STAYING PUT

Dear Family,

I got my transfer call on Saturday! No surprise there. I am once again, staying in Lake Placid. I knew that was coming, but I hoped for a change. Hopefully next transfer I'll go somewhere else! This means I will be here for 7 months! I think the record is 9. 

So we had a pretty fun week! We went to Return and Report on Thursday which was a lot of fun. I loved seeing all of my friends there who are trainers as well. We had District Conference on Saturday and Sunday which was awesome! Elder Bennett of the Seventy was there to speak! It was fun, we all drove to Malone to attend. My entire zone was there, so I got to see the 2 Elders from my MTC district. 

We had a sweet district activity today! (that is why I am so late emailing today) We went to a huge base ball field and set up volleyball nets, played soccer, and kick ball. I took a picture, but I don't have my camera with me. I'll send it next week. 

I pretty much just have one progressing investigator now. She is not the only one we visit, but she is the only one showing any sort of interest in learning more. We have really been working hard with her. We visit her every single day, and she finally reads the Book of Mormon! She always told us she hates reading but now that she actually started, she can't put it down! She wished she had just picked it up and read it a long time ago. It has been so awesome seeing how far she has come in these past two weeks. I am very happy for her! She is seeing the blessings more clearly and understanding that God really is answering her prayers! 

I am doing really good with reading my scriptures! I am almost done with Doctrine and Covenants. That book has some amazing stuff! I am learning so much more about the church from studying it. Once you get into sections 120 and on, it gets deep in doctrine! I love it!! 

I love you all so much!! the church is true!!

Sister Keller

I KNOW WHO I AM

Hey there everyone! 

How is life in the West? Good I hope. Things have been pretty awesome here. You wouldn't believe how much things are changing already! They have so many trees here of all kinds and the leaves are just beautiful. It has been nice seeing colors other than green. It has also cooled down quite a bit.  Fall comes fast! 

So we had a pretty good week, but also some sad times. A less-active member of our branch just died recently. I loved going to see her. I am glad that I got to bring Sister Dahl to see her a couple times before she passed. She was just the sweetest lady. I knew how much she struggled though, so I am happy that she is in a better place and with her family again.

Sister Dahl and I experienced some hard-core Bible bashing with an investigator. We no longer consider her a progressing investigator. All she wants to do is learn bits and pieces of the gospel. At first we thought she was really interested. But as it turns out, she found joy in trying to prove every bit of doctrine wrong with her bible. She said there were some things that fascinated her about the church. Like, temple work for example. So we are going to teach her what she wants to learn for now rather than wasting our time with this bible bash nonsense. In time, we pray that the Lord will soften her heart and she will realize that what we teach is true.

We had a very annoying OYM (open your mouth) experience. So we are just walking along the side walk, being friendly, saying hello and smiling, handing out cards etc.. All of the sudden we see a group of people walking by, handing out cans of beer for FREE! We couldn't believe our eyes. People were gladly taking alcohol off of the street while ignoring our friendly "hello". Just shows how much Satan is influencing the world today... Other than all of that, we had a pretty swell week with teaching our awesome investigators and recent converts. 

I finally got the package with the skirt and two shirts. Thanks!!!! I've been wanting those types of things!! They fit perfectly too. I also got a letter from Mema and Papa. I love getting their letters. They are so sweet. I still get my weekly letter from Grandma and Pappy! I love those!!! I also got my hair cut! It was long enough to donate! I don't know how to do that sort of thing, so I am sending it home. I know how much you like getting pieces of me in the mail. :)

I think it is really great that you are trying harder to have FHE, and scripture study, and prayers together. TRUST ME, the more you work at it and the more often you do it, you will feel so weird when you forget to read scriptures or say prayers. I literally can not go to sleep without saying a prayer first and tell Heavenly Father how grateful I am for each day. 

I am a Latter-day Saint. I am a full time, totally committed disciple of Jesus Christ. I wont look back, let up, slow down, or be still. I know where I came from, I know why I am here and I know where I am headed. I am no where near perfect, I have so much to learn. My faults are obvious to everyone, especially me. I have a friend who is perfect and He can help me along my way. I strive to live by inspiration, learn by faith, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor with power. My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Celestial. My road is narrow, the mountains are high, my way is rugged, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised deterred, lured away, turned back or stopped. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate with the enemy, pause at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I will be the very best I can be in every aspect of my life. I am a Latter-day Saint. I must go forward until I am called home, give until I drop, teach until all know, and work until Jesus comes again. And He will come again. He will find me doing the best I know how to build His kingdom here. I know that the church is true! 

Love, Sister Keller

LABOR DAY

Hello! 

Trent is here letting us use the Olympic Training Center to email again since the Library is closed. We've had a pretty cool day. I have been showing Sister Dahl around town and letting her see the cool visitor centers. Tried to go shopping, but we get sick of Gap after a while. It sure would be nice to have a Walmart or a Target closer to us. They are in Plattsburgh which is an hour away from us.

This month will mark my 6th month mark!! I have a 3rd of my mission done! It's crazy that I have been in Lake Placid for that entire time!! Just a year left to go! I have been having so much fun here though. I really, really love the people here. Especially the members. This branch is just awesome. They are all such great people. My current investigators are awesome as well. We are teaching Marybeth, Brandy, Brittany, Lonni, a family of 5, and the elderly couple I mentioned before. They are all pretty fun. We enjoy teaching and getting to know all of them. 

We had a super awesome weekend! During 3rd hour on Sunday, we and the elders taught everyone the Restored Teaching Method. It is basically the way we teach investigators. We wanted to show the members how we teach the Message of the Restoration so that when we invite them to come with us, they know what to expect of the layout of the lesson. The members really enjoyed our lesson. We were able to follow up with one family that evening at a dinner appointment on how they liked it, and they are excited to start working with us more. It was awesome to see how many members came up to us right after church to tell us they are willing to come teaching with us! I do have a strong testimony in the way we teach investigators. It is simple, short, and spirit filled. 

On Saturday we were out on our bikes.  We had so many opportunities to talk with people on the street because of it. We rode past one man sitting in his truck with a map and he looked pretty lost. So I told Sister Dahl that we should turn around and see if we could help him find his way. He was so grateful for us, and we were able to point him in the right direction. We didn't get to give him any literature, but we still planted a seed for him. Next time he sees missionaries, he will remember that a couple of sisters helped him find his way. Right after that, we rode a little further and a biker called out to us. She was so excited to see us riding along and told us she and her husband were riding across the US. They told us about their life, and said they may not look like Mormons because of the motorcycle get up but they were! I though it was awesome. We found all of these people from just being outside riding around and gave ourselves that time before we met a potential who turns out to be a really awesome woman we hope to teach about family history. 

Well everybody, you are awesome! I love you all this much!
 [-----------------------O-----------------------] (pretend that is my arms stretched out) 

The church is true! 
Love, Sister Keller

FUN WEEK

Dear Family and Friends,

I had a really good week! Being in a trio is a lot of fun! It was a three day exchange with our Sister Training Leader, Sister Barlow. The whole purpose of this special exchange was so that we can improve our short and frequent lessons with investigators. I hope we can do them more often, as well as still doing the normal 24 hour exchanges. I really grow a lot when we do those, and I know that Sister Dahl would too. 

I absolutely love the members here! They are so good to us! One family made goodie bags for the Elders and us. These goodie bags where huge, and clear full of food! It is enough to last us the week! I also love visiting them all. They are so fun.  I really hope to stay in touch with them. One member wants to invite me to their wedding reception next year. I thought that was so sweet. 

I don't have very much to report on with investigators. I am teaching a very old couple that have the desire to be baptized, so that is way cool! They love us. They yell from the door for us when we pull up! They literally tell us to hurry up and get in there! I think it is funny. Jeremy is preparing to go to the Palmyra Temple with the whole branch in a couple weeks. I am so excited for him! He is even more excited though! He couldn't wait to tell us he got his recommend from the branch president. He also bought a CTR ring online that he couldn't wait to show us. It is so awesome to see how much he has grown. In just 3 months he went from smoking, and no church, to a priesthood holder and now on his way to the temple! He passed the sacrament for the first time yesterday. It is now his calling to prepare the sacrament each week. I'm just so happy for him. It also really helps me know that I am doing a good job as a missionary. 

I hope I can get a hair cut soon. It might not happen for a couple weeks because I can only do it on Mondays, and it is Labor day next week. They are so expensive here... it's too complicated to cut it myself though. I want more than just a trim. A lot more. Maybe someone in the branch can cut hair. 

I am so excited for you all to start school again! I wish I could see you go! You all looked super cute in your "first day of school" pictures!  I love you guys so much! I know that you have seen a lot of missionaries come home these past couple weeks, but don't let that get to you! It will be my turn next year! I love being a missionary! I am not ready to come home yet! These people need me here. But hey! guess what! it has been 5 months! I am almost a third of my way done! I will have spent a 3rd of my mission here in Lake Placid. WOW! The church is true! 

Love, 
Sister Keller

P.S. A huge thank you to the Vrba's (I wear the necklace everyday) and to the Robinson's for their packages! 
I LOVED THEM!!  

THANK YOU

Dear Family, 

This week went SO much better than last week. Thank you all so much for your prayers and HUGS!!! It all really helped me. I got the flowers you sent me that same day!!!! I was so surprised! They are beautiful. Thank you so much!! I have been truly humbled by this experience of training. It is still hard, but with the help of my constant companion I get through it. I seriously wouldn't know what I would do if I didn't have the Spirit with me to lead and direct me in the work. I have learned how to put my full faith in the Lord. 

We had a really neat lunch appointment with some members the other day. When we arrived, we could just feel the tension that was there between the family members. They had just been in a huge argument before we showed up. Their daughter went up to her room the whole time we were there. We stayed with the parents, and had a good uplifting conversation about church stuff, and gave them a spiritual thought at the end of our meal. We then went upstairs to the daughters room to see if we could help her in any way. We had an investigator we were planning on seeing right after we left, and we had the impression to ask this daughter if she would like to come with us. It would get her out of the house and focus on the Lord for an hour of her day. She told us No, and came up with a bunch of excuses. I then had another impression to say a prayer with her. I can't explain how the spirit took over me, but that prayer was one of the strongest overpowering prayers I have ever said for someone. The moment I said "amen" her whole attitude did a 180. She perked up, and said she would love to come teach with us! The spirit was so strong at that moment! It was so cool! 

This week, we will be on a special exchange. I am going to be in a trio for a couple days. One of my Sister Training Leaders will be coming to our area to teach with us. It should be interesting and fun. I think we will learn a lot! 

So, as you have already seen, I am on Facebook now! It is going to be such a huge help with staying in touch with the people we meet, and be able to contact them on a daily basis now. We will even be able to have lessons with them using Facebook. We just "message" them. I have to admit, it was hard to see that part of my life again. As a missionary, that stuff had been set aside for 5 months now of my life, and seeing all of my world at home was very strange. It is so tempting to send you all a quick "Hi" but I know that, that would be disobedient. We have been given this special privilege and if we take advantage of it, President will take away ALL computer privileges. You, however, may comment/like the posts that I put on my page. I can respond as long as we keep things missionary based. I have to always maintain my sacred calling as a servant of the Lord in conversation and in photography. 

I love you all so much! I am doing much better now, so it's all good :) The church is true! 

Love, Sister Keller 

P.S. Thanks for the play-dough.  I had fun!!

SOMEONE NEEDS A HUG :(

Dear Family, 

Oh boy, where do I begin... 
My new companion is Sister Dahl. She is 21, and from Dallas, Texas! She is a very sweet girl. Man, is she hard working too! It is like there is never a slow moment to breathe with her! It has been great to be busy and work hard. That doesn't mean there has not been any stress from it all though... I have actually had an extremely hard time adjusting to all of this change. I have been very, very stressed out. Since transfers, I have hardly wanted to eat anything, and it has been 5 days now... I have never experienced this level of stress which made me not want to eat before. I force myself to put something in my stomach so I can avoid getting sick, but I don't want much. Water has been my constant friend. 

Training is probably the hardest thing I have ever done. I have learned so much from the amount of time I have been out, and was doing so well with my trainer. I now have to learn how to help my companion feel the same way. Everything we do now has to be all planned by me, because she doesn't know anything yet. Yes, I expected that, but I was not ready for what the stress would do to me. It has almost been a week now, and not much has changed like the way it did when I was being trained. I guess I kind of know what Sister Bowen went through, but she didn't seem as distraught as I do right now. I know it made her feel overwhelmed, but I never saw this type of effect on her.

The only time I feel comfortable right now has been at church, seeing the members, and studying on my own. Every other moment of the day, I am overwhelmed. I have written to President Wirthlin about how I feel, and I hope he has a way to help me. I have told Sister Dahl how I feel, so she knows I am overwhelmed. She told me that I am doing a wonderful job with helping her, and I was happy to hear that. Sure, I know how to do the work, and yes, I am very passionate when I teach. I love to teach, and bare my testimony. but I don't know how to handle the stress. 

I am so sorry that telling you this probably isn't what you were hoping for, but I just feel like there is no one else left whom I can turn to, to express how I truly feel. 

I miss you all so much!!! I think about you every day! I really need a hug or something... can you send me one of those in a package? 

None of this has shaken my testimony. I still know that the church is true! 

Love, Sister Keller

BAPTISM #2

Dear Family/Friends, 

Hey Hey Hey! This week was amazing!!! Sooo much stuff happened! So, first of all, Jeremy's baptism went so well! Brother Sipler had to say the prayer 4 times because he wouldn't say it exactly right. It was cringing, but also funny because he would mess up the same thing over and over again. He finally got it right, and was able to baptize him. It was so amazing to see this young man make this change in his life. We see in him that he is ready to be a disciple of Christ. We asked him why he made the decision to be baptized and he responded saying he knew it would bring him closer to God. What an amazing answer!!! Sister Bowen sang at the baptism, and we watched a Mormon Message. His mom and twin brother came to support him, which was great! They were very happy for him. His brother had mixed emotions, but I'm sure they all felt the spirit. He was confirmed yesterday, and Sister Bowen was able to write down the prayer for him so he could read it all the time. This guy seriously needs to serve a mission now. He could be an amazing missionary! 

Our trip to Utica went great! I had a really fun time in Hamilton on exchange with Sister Fiefia. I really hope I get to serve there one day. The people were awesome. I loved teaching and giving church tours. We went tracting in a trailer park over there and had a scary experience! This guy came to his door and was very rude. He said some threatening things to us and told us to go away. We just said something like, alright, have a nice day! Everything is all good though. It's not like I haven't had a door slammed in my face before. Sister Bowen had a fun time in Palmyra. I am excited for my opportunity to go there next year! It will be fall time, so it will be very beautiful! 

The next day, Thursday, we hung out at the mission office for a little bit to get new cell phones. President Wirthlin came up to me and asked me to come into his office. I had 2 theories of what he wanted to tell me. I was either in trouble, or becoming a trainer for the next transfer. Can you guess what happened?? I am training a new sister this next transfer!!!!!! I was very surprised! I was amazed at how soon I have been called to be a trainer. The Lord knew I was ready now I guess. So I will be staying in Lake Placid for another 12 weeks! That is how long a missionary trains for. I don't know who she is yet. We always find out who we are training with at transfers. So I will know this Wednesday who she is. I am excited! 

On Saturday, one of our investigators, Lonni, took us to the top of White Face Mountain. There is a castle up there and a beautiful view of everything. It got stormy really fast up there, so the clouds blocked our view. Thunder and lightening came and one struck the castle we were in! The worker was funny because he told us all that we had just been struck by lightening. It was so loud! I am alright though. The electricity in the air made our hair go crazy though. It was fun! 

I love yous all very much! :) I actually said "yous" one day and Sister Bowen laughed. It is a weird accent that people in the North Country have. I am slowly picking it up now... haha. The church is true! 

Love, Sister Keller