Bonjour ma chére famille et amis!! What an interesting past week it has been! So, my companion got really sick last week unfortunately. So, we weren't allowed to leave our apartment much at all for the last few days of this transfer. We went a little stir crazy, but we made good use of our time inside. So, Friday transfer calls came. My dear Soeur Magleby and I were hoping to stay together so bad, but God had a different plan. She got assigned to be a STL in Lyon. I was so so so sad to see her go! I love that girl. My new companion is Soeur Cherry. She's from Tennessee!!! The Southern Belles are now domination nation over in good ole' Chambery. So, on our very last night here, Soeur Magleby and I were trying to figure out what we should do for the last 45 minutes of our day, because some things didn't go according to schedule because she wasn't feeling well. So, once she felt up to it, we decided to just go out street contacting. We didn't really have a place in mind, but we walked out our front door and just started walking. We got about 20 feet when we noticed a young man across the street walking into his apartment, and he was staring at us intently. We get a lot of weird stares, so we didn't think much of it. So we just kept on walking and he went inside his apartment. We walked another 10 feet or so, then the next thing we know he's running across the street yelling "wait!" He gets over to us, and says something like this: "I can't hold it in anymore! I just have to ask. Are you the Mormons? I've been studying Mormons for a really long time. But it's been on the internet and stuff. I really just want to find a concrete source to learn about them. I want to know what they actually believe, and why they're here, and what they do. Do you know how I can find out more?" We literally had to do all we can to keep our jaws from dropping... We were like "US! That's how you can find out more! that's our job! We'll tell you everything!" So he got super excited. He said he had even rode his bike up to our church doors, where we have a sign up that says when we have English Class, FHE, and our Sunday meetings. He said he really wanted to come to those. So obviously we told him to come. Then we exchanged numbers and went on our way. Soeur Magleby were like little kids on Christmas for the rest of the night. It's moments like that where every difficulty of this work becomes worth it. I had read in PMG and the scriptures and in talks and everything about how the Lord prepares people to hear the gospel and then places them in our path. That night I saw that truth come to pass before my own eyes, and it was such a sacred experience. The Lord knows His children, and when He wants us to find them, He will make it happen.
The story gets better. So, all day yesterday I spent in Lyon as we had to change companions. Our train got in at 6:58 and FHE started at 7. We had invited this young man to FHE the night we contacted him, and he said he'd come. I texted him on Monday afternoon to remind him, but he never responded. Since we would be cutting it so close to when FHE started, we really considered cancelling it. But, we decided just to go ahead with faith and have it anyways and see if anyone showed up, especially him. So, we walk up to the church and there he was!! Waiting there all eager to go in! So, we try to contain our excitement, and then we had a wonderful FHE. You want to know why? Because out of no where, this adorable family from England shows up. The wife had served her mission there and they were visiting, and stopped by when they saw the sign on the door that an FHE was going on. So, this family hit it off so well with our amis. The dad told him his entire conversion story, and he just absorbed it up like a sponge. He asked a bunch of questions, and this family did a great job at answering. It was just miracle after miracle. Now tonight we are teaching him and he asked if we could have dinner afterwards with him too! He is the coolest guy ever!! I'm telling you, when it rains, it pours. The Lord is blessing us for our hard work and diligence, and it feels so good! Even if nothing happens with this guy, I just feel so grateful to my Lord for allowing me to see miracles. Speaking of miracles, I contacted this man on a bus, and he happened to be from New Zealand, and spoke English. After a few minutes of talking, he told me that he was on his way to go get coffee with his friend who used to be Mormon, and if we wanted to, we could come with him and say hello. So, of course we said yes! So, we get to the cafe, and up walks this blonde Utah Mormon. Literally, she was a born and bred Provo chick! She became inactive in the last few years, but we had a great time talking with her! We hit it off and she is the coolest lady ever. We'll be doing all we can to get her back to church! Who'da thunk in little ole Chambery that we'd meet a girl from Provo! haha So, my new companion is Soeur Cherry. She has been out about 11 months. She is seriously the sweetest person I have ever met in my life. I love her so much and we are going to have an awesome transfer together, or more. Soeur Nuutinen got transfered, and so Soeur Pagano's new companion is Soeur Kehl, who is from Paris and is only in her 3rd transfer. So, it's nice having another newbie in the house, except we can't relate on struggling with the language. haha. It's so great having a native in the house though, because she is helping us all so much with our French! It's a little stressful being the one who is the "veteran" here now. I have to know everywhere to go and who everyone is, which I do for the most part, but I've been so used to being the follower, so it's different being the leader now. It's good though, because that's the fastest way to learn! Family and friends, this is the greatest work I have ever done and I am so blessed to be a part of it! I love what I'm doing! I wake up every morning feeling so happy and go to bed every night feeling like I got to be a little part of helping God's children, and THAT is the greatest feeling that there is, let me tell ya. Thank you so much for your prayers and love!!! Love always, Soeur Shields
The story gets better. So, all day yesterday I spent in Lyon as we had to change companions. Our train got in at 6:58 and FHE started at 7. We had invited this young man to FHE the night we contacted him, and he said he'd come. I texted him on Monday afternoon to remind him, but he never responded. Since we would be cutting it so close to when FHE started, we really considered cancelling it. But, we decided just to go ahead with faith and have it anyways and see if anyone showed up, especially him. So, we walk up to the church and there he was!! Waiting there all eager to go in! So, we try to contain our excitement, and then we had a wonderful FHE. You want to know why? Because out of no where, this adorable family from England shows up. The wife had served her mission there and they were visiting, and stopped by when they saw the sign on the door that an FHE was going on. So, this family hit it off so well with our amis. The dad told him his entire conversion story, and he just absorbed it up like a sponge. He asked a bunch of questions, and this family did a great job at answering. It was just miracle after miracle. Now tonight we are teaching him and he asked if we could have dinner afterwards with him too! He is the coolest guy ever!! I'm telling you, when it rains, it pours. The Lord is blessing us for our hard work and diligence, and it feels so good! Even if nothing happens with this guy, I just feel so grateful to my Lord for allowing me to see miracles. Speaking of miracles, I contacted this man on a bus, and he happened to be from New Zealand, and spoke English. After a few minutes of talking, he told me that he was on his way to go get coffee with his friend who used to be Mormon, and if we wanted to, we could come with him and say hello. So, of course we said yes! So, we get to the cafe, and up walks this blonde Utah Mormon. Literally, she was a born and bred Provo chick! She became inactive in the last few years, but we had a great time talking with her! We hit it off and she is the coolest lady ever. We'll be doing all we can to get her back to church! Who'da thunk in little ole Chambery that we'd meet a girl from Provo! haha So, my new companion is Soeur Cherry. She has been out about 11 months. She is seriously the sweetest person I have ever met in my life. I love her so much and we are going to have an awesome transfer together, or more. Soeur Nuutinen got transfered, and so Soeur Pagano's new companion is Soeur Kehl, who is from Paris and is only in her 3rd transfer. So, it's nice having another newbie in the house, except we can't relate on struggling with the language. haha. It's so great having a native in the house though, because she is helping us all so much with our French! It's a little stressful being the one who is the "veteran" here now. I have to know everywhere to go and who everyone is, which I do for the most part, but I've been so used to being the follower, so it's different being the leader now. It's good though, because that's the fastest way to learn! Family and friends, this is the greatest work I have ever done and I am so blessed to be a part of it! I love what I'm doing! I wake up every morning feeling so happy and go to bed every night feeling like I got to be a little part of helping God's children, and THAT is the greatest feeling that there is, let me tell ya. Thank you so much for your prayers and love!!! Love always, Soeur Shields