96th P-Day (89th in France)

So last Monday we visited an elderly, in-active woman in the Branch, Sister Champion. We went prepared to teach her a lesson, but instead she taught us! Her message was about how we need to be nice to others, because one day karma will get us! She said that at one time she was in court against a few of her children. She had had cancer at the time and told the judge. Her kids didn't believe that she was actually sick and made jokes about it (i.e., "We have cancer too," etc.,) and she said that now-a-days they all have cancer themselves. What a story! Karma will get you. Be kind to one another. :)

The next day we finally met with Hilda again after about a month apart. She's doing well, but still more interested in being our friend than talking about religion. That night we went to a Catholic mass of a break-off Catholic "sect". They consider themselves to be 1st century Christians, and therefore the true church of Christ. The women still wear veils to the service and there really are lots of other differences between this and the masses of the real Catholic church today. It was an interesting experience, and we did it all to please a potential investigator who probably won't progress at all lol. She was a great missionary that night, however, getting everyone from the church to come fellowship us and share their testimonies with us. The Priest, however, was less than happy to see us there. What a time!

On Wednesday we had interviews with President up in Rennes, followed by eating Poutine for lunch. Love that. That night we spent at a member's house, the Plante family, for a crepe party with Yvan. It was a great time with great food and company. 

The next day we Zone Conference in Rennes, followed by a meal at the American family, the Semerau's, house. I love that family. 

On Friday I got a smoothie bowl (finally). It was so good and actually pretty cheap, coming in at about 4 Euros. That was actually the highlight of the day, as the rest was all finding/planning. 

The next day we had a baptism in the Branch for a kid named Jared Bousseau. His family is so cool and the church was packed. They had invited all of their non-member neighbors to attend as well, and all 20 of them came! It was a great time and good opportunity for missionary work. After the baptism, we went back to their house to eat and approach these non-members. None of them were really interested, but did have lots of questions for us. Even though none of them became investigators, it was still a good moment for us to plant those seeds. Then the Raveneaus drove us home for the night. 

On Sunday we went back to the Raveneau's house after church with Yvan and had a great lunch there. Then we shared a message and went off to the beach. There we played tag and just had a good time. I'm going to miss moments like this when I leave. Brittanic beaches are so peaceful and beautiful. And the air does you well-- so fresh! I love these people, I love this place. 

In terms of my spiritual thought this week, I'd like to really echo the words of Sister Champion, that kindness goes a long way. We're all of the same family, God's family. We're all of the same race, the human race. We have our personal differences which are great and necessary, but at the end of the day we are all equals. We need to treat each other as such. Remember that kindness goes a long way. Also remember that, "When ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God." Get out there and serve and love with all of your heart. It'll do you well and bring happiness to your soul. 

I love you all! Have a great week! 

Elder Connor Anderson

95th P-Day (88th in France)

This week was a good one!

Tuesday we had a lesson with Yvan and Brother Raveneau which went really well. He's getting closer to baptism and it makes us so happy!

The next day we took a tour of the Bishop's new house here in Saint-Brieuc. It's a 200 year old mansion and only cost $250,000. Talk about a steal of a deal. 4 stories, huge yard, and ocean-view. He said complete renovations will only cost about $175,000... Texas has some French competition in pricing. Anyway, that night we had a lesson with our new Bulgarian investigators, Stanislav and his wife, Dinka. They are so nice, but very angry with France for not recognizing Dinka's doctorate degree and accepting her to work as a doctor for France. She says that because Bulgaria is in the E.U., that all diplomas should be accepted in France. Because of this, which they claim as discrimination, they are both without work. They were interested in our message, but even more so in us finding paid work for them within the church. Stanislav (AKA, Stanley) and Dinka can both speak French, Bulgarian, Russian, and Polish fluently and are willing to work as material translators for the church. If any of you know of any spots hiring, let me know haha. 

On Thursday all of the Priesthood brethren gathered together at a member's house in Lannion for a service activity. We were to prepare the terrain for stake girl's camp in the backyard of one of our branch's members. It was a lot of chopping and stacking wood, but it was a lot of fun. Afterwards we had a BBQ and then Elder Paxman and I were able to teach this member's son, Jared, to prepare him for his baptism this Saturday. He's a cool kid and I'm so excited for him. 

The next day we bumped into Hilda again for the first time in a while. She was happy and told us that she'd come back to church soon! It made our day to hear this, as we had been rejected from just about everyone that we contacted that day. Glad to know that she misses us, because we miss her!

Saturday was a good day! We got to go to the temple in Versailles with Yvan, thanks to one of our members, Fali. Because we needed to go all the way there (nearly 5 hours by car) and back (another 5 hours) in one day, we had to go pretty early. I woke up at 3:45 and we were on the road just a couple hours later. Once there, so many memories from when I served in Versailles came flooding back. Man, do I miss this place! We got Yvan set up with the Meunier couple at the temple and they did a great tour with him for a few hours. During this, we also met with the Raveneaus from our branch, who were there for a family wedding. They had bought us cheesecake from a nearby boulangerie. I love them! I was also able to meet with members from the Versailles ward that I miss, as well as missionaries. It was a great experience. Yvan loved it so much and ended up committing to a baptismal date of July 27th. We're so excited. 

Sunday was pretty basic. The Bulgarian couple came to church and asked the members for help looking for work haha. I admire their commitment and dedication to earn money! Here's hoping that they'll find something! Other than that, it was a very ordinary day. 

Today we went to Binic with our district for district P-Day. Look out for pictures of us all on the beach in my album this week. 

This week was still rough with a lot of rejection from people, but through it all, I realized that the Lord will bless us if we just don't give up. We're not always going to be accepted by everyone and that's just life. The World is changing and more and more people are not caring about religion (at least in France). BUT that does not mean that there isn't anyone who is interested. There are people that are searching for the truth and I know that with hard work and perseverance, God will put them in our path. I love this gospel and I'm very grateful to have been raised knowing these truths. I've seen the blessings it has made in my life and I want that to be available for everyone. That's what keeps me going. The best I can do is to continue on and keep going strong. I promise that if you do the same, you will see the blessings in your life. Don't give up! 

I love you all! Have a great week! 

Elder Connor Anderson