Week 29 (8/19/19): Baptisms and miracles!!!

Hello everybody!
We had so many miracles! This week was just lined up by God and it was amazing!
So, crazy awesome things that happened-
1) we had a baptism!! We had Karine finally get baptized and confirmed this week and it was amazing ! She was so happy and kept saying she felt like a new person and was so happy she had made the covenants with God ! The elder who had found her, came back from his mission and was visiting. He came to perpignan for one day and baptized karine. She was so happy to see him and it was just so cute !

2) We were also out contacting a bunch. We had this crazy experience where we were going home from a member's house. She talked for a long time so we missed our bus by like 5 seconds. The second bus came and my companion helped stall it for someone so they could cross the street and get on. She felt like she should contact him, but it was like, 2 stops, and we were already getting off.  After we got off the bus, this little old lady started talking to her and we talked for like, 5 minutes. She kept turning to leave and then she would talk for another 30 seconds. After she finally left, we turned around, and the guy from the bus was right there! If the lady hadnt had talked to us we would've been inside our house and not had seen him again. But he told us, he had gone to the next stop, got off, came to thank us, and we talked a bit! He asked my companion's name, saw we were missionaries, told us he was believing, we exchanged numbers, and he came to church Sunday!!! He said he had just moved to France he had kind of been asking God what to do, and then he met us and liked our church, so that's a pretty stellar miracle! We're seeing him again tomorrow, we're so excited!!!

3) another time, we decided to head out to a place a little far away from mainland perpignan. We got on a bus and went out to hit some potentials. We went to the points super far away first. We had to walk 40 minutes through vineyards and mountains and windmills. It was gorgeous. But when we finally got there, nothing happened. The guy had moved. We turned on our wifi to tell the elders He had moved and to delete his contact. Right as we turned on wifi, we got a bunch of texts from the elders saying they were hitting other potentials in the same town but more close to perpignan than the ones we hit. We ended up taking the same bus home. The elders were gonna stay out in the city to hit other potentials, but we had gotten all the rest. We took the bus home, and getting off the bus the elders contact this guy. They talk for awhile, got his number, and have a meeting set up for this week. Again Just God lining up all these people who are ready to receive the gospel ! It's just amazing and I and so thankful for God!

4) we had a "family home evening" with some members last Monday night. It was so fun. We talked about captain moroni and asked what people liked in him. They said his courage, preparation, loyalty, faith and more. We then read alma 48:17, "Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men." We then talked about how we can be like him and shake the power of Hell from our lives and our families. It was super good.

So yeah! Life is amazing! I hope y'all are doing well, and don't forget that you can always turn to God for help!

Love ya!
Soeur Cate

Week 28 (8/12/19): Lehi's dream and pizza stands

Hey everybody!
I hope y'all are doing well! We're having a great time here in Perpignan, with our friend Karine's baptism this week. She's changed so much since I met her and I know that her baptism will just help her along with all those changes. We also have another friend that is making really cool progress. She asks such poignant, sincere questions, and she absolutely loved the plan of salvation. She kept saying what a perfect plan it was, and how full of hope, it was such an incredible lesson, the spirit was so strong! And she seemed so grateful to know these truths, and it just reminded me how blessed we are. We also taught the weekly class for amis and recent converts, which was super fun. Soeur Flora drew Lehi's dream on the board, which was so adorable! It was incredible to see them reacting to the scriptures and teaching each other and sharing their insights. Honestly, we're so blessed to have the members and amis we have. And Soeur Flora bore testimony at the end, and I swear she was glowing. What a super power...
In other news, we're trying to focus more on the book of mormon, so we've handed out 3 or 4 since zone conference on Wednesday, where it was a major theme (we had a pizza party with other soeurs the night before, I love piz. I've loved reading it more since our president issued the challenge, I love this book so much, it literally never fails to calm my mind and enlighten my understanding. I've read it many times, but it never gets old. Truly we are blessed to have it!
Love ya!
Soeur Cate

Week 27 (8/5/19): Trials and miracles

Hello everybody!
So it was a really exciting week. My companion and I have had a hard week, but we've also seen a ton of miracles, which is a huge blessing. I'm going to list all the miracles we've had now, so you can enjoy it! I know our trials make us stronger, and we're making it through.
We had a really cool lesson this week, where we were trying to help someone, and then Soeur Flora just said something super complicated and profound in French, which I didn't even know how to say. She doesn't either, and she doesn't know how she said it, but it really touched our friend. The gift of tongues is so real!
Then one of the people we're working with received straight up inspiration during a lesson, and was able to find a way to stop smoking. After forever of trying, she's finally there! We're so excited for her 😊
We also had a less active come to church last week and set up a rendez-vous with us, and then she was actually there and excited to see us for the rendez-vous, and then she bore testimony, and it was awesome!!! What a cool little miracle!
On the way to that less active member's house, there was someone in the road talking to someone in a car. Usually I try not to interrupt conversations, but he saw us and stopped us on the street. Then he asked us if we were missionaries for the church "right there." He was pointing at our church, so that was crazy! Obviously we said yes, so we'll be seeing him later this week!
Then at church yesterday, the child of someone we're teaching was really reluctant to come, but then the other children in the ward were SUPER welcoming, so when I asked them to help him out, they totally took him under their wings. So now he likes church!
Basically, there are so many miracles, and being a missionary is awesome! We're so blessed to be helping God's work along in our little corner of the world, He sure loves Perpignan! And I know He loves all of you too.
Love y'all!
Sœur Cate

Sunflower seeds are so cheap here, because they grow everywhere, so I can buy a bunch!

A pretty road

Week 26 (7/29/19): The calm after the storm

Hello everybody!!!
So this week was significantly more chill, which was kinda nice after last week, which was awesome, but insane.
We did an exchange with a senior couple- the wife went with us, and the husband went with the elders, and we did everything with her! Contacting, visiting people, and teaching lessons. And then she bought us fancy lunch!!! Lasagna is amazing.
Sorry this is so short, but I know there are still miracles here, and we're seeing God help us along! I hope y'all have a great week, talk to you next week!!!
Love y'all!
Soeur Cate

Week 25 (7/22/19): Bike races, Baptisms, and Carcassonne!

Hello everybody!!!
We had the best exchange ever on the 18th, we were in Toulouse for the tour de France! And we literally popped out of the metro like, 5 minutes before they drove by, so that was cool! The speed they were traveling was honestly insane, I have no idea how they do that, but it sure was exciting!!!
On the same exchange, Soeur Ditetova and I were blessed with a really cool miracle. We were going to pass someone, but they weren't there, and our other rendez-vous had canceled. So we had nothing. We started contacting, when I said, "let's go to a park." She didn't question it, just saying that the park nearest to us was probably empty, but the one near the apartment probably had just the right amount of people for contacting. We got there, and I felt lost. This time it was soeur Ditetova's turn to catch the prompting- she said, "I want to talk to that lady over there." By the time we worked our way over there, she was leaving, but we contacted her anyways. She only spoke Spanish, but the Spanish I've heard Soeur Flora practice occasionally came out of my mouth, and we were actually able to communicate, which was really cool. Gift of tongues moment!!! She wasn't really interested, so we said goodbye, then soeur Ditetova turned around and said, "let's talk to this man," that we'd run past to get to the lady. We had the coolest contact ever, we talked for over half an hour about the book of mormon and the bible and the gathering of Israel. He really listened, and really wanted to know, he was definitely prepared. He a very open, intelligent man, so I believe his promise that he'd read the book of mormon. And we got his number and everything, so hopefully they'll start teaching him!!! Such a thrill.
We also obviously had the 3 baptisms, which was especially awesome because a nonmember came to see it. She actually came in right at the end, but we were able to show her the baptismal font and explain what happened, and the confirmations that would happen tomorrow. She asked me what someone had to do to get baptized in our church, which was really exciting to answer. She started getting integrated immediately, and came to church yesterday! And Soeur Flora and Elder Hayes taught her about the book of mormon, and she's agreed to read it, and then have a lesson with us Thursday. So we're super excited to start teaching her!
Then today, on p day, we took a train to Carcassonne, and saw the coolest castle ever! It's actually like, an entire fortified city, so that was extremely awesome. I definitely recommend visiting it to anyone who happens to go nearby. Definitely worth the time (though maybe choose to do it on a day that's not 36 degrees plus humidity... oops).
So yeah. It was a really good week! I hope all of yours are equally awesome!
Love,
Soeur Cate

Carcassonne

Soeur Ditetova

Tour de France in Toulouse

Carcassonne

Week 24 (7/15/19): Chocolate is beautiful

Hey everyone!
We are currently surrounded by chocolate. Life could be a lot worse. I should clarify that it's 20 pounds, as in the British currency. Not the unit of measurement for weight. Just to calm your fears for my health.
We visited a medieval village this morning with a couple of members, which was super fun. As a mega nerd and a history buff, it was kinda the best thing ever. It was also on the side of a mountain, far away from other civilization, which was fun after spending so much time in big cities. The village has been around for over a thousand years. As someone coming from the United states, that was mindblowing. And the views were gorgeous, oh my gosh!!! Basically, I 10/10 recommend going and visiting random historical sites if you go to Europe because they're so cool, and you get great pictures (or your photographer companion does).
This week we had a really cool experience where we met someone we'd talked to in the past on the road. She actually was having a hard time, and we ended up sitting down and talking for an hour and a half. We then were able to invite her to come to a meal our ward has together once a month after church, and she was able to relax and make some friends. She said she really liked the spirit there, and her kid was super chill there, and she noticed the change. Yay for the spirit!!! I know God lined it up so that we could meet with her and help her. The longer I'm on my mission, the more I know that God has a plan for each of us, and that His plan is the best plan.
Basically, life is good, the work continues, and I'm excited for the baptism of the elders' amis scheduled this week!
Love y'all!!!
Soeur Cate

Week 23 (7/8/19): Shredding papers and riding trains

Hello everyone!
This week we had multi zone conference, which was super fun! I really liked seeing a bunch of the missionaries I served with in the past, and being new ones! I'm always inspired by the examples of other missionaries, and the stories of miracles we see in the field.
So we did it. We went through the entire area book and called everyone!!! And there were actually multiple people that we're hoping to start meeting with, so that's good! It's also good because we were supposed to get rid of all the papers, so now it's all online. Yay!
Also, my district leader is British and he's leaving soon. He has some extra money, so he's legit ordering us 20 pounds of chocolate apiece. Truly we are blessed.
Anyways, the work moves forward! We're teaching and working to find people, and yeah. It's a billion degrees, and humidity makes life more exciting, but I'm so grateful for the spirit we feel and the blessings we see.
I hope you all have a great week!
Soeur Cate

Picture- me and my "older sister" in the mission- we had the same trainer!