Elder Young's 4th week in the Sao Paulo Mission Training Center

Hello family!

 

The past two weeks have gone by very quickly. I'm counting weeks instead of days now. I spend a lot of time in the same room, so I lose track of what day it is sometimes. I'm glad I have time to read. It's great. I plan on finishing the Old Testament and D&C before I leave for Brasilia. It's great to have a continual stream of biblical, book of mormonical narrative to accompany specific doctrinal study. Language study is immersed with doctrinal study because of the way I have been preparing lessons for "investigators." I'm able to understand more and more what Brazilians are saying, but I still have to rely quite a bit on body language. (That's all that really matters anyway, right?) I came across 1 Cor. 14:2 and when I read until the semicolon, I stopped and laughed to myself because that's pretty much how I feel at this point. That's the funny scripture for the week. I can't help but pull out funny verses that really apply to my situation and my quirky humor.

 

This week I studied the Light of Christ for my personal study. As I read many scriptures concerning the topic, I developed a new interpretation for it.

DC 88:6-13 - Light is in all things. Things that we can see, as we all know, are things that reflect light.

Alma 30:44 - All things denote there is a God. Just look around you.

DC 88:6-7 - If you have an eye single to the glory of God, you can be consumed or filled with the light of Christ. When the light comes into you, you reflect the Light of Christ, and then you can be an instrument for the Lord in denoting that there is a God because you are filled with His light.

 

This almost literal interpretation of the Light of Christ has convinced me of the great importance of having an eye single to the glory of God. I'm so glad I have the opportunity to only think about one thing, sharing the Light of Christ.

In 2 Ne 31:20 I subsituted the word "light" for "light." We can not only have eternal life, but also eternal light.

 

This week we sang the EFY Medley in Portuguese! I know all my brothers like this song. They would have loved to hear it. It was a great experience. I remember meeting the composer of that song and hearing the story of how the medley was created. The songs that consitute the medley were in the same time signature and just fit together perfectly. I don't think it's a coincidence how powerful it is.

 

Thank you for the news and letters from home! I love you all very much.

 

Love,

Bryce