December 21, 2015- Feliz Navidad

Hola Familia y Amigos!
  This week week we started with an exchange with the Topsham Elders.
I went to Topsham and Elder Jenkins stayed here in Farmingdale. The
exchange went super well and while I was in Topsham we were able to
teach four lessons so that was pretty good for that area. We then
exchanged back on Wednesday and we have been walking around the entire
week because we are basically out of miles now which is fine with me
because I feel more like a missionary when we are walking instead of
in a car all day. We saw the Peters again this week and R who is
the Father of the family is still struggling understanding the
Restoration so if you could pray that he will receive an answer of the
truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and the Restoration that would be
great. We also were Finally able to see Todd on Saturday and had a
great lesson with him about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He feels that
the things we are talking about are true but he still isn't sure if he
should be baptized so if you could also pray for him that would be
awesome. We also saw Anthony yesterday and shared the A Savior is Born

video with him and he understands how important Jesus Christ is and is
going to do better the rest of this Christmas season to remember Him.
We also had Zone Conference this week and we talked a lot about the
Enabling Power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. This is the power of
the Atonement that gives us strength to help us overcome Temptation
and anything else that we go through in life that weighs us down. We
also talked about our new mission vision for next year and it is super
awesome! We are going to be focusing on having Members invite Families
or people that they know over to their homes and then inviting the
missionaries over to teach the lessons not only to the people that
they invite over but us as missionaries will also be teaching the
Members the Missionary Lessons. It will really help to build unity
with Members and Missionaries and the Investigators will have an
immediate support system that isn't only the missionaries but also the
members. It is going to be super awesome when we start it and I would
invite everyone to invite the Missionaries into your homes.

    I know that this is the work of the Lord and that as we as
missionaries and members come together on the same team. The Lords
work will progress faster than we have ever seen it before. I am so
grateful to be a missionary and to be able to serve the people here in
New England hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and take time to
serve someone everyday of this week and remember the true reason for
the season! Have an awesome week.
Love
-Elder Espinoza

December 14, 2015

Hola Familia y Amigos!
    This week was really good compared to last. We saw tons of
miracles this week. We were able to go to a former investigators home
named the Peters Family. They invited us right in and we were able to
teach the father and we were able to see them on Friday and  teach the
rest of the family then. We then went to visit with them yesterday and
they feed us dinner and we were just expecting to visit with them.
They are super awesome but if you all could pray for them to be more
open to accepting the message of the Restoration that would be great.
     We also just had a lot of success talking to and meeting new
people. I am super grateful that so many people were willing to talk
to us this week. It's the greatest feeling when we can at least talk
to someone for longer than two seconds before they slam the door in
our faces. It has been pretty fun here in Maine even though there
isn't as many people to talk to. All the members here are great and
are willing to do missionary work which is also really cool because I
haven't seen this kind of willingness for missionary work since I was
in Lawrence.
      I am grateful for this Christmas season and for the opportunity
I have to serve our Savior by serving others here. I am grateful for
the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ and especially for the knowledge
of the Plan of Salvation. This knowledge helps me to know and I do
know that this plan can bring greater peace and happiness into life
and it is all possible through Him whom was sent here for us. I love
my Savior Jesus Christ and would invite all of us during this
Christmas season to make more of an effort to remember Him. Hope you
all have a great week!
Love
-Elder Espinoza

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Hola Familia y Amigos!
   This week was awesome but unfortunately it is my last day today in
the Bedford/Manchester Area. President Stoker called this morning and
I am being emergency transferred tomorrow  I don't know where to yet
but I will let you all know next week.
    Other than that piece of exciting news Monday was so awesome! I am
sure you all have heard about L and J. They have been
struggling to understand priesthood authority so on Monday we talked
about the Apostasy and the Restoration of the priesthood. They now
understand the importance of the priesthood and a great miracle
happened during the lesson. After we finished teaching L has been
struggling with some anxiety and so she asked for a priesthood
blessing. We offered her one last transfer when she got sick but she
didn't feel comfortable or understand what it was. So we gave her a
blessing and closed the lesson. Later on in the week we gave her a
call just to see how things were going and she said hat her anxiety is
way to almost none existent. I have a testimony that the priesthood is
a real power and that through faith in Jesus Christ is the way and
only way that the power of the priesthood can be used.
I know that the priesthood has been restored and that it is only in
Christ's church. It was give and restored upon Joseph Smith and has
been given to all worthy to hold it. It is the power that governs
heaven and the universe. It is the power given us from God in order to
perform all the ordinances necessary for salvation. I would in it all
who read this if they do not have a testimony of the Book of Mormon to
find out for yourself and as you come to know the Book of Mormon is
true you will come to know that Joseph Smith was called to be a
prophet and that  God's authority is here on the earth again. Also
check out christmas.mormon.org and Discover Why the Savior was born.
Have a great week.
Love
-Elder Espinoza

November 23, 2015 - Transfers!

Hola Familia y Amigos!
   This week was a good week. First news is that transfers came with
both of my new companions! Elder De Leon who is from Guatemala  and
who was my district leader in Lawrence is now one of my companions.
And my other companion is Elder Harper and he is from Nebraska and is
a French Speaker and has served most of his mission in Portland, Maine
which is the French version of Lawrence.
    Yesterday we had dinner with President and Sister Stoker it was
super cool to be able to have dinner with our mission president and
his wife and share a message with them. We were a little nervous at
first but when the Spirit tells you what to say it isn't bad at all.
    I also finished he Book of Mormon for the second time and applied
Moroni's promise. I know even with greater conviction now that the
Book of Mormon is true and  that if anyone truly wants to know if it
is all they have to do is ask God and it shall be given him! I love
being able to spend everyday for two years serving the Lord and even
though it is not easy at times but it is always worth it.
I know that my savior lives and I know that as we strive to serve
daily we will feel greater joy in our life and feel His love more than
we could if we didn't. So go out there and serve our Father  in Heaven
by serving His children.
Love
-Elder Espinoza

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November 16, 2015 - Transfers

Hola Familia y Amigos!

  

       This week was transfer calls and I will be staying here in Bedford, New Hampshire. My companion Elder Shupe is headed home and Elder Pemberton is being transferred as Assistant to the President and will be serving in the neighboring ward of Manchester. 

       Other than transfer calls this week was super awesome we taught a lot of good lessons and were able to see some miracles for the last week of the transfer. On Tuesday is when we had a lot of work we had 5 lessons that day and two of them we were able to have fellowship for our investigators there. Unfortunately all of our lessons except one on Wednesday fell through. But some miracles did happen. 

-Miracle 1: We went and saw S and A- they are fairly recent investigators that we picked up a few weeks ago and hey have come to Church the past two weeks in a row. A is reading the Book of Mormon and we left them with the Plan of Salvation pamphlet to read when we stopped by one night and S loves it and has read it through twice. They are so prepared for the Gospel and it is super cool to see them so enthusiastic and excited about everything. 

-Miracle 2: we saw L and J is week on Saturday night and had dinner with them and a good lesson on the Book of Mormon and faith after they had read Alma 32. They seem to be enjoying the parts in the Book of Mormon that resonate with them but they are still struggling to understand the entire Book. So please pray for them to be able to understand he Book of Mormon. 

-Miracle 3: Happened yesterday after Church. Well first off S, A, and J came to Church. And then after Church we all went up to the Joseph Smith Memorial Birthplace and they all loved it. S and A especially because at one point S said "This guy Joseph must have been one of the most important people to have been born over the past few hundreds of years". It is cool  to see someone understand or at least start to understand who Joseph Smith  truly was.

Elder Espinoza and friends at the Joseph Smith Memorial Birthplace.

I would just like to leave you all with my testimony that I know that Joseph Smith saw God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ in the spring  of 1820 and that he was guided and directed by God to Translate and ancient record now known to all humanity as The Book of Mormon- Another Testament of Jesus Christ. I know that as we read the Book of Mormon, Pray and ponder about it  that we can receive a witness of its truthfulness and divinity, that Jesus Christ is our Savior and that Joseph Smith was called to be a prophet of God. I know that through Joseph Smith God has once again end restored his only true and living Church here on the Earth again and at we are guided and directed by a living prophet today who is guided by The Head of this church, the head of my life, our Savior and Redeemer Jesus Christ.  This is His work and His glory that I am privileged to be apart of and I know it is all true. 

Have an awesome week.

Love

-Elder Espinoza

November 9, 2015 - Two Weeks of Missionary Work

Hola Familia y Amigos!
   This week (26 of October-November 1) was not full of very much
teaching but we did have an eventful week. We started the week off
with a less active named Sister C and we talked about the
prophet Joseph Smith and she seems to have a greater understanding of
the importance of the prophet and it seems that her testimony grew
from us reading the talk with her. On Tuesday we were able to teach
the Restoration in Spanish to a new investigator named L. She is
from Mexico and seems to be interested in the message; hopefully she
starts tomorrow to apply the message. On Wednesday we had our Ward
Trunk or Treat and we had a good turn out of some investigators and
less actives so it was a great hit even though it rained. Because it
rained all the kids went around to different classrooms of the church
and trick or treated that way. Then on Halloween we went to a member's
house for dinner and then went home at 5pm  because we were not allowed
to be out past then because of all the trick or treaters. So we stayed
in the apartment and deep cleaned it we found something super weird
while we were cleaning and I have no clue why missionaries keep or get
their hands on stuff like what we found which was a whip. Sometimes
you find or have super random things happen to you as a missionary but
that is one reason why the mission is so great because there is always
almost a new experience everyday.
     This week (November 1- November 8) was super awesome and it
started with exchanges with the assistants. We meet some super cool
people Monday night while street contacting and hopefully we can find
those people again because we were not able to see them during the
rest of the week. Tuesday we were able to find a woman named D
whose door has not been knocked by missionaries in 38 years but was
able to walk through the Washington DC Temple before it was dedicated
in the 70's. We offered to rake her leaves and she accepted. We then
had a lesson with L and Hermano Raymundo came with us to the
lesson. We taught briefly on the Book of Mormon because she was having
family over for dinner. She invited us to eat with them and it was
cool to get to know her and her sister and brother-in-law. After that
we had a dinner appointment with Brother Pastrana who is our ward
clerk and he has such an awesome conversion story and is super rock
solid in the gospel. We then on Wednesday had a great lesson with an
investigator named R and he is similar to Brother Pastrana. He has
had no religious background and has read the Bible, Koran, and the
Tora. So he has an understanding on  religion but he still lacks
fundamental basic belief in God and that Jesus Christ is our Savior.
But he has a desire to learn more about what we believe. On Friday we
finally had a lesson with L and J after helping them move
some furniture and it was a very spiritual lesson on the Holy Ghost
and baptism. Please pray for L especially as she is sick right now
and is trying to understand the restored gospel and the importance of
baptism. On Saturday we were up in Vermont for a Zone Conference and
we were given instruction by Elder Neilson of the Seventy who is the
Head of the Missionary Department for the church and he gave a great
training on the Atonement and how it can help us in all aspects of
life and that is what I would like to end with.
      I know that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can be
strengthened and lifted up because of the enabling power of the
Atonement. Through the enabling power we are given the power to
overcome our pains and difficulties our burdens and trials and that is
because as we pray for strength to overcome our trials He can and will
strengthen us. I would invite all of us to pray and seek for strength
to overcome our adversities and trials and then watch as you feel the
effects of the enabling power of the Atonement or sacrifice of our
Savior come into your life. I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior and
Redeemer. Have an awesome week.
Love
-Elder Espinoza

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October 26, 2015

Hola Familia y Amigos!
   This week was really great and we were pretty busy probably the
busiest I have been in a while  and time flew by. We had an awesome
opportunity Elder Pemberton and I on Tuesday to teach a new
investigator in Spanish named L. It's nice to know that I haven't
lost it so that when I go back to Lawrence I will still be able to
understand the people. The lesson went really well and hopefully
tomorrow we are going to pick up his sister P as a new
investigator.  On Wednesday taught some less actives and we were able
to visit a lady named Sister M. Sister M lives in a nursing
home so we try to stop by every week and share a lesson with her. It's
nice to be able to do that for her because she always really enjoys
it. Thursday we taught a couple of new investigators named S and
A. They are super awesome and A after the lesson said that
it just all makes sense. We also had a lesson with them on Sunday
(yesterday) and they love it already. They read the testimonies and
the intro in the Book of Mormon and then we read 1 Nephi 1 with them
and they already think that it is true and makes sense so it is really
awesome to be able to see their excitement. Then on Friday we had an
awesome lesson with K who is a MMA fighter. We taught him last
week and he was having some concerns and questions about the Plan of
Salvation so we left him with he talk "What is the Blue Print of
Christ's Church by Tadd R. Callister" and when we visited with him on
Friday he was preaching to us and is inviting all of his friends to
learn. He is so awesome and it is really cool to see the fire when
someone understands the Gospel and how it can bless their life for
themselves. Saturday was a day full of Service and we chopped wood for
Z for 5 hours but it was tons of fun to be able to do that.

    I know that as we help others to read the Book of Mormon, and I
know that as I have read it myself I have seen a great change and I am
better able to understand my purpose here and through the Book of
Mormon I know that any question that we have can be answered if we are
willing to accept that answer from God and act upon it. I also know
that with the Savior's help we can be made clean and feel His love
greater in our lives and we strive to walk the strait and narrow path
of discipleship. If you feel that you can never become perfect
remember Moroni 10:32:
    " Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny
yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all
ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then
is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect
in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can
in nowise deny the power of God."
With the help of Christ and only through Christ is when we can be made
perfect and be strengthened I know that to be true.
Have a great week.
Love
-Elder Espinoza

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