Graduation!

May 28, 2013

This particular title is in honor of another fallen comrade. My younger brother, Braden cornelius edwin DeFreese III, has graduated from Springville High School! Congratulations to him, as well as the whole 2013 class, but mostly to my Brother because that's the one that I know best. :) Aaaaand... he's awesome and I love him!

Such talk is tiresome to me, for it shows unto all, my love. Which is not freely given, but more of a reward, for hard work, and obedience.

Meanwhile, in the Mission Field, Elder DeFreese and his Compatriot, surnamed, Kempter, are working hard in their labors in Concordia Kansas. Let us see what they are up to....

This week has been great! Elder Kempter is slowly recovering and feeling better each and every day. So we are getting out and working more and more! It's going very well, and he's loving the fact that we're almost back to normal :)

Nothing too interesting really happened this week until Friday, when we had District Meeting! All the way down in Salina, we met with the District and had a great meeting, and everyone participated and had a good time. It's always fun to catch up with them, and see how the work is going in their own respective areas. Love it!

After District Meeting, the Great Bend Elders (DL) had to come to our area to work for a little while, our DL Elder Sweeten had to interview our Investigator, Gary, for Baptism! The interview was at 7:30, but we got back at about 2:30, so we had some work to do! Good thing we had a few appointments that we could go to! So, we went to the Harris' and had a great time with them, taught Michael about the priesthood, and it was sweet! He's super excited, and will be talking to the Branch President soon about getting that, so that he can help bless and strengthen his family. Then we tried a few potentials, had home made tacos at our apartment for dinner, and then went to Gary's house! We had a great time, and he was interviewed and "passed" for baptism! Then, the Elders Realized that they couldn't make it home in time for curfew, so we called the Zone Leaders and they approved a sort of sleep over, so they stayed the night! Doesn't happen too often, but those experiences seem to follow me around :)

Anyways, that was a lot of fun, we had a good time working, and catching up and such. Good stuff, then on Sunday, Gary had asked me to Baptize him, and Elder Kempter to Confirm. It was awesome! The water was SUPER low though, not even to my knees, and Gary is just as tall as I am! So it was tough for us, I had to let him down kind of slowly and then unbend his knees, but we got it on the first try! Even with the difficulty, the spirit was very strong in that room, it was amazing! Gary was very nervous before, and extremely happy afterwards! He was asked to bear his testimony, which he did, and that was one of the most powerful moments on my mission, this man KNOWS the gospel. He will be an amazing member, and a great leader some day. I love him, and I know that he's ready for this next step in his life.

Memorial Day was yesterday and I just want to give a quick shout out to anybody reading this, who has served, is serving, or who will serve in the armed forces. Thank you. For everything. It is because of you that we have these freedoms to worship the Lord, and it is your efforts that bring us the feeling of safety, and peace that we enjoy. Thank you.

On Memorial Day we were invited to a members BBQ, and we had a really good time, meeting with the family and getting to know them, reminded me of the BBQ's we would have back home, good times!

Anyways, I gotta go, I love and appreciate you all, and I hope to hear from you soon!
Elder DeFreese

1. Tacos!

2. 40 lbs. of new investigators...?
3. Gary's Baptism!!!