The Birthday was great!

Hey everyone... well I'm twenty one and I have got the brains and the brawn to prove it... actually no one told me that when you turned twenty one you automatically got fat... I just always thought that happened with Clint and Jaron... I thought it was just them .. but apparently it is everyone..; I don't think I told you.. but since I became Assistant in September.. I have gained about 3-5 kilos.. that is a lot.. that is almost 7-10 pounds.. In other words I am fat... I never thought this day would come..; but now I am left to look at my brothers and embrace the inevitable future......
The birthday was great. I got both grandma and grandpa Hamblin's and Simonson's card. Thank you very much for thinking of me... It was great, the day of my birthday I got a call from Sister Staheli, some Sisters here in Paris, some Sisters in Liege and also a guy named Harry in the Netherlands. I would have to say that that was the most shocking and touching. Harry is an 80 year old man that lives in Eindhoven, Nederland. He works with the missionaries everyday and he loves the missionaries. He comes to every Zone Conference and every missionary related thing. But I received a call and saw it was from the Netherlands and thought hmmm it is probably a missionary;; calling me and breaking mission rules.. and then I answer and I here.. "Hello, it's Harry..." and he said.... "What day is it today?" I said it was Thursday the 18th.. and he said, "What special thing is happening today?" and I said oh.. it is my birthday.. then he wished me happy Birthday.. it made me happy. I have no idea how he got my number nor how the heck he knew it was my birthday..
The day before my Birthday we had District Mtg in Versailles and the district Sisters surprised me with a cake.. candles, song..; the whole thing.. They stole my camera and filmed it also.. so it is recorded as well.
This week was and has been great. We have been doing a lot of finding but also we have been teaching a few people.. I don't think that I told you about a cool experience... but last Saturday we went to a baptism at the Versailles chapel... it was for another Ward but, anywho.. we had talked to a guy while buying juice for Zone Conference one day... and we gave him our number etc.. because he couldn't give us his because he was working.. etc. but then I guess the Sisters met him on the street a couple of days later and they invited him to this baptism and.. he just showed up.. then while the lady got baptized.. he turns to Elder McKay and said hey so do you have extra clothes.. I want to get baptized.. haha.. we told him. whoa; well we have to teach you a few things and then ya you can for sure get baptized... then while we sang hymns he just bawled like a baby... his name is David and he is French.. he has a cute little 4 year old girl.. named Diana... well the more we talked to him after the baptism.; we kinda thought he was just crazy.. but none the less we set up a RDV with him and we taught him on Monday.. and found that he is just a really lost, sad man... His wife left him a little while ago and he lost his daughter and his house, everything.. so he really has just hit rock bottom and just is in the middle of a break down.. We taught him and he just cried like a little baby.. cried and cried.. it was sad.. he needs the gospel. He doesn't see why he even needs to live.. and so this is great for him.. he wants to be baptized we think it will probably be around the 24 of April. Also Sunday we had 4 people show up to church that we weren't planning on.. so that was sweet. I have really lacked on telling you cool things that are going on. So two weeks ago a big huge African guy showed up to church. His named is Melaine and apparently he has known the church for a long time and has been an investigator for like 2 years or so.. but he just showed up and then this last week he came with his "wife" and his two kids.. it was cool.. we taught them on my birthday and they really want to get baptized badly; but the problem is that they aren't married legally.. just traditionally in Africa.. soooo that is what has been holding them up for the last two years apparently.. The first thing Melaine said is, "Soo why cant I get baptized... I want to.." and so we explained..... The problem is, is that they are waiting to get married until their family from Africa can come up to France an see the marriage.. well that is never going to happen.. we are going to try and get them down with the idea of getting married now and having a celebration later.. we'll see what they think. They are African and they love their traditions... sooooo.. but ... that is a little bit about the people we are teaching.. we did a lot of finding this week because we don't have any investigators.. because like I told you before, the Assistants used to just follow President around to all the interviews and what not.. so they were never really in their area.. which means they just taught old eternal investigators..
Also a highlight of this week was that we went up to Lille for exchanges.. It was great. Lille is such a happening place; there are soo many nice cool people.. We met some sweet people.. The coolest was this girl.. she was French and 21.. just a white girl... and we stopped her..she listened.. and we told her about the Book of Mormon and explained a little and then she told us that her friend had the Book of Mormon and that she had read from it already... she was really interested and wanted to know more so we got her info and she will be seeing the sisters... That was AWESOME.. you never find normal upper class white French people that are genuinely interested in the church.. but God is a God of miracles right?? haha I also got to teach a little family that Elder Nielsen taught; Greg and Raphaelle.. it was cool.. It made me happy.. all in all it was a good week..
So I don't know if I already told you but Paris is such a HUGE stinkin city.. the Parisian people are not very happy and very pressed for time etc.. they all seemed to be extremely stressed and not happy.. it is interesting.. It is weird.. we will be finding and talking to people on the road and I will see an African person and get all excited.. and I will run up to them and contact them and they will tell me that they don't believe in God and that they are late for work.. etc... I pretty much die a little inside.. "What you don't believe in God... but you are Black and from Africa.. you have to... at least that is how it is in Belgium.. for the most part..." haha.. well.. I will end my rambling...
Love you lots.. also mom, I didn't forget.. I feel great about you coming to pick me up... it will be a wonderful experience; hope to hear from you soon ...
Love Elder Jacob Von Simonson

Birthday Week!

Well.. well.. the months start winding down and the whole family all of a sudden starts making comments about when I will come home and how hard and scary it will be for me.... HAHAHA I laugh in the face of the unknown... It will be fine and.. I still have time to kick some butt here in the field...
Well this week was no different than last week in terms of busy-ness. We had Zone Conference..; I know we just had Zone Conferences in the BBN .. but it was a really great and powerful week. Monday we were in Angers France that is like central west France.. then On Tuesday we had a couple of new sister missionaries come in a little late.. so we spent that day orientating (24 percent sure that is not a word) them. I think the best part of the week was we finally got to go out looking for new investigators... we got owned and no one was interested but it felt soooooo good to go out and work and talk to people searching for the one person that was interested... Then on Wednesday we had Zone Conference right here in Paris.. The chapel in down town Paris is in an old hotel that was built in the 1600's it is awesome and one of the most expensive pieces of church property... It is situated right next to the George Pompidou center/building.. its famous apparently.. We had two days of Zone Conferences here in Paris and then I WENT HOME BABY.... It was so good to go back to Brussels.. I love that place.. It is literally home away from home... We had Zone Conference in Brussels yesterday and it was good to see more of the BBN missionaries..;
However I really love the missionaries from the Paris mission there are some super great missionaries.. It is also fun to make new friends and learn from so many new people...
So I thought I might tell you about a little cool experience that I thought was neat. At Zone conference President's training was on Personal Revelation. It was very great and very powerful. However it made me think twice about going into architecture and you coming to pick me up..(just because he told the story about how he was training to be a fighter pilot and that was his dream from since he was little, but how during his schooling his friend and elders quorum president told him he felt like he wasn't supposed to be there and they fasted together and President Staheli got his answer that even though that is what he really wanted to do... the Lord had other plans and then how he became an employee of the church and how he came to be President Hinckley's personal assistant..) I just kinda thought to myself hmmm am I sure this is what the Lord had in mind. But I think so..
Anyway during his training he called on a few people to share experiences about personal revelation and how it had changed their life etc... so blah blah blah... While he was teaching.. I got the feeling that I should share an experience.. and when I finally went to raise my hand the moment had passed so I ended up not raising my hand and just kinda said a little prayer and said well if you wanted me to share that..hopefully president will feel to ask if someone wants to share something more... Well just as I thought that little prayer..; President Staheli paused for a second and then looked up and said.. I feel like there is someone who who felt that they were going to be called on to share an experience... so... whoever that is just raise your hand... It was just crazy.. I was astonished.. I kinda thought to myself no way did that just happen.. so I raised my hand, shared my experience and that was that.. I don't know exactly why I was to share that.. maybe it helped someone..; or maybe it was to just reinforce and help my testimony that personal revelation is true and real... probably the latter..;
Thanks so much for all the letters.. and thanks for the package.. i already opened it. You are the best.. I loved all of it. Elder Simonson

Remember Me?

Hey there... so my name is Elder Jacob Von Simonson... I don't know if you all remember me or not... but believe it or not I was once your (son, brother, cousin, friend, grandson, or that one kid) you go ahead and choose one.... but that is me and I am still alive. HAHA
Well all is well here in Le Vésinet. The France Paris Mission is great. They are a bit different than our mission but ultimately the same. At first I was freaking out a little, just the weird ways they did things, but the more and more I think about it, I realize it really doesn't matter at ALL.. the same thing happens and all the little bureaucracy doesn't matter. So to clear up a few questions from Mom. They are on the same transfer cycle as we were so don't get your hopes up, I am still coming home the same date. When we first heard of the merger we thought that they were on a different transfer cycle but it ended up being the same. BUT.... Question.... Are plane tickets cheaper to Paris???? Think about it.. because with all these changes and all that has happened.. going home won't be the same experience that it would have been and if you want to come.. I wouldn't be completely against it... because then I could go back to Bruxelles and see everyone before I leave. Just something to think about. I know you probably love me and are thinking man he is about as indecisive as his father or Clinton.. ha :) Um so Elder Mecham and Elder McKay were the Assistants, but now it is just Elder McKay and I are the Assistants and Elder Mecham is on his last transfer and is training a sweet newb. I thought I told you in the last email that last Friday we spent all day doing transfers with President Stahlei it was crazy. I guess that brings us to this week; probably the craziest weeks ever.... SOOOO much stuff to do and stuff going on and people complaining and people with tons of dumb little questions and re-working forms and just a bunch of busy work. It has been crazy. I literally have not been out of this office since I got here on Thursday of last week. This last week was transfer week, so Monday we had stats and then we spent the rest of the day mapping out transfers and how they were going to work because we did them two different ways and the Paris France missionaries were freaking out because we do them differently and visa versa.... wow.. so we were on the phone for hours .... Then on Tuesday, The new missionaries came in so we had our little program with them..as usual it was awesome, you gotta love new missionaries. Then we had the Departing missionaries on Wednesday. There was a missionary named Elder Andrus from Post Falls Idaho... he asked where I was from and I said Pocatello and he got this look on his face and then I said, "Hey do you know the Andrus' in Pocatello?" and he said, "Ya, they are my cousins we were there all the time." He told me that the one of the youngest, Kim I think her name is.. is married.. hmm cool.. That brings us to Thursday.. that was our day to plan out for this next week and also we met with President to talk about our mission leadership council that was for the next day... ... so there went that day... believe it or not... And then Friday we had Mission Leadership council, where we cleared up a bunch of stuff... With the changes and the merger.. there have been SOOOOO many questions and everyone is just kinda feeling lost.. so that is why it took so much planning and what not.. But the meeting yesterday went well.. we are finally all on the same page. But then after that we came back to the office because we had to finish and finalize plans for this next upcoming weeks of Zone Conferences..... FREAK.. it feels like i just got done planning for Zone conferences and did them...OH WAIT I DID.. that is one of the differences.. the week after transfers they have their Zone Conferences. whereas we did Zone Conferences the week before transfers... it all works out the same except now that means I have almost 4 weeks of complete craziness. Another very different thing is that President Stahlei used to have his assistants go to all the interviews and go everywhere with him so they were never in their area and they never really go to much time to be regular proselyting missionaries. Luckily that will change this transfer.... I am just soooooooooo hungry to get back out to the field... ya I am still a pros missionary while assistant but I don't have 100 percent focus on the area with all the responsibilities etc.. so that is my little dream if you will; to go back to being just a measly senior companion and working my butt off... we'll see what happens; maybe I just need to wipe my tears away and pull up my pants and get out working now... Ya I think that is it. So if all goes well and as planned, after next week it will be home free we wont have to do anything but go out and teach people the gospel and search for some sweet miracles.. One cool thing did happen this week.. On my way into Paris on the metro/train.. I started talking to this guy and he used to go to church in Bordeaux... and he was a really cool African guy.. he wanted to come to church and doesn't live to far away from the church in Versailles.. Another fun fact; Elder Gerald Caussé, a Seventy, lives in the Versailles ward.. so how does that make you feel??? haha Well that is about all for me this week... next week will be Zone Conferences we'll go to Angers France and then stay here in Paris twice, and then up to Bruxelles.. my home... ahhhhhh Belgium here I come...
Sorry I haven't had a pday to go into Paris yet so I don't have cool pictures to send to you; I have a dumb little picture of the area around the mission home but that is really about it.. lame I know. Well love ya lots..
-Elder Jacob Von Simonson

Hello From Versailles

Well hello .. I don't think I am in Belgium anymore.... sad huh. This week has been a crazy one. Sunday was great, Kadio came to church and after we taught him about the law of Chastity, he was very accepting and understanding and he said that he would have to make a choice. It will be interesting and exciting to see what happens with him.. He is awesome. Well then that brings us to Monday... Monday was a crazy day to prepare for the switch and transfers and what not... Tuesday we had Zone Conference in Antwerpen so that was cool! I got to say goodbye to some of the Dutch missionaries. Then that brings us to Wed; in Lille, President and Sister Staheli and the Assistants of the Paris Mission came up. I think that was the day that started freaking me out. It all of a sudden became very real that we were soon not going to be our mission anymore. So they interviewed all the missionaries while we did trainings and what not... then on Thursday we were in Brussels.. The day went good, but I was also dreading the day a little bit because that meant that this change had to happen and that I had to leave my home in Brussels.
I had all my stuff packed and ready to go right after we finished in Brussels and that is what we did. It took us about 3 hours to drive down to Paris and so I got to know President and Sister Staheli and the Assitants Elder Mecham and Elder Mckay. They are all sooooo great: I really like all of them and surprisingly I really just haven't felt out of place or weird yet so that is really good. Elder Mecham is sooo much like Dustin Hubbard it blows my mind. He acts like him, looks like him, and ya it is weird. Also just a little cool thing; Elder Mecham's parents just got called as Mission President in Mongolia.
So the change is made.... I will be honest and say that I am a little sad. Things were finally going SUPER great with President Brubaker.. Everything was awesome. Everyone was finally on the same page and we were baptizing up a storm on the French side. President Staheli is a lot different than President Brubaker, not in a bad or good way, just different...and ya... but it will be interesting... I am excited, but I really hope that the mindset won't change for the missionaries in Belgium and the north of France, because that is the most amazing part of our mission (the BBN), was that everyone had the mindset that the work would go good and that they could baptize anywhere. Here, even in Paris, the mindset is a lot different. I guess you could just say that I am like a parent seeing a kid that is succeeding and then my kid that is doing super well starts hangin out with kids that aren't succeeding as much... But I know that this change was obviously inspired and it will be a good thing.. I hope that it will have the opposite effect, and all the fromer BBN missionaries will help explode the work in France...
So despite the differences, it is good to be here. I am living in le Vesinet, it is supposedly a rich suburb of Paris.. It is in Versailles.. not Paris. Anyway things are well.. It will be cool to serve in France.. I will miss Bruxelles and Belgium.
So that also sounds cool about the Apartment that you found... sounds like it is perfect.. thanks for getting all that in order. I also bought a card last week too.. sorry... I am a little preoccupied, so that is why this letter is all over the place. We did transfers yesterday, ALL DAY.... it was hard. But I will stay here as Assistant for one transfer or maybe more.. we will see.. anyway the address for the Mission Office is: 23 Rue du Onze Novembre 78110 Le Vesinet France

Love Elder Simonson

Paris...this week!

Hey mom, and Fam. Well this is my new email account... jacob.simonson@myldsmail.net...They updated myldsmail... so.. it is better now...

I still got your emails... It transferred everything... and I can still get on the old one for a little while so... but now just write to this new one...

Well... I am feeling pretty weird.. I feel like I am in a limbo state... I'm still here in Brussels and I know that I will be going to Paris this coming Thursday. We went and picked up the new Dutch Assistant this week, Elder Christensen's new companion. His name is Elder Wells.. He is a great guy.

It was cool, this week we have been doing a lot of exchanges because our companionship is closing.. So we have just been working in other people's areas...that way the work we do is more effective. On Monday we had a lot of planning and prep for Zone conference and the switch. Then on Tuesday we went up to the Netherlands! My last time in that beautiful country.. We went and did an exchange with the Zone leaders in Apeldoorn.. I got to try out my Dutch speaking skills... I understood a little, enough to answer back in English... how long I had been in Europe and what not.. It was cool.. It was a great day. We went to this beautiful city called Deventer, just outside of Apeldoorn. We slept there and then we brought Elder Wells back with us (he was in Apeldoorn) and we had a mini transfer in Roosendaal with a few missionaries.. Then the rest of Wednesday we finalized our plans for Zone Conference with our new comp Elder Wells... and that ate up the rest of Wed.

Thursday, Elder Wells and Christensen went to St. Niklaas in Belgium to work with the Zone Leaders and I stayed in Brussels and did an exchange with Elder Benito.. We had a big exchange with the Brussels Zone. It was an awesome day... It was full of miracles.. we stopped by this inactive member of Brussels 2 Ward, who's wife is not a member and they were home... so we got to meet his wife, and by coincedence, her father had just recently died and it was the day that he was burried when we came over...so they were a little sad and somber.. but we taught her about the Plan of Salvation and it was very powerful...

Yesterday we did a lot of stopping by our investigators and telling them that we are leaving and that new missionaries will be coming to teach them...

It will be sad to leave Kadio.. he is still doing great.. it is just taking him time to prepare to be baptized.. I can almost guarentee that he will be baptized... he shows up to church every Sunday and he has a testimony.. Now he just needs to get married or move out so that he can be baptized..

I went to see the Family Johnson one last time last night... It was very special. They were all sad.. but they are doing so amazing that I am not scared to leave them... Mercy has a calling in the Primary.. ans she loves it and she has awesome visiting teachers that visit her... Bro Johnson will be getting a calling.. but he already has home teachers who visit him.. and he is a home teacher and he is doing his visits on Sunday... They are very well integrated.. Elisa is in with all the youth and will be going on a youth trip with them... so I am very thankful for an awesome Ward that is taking such good care of them...

Now I am just ready to go down to Paris and find a new Family Johnson... I am ready to work... and in French especially. I miss teaching and doing missionary work in French... It is better, I promise... that and it is easier to find people who speak French... English is a lot less common... hmmm weird huh?? :)

Well, I will stay here in Brussels until Thursday... We have Zone Conferences on Tuesday (Dutch side) then on Wed. in Lille, France and Pres. and Sis. Staheli and their Assistants will be there for Wed and Thurs and then I will go back down to Paris with them... Weird... I don't know what I will be doing exactly. I don't know if I will stay Assistant or if I will just help Pres. Staheli with transfers and then head out to a new city... I would love that! Anyway.. that is about it..

I love you..

Elder Simonson

Hmmm...so get this....

Well this week has been great... one of the weirdest, but good. I will now narrate my week as it has unrolled. Monday morning everything was good.  We had a great meeting with President and things are going well in the mission.... ha... more on that later... so then afterward we went about our business like normal and we found some cool new people, a lot of Ghanians so that was cool. Also on Monday we taught Godwin. (He also came to church last Sunday so that was cool) Our lesson went well with him.. he really understands, but he is just not ready to join the church... I don't know why... We talked to him about the Book of Mormon and what it meant if it was true and and he said, "I know it is true but..." Then we invited him to be baptized once he knew it was true.. and he was a little reluctant... and said, "I don't know.. I like the church but I don't really want to be baptized.." which was ok... so that was that...
Tuesday... nice little day we had a great District Meeting and then we went out to find so more people... and we had a little member appointment with the sweetest little family from America.  Their names are the Whites.. They are sooooo much like Trish and Dan... and they have two little boys and a little girl... it is cool because both the little boys speak French perfectly and still speak perfect American English... Anyway the Whites were really cool. They lived in Hillsboro for a long time, so I got really excited about that and told them that my sister had lived in Forest Grove and I had been there a few times and LOVED it.
Wednesday... was the day my whole entire universe got flipped upside down.... haha... aren't you just dying of suspense.... I will now have a philosophical pause for everyone to take a guess of what is happening.... HINT... it is HUGE... and it affects the WHOLE mission.............................................drum roll please .............bebebebebebebebebbhpbhpbhpbhpbph....
Well.. ... let's review ironic things from Mom's letter.... 'I just can't believe the wonderful miracles that you all have in the Belgium Mission! You are truly blessed...so many golden people just out there waiting, and dreaming, and finding Christ...it is truly amazing...I just think how very blessed you are to be able to serve there. I really believe it is one of the greatest Missions in the world! You are so lucky! I know that there is a purpose for you being there...I know that you are as special as the Mission you serve in, and I know that is where the Lord wants you to be'... Well good comments mom... haha.. now comes the news... you remember the Belgium Brussels Netherlands Mission?  Well... remember was the key word.... I am no longer in the Belgium Brussels/Netherlands Mission.... in fact that Mission no longer exists. Have you ever heard of Paris? Well... let's just say that I am now in the Paris France Mission... didn't see that one coming did ya?? HAHA and I am not even joking you, I bet you checked the date on your watch to make sure that it wasn't April 1st...
That is the Huge news... On Wednesday President Brubaker called us (in the morning) and said, "Hey, we need to have an emergency meeting this morning."  And I said,  "Ok.. I don't think I will be able to make it because I will be on exchange with Elder Cabrera going to France to my legality appoinment... but Elder Christensen can be there.." then President said,  "Well can you change the appoinment?" and I said.. "No, I have been illegal since November... and I had an appoinment in Dec. which I had to cancel because of Zone Conf. and I haven't been able to fix an appointment until Feb... so I can't miss this one."  And President tells me, "Ok, it's fine.. go get legal in France because you are going to need it, because you are going to Paris."  I started thinking in my mind.. what? why for... hmm that is weird... and then he told me that the night before he had received a phone call from the Area Presidency telling him that the Mission boundaries would be changing and would be effective March 1st... and that all the French speaking missionaries would now be part of the Paris France mission... and the Dutch speaking missionaries would be a new Mission... I don't know if you noticed but... this is a HUGE ordeal and TONS of things to change and do and we have about 2 weeks... haha should be interesting.
Logistics.... Well I am not exactly sure what is happening with me, seeing as how I have a Dutch companion.... President said I will likely be going down to Paris to help my new Mission President, Pres. Staheli (pronounced Stailey) get to know all the former members of the BBN mission... but we will see... might happen, might not... Pres. Staheli will have to begin thinking about transfers really soon, like this next week, and he has no idea about any of our areas in our Mission or any of our missionaries sooooo.. There is a possibility that I might be going down to Paris before March 1st.. but we will see... This is going to be a difficult change for lots... but I am stinking excited.... there are so many areas and opportunities that await me...
I am not going to lie, I was pretty sure that I was done being Assistant and that I would be moved to my last city where I could be a little more calm and just work and not worry about responsibilities... but then the Lord had other plans....... Oh.. man... I have been freaking out since Wednesday, because I have no idea what is going to happen or what it is going to be like.. and I know that no matter what, I will be out of Bruxelles and going somewhere else... and there is a Whole other Mission to get to know and to get used to.. it is going to be crazy...
President Brubaker will be the Pres. of the new Netherlands Mission so... ya.  Anyway.. that is the big NEWS....
Thanks for your letter this week, it was nice to hear from someone.... and yes this is a big guilt trip for everyone to write me... I hate you all... haha :) well, really I love you and I will speak at you later...
Elder Simonson

Great Week!

Hey there Family and friends...... Well this week has been one of the greatest weeks of my mission. I have loved this week. Things have seemed to finally slow down a little... after having the Mission Leadership Conference we haven't had to prepare for anything.. SO that meant a sweet open week to go out and work sharing the gospel... I really miss having all day everyday to be out teaching and finding and teaching...
We have been a little down lately because not much has been going on and things have been stressful and slow... So last week while we were planning, we decided... "Alright, some things need to change." So we decided that we needed to find a bunch of new people... We decided that we would no longer take our car around, but take metros and the tram and buses, because then we have all day to talk to people... So that is what we did... and it has been great.. the first day on Monday we were waiting for like 2 hours to get Elder Christensen a metro pass and we talked to a bunch of people. But it was really cool because we were just sitting their talking.. and this girl that had been in the line about half an hour before came walking back up to us and said... "Hey you speak English right?" and then she said... "Well, I was sitting there looking at you and I thought hmm they look like Mormons.. ya know, I don't really know what Mormons believe..." and she said, "...so I really want to sit down and talk to you more about your church and what you believe.. I don't know if you do that or what.. or if you have time during the week, but I really want to know." So we got her number and address and what not, but she was in the other Ward's area so we told her that some Sisters would call her.. so we will see where that goes. She was awesome, she was from England, 24 years old, and is a head person over this big Non-denominational Christian Organization of West Europe.. and they believe, and try to follow, as closely as the Bible explains.. soooo that should be sweet.. that was cool experience number one.
Then on Monday night we got a referral from a convert named Rachel. She is super solid and is from Burkina Faso. She talks to people about the church all the time. So she gave us a referral of a Ghanian man named Godwin ... We saw him on Thursday and he has three best friends from Ghana, all served missions and are very solid in the church. He told us.. "I know Latter-Day Saints very well.. I went to Latter-Day Saint church all the time in Ghana." He is really cool and will be coming to church ...
Another cool thing was that we really want to help Kadio to be baptized, but he never has time to see us and then he will come to church and love it. So he comes to church, but can never meet with us so that we can teach him. So this week we decided that we would just pray really hard for him and for the chance to see him during the week so we could set up some plans on how to prepare him for baptism.. Well.... let's just say prayers work. On Wednesday we were in Liege to attend some interviews and Kadio texts us and says... and I quote "Hi can we meet 2moro from 11 to 11:30 to talk on baptism".... how sweet is that... unfortunately he had something come up and asked if we could move it to Sunday... so this Sunday we will see what he has to say... He is such a great guy..
Also last week or so we went to just stop by an American family just to say Hi and to get to know them better and ask them about some recent converts that they helped teach that are now inactive and.. long story short, they told us about their neighbor and how the missionaries used to teach him.. so we went over their and found a beautiful little family from Kenya.. they have two little girls and ya... his name is Roy and he is a super intellegent and believing guy. We taught him last night about the Book of Mormon and he had his doubts and then he told us all about how the Bible came to be. He is really smart and knows all his stuff.. but what was great was that he was humble enough to say, "Well, I can't say this isn't the word of God if I have never read it." And he said he was going to read it all and pray about it and then he will be able to say yes or no.. we will see in 2 weeks.. we are meeting with him again and we will talk about his findings..
This week has been really cool.. We did some exchanges. We went on an exchange with Elder Spicer and Elder Canonica... Elder Spicer is a stud, he is doing very well and I love him.. They stayed the night at our apartment and Elder Spicer and I talked forever about Pocatello and what not and then I said, "Man, I would have never guessed that I would be in Belgium laying in bed talking to Daniel Spicer!" It was funny..
Anyway that has been my week. It has been really great and it only continues.. so... Working makes me happy... Anyway I still love you, even though I didn't get any mail... :) : ) haha.. but I think that you got my camera card... As soon as you send me back the one, I have another one almost ready... and today we are going sight seeing in BRUSSELS.. we are going to see like 4 sweet Cathedrals and Castles and cool stuff.. so lots of pictures will follow.. Love you, talk to you later..
Elder Simonson