Miracles; that’s what this week was all about. I know I am constantly talking about miracles but honestly, this week was incredible. First off, I just want to start off by talking about some big news. During this past week my Companion and I were able to have a few visits with Billy and in the last visit we had with him for the week we were able to talk to him once again about baptism. When we brought the topic up again, there seemed to be a huge change in his countenance and he seemed so much more excited to talk about it. When we asked him what he thought about be being baptized he looked at us with tears in his eyes and told us that he wanted more than anything to be baptized. So we asked him how this next Saturday sounded and he accepted it! He was able to have his baptismal interview and passed it, so this coming Saturday Billy has asked me if I would baptize him! Not only were we able to see an incredible change in Billy, we also were able to see some other very interesting miracles that occurred this week.
In my Ward here in Chasqui there are also a companionship of Sister Missionaries that also serve here with us. This past week they gave us a call and asked if we would come give a blessing of health to their investigator named Juanita. Well to give you a little bit of background of information, Juanita is 82 years old and has the same exact illness that my Grandma has. Her mind is in a state of complete innocence and acts like a child so as we arrived to give the blessing, I was able to help just because of the experience I have had seeing from what my grandma is like. Juanita is married to a man name José (Age 86) who plays the same role that my Grandpa does, having to care for his ill wife each and every day. As we arrived to give the blessing we were told that for whatever reason, Juanita had something happen to her that made her become unresponsive. But after giving the blessing, she slowly went back to her old self before we left. For me, it was such an interesting experience to be able to help bless as the Savior blessed. As we got up to leave, José got up and went into the backroom and left us for a few minutes. When he returned he brought some beautiful cultural paintings of Perú that he personally painted. He asked me which one I liked and I told him that I thought they were all beautiful. He then grabbed one of them, rolled it up and began to hand it toward me. Not wanting to accept such a beautiful piece of artwork, I told him that he didn’t need to do that but he responded saying that he wanted to give us something in return for us blessing his wife. Knowing that rejecting a gift in Perú is considered very offensive, I accepted it and thanked him very much for it. He then commenced to do the same with my Companion, giving him another of his beautiful paintings.
Coincidentally, I was informed by the Sister Missionaries that José was ready for his baptismal interview. So Sunday, I was able to interview him in an interview that was very special for me. We sat down and had his interview for a super long time (Over an hour or so, they normally last only 20 minutes). Although José was a bit hard to understand (his voice is super crackly, he speaks very quietly, and doesn’t pronounce his words very well), I was able to understand everything that he was saying perfectly. We talked about many things, or should I say he talked about many things including the situation with his wife. He commenced to tell me that he has felt for years that the sickness that his wife has is a punishment God is giving him for having committed sins in his life. I was able to explain to him that though he may feel that way, it takes a very special and chosen person to be able to have the love, patience, and the ability to care for his spouse the way that he does each day. He was able to express the love that our Heavenly Father has for him and explain that our Heavenly Father is loving, and that though this may be a huge trial and tribulation in his life it has been given to him because he can learn and grown in ways that others cannot. As we finished the interview, the Spirit was very strong and I knew he was ready for baptism. So this Saturday, the sister’s missionaries will also have 2 baptisms. José has asked me to perform the ordinance for him and for his wife (special permission has been given for his wife to be baptized as well). Elder Pinedo and I have been given permission to “both” baptize Juanita due to her condition. Even though neither of these 2 investigators are people that my Companion and I have personally been teaching, I know without a doubt in my mind that they were also placed in our path to not only help them but to help us.
Also this week, I had another amazing miracle occur when we were riding in a taxi. I know I have so many taxi stories, but this story seriously was crazy. So, we were riding in a taxi and I was sitting in the passenger seat when I got the feeling that I needed to talk to the taxi driver. So I started off with small talk and he didn’t seem too interested in talking. But still feeling the prompting, I kept talking to him. We eventually came to the point of talking about why I was here in Perú. He asked me and I looked at him and told him that I came to Perú to help people just like him. Still not seeming interested, he sort of started ignoring me which made contacting him that much harder. Before I knew it, we had arrived at our destination. Not having enough time to take any information from him I told him the address of the Church where we attend and told him that we hold our Sunday meetings beginning at 8:00 am each Sunday. We hopped out of the Taxi and I thought that would be the last I ever saw of him… or so I thought. As Sunday rolled around, we had the chance of talking in Church again and as I was giving my talk I saw the taxi man walk in. After Sacrament meeting, he was able to come with us to the second hour class with our investigators and following that to Priesthood! As Church concluded we took his information and we are having a Family night in the Bishops home with our new investigator, Pedro, tonight (Monday Night). You never know what a small prompting of Spirit can lead to, it could lead to your potential next convert.
In closing this week, I just want to share a little bit of what I shared in the talk I gave in Church this week. I was asked to talk about how we as members can avoid self-apostasy in our lives. So, I decided to use the Prophet’s words from the April General Conference and talk about the importance of the Book of Mormon. While preparing for my talk, we had a conference with our entire zone this week in which President Herrera talked about the importance of true study of the Book of Mormon. He used the example of 3 different types of swimming that people do. There are people who just swim. They stay on the top of the water, and never really see anything beneath. Then there are people who snorkel. People who stay on top of the water occasionally entering a bit, and can see more. Finally, there are people who dive. These are the people who understand the deep things that most people are missing. While preparing for the talk, I asked myself this question. How frequently am I just swimming or snorkeling in the Book of Mormon? Each day I read it, but how often am I trying to understand the deeper meanings it contains? As I prepared for my talk in Church I realized that not just “reading” the Book of Mormon is enough. What the Prophet wants us to do is to dive into it. To search the deeper meanings that it contains and to use that to overcome the afflictions and trials that we are faced with each and every day as members of the Church. I know that it is very important for us to listen to the words of the Prophet and to take them into our actions daily. As a missionary I have come to learn that the Book of Mormon is not only the key to conversion it is also the key to helping us maintain our conversion. I love you all and hope that you each have a great week!
Love,
Elder Fawcett
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| Original Painting Elder Fawcett Received From José |
