Bounour a tous!
Sorry I am a bit late, but I had Zone Conference in Bordeaux yesterday! It was an awesome day, and I learned so much. We had a member of the Seventy come, and he had some really awesome insights that are going to make me such a better missionary.
We had a busy week, it all kindof seems like a blur to me. We taught our ami JP again, and he really liked everything that we had to say. He is such an honest, loving man. He came to our first ever english class that was just him and our eternal ami named J who is Jewish, but is married to a member. It was a lot of fun.
One of the highlights of my week was an exchange that I got to do with Elder Roberts, my MTC companion. A lot of it was unfortunately spent riding trains, but it was so good to catch up with him.
Other than that, it was just a lot of regular stuff. It was a good, productive week, and I am happy.
My little thought comes from Matthew chapter 6 verse 21 "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also"
This came up in my studies, and it really hit me hard. It made me think about all of the things that I "treasure" in my life. A lot of them were really great things such as my Family, my mission, the gospel, friends, etc. But then I also kinda thought of some of the things that I treasure that maybe I shouldnt. One of these things for me is sleep. Oh how I love sleep. It is sometimes the best part of the day. But I came to the realization that when I treasure these kinds of things, that is where my heart is. And that is not where it needs to be. I want to invite you all to think of the "treasures" in your lives, and try to treasure the good things in life.
I love you all, and hope that all goes well.
Elder Duckworth
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Monday, March 17, 2014
Rabbits in a beret.....
Ok, first one is the old chapel literally next door to our apartment.
Second one is me holding baby rabbits in a beret......
Second one is me holding baby rabbits in a beret......
Temples are important
Bonjour mes amis!
It has been an amazing week here in Limoges!!!!
we had zone training on Thursday, and I got to see lot of my friends from the MTC there. I talked a lot with my good friends Elder Smith And Elder Roberts(my old companion) It was so good to see them and see how far everyone has come. Im in the same district as Elder Roberts, and we get to do an exchange this week i am sooo excited!
We had 5 whole lessons this week! Which has just about doubled my mission total. It has been great. We taught JP who I mêntioned earlier, and he took everything really well. We were teaching the Restoration, and when we got to the end, I challenged him to read and pray about the Book of Mormon, and when I did he got mad. I was really worried, but then he said it was because he already knew the truth of our message and didnt like the fact that I had doubted him :) It was a cool lesson.
Other than that, I really dont have all to much to report. But I have been really busy, and that makes me happy.
This week I learned about the importance of Temples. I was studying about the lives of the Pioneers. I came across a statistic that said that at a time there were something like 30000 members of the church in the United Kingdom, and about 10000 in the United States. That made me wonder why everyone had to leave. But then I came across the fact that it was because Utah was where the Temple was. And it kinda clicked after that. The temple is so important to God, that he would have his people go through such great lengths to receive its blessings.
Anyways, I love you all, and hope all is well.
Have a fantastic week
Elder Duckworth
It has been an amazing week here in Limoges!!!!
we had zone training on Thursday, and I got to see lot of my friends from the MTC there. I talked a lot with my good friends Elder Smith And Elder Roberts(my old companion) It was so good to see them and see how far everyone has come. Im in the same district as Elder Roberts, and we get to do an exchange this week i am sooo excited!
We had 5 whole lessons this week! Which has just about doubled my mission total. It has been great. We taught JP who I mêntioned earlier, and he took everything really well. We were teaching the Restoration, and when we got to the end, I challenged him to read and pray about the Book of Mormon, and when I did he got mad. I was really worried, but then he said it was because he already knew the truth of our message and didnt like the fact that I had doubted him :) It was a cool lesson.
Other than that, I really dont have all to much to report. But I have been really busy, and that makes me happy.
This week I learned about the importance of Temples. I was studying about the lives of the Pioneers. I came across a statistic that said that at a time there were something like 30000 members of the church in the United Kingdom, and about 10000 in the United States. That made me wonder why everyone had to leave. But then I came across the fact that it was because Utah was where the Temple was. And it kinda clicked after that. The temple is so important to God, that he would have his people go through such great lengths to receive its blessings.
Anyways, I love you all, and hope all is well.
Have a fantastic week
Elder Duckworth
Monday, March 10, 2014
Miracles
Bonjour!
I had an awesome first week here in the beautiful city of Limoges! We spent a lot of time this week here working with people in the ward here (we have an awesome ward here by the way). On Saturday the ward did an "international night" where everybody brought foods from where they are from. Needless to say I struggled with that being the picky eater that I am. Some people also did really cool presentations on the countries that they are from. A lady did a presentation on the Philippiens, and taught us how to sing a song in Tagolog. Our Relief Society president here is Tahitian, and had a group of Musicians come which was really cool. It was an awesome night, and what was even better, is that one of the less active members and one of our amis came!
Their names are M__ and J__ and they are both from the Congo. Apparently they had both kinda fallen off of the face of the planet for a while, and it was the first time in like over a month we had seen them. But they came, and even brought an African Dish called Saka Saka (It was sooo nice of them, but it straight up made me gag). The ward here was so good too, and immediately greeted them and made them feel welcome. They had a great time, and I got talking with M__ the Less active, and he kinda told me his story. It was so cool. He has been through some serious stuff in his life, especially with the wars that are going on in Africa. His story is awesome, and I dont have enough time to do it justice, but long story short he had a Joseph Smith-like story where he tried all of the christian churches, but none of them "convinced him :)". Then he knew of someone who was "Mormon", and was a colonel in the Army there. He was in a position of power that is normally very corrupted in his country, but this man did not abuse his power and take advantage of the people. Then he moved here to France, kinda stalked down our church, and was baptized in 2002! After I talked to him for a bit, HE invited US to his house this Wednesday (miracle) and his friend wanted to talk Sunday.
Fast forward to Sunday. It was a great Sunday. M__ came, participated and was immediately welcomed back by the members as if he had never left. J__ had to work, so he didnt come, but we worked something out kinda sorta where we would come pray at his house after church some time. After church, we tried passing some people, and it didn't really work out, and then we missed our bus, which are like every half hour here on Sundays. So we had to wait, and then finally we were able to make it over towards J__ house. As we were approaching the address, I look out the window and see J__, M__, and another friend walking down the street. I got really excited, and all I could get out was "....STOP". So we hurried and got off of the bus and went and talked to them. Its hard to explain, but I cant stress enough that if we were either a minute earlier or later we would have missed them (another miracle). They were kinda off guard but invited us into J__'s house. We talked for a bit, and met their other friend, a woman named N__. She was very curious about who the heck we were, and how they were friends with us. She was very impressed, and got really sparked when we told her that we are going to start an English class here soon. Then we had M__ share his story about how he met the church which was even better a second time around :). Then we did a quick presentation of the Book of Mormon/Restoration to their friend N__. She was kindof unsure about it, but then J__ (who we weren't sure if he had read) Pulls out his, and basically tells this woman that she needs to read it! (miracle miracle miracle). It was an awesome experience, and it showed me how much God is in control. Everything works out for a reason :)
This week, I've studied a lot about Jesus Christ. I have learned a lot, and I just want you guys to know that He loves you :). He did so much for us, and all he wants from us is to follow him. It has been amazing as I have really started to learn about him, and how much really went into the Atonement. I testify that he died for us, and through him, we are going to be able to live again! This good news makes me happy, and I get to share it with everybody! This Gospel is a Gospel of happiness, and I challenge you to find somebody this week, and make them happy :)
Love you all, have a great week
Elder Duckworth
I had an awesome first week here in the beautiful city of Limoges! We spent a lot of time this week here working with people in the ward here (we have an awesome ward here by the way). On Saturday the ward did an "international night" where everybody brought foods from where they are from. Needless to say I struggled with that being the picky eater that I am. Some people also did really cool presentations on the countries that they are from. A lady did a presentation on the Philippiens, and taught us how to sing a song in Tagolog. Our Relief Society president here is Tahitian, and had a group of Musicians come which was really cool. It was an awesome night, and what was even better, is that one of the less active members and one of our amis came!
Their names are M__ and J__ and they are both from the Congo. Apparently they had both kinda fallen off of the face of the planet for a while, and it was the first time in like over a month we had seen them. But they came, and even brought an African Dish called Saka Saka (It was sooo nice of them, but it straight up made me gag). The ward here was so good too, and immediately greeted them and made them feel welcome. They had a great time, and I got talking with M__ the Less active, and he kinda told me his story. It was so cool. He has been through some serious stuff in his life, especially with the wars that are going on in Africa. His story is awesome, and I dont have enough time to do it justice, but long story short he had a Joseph Smith-like story where he tried all of the christian churches, but none of them "convinced him :)". Then he knew of someone who was "Mormon", and was a colonel in the Army there. He was in a position of power that is normally very corrupted in his country, but this man did not abuse his power and take advantage of the people. Then he moved here to France, kinda stalked down our church, and was baptized in 2002! After I talked to him for a bit, HE invited US to his house this Wednesday (miracle) and his friend wanted to talk Sunday.
Fast forward to Sunday. It was a great Sunday. M__ came, participated and was immediately welcomed back by the members as if he had never left. J__ had to work, so he didnt come, but we worked something out kinda sorta where we would come pray at his house after church some time. After church, we tried passing some people, and it didn't really work out, and then we missed our bus, which are like every half hour here on Sundays. So we had to wait, and then finally we were able to make it over towards J__ house. As we were approaching the address, I look out the window and see J__, M__, and another friend walking down the street. I got really excited, and all I could get out was "....STOP". So we hurried and got off of the bus and went and talked to them. Its hard to explain, but I cant stress enough that if we were either a minute earlier or later we would have missed them (another miracle). They were kinda off guard but invited us into J__'s house. We talked for a bit, and met their other friend, a woman named N__. She was very curious about who the heck we were, and how they were friends with us. She was very impressed, and got really sparked when we told her that we are going to start an English class here soon. Then we had M__ share his story about how he met the church which was even better a second time around :). Then we did a quick presentation of the Book of Mormon/Restoration to their friend N__. She was kindof unsure about it, but then J__ (who we weren't sure if he had read) Pulls out his, and basically tells this woman that she needs to read it! (miracle miracle miracle). It was an awesome experience, and it showed me how much God is in control. Everything works out for a reason :)
This week, I've studied a lot about Jesus Christ. I have learned a lot, and I just want you guys to know that He loves you :). He did so much for us, and all he wants from us is to follow him. It has been amazing as I have really started to learn about him, and how much really went into the Atonement. I testify that he died for us, and through him, we are going to be able to live again! This good news makes me happy, and I get to share it with everybody! This Gospel is a Gospel of happiness, and I challenge you to find somebody this week, and make them happy :)
Love you all, have a great week
Elder Duckworth
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
First Transfer
Sorry, I dont have much time today. I spent all day yesterday riding trains!!!! yahoo!
I had a great last week in Annecy. We taught a lot, and served a lot. I felt very fulfilled in my work. I left Annecy feeling like i accomplished a lot. I was blessed with a great trainer, and an awesome branch that will always be considered family to me.
I got transferred to the beautiful town of Limoges! My new companion is named Elder Lehmitz, and I think we will do some serious wurk here!
I got to go, but love you all you are great!!!
Avec Amour
Elder Duckworth
Monday, March 3, 2014
Message for Jaysen's Talk
Jaysen was asked to speak a couple of weeks ago and to include how the gospel has changed his brothers life who is serving a mission. This was Kyle's response when asked.
"Hmmmm how the gospel has changed my life. I think since my short time here in France, I think the biggest thing is what it really means to have the restored gospel. Now that I am somewhere where lots of people haven't really heard about us, I get to see people's reactions to when we tell them things like there is a living prophet today, just like Moses, or how we have another book of scripture, that contains the fullness of the gospel of Christ. Its awesome to feel the spirit that is felt as I testify of the first vision, and how a humble 14 year old boy saw God and Jésus-Christ. I get to see the hope in people's eyes when we tell them that they can live with their families forever. The claims we make are bold, but they are true. I have grown immensly grateful for the knowledge of the restored gospel, and the peace it brings to my soul. And with this knowledge, comes a burning desire to share it with anyone who will listen. At times it is hard, but it is sooo worth it :)"
"Hmmmm how the gospel has changed my life. I think since my short time here in France, I think the biggest thing is what it really means to have the restored gospel. Now that I am somewhere where lots of people haven't really heard about us, I get to see people's reactions to when we tell them things like there is a living prophet today, just like Moses, or how we have another book of scripture, that contains the fullness of the gospel of Christ. Its awesome to feel the spirit that is felt as I testify of the first vision, and how a humble 14 year old boy saw God and Jésus-Christ. I get to see the hope in people's eyes when we tell them that they can live with their families forever. The claims we make are bold, but they are true. I have grown immensly grateful for the knowledge of the restored gospel, and the peace it brings to my soul. And with this knowledge, comes a burning desire to share it with anyone who will listen. At times it is hard, but it is sooo worth it :)"
Missionary March Message
Missionary life is really awesome. We follow the normal schedule, so lots of studies in the morning. Then we get to fill the rest of the day however we want. We try to teach as much as possible. Whether that is through people we have found through our contacting efforts, less active members, or active families, Everybody needs to hear the beautiful message of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. When we dont have people to teach, we are looking for people to teach. We try to talk to everybody we come in contact with on the street, as well as we do the whole door to door thing. It can be hard at times, and it's definately not easy to talk to strangers. I am by nature a kind of shy person, and fear rejection from others. But I can tell you that I love being a missionary, and that includes doing door to door and street contacting! And that is thanks to the spirit. I feel the spirit the strongest as I am out giving all of my effort to try and bring others closer to Christ. We also get to do service a lot, which I love. It is one of the best ways to introduce people to the church. When people see us living what we teach, they become interested in what we have to say. We teach English class every thursday at the church, and we also volunteer at the French Equivelant of DI every week. There is never a dull moment. I cant even begin to tell you how much I laugh every day. This gospel is a gospel of happiness. I seriously love being a missionary, and even though it gets hard at times, I would not trade it for anything in the whole world... not even a Jetpack.
Now as for what you could do to prepare for a mission, there are a zillion different things that I could tell you, but you will probably forget everything, so I narrowed it down a bit. The first thing is to read Preach my Gospel. I know that it's not very original, and youve heard it a thousand times, but its true. It was written by inspired men of God, and it is basically the guidebook to be a perfect missionary. The other thing that I feel is important, is to just strengthen your testimony as much as possible. Your testimony is the most powerfull thing a missionary can use. I have talked to people who think that they have everything figured out, and that they don't need God in their lives. And they use modern day "facts" to try and disprove what I know to be true. But as I bear testimony, the spirit comes, and there is no arguing with that. So I guess I just invite you to continue what you're doing. Stay active in the church, go to seminary, participate in youth activities, you know the list. It sounds simple, but if you arrive at your mission already having a firm testimony, there is seriously nothing that can stop you.
Now as for what you could do to prepare for a mission, there are a zillion different things that I could tell you, but you will probably forget everything, so I narrowed it down a bit. The first thing is to read Preach my Gospel. I know that it's not very original, and youve heard it a thousand times, but its true. It was written by inspired men of God, and it is basically the guidebook to be a perfect missionary. The other thing that I feel is important, is to just strengthen your testimony as much as possible. Your testimony is the most powerfull thing a missionary can use. I have talked to people who think that they have everything figured out, and that they don't need God in their lives. And they use modern day "facts" to try and disprove what I know to be true. But as I bear testimony, the spirit comes, and there is no arguing with that. So I guess I just invite you to continue what you're doing. Stay active in the church, go to seminary, participate in youth activities, you know the list. It sounds simple, but if you arrive at your mission already having a firm testimony, there is seriously nothing that can stop you.
Saturday, March 1, 2014
I have the best job in the world!
Sent 2/24/2014
Bonjour à tous!!!!
This was a great week here in Beautiful Annecy France. The sun is shining, the gospel is true, and I have the best job in the world! Life is good :)
This week was just a really solid week of missionary work. We got to see a lot of our area (our area is stinkin huge, in two transfers I have still yet to see all of it.). We visited this sweet Romanian family that the Sisters are teaching. The Mom was baptized about a month ago, and one of the daughters is working on quitting smoking so she can be baptized. They are the nicest people ever. They have been going through some really hard stuff, and satan has been working really hard to discourage them. The mom was going to have to be deported back to Romania, but through a lot of faith, prayer, and help from the ward, she found a job (which is super hard to do here) and is now able to live here for the time being. She is very new to the gospel, but her faith in Jesus Christ is inspiring. Apparently she got in an argument with a Jehova's Witness who came to their house, and she defended the Book of Mormon to him. :) really cool family and if I stay in Annecy next transfer, you'll hear a lot more from them.
We also found a couple of people to teach. We have appointments for this week, and we will keep our fingers crossed. So hopefully next week i'll have some good stories.
On sunday, we brought this little boy named N___ to church. He is 10, but hasnt been baptized. His mom is inactive and doesnt come to church. The Sisters meet with her a lot, and apparently one time, the boy kinda got mad at his mom because he wanted to go to church. We live really close to them, so we worked something out so we are going to walk with him to church every week :) He has such stong faith, and it was funny we were walking home, and he saw one of his friends who basically asked what the heck he was doing, and he just said "it's necissary, I go to church every sunday" sorry for the bad translation, but basically he just said it very matter of fact-ly. It was very profound, and it really stuck with me. It made me really appreciative for the fact that I get to go to church.
Last story, Yesterday, me and my companion had a tombez vous, so we had an extra hour of work to do that we hadn't planned on. So normally this means we go out street contacting or door to door. But admittedly, we were kinda tired of that, and had done a lot during the week with no success, so we decided to switch it up a bit. I took my ukulule out with us, and my companion is a great singer. We just walked up to people and said, "can we sing for you?" The very first try was a beautiful, young family of four. They said yes (I was kinda surprised how easy it was) So we performed "somewhere over the rainbow" and they loved it! and after that they were very sparked, and asked us loads of questions. Long story short, we are going to go do a family home evening at their house soon!!!!! It made me and my companinon very happy to say the least.
I love you all, and my little thought for you this week is that God loves us, and wants us to be happy. I firmly believe that we choose to be happy. Its not always easy, and life is going to be full of ups and downs. But I can promise from experience that we just need to look at the bright side of things. God has to teach me this lesson over and over again because I'm so stinkin stubborn, but everytime I'm happy after a hard time here on the mission, its not because circumstances have changed, but more rather that I changed.
You guys are great, Have a fantastic week!
Bonjour à tous!!!!
This was a great week here in Beautiful Annecy France. The sun is shining, the gospel is true, and I have the best job in the world! Life is good :)
This week was just a really solid week of missionary work. We got to see a lot of our area (our area is stinkin huge, in two transfers I have still yet to see all of it.). We visited this sweet Romanian family that the Sisters are teaching. The Mom was baptized about a month ago, and one of the daughters is working on quitting smoking so she can be baptized. They are the nicest people ever. They have been going through some really hard stuff, and satan has been working really hard to discourage them. The mom was going to have to be deported back to Romania, but through a lot of faith, prayer, and help from the ward, she found a job (which is super hard to do here) and is now able to live here for the time being. She is very new to the gospel, but her faith in Jesus Christ is inspiring. Apparently she got in an argument with a Jehova's Witness who came to their house, and she defended the Book of Mormon to him. :) really cool family and if I stay in Annecy next transfer, you'll hear a lot more from them.
We also found a couple of people to teach. We have appointments for this week, and we will keep our fingers crossed. So hopefully next week i'll have some good stories.
On sunday, we brought this little boy named N___ to church. He is 10, but hasnt been baptized. His mom is inactive and doesnt come to church. The Sisters meet with her a lot, and apparently one time, the boy kinda got mad at his mom because he wanted to go to church. We live really close to them, so we worked something out so we are going to walk with him to church every week :) He has such stong faith, and it was funny we were walking home, and he saw one of his friends who basically asked what the heck he was doing, and he just said "it's necissary, I go to church every sunday" sorry for the bad translation, but basically he just said it very matter of fact-ly. It was very profound, and it really stuck with me. It made me really appreciative for the fact that I get to go to church.
Last story, Yesterday, me and my companion had a tombez vous, so we had an extra hour of work to do that we hadn't planned on. So normally this means we go out street contacting or door to door. But admittedly, we were kinda tired of that, and had done a lot during the week with no success, so we decided to switch it up a bit. I took my ukulule out with us, and my companion is a great singer. We just walked up to people and said, "can we sing for you?" The very first try was a beautiful, young family of four. They said yes (I was kinda surprised how easy it was) So we performed "somewhere over the rainbow" and they loved it! and after that they were very sparked, and asked us loads of questions. Long story short, we are going to go do a family home evening at their house soon!!!!! It made me and my companinon very happy to say the least.
I love you all, and my little thought for you this week is that God loves us, and wants us to be happy. I firmly believe that we choose to be happy. Its not always easy, and life is going to be full of ups and downs. But I can promise from experience that we just need to look at the bright side of things. God has to teach me this lesson over and over again because I'm so stinkin stubborn, but everytime I'm happy after a hard time here on the mission, its not because circumstances have changed, but more rather that I changed.
You guys are great, Have a fantastic week!
Salut!
Sent 2/17/2014
Salut!
Oh what a crazy week it has been!
It started of Monday with us getting on a train for our lesson with the less active family we have been working with. They are such amazing people, and it is really them who teach me. We taught them about the story of David and Goliath, and then worked it into how the Lord doesnt give us things that we cant handle (1 Néphi 3:7) And we got the family to recommence reading the book of mormon together! :)
After that we had to hurry and catch a train to take us to Geneva for exchanges (theres a theme starting here). Tuesday I worked with one of our Zone Leaders, Elder Elvidge. We taught a dominican Lady The plan of salvation, and it was awesome. There were 2 members present, and they made the lesson just amazing. I have such a huge testimony of having members present while teaching! They are a lot less weird than us 20 year old americans in shirts and ties. Geneva is a really cool city, and I met a lot of people from all over the world. I heard 6 different languages used in an hour!
The next day we had a zone conference, and it was all themed on love. Kinda Gushy, i know, but the theme was that "Love is the Key". We talked about how love makes everything happen. And we were challenged to study this and come up with the answer as to how love makes it all happen. I am far from a scriptorian, but the cool little thought that I had was when I read John 3:16, which goes something like "For God so loved the world, that he sent his only begotten Son." This is one of the most well known scriptures in the world, but for some reason it struck me a bit different this time around. It made me think about how much God LOVES us, and thats why we have the Atonement, which Christ did out LOVE for us. And the Atonement makes it so that we can live forever with our Families, people that we LOVE the most, etc...
So from what I have tried to take from this little epiphany, is to try and love others unconditionaly. If love makes everything happen, I need to love others to make stuff happen.
After zone conference we had to run and catch another train to take us to a city called Annemasse for another exhchange. We got to teach these two kids who were baptized this last saturday, and it was awesome. They were only 10 and 14 years old, but I was very impressed by their testimonies, and desire to follow the savior.
After that we took a train back to good ol Annecy, and we got home to find out that the power was out! HAha apparently the office had a mix up with the bills. Its all taken care of dont worry, but for the next little bit we get to live like the pioneers i guess :) oh the fun times that we have as missionaries :)
Anyways I Love you all. Like for reals. And even if that doesn't really mean a lot to you, Our Heavenly Father also loves you, and that means alot.
Have a good week!
Love Elder Duckworth
There is a place in geneva called Holy Cow, and this is me eating the King Kong Carnivore. There are like 5 different meats on this bad boy. They all said I couldnt do it, but I did.
Salut!
Oh what a crazy week it has been!
It started of Monday with us getting on a train for our lesson with the less active family we have been working with. They are such amazing people, and it is really them who teach me. We taught them about the story of David and Goliath, and then worked it into how the Lord doesnt give us things that we cant handle (1 Néphi 3:7) And we got the family to recommence reading the book of mormon together! :)
After that we had to hurry and catch a train to take us to Geneva for exchanges (theres a theme starting here). Tuesday I worked with one of our Zone Leaders, Elder Elvidge. We taught a dominican Lady The plan of salvation, and it was awesome. There were 2 members present, and they made the lesson just amazing. I have such a huge testimony of having members present while teaching! They are a lot less weird than us 20 year old americans in shirts and ties. Geneva is a really cool city, and I met a lot of people from all over the world. I heard 6 different languages used in an hour!
The next day we had a zone conference, and it was all themed on love. Kinda Gushy, i know, but the theme was that "Love is the Key". We talked about how love makes everything happen. And we were challenged to study this and come up with the answer as to how love makes it all happen. I am far from a scriptorian, but the cool little thought that I had was when I read John 3:16, which goes something like "For God so loved the world, that he sent his only begotten Son." This is one of the most well known scriptures in the world, but for some reason it struck me a bit different this time around. It made me think about how much God LOVES us, and thats why we have the Atonement, which Christ did out LOVE for us. And the Atonement makes it so that we can live forever with our Families, people that we LOVE the most, etc...
So from what I have tried to take from this little epiphany, is to try and love others unconditionaly. If love makes everything happen, I need to love others to make stuff happen.
After zone conference we had to run and catch another train to take us to a city called Annemasse for another exhchange. We got to teach these two kids who were baptized this last saturday, and it was awesome. They were only 10 and 14 years old, but I was very impressed by their testimonies, and desire to follow the savior.
After that we took a train back to good ol Annecy, and we got home to find out that the power was out! HAha apparently the office had a mix up with the bills. Its all taken care of dont worry, but for the next little bit we get to live like the pioneers i guess :) oh the fun times that we have as missionaries :)
Anyways I Love you all. Like for reals. And even if that doesn't really mean a lot to you, Our Heavenly Father also loves you, and that means alot.
Have a good week!
Love Elder Duckworth
There is a place in geneva called Holy Cow, and this is me eating the King Kong Carnivore. There are like 5 different meats on this bad boy. They all said I couldnt do it, but I did.
David and Goliath
Sent 2/10/2014
Bonjour Everybody!
Sorry i missed last week.
This last little bit has just been crazy! We are contacting like mad trying to find people to teach! This last week we contacted 721 people to show the Lord that we really want people to teach. And we actually taught a guy a legit official lesson! he kinda fell off of the face of the earth, but its progress! Also, we had 2 other lesson appointments, but they kinda bailed. But progress is progress, And things are really picking up!
It rained here all week, but that actually made contacting better, because people seem either really offended, or really impressed that you are crazy enough to brave the weather to share the message of the gospel with them.
My quick little thought this week is on David and Goliath. There was this gigantic man who everybody was scared to fight, except for little david, who was just there to bring people food. But he had faith in God, and was able to over come the giant. I would like to invite all of you to pick a Goliath in your life. No matter how big or small. But pick one, and go to the Lord for help. If you have faith, I promise you that you will be able to overcome your Goliath. And thats a missionary promise. They hold extra weight :)
Love you all, have a great week. Here are some pictures of some of the little towns that are in our area :)
Bonjour Everybody!
Sorry i missed last week.
This last little bit has just been crazy! We are contacting like mad trying to find people to teach! This last week we contacted 721 people to show the Lord that we really want people to teach. And we actually taught a guy a legit official lesson! he kinda fell off of the face of the earth, but its progress! Also, we had 2 other lesson appointments, but they kinda bailed. But progress is progress, And things are really picking up!
It rained here all week, but that actually made contacting better, because people seem either really offended, or really impressed that you are crazy enough to brave the weather to share the message of the gospel with them.
My quick little thought this week is on David and Goliath. There was this gigantic man who everybody was scared to fight, except for little david, who was just there to bring people food. But he had faith in God, and was able to over come the giant. I would like to invite all of you to pick a Goliath in your life. No matter how big or small. But pick one, and go to the Lord for help. If you have faith, I promise you that you will be able to overcome your Goliath. And thats a missionary promise. They hold extra weight :)
Love you all, have a great week. Here are some pictures of some of the little towns that are in our area :)
Live your life for others
Sent 1/27/2014
Bonjour!
This week was really great!
Not a whole lot of "action" but I just love doing this work, and although it does get really rough at times, i would honestly not have it any other way. I'm learning so much about myself, and about our savior and his love for us. Just in case any of you don't know it, God loves you :)
We had our lesson with our less active family and it went so well. Branch President Demure came with us, and it just went well. Their little boy had out his book of mormon picture book and asked if he could sit by me :) so adorable. But he already has is mind made up and wants to be baptised :) The family is basically just waiting on the dad. He has a killer testimony, and does so much for his familly. He just wants to make sure that he comes back to church for the right reasons. We will be meeting with them soon and they have commited to read the Book of Mormon together :)
If i were to give you all a summary of what i learned this week, it would be to try and live your life for others. I was going through a rough patch (as missionaries do) and things were just not going anywhere. But I thought of how Christ lived his life. He was always serving, and something i hadnt quite though of before is that he IMMEDIATELY forgave. As I have tried to apply these principles in my daily life our work has gone a zillion times better. Im far from perfect, but all the Lord asks from us is our effort and his grace is sufficient for the rest :)
I love you all, and i have felt your prayers. It sounds weird, but its true. I pray for you too and hope all goes well :)
Bonjour!
This week was really great!
Not a whole lot of "action" but I just love doing this work, and although it does get really rough at times, i would honestly not have it any other way. I'm learning so much about myself, and about our savior and his love for us. Just in case any of you don't know it, God loves you :)
We had our lesson with our less active family and it went so well. Branch President Demure came with us, and it just went well. Their little boy had out his book of mormon picture book and asked if he could sit by me :) so adorable. But he already has is mind made up and wants to be baptised :) The family is basically just waiting on the dad. He has a killer testimony, and does so much for his familly. He just wants to make sure that he comes back to church for the right reasons. We will be meeting with them soon and they have commited to read the Book of Mormon together :)
If i were to give you all a summary of what i learned this week, it would be to try and live your life for others. I was going through a rough patch (as missionaries do) and things were just not going anywhere. But I thought of how Christ lived his life. He was always serving, and something i hadnt quite though of before is that he IMMEDIATELY forgave. As I have tried to apply these principles in my daily life our work has gone a zillion times better. Im far from perfect, but all the Lord asks from us is our effort and his grace is sufficient for the rest :)
I love you all, and i have felt your prayers. It sounds weird, but its true. I pray for you too and hope all goes well :)
Prayers are answered
Sent 1/20/2013
Bonjour mes amis!
This week was great! we had an appointment everyday! We met with a lot
of less actives and it was a good experience to meet all these new
people. We got transfer calls and i am staying here in annecy for
another transfer
We had a really cool story this week,
A few days ago we got back to the apartment after a long days work. We
had a lot of dissapointments that day and we were really tired. I
offered to make dinner while my comp Elder Heck made some calls.(im
getting good at cooking.) The calls were going nowhere and on the
last number we had we got an answering machine. But the story doesnt
stop there!
The last number we called which was a less active family called us
back 5 min later and said ok we need to tell you guys somethig. It
turns out that they were praying that night as a family before dinner.
In the prayer, the dad asked heavenly father for help with some trials
that they are going through. Right after he finished the prayer is
when we called. They didnt recognize the number, so they didnt answer
but as soon as they heard the message they called us back.
As it turns out, the family wants to start coming back to church, and
they have a 8 year old son that they want to be baptized!!! they are
going to have us over soon to teach the missionary lessons!!! It was
such a miracle, and it was very humbling to be the means by which the
Lord did a miracle.
Such a cool story
I love you guys and My little thought for this week is that prayers
are answered. Not always immediately, but they are.
Have a good week!
Bonjour mes amis!
This week was great! we had an appointment everyday! We met with a lot
of less actives and it was a good experience to meet all these new
people. We got transfer calls and i am staying here in annecy for
another transfer
We had a really cool story this week,
A few days ago we got back to the apartment after a long days work. We
had a lot of dissapointments that day and we were really tired. I
offered to make dinner while my comp Elder Heck made some calls.(im
getting good at cooking.) The calls were going nowhere and on the
last number we had we got an answering machine. But the story doesnt
stop there!
The last number we called which was a less active family called us
back 5 min later and said ok we need to tell you guys somethig. It
turns out that they were praying that night as a family before dinner.
In the prayer, the dad asked heavenly father for help with some trials
that they are going through. Right after he finished the prayer is
when we called. They didnt recognize the number, so they didnt answer
but as soon as they heard the message they called us back.
As it turns out, the family wants to start coming back to church, and
they have a 8 year old son that they want to be baptized!!! they are
going to have us over soon to teach the missionary lessons!!! It was
such a miracle, and it was very humbling to be the means by which the
Lord did a miracle.
Such a cool story
I love you guys and My little thought for this week is that prayers
are answered. Not always immediately, but they are.
Have a good week!
Bonjour mes amis!!!!
Sent 1/13/2014
Bonjour mes amis!!!!
Sorry im mega short on time, but we taught a lesson!!!!!!!!
Its the last week of the transfer but we finally did it. I dont know if ive mentioned her, but there is this sweet muslim lady named F-- that we have been in contact with for the past few weeks, but have never beenable to fix a rendez vous with her untill last night! We pulled out all of the stops. My companion made bannana bread, and i brought my ukulele. Hes a really good singer and we did a couple of hymn renditions that would blow your socks off. We figured that theres no way she would say no. She really loved the book of Mormon, and was flipping through the pages the whole time. The spirit was there and we have built a really strong friendship with this lady (for family shes kinda like a muslim version of maria. She gives us candy alot). So after all of this we were feeling really good, and twords the end she basically said theres no way you guys will ever convert me...ouch. But miracles do happen. This lady still has agreed to listen to all of our lessons, and because we have made such a good impression on her, she is now calling her friends and setting up rendez vous with her friends for us. We have one rendez vous qllready set up, and another in the works. It didnt turn out quite how we planned, but the Lord really does bless us.
The sisters in our city had a baptism this last week. Shes this really nice Romanian lady who is about at my level of French. She was just so happy the whole time, and it was a great experience.
Anyways, I love you all, and so does our Heaveny Father!
Elder Duckworth
Serving others has always made me happy
Sent 1/6/2014
Bonjour!
Oh man, what a week!
We started the week with a goal to contact 500 people and we did it! It was hard, and involved a lot of walking, but we did it!
Since this week involved a lot of talking to people, i have a lot of stories. But ill just leave it at there are a lot of creepy people in this city :) we talked to a lot of good people as well. The French people really do have a good heart for the most part.
This week we ate dinner at a Families house which is always really nice. After Dinner, they let us teach them a lesson as if they were a new investigator family. It was the first time I had done this, and even though it was practice, It was really powerful to share the simple truths of the gospel with a family.
I also taugh Elders Quorum this last sunday. Its really hard in french. Good thing the french love to talk so I didnt really have to all that much. But one thing that came up really stuck with me. We were talking about charity. As a missionary, there are times where i have felt very strange, specific statements come to mind that i feel like I need to share. At the end of the lesson, I had one of those experiences. I said in the best french that i could that I know that there will always be trials in our lives, but as a missionary, i promise that if you serve others, you will always be happy.
I guess I would like to make the same promise to all of you guys as well. Trials are just part of life. But I can tell you from personal experience that serving others has always made me happy.
I love you all! have a good week
Elder Duckworth
Bonjour!
Oh man, what a week!
We started the week with a goal to contact 500 people and we did it! It was hard, and involved a lot of walking, but we did it!
Since this week involved a lot of talking to people, i have a lot of stories. But ill just leave it at there are a lot of creepy people in this city :) we talked to a lot of good people as well. The French people really do have a good heart for the most part.
This week we ate dinner at a Families house which is always really nice. After Dinner, they let us teach them a lesson as if they were a new investigator family. It was the first time I had done this, and even though it was practice, It was really powerful to share the simple truths of the gospel with a family.
I also taugh Elders Quorum this last sunday. Its really hard in french. Good thing the french love to talk so I didnt really have to all that much. But one thing that came up really stuck with me. We were talking about charity. As a missionary, there are times where i have felt very strange, specific statements come to mind that i feel like I need to share. At the end of the lesson, I had one of those experiences. I said in the best french that i could that I know that there will always be trials in our lives, but as a missionary, i promise that if you serve others, you will always be happy.
I guess I would like to make the same promise to all of you guys as well. Trials are just part of life. But I can tell you from personal experience that serving others has always made me happy.
I love you all! have a good week
Elder Duckworth
Joyeux Noel Everybody!
Sent 12/23/2013
Joyeux Noel Everybody!
Things are going well here in France! We now kinda sorta have one new ami (investigator) now. Her name is F-- and shes an oldish Muslim woman. We just ran into her on the street one day. We invited her to the English Class the sisters do on thursdays and she came. She is very shy, but she had a good time so we invited her to the branch Christmas party and she came and just had a smile on her face the whole time. I was worried how the ward would treat her because she is muslim, but they were great. They even gave her a ride home. She has comitted to come to church next week.
We spend a lot of hours here trying to track down people from the area book. But seeing as how we havent had elders here in years, we have yet to have any "success". A lot of people werent home, and 2 were dead. But things will pick up soon I just know it. we have had a 100% increase in investigators this week so lets hope the trend continues.
quick thought,
I had to bear my testimony on sunday, and it went well. I said everything I wanted to say in french which was nice. one thing I said was that Even though im away from my family for Christmas, i'm still with my brothers and sisters in the church. I really feel that the church is true everywhere, and the gospel brings everyone together.
Have a good week!
Elder Duckworth
Joyeux Noel Everybody!
Things are going well here in France! We now kinda sorta have one new ami (investigator) now. Her name is F-- and shes an oldish Muslim woman. We just ran into her on the street one day. We invited her to the English Class the sisters do on thursdays and she came. She is very shy, but she had a good time so we invited her to the branch Christmas party and she came and just had a smile on her face the whole time. I was worried how the ward would treat her because she is muslim, but they were great. They even gave her a ride home. She has comitted to come to church next week.
We spend a lot of hours here trying to track down people from the area book. But seeing as how we havent had elders here in years, we have yet to have any "success". A lot of people werent home, and 2 were dead. But things will pick up soon I just know it. we have had a 100% increase in investigators this week so lets hope the trend continues.
quick thought,
I had to bear my testimony on sunday, and it went well. I said everything I wanted to say in french which was nice. one thing I said was that Even though im away from my family for Christmas, i'm still with my brothers and sisters in the church. I really feel that the church is true everywhere, and the gospel brings everyone together.
Have a good week!
Elder Duckworth
France is amazing!
Sent 12/16/2013
bonjour tout la monde!
France is amazing! its good to finally be here
I dont have much time, but i just want to say that This is the lord's work. me and my companion are the first elders in a long time here in annecy, so we have a lot of work to do. since we didn't have the help of a previous companionship, we get to start from ground zero.
My quick thought is that small miricles happen all the time. i get to see them all the time.
Late one night me and my companion were walking to the store. it was dark, and i didnt really feel like talking to anybody. this Big african guy walked by and my companion stopped him. Long story short, the man bore a beautiful testimony about grace, and the savior right then and there on a street corner. Another night we were porting, and an old man let us in which rarely happens in france. he wqs atheist, but was kinda curious because he never heard of our church. we ended up talking for an hour, and basically gave him the whole first lesson. I was able to contribute with some gift of tongues business, and it was so cool.
anyways, i must go, but church is true
love elder duckworth
bonjour tout la monde!
France is amazing! its good to finally be here
I dont have much time, but i just want to say that This is the lord's work. me and my companion are the first elders in a long time here in annecy, so we have a lot of work to do. since we didn't have the help of a previous companionship, we get to start from ground zero.
My quick thought is that small miricles happen all the time. i get to see them all the time.
Late one night me and my companion were walking to the store. it was dark, and i didnt really feel like talking to anybody. this Big african guy walked by and my companion stopped him. Long story short, the man bore a beautiful testimony about grace, and the savior right then and there on a street corner. Another night we were porting, and an old man let us in which rarely happens in france. he wqs atheist, but was kinda curious because he never heard of our church. we ended up talking for an hour, and basically gave him the whole first lesson. I was able to contribute with some gift of tongues business, and it was so cool.
anyways, i must go, but church is true
love elder duckworth
Elder Duckworth goes to France
This is his actual flight in progress. 12/9/2013
Kyle arrives!
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Dear Family of Elder Duckworth,
Elder Duckworth will be serving in Annecy with Elder Heck. Their new address is 24 Blvd du Fier, F-7400 Annecy, France.
I am attaching a companionship picture below.
Your son has a wonderful trainer. He was our zone leader for the first 4 months of our mission.
Last email from the MTC
Sent 12/2/2013
Bonjour!
This is the last email you'll get from me from the MTC! In a week from today i'll be on a plane headed off to France.
I don't know how P-days will work or anything, but i'll figure it out soon enough.
Thanksgiving was cool here. Russel M Nelson came and spoke and it was really good. We also got to do a service project where we made 350,000 meals for local kids in need, and it was a really cool experience.
I thought alot of what i'm thankful for, and I found I'm really grateful to be a missionary, for my family, for my friends, and the gospel.
Unfortunately, I don't really have any cool stories from here, It gets pretty monotonous at times.
Cool spiritual thought for today:
I believe it's in D&C section 8, but it talks about how when Moses was leading his people out of Egypt, he was really going off of small promptings of the spirit. I had never really thought of that. I wonder what it was like for him just wandering and hoping he was doing the right thing. I find that comforting though, because at times, I feel like i'm kinda "wandering" at times. I do get spiritual promptings at times, especially as a missionary, but I feel like i'm calling a lot of my own shots at times. But that's how the Lord works. If Moses did all that stuff on his own with just small promptings of the spirit, I'm pretty sure I'll be able to make it.
I guess what I hope that you all get out of this, is that it's ok if at times, you feel like you're not receiving a lot of direction. If the Lord isn't telling you anything, that means that he trusts you. We have been given the agency to choose so that we can learn.
anyways, have a good week.
Bonjour!
This is the last email you'll get from me from the MTC! In a week from today i'll be on a plane headed off to France.
I don't know how P-days will work or anything, but i'll figure it out soon enough.
Thanksgiving was cool here. Russel M Nelson came and spoke and it was really good. We also got to do a service project where we made 350,000 meals for local kids in need, and it was a really cool experience.
I thought alot of what i'm thankful for, and I found I'm really grateful to be a missionary, for my family, for my friends, and the gospel.
Unfortunately, I don't really have any cool stories from here, It gets pretty monotonous at times.
Cool spiritual thought for today:
I believe it's in D&C section 8, but it talks about how when Moses was leading his people out of Egypt, he was really going off of small promptings of the spirit. I had never really thought of that. I wonder what it was like for him just wandering and hoping he was doing the right thing. I find that comforting though, because at times, I feel like i'm kinda "wandering" at times. I do get spiritual promptings at times, especially as a missionary, but I feel like i'm calling a lot of my own shots at times. But that's how the Lord works. If Moses did all that stuff on his own with just small promptings of the spirit, I'm pretty sure I'll be able to make it.
I guess what I hope that you all get out of this, is that it's ok if at times, you feel like you're not receiving a lot of direction. If the Lord isn't telling you anything, that means that he trusts you. We have been given the agency to choose so that we can learn.
anyways, have a good week.
Greetings from the exotic land of Provo!
Sent 11/25/2013
Hello Everybody!
Greetings from the exotic land of Provo!
I hope that everybody is doing well. I am having a great time here at the MTC and in my short 4 weeks, I have already learned so much It's Crazy. In only 2 weeks from today I'll be on a plane to France to begin the biggest adventure of my life, and i'm so excited.
Even though things are going really well here, I am starting to go crazy. I am laughing at the dumbest jokes now, and I do beleive that I haven't seen the sun in days. But it's all worth it.
My thought for everybody this week is about Faith.
Since being in the MTC, it has truly been an emotional/spiritual roller coaster. I have never felt the spirit so strong in my life, But at the same time, I do feel that that makes the adversary really mad.
I have found myself at times feeling inadequate. I start comparing myself to others, and get discouraged. But all I have going for me is my faith. But now that I've thought about it, that's all that I need. I may not be a scriptorian, and if i'm to be honest, i've lived a lot of my life not being the best I can be, but I do know that this is where I need to be, And that the lord wouldn't have me anywhere else, and that gives me great power. When I realize that I am just an Instrument in the lord's hands, It takes a lot of pressure of of me. When I just put my faith in the Lord, Really great things happen.
I love you all and truly do appreciate the support that you give me.
Avez-vous une bonne semaine, et je vous aime.
Elder Duckworth.
Hello Everybody!
Greetings from the exotic land of Provo!
I hope that everybody is doing well. I am having a great time here at the MTC and in my short 4 weeks, I have already learned so much It's Crazy. In only 2 weeks from today I'll be on a plane to France to begin the biggest adventure of my life, and i'm so excited.
Even though things are going really well here, I am starting to go crazy. I am laughing at the dumbest jokes now, and I do beleive that I haven't seen the sun in days. But it's all worth it.
My thought for everybody this week is about Faith.
Since being in the MTC, it has truly been an emotional/spiritual roller coaster. I have never felt the spirit so strong in my life, But at the same time, I do feel that that makes the adversary really mad.
I have found myself at times feeling inadequate. I start comparing myself to others, and get discouraged. But all I have going for me is my faith. But now that I've thought about it, that's all that I need. I may not be a scriptorian, and if i'm to be honest, i've lived a lot of my life not being the best I can be, but I do know that this is where I need to be, And that the lord wouldn't have me anywhere else, and that gives me great power. When I realize that I am just an Instrument in the lord's hands, It takes a lot of pressure of of me. When I just put my faith in the Lord, Really great things happen.
I love you all and truly do appreciate the support that you give me.
Avez-vous une bonne semaine, et je vous aime.
Elder Duckworth.
Lovely pics
Sent 11/18/2013
Bonjour tout le monde!
I am out of time for this weeks email, but here are some lovely pics to tide you over untill next week.
Bonjour tout le monde!
I am out of time for this weeks email, but here are some lovely pics to tide you over untill next week.
Feel not Smell
Sent 11/11/2013
Bon Jour tout le monde!
I've made it to yet another P Day. Everything is going great here so far. The Lord really helps those who are doing his work. The french is coming on slowly, but surely. I've been able to witness his hand in several people's lives, including my own.
This week honestly has been kinda boring, not going to lie. But I've come to realize that i'm not here for me. I will sometimes get really distracted during study time (it's very self regulated here. We are by ourselves a lot and its up to us to stay on task). the good thing is that i know that its worth it. When i teach the practice lessons with investigators, i feel really good inside, and i know that that's what i want to do. That is what gets me through the long hours in the classroom.
Funny story for the week,
When preparing for our lessons, we have to do a lot of research on how to say things en français. One word was Sentir, which we thought means to feel as in "feel the spirit". Which wasn't totally wrong, but we used it a lot, and it more directly translates to feel as in senses, especially as in to smell. So we had taught like 5 lessons telling Steven, our investigator, that when he prays, he will smell the spirit. haha its so good that it's just practice.
anyways, I love you all and have a good week
Je veux rendre mon témoinage a vous. Je sais que l'eglise est vrais, et que Dieu et Jésus-Christ nous aiment. Je vous aime, et je sais que les choses que je fais sont que Dieu veut me faire.
Elder Duckworth
P.s. i'm flying to San Fransisco tomorrow to visist the french consolate, so thats kinda cool.
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