Time to learn some Spanish??? (Jacob-Brive)

Well it was a huge surprise when on Friday I received the "Elder Pettingill, your mom wants to know your status in the transfer, Elder Bria" text. Well the obvious response was well I love my mom, but no! But now the wait it over and you can know that I will be staying here in Brive but this afternoon I will be shipping Elder Adamson off to Albi (which is super sad because he was such a good companion and we got along so well and I love him so much) and I will be picking up Elder Martinez-Granados!!!! I was so excited when President said his name!! I never even thought it would be possible to serve with someone who came in with you!! I love him so much and it will be so much fun serving with him! Plus he loves running in the morning!!!!!!! (We'll see if that is still true but I can hope right?) It has been great to be able to just list off facts to the members about my new companion because I already know him so well from the MTC!  He is one of the first Spanish (from Spain) Elders so that will be awesome because we have a bunch of Spanish speakers that we have met but could not communicate well enough to go farther than Que tal? And even more we have seen them over and over so basically I am excited. 

Elder Pettingill's MTC roommates, including Elder Martinez

Other awesome things that happened things this week. Yesterday we had two of our amis come to church!! Allain, who is prevued for the 29 march for the baptism, and Olivia who is so golden and is actually Americainne. It was so awesome because the testimony meeting was so powerful and made me feel so good! I asked Olivia how she felt and she was like.. "well basically I have never felt so welcomed and loved anywhere else by strangers and also I felt weird... like I can't describe it. not bad though just a feeling that I don't really know." So cool! They both said that they want to come back and so that is super sweet! The ward here is so awesome and I am so grateful for them. It is so crazy how important members are in missionary work! 

Also amazing miracle! We got our first coordonees (referral) from the church. It so happens that our district leader Elder Moeller happened to meet a lady on the train going back from an exchange and talked with her for almost the ride. They taught all about the restoration and the Plan of Salvation and even invited her to be baptized. She apparently just loved it all and is super excited! But anyway she just happens to live an hour and a half  to 2 hours from our ward, the Clermont Ferrand ward and the Rodez branch and is the closest to  us. SO I am super excited to work over in Aurillac...

Aurillac

I also had an amazing exchange with Elder Moeller who will be leaving for Corsica but he taught me so much and I feel so much love for him!! We worked so hard and I realized a couple things. The Gospel is the way to become like Christ and that God has mercifully put down every stepping stone so that we don't even really have to make choices. The only choice we really have to make in this life is whether we want to try our capacity and do some of the things that we want to do to TRY and be happy or if we want to just give up ALL our will and do the things that the Lord has PROMISED will make us happy. Life is so simple. Also life is so much simpler when we do that because we don't have to fight within ourselves for every choice we make. Also I learned that I never want to go off my mission. Yesterday we went over to an amazing members house and basically he scared us soo much. His son is coming home from his mission soon and so he found a talk that talked all about how many missionaries get home and then fall away because they lose habits. So that just pushed me to want to REALLY SERIOUSLY APPLY and find the principles of the Gospel that will help me succeed no matter what rhythm of life I am in and I will be able to overcome all the fiery darts of the adversary (my scripture of the week is Helaman 5:12).

Well I love you all and I hope you know that the Lord loves you. I know that this church has the full gospel of Christ and that through Christ we can do all things. Read your scriptures, say your prayers, and please please don't ever stop going to church. 

With so much love you can't imagine because you can't see the people who I am with,

Elder Pettingill