The Noble and Great Ones....

Hello everyone,

Well this has been a revelatory week for sure with SZT and also Stake Conference. Its also been a week full of coughing, headaches, and sleep. Yup... I caught the cold this week and it has been brutal. Luckily, it is finally winding down a tad bit so hopefully within these next couple of days, I should be fresh and prone to sickness for the next 6 months. haha Anyways, hopefully everyone's week has been a good one full of adventure and joyous times!

Tuesday: April 19th, 2016
So with today, we had some computer work as usual to get done in the morning and then we went out to do some finding and in the evening we went to see Rudy and Amy and we were able to go over the Word of Wisdom with them and they accepted to live it. Still got to wait til August to get them baptized but they are trucking along really well.

Wednesday: April 20th, 2016
Exchanges round 2 with Portsmouth today. Really great exchange for sure with Elder Schulthies again!:) We were able to do a lot of finding and knocking in some areas and were able to find a couple of potentials but it was still a good day.

Thursday: April 21st, 2016
Finished up exchanges and then we had a lunch with Felix, his friend Chelela, and Dave before they left back to Angola for 9-10 months or so. We also had the opportunity to go and provide service for a member and we were greatly rewarded. Today was also the Queen's birthday and so they were telling us a little bit about that while we were helping out.

Friday: April 22nd, 2016
Specialized Zone Training today was just remarkable. A lot of personal revelation came and we were also able to learn a lot of things from President and Sister Gubler. The assistants also led a treasure hunt around the chapel and it was super fun and some amazing lessons were learned during it. Our group was able to complete it and we got the "gold"(fererro rocher choclate). Definitely one of the greatest zone trainings I have been a part of. For all you "noble and great ones" out there, you know who you are... study D&C 138:53-56 really carefully. Come to understand who you truly are and what God expects of you. President taught us and testified powerfully of this again and it just resonated in my heart again. I know who I am and what God expects of me. Hopefully you will too. Our noble generation will be the ones to usher in the Savior. We are the ones who have been reserved, chosen, and prepared for this specific time to prepare the world for His coming. Lay the foundations and prepare the world through missionary work. It is in your spiritual DNA. Come to know this and set your true self free.
(D&C 138:53-56, Abr. 3:22-26)

Saturday: April 23rd, 2016
So late Friday night I started getting sick and today it crushed me... We had Stake Conference and we had to be present for Priesthood Leadership Session and President had us share some insights of our own on what could benefit young men in preparation for missions and how they could best help them do so. We shared and President asked us a couple of more questions that we happily answered and gave advice to all the Bishop's and young men's leaders, etc. Later, we had our interviews before the adult session that night. We were able to spend a lot of time with Elder Adler of the Seventy this weekend which was amazing.

Sunday: April 24th, 2016
With sickness rolling everywhere in me...(sounds gross but wasn't that bad, just major headache, and coughing like mad) I slept in a little longer than usual as directed by Mission Mom and then we prepared for the Sunday session of conference and then we had lunch and headed home for the rest of the day. We accounted and then I went right to bed! oh man... best sleep I've had in a while but it's not fun waking up in the middle of the night just to cough like 100 times and then fall back asleep... anyways, it was a super amazing jam packed weekend.

Verse of the Week:
Ether 12:4
"Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."

Hopefully everyone's week was super well again. I got some crazy exciting news from multiple friends this week and just wanted to say congrats again!

I unfortunately have no new pics this week... so hopefully this week will be different! :) but here is an awesome one I just loved.

Have a great week everyone!

Love,
-Elder Rivera

Will You Be Ready?

Good Morning/Afternoon Everyone,

Sun is out, drivers test in progress, why study at a desk?

This week has been one for the books! Not only did we have a great week but we were able to see another brother of ours join the fold with the Chinese Elders! It was a great experience for all and this week we have some trainings coming up, as well as stake
conference! Can't wait! Hopefully everyone's week went well and that you aren't to scared that we are already half way through April... Where is this year going? Anyways, here is a rundown of the week! Enjoy!

Tuesday: April 12th, 2016
Today was my  two year mark from being baptized in the true church. Wow has it flown by! But today was a great day! Had some time to reflect how far I have truly come since that day and how much the Lord has blessed me with. It truly is amazing... He truly lives!

Wednesday: April 13th, 2016
We had district meeting today and then we had some exchanges with the Hamble River elders and that was great. We went and knocked a road and it was a gold mine! We found a lot of people who were interested and/or have had contact with the church in the past. Great night for sure!

Thursday: April 14th, 2016
Finished exchanges and then we had correlation it instead of correlation, we taught a guy who was visiting the church for the first time (we dropped him for reasons I can explain later after the mission,
so stay tuned cause it was a crazy story after we taught him twice)

Friday: April 15th, 2016
Weekly planning and then we had lunch and went to Elder Lika's driving test. After we had our second round of exchanges with Winchester and it was a super good night. I got to work with Elder de Kock who has only been out for 3 weeks! Crazy!

One ring... To rule them all...

Saturday: April 16th, 2016
Finished up exchanges today and then the Chinese elders had a baptism that we got to watch. Jonah was super excited and was glowing after the baptism! Then we worked on the Newsletter for the zone.

Sunday: April 17th, 2016
Sabbath day is #Hisday! We had an amazing day today and we got to have a barbecue with some members for dinner because it was a sunny day! Then, we accounted for the rest of the evening again! The zone was on fire this week! We were super pleased with the work throughout the areas this week!

Verse of the Week:
Alma 12:24
"this life became a probationary state; a time to prepare to meet God"

This time truly is the time to prepare to meet God! How are you preparing for that great and last day?? Ask yourself sincerely... Is it enough? Do I need to do more? What else is there to do? Do I need to learn more? What haven't I done yet? Have I been saved? These are all questions that the Book of Mormon can answer, so if you need answers, bounce between the pages and search for them because they are not going anywhere! Therein lies happiness, go find it!:)

Go and prepare now, for time is short and there is much to do to ensure you are prepared for the day when the Bridegroom comes to seal you His.

Love you all!

Have a great week!

-Elder Rivera

"At One" with Him in every mo"Ment"

Hello Everyone,

This week has been a great one! We were pretty busy with meetings this week but they all went super well! It's been another cold and wet week as well... Was hoping some Spring would shoot up soon but I guess we aren't quite there yet! Almost though! I hope everyone has had a great week as well! England is just amazing! Wouldn't want to be anywhere else serving the Lord and His children!

Tuesday: April 5th, 2016
We had an amazing MLC today... President shared some amazing experiences and we also got some amazing new things we are going to do with the mission. One is that as a mission, we will study 12 Week again and make it a focus for improving our fundamentals and skills again. All you sports players knows how important fundamentals are to become great, same thing with missionary work. Back to the basics so we can achieve great things!

Wednesday: April 6th, 2016
Happy birthday to the church! It was a super good day. We had DLC and then we had exchanges after and it was a very powerful exchange. I had some nudges from the Spirit to do some things that were a tad different but this elder needed it and boy oh boy, did we feel the Spirit with the little activity we did. I'm grateful for the Spirit and guiding me on what to help an elder who was in a rough patch, but I'm sure after this, the Lord will carry him to where he needs to be.

Thursday: April 7th, 2016
Had district meeting today and that went super well and then we finished up our exchanges and then we did some driving for Elder Lika. He has his driving test next Friday so hopefully he passes!

Friday: April 8th, 2016
Weekly planning and a pretty eventful day in Hythe. We went and visited some members out there and had a great time with them and taught about the importance of the Atonement and how we can be
"reclaimed"(Mormon message) through its power. We also drove 40 minutes to respond to a referral we got from the office about a lady who just got out of the hospital and wanted a priesthood blessing. So we accepted and drove out there and turns out... The lady had an operation for sure and we asked her if she requested a visit and from her second floor window she says, "no, I just had an operation and can't go down the stairs, sorry chaps." Ugh... You're telling me we drove 40 minutes to find the right lady but she never requested it... Hmm. Well, we did our part and who knows, she'll probably call back again. The Lord just was testing us to see if we would respond I bet!

Saturday: April 9th, 2016
Today we took some time to build a newsletter for the zone and that took quite a while... It's causing me to get creative so I love it! Haha

Sunday: April 10th, 2016
We had a great fast Sunday today and the testimonies of the members were super strong! All focused on the Atonement. We had Sebastian show up to church today and he brought his friend Daniel who just came to England the other day! He wants to learn more about the Book of Mormon now to! Pretty sweet miracle.

Verse of the Week:
2 Nephi 33:3
"For I pray continually for them by day, and mine eyes water my pillow by night, because of them; and I cry unto my God in faith, and I know that he will hear my cry."

This transfer we are studying the Atonement as a mission and so far, I have gained so much from studying it. I will include a verse each week from the studies on the Atonement and I'll even attach the PDF in a separate email for all of you that would like to study it as well!

Verse of the Week about the Atonement:
2 Nephi 9:21
"And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam."

I hope everyone continues to do well! Thank you all for the emails! For those of you who are slacking a bit, I forgive you and just know I love you and hope to hear from you soon!😉

Have a great week!

Lots of love,

-Elder Rivera

Decisions...Determine...Destiny..!

Conference Weekend is the Best Weekend!

Hello everyone!

This has been one of the greatest weekends in the world! General Conference will always be the greatest weekend ever and it just keeps getting better each time! Personally, I was able to gain so many answers to the questions I had and oh my goodness... It was just a great way to start off April! Now we must apply what we learned from this conference and live it until October! I hope everyone was able to watch it and if not, the talks should be available to soon to watch again! I love having living prophets and apostles to lead and guide us today because without them, oh would we be very lost... It is such a sacred privilege to be in the Lord's true church and to receive counsel from his chosen servants to lead and guide His children through modern revelation.

Tuesday: March 29th, 2016
Due to moves, today was pday and nothing to much happened... Just the usual.

Wednesday: March 30th, 2016
Lessons today went super well with Ali and Alfred. Ali is progressing well and Alfred has a couple of pieces of doctrine that he struggles with but conference definitely gave us some answers to give to him now!

Thursday: March 31st, 2016
We saw Ali again today and we got to teach on top of his radio studio roof in the basking sun! It was pretty nice if I do say so myself, but however, England likes to ruin the fun and it began to rain...

Friday: April 1st, 2016
April Fools... Well, it was a pretty calm April Fools day... We got to visit some wonderful people before we had to do a ton of transfer planning and that was about all we did.

Decisions Determine Destiny...

Saturday: April 2nd, 2016
We did some painting today for a member and then we had conference in the evening! It's hard to watch over here because of the time difference and so we watch the morning session and then have to wait until Sunday to watch Priesthood and the Afternoon session and then we watch the Sunday morning session. Then... We have to wait until Monday to watch the Sunday afternoon session. It's crazy. But SO worth it!

Sunday: April 3rd, 2016
So what better way to spend the whole Sunday than watching conference? So many inspiring words were shared and so many answers to questions for sure! I guess that the Celestial Language is German... So we might all want to start doing some language study... Also Chewbacca just became scripture... So yeah. Conference was amazing... And now we have to wait until October for it to happen again...! Hopefully everyone enjoyed it and was able to receive what they needed for themselves and for the family!

Verse of the Week:
Finished the Book of Mormon again and so, the promise is always the same and it is my testimony that it is still true. If you haven't read it. Read it. If you haven't tried... Try harder... For God will only
help those who first help themselves. I promise you, it will taste good to the soul, and you will feel God's love more than you ever have... And you will know that the Book of Mormon is God's word... And that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, as stated in conference and by missionaries all around the world... Is the ONLY true church of God and His kingdom on the earth today. This can't go un-missed... Learn of it. Study it. Ponder it. Feel it. Love it. I know it will bless your life more than anything else in this world. I am a witness of it myself... If you wish to know what I and millions of others know... Pick it up. Read it. Study it. Ponder it. Embrace it. Love it. Live it.

Set Your True Self Free

Moroni 10:4-5
"3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.
4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with
real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."

I invite you all to read the Book of Mormon and apply Moroni's
promise... For you truly will know the truth of all things.

Love,
-Elder Rivera