October 26, 2015

Well I had the opportunity to see 2 primary programs within a week!

One in Fall River, and one in Palo Cedro! The kids were super funny and it was put together really well.  This week was so filled with service, I've woken up aching almost every day! We did over 10 hours of service this week! We helped a lady move furniture out of a house she was selling for someone else. We moved sofas, tables, and boxes out to the barn to be sold. The next day we did an hour of service at a new ward members house unloading a uhaul truck, sister Walker. She is a really nice person. Her father was there helping her move and it was fun. He took us out to lunch at burrito bandito and it was awesome!! Such good food! Then we helped the Wentworths clear out manzanita trees and prep them to be loaded on the trailer. Me and elder Kelly had a lot of fun ripping trees from the earth. It made me feel so strong and manly, it was great!!!

 

On Tuesday, we did our usual service at the library in Shingletown, it was quiet, not much was going on, I was sitting at the front desk like I do every week. Then out of nowhere, I hear a "SMASH!" Followed by "SKIRRRRRT!" And I'm thinking "what on earth was that?" A few minutes later I decide to stand up and look out the window and I beheld a white Mercury that had collided when a red Dodge Neon ran a stop sign! It was such a mess outside. The driver of the neon was freaking out and yelling at everyone, and blaming them for what had happened, when in reality, she was at fault.. There ended up being 4 fire trucks, 3 highway patrol units, an ambulance, and a life flight helicopter!! The whole ordeal went on for a good 2 1/2 hours.

Then on Saturday we had zone blitz (where the whole zone serves in one area for a day) we started off with service for a few hours doing various tasks at the local skate park in red bluff. Me, elder Kelly, elder Worthington, and elder Funk dug some holes in the ground for a new skate park sign to be put up. The sign was made of steel and powder coated. It looked good from afar, but was far from good looking. It was plasma cut and burrs were left on the other side, and there was a lot of porosity in almost every weld!!! (But that's me being picky)

We also stopped by Zaq and Adams house because we saw that they weren't at school. Zaq was building a catapult for school in the garage and I wanted to help. So I helped them out out and we built a sick catapult. The catapult ended up getting 100% in both accuracy and distance! Haha. It was a pretty sad catapult, but hey, it worked!

 

Elder Funley

This week in Palo Cedro

October 19, 2015

 

So we were at the library in Fall River just hanging out bumming Wi-Fi and a lady comes up to us and says hello. We say hello and start talking to her. She told us that she misses the missionaries coming over and talking to her and she used to talk with them all the time at her house. We ask her where she lives and set up an appointment. She's really nice, she lives in a trailer with six other people and it's kind a looney.  They say they were all baptized into the church in a town nearby but they do not attend anymore. It was really cool to meet with them and get a feel for their relationship with God and understand where they are in the gospel.

We also had the opportunity to go over to a recent converts house and give her a blessing. It was really cool cause she asked Elder Kelly to annoint the oil and asked me to give the blessing. I really felt the spirit and it was super cool!

Being up here and seeing the struggles people have, really makes me appreciate the gospel more and more. We all have our own trials, but the lord makes them manageable. Back home I always knew that things would work out because our family had such faith in the Lord. We knew everything was for the better. But these families who struggle through hard times without God, or faith in Jesus Christ, or the gospel, have to worry about everything much more. We as missionaries worry about them and pray for them often, that they may see the Lord's hand in all things. That they might see that everything is for the better.. I love the restored church on this planet and am so grateful for all that God has provided for me.. Take care you all, have faith, and know that God has a plan for each of us!

 

Elder Funley

 This is the view outside my apartment in Burney.....it reminds me of some beautiful campgrounds up in the Uintah's.

My companion, Elder Kelly

 

Just hanging out on our P-Day!

and taking photos

Transfer Week

October 12, 2015

It is transfer week!  We will get two new sister missionaries and one new elder.  But I have not been transferred.  I will stay another 6 weeks here in Palo Cedro, and I think it is good.  I like this place.  I love being out here, exiled, to Palo Cedro. Because there's no big city lights to block out the stars! I can see the Milky Way from our apartment!

Hello all!! How are things back home? Has the world fallen apart yet?

Haha. All is good here in the mission field and up here in

 

Palo Cedro and Fall River.. The work goes on! We don't have many investigators, but we work with many less active members..

We've been meeting with this less active member named Derek for a good

12 transfers. At the beginning of our visits he told us that he doesn't want to say any prayers at all because he's not comfortable with it. Both in front of other people and personal. But our last visit he offered to say the opening prayer out of nowhere! It was super cool and are trying to get him back to church!

 

OH! Something exciting came in the mail this week! Terry, from Canada/Hawaii, sent me a super cool card! She filled it with awesome pictures of our family on the beach! It was super special.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of our zone leaders is going home on Tuesday. His 2 years are up!! He's from Ogden Utah and he's a great person! Very spiritual and a great person to look up to. Conference was amazing!!! The sessions seemed not to be long enough!! So many spiritual things! I know that was all last week.. But there was not a lot that went on this week...

The church is true and I can feel it every time I talk with someone about it.. I love to feel the spirit each day.. When it starts in my toes, and it works its way up and I crinkle my nose. And wherever it goes. I always know.

Elder Funley

 

MTC companion reunion October 8, 2015

Kiefer met up with his MTC companion, Elder Broderick from Bountiful, Utah.  They are in the same mission, but are in different areas, they met up at a meeting.  The caption was "Look at our ties, totally unplanned".  We think they both look so handsome.  I, mom the hairdresser notices that his hair is long enough to comb to the side from a "part".  Before he left I said "son, take a comb it may come in handy".  His reply "mom, I have never used a comb, I will never use a comb and I don't need one, okay I'll take a comb anyway".  Bet he is glad he has one, looks like he is using it. 

Hanging in Carly's room on the wall

While Carly was gone on a camping trip, we saw this hanging on her wall.  We had never seen this, and today is October 8, 2015, and we see that the letter was dated September 21, 2015; the day it was sent from California.  We thought we would share it with you because it was just so special to us, and it hangs like a "shrine" in remembrance of her dear brother. 

This week in Palo Cedro, CA.

10/2/15

Every month or so, the library in Fall River has a bag sale/ yard sale. It's all donation items, from furniture, to clothes, and dishes, etc.. We helped them from 8-1 lifting all the heavy furniture into trucks. Afterwards the Oilers needed help moving dirt from their pick up to a neat little flower bed that they made. We had a good little lesson with sister Estes about the proclamation and she told us a little about her kids and how the proclamation has influenced her life

 

10/3/15

Wow! What an incredible day! Filled with the spirit from conference!

What was your guys favorite talk?? I really liked the one given by Bradley D. Foster... I really liked the quote he said "It's never too early and it's never too late to lead, guide, and walk beside our children, because families are forever" I'm so excited to have a family of my own! Or at least get married first... Robert D. Hales said to "marry someone who has potential, not perfection. Because progression is eternal."

I love all of you guys, especially you mother. Elder Holland spoke about motherly love and how maternal love has to be divine and is second to christs perfect love for all of us. Thank you for everything mom, I love you.

 

10/4/14

Well, I just had an amazing weekend full of the spirit, love, and inspiration. I had a great time listening to all the wonderful talks given by such spiritual men. I hope that you guys were able to watch conference and learn as much as I did!! I almost felt today that conference was NOT long enough!! Imagine that! Well, it's been an exhausting weekend sitting on church benches for 10 hrs. But it was good! Thank you so much for all the beautiful letters and all the love sent out each week in the form of a letter. Carly, I love your little pictures that you have sent to me.. And what's this about a tortoise!?!? I'm so jealous! Anyways , I love you all so much! Take care!

 

Elder Funley

My Brother had a 17th Birthday

My Brother Sawyer had a 17th birthday this week.  I was really thinking about him, missing him, and at the same time hoping that he is preparing for his mission, because it will make him that much better of a missionary; so much more prepared and able to do the Lord's work.  But I know my brother, he will be a great missionary, because he is diligent and smart,  and he is a disciplined student and it comes so naturally to him, yet he puts time into it.   That's a talent in itself, and he has so many skills and talents that I don't have.  He is an amazing photographer and artist and is able to capture things that I wouldn't even think of.  Yet I realize that we all have different talents, and the most important thing to use them for is to help others around us and to help our Heavenly Father spread the word about his gospel here on earth.  I want him to capture all the beautiful things that we have been given on this earth, so that people can easily see this-- through his skills with the camera, and his his movie making abilities, and his "drone" excursions.  I love my bruddah so much!!!!

9/21/15
P-day was great today! We had to take the truck in for new tires (too
many burnouts) and an oil change. We waited for 2.5 hrs. We walked up
the street to Ross and shopped around, and that took up an hour and 45
minutes..

9/22/15
We had a lesson with a less active named Derek. He's in his late 20s
and is in a wheelchair. He got a new horse a few days ago, and man is
it beautiful!!! We stopped at a thrift shop and me and elder Kelly
both found cool ties! We are at the Paris' house and she gave elder
Kelly a tie for his bday (on the 28th)

9/23/15
We went to district meeting today and talked about families and the
proclamation. We ate at Taco Bell and I had some really good
quesadillas! We went home and packed for Fall River, then left to go
do service at the Wentworth's home. We helped them dig a trench for a
water line and electricity to their goats. Brother Wentworth  is super
cool!!! His son builds toyotas and he built his dad a 98 extra cab!
Brother Wentworth also knows the owner of marlin crawler!!

I can't believe how  nice the members are up here! It's
incredible! I'm going to have a dish I used to have at home, made up
for me next month.   Everyone has chickens, so we get fresh eggs to take
home all the time. The Wentworths told us that if we need any gas,
they have 55 gal drums of gas that are available for us. Everyone is
so loving towards us, it's awesome!

9/24/15
We visited two potential investigators in the morning before lunch,
Bill and Doug. Bill is a crazy guy who reads too much about religion
and conspiracies on the Internet. Although he said that he wants to come our church, so we invited him.

9/25/15

We also helped the Nordstroms prep for a wedding for their daughter at the church.

9/26/15
We didn't do a whole lot today out of the ordinary, just a typical day in palo cedro doing our normal routines; we saw some people. Had dinner. Drove around. We drove 175 miles today. We average about 89-90 a day. The truck is at 41000 miles, and mission cars are retired at 50000. So our truck is pretty old

9/27/15
We visited with the Strattons today, and had dinner there. They have a daughter that went to BYU I for a semester, and she told me how much fun it was! Man I want to look into BYU I when I get home..there's a lot of church oriented things that go on there, a lot of wholesome activities too! We shared a spiritual message at the Pyles home (a part member family) and left them with a proclamation to the world.

I love you all and miss you.  Things are great here in Palo Cedro.  I am glad to be here in this spot of California.

Elder Funley