January 27, 2014

Hello everybody! I hope that everyone's week was good this past week! I was happy to hear from Dad and Kellie this week! Dad thank you for your thoughts on the fall and the Atonement! He suffered all so that we can return and all have a choice! Be careful this Tuesday on your travels! The Brazilians here are just talking how the united states is being pounded by snow freezing temps. I don't know if that is true but be careful! I am sorry to hear that Kellie is the healthiest sick person in Idaho! Ha you might have this problem every winter with your germ carrying 5th graders. haha Kellie the talk is called Hasten the Lord's game plan! by elder neilsen! (exclamation point) It really gives a game plan for members to help with missionary work! It is great! I am always reading the liahona on the bus so I have already read alot of the conference talks already.  

This week was a crazy week! We witnessed a miracle in our zone! Our zone had 20 baptisms in one week! I humbly know that the Lord is hasten HIS WORK. When I was still in New York, we had the worldwide leadership conference for new mission presidents. The spirit whispered to me "Elder Bell, this will go really fast. You just need to hold on!" I know that this promise is being fulfilled! It can be realized as we do two things! First, we must have our eyes focused on eternal life! in john 17:3 it says, "and this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." the way we will begin to obtain eternal life is to "know" our Savior and our Father here on earth. It starts now and through our simple and constant acts of righteousness we will know them! Second, Always preach the gospel in everything we do and say! The opportunities will always come as we search to share the gospel! I know my Savior lives and he is calling for us to share what we hold dear and bring others unto him! I love him and hope that I can continue to serve him with all that I have! 

May the Lord Bless you all,

Elder Bell   

January 20, 2014

I am grateful to hear that Jon is doing better! Thank you for letting me know! I did receive the package! ha there was only one problem. the post office held it hostage and I had to pay 60 bucks to receive it. haha you have to love political corruption! but thank you for the ties and shirts. I am actually using them today. Ryan thank you for your words of advice! I will do my best to double my efforts to bring souls unto my savior! Monica, I still cannot believe that Addie is in preschool! That is so weird to think and haha good luck on the potty training! haha I would love to hear from the rest of you!

Well today actually we had another surprise! Whoo now we have 2 sets of missionaries in our area! My son is now with a new companion and I received a new greeny! Whoo whoo! haha It is great! It has always been my goal to have 2 sets of missionaries! There is also something else that I reflected a lot this past week! When elder Junot of the seventy was here, He said a phrase that has really stuck in my mind! The best way to grow our faith in the savior is obedience. I have come to know this to be true! All throughout our trails and difficulties, we have to ask ourselves, "What commandment can I obey better?" I know that through this as we show our faith and obey to continue on our quest to become like our Father in heaven, we will receive the power of the Atonement in our lives! May we better ourselves each and everyday!

Love Elder Bell    

January 13, 2014

Whoo! it was great to hear from those who wrote this week! Dad my health is great! haha you'll never have to worry about me not eating! continue to have hope for Mike! Jon I am continually praying for you to get better! MINDY wrote me! WHOOO ha thank you for your testimony and know that the power of prayer is real! I feel you prayers daily! Heather it is great to hear that the bells of Iowa are ringing true, haha ringing,  in missionary work! Hailey is going to be NINE? what is this? haha ah oh well! Myara, not mayram, has received much comfort through the plan of salvation! Gil had some opposition this week! And so did Patrick! continue to pray for them as well as pray for Jennifer and her mother, and Andre that they can be baptized this coming sunday!

 I am still in the same area with my son Élder Periera! Oh and I am a district leader now! I guess the Lord wants me to repent just that much more! haha But I am grateful to be an instrument in the hands of the lord and to serve other missionaries! This week was about the Atonement. I well never forget the greatest gift that I have received in my life! Forgiveness. forgiveness for all that I have done wrong and that I get up and always continue forward! to be forgiven our savior paid with everything he had even his life! I truly stand all amazed at all he has done for me and continues to do! May we stand at all times for him. know that unlike him we will not have to stand completely and utterly alone. he will be on our right and on our left and he truly will go with us in all things as we stand with him! I love him! May we remember him this week and forever! 

Love Elder Bell  

January 6, 2014

Hey everyone! Thank you so very much those who wrote me this last week! I was thankful to hear that Ella had a good christmas with her dad, and that Jon is still as techy tech as ever! haha He was able to enjoy a little facetime with blake! Know that I am praying for you to get better!!! but most importantly thanks mom for your email! Yours always give a great strength to continue onward! Your right we have the best family in the world! during my service in Brazil and New York, I have come to treasure the family that I have been blessed with! The Good brothers and sister that I have that are constantly praying for me to continue onward! I am so greatful that we all have a knowledge of the gospel and I strive "without ceasing " as alma the younger did to bring souls to the same knowledge that we have! thank you for that reminder mom! No my package has not arrived yet but it has 2 chances to arrive this week! if not this week I'll just have to wait until next week! this WEEK I humbly ask for prayers for Gil, that he will accept to be baptized, Mayram, That the plan of salvation will help receive peace for her fathers death and that she can be baptized, AND Patrick, new patrick, that he can understand the restoration! Pray that we can continualy find those who are ready to receive the gospel now.

this week was a week of rememberence. a rememberence of how much time I have left! This next week I will have 11 months on the mission! This Year has gone by in an instant! I can't believe that I only have 13 months left! I want us all to remember how time can easily pass and leave us on the side of the road! If we allow it, time can rob us of our potential, and how divine is our potential? I know that all of us are children of our Heavenly Father! Our potential to do good, to change the lives of others, and to follow the savior is as great as we will permit it to be! This year, I hope we can all grow our capacity to act in righteousness and DO as the Lord has commanded. I know our happiness will grow in the work that the has for us to do, and more importantly, we will know him! Moroni 7:48
I love you all and may you let the Lord Bless you,
Elder Bell

December 30, 2013

hello family! Whoo it was so great to see spencer kellie jon mom and dad ON Christmas!! I was so grateful to see my family face to face. I was happy to See spencers "jolly face" and that he is still training to become the next elf. I will pray for you kellie. haha Grateful to see that mom is looks great and that dad still has his great sense of humor! haha Todo bien? haha you know I am speaking Portuguese right? Also that Jon you are doing better! I will pray for you that you can quickly get over your cold! So You want to know about Elder Pereira? so he is awesome! He is 19 years old and has 2 years of membership in the church! He is the only member in his entire family and an only child! It has been very difficult for his parents and grandparents to allow him to serve a mission! He has much more courage and grit than I do! I am grateful for the opportunity to be his "father" on the mission. I have been very grateful for the example that he gives for me and that he has been humble, meek, and loving!

This week I  was definitely reminded about something incredibly important when sharing the gospel! study, Listen, identify, and teach! Study all the doctrines of the gospel and applying them in your life! This will allow you to gain a promise that in the "very moment" you need to teach you can. Listening shows that you care. it shows that you want to help and that you love whomever you are speaking with. The next would be to identify! Identifying what their soul is yearning for. President monteiro gave a perfect analogy. The gospel is like a huge platter of food and those who are your neighbors or the people in Walmart, anyone really, They are all hungry! But, they all have different tastes. if you find someone that wants pizza, you are not going to give him ice cream. he wants pizza. As you listen to those around you and the spirit, you can identify what doctrine they need. Then teach! As you show your trust in the Lord, he will guide your mouth! I know he Always helps those who are serving him! May we all Remember that as we continue to love and help others receive the Gospel, We will begin to have a taste of the Love and Joy that God has. The Work of Salvation is his work. I love and pray for you all!

Love
Elder Bell

December 16, 2013

Hello family! MOM HAPPY BIRTHDAY! You have now passed the mark of being 3/5 of 100! WHOOO haha That is so great! I am happy to hear as well that you are very hip with your new tech. haha I bet spencer, jon, and Blake are very proud! haha Also I am happy to hear that Baczuk is down the fort there in the ward and that You are continuing to work with Mike! I will pray for him! Monica thank you so much for the pictures! Ha what happened with gracie? she spouted really fast! haha Also Jon I am happy to here things are turning around for you! I will continue to pray that you and the leg can find the true happiness that we all need! Oh and I will wait anxiously for the package! PEOPLE TO PRAY FOR: Patrick and his son Raffael that Patrick can stop smoking. they have a Baptismal date for this Saturday! Marina, she was baptized this last week and her son paulo this week, pray that she can find a Job! And Sandra, pray that she can overcome her problems with the word of wisdom! TELEPHONE CALL WILL BE AT NOON more or less on CHRISTMAS DAY. Everyone just make sure you are at mom and dads house at about 11. Give the address of mom's ipad and we can face time! 

This week honestly was completely miraculous!!!! I know that this is the Lord's work! There is no way that all the things that have happened this week were coincidence! God is hasten his work! Just one example, we were talking with a man on the street and Sandra, now investigator, came up to us out of nowhere and said, " oh my son told me that he wants to talk to you." So, we wrote down there address and on Saturday went there. come to find out her sons are less active members and they both want to return to church! she Starting asking really specific questions and we responded with the Book of Mormon! I know that really the Power of the Book of Mormon is real! It answers all the questions of the soul because it holds the fullness of the Gospel of our Savior! Sandra went to church yesterday and said "It is now my Goal to be Baptized! If any of you are not reading the Book of Mormon, I plead with you to Start again today! Read every day! I promise you as a servant of the Lord and from the promises found in the scriptures that if you are reading alone and as a family and applying the principles taught every day in your life, You will easily distinguish right from wrong, Have the spirit as your companion, have an increased amount of Joy and Happiness, and feel a better sense of Determination and strength to put Eternal Life at priority number one! I Know that more miracles are yet on the horizon and we only need to use the word of God to see and receive them! Love you all, Elder Bell 

December 9, 2103

Haha Dad I am happy to report that heaven is very close and my only goal is to get a little Closer Everyday! WOW as well you just keep helping the missionaries and remember january 4 is alot of time! (more time you wait, the more time you give satan to work) they are being obedient to the guidelines of the "first 12 weeks" a program that you use for training new missionaries. (I am training a New Missionary "greeny") ha that is what training is. It states that you should mark a baptismal date in the first visit so they are doing great! support them and continually pray that the spirit may be upon them!  Oh spencer and Kellie I received your package 2 weeks ago! Thank thank thank you bundles! And my heath is great!

after this week I am dead. ha we worked worked worked worked!  I feel like I returned to new york, but this time I don't have a car! haha This week was just full of miracles! I cannot deny that this is the Lord's work! How grateful I am that we are a part of it! Yesterday we baptized Marina and Ia her daughter! It was very difficult with them but In our last lesson we had recent converts with us and I felt the spirit with great power in the lesson! It was amazing experience! We also had stake conference and we were able to go to the adult session because the first Presidency asked all missionaries to go! so we all went and was I in for a little suprize! So the stake president called all the missionaries up to and we all said our names and where we were from. I was the last to say my name but when I finished, the stake president said, "alright now you and I will give a talk" haha so he wanted me to relate the Story of elder Olmos, less active for four years and then returned and went right into the field. I will never forget this experience! As I began to speak, I almost felt like the hand of God was on my shoulder. Wow I knew that the lord Was using me as an instrument in his hands! I am grateful for this experience. It reiterates that I really am nothing without the spirit! But with these two experiences, I know that as we permit the spirit to use us as a channel, the Hand of God can be outstreched to all. May we be worthy of this sacred gift so that we can feel closer to heaven. May we remember and keep Our covenants!!!! If you are not doing so, abandon whatever it blocking the blessings and put the covenants you have made at priority number one! I found a verse in enos that I liked a lot! 17And I, Enos, aknew it would be according to the covenant which he (the Lord) had made; wherefore my soul did rest.  
If we are keeping our covenants regardless of anything else, our souls can be at peace. love you all FOREVER (this is possible through our covenants)

Elder Bell