Welcome Home!

Dear friends and family,

After being home from the mission field, you would think that my schedule would be a bit more free or maybe I have just relaxed a bit too much but my children reminded me that  I have not put an update on facebook for far too long. We have been thinking about all of you and the precious way that you continue to support and show love to so many. We are grateful to be recipients of your prayers and your love. (Sister McKee) RaNae is still progressing and was doing so well until this week. We were actually walking a half mile everyday until this week. We have seen  a bit of a set back as we have changed to Idaho/Utah doctors and experienced a few med changes so she has been blacking out often and does not walk as well. They tell us that this will hopefully pass as we adjust medications but it has been almost a week with little progress. There is no doubt that we miss our wonderful medical support in Nashville and those medical professionals who may be reading this, please know how much you are loved an appreciated. We will adjust though. RaNae still has her double vision. We are going down to the Moran eye center in October where they tell us that she may possibly be a candidate for surgery that may correct this. With medicine changes, her severe headaches are back and so life has slowed down quite a bit for her. She is a woman of faith though and continues to trust in the Lord and “His will”.  In the midst of challenges we watch for the blessings. Our daughter Kylie surprised us with sending her missionary papers while we were preparing to leave Nashville. She received her call and will be leaving November 6^th for San Diego , California, serving in the Mormon Battalion Visitors Center as well as proselyting. She is so excited. Angie, who is now attending BYU Hawaii will be sending her missionary papers in October, so both will be serving at the same time. Aubrey 16 and Kiara 14 are both attending Highland High School. Aubrey is very involved with choir, powder puff football, and possibly basketball. Kiara made the flag team and gets up every morning at 5:00 am to practice with the band. It is very familiar to those early morning seminary classes that we loved in Nashville. Destini is attending Franklin middle school and just got a part in the “Wizard of OZ” at the Mystique Theater. Scott and Seren just bought a house and moved to Boise on our return. Scott is teaching seminary there. Steven and Rachel are buying a home in Chubbuck and tell us that they will soon be moving. We will miss them as Rachel is a nurse and very convenient for RaNae in taking that blood pressure on a regular basis.

Before leaving Tennessee I had a wonderful opportunity to speak with Elder Widman and Elder Meredith at a multi-stake Boy Scout camp outside of Nashville. The setting was amazing and the spirit there was remarkable. These were young men preparing for missions with such a strong desire to serve. We miss the mission field and all of our missionaries. We love and miss our Kentucky /Tennessee/Illinois friends and hope that you’ll know how grateful that we are for your influence on us.

Welcome Home! (Photo: Kirsten McKee

After returning home we found another wonderful blessing. Our ward members got together with our children and planted a lawn and garden around our home. We have enjoyed garden produce from their hands which reminded me of how many early pioneers planted gardens and crops for others coming after them. What a Christ like gesture. We took a large bag of corn to the ward party last week and said, “This is the Lord’s corn and the ward’s corn. We hope you enjoy.”

We reported our mission this month which was another wonderful day for us. We spoke in the Chubbuck 1^st ward at9:00am Sunday morning with around 400 in attendance. The spirit brought there by the members was so very special. How we enjoyed seeing our good friends there again as well as many of our missionaries. At 1:30 we spoke at our Highland 2^ndward with around 700 in attendance. We were overwhelmed with the love of great people. The Lord blessed the room with the spirit as we witnessed over 70 missionaries in attendance. I just had to have them stand and repeat “our purpose”. Inviting all to “come unto Christ” is the most important thing that we can do. We so enjoyed all of the friends and our missionaries coming up to the house afterward. There must have been 3 or 4 hundred people there that night. The house was overflowing with love.

The TNM Missionaries that attended our homecoming

It reminds me so much of the scripture in 1 Corinthians  chapter 12 that says, “ For the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body , being many are one body; so also is Christ……For the body is not one member , but many, IF the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? IF the whole body were an eye where were the hearing? IF the whole were hearing , where were the smelling?....And now are they many members, yet but one body. The eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee; nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you…………………..Now ye are the body of Christ , members in particular.

This passage is such a gentle reminder that everyone of us are important and that it takes each of us to build His kingdom and each of us to do our part. We cannot define that one part is more important than another part and we cannot say that our part is not that important. All parts function to assist the whole body and all are one , just as all parts in a family , ward family or community are important. We have need of each individual and together we produce and function as the “body of Christ”. How essential that we see our own personal value in every situation and what a gift each individual is as we strive to be “more like Him”.

This passage in fact helps so many to understand the Godhead as they are all separate but one in purpose. God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are one  and are also separate beings creating a single purpose. What a gift to the world this is as each carries their individual responsibility. We in turn get the opportunity to carry our own responsibility as we strive to become more like them.

Thanks to each of you again for doing your individual part and blessing our lives. It is not the big things that we do but those “little things” every day. Each of you play such an important part in our lives and in the lives of so many that you touch every day. That part is essential no matter how small. We love you and pray for your happiness as well.

Happy Birthday Grandpa McKee ---He will be turning 85 this Sunday!!!

Love and prayers

William and RaNae McKee, Steven and Rachel, Kylie, Angie, Aubrey, Kiara, Destini...