Nov 12, 2013

This week has been really busy!!!! It was the last week of the transfer and I knew that miracles happen in the last week and they did!!! So this week we taught a lot of lessons and mostly were to less actives. But we saw Mike and taught him the 1st lesson which was the restoration and I love this lesson because of how much it can bring the spirit into someone's home!!!! I have been trying to get as many lessons for Elder Dennis to teach as I can because I know that the more you teach the better you get!!! He has improved so much since the first time he has taught it. I can see the growth in him in the past 6 weeks. 

We also got to go on splits with the Bishop and the ward missionaries. So Elder Dennis and I split up. He was a little nervous leaving me but he went with the bishop so I knew he would be good. I went with our ward mission leader and we went to the Sosa families home. The dad is less active an no one else in the home has been baptized. So brother Turnbow ( The ward mission leader) knew them pretty good and I never knew them. So he introduce me and we talked for a little bit to the wife and the wife's sister. They invited us back over to teach and eat with them, so we got some new people to teach. When we went back over it was only the wife's sister and her kids. We didn't really teach one specific lesson but she really wanted to know what we believed in. Her name is Josephine. She lost her husband to cancer this year and moved here from Nevada to be closer to family!!! She started telling us her beliefs and they were pretty dang close to our beliefs!!! So taught her a lot of different things and said that she wants to come to church and see what it is like and get a feel for it. So this Sunday coming up is when she said she will come and a lot of the family said they would come too!!!! So that is like 10+ people there!!!!!

 

Also we taught Jeff, he is a messianic Jew (Christian Jew). We taught him the restoration of the gospel and he accepted a lot of it. He said he would read the Book of Mormon and come to church this Sunday also!!! We are getting a lot of people to come to church!!!! We are going to go to his church on December 1st which is the 1st day of Hanukah!!! I am pretty excited for that!!!!

 

So transfers came up and I stayed of course because I am training still but I also got called to be a District leader which means I am over 4 to 12 missionaries to help and uplift them!!!! Its a lot of work but it should be good. We also moved into a apartment yesterday. We have nothing in it but our clothes and a couple air mattresses but we should get furniture this week sometime!!!! Also we got a car!!! Somebody told us its cause I am a District leaders but I don't believe it haha So a lot of new changes happened. The Zone I was in which consisted if 4 districts split in half and now I am in the Denver South Zone! In the cherry creek District!!!! So ya Elder Dennis and I keep on working hard and hopefully will start seeing a lot of success this transfer.

 

I love and miss you all!!! Hope everyone has a good week!!!! I attached a couple pictures. One is of my and my companion Elder Dennis and the other is a elephant from the zoo. We went last week!!! Hope to hear from you guys soon!!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

Nov 4, 2013

So this week was really good!!!!! So the ward I serve in wants to get 20 lessons with a member present a week. So the lessons could be with less-actives, new members, and investigators. So this week we only got 9 of those!!! But that is the most we have gotten yet and this next week we have 14 lessons set up and I have never had 14 lessons set up before week even started!!!! I definitely can see how much the missionary work is starting to pick up in the ward. But not only the ward but the whole mission. I read the letter the Assistants to the mission president sent out and they said a week ago our numbers were off the charts. We had 116 people on date for baptism, 149 new investigators in one week, 232 member present in one week and 6 baptisms!!!! That is insane!!!! One mission president challenged us to find one new investigator and put someone on date to be baptized. You can tell when a whole mission goes out with the same purpose, we start to see Heavenly Father's hand in the work.

 

So this week we saw a lot of less actives and taught lessons to them. I have been trying to get as many teaching opportunities as I can for Elder Dennis to teach the lessons because he needs as much practice as he can get to be a excellent teacher. So Im using the tactic that my trainer used on me. Knock on a door, hi we are the missionaries and saw your name on the church directory and wondering when we come over and meet your family. Also my companion is new and needs some practice on the lessons. It works every time!!! haha So one Wednesday we went and saw a less-active and he served a mission like 5 years ago and now is questioning stuff. So we went over and taught the first lesson and sort of got the sense that he never had that true conversion of the gospel. It was a little sad to see but as we taught the lesson. I started to see a little spark in his eyes like he knew it and that he wanted to come back to church. So at the end we invited him to read and pray and to also come to church and he came!!!! It was pretty exciting see him at church!!

 

So on Halloween we had to go in at 6 because of everything so started to go out for the day and I didn't have any back brakes. I tried to fix them and it didn't hold. So had to go tot the bike shop real quick. So we started to ride there and all of a sudden my front tire was flat. Thankfully it was a slow leak. So I pumped it back up and continued. We got there and he took it immediately and worked on it. he fixed the brakes and put liquid sealer in the front tire and the give missionaries discounts because we are in there all the time so it wasn't that expensive!!! But we went through our day and got to see Mike, the less-active the ran out and scared me last week. We were able to share a quick lesson with him and set another lesson with him this week. Then we went to the other missionaries house at 6 and stayed the night there because we had a breakfast in the morning. It was a lot of fun!!! 

 

So on Saturday we had a lesson with Jeff. We did service for him a few weeks ago and his friend wanted us to come back over. So Jeff is a messianic Jew. So basically he is a Christian Jew. So we came over did more service then had a mini lesson and his friend told us we had to share something from the bible. So we shared the story about Naaman the leper in 2 Kings 5 and it was good and our ward mission leader was there and afterwards Jeff's friend invited him to listen to the missionary discussions and he said yes. So we are going to start teach him this week!!! We are going to go to his church also sometime soon and he will come to ours hopefully soon too!!!

 

On Sunday we actually had a lot of people come to church. We invited as many people as we could and some people that I haven't seen come to church in the last 3 months actually came!!! it was awesome to see and I was able to set up more appointments.

 

So this week I have been studying a lot of random topics. I don't know why but it was awesome I was learning so much about Jesus Christ and his disciples. I love learning new things and to learn all that was amazing. I know that this church is the true church of Jesus Christ restored back to the earth again. I know that the Book of Mormon is a companion to the bible and helps us understand it better. I know my Savior and he know that he loves me and wants me to do my best. I love serving a mission. It is the hardest thing I have ever done but it is the happiest I have ever been!!!! I memorized my commission as a missionary this week!!!

 

"I am called of God.
My authority is above that of kings of the earth.
By revelation I have been selected as a personal representative of the Lord Jesus Christ.
He is my master and He has chosen me to represent Him--to stand in His place, to say and do what He Himself would say and do if He personally were ministering to the very people to whom He has sent me.
My voice is His voice, and my acts are His acts; my doctrine is His doctrine.
My Commission is to do what He wants done; To say what He wants said; to be a living modern witness in word and in deed of the divinity of his great and marvelous Latter-day work.
How great is my calling!"

 

-Bruce R. McConkie

 

Well that was our week and I loved it. I can't wait to see what happens this week with all of our lessons. I love and miss everyone a lot. Thank you for all the support.

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

 

Oct 28, 2013

Alrighty, so this week has been super eventful!!!! So on Tuesday we went to the library to do Mormon.org profile stuff and after that we went to get our bikes to go to an appointment and on our way we were riding on the sidewalk and there was some high school kids walking extremely slow. So I saw there was no oncoming traffic, so I hopped off the curb and Elder Dennis followed. I saw a drive way up ahead so I got back onto the curb. Then from behind I hear metal sliding and I turn around and Elder Dennis is on the ground and he looked in pain!! So I went back and he got up fine. Had a little limp and some road rash. Also his front rim looked like a taco. So I had to start making some phone calls. We got him patched up but he was a little sore. So we took it easy that day. We got him a spare bike so we didn't have to walk and we went back to work!!!!

 

Elder Dennis is doing great. Training him is a lot of fun because he asks questions and isn't afraid to go for it and just teach which is great. I just like the training program because it gets me out of the normal missionary routine. It gets me to try new things and ideas. Oh also this week we had interviews with our Mission President!!! I love interviews because I can ask any question that I want to ask him. Usually I try to get transfer predictions out of him to see if I am staying or leaving soon and it sounds like I will be staying in Aurora for awhile. Hopefully through Christmas because I don't want to go to a new area for Christmas. Also something extremely cool I found out is that anytime from now to April. Every mission should have IPads and IPhones!!!!!!!!!! Also what our mission president said is that every missionary will get his own IPad and it goes with them from area to area and after their mission they get to take them home. He said that is what they are saying right now but it can change before we get them. But I am pretty excited for that!!!!

 

Okay here is the highlight of our week. IPhones and Ipads was pretty big but this was much bigger!!!! So on Friday we were riding our bikes up the hill we have to go up o get to our area and we are huffin and puffin all the way up and we pass an apartment complex and this big black guy comes out and is like hey when are you coming over? I was like ummmm when do you want us to come over? He said how about today? I looked at my planner and I was like 8 and he said something earlier? so I looked again and said 5??? And he was like alright see you then. I was a little confused on what just happened but I also think a lack of oxygen played a big role in the confusion too. So we went through our day and then went to see Mike, That's the guys name. So I didn't know if he was an investigator or not. So I prepared Elder Dennis to invite him to be baptized at certain part of lessons depending on what lesson we teach. So we go in and introduce ourselves and then I asked some questions about him. He is from New Mexico. Played for University of Utah for football. Met a girl there and her mom sent the missionaries to his house and gave him the discussions and 3 months later he got baptized and at this point, I was like oh he is a less active. But then he went on to say that he got divorced recently and pushed the church away from his life. He knew something was missing and his friend lost his job and Mike was talking to him. His friend was confused why he got fired and mike said you aren't doing gods will and then it hit him. He was talking the talk but not walking the walk! Then he saw us riding our bikes all the time and finally Friday when we rode pas he decided he needs help, so that is why he ran out to stop us!!! He wants to come back to church and get his 3 kids involved too!!! It is extremely cool how just us riding our bikes around can help people realize that they need to come back to church. He is one of the coolest guys I have met so far!!!! He also played arena football for 2 years!!! But ya that was our cool story for the week!!!!

 

Oh then he next day kind of went downhill from there. Elder Dennis got the stomach flu... So while he slept for 18 hours. I was extremely bored!!!! So I learned to play a hymn on the piano, watched a couple church movies, and slept also. I was soooo bored. I haven't been that bored in a long time but I am glad it was only for one day unless I don't know what I would of done!!!

 

Well that's my roller coaster week, I think the roller coaster part is for my companion Elder Dennis!! But all is good. We are working hard and inviting others to come unto Christ. That's our purpose as missionaries and we are sticking to it!!! I love my mission and can't wait to see how much I grow in the next few months. I love this gospel and how simple it is. I love my Savior and all that he has done for me. I love my Heavenly Father and the love that he shows me everyday!!! I love you all and miss you bunches!!! Thanks for all of the support!

 

P.S. Here is a picture of Elder Dennis's tire!!! I keep forgetting to take a picture of me and him so I will do that next week! Also this is my zone and Elder Corbridge of the quorum of the seventy who came and spoke to us a couple months ago!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

Oct 21, 2013

Hello everyone!!!! So this week we were pretty busy!!! Which means a lot of biking in 30 degree weather. In the beginning of the week we went of exchanges so I was with a Tongan missionary all day. I was pretty excited for that. We had a lot of fun but also worked real hard. His name is Elder Vea and he isn't related to the any of the 3 Vea families in our ward.

 

Training is going pretty good, Elder Dennis is still really quiet in lessons but hopefully he will open up more. It is really good that our ward is trying to keep us busy because that gives us time to practice our lessons with people.  Elder Dennis is still trying to learn them and I am trying to help him learn them quick!!! He is having a little trouble with teaching simply but that is a easy fix. He is really smart and wants to add everything to the lessons but I had to explain to him that we have to teach that ever a 7 year old could understand it.

 

Also its awesome that the ward is trying to go out with us everyday! Our bishop has a goal of getting 20 member present in lessons a week. We were barely getting 1 a week and this last week we got 9 and that's a huge improvement!!!! I cant wait to see if we can get 20 member present lessons. That would be incredible!

 

Also this week we got a random phone from a member in a different stake about someone who moved into our area who need service and he wasn't a member. We were all for it. SO we went and helped him, His name was Jeff, and while we were there he says: " you guys changed my whole perspective on the Mormon faith". I thought that was awesome, just because we were willing to sacrifice part of our day to help him he was extremely grateful.

 

Also this Sunday was ward conference and of course the focus was on missionary work!!! It was really good because I think it got the ward really looking forward to coming out with us and doing missionary work themselves!!! I am excited to see this area grow. The bishop said that there is about 17,000 people in our area and that's huge because our area is only 2 miles by 2 miles... A lot of people in a small area!!!!

 

The weather is starting to get a lot colder and they say this is going to be a bad winter. I am not really excited for that. Due to that I ride a bike... But that also means that we will walk... I have been fighting a cold and I think I am winning because I haven't gotten sick. (Knock on wood). That's been my week, we have 8 investigators now but no one is progressing yet. I hope they will soon and we will start to see the miracles.

 

I love my mission, I love training, and I love this work. I wouldn't trade it for anything. Thank you for all the support. I love and miss everyone!!

 

Love,
Elder Escudero

Oct 14, 2013

The elevation where i am at is actually 6,000 + feet but its close to a exactly mile high. Well training is going great!!! Elder Dennis is starting to open up a lot more, which is awesome!!! I actually love training because I get back to the basics. So this week I went on exchanges with one of our Zone leaders. Which is sort of rare to go out with one because usually they just go out with district leaders. But that was actually really good. I had a lot of fun and learned a lot. He said it was one of his favorite exchanges so far... It was a lot of fun though. 

Also this week was pretty much full of meetings. We had our zone meeting which lasted for 4 hours then we had a training meeting for everyone who is training and that was like 3 hours. Long meeting that made my head hurt!!! Glad they are over!!!! 

SO this next week we are going to be sooo busy....  So we went to church and they said that your week is now full and they weren't kidding. Our week is literally full. We are going to be so busy and now we have 6 investigator who could be baptized in the next couple months. I am soooo excited for that!!! 

This week has been pretty lame because a lot of our appointments fell through but this week looks amazing!!!! Sorry the letter is so short but I was on limited time to write this. I hope everyone can forgive me. I will be better next week. Winter is around the corner!! It doesnt get the 60's here anymore. Love and miss everyone!!! 

-Elder Escudero

October 7, 2013

Hello Family and Friends,

 

So this week has been different because I had to figure out where people lived and I had no clue and its great that new people are feeding us dinner this week as I have no clue where they live. Colorado has the worst street names ever!!! There is like a million nice places through out our area and a lot of neighborhoods. But I did good at only getting lost at least 5 times this week haha So I am training a new missionary these next 12 weeks and its going great so far. His name is Elder Dennis! He is really smart, he wants to be a engineer. I feel like I am learning more than he is but all is going good.

 

So this week we got our first snow fall of the year. It wasn't bad but it was 35 degrees all day. So it was really cold. But we got through it, good thing I had cold gear to put on. That just means winter is around the corner.

 

Also this week I have been trying to visit as many people as I can to introduce them to my new companion. Of course as normal we saw Steve this week and we read and talked about blessing the sacrament and he talked about how he wanted to learn how to do that. SO we are going to work with him on that!! Also we tried to visit a lot of new people that I have never met and that was good because I know them and they know us. We also saw one of our investigator families and we have like 3 lessons with them this week!!! Pretty excited for that!!! Also this week since I am training I don't go out until 11 every morning instead of 10 which is nice because we get to study longer and help my companion learn missionary work better!!!

 

So conference was this weekend and it was sooo good. I loved Elder Hollands talk about getting through depression by remembering how much our Heavenly Father loves us and also how much the Savior loves us. Also I loved the whole Sunday morning session. The talks were so good that I forgot to write some notes on the talks...

 

Well all is going good for me. I am loving my mission and the people I serve around. They are a lot of fun and missionary work is fun. It is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life but it is a lot of fun. I love sharing my testimony about the gospel with others and can't wait to see where this week takes us. I love my Savior Jesus Christ. I know that the Book of Mormon is the true word of God. I know that my Heavenly Father loves me and listens to my prayers. I love this work that I am doing. I wouldn't trade this time for anything else!!!

 

I hope everyone has a good week!!! I love and miss everyone!!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

 

 

September 30, 2013

Oh its transfer day!!!! And I am staying!! Also I am training a new missionary!!! I asked my mission president after the trainers meeting. Are you sure I am training? and he said yes I am. So at least I know I am doing something right for them to let me train a new missionary!! I don't know who it is yet but I will meet him today!!!

 

So this week was crazy!! So since I was in a trio and covering both wards on bike we were pretty busy!!! We put over 70 miles on our bikes this week!!! My legs hurt!!!! We really only worked with Less actives this week and had 20+ lessons this week combined!!! Also a lot of this week was Elder Daley saying good bye to people so nothing much happened. Oh we ate a lot of food this week!!! We had at least 2 dinners every night and 3 Sunday night. I have never been so stuffed in my life. One of the dinners was with a Tongan family that night. I finally get to sleep in my own bed tonight for the first time in 2 weeks. Oh we also had 8 hours of church and meetings that we went to!!!

 

The weather has been amazing this week. No rain and not hot. It was PERFECT!!!! I love this area also because there isn't a lot of hills!!!!  I can't wait for this transfer to start and the miracles to start pouring out because it always happens in the training program!!!! 

 

Sorry this letter is so short! It is transfer week so nothing really happens besides packing and saying goodbyes. I was able to finish reading the book of Mormon though!!! 25 days!!! I have never read anything that quick!!! My testimony in the truthfulness of that book has grown so much more!!!

 

Well I love everyone and hope everyone has a great week!!! Sorry about the short letter!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero 

September 23, 2013

Hello Everyone!!!! Well this week we were pretty busy again but we had a lot of fun too. So right now I am in a trio companionship for the week because the ward next to us lost a missionary because he got his visa and went to Brazil today!!! So my companions is Elder Near and Daley. SO now we have to cover 2 wards on bikes!!! It wont be too bad but a lot of work and stuff to figure out!!!

 

SO this week we went to town with trying to teach everyone we saw and everyone we visited. SO we were able to finally meet this guy named grant. Elder Daley has been trying to get in contact with him for a few months and we finally got ahold of him on wednesday and when we got there his wife answered the door and we were able to teach her. SO now she is investigating!!! The only set back I see is that the look pretty set in there church!!! But we will see where that goes. 

ALso I attached a couple pictures of one of our dinners. It was chicken parmesan and the smaller one was the rest of the families and the big one is the size ELder Daley and I recieved. The member that cooks it always cooks that size for us all the time. 

Also we taught 20 lessons this week and 15 of those were to less active members of the church!!! It was a hard working week. I am really tired too. I have never been so tired in my life, its insane but worth it!!!! 

So we have been biking a lot and trying to have the members come out with us and visit all the people that we see but its hard to coordinate them to come. Our Bishop wants us to get 20 member present lessons. Its sort of hard to do that when we barely get 20 lessons... Well we will eventually get that. 

SO transfers are next week and I have no idea what is going to happen been i probably will be staying because Elder Daley has been in this area for 9 months now. SO I hope thats the case so I don't have to pack... 

Well I love this work so much, I love talking to random people about religion and not being shy about sharing the gospel with people. I love telling people about the restored gospel of Jesus christ. I also love testifying of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. I love that I have a testimony of all these things. Also that I have found out for myself that these things are true. 

Well I hope everyone is having a good week and will have a good week. i love and miss you guys!!! 

LOVE,

Elder Escudero

September 16, 2013

Hello from the rainy state of Colorado!!! I never thought I would be saying that on my mission or ever in Colorado but this week proved worthy of saying that. So There was 3 huge rain storms the hit this week and Saturday was the worse of the 3. The first 2 we were outside working so we got soaked. I have never seen road flood so quickly in my life. Our basement that we live in got flooded a little bit but not bad. I am glad it is over but it does look like a hurricane went through Aurora and it did look like one while it was happening. Oh and I got splashed by a car. I was wet already, so I didn't really care..

 

Well besides that Elder Daley and I worked really hard this week. we were able to teach 20 lessons this week and 14 of those were to Less actives of the church. Even though we got soaked, we saw the blessing from our sacrifices. We saw a lot of miracles come from it. We got a family that we are going to start teaching soon so I cant wait for that and the progress of the people we are working with.

 

Also this week we had a mission tour. Elder Corbridge of the seventy came and spoke to us all day and it was awesome. He taught about the atonement and how to be better teachers. Most of it was how to be better teachers. I learned a lot form him and I have a long ways to go!!

 

Also we moved into our new house. It is 2 miles out of our area and it is uphill both ways so it stinks but it is a awesome family and awesome basement. Well until it flooded. Now we have to wait for the insurance company to call back.

 

We still have been trying to read the book of Mormon by the end of the transfer which is in 2 weeks and we are way behind. Looks like I have a lot of reading ahead of me!!! I love reading he Book of Mormon though. I learn so much and I am able to teach better. I have grown to love them.

 

Well that's pretty much all the big things that happened this week. Rain, biking and a lot of teaching. So I say its been a good week. I would love to hear from people, so write me some letters. I love getting letters!!! Or just email at least!! I hope everyone has a good week. love and miss you all!!!

 

Elder Escudero

September 9, 2013

HELLO FROM AURORA, CO!!!!

 

SO this week has been crazy!!!! it seemed like we were super busy all week and we were but the lessons we had were a lot lower than we thought. Also we were helping out the other ward a lot too this week.

 

So this week we teach a lot of less actives in this area so twice a week we help a guy Steve learn more. He has a little mental problem but understands a lot as we come by. We read the Book of Mormon with him and when I got there we finished the last few chapters with him. He is a awesome guy and he is a great grandpa already and is only 58. Pretty incredible guy!!!

 

Another one we work with is lady Dorris, she is 91 and moving soon. We go over and read with her too and just talk. She has only been baptized for a little over a year now but she is way funny!!!

 

We are starting to get a list of part member families in our ward to go and teach them because we really don't have anyone to teach. It is really hard in this area to find people to teach. But the bishop and our ward mission leader is seeing that so the are really trying to help us!!!

 

So we moved out of our house yesterday and into another home for a week which is way at the other end of our area where no one lives. SO we have to bike up that hill everyday. But next week we are moving into a couple who lives 3 miles out of our area and to get to our area is all uphill... Its going to stink but hopefully we can convince our mission president to maybe to a car. I highly doubt that we will but its worth a try!!!!

 

Yesterday was Labor Day and the Rockies were playing the Dodgers at 2 and it was on our Preparation day so we went to that. It was way fun and the best Baseball game I have ever been to. There was a lot of other missionaries there too because they had the same idea as us!!! I am a Dodgers fan so it was pretty cool that they were playing them and they won 10-8!!!

 

So since I have been transferred to the cherry creek ward. I have been trying to first get used to the area and people. Also to get back into good studies in the morning. I have been trying to re-read the Book of Mormon and to finish Jesus the Christ. I am half way in both books and I need to finish them!!! I love learning more and more. It is crazy how much I have learned these past 6 months. Oh yeah that is something else that happened this last week which was my 6 month mark!!! I love my Savior and this gospel. It is crazy much you can learn from just reading the Book of Mormon. I love going to church and talking to people!!!

 

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!!! Love you and miss you guys!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

August 26, 2013

From Grandview to Cherry Creek!!!! Transfers was quick and easy. My new companion Elder Daley is great!!! We have a lot of fun while we work. The work is way different in this ward because we work with a lot of less active members versus working with members trying to get referrals. The biking is way easy. It is a small area and not very many hills which I am thankful for!!

 

So this week was mostly me getting used to the area. My companion was showing me around and taking me to see people that they normally see. My job or I guess goal is trying to get everyone's name down in 2 more weeks!!! I am doing good so far but I still have a lot of work.

 

So for the week I went on exchanges with the District leader, Elder Matheson. They have a car in their area because of a lot of hills but of course they don't have any miles so we had to bike everywhere. I got to know a lot of people from their area but it was lil confusing for me!! Because I just got used to my new area!!!! 

My new area does not have any investigators at this time but this week Elder Daley and I set some big goals to find some people to teach. Hopefully as we go out and really go hard this next week, we will find someone that is ready!!! I am really excited to see what happens. I am now closer to downtown Denver which I am excited about. Also on Saturday we had a stake fair which was way cool to talk to a lot of random people that I had no clue who they were. Also this week we were able to go to the temple. I was so excited to go. I love being in the temple because it is so peaceful and I can go and ask questions that have.

 

It is pretty hard to adjust to a new area but I think that I am getting there. The people are super nice here and hopefully I can add things that I have learned from my last area and apply them here!!! I have been having some pretty good studies lately and have been learning a lot. I have been reading more out of Jesus The Christ and I learn more about my Savior everyday. I love serving a mission and I love being in Colorado. I know I have been placed here for a specific reason and I can't wait to find out. I love and miss everyone and thank you for all the support.

 

Love,

Elder Escudero 

August 19,2013

Today is transfer day and after 6 months in one area, I am finally being transferred about 7 miles north of where i am now!!! Not very far but I am excited, it is a biking area but very small area too!!! So it will be a big change from a 13 X 6 mile area to a 1 X 2 mile area!!!! All I have to say is I hate packing when you are restricted to 2 suitcase and my back pack... Lets just say I made it all fit!!! My new companion's name is Elder Daily and I haven't met him yet, so we will see. I get on a van in a little bit to be transferred. Elder Harley in our district is also being transferred and we had to fit all of the stuff into a small Toyota Corolla so the shocks were all the way down so we were low riding until we unloaded everything at the stake center. Yesterday we pretty much just went around and said goodbye to people. Also yesterday at church Caitlyn was confirmed a member of the church. I am pretty happy i got to be a part of that before I left.

 

So of course like normal the work really started to pick up right before transfers. Caitlyn's family is now interested, so we were able to teach her mom this week and a less active just became active and brought her friend to church and she is really interested and told me that she will be baptized soon!!! But I am excited because if they get baptized I will be able to come back and see them.

 

We worked pretty hard this week where we saw quick a bit of success. We worked a lot out of the area book because I knew that a lot of these people have moved or would still be really interested. We actually were able to find a couple out of it where they could be a big possibility of taking the lessons again.

 

The weather has been pretty hot lately and hopefully will be cooling off soon. I can't wait to see what is in store with me in the cherry creek ward. I have notice a change in this week than all the other weeks because of how we were exactly obedient to every little thing that heavenly father helps us out with the rest. He will pour out the miracles as we follow the guidelines that he has given us!!! I have seen a difference in myself and I am happy about it. I will miss the Grandview Ward but I have made some life time friends there that i will never forget!! I love and miss everyone. I hope everyone has a great week.

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

August 12, 2013

Good Morning from COLORADO!!!! Well this week was really rough!!! So on Tuesday we put our car into the shop because the previous missionaries that had this car ran into a cement pole... So we have been biking all week in a 13 by 6 mile area and lots and lots of hills. Pretty great!!! It was especially awesome because it rained all week... Didn't hear about it so of course we don't have rain jackets haha But is was a lot of fun to walk into peoples home soaked and drenched!!! Hopefully we got the car back this Tuesday!!! 

So every single one of our lessons this week was cancelled... Everyone either forgot or the were not available. We also had our Zone conference this week and it was way good. Talked a lot about new ways to help people come unto Christ and to work with members!!! I always enjoy these big conferences because I learn sooo Much!!!!  

SO on Friday we got a exciting call from our mission president that Caitlyn could be baptized anytime now!!! So we called her and she called us back and said how about this Sunday!!! We were like absolutely!!! SO we planned it and got everything ready and yesterday I had my first convert baptism. I gave a talk on baptism and there were so many people there that the room was packed. I have never seen so many people at a baptism!!! 

Well even though it was a rough week, Sunday was great!!! We had a baptism, we got 2 new investigators and now we are working on the rest of Caitlyns family who is interested now!!! It was a great way to end the week!!! 

I love this gospel and I have a very deep testimony now. I am working on having a Testimony like Jacob in the Book of Mormon which his is unshakable, which I can say that I am getting there. I have seen a lot of miracles in the last 6 months!!! Cant wait to see what is next!!! I love and miss every one!!!

Love,

Elder Escudero 

August 5th, 2013

HELLO EVERYONE!!!

 

Wow has this past week flown by!!! Kind of been a roller coaster for me and my companion but in the end it has been good. There was a couple of huge rain storms that came this last week which was insane. I never have seen a river formed in a parking lot in less than 5 minutes haha Kind of sucked to work when you didn't have a coat either!!!

 

We did a couple service projects this week where one we helped a senior home move books into the building for their book sale. I got claimed by one of the ladies there as her son haha It was pretty funny because she told me that I could have any book I wanted and if anyone stopped you for not paying, say your mom gave it to you haha That was fun and we also helped at the animal rescue place again. It always is a fun place to go to and help the animals.

 

SO we did not have a baptism this Sunday... Caitlyn passed the interview with our mission president then a hour later he calls us and says that he has to write a letter to the first presidency. He didn't think it was a problem at all but apparently for anything you have to write a letter. So he wrote one and called the first presidency on Saturday. So hopefully we get a response pretty quick about it. Caitlyn was pretty upset about it but she was more frustrated that she had to call everyone and cancel the baptism. So we went over and she said that she prayed about it and feels better about it but still frustrated!!! Fingers crossed that we hear something about her baptism this week!

 

This transfer has flown by!!! I can't believe that its already week 5 of the transfer!!! I am excited to go to the temple on the 21st of this month!! I am going to do some family names that I have found!!! This week is going to be rough without a car. So the car is going in for repairs and we have a lot of appointments this week and 8-10 days with out a car in the area that i am in is pretty tough!!! But I will survive and probably will have some thunder thighs haha Well not a very exciting week but we mostly work with members to become missionaries themselves but it is a work in progress. Hope everyone is doing good!!! Thank you for support you give me. I really do appreciate it!!! Love you guys!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero  

July 29th, 2013

Hello from Colorado!!! This week has been pretty tiring, we have been low on miles so we have been biking a lot. Elder Goldade had a couple tire flats this week but we fixed them immediately!! I hope I don't get any flats anytime soon!!! FINGERS CROSSED!!! So as I was reading through my emails today the assistants to the mission president always send a email to all the missionaries about tune ups and a boost of encouragement. They also put a link up to a mormon message video that is really powerful. If you ever need any relief this is the video for you!!! Here is the link http://www.lds.org/pages/mormon-messages#mountains-to-climb It is way good!!!

Well anyways this week has been great!! We have trying to get as many lessons as we can with everybody we come in contact with!!! Its is the standard that our mission president wants from us to get 20 lessons a week. Our ward mission leader helps us to accomplish this goal. We are working towards it and hopefully we can get it. Usually we share lessons at dinner with members but those don't count as lessons anymore. So it got a lot harder but I know that we can do it!

So this next Sunday we have our first baptism!!!! Caitlyn is finally there and she is so ready!!! I know that Satan is working on her and she knows that. It has been a rough journey but after Sunday Satan has lost his battle. We really are all in a battle with Satan, everyday we need to think about the little things that he does to get us off the path but as we think about the end result and lean on the savior we can win each little battle.

So I really love this new Just serve program that the mission is piloting. We have been getting our name out there and just giving service for organizations. We are really starting to see success from it.

We also have been working with the less actives. A lot in this ward are hard to get to come back to church because they have a legitimate reason why they don't come. But we are starting to create solutions to help them!!! A lot of the programs we have help is for everyone and a lot of the less actives just don't know what they are missing!!!

I have been reflecting a lot just on myself and I know I can do better. There is always room for improvement and I want to be the best missionary that I know I can be!!! I have been watching a lot videos that that Elder Goldade has and they are amazing!! It truly has shown me that I can do it. All I have to do is the little things ask for help and study it out. I love serving my heavenly father in this great cause and I love everyone in this area!!! Thanks for everyone's support!!! Hope everyone has a great week!!

Love,

Elder Escudero

July 22nd 2013

HELLO from COLORADO!!!!!

 

Well last week was pretty great! So after our preparation day was over we went to dinner then to a lesson with members. The other set of Elders had dinner in the same apartment complex as we had our lesson. So we got out at the same time and of course they need a ride. So they loaded up their bikes and Elder Harley said hey there is some people playing some basketball over there, we should play them!! I was like alright. So I went to tell my companion elder Goldade and before I finished my sentence he got out of the car and pulled a head band down and started walking haha So we went over and we asked them if they wanted to play and they started laughing!! But they accepted. So the hoop had no back board so it was a little trickier. So we started playing and it was bad. We were playing to 21 and it was 6-1 them. Then one of us drained a 2. Oh and we were only playing 2's and 1's haha so all of sudden it was 12-12. They started to get scared and started to play harder. Then it was 20-16 them and Elder Goldade made a comment to a younger kid on the other team and said watch out for him, he is a little slow haha Everyone started cracking up. Elder Goldade meant to say sneaky. But that kid made the last point and they won but for some missionaries who never play basketball on a team. We did pretty good!!!

 

So Caitlin our investigator she is still on track for being baptised on August 4th. We had a meeting with her this week and it was great. We brought the relief society president with us to get to know her and to explain what relief society is. Also we talked about the baptism program with her. Sister Pulsipher (The Relief Society President) Told her that since she has a baptism date that Satan will be working on her more than ever. She was right. They ended up not coming to church and other little things keep on happening. She told me last night that she has noticed that since the date was set that life has been the hardest it has ever been. Which I knew would happen. Satan doesn't want her to make this covenant with Heavenly Father and sees the potential in her.

 

Something we learned in our last training meeting is that as heavenly father is hastening his work all over the world. Satan is doing the same. A elder related it to a story in the Book of Mormon when Captain Moroni was fighting and he was fighting at his best and when he was at his best the enemies fought like dragons. So it is pretty scary to imagine that but it really is true. I have seen it in many situations since I have been out. Satan doesn't want this work to progress and will do anything he can to stop it. I am grateful for the opportunity to help people out of this trap and to put them back on the path.

 

Since being in the new mission there has been a lot of changes. We work a lot with our ward mission leader in coordination lessons and dinners. We have to get 20 lessons a week and that includes everything. Sometimes it is hard because we have a lot of meetings in the week . Also because of the 10 hours of Just serve program a week but it is possible. This has been the most exhausting thing I have ever done but it is so rewarding in the end. I have made some life long friends since i have been out. I have seen things were I knew that there was no possible way that it could of happened but it is great. I love my mission, I will never stop saying it because I do!! I love the people and I love the missionaries I get to serve around! I am doing AMAZING!! I can't wait to see what else the lord has in store for me and the people around me! I love and miss everyone!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

July 15th 2013

Hello Family and Friends!!!!

 

This week has been pretty great!!! We did a lot of service and I loved it. Also our investigator Caitlyn got married and we went to that and it was a amazing wedding. Bishop did a great job and most of the people at the wedding were not members!! They all loved it too and said it was the best wedding they have been to. The day after the wedding we went over to their house and talked to Caitlin about moving up her baptism date from August 25th and she said she will let us know on Sunday at church about the day. So on Sunday we went over to them to see what day they picked and she said August 4th!!!! We are so excited to finally have a baptism on this ward.

 

This ward has been in a drought for baptisms since December. It is great to finally end that and hopefully improve that a lot!!! The work really is progressing and I can't wait to see the miracles come!!

 

Some of the service we did this week was working a lot with horses. We first went to a animal rescue place and helped out with them and we did so much in the few hours we had there. We also helped at a ranch. We had to help with kids riding and some of the kids had special needs. It was so much fun to interact with the kids and they were so funny!!! We also unloaded 80 bales of hay at the bishops. We also had a move like normal and on our way home it was raining and of course we were on bikes so we biked 4 miles in the rain and we were soaked and it was great. I loved it!!!

 

We have a lot of lessons set up this week with members because we really rely on members to do missionary work too. We can't do it alone. The Apostles have been talking about it a lot but the hastening of the work, more missionaries is not going to do that we really have to include everyone. Members really need to invite their friends to do things and just become closer with them. People's hearts are being softened everyday and you never know who it could be. Don't be afraid to do missionary work!!

 

I have loved these last 5 months, I wouldn't trade it for anything. I love this area I have had to serve in and can't wait to see what happens next!!! I thank you for everyone's support. I do miss and love you all!!! I hope the best for everyone and hope everyone has a great week!!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

July 8th 2013

Hello Everyone!!!! Well today is transfer day for the Denver North Mission but I am not being transferred so i don't have to worry about it. That means I will have been in this ward for a quarter of my mission at the end of this next transfer which I think is great!!! I love this ward and the people in this area. They are really nice, even when they aren't interested. 

 

This week was great so our investigator Caitlyn is getting married on July 10th and I have been helping her plan it. So I can officially say that I have planned a wedding!!!! She has a baptism date for the 25th of August but we are going to try and move it up to sometime this month! Her and Corry are so great and the changes they have made in the last couple months are amazing.

 

We also had a lesson with our other investigator Tom, we taught him the Plan of Salvation and he seems like he has no desire to learn more. So all we could do is testify and give him time to read and pray because we can't force him to do anything...

 

The 4th of July was a lot of fun. The ward had a breakfast and we showed up to help set up but we ended up cooked and I cracked 10 dozen eggs!!! It was a way good breakfast and afterwards played Ultimate Frisbee and some football. Then we had to clean up and went to a barbeque then worked for the rest of the day but after dinner we had to go in. They don't want missionaries running around to firework shows. Or even be around fireworks which I understand because there would be that one missionary that gets hurt and ruins holidays in general for everyone else!! But ya we couldn't see very many fireworks from where we were at so we just went to bed. 

 

We did quite a bit of service this past week!! We moved 3 people in the ward, pulled some weeds, cleaned a boat, moved some mulch around, and cleaned out a storage unit. I have never been so tired in my life!!!!

 

Well I am excited to be here for another transfer in this ward. Elder Goldade is staying here to so no new companions yet. I am excited for this next new transfer and to see what happens!!! A lot can happen in 6 weeks. I am doing good, weather is hot but i love it. I have the best farmers tan and best watch line now, its great. I love serving a mission, it is the happiest I have ever been and I can't believe these last 5 months have flown by!!!! The new mission president, President Toombs is awesome we had a little mini meet and get to know him on Wednesday and I am excited. We got our new guidebook last night and I am excited for the new changes. Change is good, it keeps you on your toes!!! I will have 3 mission presidents on my mission. I think that's way cool to have the opportunity to do that! Well that's all I got this week!! I love my mission it has changed me for the better. Hope to hear from everyone soon!!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero 

 

July 1st Officially in the Denver North Mission

Denver North Mission BABY!!!!

So this was my last week in the Colorado Colorado Springs Mission. It was pretty slow but good at the same time.

Most of the week was a lot of service. It was pretty much moving people!! Like normal in this ward we did 3 moves this week. One of them took 2 days and oh boy did they have a lot of heavy stuff. Also we helped the Bishops wife with a stall in the barn. She is making it comfier for the horses. We also have been helping an investigator drop some trees in his back yard!!! That was fun!!! But ya that was a lot of the service this week.

So since our car had to be parked for most of the week, we had to bike a lot. One day was insane. We got finished with the move and then we had to go to dinner which was by the church 8 miles away... So we biked there and then after dinner we had to bike all the way back and some to go to a lesson so within 3 hours we biked close to 20 miles... My legs were dead but I definitely can tell I am getting in shape!

That lesson we went to was with Caitlyn. We have finished all of the lessons with her so we go and teach random lessons and answer questions. Elder Goldade and I decided that morning that we needed to set a baptism date to push her wedding up closer. We considered what they told us of late August so we set it for August 25th. The last Sunday in August. She accepted and we were excited to see what would happen with the wedding. On Friday we had our district meeting and she called me and left a voice-mail saying to call back because she had a question. So I called back and told me that Corry and her decided to get married on July 10th and asked if bishop could marry them and I said of course and I gave her Bishops number!!! Oh boy I was sooo excited. I played as Bishops secretary in this whole thing as I was setting up appointments for him! But ya it is exciting. So we will be moving up her baptism date up sooner than later!!! This was the high light of my week.

There was a sick lightning storm this week!! Oh and it rained super hard and huge hail. It dropped 30 degrees in 15 minutes!!! We sat on the porch and watch the lightning forever until we had to go to bed!!! But our room lit up all night!!!

So Sunday was pretty crazy. I got told like a half an hour before being picked up that I was teaching the Preach my gospel class. Good thing it was Preach my Gospel and it was on the first lesson!!! I guess I did a good job because that is what everyone said haha I have no idea what I said. Then the 3rd hour was all about the new program that the Denver North Mission is Piloting called Just Serve. Super pumped to get started on that!! Then we had to pack because a family is moving into bishops home while thy are gone and they have little kids so we got the boot. But we moved right back into the Maughns and Sister Maughn was sooo excited to see me!! She calls me her son now haha But ya we are all moved in and loving be back at the Maughns.

So now that I am officially in the Denver North mission it is exciting. I am excited to see the changes, I am excited to meet new people and i am excited to see how I grow. This morning we went into our new mission and went to the driving range. It was fun to hit some golf balls!!!! I love change and adapting to new things. I will have 3 missions presidents on my mission. Way crazy but cool!!! I do miss everyone and love all the support you give me. Can't wait to see what else is coming up for me!!!

Love,

Elder Escudero

June 24, 2013

OH MAN has this week been crazy!!!

 

So on Wednesday we had a specialized training which focused a lot on family history. I am really excited about that because I have been doing a lot of family history as much as I can!!! We also got to meet our new mission president. President Toombs and his wife are really cool. I am excited to be a part of their mission. Also our current mission president got to say good bye to us and we all got a CCSM pin (Colorado Colorado Springs Mission). Usually missionaries who go home get the pin but since we are leaving to a different mission we got one. We were told that we could only wear them until July 1st then we have to take them off!!! Sister Toombs said she would get one of those cub scout mother necklace to put the pins on them. She is GREAT!! President Toombs put it so well for the transferring of missions. He said when we received our call it said that we have been called to be a missionary of the church of Jesus Christ of latter day saints. You are assigned to Colorado Colorado Springs mission. Then he continued to say our calling has not changed. We are just being reassigned!! I loved that! I am excited about being in the Denver North Mission. It probably is the smallest mission. It only is a hour drive from the top to the bottom!!!

 

Well this week we finished all of the discussion lesson with our investigator Caitlyn. She is progressing so much and all she needs to do is to get married to her boyfriend. They came to church and she loves it. So now its just a waiting game!!!

 

We have a new investigator Tom. He seems like he has little desire to find out for himself if this is true but by the end of the lesson and thanks to our awesome fellowship, he is curious now!!!!

 

Also this week we had a lesson with a our couple that we have been working with for a few months now. Dan's wife Anna was finally back in town and we were able to teach her. Sad part is that they are moving to Castle Rock on Thursday and they won't be here anymore... Also the other sad part is that I might not be able to attend their baptism because that will be a different mission than ours as of July 1st. So we will see if the mission president will allow me to leave the mission for that. I already asked him and he said that we will talk when it gets closer to the day.

 

On Saturday the Elders quorum had their annual rocket pine wood derby car race and Elder Goldade made a car and Elder Keliikoa and Harley made one too. So it was single elimination and we got 2nd place!!!! It was way fun. After that we helped a family move into our ward and only us 4 elders showed up and even better it was a second floor move!!!! It was hot too!!

 

Okay a little funny side note I fell off my bike. Here is what happened. So we were leaving our dinner and I got on my bike and started riding. I felt the phone ringing so I went to pull it out of my pocket and the curb was right in front of me. i didn't have enough time to grad the handle bars when the front tire turned and I flew over the bike! Thank goodness for a helmet because it cushioned the fall to the road and the bike falling on top of me. I was fine, I laughed about it when I got up. Hope that made some people laugh.

 

Well I love this work and wouldn't trade it for anything. I know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ. I get to be a representative of him everyday. There are now over 70,000 missionaries around the world and it is exciting. I am one of those. I love my savior Jesus Christ and all that he has done for me. I love the Book of Mormon and how it brings people closer to Christ. I love all the support everyone gives me. Love and miss everyone!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero

June 17th, 2013

Well I am safe first of all. The fire is down closer to springs which is a hour and a half south of where I am at. The smoke did travel to where I am at thought and we couldn't see that good. It burned down like 480 homes already and is only 65% contained as of yesterday... Very sad but you can't control these things sometimes. Well anyways this week has been mostly service!!

 

Elder Goldade and I pretty much parked the car this week and biked!! I love biking. My new bike is great until my pants got caught in the gears and tore them haha But I fixed the bike and it runs great. I can actually get to places with out pretty much dying with this thin air here.

 

Some of the service things we did was move people like always. People actually moved into to the ward though which hasn't happened in awhile. Also we went and built a chicken coop that we have been working on since I have been here pretty much. It looks way cool!!! Ya thats all I can think of right now but there is a lot more.

 

We had a couple lessons this week and couple lessons fell through but the ones we had were great. Our investigator Caitlyn is great!!! We finished all the lessons with her. So now until she gets married we go over and answer questions or go more in depth with her about things. Also our lesson with Dan was good, we answered more questions and that was all the lesson. We found out that him and his wife Anna will be moving before they get baptized... So on Wednesday I have to talk to my new mission president to get permission to leave the mission when they get baptized. Since it will be a new mission as of July 1st. Kinda upset that they are moving but can't stop them!!! Anna gets home today so now we can teach her!!!

 

I have seen myself grow a lot in the past week as I have taken lead and been trying to introduce Elder Goldade to people. Members really trust us in this ward. They say it a lot that they have the 4 best missionaries they have ever had. We aren't doing anything special here, we are just working and serving them. That is what we have been called to do is to serve the people in all the wards you serve in and that is what we do!!! It is that simple. I love being a representative of Jesus Christ and all the responsibilities that come with it!!! I love reading the scriptures and actually knowing them. Helps a lot when you go into lessons!!! I am excited for this mission transfer. The Denver North mission is going to be great!!! It is mostly Downtown Denver and really small. I can't wait!! I love serving and being a missionary. Best decision of my life!!! Love and miss everyone!!

 

Love,

Elder Escudero