BONJOUR!!!

So this past week was good, we went to Marseilles on Saturday to help our investigator move that was a cool. She started giving us books and plates and stuff that is like 300 years old. She is moving to New York City, and she need help clearing the stuff out of her old apartment. We also spent a the whole day in Marseilles on Wednesday with transfers and that is when I met Sister Bartlomé. That was pretty cool to get to see her on the other side of the world, she is companions with Sister Lala, who is french and super super cool, they will have a great time in Nice. We found a couple of new investigators and we went and did some more service on Thursday (helped someone move into their apartment). We were kind of running around all week just trying to find 1 or 2 hours here and there to teach and to find, but we invited everyone to church and the Lord blessed us on Sunday and we had 4 of our investigators out to church.

We had a lesson with Greg, the husband of a member that served a mission at Temple Square and it was really great. He asked all 4 of the missionaries in Aix to come because he likes to here lots of opinions and hear more than 1 or 2 people teach. He had prepared a list of questions about the plan of salvation and about the commandments and about prophets and how to get a testimony. The lesson kinda of went in all directions because we were talking about some many different subjects. Normally we would try to just set up another appointment but they were leaving for salt lake in 2 days, so he really wanted just plain and clear answers to his questions. It seemed that every time he asked a question there was one of us that had a feeling, scripture, or experience that we could share with him, we were able to answer lots of his questions and we left him with scriptures for the other ones. The appointment ended very well, we were talking and everyone one just kinda of went quiet and had nothing left to say. I felt prompted to share my testimony of Joseph Smith and how I had come to know that we has a prophet. I testified that I had been taught by the spirit as I watch the Joseph Smith movie in Salt Lake and that he would have that same chance, We invited him to offer a simple prayer of "God, was Joseph Smith a prophet?" every time he was in question while he was in Salt Lake, my companion then testified powerfully of Jesus Christ and Greg left the appointment with a great desire to know the truth for himself. He is now in America and he will be visiting Salt Lake in about 5 days. I am excited to see him when he gets back and has his testimony of the Restoration of the Gospel.

This Monday we spent the morning on a bullet train to Lyon and and then we had a meeting with President Murdock for about 5 hours, we then spent another 3 1/2 hours on a train to Besançon. We went and saw the city a little bit, ate at SUBWAY!!!!! ( God bless America) and then went back and crashed in the apartment. The next morning we woke up early and when and got at line at the visa office, we then hurried of the aix and took another bullet train for 4 1/2 hours to Aix en Provence ( I was very happy to see that we weren't on a slow poke for the return). we got back to aix and hurried off to another service activity with a brother that need help in his garden. We have been doing lots of service lately and we don't get a lot of time in our area. Today we will have about 6 hours of contacting and I am excited to finally get to work. We are going to knock a building that I saw the other day and I felt the spirit when we passed that there was good things waiting for us, I will let you know if there is anything exciting for you next week.

This week during church I was doing lots of praying and trying to find out what the Lord wanted me to do this week, I hadn't felt anything special during all of the meetings and I was praying during the sacrament and I felt a peace in my heart that witnessed to me of the importance of the Book of Mormon. I wanted to let you know that I know the Book of Mormon to be the word of God, the spirit has testified to me that it is the proof of God's love. Through that knowledge I know as well the Jesus is the Christ, Joseph Smith is his revelator and prophet and that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is his kingdom restored again to the earth. I love the Book of Mormon and I love the Lord.

Thanks for all the updates recently, Mom and Dad, the Sealys, the Ben Smiths, the Poulsens all did a great job this week, and last week I had the Tres Smiths and the Packs........Jodi what are you doing?

Glad that the New Yorkers are safe, and that Both the Ben Smiths and the Poulsens will be keeping the newborns inspite of the objections of the children.

I love you all!
Elder Smith

PS Congrats Charlie, I was so happy to hear about your babtism, I wish I could have been there! I love you bud!

1. Did you get both packages? I got both of the packages and the debit card, and I even got a package from the sealys!

2. Are you Tiffany Bartlome's zone leader? Yes See attached pictures

3. Is Fall nipping the air over there? A little bit but not that much yet, I am still in short sleeves

4. Have the students returned to Aix en Provence? They are starting to show up, the big university starts in 2 weeks and a couple of small ones have started

5. Sister Wallin came over to the Zucchini Swap and she has been to Aix en Provence and has a movie that was filmed there she is going to loan us. This wasn't a question.

6. How is the apartment building that you were tracting out last week? Pretty good, we are working with a woman named Francoise that is from Africa and is honestly looking for the truth.

7. How was Elder Clayton? He didn't come, he got an emergency phone call and had to go to New York City, that was a bummer. But we did get the chance to see President Murdock though.