What goes up must come down...

Well I guess what goes up must come down... haha. I certainly experienced that this week. It wasnt exactly the most exciting week of my mission or the easiest haha. But its all good. On monday we were able to see Anthony and fixed a baptismal date for the 30th of June! He is pretty cool. But then we lost contact with him until last night. He lost his phone. Other than that we werent able to see anyone else. We had around 18 lessons either not show up or get cancelled. Rough! So yeah. Most of our week was spent waiting for peopel to show up to the lessons and then realizing after a while that they just werent going to come. It was definitely a trial of our faith. And I'll be honest I needed it. The last couple weeks ive been getting a little proud of all the good things that have been happening.

This week after praying to know what was going on I came across the scripture Jacob 4:7. I can do nothing without God. This week has helped me to realize that i need Him more than i thought. And that i need to rely on Him for His work. So yeah. Basically it was a rough week. But i am glad that it happened that way. I just hope i dont have to learn a lesson like that again.

Xavier is still doing well and we are getting him ready for the melchesidek priesthood. We are going with anthony to a members house tonight for FHE. Should be good.Tomorrow we get to go to Versailles to hear from Elder Ballard!!!! I forgot to tell you that last week. I am so excited for that!!!!!!

Sorry the email is a little bland this week. Im not sure what to say. Writers block... Love you tons! Have a great week!
Elder Thomas

My comp Elder Jensen and I

An Amazing Experience...

Hey! Paris is doing super well. How is sunny arizona? i will try to give you an update on everyone and all that has happened. There were some cool miralces this week. We had to move the baptism. First We moved it to the 23rd but realized that that is stake conference so that won't work. So we have to do it the 30th. But that will be good. Going to The eiffel tower was great with xavier. He is just too awesome. I cant wait for you to meet him.

Okay so heres how this last week went. Monday night we went to a familys house with xavier and ate a monster salad haha. Renu is doing okay. She is kind of getting swept up by the evangelist church. She has some memorized prayers that she uses... And she already has friends there and it is in her language. So we may lose her soon. Vigin is super busy but we did see him once. He is doing well. Xavier brought us another friend named antony or anthony. He is super cool. Not sure if i mentioned him last week or not. But he speaks english and accepted to be baptized. Most likely for the 30th. Super cool!!! Ness is doing well. We saw her once and she invited her sister too. Kinda weird teaching two twenty year old girls haha. But it was really good. They are super curious and really want to know more. But they had some kind of family problem this week and so they couldnt see us or go to church. Zackie is doing well. She is slowly learnign and we have been trying to get her to pray to know if these things are true. But she just hasnt done it. The last time we were there i was pretty bold and a little frustrated. mainly because my whole life i never really prayed for an answer myself. I know how terrible it is not to know for sure and i know how simp)le it is to get an answer. But i think that she could feel my sincerity and understood.
I had quite a few opportunities this week to testify boldly to people. It feels great haha. Claudine is doing super well. I dont know if you remember or not their story. but I will tell it again because it is a huge miracle so far. So last transfer we were early for a lesson and so we prayed to know what to do and decided to try to get into an appartment building. So we started ringing the doorbells and someone finally unloked the door. So we went into the building and one of the doors was open. So we knocked and then a lady let us in after seeing Jesus christ on our badges. She sent she never lets people in but let us in becquse of that. So we went in and taught her and her 20 yr old daughter. At the end of the lesson the daughter asked if she could say something. She said that she had been praying for years to know if god was there but never got an answer. So she wasnt sure if He was there. She was depressed all the time. That day she was having suicidal thoughts and prayed to get an answer. But she could feel a bad presence keeping her from praying. So she sang a hymn and at the end of the hymn we rang their doorbell and came in and taught them. She said that she knew that we were sent of God to save her and answer her prayer. Then the next lesson we taught just the mom claudine about the restoration and watched the movie with her. The next lesson carol the daughter and her other daughter muriel were there. The mom told the other daughter that we are called of god and were sent to their home as representatives of christ to bring them his gospel. It was an awesome intro! She then basically taught them the restoration lesson. Then yesterday we dicided to just drop by and give them two more book of mormons and leave them with the dvd. And they ended up letting us in and the mom said that her daughter muriel had something to telll us. She said that the last time we were there while i was saying the closing prayer she saw two angels in all white leave my comp and I While i finished the prayer. The spirit was so strong. We sat there for a moment in silence and then i felt the need to testify to them. I told them that i dont know what she saw nor can i interpret it for her. But i do know that we are called of god and that he sent us to your home last week for a reason. I said that i know that this is the true church of christ and that god is trying to help them to see that what we are sharing is true. It was a very intense few minutes. We ended up talking for a bit. There was just a sense of peace there. I am super excited to go back there hopefully tonight. I know that miracles exist. That God is watching over me and all of his children. He hears our prayers and he answers them. I know that he is helping that family to find the truth and recognize that our message is true. I am so grateful to be able to be an instrument in the Lords hands. This is His work.
I love you guys so much! Miss you tons. Know that i pray for you often and that i love this gospel! Talk to you soon. Loves!
Elder Thomas

At the Eiffel Tower with Xavier. Me in our apt.

Six months to sexy...

Well this week was full of walking and talking to people and crêpe eating of course. What else is new? But we really saw a lot of miracles this week. Ill try to give you a run down haha. Monday was a lazy pday and then we got lost that night looking for someone who ended up not being home after two hours of searching. Like i said, what else is new? Tuesday we gave our training to the zone... i forgot to get a zone pic. Déso maman. I had an exchange with one of our district leaders and we saw xavier and kareena. They are doing really well. We tried to see marino that night but he wasnt home... Not sure whats up. But we couldnt see him all week. Hopefully this week. Mercredi we met with xavier and his friend vigin. we set a baptismal date for the ninth of june! He is super cool and really wants to improve and change his life especially after seeing the change in xavier. We may need to push the date back a week because he didnt come to church and there is a bit of a language barrier. But he will be baptized this month for sure! Then we met with a woman from sri lanka that we met by our house. Her name is Renu and she is super cool! She is bhuddist and so she doesnt know much about god or christ. But we explained our purpose in inviting her to come unto christ. We explained who god is and taught her how to pray. She is super sincere and wants to learn more! On thursday we met with claudine... not sure if you remember her or not, her daughter was the one who prayed for an answer from god and then we knocked on the door. It went super well. We watched the joseph smith video and she understood the importance of the restoration super well and wants to pray to know if it is true. Super cool. That night we went tracting in a big building and found a cool young african girl about our age named nes. We saw her the next day and she is super cool. She really wants to come closer to christ in her life. We also saw Vigin that day and a new woman named zackie. Her mom is a member in benin africa and sent us her number. So we passed by her house and she is interested a bit in learning what her mom believes. Hopefully that desire will grow into something more. Saturday was a rough day with a lot of waiting for people and cancelled rendezvous. Sunday renu came to church with her sister and friend! Super cool! Also two people we had contacted came too! Legit! Xavier was called as the new ward missionary and then we helped give him the priesthood after! Kareena was called as the gospel principles class president. So cool! Xavier is one of my best friends. He is just so awesome. Every time i see him he just thanks me for changing his life. He helps me to just keep going and looking for those who are ready.

I also got an email from ludovic today thanking me and he is doing super well. He may have found his future wife too haha. Ill keep you posted. Everything is going super well and we are just chugging along. Its getting a little weird right now as we are closing in on six months left... both elder jensen and i. So it is difficult sometimes to not get distracted sometimes and think about home. We are both planning on starting six months to sexy, hahaha... Gotta start working out and eat a few less patiseries and kebabs!

Thank you for everything that you do and for how much support you give me. I can feel your prayers and those of the whole family each day. I love you guys!!!! "Your sandy hair blows in the air oh so high just flying by like a kite in the sky" hahaha... Loves!
Elder Thomas

Sorry no pics this week...forgot my camera cord.

The Paris Mission is growing...

Hey!

This week was pretty good. We had a ton of random things to do so we ended up not having a ton of time to do actual missionary work in our sector. monday was pday and then we went to a family's house to do an FHE with kareena. That went pretty well. We ate a specialty that was kinda weird. It is called riette. Basically they take a whole pig and grind it all together and make this paste sort of consistency. Then you eat it on bread. Yumm? It was okay haha. Tuesday we had to finish putting together the new appartment for the sisters in paris. That took a while and then we had to go to st. merri and move all of the luggage of the 40 new missionaries coming in. So basically 120 bags. Whoa. That night we went to a members house and ate some yummy african food and had a blast with them. Then wednesday i took elder webber to st. merri and sent him off to strasbourg. Then had to chill there until my comp arrived. I was able to see all of the missionaries that i know and best of all my son haha. Elder oliverson was training! So i got a pic with him and my grandson. He's hawaiian! legit haha. Thursday we had to go to Evry to do two baptismal interviews. That ended up taking like seven hours because our train got delayed and so we were stuck haha. Then friday i went and waited for legality for five hours and now im legal for the next three months but not finished yet. Then i caught the last half of mission council and then we had to go to north paris for another baptismal interview. That took up the rest of the day. Then Saturday we had a ton to plan for and then finally we were able to get to work. We did get a couple referrals and some cool new people. But nothing super new or exciting yet. Hopefully soon! Marino is doing well and hopefully will accept to be baptized soon. Xavier is inviting everyone that he knows to meet with us and come to church haha. So he is doing super well! Anyways all is well here. Love you guys and miss you tons as always! Love you, talk to you soon!
Elder Thomas

Me, Oliverson and his blue.

Transfer day... 40 new missionaries arrived today. I'm staying in Antony with my new comp Elder Jensen.

Why I'm on a mission...

Hey!
It was so great to be able to talk with you guys on skype! It was just a super good hour or so...haha. This is a special time that we all have to learn and grow. And i am so grateful for that. Often when talking with people in the street they ask what the heck i want or why i am bothering them. Or why i left my family and everything behind for two years to come to france. And i tell them that i am hear to help families find the same joy and happiness that my family has found together through the gospel.

Love you tons. Talk to you soon. Have a great week! Oh yeah... My new comp is named elder jensen. He was one of the elders in my first appartment in lille haha. Should be good! Loves!!!!!
Elder Thomas

Family pic 2013

Bonjour tout le monde!

Well this week was another great one! It flew by. We had a lot of odd jobs to take care of that took a lot of our time. Baptismal interviews and exchanges and such haha. But it was great. On sunday Kareena was baptized!!! She was so happy and the baptism was great! It really just went so well. She literally was glowing afterwards. So amazing. I wish that you guys could be there to see one. Imagine how amazing it would be to bring a family that you know into the ward. So awesome! Im pretty excited to do member missionary work when i get home. Im working on a few friends right now.

Anyways we fasted on saturday and sunday specifically to find a new family who needs the gospel... They all do but one who is ready for it. We worked our butts off and sunday night we knocked on doors for over two hours just getting doors slammed in our face. But then the last door... always the last one... a lady opened and was nice but said no thank you. But then we testified and she let us in! She is from guadalupe and has two adorable little girls. She really needs this gospel and christ in her life. We will see her tonight too.

Xavier is doing super well. He is so funny haha. He is getting ready to recieve the priesthood. This morning he called us and said that one of his friends is interested in talking with us. So we are going to teach thel tonight! After Kareena's baptism on sunday he asked us if we found her in the street too like him. We said yes and then he said, So you guys are like the heros arounds here. You brought us both to God. It was so awesome to hear that. I love xavier!

Other than that that everything is great! Im sure other stuff happened this week. But thats the main stuff. Now we just have to wait till sunday for kareena to get the holy ghost!

Sounds like you guys had a pretty good week. Cant believe that bishop was released! So sad... he will always be my bishop. Cant wait to talk to you guys though on sunday!!!!!It will be so awesome!!!!!!Love you tons and miss you a lot! Have a great week!
Elder Thomas

Picture of Kareena's Baptism