Mother's Day

We had the awesome opportunity to skype with Elder LeSueur today, and he is doing great! He looks wonderful and sounds great. He spoke in Portuguese with us and we think he sounds like a native! Here are a couple of screenshots from the big event:

Mom & Dad, The Jensens, The Johnsons, and both grandmas were able to connect on the call!

A good time was had by all (:

Trevor and his companion, Elder B. Carvalho

...And here's the audio of Elder LeSueur's testimony in English and an account of The First Vision in Portuguese. It got cut off at the end, but Elder B. Carcalho told him that his Portuguese was spoken without an accent! 

In Case you want the English text to what exactly he is saying in Portuguese:

" I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me. When the light rested upon me I saw two personages , whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other-- This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him! "

Mormon.Org

"His Plan is Absolutely Beautiful and Perfect Because He is Perfect..."

I can't begin to tell you how fast these days and weeks are beginning to go by now. It seriously scares me how quick things are going to go by, especially once I'm out in the mission field and doing the real work!

This week has been absolutely great. I have learned a ton in the gospel and have even started getting back into the swing of learning Portuguese. I kind of hit a wall for a while and needed to get back into it or I would have been in big trouble with the natives... I still probably will, but I will be way better off than most of the rest of my District!

We are teaching 4 investigators right now: Germano, Michel, Xavi, and Morgan. This week, we have committed all but Morgan to baptism and even though these are practice scenarios, the Spirit is just as real as if we were to be teaching true investigators! Helping them overcome their struggles and to gain faith and teaching by the Spirit is such an amazing experience and I can testify to all of you that this is truly Christ's church!

I also was able to finish reading The Book of Mormon all the way through today and let me tell you, there definitely is not a more true book on this earth that can bring you closer to God. Please, if you aren't reading it now or if you have never even read it in your life (non-members included), just take a few minutes out of your day to read it and experience the pure happiness that comes from it! I know it's the word of God and He will bless you for reading it diligently, seeking to learn! Moroni 10:3-5 says it all!

I got to host the new missionaries again this week and only got to host one and he was from Tahiti and spoke purely French. It might have been one of the coolest experiences I have had here with another missionary because even though he was miserably cold in the 5 degree weather and couldn't communicate with anyone, he was so excited to be here and doing the Lord's work! He is a convert of just a year and in the little English he did know, he told me that he wanted to meet the missionary who baptized him (I guess he works here at the MTC) and thank him for the best gift he has ever received in his life. That touched my heart so clearly and made me so much more excited to bless the lives of others by bringing them God's true word.

In other news, I think we might have broken the freezing point today because the snow is FINALLY starting to melt and I was able to walk outside in shorts and a t shirt. So if you'd like, go check Provo's weather for the day and tell me how crazy I am for thinking 30 degrees is a nice temperature.

I want all of you to know that I see the hand of the Lord in my life each and every day and feel His love more than ever because I have dedicated myself to living according to His word. Having experienced the worldly happiness and this true happiness, I would choose the spiritual side every time! I want you all to share this love and joy with me and I invite you to change whatever you need to change in your life to be in accordance with Heavenly Father's word! His plan is absolutely beautiful and perfect because He is perfect.

I testify that He loves each and every one of us equally and desires that we submit to His will by seeking true forgiveness of our sins, big or small, and doing all that we can to show our love to Him. We can all return to His presence through His great and eternal plan!

Eu amo voces muito and miss you tons! Please keep/start writing me! Have an amazing week and go do some good in the world! 

Com muito amor, 

Elder LeSueur

Mormon.Org

"Have Faith That He Hears and Answers Your Prayers..."

It has been one crazy week here at the MTC and time is really starting to fly by like nothing else. 

Well on Saturday at TRC (a small thing where we get to teach members lessons like family home evening) I met a Blake LeSueur from Arizona who met Grandma LeSueur a little while ago randomly and then I taught a guy named Patrick that had a photography class with Chelsea not too long ago, and he was super excited to meet me! I have found it's easier to speak Portuguese when you have something in common with someone and it just flows! 

So that was cool, then Sunday flew by, Monday was nothing special, and then Tuesday was insane. 

We were privileged to have Elder Jeffrey R. Holland speak to us and he completely blew us away. He spoke about staying active [in the gospel] when we return from our missions, and how Preach My Gospel came to be for that reason of keeping RM's active. 

He went on to speak about the Son's of Mosiah and all the great missionaries in the Book of Mormon and how they taught with power and authority (turns out thats the most used phrase in the book) and how we can maintain that power and authority. He also talked about how everything that has ever gone on in the Church up to this point has been building to this time and we are responsible for carrying out the plan Heavenly Father has for us. 

Even more than that, all the prophets of old knew that their time wouldn't end with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. In other words, they knew that their dispensation wasn't the chosen one for having Christ come back to cleanse the world, yet they still carried on their work and fulfilled their responsibilities because they knew what we would be doing exactly at this moment to hasten the Lord's work and bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. Seriously, everything connects and its so awesome to think about and make those connections and have a personal witness of the truth of everything! 

f you haven't had a witness yet or you want one, I encourage you to read the Book of Mormon and sincerely pray about receiving a witness that the words spoken in it are true. I testify that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and you will become closer to Him upon reading it and by gaining a testimony of the Book of Mormon, you can know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true as well. I promise you all that I wouldn't still be here if I didn't know that what I was doing was true! I love you all so very much and I want you all to have the peace and joy and TRUE happiness I have in my life! 

Another cool part from that was when he said the dedicatory prayer for the new buildings on campus. He blessed them to be protected by angels that nothing would ever harm us or these facilities. Such an awesome blessing and it meant so much coming from a man of his stature! 

Other than that, I got to host new missionaries this week on Wednesday and they were kind of funny. They were a little culture shocked, but nothing different from me! I know they're in the right place and they will get along just fine. 

I want you all to know that I know this Church is true with all my heart. Heavenly Father loves us and knows each one of us individually and all of our struggles. He is waiting for us to humble ourselves in prayer and ask Him to bless us, once we do that, He will! I promise! Put your trust in Him and have faith that He hears and answers your prayers. If you don't have faith that He will, what would it hurt to try?

 I love you all so much! Please keep writing me! Be happy and share love with all those you meet! 

Love, 

Elder LeSueur

Mormon.Org

"We Have the Potential to Become Like Him..."

It has been an absolutely crazy week! I just want to start off by saying I love you all and miss you so much! This past week we experienced a flu outbreak which kind of caught me for a day so I was stuck in bed all day Wednesday wishing I could be doing something productive, but it was also kind of nice to be able to sleep 20 of the 24 hours! It was tough because I was having really weird dreams and kept waking up feeling like something was wrong and then I was just so vulnerable to thinking about everyone back home I got really upset and really homesick.

I want everyone to know that those feelings (any bad feeling we get at all) are from Satan himself and he is working so hard to discourage us and make us feel like we can't live up to the potential we have as God's children. Think about it... We learn from our parents and eventually become like them because of the observations and everything we have of them. Now apply that to Heavenly Father. As His children, we have the potential to become like Him! How cool is that?! I challenge all of you to find out for yourselves what you can do to become more like Him and have all that He has. 4

We have also been dealing with the coldest consistent weather I have ever felt. It was 0 degrees this morning on our trip to the temple and that made the ten minute walk feel like an eternity! As soon as we stepped outside it felt like I couldn't breathe because it was so cold and so dry! Miserable... But that just makes the entrance into warm buildings all that much better! I have been feeling so great the last couple weeks and I know its because all of you are praying so fervently for me to have all that I need, so THANK YOU! Please keep the prayers coming ;)

I was reading in Alma 26 the other day and came across the scripture about why he was boasting in God. Verses 10-12 and 27 summed up to me says that we are nothing in our own strengths, but with the help of the Lord we can have success by bearing our afflictions with patience. I know this is true because I have been dealt some pretty rough things already! And whenever I've complained or felt like I was being wronged, it was so much harder to be happy or gain blessings from it. But when I was willing to accept it as the Lord's divine plan for me, I understood the lessons I needed to learn and how it would help me in the future.

For instance, yesterday we were teaching one of our progressing investigators, Fabiano, and the lesson ended up being the last lesson we would teach him because he had stopped progressing. What I learned was that when Elder Ginez and myself were not teaching in unity (the most important key of teaching), we didn't allow him to be taught by the Spirit and everything fell through. There's a lot more that I learned, but I'm running short on time.

I just want all of you to know that the things you deal with in this life are preparing you for the future and giving you knowledge you must know for the next life as you become like God!

To finish off, I have some awesome news... Drum-roll...

People are starting to get their visas from Brazil! The district that is just one week ahead of us started getting them today and Elder Christensen of my district got his too! AHH its so exciting and so much more motivating to know we are finally so much closer to being where we are going to be proselyting! I'm so excited to get to Brazil! Even though I won't be able to get letters and packages as easily, its still way exciting.

Speaking of letters and packages, SEND ME MORE! I'm really wanting to hear from all of you about your lives! I know its time consuming and I cant be a hypocrite because I never really wrote missionaries, but I would love it :) I gotta go, but I love you all!

I know this gospel is true and I know that Heavenly Father loves each and every one of us individually and knows us personally too!

I look forward to your letters :) Be happy and go share something with someone in need! 

Love, 

Elder LeSueur

Mormon.org 

"You Will Find Great Joy and Peace..."

Wow what a week it has been here in Provo, Utah! I've never been so tired but so dedicated and willing to work in my life as I am here and it's amazing but so exhausting at the same time. I have continued to learn so much and it's really becoming a habit that I will love and hopefully continue to keep past the next two years and for the rest of my life! I miss every one of you so dearly and I pray for you each time I speak with Heavenly Father, so I know He is taking care of you :)

I feel like I have kind of hit a wall with learning the language, but to me that means I just have to work harder! I know the Lord will bless me according to my needs and my obedience to His will. I have never been more willing to deal with things that come up in my life that are tough than I am now and it truly makes me so much happier. We can only deal with the experiences we are given, so complaining and wishing for it to change won't do us any good. Go out and make the most of it and give thanks to our Heavenly Father DAILY for the life He has provided you with here on Earth!

Even when we teach these "investigators" (our teachers act as people they taught on their missions for us to gain teaching experience) I am sad because they don't understand God's plan of happiness for us and I just can't even imagine how hopeless I would feel without that in my life. I testify that He loves each and every one of us beyond what we can comprehend and He's awaiting our return to His presence!

I encourage each of you to develop your Christlike attributes and show everyone you come into contact with the love that our Savior would show for them. We take so much for granted and not everyone has the same love in their life as you do so PLEASE go out and be charitable! 1 Corinthians 13 will tell you exactly how to do that. Go read that chapter, write down the characteristics of charity, which is the pure love of Christ, and strive daily to improve on those characteristics in your own life. I promise if you do this, you will not only be happier, but it will bring you closer to our Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ, and in turn you will feel great joy and peace like you have never felt before.

I love all of you so much! I have a lot of time to think to myself when my companion, Elder Ginez, wakes us up a half hour early every morning (because he's gotta look pretty for all those Sister missionaries here ;) ) so during that half hour before I get up to shower, I just ponder about the plentiful amount of blessings I have in my life. My family and friends are the things I know I wouldn't be able to survive without so thank you all!

I hope you all have an incredible holiday season and please, don't focus on what you may or may not get for Christmas. Instead, focus on the Savior and His Atoning Sacrifice for each one of us. There is no greater gift we have received or ever will receive than what He did for us, so I beg you to at least kneel down and pour out your heart to Heavenly Father [in gratitude] for the wonderful plan He put in place to save our souls. If you want to know more about this plan, it's called The Plan ofSalvation. Google it or look it up on LDS.org and just marvel at the beauty of it!

I testify that Jesus is the Christ and He is the way by which we can return to live with our Father in Heaven again in His glory. I know that He loves us more than we will ever know in this life, and I pray that each of you can take time out of your own lives to discover that love! Go out and do some good in the world today and tomorrow and every day hereafter!

I love you all so much! Merry Christmas!

Elder LeSueur

PS- I heard this several times this week, and it really struck me hard. "When obedience ceases to be an irritant and becomes a quest, THAT is when the true blessings are poured out to you."
BE OBEDIENT!

Mormon.Org

"It's amazing the things we are capable of..."

Hello my beautiful friends and family! Sorry it has taken me more than a week to finally write this email... our P-Day is on Friday and since we got in on Wednesday they didn’t let us have one last week! So finally I’m here to tell you about how well everything is going! Gosh this experience is so amazing. It has been a whole bunch of ups and downs but the ups WAYYYY outweigh the downs! 

I have been doing more learning this past week than I did the entire time in Hawaii... I have learned more Portuguese in the last week and a half than I learned Spanish in my whole freshman year in high school! Holy cow its amazing the things we are capable of if we have the Lord on our side and are doing what we know He wants us to do. Conversely, life is much harder whenever we aren’t doing what we are supposed to be doing so the choice is yours, but BE SMART. 

My companion is Elder Ginez and he is from San Luis, Arizona. He speaks Spanish natively so Portuguese is much easier for him, but I think I’m catching up ;) he is such a great companion though. I have learned so much from him its amazing! 

I love the Spirit here and the people and the teachers. Everyone is so friendly it makes me want to hug every single one of them! I miss all of you though. I know that I'm here doing something much greater than what I could be accomplishing at home so i cant complain.

I just want all of you to know that I know that God loves every single one of us and the evidence is in the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ. He sent His Son to die and pay the price for ALL of our sins and through sincere repentance we WILL be forgiven of them. I know life is tough and there are a lot of things that happen that you wish didn’t, but its not always up to us. But Heavenly Father will always love us no matter what! And I testify of that in the name of Jesus Christ. 

Anyway, I hope all is well back home! I know you are all missing me soooo much but don’t lose sleep over it... It’ll be a couple years ;) but if you want to write me, do it through dear elder. I only have 30 minutes to email so I don’t want to spend it all reading yours! Thanks guys I love you all so much! Make good choices! 

Elder Trevor LeSueur

Mormon.Org