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!