The reason for the season

The Christmas season and the reason for the season brings me much happiness and joy. 

On Monday night, our FHE group met at the church for pizza and to assemble gifts for missionaries who receive no/few packages from home.  Many of them have families who live in distant areas of the world and shipping packages is cost prohibitive.  Others are more or less on their own.  For whatever reason, we put together 30 gift bags.  People/parents/missionaries donated money, candy, other items that Sister Williams and some of the other senior sisters gathered together and organized for the assembly process.  It was a lot of fun.  Much joking, giggling, and love going on in that room on Monday night.

Tuesday I drove to Hicksville to take some medicine to a missionary.  While there I coerced a set of elders to go to dinner with me.

Elders Rhodes and Perry

Wednesday and Thursday I prepared for the Mission Christmas Devotional by going grocery shopping (The senior couples each provided 2 pans of “funeral” potatoes for the dinner at the devotional.) and going to a practice for our Zone musical number.  Each of the 9 zones prepares a skit/musical number for the conference.  It is always a fractured Christmas carol presentation with lyrics relating to our mission and missionary work set to a familiar carol/song. Out zone did a medley of several songs.  So you get the picture, here is our skit script:

Game plan---

Sing silent night while walking stage

Elder Sundet says "who is that?"

Elder Thomas plays Santa clause is coming to town (sing one verse while Santa walks in) 

---Baby It's Cold Outside tune ---

(Far Rockaway) We really should go 

(Everyone Else) But elders it's cold outside

(Far Rockaway) You're starting to scroll

(Everyone Else) But Elder it's cold outside

(Far Rockaway) But president said

(Everyone Else) I'm just gonna stay in bed

(Far Rockaway) Where is your purpose

(Everyone Else) How has it really come to this

(Far Rockaway) The zone leaders will start to worry

(Everyone Else) I'm trying to watch Steph Curry

(Far Rockaway) Our numbers are looking grim

(Everyone Else) I really wish we could swim. 

(Far Rockaway) So really we'd better go

(Everyone Else) It looks like it's gonna snow

(Far Rockaway) You told me just an hour more

(Everyone Else) That was twenty minutes ago

(Far Rockaway) We really can't stay

(Everyone Else) Cause Elder it's cold outside

--- Last Christmas tune ---

We should go, but it is cold outside

We're half hour late, more memes to rate

Get up, out of that chair

Jay needs to cut my hair

How is your battery life

My Facebook time is way too high

New transfer is gonna begin

So I can start to grin

--- Feliz Navidad tune ---

Feliz transfer day

Feliz transfer day

Feliz transfer day

Now I can start my purpose clear 

Elder Peter's going home

Elder Rossi's going home

Their mission is done

They have seen two visions come and go

We get a new vision next year

Another idea to pioneer

Wonder what we'll get

After 5, 6, 7

--- Jingle Bells Rock tune ---

Ring the bell, show the tag

Give out a card

Find when you teach,

And teach when you find

Snowing or blowing,

We really don't care

After 6 were all out there.

Swipe the card, Find a seat,

Talk to some peeps

You studied it all at 8

Look through your eyepiece, ***(eyeglass)

and follow the rules

Be obedient,

Be obedient,

Be obedient!!!!

(Last Song)

We wish you a merry Christmas, We wish you a merry Christmas, We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year

(Slower 2nd time)

We wish you a merry Christmas, We wish you a merry Christmas, We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year

           --- The End ---

Again, we had fun (always having fun!) practicing and trying to get the words to the tune so the audience could understand what we said.

Friday, the day of the conference, a missionary was sick so I stayed in my apartment with the sick missionary so the companion could attend the conference.  I had a most rewarding day.  We talked and shared stories and thoughts and testimonies.  What a blessing for me.

Saturday was a “get ready for Sunday-Christmas day.”  I always love primary songs and Saturday is a Special Day is a favorite song of mine.  Anyway, I invited 6 sets of missionaries, 2 senior couples and Laura to brunch after Sacrament Meeting on Christmas Day.  I cleaned my apartment, set up the tables and chairs and finalized the food preparation that could be done ahead.  I made French toast strata which is made the day before so the bread can absorb the milk and eggs.

Sunday after church, I assembled a savory casserole with sausage, onions, tater tots milk, eggs and cheese.  Cut up some fruit and was ready at 3 when they arrived. Then the sisters and Laura stayed after we ate to use my wifi to talk to their families in the Philippines, Hawaii, Brazil, and Utah.  Laura didn’t talk to her family in Colombia as they will be meeting her in Florida in two weeks.  She will be going back to Colombia as her work visa will expire then.  She desperately wants to stay here but has no choice but to return to her country.  She is going to see if she can get a different kind of visa so she can return.

Laura

Sister Talaboc and Laura. We practiced Laura's English by reading and singing the words to Jingle Bell Rock

I was able to FaceTime my family as they all gathered at my home for Christmas pho.  Jeff made brisket pho, a Vietnamese soup.  I missed going to Grace Mary Manor with them to serve breakfast and I missed out on the pho, but it was great to talk to them and share in the festivities from a distance. 

Rory, Katie, & Reed

"Christmas" Pho

 

 As the missionary and I chatted on Friday, we talked about adversity in our lives.  I found a thought that I really like.

“No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude and humility. All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable, more worthy to be called the children of God … and it is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire and which will make us more like our Father and Mother in heaven.”

—Orson F. Whitney, quoted by Spencer W. Kimball, in Faith Precedes the Miracle (1972), 98

Then I read a talk given in October 1973 by H. Burke Peterson.  You may read the whole talk but I liked these thoughts:

Let us remember—trials are an evidence of a Father’s love. They are given as a blessing to his children. They are given as opportunities for growth.

Now, how do we approach them? How do we overcome them? How are we magnified by them? There seems to be a reason why we lose our composure in adversity—why we think we can no longer cope with what we’re faced with here in this life. There is a reason why we give up, why we “fall apart at the seams” so to speak. The reason may be so simple that we lose sight of it.

Could it be it’s because we begin to lose contact with our greatest source of strength—our Father in heaven? He is the key to our enjoying sweetness in adversity—in gaining strength from our trials—he and he alone.

May I suggest the best way I know to keep close to the source of this great strength is through prayer.  No man can stand alone in his struggle through life. Sometimes in discouragement our prayers, at best, become occasional or maybe not at all. Sometimes we forget or just don’t care. Brigham Young once said, “Prayer keeps man from sin, and sin keeps man from prayer.”

Some may be thinking that because they have a Word of Wisdom problem or because they have been dishonest or immoral—because they have not prayed for years—because of any reasons they now feel unworthy—they may say, “It’s too late, I’ve made so many mistakes—so why even try?” To these we say, “For your own sake, give yourself another chance.”

Sincere prayer is the heart of a happy and productive life. Prayer strengthens faith. Prayer is the preparation for miracles. Prayer opens the door to eternal happiness. The Father of us all is personal, ever waiting to hear from us, as any loving father would his children. To learn to communicate with him, to learn to pray effectively, requires diligence and dedication and desire on our part. I wonder sometimes if we are willing to pay the price for an answer from the Lord.

As we learn to develop this two-way communication, the standard of our life will improve. We will see things more clearly, we will try harder to do better, we will see the real joy that can come through trials and testing. Although problems will still be with us, peace, contentment, and true happiness will be ours in abundance.

I know that adversity is a blessing that gives us the opportunity to learn and grow.  I also know that prayer is a vital part of my life.  Without it, I would be lost.  I hope that you know and trust that you are loved by our Heavenly Father.  He desires and hears our every communication to Him.

I love you my family and friends.

A corner of back yard (Utah) in winter splendor

This is an "I'm a Morman" video. This man lives in our mission and is really good to our missionaries. I love his video.  (If you can't play the video, you can go HERE to view it.)