Montreal Mission Miracles

Today is Monday, January 19, 2020

Friday the 17th we celebrated Walker’s 12th Birthday, and tomorrow the 21st we celebrate Haysten’s 6th Birthday!! Happy Birthday!!!

We travelled over to the Papineau Building yesterday to attend the Hochelaga Ward Meetings. Richard said that the Hochleaga Branch was the first, and only French-speaking branch on the island of Montreal when he was here from 1973-1975, so again it was a thrill to be amongst a ward of Saints. I appreciate Richard’s soft whispered translating, and although I do understand some of what is said, I don’t get it all, so having a translator whisper in my ear is great! (A little aside…my second French MTC tutor Lavender, got married the end of December, and I was assigned a new tutor named Evelyn, but, I think she must have quit, because I haven’t heard from her….c’est la vie!! I’m going to try to have my own Language Study everyday, with maybe Richard tutoring?! I still do pray in French, but when I don’t know the words, I occasionally throw in English. I think that is called Franglish!!) Anyway I am trying!!

Elder Nipko, one of our fairly new missionaries,  was asked to play the piano for Sacrament Meeting in the Hochelaga Ward, and the good fellow marched up and was diligently trying to plunk away the prelude hymn with his right hand. I could tell he was a little flustered so I marched up to his rescue. It seemed like I had bazillion little mistakes. I finally realized I just couldn’t see what I was supposed to play.. Although I knew the hymn, for the life of me I couldn’t read the notes or the words as fast as they were sung, and then I couldn’t even find where I was supposed to be!! The closing hymn was “Oh j’ai besoin de Toi” - “I Need Thee Every Hour - (boy is that ever true!) And then… after Sacrament Meeting, Sister Swensen, a Senior Missionary told me there were two very capable pianists sitting right in the congregation who won’t play!! Oh brother!! 

I loved this miraculous story Brother Garon, our ‘Come Follow Me’ discussion leader shared about how he was introduced to the gospel.. Twenty-five years ago while dropping his young daughter off at daycare, he realized they had forgotten her shoes, so.. they turned around and returned home. As they were driving past the University of Montreal, which is near his home, he noticed the corner of a blue book sticking out of a snowdrift. He felt prompted to stop and retrieve the book. Brushing the snow off the cover and discovering it was the Book of Mormon, began his conversion journey. His visual aid was the very water-damaged copy of the Book of Mormon he found that day!

Saturday we attended the lovely Baptism of Raky Adom, a darling gal from the Ivory Coast who with her boyfriend are here on student visas.  Sister Murray and Sister Scott started teaching her back in July. So, for almost seven months they have worked, and taught, and taught. Raky’s (pronounced Rocky) boyfriend joined the Church in the Ivory Coast, but was less active. Because they were living together, the sisters taught that before she could be baptized she needed to be married.  Raky accepted that, and just imagine the excitement Saturday morning when Raky married her boyfriend Parfait, and then…..Saturday afternoon she was baptized!! She was just giddy as she came out of the water…it was so cute!! 

Canada Montreal Temple in January 2021 is their next goal!!! 

And that reminds me of our exciting  phonecall!! Ken and Kathy Eldershaw, and Stephen Creelman, our dear friends from Dartmouth who joined the Church last year are going through the Temple for the first time ,Thursday, March 5th!! Temple Preparation course is almost complete and all three are so thrilled to be reaching this milestone in their conversion progression!! Kathy called to see when we would be in Nova Scotia so we could be with them, and I was touched and thrilled when she asked me to be her Escort. 

Our six missionaries in Newfoundland are very well, and accounted for…in case you have been following the crazy, record-breaking “Storm of the Century” there. Check it out on the internet if you haven’t already seen!! Before we even knew about the storm we received an email from the Missionary Department, who had received instruction from the First Presidency asking for a report from us, on how our missionaries were prepared for the arrival of the storm. Incredible!!

Week Six (Transfer week) last week was a marathon!! Our group of ten new missionaries arrived in good order and on time Tuesday evening, Wednesday was orientation at the Office, with welcome supper back at the Mission Home. Thursday new missionaries met their new companions either here, or they hop a bus or plane to travel to their first area where their companion is excitedly waiting their arrival!! Our January 14th group include: Sisters Gay, Goodwin, Hiatt, Irazoqui, Vaiho, and Elders Chartrand, Estrada, Garrett, Lacy, Zhou. When we receive photos and info packets about each missionary, we prayerfully consider where each of our new group should serve, and with whom. It is quite the process. Who speaks which language…French, English, Spanish or Mandarin, how long the senior companion has served in an area..etc. etc. ??There are so many considerations and it is really a miracle to see how these companions are just right. Occasionally we do have to make emergency transfers, but generally it all works out. 

Thursday afternoon four departing missionaries Sisters Arfouilloux, Chonger, and Nelson and Elder Groneman arrived. Farewell dinner attendees included departing missionaries as well as our outstanding Office missionaries. Temple session at seven thirty was great, and in the celestial room we saw a lovely finale to Sister Arfouilloux’s mission. She is from a tiny village about an hour from Bordeaux, France where, ten years ago, her family joined the Church.  The missionary who helped teach and baptize her family is Quebecois, and he was in the session!!  She had not seen him since she was baptized, so that was a big thrill for both of them….(and all of us, that watched!!) 

Yesterday after our experience in Hochelaga, we came home for a few hours, and then drove to Laval where Uncle Don Crawford, and his wife Annette live. Annette prepared a beautiful, Quebecois gourmet dinner with local specialities like tortiere, french green beans, and sugar pie. Food was yummy, but it was great to have a wonderful visit with Uncle Don, and Annette. 

Hearing brief reports from our senior missionaries where they share highlights of their weeks is always a great way to start our Monday mornings. From shovelling snow, to ministering to folks in hospitals and seniors lodges, members, and friends, to teaching English classes, to serving at soup kitchens, to working in thrift stores, to contributing articles to newspapers, they are so creative in their MLS service, and we always come away so inspired!! We are losing 15 of these amazing couples in the next eight months… so anyone reading this who might know someone who would love an adventure of a lifetime, contact ME!!! 

Following are some Canada Montreal Miracles:

Greenfield Park Elders: 

This week has really been a continuation of the miracles that have happened last week. We've been able to visit with our two Angolan friends quite frequently, and they are pretty serious about the church. One of them straight up asked us "how do i become a member of this church" while the other contacted his family in Angola and told them to find our church there to attend (Will be a cool missionary moment for the missionaries there!). They are going to come to church pretty regularly, so that is exciting.

The only thing that was a small disappointment was the ice storm, we had quite a lot of people we expected to go to church, but it was cancelled. At least we know they'll be there next Sunday!

Drummondville Sisters:

The third miracle happened on Monday night. Our lesson fell through again, but we felt impressed to go by a former which was strange since we have not had much success in that area lately. The former wasn't interested but we did find a new friend! She is SO COOL, she just got here from The Ivory Coast after trying for 7 years to join her husband who was waiting here in Canada, she was taught by missionaries there before enough for her to immediately want us to come back the same time next week and teach her more!! She is so solid! It's not often someone gives us the specific times they're most available like that! 

The fourth miracle, we left our keys in the apartment last night and had to pick our own lock to get inside! After checking the car 5 times calling the Elders for instructions (but they didn't pick up) and trying the card and bobby pin method by a miracle we taught ourselves to pick a lock!! 

Laval Sisters:

During a lesson, I testified that I knew the BOM was true and our sweet friend just kind of got washed over by the spirit. She was so happy and she told us that it showed her that we cared a lot about her to share something so special and important to us, all for the sole purpose of improving her life. Then, she called us up later that day to thank us again for sharing our testimonies! I'd never had anyone so excited about testimony before, but it goes to show that when the spirit is present it can really touch peoples' hearts. It was really humbling and heart-softening, and she has been progressing so much! I hope she will soon be ready for baptism! (This is Lysanne :) )

Halifax Sisters:

Oh yeah, one little miracle I wanted to share. We had an amazing lesson this week with someone we've been teaching named Mike. We brought Joan, the best YSA member missionary ever. She bore her testimony and after she finished Mike told us that he wouldn't normally have believed what she had testified about. But he told us that a year prior to meeting us he remembers being on the bus and seeing Joan walking on to the bus in her red coat smiling a big, genuine smile at him. Because of that experience a year ago he said he trusted her enough to believe her testimony. Just because that smile made such an impact on him!

Sometimes we might not feel like we have anything to contribute in the church or in the world, but I know that if a little smile can go so far to help build God's kingdom, every time we intentionally are striving to help the work move forward, miracles will happen! Even if we never get to see the harvest!

Fredericton Sisters:

This week we officially started teaching 6 new people! Some of them are in our apartment building and the other 3 are people we found! We have been teaching a lot of people I feel like so I am so excited to see what will be happening with them. Albert was also baptized on Saturday and it was so amazing to see him getting baptized. Because of the weather on Sunday only 9 people, including Sister Mavy and I, were at church and Albert was too! He was super excited about getting the gift of the Holy Ghost so he said he had to come! He was so happy and our lesson with him last night was awesome too. He already got an account for Family History and he can't wait to get a temple recommend to do his family names! I have just loved getting to know him and seeing him progress, and how much the ward loves him! 

Ernest came to Albert's baptism and he loved it! We have a girl getting baptized in the ward this Saturday and he told us he is bringing his whole family! I really hope they come because his wife and son need to experience seeing what a baptism is like because the feelings are just so strong. I have really good feelings for him and his family! Something good is going to happen and it will be in this transfer, I just know it! 

Montreal East Sisters:

We are currently teaching this cute family that has 3 girls one who is INCREDIBLY hyper and 1 little boy, it is so hard to keep everyone calmed down and really invite the spirit but we do our very best. At the end of our lesson we felt a little whipped, because... as we try to testify of the first vision, our hair is being pulled, and our bags are being dug through... lol not an exaggeration. But at the end, we invited V----- who is 10 to pray and she gave such a beautiful prayer, and then all 3 of them tackled us with a HUGE hug! Just a few beautiful Haitian girls who somehow love these random american girls. I left the house feeling really happy and genuinely loved, while questioning how these girls have so much love for someone they don`t really know... the conclusion didn`t come for a couple days after a different experience.

We walked out of a lesson and noticed a woman with her hands FULL of groceries and two little kids, we offered to help and she politely said she was alright but we kinda ignored it and just grabbed the groceries, we shuffled more in from the car, and then helped her carry them into her apartment. As we laid the last set of groceries on the ground the kids pulled and tugged wanting to show us different toys and puzzles we soon found ourselves on the floor putting together puzzles while listening to this woman’s story, I cannot comprehend the things this woman has endured and how much she has done for her kids, independently. I sat on her kitchen floor amazed, inspired, and again questioning why people just trust and open up to us. When we left her apartment I walked out the door in awe, Who gets to drop all their plans on a Friday night to carry in groceries, and listen to someones life story?Such sweet, optimistic missionaries who are looking, and finding miracles everyday.  Such a lesson for each of us…we just need to look Their examples certainly motivate and inspire us!! 

We continue to be so grateful for this opportunity to serve, and LOVE missionaries, and all the people around us. We are so inspired by their work ethic, their obedience, their love of the people, and by their testimonies and love of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. No better way to grow up than by serving a Mission!! 

Thank you for your love and prayers for the missionaries! 

Have a wonderful week!

with much love,

Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma, and Richard and Gayle

Keep Smiling!!!