May 6, 2013

Bonjour à tous,

Another good week here in Saint Etienne. This transfer has flown by. Calls are this Friday so i will let you know details next week. We'll see if I continue the pattern of having a new companion each transfer. So there are like 20 sisters coming in this transfer. At conference president told us about how there are only about 12 sister trainers in the mission right now. Basically every sister in the mission right now is going to be training. Crazy. Speaking of calls, I am looking forward to being able to talk to you on mothers day. Should be great.

Last monday in France was labor day so there was no public transportation. That morning also happened to be the craziest rainstorm yet. The streets were like rivers. The raindrops were huge, and the it was pretty windy. We decided to go out and contact. It was crazy but there were actually some people on the streets and we had some good contacts. Unfortunately my umbrella sustained some battle wounds from the storm. After lunch it was a really sunny, beautiful, not a cloud in the sky type of day. I think we got rewarded for our diligence earlier that morning.

So yesterday was the first fast sunday I had in St Etienne. It was awesome hearing all of the testimonies. There were super powerful testimonies given and the spirit was super strong. The other morning I read D&C 27 about taking on the armor of God. I'm sure you're all familiar with it. It's in the scriptures a couple of times. Anyway it talks about taking upon us certain attributes that will protect us like a spiritual suit of armor. Breastplate of righteousness, shield of faith, etc.. Any way if you notice in there all of the things are defensive like shields and helmets. We have things like faith and righteousness that will protect us from the wicked things of this world. However we have also been given one offensive weapon, the sword of the spirit.

The spirit pricks the hearts and pierces the souls of others each time that we bear testimony. As members of this church we are members of Gods army. We have each been given armor to protect us, but more is expected of us then to just protect ourselves and bide our time until the end. We need to fight off wickedness with our sword of the spirit. Only by using this powerful weapon that we have been given we will be victorious in the great battle between good and evil. We need to use this tool we've been given. Bear testimony every chance you get. A simple heartfelt testimony can make all the difference in the world. I challenge you all to look for those occasions to bear testimony to others.

I love you all and testify to you that i know that this church is true. I know that sharing the gospel with others brings us more happiness than we can even understand, and I am so lucky to have a part in such a great work.

Elder Swenson