Week 82 (Nivelles)

I hope you all had a very merry Christmas!

Ours was amazing. We had three different families who invited us over for the 25th, and a fourth who invited us for the night before. So we ended up eating a Christmas meal four times in a row! When we were talking about that with someone in the ward, they told us we would have bellies like Santa Claus! They weren't wrong! We shared a Christmas message and had a great time together.

We've also met some cool people this week. We went to visit a family Sunday evening, and they were so happy to have us. When we met the father on the street, he invited us to stop by because as he said, My door is always open for Jesus! The kids were a bit hectic, but as we shared the Book of Mormon with them, the Spirit was present. I'm so grateful to be able to share this message with everyone!

Bonne année!
Elder Wood

Elders McGrew, Wood, Layton, and Dunn

Elders Wood and Dunn with their ami, Christian

Elder Wood and Elder Dunn ice skating on New Year's Eve

Elders Wood, Layton, Karratti, Belka, Melanson, Darrington, Dunn, and McGrew

After a game of spikeball; Elders Belka, Darrington, Dunn, Karratti, Layton, Melanson, McGrew, and Wood

Not clear what this is, but it's Christmasy!

Week 81 (Nivelles)

What a week! A great setup for Christmas!

We actually met with one of our friends to do some genealogy with her. She's met with the missionaries for years, but never set up a FamilySearch account. So we met her at the chapel with our Family History consultant and got her family tree started. It was so cool, especially since recently we've been discussing in our zone and district about using genealogy in our missionary work. The family is something that's important to all of us, and it brings us together.

We also did some caroling in Brussels! We had zone conference the next day, so we all met up near the train station in Brussels to sing Christmas hymns and let people write cards for kids in a nearby hospital. We also handed out some Book of Mormons wrapped up as presents! It was lots of fun to be with the whole zone and sing together, all while helping people #LightTheWorld!

And on Sunday we had our Christmas party after Sacrament Meeting. Our ward was over double the normal size! Afterwards we all shared a meal together and watched the new nativity video the Church made this year. When we finished the meal, a group of us went caroling to a few members' houses!

Then when we finished, a member was driving us home and we noticed we were right next to one of our friends' houses, so we asked to be dropped off there. One of the other members in the car (a returned missionary) decided to come with us. We went to their house, but they weren't home, so we decided to do some door to door caroling. We met mixed success, not everyone wanted a Christmas song. But without knowing, we knocked on the door of a guy we'd met on the road a week or two ago, and he was super happy to see us! Then a bit later, someone else let us in to chat, and we're coming back to share more soon! It was a miraculous evening, in part because of the opportunity to work with members!

Joyeux Noël!
Elder Wood

Christmas caroling in Brussels

Christmas caroling/signing cards for sick children

Elders Darrington and McGrew, with wrapped Book of Mormons to give away

Making Christmas goodies with a family from his ward

"Light the World"

Food photo: They baked a quiche but the crust was a little overdone.

Some of the elders from his zone looking suave: Elders Poulson, Layton, Carrillo, Dunn, McGrew, Belanger, Poll, Canez, and Wood

All of the elders from his zone looking happy. Standing: Elders Luth, Wood, Layton, Belka, McGrew, Dunn, Poll, and Denton. Seated: Elders Belanger, Poulson, Carrillo, Melanson, Karratti, Darrington, and Canez

Week 80 (Nivelles)

One week to Christmas! Not that I'm counting.

We met with our friend Christian this week, and he's amazing. He wants to be baptized, but we're just waiting on his family so they can be here for it. At one point during our rendez-vous, he was telling us about some advice his mom had given him when he was young. She told him how if he wanted to improve, then when everyone else went out to play, he should go in and study. He then related it to the gospel; how if we put in the effort now, later on we'll be much better off than those who didn't. And they'll all be playing catch-up.

We've also been visiting with members to help them invite people to the Christmas celebration on the 22nd. One lady invited us over for dinner, then when we got there, showed us the list she'd made of all the people she invited! There were people like "The neighbor across the street" that were expected, but others like "The man working at the grocery store" that came out of nowhere! She invited literally everyone! She was an unexpected example of how to be a true member missionary. So what about you? Have you invited anyone yet?

Prenez courage!
Elder Wood

It's cold outside!

Elder Wood and Elder Dunn with a family from their ward

Group photo from the multizone conference a few weeks ago. Elder Wood is third row from the front, second from the left.

I'm not sure what this is, but possibly some bookshelf repair work?

Week 79 (Nivelles)

Tuesday? Why not Monday? Surprise! My P-Day is now on Tuesdays.

Other than P-Day being switched to Tuesdays now, the big news is that we're sharing the car with Charleroi. So last week we were on bus. It was interesting, and it took a bit longer to get places. But we met people we wouldn't have met otherwise and Charleroi was able to go places they'd never been before.

One person we talked to was telling us about his coworker who's a member of the church. He talked about how he's such a great guy and how everyone loves and respects him. And it made me think about how people notice our example. When we live the gospel, our light shines forth and people see it. It makes me think of what Elder Uchtdorf said, "I am asking that you 'stand as witnesses' of the power of the gospel at all times?—and when necessary, use words."

In Elders Quorum this Sunday we were talking about ministering, and the story from Elder Holland's talk, Emissaries to the Church, came up. What touched me is how forceful the ministering brother was. He said, I'll be here every morning at 5:15 to play basketball, and you're coming with me! Had it not been for the love he had for his friend, that would never have worked. Trust me, we as missionaries can barely get people on the street to read a book! But if people love us, and more importantly know that we love them, there's a power behind our invitations that works miracles.

Je vous aime tous!
Elder Wood

He enjoyed pecan pie at one family's home for Thanksgiving - his mom's favorite pie!

It's a little blurry, but they found a house with fun Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs decorations

Elder Dunn with their Christmas advent calendar

Food photo: They made pizza!

O'Tacos restaurant. Roughly translated: "The best way to resist temptation is to give in to it"

Week 78 (Nivelles)

Transfers roll around again! What surprises are in store this time?

First surprise, there are no big surprises! Just that our district is staying as it is. And speaking of our district, we all spent a great Thanksgiving together! A family in Charleroi invited all of us over, so we baked some pies and had an amazing dinner!

We've also met lots of cool people throughout the week. One lady that we met was thanks to a random stranger who's door we knocked on. He wasn't really interested, but he told us to try two doors down. A really religious couple lives there and they host Sunday meetings at their house sometimes. So we took his advice and knocked on the door. The wife answered and we had a really nice conversation with her. She was somewhat curious about the Book of Mormon, so we left her with a copy and she was open to us stopping by again to talk some more. Moral of the story, always ask for directions from strangers!

And for those of you who haven't heard, Christmas is just around the corner! That means it's time to #LightTheWorld! Go check out LightTheWorld.org for some neat videos and service ideas to make this a great Christmas season!

Joyeux Noël!
Elder Wood

A landscape selfie somewhere in Belgium

Posing with the friendly cow

Elder Wood and Elder Dunn visiting with a family in their ward

Food photo: Smore's, Belgian style! (Marshmallows and Belgian chocolate surrounded by gauffres/Belgian waffles)

Their "Come and See" invitation for this year's Light the World/Christmas season

Week 77 (Nivelles)

Another crazy week in the life of a missionary!

We had an exchange with the Charleroi Elders this week, so Elder Belka and I went out to do some great missionary work on the streets of Nivelles. Unfortunately all our rendez-vous fell through, but that just meant we had more time to talk with everyone we met on the road. Even though it wasn't what we had expected, we made the best of it!

On Sunday we had so many people who came to church! We had arranged with a member in the English branch to drive our friend Ryan to church, so Sunday morning we made sure he was good to go, then got to church ourselves. And during the week, one of our friends, Jérôme, who we hadn't heard from in a while texted us saying he would be at church. So when he showed up we were so happy to see him.

And the even bigger miracle was when a mother and son showed up. We'd taught the mom once before and it was an amazing rendez-vous, but then she just kind of dropped off the radar and wasn't responding to our texts. But then there she was at church! She told us about how she was so sorry to not have responded, how she was completely occupied with family/work troubles. And it was neat for me to notice how even though it could have seemed like a lost cause, even though we had lost contact, no one is ever lost from God. He never loses track of His children. And when we are involved in His work, we have to remember that it is His. We are but tools in His hands, and we don't see the full picture. We aren't in charge, nor are we responsible for all the results. But when we do our best, He uses it to bring to pass mighty miracles.

Bon courage!
Elder Wood

I'm not sure what the flowers are for, but they're very nice

With Elder Belka on exchanges

District meeting: Elders Karrati, Belka & Dunn; Elder & Soeur Denton; Elders Melanson, Darrington & Wood

Apparently he met a friendly cow?

They did a service project helping a family clean up their yard.

Food photo: The grateful family took them to a Tex-Max restaurant for lunch today

Elder Wood with a Tex-Mex meal

Elder Dunn with a Tex-Mex meal

Week 76 (Nivelles)

This week was super hectic, but super fun!

We got to go to Paris for a Multi-Zone conference, so we all had a nice reunion with other missionaries we hadn't seen in a while. There was also a special guest, Elder De Feo (of the Seventy) who talked to us about lots of cool things. He spoke about the importance of becoming a true disciple of Christ, and how that gives us the spiritual power we need to fulfill our missionary purpose.

The day after the conference, the new missionary handbook was released! It's amazing, not only because it updated lots of old rules they've adjusted over the years, but because it focuses less on the rules, and more on becoming faithful disciples of Christ. It sounds more loving and encouraging when you read it, and there are pictures! If you want a look at it yourself, it's on Gospel Library and the church website. Definitely recommended.

So the overall theme of this week seems to be becoming. We all need to become better than we are now. We all need to become more like Christ. And that's why we missionaries are out here, to help people do just that.

Bon courage!
Elder Wood

At the Multi-Zone Conference: Elder Wood with Elder Coryell (his previous companion) and Elder Morrison (Elder Coryell's current companion)

The Belgian missionaries on the Thalys train back from Paris after the conference

More of the Belgian missionaries, after getting off the Thalys

Food photo: "A member fed us tartiflette!" (A potato and cheese dish)

"It's getting cold"

"These stoplights look like they're from Dr. Seuss"

Week 75 (Nivelles)

We talked to lots of cool people this week!

It all started out with an exchange in Brussels with the Zone Leaders. We went there on Tuesday and had a great day. One of our rendez-vous was with  somebody who's been meeting with the missionaries for a while now. But when we got to his house, his friend was there with him. And as it turns out, he actually lives to the south of Nivelles, so I was able to give him the address of the chapel and we exchanged numbers so we can stay in touch. What an amazing miracle!

And on our exchange with Charleroi 2 this week, Elder Melanson and I met with Fernand. He's the man we met a few weeks ago who looks and sounds like Indiana Jones. We visited him and talked a bit about the Book of Mormon. He wasn't too interested at the beginning, but by the time we left he was curious about it. He said that he would start looking through it and that he'd learned a thing or two from us.

We also met Tony, he's from America but has been living here for a while now. So we were all glad to get to speak English for a change! Elder Dunn had actually met him on the street a few months ago, but they were never able to see him again. But that day, when we were driving through his neighborhood (after taking a wrong turn), Elder Dunn had the idea to go stop by and see if he was home. So we went over, and lo and behold he was there! And during our amazing discussion, he told us how the only reason he was home was because his car was in the shop. Otherwise, he would have normally been out and about! So if you believe in happenstance, that was a crazy coincidence. Sinon, c'était la main du Seigneur.

Bonne semaine!
Elder Wood

District Council with the Zone Leaders: Elders Luth, Poulson, Melanson, Belka, Wood, Dunn, (front row) Darrington, and Karratti

Elder Dunn and Elder Wood with the children of a family in the Nivelles ward that invited them over for dinner

Soccer on exchanges: Elders Poulson, Swensen, Wood, Luth, Carrillo, and Dunn

Food photo: Chili on exchanges, with Elder Darrington

Elder Dunn at the gare during their trip to Paris this week

"Franglais!"

Week 74 (Nivelles)

This week was just amazing.

We had Stake Conference this weekend, and Elder Kopischke (of the Seventy) visited! What was so great about it was that he invited all the missionaries to the Saturday sessions, so we had three 2-hour sessions of inspired council. And he talked a lot about how members need to work with the missionaries to keep new (and returning) membres active, to not lose them. He also touched on the importance of family and how we need to bring families together in the gospel.

To do so he gave the example of "Jean," A new convert. Jean has family members, living and dead, that need to hear the message of the gospel. So when Jean is baptized, the ward needs to support him in doing missionary work for his living family and family history work for his dead relatives. Because as President Nelson says, "exaltation is a family matter."

We also met with our friend Virginie twice this week, she's really interested in the gospel! She wants to turn her life around, and the member that we brought to teach with had actually gone through similar struggles as her. So he was able to testify of the atonement and Christ's love for her, and it was just what she needed.

An experience that we shared with her happened just the day before our rendez-vous actually. We were talking about prayer and faith, so we shared how the night before, we went out to go talk to some people. The problem was that it was nighttime, about 8 o'clock, so nobody was out and about. We got talking about faith and how neither of us had ever really gone out expecting certain results from our efforts. So we decided then and there to work our hardest, and asked God to bless us to meet someone who would be interested to talk another day. We kept walking down that empty road and when we finally ran in to someone we talked to them. Eventually, we did find someone who wanted to see us again, and we knew it was because of our prayers and our faith to continue working, even when it seemed tough.

À tantôt!
Elder Wood

"This house is giving that car a weird look" (because its windows are half-shaded and appear to be looking sideways)

"Saw this on someone's back car window"

"People come up with funny road names"