

   Love you both,

                        Jacob

Late Weekly Report of Elder Shepard 9/2/13

Mon, Sep 2, 2013 at 7:57 AM

Dear everybody,

 

                       It´s probably been a little more then a month since I´ve written one of these. A lot of stuff has happened and I don´t think I can write it all. I´lll just have to ask forgiveness and keep on going. So these past few weeks I´vee still been in Camocim, beach city thats all about fishing. It´s been hot here but it´s got wind here. There´s been some gang violence around here, but in the farther parts of the city where we don´t usually go. Other then that everything here has been great. 

 

   As missionaries we got out trying to find people to help and teach them about Jesus Christ. There are the people who live here that are members of the church who help the work along here in Camocim. The church is still relatively new, so everyone here is still learning. 

 

   I´ve been here for about 6 months and 3 of those most recent have been with Elder Bird. He´s from Arizona and He´s been on the mission for abput a year and a half. I´m most likley going to be leaving here pretty soon. We switch out every 6 weeks, if we do leave.

 

   These past few weeks we have baptized two new people who have entered the church and are really liking everything. One of them is named Lucas Lima and the other Airton. The both have had a lot of trouble in the past but are doing well. 

 

I supose I´ve run out of time but next week will be longer nad better.

 

Love,

 

       Elder Shepard

Jacob letter to Mom 9/2/13

Dear Mom, 

                The unfortunare part about transfers is that the Zone leaders of my area usually call after we do emails. If you semd mail or packages, just send them to the mission home. We get our packages and mail every zone conference. It´s nice and cool latley in about the 80´s. The sun is still always out, so walking in the sun makes it pretty hot. That´s cool that you got to be on TV for a bit. While we study in the house, we use the fans because it´s pretty humid and warm there. Are still teaching the same classes in English? or have you started on others?

 

   Here in Camocim, there are always tons of kids running around outside of schools and in the streets. Most couples that have been together for more then two years seem to usually have a child. A lot of the men here are fishermen or work outside of the city.

 

   I do think sometimes about what I will do when I get back. I know I´m going to find a job as sson as I can and start the 2 years at Harper. After that I´m still not sure. Something in English, Computers or who knows? Something along those lines. 

 

   Speaking of churches, I miss going to our ward. I love the members here, but at times it´s a bit unorganized. It´s still a branch here so they´re still learning. There´s mo choir, but they started a hymn book class to teach people some new songs. We, the missionaries, are working really hard to help with the activities. Do you have any ideas about some activities that don´t cost a lot or any money? That would be great if you have any.

 

   Latley I have been studying in Mosiah chapter 2 through 6. King Benjamins Speech is really good. To be truthfull I had started memorizing scriptures in english in the beginning, but now I try to memorize where the scripture is and the main idea of it. The importance to me is to get the key words and phrases that will help the person understand. I ´m not sure where    I´d find poems. The charger hasn´t come yet, but packeges sometimes take a while. When you send stuff in packages, you should put pictues of Jesus or Mary, the Mother of Jesus on all sides. It´ll help stop people from stealing things from them. 

 

I love you both,

 

                     Elder Shepard

8/26/13

Dear Mom, 

 

   Funnily enough, Airton found us. He had been talking with the missionaries before, but He was having trouble about the Sabbath and parts of the plan of Salvation. They had been visiting him reguraly but had stopped for a few months. So we began teaching him again and we helped him with his doubts. He was praying about these things when he received an answer, and now knows that these things are true. He was baptized Last week and will receive the holy ghost this next sunday. 

 

   It´s been a little hard to learn but I´ve got a handle of it. I´ve been feeling fine and I´m in good health. There´s been a few changes in the mission, so it does take up time on the computer, but I´m really doing great. I´m baptizing people and the Branch is growing. It´s good to be a missionary here in the North East of Brazil.

 

   We´ve also found a teenager named Lucas Lima that was baptized last Sunday. He used to stay in the house all the time and didn´t go to school as much. Now we´ve got him to start coming to church and all the activities. His Mom is very happy about the change in attitude, and I think she´s taken an interest in the church. 

 

   It´s great to hear about everything that´s going on at home. Thanks for the updates and for the news about the family. Next week I´m going to not write all of the things for the mission and I´ll write a weekly report like I used to. I´ll try to send some pictures too. 

 

   I know that what I´m doing here to help the mission is called of God. Lives are really changing for the better including mine. I know that if all of us keep the commanments and repent daily, we´ll se each other in the Kingdom of God, on his right hand. I love you all, and pray that everything will be for the beast.

 

   Sincerly, Your Loving Son,

 

                                         Elder Shepard

Here is Elder Shepard's address 8/26/13

Mon, Aug 26, 2013 at 9:57 AM

Mailing address: Missão Brasil Teresina, A/C - Elder Jacob Shepard, CPX: 2321, Teresina - PI, CEP: 64001-973, BRAZIL

8/19/13

Dear Mom,
             

   Sorry about the last pre sent letter. Thank you for all the help with the bank. I´ll pay you back all the you´ve spent on me after the mission. I know that I can´t pay back all the things you´ve both done for me, but hopefully this mission will help. How are things at home?

 

It´s getting close to the of this transfer, so I only have about 2 more weeks here in Camocim. We started teaching a guy that teaches selfdefence, but he doesn´t believe in Jesus and many other things, so we just talk to him on on p day, when he shows us a few things.

 

The president is really great. The Branch needs a lot of help but Í think they´ll get there. We´ve had a lot of work here and the members aren´t always together on everything, but us missionaries are doing our best.

 

We just baptized a man named Airton. He really enjoys every part of the gospel and is trying very hard to help the ward. 

 

elder Shepard  

 

O didn´t have much time ether, but I love you.

8/12/13

Dear Mom,

               The mission has been going fast for me. What you said was true, about months and weeks go fast but the days at times go slow. Elder Bird is goo. Camocim is doing good, though we are still looking for a lot more people to teach. We are working very hard.

 We are teaching a young man named Regis who is going to be baptized this next Saturday. He´s only twenty and he knows some members in the church.  We hope to baptize an older man named Airton( pronounced I-ir-ten) That has practically memorized the bible. He´s prayed about the book of mormon and the church and he knows it´s all true. He only has a few problems getting to church. We have a lot of other good people but they aren´t easy to find in home.
That´s awesome that everbody is doing well. The president of the mission is visiting today so I only have a little time. I love you all and hope everyone is doing well.

  Love,
         Elder Shepard

Letter to Mom 7/29/13

From: "Jacob Shepard" <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net>
Sent: Monday, July 29, 2013 11:47:09 AM
Subject: Re: Weekly Report of Elder Shepard

 

Dear Mom and Dad,

                                I´m fine and healthy will be alright. I had been having headaches and loss of energy but I went to the doctor here and got better. It does stink that the guy stole our phone but we´ll be ok. There is another pair of missionaries here and we are sharing their phone. The mission should get a new phone to us soon, if not by the end of August. You don´t have anything to be sorry for. I had been getting behind on some letters to you, so you have nothing to worry about.

   Sounds like the house is really taking on a lot of changes. It´s probably a lot cheaper to maintain without five others kids. I remember that when I was looking for my driver´s license, I sort of took apart my room. Have you taken my old room apart and put all of my things into boxes? Now that I think about, about 96 percent of all that was bought by you guys. I remember that Othelo parady. My english teacher showed a part of it to me and I think i´ve seen some other Shakespeare humor plays with you and Dad.

  There´s a few people here in Camocim that have gone through the temple and one couple that are going there soon to get sealed. It´s funny how I´ve only been here for about 7 months and I´ve seen the blessings of every part of the church. And on the other hand, just about every part of the church attacked by other churchs and beliefs. Not physically but with arguing and preaching against the Church. And on top of that, I have the comfort of the true church of God behind me as I use His priesthood to do his ordinances.

   At times, it´s frustrating to have a lot trying to stop or slow the work here, but It´s now starting to pick up, When I first got here, only about 38 people came to church regularl. Now, it´s up to fifty four and we have 8 people baptized. The leadership is starting to help a lot more and the members are more excited about the missionary work here. Thank you for all your support and love. 

 

Love,

        Elder Shepard

Weekly Report of Elder Shepard 7/22/13

Mon, Jul 22, 2013 at 8:29 AM

Dear Everybody,

                        How is everyone? It´s been a couple of weeks since I´ve written one of these but things have been going great here. Camocim is a town that gets by mostly by it´s fishing industry.  It´s on the coast and is pretty beautiful. As missionaries we tend to walk around a lot, talkin to a lot of people and going from one end of the town to the other. Snce we walk everywhere, we get a lot of chances to see the beach from the side walk and the ocean. I´m still working on my camera situation  get pictures for everyone but it´s pretty awesome here. Some weeks back there were some protests during the World Cup with Brazil, since a lot of people want better things then just stadiums and soccer teams, but Camocim was mostly untouched. A lot of people talk about how a lot of Brasil needs to change but most think that Camocim is a great place. There´s not much to do here but it´s a nice place to be.

   While we serve down here in Brasil, we find people to teach and those that want to learn more about God  and Jesus Christ. Being in Brasil, most people are religious and there are various churches here, Many have conflicting beliefs and tend to fight and argue about what´s really true. Some go door to door saying people will burn in hell unless they do what the other people want. So, quite a few are tired of the craziness. When we talk to people, we like to converse and invite people to learn more. Several are pretty receptive since it´s different then the usual bible bashing. What we t to teach are things that will improve there lives and have them act on what they believe.

   Lately, we´ve been taking to a lot of younger guys that have done military exercises that is mandatory for one year. Most know each other and are pretty good people. The youth in Brazil have a lot of challenges to cover. Drugs, alcohol, and general pleasure seeking destroys the lives of many and lead others to broken families and children with out parents. Luckily these guys have grown up with good parents and chose to do better things. One of them is called Antonio Rodrigues. He practices Jiu Jitsu and is studying in college. He doesn´have a goal in mind right now but he´s doing good. He has always been interested in God but hes run into a lot of hypocrites before. We´ve been teaching him for about a month or so, and he´s decide to get baptized this Saturday. With him it´s been really great to see some understand what we are saying(doctrine wise, not Portuguese) and decide to act on it.

   Another interesting thing that happened is that while we were in the hospital, we met this one guy. I was a little sick and we were there for some medicine. We talked with him or a while as we waited in line for the doctor. He seemed nice enough and said he´s visit the church one day. After we got in and were waiting in an examination room,he came an asked to borrow our cell. As missionaries, we share one to call people and emergencies. He took it and called and said he´d be back.  was sick so we didn´t think much of it. But after a while he didn´t come back ad we were left twiddling our thumbs thinking we were pretty dumb. So lately we´ve been walking a lot more to go to people´s houses to confirm appointments and stuff like that. Yo learn something every day on the mission, whether it´s about God, yourself or whether or not you should watch some people more closely.

   Well that´s all he time I have, but there will be more to come every week. Send me any questions you have or anything you ant to say that´s been going on with you.

Love, Sincerely,

                     Elder Jacob Allen Shepard

7/15/13

From: "Jacob Shepard" <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net>
Sent: Monday, July 15, 2013 11:25:32 AM

 

Dear Mom and Dad,
                             When I left the MTC, I could teach all the discussions in a simple version and after about 3 weeks in Brazil most of all the discussions too. Now the hard part is getting the people more invovled in the lesson by inspired questions and applying everything to that person. I study the scriptures, Preach my Gospel and the missionary library every morning, but I study the language every other day. Since I´m speaking Portuguese every day, I learn from practicing the language. I understand just about everything the people say, but There are still a lot of words I don´t know, so when we talk about some subjects outside of the gospel, it´s a bit dificult.

   We have recently had several missionaries return home from there missions, so they with a lot of the other members have been helping us out. They have been showing us a lot of their friends. We have started to teach several young men who are interested in God and what a lot of things mean. There names are Regis, Daniel, Leonardo and Joel. We´ve given them all the Book of Mormon and many of them are reading reguraly. Many people here are unsure about other relgion or there are out right against anything that they haven´t heard from their pastors. I remember that Dad had said he liked people who hadn´t found another church before, because they hadn´t learned any bad habits. I have to agree with him. Many people here have strange beliefs and practices that are contrary to the bible and what the prophets have taught. With many of these young men, they have been put of by the way others have tried to force their ideas on them, how they think only about money and the way many turn out to be hypocrites. I like how the younger people here are more open to talk with and hear what God wants for them. A few have accepted dates of Baptism. We´ll see how everything goes, but I have faith.

   It´s great to hear about everything at home. Everyones growing up and moving fast. Hopefully I´ll catch up one day. I know the mission is going fast already, and I´m going to miss being a missionary, but I can talk like that more in a year and a half. The way the people live and act down here is pretty different then the States, but I love the people here. I can tell that their are so many people prepared to just hear our message and make the changes that the gospel brings. I am at times sad because so many people reject us but each person that decides to listen and act is worth it. Thank you all for your support and emails. I know that someone at home is getting blessed from what I´m doing here and I hope that one day my time in the Lord´s work will bless the lives of others.

I love you all,

                   Elder Shepard

Hello! 7-8-13

Dear Dad and Mom,

At times I do get a little homesick. The Skype call helped me not be too homesick, but it also made me think about how fast everything is going. It´s already been seven months. I see people with their families and friends doing stuff together and then I think about home. Thinking about you guys and some people at home isn´t bad as long as it doesn´t distract me, but seeing things like TV or games is when I start humming hymns.

I´m trying to talk a lot more in Portuguese to my American companion so I don´t forget what I already know.

Most people won´t go for marriage here, just the one night stand thing. But the missionaries here know what to look out for when we teach or talk to people, and what to stay far away from.

 

The book of James is one of my favorite New Testament books. I´ve been reading in the Acts of the apostles and the epistles that they´ve written. It´s a little difficult to read the 4 gospels side-by-side since they have many of the same events, but the New Testament is where I´ve learned a lot about Jesus and my calling as a missionary. We got the conference magazine of last General Conference, but just that one and some older ones. You don´t have to send any, but thank you for the thought.

It´s funny that you say it was Fourth of July because Elder Bird and I woke up and said, "Hey. It´s Independence Day... whooooooo." And then he had this little U.S. flag that he shook a little. It´s interesting being in another country with different holidays.

I really miss washers and dryers. We had this problem with the old washer that I´ll explain about later, but I appreciate you a lot Mom. And things that tend to work for longer then a few months. I´ve run out of time, but thank you for all the news. It´s great to hear about home and everyone else. I hope it all works out, too. I´m praying for you all and I love you both.

Sincerely,
your tanner, thinner son,

Elder Shepard

7/1/13

Sent: Monday, July 1, 2013 12:49:41 PM

 

Dear Dad,

               Thank you for the quote. I´ve been reading through dctrine and covenants, the Book of Mormon and the Bible a lot during the mission. Every morning wih a hour to come, the people are afraid. The people want to help but put it down as nothing. I think that many peopleare frusrated with the government but a lo of the local govenment is still corrupt. One way or a another, all the prophecies of the prophets will be fulfilled. I forge exactly where, but I remeber the sriprtalking about how babes are not ready to eat meat first, but must drink milk. I like to think that our faith and willingness to obey is what help us move forward in the gospel. Here in Camocim, mos people are religious and most tend to not riot or protest. I´a pretty peaceful city, even though from what I´ve heard, it´s getting worse. However, Elder Bird and I have been finding a lot of new people that seem to be the eleits of th Lord. I pray for many of them to be ready to make changes necessary in their life to follow Jesus and be baptized as he was.  Is there anything tha yo and Mom want to hear about in my mission? If you want just ask.

Love,

        Jacob

Weekly Report from Elder Jacob Shepard

Camocim, 6-16-13

(Elder Shepard)

 

Good day, every one!

                              

This week has been busy and last week was as well (sorry about the missed report).

 

Elder Bird is my new companion here in Camocim. He is from Arizona and he has been on his mission for about a year and two months. He´s a lot more strict about the rules, which in all reality is good for me, since at times I can get lazy. We live in an apartment that has two bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, a balcony, and a back maintenance room to hang up clothes. It´s the perfect size for two missionaries, but now that we have four living together it´s a little tight.

 

These past two weeks we have been working hard to find more people to teach. There are a lot of people who are Catholic, but not practicing. Most people are willing to let us in to hear about God. So it´s easy sometimes to teach people but it´s harder to find some who are willing to act on it. We found a lot of people who said that they need God more in their lives, but never had the will power to change for the better. 

 

Recently we found several young men who let us in and came to church. A lot of the youth here tend to run wild and are in bad situations in the streets: with drugs, smoking, drinking, and getting young girls pregnant. If they learn to do better by following Jesus and his teachings, it´s great to see the changes in the people for the better and a privilege to be the one to help them.

 

I love you and hope everything is going great.

 

Love,

 

Elder Shepard

Camocim, 5-19-13

(Elder Shepard)



Protests in Brazil

Dear Dad,

I´ve seen some of the protests on TV that have been going on and it hasn´t hit Camocim too bad. The news report said that the first protest started sparking other protests over various issues. The country could use a better government and the basis provided by one, but it seems like soccer has always been something to distract everyone from the real problems. Nothing happened in Camocim because it's a small city.

 

There are a lot of people here who can´t read and many don´t go to college. Education is very important to people, but it seems that there is some corruption in the government. But the people here are doing alright. Many are very humble and want to talk with us. I think that a lot of them are ready to learn because they have gone through hard times.  Religion is a hot topic around here since many say they´re Catholic but don´t practice it and some are very fanatical in their churches.

 

Also, sorry if there are any typos. This computer is very slow and doesn´t register the letters very well. I´m doing fine though, and the work here hasn´t changed because of the protests. Elder Bird and I have found a lot of other people to teach, so we´re staying busy. I love you and thank you for the emails.

 

Love, your son,

 

Elder Shepard

 

Unrelated photos :-)

 

Camocim, 4-14-13

(Elder Shepard)

 

 

Weekly Report of Elder Jacob Shepard

Dear everybody,

 

Sorry about the lack of reports and how the last one was sort of short, too. There has been a lot of crazy stuff that´s been going on here in Camocim. This last week was the end of the transfer, a 6 week period. At the end of each transfer a missionary can be sent to a different area, and my companion Elder Morris left to serve in Teresina. I now have a new companion named Elder Bird. He´s from Arizona and has been here in the mission about a year and 2 months. He and I are now working in an area that has not had a lot of missionary work done, so we are working hard to find new people to teach who are willing to learn and do more.

 

As missionaries, we have to work with people that have one way or another come into contact with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So we´ve begun teaching a man that has visited the church before to quit drinking, but relapsed and was ashamed to come to church again. It was about a few weeks ago that he saw us walking on the streets and said he wanted to try again. He had started using drugs and spending less time with his wife and family, but he has been doing better. He´s given up drugs and been spending more time at home. He just has to quit drinking, and in his words, he´ll almost be a saint.

 

Elder Bird and I have talked to a lot of people but we´re trying to find people who would take what we´re talking about and make an actual difference in their lives. A lot of people talk a lot about God and say that they love their neighbor, but many times it doesn´t matter. In the Bible one of the apostles said that faith without works is dead. So saying that you love everyone and believing in God makes no difference if you don´t act on it. My dad sent me a quote about how being in a church doesn´t make you a Christian as much as being in a garage doesn´t make you a car. To tell you the truth, me being out on a mission doesn't mean I´m a good person if I don´t believe in it and do it grudgingly. I know that what we´re doing out here is where I´m supposed to be and that by this work, someone will have a better life because of it.

 

I love all of you and I hope that everything is going great. I hope that these few words will make you think about what´s important in life and I´m grateful for all the help and support you all have given me.

 

Your, something or other of some kind of relation, in the service,

 

Elder Shepard

Camocim, 6-10-13

(Elders Morris and Shepard)

Jacob's Email Response to Mom

Dear Mom,

It´s funny how Ohio seems farther away than home, even though it's about the same distance. It´s great that everyone out there is doing well.

 

Here in Camocim everything is going great. We found a man named Claudio who at first was not as interested, but after we sat down and showed him the Book of Mormon he was excited and wanted us to come back.

 

My companion and I have been working in the upper half of the city where not a lot of missionary work has been done. It seems like there are a lot of golden people. This next Tuesday though, I´m switching companions.

 

It´s unfortunate that my camera charger was left in the States and my battery ran out. However, if you want pictures, a church member named Maria Felix has a few pictures of me on Facebook.

 

I don´t have time this week to write more because we have to drop people off at the bus. I love you all and hope everything is going great.

 

Love Elder Shepard

 

Camocim, 6-10-13

(Elders J. Santos, Portela, Shepard, and Morris; Sister Felix)

 

Before eating a pepper, Camocim, 6-2-13

(Elders Shepard and J. Santos)

 

After eating a pepper, Camocim, 6-2-13

(Elders Shepard and J. Santos) 

Camocim, 6-2-13
(Elders J. Santos, Morris, Shepard, and Portela)

 

Camocim, 6-9-13

(Elders J. Santos, Morris, Shepard, and Portela; Sister Felix)

 

 

 

Camocim, 6-1-13 

 (Sister Felix; Elders Shepard and Morris)

 



2nd Weekly Report of Elder Shepard

Hello Everybody!
 

Thank you for being supportive and it´s great to have you as my relatives. I wouldn´t want anyone else in the world.

 

Things have been going a little crazy the week before. My companion, the other elder I´m paired to work with, was sick for a whole week with a stomach flu. Since we can´t be alone, I was basically under house arrest. I got through a lot of my studies and cleaned my apartment. So at least something good came of it.

 

This last week was a lot better, though it was a lot harder and rewarding. We used to be just one set of missionaries working in Camocim, but now we are lucky enough to get another. Camocim is a city big enough to make hard for just two people together to walk around in. Now our area is split in two. All of our hard work and people we have been regularly talking to has gone to the two new Brazilians. We are working to find people that would be interested so we have been walking non-stop for a week without much rest. Here in this city, most of the roads aren´t well put together, since they're basically a ton of hand-sized rocks pounded into the ground. My feet are still killing me. But...it´s been worth it.

 

We´ve found a lot of people who want to hear more and think that what we´re doing is good, instead of calling us antichrists and telling us to leave. Just kidding. Mostly. Brazil is a very religious country and most people think they just need to pick a church that sounds good. I know that Elder Morris, my companion, and I are doing our best to be the best examples and helping them see the benefit of our message.

 

I love the time I´ve already been here and I don't think they´ll send me anywhere else soon. It´s one of the nicer places because it´s been windy, so the heat isn´t as bad. I´ve already been here 3 months and time is flying by.

 

I hope everyone is doing well and that you all are happy.
 

All of my love and wishes,

Elder Shepard

Memorial Day

Good afternoon!

 

It´s Memorial Day here too, I think, because a lot of people are walking around on the streets. If it´s a holiday or some kind of reason, people like to take the day off here. I miss having a good choir to sing with. Since we only have a branch here in Camocim, we don´t have a piano, and a lot of people can´t really sing. I think my voice will probably be bad at the end of these two years.

 

It´s awesome how John is getting so big. He looked bigger than James on Skype. Are Trey and Ashley working right now or looking for jobs for summer? Ashley´s trip sounds great. I wish I had been a little more active in band and saved up for one of those trips, but band had it´s moments.

 

Here in the mission you have a lot of people here who are friendly and willing to talk, and agree to commitments, but they keep on falling through. We´ve had quite a few people who we wanted to get baptized here these past 2 months (soon to be 3), but they just aren´t ready to make the covenant of baptism when they won´t go to church. It´s just like the parable of the bridegroom. Those who were the original guests or elites were invited but did not come. So those who were in the street and not as good were welcomed in. So we´ve started working a ton on finding new people who are ready to be humble and keep their word.

 

Which reminds me, that recently we had an interview with the mission president and I said one of our goals was to get another set of missionaries here. So that was about 1 week ago and now we have another pair of Brazilian missionaries living in our tiny apartment. We had to go bed and desk shopping. We split our area and have been working with them in our old area and gave them all our old investigators, and basically everything. We have started working on a place that has not had lot of work done, though it was close to the church. We got them familiar with the area and now the numbers in Camocim will be doubling shortly.

 

I hope to leave this place a full ward and with plans to build a new chapel since we are working out of a casapella (a church made from a house). It´s been very challenging, but as a missionary once said, "If things are going rough, it means that Satan is trying his best to stop you. Because you are a danger to him. If things are easy going, then you might not be doing much." I think that all the trouble you´ve gone through for your students, Mom, is helping them be better.

 

It´s crazy how Matt was called to serve in Utah. I don´t know if that would have been the right place for me, but who knows? It could be perfect to him. I wish him the best of luck and success. If you happen to see Brother Chappell, Matt's dad, could you tell him: "Como esta? Espero que tudo é bom com a familia de te. Eu sei que sua familia é um luz para todo mundo e são bençoado. Vai com Deus sempre. Elder Pastor."

 

It´s great to hear that Trey and Ashley are doing so great in the church. It sounded like their talks and the whole meeting was great. I hope that they know that knowing about these things from a young age will bless their lives more then they can imagine. I´ve seen the difference of the youth here who have kept the standards of the church and the ones who have left for the things of the world. I can tell from these people that Trey and Ashley are doing the right things.

 

I love you all and miss you a lot. I love being here and know that the time is already flying by. It´s already been 5 months. Only 2 more calls home and who knows how many more days, but I hope to come home with work the Lord would be proud of.

 

Love,

 

Elder Shepard

Old Letter to Emily 5/26/13

From: Jacob Shepard <jacob.shepard@myldsmail.net>
Date: Tue, Mar 26, 2013 at 10:55 AM
Subject: Re: Feliz Aniversário Elder Shepard!!!

Dearest Emily,

                      It's great to hear everything that is going on in your life. I think it's wonderful that John is growing up. It seems crazy to me that I've been in Priest River and Newport for 5 weeks. I have just gotten attached to the wards and getting progress on our investigators.  I have been out in this beautiful area that has mountains, rivers and lakes, trees and it is just breath taking when I was driving around. Thank you for your support and remembering to write or email, even though I've been somewhat lax in that department. As well as writing in my journal. When I come home, I'm usually tired and we are usually so busy on P-day that I have a hard time writing anything, except for emails. But that is just another excuse that I'm using, which reminds me of all the people who use excuses to not do what they need to. So I will do better and write to everyone more often. The last part of this week has been crazy since I got my visa last Wednesday and my flight to Brazil was delayed because of lack of 2 pilots. So right now I'm in Detroit, in a hotel writing. My flight was pushed back a full day so I won't be in Brazil until tomorrow. I've been learning so much in the field and I've learned how to teach simply and for understanding. And being out here has strengthened my mindset of teaching any and everyone. With so many people out here it makes me realize even more that they all are children of God. My love for the scriptures and everything like Article 13 states, in all that is of good worth. My Portugese needs a little polishing and there is so much that I need to learn, but I think I will be going straight to my area. I won't be going to the MTC since I spent all my training in Provo. But I'll still be learning from my first companion to my last. I think that I'll struggle for a little while, but the language will come soon enough. Thank you for the scripture, since it was my favorite in the MTC and memorized it. Added with Matthew's verse about, "unto the least of my brethern" I know that I am in the service of the Lord as the Book of Mosiah saysand that this is the most important work that is going out today other then the building of familys. I also love the Hymn, since it shows how much I need to stay diligent to save some wandering soul. I'll be skyping on Mother's day though I'm not sure what time. I love you and everyone in the States. Soon I'll be working with Brazilians. Love you so much.

Your Brother in the Service,

                                        Elder Shepard

Mosiah 4:6

5-20-13

Hey Hannah, James is huge and I´m here Brazil, and.......it´s a thrill?

Anywho, Thanks for getting on Skype. It´s funny how everyone was on Skype at different times. I´m sending out weekly thingies now so you get to hear more about my week, so if you have questions, ask away. I do have a question for you guys though. I was wondering if you could find the album of the Movie UP and a cd called Night Tracks, which is a piano thing. I was thinkg about music and those were two I knew were mission ....worthy. *shrug* If you could find them online and tell mom and  dad to send them that would be great. Or whoever wants to, If you guys can that woud be awesome. If not, I´m sustained by the work and the Spirit. Missionary Power, Hoooooeeee! As in old english tally ho. I love you guys and being on a mission is the best choice I could have made at this time. I hope your family is doing great.

Love, your Brother,

                          Elder Shepard

Also this the mailing address if any one forgets:

Elder Jacob Allen Shepard

Brasil Teresina Mission

Rua Tersando Paz, N* 2129

Salas 105-108, Centro

64001-380 Teresina- PI

Brasil

Thank you and good night

By the way the N* thing should be writtn like a zero on a degree of temp. And thank you. Your daaaaaaaaa Best! Also if you have the time there is a member called Maria Felix who takes a lot of pictures in Camocim. I can´t send many pictures now because my camera charger broke. If you send here an invite or look at here pictures. you can see some of the pictures of me here in Brazil. All of my love,

 Elder Shepard

First Weekly Report from Brazil

Hello everybody!

It´s me, a distant, as in distance, relative of yours. I´m here in Brazil in a LAN House writing my first email like this that I will be writing weekly to all of you. I might not have all of the contact information of might that might want to hear me, but if you know someone who does, send me a list and I add them to the names of people I´m writing too. (might have been a run on sentence)

 

I´m in a city called Camocim, which is a place known for fishing and it´s beaches. It is as hot as anywhere else in my mission but it´s luckily windy. The down side is that it rains like a monsoon every once in a while. It´s funny because when it rains, all the Brazilians hide in their houses. A saying here is that when it rains ,all the Brazilians melt.

 

The people here are very nice and humble. Many times they do not have a great education, because those that do, usually leave Camocim for a bigger city. They are very serious about the education of kids, though. It´s a different kind of place here. Many people will invite us in and give us juice or cookies or something want us to feel at home.

 

Religion is a big deal down here, and everyone seems to think that they just have to pick on that sound nice. If you see something about Jesus or God on every block, you know your in Brazil. Since we´re missionaries, I think that´s why many of them want to be nice to us, because we are talking about Jesus.

 

It´s been really great here since I can actually see the difference of the peoples lives when we help them. To see a person give up drinking and partying, so that can be with their family, to see a young man get off the streets, away from drugs and gangs, or a women that has gained respect for herself and realize that their is more to life then her body is rewarding and really why I´m here. We talk about what we believe in and try to get them to improve their lives even if they don´t want to do anything with our church.

 

To have them improve their lives in anyway has made my time here worth it and I know I´ll get better at finding and helping anyone from the rich person trying to find purpose to the poor family trying to bring a broken relationship together. And as we talk about these things, I can tell I´m a better person then I was before. At least I know how to clean my own mess, clothes, buy food and live somewhere where I have to take care of things. You´d be surprised at some of the crazy things I´ve seen here, but Life is good.

 

If you have any questions send me a line and I´ll answer as best I can. I´m at the point where I´m mixing my English with Portuguese, so we´ll see how my grammar is. I write emails on Mondays around 10 o´clock to 4. I love all of you and hope that everything is going great in the States.

Your (Something or Other) in the Service,

 

Elder Jacob Shepard

Camocim, 5-3-13

(Elders Morris and Shepard) 

 

 

Camocim, 5-19-13
(Elders J. Santos, Morris, Shepard, and Portela; Sister Felix)

 

Camocim, 5-19-13
(Elders Shepard and Morris

 

5/13/13

Mon, May 13, 2013 at 10:46 AM

The weather here is Hot and humid. We already had the Skype confernce call, and thank you all for he love and support. The lady that picked up is named Matilde and she is married to an American. She was nice enough to let us use her computer for talk with everyone.  Elder Morris is from Utah originally, but lived in Seattle before. I will now be responding to all emails, though some might just tell you that I ran out of time on my hour to read and respond, and that´ll say more next week. Before the Terezina mission was formed, it was part of other missions. So when they split it up, the other missions took all of the good missionaries and sent ones that were less so. Camocim had some lazy missionaries before and was then closed down for about two years. Then some sister missionaries
opened it back up. The Members love the missionaries, but depend on them too much for some things; but won´t listen to us for others. But all in all, it is growing and expanding. The missionaries who have served here recently have worked a tone and Elder Morris and I are working everyday to find elect investigators and help the ward to function better. This last week I had an interview with the Mission President and I told him how Elder Morris and I are working to get another set of missionaries here in Camocim. We just got a call asking how much room we have in our apartment, so some time soon, this area will have more people to work with. I have only 4 weeks more with Elder Morris, but I hope that by the time he leaves, we will have people prepared to be baptized for the next missionaries.
All of my love, Sincerely, Your Son in the Service,
                                                                      Elder Shepard