Week #17

Famille, *

* family in french

This past week was a roller coaster of faith and miracles :) Let's see. One miracle. I only had two bananas to make banana bread for FHE and I need 3. So I was thinking how I could get a banana, and kinda prayed a bit.  Then yesterday when we were contacting I found a banana on the street! Perfect condition. No bruises, openings, splits. Just perfect. It was a miracle. I think my companion thought I was weird but it was still a miracle and she even checked it to make sure everything was OK. I mean let's be honest.  God even answers prayers like that. 

On to a more spiritual miracle... All is good with F :) Frere G who interviewed her came out with wide eyes and said " She is really a miracle." And it's true. F is a miracle. She has changed so much in her life. I can't wait to see her be baptized. It will be such an incredible experience. We saw her everyday this week. Each lesson was so quick because she knows everything already. She knows about temples, already did 8 generations of her genealogy, patriarchal blessings. It's incredible. AND she has a testimony of it all. I love her so much. 

We met this guy G. We were walking around with a less active trying to find a place to sit out of the sun because she was losing steam and all of a sudden we just decided to go to this park by the train station which can be sketchy sometimes. But we went there. We taught our lesson and as we were teaching (actually it was in Spanish so Soeur O was teaching) and I saw this guy kinda watching us and walking around. So then after the lesson he stops us and starts telling us about his wife that passed away 5 months ago and how he is just broken and wants to give up, but he has the Book of Mormon and feels good when he reads it. He's been wanting to end his life for some time and he's been praying to God and he met us and he said he knows that we were an answer to his prayers. So that was cool. He lives a bit far so we won't see him until Thursday.  He misses his wife a lot;

Fun fact: on exchanges with a Swedish sister she taught the restoration in Swedish to a potential and gave her a Book of Mormon. Swedish is a cool language :) And I realized everyone believes in God they just think they don't because they are too stubborn to have faith. They want a "comfortable God" but Heavenly Father is going to turn us into better things than comfort when we have trials and questions. 

Anyway, that is all :) I love you all. I know the Gospel is true. It truly changes people. 

Love, Soeur Roberts

Week #16 Montpellier

Dear Family, 

Another great week :) So I will tell you a little goal our mission has. July Fifth is our baptism day. We are trying to get as many baptisms as possible on this one day, of course other days are great, but this one day is THE day. So As a gift to Elder Andersen, all the missionaries wrote a list of people they really believed could be baptized on or before July Fifth, since May 10. J was baptized, so we put her name on there.. This past Saturday, we were able to invite F to move her date up to July 5. She is the most prepared person I have ever met. I have never met someone so willing to change and start over, with a desire like hers. She is truly special to me. I love her. She will be baptized. It is truly a miracle.

It was a bit tiring this week, there was a strike for trains so we had to reschedule and do three exchanges and so it was a lot of trains and traveling and running around. I love exchanges though. I learn so much from the sisters I am with. I love them :) 

I will share a couple amazing experiences :) For me at least. 

One: So Tuesday we had a lesson with this guy named F. Just the first lesson. He is Christian. He knows the bible really well. Soeur O is great though, she is an incredible teacher. Anyway, I have always had this fear of forgetting the first vision. I know it, but you never know. In the past I try to push it on to my comps, just in case :) Anyway, she knows my fear. I love her. So it just so happens that I am the one to say the first vision. The spirit filled the room. I started to talk really quiet, mostly praying that I wouldn't mess it up, and I paused right before Joseph Smith starts to talk about the two personages. The spirit flooded the room. F just had this look like the spirit was testifying that what I was saying was true. And even better I was filled with the witness again that Joseph Smith is a prophet. He did see God the Father and the Son. I know it. It was a powerful experience and I didn't mess up the words :) I love my comp. 

Two: On my exchange with Carcassonne, we contacted a devout, catholic priest. Yippee! He started testifying about Mary being the intermediary between us and God, and I said that is OK, I prefer Jesus Christ. Anyway, he was testifying to us and invited us to go home that night and pray to God and say "God I met a disciple of Christ and he told me some things. Is what he said true?" I said I would of course, but I gave him an invitation too. I said, "Pray tonight and tell Heavenly Father that you met two disciples of Jesus Christ,. Is what these two girls said true?" Long story short, when I said we were disciples of Christ, my heart filled with the spirit, both me and my companion. We are true disciples of Christ, called to do this work. I know this man felt a burning in his bosom. It was incredible. And he accepted a Book of Mormon. I don't know if he'll read it. Truth is scary sometimes, especially if you're him. 

It was a great week. I love this work and I know it is the work of the Lord. I love you all! 

Love Soeur Roberts

Week #15 AKA Week of Miracles

Dear Family,

This week was incredible. Of course one of the reasons is because all 270+ missionaries in France Lyon got to see Elder Andersen, his wife, Elder Kearon, and his wife speak to us. It was something we had been preparing for spiritually for quite some time and the experience I had is one I will never forget ever.Yes I got to shake his hand :) Elder Andersen is an apostle of the Lord, it is clear. I have a testimony that God still calls men today to guide His children. 

His focus was on Faith and Miracles, which was exactly what I needed to hear, whether I knew it or not. Faith is a decision. France is a unique place to do missionary work. I don't know why, it's just special here. To people who like stereotyping, apparently it's a harder mission, but it's no harder than any other mission. He totally called us to righteousness. It was awesome. Where is your faith? Have faith. It doesn't matter what your circumstances are or who you are, Have faith. God works miracles. I know that. He works miracles everyday. I can't tell you how many people have told me that miracles are in the past. Where is their faith? Ether 12. Mormon 9. Moroni 7. There was a lot more that I learned that I won't be able to tell you, mostly because they were things the spirit taught me. But what an experience. 

That leads me to the greatest miracle of my mission. F :) . Wednesday we get a call from her :) It wasn't that out of the ordinary because she'll do that from time to time.  Remember how I said she wasn't ready to talk about/read the Book of Mormon? We meet with her, she tells us she watched the restoration video, and has the exact same questions as Joseph Smith, then says that weekend she felt a push to read the BOM. She refused and refused until she read a Ensign referencing Alma 32. She couldn't resist. Then she tells us she is doing what Joseph did and learning about all the churches. "I want to know the truth!" she says. So she asks for our testimony on the BOM. Done. Couple hours later, she calls and says she knows it's true. Moving on. Friday we meet up and she has read like a bunch in the BOM. Like a bunch. All of Moroni, & and 2 Nephi some, Jacob, Alma, Mosiah, Ether. She asks us what the conditions are for baptism. We show her the interview questions and smoking comes up. She said "that's fine I stopped yesterday and stopped coffee. And tea is no problem." WHAT? Yeah. We continue to meet up and we discuss Nephi killing Laban, the tree of life, allegory of the Olive tree. We invited her to church, (she's been once before) but she wasn't sure. The one she goes to now she just loves. They sing and praise and she just loves it. Sunday comes and she is at church with her two kids. She loves it. Then a member comes up to us (he has been working with her a bunch too) and says he fixed a date with her for baptism.....!!?? That's what member missionary work is. Best news ever. F is literally a waking miracle. She has done a complete 360 degree turn around since the first day I met her. I love her so much. 

So our week was great. I really have a testimony that God really does have His own timing. People can change no matter what. Miracles happen everyday. I know God is our Father, and Christ is His Son and Savior of the World. And when we let all the worldly things in our life take less precedence than the Gospel, we find true happiness. I testify that is true. With all my heart. I love you all so much. The gospel is true. Happy Birthday Mom and Happy Father's day Dad!

Love, Soeur Roberts

Montpellier Week #13

Dear Family, This week was really great :) I love Sister O. She is from Tahiti, but not actually Tahiti. She speaks French, Marquesan, English and Spanish :) This is the first time she's been in the actually France! like the heart. She has been in Switzerland mostly Geneva her whole mission! She is finished in August. We get along super and she helps me a lot with my french and help her with English and I can't tell you how much I love her :)  After she got settled in we were able to have some great lessons! With F, D, and E.  D is doing great :) We taught her the Plan of Salvation and it went wonderfully. She was really touched by the Spirit World. She has an older brother who passed when he was a baby. She never knew him, but the spirit was strong and I know that she will see him again, and he will have a knowledge of the truth. She finally got her question resolved about the three kingdoms too. Our member explained that really well to her. Next is baptism! She has some questions about age, immersion, etc. So I'm stoked for that lesson :) She is so great. So prepared. I love her.  F called us too! She is really looking. We don't teach her exactly like an investigator, as in consistently, but we do when she needs us. She is really studying the bible. She isn't ready for the Book of Mormon yet, she told us she just isn't ready. It's already a lot to change from Islam to Christianity so I think she is taking it little by little. As she studies the bible she will see things are missing, and when she does, the sisters will be there :) Soeur O is an incredible teacher. So simple. I'm learning so much from her. She showed F the connection between Christ and the Fall. How Resurrection is taken care of, but If we want to be with our Father in Heaven, we must follow the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Fanny understood so well and the spirit was so strong. We hope to have some bible studies with her this week :) Then E! It is so cool to be teaching her again. She is incredible.We taught her obedience, prayer and scripture reading. It went great. The spirit was there and when we were leaving she was so anxious to see us again. I hope she will be able to accept . I love her so much!  Other cool little miracle..... :) We have four Sisters from our ward hospitalized, so Sunday we went and visited one. On our way back, we totally didn't get off at the right tram stop, so we just kept going. In my head, I was like well there must be someone we need to meet then. We we get off just at a random spot and decide to contact. We are walking and we see this guy with a little boy in his stroller, just walking. The spirit was like Go! So we go. We had a cool contact. Cool conversation. He asked about prayer and we said it's communication or conversation with God, and he was so amazed. Said he never heard that before, he loved it. So we were able to set up a lesson for next week. I don't know if anything will come of it, but I know that the Lord needed us to talk to C for whatever reason.  I believe in revelation and inspiration. I know that we really can be instruments in God's hands if we are worthy and doing everything we are supposed to. He will accomplish what He needs to through his children :) I love you all and I am so grateful for your example's to me. Christ lives and this is His church, led by a living prophet. I love you!  Love, Soeur Roberts

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