HALLELUJAH!

Goedemiddag iedereen!!

How is everyone?? I hope you are all doing fantastic...I miss you all.

Quick shout our to Birthdays this week!!:

DALLIN, SAM, and NICK...all on the same day.

Also Clint on the 14th!  haha I hope you guys have the best day ever, and eat a lot of birthday cake for me. I hope everything is going well with you all.

Now...this week.

Honestly nothing too crazy this week happened.

I think I had the hardest day of my mission this week though...and I am only saying that to you all because I was able to overcome it and it turned out to be a great day (in the end;)) I learned sooo much and I was able to realize how much farther I can go than I think I can.

It was just this past Friday... and ALL of our plans fell through...but the thing with missionary work, is you cant just not do anything...if you arent busy you have to make yourself busy. Soooooo We knocked doors.

Just to make sure it wasnt an extremely long day, we decided to do a power hour before lunch so we could have a little break in between. Well within the first two doors, we talked to a lady for 10 minutes, and all she had to say was that what we were doing was absolutely pointless. She kept going on and on about how knocking doors doesnt do anything, and she was trying to come up with ideas even for us of other things to do..(all of which are like once a month ideas...and we have to do missionary work somehow).

She was still nice though...and we kept going. Literally every person slammed the door to us, and one guy asked us what in the heck we were doing here all the way from America..of course we told him, and he made the comment of. "nee, wij vinden het prettig binnen onze eigen kerk, en andere mensen vinden het ook zo, want we hoefen niet om andere mensen te dwingen om naar de kerk te komen."  .....basically: No we find it lovely in our own church, and other people think that as well, because we dont need to push people into coming to it.......

It was rough. I went home to lunch and prayed and cried and slept for an hour. haha

I really did not want to go back out...BUT I DID!!! and it was fine...obviously it still wasnt that great...but I definitely received help from God. He gave me the strength to keep going.

Then just when I think that day could never get better (because of how hard it was and I still had to keep working)...I find I am totally wrong.

We went to the Saores for dinner. (a lovely couple from Cape Verde...(Idont know how to spell it...africa)) and they just had a party at their house...It was ssooooooooo refreshing. So different than what I am used to...with the dutch people, but it was a taste of home. There was music, and laughing and eating yummy kachupa (also dont know how to spell it) which takes apparently five hours to make and it was delicious!! I brought my guitar and we just sang. There were some non members there too of course and we talked to this lady forever about the church. She was just eating it up. It was so nice!!

So that is where my title comes from: I played hallelujah and a bunch of drunk african guys (who spoke portuguese) sang a long at the chorus. Also one of them when we were leaving said.."wait you cant leave we were just going to dance..."and he proceeds to grab sis. Duncan and start dancing with her. She went bright red and I laughed soooo hard. It is just funny because you especially have to know her and how she is.

It was a wonderful night...and the Lord for sure gave me a tender mercy.

(I am sorry mom I couldnt get any pictures because my camera wasnt working with the new sd card...but of course I figured it out after we left...I was soooo sad...but hopefully we will just be able to do it again)

Soooo...If you ever feel like you cant get through the day like I did....IT IS NOT TRUE!!! GET ON YOUR KNEES AND PRAY. God knows us, He loves us and wants us to communicate with Him...He will give us the strength to carry on. I know that! I experienced that!!

I love you all...I am sorry I have no time to send pictures this week. I will send some next week!

Fijne Week!

IK HOU VAN JULLIE!

Liefs,

Zuster Stewart-Chester

last weeks pictures...guido......;)