Tuesday, October 16, 2012

The Last Letter

I look back on these two years, my heart having grown twice its size, and my eyes having seen the profound depths of Heaven and Hell. My mind turns and tumbles like a washing machine, yet my emotions spread out along the ridges of a Cape Verdian wash tub. They wait for that visceral force that will senselessly push up and down those agonizing ridges. 6 days left on the field, and I think to myself "Wasn't it just yesterday that I just got here?" 

I think back to that evening of May of 2011 remembering that the setting sun was especially golden. It made the rocks, the fields, and the waters of the coast of Santiago shine in such a way that was breathtaking and unforgettable. I was, then, a new missionary that was just barely starting to lose his green. I was still a clueless teacher and a stubborn servant. Yet, there I was standing in the turquoise clear waters of the lagoon just a few minutes north of the church. The mercy of the Lord was upon us in its fullness. I looked over into the eyes of my best friend after having just baptized him and I said "Now we can be together forever in the kingdom of God".

How is it found in his loving kindness that the Lord permitted someone like me to have such an experience? What I have just written was a short description of my first convert baptism as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Somehow, it was found in his great wisdom and convenience that I came here for a short time to work for the salvation of souls. This privilege has left a profound mark on my heart and soul that can now never be removed. Before coming here, I did not think that one's heart could swell this big. I did not think that the soul could be filled with so much compassion, so much charity that one could completely lose himself and forget his own existence in the service that he embarked. But that is the effect that the mission tends to have on those who try their best to serve in all righteousness. It is the cure to all selfishness, the secret to true happiness, and the key for an exceptional, loving relationship with our Father in Heaven.

The past two years have been nothing short of a miracle. They have taught me the ways that a true man takes. A true man looks for God in everything he does. A true man seeks to become humble, meek, and submissive. Any other way is complete senselessness. These past two years have taught me the greatness and endless power of our living God, and they have taught me my own boundaries. I am weak and inadequate in my own state. Nevertheless, Heavenly Father grants me his strength, his love, and his incomparable power as I turn to him and ask for his help in all things.

"I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13)
"I glory in plainness; I glory in truth; I glory in my Jesus, for he hath redeemed my soul from Hell. I have charity for my people, and great faith in Christ that I shall meet many souls spotless at his judgment seat" (2 Nephi 33:6-7)

Through my feet, the Lord has walked thousands of miles finding his lost sheep. Through my hands, the Lord has touched the lives of those who I never met before, yet they are now my brothers and sisters in Christ. Through my heart, the Lord has taught scripture in its fullness of power and meaning to me and to them, and through my heart has persuaded many to accept the sacred promises with Heavenly Father that now enable them to prepare to return to his loving arms.
I already miss the hustle and bustle of Avenida Lisboa, in Fazenda in the center of the city of Praia. I miss the warmth, love and laughter of the people of Fogo (The promise land, I call it) I miss the silence, isolation and indescribable beauty of Brava. This country is unparalleled to me, and it has a place in my heart that possible no other event in the course of my lifetime will be able to find. I will lock these memories away until the day that I can fall to my knees in tears and gratitude to my creator, my God. I will remember every moment of these two years until the time comes to see these people again beyond the veil in their fullness of glory and joy.
How I wish like never before that I could turn back time. I would give anything to be back on the streets of Sao Filipe with Elder Weiss. I would love to take one more boat ride to Brava with Elder Abularach. I miss all the nights walking home in Mindelo with Elder Fernandes after having helped Andirson and his family drew one step closer to baptism. They are one of the first families that I am going to look for beyond the veil. I long for just one more division with Elder Reeser, probably the best friend I made out here outside the companions that I served with.

But now it's all over. I hold in my hand the boarding pass to TACV Flight VR690, the flight that will take me away from here. Never again on this Earth will I be able to preach the Gospel of our Lord like this. It is time that the most intense, humbling, educative and spiritual chapter of my life comes to a close, and though almost all may be taken away from me when I step on that airplane, it is once again in his knowledge and infinite wisdom and love that I take home with me this one thing.

It is with every particle of my heart and faith and knowledge that I bear testimony of the one true living God who knows all things. He loves us with a perfect and endless love. He has forgotten none of his children, and he honors all his promises. He has called prophets, leaders, and missionaries to find his children, teach them and lead them to know of their Father in Heaven. I testify that I am a child of God and that it is because of this one true statement that my eyes have seen the fullness of his love, his mercy, his patience and the suffering of his children who disobey him. This is the one true living church that contains the once lost precious truths of our Lord and Savior. Christ lives. Joseph Smith was His chosen prophet in these last days to restore the Gospel. I love my Savior, his church, and this magnificent work.

"Shall we not go on in so great a cause"In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen.

Elder Gianluca Cuestas
Cape Verde Praia Mission
2010-2012

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

She is a diamond in the rough!

I thought that last week flew by....this week was lightning speed, and I am pretty sure that next week will be too.
I think that I have mentioned before that there are many challenges in Bela Vista and that we have slowly but surely working to overcome them. Well, there are weeks where it seems that we have overcome the challenges, and there are other weeks where stuff just kind of blows up in your face and the difficulties come back. That is kind of how things work in missionary work...but it’s all good.

So I said last week on how we have been focusing all our forces on Odete and her family. Things are going pretty good up to a certain point. It’s interesting that things have been kind of going the same way with many investigators that we’re working with. As I pointed out before, Onze drinks and smokes and Odete drinks coffee. We have taught them about the Word of Wisdom and invited them to live it. Interesting that this is where most people have the most struggles. Well Onze hasn’t been drinking for almost three weeks now, and Odete doesn’t drink coffee anymore. Onze used to smoke about 20 cigarettes a day and is now smoking 2. This is incredible progress...yet when it comes to going to church, this is where they struggle. They’re completing the hardest steps in converting to the Gospel, yet they have missed church for a few weeks now. Odete came this past Sunday, but Onze could not make it. We would like to get them to baptism, and I have all the faith that the Lord will make things work out...it’s just sometimes the natural man in me that gets a bit frustrated when things don’t happen as expected. I know all this is the Lord teaching me patience and longsuffering. I love this family very much; thus it breaks my heart when they don’t do what they need to do to receive all the blessings they deserve. The biggest concern is that Onze is trying to find a way to get this surgery to happen with the means that he has. Obviously this is something that the whole family is concerned about, so focusing on this and our lessons can be quite difficult at times. We’re trying to teach them to make the connection that obedience to God’s commandments entitles any of his children to the divine help and miracles that they need in their lives. I have a pure testimony of this because I have seen it so many times in my life and in the lives of all the people we have helped get over their problems. Well, obviously we will keep working with them, and I hope that this week we can make a major progress with them.

Another person we’re working with has made a huge step in improvement, and she is now our top priority. A while back we were working with a woman named Firmina and some weeks after her baptism, we started kind of having side conversations with her mom Maria. She started sitting in on our lessons with Firmina, and one night at the end of a lesson, she asked if she could have a copy of the Book of Mormon. This threw us off… Maria is an older woman, probably somewhere in her late 50s, and most people her age here can’t read or write, or are just "too old for a new religion" as they put it. So we got her the book of Mormon as soon as possible and started marking appointments just for her. Well the first few times we thought that this was going to go nowhere. She complained so much when we had our appointments to teach her, and she would make excuses such as "there is too much wind" or "it’s too hot" These excuses would drive us a bit crazy ha-ha. I’m sure that Satan was trying to distract us from the true potential that she has as an investigator. Well, we kept persisting because she’s the mom of two of our recent converts. We thought we would teach her the Word of Wisdom to see if she would be able to progress. We came back two days later to see her in a really bad mood. We asked how everything was going. She replied "I’m not drinking coffee, are you guys happy?! We laughed and encouraged her to go to church this weekend. She grumbled a bit more and then said that she would be there. Well, there she was this weekend in the first session of general conference at the church. This was huge, and she told us that she’ll never drink coffee again. To make a long story short, we went to visit her at her house yesterday and had a long talk about why she was doing all this. We also taught her the law of chastity because she lives with a man...as so many people do here.
Right there, she told us everything. She told us that she was living with this man for 3 years and that it was the biggest mistake of her life. She told us on how she longs to be by herself and that she’s sick of all the arguments and problems that this man has been causing. He drinks and gets in these moods where he makes the atmosphere of the home impossible. She said that when she started going to church, and started reading the Book of Mormon she felt at peace, something she had not felt in three years. She said that she’s the happiest that she’s ever been since moving in that house. She had been thinking for the longest time in separating from her companion and all this confirmed her desire. Now that we brought the law of chastity into all this, she will now make a choice on what she wants to do next. All she knows is that she wants to get baptized. She is a miracle investigator, a diamond in the rough!!

Abilio and Sandra are again stuck...well it turns out that Sandra has to make a choice between migrating to another place due to some papers that her sister was able to put in, or stay and get married.  We’re talking with them this week to see where she is at. It’s just kind of sad that she would leave her family and children just to migrate...it’s nothing out of the ordinary here. We just need to have tons of patience with her.

Elder Fogelberg and I are doing extremely well. He’s growing and changing so much. Every week he makes major improvements on his teaching and his desire to be on the mission. He’s a brother to me, and I’m going to miss him so much when I leave. We have talked about this several times. I love this guy to death, and I know that the Lord has called us to be together. I would say that he has kept me in line these last two transfers, so that I can continue working my heart out.
Elder Cuestas



Wednesday, October 3, 2012

I feel that through the Lord, I can handle anything!

This week we’re working and concentrating all our efforts on Odete and her family. I don’t know if I have mentioned this before, but Odete has 5 children and lives with her partner Onze. This family is relatively poor, but nothing like Jocyleida and Andirson. Onze works for the city hall picking up trash from the public containers. Odete sells fish and mostly takes care of the children. When the children are at school, she is out on the streets selling fish. It’s interesting that this is one of the happiest families that I have met on my mission, despite all their afflictions. Onze has a serious problem in his leg which requires a metal plate being inserted, to which he doesn’t have the money or means to do so. He walks and works but with extreme pain. The family lives very far from the church, but has already made it twice without anyone having to look for them.

Last week, we taught them the word of wisdom, as Onze has a drinking and smoking problem, and Odete drinks coffee. Normally it’s extremely difficult to get any man to even want to desire to stop drinking, but Onze has been doing an excellent job cutting down and going many days at a time without drinking and fighting extreme headaches because of this. Odete also is fighting caffeine withdrawal and serious headaches as well. They’re all very humble, and we have grown very close to them. We had just taught them the Law of chastity, and they told us that they would ponder on marriage. They probably won’t be able to get married until after I go, but at least I can do everything to place things in order, so that Elder Fogelberg can carry out the rest.

Abilio and Sandra had a very rough time recently with keeping their commitments, but it seems that they’re finally on track as they’re coming back to church and getting their act together.  Interesting thing is that some 4 weeks ago, Abilio passed out drunk on his bed and Sandra sitting by his side with a scowl on her face. We did not even know at the time that Abilio had a drinking problem. We asked if we could pull Sandra aside and talk. She agreed. She talked about how Abilio was going to have to make some major changes before she would agree to marry him, like stop drinking being priority number one. We found Abilio that next day and taught him the Word of Wisdom. He reacted much more humbly than we had expected and promised that he would leave the habit. He seemed to do it with great ease and has not touched a drop since. I love this guy. He has some real humility, and it touches my heart how important the Gospel has become in his life. He receives us with such warmth, and we have spent ample time just talking with him and getting to know more about his life. Hopefully we would be able to mark a date for their wedding soon.

Joana was baptized this weekend, and everything went really well. Joana has suffered quite a bit in her life, now living alone with 2 children. I have seen the difference in how her afflictions have humbled her. She does everything by her feelings, so the Gospel was music to her ears seeing how the spirit played such a big role in her life. I’m really proud of her and how far she has come. Many times we’ve walked by her front door and have caught her reading the Book of Mormon by herself. She has a very strong spirit, and I have no doubt that she’s going to grow quickly in this magnificent Gospel.

This weekend was District conference (like stake conference) and all the members of Mindelo were there. I saw most of my recent converts, and I am glad to see that almost everyone is  active. Andirson is still preparing to get the Melchezidek Preisthood and is strong in the church. I saw Anna and Margarida and some other members that I was close with. Mindelo 1 is one of my favorite branches that I have worked with in my mission, and it was so great to see everyone again.

As for the feeling of going home...it’s a bitter sweet feeling. My heart is like a washing machine right now. There are so many great things that I know I’m going to enjoy going home, but a big part of my heart though is also preparing for one of the biggest shocks I’m going to have in my life and having to cope with the fact that it’ll all be over soon. I’ve converted to this mission so much, and it means to me what words cannot describe. This mission has such a profound impact on my heart, and it’ll be over in three weeks. I’ll never live a part of my life like this again. I’ll never be in this country again as a missionary. So right now, I am happy as happy can be and sad as sad can be. I wonder if that is even possible, but that’s what I believe I feel.

The friends that I’ll be leaving are the most painful part of this journey. All these wonderful people… I know the Lord will be taking care of them, but how I wish I didn’t have to say goodbye. I love these people like I have never loved before. My heart has gone through the ends of the world for these people, and I have lost myself in service to them. It hasn’t been easy, but is an experience that I’ll never, never, NEVER take back.

I’m the most proud of the fact that I believe that I have the necessary tools to be an active member of this Gospel for the rest of my life. I’m proud that through all the joy, pain, and hard work, I’ll always feel that I did my best with the knowledge that I had. I’m the most proud that I know God so much more than I used to and that now I have a true reason to be a member of this church, and definitively, I’m proud of the fact that now I’m stronger, more mature, and numb to life’s problems. I feel that through the Lord, I can handle anything!

Elder Cuestas






Monday, September 24, 2012

Division with Elder Reeser

Last Thursday I went on the division with Elder Reeser. We talked about all sorts of techniques that we can use to improve the work. This had to have been one of the best divisions that I have ever done in my mission. The Spirit was extremely strong throughout the whole day. We talked about engaging the investigators better in the lessons, so that we are teaching people, not lessons. We put this into practice and had an incredible day! We committed an investigator to live the Word of Wisdom after the Spirit being super strong in the room.
The interview went super great with my Mission President. He actually did not have too much counsel for me, other than not to get trunky (lazy) on my mission. He told me that I have done great things on my mission and that I’m doing a great job in helping Elder Fogelberg in becoming a strong missionary.
So this week, we have had some major progress with Odette and her family. Her whole family now has the desire to come to church, and they were going to come this past Sunday, but Onze (Odette’s partner) his brother died, and the funeral was on Sunday. Funerals here take all day because, after the service, all the people walk behind the funeral car all the way to the cemetery. Odette’s baby also had a fall and passed out, but everything seems to be ok now. We had a great lesson with them about the fact that families can be together forever. Odette’s face lit up as she mentioned that she missed her mom very much since her death. She got more excited to live the Word of Wisdom and want to continue talking to us. They promised that they would come to church this week.

Also, this week we are preparing this woman named Joana for baptism. Joana was someone that had been studying with the elders for a very long time. She had a few problems coming to church in the past, but she had recently experienced some major health problems like migraines and other issues. This has caused her to humble herself and look for the Lord. She came to church last week, and she said that she was ready to prepare for baptism.

Additionally, we are working hard with other investigators, so they can progress and come to church on a regular basis.
Elder Cuestas

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

The Family From Pedreira

Last weekend was the sickest I have ever been on my mission. I literally could not get up from my bed, and Elder Fogelberg was throwing up throughout the day. The whole city was without power, except Bela Vista. (That was a gift from the Lord, so that our fans could keep working)

It’s interesting because towards the beginning of the afternoon, Elder Fogelberg could not get up from his bed, and I was taking care of him bringing him water and medicine, and anything he needed. Around 8 pm, he started to feel much better, and I had started to feel worse. I had acquired a killer headache and quite a fever, so much that after 9 pm, I could not get up from bed, and Elder Fogelberg was bringing me water and medicine and what not…It seems that the Lord staged our sicknesses so that we could help each other…ha-ha.
This week we’re feeling much better!
So this Wednesday, we have training and interviews with our Mission President. I’m excited for this because I’ll receive inspired counsel for these last 5 weeks that I have left here. I’m also excited because I’ll be going on a division with Elder Reeser. He has been a good friend throughout my whole mission, an excellent missionary. He’s very humble, and it’s great that we’ll be spending a day together, so that I can see how I can help him as his District Leader.

Right now we’re focusing on the family from Pedreira. The woman’s name is Odette, and her partner’s name is Onze. They’re extremely humble and have 5 kids. Odette and Onze seem to have an extremely good relationship, and it’s interesting that Odette is really good friends with Zuleika. Zuleika told us that Odette has wanted to get married to her partner for a very long time. We’re excited to get to work with them because we taught them the word of wisdom last week. It seems that this flu has been spreading throughout all Mindelo very quickly, and Odette got it pretty bad this past weekend. However, despite that she managed to stay away from coffee which she has been drinking for a long time. She is a woman of true faith, and she walks to church in the heat every week with her children. Her partner this last week has begun to acquire interest, and he’s now participating in the lessons.
Orlandina and Firmina are doing better than ever this week. They managed to bring their mother to church this past Sunday. We’ll start teaching her this week, as well.

Abilio and Sandra have been having huge issues in their relationship. It was becoming so hard to find them that we decided to leave them be for a while, due to the fact that they were not keeping appointments at all. Miraculously, this past weekend they both showed up to church on Sunday, which is really good. It seems that they have not forgotten their desires to join the Church, so after talking to them for a while, we made an appointment, and we’ll be focusing more on them now.

We’re currently with a lot of investigators, and a lot of people to work with. This is good because it will keep me busy, so that I can finish the mission strong.

This week we’re preparing Aileen for baptism. She is a younger girl who caught interest in the Gospel because of her sisters Zuleika and Kika joining the church. Little by little, we’re helping this entire family to come to the gospel. We’re teaching their other sister Doris, too.

Well, due to the few days out of work last week, we have tons of work, and we’re excited for the weeks of hard work ahead!  
Elder Cuestas


Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Firmina's Baptism

This week was Firmina’s baptism, which was something very special for Elder Fogelberg and me. The spirit was exceptionally strong and the whole time during her baptism I did feel that she is going to be an excellent help in the church and that she is going to start service through church callings pretty soon. Her testimony was one of the strongest that I had seen for someone who is just learning about the Gospel. Ever since she moved out, she has been at peace, and she is enjoying her new live with her little 6 year old. She is an extremely strong woman, and she knows that she has just made one of the greatest decisions in her life!

As I’ve mentioned before, one of the biggest challenges here in Bela Vista is getting people to church. This week we did end up finding a bunch of new people, but we did not have too many investigators that were progressing towards baptism.  Both Elder Fogelberg and I were a bit drained on Saturday after working all that we could this past week with not exactly the results we were expecting. However, that day we were walking up in a part of Bela Vista called Pedreira and we got this impression to visit these relatively new investigators that we were teaching to invite them to church. We got to their house, and all of them were there. We talked to the mother and invited her to church, and she agreed. The people here often agreed to come to church, but who actually makes it, we never know.

Sunday morning comes around and after a 35 minute walk in the 90 degree heat, and rain, while wearing our suits, we only found 3 investigators in church. We weren’t happy about it, but we accepted it...then about 10 minutes later, there was our family from Pedreira all coming to church as well as 3 other investigators that we were counting on. This resulted in the highest amount of investigators that I’ve ever had in church at one time. We had 11 investigators in church. This is huge for an area that was once dead.
My companion and I were cheering and celebrating the whole way home. The Lord produced such a huge miracle for our hard work this past week. I’m so grateful for the power of faith and the power that it has to convince people to make that 35 minute walk in the heat to church. It’s all the spirit. We just try to move our mouths to what the spirit wants us to say.
Elder Cuestas

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

My 21st Birthday!

I cannot believe that today is my 21st birthday.  My time here has gone by so quickly, and it seems sometimes that I was - yesterday - a brand new missionary with all this nice brand new clothes, ties and a new/clean nametag.  Currently, I’m at 8 weeks left until home. My nametag is now brown with almost 2 years of work, sweat and dirt, 2 years of walking dirt roads, hiking rocks and small mountains.  Two years of sitting in tin shacks and spreading the word of the Lord in one of the most sacred countries in this world. It has been an amazing journey!
So this week was busy with its ups and downs, and we have had tons of work to do here in Bela Vista.
As I mentioned last time, we have been working with Firmina. She has been having major problems with her husband. Well we discovered more about their situation.  Her husband is indeed a very violent person. He has tried to strangle her many times, and he wants to control her and have her be at his will. I’m so grateful for her faith, and what she has had to do these past two weeks. She made the decision that she no longer wanted to do anything with him. Being on how wicked a man this is, we supported and helped her build enough faith to move out as soon as possible. Well, she was living in the shack attached to the house, and being that she was living the law of chastity already, she has plans to get baptized this weekend.   Well, Satan is really good at stirring people’s hearts to contention, and he had this man at his will. The husband found out about her plans, and he threatened to throw her out on the street should she be baptized. This man has no reason to do that, other than to just be cruel. He doesn’t even have a religion and just spends the day in the streets with his friends.

Oh well, the Lord is more powerful. We prayed and prayed and prayed for her, and Saturday around 6 in the evening, she found a house and rented it out. We dropped almost all our appointments yesterday and immediately went to go help her get her stuff out. It’s interesting that as she was doing this, the man began to weep and told her that it was his family’s fault that he was so violent with her and that he wanted her back. As we like to put it, "she loves Christ more than she loves him". We got in the truck with all her stuff, and that was that. As missionaries, we support families and unity, but we do not support abuse and the kind of treatment that this man was giving Firmina. We got out and helped her move in, and as she was putting her things in the new house and organizing, she started smiling and expressing how happy she was that the whole thing was over. She is now there with her children, and she is looking forward to being baptized this week. I’m so proud of her for her faith in the Gospel, and all she has done to come closer to Christ. This is the beginning of a new chapter in her life, and she will be blessed with a bright journey ahead.  
Elder Fogelberg is doing incredible. He has already become a great missionary, and I’m so excited to see all that he’s going to be able to accomplish in his mission. I’m so grateful for him!
Elder Cuestas 
This is the view of Mindelo that I get from my area






Tuesday, August 21, 2012

I'm grateful to Heavenly Father for all the blessings!

First off, Elder Fogelberg and I are doing better and better each week. He’s someone who is willing to work as hard as we have to work out here, but at the same time, we can relax and share stories from home, or BYU without getting homesick. I love it. He asks me a ton of questions about the country, the people, the mission, etc. Tomorrow, President Oliveira will be coming here to impart training as usual, but it will be Elder Fogelberg’s first training on his mission, and he’s pretty excited about it. I’m grateful to Heavenly Father for all the blessings that he has given us.

So this weekend, we had the baptism of Orlandina. Everything went well, and she was prepared to take upon herself the promises to follow Jesus Christ. We found eight new investigators this week, and we have a total of 8 baptism dates marked. There are several challenges that lie ahead of us, but we’re going to do all that we can to get these people to church and get them to progress for their own true happiness.  One of the challenges that we have here is the location of the church because it’s a 25 minute walk from our house in a 90 degree heat. It’s very hot, and of course, being that Bela Vista is a very poor area no one has money to pay the bus. So we just walk with the investigators. Every Sunday, when we get to church, we’re soaking wet, and in a suit, it’s a bit tiring, but we got used to it very quickly. Most of the investigators don’t seem to have a problem with walking so much, but still remains a challenge.

This week we will be preparing this woman for baptism, and her name is Firmina. She was, for years, in this terrible relationship with her husband. Her husband would often beat her, threaten to expel her, and even threaten to kill her. He has quite the temper, and he has caused much pain to her and her children. She has been taking lessons from the Elders for a very long time. She has even received a visit one time from President and Sister Oliveira, and the Elders, us included, have tried to visit her husband many times, but our efforts have been in vain. He’s not interested in changing at all or accepting the invites that we give him. Two weeks ago, Firmina and her husband got into a huge argument, and he threatened again to kill her. She took that as the last straw and decided to leave him. Finally that she has separated from him, she can move on to what she wanted to do for a long time, and that is to be baptized. This woman has an incredible testimony and is right now living in a wood and tin shack with her 3 year old child. She does not even dwell on all the things that have happened to her, but instead looks forward to her baptism.

There is this one family that we’re teaching, and they remind me a lot of Jocyleida and Andirson, but only a little older. Abilio is 35 and Sandra is 32, and they also live in a very small tin shack in our area.  They have gotten all their documents to get married, but Satan tries everything to tear families in prospective apart. Right now, Sandra’s mom has some serious health issues, and she has to go all day every day to take care of her. Abilio’s ex-girlfriend, who he shares a son with, is making some big time fuss about his plans to marry Sandra. She really has no reason to do so, other than Satan. He tries to destroy everything. He never succeeds when the investigators do what is right. We had this incredible lesson last night with them, where both Fogelberg and I literally felt the spirit moving our mouths for us. They’re going to pray and see if they should proceed with their plans to get married. We hope that everything goes well.
We also went by Andirsons’ house on our way into the city. His family is doing amazingly. Better than I thought as new converts go. Andirson is doing tons of church service for all the charity that the branch has given his family. He’s preparing for the Melchizidek Priesthood, and everything is going super well for the whole family. I’m so proud of them and grateful that the Lord has blessed me so much with all these sacred experiences.
Elder Cuestas

 

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Incredible Miracles!

The most important thing is that the Lord has performed incredible miracles in our area. Bela Vista is doing amazing now, with plenty of investigators that we have found recently. Just this past week and a half we have found over 10 new investigators, and 5 of them already have a baptism date. We should be having a baptism this weekend of a woman named Orlandina. She’s about 21 years old, and she has been showing great interest in the church and the Gospel for quite some time.
This is nothing short of a miracle that the Lord has placed in our hands. We worked so hard this past week, and we were so blessed with miracles of finding new people and getting them on track to baptism. I never in my life thought that we would have this area pick up so quickly.

I’m sure that the reason of that is because of the incredible unity that Elder Fogelberg and I have in our companionship. I could not ask for a better companion. We have been hitting it off extremely well and working together side by side. It is often hard to imagine that he’s a new missionary, because we feel just like a normal companionship that is making all the decisions together. Elder Fogelberg has fire for the work, and he already is developing a great love for the people. He can speak fluent Portuguese, and he is happy with everything about this country. He is definitely a great missionary!!

So like I said, we have been finding new investigators really fast this past week. Orlandina had plans to be baptized the 25th of August, but we feel that she is ready to be baptized this next week, since she has been coming to church so much. She agreed. She is the sister of another investigator that we have that needs to work on a few issues before she can be baptized. She is someone that we’ll be working with for a while.

Many of our new investigators live very close to each other, so our plan is to help them all come to the Gospel, and then they can strengthen each other as new converts. It’ll be a great help for Bela Vista because one of the weaknesses of this area is that there are not many current members.

The other investigator that I’m extremely excited about is a man named Francelino. The Relief Society President of our branch is dating this man that she convinced to start talking to us. It turns out that he’s very interested and happy in taking our lessons. They don’t live together, but I am pretty sure that they want to start making preparations to get married. I know that they have been together for quite a while, and this is drawing them closer together. We have a baptism date for him on the 1st of September. Hopefully everything goes well.
After further analysis, Bela Vista is poor, but not as poor as Tarrafal. The people are a little more humble in this part of Mindelo than my last area, which makes it easier to find new investigators. There were rumors that Bela Vista was an extremely dangerous area. In reality, this is one of the calmest areas that I have served in. My last area was a constant riot compared to this one. I’ve never served in a part of the city that is so quiet. Maybe the danger happens after I’m asleep. Ha-ha. As for the mountain, we teach investigators on that mountain almost every day, so I get to see that incredible view.
So due to all this success that we been having, and the amazing life that Elder Fogelberg and I are having together as companions, I got over my last area really quick. I’m so focused on all the work that we have to do here, before I go home, that I don’t have any time to think about anything else.
Elder Cuestas

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Bela Vista, Mindelo South

Transfers came, and I finally retired from being a Zone Leader, and now I became a (dad) trainer. This means that I’ll train a brand new missionary, and I’ll be his first companion.  
I’ll be training Elder Fogelberg, and we’ll serve in the area of Bela Vista, Mindelo South. This is the first time in a year that I’m no longer a Zone Leader as our Mission President likes all the Zone Leaders to end their mission training the new missionaries. I’m a bit sad to leave Elder Fernandes, but I’ll go and do whatever the Lord requires of me. Certainly I’m very excited to get Elder Fogelberg started on his first days, weeks and months. This may be the missionary that is with me my last transfer, and I pray that I’ll have the capacity to give him all the necessary skills that he needs to go out there and be everything that the Lord wants him to be. It was interesting that when President called me, he said that he needed me to leave behind a legacy and take upon me a son who will possess my same characteristics and skills. I asked him, President, are you sure you want that? He laughed.
So Fernandes and I were doing our last planning session together, and we stopped for a minute. I thanked him for everything that he had taught me, all that he had helped me be, and all the patience he has had with me. I told him that I would never forget him and that he was one of the best companions that I have ever had. I only wish that it could have been more than 2 transfers, but I know that the Lord needs otherwise. 8 transfers as a Zone Leader is a long time. Half of my mission has been as a Zone Leader. In response to what I said to him, he told me that these have been the best 2 transfers of his mission and that we’re brothers for all eternity. Fernandes is an incredible missionary, brother, and friend. I’ll never forget him and all that he has done for me. I’ll miss him. However, I’m stoked that Elder Josephson, a missionary that I have known for a long time will take my place. He’s an excellent worker. He is a good friend of mine, and we will be able to see each other again in BYU next year.
The part about my new companion is awesome. Elder Fogelberg is from central California close to Fresno, and he is amazing! I went to Praia Monday night to go get him, and we got back to Mindelo around Wednesday night to arrive to the house. He doesn’t seem the slightest bit homesick and seems to really enjoying the mission. We’re already getting along great, and I can tell that he’s spiritually prepared to come out here and start working.
On the other hand, the new area is in very bad shape. There are very few investigators, members, and overall just a lot of work to do. We have to perform what is called a resurrection of this area, where we work, work to construct it again, find investigators, and get things going. It’s the same exact thing that we did in my last area with Elder Fernandes, just that this area is in a much worse shape. Elder Fogelberg already knows this, and it does not seem to bother him. He’s excited at working hard and being able to do everything he can. We just need to pray and work for miracles, because miracles are what we need to get this area going again.
Bela Vista is one of the poorest areas in Mindelo. It’s Tarrafal all over again…people living in tin shacks, no power, no roofs and no other basic things. It is not as ghetto as Praia, but for Mindelo, it’s very ghetto. However, it is called Bela Vista for a very good reason. There is a mountain in the middle of the area, and when you get up there, you can see ALL of Mindelo. It’s a breathtaking sight!
My new companion and I started this week just getting to know the area, the members and investigators. We should have a baptism soon of a woman named Zuleika. She has been investigating the church for a long time and has finally decided that she is ready to be baptized. We’re also working with this one woman named Joana who should be baptized in a couple of weeks. She has been talking to the missionaries for a long time, and she spoke about the peace that she felt in her heart as she read the book of Mormon. It was a very spiritual lesson, and we were able to commit her to a date for her baptism of two weeks from now.
Elder Fogelberg already can speak some pretty good Portuguese for being in the mission field on such a short time. He pays attention really well to the counsel that I’m giving him, and he never complains and is just getting used to everything really fast. It has been indeed a miracle to have him as my new companion.
Obviously, I feel somewhat nostalgic to know that I’ll never be Zone Leader again as it was one of my favorite positions in the mission, but I’m honored that the Lord put such a good missionary in my hands to train.
So the new area and responsibilities will keep me very busy until my last day, as I’ll be making sure to train Elder Fogelberg to do things the right way and set him off on the right foot, and I’ll work harder than ever to resurrect this new area.
Andirson’s wedding was incredible! I’ll write more next week.
Elder Cuestas

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Santo Antao Island

This week was a little different as a huge part of this week was spent in the island of Santo Antao. Being the Zone Leaders here in Mindelo North, we have, as our responsibility, the island of Santo Antao. We went there this week on a three day division, and it was an incredible experience. To get there, we have to take a boat, just like going to Brava. I’m grateful that the sea between Sao Vicente and Santo Antao is a lot calmer, thus making the journey much more pleasant. The boat is much older, but much comfier because you can walk around and be outside where you can feel the wind.

So we got there, and we had district meeting with the missionaries of that island. There are 6 missionaries on the island of Santo Antao. We arrived in the city of Porto Novo and went immediately to the chapel there and met with everyone else. District meeting was pretty good. Nothing special, just district meeting (Happens every week).

The special part was going out with the Elders to the farthest point in Santo Antao to a place called Ponta do Sol. This is one of the most beautiful areas of Cape Verde. This is an area that is extremely rural with almost nothing, but people and pure nature. We went to an area of Ponta do Sol called Cuquoli (pronounced coo ko li) and took a look at the work of the Elders there.

Those two days out there were extremely spiritual, and we were able to help out the Elders a lot and give them some inspired counsel from the Lord. Next to Brava, Ponta do Sol, Santo Antao is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen in my life. It is an undiscovered paradise of greenery, mangos and nature. Santo Antao is famous for mangos, so we ate a lot of mangos this past week. Mango has become my favorite fruit, and I love anything made from mango.

We got back and continued to prepare Jocyleida and Andirson for their wedding, just two weeks away. Everything is going very well with them, and their faith is stronger than ever. We’re so proud of them. Andirson had a very special challenge this week. he was not able to work all week; thus he was unable to provide for his family. He got an offer to work on Sunday, and If he wouldn’t accept it, his family would go hungry all week. We arrived at his home and testified of miracles and the power of obedience to God’s commandments. We also said that he should go to church instead to protect his family from Satan’s temptations, especially so close to the wedding. I know it was something so difficult to understand to anyone else. Why would you go to church instead of work that day, especially if you knew that your family would go hungry, if you did not work that day? He told us that he would think about it. On Sunday, there were Andirson and his family all dressed up and coming to church. Andirson wore a white shirt and tie. My joy was so great to see the faith of this incredible man!

Now, what about that miracle?

It so happened that a member of another branch was visiting our branch that Sunday. I notified our branch president of Andirson’s situation and asked if they could help. Just a few minutes after church ended, this member that was visiting our branch walked up to Andirson and said: "Brother, I own a supermarket. Come with me right now and get some food for your family".

That is a miracle. Andirson and his family got something to eat that day and for some time.

Ana is doing very well. Despite suffering many health issues, she is strong, faithful and going to church every week.

Elder Cuestas

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Thank goodness we're promised his protection!

The Lord performed a series of miracles one by one these past few days. Even though, we are preparing Jocyleida and her family for baptism on the 2nd of August, and that we had a few other baptisms, our area was running out of investigators. We had been having an extremely hard time finding new investigators these past weeks.
So we were working on Friday, and really not having much success in finding anyone. I was praying in my head the whole time, pleading the Lord that we could find someone interested in the Gospel.
When nothing happened that day, we went to our Correlation meeting with the Branch Mission leader around 8p, when the phone rang. It was one of the Elders from Mont Sossego (Another area). The elders there had talked to two people who lived in our area, and they said that they were interested in getting to meet us. At the same time, a branch missionary passed us a reference of another person that we contacted later in the week.  Finally, some new investigators to work with…!
But the following two miracles are just amazing  
Last Saturday, we did not have a baptism, so we were trying to find investigators to come and see the other missionaries' baptism. No one was home. We entered the chapel, thinking of what to do. We were in the chapel about 10 minutes, when a man we had never seen before walked in the chapel. He was a skinny man, about 22 years old and very tall. We went up to him and asked him who he was, and what was his interest in coming to the chapel. He responded "My name is Hernany, and I just felt in my heart that I needed to come here and find you".
I had never in my mission heard anyone say that before. The Lord clearly turned him in to us for help. He started explaining more about his life, which made his first impression to come here a lot more sense. He told us that his mother died a year ago, and he had not been able to cope well with that. He had been drinking, smoking, and using drugs for a very long time now. He said he felt lost and alone and that he wanted and needed help from us. He said that that morning he woke up feeling in his heart that he needed to find the Elders. We started explaining on how God Loves us and that he made a way, so that he could see his mother again and be with her again.
His eyes opened wide with tears forming. His whole countenance changed. He brightened up and instantly was filled with hope. He said that he couldn’t sleep, he couldn’t eat, and that he had to drop out of school because of how hard it has been to cope with his mother's death. Also, he has a daughter, and the daughter's mother had been making it really difficult for him to see her. This was a broken hearted child of God looking for help. We were filled with compassion, and we went with him afterwards to see where his house was. We told him that we would be there to take him to church with us the next morning.
The next morning he was not at home, and we found out that it was because he had arrived at church much earlier than it actually started. At the end of the meetings, he came up to us and gave us really firm hugs and thank us. He knew right then and there that the Gospel was true. Now we just have to teach him.
The other incredible miracle happened Sunday night.

On Friday, before going to Correlation meeting, we were not having much success in finding people, as I mentioned earlier. We were close to Aldina's house, an investigator we had stopped teaching some time ago. We felt that we had to go by her house. We found her outside her home. We asked how she was doing, and she said that she was still praying and that she was thinking of leaving her boyfriend. We asked if we could visit her on Sunday, and she said yes.

Sunday night comes around, and we head over there. Aldina lives in a very dangerous area of Mindelo. Her zone is called Impena and is about 60 feet away from the most dangerous part of the city called Ilha de Madeira. This zone is full of drunks, gangs, fights, thieves, and violence. The Cape Verdian SWAT team has had to come in that zone many times over the years. The only people in that zone that are spared...are the Elders. No one touches us. No one. Gangs swarm the area with knives, stones, and other stuff in their hands. We have to work in the zone frequently. Everyone there knows us. Most people aren’t very interested in talking to us because of their lifestyle, but they make sure that nothing happens to us, or that we are not involved in anything.

Interesting isn’t it.
Anyway, as we were walking through Ilha de Madeira to get to Aldina's house, the zone was pretty agitated. Some party was going on, and EVERYONE in the street was drunk, and there were a few fights going on...ugh. Anyway, one fight was right in front of Aldina's house, and I was wondering why. We made our way through to the front door. Aldina was there and looking extremely upset. I asked her what was wrong, and she pointed to the screaming drunks. One of them was her son. I had seen him a few times, but I had never had the opportunity to really talk to him. She had told us before that he had serious problems with drinking and that he hung out often in Ilha de Madeira.
Here he was, drunk as drunk could be and just about ready to start throwing fists at his opponent. I asked Fernandes "What do we do" He said that we should leave, but neither of us started walking. I then said that we should leave, but again, neither of us started walking. Fernandes then grabbed Emmerson (Aldina’s son) and started dragging him inside the house. I immediately started to help him. We dragged him over to the living room and threw him on the couch. He was so drunk that he could hardly speak, but he was raging mad and wanted to go back outside. Aldina was crying in the doorway.
Fernandes got up to take Emmerson into his room where we could talk to him and calm him down a bit. I went after Aldina, who was broken hearted and gave her a blessing and that immediately helped her to help us take care of her son. She got him clothes, a towel, food and water, so that we could help him. We had spent almost 2 hours in their house calming things down. He had been out in the streets for over two days and had not eaten anything.
In the midst of all his blabbering, he finally calmed down and revealed some information to us. He said that he had wanted to talk to us for a long time and that he wanted to stop drinking because it was hurting his family and himself. He said that he was disgusted with himself and that he needed help. This was another broken hearted child of God that the Lord sought conveniently to deliver into our hands. With this act, Aldina and Emmerson are once again investigators, and we will continue helping them to overcome their troubles. It was the most intense way the Lord has ever brought us an investigator, but the Lord places us where he needs us, even if it means being in the middle of screaming drunks. Thank goodness we’re promised his protection.

Elder Cuestas 

Monday, July 2, 2012

Jocyleida Conquers Her Fears

To follow up on Jocyleida's situation, two Sundays ago I was on a division in my own area, and I was with the District Leader from Santo Antao. We had an appointment with the family, and we started teaching them about the Word of Wisdom. At the very end of the lesson, Jocyleida asked if we could baptize her daughter the following week. I responded that we were planning on baptizing all of them together. Jocyleida looked at me and said:

"Well I don't really know about that".

There were a few minutes of silence, and I then asked, "What is your concern?"

She thought, and she thought, and she thought some more and then she answered "Look, it’s the same thing as before, and I’ve told you that I don't like the idea of having to get married".

More silence...is she putting a stopping point?

I instantly thought, no. There is no way that the Lord put a complete family in our hands to have them not make it to baptism, I completely rejected that idea.

I summoned up all the power and authority that the Lord placed in me. I felt full of his spirit, and I looked at her straight in the eyes and testified to her as an authorized servant of Jesus Christ that this was the Lord’s will for her life and that the Lord placed her where she was, so that she could prepare for the blessings of Baptism. I promised to her that if she took this step that she would be blessed for all Eternity and that she could return to live with her Heavenly Father again. I was as firm as I could be, and the words that came out of my mouth were things that God placed in me. I promised her that she would start seeing the blessings as soon as she said yes.

Silence for several minutes…my heart was pounding. I did not take my eyes away from hers. No one could have denied that the Spirit was there and that the spirit was testifying to her of the truthfulness of our message. After what seemed an eternity, she responded "I will think some more".

We left it at that.

I met up with Fernandes later and told him everything that happened. We prayed and prayed and prayed that night that she would accept. We spent hours the following day practicing our lesson for her in our companionship study. We were prepared to teach her about the Lord’s will and Satan’s will and that Satan was who was placing that fear in her heart. We wrapped up and went to go teach our other investigators waiting for eight o clock that evening when we would teach her.

Eight o’clock came, and they were waiting for us. We came in and sat down, had a prayer and some small talk. We asked if everything was ok. They said yes, and everything seemed normal. Jocyleida was a little quiet. The time for the question came up…

"So have you thought about what we discussed two days ago?"

"I have, and I have made a decision"

She paused and then said "I want to get married"

My heart skipped a beat right there. She did it!! She overcame her fear!! She felt that the Lord was there and that the Lord was telling her that this was the will he had for her. She felt it, and she knew that it was true!! She overcame 22 years of being against marriage to get married. What a miracle! What a joy!

This last week was all about getting papers and documents from several places including the City Hall, the registry, department of vital records and so forth. We helped them in all the processes as getting married takes some time and requires a lot of papers. I remember last Wednesday that we went just with Jocyleida to get a copy of her birth certificate. She seemed extremely happy that day. I was curious as to what was making her so happy, because she is generally very quiet.

When we walked out of the City Hall, she found one of her close friends walking nearby. She called her over and starting bragging and telling her on how she is preparing to get married. You could see this joy in her heart, and she was radiating. Then she pulled out her husband’s ID and showed it to her and said: "look! This is my future husband”.  

I smiled as I know that the Lord changed her heart, and she has not turned back since.

Something that is really cool is that we had the baptism of an investigator that we have been working for a few weeks now. His name is Ivan, and he was truly prepared to receive the gospel. We went to his house for the first time last week, (we usually teach him in the chapel) and as we began to teach him, his mother quietly watched through the doorway. After a few minutes, I looked at her and smiled and said "Would you like to sit with us?" She did.

Through Ivan, her mom and his sister are now investigators, and we’re hoping that this could be another family. We haven’t met the husband yet, so we will see, but we have some good hope for them.

Elder Cuestas




Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Politics and Elections in Mindelo

Mindelo has been getting really hot lately. It is starting to remind me of Fogo, except for that Mindelo is the windiest city in Cape Verde. This helps a lot.
Right now, they’re having campaigns for the Mayor of the city. The way they campaign is they set up stages in various parts of the city over the course of 3 weeks, and the candidate goes there and speaks to the people. The two main political parties in Cape Verde are PAICV (Partido Africano para Independencia de Cabo Verde) and MPD (Movimento para Democracia) PAICV tends to be the more conservative party from what I hear, and they’re more successful in Praia, as Praia is more conservative than Mindelo.  Politics and elections are something that is generally important to the people here, and campaign time is a big deal. It’s actually pretty cool to see. Elections here are very peaceful and lively with music and a political spirit.

P day is something that is always a joy here in Mindelo. All the missionaries really like one another, so we have a great time every Monday morning in soccer. We get up at 6:20am and catch the bus to the church that is on the outskirts of the island here in Mindelo. There are two churches here in Mindelo. We play soccer for some 2 hours, and then we go with the other elders to a bakery in downtown to eat bread and get something to drink. Mindelo has the best bread and pastries in all the country. So it is a small time we get on Mondays to relax, get some breakfast and get going with our day. After that, we go home and clean our enormous house. We live in the biggest house in the mission. It has three floors, and very difficult to keep it clean. We take the time to clean, sweep, mop, and keep it organize for the week.  Then we go out, use the internet, buy groceries and run other errands. Today, we are going to the airports to pick up some missionaries that are coming in as the transfers are going on right now.

Last week was full of spiritual moments and challenges. To start the week off, Margarida’s daughter told us that she wanted to be baptized this past weekend. Her name is Eriette. Being that Margarida's situation is somewhat complicated and that it’s going to take a longer time for her to be baptized, we decided to prepare Eriette for baptism this weekend. The young women in the branch did an excellent job of integrating her and helping her feel welcome in the church. By the time of her baptism, she was already participating in personal progress and in the church choir.  

We’re facing some challenges with Valdevino. He keeps saying that he’s going to come back to church and be a support to Margarida, but he’s not keeping up with his words. He keeps trying to stall on getting married to Margarida and completing his commitments to come to church. It’s extremely frustrating because Margarida is going through a lot of pain right now. She received one of the strongest testimonies I have ever seen an investigator received about the Church and the restoration of the Gospel.  It breaks her heart to see that Valdevino doesn’t show the same passion for the Gospel as she does. This also hinders her progress on getting baptized, as Valdevino still has to get divorced from his previous marriage and marry Margarida. We continue to try thought because we can’t give up on her.
We did get the chance this week to teach Andirson and Jocyleida about the law of chastity. This has to have been one of the most powerful moments of my mission. It was interesting as we helped them see the true purpose and blessings of marriage and covenants. We helped them understand that marriage is not a matter of fancy dresses, cakes, parties, and money, but more about the promises we make of fidelity to our partners and to God to receive the blessing of obedience to the commandments. They understood that clearly, and Andirson said yes. We’re only waiting on Jocyleida and being a little patient with her. She grew up her whole life thinking that she never wanted to get married, so it is a big thing for her to go against that. She has not said no, she just said that she needs some time to think about it. We’re praying for her that she will see the blessings of preparing for that.
We had a rather sad moment with Aldina as she said that she didn’t want to try anymore to change for baptism. Aldina is a woman who is a bit negative and would rather spend time trying to gain the pity of others, so that they can help her. We discovered that the man she lives with supports her financially, thus being the true reason that she does not want to leave him. She tried to make us understand that God has to be more considerate. I explained to her in a more firm manner that God does not accept and will never accept her situation and that he prepared a way for her to get out of it, but that she has to act to find out what to do. There is nothing more we can do, but pray for her.

We found some more new investigators this week, and the members have been doing an amazing job in helping us out and teaching with us. We had 15 lessons with a member present this week!

Elder Cuestas

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

"Teach People, Not Lessons"

These weeks in Mindelo have been the most intense moments of my mission. Every lesson is different in this area. There is no such thing as routine, and it’s truly a blessing because it really gives us a chance to grow and, as we say "Teach people, not Lessons."

This week has had a few disappointments, but overall, there were more miracles than there were not, and I think we’re finally starting to turn the place around and reach the objective to which we were placed here for.

As I mentioned before, finding investigators here is quite difficult as people in Mindelo are the least receptive to the Gospel, compared to all the other islands. Street contacting is completely useless here. That being said we have to be super smart and work with the members, members, members. We have been working with a few of them for a few weeks, motivating them to look for their friends, and finally we were able to get results. Our area has turned from dead to strong,  and there are a good number of people that we’re now working with. We have a beautiful family, as well as some other investigators, and we were busy as busy could be last week. I have never been so tired in my life hahaha. Just this morning, my companion went to take a 10 minute shower, and I sat on my bed for a few seconds, and before you know it, Fernandes is like "Hey....hey...Cuestas" as he was trying to wake me up. Ha-ha. This has been an intense week.

It feels really good right now. I have fought like I have never fought on my mission before to get these new investigators. We have tried more than we have ever tried to find the potential in this area. What a blessing that the Lord has given us to be able to finally have found these elected souls. It proved to me that there are people everywhere in this world that are being prepared to accept this marvelous gospel. We came in this area to show everyone, as the zone leaders, that finding, teaching, and baptizing in Mindelo is possible. We’re far away from the final goal, but we finally got the train going.

So, that being said, Mindelo is becoming my favorite area on my mission. As I said, here in Mindelo, baptisms don’t come that easy, but because we have to work so hard, we’re learning life lessons. After a few good weeks of struggling and not giving up, we realized how much we have grown and how much better we can teach, feel the spirit, and love the Gospel because of all we have been through. That is what Mindelo has done for us so far. Fernades and I were talking this week, and we were just marveling on how much our teaching has improved, and how much more we feel the spirit in our lessons, just because of all that we have endured here. We have suffered big time, but I would never go back, and if I have to suffer even more to keep picking up this area, so be it. I love the work that the Lord is permitting us to do here. Our accomplishments feel 10 times bigger because of how much harder it was to get them.

We taught our wonderful family three times this week. Imagine this. Jocyleida doesn’t know how to read. She said that when she was little, her mom told her that she was stupid, and as a result she was denied schooling. She never had the opportunity to go to school. It was something that was so heartbreaking to hear. Her mom used to abuse her and enslave her to whatever she pleased. She was like a little mule for her mother, and as a result, she has a true hatred for her mother, which we’re trying to help her with. Her husband, Andirson, being the amazing man he is, is reading the Book of Mormon out loud to her, so that she can learn the things that he’s learning, as well. I would never imagine something like this happening on my mission. We taught them about the restoration this week. At the end of the lesson, we committed them to be baptized in due course, and they accepted.

The husband said something very interesting: "My whole life people have been telling me what to do about religion. I don’t believe that you should do something just because people tell you to. How do you know that they’re right? This is different. You didn’t come in my house to convince me. You came in to teach me, and I feel the truthfulness of your message. I feel that this is right, and I, my wife and my children will be baptized in this church. I feel that I’m doing this out of my own free will, and that’s what is making such a difference".

This is a man that truly ponders about the things that we have taught. He thinks for himself and asks questions. He has a genuine curiosity and has the true desire to live the Gospel. The big lesson/obstacle is coming up, and that is that this couple has to get married. We’ll teach this lesson this week. We hope that everything will go well for this family and that they’ll accept to assume the hardest commitment in this country - The law of Chastity.

We had a major change as well with Valdevino this last Sunday. We came and visited their house with the counselor in the District Presidency and his wife, as well as another member to show the love that we have for him and the desire that everyone in the branch has to get him to come back to church. His countenance was so different this time around. He said to us that he was happy that his wife was going to church, but he was discouraged that he wasn’t finding it possible to go. He was on the verge of giving up, but after the visit, he felt rejuvenated to start up again and try again to start coming back to church... a true miracle.

Aldina was our major disappointment. Being that she has low self-steam, she didn’t reveal one crucial thing to us. Last Tuesday, she finally revealed that she lives with someone, and they aren’t married. Let’s see what happens, if this man is willing to get married, so that she can be baptized. This is going to have to take some time thought.

On the other hand, Gualdino made it to baptism this Saturday. A 57-year old man finally put behind years and years of drinking to change his life and accept the Gospel. This baptism completed his family of all members now. I’ll admit there were certain points in his progress that we thought that he was not going to make it just because of how many relapses he has had, but the Lord knows what he is doing. Gualdino was an elected one, and he is ready to begin a new life as a member of the Lord’s church.

Yes, indeed it was a super intense week… Let’s just say that, although a very small light, the light at the end of the tunnel has, indeed, begun to shine. These are weeks of fasting and prayer, and I know that the Lord is watching out for us and working with all our imperfections and setbacks to make us the missionaries that we need to be.


Elder Cuestas