"Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Isaiah 7:14

It is amazing that, as I sit to begin writing this post, it is already Christmas Eve. The mission home is graced with the presence of my mother, my youngest sister, our second daughter Natalie and her family and, our eldest daughter Carissa, whose flight home was unfortunately delayed. (After numerous delays and cancelations over this terrible travel weekend, Carissa whose original travel plans had her home for Christmas, finally arrived home to the delight of her family on Monday morning - having spent Christmas Day traveling.) Having an age span of 86 to 2 years made for a magical Christmas!

Not only was it nice having family in town for Christmas, but also we found Christmas in the mission field to be amazingly fulfilling and fast-paced. This last transfer has been a whirlwind of activity. Here is a bit about some of our busy-ness. 

"And mine angels [shall be] round about you, to bear you up." - (Doctrine & Covenants 84:88) "I'm going down . . . " those were the words I exclaimed as Norm and I crossed the street, Nov 26. We were out with some of our missionaries delivering invitations for a program a Spanish congregation was hosting that evening. It was dark and as we stepped off the curb to cross the street, my right foot could not get traction, despite my best efforts. I immediately sensed there was no way to catch myself or get my footing and it happened so quickly that Norm, who was a step or two ahead, did not have time to react and brace me from my fall. As I fell, I instinctively held out my hands and while that lessened the impact if hit the ground so forcefully that my glasses were knocked off. Two elders who were across the street from us and also happened to hear my exclamation came running to my aid. Of course I was flustered and embarrassed and as I inspected the asphalt I noticed a large rut, that accounted for my inability to get my footing. It was too dark for a thorough inspection but I felt certain my sweater and dress would bear markings of the fall onto the dirty asphalt and also anticipated bruising on my body. The amazing thing is that other than some surface scratches on my palms, there was no mark or tear in my clothing and no bruise on my body. We feel that the angels were there, catching me and bracing my fall that easily could have resulted in broken wrists, concussed head and certainly a bruise. This is a simple depiction of how sustained we have felt as we go about our work here in San Diego. His angels are truly bearing us up. 

O Come, O Come Immanuel 

This is such an amazing time of year - a time of outward focus and good feeling - a time to reflect on the the greatest Gift ever given to us, even God's Only Begotten Son. We've always enjoyed Christmas time but we feel it doubly so this year. There is something about being dedicated full time to His service that makes us feel closer and more thankful. As a way to help keep our focus on Jesus, each day in December, we have shared with each missionary a different name of Jesus Christ with a short explanation. It has been wonderful to ponder His names: I am that I am, Lord of Lords, Wonderful Counselor, Savior and Redeemer. All descriptive of the various roles He plays. Here is one of our favorites:

December 15, 2022

Bread of Life – From the beginning of human history, people have taken the grain of the field, ground it to flour and made bread as a major source of sustenance. (Genesis 3:17-19) So much so that it became known as the staff (or support) of life. (Ezekiel 4:16) Interestingly, a small town in the Judean hills was called the “house of bread” or in Hebrew, Bethlehem. How fitting that Jesus, the Bread of life, was born in Bethlehem, the house of bread, and so it is that from that small town came the Bread that feeds the whole world. Manna fed and gave them life for a day but the Bread Jesus offers feeds us and gives life for ever. (John 6:28-35, 47-51) May we proclaim as did the throngs at the seaside and in the synagogue at Capernaum, “Lord, evermore give us this bread” that we may “never hunger”? (John 6:34-35) Let us eat of this bread literally at the sacrament table (John 6:52-57) and figuratively by following Jesus and applying the doctrine of Christ on a daily basis. 


We attached to a goodie bag for each missionary a small ornament on which one of Jesus' names was engraved. It just so happened that a "Bread of Life" ornament was attached to the bag of a missionary who has celiac disease and avoids bread. We pondered the significance of the fact that while she avoids bread in her diet, Christ is the bread of which she can freely partake. (If you'd like the list of all 25 names, let us know and we will send it along.)

Noel = Know Well - We were pleased to have a visit from Brad Wilcox, second counselor in the Young Men General Presidency earlier in December. In 5 different meetings, he was kind enough to speak to youth, young single adults, the general public and our missionaries. In one of these meetings Brad shared his thought about the french Christmas greeting of "Noel". Brad thinks of this as a reminder that we should Know God well. This is the invitation our missionaries make throughout the year and it is especially wonderful to have so many focused on knowing Christ well during this season. 

Mini-Concert SeriesWe have hosted a mini-concert series at the Mormon Battalion Historic Site in Old Town that has been very gratifying. We caroled in old town inviting people to join us and had many people come for beautiful music that testified of Jesus Christ. (Click link to see O Come O Come Emmanuel performed by CSDM missionaries). One couple that attended recently was in San Diego to tend to the affairs of a brother who had recently passed away. While seeking for a place to get dinner someone recommended they come to the concert. As they left they thanked us for providing them just what they needed to lift their spirits at this difficult time. Christ can do that for us! Below is a little clip of a rendition of Angels We have Heard on High - including a verse in tagalog from our final concert. 

We continue to see the Lord's hand in this work. Recently a couple of our elders reached out to a self-referral who was so glad to hear from them. They later learned this new friend had been contemplating taking his life but the contact they established gave him new hope and he continues to improve. Another group of missionaries was out caroling and heard a smoke detector going off. As they looped back a few moments later the detector was still sounding. There was no answer when they knocked on the door, and after saying a prayer they decided they needed to act. They called 911 and firefighters were called to the scene. The firemen found food had been left unattended on the range and a fire was about to break out, but thankfully the timely call prevented that devastating occurrence from happening. They know they were in the right place at the right time and saw the Lord's hand in this happy occurrence. 

Today, the day we are finally getting this posted, we celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. We would not be any other place or involved in any other work than our missionary focus here!

We have enjoyed receiving your holiday cards and posting them on a designated wall as we traditionally do. Our blog will have to suffice as our Holiday greeting this year. Know that we love you and are grateful to hear from you and have you in our lives. May you feel the Lord's love throughout the coming year!








Comments

  1. Read your latest--glad that Armenay was kept safe there. Wish you all well--very proud of your lives. Great to see your family together and they are doing so well. Have a wonderful New Year friends!

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