May 12, 2014

Hello EVERYONE!!!  So this week has been so great! I had a great time skyping my Mom and Dad.  It made me a little homesick, but this week has been full of miracles! :) 

First, below is a picture of my two amis in Chartres: Gwen and Maria. They were baptized last week. It made me so happy!

So starting off, we found 2 new amis!!! One was on an exchange and it was pouring rain, but we continued and were blessed for it. The other ami is a long story. This past week was Fast Sunday and Elder Smith and I have fasted and prayed our butts off so that we could find someone.  The next day the ami, that we will eventually contact, watched a LDS commercial. He called the United States and sent in his info. Then on Thursday we got his referral from Church Headquarters and we set up our first rendezvous with him. He is 19 years old! his name is Aly. He said he wants to become a member and that he knew that this was the right path for him. We gave him a Book of Mormon and explained all about it. Then we invited him to be baptized....and he accepted! :) It was sooo cool. Such a great moment. The Spirit was there so strong.


This week has been one of my favorite weeks. It is amazing how prayer and fasting work. Our Heavenly Father always hears our prayers. We just need to have patience and hope that they will be answered because they always will. I hope you guys had a great week like I had! I love you all!!!

See you next week! :)

Elder Peterson

Here's a picture of us making crepes. C'est la classe! NUTELLA BABY!!!

Notes from Mom:

It was so wonderful to see Evan and hear him speak French which he is so amazing at!
His apartment is very large. It consists of a living room, kitchen, a bedroom, 2 study rooms, and a bathroom.
Evan skyped from the Branch President's home.
They work with the inactive members by teaching them lessons.
His favorite place to eat is KBobs which they go to once a week.
Evan's Mission President, President Poznanski is being released this June.
Hair cuts are around 20 euros.
Suits cleaned 15 euros.
He and the other 3 elders cover 140,000 people in the city of Amiens.  They have one branch with only 50 people.
Foods they can't get there are Cream of Chicken soup.
One of his comps loves to cook and makes them everything from Mexican to African to Thai Curry.
France's Mother's Day is next week.
Favorite foods there are Couscous and Raclette which is a type of cheese that gets melted and poured over other foods like potatoes and ham.

May 6, 2014

Hello everyone!!! So this week has been really great! I can't believe I have been out for 6 months.

We had zone conference and our district had our interviews with President Poznanski. That was my last interview with him before he and his wife leave and the new President comes in. He said he is proud of me and I was king of shocked because sometimes I am just a little too hard on myself so that really uplifted me.

The most exciting news happened!!! Two of the investigators that I taught for a long time in Chartres finally got baptized,...Gwen and Maria!!! I am so happy they were baptized...so happy! I remember when we were first teaching them.  They have progressed so far. Elder Eldredge should be sending me pics of them soon.

Other than that exciting news, Elder Smith and I have been still trying to find people. We have seen some great potentials but it is hard for us to get a hold of them but I know that we will find people soon!

I got a package from the Raubenheimers! That really made my week. Especially the candy...haha. I loved it. Thanks...I miss you guys!

Have a great week!!! I love you! Until next week! :)

Elder Peterson

Pics:  Me with a new haircut...

April 28, 2014

Hello everyone! This week has been really good! We have been working really hard and have been finding some potentials. So that is a huge blessing!

This week we went into Paris for a District meeting. Afterwards we had a lot of time before our train arrived so we decided to go to Sacre Coeur (Holy Heart). It is a Cathedral that supposedly has the heart of Peter or Paul, one of those dudes. So anyways, we walk up the huge staircase to get to this place and then we saw a line of some black dudes. They stared at us and we kept on walking. When we got closer they grabbed our hands and put this string on our hands. They kept on saying, "Hakuna Matata" and "Don't worry, be happy." Then they started making a bracelet.  I was talking to the guy who was making mine and we had a good conversation but I knew they were there to take our money. After they were done they kept harrassing us for money. I ended up paying 4 euros for mine. Another missionary spent 10 euros. haha. So the moral of the story is...when someone says "Hakuna Matata," don't trust them. haha

Other than that Elder Smith and I have been working hard and having a fun time while doing it. When people reject you it is better to just have fun and laugh it off. We were actually able to talk with a lot of people and we have been able to teach lessons on the street. This place is amazing!!! :)

Love you guys!!! Have a great week!

Elder Evan Peterson

Mom's notes:  The Branch President's name is Elder Allanic.  He is a senior missionary. They are running out of people to be Branch President.

Pics. First is me at the Amiens' Cathedral. The second is Me, Elder Smith and Elder Barr (one of the other missionaries in our apartment). We are at Sacre Coeur.

Another pic: This is the Amiens Cathedral.  Supposedly the head of John the Baptist is here.