This
week we had the really neat experience to help a little with a live
nativity. A family in a neighboring ward puts in on, and a country store
that is basically a barn lets them use their building and it turned out
great! There were lots of animals and we got to help kids dress up as shepherds as they came in (that was so much fun!) and there were musical
groups every night. It was so cool and there was a very special spirit
there. One of the nights they had wanted a missionary choir and we
really wanted to do it! We tried and no one was really helping getting it
organized. But we had already promised, so Sister Holdaway and I and
two companionships of Elders sang. By the time it was our turn everyone
had pretty much cleared out, but we sang in the loft of the barn for the
cow and the sheep. There was a very special spirit that accompanied us
that night. I can't think of anything to honor the Savior more than
singing hymns of praise to his birth in a humble setting such as that.
It was amazing.
Something
we are focusing on as a district is finding through members, to do this
we decided we would focus on teaching families about the Restoration
which is usually the first thing we teach to our investigators. When we
were given this challenge, Elder Bagley, our district leader, promised
it would produce some incredible experiences and that is definitely
true. Those lessons, with people already members of the church, have
become some of my most treasured memories as. We have taught quite a few
of these lessons now, but one of my favorites has been with the
Villers. I have talked about them a bit, but they are some of my
favorite people. It was actually a little difficult to get through the
lesson, we were all getting a bit choked up. Sister Holdaway was trying
to share Joseph Smith's experience and the vision he saw and asked me to
finish for her, but I had just as hard of a time. There are very few
times that I have felt the amount of peace that I did sitting in their
living room that day, and I cannot deny that those feelings came because
of the intense spirit present there.
I
hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! It was a special day indeed and
I had a wonderful holiday spent with families in my ward. They have all
become my family and made it feel like home which I am grateful for.
I
am grateful for this time that we have to focus on our Savior Jesus
Christ. Something I have been pondering on lately is the fact that
without Christ's life and the Atonement that He performed for each of
us, there would be no reason to celebrate His birth. He would have been
just another baby if He were not the Savior of the world.
 |
| Merry Christmas! |
 |
Skyping the fam
|
John 3:16-17
For
God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
I love you all, I hope you have a wonderful week and a Happy New Year!
Just keep smiling!
