Six Months, and I'm stayin' here with my bro!

My man, Elder W---

Hey ya'll!

Transfer calls are in, and I'm staying in Priest River with Elder W---! Actually, our whole district is staying! We're excited to have another transfer together, and we are going to ROCK our District!

We've had an awesome transfer, and we've learned SO MUCH! For the last week of the Transfer, Elder W--- and I made a goal to teach 70 lessons. We only made it to 50, but that was still a HUGE success, and we are seeing SO MANY blessing from it! 

We have several new investigators, and a couple of new children of God preparing for Baptism! Ah! How could I ever hope to describe missionary work? How could I EVER explain the feeling you get when someone changes their entire life around to follow Christ? It can't be done!

I can honestly say that this has been the best six months of my life, and I fully expect that the rest of my mission will only get better! Every day has new challenges, but the good ALWAYS outweighs the bad.

I am so happy, I can't even put it to words! I know that what I'm doing has meaning, purpose, and importance. God truly guides and directs our lives, and I get to see it first hand EVERY SINGLE DAY! I am in awe of how much he loves us, and how willing he is to help us in every step of our journey through this life.

I know this church is true, and I am so happy to be a part of this work!

I love and miss you all!

-Kep

LAST WEEK OF THE TRANSFER!!!

Holy cow! The transfer is just about over!

You know, when people say that the mission flies by, THEY AREN'T KIDDING!!! I'm about a week away from being a fourth of the way done with my mission! Six months looms overhead, and I don't know what to do about it! I don't want my mission to go by this fast! It's not fair! AHHH!!! 

Anyway, that aside, this week has been NUTS!!! Elder W---'s health has been bad, and then he got FOOD POISONING two days ago, which made things interesting. Anyway, not a whole lot of other changes, other than I WORK OUT A TON!!! I've worked out my whole mission pretty hard, but now my whole district is almost competing to see who can be the biggest, and well, I'm pretty sure I've got them pretty well beat. 

Mwahaha!

Anyway, not a lot else to report, but I love and miss you all, and I wanted to thank you for my package! Andes [mints] are my favorite, and $ in tax returns is freaking awesome! The thumb drive contents made me so happy, and I'm so thankful for all of you!

Love and miss you all!

-Elder Keppner

I forgot to mention baptism #6...

The Baptism! :D

So, I totally forgot to mention, that last week, was my sixth baptism here in the mission...

Yeah, I can't believe it slipped my mind. :P

Anyway, her name is E---, and she is 9 years old. Her father was inactive, but part of our mission is to find the lost, so, we brought him back to church! We taught him the lessons again, and he found his testimony again! We were teaching him and his daughter together, and E--- said that she wanted to be baptized! So, we taught her the lessons, just like any other investigator, and she got baptized! That day was super stressful though with getting everything set, but we made it through. (See picture below)

STRESSSSS!

As far as THIS week goes, things have been pretty much just us missionaries, doing our missionary thing. 

We teach lessons, see miracles, give blessing, talk to random people, and stay up until 10:30 talking at night.

 Speaking of nights, me and Elder W--- had an interesting night this week. You see, he accidentally over-dosed on his sleeping pills, and, well, he was high as a kite that night, before he finally crashed, and crashed hard. He doesn't remember anything from that night, and he woke up with a killer headache.

*cough*Hangover*cough*

Aside from that craziness, and the fact that I met S--- H---'s GRANDPARENTS UP HERE, things were pretty tame. :D

Anyway, I love and miss you all! And keep writing!

-Kep

Is Priest River ready for this?!?

Man, last week was SO SLOW. We had two all day meetings, two exchanges, and an insane amount of little side projects. But, in spite of all that, we were trained on a new way to plan our week, and it ROCKS! We were able to plan out this next week in such a way that EVERY SECOND is planned out, but at the same time, it is flexible to any changes we need to make.

You know, I've never been organized in ANY WAY, but here on my mission, I've learned to organize my life a LOT, and actually, my board game making tenancies actually have helped a lot! (Weird as that may sound. ;) )

Oh! And we got to meet with some old family friends in Newport, the M---! I didn't realize how much I've missed them until I got to see them! They were VERY receptive, in spite of the fact that the father is a pastor for another Church. Now, they're probably a lot more receptive because they are family friends, but they were willing to read the Book of Mormon, so, here's hoping! :D

This is Ferdinand. (He is a turtle.)

I was hungry.

My mission has been the best thing I've EVER done in my life! Being able to come here and serve the God who has helped me through so much, has meant everything to me. And every day, I get to help other people find that same help, strength and hope that I've been given. I love these people, and I'm trying to show them that in the best way I can: to help them find true happiness.

I'm serving with an AWESOME companion, and we are playing hard, and working even harder! Actually, the harder we work, the more fun we seem to have! The weather is warming up a bit, and we're heading into the 80's now. :)

Ah! In case you can't tell, I'm pretty much in love with my mission... :D

I love you all! And I hope you have a great week! :D

-Elder Keppner

Rocking the new area

I always thought it would be bigger...?

This week has been amazing! I don't have much time to put it all down, but the work is truly pressing on here in Priest River! As to our progress here, it's been great! Elder W--- has a bad leg, and has been sick for the last bit, but we still go forth in faith each day! Elder W---, in spite of all of this, has been cheerful, and willing to learn! He is a great trainee, and I love working with him!

We recently were at dinner with a ward member, and we were determined to get an investigator that day.

Before we left dinner, we talked to the waitress, and asked if she would be interested in talking to missionaries. She said yes, and now, she's our newest investigator!

So many little miracles have been happening every day, and I can't believe how much we are being blessed for our efforts.

My testimony has grown so much these last two weeks. I've been learning to study more in-depth, and my knowledge of the Gospel has increased dramatically. I LOVE studying the Lord's words, and I truly love learning!

Jesus is the Christ, this is his true Church, and I will teach, and preach, and defend that to the very end.

Love you all,
-Elder Keppner

Just Elder W--- and Me!

Me and my new companion, Elder W---! Isn't he a BEAST?!?

Elder W--- is a STUD!

I was sad to leave St. Maries, and a piece of my heart will always be there. I miss those wonderful people more than I can put to words, and you can bet your fanny, I AM GOING BACK!!! :D

C-- teaching me and Elder H-- on my last day.

Me crushing Elder H-- at Chess...

These are two of the greatest men I have ever met: Brother S--, and C--. I love them both dearly, and I look forward to when I'll get to see them again! :D

Me and C-- were trying REALLY hard not to break down in front of the camera. I think we sort of pulled it off, but it's easier for him, because he can just hide behind that fantabulous beard. :'(

In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy my time here in Priest River, with my new companion, ELDER W---!!!

Ah! Where do I start with this guy?!? All I can say is that HE IS A BOSS!!! We get along VERY well, and the work presses forward! I love the people, and I'm so excited to be here!

Some artwork by Elder W---...

It's a bit weird being a trainer, mostly because I feel like I just got here, but, I guess the Lord knew I was ready. :)

I've learned so much, and I keep learning more each day! My testimony, and my conversion continue to grow, and bare fruit. I love this Gospel, and I know with all my heart, might, mind and strength that THIS IS THE TRUE CHURCH OF GOD. I know that, and I will defend that to my last breath.

Anyway, that's all I've really got this week. I love and miss you all!

Enjoy the pictures! :D

St. Maries

R--- (investigator), her daughter, and a bunch of little kiddilywinks running everywhere! :)

Well, transfer calls are in, and my fate has been decided: I am leaving St. Maries.

Sister L-- (the bishop's wife, on the left), and Sister N-- (on the right). Two awesome ladies! :D

I'm doing my best NOT to be depressed, or anything like that, but it's hard. I've been here for only a few months, and yet this feels like a 2nd home to me. I know pretty much everyone in town, and they all know exactly who I am too. I love everyone here so much, and it's hard to say goodbye. :'(

Brother Webb and his cute little daughter Amy. :')

BUT! I'm not going to let it get to me. I have every intention of coming back in a couple of Summers, so I have no need to worry about it. :)

So my new area is going to be: Priest River! Another boony town (which I am thrilled about. Small towns are my favorite places to serve! :D ), and apparently it's really pretty up there!

God works in mysterious ways. I know that I will learn, and grow, and come to appreciate this change, and so I'll look forward to serving in this new and wonderful area!

I love and miss you all, and I'll write ya same time next week!

-Elder Keppner