2nd Transfer

I had a great week this week. I got to play in two Turkey bowls. The first one was during prepartion day, with all the other missionaries in the neighboring zones. I saw a lot of the missionaries from my MTC district, including Sister Crowther, the sister that went home for a while. I love playing football.
It made me really sore, i need to do more stretching in the mornings.
On Thanksgiving we went to around 4 different houses and ate 3 dinners. The First one was at our bishop's house. There were a lot of people there. Then we ate at Kim's house in South Selma. Next we brought a lot of food to one of the Spanish elder's investigators. He is going to be baptized in December if he doesn't go crazy. Next we ate at a less active's families house in Central Selma. It was a good thanksgiving.
Transfers is here again, and guess what, I am going to be a trainer! I'm staying in Selma. I don't know who I am training yet though. I am super excited.
We have a lot of baptisms coming up this month, we have about 8 people that are solids so far, and we have some more solid potentials coming as well. We have had lots of miracles with finding.
I am having a great time being a missionary. It is still fairly warm here, but I am wearing a sweater now most of the time. 

​​Love

Elder Keeley

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Attitude of Gratitude

I have been studying a lot about gratitude recently, and have been trying to have prayers of thanksgiving often. It helps me to be happy, even when things are crazy. This week we had about 4 sets of people come to church that we have been teaching. The Zamora family, Abel, Alfredo, and Daniel Hernandez. It was the first time that Daniel had come to church in a really long time. He seemed to have a good time, and even participated a little bit. Abel was great as well. Everyone who came to church stayed the full three hours. That's awesome. It also meant that Elder Perkins and I have to run all over the place trying to help each of those people have a good experience, and get fellowship and help from the ward. It was crazy. It was a really great Sunday. Elder Perkins even gave a talk, on gratitude coincidentally.

We ought to be grateful both for what we have, and for our circumstances. There is always something to be grateful for. Gratitude helps us to be humble.

The Bundy family also "probably" moved their baptism to the 5th, but they are still pretty solid for being baptized. Alfredo is as solid as the Salt Lake Temple's foundation.

We were given a crazy referral from the Spanish Missionaries. They had just left an appointment when a car pulled up and a man asked if they were "the Mormons." He had the goal of creating a business of stopping the viruses. The viruses come from the shopping carts. He had a dream that told him that in order to stop the viruses he had to be baptized in the temple at Fresno. Unfortunately, Elder Perkins and I couldn't find him at the tire shop he said to meet him at. I enjoy talking to crazy people sometimes just for the stories, but Elder Perkins doesn't. 

We are having a Turkey bowl today, that should be lots of fun.

Have a great week!

Elder Keeley

 

You Know what day it is. It's Thrusday.

Thursday means mail   this week because my Zone got to go to the Temple. I am still alive. Elder Perkins is also still alive. The Fresno Temple is pretty cool, and it is also really small. We drove with our new ward mission leader. He is really awesome and fired up. 

On Monday we came home from a zone meeting, and Brother Smeaton was by our apartment wanting to go out teaching with us. So out we went, visiting as many people as we could. We visited Minerva, the most recent convert, and talked with her about doing missionary work through our everyday lives. Minerva is a funny lady, she casually offered us drinks. She offered us water, and then Tea. Elder Perkins and I got really nervous, thinking to each other, Oh no! Minerva is breaking the word of wisdom. Before we could say anything she also offered us coffee and then broke out laughing. She was just playing a joke on us, she didn't really have any tea or coffee. It was pretty funny.

We also visited a less active man who really wants to become active again and go to the temple. He quit smoking two years ago, and we helped him set a goal to come to church, and to quit drinking coffee and tea on January 1st. Sometimes all it takes is a push, and some help setting a goal to help people get back on track. He is a cool man. 

Minerva gave Elder Perkins and I quilts, because she likes to make quilts for people, and because she is very nice. She is a 75 year old lady by the way.

We did a couple service projects this week. We seasoned a hundreds of pounds of Tri-tip steak for a band fundraiser. We helped a less active member move back into his house, and move lots of his things into storage. That's a complicated story. We also helped the bishop with his yard, and took a trailer to the dump with him.

Alfrado has a really solid baptismal date for December 4th. He already has set up the program, chosen who will baptize him (Elder Perkins) and confirm him (Me), and started making plans to go on a mission in a year, and go to the temple. He is fantastic.

The Bundy family is still set to be baptized on the 28th as well. They came to church last Sunday, and we helped them put together a plan for their baptism as well. They supposedly won't be able to come to church this week, so It will be a scramble for Elder Perkins and I to finish putting everything together.

Kim is still looking for a new apartment. We have found a few options for her, and many of them are full. Pray that she will be able to find somewhere better to live. 

The Zamora family is all really excited for everything, but they haven't made it back to church yet, and they don't want to set a baptism date until they come to church a few more times. 

I know that prayers really work. I know that the Atonement is real, and it applies for everyone and everything. Jesus Christ lives.

Have a great week.

Elder Keeley

We went to Caruthers on Tuesday. I take a lot of pictures, but most of them are on other people's cameras. They aren't the best at forwarding them back to me yet.

 
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Soy Bien

​Elder Perkins and I worked hard and had some success. We went to Kingsburg one day and had a team up with our new ward mission leader. We visited the daughter of a referral from the other elders that we had seen once before. Her name is Kat. She said that she had read about half of the book of Mormon since the last time that we had visited her. It's possible that she hasn't actually read anything, but we went over the restoration with her, and committed her to a baptismal date. We'll see how that actually turns out. She wasn't at church on Sunday, but that may have just been because her mom was working.

While in Kingsburg we found some inactive families that said they would like to come back to church. It was nice to have the ward mission leader with us. Finally, we taught Alfredo, the member referral that we received

​last​

 Sunday. We taught him at the member's home, with the help of another one of his member friends. Alfredo has already invited his friends to come to his baptism, and know that this is the True church. Member referrals really are the best.
On Sunday the ward we are in had their primary program. Elder Perkins and I had

​the Bundy

family, and Alfredo at church on Sunday. It was good to have the

​Bundys

 back. Their children will be baptized this month.

We are working to help our investigators feel like they are are ready to take the step of baptism.​

We were finally able to meet with Able again this week. He is still doing very well spiritually, and got upset when I invited him to pray to know if what we have taught him is really true, because "I already know that it's true. I have no doubts." Or something like that. He will be baptized once his health is back.

We visited our friend Eric in the Long term care facility again. We took him on a walk in a wheelchair. He had a stroke, and lost his left side, and some of his sight. 

We also visited the Zamora family. They are doing everything pretty well, but they don't think that they want to set a baptism date until they come to church a few more times. The mom is still working on coffee, but the children will probably be baptized fairly soon. Maybe December.

Kim is looking for a new apartment, specifically in North Selma. We have been helping her by sending her all of the apartments near the church. She will be able to be baptized as soon as she moves, so that is great news.

We have seen some miracles happen to help families come to the church. Conversion is a miracle.

I am doing well.

Love,

Elder Keeley

pictures

It rained today

Halloween

It was Halloween this week, but it was still stinking hot outside. 

Anyways, this week was kind of an interesting one. On Monday, instead of playing soccer and basketball and doing active things like that, Elder Peterson and Elder Arebalo just wanted to write letters and do non-active thins like that. It wasn't my favorite preparation day ever, I like to write and do things like that, but I need my exercise.

On Tuesday Elder Perkins and I met with the ward's new mission leader, and sort of gave him a training of what we expect from him as a mission leader, and what we can do to work together. We talked about ways that we can help the ward become more involved. Some of the best things they can do is to pray for missionary experiences to come to them, and prepare to respond. Their are also lots of resources in the ensigns and online for doing member missionary work. 

On Wednesday we ate dinner in Mexico. We were with the Spanish Elders, and went to a no room house, where the family only spoke Spanish. There was just a kitchen and a bathroom. I thought it was pretty neat. We had spaghetti, and some Mexican drink. I also had a Tamale, it was good.

On Thursday I went on an Exchange with Elder Rearte. He is a really cool Elder, and is also an Argentine. We visited a lot of people, some of whom only spoke Spanish. I read from El Libro De Mormon, and I also gave out a Spanish book of Mormon again. Some of our plans didn't work out, because a member who was going to pick up an investigator's tires got slashed. The member is going on a mission soon, and her friends don't appreciate it.
Friday we had a ward Halloween party and trunk or treat. We had about 15 of our less actives/ investigators show up. It was pretty successful, and we had some good fellow shipping happen.

Saturday was Halloween. We had to be in our apartment at 6. Elder Perkins and I watched some of the LDS Christmas proselyting movies that we have. 

Finally, on Sunday we didn't have any of our investigators/ less actives come to church, but we did get a new member investigator. His name is Alfredo, and he will be baptized moy rapido. We also were able to teach Daniel Cooper and his Wife Amanda, which was awesome. He is moving to Fresno on Friday, so we don't know exactly what will happen next, but he will be baptized. Pray for him and his family.

I learned this week about how we can learn so many different things from the same writing. I specifically learned ways to improve my finding.

I am doing well. 

Love,

Elder Keeley