Elder Chase Player: Week 8 - Miracles in Brussels!

This week has been another great week. Since there is no celebration in Belgium for the 4th of July we had our own. We "pledged Allegiance" to the flag and ate on American Flag plates. During our pledging we heard water running and went into the kitchen to check it out. The whole kitchen was flooded because the sink backed up. We spent most of the morning mopping, cleaning up the mess and getting a plumber in to fix it.

After emailing last Monday we were off the see the city and do some shopping. I had my first Belgian Waffle covered in Nutella - Yum! We went and saw the Grand Place and Manican Piss - suppossedly a huge thing...google it. There is a huge mall here and everything is on sale for summer soldes! They only listen to Amerian music so it felt like I was shopping in America with European clothes. (They have skinny ties here so I had to get a couple to blend in!) After, we had a lesson with Adalbert. It took us an hour to get there and on our way we had a man stop us and say, "I want to talk to you". We told him we would call him later. Adalbert gave us cokes and the whole shebang and than we started talking. We had given him a Book of Mormon and challenged him to read the intro. He had read the intro and all the testimonies and highlighted it. He had questions that we tried to answer as best we could. So cool! We taught about the restoration and how the Church has been restored in these latter days. I did the first vision for the first time in France and it was so amazing and the spirit was so strong. Adalbert's nephew came in later and listened too and said he knew that what we were saying was true because we were the proof and he could feel something. Adalbert walked us to the bus stop, which was different than the one we had used to get there, but we still made it home eventually. We called the man, Mosa, who stopped us on the way to Adalbert's and he said he knew we were messengers of God and he needed to make time for us because this was a great opportunity for him. I've heard stories like this but had no idea it would happen to me. People are truly being prepared!

Tuesday we had dinner with an American Family. They are the Curtis family and are related to people in my ward back in SLC, Utah. Small world! We had pizza hut - delicious! After dinner our appointment fell through and we only had an hour so we said a little prayer and asked where we should go. I felt like we should check on one of our "amis", Phillipe, and see how he was doing. After two rings nobody answered but than somebody in the same apartment, who lives with Phillipe, said, "come on up". We met Kingsley and Marsella, a married couple from Nigeria and Spain. Phillipe had told them about us and they wanted to talk to us. We gave them a Book of Mormon and taught them three times during the week. They both said they have felt the spirit and know that Joseph Smith is a prophet and know that this is true. They want to be baptized but need time to get ready. Last night we challenged them to not smoke for three days and they both accepted. He speaks English and she only speaks Spanish so we are teaching in 3 languages now. The crazy thing is we can understand her quite a bit. I'm telling you the gift of tongues is true.

On Wednesday we had a district meeting and a mini-Zone conference. On Thursday we celebrated a little for the fourth and then went and met with Mosa again. He had invited a friend, Emerson, and than the next lesson he invited another friend, Cedarik. He's already a good missionary. Mosa even came to church this week and loved it. He wants to come again next week and bring his daughter. They all accepted a baptismal date, meaning if they receive an answer they will be baptized. Mosa speaks English and Emerson and Cedarik speak French. So Mosa said, "Elder Player you teach me. Elder Davis you teach them." So,we teach in opposite corners. Amazing!

I love it here and it still shocks me when I think, "Wow! I'm on a mission - in Belgium." All those stories of people being prepared or miracles happening are really true. I know it will all my heart. Christ and God live and my testimony is growing stronger every day. The people here have extreme faith in the Lord. Have a great week and remember I love hearing from you and love you all so much. Here are a few quotes I found this week.

"Though the expanse of continents or oceans may separate us, hearts are as one." President Thomas S. Monson

"It is true intelligence for a man to take a subject that is mysterious and great in itself, and to unfold and simplify it so that a child can understand it." President John Taylor

PS...Yesterday at testimony meeting a young boy said, "I know God said no smoking because it kills you, Amen.