Week 26 (Dunkerque)

Lots of stuff happened this week. I just can't remember any of it. But that's because the most important thing was our mission-wide conference!

Wednesday afternoon we took a train to Paris and spent the night with a bunch of missionaries. We had 10 of us in an apartment meant for a maximum of 4 people. Lots of fun, but sleeping on the ground hurts.

That night we also took some time to go check out Notre Dame. Because of course, we're in Paris. And a lot of us hadn't seen it yet.

The next day was the conference. It was great to see everybody again, but the Paris Zones weren't there. They had to split us up over two days, otherwise we wouldn't all fit in the chapel. That meant Elder Bunker & Elder Poulson weren't there. (Except I did get to see Elder Bunker! He's serving in Versailles, so he stopped by the chapel at one point) But I got to see everyone else from the MTC, as well as back in Charleroi. So good to see everyone again.

As for the conference itself, President Johnson was there. He's from the Area Seventy Presidency over the Europe area. If you don't know what that means, you're in good company. But he brought big news: Europe is going to be testing out two new Key Indicators. They're aimed at getting missionaries to work more with less active members. So we'll start reporting how many returning members we contact, and how many of them come to church.

The main topic though seemed to be endurance. There was a lot said about patience and trusting in God. One thing I liked was when President Johnson said that smooth sailing never made a great sailor. It takes overcoming stormy waters for a sailor to really achieve his potential. And that's like us. Often, we face trials not because we're being punished, but because we're being rewarded. By sailing through these stormy seas, you will come out the other side stronger than you ever thought possible. So hang in there, and He's always there to help.

Bonne navigation!
Elder Wood

Notre Dame!

Food photo of the week: "Showing off my French side"

"Our street"

The Eiffel Tower caught from a train window

A photo of the lunch from their mission conference. I didn't see him at first, but turns out he is in the bottom left corner, white shirt (no suit coat) with his back to the camera.

"The two little kids in our Branch posing in front of the tree in our chapel."