Dear Family,
Sorry that I'm writing a little late. On Monday we were told to work so that we could have Christmas off. Actually this week we have four p-days because Czechs have Christmas the day before until the day after (all together three days) so people wouldn't be out on the town, nothing would be open, and people would not be very likely to want to listen to us if we came tracting. So, that's how that's going.
We're going to Prague tomorrow for a Christmas Mission Conference. I'm excited to see everyone.
It's just a few days before Christmas and I figured, instead of telling some of the stories from our work here, because there really hasn't been anything huge, but that's not to say we haven't been seeing miracles. Instead I want to give you all my Christmas testimony (also because I don't have a lot of time).
I came on the mission because I knew that it was the right thing to do and I had a testimony of the Book of Mormon and of our Savior, Jesus Christ, but sadly, only recently have I really started to realize what that all means for me; why it applies to me and why it's important for me. We've been spending some time reading Alma 7:10-14 and talking about the importance of the birth of Christ, but we know that he was prophesied because of the things that He would do. I've found out that the Lord Jesus Christ laid down His life for me. Every rejection that I get here, every time that someone tells me to go back to America, every time that someone slams a door in my face, every single time that someone tells me that they don't have time, I know that the Lord Jesus Christ felt every single one of them through his infinite atonement. At the root of Christmas lies the love of God. He loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten son so that we could all live and not perish. What a great blessing and gift is that? Isn't that something to rejoice about? I know that there are people here who are waiting for that message. They want, need and are yearning to find this message, whether or not they know it right now and this is the solution. I love Christ and I know that every single hardship is worth it. He loves me. At Christmas, we have the wonderful opportunity to sit and have some time to think about how Christ gave us the ultimate gift: the gift of life through the one that He gave for us. It is wonderful. I want you all as a family to pick a song, preferably a slow one, and sing it together. Thrive in the spirit of song. Know that the composers and writers were inspired in the Spirit of Christ to write the melodies and texts that can touch us to the soul. I love being a representative of Christ, because I get to carry his name on my jacket; that everyone can see that I am devoted to Christ and that I know him. I have found Christ and His gospel. We can all live again, just as He did. He laid down his life, but took it up again! Glory in it. He loved us enough to take up His life so that we could live through His life.
I love you all and wish you all a wonderful Christmas.
Srdečně,
Starší Monk