Sixty-three

This week was filled with a lot of fun! We had a exchange with the

zone leaders in Bordeaux and I had the chance to be with Elder Hall,

who is in my group, as well we had district meeting in Perigeux. The

main focus of district meeting was, in order for us to reach this 250

baptism goal this year, we need to work with part member families.

Contacting and Porting is great but from what I have seen, working

with members is by far the best.

The most striking observation that I made this week was the importance

of relationships. Throughout my mission I have made eternal friends

and amazing relationships. But it was until this week that I found

that the  interpersonal ties that we create to be actually the most

important part of this earthly experience. I find it quite interesting

that the realization/endeavor for a happy family is the goal of

everything in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for my

family, who has always shown me what it means to put family first. I

am so proud of my brother and sister who are both almost married and

making their relationships with their spouses the center of their

loves. I am so grateful for great mission leaders who put their

mission family in the center of their lives and in doing so have

changed mine. (By the way, the 3 missionaries that I started my

mission with Elders Shaw, Perry, and Lythgoe all got engaged within 2

months of getting back ;) A true disciple of Christ thinks of others

first and when we forget he "I" is when we find true happiness.

As well I would like to share to finding miracles that happened this

last week. The first miracle was we had pass to potential's and one

less active and this one neighborhood and we were heading back to the

bus stop heading back home. We saw this house on our left with

cartoons on the exterior metal things. Elder Sorenson and I looked at

each other and we said we need to knock on this door. We we knocked at

the door and a university girl student looked at us and said she'll be

out real quick. 10 seconds later she came out with a jacket and her

mother came out as well. We picked up a lively conversation and they

explained to us that they were both atheist but they accepted a

comeback rendezvous. It was nothing we said that made them make this

rdv but I believe it was they saw something in us. Second miracle of

the week was we stopped a man and told him we were doing a

questionnaire about the family and he accepted to

help. We asked the first question. "What do you do to fortify the

relationships you have with your family" He looked at us puzzlingly

and asked us to repeat the question so we did. After he said it was

interesting we had asked him this question because he had just

finished spending time with his family and he hadn't talked with them

for months. He said he had just finished praying to God for this

moment he had passed with his family and then after this was just

another testament to him of God's love for him. We told him us meeting

him wasn't an coincidence and he knows it wasn't. He has already

talked with Mormon missionaries but he really wants to talk more now.

We got his number and will be scheduling a visit for this night.

I know God is guiding us to the people that he wants us to

specifically talk with. I know God loves each one of us and that we

need to radiate and let others know by our actions and word for our

love for them.

Love ya,

Elder Duffy

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