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Maceio Brazil Mission Assignment Serving in God's Army 8 July 2013 - Experiencia Tramatica (Dramatic Experience)

OH.... this week was alright. I started the week off with a major headache and a fever and I wasn't sleeping really well. But I woke up one morning and it went away! But then my companion got sick with the same thing but worse! So the week started a little slow but we're all good now. Friday we were able to have a fireside with Elder Moroni Torgan who is an area seventy. He talked so openly with us I loved it! A few things he said have stuck really well with me. He said that we need to always stay with "the angel". Angels go to bed at 10:30 and wake up at 6:30, angels leave the house at 10:30 sharp. When you're not with angels you're with the devils. He taught us that the followers of Satan are after us. They want us to fall. He talked about the mission being like a race and you have to give your all, everything you have on the last stretch or last few months of your mission. So the fireside really helped me and my companion and we kicked it into high gear and we've changed a few ways that we have been doing the work. We have decided to work more with members, helping them find people that we can visit, that they can invite to church and family home evenings. So far it is going extremely well and the members are helping ALOT. We were able to get 18 references which is a ridiculous number for this area. We're stoked! :)
So the mission is filled with experiences, one that I've never had in my life and a few that I've never wanted to have in my life. Saturday night we were teaching two women and a few kids about prayer. While we were teaching the husband of the woman we were teaching came home extremely drunk, and rowdy. We ended up finishing the lesson just fine with only a few interruptions, yelling and small arguments. We have been teaching him and trying to help him stop drinking so he could be baptized and marry his wife legally. From the moment he got home I was on my toes and placed my bag on the ground and watched the two of them argue, stop, argue again, then stop. Then it happened. He started hitting her, and I SNAPPED! Before I knew I was on top of him. I ran behind him and held down his arms to keep him from hitting her, he tried many times to throw me off him to set himself free, but I wouldn't let him. I held him there until he calmed down, about two minutes passed and I let him go. I jumped away because I was scared that he would go crazy on me, but I'm pretty sure he was too drunk to notice who was behind him. The woman who was hit called the police and the man went to jail that night. He only managed to hit her two times before I got to him but her face was so swollen, he didn't just hit, he punched, clobbered her. I don't think I will ever forget the sight. I was trembling, my heart racing, and in the end of it I just wanted to cry. It was So Sad, the way that alcohol changes a decent man into a monster. I will never hurt my wife, Never. Everyone was praising me and saying that what I did was so brave and all I could think was that anyone would have done what I did. But talking to the people that were there and even my companion, they wouldn't have done anything and just yelled at him to stop. I believe that God's hand is in the work that we do, He guides us, inspires us, helps us. I know that He put us there to help that poor woman. I can't imagine what would have happened to her if we weren't there. I am so thankful for the opportunity that I have to serve a mission for my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He lives and loves every one of us.
Elder Ralph Sao Paulo Temple Maceio Brasil Mission Search for your family!