making changes

Dear Family,

I recently remembered that I neglected to tell about our trip to Cumbe Mayo two weeks ago. I believe the only detail I mentioned is that we piled 14 missionaries and 3 members into a pick-up truck. The three members were in the front seat, five elders in the back seat, and nine of us in the pick-up bed. I was seated on a plank towards the back of the truck, facing rearward. Apparently there's nothing illegal about overfilling the car: we drove through populated parts of Cajamarca only receiving a few weird looks. We drove uphill until the city was far, far below us, and eventually it disappeared from view. I took several pictures from the back of the truck (trying not to let my camera fall off the side and into the abyss), but spent most of the time trying not to fall off myself. After an hour of that, we arrived at Cumbe Mayo. The site received its fame for having some ancient engravings on a rock. (It reminded me a lot of the movie "The Road to El Dorado"). We crawled through a hole in the mountain and came through on the other side. Then we took a break and played soccer (in grass!!) and ultimate frisbee at a field next to the ancient ruins. Unfortunately, Cumbe Mayo sits at an altitude of 10-12,000 feet. Needless to say, we were quite out of breath.

We continued the tour and discovered some two-thousand-year-old canals that still flow with water from the mountain rains. There were also some reputed "sacrificial altars," but I didn't hear it from anybody with authority. I suppose it's possible. All in all, the ruins were fascinating.

This week in Cajamarca was something special. Our Mission President informed us of new goals, including daily contacts, new investigators, baptismal dates and baptisms. We weren't satisfied with the results from the previous week, so we did some brainstorming in our planning session to make the week more productive and to reach the goals we set. We made a plan, then we knelt down presented it to the Lord. Afterwards, we made a few changes and went to work. Every night, we spent twice as much time planning out our day: we planned so that every 15 minutes we knew what we would be doing. At the end of the week, our results had doubled (and tripled in one area) from the previous week. This week we need to do even more to reach the goals we've set, but at least we have the planning down.

We've talked to more people this week than any other week in my mission. Every day I wrote myself an inspiration line in my planner to keep myself motivated to talk to everyone. I've found that the more people I talk to, the happier I am at the end of the day. "The truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly and independently, till it has sounded in every ear..." I'm excited to share the Gospel with so many people who just haven't heard a thing about it.

The Restoration of the Gospel is the greatest news the world has ever known. When I think about it, it's the most profound announcement since the Ressurrection of the Savior almost 2,000 years ago. The heavens are open and God is extending his kingdom over all the earth. What so many people have been (and still are) searching for over the years is now within their reach. There's a living prophet who speaks with God today (and he's going to speak this week!). I've never heard more exciting news in all my life!

I'm glad to hear that everyone is healthy and safe. You're in my prayers!

Love,
Elder Withers