Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Week 6


Man!!! Where has the time gone?? We are already in the last week of the transfer!!! I feel like I just got here to Clark Lake and I've already been here for 2 months! This week has been awesome! We had 3 exchanges and I stayed in the area for all 3 of them. Poor Sister Judd wasn't home like all week! Sometimes I feel like I don't really have a companion! haha. :) Anyway, we were able to attend the baptism of the Brandenburg family this past Saturday. They are a couple that I was able to teach on exchanges in the Lake Sawyer ward a couple weeks ago. I just love them! We were asked to teach the 5 minute restoration while they were getting changed. We were super nervous because President and Sister Eaton were going to be there. But, it went well and President Eaton told us it was the best Restoration he had ever heard. That made us happy! But, not the point! The baptism was amazing and the Brandenburgs were SO HAPPY!!! They are going to be such strong members of the Lord's church!!
We also had dinner with a 93 year old woman this week. She is a sister in our ward and she does NOT look or act 93! She travels to Germany at least once a year and she was up and getting dishes, setting the table, and cooking! I've decided that I am going to be her when I get old! :)
We had an awesome church tour with a family we are teaching. The mother struggles with really bad anxiety and hardly ever leaves her house. She was really nervous to come on the church tour, but finally agreed to come. Her husband is Catholic and "will always be Catholic." He came as well. :) It was an amazing experience to be able to walk into the Chapel with them and see the change they felt. Lorenzo just sat there quietly taking it all in. When we asked him how he felt, all he could say was, "I feel good. Really good." Davina managed to go through the whole church tour without having a panic attack and she felt the Spirit as well! Their 9 year old daughter was quiet the whole church tour and said the prayer at the end. She thanked Heavenly Father for the opportunity they had to be in His home. It was a moment you live for as a missionary. I know that the Spirit was felt by everyone who attended the church tour. I know that the Chapel is filled with a Spirit that is unlike the Spirit in our homes. And I know that this gospel is one of change and of hope. 
I invite you all to attend church each week and partake of the Sacrament. It is the most important thing we do all week! I have seen the blessings of it in my life and I know you will see the blessings in your life! 
I love you all!!!
Sister Keele

P.S....my camera died this week...so no pictures! :'(

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Joseph Smith Questions

Hello! How is everyone? Doing well, I hope! Last week I forgot to tell you all about the funniest thing! We were in a lesson last week with 2 members who are less active and Sister Judd was really struggling to stay awake. She hadn't slept well that night and the couch was super comfy and it was warm. Basically, it was a recipe for disaster!  We were teaching the restoration and I taught the First Vision and transitioned back to Sister Judd. She asked Agnes if she remember the question that Joseph Smith had asked. She didn't, to which Sister Judd replied, "The question that Joseph Smith asked was, 'How do I become a more successful and worthwhile missionary?'" Her eyes were closed and everything. I tried so hard to not laugh but I just couldn't help it. She looked over at me with such a confused look and said, "How about you just take it from here?" When we were done with the lesson we walked out and she turned to me and asked what she had said. She was so asleep that she had NO RECOLLECTION of what she had said. She didn't believe me that she had said that at first. It was SOOOO funny! So advice to all of those that are planning on serving missions: get sleep now while you can! :) 
We have had a great week here in Kent. Our teaching pool has changed so much since I first got here. It's so strange. But everything happens for a reason! And we found a great family this week! The mom was a referral a couple months ago but she wasn't interested then. We saw her again last week and set up an appointment with her. We had an amazing lesson on the Restoration and invited her to pray at the end. She prayed and even compared herself to Joseph Smith in the prayer. After the prayer she said that she felt peace and that she saw how this was different and that it was truly a message of hope. She committed to be baptized on August 30th! What a great birthday present! ;P
I was reading this week in Helaman 10. I love this chapter! It is when Nephi is speaking to the Lord about the people that will be destroyed if they do not repent. The Lord tells him a bunch of stuff and then tells him to go and tell the people. In verse 12 it says, "And behold, now it came to pass that when the Lord had spoken these words unto Nephi, he did stop and did not go unto his own house, but did return unto the multitudes..." I LOVE that verse! Nephi STOPPED and WENT. There was no complaining or asking why. There was only going forth with faith. That is the kind of missionary I want to be. That is the kind of child of God I want to be. I know that we can ALL be like Nephi. We need only to have willing hearts and minds. I invite you all this week to take inventory of yourselves and see where you can improve in your obedience to the Lord. Ask for His help. You will receive it! I love you all and I know that this gospel is true! I love it with all my heart! 
Have a great week! Pray hard and work hard! 
Love, 
Sister Keele

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Oh, The Places You'll Go, July 14, 2014


Yokwe!! How is everyone? I hope everything is going well! I've enjoyed all of the snail mail I got this week and the package I got today! thank you so much! This week has been, well, interesting, to say the least! We went on exchanges this week and I stayed in Clark Lake with Sister Ripplinger. It was my first time staying in the area and so I was a little nervous that I wouldn't know the area well enough, but it was great!
Interesting story of the week: I think it was Wednesday night, Sister Judd and I were driving home for the night and the car in front of us slammed on it's breaks and we noticed that there was a guy running crazily in the street. All of a sudden, a bunch of undercover cop cars that were parked there turned on their lights and started driving trying to cut him off and trap him. He ran over to the sidewalk and the police officers got out of their cars and pulled out their gun. One of them tased the guy and he fell to the floor and they handcuffed him-guns out the whole time. It was crazy! Needless to say, we were late getting home that night. Oops. :)
On Friday Sister Judd had leadership council at the mission home so I got to spend most of the day with Hermana Clark. It was pretty interesting being in a Zebra companionship for a little bit. I loved it though! Maybe when I come home I'll be bilingual since I hear Spanish so much these days. :)
Then on Saturday we had the opportunity to do a zone service project at Lake Meridian. It was so much fun! Kent has this summer thing called "Kent Cornucopia Days" and as part of that, they have dragonboat races. We got to help the teams on and off the boat and make sure that the dragon head and tail didn't get damaged. I got a little sunburned, but not too bad. It will be gone in a few days. :) (Brooke and Brittany...start looking into dragonboat races. It's happening when I get home.) It was a really fun service project and we were able to talk with several people about the gospel! It was amazing!
This week I wanted to share with you the love I have for the Atonement. I love my Savior and I feel of His love each day. I am so grateful that He sacrificed His life for us. I have been studying about compassion and the compassion He has for us. I have realized that when we truly understand the Atonement, we have compassion for our brothers and sisters AND for ourselves. The Atonement is truly amazing! I invite each of you to learn more about the Atonement this week. Learn how to feel it, use it, and love it! You will be blessed! I can promise that!
I know that this gospel is true. I know that my Heavenly Father loves each of us. I love Him, and I love this gospel!
Much Love,
Sister Keele

July 7, 2014

Hello family! How are you all? I hope you are all doing well! 
Today I am very grateful for the Plan of Salvation. I am saddened at the news of Jeri Emmi passing away, but I know where she is, and that brings me great comfort. I know that I will see her again one day and that she will no longer struggle with the physical or mental things that she while on this earth. I love her and I will be so happy when I can sit and talk with her and see her again! 
This week was a good one. I went on back to back exchanges and I left the area both times. I felt like Sister Judd and I weren't even companions for a whole 48 hours. haha. I went to Lake Sawyer with Sister Webb and to Fairwood with Sister Collins. I had a great time with both sisters. I learned a lot from them! I love exchanges! 
We went to a park to contact some people this week and found an amazing family that we are now teaching! It is amazing how God puts people into our lives! The mom in the family suffers from anxiety quite severely. She never goes outside of her house unless her family forces her to. We "happened" to meet her on one of those nights. We taught them the restoration and they loved it! On our return appointment, she shared with us that she has felt comforted, and much happier since we met. We are so excited for her to soon recognize that those feelings are from the Holy Ghost! She is amazing and we are looking forward to working with her more! 
I know that my Heavenly Father loves me. And I know that He loves each one of you. When we put forth the effort to know Him and come closer to Him, we WILL feel of His love. We get out what we put in. If we don't put anything into our relationship, we won't get anything out. He will not force Himself into our lives. We have to invite Him in. I invite you all to open the door to our Heavenly Father and let His love into your life. You will be greatly blessed! 
I love you all! Remember who you are and where you are headed! 
Sister Keele
P.S...pictures! 
#1...sister collins and I
#2....Literally my DREAM CAR!!!! 1968 aquamarine mustang coupe. and I got to sit in it. and see the engine. and it was all stock. and she offered to let me drive it. and it took every ounce of self control I had to say no. but I was so tempted. wahhh. One day, I will own that car!
#3...sister webb and I 

Friday, July 4, 2014

June 30, 2014


Yokwe! How is everyone doing? If you hadn't noticed, I'm picking up a few words in Marshallese! Yokwe means hello! :) Anyway, this week has been a good one! Nanita was confirmed yesterday and she was so happy!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE seeing the change in people once they receive the gift of the Holy Ghost! They are new people! It is absolutely amazing! 
I got to go on exchanges to Tiffany Park this week! I was with Sister Peterson and it was so fun! She is a great missionary! Sister Copen, one of my MTC companions, is now in Tiffany Park. Sister Carlin just got transferred! She's in my zone now in the YSA ward! '
I have met so many amazing people this week! I just love being a missionary! It is my favorite! :) The good days far outweigh the hard days! And the hard days make it all worth it!! 
Yesterday, since it was the 5th Sunday, we had a combined Relief Society and Priesthood meeting. It was on music and how we can bear our testimony through music. It was really cool. I am going to attach a video of a song I am pretty much obsessed with right now. It is called, "Come Unto Christ".  https://www.lds.org/youth/video/come-unto-christ-2014-theme-song?lang=eng
I know that as we "come unto Christ," we will feel of His love and we will never be the same. He will make us whole. "He's waiting for [us] with arms open wide." I know that He is! We just need to put forth a little effort! I love my Savior and I know that He loves each of us!! I invite you all to come closer to Christ each day this week! I know that you WILL be blessed and that you WILL feel of His love! 
Love, 
Sister Keele
P.S....I wouldn't mind some snail mail ;)

June 24, 2014


Hey family!!! I hope you are all doing well!! Things here in Kent are great! We had the baptismal service for Nanita this past Saturday and it was a great one! Two other people got baptized as well! One of the Elder's investigators, Abi, got baptized and the Senior Sisters had their investigator, Ruth, be baptized as well! It was a wonderful service! The spirit was so strongly felt and I know that they knew they had made the right decision. We had a scare that morning though during companion study. Nanita called us and said she wasn't going to make it to her baptism!!! The little stinker!!! She woke up with the right side of her back inflamed and she was in pain. We told her that she would be blessed if she came to her baptism and went through with it. After a few minutes of discussing with her, she agreed to come regardless of the pain she was in. I know she didn't regret it. 
However, she didn't show up for her confirmation on Sunday. Sister Judd and I were so sad. We called her and texted her and we didn't hear from her all day. She never even turned her phone on. We were starting to get worried and so we went over to her house and her shoes were out by the door and her car was there, but there wasn't a sign of life inside. We started to get really worried. Long story short, she called us yesterday and said that she had woken up at 6:30am and taken a muscle relaxer because of the pain. I immediately knew what she about to say (thanks for the experience with muscle relaxers, mom.) :) She said that she didn't wake up until after 4pm. Church starts at 1pm. She was so sad she had missed it! But, we have arranged to have her confirmed in Sacrament meeting next week! 
This week has been full of adventures here in Kent! To keep from writing an email that takes 15 hours to read, I'll just send pictures and tell the stories about them when I get home! 
I just want to remind you all that Heavenly Father loves you. He cares about you and only wants the best for you. Bad things happen sometimes, but they don't happen because He doesn't care about you. It's actually quite the opposite. Bad things happen to help us learn and grow and come closer to Him. I invite you all to write down 3 ways you see Heavenly Father's hand in your life each night before you go to bed. I promise that you will see more than 3 ways. You will struggle choosing which three to write down. Not only that, you will be happier and better rested the next morning! I know that Heavenly Father loves you! Don't ever forget that!
I love you all!!!
Sister Keele