Thailand Week 46, 29 June 2014

Hey family!! 

So no surprises, I moved out of the office!  My new calling is pretty exciting though!  I moved to Saphaan Sung (sapan soong)  which is like 1 hour or so away from Asoke (where I have been) to the East, and I'm training Elder Wright!  Whitewashing is intense!  (Both Josh and Elder Wright are new to the area).  But we have a really good area and a solid ward to work with.  Our district is the Zone Leaders Elder Kohler and Elder Cosper (who was a companion of mine in the office) and Sister Ference and Packard who are the Sister Training Leaders here! They're both from my MTC group but were in the other district.  Saphaan Sung is a really well functioning ward and has some strong members who really understand the church.  

Last night there was a fireside about the temple and one of the speakers had been a temple worker and everything.  He's one of the early pioneers of the church here for sure.

We walked into a pretty good area.  We're having a baptism this week and should have another on Sunday!  

This transfer was a really sad one.  So many of the older missionaries that I looked up to went home.  Elder Marshall was an AP for the last transfer and I lived with him.  Elder Harris (a former AP) died (went home) along with Elder Barfuss who was my zone leader. The hardest person to say goodbye to was definitely Elder Hunsaker.  He trained me and then has lived with me for the past 4 months in Asoke as he was an AP.  He's taught me more than anyone else to really put everything into my mission.  He taught me through example and helped me understand that if I held anything back, then I wasn't doing missionary work the right way.  He's changed my mission completely.  He's coming back to visit because it's such a short trip from Hong Kong so I'll see him this week.  It'll be fun to see him in his old area.  Calling him by his first name will be weird though haha.

I'm so excited for this transfer!  Elder Wright is from Colorado and is a hard worker already. He put in the work in the MTC to come out skilled and driven.  We're going to see a lot of success and I can't wait to see what all unfolds! 

We're doing a zone activity at the crocodile farm today! 

Love Elder Keller

Second Stake Created in the Land of Smiles

June 18, 1995, Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles created the first stake in Thailand.  The excitement of that historic meeting was repeated on June 15, 2014, nineteen years later, as members of the Church in Bangkok were again gathered to witness the creation of the Bangkok North Stake and Bangkok West District. 

President David M. Senior, Thailand Bangkok Mission President stated, "Members of the Bangkok North Stake worked with dedication and faith in bringing to pass the vision of becoming a new stake. It was a faith filled day and I felt a confirming joy for the blessings being showered upon the land and people."  He continued, "There will yet be many blessings in Thailand as the faithful Saints join with missionaries in this great day of the Lord's hastening, taking the Gospel light to nations, kindreds, tongues and people.  In 2013, there were roughly 650 baptisms in Thailand and in the first half of 2014, there have already been over 1,000 new members added.  The Lord is indeed hastening his work."

Elder Lucas, Elder Hunsaker, Elder Keller, Elder Wright