Learning Lessons of Gratitude

I still cannot quite express the emotions I am feeling as I reflect on the news I just received ... that my younger sister, Lydia, has submitted her mission papers and will be awaiting her call. When I read it, I just began to cry ... tears of joy ran down my cheeks as I thought about how incredible an opportunity it is for my sweet sister. My mission here in Belgium and France has proved to be such a sweet and spiritual journey. I have changed and grown in ways I can’t even begin to explain. The people I have met and my profound spiritual experiences have impacted my life in more ways that I will ever be able to understand or communicate. I know the Lord answers prayers. I know He has a specific plan for each of us and that if we simply ask Him for counsel or guidance, that He will direct our paths and never lead us astray. I know Lydia will be a powerful servant of the Lord and I will be waiting anxiously to hear about where she is going!

On another note, I want to wish everyone a HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Sadly, this great day of feasting and family is not celebrated here in France, but all of the missionaries are getting together and we are doing something special to celebrate. Soeur Hill and I have made it a goal this week to only say prayers of gratitude. It is incredible to see how many blessings you begin to recognize when you start listing them off. I love the scripture found in the Book of Mormon in Alma 34:38; "Live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you." While Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to reflect on our many blessings, I have truly discovered on my mission that when we take more time each day to be grateful for the things we DO have, we forget the things we DON’T have. I know showing gratitude to our Heavenly Father and those around us each day brings us the most happiness.

On Sunday, two couples from Syracuse, Utah were visiting our ward. They came up to us and asked us where we were from and how we were doing. They are members of the church who are on vacation here in Paris. It was neat being able to talk with them, and each of the women gave me a "momma hug"! It was cool because they each said they had children serving missions around the world and I really felt like I was able to get a hug from home. As I was talking with them, I noticed two key things. First, how absolutely terrible my English has gotten to be at times, and second, how much my mission truly has blessed my life. They kept firing question after question about the life of a missionary and I couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear as I told them it has been the best experience of my LIFE. I know the Lord has changed my heart and continues to push me to become the woman He needs me to be.

After a busy day at church on Sunday we were headed home for our lunch break. After the 10 minute walk to the metro, we went down the stairs and into the metro station. Out of nowhere my stomach dropped and I said to Soeur Hill, "Oh no, something is not right ... I think I forgot something." She turned to me and said she had the same feeling. We shuffled through our purses and didn’t see anything we were forgetting. Then we decided that there is a reason we feel this way, so maybe we are supposed to find someone and we better head back to the church. As we began the long walk back to the church, thoughts began to enter our minds. “What are we doing? We didn’t forget anything.” I was scanning up and down the streets in search of the person we were supposed to find. Then Soeur Hill turned to me and said, "It’s weird because I feel like we were supposed to come back, but I don’t want to waste our time." Without even thinking, the following words left my lips, "It’s never a waste of time when you are following a prompting."

After I said it, I knew the phrase was not my own. It was the Spirit that guided my thoughts, because once I heard myself say it, it was as if I had just learned a profound lesson. When we are prompted by the Holy Ghost to act, we must ACT … no matter how busy we might think we are or how inconvenient we think it might be.

We picked up our pace and continued further down the road, and passed the church to find an elderly, African woman outside a convenience store, smoking. I approached her and introduced myself. Her name was LiLou. As we began to talk she told us that she was very believing and that she truly knew that Christ was her Savior. It was in that moment that I knew we had come back to talk with her. We later discovered that she had attended church two different times and lived down the street. She was a sweet lady, but was very set in her own beliefs. We ended up teaching and talking with her for 30 minutes and ended our discussion with a prayer. I don’t know if we will be able to meet with her again, but in that moment I was so grateful for that chance I had to testify of the truthfulness of the restored gospel. I know the Lord blesses us when we follow spiritual promptings.

Our amies are continuing to progress. Ammara has been going through a lot lately and she thinks it might be better to push back her baptismal date until December 22^nd. Please continue to keep her in your prayers! We are still working with Samia and her family but they have been a bit busy lately. It has also been amazing to see how many people we are finding through the less-active members! We had a really cool experience with a young woman named Aymmeline! We saw her name on the ward list and called and set up an appointment with her. She is a beautiful French woman, only 22 years old but has a baby girl. After talking with her, we discovered she wasn’t a member at all! She was only on the ward list because she was blessed in the church as a baby! Her mom was home during the lesson and was very touched when we sang "Be Still My Soul". In the middle of the lesson, their friend, who also lives in the apartment, came into the room and sat in on the lesson, listening intently. So we ended up finding three new amies to teach! They are super excited to learn more and were in tears as we testified of Christ and how our message truly will bless them in their lives. Another family we are teaching!!!

Please continue to pray for the sweet people affected by the typhoon in the Philippines. This past Sunday at church, we were talking with Emy, a woman from our ward, and she was telling us about all of the damage and destruction over there. She is Filipino, and has many of her family members over there and she has been so worried about them. Luckily all of the missionaries were safe and accounted for, but there are still so many people suffering and searching for loved ones. My heart goes out to those people there and, while we may not be able to do big things to help, we can always make the time to pray for them.

I know that we are not expected to be perfect, as missionaries or as people. The Lord expects our heart and our best efforts to follow and accept His will. "Your calling is not to be 'successful' in all things; your calling is to be faithful in all things." No matter how hard the trial, no matter how long the wait, the Lord will carry us through. I know He is by our side, because He has been by mine. We must remain faithful to the end; and there is no better way to do that than being grateful and happy!

Thank you for your prayers. The work is accelerating and we truly are seeing miracles here in the France Paris Mission. When we believe in miracles, they happen. I love you all and wish you a wonderful week of gratitude and thanksgiving!

Soeur Madeline Vance

A Week of Reflection

The past week proved to be a week of reflection for me. I am at the halfway point of my mission and I couldn’t help but think all the way back to the day I entered the Missionary Training Center in Provo nine months ago. Time has really flown by, and as I thought of all of the people I’ve met and places I’ve served, I couldn’t help but smile as I realized how much eternal joy has truly entered my life because of the experiences I have had while doing the Lord’s work.

Soeur Hill and I moved out of our old apartment and temporarily moved into a new apartment with four other sisters until the mission finds us a new one. With six sisters living together, it can get crowded at times, but it is also such a blast getting to know the other sister missionaries! I am living with Soeur Thibault again, one of my close friends who lived with me in our apartment in Villeneuve D'Ascq. It is neat to come home after a long day and share all of the miracles and/or crazy stories we have had together.

Across the street from our new apartment, there is a store where they sell puppies! They are sitting in a bunch of hay in the front windows playing around all together. There are yorkie puppies jumping all over one another and each time I walk by I just want to buy one! Memories flash back to when we first got Sadie, our little family dog at home, and how much joy that little fireball brought into my life.

Soeur Hill and I decided to get a jump on trying to reactivate the less-active members in the ward here at Paris Lilas. Soeur Hill was looking through the list and felt prompted to call a woman whose name she did not recognize. Her name is Margerette, and when we called her she happily answered, and we set a dinner appointment with her for last Monday night. After taking a while to find the apartment building, we decided to call Margerette to see if we were in the right area. When we did, Margerette answered and said she was actually all the way on the other side of the city at her daughter’s house.

We were kind of frustrated that she had canceled on us like that, since we had confirmed with her the night before. She told us we could still see her at her daughter’s house if we wanted to meet. Not knowing what to do, we decided to stop and pray. Afterward, Soeur Hill and I both felt impressed to get back on the tram and metros and head over to her daughter’s house, even if it meant it was going to take 45 minutes to get there. When we arrived, Margerette met us and led us to her daughter’s door. Margerette is an elderly woman from Haiti and explained that her 34-year-old daughter was going through a hard time, and asked if we could share something that would boost her spirits.

When we walked inside, a beautiful young woman approached us. She introduced herself as Sophie. We all sat down and began our lesson with a prayer. After taking some time to get to know her, she explained to us that her husband had left her about a month ago, even though she was five months pregnant. She said it was really hard for her at the time, but said that the joy and excitement she felt anticipating the birth of her son was the thing that kept her going. Tragically, two weeks later she lost her baby, the very thing that had kept her going through such a hard time in her life.

My eyes filled with tears as I felt this woman’s pain. She seemed so alone and she felt abandoned by God, not understanding why she had to go through such hard things all at once. We followed the Spirit and testified of the power of the Atonement. I testified that there were times in my life where I too felt completely alone. I looked her in the eyes and told her that I knew, without any doubt, that her baby boy was in the hands of the Savior and that one day she really would see him again. Her tearful eyes seemed to fill with light as we told her how the Book of Mormon was going to help her build her faith. We testified that, by reading this powerful book, she would be able to acquire a firm and unshakeable foundation of faith that would help her overcome any trial that came her way. She was on the edge of her seat and began to ask question after question, wanting to know how she could gain the same conviction that we each had that Jesus Christ truly is our Lord and Savior.

It was such an incredible experience for me … being able to share the message of hope and happiness that we had to share with Sophie. I knew that our Heavenly Father was aware of her and had heard her desperate cries. We were led to His precious daughter, to give her the lasting peace that comes through the message of the gospel. She has been reading the Book of Mormon, and is coming to church this week! Keep her in your thoughts and prayers, that she will continue to progress!

Samia and her little French family is continuing to progress. We are actually teaching her sister now too! Halimata and Ammara are on track for baptism as well.

We were able to go to a special missionary conference at Versailles on Saturday morning. It was so neat seeing so many missionaries who are all serving in the Paris area. We had the chance to hear three General Authorities speak … Russel T. Osguthorpe (Sunday School General President), Randall L. Ridd (2^nd Counselor in the Young Men General Presidency) and Elder Patrick Boutoille from the Area Seventy (who I knew personally from serving in Villeneuve DAscq). It was such an uplifting conference filled with ways we can improve as missionaries as we apply the principle of real intent in all that we do!

Last week on preparation day we went to a big catholic cathedral called La Madeleine. We also went to Place de la Concorde and the big Opera House. It was so cool … because we were also able to see the Eiffel Tower in the background the whole time we were walking around. They are starting to decorate the streets with Christmas lights, and it truly makes this holiday season such an exciting time! Later today (Monday), Soeur Hill and I are going to climb up to the top of Arc de Triomphe and stand on the top of it! I’ve heard it is one of the greatest sights in Paris! I have the coolest mission in the world!

I am so grateful for this opportunity to serve. It makes me sad knowing that I only have half of my mission left, but it also motivates me to work harder than I have before. I know that I want to implement the incredible lessons I have learned into my life well after my mission. My perspective has changed … I am blessed with moments where I truly feel I have God’s eyes. As I look around at the people here, it doesn’t matter their station in life, their appearance or difficulties, or where they are from … I see them as my brother or sister, a child of God and someone who has divine potential to return to live with Him again.

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers! I love you all and am so grateful to be a servant in the Lord’s vineyard … especially in the greatest city in the world!

Soeur Madeline Vance

p.s. Please remember our amies (Halimata, Ammara, Sophie, Samia and her family) in your prayers.

Finding a Family, Persevering with Gratitude

It is such a blessing to share my missionary life with all of you and I hope I am able to convey the truly miraculous experience I am having here on my mission and my testimony of Jesus Christ. With the very limited time I have on Mondays, I am so grateful for my parents as they take my message and post it with photos on this blog during the week. I really feel that you all are sharing a part of this wonderful experience with me. I would like to wish my dad and Grandma Vance an early HAPPY BIRTHDAY from Paris, France! I love you both so much and will be thinking of you on your special days. Also, I recently received news that Ryan, the son of one of our recent converts (Astou), was baptized this past weekend! It is incredible knowing that our simple efforts as missionaries can end up affecting generations!

Soeur Hill and I had another great week together here in Paris. I am starting to get a feel for the area and am starting to absolutely love it here. Every day is new and exciting, and I know we will be blessed as we continue to go forth in faith to find those who are searching for the truth.

Halimata and Ammara are continuing to progress towards baptism. We set a date with Ammara for November 30^th, so please keep her in your prayers!

On Halloween, Soeur Hill and I met a French woman named Samia. It was dark and there weren’t a lot of people on the streets, but we both felt the sudden prompting to cross the street and talk to the woman who was holding a baby and pushing a stroller. We introduced ourselves and explained our purpose as missionaries … to invite others to come unto Christ. She said she was on her way to the Boulangerie (bakery or sandwich store) and asked that we continue walking with her. She went inside and bought a small treat for her 3-year-old son named Dylan and came back out. Samia then explained that she was Christian and that her ancestors were from Algeria. She said she had so many questions and had felt like she had been spending her entire life searching for the truth. She then invited us to her home, where we were able to share the beginning part of our message of the restored gospel and pray with her.

We were so excited and set another time to meet with her the following week. She called us the day before and said she couldn’t meet with us because her children were sick. We were kind of bummed out and weren’t sure that she was still interested to learn more.

On Saturday of that week, Samia called us out of the blue and asked if we were free to meet with her that afternoon. I was on an exchange with a member in St.Ouen for the day, so Soeur Hill and a member went over and taught her more about the gospel. Samia wasn’t lying … her kids WERE sick! Her little girl had chicken pox all over her face! Soeur Hill told me the lesson went well and that Samia had decided she would start reading The Book of Mormon.

This past Sunday at church … one of those days missionaries dream of … Samia, her husband Ferrah and their two cute children came to church!!! WE HAD AN ENTIRE FRENCH FAMILY AT CHURCH!!! My face hurt from smiling as I couldn’t seem to control the joy I was feeling inside. There was something so powerful and special about seeing a husband, wife, and two little children together in the chapel.

It was such a blessing and I am SO excited to see where this will go. They are such a sweet little family and they have the greatest desire to learn and find the truth. I had the chance to talk with her husband a little bit in the hallway after church and he was asking so many questions, telling me he knew there is one God, and as such, there has to only be one true church. They were admiring the pictures of Christ on the walls and I know they felt the Spirit while they were there.

I know the gospel is true. I know the Lord helps us reach our goals when we are obedient and are doing all we can to do His work. Please pray for this sweet family! I am not sure what will happen but we will continue to teach them about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ in hopes of one day helping them be sealed in the temple for time and all eternity!

"Do your best; your very, very best. Say your prayers and work hard and leave the harvest to the Lord." - President Gordon B. Hinckley

Love you,

Soeur Madeline Vance

23, rue du Onze Novembre

78110 Le Vesinet – FRANCE

So Many People

It has always been a dream of mine to go to Paris. A year ago, on Halloween, I opened my mission call and tears of joy filled my eyes as I realized that dream would be coming true as a full-time servant of the Lord … as a sister missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It was so neat this past week to reflect on the feelings I felt as I opened my mission call a year ago and to realize how blessed I am to be serving here in Paris Lilas at this time. Who knows what the next transfer will bring, but I could be here for Christmas, which would be really exciting!

Last week I packed my bags and said my goodbyes to those I grew to love in Charleroi. It was the most difficult saying goodbye to the Ypersier family and my sweet companion Soeur Gordon. Frere Ypersier was our ward mission leader, and he and his wife had become like Belgian grandparents to me. They wrote me a sweet note and I promised them I would come back and visit someday.

I had a bit of culture shock again after taking the two hour train ride to Paris. My luggage was pretty heavy and lugging it around was pretty hectic. We finally made it to the train station in the center of Paris. People were everywhere! It is so fast paced; everyone is power walking and my head seemed to be spinning. All of sudden I felt like a brand new missionary … so many different metro lines to take and I had no idea where to go! Luckily, with the help of some other missionaries, I was able to find my new companion, Soeur Hill.

Soeur Hill is awesome! She is 22 years old from Dallas, Texas. She has been on her mission for more than a year now. Like me, she studied at BYU before her mission. It was funny because we actually discovered that she was the teacher’s assistant in one of my nutrition classes my freshman year! She is a lot shorter than me (haha), at only about 5'1 or 5'2. She is super cute and has a huge heart and desire to work hard. We have already seen so many miracles together and have strong unity. I am looking forward to these next six weeks with her!

I love Paris Lilas already. There is such an energy here and, even though other missionaries tell me it’s hard to find people because everyone is so busy; or that it’s complicated with the ward at times, it just motivates me to work harder! I am excited to see what Soeur Hill and I, with the Lord’s help, can do together.

We have two incredible, progressing amies. They haven’t been working with the sister missionaries for a super long time, but it’s so cool because they were introduced to the gospel by their friends who are members.

The first amie's name is Ammara. She is from Cambodia and is very well integrated with a family from Peru. This family was actually less-active for a while, but it has truly been a miracle to see how their efforts of sharing the gospel with their friend have brought them back into full activation in the church. It’s true, doing missionary work brings a certain joy into our lives that can’t be compared with anything else. Ammara is in her twenties and actually comes from a Buddhist background. We were able to have a neat lesson with her on the Book of Mormon and explained how we can receive answers to our prayers through the Holy Ghost. The Elders came over as well and gave her a priesthood blessing to help her with the health problems she has been dealing with lately. Priesthood blessings only work when the person giving and the person receiving the blessing have adequate faith that it will work. Ammara definitely had that kind of faith, as it was incredible how the Spirit filled the room as these young men where using the power of God to heal this young woman. Afterwards she explained that she felt a mixture of warm and chills start from the top of her head, down her body to her toes - she said she felt joy and at peace. We explained that those feelings were the Holy Ghost. She comes to church every week and has a desire to be baptized. She is so sweet, and we are going to try to set a date with her this week!

Our second amie, Halimata is absolutely amazing. Anyone remember Astou from when I was in Villeneuve D'Ascq? Yes, she is basically the same person. Halimata is a young African woman with a Muslim background. Like Astou, she is not practicing and has been looking for the truth. We had a really powerful lesson with her. When she was first given the Book of Mormon they encouraged her to begin by reading a couple chapters. She read 133 pages … and several talks from General Conference! She is hungry to learn. I am really starting to gain a testimony of the importance of having the members bring their friends to church. It really is the springboard to conversion for these people. Halimata’s friend has been her anchor in learning about the gospel and is always there for her when she has a question or concern. We as missionaries are just there to teach the fundamental principles in a clear and simple manner, but it truly is the members that get things going.

Yesterday at church, I was asked to introduce myself and share my testimony, as it was the first time I attended the ward. My heart filled with love for all of the faces I saw in the congregation, even though I hadn’t even met them yet. I testified of how the gospel has changed my life and how it has made me into the person I am today. I strongly testified that we, as missionaries, needed THEIR help to find families. I testified that I know that Christ is my Savior and that He is always there for us. I truly felt as though the Lord was guiding my words and that the Spirit was working through me. The French flowed easily and I was able to share the things dear to my heart.

Every first Sunday of the month, we have fast and testimony meeting where the microphone is open to the members of the congregation to share their testimonies. After hearing many great testimonies, I look to Soeur Hill with wide eyes of surprise as our amie, Halimata, walked to the front of the room and up to the stand to share her testimony. She was nervous, so her friend Nornella stood by her side and reassured her as she began to speak. We listened intently as she went on to say she KNEW the Book of Mormon was true. Never have I felt the Spirit quite like I did then when she shared with us how she decided to pray to know if it was true and received her answer. She said she had a dream where everyone was dressed in white. She had a white dress in front of her and wanted to wear it, but her Muslim family was confused and asked her why she was becoming Christian. She turned to them and said, "Because I know Jesus Christ is my Savior and that the Book of Mormon is true." As she continued with the vivid details of the dream she began to weep. I couldn’t help but cry myself, as I was witnessing the power that comes from the Book of Mormon and how it truly can change lives.

Last night, Soeur Hill and I decided to do some contacting. We had about an hour and a half on the streets of Paris to stop and talk to people and share our message with them. Most people were pretty busy but we decided to stop and say a specific prayer. We ended up finding and talking to two women and gave them copies of the Book of Mormon. I know the Lord loves us and hears our prayers.

I love Paris Lilas. I know I am here for a specific purpose. This holiday season is the time to find families. We have already found a couple but I ask you to keep us in your prayers so we can bring a family unto Christ; one that will be sealed for time and eternity in the temple someday. I love you all so much … remember that the Lord loves you!

Love

Soeur Madeline Vance

23, rue du Onze Novembre

78110 Le Vesinet – FRANCE