Week 26...Grocery Shopping for our Rendez-vous

Sounds like Gabi had a wonderful week feeling a lot of love from the members. I am so grateful to these people who I do not know who are taking care of my little girl. Elder Packer arrived after a 2 hour bus ride to deliver the girls' Christmas presents from home. This couple have been a miracle in so many ways. So grateful to them. It sounds like she is having good success with her investigators or amis. What a blessing to be able to share this happiness with others. Here is her email for the week. 

Bonjour tout le monde !!

I hope everyone's had a great week full of Christmas things!

So this week we went to visit a less active member who lives pretty far away. The bus ride was about an hour and when we got there she told us all about her life and then asked us to go grocery shopping with her and her 3 year old daughter! It was a weird experience but it was fun, hopefully she'll be able to come to church soon! After that rendezvous we zoomed over (and by zoom I mean a one hour bus back and then another 20 minute bus and then walking for 15 minutes) to the Neveus house for dinner! I love this family so much! They have us over so often and they really are just amazing so it's always a good time when we get to visit them!

Then later on in the week we had a rendez-vous with Alodie ! This lesson actually went really well and she was super engaged in what we were teaching! She shared her testimony with us and told us she'd come to church! Then we had dinner at the Javoy's house. These are also some amazing members who I love so so much! They bear their testimony so often and I feel the spirit so strong in their home and they always make sure to remind us that their home is the missionaries home so we are always welcome! After dinner they walked us home in the dark which was so so nice of them!

The next day we got to visit Sœur Bonavera who is an old woman in our ward. Her health isn't very good and she lives alone. She's so so sweet and when we got their she gave us both sweaters and backpacks which was super nice! We were able to talk to her about faith and family and it was amazing! Keep her in your prayers! That night we had a ward party and it was a talent show! George came which was awesome! He kept telling us how excited he is for baptism and we are just as excited for him! He told us he new he had his family back in Africa but he knew he had a family here in France with us and the ward too. His faith and desire are such a miracle and it's been so amazing to see him grow stronger and stronger in the church everyday.

And one quick side note, George wanted to see a picture of my family and when we saw it he couldn't tell which one was me and which one was my mom! Everyone here who sees pictures always says I look just like her!

Then we had Sunday and George came And drum role please... ALODIE CAME!! we didn't see that coming but we were so so happy! Miracles!

Then yesterday we did a whole lot of finding and we were so tired but it was good for us!!

This week was great! And I really found joy in everyday! I've loved hearing the stories of all these different members and people who have all found the gospel in different ways. Their faith is so strong and its an example to me. Each person is a convert and I've lived seeing how they are continually working on their conversion like we all need to be. True conversion is doing the little things everyday. It's growing our testimonies each day and living as disciples of Christ. Their are many people who are converts or a amis or members their whole lives but all of us still have to do the same work and grow our faith. I've loved learning that, especially this week!

I hope you all have a great week!

Love, Sœur Uboldi 

Pictures!!!

1: us with George after our ward talent show

2: us in a new town and we were slightly lost so we took a selfie

3: a fun bridge in Orléans

4: dinner with the Javoys! I love them so much!

5: dinner with the Neveus! We really do have the best members ever! 

Just a few more photos

1: elder packer bringing me my package! It was a Christmas miracle! I love the packers!

                            2: about ten seconds after this picture it started pouring but its OK!

                          4: finding near the cathedral

                            5: gotta love the wind! 

Week 25...Best Day Ever!!!

Well, Gabi moved to a new P-day. It works nicer for my schedule but they are all pretty sad about it because most missionaries have their P-days on Mondays so it keeps her fro being able to communicate back and forth with her mission buds. I am so excited about George! I have been praying for him as I know many other have. I love that they have found someone who is accepting to the gospel and finding the happiness that can come only from Christ. It looks like France is a beautiful place to be at Christmas. I am excited for her to be there and celebrate this wonderful time of year actually preaching daily of Christ. 

Here is Gabis weekly email. 

Bonjour tout le monde !

So my p day is now Tuesday! I think I forgot to say that but now everyone knows so it's ok!

This week we did lots of finding and had a couple lessons. It was good! Our mission also got trained on online proselyting so if I'm blowing up your Facebook that would be why!

So this week I also had one of the best days/moments of my life! This week the elders in my district had a baptism at our church so we invited George to come with us. The baptism was amazing and you could really feel the spirit and I could tell George was too. So after the baptism ended we sat down with George and asked him how he felt and he said he felt the spirit and he knew all of this was true. As he bore his testimony to us the spirit filled the room. We felt prompted to share Mosiah 18:8-10 with him and we told him we knew he had strong enough faith to be baptized and asked if he had the desire to be baptized. He told us he did and we were able to set a baptismal date for January. We were so beyond happy for him. He has such strong faith and after we set a date he continued to tell us a lot of struggles he's going through but he told us he felt something different when he met with us. He felt something here and he knew it was true. It was such a testimony to me to see someone who's going through such hard things to come unto Christ and be strengthened in him. I know without a doubt that this gospel is the only way to true happiness. I've seen it in George and I've seen it in myself. God blesses us not by taking away our trials but by giving us what we need to endure to the end and to endure with joy.

I'm so grateful that I have this gospel in my life and I'm so grateful that I get to share it with others and that I get to see how it can change lives for the better!

I hope you all have a great week! Go make someone smile!!!

Love, Sœur Uboldi 

Pictures!!!

1: venez et voyez (come and see) invitations!

2: gaufres

3&4: Christmas time in Orléans is BEAUTIFUL

5: and we got to go to Chartres for district p day so that was a blast! 

Week 24...Miracles aren't always immediate

I love Gabi's letter this week. It starts off kind of rough, which made the Sunday so much more sweet after going through the difficult week. Isn't that how life is? We don't really recognize how good something is until we have been without it. I am so glad Gabi is learning these important life lessons at an early age. She is seeing that opposition makes the joys and positive so much sweeter. Well she has another 6 weeks with Soeur Popoca so she is excited about that! I love how they created their own little Thanksgiving feast together and ate snails!!! Who are you and what have you done with my daughter???!?

Bonjour tout le monde !

So I'm going to start off with an update! My p day will be on Tuesday from now on so that'll be different! 

This week we had a lot of days full of finding. And after days and days we still hadn't found anyone interested. And then we got to Saturday. And Saturday can be described as a series of unfortunate events. First of all the trams and buses weren't working in the direction we needed to go for our rendez-vous and then once we got on one that was working we were late. Then we get off at the wrong stop and then we had the wrong address and so we were basically running around like crazy. Then after all our setbacks we got to our rendez-vous about 45 minutes late and it was a rough lesson and things weren't clicking. Then our next rendez-vous got canceled. So it was a hard day that had followed a hard week but we prayed to be able to keep going so we went out that night and went finding and sadly we didn't find anyone interested. 

Then we had yesterday. No one had confirmed that they'd come to church but 3 of our amis came! And it was amazing! Marie came and she brought a notebook for notes! Alberto came and told us he wanted to have another rendez-vous soon and that he was sorry he'd been so busy and then he talked to all the members and made friends! And George came even with his hurt leg and he was able to sit through the whole entire 2 hours without pain and then he said he wanted to meet with us on Saturday! 

This week had a lot of setbacks but it made all those miracles on Sunday so much better! Heavenly Father sees our efforts and he knows how much we can take and he knows how to help us. I prayed for miracles on Tuesday, and Wednesday, and Thursday, and all week long but I didn't see them until Sunday. I love the quote from Elder Anderson that says "Miracles are not always so immediate. At times we thoughtfully wonder why the miracle we have so earnestly prayed for does not happen here and now. But as we trust in the Savior, promised miracles will occur. Whether in this life or the next, all will be made right. The Savior declares: “Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”" 

I know his church is true and I know that miracles and blessings always come even if they aren't always when we want them to! 

I love you all and hope you have an amazing week!

Love, Sœur Uboldi

Pictures!!!

1: batting for hours and hours in the rain

2: we found the Orléans O

3: finding 

4: our ginormous Thanksgiving dinner we made for ourselves!

5: me and Sœur Popoca! I love her so much!!

P.s. Another miracle just happened! Me and Sœur Popoca found out we're staying another transfer together! Whoop whoop!!!!

And then I added this one because I LOVE IT...

Week 23...Small and simple acts of service

Well Gabi seemed good today. She was a little bugged that her shoe broke and that she had to buy new ones. I told her to get good ones this time. Those were only a couple months old at most! So she grabbed some Dr Martens and I assured her they would last the duration of her mission and probabaly life. I know one person who wore through the sole of a Dr. Martens and it was her dad on his mission. :) Besides that everything seemed to be going great. One more week till transfers so we will see what happens. 

Bonjour tout le monde !

So this week flew by and I don't remember a lot of the things that happened but luckily I've got my journal! 

So this week was really hard because of the fact that most of our rendez-vous fell through. We had a lot of plans and things kept getting pushed back or changed and in the end a lot of people didn't show up. But this opened up some time for finding and contacting! 

We were able to talk to some new people and it was awesome! We got a few numbers and have a couple rendez-vous set up for this week so I'm pretty excited! 

This week we had 3 rendez-vous scheduled for alodie. The first day we came and she wasn't there so we rescheduled for the next day, then the next day we came and we got there early so we were calling some people to make some new plans and we just got the feeling to go to her apartment early and as we walked there we saw her walking out of her apartment. She was carrying a bunch of recycling bags and was on her way out to go run some errands. She told us to come back the next day but because we were there early we were able to help her with her bags and the next day she was there for our rendez-vous and it went well! I know heavenly father gives us ways to help others and to show we care for them, even if it's just helping to carry their recycling. It was a miracle to me that heavenly father really is in the details of our lives and is giving us the chance to serve. This week I really learned about the small but meaningful things. Sometimes the small things are what matter most and what can change someone's day. 

I invite all of you to go out and serve someone each day this week! Whether it be a smile or a text message. When we share the light of christ with others through the small and simple things the lord expands our efforts! I'm so grateful to be here and to be able to serve! 

I hope you all have an amazing Thanksgiving filled with family and turkey!! 

Love, Sœur Uboldi 

Pictures!

1: district p day at the Orléans cathedral 

2: me and Sœur Popoca at our favorite fountain

3: finding!

4: fun photo at the church 

5: my boots died just in time for winter but that's ok!!!

Week 22...Trust in God

I love this week's letter. I love that Gabi had those really difficult weeks and she can now see them as a strength and blessing in her life. This week Gabi was very busy and didn't have a lot of time to talk so it was short and sweet. Some of my favorite pictures came this week. I added a few of them in addition to the ones she sent the group. THE LAST ONE IS ESPECIALLY MY FAVORITE!

Bonjour tout le monde,

This letter might be a little short because I don't have the most time! 

This week we had a rendez-vous with Marie AND she came to church again all by herself! I've seen her grow so much since I first got here! I love seeing heavenly father change peoples lives, including mine! 

This week we weren't able to meet with George because he's been at the doctor so often with his leg and everything, but he sent us a message asking for us to give him chapters in the book of mormon to read and on Saturday we called him to check up on how everything was going. That phone call was one of the highlights of my week. We called to share a scripture with him and as we were about to share it he told us to wait so he could find the right page in his book of mormon, then HE read it for us. It was alma 38:5. I found this scripture early on in my mission during a really hard week. Its helped me to get through some tough days and has helped me to grow my testimony. It says "and now my son, Shiblon, I would that ye should remember, that as much as ye shall put your trust in God even so much ye shall be delivered out of your trials, and your troubles, and your afflictions, and ye shall be lifted up at the last day." I know that faith is the first step to getting through our struggles. The second we show our heavenly father that we are willing to put our trust in him he opens up the flood gates. I have never felt more love and comfort than I have on my mission. Those few tough weeks I had were difficult but they were also the refiners fire for me. I know I needed those tough experiences for me to be able to be the best missionary I can be! I know I'm not there yet but I know that with faith in the Lord and in His plan for me and for the people in France that miracles will happen. George has been a huge miracle and when we shared this scripture and these thoughts with him he expressed how he knew this was all true and he was so thankful that he had met us and that Heavenly Father has given him this. The gospel came at the perfect time for him. He's had difficult times in his life but with the gospel he has the tools to get through it and he knows he's not alone! I've loved sharing the happiness that we have with him! I've seen his testimony grow and have seen how happy the gospel has made him through his trials. I know that the gospel does that for each one of us! I am so beyond grateful to be here serving these people! It's so true that even when we struggle on a mission we still feel consistent and resilient happiness!

So in honor of the Thanksgiving season I invite all of you to find what makes you most happy and share it with someone else! I love you all so much and hope you have an amazing week! Thank you for all your support!

Love, Sœur Uboldi

Pictures!!!

1: leaving zone conference 

2: I got to see cute Sœur Henderson at zone conference!

3: me and Sœur Packer! (Shes become my missionary mom!)

4: me and Sœur Popoca talking to everyone at zone conference!

5: sitting on the bus!

Week 21...Spicy Rice

Well, another cold week in France. Gabi is continuing to grow through the different challenges she is experiencing. She is keeping up her positive attitude and is loving this chance to serve. Here is her letter from this week. I added a few extra pictures that I loved, especially the one with Gabi and sweet sister Packer. I will always be grateful to that dear lady. 

Bonjour tout le monde !!!

This week was freezing!!! But it flew by! I still can't believe we're in November! 

This week was great! We definitely had some struggles but we also saw the spirit working miracles and helping us every step of the way! 

In Tuesday we had interviews in Paris so that's always super fun! It takes up a lot of our day but we were able to see our district and that was great! On Wednesday we had a rendezvous with Diaby. He is Muslim and after telling us he was planning on staying in his religion he gave us a HUGE bag of food. He's super nice, sadly he just wasn't interested in our message.

This week we were also able to visit Sœur Girard who is in the hospital. She's 86 years old and lives alone so when she got surgery there haven't been a lot of people who visit her. We were able to share a message with her and say a prayer together. She's such a cute women, pray that she starts to feel better soon!

We were also able to teach Marie again! She's loves the book of mormon videos but we didn't see a lot of progress this week! We're hoping for next week! 

We weren't able to meet with George this week because he's been having some medical problems but he's been reading the book of mormon and Hopes to meet with us on Saturday! 

Yesterday we had dinner at the Neveu's and it was awesome! Raja, a recent convert, lives with these awesome members and he made us some rice that he used to eat in Pacastan. Before we ate Sœur Neveu told me it was very spicy so shed made me something else in case because she knew I was very sensitive to spice. But not wanting to be rude I told her I could eat the spicy rice. I took my first bite and my mouth was on FIRE!! It was by far the spiciest thing I've ever eaten in my life! Luckily after Sœur Neveu tried the rice and realized it was way too spicy for her too she gave us all something else to eat. Raja and Sœur Popoca were the only ones who ate the rice! So that was super fun!

I've had so many awesome experiences here in France and I'm so excited to keep learning and growing! I love this gospel so much and I know that it's true! I hope you all have a great week! Go make someone's day better!! 

Love, Sœur Uboldi 

Pictures!

1: my first waffle in France and it was POURING

2: waiting on the bus

3: after visiting Sœur Girard in the hospital we got some hot chocolate!

4: my waffle 

5: we made some cute sister missionary ornament/doll things!!

Week 20...Cold showers build character!

Week 20! What an awesome, exciting number to hit! I also got this app that tells how many days Gabi has served and her percentage finished. I will put a picture below. We just hit 25% this week! Gabi sounded great this week. She has been showering with no hot water all week and I expected to hear a lot of complaining but she just brushed it off and said "oh well" I wanted to say, "Who are you and what have you done with my daughter." I love that she is growing and getting stronger every day that she is out. 

Here is her letter from this week

Bonjour Mes Amis !!!

Time is flying! I can't believe its November! Did October even happen?!? 

So we started this week off on the right note when me and my companion were trying to turn on our heaters and in the process broke our water heater! So this week we've had no heat or hot water and it's been freezing! But it's ok because cold showers build character! 

I hope everyone had an awesome Halloween! Halloween isn't the biggest deal here in France but me and my companion did our best to "dress up". We decided to be princess and the pauper with our pink skirt and blue skirt! We also had a bunch of halloween candy that my grandma and mom sent me! So we celebrated pretty good! 

This week was another tough week with rendez-vous. We got canceled on so many times! So we went batting for hours and hours in the rain! And it rocked! We layered up our clothes and went out in the freezing weather and worked hard! A couple people told us to leave our phone number in their mailbox so hopefully we'll get a call from them one of these days! 

This week we had some awesome rendez-vous as well! The first one was with George! One of the members in our ward Sœur Penverne invited us, George, and 3 recent converts Ibrahim, Alhassan, and Mohammed over for dinner and a lesson. It was super fun to spend time with all of them! We taught about prayer, scripture study, and the sabbath day. It was so great to hear all of them bear their testimonies. And then George bore his testimony! He said he knew how important it was to go to church on Sunday because there was no other time when we could partake of the sacrament. He said he knew prayer was for everyday of the week but we needed to be at church on Sunday to worship. It was amazing to see his progression! After our lesson George's leg stiffened up and he could barely walk. He was in so much pain. He was able to receive a priesthood blessing and he told the Sœur Penverne he knew the power of the priesthood was real even if he wasn't automatically healed. Sadly George's problem with his leg has really been making life hard for him though. He's been to the doctor multiple times and wasn't able to make it to church because of it. So prayers for his health and ability to come to church and rendez-vous would be amazing! 

Then we had a lesson with Marie and we asked her what she thought her next step was. She said she wanted to understand the scriptures better and then baptism. Her whole attitude has changed and its been so awesome to watch. She came to church again all on her own and I was so happy! She seems to be progressing well. I've seen her happier the last few weeks and have heard her talk more about baptism than before! So keep her in your prayers!

This week I saw a lot of miracles and saw the hand of the Lord in a lot of things. My testimony of this gospel grows more and more everyday! I'm so grateful I get to go out and serve and share the good news of the gospel! 

I love you all and hope you have a great week!! Go make someone's day better!!

Love, Sœur Uboldi 

Pictures!!!

1: waiting for the bus

2: halloween at the penvernes

3: batting in the freezing cold

4: batting in the cold round 2

5: princess and the pauper "costumes"