Olá!

Olá!

This week started off with a plane ride to Porto, all by myself! My SEF (Temparary residency card) was about to expire, so I had to go to Porto to renew it so I wouldn´t be illegal, haha. Usually several missionaries do it together (the ones that arrived with you from the MTC), but this time only me and Elder Ozuna were there, because Elder Pratt already did his for some reason, and Sister Shepard is finishing her mission this month. It was kind of weird to travel all alone in the airport and then the metros of Porto, but fun at the same time, haha. I slept with the other elders there, and then the next afternoon I headed back to Madeira. Porto was rainy, cloudy, and cold, so Machico seems like a paradise with it´s hot, sunny days, haha!

While I was in Porto waiting for the lightrail, a nice, smiley family came up to me and introduced themselves...in spanish! They were members of the Church in Spain and were asking me if I knew where the chapel in Porto was. I didn´t, but I gave them the cellphone number of the elders serving there. I was pretty proud of myself for understanding (more or less) what they were saying, and even more that I could put together a few spanish phrases to talk to them. Portuguese really helps you struggle your way through spanish, haha!

Serving a mission brings moments of great joy when you can really feel the love of God for yourself and for others. I have had times on my mission where I have seen His hand in the lives of others, and when I have been able to feel Godly joy. But serving a mission can also bring moments when you feel true, Godly sorrow because of the choices of other people. For example, this week we haven´t been able to get a hold of Paulo. It seems like he has either dissapeared off the face of the earth or is running away from us. Several times we knocked on his door, and we saw the light in the house turn off. I´m not sad because he is ignoring us, but because I know how much joy and hope he is going to miss out on if he decides to give up. All this joy and hope that comes from the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, and it seems that he is choosing to throw it away. 

But I know that everyone has their free agency to choose between right and wrong. We will continue to pass by Paulo´s house everyonce in awhile to see if he´ll answer the door, but if not, I know that there are more people here in Machico searching for the truth! Elder Franco and I will continue to work to find these people! 

We taught a family this week, and they gave us cake and sandwhiches! (but they are hardcore catholic and told us that they are never going to change, but at least they were nice about it, haha!)

I´m grateful that I can serve a mission and experience even on the smallest degree the joy and the sorrow that our Saviour felt while he was on the earth.

I love and miss all of you!

Love,
Elder Barker

P.S sorry for no pictures this week! I´ll be sure to send a few next week!

P.P.S I´m not sure if I have too much more time on the computer today, because the really strict librarian is working today, and might kick us off if we are here for more than an hour, :) but know that I always read and appreciate everyones emails to me!