Merry Christmas Family and Friends!
So for those of you
who don't know about my family's Christmas tradition of going to the
Forgotten Carols, this song is my favorite from it!
Somewhere beneath the glitter
That comes this time of winter
In many souls there is a cry
They may not clearly say it
But in their hearts they pray it
And you can see it in their eyes
I cannot find my way
I cannot find my way
I cannot find my way at all
There are so many voices
So many different choices
I cannot find my way at all.
As
a missionary I have never been so aware of those many souls who are
trying to find their way in this dark world. Sister Cohen, Sister
Manwill, and I have spent some time reflecting on the miracles of the
last transfer and a half together (mostly because Sister Cohen is going
home on Friday). We have seen so many come back to the fold as we have
tackled less-active work. Yesterday it was our own little Christmas
miracle to see so many that we have been working with come to chruch. We
also had the opportunity to watch as some of them as they took the next
step to stay longer than sacrament meeting,which they had never done
before!
You truly can see it in the eyes of those who are seeking for a
light in the darkness. I have also gotten to see how the light begins to
radiate in their eyes as they find it! My favorite is Thomisina.
Thomisina has been struggling for a long time now to come back to the
light. Saturday we had the opportunity to see the light come on for her.
We could see in her eyes that she couldn't find her way, but as she
read the scriptures that light began to radiate through her eyes! She
was actually excited and almost giddy. Thomisina came to church the next
day with the light still gleaming in her eyes!
There were three kings
Who followed the star of Bethlehem
They came from afar
To praise and honor him
The light which beckoned them
To seek the Lord of men
It calls to you,
It calls to me
We cannot find our way
We cannot find our way
We cannot find our way at all
There are so many choices
So many different voices
We cannot findour way at all.
Each
of us have times in our lives where we have to search for the Lord in
our lives. Sometimes we may be far away from the light and other times
it only grew a little dim in our hearts. But, we will always have that
star to light our own way back to Him. Aja is the hot topic of most of
my conversations now. She is a bright young woman who found the Gospel
in June, but she has had an onslaught of trials that have pushed her
faith to the limit. We have watched as she has struggled and struggled.
While she is not out of the dark yet, so to speak, we know that she
knows what she needs to do. She can see the star (prayer, reading
scriptures, going to Church) and she knows that she must follow it to
get back to where she wants to be.
We're not alone
We have a star that shines today.
The love He gave Teaches how
And shows the way
That light, it's clear to see
If we have faith and believe
Three kings found the Lord
And so can we
Lord, help us find our way
We need to find our way
Lord, help us find our way back home
Three Kings found the Lord
And so can we!
Gretchen
is one of my favorites! She has come so far. Her life has been darker
than most and her struggles have been deeper than many. But we can see
that slowly she is accepting the Lord's love back into her heart.
Saturday afternoon we decided that we needed to drop by and see her.
When we got there her son was over at someone else's house so she could
wrap his Christmas presents. Naturally we offered to help while we
talked. That was the best hour of my life, we had so much fun! In the
end our conversation turned toward the Savior and the Book of Mormon.
She wants to teach her son about the truths that she has learned from
the Gospel. I know that Gretchen is not alone on her journey back to
finding peace and forgiveness, Christ is standing at her side waiting
patiently for her. He is showing her the way back to Him weather she
knows it or not.
And if you've lost your way
That light burns bright today
And it will shine eternally
Three kings found the Lord
And so can we!
In
the Christmas season, ponder how you can find the Savior as the three
kings did. We all can have Him more fully in our lives regardless of our
calling, religion, or age. This week as you read the Christmas story
from Luke, open presents, and spend time with your family remember WHO
this is all about and HOW you can accept Him more completely in your own
life! The light of His love will always shine on for us to see and
follow, choose to follow it!
Remember the Lord loves you and the Church is True!
Sister Nay
You know you are serving a mission in Pennsylvania when...
You
drive up to a less active's home and you see the woman you where there
to visit yelling at her sons about something, but you didn't recognize
that it was her as you approached the house. So you quietly walk past
the situation, trying not to be awkward. Then you and your companions
realize that it was her and you wait awkwardly in the yard. You finally
figure out the reason why you don't recognize her is because she got
dentures and looks way different with teeth at the ripe old age of 50!
You continue to walk to the front door, but notice a deer leg just
hanging out on the ground. As you walk into the house, their pug is
chowing down on a piece of fresh, bloody meat on the couch that you sit
on. So you make your way to the couch and force yourself to sit in the
nastiness hoping that it doesn't get on your skirt. Then her husband
walks in the room weilding a knife, saying ' We are butchering a deer,
do you want some?' Then he startes to go on about how cool this special
knife is. You teach your lesson and then as you walk out you go see the
deer. In the kitchen there is not just deer meat, but an entire deer
carcas sitting on the kitchen table. Only in Pennsylvania folks!
I thought I would share a little bit of our adventures in Washington, PA!
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