Time for Those We Are Passing By

In Junín, we are some of the fortunate few missionaries who make our own breakfast. Why is that such a blessing? Firstly, we don't have to walk to our Pension every morning. It's also nice to actually choose what to eat. Finally, the 8 soles we receive daily to pay for the meal are hardly ever used completely, which builds up quite a fund near the end of the month. My first Junín companion and I fondly called it "fondo brekky" and took to using the money for a fairly expensive restaurant outing to buy American popcorn chicken in Tarma. Unfortunately, with the President's new mandate that forever confines us to our own areas on P-Days, there's no way to use the money effectively. We have no other choice but to make up for all the stingy breakfasts we made and buy whatever looks good. 

One morning, as we made our way to a Plan C after a service project fell through, my companion asked me for five little chocolates I'd recently bought. I encouraged him to take half the bag; fondo brekky was ours to enjoy. He took five and shot back toward a family pushing a man in a wheelchair. He gave one to each and we walked them home. The old man with the bad legs loudly and emotionally declared his faith and we gave him a blessing.  Afterward, we hoisted him up on our arms and walked a little with him around the room. The family not only promised to come to church the next day, but actually came. In my four and a half months here, I believe I've seen one other investigator visit the church. To make the experience all the more surreal, the old man's name was Gubercindo. It was a very happy day, and made me thankful for my companion following through on a prompting. As the Lord said to early church missionaries in Doctrine and Covenants 61: 3, "It is not needful for the whole company of elders to be moving swiftly...whilst the inhabitants on either side are perishing in unbelief."  We can always have time for the few whom we are passing by. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

No More Strangers

When Paul taught the Ephesians, he knew they had grown up hearing the Jews' self-righteous claim that they were the chosen people of God. While they were to some extent justified in this, by the time of Christ it's clear that as a people they had fallen from the expectations the Lord had for them. It impressed me how Paul acknowledged that the Ephesians previously lived without the Gospel, yet were now invited to take part in it. He risks offending them, but instead makes an inspirational speech about the mercy of God. He begins by drawing them in, relating to them and painting a dismal picture of their past in Ephesians 2:

Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

He discards their plight with the hope of his new message-But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us.

This fraternal sense of fellowship was no doubt a contrast to the condescension of other Jews the Ephesians knew. There is no middle wall now! We are children of God, and Christ has slain any enmity that existed between us by His cross. And now, you can hear him smile and raise his voice, powerfully and emotionally, "Ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God."  

And what are these blessings that Paul is saying they're so worthy of? The very church of God. He continues in the next verse, "And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the corner stone."  I like to imagine Paul preaching the same message across the ages to our own... "What? Like Christ cares what age you live in?" Yet does the fraternity of the Saints permit us to live in a church guided by prophets, apostles, and revelation. We can depend on the same miracles with the priesthood of God.

Last Monday, as we had just finished up eating our burgers as a zone, one of the workers at the restaurant asked us if we would give her a blessing. I asked her carefully what her knowledge of our church was. She confessed little to no knowledge, just that we as missionaries might be able to help her.  I methodically explained to her the claim we had of possessing the same priesthood found in the church of Christ in the Bible, being restored through a prophet in these days. Eight or so missionaries put their hands on her head in the back room, and the feeling of priesthood power was tangible. When I finished the blessing, we turned to her and the other workers witnessing and made appointments with all of them, each eager to meet with the missionaries who worked in their area. It was a powerful witness to me that we are no longer strangers or foreigners to the blessings of the kingdom of God...rather fellow citizens with the early Saints. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen. 

New Mission President

Hello, all! This week started with the Fourth of July, for which I was very thankful. We love our country, and all of us gringos sang the National Anthem in an American Restaurant to celebrate. We also went to meet the new President Silva and his family in La Merced. I've brought pictures! He spoke little on goals or new rules this first time...he just wanted us to meet his family. Due to many changes of plans and traveling this week, we spent little time in our area. It's begun to rain a lot in Junìn, which we don't mind too much.

Once more, we returned to Tarma yesterday for a conference about the year area plan for Northwest South America. The goals focus on the youth, self-sufficiency, and ordinances. I believe these are good arching goals for an area. If you're a youth, go to seminary and focus on a mission! As a member, be self-sufficient and focus on paying a full tithe and keeping the Sabbath Day holy! If you yet lack one of the ordinances of salvation, work on becoming worthy to take the next step! If everything's golden, do family history. There will always be more to do. Let us waste and wear out our lives bringing to light the secret things of darkness. Bring heaven forward, and let it encompass the harsh realities of today's world. We are capable, and we will eventually win. That's the promise. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

New Companion / New Mission President / Finding Families

Transfers arrived this week, bringing me a new companion named Elder Egan. Changes will continue to take place as our Mission President and his wife return to the States. Our new mission president, President Silva, will enter into the field tomorrow. The only constant in the mission field is the work, though it is frequently pinpointed by special opportunities. The other week, we found two families with whom we had lessons this week. Both came from contacting and knocking doors, miraculously, which very rarely happens in Junín. All the more miraculously, one of the families happened to hold a recent convert. We recently were asked to take all the recent converts of our areas for the last two years and give the names of those who were still active, to examine retention. We had five names, one of whom is still attending. All are under 14 years old. We were told one family did not want contact with the church anymore, yet with providence we found the father one day in the street and were pleasantly invited to teach them. My mouth dropped open yesterday when we found out the oldest boy was baptized last year, and that this was the family with whom we would have respectfully kept our distance from had we not found them randomly. While there will be obstacles, I'm certain we found them for a reason.

In the second family we found, we originally contacted the children, ages 7, 8, and 9. Of course, after speaking with them for a few moments, we asked if we could speak with their parents. Their uncle came out, and the girl ran over to him and dramatically cried, "Uncle, they're talking about GOD and I want you to LISTEN!" The nice thing about teaching a family is that the children provide the enthusiasm and the adults provide the responsibility. We begged side-by-side with the children for another visit and cheered when he accepted. We visited with them yesterday, taught the first lesson, and committed them all to come to church the following week when we pass by. Coincidentally, one of their younger uncles is taking the lessons in Cerro de Pasco.

Moroni wrote in the Book of Mormon, "I speak unto you who deny the revelations of God, and say that they are done away, that there are no revelations, nor prophecies, nor gifts, nor healing, nor speaking with tongues, and the interpretation of tongues. Behold, I say unto you, he that denieth these things knoweth not the gospel of Christ; yea, he has not read the scriptures; if so, he does not understand them." (Mormon 9: 7-8) God doesn't change, he explains, and if faith led to miracles in the past, it must surely lead to the same in these days. "I will show unto you a God of miracles", he boldly proclaims, and with such claims we must hold firm and unapologetically confirm it. I know this is true. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Daily Life in Peru

I've begun to realize that I rarely speak of my life on a daily basis in my blog. I apologize for this. When one reads the reflections of one living in a strange land, one must hope in part to read about foreign and interesting experiences. In Junin particularly, my life is pretty interesting.  Most Mondays, we travel an hour out to Tarma, a larger city in which the majority of our zone resides. After some recent emergency transfers, it's there that my old companion resides as a Zone Leader. We travel back Tuesday morning, have a quick District Meeting in our room, and spend the time between the end and lunch browsing the Tuesday Market which stretches through the  town in nearly every street. It makes for a devil of a time trying to visit people later in the day. 

With the tiny size of our branch, much of the responsibility for activities comes to us, which generally makes for good fun. In all of Peru, one day of the week is designated as Mission Night, where people can invite their friends to play games, have a quick message, and perhaps have a treat. I generally share a quick message, and then we play one of the many famous group games here: PedroPablo, Señales, Gato y Ratón, etc.  Most of these games were brought by gringo missionaries, so while they have different names, you'd recognize them if you saw them.  On Saturday, we lead Mutual, which is slightly more stressful now that my companion left who had all the games.  Luckily, the only thing youth like to do here is play soccer, which is very easy to plan. All we have to do is bring a pack of treats. 

We've recently also begun English classes on Saturday night, ever since a group of earnest rockers expressed an interest. We originally found one and while he said he wasn't interested, I noticed his Pink Floyd shirt and we started talking.  He invited the rest of his friends, and now they come to the church, learn vocabulary, a grammar concept, and a translation of one of their favorite songs, which are always awesome.  I've written down a lot of the bands to look up when I get back home. They also opened up in the end and said they'd love to hear our message as well, which we share at the end of each lesson.

Sunday is all the more busy. Once again, with the small branch, we are responsible for a good deal. Nearly every week we give talks, participate in the Sacrament, and teach a two-hour Sunday School Lesson. This last week, we were also very blessed to see one of our less-active youth we've been working with receive the priesthood. We also were very blessed to see the Sacrament Meeting attendance go over 30, which was one of the first goals my companion and I made when I came into the area.  The average attendance from January to March was 16.  In Sunday School, videos are very popular both with us and with the youth we teach.  We participate in Ward Council in the evening as mandated by Peru's Area Presidency to help direct the flow of the meeting and make assignments. 

It's a busy life, but it's a good life. I love the people here and am happy to serve in this cause. A man is free to choose the principles by which he holds himself bound. The level of his consecration is the level of his success. I have not been as devoted as I previously always hoped to be. Part by part, I hope to change. I am thankful that we are all able to do so by the grace and mercy of Christ through his Atonement. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Reflections On Growth

Had there been one selfish reason for which the mission held me captivated, it would be the change it promises. We are such that spiritual stagnation is contrary to our comfort, and just as small children struggle to sit still, we grow frustrated at a lack of progression. The difficulties a mission promised seemed a straight shot out of immaturity as powerful as any coming of age story. When the meat and the substance of such challenges do their surgical work, the grimness of the operating room ought not to be viewed in isolation from the future results we so long desired. Elder Maxwell once noted we sometimes beg to be freed from trial when the result would be an incomplete process, thereby invalidating all past sufferings. By bailing on God's plan, we find ourselves jaded at the senselessness of being cut open without permitting Him to sew us back up. Hemingway found himself in such a state after extreme trials when he told the world in complete disillusionment, "The world breaks everyone...and those who will not break it kills."  Or Eliot's gloom, "Between the idea/and the reality...falls the shadow."  I would contest the shadow falls between the reality and the waiting, for between these so many minds are darkened.

Another more hopeful poet expressed some confidence in God's ability to raise us "beyond this rugged veil of mortal tears" in His way, perhaps the veil made rugged by 'tears' torn in our resolve. Our patience is paramount to the process. Such is seen in the mission, which is a kind of compacted life, and such is seen in mortality. I know God's plan demands our cooperation. 

In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Doing the Right Thing

Life rolls on in Junin, and things are looking up. The weekdays were discouraging, and we hardly found anyone to speak to, day after day. This is particularly not fun when the mornings freeze, the afternoons scald, and the nights' temperature dips down again. Once the weekend hit, we began seeing a lot more results from our work. While our attendance didn't rocket upward, nearly half of the attendance was less active members we've been working with. Many of them have interviews scheduled with the President to talk about progressing, and among those who came included both the less active men who used to be the Branch Presidents. We're still on the edge waiting for the baptism of our good friend, the daughter of our Pension, but she is diligently reading the scriptures and taking the lessons and going to church. 

We're recognizing the real results of all our work the last couple months. Some families we've finally decided to stop visiting for their lack of interest. We had a very serious lesson with one about the decisions they had to make and their continual lack of effort to keep promises. When we saw even such an earnest discussion as this did nothing, we decided to dedicate our time elsewhere. Mission decisions such as this are extremely difficult...these were recent converts and a family we are well acquainted with. Yet time will always be a factor we need to keep in mind, and the shower of blessings we are seeing elsewhere is an indication of what we need to do.

Doing the right thing has always been a chief worry in my life. I am so blessed to live in this time where that question can be quieted to some extent. There are many other worries in mission life, and I won't pretend the work isn't at times discouraging here. We're all told going to South American missions that the success will be flying, and the people are lining up to have gospel change their lives. The disillusionment was difficult and discouraging. Yet the truth is, the work can never be easy. As Elder Holland once said in one of his most inspirational talks, salvation is not a cheap experience. It never was. Why should we expect it to be for us when it never was for Christ?  If He gave His life in what was more or less the most important missionary work the world has seen, how can we expect conversion and following Him to be easy? It never will be...the only thing we can be sure of is that it's worth it. And that by participating in such a work, we are standing with the greatest man who ever lived. To all the invitation comes and to all the privilege is issued. Accepting it is what this life experience is about.

From Zone Conference last week. Elder Burt is 3rd from left, standing.