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
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