Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Christmas Devotional in FL

Hi Family!

I got a good laugh out of Logan's letter from this last week.  I can totally relate to being fluent in "Gangsta"!  We encounter all the same stuff here, so perhaps it's just inner city culture across the states.  I'm sure he's getting more of it than I do now -- Gainesville is a university city, so a lot of the people are more professional/educated. But we do have a few "hood" areas and it's always a treat to work there.  I just try to avoid them on Friday and Saturday nights -- it's not safe for white boys in suits preaching Jesus to be in there when all the sin is going down.

Well, this year's Christmas devotional was a big hit!  Having all 150 missionaries together at one time is pretty rare and it was quite the celebration!  Elder Bishop and I did perform our skit with a little bit of lip syncing to "You Are Loved"....in order to preserve my dignity, I'll pass on any further explanation of that one other than saying it was a big hit.  =D  But, in the end, it all came together with a very Spirit-filled devotional centered on the nativity and atonement. I opted to be in the choir again this year (of course) and we sang "Who Is He in Yonder Stall" and "Peace, Peace, Peace" -- two very beautiful pieces of music if you want to look them up.

In short, I'm experiencing all over again that Christmas really doesn't require anything other than love to be a success.  I love my missionaries, I love my work, I love the investigators we have, I love my family at home -- and I've never been happier about a Christmas in my life.  Jesus really is the center of it all, and the great thing is, He's with us no matter where we travel in this world.  I hope you all get to experience the simplicity, peace, and joy of life that I have been blessed with at this time.

Much love,
Elder M.

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