Week 61 - Huaraz

This week was  an awesome week here in Huaraz. Hermana Yaquelin and Hermana Roxana are still reading the Book of Mormon together every night and they got baptized this Saturday. It has been so awesome to see them progress these past few weeks with their mom, Hermana Agripina. Their mom has been less active for more than 25 years, and she has come back to the Church with her daughters. They seem very happy and content. They have been prepared, and the Lord put us where we needed to be so that we could help them. They have had lots of very good questions, and have worked hard to gain their testimonies. It seems like when we don't have the gospel in our lives we have a hole, or it feels like somethings missing. They realized that they needed something more, and it has been so awesome to hear from their family members and from them how the gospel has helped them to be more relaxed and happy. The work of the Lord is pretty great. This week in our ward we had four baptisms. I have included a photo.
This week my companion and I also got to work with a few other families. We found a few new families to teach, and we are excited to see them progress. In one situation we knocked on the door of a house that we have never visited before and talked with a lady at the door and agreed to come back the next day. When we came back the next day she told us that she felt like we could help her, and was happy to let us talk to her and let us say a prayer in her house. I am very grateful for the promise of the Lord that we can have his Spirit with us, and that he helps people to feel that the message we bring really can help them. I know that the gospel blesses families. I know that Heavenly Father has a perfect plan for us. I am very grateful for his plan and for the many blessings and opportunities that he has given me.

the elders in our ward after the baptisms

a picture after their confirmation this Sunday

a picture before the baptisms. Hermana Agripina is in the middle and Hermana Roxana and Hermana Yaquelin are beside her in white. Their family is not members, but they came and supported them and are interested in learning more

Week 60 - Huaraz

Many great things are happening here in our area and we are really excited for this next week that is coming. We have a few people that are really progressing, and we have also gotten to know a few new families this past week.
The highlight of this week once again was working with Hermana Agripina and her family. We have been visiting them quite often, and they are still going strong with their goal to read the Book of Mormon for 21 days straight together. This week we talked to them a little bit about a few commandments. It has been great to see their progress, and as we explained a few of the commandments they really showed their humility and showed that they trust the Lord. As we taught them they actually bore testimony to us. Her daughters Hermana Roxana and Hermana Yaquelin have told us that they are willing to be baptized this weekend the 22nd of October. They are pretty excited and a little bit nervous, but they will be just fine. They have worked so hard to prepare themselves. The Lord has really blessed me by putting me here at this time. What a privilege.
Every week is always full of ups and downs. I have learned to trust in the advice that the Lord gave to the missionaries in the Book of Mormon, to be patient. Yesterday, after lunch we walked around for quite a while and didn't really have any lessons. We kept going, however, and the Lord blessed us big time. Our second counselor in the Ward, Hermano Javier, came by in his truck and took us to go visit a few people. We got to know a recent convert here a little bit better, and we had the privilege to get to know his family. Their family is very humble, and they are very willing to learn. We also went with him to go visit Hermana Agripina and her family last night. Getting to work with members makes the work so much easier, and its a pretty good time as well.
Today for Pday we hiked as a zone to the Laguna Wilcacocha. It was a pretty good hike and when we got to the Laguna I couldn't help but laugh. Its basically a pond, but we got to take some great pictures of the awesome view. It was a pretty great pday.
I am very grateful for the opportunity to be a missionary. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I have now read it two times from the beginning to the end. I am very grateful for the restoration of the gospel, and for the hope and happiness it brings into our lives.

my companion and I. it was windy so I've got some nice hair

The Valley 

selfie by Wilcacocha 

Week 59 - Huaraz

One more great week in the work has come to an end. This week we were super busy and it has been super great to see the progress of the people that we are working with.
Hermana Agripina and her daughters are still progressing a ton. They have set a goal to read the Book of Mormon together every night for 21 days. It is amazing the progress that we have seen in their family as they read The Book of Mormon and pray. This last Saturday we had a family home evening with them and they invited their family members. It was a great time and it was a pretty full house. We explained the Plan of Salvation to them a little bit, and we got to answer a lot of their questions. The Plan of Salvation really makes so much sense and I believe that we had a knowledge of this plan before this life on earth. In the end of the family home evening Hermana Agripina shared her testimony with her whole family. It was so powerful. Yesterday we visited them as well, and we got to answer a few of their questions about a few commandments and we got to talk a little bit about baptism. They have been developing their testimonies, and they told us that they want to be baptized. It was so awesome. We were smiling pretty big. A few trials have recently come into their path, but I know that the Lord will prepare the way for them. It has been such a blessing getting to help this family and see their progress.
Lately we have been learning more about the restoration and how we can teach it better as a mission. This week we met a man who had a ton of questions about all of the religions and about all of the things that he has heard about the many churches that there is. It was really interesting, however, because as we explained the restoration his questions stopped and he began to listen more. This week we had a leader training with President Rios and the assistants. President Rios told us ¨La Restauración esta cargada de poder¨ which means, more or less, that the message of The Restoration is packed with power. I really have seen that that is true.
The meeting we had with President Rios was awesome, and I also got to see my trainer Elder Sanchez. He is ending his mission in a few weeks so we took one last picture which ill send in this summary.
I know that this is the work of the Lord. I know that this life is a time to learn and to gain experience. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow as a missionary in this great work.

 eating lunch in Trujillo at the leader training

Elder Sanchez, his trainer.

Elder Guerrero. an elder from my group 

Week 58 - Huaraz

Elder Miller's weekly summary from October 3rd, 2016

This week was a great week in the work. We were super busy all week doing things for the zone and working in our area. Time sure flies by when you are having fun.
This week we have been working with a less active member, hermana Agripina and her daughters. They have started to read The Book of Mormon from the beginning and yesterday we had a really awesome lesson with them. We got to answer a few of their questions about The Book of Mormon and about why Joseph Smith was disciplined by the Lord for a short time during the translation. After we had answered a few of their questions my companion asked them if that felt like they had received an answer to know that the book is true. They explained to us their feelings about The Book of Mormon and told us that what they have read up to now they know to be true. They told us that it has in a sense opened a door into another world. My companion, hermana Agripina, and myself had some pretty big smiles. We were pretty happy. The Book of Mormon is so powerful, and I am so grateful for it.
The less active member that we taught last week, hermano Luis, is still progressing and doing very well. We have gotten to visit him a few times this past week, and he always gives us a big hug when we see him. He got to come to conference and it seemed like he quite enjoyed it. It has been such a blessing to see his progress in these past two weeks.
I really enjoyed general conference this past week as well. It was a great weekend filled with great council from the Lord´s leaders. I really loved the talk by Elder Hales in the first session and how he talked about families. I also really enjoyed the talk by Elder Holland in the priesthood session. Holding the priesthood is a great privilege. I liked how many people talked about repentance and how it is a blessing in our life. I know that the general authorities, apostles, and Prophet Thomas S. Monson are called of God. I am so grateful to be a missionary in this time. It is a great privilege to be a missionary. I really love it. I know that the Lord loves us and knows us, and I also know that we can come to know him.

a little bit of a zoomed in pic of the mountains from our room