Salut!
Well, I am now back up near my bleuville, in Annemasse. It's just on the border of Switzerland, so I'm back in my beautiful Swiss Alpes region. I'll be working almost entirely in Switzerland as well, since that's where all of our sisters are that we're over. It's going to be really cool, and my new comp is a gem! Let me tell ya though, it has never been so hard to say goodbye than it was to my humongous family in Nice. To say I'm tired of goodbyes is an understatement. But I know that I'm where the Lord wants and needs me to be right now.
One reason that Nice was so nice, is because the members were stellar missionaries. They were actively preparing their friends for us to meet, and they had no fear in letting us get to know their friends, and eventually to start teaching them. In case you didn't know, that's how this work needs to be done. We can literally do next to nothing without the help of the members. So, if you haven't even considered a friend or family member you could introduce to the missionaries, even just to get to know them and make a friendship, I invite you to start praying to know who to do this with. If you've done that much, then start praying of ways to get those two worlds to collide, and get the missionaries and your friend together! You don't have to start out in a teaching setting by the way, just get them to be their friend first. And hopefully, your friends will then see the happiness that we have because of this gospel, and then eventually will want to learn more. Please take courage and show your friends and family that you really love them by helping lead them to the one thing that will give them eternal joy! You can do it! :)
Ok, so something super cool and exciting. We had a huge mission conference this past weekend in Lyon. Our mission is getting Ipads, and the whole conference was on training of how we're going to use these tools. The gospel and sharing the gospel go together like peanute butter and jelly. We had Elder Kearon and Elder Nealson of the 70 speak to us, and you know what they said? That God gave us these technological devices for the primary purpose of hastening His work! So invite you to ask yourself what Elder Nelson asked us in General Conference when you post something online: "What sign am I showing to God?" Are you showing what joy the gospel brings you, are you standing up for what you believe in, are you seeking to uplift others, are you striving to share the precious truths that mean so much to you? THIS is what all of our lovely social media and devices can and should be used for. So, we'll be allowed to use facebook pretty soon for this purpose, so don't freak out when you see me on there. Haha
Also, a really cool reason why they are wanting us missionaries to use them now, is to train and condition us in the field, while we're in a "nurturing environment" as to how to regulate our usage on devices. Because I'll be the first to admit, before the mission, I was on my phone all the time. They want to help us learn to gradually use these wonderful devices in moderation, for the right reasons, and to develop good, healthy habits with our usage of them. That way when we get home and have free reign on using our devices again, we don't just fall back into the trap of being glued to your phone 24/7. So, if you feel like you're one of those people who can't leave your device for 10 minutes, start trying to put it away for an hour here, an hour there, and you'll be amazed at all the time you have to do so many more productive things! It provides you the ability to look outside of yourself, and look up to see the needs of others. Make the gospel the center of your life, not your phone, but use your phone to share the gospel. Get it? Got it? Good. Clear as mud. I know. But with God's help, you'll figure out a good balance. I'm really grateful for the opportunity to do so.
Have a fantastic week!
Love,
Soeur Shields
Well, I am now back up near my bleuville, in Annemasse. It's just on the border of Switzerland, so I'm back in my beautiful Swiss Alpes region. I'll be working almost entirely in Switzerland as well, since that's where all of our sisters are that we're over. It's going to be really cool, and my new comp is a gem! Let me tell ya though, it has never been so hard to say goodbye than it was to my humongous family in Nice. To say I'm tired of goodbyes is an understatement. But I know that I'm where the Lord wants and needs me to be right now.
One reason that Nice was so nice, is because the members were stellar missionaries. They were actively preparing their friends for us to meet, and they had no fear in letting us get to know their friends, and eventually to start teaching them. In case you didn't know, that's how this work needs to be done. We can literally do next to nothing without the help of the members. So, if you haven't even considered a friend or family member you could introduce to the missionaries, even just to get to know them and make a friendship, I invite you to start praying to know who to do this with. If you've done that much, then start praying of ways to get those two worlds to collide, and get the missionaries and your friend together! You don't have to start out in a teaching setting by the way, just get them to be their friend first. And hopefully, your friends will then see the happiness that we have because of this gospel, and then eventually will want to learn more. Please take courage and show your friends and family that you really love them by helping lead them to the one thing that will give them eternal joy! You can do it! :)
Ok, so something super cool and exciting. We had a huge mission conference this past weekend in Lyon. Our mission is getting Ipads, and the whole conference was on training of how we're going to use these tools. The gospel and sharing the gospel go together like peanute butter and jelly. We had Elder Kearon and Elder Nealson of the 70 speak to us, and you know what they said? That God gave us these technological devices for the primary purpose of hastening His work! So invite you to ask yourself what Elder Nelson asked us in General Conference when you post something online: "What sign am I showing to God?" Are you showing what joy the gospel brings you, are you standing up for what you believe in, are you seeking to uplift others, are you striving to share the precious truths that mean so much to you? THIS is what all of our lovely social media and devices can and should be used for. So, we'll be allowed to use facebook pretty soon for this purpose, so don't freak out when you see me on there. Haha
Also, a really cool reason why they are wanting us missionaries to use them now, is to train and condition us in the field, while we're in a "nurturing environment" as to how to regulate our usage on devices. Because I'll be the first to admit, before the mission, I was on my phone all the time. They want to help us learn to gradually use these wonderful devices in moderation, for the right reasons, and to develop good, healthy habits with our usage of them. That way when we get home and have free reign on using our devices again, we don't just fall back into the trap of being glued to your phone 24/7. So, if you feel like you're one of those people who can't leave your device for 10 minutes, start trying to put it away for an hour here, an hour there, and you'll be amazed at all the time you have to do so many more productive things! It provides you the ability to look outside of yourself, and look up to see the needs of others. Make the gospel the center of your life, not your phone, but use your phone to share the gospel. Get it? Got it? Good. Clear as mud. I know. But with God's help, you'll figure out a good balance. I'm really grateful for the opportunity to do so.
Have a fantastic week!
Love,
Soeur Shields