Elder Taylor Fawcett: Week 10 - Miracles in Spanish

Hola,

Este semana fue lo máximo! This week was great! My companion and I went to Cusco all week to do things for his Passport, so I was on splits with the Zone Leaders all week and it was fantastic! We worked really hard together and saw a lot of amazing miracles.

The longer I am here the more I am astonished by the poverty of the people down here. They have nothing worldly! But they have one thing and that is their families and loved ones. It’s very interesting to watch how a family who has nothing is so willing to give anything they can to the missionaries. Each house we are in, we are offered something. Every single one! I truly know that these people need to hear the gospel because they all are so prepared for it!

One of the interesting things about tracking down here is the dogs! The whole dog situation down here is pretty awful. We are constantly chased by dogs, they are everywhere. Dogs of every breed, shape and size. But the dogs are very very different from the ones back home! These dogs are very mean! We get chased by a dog at least once a day, sometimes it’s pretty scary especially when it’s a mega, mean hungry dog! But, the secret is if you just throw a rock at them, they leave you alone.

When I finally returned to my sector with my companion, we got right back to work! Sadly... our investigator family we have been teaching and had committed to baptism is no longer committed. The father of the family who has felt the spirit so strong in our lessons, is beginning to deny it all. It’s really tough. He will not allow for the rest of his family to be baptized, but my companion and I are going to continue to do all we can to help him.

The family is so incredibly poor, the father just has trouble thinking about paying tithing in the future. With more faith and work, my companion and I hope to get him to commit to baptism! We have 2 baptisms this week, and my companion is going to be baptizing them. It truly is incredible (the work). We walk all day every day, uphill praying for the strength to push onward. As we do so, the Lord truly does bless us.

Most of our investigators right now are fairly early in the teaching process. So, one of the things I taught a lot this week was how to pray. This is perhaps my favorite thing to teach. It truly is incredible to see and hear a person pray for the first time in their life. My favorite experience was teaching a little boy named Mateo how to pray. His whole family is not interested in the church, but every single week my companion and I go and pick him up for church and he absolutely loves it! He is growing rapidly and we are inviting him to baptism this week! But, with each success is a downfall it feels like. People down here are staunch Catholic and we have had many investigators bail because of it. But one thing I am realizing is that Heavenly Father has truly prepared certain people for us to teach. I am realizing more and more every single day that this is where I was called and it is for a reason. It truly is miraculous!

I have a testimony that Puno Peru is where I need to be right now. Every day is so difficult. Spanish is hard, but I see the Lords hand as he puts words I have NEVER heard into my mouth. My companion tells me every day that when I speak, the spirit talks through me. My Spanish is somehow perfect. I don’t know how, but when I speak it just flows. I thank my Heavenly Father every moment for this. It’s truly a miracle to me! I Love being a missionary! I testify that God answers prayers! I have prayed EVERY DAY to speak Spanish and I am finding that the Lord helps me in every moment. I love you all!

Elder Taylor R. Fawcett

Peru Cusco Mission