Live Rounds (Week#4 Transfer #10)

Hey everyone! Week 4 was awesome, my favorite part was conference and interviews in Toulouse! We had President and Sister Brown share the most powerful and inspiring message I've seen in a conference so far. We as a mission are becoming more prepared and obedient and who we need to be to see great miracles. This is phenomenal and I'm so happy to be a part in the work here, and I know I'll give my best.

On the train to Marqueze

President Brown also told us we're loading live rounds against Satan and going on the offensive, haha I love President Brown, we're all going to work hard to beat the opposition against us through our obedience and our fearlessness to do the lords will and help others.  I know this end of this year will be cool, we are aiming to baptize 250 people who are prepared, this is a goal many of us participated in making and we know we can do it with the Lord's help. He is there with us. I'm excited for what happens :)

Pretty French farm

The rest of the week went well, we haven't been able to see very many people and are on the lookout for new Amis as usual, and we have found a lot of people we will see this week.  My favorite part was yesterday when we were porting, we passed this South African family and they weren't home, and we didn't know what to do.  So we said a prayer (something Elder Nelson had taught me to do is to pray when I don't know what to do and ask God, it has worked every time and we've been more effective because of it) and then we said another when still unsure. I thought we should knock on the door one more time and so I did, and the wife was there!  Had a great conversation with her and we are excited to come back and see them later, it's really neat how prayer can help us out so much in times of trouble or indecision.  I
learned this week the importance of prayer in all things , and so if you need to really just talk to you Heavenly Father and learn more from the endless amount of knowledge he has for us, or need help don't be afraid to stop and say a prayer. When in doubt, pray. It's worked for me and is really cool.

True French farmers...

Fake French farmers...

All we visited a cool old farm place last P-day, and this P-day I got new shoes!  My current ones have some considerably sized holes and may be a bit warped... So I got some new ones to wreck until the mission is done :) then I'll buy some nice ones to bring home haha!

Tired old shoes...

Happy new shoes

Love you guys and have a good week!!!

Love,
Elder Laney

1st Trimester (Week #3 Transfer #10)

Hey everyone! This summer has been the mildest i have ever seen in my entire life, I thought that last summer was how it normally is in the south of France but it looks like it's usually a mix of a ton of rain, a ton of sunshine and a few hot days. July was basically just rain haha, but we've seen some really nice weather recently and a few hot days this week.  


This week went well thought, had an exchange with Elder Robards and Elder Berget from Agen, as well as Elder Gaspar and Elder Brown from Tarbes.  It's super funny to be doing exchanges with the Elder Robards haha, still doing work together here on the Mont.  We had our district meeting which went well, no baptismal interview this time, but it went really well.  Got to see Felix this week and give his mom a blessing which was really cool, she really appreciated it and was happy to see us, I'm just glad we were able to go. We made a few new Amis this week, one who's name is Kael who was super cool, haha I'm not sure which Christian religion he belongs too, he kind of told us 3 but anyways he's super awesome and wants to learn more.  Besides him we met a lot of other really really cool people this week and I can see the work here for their help progressing a lot in the near future. 

Elder Nelson and Elder Laney

Highlight of my week besides giving Felix's mom that blessing was talking to this man from England who lives in a mobile home and is obsessed with physics.  I love physics so that was an awesome conversation.  Also, turns out he has a Book of Mormon!  He found it in a dump one day and likes the miracles in the stories, he believes science and religion should go together.  I hope we get to run into him some more, he's super cool. 

Well anyway, the weeks are passing fast!  Love you all and have a great week, Elder Nelson and I are doing well here and he's making a ton of progress as always. Thought for the week, I learned this week from reading the scriptures that sometimes if we really want a response and help from God, and feel we should, we just need to pray until we get it :)  I've had some really good experiences with prayer and know Heavenly Father listens to us and helps us out if we take enough time to really truly listen to Him.  So try a prayer this week that will be longer than usual, just enough to have a really special experience.   Have a good week!!

Amicalement,
Elder Laney

Another Good week (Week #2 Transfer #10)

Hey Everyone!

This week was a fun one, went by pretty fast.  We got to do service for Jean-Louis twice at the beginning of the week which was fun, he needed help with putting away wood and then distributing some papers so we got to spend some time with him.  It's so cool to get to know members and how they are doing, the members here are so cool.  And each time we go, Dominique bakes us fresh home-made croissants which are the best things in the world, so that's always a bonus.  Elder Strong told me I'd love seeing them! 

Found a fancy car in Toulouse!

We got to go to zone training which was enlightening and inspiring.  I am grateful for a truly inspired mission president.  I know our mission will improve again and again as we all work hard.  Here in Mont-de-Marsan we have been working hard, we had an exchange and got to see a member (Claude) as well as an ami who sadly we had to drop.  I know we'll find those who are prepared soon. 

Toulouse Cathedral

We saw some cool miracles this week.  I got to go on an exchange with Elder Blackham here.  So in zone training we were invited to do this activity in Preach My Gospel where we choose a time of the day to teach someone a short lesson we practice in companion study.  So we did that, and we had about 20 minutes to do a little bit of finding.  So we are getting to the bus stop with our 20 minutes, and we see a man sitting on a bench and we go talk to him, teach him the Book of Mormon, and he was super happy and enjoyed it and took a copy, even if he isn't living in town he said he'd contact the missionaries up where he's going.  So that was super cool!  Me and Elder Thorley my zone leader did the same thing and it was so cool to see how we were able to teach 2 lessons in a specific place, one of which started because a man stopped us and wanted to know more about who we were.  So I know the Lord really does inspire our leaders to help us out, and us in the work!  I'm excited for more cool experiences like that.  So make some plans of something that you will do to help someone at a specific time today!  You may just have a miracle :)

Have a great week as always!

Love,
Elder Laney

Mont de Marsan District

Double Digits (Week #1 Transfer #10!!)

I'm in the double digits now! I'm in transfer #10 and man its flyin' by.  This week was actually a pretty slow one at first but BAM! now it's Monday.  Goes quick!

Tartas, France

We had a pretty slow first few days and then the rest of our week was pretty awesome.  We got to do some service for Jean-Pierre Bernier our member and it was pretty fun, had a great meal and such a spiritual discussion with him and Soeur Bernier after watching the French version of the "Strength Beyond My Own" video about temples, after we got to go see Anris and Arsene his brother (who we actually met on the street 2 days before we met Anris), came and joined us for the lesson on the Restoration.  The Spirit was really strong and they both accepted to read the Book of Mormon.  Sadly they are both leaving for Gabon until November, so if I'm still here I hope I'll get to see them again!  I'm sure God will take care of them though,  outstanding guys.

La Midouze River in Tartas

Friday was a bit of contacting, and in 2 short hours we taught 2 lessons on the street, gave out a Book of Mormon and found a member from Spain who's been living here recently!!  So cool, and the next day we were in a little town called Tartas out in the countryside, and we ended that day with a super spiritual rendez-vous with this man on the street, we had about 4 different people try to interrupt our conversation either to make fun of the missionaries or to talk to the man we were talking to, but he just told them that he'd talk to them later, being really interested in our story.  We finished and it was really cool to see how God will help us with straight opposition like that, and he accepted a Book of Mormon and I'm praying he reads it.  Then yesterday we taught another man who was really touched and accepted a Book of Mormon too.  I was really touched by the power of the spirit and love I felt for others this week, and the cool things we were able to see and experience and be a part of in helping others come unto Christ.  It was a fun week, and I know how when we work hard we will see miracles and we'll be so happy.  My thought at the end of this week is on the Book of Mormon.  I've seen how this  book has changed others lives, (like Jean-Luc in Manosque and others I've met on the mission) as well as how it has influenced my own.  I know if we really ask God with a sincere heart if it is true He will tell us. I wish any of you who have not yet had this witness or testimony, or who have found theirs to grow dim, to refresh yourself and to find the truth by reading the Book of Mormon and asking God if it is true, He answers us, and He can when we are sincere and really truly desire it for the right reason.  Love you all and have a great week! Let me know how you guys are all doing!

Love,
Elder Laney


Tartas!! I think it's funny how missionaries who served here always write this town's name with exclamation marks.  I think it's because it's like.. Spartas!  Pretty town :)

KILLER BEES!!!  Look at the size of these winged menaces!

Staying! (Week #6 Transfer #9)

Hey everyone! Got transfer calls this last Friday and Elder Nelson and I will be staying together!  I'm super pumped! He's such a cool missionary and person and is progressing so so so fast.  I'm super impressed; he'll be training me pretty soon (actually I think he already is haha.) This next transfer will be super fun.  And now I'm in transfer #10!!!!  Man things go by fast, it's been well over a year now, and I'm now 21 and I feel a lot of.. age?  Idk, it's interesting.
 

Just a couple of good looking guys working hard in France...

This week we had a good time just working hard, it was a little long but we managed to see some new amis and make some new amis, including Ingrid who is super awesome, and Anris who is super cool as well.  Ingrid is of Italian descent I think, but totally French and super awesome and friendly, wants to learn more and though she hasn't been able to get to church yet she still wants to go.  Anris is from Gabon and getting a PhD in chemical engineering, so cool and humble and such a cool guy. 

Tiny little birthday cake...

Started the week off seeing a member who is from the north who is sick in town and giving her a blessing. We later got to see our members Jean-Louis and Dominique with Frere Krokovski and Frere Bernier and it was super fun, had a great lunch after service and then a great lesson after with Jean-Louis and Ingrid. Then we got to visit the Krokovski's who are from Ukraine, and they are literally the best ever, they just keep giving us food while we are there until we are walking home with an armload of groceries. Their kids are adorable! We then got to go out to this town called Aire-sur-L'Adour which was fun, we ate at a nice French cafe and I got a really good pizza and pastry :) Overall a fulfilling and a fun week, I feel happy about it. 

Birthday Pizza!

Reflecting on the time that has come and gone, and being older now, and realizing I have less than a year left!  I wanted to share a thought our mission president shared with us this week:    

              " A wise and funny man once told me that life is like a roll of toilet paper-- the closer you get to the end, the faster it goes! Surely, the same is true for a mission...I encourage each of you to practice those time management principles and make the most of each day of your mission."

Haha I really like that analogy, so true. I know I'm going to review that, and I invite you guys to too!  It's important to manage our time and it goes by fast!  So have a good week and spend you time doing what matters most :)  And have fun while you're at it and treat yourself to something nice because we all need that pastry during the week!  Love you all and have an awesome week!
 
Elder Laney

Just desserts at the end of a hard week!

 

Small and simple things (Week #5 Transfer #9)

Hey everyone!

This week was a blast. There was a huge party in Mont de Marsan with 300,000 people and fireworks and bullfights and theme park rides and ... We left Mont de Marsan the whole week to purposefully miss it!  Haha, apparently according to members there's a little too much... certain types of drinks,  so we skipped town to be a little safer and more productive. Spent the whole week in Pau with the elders there, had a really fun time!  Favorite parts include visiting the Leungs who are from Cambodia, so funny, Frere Leung sang us a song in Cambodian on the way home, and they fed us such good food!  Oh man. Also got to see Pierre's baptism!  I'm really happy for him and the Pau elders, it was a really cool experience.

Finding Day in Toulouse with Elder McKenzie

Another fun part of the week was yesterday my birthday! I'm now 21!  Man I feel old haha, I'm one of the older missionaries in the mission now, when I was in Pau I was with two 18 year olds and a new 19 year old haha, everyone is such a little young chap.  Me and Elder Nelson celebrated with some Canadian cookies and some nutty bars, it was the perfect birthday treat, and we'll go buy a cake this week with the cake money I received! (thanks mom!!!)

Birthday cookies...from Canada...

So this next week is transfers so if I get to emails a bit late or the next day it just means someone got transfered!  Lol.  I hope we stay together, it's been an awesome transfer training Elder Nelson, he's picking up super fast and just killing it at the missionary work, he's not afraid of anything.

Locals headed to the Madeleine Festival in Mont de Marsan

Anyway, I liked the lesson I've learned on my mission and at church on Sunday about small and simple things. 1 Nephi 16:29 in the Book of Mormon says that by small things the Lord brings great things to pass.  I have seen that and in the small example of my daily sincere prayer and scripture reading, as well as going to church, the little things like that I've seen my testimony grow so much and a power come to choose the right.  I know how awesome the little efforts we do as missionaries can turn out and as a person everyday, I wish you all to keep that thought in your thoughts as you do little things each day that count for you and for others :)

Elder Laney

I can GUARANTEE that my local McDonald's beats your local McDonald's hands down!!  #McAroons

Prier (Week #4 Transfer #9)

Hey everyone,

First I want to acknowledge and wish courage to all those affected by the events in Nice this past week. Our prayers go out to you and I ask everyone to keep these people kept in their thoughts and prayers. It's horrible to see the things that keep happening nearby, but I know the French are stronger than such tragedy, and we are not disheartened. I know it will all be well.

This week went really well. It was really cool, since Tuesday, every day this week we found someone with real potential who wants to see us again and learn more about the gospel. It was so cool, and we met them in a variety of ways in finding them, be it meeting them in the street, calling an old ami (who just showed up for church for the first time on Sunday! So cool!) or porting into them, Heavenly Father really lead us and put people in our path this week. That was so cool and I know it will lead to baptisms and the advancement of the Lord's work. We taught 12 lessons this week, which was a record for me.  One of those was on the street where we shared our testimony with this lady, Catia, who is so cool and we answered a lot of questions for her.  At the end I felt like I should ask her if she believed what we had taught her, she's pretty religious in her own faith, but I did and she said yes, that she felt what we said was true. She accepted the Book of Mormon we gave her and she gave us her #s so we can see her later.  Just one of the many cool miracles we had this week!!  So awesome, what a cool experience.

Happy Birthday Elder Laney!

You know last week felt like 2 weeks of work put into one, it was so successful, and good thing too since we'll be gone all the next week!  Off to Toulouse at the moment, and we'll be doing a zone finding day tomorrow and then we're off to Pau for the rest of the week due to the giant party going on in Mont-de-Marsan this week. Not the best circumstances for missionary work, and members have been helping
missionaries to avoid this for the last few years since it's not a very safe situation for misisonary work (these French people party pretty hard haha)!

Service activity 

Anyways I'm excited for another week and it'll be a fun one!!  Well then get in contact with all those we will see in a week and it will be cool to see so much progress and teach so many cool and prepared people. I really was so grateful for everything this week, and Elder Nelson reminded me of that.  Something I thought was so cool was how if we had an awesome experience, or weren't feeling good Elder Nelson would stop and say "we need to say a prayer". So if you really see God help you, take some time and thank Him, and if you aren't feeling good, just say a prayer and ask Him for some help.  He's always there to help us and you'll feel your love grow for Him in gratitude for all He does, and he'll even bless you with more peace afterwards.

I wish you all a good and fun and safe week!! Miss you all and bonne semaine!

Amicalement,

Elder Laney