God lives and works miracles....

I'll keep it kinda of short this week do to time.

I KNOW God works miracles when you have faith.

So this week was kinda long but kinda great!  I had some rough spots with my companion but its all good. We started the week out by going to a Jaredite burial ground.  It turns out I'm literally living in the wilderness of the land desolation.

I'm doing great and walking and walking and well.... yeah it gets a little tiring :) We had some great lessons and taught very powerfully this week. Sunday came and we had our conference.  I guess I should mention that this week was our ramas conference so we had activities all week from typical plates of food from Peru where almost all the rama burst into tears trying to stomach all the Tabasco sauce.  Then karaoke where Elder Grow did a fabulous rendition of One Direction and Waka Waka de Shakira :) Then we ended on Sunday.  It was a rough day at first.  There is a family who have out right rejected keeping the commandments of God, but at the Conference the family Manchego came!!  It was a miracle!  There is no other way to describe it.  A less active family that we had pretty much given up on, we haven't even visited them this week!

Then I was crying for joy when we went to a lesson where I watched a man change. The spirit worked on him and he made the decision right than and there to follow god from the inspiration he got from a prayer. I know that God lives and works miracles in the lives of these people and it was wonderful!!

Love,

Elder Grow

Working with the less active & Conquering the hot peppers

This week has been wonderful. and long. :)  We spent Monday through Wednesday looking for a map, directories, names and everything.  We wanted to get to all the less actives, as much as we possibly could. Then we started to work. We worked vising all day looking and asking; we set out to find everyone!  The days flew by and we had a lot of success! We were visiting, talking to people who "were members of the church" little did they know ... they still are ;)

I had a lot of struggles and questions but almost all of them seemed to be answered as I helped these people come back to Jesus. :)  It was a great week following the promise of the area authority.... we would find people to baptize. :)  One of the days, I think it was Thursday, we were super tired so I saw a rock in front of a house and I sat down (after previously harassing my companion for doing the same) he responding in impacients vamos! I knocked on the door.. giving me an excuse to sit for an extra 5 seconds.... AND a family walked out! They literally asked what we wanted, invited us in, listened, and promised to read the Book of Mormon :)  Miracles!!

Sunday we had the pleasure of seeing 4 menos activos come to church for the first time in forever. It was amazing!  I gave a talk on the family, how missionary work begins in the family. I couldn't help but cry about how blessed my family is and how happy I see them, just from serving God. :) Then a lady, who I passed judgment on previously, started to cry.  Her husband works and can't come to church. It was a testimony to me that God knows everyone and they are all trying. Then we visited a family who were all recently baptized. They can't come to church or pray or read every day.  They asked if it was really necessary. The Spirit taught me as I told them that God hasn't asked us to do anything he hasn't prepared a way for us to accomplish.  It was great.

Sunday in the tarde I amazed everyone by eating. pinchinto de mono, the hottest and smallest pepper Peru has to offer. They cried just to see me pick it up :) In a GLORIOUS DISPLAY OF MANHOOD AND POWER.... and very humbly.... I ate... 2!!!!  :) And smiled :)  They all gasped it was hilarious!! I've become a pepper machine! .... Of course afterwards, well my companion left the fan on in our house while we slept to air out the bathroom ;)

That's this week.

Love,
Elder Grow :)

The good the bad and the happy.

Well my new companion is great. We really get along good. We made a decision this week to be the companion of the month so we started working our tails of. This week we really made some super high goals and worked our butts off. We accomplished several and failed others. We found 15 new personsas (investigators) but we are not sure about any of them following through because none of them are married. No one came to church this week. It was a little difficult because this is the first time I've had a companion that is also super obedient.  We worked hard and did everything we could.  Sunday came and well - yeah, nothing.

I had a lot of really cool experiences this week and we had a menos activo (less active) family come to church.

First I had a really cool fulfillment of a promise that was made to me. My companion and I felt impressed to give a man a blessing who has been menos activo (less active).  His family is having a lot of problems.  It takes the Lord to make us equal to the challenges of life.

We also visited a member who is preparing to be baptized.  Her menos activo boyfriend, said something that I'll always remember. "It's hard (speaking of the law of chastity), "its just all hard, all the commandments they're just all hard." That is when the scripture came to mind from the Book of Mormon. "Learn to keep the commandments in thy youth." It's just learning that the Book of Mormon can bring the change of heart and through the Lord we can be strengthened.

We had an individual unsure of baptism so we knelt down for a prayer. She rose up stronger and more determined with a fecha (date) for baptism.

God will always be there for us.

We visited two families who are active but struggling. The first thing I asked is whether they were reading their scriptures every night as a family.  The Area Presidency has challenged us to do this for everyone. I'm really grateful because when we exercise our faith, becoming converted to the gospel we get rid of anything in our way.  Maybe it might make us ashamed in front of friends or prevent us from doing the things we want to do, but we will find Jesus as our friend and the things we will want to do will be keeping the commandments of God!. :)

I love you all.

Elder Grow