LettresdeLyon: Besançon Visit and Zone Conference

It is humbling to see how the Lord works. We held our first Mission Health Council this week . This includes the mission health advisor, the Area medical advisor, the mission leaders, the Area dental advisor and the Area mental health advisor. We mostly discussed two missionaries and their specific problems, one emotional and one physical and possible solutions. Amazingly, each of them wrote to the president that same night sharing their concerns. In the morning he called Tom stating that each may need to return home early and did he have any suggestions he would like to make. I remembered the training we had in SLC about missionaries going home early. I had taken good notes. It was a quote from Elder Holland from a Face to Face in 2016 answering this question: “I served a mission only 4 months. How can I look at my mission in the best way?” ‘ Be proud of your service. You served well. You served to your best capacity for as long as you could. The Lord knows you wanted to go. If people asked you if you served a mission, say yes. You do not need to add for how long. Do not relive or rehash or feel inadequate. You tried’. Even though my French is limited, the Lord can use my abilities to further his work.

We took our first trip out of town to Besançon, to check a missionary apartment for needs and cleanliness. What a beautiful area—rolling green hills, forests and hedgerows. We were pleasantly surprised by a decently clean apt. and one smiling elder from Tahiti and a second smiling elder from Glendale, CA. I asked if their mothers came to see it, what would they say? The American said his mom was such a clean freak she would never approve. We enjoyed a delightful lunch together at a nearby Lebanese restaurant and left them anticipating their baptism on Saturday. We drove home on country roads through the village of Dole ( Louis Pasteur birthplace) and stopped for a break along their riverfront. A beautiful old church caught my attention—especially the rooster weathervane at the top of the steeple.

All the senior couples spent Wednesday preparing the holiday meal for zone conference. The president praised us saying that no other zone in the mission would have a meal like this. 40 lbs of mashed potatoes and a gallon of gravy, chicken breasts, my 9 lbs of garlic green beans, my 14 lbs of buttered carrots, homemade rolls and butter/jam, my 60 individual all fresh fruit cups with pineapple, pears, pomegranates, kiwi, banana, and mandarin oranges and dessert. One elder made 5 excellent pumpkin pies. Others brought cookies, brownies, and pumpkin cake . It was a marvelous meal. We hoped they would all feel loved and it would remind them of home.

I will close with a question posed and two personal experiences shared by Pres. Soulier. He referred to the absolute commitment to Jesus Christ that Nephi exemplified in the story of the brass plates and that same commitment shown by Abinadi before King Noah. How do we cultivate those intense feelings in our own lives, remembering that our faith is in the Savior, not in the outcomes?

Eight years ago Pres. Soulier lost his job. He could not find another and had 4 children dependent on him. He was afraid they would lose their home. He said it was the hardest year of his life. Seven years later, he is a Mission Pres. in France, his mortgage is paid off and the kids college plans are secured. Without going into details he testified ‘Only God could do this’.

When Pres. Soulier was eight, his neighbor received a new red Huffy bike purchased at KMart. He was so jealous he wanted that bike more than anything. He thought about it, he dreamed about it. He really wanted it. On Christmas morning, under the tree was a sparkly Schwinn Stingray with a banana seat and raised handle bars. This was the Tesla of bikes. “And I was ecstatic, this was beyond my wildest dreams. I could not believe it.” Then he said “Imagine what we will feel like when we meet the Savior, when we are accepted by Him. That will be beyond our wildest dreams”.