week 22: Heavenly Father Loves all of us!

Hey Y'all,

This week has started to get warmer which is awesome because sometimes we have lessons outside and it's not too fun to be freezing when you can be warm. We have had some incredible food this week which always makes me extra happy. 

We had such a wonderful week and I was able to recognize how blessed I am and how I need to be greatful for everything Hevenly Father has blessed me with and continues to bless me with. We meet this Guy on Facebook this week. And he shared us his story of how he walked all the way from  Venezuela to El Paso. It took him 3 months and listening to his story made me appreciate everything Hevenly Father has blessed me with. 

Also our friends Danelly (13) and Ely (11) were baptized yesterday!!! Their parents were baptized almost a year ago and since then Danelly and Ely have been meeting with the missionaries and have been gaining their own testimony. Yesterday they gave the sweetest testimonies. One thing that Danelly said that really stood out to me was, "I always knew this church was true and I didn't doubt that my parents knew it was true either. I just wanted to have a super awesome experience to know it was true true! So I decided to get baptized!" I know that sometimes all we need is faith and Hevenly Father will let us know that this is his gospel.  

Songs I'm missing:

Country Roads

Payphone 

Lots of Love,

Hermana Wait 💗 

If you ever want to send me a letter i will love to write you back :)) 

12130 Pebble Hills Blvd, El Paso, TX 79936 Apt M307

week 21: Be Nice

Happy New Year,

  This week was an awesome week, we had the opportunity to meet with all of our friends we have been keeping commitments and going to church!  One thing I have learned this week is that you need to be nice! We have had a lot of our friends compliment us and tell us how they knew we were disciples of Christ because we constantly smiled and always asked people what they needed help with! ❤️ 

This is something I have learned a lot on my mission. There are a lot of missionaries who don't smile very much but are incredible missionaries. 🙌  This is so important because christ has always taught us to be kind and serve others. As a representative of Jesus Christ I need to try to be more like Him every day and by helping others and smiling can make another person's day brighter and better. 

 Anyways onto the missionary work stuff...  All of the people we are teaching are awesome and they love reading the book of mormon and they are so awesome!!! We have our friend Jorge Gonzalez and his 5 year old daughter who we sing with every time we visit them. They went to churvh for the first time this week and they loved it!!! They are so excited to go nect Sunday!!! 

Love you all,

Hermana Wait 💗 

week 88: Finding for days

This week was crazy! We had so many miracles happen. 

Monday we didn't have any plans at all so we hust left and started knocking on this one street. The first few doors opened and we got to testify and teach about God's Plan for us after this life like after we die. It was amazing to see the people's eyes open as they understood they will see their family members that have past away thanks to Jesus. We ended up talking to a few people walking down the street and they are from Guatamala! They invited us in and we chatted about the resturation of Christ's Church. We ended coming back the next day and shared about the scripture that God has given us. When we gave them to Book of Mormon, they were in awe and were flipping through the pages and just amazed of this amazing blessing God gas given us. 

Tuesday We went out with these people who have been coming to church forever and went to Golden corral. We were stuffed and Elder Jones ate like 4 ice cream cones. All we talked about I'd how God has blessed our lives and that we want to be better people. It was hilarious and we also had some incredible lessons too. 

Wednesday Elder Jones and I taught someone from Cuba that doesn't believe in Jesus and believes in a bunch of different god's. It was super interesting and I didn't really know how to start. 

Thursday I got to have Elder Castle come over and it was a blast. That man spoke in an Argentina accent and flipped open the scriptures and was incredible. 

Friday we got yo teach some people till like 10 pm. They were from peru and we found them as they were walking to thelaundrg mat. Ended up talking for like an hour as they were washing their clothes haha. Also they got to practice some English too. 

Saturday was crazy. It was lesson to lesson to lesson. We had found someone from niceragua on Wednesday and had a lesson every single day since. She accepted to prepare herself to be baptised. She even gave us like 50 eggs and 2 gallons of farm fresh whole milk so that was a blessing. 

Sunday at church was crazy! A bunch of our friends were able to come and loved it. One that only spoke creole came and didn't understand a thing but she felt the spirit so strongly. 

Love yall, look for all the good things that happen every day!

Elder Wait 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/cf3A3DQ4FkEUin23A

Week 20: Plan de Dios

Hey hey hey,

This week has been a crazy week. I spent one day sick in my bed 🤒 BUT don't worry I'm better now and I'm back on the missionary grind!!! 

We were able to have so many good lessons this week with our friends. We talked about the plan of Salvation so many times that now I have a better understanding of the plan Hevenly Father has for us!!! 

One of my favorite parts of the plan of Salvation is when our Savior was sent to this earth. In come follow me (a manuel the church puts out every year to help study the scriptures better) this week we read in Luke 2 and Matthew 2. 

I love reading all about the Savior and his life ❤️.

We  Had an awesome lesson with our friend Jorge. He is so interested in hearing more about the gospel every time we get over to his house. Has the cutest daughter who is 5. Every time we have a lesson with him we start off by singing a song with she always feels the spirit so strongly. Boys so fun to go over here and to sing songs with her. Weekly we were also able to teach to them about the plan of salvation and we showed them a video on youtube the plan of salvation. Jorge was a little offended when we started showing it because it was called plain of salvation for kids. But honestly I learned a lot from the video and I feel I am at a more intelligent level than a kid. 

Anyways I love the work and I love being here 💗 I love all the people here on el paso and am so excited what this week has!!!!

Much Love, 

Hermana Wait 

Week 87: Baltimore ZC

This week went by quick! I got to go on an exchange with Elder Johnson and also got to see everyone at Zone Confernce in baltimore!! We got to see the power of prayer and the power of Jesus Chrisy and His atonement. It also made my mission feel like it's coming up real quick. It's made me think and reflect on my mission some. When the time gets thin, it make your priorities real clear. 

 If I could sum up what I have learned in my mission is that an increased understanding of our Devine nature and our relationship with God make the need for a Savior, Jesus so important. Nothing teaches one more of these truths as the Spirit of the Lord. I have been able to learn what God has for me as I prayerfully pray, study the word of God (both the Bible and the Book of Mormon), and keep my covenants I made with my Heavently Father. I was listening to one of the talks of the living Prophet of Jesus Christ in 2017. He has since past away but the spirit of the message remains. 

"This morning I speak about the power of the Book of Mormon and the critical need we have as members of this Church to study, ponder, and apply its teachings in our lives. The importance of having a firm and sure testimony of the Book of Mormon cannot be overstated. We live in a time of great trouble and wickedness. What will protect us from the sin and evil so prevalent in the world today? I maintain that a strong testimony of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and of His gospel will help see us through to safety. If you are not reading the Book of Mormon each day, please do so. If you will read it prayerfully and with a sincere desire to know the truth, the Holy Ghost will manifest its truth to you. If it is true—and I solemnly testify that it is—then Joseph Smith was a prophet who saw God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. Because the Book of Mormon is true, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s Church on the earth, and the holy priesthood of God has been restored for the benefit and blessing of His children. If you do not have a firm testimony of these things, do that which is necessary to obtain one. It is essential for you to have your own testimony in these difficult times, for the testimonies of others will carry you only so far. However, once obtained, a testimony needs to be kept vital and alive through continued obedience to the commandments of God and through daily prayer and scripture study. My dear associates in the work of the Lord, I implore each of us to prayerfully study and ponder the Book of Mormon each day. As we do so, we will be in a position to hear the voice of the Spirit, to resist temptation, to overcome doubt and fear, and to receive heaven’s help in our lives. I so testify with all my heart in the name of Jesus Christ, amen."

I invite all of you to pray and just talk with your Heavenly Father and ask if this really is real. It will change you life for the better I promise you. 

Go look at the smiles and changed lives I've met on my mission this week and every week. 

Love ya,

Elder Espere

https://photos.app.goo.gl/cf3A3DQ4FkEUin23A

Week 18: Martha is So Cool!

Hey hey hey,

We had the most awesome visits with Martha this week!!! We went over to her house and watched a Facebook live on our mission page!! (Its all in spanish but yall are totally welcome to follow it, Christianos en) Then after we had a little party and sang some songs. 

I also had such a Feliz Año Nuevo!!! We had a traditional Mexican new years dinner with one of our members and the food was so good. There was so much food you have to eat super fast so that you can have room for the rest of the food. We were also given the best Christmas present ever!!!! We were able to go to bed early!!! 🛌 sleeping as a Missionary is important and I know that having all 8 hours of sleep and maybe more can make you a better missionary lol 😆 😴 I love my sleep so when we were able to go to bed early I was so happy!!!!! 

We also were able to teach about how this gospel Blesses families 👪  I know that this is the gospel of Jesus Christ and he has restored it on this earth today for all of us to enjoy it with our families. When we teach the families I can feel the Saviors love ao strongly. I am so greatful for the opportunity I have to be a missionary!!!

Love you all,

Hermana Wait 

Week 17: Feliz Navidad

Feliz Navidad Todos, 

All week all the missionaries in our Zone were talking strategy for our Christmas party with the other zone. We had a basketball tournament and a volleyball tournament. But all I heard from last Monday to this Saturday is what we need to do to prepare for the tournament.  Anyways we won both so our Zone is having trouble with humility lol. 

Anyways Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year. I am able to see my family and be able to spend time together. This year I am on my mission so I don't have the opportunity to be with my family but my ward family here in El Paso has made me feel so loved 💗 They have welcomed us in their homes and have treated us like their own children. 

I love thinking about Christ during the Christmas time. My companions and I watched the Christ Child together and I have never focused more on Christ any Christmas than this year. I have read so much on the Savior in Luke 2 and I can just feel his love so much when I read 📚 

Songs I'm missing:

- wasted on you by Morgan Wallen 

- shower by Becky G 

Lots of love, 

Hermana Wait 

Week 85: it's LAN-KISS-TUR

I'm officially in Pennsylvania and I love it. It is full of a whole new type of people. In most of the areas of rhe mission I have worked with people fron central and southern America. But here in lancaster, they are from Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. And they are AMAZING PEOPLE!! A lot of the know a good amount of English so they have a mix of spanglish and it pretty funny. But I'm loving it and getting to know them and their culture. My companion, Elder Jones is also super cool. He's from Utah and just finished his training. He's also got a super big desire to serve these people and help their family's grow closer to Christ. 

I don't have much stories to tell either. We share a car so we have been with another set of missionaries for a while. I also got sick earlier in the week so a good majority of the week I was recuperating. But we still got out to find and teach about Jesus. 

One of the last lessons I had in Hagerstown was super awesome. We said goodbye to Claudia and also the Family from Niceragua that I've grown super close with. It was sad but I was able to share my testimony and reassure them that the Gospel of Jesus Christ never changes even though we might lose. Christ is our Savior and He is the one that saves us. 

Kaylea is serving a mission in El Pasó Texas right now and her companion is actually from Lancaster. I was able to meet her dad and He's super cool. I'll be able to chat with them and grow closer to them in the upcoming months. I love it hear and can't wait to update yall with more stories!!

New Address

240 Stone Mill Rd, Lancaster, PA 17603

Apt E105

https://photos.app.goo.gl/cf3A3DQ4FkEUin23A

Love yall,

Elder Espere

Ps. HAPPY NEW YEAR. ITS 2023!!!!!!!

Pps. Lancaster is pronounced how it's spelled in the title haha. Idk why