#ÉCLAIREZleMONDE

Hello!

On Tuesday, we had the opportunity to do an exchange with annemasse. I was happy to be with elder Hekking because he is in my same group. We got to teach Michel and he really understood the plan of salvation. It was amazing to see him captivated by the plan of our Heavenly Father. We also helped a family move because they are going to Arizona. Then we got offered drugs in the park. I said no and we left. Then we ate raclette for dinner. That's a good day in anyone's book.

Elder Ramsey did a really good district meeting on the first great commandment.

We had a meeting with the sisters and we started out the meeting with 'as sisters in zion' and they told us that we were the coolest elders ever. I didn't dare say anything because I actually really enjoy that song.

I was preparing to teach Michel the gospel of Jesus Christ and I read 3 Nephi 9:13. It talks about how Jesus heals. I know that he does. I've let it and I got really excited to share it with him.

On Saturday we did a lot of contacting. I don't think that elder Kelsey was very happy about it but we had a good time!

I've gotten really excited about the new video that the church put out. We got new cards and I've been giving them out like crazy. If you haven't seen the video, go watch it. I hope that all of us can follow the saviours example throughout this holiday season.

Love,
Elder Marshall Underwood

Hello les Elders, juste pour info: 

à garder juste pour vous pour le moment car son père ne le sait pas encore  : Maria la fille de Mario et Claudia a décidé de se faire baptiser!On attend juste qu'elle ose demander l'autorisation à son Papa qui normalement devrait la laisser faire....

Les graines que vous avez semées poussent et donnent du fruit. Merci 😊

Bonne continuation , 

Les Vendassi

This is an email sent from Elder Vendassi. A senior missionary in Bastia on Corsica. Maria is a daughter in that family that I found in Bastia. The DaSilva Barbosas. The email written in French in July 2016 talks about this family. Maria needs to ask her dad for permission to be baptized, but he has already said that he would let her if she wants to. Elder Vendassi said "The seeds you have planted, grow and give fruit. Thank you"

Thankful

Hello,

We are working really hard with a couple of people with a Baptismal date right now. I hope that we will be able to help them to where they want to go.

Other than that it's work as usual. Geneva is still one of my favorite places on earth. I haven't been to a ton of places but still.

I hope that you all have a great Thanksgiving. I won't celebrate it here but that is ok.

I apologize that this letter is so short. I don't have much more to say other than the fact that I am very grateful for where I am and what I'm doing. I'm thankful for you and the prayers you send up to heaven for me.

Love,
Elder Marshall Underwood

This is the Garcia Family. They were baptized last month. 

Elder Underwood and Elder Berry worked with them when they served in Perigueux

Déjà-vu

Hello,

This week was really great. We went to Lyon for a leadership conference and then on Thursday we trained our zone. This weekend was stake conference and I learned a lot. Today, we did a training and holiday party with our zone. It was really good. It was a lot of work to put together and I felt like I was back in senior year.

Today I learned that the metaphor of the wise man that built his house upon the rock and the story of Peter walking on water go together perfectly. In our world, we live on stormy seas. There's no escaping it. If we want to have a solid foundation, we must learn to walk on water. We know someone who has. Let us mirror Him.

Love,
Elder Marshall Underwood

Comment ça s'écrit, "maman, je t'aime?"

This week we saw an amazing miracle.

There is a part member family that wewent to go see. We walked in and the dad made small talk with us Elder Kelsey then asked him what was new and the flood gates opened He told us a lot of personal things and then got out his scriptures. he said, "Elders, I know that there are answers in here. But, when it says "see Mark 3:5" I have no clue what that means. Can you help me?" We ehlped him understand the scriptures a little bit and then we asked him if he had ever thought about being baptized He said that a lot of the members of the church say that they "see him in white." He was quiet for awhile and then he said - yes.

So, I guess more new to come. We have a lot of work to do, but his life is about to change.

Love,
Elder Marshall Underwood

Perfect Love Casteth Out All Fear

This week was a wonderful week for me to learn. We have talked before about the bus situation here in Geneva, because it's actually illegal, and I have encouraged the missionaries in Geneva to talk to people anyway and wait for those questions to come. However, when I got onto the bus on Tuesday morning, I found myself hesitant and reluctant to talk to anyone. I didn't understand why. I felt really hypocritical for a while before I realized that I have never really taken buses on my mission. This was my moment to learn!

Two things helped me:
1. What if love were out only motivation? This question was burned into my soul and I lost myself in the possibilities of it. I got so excited to love people! I always told myself that when I finish my mission, I will be so kind and loving, but I wasn't doing anything to improve that attribute.

2. Don't overcome your fears, just leave them behind. This is what the spirit told me when I was walking to the bus one morning this week. I was thinking about how I needed to over come the fear of what people would think of me on the bus and go to work. I often think of overcoming fears as a long, uphill battle. However, the spirit helped me realize that it would be much easier if I forgot that I had any fear. So, I figuratively took the fear out of myself and imagined myself placing the burden on the sidewalk next to me. The spirit just brought to my memory that "perfect love casteth out all fear." These two things are actually connected. I wouldn't have been able to cast out the fear if I didn't decide that I wanted to love people, no matter who they were or what they would think of me.

The rest of the week went really well on the buses. Not everyone wants to have a gospel conversation but I always seem to be able to tell them who I am and what I'm doing. I will get better. I really try to talk to everyone because I don't really care if someone thinks I'm weird. For example, one day, we talked to about 20 people from 16 different countries! Egypt, Kenya, Russia, Portugal, Zimbabwe, Togo, Poland, China, Bahamas, Greece, France, Switzerland, Colombia, Brazil, Afghanistan, England. Wow! I love Geneva. I hope I will stay here for a long time.

We lost a couple engages this week, but don't worry, we will find some more!

I love you,

Elder Marshall Underwood

Halloween Costume - A Missionary

Double Whammy

I met two people this week that I really appreciated.

The first one was a referral that we got a couple weeks ago with whom we had set a meeting for this week. We went to his house and he warmly invited us in. As we began talking, he expressed to us that he had read the Book of Mormon, asked us for the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price, told us that he loves the gospel library app, took a Book of Mormon for his daughter... As you can guess, we were pretty shocked. He already knew the role of Joseph Smith so we did not spend any time there. We went straight to the gospel of Jesus Christ because he asked us if we could teach him how to repent. He has some worries that will keep him from baptism for a while, but it is his goal and we hope to help him.

The next one was a man that we met a couple weeks ago too. We were in the park and we know that we were there to see a miracle. We met the people that we thought were our miracle. It turns out that they weren't and so we walked away. Elder Kelsey asked, "where should we go?" I looked around and said, "there it is." We walked swiftly to a couple and started talking to them. The man was very kind and his job is to teach people how to be compassionate. I asked him when we could see him again and he said, "that's tempting." I said, "I know, so when can we see each other again." He didn't know his schedule too well so we took his number.

Fast forward to this week.

We called him up and set a meeting for Saturday. It was about ten minutes past the time and so I thought that he wasn't going to come. However, at that moment, he walked around the corner and apologized for being late. After a quick tour of the chapel, we looked for a room and sat down together. He is a very smart man that studied to be a catholic priest. We asked why he didn't become one and he explained that it was because he knew that the bible was compiled by men, many things have been changed and the religion didn't follow what's written in the bible. I told him that he was exactly right and then elder Kelsey and I presented the message of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. After we described the authority that Jesus had, he said, "oh, so the restoration means that it's a return to the purity of the doctrine taught by Jesus Christ. It was incredible to see how much sense that it made in his head. We finished the message and he sat quietly. I could tell that he was thinking. He then explained, "I'm trying to decide my next step. Is it to read the Book of Mormon? Is that what you would counsel me?" We of course said yes and asked him, as he receives a testimony of the book, if he would be baptized. He understood the progression and agreed to pray right there. He went on to offer possibly the most sincere prayer I have ever heard. After we said amen, I told him that it was one of the most sincere prayers I have ever heard and he broke into tears.

I don't really understand what happened on these two occasions but I know that God just stepped into the lives of two men, and I was there to witness it.

Love,
Elder Marshall Underwood

Fruition

I don't remember what I did this week. I'm so scrambled because the Garcias got baptised. I taught them almost everything with Elder Berry in my first area. I'm just so happy!

I did get to go on an exchange with Elder Ramsey. It was fun because we used to be companions and we got to work together again.

That's basically everything important.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the church that Jesus established upon the earth. It was lost, but the good news is that it came back!

Love,
Elder Marshall Underwood

Rainbow

This week was a good one. It started out with us having to go get some more mattresses and sheets at ikea in preparation for a bunch of elders to sleep at our house. We put everything into the cart and were walking towards the register when we looks at our boring white sheets and stopped. IKEA is a beautiful place full of selection. Long story short, we tossed those ugly sheets and bought every color of the rainbow.

We got to teach Isis again. She is great. We went over the plan of salvation in the park. We used leaved and helicopter seeds to draw it out on the pavement and it made a lot of sense to her. I hope that next time that we invite her to be baptised, she will say yes. But, for this week, she told me that she would read first nephi!

On Thursday, we got to go to Lyon for a conference. I love those because I get to see a lot of people, but I usually just end up chatting with elder Pesnell during lunch. The conference was great and we got to announce that the area book app on the iPad will be used now. I got to use it in Philly and it's really a blessing. At the conference, we played human hungry hungry hippos and Geneva zone won, of course. That night, we got to present to the high council. I always love doing that because it helps a lot to be connected with the entire stake in our efforts.

On Friday we went to a members home and he was writing in a Book of Mormon. He said that his son had a tutor over that was studying religions and that he might as well show him the true one. So, he handed that to him when he came out and the tutor was very grateful. Hopefully he'll give it a read.

On Saturday there was a talent show. Me and elder Kelsey and the sisters sang. It was pretty good.

On Sunday we got invited to dinner at one of the English members homes. It was really weird because they are from Texas. It was quite bizarre to walk into an American home and eat some American food and talk with Americans. I know that most of my companions are Americans, but it's different when it's an entire family.

Anyway, great week. I'm so happy to be here in Geneva, inviting everyone to learn of Christ.

I would like to give a shoutout to the relief society from the union park 3rd ward for the taco seasoning. It was greatly needed.

Love,
Elder Marshall Underwood