URUBAMBA, Peru — In this place known for its towering Andes peaks and the Sacred Valley, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are striving to live the gospel and keep their covenants.
In doing so, they are receiving strength and help beyond their own through a covenant connection with Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.
Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles brought this message to the Valle Sagrado Peru District, in a devotional on Tuesday, Aug. 27, that included more people than had ever been in the Urubamba, Peru, chapel before at one time.
“As we receive and live the Savior’s gospel by making and keeping sacred covenants, it does not eliminate hard things from our lives. Rather it blesses and strengthens us to deal with the hard things that are always a part of our lives,” Elder Bednar said.
When he began his remarks, Elder Bednar greeted everyone in Quechua by saying “imaynalla,” or, “How are you?” The people answered with “allinmi,” meaning “good.”
When he concluded, he blessed the congregation to know that the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ are for each of them, individually and personally.
Divine roles and gifts of men and women
Elder Jorge T. Becerra, General Authority Seventy and president of the South America Northwest Area, testified of “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” and the divine role and duties of fathers.
Sister Susan Bednar expressed the many gifts that women have, inviting women to “pray for the gift of discernment, the gift of wisdom and the gift of love.”
Sister Debbie I. Becerra also invited women to ponder how they can share their voice and light with others.
The messages touched Minerva Ramos, from the Sicuani Peru Stake, who was recently called to serve in the Brazil Sao Paulo South Mission.
“Something important I think I needed was to know that the Lord needs us today, and to know that women have an important role in the Church and can do more in this work,” she said. “Our examples are something that the whole world watches.”
President William Garrasco, a counselor in the Peru Cusco Mission presidency, felt prompted to remember that when he is facing challenges or problems, he can exercise faith doing the basic things.
“We are people of covenant, and all the blessings our Heavenly Father has for us will depend on how we honor our covenants,” President Garrasco said.
Firm foundations
Around the Sacred Valley are rock walls and formations that have stood for centuries — remnants of the ancient Inca civilization. The stones are tightly placed together and fashioned deep into the ground.
Walking among some of the structures brought to Elder Bednar’s mind the hymn “How Firm a Foundation.”
“With the stability of these structures, how long they have lasted — there is a great lesson in that for all of us,” he said.
Cusco, in the Andes mountains of southern Peru, is home to nearly a half-million people — the seventh-largest population in the country. A house of the Lord was announced by Church President Russell M. Nelson during April 2022 general conference and will be known as the Cusco Peru Temple.
Francesco Galiano Abanto, who serves as a communications director for the Church in Cusco, said the people of Cusco are very traditional and have a strong foundation.
“We believe a lot in Christ. Not just our Church, but in general the people have a lot of belief in Christ through different customs,” he said. “So when they receive the missionaries, it is easy to receive the gospel because they already know about Christ in their ways.”
‘Become a missionary’
As Elder Bednar met with the Peru Cusco Mission on Tuesday, he reminded the missionaries that they are not serving a mission for 18 or 24 months, they are serving a mission all of their lives.
“I bless you to learn to be diligent,” he said. “As you exercise faith in the Savior, you will become a missionary now and remain a missionary forever.”
The invitation and blessing touched the heart of Sister Raquel Bitsilly, from near Gallup, New Mexico.
“It’s not the end once you are off the mission,” she said after the meeting. “As you build the foundation of Christ, you’ll be able to have the foundation of your family. This will be from the house of the Lord.”
Her companion, Sister Nicole Garcia from Cajamarca, Peru, said, “I felt the Spirit, and I was able to receive revelation for myself.”
When missionaries knocked on her door a year before her mission, Sister Bitsilly didn’t want to listen. But as she began learning, she said it all made sense — building upon and adding to the traditions she had as a Native American.
“Everything that was taught to me, I felt a connection to it — ‘This is true, this is true,’” she said. “This is the gospel. It doesn’t end, it keeps going.”
