When your late to church.... but it brings miracles :) Week 57

Bonjour à tous!

I hope you have had a good week! It has been so good here, i just love Toulouse so much! The members are so incredible and love to work with us. We were able to see a lot of members this week and share a pensée with them that our whole mission is doing. It's where we talk about missionary work (1 Nephi 8:12 folks the reason we share the gospel:) ) and then invite them to share something with a friend who needs it on Facebook (because what a good way to share the gospel) The members love it and they are learning another way they can be even better missionnaires:)

We had two exchanges this week with Montpellier and Perpignan. Exchanges are so fun and I love seeing our sœurs but they can be a little stressful. The way exchanges work in our mission is that the equipe of sœurs comes into our sector, so we have two days to plan and since we had two in a week- it was a little crazy but we got so much done which was awesome! We also have incredible sœurs too:)

We were able to have a really good lesson with one of our Ami's names Olivia. She has two little kids and has known the missionnaires for a few months but is just really busy. Now because it's vacance she has more time to see us, so we were able to see her with one of the incredible JAs from our ward. We taught the whole retab, and she had lots of good questions which us and Lydie (JA member) were able to answer. It was interesting because as we were teaching the lesson you could see her feeling the spirit, and she is very set in her own ways and you could see that she didn't necessarily want to believe it was true, however the spirit worked on her heart, and we watched it soften throughout the time we were there and she agreed to read the Book of Mormon and sincerely pray and ask if our message is true!

Yesterday we had some incredible miracles too, Soeur tupou'ata had the thought to contact an old ami and invite him to church, and he said he would come we just had to go and meet him at Jeanne d'arc (bus stop.) Ha it was good he wanted to go there because we ended up seeing so many people! People contacted us who needed help getting around, and then some students from BYU saw us and we were able to help them get to church. We then ran into some recent converts and amis from Nigeria who were with their friends and they all came to church with us, and our ami who also moved here from Nigeria came as well! The bus was late, so sadly we were a little late to church but we had so many people there! And our new ami, named Alex loved church. He said that everyone was so friendly to him, and though he hasn't been taught much yet he wants to get baptized! Such a miracle!

Thanks for your love support and prayers, it helps more than you know:)

Love you all so much!!

Soeur Soffe

Exchange with Sœur Seiley

Soirée with one of my favorite families! 

Oldest member in our ward- she is SOO cute!

Samedi foot 

La fête chez- Rodrigue 

Toulouse is so pretty

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Back to Lyon...✈️ and Facebook Week 56

Bonjour a tous!

I hope you all had a wonderful week!!

So last Monday night we flew out to Lyon for MLC on Tuesday. It was a lot of fun to see everyone again, yay for seeing friends:) at MLC we started talking about the light of Christ's gospel and how we are the lantern holders who get to shine this light to the people in France. The hard thing is how do we shine this light to everyone, everyone needs this gospel but it's too big for just us missionnaires and members to do. Well now all missions who have iPads are going to be getting Facebook... what!? Ha I think when president announced that we all just about fell out of our chairs. So confession time Soeur Soffe has never had a Facebook and starting in august we will begin to do online proselyting. Ha I'm scared because I have no idea how to use social media, but I know by working with our members this is going to allow us to find so many more people who are prepared.

We got backend got back to work:) we had a really cool rdv with an ami who has been one of those forever amis. She is super cute and from Australia and she has a really strong testimony of the BOM, however she has a lot of soucis that have kept her from living the gospel. But as we talked and testified to her, she choose a date as a goal for her to be baptized, ha for her it is just a goal but it's a sign she could really progress. So keep Maria in your prayers:)

This week, something that has really stood out to me is our testimonies.This morning as we were walking to get courses a TJ (jehovahs witness- they are so many here) stopped us and tried to Bible bash a little. Well we didn't Bible bash, but we were able to answer his questions with courtise. We have a blessing that elder christofferson gave to our mission over a year ago that says when we teach with a convincing power people will not be able to deny our words- they won't believe it but they won't be able to deny it. I felt that power as we talked to this man, specifically as we testified. Our testimonies are something no-one can take away from us and there is power each time a testimony is born.

I know this church is true and I know it with all that I am, the only way to true happiness is through our savior Jesus Christ. He has given us the way and the light and all we have to do is follow him!

Je vous aime

Soeur Soffe

Also shout out to my brother who is leaving to the MTC this week! Taylor I'm so excited for you!!

Hello Toulouse

MLC 

District meeting

Went to an airplane museum today

La ville en rose Week 55

Bonjour a tous!

I hope you all have had a great week, first weeks always fly by in a new ville and yeah can be a little intimidating however can I just say how much I love Toulouse! I'm oh so blessed to be here! To explain the title that is a name for Toulouse because a lot of the buildings are made out of this light red brick- It's so pretty!

We have been doing a lot this week, the beginning of the week we were passing by a lot of people and checking addresses- which is actually super helpful for me to try to figure my way around. Toulouse isn't as big as Lyon mais quand même it's still big:) We do a lot of service in Toulouse also, which I love because that's how people feel our love and know they can trust us- members and amis!

We were able to meet some really cute less active, the family bonbon who is working toward getting sealed in the temple and we also met Soeur berengere, who is super funny and cute and she took us out for ice cream!! (What was funny was the day before she tombez-vous'd us and we randomly met a couple from Utah on vacation who gave us money to go get ice cream- so yeah tender mercies this week in ice cream:) and luckily because whew it is hot!!:) )

On Friday we saw one of our amis, marie- josette who is so cute and sweet. It's sad because she has been having a hard time with her friends, but we were able to teach about forgiveness and Christ's love and we were able or refix her baptismal date:)

Okay onto Sunday, our ward is literally huge!! The biggest ward I've seen yet, and I love them so much. Everyone was so welcome and would come and say hi and ask my name (as a missionary when ward members know your last name, it's so sparky!) and what I love is that they are so diverse but like a huge family. So our évêque(bishop) is really good, but man he is intense and a little nuts (but in a good way and really funny) But before church he told me that my testimony in front of the ward had to be 4 min long and he was expecting the audience in tears because the spirit was so strong... ha pressure... but after I got the thumbs up and he told me it was perfect, whew😅

Something I've been thinking about a lot this past few weeks has been weaknesses. Because let me tell you I am someone who is no where close to perfect (and personne except our savior is) Sometimes I think we can get caught up though in the imperfections. I have already seen so much on my mission that the lord can change our weaknesses into strengths (see ether 12:27) But I have felt that I just have too many, well the other day as I was praying I had this thought come into my head "j'accepte mes faiblesses, mais je ne suis pas contente de les rester avec" (i accept my weakness, but I am not happy to stay with them) We all have imperfections, and we have to understand that- however we also have to understand that our Heavenly Father loves us with our weaknesses because it's through them that we improve and become better. I have seen it on my mission so much, and if you need an example look to me- it's only because of him that I am able to be here and help others the way I have.

I am so thankful for my savior and for his Atonement that allows me to change, and I am thankful for my weaknesses because they are how I will grow:)

Je vous aime beaucoup!! Et merci pour tout:)

Soeur Soffe

Service helping a family move

Soeur Berengere and ice cream 

So yeah... hands down best part of our apartment a hammock!!! And a huge balcony with a gorgeous view!! See how pretty Toulouse is? 

Guess where Soeur Soffe is..... Week 54

Bonjour à tous!

So to start off we got our transfer calls this Friday, and I am now in Toulouse with Sœur Tupou'ata!! She is from California and she used to be in my zone in Lyon so I know her a little. She is so awesome and I already love Toulouse and have heard so many good things and I'm finally in the south:) it was really hard to leave everyone in Lyon yesterday oh la la, that's what I don't like about being a missionary is saying goodbye. And ohh it was sad saying goodbye to my amis et members who I love so much, and of course my amazing comp who I love! But luckily I'll be back soon for MLC;)

Well we had a crazy last week, Monday was one of my favorite p-days! It was president's p-day and we had a barbecue to celebrate the Fourth of July and then some of the Ecully missionnaires came running out with water ballons- Lyon grabbed their water guns and all out war happened! Ha everyone was dripping wet and it was so fun!! Work hard play hard, one of the secrets of missionary work;)

Mardi et mercredi i actually went with some other missionaries all the way to Béziers for our legality- yay! I'm legal in France:)

Then Thursday Jo actually came to Lyon!! Ohh my goodness it was so so good to see her again! We were able to go to lunch, and I really can't explain how much I love her (she was my recent convert in Annemasse) she is doing so well, and even though her situation is really hard (ask me her story one day- she is my example) but she still has so much faith and she says that no matter what happens she knows that it's god plan and he knows best. She is even helping the sisters in Annemasse teach an ami right now who is Chinese, and she told me she is trying to teach what I taught her because this gospel brings her so much happiness that she has to share it!! That is the reason I do what I do!!

The weekend we were visiting lots of amis and saying goodbye, ahh I love them so much and since I don't have lots of time I'll attaché some pics. But really guys we have a part of our missionary purpose in our mission we say every morning that says "love is the key" and I just testify to how true that is!! My mission scripture is 2 Nephi 31:20 (look it up its worth it) because gods love is why we are all here, love is how this work progresses, and love is the ONLY way we can bring people to their savior!

Love you all!

Je vous aime tous!!

Soeur Soffe

Presidents p-day, aka extreme water fight 

Jo!!!!!! 

Saying bye to my favorite Nigerians 

Our paroisse (ward)

I love Cheng cheng so much 

Cuties

Sœur Tupou'ata