December 21st, 2015

First of all I wanted to say Merry Christmas to everyone! What a special time of the year that we are able to reflect on our Savior Jesus Christ. Many times we get caught up in all of the business of the world that we forget how simple and humble the very first Christmas was. If it wasn't for the humble yet powerful night that our Savior Jesus Christ was born we wouldn't have ever had any type of Christmas. I love the Word Christmas because it literally means more Christ. (Más Christ) It truly is a time that I have learned to love and cherish here in the mission. Although this will be my last Christmas in the field, I look forward to sharing to great message of the birth of Christ and the love that God had for us to send his only begotten son that we may have eternal life. I love it so much! This past week you could say that my companion and I witnessed a Christmas miracle. We had been praying for our investigator Manuel so that he would be able to be baptized. Friday night we went to his house and asked him how he felt and he told us that he knew that he was to be baptized the very next day. We scheduled him an interview and was baptized at 8 pm Saturday night.

I love Christmas so much and I love how much happiness this holiday brings. One of my favorite Christmas songs is Mary Did You Know. I love that song because it shows the power and importance of the birth of Christ and how important he is to each and everyone of us. A couple of missionaries in my zone and I were able to sing that song for a Christmas devotional. What power I felt as we harmonized in singing "Mary did you know that your baby boy has come to make you new, this child that you've delivered will soon deliver you"

I hope you all know that I have such a strong testimony of Christ the Lord. HE is our Savior and he is risen. He came into the world to do the will of the Father and thanks to him we will live again. I love him and am a representative of him. In this Christmas I will represent him and just as he, do the will of the Father.

I love you all and hope you have a Merry Christmas!

Love,
Elder Thorpe