March 3, 2024

 Bonjour à tous,

Things are moving at lightning speed here in the Paris France Mission. There's a saying that "Paris time is different from other time," and it's so true! Our days are jam-packed and fly by, so I'll do my best to share some highlights.

We experienced an absolute miracle with one of our friends. She's been attending church for the past 12/13 Sundays, but whenever we brought up baptism, she always said she wasn't ready. This Sunday, we had a wonderful discussion, and later that day, we sent her a conference talk that I found particularly inspiring. A few minutes later, she texted us and said, "Hello Elder Smith, I think I'm ready for baptism". It was an amazing miracle, and we're so grateful for the many prayers that supported her progression.

We also had a fantastic zone conference and visited the temple. I was able to take my own name and do an endowment session in French, which was a special experience. It's so rewarding to be able to speak and understand another language, and the spirit at the temple was truly powerful. One of our main focuses as a mission is helping our friends progress toward the temple, not just baptism. 

Quick miracle: we were able to get 7 of our friends to church this last Sunday! Which was an absolute miracle! It's cool to see how much the Lord has strengthened us in our efforts.

**Spiritual Thought:**

As missionaries, we often discuss the Apostasy. While preparing for a lesson, we came across a scripture in Matthew 24:24:

"For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."

This scripture speaks of the Great Apostasy, a period after the deaths of Jesus Christ and the Twelve Apostles when the priesthood was lost and false Christs and prophets arose. My mission has strengthened my testimony of our living Prophet and his role in guiding us today. He is a true Prophet, called of God. I invite you to read his latest general conference talk—it's truly inspiring and has deepened my own testimony.

À bientôt,
Elder Smith

Posterity Picture: My father, Me, My son


St. Eustache Cathedral




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