E-mail 12-10-12

Dec 10, 2012

Bonjour!!! Thanks for the awesome emails. Y’all be rockin. This week was awesome, at times, but mostly it was just rough .  This transfer I am really going to have to learn how to speak le Français!  It’s been a super humbling experience. The majority of the "humble pie" I ate this week came on Saturday night. We had a lesson with our new investigator Matthieu. He is a super nice guy that doesn’t believe in Christ. So my goal going into the lesson was to help him understand the importance and the role of our savior Jesus Christ. He was not having any of it. He ate me alive. There is no worse feeling then getting shut down in French because there is so little I can say back! The only thing I knew to do was to bear my testimony. He wasn’t having any of that either. He kicked us right out of the house. I will never forget the way I felt, even if I live to be a million.   It was the worst feeling ever. I was not as prepared as I should have been and for that reason alone he may never accept the gospel in this life. I felt horrible. I know those experiences must happen and I must learn from them to become a better missionary but my oh my was it a rough experience. Needless to say I have been studying extra hard on how to teach people who don’t believe in Christ. It’s been good for me! Learning about the Savior of the World never gets old. I love this time of year that we have to learn, remember, and reflect on his infinite atonement, his crucial birth, and his glorious resurrection! Yesterday I was quietly thinking to myself during personal study where I would if it wasn’t for the life of my savior Jesus Christ? Then I quickly thought to myself... what a stupid question!!!! I would be NOTHING. I would be NOWHERE! My life would be WORTHLESS.  Its because of Him and his infinite and eternal atonement that I can even repent and have the chance of returning to my Heavenly Father. He is the one who created this wonderful earth! I love my Savior!

This week I studied my missionary call, you know the one that every missionary gets that says where he is going and where he will be serving, and I learned that there are many awesome promises outlined within its 6 paragraphs. I don’ t have time to explain them all but one hit me hard. "Greater blessings and more happiness than you have ever experienced await you as you HUMBLY and PRAYERFULLY serve the Lord in this labor of love among his children." True that!  I have never been happier and I have never been bombarded with so many blessings from the Lord! Serving the Lord is the hardest thing I have ever been asked to do. Loving the people of France is the second. And Learning French is third. (or 1st haha) But trying my hardest to be successful at all three of them has blessed me more then i could’ve ever imagined! I am nowhere even close to where I need to be but each day the Lord comforts me and lets me know that I am on the right track! (or relatively close haha).   This week out DL has asked me, to ask you, if you could pray for us as a district. We have made a goal to get 20 baptisms this transfer. I know it’s possible! Thanks for your prayers. yall rock!

Life is the best. Thanks for all your prayers! I have surely felt them. Stay awesome! Que Dieu vous benisse! 

Bises Bises Bises,

Elder Adamz

E-mail 12-2-12

Bonjourrrrr! I can’t believe it it is already Decembre! So crazy. I love this time of year! Chartres is way into Christmas too, so it makes it that much better. They have so many sweet displays of lights and what not. I have taken some pretty sweet pics. (I’ll send them to you one day if you’re lucky :) Thanks for the package! It was pretty clever of you to put "thanksgiving in a box." That Turkey Jerky was way good. And of course the potatoes.  But of course my favorite part was the letters & and pictures of my cute sister and her family. Mostly just Raegen and Greyson haha. They are a couple of studs. Raegen looks so BIG! Pretty crazy. Its only been like 6 months. I can’t imagine what they will look like after two years. And yes I do have some sweet photos of last weeks football game under the Eiffel Tower. I’ll be sure to send them for Christmas, don’t you worry.

I have been eating pretty well. I can’t complain. The main reason I am loosing weight is because of all the walking we do here in Chartres. They used to have a car here, but right before I arrived but President took it away. There are some days where we have no time to eat but usually we find  time to have a couple of meals each day. My favorite is anything with potatoes in it. I have kinda mastered how to cook potatoes, not gonna lie. I can’t get enough of them :) I got skills in the kitchen haha. And to answer your question... there are fast food restaurants here in France. We have 3 McDonalds and a KFC here in Chartres. Not sure if they are any good because I have never eaten at any of them but I suppose they are the same except for the portion size. Everything is SMALL here. Like ridiculously small. Like it makes me crazy to know that people eat things so small haha. I don’t know how people do it. That part about France kinda makes me love America a little bit more haha. But i still LOVE France.  A lot.

I almost forgot to mention transfers! haha. I will be staying here in Chartres of course but my comp is leaving :(   He’s gonna be a stud ly zone leader in Nancy. My new comp is Elder Harris. Should be a good time. I keep telling myself that change is good, even though it is hard and I wish it didn’t have to happen so often haha. Things are going so good right now here in Chartres! I hope and pray it will continue!! I am excited for this next transfer. We have a few amis who are progressing like crazy. I know if they continue to keep there commitments/engagements they will be ready for baptism this transfer! Our newest ami Bairing is so awesome! He is from Chad, Africa. We have recently just finished teaching him the plan of salvation. He loved it! He is still in the process of praying and finding out if it’s the true plan that God made for him. I already know it is but I hope and pray he can know for himself that he’s a Child of God with a purpose in life! At the end of our lesson last night he gave an awesome prayer. He told Heavenly Father that he loves the plan of salvation and he wants to know it is true! Such a powerful prayer, especially for someone who never prayed up until two weeks ago! Its so awesome being  a missionary. I learn so much each day. Sometimes I think I learn more from my investigators then they learn from me and my comp. I thought I was supposed to be the other way around? haha. I have really learned that when I forget about myself and all of the things I have left behind to be here in France... the Lord blesses me with an increase of knowledge! Sometimes more knowledge than my big dome can process. I’m pretty sure when I started my mission I was the dumbest missionary alive hahaha. In the MTC I was shocked EACH minute of EACH day by the amount of knowledge that EACH person had. Not just some, but EACH and EVERY person knew so much more then me. I was the kid in class that had to cheat and look at the person to my side when the teacher said, "turn to Ether" because I had no idea where it was! haha. I still know very little about the gospel but I know so much more than I did six months ago. In ways I am very grateful for my lack of knowledge because it gives me so much motivation each and every day to work and study hard. Sorry mom and dad if this hurts your feelings hahaha. It’s not that you didn’t teach me lots before the mish, its just that I chose not to listen and remember all of the things that you taught me! You’re the best parents ever :)

Thanks for being awesome! Keep on keepin on. Thanks for all of your prayers in my behalf! (especially for my French). I need all the help I can get! Que Dieu Vous bénisses. (God Bless You). 

Bises,

Elder Adams

P.S. - Brother. I had Foo-Foo this week with my African friend. Stuff is pretty dang good. Tastes like play dough. Not sure I could eat it every day like you did but I can’t say that I hated it. I got some sweet pics of it. And lots of pictures!! I love pictures(hint hint). I’ll send you a ton if you do the same :) hahha jk.

E-mail 11-26-12

Sounds like y’all survived Thanksgiving. That’s good. Thanksgiving is always the best. I have not yet received the package from you and Tristin. It should come soon though. Did you get the package I sent? How was the chocolate? Life changing? Good. The turkey bowl game was pretty awesome. We played on a huge field right next to the Eiffel Tower. #FieldOfDreamz. I was playin like a boss. Threw a couple of TD's. NO biggy. HAHA jk. I still stink at football! Safe to say I couldn’t walk for three days after though. I am SO OUT OF SHAPE. kinda sucks. I have lost another 8 pounds though, so that’s pretty neat. I’m like right at 190. At the MTC I was 214! Bizzare eh. Walking 25 miles a day really helps with the gut uhh. #Blessing. You liked my new coat huh? I like it too. I won’t tell you how much it cost ;) #70$

That’s sweet that Scotty and Alonzo got their mission calls. They will be leggit. Pretty crazy that Tommy is already an assistant! Kid has got way to much swag. He hasn’t even been out a year yet. It really doesn’t surprise me though. He’s a boss. He will be awesome. I’m glad you found humor in that heartfelt letter I wrote you last Thanksgiving! That was not supposed to be funny haha. Je blague. Elder Adams never was good at being serious until he decided to serve the mish.

This last week was pretty awesome. I had to grow up A LOT. I went on a bleu exchange! (When two way young Elders go on an exchange). It was a huge step of faith for my French! I had to make all the telephone calls (so hard in French, but I’m making progress) and lead the discussions. And I had to get us from the center of Paris all the way to Chartres. A lot harder than it sounds haha. It was neat. During contacting the Lord blessed me so much. I was talking to French people all by my self! Just like a Frenchy. Without memorized phrases haha. I talked to three different people for about thirty minutes each. I never knew it was possible until now. I was pretty nervous for the exchange but I am so glad it happened. It has given me a lot more confidence with my French. My big head is finally starting to understand this French stuff. Sometimes I even think in French! BEST FEELING EVER. 

Yesterday rocked. We taught our new ami Bairing (From Chad, Africa) about the Plan of Salvation. He is amazing! He has kept every engagement we have given thus far and is super open to learning. He loves reading from the Book of Mormon and has prayed everyday since we have started meeting with him. (9 days). He has got a BRIGHT future. Yesterday at the end of the lesson I asked if had any questions about what we had just taught. He said, "Yeah, does everyone know about this wonderful plan of salvation?" We explained that not all that many people know. And he replied, "That’s sad!" He is so right! I am so grateful for the opportunity to teach people about the plan of salvation! The plan that God has made for each of his children! THE BEST PLAN EVER. 

Oh yeah and on Saturday I got to go to Géant (grocery store, about the size of 10 super Walmarts) with our ward and collect food for the Banque Alimentaire (food for poor). It was pretty awesome. We weren’t allowed to wear our badges though. Weirdest feeling ever haha. It was huge for my French. I got to practice my French with about 4554523877458 people who were rushing into the store. I'll guess that I successfully convinced about 100 people to donate. I wish it was that easy with the GOSPEL! It was a pretty sweet experience. I'll tell of one unsuccessful experience haha. I stopped a girl and explained what we were doing. She looked at me with a crooked face and said, "I didn’t understand a word you said." That hurt my heart a little. And then she decided to make it worse when I tried to explain that I am from America and I’m still in the process of learning French.  She said, "Cool, you should probably go back. You don’t have much of a chance with French." OUCHHH! I may or may not have cried a little after that ahha jk. But then later I thought she must have understood my French if she told me to go back to America! BOOM! I win. She understood :):)

Have a good week! Thanks for all of your prayers in my behalf. I am truly blessed! I have the best family and friends ever, and I am serving in the best mission in the world. Life ROCKS. Stay awesome. Have a good week. Keep the faith. 

Love Elder Adams

E-mail 11-18-12

Only one question? Not to shabby haha. Yes my feet are just fine. Pas de probleme! My bunions are turning into rocks. Pretty neat ehh. Can't even feel them anymore. #DreamComeTrue. Sounds like you have all had a good week up in Tahoe. Thats pretty sweet. Love it up there. Its a lot funner when its not snowing and you can play golf tho. Just saying. I can't believe Jeff is already home. Thats nuts. I swear he like just left like a month ago. Its pretty crazy how time flies. Kinda scares me. Tell him hi. Sounds like your gonna have quite theThanksgiving. Thirty people is kinda a lot. Lucky. I can't complain tho. We are having a Turkey Bowl Game on Thursday in downtown Paris! Football on the mish. Pretty sweet right. And we are having a huge pot luck. Life rocks! They don't celebrate Thanksgiving, here but that's okay, we'll make our own!

This week was one of the best! Shaking an apostles hand is always a real treat. Elder Andersen was so awesome! Easily the most powerful talk and most relevant I ever heard in my life. He started his talk with like five stories. The man is Hilarious. He had some pretty awesome jokes. I would retell them but I don't know how haha. But I do remember the first things he said when he stood at the podium. "Elders and sisters... you're not serving in Brazil! You're serving in France. One of the hardest missions in the world! You may not baptize that many people but that doesn't mean your mission is a failure." Not a bad start. He definitely had me listening haha. The main purpose of his talk was to help us find joy in our work, understand that baptism isn't everything, and to understand who we are. I got from it that finding joy in our work is all up to ourselves. When you wake up in the morning and think to yourself today is going to be rough... its going to be just that! But if you wake up with a good attitude and are excited for the opportunity to work... your day will rock. Sometimes it takes getting put down and spit on by 200 people before you have the opportunity to find that one investigator you have been praying for! Hard work is always worth it. I also loved how he explained that baptism isn't always the most important. He believes that one of the most important things to focus on here in France is the younger generation of members. To many youth fall away and never come back to church. So true. I would guess that only about 20 percent of the youth in the church here are strong and active. Pretty crazy. Another thing I got from the talk is that missions are hard but they are a lot easier when you know who you are! I have been called by a prophet of God to serve the people of France. My Father in Heaven wouldn't have sent me here if he didn't think i could do it! He wants me to be successful. And I'll be successful when I live by his commandments and follow all of the mission rules with exactitude! Not just keeping the ones I like. ALL. If I was to ALMOST keep all of them, I would ALMOST receive all of the blessings. Almost isn't enough. I am here for a reason! A reason I may not know quite all of yet but a reason nonetheless. The last thing I learned is that baptism is so important but its not something we should grade ourselves on. I was sent here to baptize people into the church of Jesus Christ... but that doesn't mean I know how many or when they will take place. Maybe it only happens once? CA VA! Thats life! It wasn't meant to be easy. We wouldn't learn if life was easy. Opposition in all things is a good things. Kinda sucks while its happening but it HAS to happen. Alright. That's about all I can remember. #BrainIsFried.

Have a good week. I sent a package the other day. Be on the look out. I may or may not have put some of the worlds best chocolate in it. Your welcome :) ... Can you give me some Jimmer updates? Please. I miss him. Those brothas better be passing him the ball. Thanks for being awesome. Keep on keepin on! Life is the best. I am THANKFUL for all of y'all. You rock. Eat some pomegranate salad for me. And taters!

Bises,

Elder Adams

E-mail 11-12-12

Fam,

Mother, you are a question machine!  But I love you so I’ll try my hardest to answer them all. I’m glad to hear that you are all freezing as well. Its sooooo cold here. Who’s the clown that said all that global warming nonsense? He should get fired eh. But ca va. All weather is good! For example, we get let into houses a lot easier when its way cold and the people feel bad for us. If it was hot that wouldn’t happen. Therefore, I LOVE the cold haha. Its weird how the Lord blesses us in a variety of ways. I have come to learn that IT IS ALWAYS GOOD WEATHER NO MATTER WHAT. 

My comp is legit. He is a spiritual giant. Elder Adams has learned more then he ever thought possible these last few weeks all thanks to him. #Blessed. And no we don’t live with anyone else . The next closest missionaries are in Versaille (Paris) about an hour away. President Andersen will be here on Friday. Pretty excited for that. He was a Mission President here so I guess his French is pretty awesome. That will be neat. The ENTIRE mission will all be together Friday morning. We will all be taking a tram to the Versaille chapel. All 180 or so of us! People are gonna freak when they see us haha. I’m sure we will make the news or something. Missionaries have been all over the news these last few weeks because of the elections. Yesterday we had a guy run up to us because he thought I was Mitt Romney's son? I said yes, haha. We have a rendez-vous with him this week!  Should be legit. And he is reading the Book of Mormon. Who knew politics could be used for good? haha Je blague. And to answer your last question... P Days are pretty uneventful. We just go to the grocery store, the church for emails, eat, write letters, and wander the streets if we have time looking at random stores. Oh and we always look at the Grand Cathedral. Its soooo crazzzy. And sooo BIG. I have seen it a million times already in my short time here but it never gets old. It manages to blow my mind every time. I think I answered most of your questions. I tried anyway.

This last week was a real treat... just like every week. Chartres is the best. I love the people here! There are so many people here interested in the gospel right now. We have talked to soooo many people these last three weeks. The first week we had 8 hour days of finding with an occasional lesson. Now two weeks later all of that finding is really paying off.  We have had lots of lessons these last couple of weeks. Teaching lessons is the best! It’s so fun studying every morning for three hours (personal study, team study, and language study) and then going out and sharing the things that I have learned with the people. These last couple of weeks I have been sleeping like a baby. There is no better feeling in the world than knowing you have worked hard all day and then it’s finally time for bed haha. Sleep is my best friend. My bed is a little to small but I have come to learn that the harder I work, the less I care about the size of my bed because once my head hits the pillow I’m out! #DeepSleep.

I don’t know if I have mentioned this already but our President has given every team of missionaries the goal of finding a family and baptizing them before Christmas. What better gift could a person give then that of the gospel?  Nothing!  How lucky am I? Pretty lucky!  And I have received the confirmation that it is possible so I am pretty excited to see what happens in these coming weeks. Things are really looking up here in Chartres. 

Thanks for all your prayers in my behalf!  I have certainly felt them this week. The powerfulness of prayer is just that, powerfull!  Thanks for all that you do. And know that I’m praying for your success as well. Y’all deserve it!  Keep on keepin on. Stay Awesome.  Stay neat!  Miss y’all to the moon and back.  Sometimes haha.  Je blague! Bon semaine!  Garder un sourir!  Life rocks.

Bises,

Elder Adams

Email 11-5-12

Family,

Sounds like life is swell out there in the real world! That’s good! I’m gettin real sick about hearing about all the fishing y’all been doing. Dang. Why didn’t this happen when I lived there eh?  Ha ha. Je blague. Ca va.  Life rocks here as well. Chaque jour est le meilleur. Vraiement. Je suis content etre ici en Chartre! The election is close huh? It’s about time. I’m getting real sick of it haha. Its everywhereeeeeeeee! Like these people should just move to the US of A or something. I’m pretty sure the election is more important here. About 10 times a day we here, "Mitt’s boyz huh... you don’t stand a chance." haha. Not sure how to exactly translate it from French but it’s something like that.

Well I kinda lied about being right next to Paris. It’s actually about an hour and a half train ride. Its not really considered to be a suburb but then again it kinda is. Tons of people live here and work in Paris. I have seen the Eiffel tour a couple of times but not very often. I get to go to Paris once a week for district meeting. The church is in the heart of Paris so it’s always fun to walk by some of the most famous buildings in the world and to learn how to get around Paris. That place is nuts. My ville is pretty small. Way smaller then Charleroi. My new companion Elder Maxwell is a stud. He is from Vegas and has been out for about 13 months. His French is amazing so I learn a lot from him in that regard. He really knows how to talk and communicate with the people so it’s been awesome learning from him in that regard as well. Life is pretty chouette right now. Can’t complain one bit. And Elder Maxwell is huge into golf so that’s obviously a real treat as well. #Blessingz. I never saw Soeur Poznanski on transfer day because I got to Paris a little earlier than most Elders. I am kinda a little camera shy but that’s not the excuse this time. The members are pretty awesome here. They have feed us twice already I think. Not too bad. Our apartment isn’t the nicest but it gets the job done. Elder Adams has done a lil reconstruction on it as well. I cleaned the stove, sink, and shower with some gnarly chemicals. They be lookin like new again. #YouCouldEvenEatOffOfIt. I can’t stand living in a dirty place. One thing I have learned in my short time here is the power of cleanliness. It’s definitely worth it. Dowmtown is about a five minute walk from the apartment. Not to shabby. We have to walk a TON. Honestly like 20 miles a day. Pas une blague. Safe to say my little tootsies are not in the best of shape. They’re bleeding in about three different spots right now haha. But they will live. We have a foot docteur in our ward and I will be visiting him tonight to get another pair of custom orthotics for free. He did some tests lasts week and I failed miserably haha. He’s not really sure what to do because he has never seen feet like mine but ca va. They still get the job done. I could buy new shoes but I don’t want to s[end the money and I don’t really think they will help. I’ll give you more of an update on that next week. I hope I answered all of your questions mom!  #TriedMyHeartest

This week was nuts!  Without a doubt the best week of the mission and my life.  Miracle after miracle has been taking place. I got let into my first house ever while doing port à port! (door to door). It only took about 500 houses before one finally decided to listen haha. And she loved it! We taught the 1st lesson. It was powerful. She was excited to have her own copy of the Book of Mormon and promised us that she would read it. We’ll see here again on Wednesday so I’m pretty pumped about that. She also has two kids and a husband who will be present in the next lesson. #GospelBlessesFAMILIES. And this week we were getting blessed right and left! We taught a lot of lessons and found a lot of new amis de l'église!  The power of prayer, being obedient, and working hard are irreplaceable.  It’s amazing what can happen when we have a goal in mind and work hard  to achieve it! 

And lastly the Français.  My French has come along way but its still nowhere even close to where it needs to be. I can finally talk with people but it doesn’t sound to hot haha. I struggle most days but with time it can only get better. I study my brains out and pray like a madman every day. I can read French without much of a problem now. It’s just my pronunciation that is horrible haha. I am wayyy to American. I don’t know how to say my R's! Its soooo hard. My big head still hasn’t quite figured out how to do it. Sometimes I get a bit discouraged wiff my Français but when i look back its amazing to see how far I have come and how much I have actually learned. It’s not easy but its definitely worth it! Pray for my Français if you have the time! The power of prayer is amazing. 

Well that’s about all I got time for. I could go on for days about all the things I have learned this last week but I don’t have the time. Oh yeah, Elder Anderson is coming to the mission of the 16th.  Every missionary from the mission will be there.  All 170 or so of us. That will be a real treat. Have a good week. Don’t forget to... "Live each day as if you will live forever, for you surely shall!"  That phrase is a life changer.  Think about it. Lovez y’all. 

XOXO... Bises,

Elder Adamz

 

P.S. I missed your other question. Mrs. Guisti is right. There is a huge Cathedral here. Third biggest in the world.  I can’t get enough of it. Sometimes during study time I get lost within its beauty (we have a perfect view of it from our apartment) Its "untrue" beauty but it is still amazing haha. You can see it from anywhere within 50 miles of Chartre I think.  I can’t even explain it, its too amazzzing. I’ll be sure to send some pics. I’ts like the Super Super Super Walmart of any church on earth haha. HUGEEEE.

E-mail 10-29-12

Life is seriously the best. This has been a crazy week full of lots of reflecting on all of the many blessings I have received from my Father in Heaven! Sometimes I get so caught up in learning French, learning how to teach the missionary lessons, learning how to pack my life into 2 suitcases over night, learning how to understand my purpose in life, and just learning how to walk, talk, and breathe like a missionary! These are all good things to get caught up in (I hope) but that’s no reason to forget about the Supreme Being who makes it all possible! These last five months have prayed like a mad man for my Fathers help with French and with many many other things. And he has answered ALL OF THEM. I am sooo blessed and I have learned that my Father in Heaven WANTS to bless me (and all of his children) when I give thanks to Him for all that I have received, when I keep the commandments, and when I read the scriptures. Our degree of gratitude and thanksgiving (coming up soon #excited) is a measure of our love for God! The necessities of food, air, and water all come to us as gifts from our loving Heavenly Father! How grateful I am for the gift of my family!! Eternal life fulfills the deepest longings of the human soul! (and golf). How grateful I am for a loving Heavenly Father who freely, but with much grief and pain, gave his son for sacrifice for all of the world! Because of the atonement, eternal life becomes a possibility for all who qualify! LIFE IS THE BEST. I could go on for days about all of the things I am grateful for but my little fingys aren’t much for typing so I’ll just stop haha. 

Yes I got the ballot in the mail literally 10 hours before I left Charleroi. #Blessing. Hopefully my boi Mitt is doing work.  #HesGotMyVote. I swear the election is bigger here in France then it is the United States haha. People are crazzzzy.  I remember in Charleroi some lady asked, "Are you Mitt Romney's boys." hahaha. Of course I said yes just to make her happy. Give me some updates on that liberal election please. Not that it really matters but so many people here ask us about it so it would be kinda fun to know.

Chartre is so BEAUTIFUL. Like I never say that word so that sorta means something. It is so clean here. (Almost as clean as the city of Fallon when me and Elder Faught were doin big things in our bright green outfitz). It’s definitely been a culture shock coming from Charleroi to Chartre. France is so different. I have soooo much to learn. People can tell I started in Belgium because of the way i speak French haha. Belgium French is "ugly" according to the people here haha. Chartre only has about 40 members or so and is just a branch. The building is small but very nice where we meet. My new companion elder Maxwell is so leggit. I have learned more in these last 5 days then in my entire life. The work has been kinda dead here in Chartre so we got BIG plans to turn the Work around here. It won[t be easy but with the Lord on our side, itz possible! I am excited about the future here. Life rocks!

Sounds like y’all had a good time in Utah. That’s good. You deserve it. Dad said it was negative 3 degrees! That’s flippin cold. I love fishing but I’m not sure it would be worth it in that kinda weather haha, I hope those fish were BIG. So did like a huge cold front hit the United States these last couple of days? It surely has here. I have been wearing tights, two sweaters, and a jacket just to stay warm... and honestly it hasn’t really worked. I have been freezing my tail off these last couple of days. And its only Octobre!! C'est pas bon! Hopefully we get blessed with a little warmer weather this next week haha. 

Well that’s about all. I will try to write you a cute little letter later today if I have time. Stay awesome. Stay neat. Keep on keepin on. Y’all rock. Don’t foeget to give THANKS for all of your many blessings! I know you gotta lot of them (particularly your cute lil French son hahaha je blague!!). Vous étre le meilleur!

Bises,

Elder Adams

E-mail 10-22-12

Thanks for the cute little package! By little I mean big. That thing was HUGE. Thanks for everything. I obviously loved everything but the mini Preach My Gospels are soo leggit! Do they make those things in French yet? If they do that would be a real treat! Merci. Merci. Merci. #LifeChanging. I will keep my eyes peeled for some new shoes but I think I might wait until January when they have "Solds," a huge sale they do once a year in all of Europe. I hope you’re having a good time in Utah. Tell everyone hi. Play some golf for me.

Well these last couple of days have been crazzzzy. My time is up here in Charleroi!  I received news Saturday morning that I’m moving to the City of Love!!!  I will be serving in a suburb of Paris called Chartres. My new companion will be Elder Maxwell. I do not know him or the city I will be living in so I have got a lot of learning to do ehh. Oh yeah and I have a lot of French to learn too haha. The Français here in Charleroi is a little different so it will be fun trying to learn French all over again haha. Well yesterday was pretty awesome. I gave a spiritual thought in Relief Society and in Priesthood and got to give a little talk in Sacrament meeting. It was a real good experience. My French has really been growing and expanding these last couple of weeks. More than I have ever thought possible. It’s amazing what can happen when you’re playing on the Lords side! He wants toooo and willll bless us when we play by his rules! It really is simple.

I really am gonna miss all of the people here in Charleroi. But ca va. The will of God can send me wherever and whenever and I will be happy. I was just starting to get to know everyone better here when the Lord decided to move me haha. The "quiet dinner appointments" and "lessons where I said nothing" the first 8 weeks or so were finally a thing of the past! I was finally getting settled in and speaking French with people... and they actually understood the things that were coming out of my mouth!  I may or may not have cried a little in my parting testimony in sacrament haha. I will forever be grateful for the people in this ward. The patience they had with me and my French was amazing. Our DMP (ward mission leader) and his wife are probably the nicest people I have ever met in the world. I will definitely miss them. They  and Patrick are the best member missionaries I have ever met in my life They are in so many ways like the pioneers of the church who struggled going to Zion. They were some of the first members here some 55 years ago. To be a member here is no easy task. I can’t even imagine all of the things that they have done for the church. LOVE THEM. We will stay in contact for sure. They are taking us to a sweet restaurant tomorrow.  Pretty excited for that haha.

Life is the besttt. I love y’all. Stay awesome. Oh yeah. Elder Andersen is coming to our mission in three weeks I think. I’m stoked for that!

Remember...

When God makes a promise,

It remains forever true,
For everything God promises,
He unalterably will do!
When you are disillusioned
And every hope is blighted,
Recall the promises of God
And your hope will be relighted.

LOVVVE YOUUUU.

Bises,

Elder Adamz

E-mail 10-15-12

Bonjourr!

This week was kinda a mess but ca va! C'est la vie! My toe was super jacked up. It finally got to the point where I couldn’t take it anymore so we took a couple of visits to the doc. The first visit the doc said it would probably take surgery to fix the thing because it was so deep but I didn’t like that idea so we went to another doc. The next one said it could be fixed without surgery; all I had to do was take some gnarly pills! He was right. Turns out it was just super infected and the nail hadn’t grown in too far. With a little digging into my foot, two large pills, prayer, and soaking my foot in some crazy medicine it was miraculously fixed! Yay. Now I can walk like a normal person. We missed a lot of proselyting time due to my stupid bug toe, so I’m glad that is finally over with.  I’ll send some pics of it. It’s pretty neat.

Conference was a bit weird. We watched the Saturday morning session here at 6 o’clock Saturday night. Then we watched the priesthood session, Saturday night, and Sunday morning session all on Sunday here. Only two of them were live feed. The other two were recorded. I still haven’t seen the Sunday afternoon session. Pretty excited for the Liahona magazine issue to come out. The church is a five minute walk from our house #Blessings. Transfer notices come on Saturday. I am pretty sure I will be staying here. I hope so anyway. I love it here. The people are awesome. And of course I love the food as well. After yesterday’s sacrament (fast and testimony meeting) meeting I’m pretty sure I could stay here in this ward forever! The spirit was soooo strong. Honestly I didn’t understand every word that was said from the pulpit (Français) but almost everyone that bore there testimony did it with humility for the lord and for the gift of his son, Jesus Christ.  Everybody was crying, sobbing, and really reflecting on the blessings they have received recently. I hope I never forget that meeting! It was a life changer.

This last week I also had the opportunity to attend the funeral of our Bishop’s mother. It was also a real spiritual builder. Once again not everything that was said from the pulpit made complete sense in my grand tete (big head) but the spirit was soooo strong. The biggest of sinners could have felt it!!  Many people attended who were not of our faith. I know they felt something. Hopefully they have questions for the missionaries! During the funeral I thought a lot about Grandma Hendrix and how her funeral would of went. I’m sure there were many tears of sadness but many more tears of joy.  Grandma is in a better place!  She is in the rest of God who gave her life. How grateful I am for the plan of salvation! I watched many people cry hysterically during the funeral. Theirs were not tears of joy because they don’t have the same knowledge we do. They don’t believe that they will ever see her again. It really is sad. But that’s why I am here in Belgium on a mission. To share with people the plan of salvation! The best plan everrrr.

 

Well that’s about it for the week. Oh yeah, Justin Beiber was in town last week. People were going crazy.  Including me ahhah just kidding.  Every missionary hates him, except for me of course.  Kids got a cute lil voice. I got no reason to hate. I hope ya’llz life is awesome. You deserve it. Love ya to the moon and back.

Elder Adams

E-mail 10-8-12

Sounds like all is well out there in that big cold world! Ca ces schouette! Y’all deserve it! What a week it has been. Conference was a real eye opener and life changer. We were able to watch conference at our church along with other Elders who came from towns that did not have it. Me and my comp were in charge of making sure that the projector and internet were working before each session so people could watch conference. Thankfully all went smoothly. We were in charge of watching the building all day to between each session because all of the Bishopric wereout of town. It kinda stunk but whatever. On Sunday we showed up at the church at nine and didn’t get home till nine. And we forgot to bring food. Worst decision ever. #Starving. Wasn’t conference so amazing? I can remember no conference as influential as this one in my life. EVERY single talk related to something I needed and have been contemplating. The Lord was truly answering my prayers right before my eyes! I could go on for days about the things I learned but I’ll try to stick to a couple of talks.

Of course because I am currently a missionary I loved Elder Nelson’s talk. It was powerfulllll. "Ask the missionaries, they can help you!" Sooo true. I wish all the people here in Belgium heard that one single sentence! haha. We are trying desperately to get into doors and to have the opportunity to share the gospel but these last couple of weeks have been rough. I wish everyone could know what we know as members. "This gospel can help us more than we can possibly imagine." Truthhhh!  Its no easy task but Ii know that if I continue to pray for those that are ready for the gospel, the Lord will send me to them and he will give me power from above so that I can turn their doubts into hope and happiness through the blessings of the gospel!  I think my favorite line from this whole talk though came from the beginning when he said "serving a mission will shape our destiny." How lucky am I! Throughout most of this conference I couldn’t help but think how truly blessed I am to be serving the Lord at this time in my life!  There are a gazillion other things Icould be doin,g but none of them are even close to the importance of serving the Lord full time. #VraitmentBenis.

Another talk I really loved was the first talk of the entire conference by Elder Cook. He really set the tone for the entire conference. I love how he started by letting all of us know how important and strong we really are as a church and as an individual. "Church members, especially our youth, have never been stronger!" I also love how he said it is the missionaries’ job to teach repentance. It is my job to preach repentance in the nicest way possible!  It’s no easy task either but people need to know that they can repent no matter what and become spiritually renewed in the process. What a blessing!!

Christ set the perfect example for us and was put to death in the process. "The death of Jesus Christ marked the beginning of Christian life, not the end!"  This work was not simply killed by killing God! Christ needs me to preach his gospel and defend his faith, no matter whatt!  Like Elder Holland, I too know "this is the work of the Almighty God" and I am so grateful to be able to share his message with the people of Belgium!!  Life really is the best. Conference really showed me how blessed I really am. All we have to do is pause and ponder once in a while and we will realize how much God blesses us each hour of every day!

"We can give people a fish and feed them for a day... or we can teach people to fish and feed them for a life time!"  Have a good week. Go fishing!  You best believe I will be.  Hopefully I catch a few! #Baptisms HAHA.  #NoJokeThough

Bises,

Elder Adams

#143
#Jimmer
#LifeRockz

10-8-12

10-8-12

Sounds like all is well out there in that big cold world! Ca ces schouette! Y’all deserve it! What a week it has been. Conference was a real eye opener and life changer. We were able to watch conference at our church along with other Elders who came from towns that did not have it. Me and my comp were in charge of making sure that the projector and internet were working before each session so people could watch conference. Thankfully all went smoothly. We were in charge of watching the building all day to between each session because all of the Bishopric wereout of town. It kinda stunk but whatever. On Sunday we showed up at the church at nine and didn’t get home till nine. And we forgot to bring food. Worst decision ever. #Starving. Wasn’t conference so amazing? I can remember no conference as influential as this one in my life. EVERY single talk related to something I needed and have been contemplating. The Lord was truly answering my prayers right before my eyes! I could go on for days about the things I learned but I’ll try to stick to a couple of talks.

Of course because I am currently a missionary I loved Elder Nelson’s talk. It was powerfulllll. "Ask the missionaries, they can help you!" Sooo true. I wish all the people here in Belgium heard that one single sentence! haha. We are trying desperately to get into doors and to have the opportunity to share the gospel but these last couple of weeks have been rough. I wish everyone could know what we know as members. "This gospel can help us more than we can possibly imagine." Truthhhh!  Its no easy task but Ii know that if I continue to pray for those that are ready for the gospel, the Lord will send me to them and he will give me power from above so that I can turn their doubts into hope and happiness through the blessings of the gospel!  I think my favorite line from this whole talk though came from the beginning when he said "serving a mission will shape our destiny." How lucky am I! Throughout most of this conference I couldn’t help but think how truly blessed I am to be serving the Lord at this time in my life!  There are a gazillion other things Icould be doin,g but none of them are even close to the importance of serving the Lord full time. #VraitmentBenis.

Another talk I really loved was the first talk of the entire conference by Elder Cook. He really set the tone for the entire conference. I love how he started by letting all of us know how important and strong we really are as a church and as an individual. "Church members, especially our youth, have never been stronger!" I also love how he said it is the missionaries’ job to teach repentance. It is my job to preach repentance in the nicest way possible!  It’s no easy task either but people need to know that they can repent no matter what and become spiritually renewed in the process. What a blessing!!

Christ set the perfect example for us and was put to death in the process. "The death of Jesus Christ marked the beginning of Christian life, not the end!"  This work was not simply killed by killing God! Christ needs me to preach his gospel and defend his faith, no matter whatt!  Like Elder Holland, I too know "this is the work of the Almighty God" and I am so grateful to be able to share his message with the people of Belgium!!  Life really is the best. Conference really showed me how blessed I really am. All we have to do is pause and ponder once in a while and we will realize how much God blesses us each hour of every day!

"We can give people a fish and feed them for a day... or we can teach people to fish and feed them for a life time!"  Have a good week. Go fishing!  You best believe I will be.  Hopefully I catch a few! #Baptisms HAHA.  #NoJokeThough

Bises,

Elder Adams

#143
#Jimmer
#LifeRockz

E-mail 10-1-12

Bonjour! Cette semain etait le meilleur! (Week = the best).

Sounds like all is well in the good ole US of A. You asked a lot of questions mother so I’ll try my hardest to answer all of them.

Yessssss chocolate is amazing here! Duhhhhh. Its changed my life for sure. I probably eat like one or two bars a day. Stuff never gets old. There are so many different flavors, brands, and ways to make chocolate here so that gives me a good reason to try them all out right? Right. haha. I still don’t know how I haven’t gained a gazillion pounds. I have lost 14 so far. Not bad ehh. And no you don’t need to send me any American money. I have enough to send you some chocolate. I have small package for you and for Whitney. I will send them out tomorrow morning so they should get there next Wednesday. I already bought some of my favorite chocolate to send you this morning. #MindReader. For us to get to Paris from here it only takes a couple of hours. The train goes straight from Brussels to Paris. It goes sooooooo fast. What would probably be a 7 hour car drive turns into 2 hours thanks to the bullet train. #Blessing. We don’t spend the night when we go to Paris. Last time we just caught a train @ 7 thirty and got home around ten. Patrick picked us up and took us home (bad idea to be our after 9... people are crazzzzzy). Oh yeah and the trains are way nice. We ride like first class it feels like. The seats are like a lazy boy. #Spoiled. Yes mother, I have learned some manners. You would ask that question haha. We ate at a members house a couple of weeks ago and I got caught eatin like a dang American. Dangit. He gave me a lesson on how to use a fork and knife. Ever since then I have been a little angel. Eating is much harder and slower... but whatever makes the people happy n'est pas? And mother happy haha. Yes I spent a few bucks last week sorry about that. I bought the cheapest pair of pants I could find. They are leggit. I look like a leggit Frenchie in them. In 4 months they are having a huge thing called winter solds that lasts for like 2 weeks I think. I’m going to buy a French suit then. It will cost me about 100£. Desolet. And about the ward,  we have like 5 young men I think. 3 young women, and 5 primary aged kids. Those are just the active ones. Depending on the week we have less or more. The other missionaries here in Charleroi have there own ward. It’s about 30 minutes away from ours. It’s also a super nice building. I think that was all of your questions. Phew.

I don’t know if I told you last week but we were on the news here. I’m sure everyone in this place (Charleroi) got a good laugh haha. It was some kind of Holiday here and we were walking down the street as a marching band was going by and the news guy spotted us walking and decided to come over and interview us haha. So within seconds the film was rolling and some lady put a mic in our face and started asking questions. My companion answered a couple questions and then it was my turn. Still not sure what they asked me but Ii managed to spit some French out hahaha it was horrible. All I could say was "cetait choutte... je veins de Nevada aux Etats-Unis." It was sweet... I am from Nevada in the United States. The people nodded awkwardly and kept walking hahah. Hopefully they understood. If not Ca Va!  Good experience for sure. Oh yeah and there were these punks on our Bus and they like wanted to fight or something (can’t understand their French very well but well enough to know their intentions) so all I did was stand up to switch seats and they went running hahahahaha. People are so small here that they just shut up when they see how big I am. My height comes in handy sometimes. I can’t speak French too well yet but my body can ;) .

Well that’s about all. Sorry this email is not so spiritual. I’ll try harder next week! Tell Whitney I got her package and loved it. She’s the best. Not sure if the world knows yet (delete this part if they haven’t told anyone yet haha) but she’s preggo!  Pretty sweet.  I’m excited for them, but mostly for me.  Kids are the best!  Missionary work is the best.  Its my job to bring salvation to the families here in Charleroi. Best job ever!!! Au revoir.

Bises,

Elder ADAMZ

E-mail 9-24-12

9-24-12

Thanks for the emails. Yall are the best. Glad to hear the Raiders won and that my boi Janikowski is still a kicking machine. #LoveHim. Sounds like dad has been living the dream this last week! #HeDeservesIt. Fishing is the best. Hopefully after my mission I might learn how to do it haha. Oh ya I learned how to say fly fishing in French this week... Pécher à la mouche. Pretty leggit eh? Surprisingly it is pretty popular around here. I see quite a few people fishing every week. And yes mother there are lots of drug dealers here haha. If it was up to me we would avoid them but its kind of hard when we just knock on random peoples door ya know. #NothingICanDoAboutIt. We are teaching some great families.  They are by far the nicest people I have met so far but they still haven’t seen the Big Picture yet. SOOON!

This last week has been a crazy one. On Tuesday we had zone conference in Brussels. It was life changing. We combined the Lille zone so there were a lot of people. And this time President, his wife, and the AP's were there. The whole meeting was centered on the atonement and the importance of it in missionary work. And also we learned a lot about having a good attitude. President gave an awesome talk on the example of Nephi and Sam compared to there wicked brothers Laman and Lemuel. They all made it to the promised land, but Naphi and Sam did it with a good attitude! Pretty much I learned that this life is wayyyyyyy hard but people make it wayyyyyy harder than it needs to be! Nephi and Sam have set an AMAZING example for moi. My family has set a CLOSE to perfect example for moi. And Jesus set the PERFECT example for moi. Now I just have to try my HARDEST to follow all of these examples in my life! I won’t be perfect but with the Atonement of Jesus Christ it is POSSIBLE! Nephi and Sam didn’t complain but rather they forgot about themselves! There is so much to be learned from this sweet story. We all have the chance to find the promise land after this life so why not do it the easy way! With Christ helping us along. President also emphasized where the promise land is right now in moi life and... AND ITS RIGHT HERE IN BELGIUM! AND SOON TO BE FRANCE. So pretty much to sum it up... Just try to be like NEPHI!!! Spiritually and Physically (dudes got a nice bod).

And also on Wednesday I got to go to Paris to do my legality. I am finally legal to live here! Maybe I’ll stay here forever? je blogggg. It was a really fun trip though. I got to be companions for a whole day with my man Elder Walton! He’s the best. Maybe you don’t remember but he was in my district at the MTC.  Oh and Paris is sooo crazzy. There are some craazzy peeps that be livin there. Hopefully I get to serve there one day!

Well that’s about all for this week. Actually just kidding. On Wednesday I got to have my first Rachlette meal!  It was a real nice treat.  Maybe the best thing that ever happened to my MOUTH. Rachlette is so simple but so leggit.  All it requires is meat, cheese, onions, and a HUGE potato. The cheese gets melted on a Rachlette machine along with onions and then you pour it on your potato. How did I not know about this earlier in my life?  Just when I thought I had had a potato every way possible I was wrong.  Not sure if they have rachlette cookers in America, but if they do you should buy one!

Love yall to the moon and back. And Back. And Back. And Back.

Elder A.

#OneLove #LifeRocks #BelgiumIsThePromiseLand

E-mail 9-17-12

Family,

Thanks for the awesome email. Yall rock! This week was yet again a real treat. I say that every week but I have tooo, cuz its true! The people here are the best. My ward is the best. The food is the best. Learning French is stinkin hard, but its the best. And of course serving a mission is the best. Everything about my life right now is pretty much the best haha except for the fact that I have to wake up at 6 thirty every morning (not sure I will ever like that).

Questions- Patrick is the man. He works for the brand Kraft. Just like the one in America I think. He is the best. I will tell him that you say thank you. And yes the pictures you saw were at a Chinese Restaurant from a couple of weeks ago. It was really good.  It reminded me a lot of American food. And they had an ice cream bar #Weakness #HeavenOnEarth.  And he only travels to the US once a year I believe. I think he usually just visits Utah. I would tell him to come say hi to you when he visits the US of A but last time I checked no one in the family spoke French haha. Language barriers are the WORST. Trust me.

This week was super bizarre.  On Thursday we taught a sweet old man named F. He has fruged (didn’t show up to the lesson) us about 5 times but finally he decided to see us! The second he let us in his house I wished he would have fruged us again hahah just kidding. But for reals the house reeeeekd. In his house he had 35 Chinchillas (rabbit looking demon things), 25 huge trap door spiders, and é huge fish tanks full of a million different things. All of these things are in his living room and kitchen! Who does that? haha. He lives in the garage and has a little kitchen set up in his garage so that all of his animals can live in the house. That’s some serious love. Probably a little to much love, n'est pas? But other than all that nonsense the lesson went surprisingly well. We taught him the Plan du Salut (salvation) and gave him a Book of Mormon. We were able to answer a lot of his questions and he said he would read the Book of Mormon. Hopefully he does!

Another bizarre rendez-vous was with a man named G. They live in a mansion. When we knocked on the door his wife let us in and went to find her husband. We literally sat in the mansion for 15 minutes before anybody came down to talk to us haha #Awkward. Finally the man came down the stairs and introduced himself.  We went out back on his porch and talked about the gospel of Jesus Christ. The lesson was awesome.  During the lesson we taught him about the atonement and the power of repentance.

Well I think that’s about all I got. The French is coming along better and better each week. The "French" light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter and brighter. It’s without a doubt the hardest thing I have ever had to do but with the help of the Lord anything is possible. Oh yeah, we set a baptismal date this week for R! I am excited for her.  Life here is the best! Stay Awesome. #churchIsTrue

XOXO Avec Amour,

Elder A.

E-mail 9-10-12

Fam,

Thanks for the emails Mom and Dad. You’re the best. This week was awesome! Sundays here are always really fun. I love the anticipation of seeing who will show up to church each week. This week we had three investigators come. We should’ve had six but ca va. It is so awesome watching people learn about the gospel and partaking of the sacrament when they still don’t even know if anything they are doing is completely true! The people here have got some faith! I have a good feeling about this next transfer. If all goes well I see a lot of success for us in the future but more importantly I see a lot of success in the future of the investigators. Hopefully they begin to see the big picture soon and the importance of baptism! I remember very clearly before my mission everyone telling me that I will probably not have any baptisms but that’s okay as long as I gain a testimony and become better myself. Not true! With that attitude no work will get done here in Europe. So many missionaries here still believe that and to me it is kind of sad. Our goal as missionaries is to help others come unto Christ by baptism! Before I left on my mission I would be lying if I said I didn’t agree with everyone and accepted the fact that I might not have any baptisms. I am so grateful for awesome AP's and for other missionaries who have helped me to have an attitude of baptism. A good attitude really does affect the outcome. 

Oh yeah and for the first time on my mission I had the opportunity to bless the sacrament this week! It was a train wreck. It took me three times before I did it correct! haha. I am such a loser. You’d think that if you had a card right in front of your face you could read it but I guess its not that easy when its in French haha. That’s definitely something I will need to practice this next week during language study. The language has been coming along very well this last week. Without a doubt the hardest thing for me is pronunciation. I sound way to AMERICAN. I have so many words in my head from all the flash cards I study but each time I go to spit them out the people have no clue what I am trying to say haha. It makes perfectly good sense in my BIG head but these little Belgians don’t seem to get it. With time and the Lords help I hope this can be fixed! These last couple of days me and my companion have taught some awesome lessons. Lots of the time he has to teach most of the lesson but this week we were pretty even! One lesson I talked for 3 minutes without stopping! Doesn’t sound like much but it IS. I almost didn’t even have to think and the words were just flowing out! With the help of the spirit anything really is possible, even Elder Adams speaking le Français!

I hope all is well back home! Life here is the best. Being a missionary is the best. Oh yeah, and a happy bday to my bro! #SuchAStud. #22AndStillNotMarried? #HurryUp.

Avec amour,

Elder Adamz

  

 

E-mail 9-3-12

Family,

To answer your question letters and packages are free to receive here. But that doesn’t mean you need to send them. Those things are expensive! Save the money and take dad on a hawt date or something. I’m sure he would love that, nes pas? Sounds like things are going well back home. That’s awesome. Y’all deserve the best! That’s pretty sweet that its already football season. Not that it matters or that I even care but I hope the R aiders bring the swag this year. #LoveThem. Sounds like your first week of school went good. Your so lucky that you get to teach Booner Ray (Ryan).  Kids a stud.  Do me a favor and never call him Ryan in class because that’s disrespectful to the south. haha #butSeriously.  Oh and to answer your other questions. I will probably be with my companion for one more transfer. This coming Saturday is transfers! That came fast. There is always a chance of getting transferred but most likely not this time. My companion is a decent cook. He makes some prettty leggit rice and veggies. I can’t complain. We usually just switch off cooking each day. The food is definitely different from the US.  We don’t really eat anything that we eat back home except for chicken and fries. Everything else is way different. For example the milk here is super good but super different.  Milk here doesn’t really expire. It lasts up to four months. Not really sure how they do it? haha. United States should pick up on that ehh. Oh and a lot of the pants I left with don’t really fit anymore. They straight up shrunk. I know you probably think its because I’m getting fat but it isn’t true. Those are just rumors. So far I have lost 9 pounds. Not bad ehh. I am gonna need to buy a couple more pairs of pants here in the next couple weeks. Or I could just go without pants. Whatever happens happens. Ca va.  (I think I answered all of your questions)

This last week has been sooooo good to me. Zone conference was leggit. It was fun meeting a lot of new people. I am the only new missionary in the district so of course they made me introduce myself. That’s always fun. My zone leaders are awesome and really got me pumped up for the work. Sounds weird saying "pumped up" when I’m talking about missionary work but its soo true. Before a basketball game I would usually get pumped up by listening to some dumb rap song (or Taylor Swift) but for missionary work its a little different. Mo Tab and the Book of Mormon (and zone leaders) are what get me pumped up and ready for the game of missionary work. Gotta love it. The Madulla famille is really progressing. They all committed to baptism but they haven’t picked a date yet. They still need to get married so we will have to see how long the whole process takes. Luigi (the dad) is my favorite. He loves going to church. He has already bought a white shirt and tie. Doesn’t sound like much but it really is. They have very little money so it was a sacrifice for sure.  We offered to get him clothes but he wanted to do it on his own. We are going to begin teaching their eleven old daughter on Wednesday because they want her to get baptized as well. I can’t wait!

Ever since I can remember I have been preparing to serve a mission. Staying worthy for a mission is something I have always wanted to do. It wasn’t easy in high school and sometimes I even wondered why I was doing it. But now I KNOW why! I will never forget how happy I was when Ii walked out of the Madullas house last Wednesday. I have been preparing my entire life to serve a mission because of them and whoever else the Lord leads me to for the next two years. Everything is really starting to make sense. Now I know why my parents didn’t want me out late, dating dumb girls (father), or all of the other stupid things that kids do that seem so right at the time but in reality are not worth it. This last week I have really began to understand the importance of being worthy of the spirit and teaching with it. It’s the spirit that is going to lead me and my companion to people who are searching for the gospel and its the spirit alone that teaches and converts people into the gospel. I have been taught this a million times in the MTC and before my mission but it’s finally all become a reality for me. Church has gotten a lot more true this week (but lets be honest, it always was haha). I have also came to realize that this life can be hard at times but that’s okay because that is how the Lord intended it to be! Without trials we wouldn’t learn and progress in this life. I can’t remember who said it but in the MTC if we want to be successful in this life we must "strive, struggle, and desire." He couldn’t have said it any better. #Doctrine.   I’ll just finish with my favorite quote from President John Taylor. "If you do not magnify your callings, God will hold you responsible for those whom you might have saved had you done your duty. There are feet to steady, hands to grasp, minds to encourage, hearts to inspire, and souls to SAVE."   TRUUUUUU THAT.   Love y’all!

Elder Adams

#ChurchIsTrue

#DontForgetIt

#BonSemaine