Turning weaknesses into strengths

Bonjour à tous!

Well this week was pretty fun! It's been raining constantly here. But it was sunny as well though, with some fog here and there. Really, the weather is rainy rainy and more rain, with about 2 hours of sunshine. I'm going to be incredibly pale when I get back and I'm gonna burn so easily, but ça va.

We had exchanges this week with the Cherbourg elders. Which was a blast, we did a ton of finding and contacting, got wrecked a few times, and then went to an Asian buffet. That was a really nice way to end the day! I think I had 6 plates and I think that the manager was starting to get angry at us for eating so much. They didn't take into account that we were four hungry American missionaries, haha!

This week has just been full of finding. We met a cool refugee from Afghanistan last night, he should be coming to our English class. 

For Christmas, we are going to be just about everywhere. We tried looking for service opportunities at food banks and stuff like that. But nobody wants three missionaries helping them out. Some organizations are pretty against religion. But, we did get permission from our leaders to go and visit all of the people in our ward that may need some company! Normally we'd have to have a member there with us when we visit some of the older single women, but our leaders said we could visit anyway because they could really use a visit and it could be a great service! So I am way excited for that because the people here in Rouen love us, and we love them, so it's all good. 

Anyway, today we are going to go on a hike, because I just love getting outside of the normal city life. And I haven't had a really fulfilling P-day in a while. I will try to send pictures later today.

Something I've been learning recently on a very personal level is the idea of just how small and weak we all are. Now when I say that, of course I mean our physical, imperfect bodies. I have been coming to terms recently with the fact that I really am weak. My whole life, I've been trying really hard to be strong and specifically to be strong enough to do everything I need to do. I hate the feeling of not being capable of doing something. But I realized recently something that struck me to the core. It's simply "I'm not strong enough". When we say "I want to be strong enough to do anything I want or need" we are effectively saying "I don't want the help of others" which is a form of pride. When in reality, we need to realize 1. That we need others help and 2. We need God's help always. Once we start to be strong, we start to get prideful, and we start to shut others out of the equation, including God. But we will eventually be humbled and realize that we can't do it alone. We simple aren't strong enough. One of the prophets once said "the Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" think about how true that is! And Henry B Eyring once said "When I find myself drawn away from my priesthood duties by other interests, and when my body begs for rest I give to myself this rallying cry, Remember Him.". I try to Remember Him when I am tired, I realize, though, that the first thing I think about when my body "begs for rest" is not always the Savior. But I also find that every time I say those words in my head, I do remember him, and that gives me just enough strength to take another step, and I find myself every Sunday with just enough strength to say to God during the Sacrament "I do remember him". Yes, times may be hard, trials are meant to test us to our limits, that is how we grow. Sometimes trials may last a week or a month or even years. But our Heavenly Father makes us these two promises:

1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Ether 12:27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

We'll that is what I have been learning recently. I hope you all have a great week! I love you all! Don't forget to eat lots of Christmas food for me!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Rainy in Rouen

Bonjour à tous,

We'll this week was kinda rough. Elder Banton was really sick for two days with the flu as well as a cold. I don't even know how that works but okay....

Anyway, so this week was a really slow one, it keeps raining, and it won't stop. I like the rain, but only when it rains a lot. In France you have this constant mist. Not even rain, just mist. But then when we do go outside, it rains harder. I'm getting pretty tired of it, it just never ends!!

On the bright side, we have a lot of fun as a trio! Even through the hard times, we joke and laugh, so that's good. 

I am way excited for Christmas! It's coming up fast! I don't know exactly what we're going to do, we already have a member that wants us to come over. We might just do that. 

We'll I'm sorry I don't have a lot to tell! Have a great week everyone!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Parent's note:  The Mission President has been keeping us informed about our missionary.  There is some protesting and other not pleasant events happening in France right now.  Jay (and the other missionaries) are safe.  If they encounter any gathering of protesters, they are instructed to stay/get away from the area.

Acting on Spiritual Promptings

Bonjour à tous!

So I just wanted to share a cool experience this week!

I am in a trio right now. And one of my companions loves to skateboard. So, Since today was P-day. We decided to look for a skate park. We wandered around town a little but couldn't find one. We finally just settled with a bike trail. 

While we were playing around, a woman passed by and I remember feeling something was off as she walked by. I didn't think much of it and we just kept playing around with the skateboard. We decided it was time to head back and we started down this bike trail. We come to somewhat of a dead end, but it was more like a random wall in the middle of this bike trail. Well the woman was sitting of the ground leaning on this wall and as we passed by, I could immediately tell that she was very sad. But we just passed by as I made eye contact with her.

As we were walking away, the thought of turning around and talking with her replayed over and over again in my head. Finally, I came to terms with myself and recognized it as the Spirit, and I knew that I had to do something about it. 

I had fallen behind the others for a moment at this point because I was rather caught up in my thoughts. And God, just to seal the deal, somehow made it so that one of my companions actually passed me the skateboard. So I took the skate board and just started going back to the woman, signalling to the others to come with me. I finally made it over back to the wall. The others caught up to me and I told them, "That woman is sad and we are going to help her, let's say a prayer." And before they could say anything about it, I prayed. 

I then we went over to the woman and sat down next to her. I don't remember everything I said, but she cried and told me everything about her life. Her mother had died recently, as well as her sister. And she had lost her job, and was just totally wrecked emotionally. I basically just told her that God loves her and then suggested that I pray with her. She agreed and I prayed for her, I blessed her in my prayer and did my best to listen to the Spirit. 

After that, I told her that we needed to go. I told her that everything would be okay. Then we left.

I hope with all of my heart that she will be humble enough to continue to pray. I know that if she does, she will be guided to the truth. 

That is the cool experience that I had today, and I definitely felt that truth of the principle that the more good things you choose to do, the more light you have in your heart.

Well I love you all! Have a great week!

Transferred to Rouen and a broken window

Bonjour à tous,

Well so this week was rather interesting. Because I got moved to Rouen. And now my companion is a super guy named Elder David. We get along pretty well.

It was incredibly hard for me to leave Liege. I really loved the people in Liege so much. They were all so great that the night that I left, I couldn't help but feel sad. I was so excited to be in Liege and then I was moved.

This week, on Wednesday, we are going to Versailles for mission conference! I am way excited for that. And at mission conference, we are gonna get an additional companion! Elder Banton will come home with us and we will be in a trio for the rest of the transfer!

Also, I broke the church window! Let me explain. Elder David and I went to them church for some business. And there are 2 doors on the chapel, one we use the key to get in, and the other locks behind you automatically. So we got in, left the keys in the door lock, and walked out the automatic door. We got all they way to our apartment before we realized that we didn't have the keys. So we called some people, got some keys and then found out that because we left the keys in the door, we couldn't use keys to unlock the door. We were stuck. So, we called the bishop and he sent a member here who had apparently picked them door lock before because they're have had this situation before. The brother comes with some X-ray photos and tries to use those as the lockpicks. He would slide that sheet between the door and attempt to open lock like that. To no avail. By this time it was dark and he called the bishop and said that that the only way is to go in through the back and hope that one of the windows are open. He asked the bishop for permission to break a window if the windows weren't open. And the bishop said yes. So we found one of the neighbours and she was kind enough to let us into her home, climb through her bedroom window, and get into a courtyard that belongs to the church. We found that none of the windows were unlocked (big surprise) and he gave me permission to break the window to the bishops office to get in. Which I did enthusiastically.

I only cut myself a few times on the broken glass, but it was surprisingly easy to break the window (the church definitely needs an upgrade).

So yeah, I broke into the church and later learned how to pick the lock to get in. Good to know!

Also, I need to apologize to a few people who have written me letters and have not received a letter back. Namely, the Horshel family (I hope you got my letter but I don't think so), as well, the primary sent me some drawings early on in my mission that I LOVED but never responded to, and a few other people that sent me letters that I never replied to. I either sent you a letter and you never got it, or I kept meaning to send you one and never got to do it.

Otherwise, this week has been a long one. Sadly we had several cancelled appointments and stuff like that. Rouen has a lot of potential and I can tell, it's hiding, but it's there.

Well I better go! I love you all! I hope you had a great thanksgiving! (We just made a casserole for thanksgiving).

Sincerely,
Elder Jay Payne
France, Paris Mission

Transferring out of Liege Belgium

Bonjour à tous,

Well today was an interesting day. We woke up this morning to see that we we're both staying in Liège. But that the Soeurs (Sister Missionaries) are leaving and that there were going to be no more Soeurs in Liège because of the all time low of missionaries in the France Paris Mission. So we were preparing to take charge of all of the Sister's investigators. We were setting things up and planning for what to do next. Then, as we were leaving the apartment, we get a call from the Mission President and he told us that we are actually both leaving and Soeur Egan is going to stay! I am going to a city in the Paris zone called Rouen, and Elder Pettus is staying in this zone but going to another city called Charleroi. 

Two weeks into my time in Rouen, I will have another companion making a trio and my 14th companion! I wonder what the record is! Haha!

So I am packing my bags again! We head to Brussels tomorrow to stay the night there before we go into Paris. I am going to get rid of a bunch of stuff in my suitcases because those things have become ridiculously heavy. We also are trying to do everything we can to prepare our investigators for the change so that none of them fall through the cracks. However, the Soeurs are going to have so many lessons every week that I don't know how that will turn out. So all of our investigators are going to be taught by the Soeurs.  Liège now has 7 people that could potentially be baptized.

It's sad for Elder Pettus and I because we had three dinners planned with members this week for Thanksgiving! Ugh! I was really excited for those. I was also really excited to be spending Christmas in Liège. They are putting up a giant Christmas tree right in front of our apartment! I WANTED TO SEE THAT!

But, it's out of my control and I have faith knowing that the Mission President is following the Spirit and sending me where the Lord need me now.

Well I love you guys so much! I am excited to talk to the family at home in a month!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Good work happening in Liege

Bonjour à tous,

Well this week was super super busy. As well pretty exhausting. Elder Pettus and I decided that we were really slacking off on contacting people on the bus. So we made a goal to contact someone on every bus ride. And we did it! But it was mentally exhausting because we were constantly thinking and planning about how to do so without being incredibly awkward. But we did it! We got over our fears! Now the next goal is to not stop just because we didn't make a specific goal for it. It must become a habit. 

Anyway, last p-day we went as a district to do some hiking. Which was a ton of fun! We found some old church ruins along a trail and had fun taking pictures there. 

Miracle story! 

We had a lesson with a woman on Wednesday named Fatou that we had met while contacting in the street. She said that she was a member of a different religion but that she would accept a lesson anyway. We didn't think much of it. We thought that she simply didn't want to be mean and that's why she set up a time for us. Anyway, so we had the rendez-vous and she was super nice and had bought us some treats. She invited us in warmly and we started a super dry, robotic restoration lesson. Not long into it we felt that something wasn't right and that we had to change our lesson plan. Elder Pettus started to testify, and then I did, and she opened up to us and said that before we contacted her, she had been thinking about God and praying. And then of course, we stopped and visited with her and that's why she let us set something up. We quickly got her setup to continue to meet with the sisters to teach! So that was awesome! Shes very sincere and very nice. 

And then later that night we managed to get back in contact with an old ami who shows real promise! So that was an awesome day!

We also received 2 referrals! One guy already has a baptismal date from the elders in the mission next to us. And the other person has already told the missionaries in Namur that she wants to be baptized! So hopefully, we got 2 baptisms coming up! 

So that was kinda our week. We also had stake conference on Sunday! 

I hope you all are having a great week! Good luck out there and of course, I love you all.

Sincerely, 
Elder Jay Payne 
Paris, France Mission

Very Busy Elders in Liege

Bonjour à tous,

Dang, this month has FLOWN by! Time is going so fast right now that it's not funny anymore. Its plain just not fair. 

So this last week and the week before were jam packed. Our schedule is incredibly busy. We have so much on our to-do list that I lost count of how much we have to do. 

Well, we have a few amis that are doing alright. One guy who will probably be baptized, (once we can find a time that works for him to come over and teach) but it's hard to get a hold of him. 

We are also planning a cultural activity on the 23rd of this month. We are doing this ward activity to create a good social opportunity to meet with the members more and to also have a good environment for amis to meet the members. We are doing everything so this is going to take some serious planning on our part. 

Last p-day we went hiking just me and elder Pettus and we found an old abandoned military fort here in Liege. Its called Chartreuse Fort. And today we went with the district to do some more hiking and we found some old church ruins that were pretty cool. Good times.

This week is a pretty normal week, but we are trying to meet with everyone that we can. We don't do much finding here because we have so many people to call and meet and help them with service, also we have a lengthy list of people that the missionaries found but who were never contacted after that. So we are going through all of those.

Well I have some pictures for you guys! I love you all! Have a great week!

Sincerely,
Elder Jay Payne
France, Paris Mission

Elder Pettus and Elder Payne

Carry-out snacks

Probably?

Train Station - Liege Belgium

Getting to know Liege Belgium

Bonjour à tous,

This week was a good week! Last Monday we explored Liége a little bit. And on Tuesday we had district meeting and we decided to do the Book of Mormon stand. It's literally a giant poster that we put up and just talk to people who pass by. It worked pretty well! We are now meeting with some new people who show some promise! One guy named Charles has actually met the missionaries a few times like 30 years ago! He's super nice and sincere, and he was an English professor. So he speaks fluent English as well. He's pretty cool. It's also really nice working with Elder Pettus in teaching situations because we both know what to do and we are both pretty good at teaching.

Belinda from my last area got baptized!!! Last Saturday she got baptized and I'm still waiting on the pictures from Elder Nilsson. 

There is a Dominoes right below our apartment, and that makes it REALLY hard to not eat pizza 3-4 times a week. Because it's cheap, close by, and this last week they had a crazy deal of 3.50 for a regular pizza before 4 o clock. We joke all the time that this apartment was a bad investment because of how it is placed. We are in the middle of town, so there are good shops everywhere, and there are several fast food joints really close to us. We are committed to keeping on our budget.

Anyway, I love you all!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

First Letter from Liege Belgium

Bonjour à tous,

Well I am no longer in Blois! In fact I am no longer in France! I am in Belgium!!!

Liége is awesome! It's a pretty big city. And the apartment is almost brand new to the missionaries. The old apartment was in a rougher part of the city. But now we are placed pretty much in town square. Our apartment is right next to Place Saint Lambert. There is a large open area and a huge old building right next to us.  Belgium is very different from France, the food is closer to American style food. The architecture is literally just bricks EVERYWHERE. In town, there aren't really  any houses, just lots of 2 story apartments everywhere, and they all look very similar because they are all made of brick.

I came in last Wednesday, and my new companion is named Elder Pettus. I was actually in a trio with him in the beginning of my mission! He's a great guy and I'm excited to work more with him. 

Anyway I'm also district leader again, so that's fun. I'm trying really hard right now to do what I can because the ward here in Liége has a lot of potential. I can tell that all this ward needs is a catalyst. Someone to come in and really make a difference, I hope to be able to help all the people I can in this ward so that we can really do the Lord's work. I pray to know what to do on that front.

For general conference last week, I got that chance to listen to some of women's conference as well! And I really liked the talk by Joy D. Jones. She talked a lot about service and that was actually one of my big study topics at the moment. I have really learned how to serve others in a meaningful way. And now I have been trying really hard to find ways to really serve people. Sometimes that just means to put a smile on their face when they feel down. But that is where real joy comes from. Serving others.

Speaking of service, I got to help a member here build a roof for his shed! And for those of you who know me well, I love Carpentry, so I got to work with wood a little bit. That was fun, and we will probably go back this week to finish the job.

Well I hope you all are having a great time! If not, serve someone!

I love you all!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Busy week and getting transferred to Belgium

Bonjour à tous,

So I actually tried to send a weekly last week, but for some odd reason, it wouldn't send. Sorry.

In other news, I'M GOING TO LIÉGE! Which is in Belgium. We found out this morning. And I am STOKED!

I hear so many good things about Belgium! (Minus how cold it's going to be). Plus, my companion is going to be Elder Pettus! I served with him for 2 weeks at the beginning of my mission and he's a cool guy, super chill. I'm very excited, the food there is rumored to be amazing, the people apparently are very friendly, and I'm also district leader again! 

So on to what happened this week!

Well, we started off by repairing the branch presidents wheelchair! Which I deeply enjoyed doing. Anyone who knows me knows how much I like to create things and fix things. So I really enjoyed doing that for him. It was a simple job, not to complicated. 

On Monday, we got a surprise call from the sisters of Tours and Orleans saying that they were in Blois for the next 4-5 hours because the bus they wanted to take to go to the Chambord castle wasn't running that day! So we took the opportunity to go to the Blois Castle! It was actually really cool and I really liked it! We had a good time.

On Wednesday, we went to Bourges for exchanges and that was awesome, nothing crazy to say there. And then on Thursday, we went straight from Bourges to Orleans for District meeting. We had a great district meeting. And then we literally ran to catch the train (which I absolutely HATE doing). Then on Friday, we went out to Paris to get Elder Nilssons visa work done. That went well. That was probably the first time I've been to Paris for visa work and nothing went wrong. Something always goes wrong, miss a train, train gets cancelled, forgot something. 

Then on Saturday we went and helped a member pick up hazelnuts in his back yard. We gave a good spiritual message and then watched general conference which was awesome! We haven't been able to watch all of the sessions yet, but of what I watched I really liked it! Not to mention, 2 hour church is going to make inviting investigators a lot easier now. Cuz we don't have to tell them that it's 3 hours!

Again, I'm sorry for the lack of weeklies lately. I really did try!

Also, Belinda is still doing super well! She came to watch general conference! And she also bore testimony to us about just how serious she is about getting baptized! She is going to the temple this next weekend!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Elder Payne and Elder Nilsson

Committed to Selfless Service

Bonjour à tous,

It was a long week for Elder Nilsson and I, since today is p-day and not this past Monday. So we had to go an abnormally long time before p-day. I found out what it means when the apostles say that it's good to work, but your body and mind need a rest every once in a while. 

I had a cool experience this week! After zone conference, we had a couple hours before our train home. So we went to go get dinner while still in Paris with some other elders. Well we had a bunch of leftover Subway sandwiches from lunch with the Zone and Elder De Geus volunteered to take them. What I didn't know is what he would do with the food. So we were all walking to a restaurant for dinner, and I noticed that he had fallen behind, so I walked over to him and found him giving a sandwich to a homeless person. He just smiled and gave the man a sandwich. Then we kept walking and he gave another sandwich out. And he just kept giving sandwiches out to homeless people. I just stood there amazed at what I was seeing. I had been looking for a way to really serve people. He told me that he had been doing that every zone conference for 3 transfers. And I just love that idea. That is such a good way to show our faith and love. So I helped him hand out all of the sandwiches. It was 200% worth it. I have committed myself that I will do the same thing in my next zone. 

I did some good service this week! Elder Nilsson and I helped to repair our branch presidents wheelchair. I was very happy to use my skills to help serve someone in a big way.

In other news, one of our investigators has quit smoking!!! She was so excited to be a non-smoker. She told us the other day "je ne cours plus, je vol!" Which translated is " I don't run anymore, I fly!" She is awesome, I don't see any reason why she would not be baptised in October.

So that is awesome news as well, Olivier is getting the ordained a Deacon in the Aaronic priesthood on Sunday!

Transfer day is in 2 weeks. If I get transferred, I hope to go to Paris so that I can finally serve there and also know my way around the city. I may be in Paris when Christmas comes around. But we will see.

I love you! Have a great fin de la semaine! (Have a great rest of the week!)

Elder Payne

Great Baptism on Saturday

Bonjour a tous!

This week was awesome! I learned so much and my testimony grew a lot this past week! Also, Olivier got Baptised! WoooHoooo! It went really  well (other than the baptismal font that could have doubled for a hot tub). We were a little scared because Olivier is a really big guy and Elder Nilsson is a relatively small man. So we were anxious to see what would happen. But it was successful and afterwards, Elder Nilsson told me that the hardest part was actually going into the water. Coming out was apparently much easier. So I count that as a miracle of its own.

One of our investigators, Belinda, came to the baptism as well. The next day, at church, she came into the Gospel Principles class and said "I want to be baptised, but the problem is that I have so many darn questions!". So naturally, we set a baptismal date right then and there for the 13th of October. Which is super cool! If any of you remember, we gave Belinda a priesthood blessing right on the street one day! Yes, that Belinda. It is so cool to see how she has become a visibly happier person and that she finds peace in the gospel and following the commandments. 

I also had a super spiritual experience this week, my testimony grew. And it all started with a super hard day that we had on Saturday (or maybe Friday). But Elder Nilsson shared a thing with me that I thought was incredibly spiritual and touched my heart in several ways. I just wanted to share it with you guys, I hope this works because it's an audio file (audio file didn't come over e-mail - attached a snippet from www.lds.org)

I love you all! Have a great week!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Missionary Work and the Atonement

The Prophet Joseph Smith once declared that all things “which pertain to our religion are only appendages” to the Atonement of Jesus Christ. In like manner and for the same reasons, every truth that a missionary or member teaches is only an appendage to the central message of all time—that Jesus is the Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, the Holy Messiah, the Promised One, the Savior and Redeemer of the world; that He alone burst the bands of death and triumphed over the captivity of hell; that no one of us could ever have those same blessings without His intervention in our behalf; and that there never shall be any “other name given nor any other way nor means whereby salvation can come unto the children of men, [except] in and through the name of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent.”

Inherent in all of this is a rather simple definition of the gospel, at least when considered in its essence. The word gospel as we use it in English comes down to us through early scriptural language which meant literally “good news” or sometimes “glad tidings.” The “good news” was that death and hell could be escaped, that mistakes and sins could be overcome, that there was hope, that there was help, that the insoluble was solved, that the enemy had been conquered. The good news was that everyone’s tomb could one day be empty, that everyone’s soul could again be pure, that every child of God could again return to the Father who gave them life.

This is the essence of the message delivered by every prophet who has ever lived and every Apostle ever called to the work. It is the message we are called to declare. It is the message of the angel who came to those unsuspecting Judean shepherds:

“And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy [or, in other words, I bring you the gospel personified], which shall be to all people.

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”

Upcoming Baptism and Staying in Blois

Bonjour à tous!

Well this last week was alright. I got cussed out on Thursday. You know, I firmly believe that when people aren't nice to us, it's because they think that we are someone else, or they simply don't know who we really are. Quand même, it's hard to have charity some times for people who do that. 

Olivier had his baptismal interview! He's gonna get baptized this Saturday! I am so excited for him! It's been really cool to be there by his side as he decides to take this step. I've loved watching him grow (he's already a pretty big guy) and he's just awesome all around. 

We got the transfers today. I am staying in Blois for another transfer! And staying with Elder Nilsson too! So I will get to be there for Olivier's baptism and I am so excited! I am also no longer district leader because the district was merged with the Bourges district. The mission has downsized this transfer because there aren't that many missionaries coming in because of visas. But there is still about 12 missionaries finishing. So they had to close a couple of areas temporarily. It's pretty weird. 

Our ami Belinda came to church all on her own again and she is coming to Olivier's baptism as well. So we are excited for that. 

We went to Paris on Friday because I had to do legally work we ended up going at the same time as the sisters in Tours so we spent a whole day in Paris and went to eat at KFC got home at about 8 at night and we were exhausted. Voilà quoi.

Overall, everything is awesome (cue Lego movie music).

I love you all and wish you the best!

Excellent District Meeting and New Shoes

Bonjour à tous,

Our investigators are doing well. One of our amis is still going for baptism, a few hiccups have appeared, we are helping him however we can and he is still pushing forward. 

Anyway, life was fun this last week. Our district went to Alencon on Tuesday to help clean out the old Elders apartment. And I got some free shoes! They are Rockports and they are some pretty intense shoes. They look really tough and I will probably use them during the winter. They look completely unused, which is awesome and they're my size!

Transfers are next week. We get the repertoire (document with who is going where) next Monday morning. I might be transferred. I asked the zone leaders about it and they told me that I may be moved. So I am anxiously waiting for the new. I will be sad to leave Blois because it's so beautiful and the branch is awesome and Elder Nilsson is great.

 My cooking skills are improving. I made a pizza a few days ago! It was a French specialty of chevre and honey. It was REALLY good. I've had it before and I really liked it, so I figured out how to make it myself. This week I want to learn to make something new. I'm not sure what yet. I'm thinking Mexican, any ideas? 

As I write this letter I'm actually sitting in the gardens of the Chateau de Chambord. It's one of the most popular castles in France. It's beautiful and very intricately made.

I had a cool experience lately too! On Wednesday, I had to lead a discussion in district meeting where I was assigned to teach the missionaries in our district how to be better consecrated. So I prepared my lesson over the course of the week, making sure to listen to the Spirit and everything neccassary to help prepare and teach the missionaries to become the best they could be. It is sometimes a daunting task to teach. But I love it. 

I planned a good lesson, and then the day of the meeting, I accidentally left my tablet with all of my planning at the apartment. So I had to replan it using the time I had on trains (what had taken two days to plan). And hoped and prayed that I could deliver this message in such a way that I would do the most good possible to the missionaries. I prayed a lot on the train and felt good about it. We got to the district meeting and I did someting I hadn't planned. We had an activity to help everybody focus on being humble and ready to listen to the Spirit. 
After the activity I started to teach the lesson. Not long into the lesson I realized that I was teaching a lot that I had not planned on before I started teaching. I realized that the spirit was directing the things I taught. I let it happen and made sure not to become a speed bump for the Spirit. And it became a powerful Spiritual experience.

A couple of days later, I got a call from one of the Sisters in my district and she told me of a super cool spiritual experience that she had at District meeting. I became curious and looked at my original notes and saw that the whole activity we did was something that I had only added because I lost the original notes. So if I had not left my tablet at home. This sister may not have had that Spiritual experience.

So that was a miracle that I had the luck to see play out. My testimony was strengthened by that.


Love,
Elder Payne

Two Excellent Investigators

Bonjour à tous,

This week was pretty good! One of our investigators is still preparing steadfastly to be baptized. It's pretty much certain at this point. I love him so much, he's awesome. Although, I'm not sure that I will still be here for his baptism, it is possible that I get transferred before I get the chance to see that. He asked Elder Nilsson to baptize him, Elder Nilsson is a smaller man and the investigator is pretty big, so this will be interesting for sure. 

Another investigator is also is doing good, she read the assignment we gave her! Yay! And she also read the chapter after that without us asking her to! That's awesome, she has been growing and progressing pretty well, it's tough to get a hold of her sometimes, but we keep trying.

We had a birthday party for Elder Nilsson! We wanted to go out and eat, but that got complicated really fast because apparently 6pm is way too early for French restaurants to be serving anything else other than drinks. So we just got some kebabs and then some ice cream. We put candles in the ice cream and I sung happy birthday to him. It was fun. Small, but fun.

Tomorrow we get to go a city called Alençon with the district because there used to be elders there and now there aren't. President told us to go over there as a district to clean the old apartment, which apparently is in pretty bad condition. But it will be a nice way to get out of our normal every day routine and do something different. 

It has rained here, and I love it. Because the heat tends to make missionary work harder than it needs to be. 

I have some pictures! One of me with a giant pistol meant for dismounting cavalry. Elder Nilssons birthday ice cream. And I learned how to poach eggs! Delicious!

Love,
Elder Payne

Happy Birthday!!

Renewed Interest from Old Contacts

Bonjour à tous,

Well this past week was pretty great. Today we went to Tours for Elder Nilsson's Birthday. We played laser tag and it was an awesome time. One of the sisters was hilarious because she has a reputation of being clumsy. Well she blew us all out of the water by crushing us at laser tag. She was a total underdog! I got 3rd place. But it was so much fun and I think I lost weight just by sweating so much! Hahaha

This last week we had some fun stuff happen. A woman we met a while ago has started to become more interested in hearing more about the church. It's gonna be an adventure because she has some habits she needs to overcome, but at the same time, she is learning. So we will see how that goes. She came to church and loved it!

We got stopped on the street a couple of days ago by a homeless woman and told us that the Sister missionaries that used to serve here years ago came to her home (at the time) but she rejected them. They prayed with her before they left and a week later, she won 20,000 euros. And she has been looking for the missionaries since then. Now she says that she has begun to believe in God and her kids believe in God and that's why she wants to meet with us. She wants to make her kids happy. I'm not sure how teaching her will go. But it's a start.

I found that Elders have no idea about interior design. I rearranged our apartment to create more space, and it looks so much better now. There is so much more space than before. I did the same thing in Épinal and Amiens. Missionary apartments are pretty horribly done sometimes.

Well right now we are stuck on a train trying to go home. There was an accident in the Blois train station. And now all the trains in the area are backed up. So we are in a train waiting for things to start back up. Not a huge problem, it's only 6, I have at least 3 hours to get home. Sometimes you gotta be patient.

Well I love you!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

The work continues in Blois for Elders Nilsson and Payne

Bonjour à tous,

This week was pretty awesome! We met some new people and felt the spirit often!

We helped a family move on Friday, I was sad to see then leaving, because they are really awesome. They moved to Dijon. Also, the new transfers came! I am staying in Blois with Elder Nilsson for another six weeks! Which is good, I like Blois and I really like where the work is going here. 

I'm gonna be honest, I don't really remember much about this week. We met with a new ami and she introduced us to her friend! Who is super awesome and was a lot more prepared for the gospel than she was. So we met with her, and her friend. The rendez-vous was awesome and they both committed to pray and read the book of mormon (we later found out that the girl hadn't read or prayed, but the guy did.) The girl then told us that she's not the one who needs our message, but that the guy needs a lot of help and she gave us his address and told us to go find him because he needs us. So we did. He wasn't home, but no big deal, I'm a missionary, I'll go back several times if I have to!

After that we ate at the home of an American family named Rowley. Eric Rowley is the guy that is here for work for a year and his family is here to visit him. Classic American meal. I felt right at home. I have never felt more comfortable in a members home during my mission. It was awesome. And I got a free haircut! Woo-hoo!

I made sopapillas a few days ago and BOOOOOY they were soooooo good. Shout out to my mom for sending me the recipe!

I am also apparently the cat whisperer. Because almost every cat I come across on my mission comes when I call it. So yeah, cats aren't evil people, sorry to break the news.

Well I need to clean the apartment. Have a great week everyone! I love you all!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Elder Payne - the cat whisperer

Beautiful View

Sopapillas!!

Elders Payne and Nilsson with the Rowleys?

Zone Conference

Staying in Blois

Bonjour à tous,

Well this past week was pretty great! And I am still seeing miracles every day! I am learning a lot of lessons (many of which I learned the hard way).

I am so grateful for this wonderful district and the ability and opportunity I had to serve them on a meaningful level. Thankfully, I am still the District leader here in Blois. And I am very happy about that. 

One of our amis is coming to the temple with us on Saturday! I am incredibly excited for that because the temple has always been a wonderful place for me, and one of the only places on earth where I can feel genuine peace and refuge from the world. So I am very excited to be able to share a little bit of my passion for the temple with one of our amis. We also had to change his baptismal date, some family issues.

Also, this past week I have again seen the hand of God in my life. He answers every single one of my prayers.

I have been learning how to make crepes and I must say, I've gotten decent at it. I've made crepes for dinner about once a week now. I'm starting to really figure it out.

I have begun to look into my family history as well. I figure that during the Mission, I don't have a way to really do work to find these ancestors, but I can learn about them. So I have been using the family tree app to learn about my ancestors. And I must say that I feel like I have more of a real relationship with these people now. I know some of there stories and have taken a real interest in it. It really is interesting to learn about who they were and to understand what kind of people I came from.

I learned an especially large amount about the man I was named after, Jay Payne. Who was my great uncle. It is amazing to read about the legacy that was left behind for me.

Anyway, so this is a little bit on what's going on in my life. Also, France just won the world cup for soccer. And man, France went crazy that day. We actually were told that we needed to be home by 5 because that's when the game started. And people in France tend to be a little crazier when things like this happen. France likes to get really loud and crazy when the world cup comes around.

But we were safe so no worries there. 

Well I love you all! I will see you in about 8 months! Have a good week!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Learning to Use the Spirit More Effectively

Bonjour à tous!

Well this past week was interesting. We went to Paris for exchanges with the Zone Leaders. And that was good, nothing much to report there.

Something that is really cool that has been happening is our efforts in Blois. I had the idea while I was still with Elder Sebryk that I could try a new way of finding the people who are ready for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The idea is centered on using the spirit to the maximum. Every missionary knows that tracting door-to-door and contacting on the streets is incredibly inefficient. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack. We go out and walk around and talk to everyone in hopes that we will find that one person who is searching.

So what we do now is every morning, we try our best to feel the spirit during personal study. And then before we do any proselyting, we pray personally to make sure that we do indeed have the spirit with us. After that, we get together and pray as a companionship to know what to do. Then we go out and follow the spirit to the best of our ability. The idea is that we follow literally the challenge given in the scriptures.

Doctrine and Covenants 42:13-14
And they shall observe the covenants and church articles to do them, and these shall be their teachings, as they shall be directed by the Spirit. 
And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith; and if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach.

And that is what we have decided to do as a companionship. And let me tell you, the fruit is good. I have seen miracle after miracle, day after day. And I feel like I have been the doing my best to improve. It's amazing and I see God's hand in my life every day. I am so blessed right now that it's not even funny. 

I feel that I have found the key to effective missionary work. And I wouldn't have found it if I had not gone through the trials that I did. 

So that has been amazing to watch. And that was the highlight of my week.

I love you all!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Baptism and a Flooded Font in Tours

Bonjour à tous!

Well this past week was a blast I'm gonna summarize it for you.

First we had zone conference and missed our train heading back because of some guy who wanted to argue with us about our religion

We stayed the night with the #ParisLilas Elders (not the first time).

We had a baptism on Wednesday in Tours to go to because the sisters there couldn't find enough priesthood holders to do it. So we were witnesses. So we took a train straight fro  Paris to tours.  We got there early to help set up the font. And we started the water and started filling it up, then we decided that it should take a while so we went upstairs and just left it running. Well, about 40 minutes later, we hear the door open downstairs (it's a 2 story building) and then we heard someone yelling. We went to check it out, and it was a member and the branch president who had shown up. But the entire area with the font was flooded! The font had flooded and now there was about 2 inches of water on the floor. I didn't know it could do that! Most fonts have some drains to help that not happen! Well this one wasn't like that. So we grabbed dustpans, buckets and literally anything that could pick up water and got to work. We ended up getting it to the point where it just looked like we had mopped recently in about 50 minutes. Everything went well and the girl getting baptised was definitely strengthened by the whole experience. She was so happy!!

Then we had an apartment inspection (that we rocked) on Friday.

We went to exchanges that night in Le Mans. (Sorry dad, I didn't get to go to the race track). Had a crazy awesome time there.

Then it was Sunday, we ate a five course meal at a members house and now here we are on Monday. For P-day my companion and I found a cave with a bunch of homeless people in it, after visiting with them spent the rest of the P-day playing basketball, frisbee, and ping pong (I've gotten pretty good at ping pong).

Well that's it, I've gotta play more ping pong.

Here are some pictures from last P-day and a helpless flightless bird I found in the street. (It was alive, but unable to walk or fly. I did what I could transferring it under a bush where it would be safe. Never did find out what happened to it.)

Sincerely
Elder Payne 

New Missionary Companion in Blois

Bonjour à tous,

Well, I have been getting kinda nonchalant about writing these weeklies. Sorry bout dat.

Anyway, my new companion is awesome! We have a great time together. We have bonded over Fhineas and Ferb! He is a big fan of the show just as much as I am! So we quote it pretty often. I am going to be fast here, because we want to play some ping pong. 

Our most promising ami is still doing great! We had a really good rendez-vous with him and a member this past week and we intend to have another one this week.

Tomorrow we go to Paris very early in the morning to eat breakfast as a zone and have zone conference. 

Friday we have an apartment inspection to make sure that everything is functioning properly. 

Today me and Elder Nilsson went on a walk in a big park nearby. It was beautiful and I really needed a good fulfilling p day. We had some ice cream and filmed a nature video of "The Wild Elder Payne" I will see what I can do about sending it. I discovered the French equivalent to poison ivy (that wasn't fun). We found a bird on the way home that was injured on the sidewalk. It wasn't dead, but it couldn't fly or walk. We don't know why, I suspect it was hit by a car. I moved it to a better spot. And because I'm a missionary, I can't keep pets. I would've loved to help it more. But I think I did what I could.

Well I don't have any more time. Talk to ya next week! 

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

New Companion and Potential Baptism

Bonjour à tous,

Well this week was interesting for me. Elder Sebryk is now home. He was a sad to leave France but excited to see his family. My new companion is Elder Nilsson. He is a really good missionary and speaks French very well. 

Anyway, good news! I am getting the hang of this District Leader thing! It is a time consuming assignment. But, at long as I take the time the assignment needs, I'll be alright. I was supposed to make a video of a district meeting for the rest of the zone to share in their district meetings. It turned out awful. It looks like someone from the 80's took the video. Haha. I could make a new one but it took so much work and time that I'm just not willing to spend that kind of time. 

Also, our ami has accepted a date to be Baptised!!!!!!!! I'm so excited for him. He has been doing so good. I asked him why he comes to church all the time and he said it's because he feels very calm at church and that his worries seem to go away when he comes to church. He has the faith and now we just need to make sure that we provide all the support he needs. His baptismal date is set for late July. 

That's it for this week!  Anyway, talk to ya next week!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Staying in Blois and getting a new companion

Bonjour à tous,

I am staying in Blois. But, just like every other transfer, I'm rather anxious about this next one. I am getting a new companion named Elder Nilsson. I am also excited because I was called to be a District Leader! I can't wait for the new experiences that comes from being district leader. I am a very adaptable person and I can't wait to start serving my fellow missionaries! It's going to be an adventure!  

So we get to go to Paris on Wednesday to make the change! I think that Elder Sebryk is sad that he is leaving France but at the same time, he is way excited to see his family. 

On Saturday, we got his parting meal, which was some kebabs, but these were special kebabs. I will explain it later.

We got some good rain here last night. I've come to love the rain, it's so refreshing. 

Well, today is a really busy day, I better finish all these emails. I love you!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Birthday in Blois

Bonjour à tous,

This week was alright, nothing huge happened other than MY BIRTHDAYYYYYYYYYYYY!! It was fun! The night just before I ate until I couldn't at a members house. Then the next morning we went to the local market to get a pastry. Then we went to get kebabs for lunch. Then we had a rendez-vous that night with an ami we are working with. That went really well, he still has some pride in his heart but he is starting to change. So that is really cool. 

Yesterday we went to eat with a member and like 9 other members! We had a big meal all together and on the way their we got to ride in a convertible! It was an old fiat but riding through Blois in an old convertible fiat with a suit on made me feel like the classiest man alive! My hair didn't feel the same way but I don't care, it was still awesome.

I also got my birthday package! Some Hatch green Chile and other essentials! My parents also sent me a cool metal scorpion to build as I did ask specifically for something I could build with. Little old me, always fidgeting and tinkering with things. 

This week is the last week of the transfer! And my companion Elder Sebryk is going home next week, so I am guaranteed to get a new companion. Of course I'm excited but me and Elder Sebryk have had some really awesome times together and we get along so well that I am really sad to watch him go. Maybe I will see him in the future if I ever go to Canada. 

Anyway, that's all I got! I love you all! Here are some pictures!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Elder Payne and the wonderful Hatch green chile

Scorpion puzzle for birthday.

Rain in Blois

Excited to work with the new Branch Mission Leader

Bonjour à tous,

C'était une bonne semaine! My companion is on the last 2 weeks of his mission! So we are making sure to work as hard as ever and do everything he wants before he leaves. 

We have a new Branch Mission Leader! He is awesome and I can't wait to really work with him. He is kicking the work here into shape and has a lot of motivation to get things done, which is awesome because now we have a chance to do some member missionary work. As all missionaries know, member missionary work is the best kind and it's the most effective. And our new DMB is really gung-ho for that. 

This Saturday is my Birthday!!!! I'm really excited! I will be 21 for the rest of my mission. I feel like I'm still 19. It's weird how life works like that. I am patiently waiting for my birthday package from my parents. I will take pictures of it when it arrives so you all can see. But mainly so that I can have the pictures forever. 

We had some exchanges this week and me and Elder Langley (love that guy) went to a nearby lake. Well I love to skip rocks, it's something I used to do all the time when near lakes and rivers. So I was bent on skipping a few rocks. Instead, we got stopped by a young couple and ended having a 40ish minute long discussion with them about life. They were really cool and although we didn't get to share a formal gospel message with them, it was still really cool to be able to tell them who we are and what we are doing here.

So that was a cool little moment. 

My Pimente plants are starting to flower! I will attach a picture.

Well that is it for the week, I had a great time talking with my family last Sunday! 

Talk to you next week!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

On our Mother's Day call Elder Payne noted that all 'pepper' or 'chile' plants are called pimento in France. So we don't know what kind of peppers they will be yet.

Short letter after Mother's Day video chat

Bonjour à tous!

Well mothers day was yesterday for America, and I got to talk to my family! Which was awesome!

Well this past week we were outside of our ville again for a lot of the week. We went to Le Mans for district p-day and then we stayed for exchanges. We ended being in Le Mans for a grand total of 3 whole days! Monday we were supposed to be there, Tuesday was exchanges, but then we found out that there was a strike for the trains on Wednesday at the exact time that we planned on going back. So no trains were running. We had to stay for another night. That was long. 

We finally came back on Thursday but on Friday, I had to finally go back to Paris to make myself legal again in France. It was successful we just scraped by though because of conflicting trains and metro lines and stuff like that. 

Well I am now legal in France again. And yesterday we had a mangez-vous with our new branch mission leader. He is awesome and fed us a five course meal. He is a chef, and knows what good food is. But he also knows that we missionaries will eat whatever he feeds us. But it was delicious anyway, I have a picture of the cake he made, I will attach it here.

This next week we are looking at a pretty tranquille week. Although we have exchanges in Blois this time and we have quite a few people to call and set things up with. 

Well have a great week everyone! I love you all and I will see you in roughly 11 months!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Blois France - Work Continues

Bonjour à tous,

Bonjour tout le monde! J'ai passé une bonne semaine! Il était très chargé, mais bon. I thought I could give you guys some French.

But boy was it a week. We had zone conference on Tuesday, but we couldn't find any trains that day so we had to go Monday night and stay in another apartment for the night. The next morning we had zone conference. After that we tried to get our train, but the subway line didn't go to our train station to head home. We tried several different lines to get there but they were all closed down due to protesting (there is a lot of that in France right now ...it makes travelling really frustrating). We tried to find out what to do but found out that there was no way to get there and take a train home. So we decided to call the missionaries in Paris to find a place to stay for the night and after calling a million people and no one answering, we found out that there was a baptism with the Elders we stayed the night with already. So we went to the baptism of their ami. That was cool. The next morning we went home. On the way back home, a guy stopped us in Blois and told us that he was there for a rendez-vous with us that we had forgotten. So we had an impromptu lesson which went okay. Then we had a guy come and turn back on our gas. And then we had all of our rendez vous crammed into 4 days. So yeah, crazy week.

And this week we have a ton to do. I have to go to Paris for legal paperwork, we discovered that last week that the office was closed. So yeah.

We taught one of our contacts this week. He is doing really good right now and told us that he is really on the fence about joining our church but he has seen so many good things. He has really been seeing a change of heart and has found somewhat of a home in the Church. Which is really awesome.

Right now we are in Le Mans for district meeting and P-day. We found an escape room here and went today. It was zombie themed and awesome. We didn't make it out but we were really close. We were just at the end when time ran out. But it was so much fun and quite the adventure. 

Well I am at FHE right now and I better get back to being a missionary. Here are some pictures though!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission

Bridge in Blois France

Balloon above Blois

Amazing progress in Blois

Bonjour à tous,

This week was amazing, literally a miracle week! But the miracles didn't show up really until the weekend.

So our gas service at our apartment has been out for the past week. Luckily our stove is electric and so is the oven. However the hot water for showers in the morning? Yup you guessed it - nothing. We now have to boil our own water every morning. I know that other missionaries in other areas have it worse still, but it's still pretty annoying. We expect that to be fixed this week. The problem though is that the utility company is not reliable and for some reason, and they seem to ignore the missionaries. 

On the other hand, to the miracles! So the first one started out as an awful day. We had a progressing investigator who told us that he doesn't see the need to come to church or get baptised. He is too prideful and we left the appointment feeling awful. But we had another rendez-vous right after that with a part-member family. The father being the member. His wife has been difficult and unrespensoive for a long time. We went in with a general idea on what to teach, but we weren't sure. And as we said the opening prayer, the spirit told me in a quiet whisper "have a testimony meeting", so I told my companion and then I testified, he testified and the father testified. Then we turned to the wife and said "now you've seen the testimony of 3 people who you are close friends with, and there are almost 16 million other people out there who are a part of this church because they felt the same feeling, now when are you going to start looking for yourself?" (Paraphrasing of course) she said that she always knew this to be a good church and she trusts the missionaries and loves the members. Thé spirit was so strong in that room and we know that she is really going to be moving along towards baptism soon!

Also the man we are helping to Quit smoking came to church! With his 2 kids! His kids absolutely loved it! I have never seen the man so happy than when he was at church with his kids. I think he caught a glimpse of what his future could look like and he loved it!

Another ami that has been coming to church all on his own told us that he feels at home in our church and is probably going to invest more in our church! Also, another ami that we were going to stop teaching had a sudden change, she used to be completely unresponsive and would not follow commitments and she wasn't progressing. We had a rendez-vous with her and all of the sudden, she seems to have changed, just enough to contribute and listen to what we have to say. 

Man, I love this gospel. I have been doing so much learning and growing over the past week that it's not even funny!

Well I love you all! Have a great week!

Sincerely
Elder Payne 
France, Paris Mission