Elder Anthony Scott Lee

Elder Anthony Scott Lee

Tony can be reached at...

ELDER ANTHONY LEE
Portugal Lisbon Mission
Rua Jorge Barradas 14C
1500-370 Lisboa
Portugal


Sunday, October 19, 2014

Week 71 Letter

Monday, October 13, 2014

Famlee!
Heyoh! How are you all doing? Sounds like you all had a good weekend adventure! Hahaha, glad everything is working out. I can almost taste the washington apples...
Well, before I get started I just want to say...
Happy Birthday Jet!!!!!! Parabéns! I can't believe you are getting so old Jet, it's crazy! Dad told me that you still remember me really well though, which made me happy. Don't forget all of our good times! (Like the time I took you fishing... cough cough... (For those of you who don't get that reference, just go ask Jackson Romney about it...))
And,
Happy birthday Ryan!!!! You sure are growing up! In all the pictures mom sends me you look so old and so cool! You are such an awesome kid Ryan, I am proud to have you as a brother. Keep being cool, and don't grow up too fast! (Also, eat some albertson's chicken for me!)

Dont worry, I know there are a lot of other birthdays this month (wink wink Ali...) and I didn't forget them. I just sent them separate letters.
This week was awesome. We keep finding more and more people with potential. Elder Bezerra is a really good worker, so we really get things done. 


As far as our family, things are pretty complicated. I mean, kind of. They are all still great, and really want to be baptized. They all went to church and loved it. However, we have found out more about the situation with the dad. We taught Indira the law of chastity, and asked her if she wanted to be married. She got a bit smile on her face and looked up longingly and said, "ahh, yes, yes I would! If I could be married tomorrow I would be." She then explained the following.

The dad is Muslim. She and he met almost 20 years ago in Guinea Bissau, and decided to start a family and be married (unofficially, of course). So they did. However, Guinea is going through basically a civil war right now, and it isn't a very good place to raise a family. The education system has crashed, there is violence, and a lot of instability. So, very early on in their relationship they decided to raise their kids in a better place. But, the dad works for a company there in Guinea which is how the family lives. So, he sent her up to Portugal when she got pregnant. Well, the dad makes good money, so he was able to pay for flights, so he visited the family a lot, or paid for them to fly and visit him. The family grew to have 3 kids.
Like I said, the dad is Muslim. I doubt you know this, but Muslims are allowed up to 4 'wives'. So somewhere along the line, he made another union with another woman, who also is now living in Portugal as well. They have at least two kids together. Naturally, Indira felt pretty bad about him doing that, but she still loves him, and the kids love him, and she decided that when she married a Muslim she accepted the risk of that happening. She just never thought it would. So, the two families of this one dad just lived separate lives. No contention between them, they lived separate, didn't communicate, and just went on with their lives. However, time in, Indira decided that they should make a friendship, because they didn't want their kids growing up knowing they had siblings they weren't allowed to see. So, Indira reached out and they began letting their kids play together and that kind of thing. Indira has already invited the other family to church, and we are going to teach them soon I think.
So there it is. To be baptized, Indira has to be married, or leave the father. If we start to teach the other woman and she wants to be baptized, she also has to do one or the other. If Indira tries to marry the father, what will the other woman do? I think they would both like to marry him.
I'm kind of stuck. I don't know what to shoot for. Advice would be great from anyone who is getting this letter. The kids I think will all be baptized this weekend, but we will have to wait on Indira. Pray for them!
As far as everything else, we are really trying to hit some high goals this month. We are going to do it! We need to figure out who really has desire and really focus on them, as well as keep finding lots of new investigators. Progressing investigators are my favorite thing in the world!
That's what's going on with me on this side of the world. I love Portugal so much. Sometimes I forget how different it is. Cobblestone, castles, milk from boxes, and a lack of hot water and water pressure have all become the norm. I love it!
I love you all!
Elder Lee

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