Thailand Week 86, 6 April 2015

Best Day Ever!!!!!!
As soon as I get a job I'm going to start saving money to attend the Thailand Temple dedication!!!!!

This week is the last full week of the transfer, and it's already crazy because I'm sitting in Bangkok just having finished Mission Leadership Council.  Elder Watkins and I will get back on a bus to Roi-Et this evening and work as hard as we can!  Saturday and Sunday we watch general conference, and then Monday-Wednesday is the national songran water festival, then Thursday is transfers meeting.  It will be a little hectic this next little bit but the work will move on as always. We have some great investigators we're working with!   Sister Mali got baptized!!  She's the mother of a recent convert who just got the Melchizedek priesthood!  Then we have Mint and Thohm, a mother and daughter who are open to find the truth.   Next is Nah who has a true desire to be baptized, just has been out of town for the last couple weeks, we'll help her prepare for baptism as soon as possible.  Her goal is for this Sunday.  And there are other people we'll be working with to help them prepare! 

I'm so happy right now!  My joy is full!  We've got to get to work!!  People need to know there will be a temple in Thailand!  We've got to find those who have been away from the church and let them know! We have to help members prepare themselves and their families!  We have to find new people and tell them all about the blessings of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
As President Senior says, "It's all over but the work."

Love Elder Keller


This is by far the best Easter I've ever had.   Nothing could have been more fulfilling than the temple announcement for Thailand.  As Elder Watkins and I were on a bus overnight to attend mission leadership council today we got a call from the Assistants to the President.  In Thailand we watch conference a week later that the English world to account for the translating work, so we weren't as on top of the news as you, but we got pretty close!  We got that call from the Assistants at 12:05 at night.  I had just stirred from a couple hours or so of restless sleep and Elder Watkins reaches over and tells me the APs have something to tell us together.  I wasn't sure what to expect, but the truth was better than anything I could have hoped for.   They told us that Thomas S. Monson, the prophet of the Lord, had just announced that the Bangkok, Thailand temple was going to be built.  I'll do my best to explain the significance of this glorious occasion. 

Nearly 2 years ago when I first came to Thailand I attended a zone conference up in Chiang Mai. We were told that our vision was a temple for Thailand.  We wanted to help bring the blessings of eternal families, ordinances for the dead, and personal endowments to the Thai saints.  That was our vision. Our methods of work have varied in some ways, but our vision has always been the same.  At first we just tried to get as many people into the church as we could.  We talked to everyone about baptism, we expected miracles and we saw them.  We kept pushing our goals higher and higher, and achieving them for the most part.  Eventually our efforts also turned to preparing the saints for a temple. Without worthy members who hold the Priesthood of God a temple could not function and our vision could not come to pass.  We've lately turned our focuses to families.  Those that are with us and those that have already passed.  We believe that in order to enter into Heaven we must perform sacred ordinances such as baptism for the remission of sins.  Because there are so many of our family who passed away without the blessings of these ordinances and a knowledge of Christ, we seek, gather, and prepare information on our ancestors to perform these ordinances for them vicariously.  It's hard in Thailand because of poor records and several other factors, but we pushed it and are seeing the blessings.  We've been focusing on helping the family members of the saints enter into the church as well.  With all the diligence, perseverance, and faith that accompanied the push for baptisms that I had been apart of at the beginning, we have focused efforts on helping people be united in the church. And now it's all coming to fruition!! There's going to be a temple in Thailand! The Lord has seen the faith of the church here in Thailand, he has poured out his blessings on this amazing country, and the millions of other people in South East Asia who will take part in the blessings of the temple here.  I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the true church of God on this earth. His work is going forth and we are seeing his hand in Thailand.  I want to share what a missionary from the Book of Mormon, Ammon, said as he saw similar miracles in his ministry.  Alma 26:12 Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, amen.

Thailand Week 85, 29 March 2015

Today I'm not writing a ton because we're going to this elephant village about and hour and a half away.  It's going to be awesome! I haven't ridden an elephant yet so this is necessary.

This week was normal except for we had conference Monday and then Pday Tuesday instead. This coming week is actually the only normal week of this transfer.  Next Monday we have MLC which will actually make us leave Sunday night. Then after that it's Songran (The nationwide water festival) and Transfers!!!!

We're going to be taking full advantage of our week though! We have 4 investigators on track to be baptized next week on the 5th! Happy Easter! They're all so great and have been progressing for a bit as well.

One investigator is smart.  He takes the things we teach and you can tell he can process them and understand their application.  He smokes, but when we taught the word of wisdom and told him God forbids smoking, he just kind of smiled and said that it's a good thing.  He's not fooling himself.  He has leadership potential for sure! We're also meeting his daughter tomorrow as well!

Another had a date for yesterday actually but had a meeting for work so it was moved. We've met her husband before as well and he's interested!  He works in a different province during the week though so we'll have to work for time to meet him.

Another is an exchange student from Cambodia he came to us from a member in Sisagate that Elder Watkins taught and baptized!  Now we're going to help his friend do the same here in Roi-Et

The last is the mother of an RC who just received the Melchizedek priesthood and just got called as a branch clerk! She's doing great because of all the support she has from her son and his fiance who brought him into the church in the first place.

All this family work has just been coming up on it's own.   As we've stayed true to principles of diligence, faith, miracles, obedience, all those basics, we've seen the family initiative go forth as well! We've been talking about it and teaching towards it more and we're seeing the miracles!

Now the trick is to keep the focus going for the last little bit.  I can pretend I'm not going home, but I don't think that's what "Enduring to the End" implies.  I've put too much into this work to go home on a bad note.  It just can't happen.  So I'm trying to up the focus, energy, and faith.  Trying to purge myself of the things that distract and increase the things that uplift.  I've got a goal to finish the Book of Mormon in Thai before I go home.  I've never had a good habit of just reading it before, so now I'm going through it 10 pages or so a day.  It takes a lot of time but I also feel closer to the Lord.  And now that I'm out of Isaiah I understand a lot more too, haha.  By the way, the Thai book of Mormon is 707 pages long.

Total Consecration!

Love Elder Keller

Thailand Week 84, 23 March 2015

This week was crazy! We spent a lot of time getting things ready for the meetings this last weekend. We had to get food, hotels, transportation, all this kind of stuff for about 45 missionaries. Saturday we were doing personal study and President Senior calls and ask for 20 mini snickers, olive oil for the 20+ Melchizedek holders, a van rental for Monday, and a couple other things. So we threw studies out the window and went to work.

That afternoon I translated for Sister Senior's temple prep activity class and translated for Sister Senior (President was there but he understands Thai really well) at the evening adult session.

Sunday I translated again for the new member session and for the main session. I was so drained...
We got to watch a special version of meet the Mormons that is released for missionaries Sunday night so that was chill.

Then we went to bed at like 11 after helping the Assistants set up for Monday morning, which started at 7. So we were up at 5. It was a really good meeting. The thing I took from it the most was a greater desire to bear testimony of Christ, which we'll be able to do with this upcoming Easter season! The Thai people have no idea who Jesus Christ is, so it's our pleasure tell them!

2Nephi 31: 13
Then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel.

I know Christ lives. He died, and then he rose. Through him we can all rise. After this life, and in it as we strive to become as he is. In his sacred name, amen.

Elder Josh Keller

Thailand Week 83, 15 March 2015

Hey Mom! 

 
This week was pretty nuts because we were in Bangkok Wednesday for the meeting and then we went and had the whole zone get together and we trained them. My portion was on Faith, Miracles, and Unity. Those 3 Principles are foundational in missionary work and I've seen then all work! 1 Corin 2:9 We have no idea what God has in store. We need to use faith to find out what's out there!   2 Nephi 27:23 God is a God of miracles.  It's up to us to use our faith and pray so they'll actually happen.  Acts 4:31-32 We pray and shake the world, one heart and one mind!  We're trying to apply/re-institute these principles in the Roi-Et zone and we're already seeing success!

I'm starting to figure out how this branch is. Lots of family oriented people and that gives us a great chance to help them be united in the gospel!!!

I like our house here, It's got ants but it's got a lot of space. Oh I got that package by the way!! Thanks! We ate the mac and cheese together the other day and the left overs are in the fridge.  Elder Morley and Elder Sukan are way cool.

We have district conference and zone conference this weekend...It's going to be crazy. We have to organize how to get people around and fed and all this stuff because it's being held in Roi-Et. We've got most of it done though. A member had the perfect number of hotel rooms and the perfect price. All kinds of miracles. Being with Elder Watkins is great.  It's just natural to work now and that makes it way easy to focus. 

 
Next week we'll email on Tuesday so don't be surprised! I'll let you know how the whole conference weekend was!
Love Josh

Thailand Week 82, 8 March 2015

Hey Mom!

Yeah my companion is pretty familiar, It's Elder Watkins my MTC companion!!!!!! I'm so excited to be serving with him again!!! It's really nice because there's no awkward transition or anything, we're just ready to work and go crazy. Right now I'm trying to stoke a fire and make sure that I don't get tired or anything. We're in Roi-Et as zone leaders. There's so much to do here. We're trying to become a stake by June so we've got to get people motivated and get them focused! We need to get Melchizedek priesthood holders interviewed before the district conference the 21st and 22nd and also need to start working on the Membership Records because our shepherding ratio is too low. We need 1:20 ratio for MP holders who pay tithing and other members. There's almost 700 people in the file and not all of them should be there anymore. We've got our work cut out for us!

Roi-Et is a pretty small area but the branch has 120 or so people so that's a huge blessing. We're only like a 5 minute bike ride away so that's a lot nice than in Toneburi. Oh and by the way, Elder Tanner, my old companion in Toneburi, is the new Assistant!!! So even though we split up I'll still get to follow up with him and stuff so that's a plus. Our house is nice but it hasn't been cleaned super well. Maybe we'll change that....

Elder Watkins is excited and we're both fired up to make something change. Our mission has been pretty dull lately. As we shift over to more family work and trying to seek referrals people have lost direction and a lot of the old, foundation principles like contacting everyone and being bold are dying as well. We're going to try and restart everything. This morning we sent out a study activity with a ton of scriptures on miracles and told everyone to read it and answer some questions. We can't forget that miracles happen everyday.

I'm excited to be here and fulfill what the Lord wants me to do!
Love Elder Keller

Thailand Week 81, 2 March 2015

Sorry I didn't email yesterday, we spent all day moving into a new house over here in Thonburi. This one is way closer to the church and it's massive too! 4 elders could honestly live on just one of the floors in it. We'll see what it turns into because 4 of the 6 elders are moving out this transfer! Including both Elder Tanner and myself!! The word surprised isn't really a thing as far as missionary work is concerned, but this definitely wasn't part of the main plan. I've never whitewashed out of an area (both companions leave) so we'll have to make sure that everything is prepared for the next elders who come in. They've got so many people to help! It's stressful leaving an area with all the people you've loved and served.

This is the letter I sent off to President Senior yesterday, it sums things up pretty well.

Dear President Senior,

Even though I've only been in Thonburi for 6 weeks, I'm not surprised that I'm moving out. Not a whole lot surprises me anymore as a missionary. The incomprehensible will of the Lord has become a normal part of my life now, the trials as well as his tender mercies. This transfer we've seen success that shows how the Lord is in control, not us. Sister ปั๊ป came to English class 8 years ago and in a time of darkness sought the church in college and was baptized. She brought a friend a little bit later too. โป๊ป is her college class mate and has been Christian for a while. He read the Book of Mormon and was struck by the testimony of the witnesses and was baptized. He also brought his parents a little bit later. His mother learned 8 years ago in Pakkret but then they moved. They've seen the light in their son and want to know more. They came to church last Sunday, the week he received the Aaronic Priesthood. And there are many, many, more.

Including the elders in this zone and in this district. Nothing compares to the opportunity to work personally with so many missionaries. I will now understand more what you and Sister Senior mean by "We're happy because we get to be with the missionaries". Thank you for everything. I think of this verse from 1 Nephi: "But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance."

I received a calling almost 2 years ago, and I am forever grateful for the work that the Lord has chosen for me to do. I am grateful that he has chosen me to be a tool in his hands; and I'm ready for whatever it is that he, in his providence, has chosen for me next.

Love Elder Keller

Thailand Week 80, 22 Feb 2015

This was a good week for me spiritually and for the missionary work!

It started off normal. We went over to China town to look around and couple other Elders got fabric for a suit. I just got some fabric to cut a pair of pants.

This week we saw a lot of miracles from working with families and friends. Tuesday we had a referral brought to us and she's really energetic and was interested in how members say they "Know" or "Got an answer". We had a really good lesson about the Restoration and she committed to pray and ask! We won't be able to meet with her very soon though because it's testing time for the college kids here. They have an absurd amount of tests in Thailand. Later in the week we also taught other families and friends of the members here! In our focus to work with the members we went and visited the 1st counselor in the Branch Presidency and got to sit down and talk to him and his 13 year old son. They're both doing great and are strong members, but it was still great to bring the Spirit into their home and share with them. We read 1 Peter 3:15, But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

That's what we're trying to do, help the members be ready to share the Gospel and be involved in bringing people to the church. It takes confidence though. This week I got to go on a switch-off to the office!!!! It was way fun to be in my old area and see the old sights. Elder Osborn and I actually rode our bikes around to get to a member's house! What would've been a 40 minute traffic jam in the van turned into a fun 10 minutes of weaving through cars clear up to the front! One thing that I admire about Elder Osborn is how independent he is. Not that he works without a companion or anything like that, but he has self-contained motivation and diligence. It gave me more fire to be the best I can be no matter what is going on around me! We saw the results of miracles and diligence around the mission this week, especially in our zone! We had a mission goal to help all the companionship achieve the standard of excellence that President Senior established. Here in Bangkok West everyone worked hard up until the last minute to reach the goal and find the miracles Heavenly Father prepared for us, and in the end we had 10/12 companionship balanced!! Elder Tanner and I saw first hand the tender mercies of the Lord as we sat down at 7:00 at night to teach an investigator and her son the restoration. This is definitely Heavenly Father's work!

I did a really cool study the other day from he bible dictionary! Repentance is really the same process as it was when they sacrificed animals, you just see the symbology differently. Go to Sacrifice in the Bible dictionary and then you can put all the pieces of repentance into the steps! I won't tell you what I learned because it was fun to figure it out but Either 12:27 and Mosiah 3:19 helped a lot.

In all the animal sacrifices of the Mosaic law there were six important acts: (1) The presentation of the sacrifice at the sanctuary door by the sacrificer himself, as his personal act. (2) The laying on of hands (Lev. 16:21) dedicated the animal to God and made it the sacrificer’s representative and substitute (Lev. 1:4; Num. 8:10). (3) The slaughtering of the animal. The sacrificer himself slew his sacrifice (at the north side of the altar), and thus carried out actually the dedication to God that he had ceremonially expressed by the laying on of hands. A later custom was for the Levites or priests to slaughter the victims. (4) The pouring out or sprinkling of the blood. The priest collected the blood of the animal in a vessel and applied it in various ways and places to make an atonement (Ex. 30:10; Lev. 8:15; 16:18; 17:11). (5) Burning the sacrifice on the altar. After the priest had properly prepared the sacrificial victim he offered it (the whole or the fat only) upon the altar of burnt offering. This act symbolized the consecration of the worshipper to Jehovah. (6) The sacrificial meal (in the case of the peace offering only). The fat having been burnt and the priests’ pieces removed, the rest of the flesh was eaten by the sacrificer, his household, and the poorer Levites at the tabernacle.

Love Elder Keller