WEEK #49 - Nick's Baptism!!

Jammed packed crazy week, but worth it!

Monday: June 22nd

Today was a blast! Emailed some savage(s) and then played chess with Elder Samojla! That was pretty fun haha. We then taught Stayven at the church with his parents, and they loved it! We taught all the Commandments in fun ways for Stayven to remember and learn. We then did more pushups with Nick over video chat, haha! He's such a stud. Who else video chats the person they're teaching and does pushups with them? Savage. 

Chess outside... it smelled like weed though so we went back in :)

Tuesday: June 23rd

We had District council again which was fun. Me and Elder Samojla developed our plan a lot more for Facebook. Facebook is my life now. I thought it was only for old people, haha!! I'm just so thankful the Lord provides specific tools for us to accomplish His work of bringing people the Gospel. You can do this in a simple way too! Just lighting someone else's world is a great first step :)

Wednesday: June 24th

Today was AWEsome. We got to teach my aunt Staci, she is super awesome and wants to read the Book of Mormon! It was really cool seeing her through video chat. We also got to teach Nick again and we covered everything. When I say everything, I mean... everything. He is so ready and prepared now for his baptism! He's truly come a long way, and we've only known him since June 1st!

Thursday: June 25th

More meetings? You guessed it. Us Facebook Specialists trained the whole mission and it was an epic FAIL, haha! Almost everything went wrong in front of the entire mission, but we managed to get some of the technology to work. It was pretty hilarious so we made the best of it with what we could. Oh well, such is life ammirite?! ;) I finally got to have an in person interview with President Rees, we also had Nick's baptismal interview. So awesome. 

Friday: June 26th

Today we got to clean the church for most of the day. I got a text out of the blue with someone asking me where I was so they could give me lunch... totally not stalker vibes right there... haha! It turns out my cousins from Cali were in Junction!! That was such a great surprise to see them. Thank you Liz, Jeremy, and fam for coming out! 

Surprise visit!!

Saturday: June 27th

Nick's baptism today was amazing! We had to scramble a little bit to get everything organized but the services went well. His girlfriend drove down from Utah to be a witness at his baptism and it was so cool to see Nick's family there to support him. He brought his 2 year old and 5 year old with him, they were so funny but had an attention span of like 30 seconds, haha! Oh well, that's family :) 

Nick's family!

 Nick's baptism!

Sunday: June 28th

History in the making. We were finally allowed to come back to church in Lands End. We were asked to bless the sacrament so we had masks and gloves on the whole time. So weird to see other members of the ward. Nick got confirmed and received the priesthood too, he had some pretty special blessings given to him about preparing himself to be sealed in the temple. The Spirit was very strong and warm the entire time. I love seeing others come closer to their Savior Jesus Christ, cause it just inspires me to do the same! This Gospel is true.

And also, happy birthday Shaylee!! I hope everything was enjoyable for you, and maybe Ky could take the day of diaper changing for Paxton as a present, haha. Love you Shay!

Have a great week everyone,

Love you all,

Elder LaRose 

2946 D Rd. Apt #D-3

Mailbox - #15

Grand Junction, CO 81504

keldon.larose@missionary.org

WEEK #48 - Anyone wanna go to another meeting?

Hello!! I hope you enjoy my totally not crazy life over here in Colorado :)

Monday: June 15th
Pday today was AWEsome. So refreshing. :) Even though I'm still a crazy man half the time. We played chess and emailed people. Then we taught our man Stayven at the church! He's 8 years old and soaked in everything. It's so fun teaching simply to kids :) Also, we got transfer news today! I'm staying again haha. We have transfers every two weeks cause of how many new reassigned missionaries we get. Fun stuff!

And here is a picture for my lack of taking pictures this week... :) 

Tuesday: June 16th
Our lesson with Angela today was AWEsome! She is such an amazing person. She's been so blessed and happy lately. The Gospel truly does change lives! "May we ever choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong" (Thomas S. Monson) Sometimes decisions in life can be hard! Please ponder, pray, and involve the Lord in all the decisions that you make and He will guide you for good :)

Wednesday: June 17th
Today we had a special Zone conference attended by Elder John McCune from the 70! He is amazing! It was truly a humbling experience learned from him and his wife <3 I learned a lot about what I can improve and better myself at in missionary work. We had an in person lesson with Nick and two members. It was SO GOOD! I was straight sweating the whole time, but it's all good. Nick is such a humble person, and he is so ready for his baptism next Saturday

Thursday: June 18th
Another North Amerca Central Conference meeting... fun! President wants to take our mission to the next level with Facebook, fun stuff. Also, happy 3 months in quarantine for us... yay! My guess is they'll let us out in August.

Friday: June 19th
We had more meetings than I could count today! We met with the mission, the MTC, another ad specialist, so many people. We at least got to teach Angela again! We taught about the meaning behind Temples!! If you don't know what a temple is, it's a sacred place where we as members go to feel closer to God and make more promises with Him. It provides us a wonderful opportunity to be together with our families forever! You can email me if you want to learn more about this :)

Saturday: June 20th
HAPPY 20TH! Woah, what an amazing milestone, ya goof. :)
FUNNY STORY: Started off today with Elder Samojla starting a "small" grease fire in our oven... nothing too big, you know? Just minor things. Nothing to worry about over here :) Haha! Don't worry... all is well in Zion! We spent a TON of the day working of a Mission Facebook Strategy which was super crazy. Good stuff to look forward to though!

 This is a picture for my Papa! He's such an amazing example to me, and I'm glad that he raised my own dad so well.

Sunday: June 21st
Happy happy Father's day! Today was very packed, we had quite a few video chats with Jenny, Carol, Angela, and Nick. It was amazing to hear that Angela and her family have set a goal to get to the temple by September!! :) And Nick is progressing very well, he's really excited to finally get baptized this Saturday!
FUNNY STORY:
We called this lady on the phone and about 3minutes into the call we realized that she was drunk. I tried to politely end the conversation but she kept insisting that she compliment me. She then kept repeating the same things and asked if we could call her again sometime before she gets to North Carolina in her minivan... so awkward... haha!

This week was tough, but a lot of great learning. That's the bitter sweet part of trials, cause you learn SO much from them! Have a great week, be safe and be strong!

Love,
Elder LaRose
2946 D Rd. Apt #D-3
Mailbox - #15
Grand Junction, CO 81504

keldon.larose@missionary.org

WEEK #47 - Baptism of Angela!!

Lot of crazy stuff this week, buckle up! :)

I found a Christmas present under the tree... in June!

Monday: June 8th
So happy. :) Today we got to have pday! We played a lot (like a lot) of chess... haha, I love chess. What a goof game. We got to teach Stayven the Plan of Salvation using my mom's awesome laminated people! It went really well. We are excited for his baptism on June 29th!

Don't watch me, I'm doing laundry

Tuesday: June 9th
We had in person District council again. So weird that I have to specify that it was "in person" haha. Me and Elder Samojla then got on a BIG meeting with the area presidency and missionary department. It was an awesome meeting, all the social media specialists from North America were there. We met Angela again at the church and she passed her baptismal interview! She is so ready and so excited. She's come a long way!!

Wednesday: June 10th
Today was packed! We had meetings every 30 minutes. Definitely a crazy day, we have no breaks and trained probably 4/7 Zones from the mission about facebook individually. Good stuff though!

I sleep...

Thursday: June 11th
The facebook team gave another training. I think all I do is train people now... I should buy some training wheels for everyone here. :) Me and Elder Samojla worked more on the Facebook Initiative and then we taught Nick again! He understood everything and we had such a real talk. I have so much respect for him, he's been waiting for this opportunity to talk with us for a long time. Inviting him to come closer to our Savior Jesus Christ is such a wonderful experience as you can literally SEE people's lives change as they repent and become better. May we ever do that in our OWN life, and strive to follow Him! :) Sometimes the greatest joy is seeing the change in yourself <3

Look at all this stuff!

Friday: June 12th
Today was ALL DAY CLEANING DAY!!! I have never been more excited to clean in my life. We threw out EIGHT trash bags worth of stuff. It was terrible. So much cleaning... it felt good afterwards though.

I clean...

We met with Angela and finalized her baptism for tomorrow! Then we met with the MTC representative and talked about running more ads through facebook. I feel like an FBI agent sometimes, just working on campaigns and operatives all the time, haha! :)

Saturday: June 13th
Angela's baptism day!! It was a great day. We had to buy ski gloves for her to wear cause she's allergic to latex gloves. The Spirit was very strong and warm. We only had 9 people there again cause the restrictions. It's been long and hard for sure, too many details to include. But it all paid off. I never knew when it would, but it did. The Lord understands our righteous desires, compensating blessings DO come. Trust <3

Angela's Baptism! Peace signs :)

Angela's family!

Sunday: June 14th
FUNNY STORY:
Today I saw a spider on my desk... it dropped from its web and landed near me. I smacked it with my flip flops and yelled, "Even though you're smaller than a penny, I wasn't scared!!" We have some good laughs over here... haha! ;) Nick went to church out in Utah and apparently got up and bore his testimony! He's such a stud. We had a good facebook live focused on our Savior Jesus Christ and His teachings, you should check it out!

Thank you everyone. I hope these emails bring joy, laughter, and peace. I love you all.

Love,
Elder LaRose

2946 D Rd. Apt #D-3
Mailbox - #15
Grand Junction, CO 81504

keldon.larose@missionary.org

WEEK #46 - Sand in the Eyes, Eyes on the Prize

Great week! Welcome back. Hope you enjoy another week of adventure from my quarantined life... yay... :)

Monday: June 1st
Happy happy June!! A lot of things have happened in a year :) I love being out here in Colorado, it's blessed my life in many many ways. I love all of you and want you to become better! That's what the Savior wants, He has high expectations because He loves us. Today we also got to have a lesson with Nick who was a self referral (someone who asked us to start teaching them) and we put him on date for baptism on June 27th!!! He is SO ready to accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Gosh, the Lord truly has a plan for each of us. Patience is central to the unfoldings of His perfect plan for your life :)

I flippin love flowers and the sunset <3

Tuesday: June 2nd
Today we had MLC! It was a looong meeting but we had some really good discussions and plans on how to help the mission. We had a lesson with Angela who is SOOO excited for her baptism on June 13th!! She is a wonderful character and has made a lot of sacrifices to get to this point. Heavenly Father knows and understands each of us. He loves us. What greater Truth than that? To know that there is a God, who is our Father, and that He loves you. Email me if you want to know if this is true for you too. Little hint... it is :)
Wednesday: June 3rd
We had our VERY FIRST in person District council today! We all had to be 6 feet apart and wearing masks.... holy cow. This is the first tine we've all seen each other in 3 months. It's been really crazy out here on the mission.

First in person District council!

We had a couple member lessons trying to show them how to use Facebook... I like these lessons cause I get to practice a lot of patience... ;) We then picked up Elder Kofford to keep for the day!! (He was my last companion here in Lands End) and it was good to catch up on old times. He's awesome :)

Thursday: June 4th
Us and the facebook specialists gave another training to the mission. Super fun! I got to drive a bunch today, went to Rifle and back. It was long! :) We taught Angela in person for the first time in 3 months... it was so relieving to finally be in person. We had a great lesson talking about her baptism next Saturday! I am so excited for her, she has sacrificed so much to get here. I know the Lord is very happy with her and her progress!

 Lesson with Angela :)

Friday: June 5th
Today we went to drop Elder Kofford off at the airport but they canceled his flight! So we had to wait to the evening to send him off. We had a crazy windstorm come in today and before that it hit 99 degrees in Junction!!! Dannnng Gina! I swear there is 5 gallons of flippin sand in my eyes from all the wind that was blowing today... good day :)

Saturday: June 6th
Today was awesome! We had a lesson with Nick, who's a STUD. He basically taught us about humility and accepted everything we taught about the Restoration and the Word of Wisdom (health guidelines in the Church). He is so ready for his baptism. :) Angela is doing wonderful, she only has 7 days left! She was so excited and kept goofin off with us as we were teaching her. She's so awesome, haha ;)

Sunday: June 7th
We were able to introduce Nick to our local Bishop and his family. He was so appreciate of all the support he's been given, even in just a week! Angela is doing well and counting down the days. We had a good facebook live too, I love doing those! Everyone keeps saying how sad it's going to be when I'm not companions with Elder Samojla anymore... too true :( But whatever the Lord has in store, I will buy. He has many more adventures ahead for me :)

Thank you everyone, I hope you have a great week!

Love,
Elder LaRose

2946 D Rd. Apt #D-3
Mailbox - #15
Grand Junction, CO 81504

keldon.larose@missionary.org

WEEK #45 - Baptism of Danyel!!

Another, (yes...) another week! Who would've guessed? How neat :)

Monday: May 25th
Good day today. Look forward to many things! We got to setup a bunch more plans for this upcoming week, it's going to be great. Also today our mission president told us we were allowed to finally have baptisms now, such a relief after 2 months! :)

Good day :)

Tuesday: May 26th
Had district council then worked alot on preparing our facebook training for the new missionaries we got, and for the whole mission on Thursday. Danyel, our favorite 12 year old, messaged us and told us he was ready to get baptized THIS Saturday! Hopefully we can work towards making that happen so quick :)

Social distance District!

Wednesday: May 27th
We had some more facebook meetings, then we had a lesson with Angela. She is SO excited for her baptism too!! Her baptism will be in June, and now both Danyel and Angela want me to baptize them. I love how this is their decision to follow the Savior though! I had nothing to do with their desire to follow Christ and accept His Gospel. They, and each of us, are presented with a choice and a chance to become better. Better in our faith, our family relations, our characteristics... who wouldn't take that opportunity? That invitation is extended to you by your Savior Jesus Christ. Follow Him :)

Awesome sunset!

Thursday: May 28th
Today me and Elder Samojla trained the mission on facebook again! :) We had a lesson with Danyel and walked through the last details got his baptism. He is SO ready! I can't wait to continue to help him on his journey.

Friday: May 29th
Today we got to be janitors. I know right?! So fun! :) I got to mop the baptismal font. It was a party let me tell you.... haha. I wish more goofs could've joined me, but Elder Samojla will suffice for now! We had a member lesson which went well and finished the night off.

Janitor LaRose...

Saturday: May 30th
We got to the church at 1pm for Danyels baptism. I asked him and he was pretty nervous but very excited. We could only have 9 people attend in person, and everyone had to wear masks, apply hand sanitizer regularly, and  stay 6 feet apart! Wow! Such a historical and insane experience. Even me and Danyel had to wear latex gloves when I baptized him. He had a really cool experience and we gave him the Holy Ghost and the Priesthood all right there. The Spirit was very tangible and present there! I love how God will always be there as we make and keep more promises with Him. He wants to bless us SO bad, all we must do is follow and become more like Him! I love this Gospel, I am and will never be ashamed to live it, to love it, and to never leave it. :)

 Danyels Baptism!!

Sunday: May 31st
Today was insane! We got to start teaching two new people, even committing one of them to be baptized on June 29th!! We talked with Angela today and then had a fun facebook live with some 'live' music, haha. I hope everyone enjoyed it!

This week was crazy, like all weeks, but I know in whom I should trust. If we follow even just  the wise words engraved on a quarter, 'In God We Trust' then we shall be led to choose right and live right <3

Love you all!
Elder LaRose

2946 D Rd. Apt #D-3
Mailbox - #15
Grand Junction, CO 81504

keldon.larose@missionary.org