I LOVE THIS PLACE! Saint Quentin is truly a land of MIRACLES!
I am starting to better understand how the Lord really
works. Soeur Kohlert and I started off the week with our faith being tested
right off the bat. Monday night we had our lesson with the Josse Family. It was
Mickael’s (the dad) birthday, so we ate a delicious dinner together and ate the
American spice cake that we made to celebrate! I have grown to love this family
so much and it seemed to bring pain to my heart as I thought of the real
possibility that this could be the last time I see them.
My stomach seemed to be turning and was full of butterflies
as I thought of the lesson we had prepared. I prayed silently for comfort and
that Soeur Kohlert and I would feel confident as we went through with our
decision to lay everything on the table with the Josse Family, and explain the
real importance of keeping their engagements. My doubts disappeared as Soeur
Kohlert reminded me that we truly felt that our decision was inspired and that,
even though it was going to be hard to be so bold with them, the Spirit would
help us with what we needed to do.
We started off by asking them if they had prayed or had been
keeping their engagements. They had not. We asked them why they think doing so
is important and Mickael replied, "To receive an answer". This is
what he was searching for, and he has given up trying to find it! We then
talked about sacrifice and its true meaning. Sacrifice is giving up something
we value to receive something of greater worth. We testified with boldness and
power. The room was dead silent and the Spirit filled the room as thick as fog.
We then read the powerful quote by Eliza D. H. Young that says, "Seek for
a testimony, as you would for a diamond concealed. If someone told you by
digging long enough in a certain spot you would find a diamond of unmeasured
wealth, do you think you would begrudge the time or strength or means spent to
obtain that treasure? If you will dig in the depths of your own hearts you will
find, with the aid of the Spirit of the Lord, the pearl of great price, the
testimony of the truth of this work."
We then turned to this sweet couple and asked them what this
diamond was for them. I testified with all the power of my heart that this
diamond they were digging for was for the possibility to live together as a
family for eternity. I testified that every effort necessary was worth it, to
obtain a testimony, to receive an answer as to whether or not our message was
true. Soeur Kohlert testified as well with so much love and power … and you
could see the Spirit penetrate their hearts as tears filled their eyes. It was
one of the most powerful teaching moments of my entire mission. I felt the
Spirit speak through us as all fear had left and was replaced with perfect love
for this sweet family.
The Josse Family decided to take a break from seeing us
until they are ready … to have time to think and reflect and search on their
own. I know their hearts were touched and that our decision was truly what our
Heavenly Father would have us do!
It was interesting to see throughout the week how Soeur
Kohlert and I were blessed for our faith. Monday night we followed our
prompting during the lesson with the Josse Family and Tuesday we went finding
all day with no success. By the time Wednesday rolled around, our day was
PACKED with appointments! We had so many, we had to rush from place to place!
On Thursday, Soeur Kohlert and I were able to teach two lessons on the train
rides to Paris and back with the women next to us, and by Saturday we had found
four new amis/people to teach!!! It made me think of a scripture in the Book of
Mormon (Ether 12:6) which says, " … faith is things which are hoped for
and not seen; wherefore dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no
witness until after the trial of your faith." It’s so true!
We had the chance to go to Paris for a special mission
conference to hear Elder Kearon speak. He is from England and has such a gift
for addressing the missionaries and speaking with power and by the Spirit! I
was moved by the many experiences he shared and left feeling edified and
determined to "rise to a new level of commitment." He emphasized the
importance of being positive and making "our faces fit our message".
Our message of the restored gospel is one of hope and joy! We must have a smile
on our face and speak with enthusiasm and with words from our heart if we want
to touch the lives of those around us!
Our neighbors, Alexandra and Logan, are so great! We are
continuing to see them and talk about different gospel topics every time we see
them. It was funny because one night, our toilet was broken and Soeur Kohlert
and I had to go so bad!! We decided to ask Alexandra and she willingly let us
use her restroom. Afterward, we chatted a bit, and Logan asked us questions
about church. He is the cutest! We asked them if we could leave them with a
prayer. We all knelt down and asked them if there were specific things we could
include in the prayer. As Soeur Kohlert prayed for them, I felt a strong love
for them, and a deep desire to do everything possible to bring them back to our
Heavenly Father. The spirit was so strong! After the prayer, I asked Alexandra
how she felt. She put her hand to her heart and said, "I felt so good. I
felt a warmth in my chest and it was as if all of my worries went away." I
then turned to Logan and asked him how he felt during the prayer. Logan
responded, "I felt really good inside too. I was happy. I was listening to
the beautiful words Soeur Kohlert was saying. During the prayer, I saw
Jesus."
My eyes instantly filled with tears and I did all I could to
keep from crying. It was one of those special and sacred moments that I know I will
never forget. We thanked them for letting us come and told them we would be
back soon. HOW INCREDIBLE!
It snowed this past week!!! I am not a fan of the winter
weather at all, but looking out my window and seeing tons of snowflakes falling
down made my day! It was the first time I had seen snow on my mission! Today,
for our preparation day, we wanted to stop by the famous Butterfly Museum
downtown, but had a hard time finding it. We went into a copy center to ask for
directions. I turned to a woman next to me and asked her (in French) if she
knew where the museum was. She then told me she was sorry, that she only spoke
English, because she was American. She pointed to a man who had to be at least
6'7 and said, "That’s my son. He plays professional basketball here."
We started talking with her son and he told us he was from California but plays
professional basketball here for the team at St. Quentin! His name is Darnell
Williams, and he asked us more about our church and what we were doing here in
France as missionaries. They were both super nice and he even offered to get us
free tickets for a game to watch their team! Haha, TOO COOL! Sadly, I don’t
think we will be going, but hey, it was a cool missionary opportunity!!!
We made it to the Butterfly museum and it was so cool! They
had insects and butterflies carefully placed in glass display cases for
everyone to observe! Who knew there were so many different kinds! I saw the Io
moth, which made me think of my sisters and the times we caught them together
when we were younger. We loved it!
The Niamke family is progressing as well. We re-taught the “restoration
of the church” lesson and explained the importance of priesthood authority …
the power to act in God’s name to bless the lives of His children and to
perform ordinances of salvation, such as baptism. They seemed to understand and
a good part of the family has a strong desire to be baptized when they know the
Book of Mormon is true! We will be doing a soiree familiale (family home
evening) with them and a member family in the coming weeks!
I love this work. The gospel means everything to me. I know
Christ lives. Families are forever. If we want ALL the blessings that come from
the restored gospel we must LIVE it. It’s not a buffet where we can just pick
and choose! If we keep all the commandments we will be blessed!
Have a great week!
Soeur Madeline Vance
If you want to send me a letter, email me and I will give
you my apartment address!
