For most of the Western world Christmas is the culminating celebration of the year.
When you are out on a Mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Christmas is a unique experience.
We all have our special and much loved Christmas traditions which are usually centered around family and food and fun activities.
When you are serving a Mission in a different country those traditions and family can seem very far away.
The exciting thing about being on a Mission for Christmas is that you get the opportunity to create amazing memories with new traditions centered round your mission family and focused on Him whose birth we celebrate at Christmas time.
“And we talk of Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies ….” 2 Nephi 25:26
As we helped our missionaries prepare for Christmas we held several Musical Devotionals based on the life of the Saviour Jesus Christ. We held one in New Caledonia, one in Solomon Islands, one on the island of Santo, Vanuatu and one on the island of Efate, Vanuatu.
Each Zone, or group of Missionaries, planned and practised songs, scripture readings, stories, quotes and musical items each bearing witness of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
President Granger and I were the lucky ones as we had the privilege of being in the audience for every single one of them.
As we all sang together or listened reverently the spirit was there in abundance and added to the testimony of music and spoken word.
Each Zone, or group of Missionaries, planned and practised songs, scripture readings, stories, quotes and musical items each bearing witness of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
President Granger and I were the lucky ones as we had the privilege of being in the audience for every single one of them.
As we all sang together or listened reverently the spirit was there in abundance and added to the testimony of music and spoken word.
It was also a lot of fun!!!
A story is told that during the bombing of a city in World War II, a large statue of Jesus Christ was severely damaged. When the townspeople found the statue among the rubble, they mourned because it had been a beloved symbol of their faith and of God’s presence in their lives.
Experts were able to repair most of the statue, but its hands had been damaged so severely that they could not be restored. Some suggested that they hire a sculptor to make new hands, but others wanted to leave it as it was—a permanent reminder of the tragedy of war. Ultimately, the statue remained without hands. However, the people of the city added on the base of the statue of Jesus Christ a sign with these words: “You are my hands.” (Dieter F. Uchtdorf; April 2010 General Conference. ‘You Are My Hands.’)
“ And though I’m not yet as I should be
He has shown me how I could be.
I will make my hands
Like those from Galilee.”
Kenneth Cope –‘His Hands’
“ And though I’m not yet as I should be
He has shown me how I could be.
I will make my hands
Like those from Galilee.”
Kenneth Cope –‘His Hands’