August 19, 2013

Well mom, I am doing really well, I am working harder than I ever have in my life, and yes it is pretty easy for me to fall asleep at night ha-ha. Yesterday we got to the church at eight thirty and didn’t leave until eight thirty at night. I had to teach a few lessons with zero notice and it was another challenge but fun. I really like what you said mom, if we do our best the Lord will fill in the gaps, and He has really filled them in for me this week. The package got to mission office last week and I am going to pick it up today! I am super excited! Ha-ha
Well mom, yours and dads and our prayers were answered, we had three baptisms this week and we are going to kick and scream for four more this week! I hope to complete a family so we can make it eternal. One of the ward counselors talked with me yesterday, and said that they have only had sixteen baptisms this year and eight of them are from the time that I have been there. I felt kind of good, but I know it isn’t me who got these, it was the Lord who blessed us with miracles, and I don’t know why He gave them to us, but I am sure am grateful for his love and his help. I still didn’t buy a new SD card, but that will happen soon. 
Ashley is hilarious, I miss all of you, I wish I could have just five minutes to give you all a hug and then I would be great. ha-ha well, I have seen a lot of little girls ever since Alaynna was born, and I am crazy to see her in person, I can’t wait to see the pics you sent me.
This whole transfer has been quite an experience, I am learning a lot about what I need to do, and it is funny Ashley said that, I have been super blessed with a lot of talents, I don’t want to sound prideful, but I need to develop them and reach my potential. I feel now more than ever, the Lord is trying to teach me to reach my potential and in some ways pushing so I can get there, but what I am realizing is that He has a lot of great work for me to do, and I really need to change some things around so I can get there. The obstacles are that my comp doesn’t know the language super well so all the work is mine, but that’s a given fact, the biggest one is that I have no time. Ha-ha other than that, life is great and I am so grateful for each minute here on the mission!
I am so grateful for you mom, and for all of your love! I am sorry the last emails have been bad, I just haven’t been feeling anything new in the weeks until this one. This truly is the work of God mom, and I am so grateful for all of the things that you and dad have done to show us the right way. I love you so much, have such a wonderful week, and thanks so much for the package!! Mmwah!

Elder Paynter


Hey Dad, 
Sounds like it was a pretty calm week for you all, and I am glad to hear you still got time to kill some interests in football there in Milford. Dad, thanks for sending that, it was really humbling to look at, I could feel the Spirit with it all. I am especially glad to see Grandpa's name. I can’t stop myself from tearing up whenever I think about him Dad, I don’t know why. 
Well it’s crazy that it is so hot there, we have been getting pretty cold here lately and since all the houses are built out of brick and nothing more, it stays pretty cold inside. Ha-ha so we busted out the Mr. Mac jacket specials and walked down the dirt roads like the men in black. It’s always fun to get our twin stuff going on here.
Well last Monday after p-day, we had a family home evening marked with an investigator, and three recent converts at a member’s house, and two missionaries went with us. It was such a simple FHE and all, a quick message and a game and after, Vera, one of our investigators who was still on the line with being baptized, came up after and asked that I would baptize her this Saturday, and it was really good! She was super nervous about going under because she didn’t think I could hold her weight to get her back up. Right before they called us in she started crying and I don’t know if it was the Spirit or a nervous breakdown, but it was good either way and she was very happy, and of course I held her weight, I’ve been doing the work out DVD. Gosh! Ha-ha! Well her parents came to watch and the next day they came to sacrament meeting and participated super well in all the discussions and are super great, so we are running after them this week to see if they would like to have an eternal family. 
Also, the Lord just gave us a bunch of miracles. A less active woman brought her kid who is 13 and her boyfriend to church a few weeks ago, and wow, they were baptized! It was incredible and it was just a miracle, that isn’t all though, we got a call from another ward telling us about a golden investigator who would be going to our ward that day, he showed up and already wants to be baptized, he brought his girlfriend, and has six brothers and yes we will be teaching them tonight at six thirty. It has just been such a miraculous week with all of the blessings and miracles that are happening. I don’t know why Heavenly Father is giving them to us, but I am sure thankful that He has been placing His hand in our work. 
Dad, it has been such a great week, I am pretty dang stressed even though we baptized three, I just haven’t seemed to be super happy, but we will see how this week turns out, I just need to get out of the whole rotation of stress or something. Dad, I am so glad to be out here, I absolutely love the mission, and I get a little sad when each day passes. I am so glad to be out here, and I hope one day I can be the missionary you were. I love you so much Dad, and I am sorry about the emails these past few weeks, I just didn’t feel like we had much going on. Be sure to pass this one onto Mom because I won’t have much time to write to her about all of this. I love you so much Dad, have such a great week!
Elder Paynter

August 12, 2013

     Of course I remember that night Mumsy, it was such a wonderful time. I miss Levi so much mom, and to be quite honest I never thought I would this much but I really can’t wait to make a mess with him again. I can’t believe it’s going to be about 3 years without seeing him, but I think I will be able to handle it. I just cry thinking about it. Please send him a big hug. I am so proud of him. Thanks so much for the ideas mom, this last district meeting went really well, and the spirit really guided me, just that president wasn't there so now I will teach him and the APs along with the zone this week, talk about pressure!!! But it will all work out! 

     I ended buying some cheap shorts a week ago, oh just a heads up, my backpack tore through a while back and I took it to a shoe maker and he fixed it, and this time it tore its basically destroyed..... I am going to try and save up buy I may need to buy a backpack in the future if things don’t work out well ok.

     Thanks so much mom, I am so excited to get the package! And no I can’t get the mini books of Mormon here, everything is made in Brasil here so it is hard to get a lot of religious things that we have available back home. I have really been wanting to give them out. Oh one thing I have been wanting to tell you, one of my memory cards for the camera is whacked out and says it needs to be formatted and will erase everything, I am just going to send it to you to see if you can do anything with it because it’s just giving me trouble, the other memory card I have is almost full, I am thinking I may need to buy a new one soon, let me know what you think. 

     Ha-ha I thought it wasn't the best choice sending them to dad.... ha-ha yeah it’s our district, our zone leaders were going to surprise the district by acting like they were baptizing in the font in white clothes while I was teaching, so when the zone leaders went to change, I made the everyone put on the jumpsuits to be baptized and surprise the zone leaders. It was really fun! Yeah we have tons of sisters here, and I sure hope that we start getting more here! We are really needing to open up a lot of closed areas! The sisters are wonderful missionaries and we are so blessed to have so many in our zone. Things have been going great with our investigators and hopefully we will finally have two baptisms this week! Pray really hard!
     
     Mumsy, I love you so so much and hope you have a wonderful week. Let me know how everyone is! Did Lacey go back to school yet?! When does everything start up again? How is work mom? Thanks so much for all you do! I love you so much!
mwah, hugs
Sunsy,



Hey Dad,
     Thanks a lot for the email paps. I love hearing about your mission, I am so happy to hear about Levi doing well, and his progression. It is so great to hear that. I have just been dying to hear more from him.
     Well this week was just another fly by! We spent almost two whole days out of our area interviewing people and it was kind of stressful but I am learning so much more about serving others and serving where I am called. It has been a great week nonetheless and yesterday was great. Our ward mission leader finally got his mother to allow the missionaries into her house after sixteen years, she gave us lunch after church and for the message I read some scriptures and we sang I Know That My Redeemer Lives. They started tearing up and it was really spiritual. It was something I really needed and really liked.
     I have been thinking so much about life Dad, and how I just want to reach my potential, and about what is stopping me from doing so. It all comes down to work, I am so grateful for every second that I have here and for the things that you and mom have to taught to me. There are no excuses, there is no reason that me and Levi shouldn't be excellent and just hit the moon. I have felt like that is the lesson that Heavenly Father has been trying to teach me this week more than ever. I am so grateful for your prayers dad, and for all of your love. 
     Morgan must be stirring up a storm there at Riverton. I am surprised to see the turnout at West Jordan, oh and who is coaching there now?
     I am really grateful that you were able to give something to the missionaries Dad, the people here treat me so well and give me the best, so don’t hold back with them. I love you so much Dad, I can’t wait to tell you how this week goes and to really just hear more about my Dad. Here it was father’s day yesterday, Dad, thanks so much for all you have done for me. I love you so much and I am so grateful! I love you!
Elder Paynter

August 5, 2013






Hey mom, I ended up having p day today. I am way sorry that it changed it didn't even give time for us all to talk much. This week was just super super busy but really great! It’s been three weeks without a baptism for us now and we are starting to get really thirsty! But I hope this week will be the one! Life as a district leader and a trainer, and a missionary over two wards is pretty hectic. Yesterday we got to church at eight thirty am, and went to a members house for an hour for lunch and then we came right back to the church. We didn't leave until nine o' clock because of the meetings we had and the phone calls I had to make! It was super busy!
This week I learned a lot, and gave my first district meeting lesson, and now I am kind of drawing blanks on what I should do for one. We will be having interviews with President Perrotti and the APs will be there so I will have to teach all of them also. Yeah I am pretty intimidated actually. So keep praying for me!
This week has been pretty good but I feel like time is flying by so quickly that I never have time to plan or organize, we are leaving our studies sometimes in the morning so we can leave and teach! Ha-ha it has been really good though.
Last week we set up a ping pong tournament and taught about the Book of Mormon to strengthen their testimonies, one member brought a friend and now we are working with her to get her baptized this week! It was such a funny and great miracle and the tournament was really fun also!
Mom, the mission is just great and I am just in love with every second of it. I am so glad to be a representative of our Savior. To walk like He wants me to, with posture, ha-ha jk. But to think and act as He would. I miss you so much and hope you are doing well mumsy!  I love you so and have a wonderful week! Sorry that things were all switched around and I didn't get time to warn you! I love you and miss you!

Elder Paynter

July 31, 2013

Hey Dad,
         Its been pretty good week. I am very safe and we ended up teaching on our p day so we could baptize soon in the ward!!!!!! Sorry it took so long to get to ya but now I don’t have anytime to say anything. Dad thanks so much for the email, it really means a lot and I love each time I get to hear the wonderful words of my father, I really am striving to give ear to them just like Nephi did from Lehi. I miss you but have never loved the mission so much! Oh and I won’t email until next Thursday because I will be in a big leadership meeting with president on Monday. I am sorry Christmas changed its dates for all of us but it will go back to normal after this next week! Dad, I am so sorry! I love you so much! Have a great week and be so safe! Keep praying for me that I can learn what I need to be an instrument in his hands! Dad, I love you I love you and I am so grateful for all that you do for me!

Elder Paynter

         I love you so much mom! I have to run, but everything is great! Pray for me, and for my comp Elder Dorman so we can learn and grow, and for our district! I love you so much mom! Have such a wonderful week! I am so sorry I can’t respond I am leaving! Won’t email again until next Thursday I have some meetings and such! The mission has never been better, and life has never been better!  Oh send more alfredo packets when you send the package if you haven’t already and send a big hug! Love you mom, hugs hugs and kisses!
Sunsy 
Elder Paynter

July 22, 2013

Dear Mumsy,
         Sounds like everything is just great at home and it's so great to hear from you! Things here have been incredible it was a tougher week but still great, sadly no, we didn’t baptize but I am hoping to have one this next week, and a family the week after, so we will see how well things go! But I was made district leader and our zone is so small that we only have one district. So it’s been a little pressure and I have been learning a lot of new things about administration ha ha but it has been really nice and fun. Half of our zone are sister missionaries and it just keeps gaining more! It has been a super busy week with training, my son doesn't really know much Portuguese but he is very willing and has been working really hard with me. I have been really blessed, his name is Elder Dorman and I have just loved it my time with him. I can't wait to break the shell a little more and see who he really is but for now he is incredible and will be a great missionary one day!
How is Levi doing mom? It was so great to hear about Lacey, she wrote me such an incredible letter and I was able to see some changes in her. I have no doubt whatsoever that she was an incredible instructor! 
         Mom, I am happier than ever here on the mission, I miss you and love you but I really am just loving every second of my life, I don't even want to sleep because I want to make use of each second! I hope you have such a great week! Hugs and kisses mom!
I love you

Elder Sunsy