Elder Jacob Mckee: December 2016

Thursday, December 29, 2016

FELIZ NATAL!

Week of December 19-25, 2016

(19) SEGUNDA (Monday): Here’s our day today. We talked with our families, ate lunch, got in a bus, and went to Santa Maria. Tomorrow there will be the mission counsel with all the zone leaders. We slept in the house of the assistants with about 20 other missionaries.

Today was day 528 of my mission.

(20) TERCA (Tuesday): Counsel!! It was super good. Also said good-bye to some people. Elder Santos Melo went home today. I also learned that maybe I’ll be coming home on the 18^th of July,

but they don’t know anything for sure yet.

So, the transfer is next week. I was feeling pretty sure that I would stay here because I just got here, but today president asked me, “Are your suitcases ready?” But I don’t know if he was just teasing me or not. I don’t know. Today was day 529 of my mission.

(21) QUARTA (Wednesday): This morning I grabbed yet another bus to go to another city in our zone to do the baptism interview. It was a very interesting interview. I asked if she had ever committed a serious crime. She said yes. This is a problem because now president has to interview her. But then she kept talking. Here’s the serious crime. She said her ex-husband drank a lot. And one night he came home drunk, and started hitting her. The first time, she ignored it. The second time she didn’t do anything. T he third time she grabbed a painting of Christ on the cross she had, and started smashing it on his head. She said he fell on the ground, and she kept hitting him, and if it weren’t for his daughter who came in middle she would have killed him with the picture of Christ. Ha-ha, but where he didn’t die, she doesn’t need to talk with President. Then she told about how a young man was swearing at her, so she hit him in the head with a sickle, that thing they used in the old times to harvest wheat, sent him to the hospital with a hole in the top of his head.

Today was day 530 of my mission.

(22) QUINTA (Thursday): Today, nothing interesting happened. Today was day 531 of my mission.

(23) SEXTA (Friday): WARD ACTIVITY! And a TON of our investigators went! It was super fun with a LOT of food. I did the samba with some people and taught some my dance.

Today was day 532 of my mission.
Elder Costa, Sister Fernandez, Jake, Sister Cunha, Christain, Mateus

Jake and Allan

Nicolas, Jake, Elder Costa

(24) SABADO (Saturday): Nothing, Nobody wanted to receive us. NOT A SOUL. We had dinner with a member and a white elephant, I got the 5^th Harry Potter book in Progusues. It was an awesome dinner. This family of member is my second family here in Brazil. Today was day 533 of my mission.

Family of Chris and Carlos

(25) DOMINGO (Sunday): FELIZ NATAL! Woot Woot. Today is a great day. Today I talked with my family. And met the families of the other missionaries. Today was great. I’m super happy. I think the best part was that I learned Zac will go on a mission. That made me so happy. He’s going to be a great missionary. Man, I am so excited. Today was day 534 of my mission.
Elder Costa

Elder Costa

Elder Gates

Elder Robeldo and Elder Costa

Mom:

We loved talking to Jake on Christmas day. He is doing well. And he did get a release date of June 6^th. We are VERY EXCITED! He talked a lot about what he wants to do when he gets home, but he said he has a lot to do in the next 5 months. He loves Brazil. He loves the people. He loves being a missionary.

The Bakers came to talk to Jake.

Friday, December 23, 2016

President And Sister Louza

Beloved parents and leaders, Sister Louza and me, in this Christmas occasion, wish you sincerely our votes of gratitude and happiness.

The original Christmas was the gift, the coming of the Son of God, full of grace and truth. We learn in the scriptures that the Savior would be called Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty God, Father of the Eternity and Prince of Peace. He was and is the gift to the mankind.

In similitude, your son or daughter is a gift for us. As a missionaries, your son or daughter is wonderful, he or she does the God’s will with willing heart; they are counselors because they help many people recuperate the confidence in a better life and they are oficial representatives of the Prince of Peace. The missionaries are for us and for the Gaucho people a true gift.

God blesses you in the new year.

Enjoy a Christ’s Christmas.

We love you and pray for you.

Merry Christmas!

President and Sister Louza

Pictures of half the mission that President sent to parents. The other half of mission had another conference. Jake is in the second row, 5th from the left, next to Elder Costa.

Jake is in the 2nd row from the left in the Santa hat and tie.

In December, on LDS missionaries on Facebook, you can send in pictures of your missionaries from around the world and they will post them. Mom sent this pic in and look a picture for Jake to show him that over 2000 people liked this pictures. There were also messages from around the world letting the elders know that people from everywhere are praying for them. That's awesome!

Christmas Conference

Week of December 12-18 2016

(12) SEGUNDA (Monday): Because of the conference we are going to have tomorrow, 6 elders came to our house from another city to sleep here and leave early, tomorrow morning. So, we grabbed everyone and we went bowling. Man it was fun. Us 10 elders, and 2 sisters. Then everyone slept on the floor. Today was day 521 of my mission.

(13) TERCA (Tuesday): We left at 6:00 AM today for the Christmas Conference in Santa Maria. It was super fun. Everyone loved the video my zone made, especially my dancing. Ended up that I did not dance with President, but he repeatedly tried to dance like I do and everyone started laughing. Then we traded presents, like a white elephant. I had bought a toy warrior on a horse, and with a sharpie scratched out the real name and wrote ‘Captain Moroni.’ It was pretty sweet. Then I got a freaken rubber chicken leg that squeaks when you squeeze it.

Then we came home and bought a huge pizza for us 10, because they have to sleep in our house again to leave tomorrow. Today was day 522 of my mission.

(14) QUARTA (Wednesday): Today was very busy, with few people answering their door. T hen we had to do a little division so I could do 2 baptism interviews for the other elders. One of them went very well with a funny boy of 9. The other, with his older sister, was the most spiritual interview I’ve had, but in the end she couldn’t be baptized. A few things to be taken care of by President Louza first. She was super sad, but understanding as well. Today was day 523 of my mission.

(15) QUINTA (Thursday): Look at my day today. We went to lunch at the house of Pedro, who we had helped paint his house. They made lunch, and then asked if we could help with the last paint job. Of course, we said yes.

So, they have metal bars on the window, and one was broken. Pedro said, “I’ll have to weld that,” and all I said was “Hey, I’ve welded before. It’s pretty cool.” Then he said, “Alright, then the machine is right there in the corner. Do it for me.” And he sat down. Ha-ha, not I didn’t want to say that it had been a long time and I’d only done it like twice, so I grabbed the machine and went for it. I clamped on the ground, and started going. After, Pedro looked at it, touched it up, then told me to weld his door as well. Then my camera died, so no pictures of me going t it after with the big ole diamond disk cutter that I forgot the name.

Then President called, about the interview I had done yesterday. He said to call the woman and ask if she could grab a bus TODAY to travel for an hour to a city to be interviewed by the stake president. And we were to go with her. So, I got her number and called, and she was super excited to go, so she met us at the bus station to grab a bus at 6:00. We went and got back at 10:30. All went well and she will be baptized on Saturday. She was so happy. Today was day 524 of my mission.

(16) SEXTA (Friday): Today was a lot of rain, and that’s about it. Today was day 525 of my mission.

(17) SABADO (Saturday): 3 Baptisms in our district today! The first baptisms of Sister Fernandez and Elder Gutus. They were super happy and excited. We also went with Nickolas to do some visits, then we helped them prepare the baptism. Then we went and bought hamburgers to celebrate. Today was day 526 of my mission.

(18) DOMINGO (Sunday): Today I hit a mid-mission crisis. Ha-ha, I don’t know. I just wasn’t feeling it today. I feel like I have to force my body to take every step. I’m just tied. Not like I need to sleep, but Like that feeling where you’re just spent. I have a lot to improve. And still a lot to do. On the 13th Sister Moss went home. I’m happy I still have 6 months to finish because I still need to reach some of my goals.

BUT! Today was Sister Cunhas’s birthday, and we planned a dinner at a member’s house. So that was great. Today was day 527 of my mission.

I love you all, Elder McKee

Jake was suppose to take a picture of him sitting on Santa's lap...instead he sent home this pic of him looking like a cracked out Santa on a street corner in L.A. haha.