Fetching Ridiculous

Dear fam,

Life is good in the Philippines.

we had a baptism this last week. it was sister J, and she has officially joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints! she is amazing! the day she was confirmed, she went with us to an appointment, shared her testimony about the Book of Mormon, and she told us she has a referral for us of one of her friends. sister J just talked with her friend about the church she was about to join, and the friend was super interested! we will contact her next week, when she gets here to start school. She is one amazing person. of course, I will add a photo.

at our zone conference, we had the chance to have a very special guest. It was the mission president of President Maurer, who served in Manila, and this man was also the first missionary called to serve in the Philippines!!!!! he shared about some of his experiences, his time here right after Typhoon Yolanda came through, and how he succeeded. this man was a sight to behold, and the spirit he brought with him filled the room. He expressed gratitude to us for being bold enough to come on a mission, and told us that we need to be strong, work hard, and simply share with people the great message we have about the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. it was a great experience. the zone conference after was just as memorable, and taught me some things I needed to hear. the food was good, I saw lots of my old missionary buddies.

I have had the chance to see lots of people, and I am convinced that there isn't a single person in the world who would NOT benefit from the gospel of Jesus Christ. everyone needs to hear about it. I have tried to think about this as I talk with people about the gospel. 

Palo is such a great area. it is a HUGE area, with lots of members. In fact, We are talking with the stake president, who says that Tacloban is almost ready for another ward, and in a couple months, could even split into 2 STAKES!!!! the church is growing so fast in region 8. the 98th stake in the Philippines was just opened over in a place called Palawan, and the stake president wants to be a part of the growth. just another reason to get the missionaries in my zone moving and baptizing, so we can help as many people as possible and be a part of the amazing things happening in the Philippines.

this week, at church, I had a little surprise. in addition to the members, in walks a family from Sta. Margarita! they were visiting family near by, and decided to come to church here in Palo! it was so good to see them again, and to hear that a person I found there, L, was baptized recently! such exciting news!

I have heard that down south, in Mindanao, Marshall law has been declared. These are the last days, and we can surely expect that the world will get worse and worse. There are many missionaries and members there, and it is sad to think of them being in those dangerous circumstances. however, I am confident the church will role on and the gospel will continue to spread, until the Savior returns. I know He will, because He said He would.

I still love the work. It's such a blessing to work with my current companion, Elder D. He works, has fun, and is such a good time to be around. miracles do happen here, the Lord still loves us, and wants whats best for us. I have a great testimony that this is the way, and It is such a pleasure to share it with others. I feel my own growth as well. I am not the same as before. I feel so much better in every way. 

I love you all, and look forward to hearing from you all

Elder Kuehne

P.S. every missionary here says "fetch." every. single. one. Even me, I started, and it's fetching ridiculous. :)

Blake's email to Morgan:

just a short little email to tell you HAPPY BIRTHDAY (because I can't do it ON your birthday, this will have to do) 16 is a very special age, because you have lots of new privileges such as driving, dating, and others. I encourage you to drive your heart out, Date away, but never betray the trust of the Lord, or mom and dad. as you do these things, be smart, be honest, and you will both enjoy and endure this tough time of high school.

Love you sis! I wish you all the blessings you deserve! just one more birthday, and then I will be seeing you in person again. Here's to a good year

love,

Elder Kuehne



 

Message to My Entire Family, Especially My Younger Siblings and Cousins

Dear fam,

what a good week. and to top it all off, it ended with a baptism! sister A has officially joined the Lords church! what a huge blessing it is to have someone so willingly and happily enter the waters and come back up with a big smile on her face. her confirmation was just as blissful. her mom came to the baptism, and her sisters and mom came for the confirmation. everything worked out so well. I will attach a photo, which I took with my new camera ;). we have another person coming up, sister J. she is just as committed as sister A, and more so in some ways. she took part in the stake choir for stake conference, and has come to church as long as I can remember. so, baptisms wise, good couple weeks.

We had a ward conference, and the stake presidency came. President T, the 2nd counselor, was absolutely crazy. he talked about how the church members NEED to go and find good jobs. region 8, AKA, my mission boundaries, is one of the poorest areas in the Philippines. lots of people are underpayed, big jobs are understaffed, and people are getting degrees only to go and work at a clothes store or something else. it is a hard place to be, and many people just don't want to take a risk. to be honest, neither do I. but I am learning that education makes a bigger difference then I ever could have realized. I slacked in high school, but I can't afford to do that any more, so, I am going to work hard, and try to come up with what I need to make my future happy and secure. the church does so much for others, such as the self reliance program, to help others and prepare them for a better and more successful life. I want that now. 

lots of funny people. the Filipino people are natural jokers, and enjoy having a good time. I really love being here, because I connect with these people and it makes it easier to love them. 

I have played lots of basketball. the people here love it, and my companion really wants to learn how to play. so, we got up at 5 and played for almost 3 hours. I can really knock some poor kids over. I played one day, and there is a member named AJ. he is a big dude, and is honestly really good. but, They can't body up with me. I am just to big for them to have a chance. and yet, we still can have such a good time playing and being with them.
I got your package, and I think it is the best package ever. a camera, girl scout cookies, and some tic-tacs. All i need. I have found that I am missing the food back home now, and this package helped a lot. Thank you so much for sacrificing to give these things to me. 

to close this email, I want to share a message to my entire family, especially my younger siblings and cousins. I know this church is the true church. I chose one day to go on a mission, and so far, I still love that decision. I love the chance to have been born in this gospel, to have it early in my life. Many of you have had that blessing, to be raised by strong member parents. I know with all my heart that this church is the only way that we can return to Heavenly Father's presence. I feel that a mission is the greatest blessing in my life, but I also get to help others and bring them the true gospel. Heavenly Father loves us, and will help us with all our trials and our struggles. I am no perfect man, but through the gospel of Jesus Christ, we can be perfected and live with Him for all eternity. no greater blessing. I love and miss you all, but, I am spending 2 years away from my own family, just so others can be with their families forever. And I don't regret it. I love you all, I will try to email you all more often, as time allows. Busy week, we have a zone conference, so, hopefully, it runs smoothly this time around. until next week, Trust in the Lord. 

-Elder Kuehne

Mothers Day Skype

Testimony in Waray

 

 

Do What the Lord Wants Us To Do

Dear Fam,

I love the chance I have to Email you all and tell you about my week. it is such a good time to spend some time and email you all.

Palo is a great place. Lots of great people are here, and I am so blessed to be with them and work with them. I just got back from a CSP. we demolished a home so the family can get a new one. a really fun activity/ I really love the chance to work with others and get to know them better. plus, destruction

the A family, who I talked about last time, is still doing GREAT! the youngest sister will be baptized next Saturday, if all goes well, we had to change the date for the nanay, but, she was 100% understanding of it, and actually encouraged it. I only hope that they can hang in there until the day comes. but, it approaches. and, they are still on time for it. hopefully, all will go well for them.

My new companion, Elder D, is a great companion who really works hard. he is from Angeles, Pampanga. I know almost nothing about that place. he loves to cook, and has taught me a couple great recipes that I am really excited to use. the food is amazing, and it is completely unique from food in the states. I may need to write them down so I can cook them when we return. It's simple food, but still so delicious. chicken curry, Bicol Express, Adobo, White Adobo, all of it is amazing! the food here is wonderful.

I am still Zone Leader, Still busy always. Elder D has never been a zone leader before, So I have to train him on some of his new responsibilities, especially working funds. You don't want to mess up with the reimbursements, or else someone will be very, very annoyed that they can't get their refunds. but, he is getting it done really well. it gives me more chance to focus on my own work and improving myself.

it's interesting you wrote about C. He was a great guy, no doubt about it; however, I still wish I could have been able to bring him to the gospel. He never took it supers seriously, and that makes me really sad. However, It is great to hear from him and know all is well in Sta. Margarita. 

really, not a lot to talk to you all about. kind of a boring week. But, I am excited about some of the less active members. We have 3 less active members who are one Sunday away from being considered "active" once more, one of whom really impresses me. Tatay M has been a member for a long time, and knows the gospel is true. He reads and prays, however, one problem; he can't come to church, because he is missing his right leg. but, a couple weeks ago, he comes in on his crutches to church. He walked there.... and his home isn't exactly close. Many people have talked about how hard it is to sacrifice to come to church, but after the experience with M, I no longer see any of them as valid. If we have faith, then no excuses will rule us. we will make a way, and do what the Lord wants us to do.

MLC is this week, along with zone interviews. we are just never done being busy. just work, work, work. I still love it though.

Not a lot of time to talk today, because I have a survey I need to take from the church. much to do, we will be busy this week.

I still love the mission, love you all too. though I don't have a lot to say this week. 

for skype, I am thinking 11 AM, my time. that way, Elder D can skype too. We have to go downtown to find webcams, so that explains the late start. hopefully, that will work. Love you all

Until next week

Elder kuehne