Bonjour bonjour!!!!‏

Bonjour tout le monde!  How is everyone doing!?  It sounds like everything is going well!   Carson i am so glad to hear about your awesome homerun and it is also cool to see that connor is just tearing it up on the volleyball team!  I am so proud of the hard work that is being put into each of their respective sports!  Also mom thank you so much for the great little talk!  I wish you could be out here on the mission with me because you would be shocked at all the talks and all the spiritual things we discover out here.  Its funny because just as i am out here changing a little bit i can see that you are changing too.  I don't remember the last time you watched a talk on BYU Channel!  That is so fun!  I don't know if i would even do that!  ok so maybe i would now but still i think it is great that you found some time to go and watch that.  Dad i am glad to hear that training is almost for the stinkin french plane.  If it is as intelligent as the french roads, french government and the french mindset on who God is, then i equally feel you pain.....  I hope that all is good and that you can get some nice rest soon.  I assume that'll be much needed :)

So as usual things in Brussels are just the best and super miraculous!  This weekend we baptized a man and also the other companionship baptized the sweetest mother and her daughter.  It was so great and honestly the spirit was so so so strong!  It was just the best in all honesty and in a couple weeks we will have the baptisms of two other men.  Kevin, the 16 year old is going to have to wait for permission from his dad so as far as baptism goes for this weekend that probably wont happen but maybe the 24th of next month.  The kid is just so stellar but is just having to wiat for the date.  That is ok though.  He is in God's hands.  So yes like i said Two more Baptisms on the 17th!  That will be for ANOTHER one of Andrew's friends!  he is jus the best i'll tell ya!  He is just sharing the gospel with everyone and i just love him.  When people say that miracles don't exist they have no clue what God can work in the lives of others.  So his name is Charles and if he wants to he could be baptized this weekend.  We'll see.  Also the other man is named Michel.  Ready for a miracle story?! 

SEPERATE PARAGRAPH!!!!  So this man michel.  The very first day Elder Petersen and I were together we were helping people get through brussels.  Well we went to the Station to wait for a train and it was supposed to come in like 10 minutes and so we decided to go and contact while we had remaining time.  We go out and contact a man named Michel, get his number and then have time to go back inside.  Soooo finally we get a rendez-vous with this guy and he seemed pretty interested so we were excited.  So we went and had our lesson and it was one of the best first lessons ever taught!  So good!  The spirit was so strong.  He even brought his Book of Mormon to the Rendez-vous.  KEY!  So we bear testimony about the restoration and all and he is just loving it.  So then he wants to bear testimony.  Now, let me tell you something.....When a person who isn't a member wants to bear testimony to a missionary, MOST of the time, not all but most of the time, either they are crazy, two think we are jehovah witnesses, or three want to start preaching to us, SO we weren't super at ease when he said that.  However his was nice.  He said that he had been Catholic his whole life and he even provided a church for a Pastor one time.  Well this pastor after aquiring the chapel kicked out Michel and other men who had helped get the chapel.  He basically just through them all under the bus.  So he continued being faithful through it all but he definately left that congregation.  So that all happened in 1998.  Well this Christmas he had what he called a revelation, where God told him "You need to find a church and you will then also receive something precious."  He said it was weird because i kept playing that through my head and i looked.  He even went to Sacré Coeur in Paris to find more direction and then of course we contact him just after.  He then tells us that this PRECIOUS message is exactly what he was looking for.  Elder Petersen and i both immediately had the strongest impression to invite him to be baptized with a specific date.  So we said March 17th and the accepted.  HOW AWESOME IS THAT!!!!!!!! GOD ANSWERS Prayers!!!!  I loved it so much.  Since then we have seen him 4 times and he has come to church.  He even said that he wanted to stay in the church to the entire elder's quorum when introducing himself!  I love him and it is just such a miracle. 

My heart is filled with so much joy!  I can't even tell you!  I love you all so much.  I will being seeing you guys soon and i just can't wit to share all these things with you in person.  So Yeah i love you and we'll talk to you soon!

Elder Hoopes